Inspire Create Challenge #036 is giving us free rein this week - anything from Sale-A-Bration!  Whoopee!
I'm still riding the high of playing with all my preview Coordinating Products toys - today it's the framelits that go with Lasting Lily!  Makes it so easy to add some pop to these pretty blossoms, AND there are some layering shapes for the sentiments in this set as well - and you know I love my layers, lol.  I decided to try out my balmy blue today, and add a touch of the lovely matching Organdy Ribbon, too - every time I stamp with Balmy Blue, I'm reminded how much better I like it than out old Marina Mist!  Oops, did I just say that out loud??  Shh!
Lasting Lily Stamp Set; Whisper White & Balmy Blue CS; Pear Pizzazz & Balmy Blue Ink; Daffodil Delight Stamp-n-Write Marker; Subtle DEF; Lily Framelits; Balmy Blue Organdy Ribbon; Basic Jewel Pearls; #ICC036.

The Sisterhood of Crafters has a fun theme to share this week - diamonds!  Time to make it shine!
This one took a while to come about for me - I really hemmed and hawed over the meaning of "diamond," lol.  I pulled out my new Tufted DEF for a start finally, and then remembered last year's Just Keep Swimming set - didn't that have a gem in it?  I finally found that set in my for sale box - it might need to relocate to my shelves of retirement now!  This ended up being way more monochromatic than I had originally thought - I initially planned on adding all kinds of colors to my gems, but then I added Wink of Stella instead, and kept them pretty pure.  It looks simple, but I'm happy with the result!
Just Keep Swimming Stamp Set (retired); Whisper White & Basic Black CS; Memento Tuxedo Black Ink; Tufted DEF; Wink of Stella in Silver; Basic Jewel Rhinestones; #TSOCDiamonds.

Thank You Cards Class Feb 7 & 9!
I don't know about you, but I ALWAYS need Thank You cards!  It's so handy to have a little stash on hand - and we have some gorgeous new sets for them right now, too!  Class will include all supplies needed for 6 cards and envelopes (bring your own snips and fave adhesive!), drinks, snacks and a special gift from me, all for $25!  Class could also be FREE with your order of $30 or more!  Class is still on for Saturday, Feb 9 at 3 pm!  RSVP now to save your spot today! 

AAA #132 has a fun challenge to encourage the clean and simple style - "up to one third."  What a neat idea - contain the card elements to one third of the card, so that there's two-thirds of lovely "white" space around it!  And if we can fit in masking, too, so much the better!
As I thought about the one-third and masking combo, I envisioned brayering a band of color on the card front, and I pretty quickly landed on a desert sunset for my inspiration.  Our Flowering Desert stamp set is my current all-time fave, I have to say.  I love how we can build any cacti we want out of all the little pieces, AND that we have a nice big saguaro, too - perfect!  So I masked off my central third, and went to town with sunset colors.  I fussy cut my cactus, and did my sentiment in bold black right on the colored band.  I added a few tiny faceted dots in black, too, and then I had to sit on my hands to stop there, lol.  I love extra details a little too much, I think!
Flowering Desert Stamp Set; Whisper White CS; Memento Tuxedo Black, Old Olive, Daffodil Delight, Mango Melody & Cajun Craze Ink; Faceted Dots; #AAA132.

Thank You Cards Class Feb 7 & 9!
I don't know about you, but I ALWAYS need Thank You cards!  It's so handy to have a little stash on hand - and we have some gorgeous new sets for them right now, too!  Class will include all supplies needed for 6 cards and envelopes (bring your own snips and fave adhesive!), drinks, snacks and a special gift from me, all for $25!  Class could also be FREE with your order of $30 or more!  Class is on for Thursday, Feb 7, at 630 pm, or, Saturday, Feb 9 at 3 pm!  RSVP now to save your spot today! 

Well, a couple of my TSOT teamies have pointed me to a new challenge blog they have going called Joy of Sets!  This is their first tic-tac-toe challenge - can't wait to play!
I decided I wanted to play with florals today, so I chose the die cut-floral-bling column, and decided to knock out some of my elements with the gorgeous Petal Palette set.  I did the large spray of flowers, and colored in with my fave green and purple color combo, and floated everything over one of our gorgeous woodgrain sheets.  I finished with a few scattered and different-sized rhinestones for my bling - I love how this came out!  Kind of country wedding-ish!
Petal Palette Stamp set; Wood Textures DSP; Whisper White & Blackberry Bliss CS; Memento Tuxedo Black Ink; Blackberry Bliss & Old Olive Blends Markers; Stitched Shapes Framelits; Petals & More Thinlits; Basic Jewel Rhinestones; #JOSTTT001.

Oh good - Inspire Create Challenge #34's In Color challenge is perfect for me, to get these beauties out and play!  I haven't been using these enough for sure...
So, I really have a hard time with this set of In Colors - I don't do bright too often.  But what about some bright splashes of color?  That could be fun!  I decided to pull out Waterfront, since it has all those landscape-building scribbles, and this "every little kindness" phrase is one of my all-time faves, lol...  I just noticed though, I went for the full set of In Colors here, and used Blueberry Bushel, NOT Night of Navy, and Grapefruit Grove instead of Calypso Coral.  Whoops!  What a dunce!  Shh, don't tell on me.  I didn't do any measuring to get this color block, I swear, I just decided to do a wider border than usual, and all my stripes just worked out!  Nice!
Waterfront Stamp Set; Whisper White & Basic Black CS; Lovely Lipstick, Grapefruit Grove, Pineapple Punch, Call Me Clover, Blueberry Bushel & Memento Tuxedo Black Inks; Layering Circles Framelits; Clear Epoxy Droplets.

