For you, Mom

Happy Mother's Day! I made a card earlier this week to mail to my mom--and had to wait until today to post it here to avoid an accidental sneak peek by Mom! Here's what she received:

I'm playing along with the the latest Power Poppy Power & Spark challenge, which is to "cut it out" (fussy cutting your main image), my second entry in this month's challenge. I'm having a ball with my new Power Poppy stamp sets! The floral image and "for you" sentiment are from Power Poppy's Potted Primroses stamp set. That lovely script "Mom" comes from DeNami Design. I love stitching on my cards, so I added a stitched border around a panel of some ancient Basic Grey patterned paper. And loopy baker's twine bows just make me happy, so that explains that ;).

I hope that all the moms out there enjoy their special "queen for a day" day! And if you can, be sure to send your own mom some extra love today.

Until next time,
Emily

Happy Halloween

It has been months since I've been inspired to write a blog post here on My Little Slice of Bliss. Rest assured, all is well here in my little corner of the world--I've just been so busy with work and family that papercrafting and blogging have taken a definite back seat. Autumn has been a whirlwind, and here we are on the last day of October already. Happy Halloween!

My kids are in 6th grade and 10th grade this year. My sixth grader is excited to go trick-or-treating tonight. After masquerading as an Apple iPhone for the past two years, we decided it was time for a new costume for him. I picked up an awesome hand-crocheted beard from Etsy, and we put together a great lumberjack costume for him from items we already had around the house: hiking boots, jeans, one of Dad's old plaid flannel shirts, an ear flap cap, and a non-lethal axe we constructed from cardboard, a paper tube, and aluminum foil. At least he'll be cozy and warm tonight! Sorry, no photos yet!!


Last year my daughter decided that as a high school freshman, she was too old for trick-or-treating. She's opting to stay in again this year to hand out treats to the visiting neighborhood goblins. Because that means she'll miss out on all that yummy loot (and little brother might not be in the mood to share), I put together a little Halloween treat for her, which I'll share once her lil' bro heads out to haunt tonight. The gift bag is a pattern from DeNami Design, and it's the perfect size for two Reese's Pumpkins. Love those!

And speaking of my daughter, she got crafty yesterday and used my DeNami stamps (and my patterned paper and dies . . .) to decorate packets of hot cocoa mix to hand out to our trick-or-treaters tonight. Aren't these adorable? I think she did an awesome job :D.

Well, I hope that you and yours have a fun Halloween. Thanks for dropping by!

Happy Haunting!
Emily

My Embossed Elements Winner for June

Hello and Happy Thursday! I'm announcing my Embossed Elements giveaway winner today. The brand-new Cloudy Sky Embossing Folder goes to lucky #23, which is Nikki C.! Congratulations, Nikki! Please email me (you'll find my email address on my "Complete Profile" page--see the right-hand sidebar under my picture) with your snail mail mailing address so I can get this embossing folder sent out to you ;).

My newest embossing folder from the DeNami Design store is the Butterflies in Corner embossing folder. My 15YO daughter ooooo-ed and aaaaaah-ed over this one, so I just had to use it to make her a card. It's a birthday card; well, actually it is her half-birthday card. My sweet thing was born on Christmas Eve. The first few years we celebrated her big day on the actual day, but it was so hard to make it special with Christmas just right around the corner. So starting around her sixth birthday, we asked her if she'd like to celebrate with cake and presents on her half-birthday, so she could spread out the celebrating more. And we've been doing it ever since! So this is the card she'll get from us when we celebrate her half birthday this weekend. My kids' last day of school was Tuesday--June 24!! So celebrating her half birthday is a great way to kick off the summer :) Here's how her half-birthday card turned out:

I used a sweet stamp from the Fancy Flutters set, a sentiment from the Thoughtful Greetings set, a Crystal Lacquer Pearl Pen, and some pink baker's twine.

I think my daughter will love how it turned out!!

Thanks so much for dropping by for a visit today!
Emily

DeNami Design Product Spotlight June Blog Hop

It's the fourth Wednesday of June and that means it is time to show off another awesome DeNami Design stamp with a blog hop! This month we are featuring the celebratory Balloon Trio stamp.

I was looking ahead to the Fourth of July when I designed this card:

In addition to the Balloon Trio stamp, I put the Starry Burst stamp and Stars Embossing Folder to use in this design. I rather like how this design turned out. My daughter says it reminds her of fireworks! It's a little something different, that's for sure ;) .

