Hip-Hippo-Ray: A Giveaway!

We are winding down to the last few days of There She Goes month long Birthday celebration. Along with fun challenges (see the TSG blog for details), tons of prizes, a Birthday sale, the TSG Trendsetters have been giving away mini sets on their blogs throughout the month of September. Guess what? Today is my special giveaway day!
I have a fun Birthday card that I made using the fun, fun, fun Zoo-Pendous set. My nephew, Denim, is turning two in a few weeks and I figured that since this set is so versatile, it would be perfect for a little boys bday card:)

 I stamped these two little hippos (2 for my little man's day;) onto Xpress blending card....man, that stuff is smoooooth! Coloured them with copics, adding spots to the big one using my colourless blender and added waves (TCP's wave Cutup die) in various colours of blue CS's.

I used a fun paper pad, Echo Park's 'Splash'. Some coordinating buttons tied with bits of bakers twine, and some silver brads add detail.

The sentiment was stamped on TCP's banner from the Easy Rosette cutup die.

The big number 2 was cut using a PTI die and popped up on dimensionals.

For the inside, I used a computer generated sentiment, adding some colour to help the number stand out!

Okay friends! Want to win a TSG mini set? All you have to do is comment on this post and you'll be entered in my random draw! Easy peasey!

Sketch- SSD#94

{YNS#52} Abracadabra!

Hi there! Today I have a fun little card to show you using a brand spankin new YNS stamp 'Poof'. Kerri has challenged us with a sketch (I love me a good sketch;) And here is what I came up with:

Pretty basic stuff- not too much 'outside the box' thinking going on over here;)

I paper-pieced my little wizards dress and hatband, adding spica glitter pen to the shapes on the gown and hat. I used my new spiderweb die from TSG, added some rhinestones, and some tinsel ribbon. The black panel behind the image was embossed with a swirly cuttlebug embossing folder and inked with memento tuxedo black to make the pattern more dramatic. The dp is an old SU pack.

 
And here is the sketch if you'd like to play along! You could win yourself some free rubber just by playing with us! Check out the YNS blog for details.

{TCPTUES178} Best Witches

Hey everyone...time for another TCP Tuesday! Today I am the hostess and I have a fun colour combo for you all! I had Halloween in mind with this one, but this pallette can definately be used for any card and occasion, from spooky to sweet! Or sppoky-sweet in my case;)

Since I didn't get the chance to play along last week with Julie's seam binding rosette technique challenge #177 (and I haven't missed a challenge in a LONG time), I just had to sneak a rosette on this one;)
This MME paper fit the colours perfectly...Not a Halloween-themed paper at all, but this just goes to show you that you don't have to limit yourself to specific holiday dp to make it work:) Stretch out your dollar a little, why don't ya?!

I used the sweet little Witchy, coloured her up with copics and paper-pieced her dress. Her arms and the kitty are popped up on tiny pop-dots for that dimensional effect. I added freckles with a brown prismacolor pencil. I added some embossing to the main purple panel, as well as the circle nestie behind her using the SU spiderweb folder, black stitching, black and purple rhinestones and black stitching. The sentiment flag was using the banner from the Easy Rosette Cutup die. My ribbon rosette was made with the lucious TCP Seam Binding in Dove.
I popped two crystal stick pins into the rosette.

Want to play along for your chance to win weekly catcash, or better yet the title of Swanky Stamper? Just link up your project to Alma's blog or SCS using the keyword TCPTUES178!

TSG Release Party Tonight!

Join the fun at the TSG Forum here.

Sets will be available for purchase here at the TSG Store.

See you then:)

Jenny

{YNS} Holiday Lights Release Hop

Hi there! Your Next Stamp has some very exciting news that we are so happy to share with you....YNS is branching out into the wonderful world of dies!

Today we are showing you a really cute new set, Holiday Lights, as well as the matching die!

A bit about this great little die:
YNS Dies are made in the USA of quality steel and are designed to work in all major die cutting machines. These dies cut through all sorts of different materials - paper, acetate, cork, felt and much more!
Karen also has directions posted on the YNS blog on how to use this die.

