I "Heart" the USA

Hi All,
Here is a cute card made for my design team work for The Stampsmith stamp company.  Estelle, The Stampsmith sent this little kitty for me to do a project up with. This stamp comes from the USA Patriotice Art Rubber Stamp Plate. I was a bit stumped as I am from Canada and this is a very American stamp with the Uncle Sam hat. I stamped him out on glossy paper and inked the image with Tea Dye Distress ink and fussy cut it out.  I used some acrylic stamps that I had in my stash and colored them in with some patriotic colors. I Used Barn Door Distress Ink to ink up the edges and background paper.

Thanks for peeking in!
~Mel~

Just Because Cards!

Hi All,
Here are a trio of cards that I was asked to make.  The individual that was looking for them, was specific in her sentiment (Just Because...) and what is written inside (You don't get on my nerves) and wanted the cards to be 'funky'....lol...tall order for someone that I have never met.  These three images are from the Greeting Farm, Rock and Roll Crew.  I stamped the images out in Memento Tuxedo Black ink and I colored them with mineral spirits and colored pencils.  Again my paper choices were from my scrap bin.  The metal stud on the black card was from K& Company and the bling on the other cards were from the 1.50 bin at Michael's.  I used my Bic Market marker in orange to color the orange bling in so that it would match the card.  The cover sentiment is from Hero Arts and I typed the inside message on my computer.

Thanks for peeking in!
~Mel~

Sympathy Card

Hi Everyone,
Just a quick card that I made for one of my husband's co-workers that recently lost a family member.  It was a simple flower stamp from Stampendous.  I stamped it with white craft ink on black card stock.  I colored the image with colored pencils and used a white poster marker from Sharpie. I used an embossing folder from Sizzix, I can't remember the name and die cut the image out on my Labels Eight Spellbinders.  I added a bow made with some ribbon from Michael's.

Thanks for peeking in!
~Mel~

Happy HalloScream!!!

Hi All,
Just a quick post on a card I did for a crafty card exchange with my girl friends.  I LOVE Halloween!!!! I love everything about it so given the chance to create for it, I really have fun.  I saw a card on the Prairie Paper & Ink blog.  I loved the card and the simple coloring of it.  The three images are from 1.50$ stamps from Michaels.  I colored them with odorless mineral spirits and colored pencils.  I used my scrap Halloween paper for the card and my Martha Stewart spider web punch for the front.
It is simple but I love it!

Thanks for peeking in!
~Mel~

Dog Lover!

Hi All,
Here is another design team post for the Stampsmith Stamp Rubber Stamp Company.  Estelle sent me a few stamps in my design team package to do up a few samples for.  One of them being the stamp on this card.  You can find this stamp at her shop.  It is called Puppy Dog Art Rubber Stamps.  It is a wonderful plate of stamps of different puppy dogs.  I showed my husband this card that I made and stated in a very serious voice that I am NOT an dog lover.  It struck me as funny, as he was laying there reading with my two cats cuddled up with him. 
I used the Pet Stack for DCWV.  I stamped the image with black Ancient Page ink.  I used a postage stamp frame die from Sizzix and die cut it using chipboard and back card stock.  The dog bone paper clip came from Big Lots when we were there a few years ago. I used the Martha Stewart heart punches on the front of the card.  The bakers twine that I used was from The Twinery.com, from one of their sample packs.  The sentiment was one that I printed off on my computer.
I hope you all like this card.
Thanks for peeking in!

~Mel~

Babies Everywhere!

Hi All,
Another post for you today.  My dear husband again accessed my crafting abilities for a co-worker.  Apparently she saw the baby onsie cards that he brought into his staff meeting earlier in the week and she requested for one to be made for her, but this one was for a little girl.  I cut the onsie with my 9 Months Cricut Cartridge.  I used 'girlie' paper from a Recollections paper pack that I picked up at Michael's.  I cut "It's a Girl" on the same cartridge.  The charms are from the baby shower section at Michael's and the baby in the sling  and the bottle on the inside are chipboard stickers from Dollarama.  I used some pink lace from my stash to 'girl it up'. The princess sticker was from K&C. The punch used on the inside is from Martha Stewart and the sentiment on the inside is from a Recollections set from Michael's.
I hope everyone is having a great long weekend!
Thanks for peeking in!