You can purchase the Balloon Trio stamp for 10% off the regular price for the next week. You also have the chance to WIN this fabulous product in today's spotlight blog hop! All you need to do is hop along to each stop in the lineup, leaving comments along the way. Here is the blog hop lineup:

DeNami blog 
Lisa Petrella
Deb Wabbe
Wendy Elliot
Emily Keaton  <==== you are here!
Lisa Elton
Pattie Goldman
Tammy Hobbs

One commenter will be selected at random to win this month's prize! Just check out the DeNami blog for all the details.

Thanks for stopping by today--have a day filled with bliss!
Emily

Embossed Elements: Cloudy Sky + a GIVEAWAY

Hi, everybody! I'm coming to you today with the June edition of my monthly Embossed Elements feature for the DeNami blog. Today I'm featuring a truly versatile item: the Cloudy Sky Embossing Folder from the DeNami store. There are just so many different ways to use this awesome design!

My first card is a sweet all-purpose card. It uses just one DeNami stamp (Noah's Ark), and two embossing folders: Cloudy Sky and Beach Waves. I think this would be so cute as a baby card, a baby's first birthday card, or even a thank you note for a Sunday School teacher!

My second card is perfect for the 4th of July! I again used the Cloudy Sky embossing folder as a backdrop, this time for an outdoor celebratory scene featuring Chickie in Balloon, Chickie w/ Sparkler, and Patriotic Chickie. The sentiment comes from the Everyday Greetings stamp set.

I hope this gives you some ideas you can use with the Cloudy Sky embossing folder! Thanks for taking a peek at my embossed projects today. Be sure to check out my giveaway!

How would you like the chance to win this Cloudy Sky Embossing Folder? I have one up for grabs in an Embossed Elements giveaway! Want to be in the running? Just leave me a comment on this post using the word "CLOUDS." There's no need to be a follower of my blog to enter, but if you are a follower (or become a new follower!), you can have a second entry in the drawing--just leave me a second comment telling me that you are a follower and how you follow. :)

I'll leave commenting open until 11:59 p.m. EST on Wednesday, June 25, 2014, and will draw one commenter at random. The winner will be announced right here on my blog on Thursday, June 26, and if I'm able to find an email address, I'll be sure to contact the winner as well.

Thanks for joining me today!
Emily

June DeNami Inspired By

Greetings, blog friends! Welcome to the June edition of DeNami Design's Inspired By feature! Each month we feature one talented DeNami customer's work, and then honor that wonderful artist with a host of DeNami DT projects inspired by it! This month we were inspired by Jennifer Loftfield.

You can read all about Jennifer's inspiring design right HERE.

Here's my creation that was inspired by her fun card:

I used DeNami's sweet Giraffe, Square Word Bubble, and "hi" from Everyday Greetings stamp set, as well as the Cloudy Sky embossing folder and some Pink/White Dots washi tape from the DeNami store.

Be sure to head over to the DeNami Design blog today to see how the rest of the team was inspired by Jennifer's lovely creation!

Thanks so much for visiting today. May your day be filled with bliss!
Emily

New Parents Congratulations

Greetings, my friends! Today the DeNami Design Team is sharing designs over on the DeNami Design blog that show off the stamp in this week's Product Spotlight: the very versatile Congratulations Circle.

It's perfect for all kinds of occasions: baby, wedding, new house, anniversary, graduation, retirement, new car, . . . the list could go on and on! I chose to go the new baby route with my project:

I used the Congratulations Circle to create a sweet little award ribbon with Little Duck as its focal point. The embossed background is the Beach Waves Embossing Folder from the DeNami store.

Be sure to check out the rest of the team's lovely creations today on the DeNami blog. Like what you see? Then you can score a great deal on this versatile stamp--as our Spotlight Product, it's on sale at 10% off for the next week!!

Thanks for stopping by today!
Emily

DeNami Design Bright Blossoms Blog Hop

Hello and welcome to the June DeNami Design Blog Hop! The theme of this month's hop is Bright Blossoms!!

Hopefully, you've arrived here by way of Tina Milbourn's blog. 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 some super-fun DeNami prizes to be won! Two lucky commenters 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, June 9, 2014, 11:59 pm PST, to leave comments on all the blogs to be eligible for a prize. 