I see some fun cards ahead with Back to Basics #19's "shaped card" challenge - make sure you check out the DT samples, lol!
I spent some time browsing some of my old fun dies thinking I would cut something on the fold for a shaped card, but I the end, I came across my old Ovals Collection framelits, for a really good card-sized oval shape, lol.  I started thinking about a pretty paper for the background, and came across this chunk of Share What You Love DSP, so that led me to the accompanying stamp set, Love What You Do.  It's all about the Blackberry Bliss today!  Such a fun little note!
Love What You Do Stamp Set; Share What You Love DSP; Blackberry Bliss & Whisper White CS; Memento Tuxedo Black & Blackberry Bliss Inks; Blackberry Bliss & Old Olive Blends Markers; Ovals Collection & Stitched Shapes Framelits; #BBB19.

Oh, good deal - Stamps Ink Paper #180 has a great theme for the start of a new year - thank yous!
And of course, wouldn't you just know it, SU! has an awesome new bundle just for the occasion!  Well Said is a GIANT ensemble - 51 stamps with every phrase and combo you can think, for all occasions.  It also has an AMAZING thinlit set to complement it, featuring accompanying words in different script and size, plus some pretty little decor elements to go along, too.  There are even 2-part phrases for the INSIDE of your card - so handy!  I kept it fairly simple for this challenge, which is all about the basics - stamps, ink and paper - all a gal needs for perfect card-making!
Well Said Stamp Set; Soft Seam Foam DSP; Whisper White, Soft Sea Foam & Gold Foil CS; Soft Sea Foam Ink; Well Written Framelits; #SIP180.

Birthdays Galore 2019!
I'm so excited to kick off our new Spring Occasions catalog with our annual Birthday Cards class!  We have so many fun new sets to play with!  This class will feature SIX cards and envelopes, all using stamps from our new Spring Mini and Sale-A-Bration catties!  There were just too many to choose from!  Come get a good start on having your birthday cards ready for the year!  All supplies provided, just bring your own snips and fave adhesive!  Class will be $25, and includes, drinks, snacks and a special gift from me!  This class can also be FREE with your order of $30 or more!  Class is announced for Thursday, January 10 at 630 pm, or Saturday January 12 at 3 PM.  RSVP today to make sure I have your supplies ready and waiting for you!

Happy fabulous New Year!  We're excited at Fab Friday #154 to kick off 2019 with this fun color challenge!
With this many greens, I knew I had to pull out the big stamps, lol, so here's a look at the elegant Sale-A-Bration set Lasting Lily.  It has these two lovely lilies and stems, and a pretty leaf, along with gorgeous sayings to accompany the beautiful blooms.  I picked out the flower spadix with my Lemon Lime Twist marker for a bit more definition - yes, I looked up lily anatomy so I'd get the right word, lol.  Vocab is important!
I can't wait to see what YOU do with these colors - see you at the challenge!
Lasting Lily Stamp Set; Whisper White, Tranquil Tide & Lemon Lime Twist CS; Tranquil Tide, Mint Macaron, Highland Heather, Pear Pizzazz & Lemon Lime Twist Inks; Lemon Lime Twist Stampin' Write Marker; Layering Ovals Framelits; Basic Jewel Rhinestones; #FabFri154.

Birthdays Galore 2019!
I'm so excited to kick off our new Spring Occasions catalog with our annual Birthday Cards class!  We have so many fun new sets to play with!  This class will feature SIX cards and envelopes, all using stamps from our new Spring Mini and Sale-A-Bration catties!  There were just too many to choose from!  Come get a good start on having your birthday cards ready for the year!  All supplies provided, just bring your own snips and fave adhesive!  Class will be $25, and includes, drinks, snacks and a special gift from me!  This class can also be FREE with your order of $30 or more!  Class is announced for Thursday, January 10 at 630 pm, or Saturday January 12 at 3 PM.  RSVP today to make sure I have your supplies ready and waiting for you!

Check out this super cute sketch from Case This Sketch #302 - love this layering!  Perfect for closing out 2018!
A sketch like this is just crying out to show off some gorgeous paper, and this vibrant Sale-A-Bration DSP that coordinates with several new butterfly sets coming in the Spring Mini (3 more days!!) does NOT disappoint!  I chose a soft botanical sheet for my columns, and fussy cut a few fancy butterflies from another sheet - just beautiful.  My sentiment is from another SAB goodie, the lovely Part of My Story set, 6 different modern and moving sayings to share with our loved ones, and even new friends.  LOVE how this card came out, but still so simple.  Happy New Year, everyone - here's to a year of love and creativity for us all!
Part of My Story Stamp Set; Botanical Butterfly DSP; Whisper White & Highland Heather CS; Lemon Lime Twist & Basic Black Stampin' Write Markers; Stitched Shapes Framelits; Faceted Dots in Black; #CTS302.

So excited about this week's "resist" technique challenge at Back to Basics & Beyond #18!
For me, when I think of resist, I think of sponge daubing over heat-embossed images - this creates such a softly colored look.  For the first time, I decided to try it over a metallic emboss - usually I do it over white.  I get to break in another new stamp set, too - the gorgeous All That You Are floral set - it's beautiful!  And I love the sentiments in it - very gracious!  I went all pastel on this one, and I love the look of the gold, too.  Can't wait to try coloring this one in with markers, too!
All That You Are Stamp Set; Soft Sea Foam, So Saffron, Whisper White & Petal Pink CS; Versamark, Pear Pizzazz, So Saffron, Petal Pink & Calypso Coral Inks; Gold EP; Stitched Shapes Framelits; Faceted Dots; #BBB18.