Bubble Bin

No card today....just too busy. I wanted to share the great sale that is going on over at My Favorite Things though. Each week they put something new in the Bubble Bin. They have some sets that are pretty inexpensive. Go here to check out the bin. I hope to be back tomorrow with FOUR cards to share for the Verve Release party. Crossing my fingers:)

WIGW...Another Black and White

Before I forget I want to let you all know that you can go HERE for details on the Verve release party. You can also get the details to enter the contest to win FREE Verve Stamps! I really hope I get to stamp over the next 2 days so I can have a chance.

My card today is for my WIGW card. I made it a few weeks ago and have just never posted it.


This card is a long and skinny one:) I've been having fun with those lately. It uses the SU Curly Label punch in the background with some faux stitching. I also added a center to the flowers by punching out a small black circle and then adding white dots to it. I had a really hard time with my ribbon on this one. I finally settled on combining several ribbons. Still not sure if I like it.

Here are the details:
Stamps: Little Layers Plus (retired hostess)
Ink: Versamark
Other: Prismacolor pencils, baby oil, black EP, various ribbon, corner rounder, black marker, stickles, Signo white gel pen, paper piercer, swiss dot EF, cuttlebug, hole punch, dimensionals.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope the sun is shining where you are. We have had rain. We are going to do a "sun dance" like the Indians used to do for rain so my son can have ball practice tonight. Wish us luck!

Brads, Buttons, No Stamping....OH MY!

Happy Monday! I really wish that the Monday after Easter was an observed holiday. I just think everyone should have that day to rest from all the Easter festivities. I hope you all enjoyed your day! We had some fun here. I'll show pictures at the end of my post for those that would like to look.

If you didn't get a chance to check out the Stamptacular Sunday Challenge you have all week to participate. So make sure you check it out.

My card for today is for the Weekend Sketch Challenge that Beate does each week. I loved the simplicity of the sketch that you can view on Laurie's blog HERE.


This card has NO stampin whatsoever. I felt like my rub ons have been very neglected, so I used them instead of a stamp. I love the color combo of pink and kraft. Very simple card to do and I used some leftover pieces from other cards that didn't work out. LOVE THAT!

Recipe: Paper: Retired SU DP, White, Kraft Other: Flowers from Joann's, Making Memories brad, various ribbon by Offray (walmart), Buttons from the Paper Studio, Scallop Edge punch, MS Lace border punch, embroidery floss, A Perfect Day rub ons (SU), glue dots, paper piercer, Inksentials white gelpen

UPDATED: I have been wanting to share this story for a few weeks now and keep forgetting. Since it's an "egg story" this is the perfect place to share.

When my mom moved in with us we had this conversation:

Me: "Hey Mom, we buy farm fresh eggs. So sometimes you may find an egg that has a little bit of dirt on it, ok?"

Mom: "Uh, Nikki, I don't think that's dirt."

Me: "Uh, what, huh? OOHHH(lightbulb!).....EEWWWWW!!!"

Sometimes "IGNORANCE REALLY IS BLISS:)"


Now onto the Easter pictures:

Easter Egg coloring made my kids a bit crazy this year

And the craziness just continued on into Easter Day:)

The great news is that they got along better than they have in about 3 weeks. Spring Break was really good at rejuvenating all of us.

This is a picture of a boy who wants to be just like his dad. They have relatively matching FD sweatshirts. Dalton followed his dad around all day...helping to cut grass and then blow the grass clippings off the driveway. We did get a chance to play a little bball when all the yard work was done.

Hope you have a fun day!

Something to Share

I read a story last year around Easter on Julie Buhler's blog HERE. It was something that I have always remembered reading. Something that made me think about Easter in a different way. I hope you take a minute to read the story I am so happy she shared one year ago. It is a great reminder.

Happy Easter!

I hope you all have a very BLESSED Easter today!

Don't worry if you can't participate in our challenge today over at the STAMPTACULAR SUNDAY CHALLENGE blog. You have all week to make something and link it using Mr. Linksy. The challenge today is to make a card with a BIRD on it.