Here's how I interpreted this month's theme:

I had a great time using elements from the Solid Flower Accents Set, Garden Accents Set, Whimsical Garden Set, and Solid Petals Set to build my own bright blossoms for this large 5" x 7" card! I stamped cling versions of the Get Well Soon and Praying for You sentiments for the flower stems, and used a strip of Green Graph Washi Tape to ground the whole design. I also use these inks from the DeNami Design store: Fresh Green Versacolor, Pearlescent Orchid Brilliance, and Habanero Versafine.

Well, that does it for today's card! It's time for me to send you along on your way. But before you leave for more DeNami inspiration, be sure to leave a comment to be eligible for the randomly drawn prizes.  Then you can head out to see the next blog hop participant on today's list: Ruza Rebel.

Thanks so much for stopping by today! Enjoy the blog hop,
Emily

DeNami Design ~ Happy Anniversary

Hello, everybody! It's my turn to share a project over on the DeNami Design blog today. I made a cheerful anniversary card using a journaling card and some wooden shapes that my daughter rescued from the school art room for me ;). I hope you'll head over to take a peek and tell me what you think! Here's a little preview:

Thanks for dropping by for a visit today!
Emily

DeNami Design Product Spotlight May Blog Hop

It's the fourth Wednesday of the month and that means it is time to show off another awesome DeNami Design stamp with a blog hop! This month we are featuring the very timely Diploma stamp.

What newly minted graduate does not need thank you notes after commencement? I can't think of a single one! So I put this big ol' diploma to work on a clean and simple thank you card suitable for any guy or girl graduate. Here's how it turned out:

In addition to our spotlight Diploma stamp, I used Thank You Script, Black Stripes washi tape, and Tuxedo Black Memento Ink from the DeNami Design store.

You can purchase this Diploma stamp for 10% off the regular price for the next week. You also have the chance to WIN this fabulous product in today's spotlight blog hop! All you need to do is hop along to each stop in the lineup, leaving comments along the way. Here is the blog hop lineup:

DeNami blog 
Lisa Petrella
Deb Wabbe
Wendy Elliot
Emily Keaton  <==== you are here!
Lisa Elton
Pattie Goldman
Tammy Hobbs

One commenter will be selected at random to win this month's prize! Just check out the DeNami blog for all the details.

Thanks for stopping by today--have a super day!
Emily

Photo Tutorial: String Art Embellishments

It's my turn to share another photo tutorial over on the DeNami Design blog today. This time around I'm showing how to make your own string art embellishments using baker's twine. Be sure to check out the DeNami blog for all the details.

Thanks for stopping by today for this little peek of my photo tutorial. I hope you have a wonderful weekend!
Emily 

May DeNami Inspired By

Greetings, blog friends! Welcome to the May edition of DeNami Design's Inspired By feature! Each month we feature one talented DeNami customer's work, and then honor that wonderful artist with a host of DeNami DT projects inspired by it! This month we were inspired by Tina M.

You can read all about Tina's inspiring design right HERE.

I was inspired by five aspects of Tina's creation:

1. the monochromatic color scheme
2. the two-tone stamping on the focal image
3. her use of an embossed background
4. the layout of her design
5. the little gemstones she used as an accent at the bottom right 

I tried to pick up all of these in my creation:

I went monochromatic, only with shades of blue {Pearlescent Sky Blue Brilliance ink} rather than black. I achieved her two-tone focal image by stamping off with the larger image in the Peacock Feathers stamp set.  I changed up the embossed background by using the funky Multi Circles embossing folder. I altered her sketch a bit by incorporating the sentiment (Medium Double Circle, Thank You Circle, and a heart from the Hearts stamp set) into the focal image panel. And finally, I riffed on Tina's trio of gemstones by embellishing the center of each circle in my embossed background with a pearl drawn on with a 3D Crystal Lacquer Pearl Pen.

Be sure to head over to the DeNami Design blog today to see how the rest of the team was inspired by Tina's lovely creation!

Thanks so much for visiting today. May your day be filled with bliss!
Emily

DeNami Design Sky's the Limit Blog Hop

Hello and welcome to the May DeNami Design Blog Hop! The theme of this month's hop is The Sky's the Limit!!

Hopefully, you've arrived here by way of Greta Hess's blog, GG Creations. 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 some super-fun DeNami prizes to be won! Two lucky commenters 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 19, 2014, 11:59 pm PST, to leave comments on all the blogs to be eligible for a prize. 

