Monochromatic Love Affair...with a Pop of Color!

Hi there! It's the Blog Hogger again, aka Kathy's sister.

This time I have an almost monochromatic card for you. Truthfully, I have a difficult time with that type of cards. I always want to add a "pop of color"!

And every time I say that, I hear a little voice in my head. Congratulations, Wilhelmena, you made an impression on me! lol (It's a long story so suffice it to say, she made a positive impression on my clothing choices!)

Anyway...back to the card. :) I fiddled with it a bit and eventually decided to keep it fairly simple but add a pop of red to it. And here it is:

Here's the details;

• Cardstock: Whisper White
• Stamp set: Sale-A-Bration "You're Lovely"
• Ink: Black Stazon
• Extras: Deco Labels Collection Framelits (p. 186 in the large catalog), Paper Doily Sizzlits L (p. 188 in the large catalog), Watercolor Wonder Designer Washi Tape (p. 22 in the Mini Occasions catalog), Fancy Foil Designer Vellum (p. 23 in the Mini Occasions catalog), Real Red & Pear Pizzazz markers and Pearl Basic Jewels (p. 171 in the large catalog)

Don't forget that you only have until the end of March 31st to get in on Sale-A-Bration, the most fun sale of the year!

Colorful hugs,

Colleen

Washi Tape Special!

Hi everyone! It's the Blog Hogger again coming to you with another card.

This time the card wasn't made by me. Oh no, I took a cue from sweet sister, Kathy, and decided to showcase someone else's card! My friend, Lisa, made a super cute 5 1/2" square card that features the "For the Birds" stamp set and washi tape.

Here it is:

And here are the details;

• Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Calypso Coral, Chocolate Chip & Very Vanilla
• Stamp Set: For the Birds (p. 28 in the big catalog)
• Ink: Early Espresso
• Extras: Epic Day This and That Designer Washi Tape (p. 171), various markers & Dimensionals. Lisa also used an embossing folder that is no longer available, however (and this is one of those times that "however" is good, lol) the Honeycomb Embossing Folder (p. 191) would coordinate beautifully with the washi tape.

Thanking Lisa hugs,
Colleen

Clean, Simple & Quick!

Hi there everyone,

Kathy is doing such a great job of posting pics of her Get Well cards, there is really no reason for me to post at all! And, yet, when has that ever stopped me? lol

Today I just want to showcase an extremely simple card I made last night. It literally would take less than 10 min. to make! Gotta love those ones! :)

Here it is:

And now for the details;

• Cardstock: Whisper White & Pistachio Pudding
• Stamp set: Happy Watercolor (And, yes, both the flower and the "watercolor" background look are stamps!)
• Ink: Black Stazon

And that's literally it, folks! Super quick and easy to make...super quick and easy to post! lol

Quick hugs,

Colleen, aka the Blog Hogger

See Ya Later, Valentine!

Hi there, everybody

It's the Blog Hogger with a new card to showcase. It's a combination of old (but still available) and new product.

I feel guilty but I'm kinda not hating the fact that Kathy had an operation, 'cause I get to play with her new product! Does that make me truly horrible? Hope not! lol

Anyway, here's my latest card, "See Ya Later, Valentine!":

I love, love, love the sentiment on this card! It's from the Sale-A-Bration brochure and it's called "See Ya Later". There are three other sentiments in the set and they're all great!

Unfortunately, the gold cardstock and sentiment doesn't show up well in this picture. Poo! lol

By the way, before I give you the details for making the card, I want to let stampers in the Stephenville area know I will be placing an order within the next week. If you'd like to join in, please give me a call or contact Kathy and she'll pass the info along to me. Remember, it's Sale-A-Bration time and with every $60 you order you can get something free from the Sale-A-Bration brochure. (It's on the top right-hand side on Kathy's blog.)

And now onto the details;

• Cardstock: Whisper White, and Brushed Gold
• Stamp set: See Ya Later (Sale-A-Bration catalog)
• Ink: Versamark (p. 165 in the large catalog) with Gold Embossing Powder (p. 167 in the large catalog)
• Accessories: Gold Baker's Twine (p. 24 in the Celebrate the Everyday catalog), the heart folder from the Adorning Accents Emboss Folder Set (p. 190 in the large catalog), Dimensionals (to pop up the top layer) and some random hearts. You can substitute the Fashionable Hearts Embosslits (p. 188 in the large catalog) or the Small Heart Punch (p. 183 in the large catalog).

And that's it, folks! It's an easy card to replicate but the gold and white combination gives it an elegant punch!

See Ya Later hugs,

Colleen

My Sneaky Sister & a Sneak Peek!

Hi there, everyone!

It's the Blog Hogger here, aka Kathy's sister. My sweet, adorable sister is a sneaky one! See, I've long held the belief that buying the In Color cardstock and ink was a waste of money. (Talk about being blunt, huh? lol) I mean, while the In Colors are nice and all, I wanted to buy something with staying power and they were only the "in" thing for one year.

When Stampin' Up decided to keep the In Colors for two years at a time, I became more interested. However, being stuck in a rut, I still resisted buying them. (Truthfully, I can also be a slightly stubborn person, and I hated to admit Kathy was right! lol)

So...what did my sneaky sister do? She gave me an In Color package for Christmas! Yup, I received all the cardstock and ink pads! And you know what? I really, really like them and in two years...I'll be ready for some nice fresh colors! So I guess the laugh is on me! lol

Needless to say, my card today features two In Colors. However, it also showcases a stamp from the upcoming Sale-A-Bration brochure. (Unexpected side effect from Kathy's recent surgery? I got gifted with new product so I could give you sneak peeks! Yippee!!!)

