Hang in There

We are off to march in our town's Memorial Day parade this morning. Both our daughter and son will be marching with their scout groups; my husband and I will be marching along with the Cub Scouts to help with crowd boy control and to lug along the mini American flags that the boys will be passing out to spectators along the parade route. Luckily our burdens will lighten the further along the route we get! This parade is always such a fun time, and the weather appears to be cooperating. Yay!

I wanted to pop in quickly to share the card I made for Paper Crafts' Gallery Idol competition, season six. The theme for the open auditions round is encouragement, and I thought and thought about it and finally came up with this card:

I figured that a frilly pink polka-dotted brassiere shaped card with an accompanying "hang in there" sentiment would be the perfect encouragement card for a girlfriend who's going through rough times! My daughter (13) thought this was the cutest ever. My 9YO son's first reaction was "I think that's kind of . . . um, inappropriate." When my daughter explained that "she wouldn't send it to a man, silly," his attitude softened a bit. But his response pointed out that what I thought hilarious and fun might not be received similarly by everyone else. So I do apologize to any and all who share my son's views!!

A few program notes: I designed this bra-shaped card myself. It's hinged at the top of the straps so there's a bra-shaped inside as well for a handwritten note. The card base is solid pink cardstock (The Paper Company), and the polka-dotted bra cups were cut from patterned paper in the Handmade collection by Lily Bee Design.  I glued some lace trim from my sewing stash to the back of the patterned paper, and then stitched the whole thing down to the card base. Remember when lingerie always had a little pink rose stitched to the center? That was my inspiration for the placement of this sweet little satin ribbon rose (a gift from my friend Carol--thanks, sweetie!). I stamped the "hang in there" sentiment (a retired stamp from The Angel Company, which is sadly no longer in business) on a strung marking tag from Avery to tie around one of the straps. A little bling on the tag was all I needed to finish this up. I love how it turned out, and really, it was pretty easy to make. A win, win!

I hope you had a fabulous weekend, and if you are in the U.S., that you enjoy the rest of your Memorial Day holiday! Thanks for dropping in for a visit.

Emily

What's Shakin' for FWF

Hello and Happy Friday!

I am super excited today to be posting a pair of projects for Unity's Friends With Flair blog hop. (Check the Unity Stamp Co. website HERE for a full list of this week's participants.)  I loooooooooove me some Unity and always enjoy linking up with FWF. But not only has life been a whirlwind recently, I've started working on a new freelance project, so my stamping time has been at a premium, to say the least. Almost all of what little time I've had has been devoted to design team assignments. That may explain why my last FWF post was March 30, nearly--eek!--two months ago!!

I'm here to remedy that today, though. But I'll forewarn you: I'm a bit rusty, so don't expect anything earth-shattering! I'll start with a clean and simple and definitely mailable card I sent recently to a dear friend, just to say hi:

Featuring the Unity Itty Bitty stamp, What's Shakin'

And another CAS creation, just in time for graduation season:

This quote is all about following your heart. What better image to use than this heart-bedecked tree from Unity's Lovely Bits & Baubles kit?

For this card, I decided to go in a direction completely different from the standard mortarboards and diplomas. I typeset this inspiring quote from Apple co-founder Steve Jobs (part of the address he delivered to grads at Stanford University's commencement exercises in 2005) with enough room to stamp a tree that ties in perfectly with the quote. The number tiles turn this into a keepsake!

Time to get to work for the day! But I'm looking forward to the long weekend {grin}. We'll be hanging out here at home. It's time to tackle some major repairs on our little pop-up camper! Memorial Day weekend means that summer is just around the corner, and we can't wait to get on the road again. :D

If you are in the U.S., be sure to tell me what your plans are for the holiday weekend! Be safe!

Thanks for dropping by,

Emily

Super-Star Dad

It's time for another DeNami Product Spotlight! This week we are focusing on the new cling-style Happy Father's Day sentiment to celebrate super-star dads:

 

And because all of the dads I know couldn't get along without their computers, I just had to feature the new cling-style Computer Chickie, too. Isn't he the sweetest? I colored him with my Prismacolor pencils using the blending technique I showed in my last tutorial for DeNami. Because my design is so star-studded, I also absolutely had to use the DeNami Teeny Star Background for both my Desert Orange panel and Leaf Green card base. A few star punches and star rhinestones were all I needed to round out my design!

 Because that awesome Happy Father's Day sentiment (isn't the font fantastic?) is our Product Spotlight this week, it's on sale for 10% off. Be sure to drop by the DeNami Design store in the next week so you don't lose out on the savings--just add it to your cart to get the discounted price. No coupon code required!