Remember how I said there would be a lot of black on my blog over the next little bit? So it begins:)

Here is my sample:I added a few details to my card that you may not notice if you don't look closely. Each of the flowers has a teeny, tiny black rhinestone that I got from Taylor's store HERE. Ohhh, she's having a special deal right now! Go check it out! I really love these little things. They can add the perfect touch to a card. I also added detail to the black embossed bird by outlining some of the flowers with a Signo white gel pen. The last little detail is on the black cardstock at the bottom. I scored every half inch on a diagonal using my fiskar's cutter (using the scoring blade) to create the diamond pattern. The top scallop was created using my SU corner rounder punch.

Here is a close up of the details:


Here are the deets: Stamps: Always, Thoughts and Prayers (SU) Ink: Versamark, Black Brilliance Paper: Whispter White, Basic Black, Basic Gray Other: Oval Nestabilities (classic and scallop), corner rounder, cuttlebug, Signo Gel Pen, Tiny Twinkles Rhinestones, Black EP, Grey taffetta ribbon, dimensionals

I have one last tip. I really like the Thoughts and Prayers set from SU. However, it is a double mounted set and I'm not so fond of that. So, my solution???


I have designated this acrylic block for my tack and peel. I left the paper on the back of each foam cushioned stamp and I simply adhere, stamp and then peel the stamp off. They all lay loose in my box. I'm becoming quite the fan of acrylic blocks. Hope this is helpful to someone else. The other solution is to buy more blocks. For me this was a cheaper solution that could be used for other sets as well.



Now, don't forget to check out all the great samples the girls on the design team have made. Their blogs are conveniently located on the left side of my blog. Leave em a little love too, ok? Hope you can play along with us! I love to check out everyone else's work....there's great inspiration out there:)

Have a very blessed day and thanks for checking in!

Simple Card SATURDAY

Good Morning! What a beautiful Easter Weekend we are going to have! Nothing much planned at the Schmaltz Family Home. We will go to church and then have a relaxing day of just being together. Hopefully we can play a little ball so my son can try out his new bat and glove:)

If you remember I have been trying to do a really simple card once a month. I usually do these on Sunday, but SUNDAY is the STAMPTACULAR SUNDAY CHALLENGE now. Even though most of you may have plans for tomorrow, I hope that you can "hop" in to see what all the girls on the design team have conjured up for the challenge. No worries if you can't. You have until next Saturday to come up with your own creation and link it to the blog. I hope you join us and play along!

This card uses some of my leftover Sweet Slumber Party DP that I used on my Mojo card this week. This paper is very thick and textured. It's fun to play with. I have to tell you though that the first time I cut it I feel a little nervous. Do you ever get like that when using special paper? Maybe what's so intimidating is that it's called "SPECIALTY Paper?" But I have now used one whole piece. Patting myself on the back:) This is a really simple card given a bit of pop with brads and dimensionals.

Stamps: Inkadinkado, Verve's Jeremiah 29:11
Ink: Soft Sky, Basic Brown,
Paper: Sweet Slumber Party, Vanilla, Soft Sky, DCWV Text. Off White (base)
Other: dimensionals, vintage brads


See ya tomorrow for the challenge!

Pacific Butterfly

I can't believe it! I have TWO posts today. I wasn't planning that. I checked Kristina's blog after posting this morning and she had the color inspiration posted. This was one of the quickest cards I have done in a while. I think it only took me about 20 minutes and that's because I had a hard time getting the little leaves to pop out once I die cut them....grrr. Pacific Point is one of my least favorite cardstocks, but I really like the ink. Yeah, figure that one out?! So here is my quickie card.I must say that the new set called GREAT FRIEND in the new SU mini is a "must have" set. Very fun and not very expensive. I added tiny Kaiser pearls that I got from Taylor's store to the middle of the iridescent ice embossed butterfly. I think I've mentioned before that Iridescent Ice is also a "must have." Email me if you'd like to order any, ok? I also wanted you to know that you will be seeing a lot of BLACK on my blog in the coming weeks. No worries, I haven't gone "Gothic" or anything. I just really like the POP that black can give to a card or even simple elegance. Remember when brown was the new black? Well, BLACK is BACK Baby!

Deets:
Stamps: Great Friend
Ink: Pacific Point, Versamark, Rose Red
Paper: Textured SU Black, Kiwi Kiss, Whisper White
Other: Cuttlebug, SU Sizzlets Lots of Tags and Little Leaves, Iridescent Ice EP, Kaiser Pearls, SU Grosgrain 5/8" ribbon, Vintage brads, dimensionals, MS glue pen

Hugs!