And here is a complete list of all the participants in today's hop:

Karen http://yournextstamp.blogspot.com

Amy http://inkaboutme.blogspot.com

Carole http://motherslittlehelper.typepad.com

Dana http://gotjoycreations.blogspot.com

Kerri http://cardsbykerri.blogspot.com

Maureen http://mycasestudies.blogspot.com

Peggy http://cardcrazy.wordpress.com

Here is my card, using the new die and the stamp set Holiday Lights. This card took hardly any time to make, but with the addition of such an intricate looking string of lights, it really packs a punch! People will think that you slaved over their card with tiny little scissors for hours, and all it took was seconds going through your die cutting machine to achieve these amazing results!

Here is a closer look at the string of lights....don't mind the colouring! I was using a peice of scrap and it obviously wasn't my good copic paper! lol! The colours are kind of just sitting on the paper and didn't even seep through to the other side! Strange! I added a little spica clear glitter pen to the silver parts on both the light string and the sentiment lights.

 
And here is a side view. I added 1/2 dimensionals to each light to give them more 'pop'.

Okay folks, that's it for me! Hope you enjoyed my fun (and easy) Christmas card, featuring the new YNS stamp/ die set!
But wait.....no good hop would be compete without a prize! All you have to do is comment on all of the hop posts today and one lucky person will win this stamp set and die! Whoot Whoot! So get hopping and don't forget to leave some lovely comments on the way:)

Sketch- MFTWSC

{TSG September Release} Day Three

Today the TSG Trendsetters are previewing a gorgeous new set by Whimsie Doodles called World's Best, and the coordinating World's Best Die.

 

This set is perfect for fun banners and badges, and also large flowers, complete with stems and leaves! So, so fun!! And also lots of options for any card reciever on your list, from Grandpa and Grandma (with the alternative Nana and Papa- which I LOVE, as my boys call their Grandpa 'Papa' and I find it so hard to get stamps using Papa) to son/daughter and alot in between! Very, very versatile!

I decided to make my mom a birthday card from the kids. Since she is the world's best Grandma, this is the perfect set for her:) Okay- my card is a little on the 'different' side. I really don't know what happened when I was making this, because I intended for a soft, floral look......and this is what I ended up with:

I was just going to stick with the pink gingham paper, and then all this other paper screamed at me, so the card morphed into a retro style. I used one of the flowers (and cut it with the matching die), as well as the pink circle, banner flags (cut with the matching die) and a punched face from the patterned paper, to make the ribbon. And then paired the 'Worlds Best' sentiment with 'Grandma'.

Here is a side angle so you can see all the dimension...I think I must have used a full sheet of dimensionals on just this one card!! And NO COLOURING- I think my cold medicine is making me both colour blind and crazy! hehe

Some rhinestones were added under the sentiment and in the corners to bling it up a bit....and have you ever sponged with hot pink ink? I have to say, I think this is my first time doing that;) lol

I covered the retro housewife circle punch with crystal effects to make it look more like an embellishment.

And here are my boys signed names, except the baby- I signed his;)  I thought that I was a pretty good mom for letting them write in a card I just spent the better part of the afternoon making and I think they did not too bad for Grade 2 and Kindergarten!
I stamped the 'Grandma' from this set on a patterned paper flag diecut, and the 'Happy' and 'Birthday' is from the set My Little Friend.

Okay- It's not the World's Best....but it just might be the worlds brightest and busiest card!

If you would like to win 'World's Best' and the coordinating die, all you have to do is comment! It's that easy! Here are the deets:

One random commenter from a per-determined Trendsetter's Blog Hop Challenge post will be selected to win. You’ll have till Saturday's Release Party to comment on as many Trendsetter Blog Hop Challenge posts as possible. The more Trendsetter posts you comment on during each Blog Hop Challenge, the greater your chances of winning! Be sure to check the TSG Blog Saturday evening after 9:00pm EST to see if you're a winner!