Don't forget to drop by the DeNami Design blog today to see how the rest of the DeNami design team used this fabulous Father's Day stamp! I know you'll get some awesome masculine-card inspiration. :)

Thanks for stopping by to check out my little slice of bliss for today!

Emily

DeNami Pretty Pastels Blog Hop

Welcome to the DeNami Design Pretty Pastels Blog Hop! Today the DeNami Design Team and customers alike are showing off creations made with DeNami stamps that incorporate pretty pastel colors.

 
Hopefully, you've arrived here by way of Stacy M.'s blog, Sweethearts & Sweet Tarts. If so, you are on the right track! If not, you'll want to head over to the DeNami blog to start the blog hop at the beginning. (And remember, if you get lost along the way, you can always head over to the DeNami blog to get pointed in the right direction.)

Don't forget, there are delightful DeNami prizes to be won! Two lucky duckies will be drawn at random from among the comments left along the blog hop to win a $20 DeNami Design gift certificate! You have until Monday, May 21, 2012, 11:59 pm PST, to leave comments on all the blogs to be eligible for a prize. 

Getting projects ready for DeNami Blog Hops is always a blast, but this one was especially fun because I just love pastels! Here's what I came up with:

I did some tone-on-tone background stamping using the scalloped border stamp from the cling-style DeNami Spring Garden 1 Set to frame some pastel polka-dotted ribbon from my stash. The "thinking of you" sentiment comes from the DeNami Thoughtful Greetings stamp set.  

I made that layered fabric flower myself from pink cotton fabric I had on hand, and hand-trimmed some DeNami celery cardstock into a leaf shape for my sentiment. Perfectly pastel embellishments, don't you agree?

 

Well, I do believe that I am the last stop on today's blog hop. I hope that you've been overwhelmed with DeNami inspiration in all shades of pastels today! Before you leave, be sure to leave a comment to be eligible for the randomly drawn prizes.

Thanks so much for stopping by to check out my pretty pastels creation!
Emily

Garden-Themed Congratulations

Today I'm sharing a garden-themed anniversary card I created for a two-fold purpose. It's not just for any anniversary, but for my sister and her husband's 14th anniversary! Happy Anniversary, Amy and Mike!

So that was purpose #1. Not long ago I was asked if I'd like to make a sample card for an exciting, brand-new card challenge. Of course, I said I'd love to, and that was purpose #2 for this card! That new challenge? It's called the DeNami Addict Challenge and it debuts today. The first challenge is to create a project with a garden theme.

How easy is that? Lots of room for interpretation I'd say, right? It was definitely the perfect theme for creating an elegant card to congratulate my sister and brother-in-law. And I'm betting there are plenty of upcoming occasions that you could make a garden-themed card for, too. I hope you'll try to play along! The requirements are easy--just make something with a garden theme and enter it over at the Confessions of a DeNami Addict blog. That's it! You can use any stamps and products you'd like, too. No restrictions! The prize is a $15 DeNami gift certificate. Isn't that awesome? So if you love the look of DeNami Design stamps, but don't have any yet, this is the perfect opportunity to win some and finally start your collection! Of course, if you are already addicted to DeNami stamps, then this is a wonderful way to continue to feed that addiction!

DeNami Addict Challenges will run monthly, starting on the second Monday each month. This first challenge will end on June 11 at 11:59 p.m. CDT. You can find all the details about this new challenge, and see some more great garden-themed cards contributed by some of the other DeNami DT gals, over on the DeNami Addict blog. I know you'll love playing along!

Thanks for dropping by!

Emily

Card Details:

Stamps: all from DeNami Design: Elegant Floral Vine, Ornamental Vine, Small Congratulations
Paper: all from DeNami Design: Lavender, Celery
Ink: Palette noir black, Versafine onyx black, Versamagic aloe vera
Accessories: Prismacolor pencils, Doodlebug lilac boutique trims, Martha Stewart Cherish PATP set,
Techniques: Gamsol magic

The Twinery/DeNami Design Blog Hop

A hearty "Happy Friday" to you and WELCOME to The Twinery and DeNami Design Blog Hop: showcasing the BEST in twine and rubber stamps! Today the design teams of both of these fabulous companies are sharing projects that show how well DeNami Design and The Twinery products complement one another, and I'm tickled pink to be a part of it all as a DeNami designer.

If you are hopping along (and you should: there's a PRIZE involved!), you should have arrived here from the blog of the talented Monika Wright. If not, you can start the blog hop from the beginning at The Twinery blog.