~Mel~

A Proud Auntie!

Hi All,
Happy Thanksgiving to all my Canadian friends.  I hope everyone is taking the opportunity to remember and give thanks for all that we have...and to have a wonderful dinner...lol.
I wanted to come on and post a picture of a card I made my nephew last evening.  Ryan is off to university this year and I am so proud that he is pursuing his education.  When I was in school, my Mother used to send me care packages from home with some treats and letters from home.  I wanted to do the same for him as this is his first holiday away and he is unable to get home for Thanksgiving.  But, given the cost of postage here in Canada, I opted for a gift card and homemade card for him.  Apparently he saves my cards in a box that I make him...what a cutie...lol.
The image and sentiment are from a Recollections stamp set that I picked up at Michael's.  I used my colored pencils and mineral spirits on the image.  I cut it out with my Martha Stewart Circle cutter.  The paper that I used was from a paper pack I got last year at Joann's when we were on our honeymoon in Maine.  I added some spiderweb ribbon from our local Dollarama.  I wrapped some orange bakers twine around the card and tied it in a bow.  The little black spider was something that I too picked up at Dollarama.The spiderweb edge punch is from Martha Stewart's Halloween collection last year as was the bats punch that I used to punch some out in  black cardstock.
I hope everyone is happy and safe!
Thanks for peeking in!

~Mel~

Much Thanks to You Both!

Hi All,
My hubby asked me to make up a few cards the other day for a couple of his co-workers who had done up a scrapbook for a retiring co-worker.  His team wanted to thank them for the job they did.
These cards were made with some House Mouse stamps that I had.  The sentiments were 1.50$ stamps from Michaels.  I die cut them using a Spellbinder in my collection. I used my chalks to color them.  The paper I used was scraps from my stash, I LOVE to use it all up, never waste anything...lol.
I hope everyone has a safe and wonderful Canadian Thanksgiving this weekend.
Thanks for peeking in!

~Mel~

A Day At My Favorite Place!

Hello everyone,
This is my first official blog post for the Stampsmith Design team! I am terribly nervous about it and excited at the same time. This post is in conjunction with the celebration over Estelle's new site. It is wonderful and you should all take the time to drop over and check it out!
As part of her celebration, Estelle is offering a 10% discount on an order beginning Saturday October 8, 2011 and ending Sunday October 9, 2011. The discount code is TENOFF and you add that during check out.
I really enjoy the beach and it made me a little sad to create with this as it has turned terribly cold here in Nova Scotia and I think that my beach days for the year are done.
Thanks for peeking in!

~Mel~

Oh Baby!!!!

Hi All,
A second post for today....though the truth be known, the first one tonight was supposed to be posted on Saturday but I am a little bit tardy.
Jim has two of his co-workers that have recently had babies, and two boys!!! Both Moms and babies are doing well.  I was asked to make a couple of baby cards for the new Mothers.  They were big enough to hold gift cards so they can pick up what they want for their little men.
I cut the onesie cards  and the "It's a Boy"out on my cricut using 9 Months, a Lite cartridge sold at Walmart.  There are lots of cute cuts on it for the entire pregnancy.  The charms on the "It's a Boy" are from the baby shower section of Michaels.  The patterned paper is from a Recollections paper pack geared towards little boys.....The chipboard stickers were from our local Dollar store.  They were quick and easy once I cut out the cards.
I hope they like them.
Thanks for peeking in!

~Mel~

TSC23: Halloween Using At Least One Stampsmith Stamp!

Hi All,
Happy World Card Making Day everyone!!

Today brings a new Stampsmith Challenge theme of Halloween! Starting today, you will now have an entire month to join The Stampsmith Challenge by creating a project featuring at least one Stampsmith stamp! One random winner will select their favorite full sheet of Stampsmith rubber valued at $21 at the end of every month!

Congratulations to Estelle on her new Stampsmith On-Line Store - there's so much new to see - an interactive catalog with online ordering, tips and tricks, a beautiful gallery and much more!!

Again, I would like to say how honored I am to be given this opportunity to be part of this talented team.
I hope everyone is having a wonderful creative week!
Thanks for peeking in!

~Mel~