Silver and/or Gold for Paper Players #122

Hello stamping friends and happy Sunday to you! This week at the Paper Players, the lovely LeAnne has given us a glitzy CAS (Clean and Simple) Theme Challenge. Projects have to contain sliver or gold...or glam it up one step further and add silver AND gold. Pull out some shimmer and shine and play along with us this week, won't you?

This was a tough card to get a  photo of, sorry! I used Brushed Silver, Brushed Gold, Silver Glimmer Paper and Whisper White card stock. The ornament (from the Ornament Keepsakes stamp set) and the sentiment (from the Greetings of the Season stamp set) were both heat embossed for added shine. I used the coordinating Ornament Framelit Dies to cut out the ornament and pop it up. The center of the ornament was punched with a 1" circle punch. As a final touch, I popped on a jeweled button to the center of the ornament and then added some bling (not like THAT is shocking to anyone, right?). This is one super shiny card! 

Please join us this week at the Paper Players. The rest of the gals on the Design Team have created some gorgeous projects, so please stop by and say hello. The challenge closes on Friday November 23rd at Noon (PST). Have a HAPPY day! :) 

The Paper Players Design Team

Amy White

Ann Schach

Anne Marie Hile

Dawn Easton

Helen Heil

Jaydee

Jen Arkfeld

LeAnne Pugliese

Nance Leedy

Button Buddies Snowmen for {DD #29}

Hello stamping friends! It's Saturday and time for another fantastic challenge over at Dynamic Duos! This week is "Black Tie" week where we take our fab duo of colors and add a "dessert" option to the mix.  This week we mixed Marina Mist with Basic Black and added a snowman theme to the mix. "Dessert" is optional at Dynamic Duos, so if you want to play along with the colors without showcasing the snowmen, please do! 

I used the layout from the lovely and talented Jennifer Timko over at Freshly Made Sketches for inspiration. Upon further review, I suppose my card has a little extra somethin' somethin' going on at the top of the snowman panel. Shockingly, I got carried away with the Glimmer Paper. I hope it still qualifies, gals. 

I have probably mentioned my love of the Button Buddies stamp set before, so when I saw the snowman theme, I knew these dapper dudes were going to make an appearance. I heat embossed the snowmen and the sentiment for some added detail. After I added the buttons to their bellies, I felt like they needed just a wee bit more and added some rhinestones to their hats and under the (slightly crooked...sorry!) sentiment. The sentiment is from the Snow Much Fun stamp set.

Please stop by and see what the rest of the Design Team have whipped up this week over at Dynamic Duos. We hope you can join us and play along! The challenge closes on Thursday November 22, 2012 at Noon (PST). That is Thanksgiving Day here in the United States...gobble gobble! :) 

The Dynamic Duos Design Team

Allyson Andersen
Christina Barnes

Vicki Burdick

Karen Day

Deanna Dean

Jenny Engelke

Anne Marie Hile

Erna Logtenberg
Bobbie Trost

Amy White

Day of Gratitude for {PP #121}

Hello there stamping friends! Well, better late then never with this post. So sorry! This week at the Paper Players, I am the hostess and I have a fab fall color combo to try out. I love the richness of these colors together and I hope you do too. Please join us!

I also used the layout from Retro Sketches for inspiration on my card. 

This is such a fun sketch...I'm loving those scalloped edges. 

With a few (*wink, wink*) layers, some embossing and the Scallop Border Punch, I got to work. As soon as I decided on these colors, I knew I was going to use the Day of Gratitude stamp set. There is something about the fall season and that stamp set that just fit. Like peanut butter and jelly..like pink and glitter...well, you get the idea. My fussy-cut leaves probably should have been sponged around the edges but I was already late with my card, so I decided to press on. Finaly, I added a couple of pearls because...well, why NOT?!

I hope you will join us this week at the Paper Players! Please stop by and see what the rest of the awesome gals on the Design Team have whipped up with this color trio. 

The Paper Players Design Team

Amy White

Ann Schach

Anne Marie Hile

Dawn Easton

Helen Heil

Jaydee

Jen Arkfeld

LeAnne Pugliese

Nance Leedy

Because I have had a few emails about the shelter dogs, I wanted to post a few photos of some of the awesome pups that have been SAVED over the past week. Although it is tough to visit and photograph some of these babies that do not make it...the success stories make my heart smile! I am so blessed to have had this opportunity, thanks to my amazing friend, Kelly. She is one of the most wonderful people you will ever meet and her passion for these animals is amazing. 

This gorgeous Boxer girl was rescued and I am so happy. She recently had a litter of pups and desperately needed a break. 

 Here is Bruno! Look at those eyes! Such a loving boy! 

Finally, this is Reggie! I didn't post the photos that show how starved he is. They are pretty graphic. Let's just say this guy stands above my waist and is probably half of the weight he should be.  He is such an amazing boy, so full of love despite everything he has gone through. This dude had my heart and I wasn't going to be content until he was saved. Thankfully the S.A. Humane Society stepped up for him. I just love this pup! 