I know you have lots of stops to make on today's hop, so I'll get right down to business. When DeNami Design first started carrying baker's twine from The Twinery earlier this year, I was so impressed with how well the twine colors coordinate with DeNami cardstock colors. That was my jumping-off point for today's project! To show off that fantastic color coordination, I designed a small petal box that I could decorate elegantly with DeNami stamps and tie up perfectly with The Twinery's baker's twine.

 

Just look at how well DeNami's Magenta cardstock matches The Twinery's Pink Sorbet baker's twine! DeNami's Iridescent Aquamarine cardstock (so shimmery!) is a dead ringer for The Twinery's Caribbean baker's twine, and DeNami's Petal Pink cardstock harmonizes perfectly with The Twinery's Blossom baker's twine.  

I knew I wanted to use a variety of cardstock colors for this collection of petal boxes, so I stamped the oh-so-chic DeNami Elegant Floral Vine in black on each petal to maintain a cohesive look. The beautiful Ornamental Vine stamp was perfect for some subtle background stamping on each tag, and the sentiments--like this "for you"--in the Everyday Greetings stamp set are the ideal size for tags.

These elegant little petal boxes are just the right size (2" square at the base) for filling with a truffle or other sweet treat (like the Ferrero Rocher chocolate I tucked inside mine). And wouldn't they make perfect favors for a wedding, baby shower, bridal shower, or Mother's Day tea? So easy to coordinate with a bride's colors or the color scheme of a new baby's nursery.

  

I had fun making up my own design for these tiny petal boxes, but you don't have to.  I'm happy to share a template for making them. Simply print this petal box pattern (in pdf form) on cardstock and trim for a template you can trace around on any cardstock or patterned paper. Once your petal box has been cut out, simply score where indicated by the dotted lines on the template and punch holes where indicated. To complete, thread with baker's twine, pull to close petals (overlap as shown below), and tie shut. But don't forget to tuck a treat inside first!

That wraps up my project for today, but before you go, I'm sure you'd like to know more about that prize I mentioned earlier! Here's a little peek at what's up for grabs:

And guess what? There's not just one prize to be given away, but TWO! So be sure to leave a comment here before you go, as well as on each participating blog on the hop for your best chance of winning, before 11:59 pm EDT on Saturday, May 12, 2012, to be eligible for the product giveaways. :)

Now it's time to head off to visit the next designer on today's blog hop:

Jamie Cripps

Thanks so much for dropping by!

Emily

Graduation Congratulations

Hey, everybody! It's so hard to believe that we are already {over} a week into MAY, right? And that means that the Congratulation Season is upon us--you know, the time of year for graduations, weddings, and anniversaries. It's the perfect time for focusing on ideas for congratulations cards, and this week's DeNami Product Spotlight is just that: we are spotlighting the beautifully scripted Small Congratulations sentiment, which I've featured on a fun graduation card.

I've also used the mortarboard and tassel from the DeNami cling-style Graduation Set. I used a black gel pen to add a dotted line to show the path taken by a mortarboard thrown into the air by a celebrating new grad! Some clouds digital patterned paper made the perfect backdrop for my happy scene.

Curious as to how the rest of the DT used this lovely sentiment stamp? Be sure to swing by the DeNami blog to see their fabulous creations! And don't forget that you can get this stamp on sale in the DeNami store for the next week.

Thanks so much for dropping by today!

Emily

A DeNami Happy Mother's Day

Good morning and happy Monday! Here's a little something bright and cheery to wake you up and get you going today:

I'm sharing this Mother's Day card that I made with some fabulous DeNami Design products for the brand-new DeNami monthly challenge. This month we are challenging folks to use this cool sketch by sweet and talented DT member Lisa Petrella:

I know, I can be such a literal Lucy when it comes to sketches! Sometimes I can tweak them and make them my own, but this one? Forget about it! But when you're working with a downright cool-looking sketch, I think it's fun just to see it come to life in color exactly the way it is!!

Curious about the DeNami goodies I used in the making of this project? My butterfly focal point (colored with colored pencils and blended with odorless mineral spirits) comes from the Fancy Flutters cling set. I also used the Teeny Heart Background and the Happy Mother's Day cling sentiment. In the DeNami cardstock department, I used some gorgeous Amethyst (have you seen the fabulous texture on this richly colored cardstock? Amazing!), cheerful Magenta, and peaceful Sky Blue.  And I used my go-to Onyx Black Versafine ink for the sentiment. Even that fun baker's twine can be purchased in the DeNami Design store! The magenta, emerald, and purple twines from the Confetti 3-pk, and the sky blue twine comes from the Pastel 3-pk.

This month's DeNami challenge runs through Monday, May 28. All you need to do is use at least one DeNami stamp and incorporate this sketch! And then be sure to link it up over on the DeNami blog. I can't wait to see what you create :) . Please plan to play along!

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily