HCIT!!!!!!!!

How cool is this :-) I love, love, love being part of giveaways.  Especially such an excellent giveaway.  Spellbinders RAWKS, hard core, yo.  Be sure to check out all my fellow DT members blogs (who also rocketh much, yo) to see all the newness coming out at CHA Summer.

Here's the schedule:
June 30: Thinking Inking by Debbie Olson
July 01: Created From Paper by Jennifer Ellefson
July 02: Wickedly Wonderful Creations by Wendy Weixler
July 03: Embellished Dreams by Heidi Blankenship
July 04: Simple Dreams by Ellen Hutson
July 05: Caffeinated Thoughts by Michelle Klomp
July 06: Linda's Works of Heart by Linda Duke
July 07: Mish Mash by Michelle Wooderson
July 08: Inky Heart by Sally Lynn MacDonald
July 09: Cookies for Breakfast by Beth Pingry
July 10: PaperFections by Sharon Harnist
July 11: Today's Creations by Holly Craft
July 12: Donya Schroeder by Donya Schroeder (that'd be here)
July 13: Follow Your Bliss by Trudee Sauer

Wow! now that's a list!  Good luck everyone!

Strawberry Season

Don't you just love strawberry season? I don't think there's anything in the world that so perfectly epitomizes June as strawberries. I'd seen some paper piecing done to look like little petit fours in wrappers, and I thought- "What sheer Genius!" and promptly set about creating my own, only I opted for my favorite seasonal tea time treat- chocolate dipped strawberries in paper crimped circle nestability papers.  I really love Crafty Secrets French Mail stamp, I think the little kewpie postman makes this card look like a delivery straight from your favorite patisserie. Mm, I think I may wander to the farm down the road and buy a few berries from their stand now...

Materials:
MME Wild Asparagus Maroon Floral Paper
Basic Grey LilyKate Posey Paper
Basic Grey Infuse Suffuse Paper
Basic Grey Infuse Stew Paper
Brown Cardstock
Worldwin White VellumPrima Ivory Flower Mix
Fancy Pants Ribbon Crush
Copic R81 Rose Pink
Copic E15 Dark Suntan
Copic R29 Lipstick Red
Paper Crimper
Corner Rounder
Archival Brilliance Graphite Black
Distress Ink Vintage Photo
EK Success Corner Adorner
Foam Dots
Dot ‘n Roller
Stapler
Crafty Secrets French Mail Stamp Set
A*muse Berry Much Stamp
Classic Scallop Circle Nestabilities
Classic Heart Nestabilities
Flower Creations 3 Spellbinders Die (discontinued, I think)
Fall Harvest Spellbinders Die (also discontinued, I think)
Cut a 4.25 by 5.5 out of the pink paper.
Punch each corner with the corner adorner punch.
Cut a 4 by 5.25 out of the floral paper and insert into the pink panel.
Tint the little white flowers with pink marker.
Age the shipping tag with brown ink and then stamp Berry Much and the little postman kewpie in black on it.
Thread 4 inches of dark velvet ribbon through the tag’s hole and staple it in place.
Cut 2 hearts of the same size: one out of the red distressed look paper and one out of brown cardstock.
Cut the top off of the brown heart in a wavy line then attach the bottom to the red heart to create a “chocolate dip”.
Corner round the bottom points of the hearts.
Use Floral Creations 3 to cut two green leaves to attach to the strawberry’s top.
Cut and emboos a pumpkin from the Fall Harvest die out green cardstock, then trim off the pumpkin part and attach the stem on top of the strawberry leaves.
Shade and create seeds on the strawberry using markers.
Cut a medium sized scallop circle out of the pink patterned paper, and a slightly smaller one out of white vellum.
Run the scallops through a paper crimper, then nest them together to create a wrapper for the finished strawberry to sit on.
Mount the strawberry on the scalloped circles using foam dots to create some dimension.
Attach the tag, tiny white flower, and scallop circles to the card panel, then attach the finished panel to the front of your card base.
C’est fine :-)

Romancing of the Card

Ok, Big BAD secret.... I read Romance Novels.  I admit it, and am coming out of the closet, lol.  I just love all those shining knights in armor, all chivalrous.  I suppose it has something to do with all of the fairy stories I cut my teeth on as a kid, you know, the REAL fairy stories, by the Brothers Grimm (they were a bit grim too)  One of my favorites was always Briar Rose.  So here's a sweet romantic card for all those with a soft spot for maidens in distress- little girls, brides, and ladies with secret stashes of paperbacks hidden behind their complete works of Dickens ;-)

Sandcastle Fun Spellbinders Die
Flying Beauties Spellbinders Die
Romance Trim Stampington Stamp
Black Ink Pad
Weathered Wood Distress Ink
18 KT Gold Leaf Krylon Pen
Crackle Accents
Ivory Mulberry Paper
White Vellum
Gray Cardstock
Crafty Secret’s Earthy Paper Designs
Sparkraft Gold Corner Sticker
Perfect Paper Adhesive Matte
A2 Card Base in any color
Cut and emboss sandcastle from gray cardstock. Stencil through the die with black ink. 
Pop the castle out of the die and use the gold leaf pen to color the turret flag.
Cut six small butterflies from the white vellum.  Pop them out and gold leaf their edges.
Cut a 4 1/4” by 5 1/2” panel from the Rose Diamond paper in the Earthy Pad.
Attach four gold corner stickers to each corner of the panel.
Cut a 1” by 5 1/2” panel from the turquoise distressed paper in the same pad.
Using the gray blue ink stamp the word “Romance” on this panel.
Tear a 2” x 5 1/2” panel out of the ivory colored mulberry paper and glue it to the rose diamond paper.
Mount the castle toward the top center of the mulberry, then attach the Romance panel in the center of the mulberry, slightly covering the bottom of the castle.
Bend the wings of the butterflies and glue them around the castle using crackle accents.
Attach the card front to the card base.

Sweet Bebe

Yet another cousin's graduation looms nearer.  I decided to help her aunt out and help her start scrapbooking, many hands make light work and all :-)

Blossom Baby Layout

Materials:
Kaliedoscope Diagonal Stripe Paper
Enfant Rose 7 Gypsies Paper
Nirvana Ultrafine Transparent Art Institute Glitter
Crystal Ultrafine Transparent Art Institute Glitter
Xyron 510
Storybook Cosmo Cricket Cardstock Stickers
Purple Butterfly Creative Impressions Brad
Yellow Glitter Creative Impressions Brads
Herbal Garden Light Prism Cardstock
Magestic Purple Light Prism Cardstock
Floral Creations Spellbinders Die
Doodle Parts Spellbinders Die
Directions:
Using pinking shears or a zig zag blade on your cutter, pink the edges of an 8x10 baby photo.  Attach a sticker and brad to the bottom right corner of the photo, then mount it to a slightly larger panel of light purple cardstock.
Attach that panel to the 8.5x11 sheet of striped paper which in turn is mounted to the 12x12 pink baby words sheet.
Cut and emboss Doodle Parts out of light green cardstock to create vines.  Attach the vines around the upper left corner of the photograph.
Cut a 5 inch square of light purple cardstock, then use the adhesive masking technique to cut it with the Floral Creations die and sugar with white and light blue glitter.
Bend petals for maximum cuteness and then attach artistically to the vines on the layout using glittery yellow brads through the flower centers.