Merry Gingerbread Christmas for Dynamic Duos #28

Hello there stampers! I am finally posting my card for this week's Dynamic Duos challenge. I am running about a day behind after a really busy week. As soon as I saw the subtle duo of Cherry Cobbler and Sahara Sand, I was immediately inspired to create a holiday card. Sahara Sand is one of those colors I rarely use. It is like Crumb Cake's pale cousin who needs to spend a little time in the sun. ;)

I paired up the colors with this month's sketch over at I (Heart) to Stamp. I love layers (which is not shocking news, I know) and this is such a cool layout to showcase them. 

I don't know about you but whenever I see gingerbread man, I always crack a smile thinking about that little gingerbread dude from the Shrek movies. Remember him? "Nooo, not my gumdrop buttons!"

That was why I HAD to add some pearls to dress my little guy up a bit. He is also heat embossed with a mixture of Cherry Cobbler Embossing Powder and Gingerbread Scented Embossing powder. The patterned papers are both from the Festival of Prints DSP pad.

Please stop by and visit us at the Dynamic Dous blog! We would love to see your creations with this week's color combo. The rest of the gals on the Design Team have created some gorgeous cards for inspiration. 

Allyson Andersen
Christina Barnes

Vicki Burdick

Karen Day

Deanna Dean

Jenny Engelke

Anne Marie Hile

Erna Logtenberg
Bobbie Trost

Amy White

Perfectly Preserved Thanks for Paper Players #120

Howdy stamping friends! I am so sorry for popping in late with my card for the Paper Players this week. Ever have one of those weeks where you feel like you are running to catch up with yourself? That was the kind of week I have had. Blah! But it is Sunday and time to move forward. So let's get to it, shall we? This week, the awesome Ann Schach is our "hostess with the most-est" and she has a fabulous theme challenge to play along with: "Give Thanks". there are a lot of ways to play this challenge, so we hope you will join us and show off your creativity.

I knew I wanted to use the Perfectly Preserved stamp set for my card, but for some reason I seemed to have "lost" it in my stamp studio. It's pretty bad when you have to spend 45 minutes looking for the set you want to use only to find it UNDER something on your desk. Ugh!! So, after locating the stamp set in question, I created my card using Cindy Hall's fabulous sketch from Freshly Made Sketches as inspiration. Love, love, LOVE this layout!!

I popped up almost every layer on my card. I love texture and dimension. After I got the card together, I realized I didn't plan on where to place a the sentiment. The little oval sentiment in this stamp set along with the coordinating punch are too fun! So cute and little...I love it!

I sure hope you will join us this week at the Paper Players! The challenge is open until Friday, November 9th at Noon (PDT). Be sure to stop by and visit the rest of the gals on the Design Team to say hello and check out their thankful creations: 

The Paper Players Design Team

Ann Schach

Anne Marie Hile (you are here)

Amy White

Dawn Easton

Helen Heil

Jaydee

Jen Arkfield

LeAnne Pugliese

Nance Leedy

Before I go, here is a quick shot of little Abby (our rescue kitten) and her big brother Tomas. She is in this phase right now where she is trying to be a "big girl"..so sassy and independent. We just love her! :) 

Paper Players #119 - Nance's Sketch

Hello there, stamping friends! It's Sunday and time for another fun challenge at the Paper Players! This week, Nance is our hostess, with a fun sketch to try out.

For my card, I decided to get creative with the Bandstand Simply Scrappin' Kit. I'm kind of hooked on chevrons right now, so this paper really inspired me. I used two of the patterns from the kit, along with the Chevron Embossing Folder for some added texture. The Pinking Heart Border Punch added to the theme. 

One of my favorite stamp sets is the Button Buddies set. It has been a little while since I used this set and was happy to ink it up again. I dressed up the "cherries" with some Cherry Cobbler buttons. I do not like "naked " buttons, so these were dressed up with Cherry Cobbler Baker's Twine. This card really has a lot of dimension with the popped-up elements and the accents. The sentiment is from a retired set called "Goody Goody Gumdrops". I never get rid of my sentiment sets...they ALWAYS come in handy. 

