For My Valentine

Good morning everyone! Are you ready to welcome the New Year? I am hopeful 2010 runs a bit smoother than '09!

Today I am so excited to sneak peek a new set for Waltzingmouse Stamps, to be released in early January!

This set is packed with sentiments (over 20!) and some great Valentine images. I used the single arrow to create a vintage-inspired Valentine!

Love at first sight!

I stamped the single arrow repeatedly, starting in one location and working out from there. A grid-lined acrylic block makes this easy. The sentiment was stamped right on the arrow - what a great discovery! I stitched around the outside and inked it up with Antique Linen Distress Ink.

The punched background is Martha's Punch Around the Page in Double Loops (with the outside loops cut off). These punches are great, but because of the corner and edge punch combination, come with limitations on the size of cardstock you can use in them.

There you have it! I'd love to hear what you think about the new set so far! If you'd like some more peeks, visit some of my fellow DT members: Julia, Jennifer, and Bonnie!

Wishing you safe celebrations this evening and the happiest of New Years!

#Anya

Recipe:
Stamps: Waltzingmouse Stamps (not yet released)
Cardstock: Vintage Cream - Papertrey Ink; Riding Hood Red - Stampin' Up!
Ink: Riding Hood Red, Sahara Sand - Stampin' Up!; Antique Linen Distress Ink - Ranger
Other: Punch Around the Page Double Loops - Martha Stewart Crafts; sewing machine

Last of the Tags

Good morning friends!

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas! I had intended to blog a bit more than I have, but I have been spending my time getting some much-needed R&R! Bill and I have seen more movies in the past few days (Avatar and Sherlock Holmes) than we have in months!

And in an effort to keep the post-holiday blues from setting in, I'm dragging Christmas out a bit longer. We spend so much time preparing for it, I feel it deserves more than one day!

Today I want to share the rest of the Christmas tags I made for Bill's presents.

Day Seven. Was in a bit of a time crunch with this one! The image is all one stamp, colored with Copics and distressed with Antique Linen Distress Ink.

Day Eight. Jenni Bowlin Christmas Mini Bingo Card layered onto a tag that had been embossed with the Stars Cuttlebug embossing folder. Highlighted the 8 with a Tim Holtz Sprocket gear.

Day Nine. Boy, this one was time intensive! The house is from Boards and Beams and all the holiday decorated bits are from Home for the Holidays. Lots of dimension and glitter on this one!

Day Ten. Another easy one - I was getting into the time crunch here! I embossed the snowflakes (from the Tim Holtz Mini Holidays Cling Set) and then added Distress Ink to the background. The splatter is Perfect Pearls mixed with water - this is one of my favorite new techniques I learned from Tim's 12 Tags!

And finally, Day Eleven! I started with a red and green plaid background made using Off Beat Backgrounds. The tree is from Tree Trimming Trio with ornaments covered in Martha Stewart Brownstone glitter. This is my second favorite (the plaid moose from Day Four is still tops for me!) tag.

I hope you enjoyed these! Maybe a little bit of inspiration for next year? I just love making tags. I still have to finish up my 12 tags for Tim Holtz's contest but I vow to get there! I haven't made much time for the craft studio these past couple days, but am ready to spend some quiet time there later today. I am thinking of you all and wishing you the best as we continue through the holidays!

See you tomorrow!

#Anya

Gifty Things

Good morning!

I am going to take a break from the tags today (..because I forgot to photograph the next ones, that's why!) and show you some other things I've been working on.

First off, some wine bottle scarves!

This uses the ginormous (purple - is that giga?) snowflake punch from Marvy, a simple tag, and a button.

This uses my favorite holly image from Sewing Box Christmas (which is out of stock in the store right now but on order - sorry!) and a big button for the berry.

I first saw these bottle scarves on Amy Rohl's blog and loved them. They were a snap to make!

Next are some gift card holders. I saw these on Jel Del Muro's blog with a link to the tutorial. These are also easy to make but really add something to your gift card presentation!