Here's how I interpreted this month's theme:

I went with a high-flying patriotic kite that's perfect for Memorial Day or the 4th of July! A few other sky-themed DeNami products, the Small Cloud stamp and Cloudy Sky embossing folder, were perfect for rounding out my Sky's the Limit design. I also used the God Bless America stamp and two patterns of washi tape from the DeNami store: Blue/White Dots and Red Stripes.

Well, that does it for my creation! It's time for me to send you along on your way. But before you leave for more DeNami inspiration, be sure to leave a comment to be eligible for the randomly drawn prizes.  Then you can head out to see the next blog hop participant on today's list: Stacy M.    
 
Thanks so much for stopping by today! Enjoy the blog hop,
Emily

A Little Message for You . . .

Greetings, my friends! Today the DeNami Design Team is sharing designs over on the DeNami Design blog that show off the stamp in this week's Product Spotlight: Little Fawn. And boy, what a cutie this one is!

I pulled out an old Basic Grey 6x6 pad of patterned paper (PB&J collection) and picked out a bunch of fun patterns to use together. With all that pattern and color going on, I figured it would be best to leave my stamped images uncolored, so I stamped Little Fawn and the log from Woodland Logs Set on kraft cardstock and then fussy cut each for my design. Here's what I came up with:

My sentiment is DeNami's A Little Message for You stamp. I added a boutique button and some orange rhinestones, along with a chevron arrow trimmed from one of my selected sheets of patterned paper.

Be sure to check out the rest of the team's lovely creations today on the DeNami blog. Like what you see? Then you can score a great deal on this sweet woodland critter--as our Spotlight Product, it's on sale at 10% off for the next week!!

Thanks for stopping by today!
Emily

My Embossed Elements Winner!

Hello and Happy Thursday! I'm announcing my Embossed Elements giveaway winner today. The brand-new Graduation Hat Embossing Folder goes to lucky #21, which is Carol Hartery! Congratulations, Carol! I've emailed you to get your mailing information ;).

I had so much fun playing with this grad embossing folder! I wanted to share one more creation I made with it:

For this card, I created a chevron pattern with Black Curly Loops washi tape and Yellow/White Dots washi tape (in the school colors of the recipient!) on a cardstock panel before embossing the taped panel with the Graduation Hat embossing folder. Then I stamped and fussy cut a Diploma to use as my focal point! A fun design with lots of impact, I thought.

Thanks so much for dropping by for a little slice of bliss with me today!
Emily

DeNami Design ~ Card for Mom

Greetings, friends! It's my turn to share a project over on the DeNami Design blog today. I made a colorful Mother's Day card using just two stamps and a handmade flower embellishment. I hope you'll head over to take a peek and tell me what you think! Here's a little preview:

Thanks for dropping by! Have a super day!
Emily

Embossed Elements: GRADUATION + a Giveaway!

Greetings, friends! I'm here today with the April edition of my monthly Embossed Elements feature for the DeNami Design blog. Today I'm gearing up for graduation season with two different cards using fun embossing folders from the DeNami store.

My first project features the oh-so-festive Graduation Hat Embossing Folder.  I used it (along with Congratulations Circle and the diploma and mortarboard stamps from the cling Graduation Set) to make a congratulatory card for the new graduate.

I chose the colors of my daughter's high school (including some fabulous DeNami Leaf Green cardstock for the embossed panel and the paper-pieced mortarboard) for this creation and went with a design that really shows off that awesome embossed sea of graduation caps. Doesn't it look like a crowd of grads has just tossed their mortarboards into the air at the end of the commencement ceremony? That image always makes me smile :). Not only is this embossing folder super for graduation cards, but it would also be perfect for making graduation invitations or graduation thank you notes.

I don't find myself needing graduation cards all that often (although as my kids progress further through school, I imagine that will begin to change!), so I was reluctant at first to invest in purely graduation-themed products. Just in case you find yourself in a similar situation, I wanted to show you another option for a fun graduation card using non-graduation-specific products. This project features the Bunting Embossing Folder.

After embossing my white card base with the Bunting EF, I embossed several scraps of patterned paper (once again choosing a color scheme inspired by my daughter's high school) and then paper-pieced each of the pennants. I love how it turned out! I completed my clean and simple design with a loopy bow tied in baker's twine from the Spring Twine 3-pack and a stamped Small Congratulations sentiment.