{TSG September Release} Day Two

Hey there! So what did you all think of the BOL Holiday Additions and Follow Your Bliss sets previewed yesterday? Fabulous, right? Remember that if you want to win BOTH of those sets, comment on the Trendsetters posts...You have until Sunday night to comment on all posts. Winners from all preview days will be announced at the release party!
Today the TSG Trendsetters are showing you a spooktacular new set by designer Torico called Bugs & Hisses, as well as a wicked spiderweb die to go with it! Yippee!! Dies are my FAVE! But alas, I live in the Great North, and my dies are being really stubborn when it comes to hopping on over the border, so I will have to ooohhh and ahhhh over others creations;) lol

So here is my card! I am always amazed when I can put together a card NOT using a sketch, but Halloween is my favorite holiday, so I felt really inspired:) I know, it's nothing special as far as layouts go, but I am patting myself on the back nonetheless!

I used a bit of Crystal Effects to add some shine to the bats and gravestones, as well as some bling! Not sure if most people would be into rhinestones on their headstones, but I think it's a nice touch;) I airbrushed the sky and ground with my copics, using a cloud die to give some shadows. I also airbrushed the sentiment panel, using two different purples as well as a light green in the centre. Lots of black machine stitching, some rhinestones added here and there, and a bubbly tinsel-ribbon bow finish it off:) I also used a Martha Stewart spiderweb border punch along the edge of the green and black cat dp (which btw, is a yummy SU! Halloween paper pack). There was honestly not a tidbit of purple on the dp that I used, but I am a nut for purple on Halloween, so I used it anyway, and I think it looks fang-tastic!

The pretty, glitzy trimmed ribbon.....

And a closer look at the mixed fonts on this sentiment (I LOVE the scratchy looking one;)...

And another view of the cardfront from straight-on:

One random commenter from a per-determined Trendsetter's Blog Hop Challenge post will be selected to win. You’ll have till Saturday's Release Party to comment on as many Trendsetter Blog Hop Challenge posts as possible. The more Trendsetter posts you comment on during each Blog Hop Challenge, the greater your chances of winning! Be sure to check the TSG Blog Saturday evening after 9:00pm EST to see if you're a winner!

Winner, Winner!

Thanks for all your comments on my TCPTUES176/ Die Giveaway post! You all sure know how to make a girl feel good:) Unfortunately I only have one die to giveaway, otherwise you'd all be getting one! lol
Random Generator chose #17, Zehra, who said:
"What a lovely card, love the grass and clouds. TFS"

Congrats Zehra! Well I'm glad you like the grass, because you have just won yourself the wonderful Grass Cutup die from The Cats Pajamas! If you could email me (jpeterson@platinum.ca) with your full name and shipping info, we can get your die sent out to you:)
Thanks again everyone for all your comments! And if you commented on some other catpackers blogs, then check with them to see if you are a winner!

{TSG September Release} Day One

Hi there!!! Welcome to Day One of There She Goes September release previews! Today the Trendsetters will be previewing two new sets, Buckets of Love Holiday Additions (a great companion set to the super versatile set, Buckets of Love) by Torico, as well as Follow Your Bliss by Di Caruba.

Today I'll be showing you a cute fall card, showcasing a fun little autumn bucket addition and sentiment, paired with the original BOL wooden bucket.

Wanna win this set?? I know you do...so, we'll make it easy! One lucky commenter, from a pre-determined trendsetter's blog, will win a set being shown today.

You’ll have till Saturday's Release Party to comment on as many Trendsetter Blog Hop Challenge posts as possible. The more Trendsetter posts you comment on during each Blog Hop Challenge, the greater your chances of winning! Be sure to check the TSG Blog Saturday evening after 9:00pm EST to see if you're a winner!