Using Very Vintage Christmas and a favorite cream, red and sand color combination.

And more holly! Love the woodgrain background on this one.

So here's what makes these so cool - untie the ribbon to reveal the inside..

Isn't that a great presentation? There is space inside for a sentiment or a little note. Very easy to make, too. The original tutorial came from Roxy's blog here. Instead of going through the whole Word Window punch business to create the opening for the gift card, I used one of the rectangle Nestabilities. Much easier!

Hope you have a great day, my dears! Have a very Merry Christmas if your holiday plans keep you away for a few days!

#Anya

Three More Tags

Hello, hello!

More tags for you today. These are just so fun to make. I am excited to share today's because #4 is my reigning favorite!

Day Four. Isn't this so me? The trees and moose are from a retired set from Stampin' Up! called Pines. This is one of my favorite Stampin' Up! sets ever. I started by stamping the trees and moose and then cut them out. And then I took the plaid stamp from Off Beat Backgrounds and stamped right over top. I love the effect. The background was stamped with a woodgrain and then I added some stitched snow. Love!

Day Five. Easy stuff here! The candy cane background was created using Faux Ribbon. The holly, gingerbread boy, and sentiment are from Oven Fresh - Gingerbread Joy. Little Ginger gets tucked into the front pocket on the tag. Some white Liquid Applique and glitter was added to give the look of icing.

Day Six. This tag was based on a sketch I saw on the Clean & Simple Stamping blog. I really like this color combination and love to add glitter to that ornament.

So that's it for today! I will be baking and stamping tonight (sound familiar?). I hope your night is productive, too!

Take care!

#Anya

11 Tags of Christmas

Hello friends! Here we are, the final days before Christmas.

I thought I'd start sharing the tags I've been making for our 11 Days of Christmas. My husband and I share a gift a day between our Anniversary (12/15) and Christmas - 11 days! Last year, inspired by Tim Holtz's 12 Tags of Christmas, I made a tag each day to go with my husband's gifts. We hung them on the tree and oohed and aahed - it was fun. I continued the tradition this year and thought you'd like to follow along.

For some of the tags that I made, I used a bunch of different products and things from my stash. I am going to skip giving recipes for each, but instead highlight the main products I used. If you have any specific questions, please don't hesitate to leave me a comment or send me an email! Ok - enough chit chat (you can click the pictures for an enlarged version)!

Day One (our Anniversary, hence the hearts). I stamped the text first and then clear embossed the hearts on top. Then I dipped the tag into ink I had spread on my craft mat.

Day Two. Stitched holly leaves and heart berries from Sewing Box - Christmas. I stitched around the outside and then stamped a row of polka dots from Off Beat Backgrounds.

Day Three. A collage of images from the Mini Holidays set, along with Fired Brick, Peeled Paint, and Broken China Distress Ink. I added a layer of Rock Candy Distress Crackle Paint and the number three from Tim's Metal Numerals.

There you have it! Tomorrow I will share the next three! I hope you have a wonderful night!

#Anya

If you have any product questions, don't hesitate to ask! :)

Blue Ornament

Happy Friday!

I love it when the holiday season starts to permeate the office... lunches with co-workers and treats abound - I love it!

I put together a card last night for the latest Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge. I was in a Waltzingmouse mood!

I had an old card on my desk that I had made using some of these colors and I thought it would be fun to use them on this card. I stuck with the combination of Night of Navy, Baja Breeze, and White. The ornament stamp is from Sewing Box - Christmas and was stamped twice - once onto white and again onto Baja Breeze. The hearts are also from the same set (the little stripe in the back is from Sewing Box - Hugs). I matted the ornament with an oval I had cut from PTI Linen Vellum. The sentiment is from Very Vintage Christmas. Right before assembly, I gave all the pieces a healthy spray of Perfect Pearls - imagine that you can see the shimmer!

Well, we're headed into the home stretch! I have so many fun things I'd like to share with you in the coming days. Last year when my husband and I started our anniversary to Christmas gift-giving tradition, I was inspired by Tim Holtz's 12 Tags of Christmas and created a tag to go along with each one of his gifts. I carried that tradition on this year and have been making different tags for each day. I really love creating this way and would love to share them with you. So look for those coming soon!