I hope you will join us this week at the Paper Players to play along with Nance's awesome sketch. The challenge closes Friday, November 2nd at Noon (PDT). Please stop by and check out what the rest of the Design Team have created this week for inspiration: 

The Paper Players Design Team

Jen Arkfeld
Dawn Easton
Helen Heil  

Anne Marie Hile

Jaydee

Nance Leedy

LeAnne Pugliese

Ann Schach

Amy White

A few of you have asked about how things have been going with the shelter dogs. This past Thursday, I was incredibly honored to have the opportunity to snap some photos of the amazing dogs at a shelter here in San Antonio. One of my favorite photos is the shot below. I am happy to report that this super-sweet guy was actually ADOPTED yesterday. "Chester" is headed to Austin, TX with his new fur-ever family! Whoo Hoo!!! Unfortunately, not all of the pups were saved this week...but I am optimistic that these babies will have a chance, with continued efforts. Thank you for letting me share them with you on my blog. :) 

Lovely as a Tree for Dynamic Duos #26

Hello there and Happy Saturday to you! It finally feels like Fall here in South Texas. We had a cold front come in Thursday night and I loved that I was able to bust out my sweaters. This week at Dynamic Duos, we are featuring a fab yellow monochromatic color combo to try out.

I decided to use the Lovely as a Tree stamp set for my card. I needed a thank you card for a friend and that was my plan with the challenge colors. I stamped the main image on Glossy White card stock in VersaMark ink. Then, I heat embossed the tree with Early Espresso Embossing Powder. I ran my Brayer through the So Saffron Classic Ink Pad and then over the image...then I did the same with the More Mustard Classic Ink Pad to deepen the colors. I was thinking the end resut would look a little different but I kind of like the little pops of white around the trees.

I stamped the background with the Woodgrain stamp and sponged all the edges of the card with More Mustard Classic Ink. The sentiment (from the Curly Cute stamp set) was also heat embossed as well. It'

Here is a quick shot of the inside of the card using a sentiment from the Occasional Quotes (ret.) set:

I hope you will join us over at Dynamic Duos this week and play along. This is also the last week that current Design Team and Guest Designers will be with us. Please stop by and say hello to these amazing gals and see what they have created with the color combo. 

The Dynamic Duos Design Team

Allisa Chilton

Allyson Anderson (GD)

Anne Marie Hile

Anika Lerche

Karen Aicken (GD)

Kim Singdahlsen

Lesley Croghan

Lisa Elton

Michelle Bala (GD)

Melissa Chipperfield

Paige Grabau

Sue Joyce

Snow Swirled Frames for Paper Players #118

Hello stamping friends! Wow...I'm so sorry for my unexpected blogging break. I did not intend to be on "hiatus" for the past two weeks. I have just had a lot going on and have not been able to spend ANY time in my stamp studio. I apologize for the lack of creative posts and blog visits. I hope to be back on track this week, for sure. :) 

It's Sunday so it is time for another challenge at the Paper Players! I am hosting this week with a CAS (clean and simple) themed challenge. What is the theme? Glad you asked. It's all about FRAMES. There are a lot of ways to be creative with frames, so I hope you will join us with your creation. 

My card was super-easy to create. I focused on the Labels Collection Framelits dies and used the Snow Swirled stamp set. I LOVE this stamp set. I have inked it up too many times to count This card is just a wee bit bigger then a standard 4- 1/4" x 5- 1/2" card. It's just between 4- 1/4" and 4- 1/2" to accommodate the die cut frame. (I'm sorry, I'm not an "exact" measurement kind of gal, I just eyeball it a lot of the time.) It still fits in a standard envelope though...I tested it out.

I popped up the layers for some added dimension. The base of the card (in Early Espresso) was embossed with the Stripes Embossing Folder. I heat embossed the stamped image and sentiment in Cherry Cobbler Embossing Powder. I tied a simple knot of Cherry Cobbler 3- 1/2" Scalloped Tulle Ribbon on the top for an added pop. That stuff is awesome! Then there is the sparklie goodness with the Glimmer Paper and bling. Hopefully, it doesn't seem like a lot of detail...it really came together rather quickly.

A quick shot of the inside of the card: 

Please join us over at the Paper Players and get "FRAMED" this week! 

The challenge is open through Friday, October 26th at midnight (PDT). 

Stop by and visit the rest of the Design Team to say hello: 

The Paper Players Design Team

Jen Arkfeld
Dawn Easton
Helen Heil  

Anne Marie Hile

Jaydee

Nance Leedy

LeAnne Pugliese

Ann Schach

Amy White

Because I have had a few people ask, I wanted to share a recent photo of Ms. Abby, our kitten. I am happy to report that she has finally reached her 2 pound milestone and that is exciting because that means she can be spayed...and we can then "officially" adopt her. Yes, you read that right...Abby has stolen our hearts and is staying. Hooray! 

Stampin' Up! Supply List

Stamps: Snow Swirled and Teeny Tiny Wishes

Paper: Be of Good Cheer DSP, Champagne Glimmer Paper, Early Espresso, Cherry Cobbler and Very Vanilla card stock

Ink: Versamark and Cherry Cobbler Classic ink

Punches: Word Window and Modern Label punches

Accessories: Stripes Embossing Folder, Labels Collection Framelits, Cherry Cobbler Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Cherry Cobbler 3- 1/2" Cherry Cobbler Tulle Ribbon, Basic Rhinestones and Stampin' Dimensionals