The Bachelorette: Gnome Edition

Hey there! Today I have a card to show you using stamps from There She Goes, one of my new DT gigs:) Now, this is THE set that made me first notice TSG ages ago. It's fittingly called 'My Little Friend' and it is a must have set!
I don't know about you, but sometimes 'fake' online shopping fills a void for me (I know, unhealthy and something that I probably need therapy for;), but it is a kind of therapy I guess;) I fill up my online cart to my hearts content, and then close the laptop and walk away....it's weird. What can I say. I feel like I've shopped. Anywho- this set was in my pretend cart about a hundred times...and boy, now that I have the real deal and not the fantasy version, I wish I would have hit the 'confirm order' button a whole lot sooner!!! IT IS CAA-UTE!!!! OMG!! I was snickering to myself the whole time I was making the card..there are so many cute little puns...you have to check it out for yourself! And have you seen the movie Gnomeo & Juliet? I look at these little stamps and think of their individual personalities if they were to come alive;) lol
Okay, onto the card!

Doesn't the girl gnome look like she is trying to decide which guy to go with? And the boys look so nervous, trying to woo her with their little flowers;) I cut squares with my spellbinders, and while each square was still in the metal die, I stamped the image down and then traced around the inside of the die with a copic multiliner.

Olive ribbon, a blue button and brown hemp twine bow tie all of the colours in.

For the inside, I kept the design elements the same, using the MFT open scallop dienamic again and adding a heart (TCP Sunflower Rosette cutup) under the sentiment to add to the romance!

Want to win some prizes from TSG? This month we are celebrating ALL MONTH LONG! Is that a Birthday party or what? Right now there is a fun little contest going on every day! Go check it out at the TSG Blog, and you may just come out a winner:)

Supplies- Stamps- There She Goes; ink- memento; cs- SU, Xpress; dp- October Afternoon, Jillibean Soup; Dies- MFT, TCP. spellbinders; ribbon- SU; button- SU; twine- walmart; copics; multiliner; bigshot
Sketch- Taylored Expressions

**Giveaway still going on from my last post. Scroll down for more details**

{TCPTUES176} Pumpkin Latte & A Giveaway!

It has been over a year since The Cats Pajamas released their amazing Cutup dies! You may have noticed from 90% of my projects (both TCP and not) that I am completely hooked on these fabulous, high quality dies! Alma's designs are so unique and have a whimsical twist (even in something so common as grass and clouds;) and I think if TCP is known for anything, it's fun and whimsy!
So in honour of Cutups 1 year anniversary, Alma has graciously decided that a celebratory giveaway is in order! You like Cutups? You want some free ones? Do you possess the skills to type? If your answer is YES YES YES!!!!....all you have to do is comment on the Catpackers TCPTUES176 posts (see my sidebar for direct links to their blogs, or check out Alma's blog for links) and you could be randomly selected to win one of the Cutups that we have used on our project! We will select the winners on Monday, September 19th, so you have until then to get in on the fun!

Isn't that a wonderful collage? I love the trees with their autumn leaves, the yummy cider, cinnamon sticks, reds, greens and yellows....all delish! So here is my card, trying to incorporate all of the things that inspired me from Jen's pic, using Like You A Latte....

I cut clouds using the Cloud Border Cutup die from cork and cream cs, which I stamped the sentiment on. I only stamped the first half of the sentiment on the front, and stamped the second half on the inside. I used a little green SU library clip to clip up the clouds.

And I gave the little guy some grass to stand in, again using cork and cs, with the Grass Cutup die.

Baby braddies were attached to his pockets. His coat was paper-peiced and the rest of him was coloured with copic markers. Some Beige Linen Thread with brown hemp twine around a neat little button add a touch of pizazz.

I used the Cloud Border Cutup again on the inside and the Pinking and Inside Pinking Cutups.

If you would like the opportunity to win the Grass Cutup die that I've used on this card, just leave me a comment and you'll be entered in my draw:) Good Luck!

Supplies: Stamp- TCP; Ink- memento, distress ink; CS- SU; DP- Bella Blvd; Dies- TCP; Linen thread- TCP; Hemp twine- unknown; button- unknown; Cork- MFT; Braddies- MFT; Clip- SU; sponge, dimensionals, copics

Sketch- SSSC

{YNS #51} 'Too Cute To Spook' Blog Hop & Release

Hi there and welcome to Your Next Stamp September release/blog hop and my YNS DT debut!! I am so excited to be joining this awesome little Canadian company..a big thanks to Karen for asking me to join her team:) I hope you enjoy what I have created for the release! I sure had fun making these cards;)
We are also combining the hop with YNS Challenge #51- Paper Piecing, so get your paper snips and scraps out and join in on the fun!