Have a great night!

#Anya

Recipe:
Stamps: Sewing Box Christmas, Sewing Box Hugs, Very Vintage Christmas - Waltzingmouse Stamps
Cardstock: Not Quite Navy, Baja Breeze - Stampin' Up!; Linen Vellum, White - Papertrey Ink
Ink: Not Quite Navy, Baja Breeze - Stampin' Up!
Other: Snowflake Cuttlebug Embossing folder - ProvoCraft; Classic and Scalloped Petite Oval Nestabilities - Spellbinders; Snowflake punch - Marvy Uchida; Silver elastic cord - Stampin' Up!; Silver Gelly Roll pen - Sakura; Perfect Pearl Perfect Pearls - Ranger; sewing machine

Merry Christmas Mouse

A cute little card for you this Thursday afternoon that came together in a snap.

The mouse and sentiment are both stamps from Stampendous. I used Copic markers to color the mouse and outline his little tree. I thought a few red crystal stickers would be a perfect addition to his tree.

I think this guy will be perfect for the Moxie Fab World Blog All Creatures Great and Small Challenge! I hope you are well today - have you made your list and checked it twice? I finally finished my shopping today during my lunch break, thank goodness. I can't handle those crowds!

Have a super night - here in the 'Burgh I'll be cozying up on the couch to watch the Pens play!

#Anya

Recipe:
Stamps: Max Tree, Merry Brackets - Stampendous; Woodgrain - All Night Media
Cardstock: Wild Wasabi, Real Red - Stampin' Up!; White - Papertrey Ink
Ink: Riding Hood Red, Wild Wasabi - Stampin' Up!; Tuxedo Black Memento - Tsukineko
Other: Assorted markers, Spica glitter pens - Copic; Red crystal stickers - Recollections; pinking shears

Completed By Your Love

Thank you all for the Anniversary wishes - it was a nice day.

I wanted to share some of the things I've been working on recently. Still so much to do, but staying busy keeps me out of trouble, right?

This is the card I made for my hubby (whose name is Bill, by the way, for easier future reference :) for our Anniversary.

I started by making a piece of patterned paper with the plaid stamp from Off Beat Backgrounds. I used Bravo Burgundy and Spring Moss. The sentiment is from Blessed By You and was exactly what I wanted to say.

We started our gift exchange too! With 11 days of gifts to give, it helps to be creative.

One thing I put together for Bill is this little notebook where we can keep track of our sushi adventures. We are both big fans of the cuisine and love to try different combinations and flavors. In passing conversation, we had talked about how it would be fun to keep track of different things we've tried and liked (or not liked) - and so the Yum Yum sushi notebook was born! The inside pages have places where we can keep track of the basics: when, where, what, etc. and an overall rating.

The black background was stamped with one of the stamps from Background Basics: Diamonds and clear embossed. The sushi pieces were all cut freehand from scraps of paper... I giggled the whole time! I used my Bind-It-All to put it all together. It was great fun, and Bill got a kick out of it. We even used it last night when we went for sushi dinner!

So glad you stopped by today, and I look forward to seeing you tomorrow! Have a great night!

#Anya

Recipe:
Completed By Your Love card:
Stamps: Off Beat Backgrounds, Very Vintage Christmas, Blessed By You - Waltzingmouse Stamps
Cardstock: Scarlet Jewel, Vintage Cream - Papertrey Ink
Ink: Bravo Burgundy - Stampin' Up!; Spring Moss - Papertrey Ink
Other: Medium Heart punch - EK Success; Scarlet Jewel button - Papertrey Ink; Linen thread - Stampin' Up!; pinking shears; sewing machine

Yum Yum Sushi notebook:
Stamps: Taffy Alphabet - Stampin' Up; Background Basics: Diamonds - Papertrey Ink; Woodgrain - All Night Media
Cardstock: Basic Black, Sahara Sand, Wild Wasabi, Blush Blossom - Stampin' Up!; Spring Moss, White - Papertrey Ink
Ink: Sahara Sand - Stampin' Up!
Other: Filigree clear embossing powder - Stewart Superior; Sakura Stardust gelly roll pen - Tsukineko; Bind-It-All - Zutter; Assorted markers - Copic

Serendipity Stamps December Challenge

Good morning everyone!

