let's celebrate *Heartfelt Creations Alumni Hop*

Welcome to my post for the Heartfelt Creations Alumni Blog Hop!

Be sure to leave a comment on all the participating blogs. One participant will be chosen to receive a $25 Gift Certificate. Be sure the check the Winner Announcement on Sat, Feb 2. If you win, send an email to Emma Lou and write "winner of the January Alumni Hop" in the subject line.

Hop ends on Friday, Feb 1st at midnight.

I am THRILLED to be joining up with my fellow HC alumni for a monthly blog hop. This event was a great push for me to be making cards and coloring again.

 I followed a sketch by Chupa. LOVE her sketches! The paper is from Vintage Floret by Heartfelt Creations. The stamp is Rejoicing Bluebirds by Heartfelt Creations and it is, very unfortunately, retired. It is the first stamp I fell in love with when I first met the HC booth in 2010. I really hope Emma Lou and Linda bring some of these retired stamps back to life in future collections!

I fussy cut the stamped images and just arranged them on my card to fit the sentiment.

The sentiment is cut from the Vintage Floret paper. I love all the innovative ideas coming from HC to make my life easier! I colored my stamped image with Prismacolor pencils and used a burnishing technique to blend.

I felt the left side of my card needed to have a little more fun 

so I added this clip by Recollections and a little bow.

Thanks for stopping by!

Dina Kowal - http://mamadinis.blogspot.com

Emilia van den Heuvel - http://few-favourite-things.blogspot.nl/

Selma Stevenson -http://selmasstampingcorner.blogspot.com/

Sarah Miller-http://plainandfancypapercrafts.blogspot.com/

Alissa Wells- http://willrunforstamps.blogspot.com/--- YOU ARE HERE

Marsha Sanderlinhttp://stampingdownsouth.blogspot.com

Lisa Allen- http://toddandlisacreations.blogspot.com/

a hiking we will go

I followed this month's sketch by Artful Delight. I had it done in time for the contest, but didn't get to blog it in time. You know, my husband decided to take up roller blading... and he fell... broke a wrist. Yeah, blogging just wasn't on my radar for a few days. Oh, well. I'm glad to share it now!

The papers are from Generation Z by Little Yellow Bicycle. It was great to get out some old stuff! I didn't do anything really special on this page. Added my usual brads, rub ons, journaling, and monsters. I've been keeping my LOs pretty simple these days. The change is nice!

Thanks for stopping by!

our big adventure

I love this LO by Charlotte that was featured on The Urban Scrapbook blog. I found it because I was looking for inspiration using this specific paper: Genuine by Authentique. When looking for inspiration, I tend to start from a variety of places: event, photo, sketch, scraplift, and paper.

The papers on this LO ended up being a combination of Genuine by Authentique and Vintage Blue by Glitz. The stickers and cork embellishments are from Little Yellow Bicycle, Pink Paislee, and Simple Stories. For my banners, I stamped with Script by Inkadinkado on the Authentique paper.

Thanks for stopping by!

Tea Cup with Rose

I LOVE this project by Linda Duke. I decided I needed one for my house! I used the Bella Rose Dies to my flower. I sponged on a combination of pink and red distress inks. I also topped the flower with Wheatfields Glimmer Mist- my favorite! I cut the leaves with my Cricut but I can't remember which cartridge. The crinkled paper filler is from Michael's.

The tea cups were cut from Nested Tea Cups Shapeabilities. I used a Borderline Vintage Lace stamp by Technique Tuesday at the top of the tea cups. I inked all the edges with Vintage Photo Distress Ink. I wanted to add a gold leafing accent like Linda did but my pen doesn't work anymore! Boo! The pretty patterned paper is from Cozy Christmas by The ScrapCake.

This little tea cup is a wonderful addition to my creative space!

Thanks for stopping by!

Serenity

I followed the January Challenge Sketch by Artful Delight. The background paper is from Meadowlark by My Mind's Eye. The tree is a digital stamp from McMahon Five Design. The sentiment is by Raindrop Echo Designs for Whimsy Stamps.

For "Splash of Color," I used a bit of green twine, cardstock, and Old Paper Distress Ink.

CHALLENGES:

January Challenge Sketch by Artful Delight

Black and White with a Splash of Color by Simon Says Stamp

spy computer

I just love this layout by Missy Whiden. I only just noticed that she followed this sketch by Artful Delight. I love their sketches! Their kits are awesome, too.

The background is kraft cardstock by Recollections from Michael's. The patterned papers are a joyful mix of Sassafras Lass and Echo Park. The ringed circles were stamped with orange acrylic paint- the stamp is from Doodles by Claudine Hellmuth. I loved how Missy used handstitching, something I haven't done in a long time so I definitely wanted to try it again. The texture is just awesome! I used a Sassafras Lass journaling tag up in the left. I think it looks a little awkward but just haven't been motivated enough to change it.

My child really does have an art easel. However, he chose to tape his paper to the wall... probably because it's only three feet from his crafting Mommy :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Celebrate *Frantic Stamper*

This post is a special tribute to Frantic Stamper. I love shopping there and was delighted to find gifts under the Christmas tree for me that were purchased from this wonderful online store.

I was so sad to read about the recent fraud that occurred before Christmas. You can read about it here. I can't do much to help at this point but I can certainly spread the love!

I followed a sketch that I found on the Frantic Stamper blog. They really do a great job showcasing practical sketches! I used Lake House paper by Kaisercraft. The butterfly collage stamp is from Botanical Butterflies by Just Rite. I colored the image with Pebbles Chalks and cut with Spellbinders, circles and scalloped circles. I really don't know if I used the large or small Spellbinders. I own both sets and they're mixed up in my storage.

The sentiment is a clear stamp by Studio G. The pearls are from My Mind's Eye and the ribbon is Stampin' Up.

Thanks for stopping by!

personalized center piece

 I saw this beauty by Charlotte on Pinterest and decided I needed something like it for my house!

I found the tray and candles on clearance at Jo-Ann's. I also picked up the alpha beads from the kid crafts section and the twine from the jewelry section.

I found the potpourri at Michael's. The other fun bits are from my scrapbooking stash. The large butterflies are Recollections, a Michael's brand. The flowers are Prima and Petaloo.

The green leaves are from Recollections by Michael's.

Between the potpourri and candles, this piece is heavily scented so it's currently sitting in the living room with the high ceiling. I had it in the office but the smell was too strong and... seriously... my husband worried that no one would ever see it in there :) Ain't he sweet?