You should have arrived here from Dana's blog, but if you just stumbled over to my blog and want to start at the 'top of the hop', then go to Kerri's blog and you won't miss any stampy-goodness;) Trust me, this is a must-see release, filled with fun fall characters, cute critters and sweet spookables that will have you itching to make Autumn cards for everyone in your life! !
Today I have two cards to show you, the first featuring Handmade With Love. I am combining YNSC51 on this card...so keep your eyes peeled for some paper-pieced elements!

Isn't she cute? I think so:) I spy with my little eye: a paper-pieced sweater, hair bow (also popped up on a tiny pop-up dot) and table cloth! I stamped all the apple goodies, plus hands and fork) again on cs, colouring with copics and adding spica glitter pen, and adhered them to the 'top' of the tablecloth. The trick with paper-piecing is to make sure that your layers are as realistic as possible, so that things don't appear 'sunken'. For example, the little girls hands would naturally be in front of her shirt, so after I stamp and adhere the patterned paper sweater, I would stamp another set of cs hands and glue them to the top of the sweater. So the hands don't look sunken into the sweater..Get it? Same with the tablecloth. I didn't cut around the food with my patterned paper, but rather added the food to the top of the layer of patterned paper. Doing this makes sure that things appear to be in the right order. And it really does make a difference. If you have never done this technique and still don't quite understand, there are some awesome videos out there. This one by Joanne B is great!

Here is a close-up! I used some Verve dies for the paper/cork/button flower embellie, and the sentiment tags are cut from spellbinders. I stamped the 'Thankful' sentiment (one of three that comes with the set, as well as a few accessory stamps) in black ink.

For the inside, I left it pretty simple, just using scraps from the front. Plenty of room for a nice, personal message:)

For my second card, I used my personal favorite from this release, 'Apple Cutie'.

And here is a close-up of the apple embellie that I made! I used some small circle spellbinder dies, and cut them from a folded piece of red cs and patterned paper, trimmed the folded corners to give a more apple-y shape, inked the edges and embossed with cuttlebug folder. I did this because one side of the circle was nice and smooth, while the other was all rough looking from my well loved cutting plate. The embossing evened them out, and as a plus added some nice detail! The leaves and seeds were cut using an MFT dienamic and the stem was free cut. The fancy scalloped edge was cut using TCP's Big Scallop cutup, and the grass was cut using a TCP cutup as well. Her boots, eyes and the apples were coated with Crystal Effects glaze.

Awe- isn't she just the sweetest!? I thought she looked like a auburn-haired little muffin (E17,19,27), and in true red-headed style, a few prismacolour freckles were added (I find copic are hard to control and end up running a bitn into the light skin tones, so thats why I use pencil for my freckles).

Paying homage to me and my hubby's eternal fight over which is better: red apples (me) or green (him)...I decided to have both in my basket. Of course, we all know that red is best, but I am trying to be a peaceful soul lately and not rock any boats...so a mixed basket of apples it was!

 
The senitment that comes with this set was stamped on the inside, which again used up some of my cardfront scraps! And true to Jenny form, I smudged the inside;) I think it's my trademark! I am just gonna go with it! lol

Okay, no great blog hop is complete without a prize, so here it is! A selection of stamps from the new release!! Isn't Karen just the best?! So generous she is:) Just link up to any of the hoppers blogs (just once is all you need to do;)

 And guess what else? There is a sweet deal going on over at YNS! For every $30 you spend, Karen will throw in a free, surprise stamp!! Spend $60, get two..Spend $90, get three....Yippee! And with this being the cutest release EVER, you shouldn't have a problem earning yourself some free rubbah!

Now it's time to hop on over to one of our talented YNS guests,  Jen del Muro's blog!