I love the festive look that the embossed pennant banner gives this congratulations card. It's so easy to personalize the bunting with the recipient's school colors. But I can also think of all kinds of other occasions--not just graduations!--that this embossing folder would be perfect for: birthday, baby, weddings, anniversaries, Independence Day, New Year's, . . . the list could go on and on!!

Thanks for taking a peek at my embossed graduation projects today. I hope I was able to inspire you!

How would you like the chance to win this Graduation Hat Embossing Folder? I have one up for grabs in an Embossed Elements giveaway! Want to be in the running? Just leave me a comment on this post using the word "MORTARBOARD." There's no need to be a follower of my blog to enter, but if you are a follower (or become a new follower!), you can have a second entry in the drawing--just leave me a second comment telling me that you are a follower and how you follow. :)

I'll leave commenting open until 11:59 p.m. EST on Wednesday, April 30, 2014, and will draw one commenter at random. The winner will be announced right here on my blog on Thursday, May 1, and if I'm able to find an email address, I'll be sure to contact the winner as well.

Thanks for joining me today!
Emily

DeNami Design Product Spotlight April Blog Hop

It's the fourth Wednesday of the month and that means it is time to show off another awesome DeNami Design stamp with a blog hop! This month we are featuring the lovely Wavy Stem Trio stamp. What a versatile stamp!

I decided to use this stamp to start making Mother's Day cards. Here's what I created:

I combined the Wavy Stem Trio with a flower head from the cling Spring Flowers Set (stamped on white cardstock, colored with Copics, fussy cut, and mounted with foam tape on the ends of the stems) and planted in a flower pot from the cling Garden Accessories Set (treated in the same way as the flowers). To finish out this design, I added a stamped Happy Mother's Day sentiment and two strips of washi tape from the DeNami store: Pink/White Hearts and Orange Stripes. I'm so happy with how this card turned out! What is it about pink and bright orange that look so pretty together??

You can purchase this versatile stamp for 10% off the regular price for the next week. You also have the chance to WIN this fabulous product in today's spotlight blog hop! All you need to do is hop along to each stop in the lineup, leaving comments along the way. Here is the blog hop lineup:

DeNami blog 
Lisa Petrella
Deb Wabbe
Wendy Elliot
Emily Keaton  <==== you are here!
Lisa Elton
Pattie Goldman
Tammy Hobbs

One commenter will be selected at random to win this month's prize! Just check out the DeNami blog for all the details.

Thanks for stopping by today--have a super day!
Emily

April DeNami Inspired By

Hello and welcome back to the April edition of DeNami Design's Inspired By feature! Each month we feature one talented DeNami customer's work, and then honor that wonderful artist with a host of DeNami DT projects inspired by it! This month we were inspired by Barb M.

Isn't that absolutely beautiful? You can read all about it right here on Barb's blog.

I really loved the colors that Barb used in her lovely creation, so I let those guide my design and decided to take a CAS approach. Here's what I came up with:

I used the Fancy Flutters cling set, Decorative Flourish, and Sending You Love sentiment. I embossed the sentiment with white embossing powder and used an emboss-resist technique with it while sponging on some dye ink. I was going for an ombre look--I hope that's what I achieved!

Be sure to head over to the DeNami Design blog today to see how the rest of the team was inspired by Barb's lovely creation!

Thanks so much for visiting today. May your day be filled with bliss!
Emily

DeNami Design Buttons and Bows Blog Hop

Hello and welcome to the April DeNami Design Blog Hop! This month's hop is all about Buttons and Bows!!

Hopefully, you've arrived here by way of Linda Monroe's blog, Stampin in the Suburbs. 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 some super-fun DeNami prizes to be won! Two lucky commenters 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, April 14, 2014, 11:59 pm PST, to leave comments on all the blogs to be eligible for a prize. 

All righty, let's get right down to business. Here's my Easter-themed Buttons and Bows creation:

I used the beautiful new Lily stamp--doesn't it do wonderfully as an Easter lily? It was quick and easy to color with Copic markers. I also used some White Boutique Buttons and lavender baker's twine in the Pastel Twine 3-pack, all from the DeNami Design store.

It's time for me to send you along on your way. But before you leave for more DeNami buttons and bows inspiration, be sure to leave a comment to be eligible for the randomly drawn prizes.  Then you can head out to see the next blog hop participant on today's list: Jennifer Loftfield.    
 
Thanks so much for stopping by today! Enjoy the blog hop,
Emily