The Holidays are knockin' on our door!...

{{{THANK YOU SO much in advance for scrolling down to view my Little Paper Shop post...there is a TON of Holiday cheer for ya on my blog today!  ;) }}}

Can you BELIEVE it?  There are only 59 "sleeps" til Christmas???  I sure can't!   Just yesterday my Mom started talking to me about who was going where and when and my head started to spin...this year is going to be particularly interesting because it's the first year that our family is truly scattered everywhere.  I'll keep ya posted on the family madness that ensues...it should make for a good laugh if anything.

For now though, I couldn't WAIT to share with you this sweet SARAH KAY image from Stampavie!  This card was made last month for our October Newsletter.  Are you getting the Stampavie Newsletter, "Stampavie Creations"?  Well, I sure hope so...cuz  it's chock-full of seasonal eye candy and well, just happens to be written by little ol' moi ;)   Not getting it in your inbox?  You can sign up HERE.

This Sarah Kay stamp "Noel Charity" is my absolute favorite of her "SK NOEL" line of Holiday stamps this year.  I must share that when I was little, I had a coat that looked EXACTLY the way I colored it.  The little girl in this image also has hair very similar to the way my Mom would do mine for holidays, and I was ALWAYS the first one to the door at my Aunt's house when we'd get there for Christmas dinner.  So, one "VIRTUAL LEAP" is all it takes and I am RIGHT back there.

I have so many childhood memories that I cherish, and Christmas has always been my favorite time of year, so this card is just super close to my heart and I'm honored to share it with you.  

Hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoy telling the story behind it.   Warm holiday hugs...
~Jessica :)

Plant your Garden...

Hello my friends...Happy Sunday.

I know I don't post often on Sundays but I just couldn't wait to show you this card. I hope this is ok to say, but this might just be my favorite Stampavie card I've ever made. To quote my friend Janna, sometimes the "stars just align" and well...I guess they did when I was making this because I just really love how it turned out. I hope you do too...thanks for looking!
Have you all seen the new Sarah Kay images from Stampavie? I am in LOVE with this new image called "Spring is Back". I had the BEST time coloring this image and pairing it with some of my favorite Wisteria paper from Basic Grey. I also had time to enter the Friday sketchers challenge using this sketch so I was happy to be able to play in their challenge for the first time.

I thought this quote from Paper Makeup stamps just couldn't be more perfect for this image and is a true reminder of how we are all in control of our own happiness and the way that we see the world. I know I, for one, try to see it as "floral" and colorful as possible! This card truly evoked some really good feelings in me about all I have in my little "Garden" of life... and for that I am so, so thankful.

I hope you enjoy this card and post and I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend!

Hugs,
Jess ;)

Some Sweet SK Bling...and a Twinkling (literally!) Challenge...

...if it's got bling, chances are I LIKE it!

This week Madelynn kept things short and sweet with a simple yet fun challenge: BLING IT!

You can create whatever you want as long as RHINESTONES are used somewhere on your creation! Fabulous!

I used the adorable Sarah Kay image (from Stampavie) called Picnic Time and I just adore it!
Sooo, you guys want to play along this week? Flash us some bling and have FUN with this FAB challenge! Be sure to use keyword MTTSC28 if you upload to SCS, but leave us a comment here and let us know you played!

Be sure to stop by the Twinkle Team's blogs today too-just a click away on my sidebar!

Happy Twinkle Day everyone!

A little TLC...

Hey everyone!

I can't believe it's Thursday already....yikes! We have a super busy weekend coming up with some school activities, Pom registration (already! for next season!), and all kinds of stuff...although I got some MAJOR cleaning/organizing under my belt. Oh, no, NOT for my house! My stamp area, sillies! LOL! It's shaping up to be more functional and less mess, so I am happy about that.

I have a card for you today featuring this SUPER SWEET "My Sweet Lili" image from Stampavie by the amazing Sarah Kay. Isn't this stamp just absolutely darling? It reminds me of my girls and their favorite teddies.

Actually, it reminds me a lot of how I felt as a child with some of my stuffed animals too. I was going through an old box that my Mom gave me about a year or two ago from up in their attic with some albums, my flute from high school, etc. and in it was my CareBear. The first one I ever got (ha ha yes, I was a child of the 80's LOL!). I am now in my 30s and put that bear on my bed when I make it in the morning. Isn't that silly? To me, it just symbolizes a part of my childhood that I will always want to hang on to. Being sick this week and having little ones getting over this awful cold/flu also makes me think of this, because my Dad would always bring me a little something home from work when I wasn't feeling well. The Carebear was one of those things. One time it was "Magic Sand"...do you remember that? OMG SOOOO 80's! It's the little things, like being taken care of when we're sick, and our favorite childhood toys, that come flooding back to me simply from looking at this image. That is really something, isn't it?

Be sure to check out the Stampavie website for a complete list of stores all over the world where you can purchase these adorable and beautifully detailed stamps. Have a wonderful day!

Hugs,

Jessica :)

Snowy Sunday...

Hello everyone!

I woke up this morning to about 7" of snow on the ground from the storm yesterday. It's so deceiving..it's sunny out, actually, but freezing and yep...lots of white stuff. So, needless to say, we'll be staying in today!

One of our favorite activities for days such as these...well, for everyday really, is to stay in and do arts and crafts. The kiddos have their own little stash of goodies that they love to stamp and create just as much as I do, I think! Mostly, we all just LOVE to color. Ever since I got my Copics several months back, I've reignited an old love affair with coloring. As a child, I loved to color, and so did my Mom, and we used to sit at the kitchen table together and I remember thinking how stunningly perfect her coloring was compared to mine. These days, my Mom is my biggest fan, reads my blog every day and loves my work, and that to me, is the greatest compliment.

Coloring in this "Best Friends Forever " image by Sarah Kay was no exception to feeling that love of coloring. Stampavie's line of these adorable, child-like images captured my heart from the minute I saw them. This particular image reminds me of a doll that I had growing up, also a favorite doll of my Mom's. So this card in particular just really sparked some memories of my Mom and I and I am giving it to her for that reason.

Now, speaking of coloring, I've been really trying to get into shading/darkening techiniques more lately, and I gotta tell you...the right paper makes ALL the difference. For a while, I was using some no-name white CS that I got a whole ream of for super cheap and I have to tell you, someone opened my eyes to what it looks/feels like to have the right paper and WOW...it was like putting GLASSES on for the first time. I can't even tell you what a difference it made.

Of course, I was peeved LOL, because of the HUGE difference in price, too...but you know, I have to say that nine times out of ten you do get what you pay for, especially in this industry.

I was introduced to Neenah Solar White, 80 lb. CS by Simone at Craft Fancy, an awesome LSS that I JUST discovered near me and she has some awesome stuff! And when it comes to Copics and coloring, she definitely knows her stuff! Just ONE use of this new paper and I was amazed by how much better it picks up, blends, and shades the ink. Just a little tip I thought I'd share with you all today. I'd love to hear what you guys think of the White CS you use, so feel free to drop me a line, and I am planning on doing a comparison article here on my blog soon.

You can find today's card I made over on the Stampavie DT blog, too. Have you guys been out to visit there yet? There is so much inspiration and a constant array of absolutely beautiful work by my fellow Stampavie DT. They are an amazing bunch!

Want this stamp? Be sure to check out places like All that Scraps, and 7KidsCollegeFund here in the states where you can order them and have them be on their way to you to create some adorable things with them! Last but not least, be sure to check out the Stampavie website and our updated "about us" page, where you can read not only about the owners and DT, but the wonderfully talented stamp artists we work with, like Sarah Kay!

Have a great rest of your weekend, everyone!

Hugs!

It means "Stamp for Life"...

Have you ever had to keep a secret for JUST about as long as you can stand it? ha ha ha....

I have had to do it a few times and I can tell you that I have been BURSTING at the seams these last few weeks to tell you guys that I have been invited to be a Full DT Member of STAMPAVIE! (*squeeeeeeeaaaaal!*)

I'm sure it comes as no surprise that after I fell in LOVE with the Rachelle Anne Miller and Sarah Kay lines (you guys have heard me say that before I THINK! lol!) that I began doing some challenges and it all kind of spun from there! I was honored enough to hav accepted a guest spot that we had in the works, but then a few weeks ago, I got an email from Heidi asking to be a Full time DT Member and I JUST about fell off my chair and/or passed out!

However, when I came to (lol), I made this card using the adorable "Spring Blossoms" image by Sarah Kay. I just love her little jeans and ruffly top!

I am BEYOND excited and I am so happy to have gotten started. I have a few cards for you to showcase just a FEW of the wonderful stamps they have to offer. I want to thank Heidi and Stuart for this opportunity and I cannot WAIT to bring you guys lots of fun samples and ideas.

I made this card when I participated in my very first challenge using this darling Rachelle Anne Miller stamp that I actually got from my sweet friend Jodi in a RAK! Since then, I just couldn't put her down and I am beyond excited to be working with not only her line, but the rest of the awesome lines that Stampavie has to offer! I just had to include her in this post because it all started with this cute little Lily :)

I would love for you all to visit the rest of the AMAZINGLY talented DT that I have the privilege to be working along side with this year. They are:

Christa Knegt
Claudia Rosa
Diane Zechman
Jay Jay
Lauren Meader
Lenaik Duluc
Michelle Oatman

Can you say UBER-talented??? What an absolute honor to be working with this great company and these creative talents. Stampavie is now offering Rachelle Anne Miller, Lelo Design, Sarah Kay, and their latest artist, Leere Aldrich. Leere brings a fresh and fun approach to stamping with her artwork and I'm having a blast getting to know this line a bit better! Here is a card I made using the Coffee Girls stamp.

You will be seeing a lot more from me with these amazing stamps. I love them!

Stampavie also has a Design Team blog that you can visit for lots of fun and fresh ideas from the DT and also news updates and more. We also have a PaperCraft Planet page where you can chat it up with us and play along with some fun challenges every now and then, too!

There are lots of great companies that sell the Stampavie (a wholesaler/manufacturer of the stamps) line near you. You can find the nearest retailer to you HERE.

I think that about does it for now, other than the fact that I can't wait to bring you guys more! There is much fun to be had and I'm so glad you are all along with me for the ride!

Big hugs and thanks for reading!

Jessica :)