Today I have two cards for you made for the Serendipity Stamps December Design Team Challenge. We were challenged to make a Valentine's Day and an Easter card. It was fun looking to the holidays ahead!

This card was made using the gorgeous Love Scroll stamp. I embossed mine in gold, cut it out and matted it with a Labels Four Nestabilities die cut. The patterned paper is from Bo Bunny - very romantic!

My Easter card was made using the image and sentiment stamps available in the Easter Flower Corner Cling Set. These stamps are also available separately as the Easter Flower Corner and This Is the Day. I colored the image with Copic markers and highlighted with Spica glitter pens. I love the detail in Serendipity's images, yet they are really easy to color (a great combination in my book!). The cardstock is Blush Blossom and Berry Sorbet - very springy!

Thank you for the stop today, now make sure you visit the other Design Team members!

Amy
Jennifer
Kathie
Lynda
Sue

And don't forget that Serendipity also sponsors a Reader Challenge in conjunction with the DT Challenge. Check out the Serendipity Stamps Blog and Gallery for more information - play along with us and you could win a $20 Serendipity gift certificate!

Have a great one!

#Anya

Recipe:
Love Card:
Stamps: Love Scroll (837G) - Serendipity Stamps
Cardstock: Vintage Cream, Scarlet Jewel - Papertrey Ink
Patterned Paper: Velvet Floral - Bo Bunny
Ink: Antique Linen, Vintage Photo Distress Ink - Ranger
Other: Red crystal stickers - Recollections; Scarlet Jewel Satin Ribbon - Papertrey Ink; Labels 4 Nestabilities - Spellbinders; Corner punch - Marvy Uchida; Gold embossing powder

This Is the Day Card:
Stamps: Easter Flower Corner Cling Set (842QCL) - Serendipity Stamps
Cardstock: White, Berry Sorbet - Papertrey Ink; Blush Blossom - Stampin' Up!
Ink: Tuxedo Black Memento - Tsukineko
Other: Markers, Spica glitter pens - Copic; Scallop border punch - Stampin' Up!

Warm Cozy Snowflakes

I love this snowflake stamp. It makes me think of a warm, cozy sweater every time I see it.

Very simple card today - I stamped the snowflake three times and then filled in some of the empty spaces left on the outside edges. I used my quilter's tracing wheel to create some faux stitching along the top and bottom sides and then matted it on a piece of navy cardstock.

I added some blue rhinestones and the sentiment and called it done. This is going into my Christmas card stash (the ones that I have yet to send out :P)

Thank you all for your comments on my last post. We really enjoyed the Nutcracker - the production here in Pittsburgh has some wonderful references to the City incorporated into it and its great to see the story set 'here'! On Saturday we went out to cut down our tree and we'll put that up tomorrow.

My husband and I celebrate our anniversary tomorrow and despite a difficult, scary, stressful year have decided to carry on our own special Christmas tradition. Since we were married so close to Christmas (which I love) we give each other a gift each day from our anniversary to Christmas. It really is a lot of fun and helps to extend the season! I usually am not one to share too much of my personal life, but you gals really do mean so much to me I feel like your good vibes will help!

On that note, I wish you a wonderful evening and I'll be back tomorrow with the Serendipity Stamps Design Team challenge!

#Anya

Recipe:
Stamps: Santa Was Here, Very Vintage Christmas - Waltzingmouse Stamps
Cardstock: Bashful Blue, Night of Navy - Stampin' Up!; Vintage Cream - Papertrey Ink
Ink: Night of Navy - Stampin' Up!
Other: Blue crystal stickers; quilter's tracing wheel