Sale-A-Bration is on from January 28th to Match 31st and it's Stampin' Up's largest sale of the year!!!

So, here's the card:

Details:

Stamp Set: You're Lovely
Cardstock: Pistachio Pudding, Crisp Cantaloupe & Whisper White
Ink: Black Stazon, Pistachio Pudding, Crisp Cantaloupe
Extras: Basic Black Marker (for the handrawn lines) (p. 145 in the large catalog), Blender Pen (for coloring the flowers & stems) (p. 164), Candy Dots (in the center of the flowers) (p. 171), Deco Labels Collection Framelits (p. 186), Perfect Polka Dots Embossing Folder (p. 191), 3/16" Corner Punch (p. 181)

As you can see, the "You're Lovely" Stamp Set coordinates beautifully with the Deco Labels Collection Framelits, and it's just one of the lovely FREE things you can get for every $60 you spend during Sale-A-Bration! Fun, fun, fun!

Sneaky hugs,
Colleen

Happy Update & The Card That Made Itself!

Hi there, everyone!

It's the Blog Hogger back with an update on Kathy's health. I am so happy (and relieved) to report that Kathy is doing much, much better today! Her fever is coming down (at times it's normal) and her blood pressure is good. They've taken her off pain meds (for muscle spasms in her leg). She's starting to chat with us and was even sitting in the chair in her room while we were visiting today!

She's only getting the pain meds now as needed, rather than constantly, so they expect her to continue to improve quickly. The funniest (strangest?) thing about all this is that her back isn't hurting and she's doing wonderful in that regard! Weird, huh?

Now, on to the card that made itself.

I received a call last week and, while chatting, remembered the person had a birthday quickly getting closer! I scurried into my craft room and started a flurry of choosing cardstock, cutting, stamping and gluing. Instead of my usual tearing out of hair and indecisiveness, everything just seemed to work out perfectly the first time, and before you could shout, "It's a Man Card!", it was done! lol

And here it is:

And here are the details;

• Cardstock: Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla & Crumb Cake 
• Ink: Chocolate Chip (for the sentiment & sponged onto the Crumb Cake layer)
• Accessories: Woodgrain Emboss Folder, Deco Labels Collection Framelits (the two smallest ones), random ribbon and brads

It is literally a 10 min. card! (Gotta love those!)

Stay tuned for some cards made from new product.

Quick and easy...and so very happy hugs,
Colleen

Update and Card!

Hi everyone,

It's the Blog Hogger, aka Kathy's sister here. Kathy asked me to update her blog followers, many of whom are friends, on how she is doing, health-wise.

I'm thrilled to say that, after a postponement due to the electrical outages in our province, she had the surgery on her back yesterday! While she's in a bit of pain today, she is actually very upbeat. That's partly because she is relieved the operation part is over...and partly because she is taking some rather strong meds. lol (I soooo wish I could take some video of her muttering to her granddaughter, who is safely at her Nana's house unaware of Kathy's ramblings. However, she would not be pleased. lol)

Kathy will hopefully be released from the hospital by the weekend so, unless you live in Corner Brook and want to visit her in the hospital, I would suggest sending any cards to her home address.

Needless to say, I have had her Get Well card made for weeks, but haven't been able to post it until now. It's a little unusual for a Get Well card, but I freely admit I'm an unusual kind of person. :)

Anyway, here it is:

I cased this card from paperholiday.blogspot.com but changed a couple of things, of course. (I find it hard to avoid giving my cards the personal touch, even when I case them.)

While the image may seem odd for a Get Well card, the snowman just seemed so happy-go-lucky I knew as soon as I saw it that it would be perfect for Kathy. You see, Kathy, even while in constant pain, is such a cheerful person and I wanted to have something fun for her to look at throughout her lengthy recovery.

Well, that's enough sisterly gushing. lol  Here are the details for making the card;

• Cardstock: Chocolate Chip, Crumb Cake, Pumpkin Pie and Whisper White
• Ink: Marina Mist (sponged around the snowman and the snowbanks), Pumpkin Pie (sponged around the nose), Chocolate Chip (for the sentiment and sponged around the Crumb Cake layer) and Craft Whisper White (snowflakes)

• The snowman is made from punches: His body is made from the 2 1/2", 1 3/8" and 1 3/4" Circle punches. (You could also use the Circles #2 Originals - #114526 or the Circles Collection - #130911.) The nose is one petal from the Five-Petal punch (you could also hand-cut a triangle) and his mouth was made using the 1" Circle punch. (You could draw a mouth if you don't add texture to the body.) His arms are from the Snowflake punch. (Alternately, you could use the leaves from the Bird Builder punch - #117191 or the Little Leaves Sizzlits - #114511.)

• Stamp Sets: Sassy Salutations and Gorgeous Grunge (the "snowflakes" are one of the Gorgeous Grunge stamps using Craft Whisper White ink)
• Extras: Bit of ribbon for the scarf, Dazzling Diamonds around the edges of the snowbanks and snowman and dabbed on some of the falling snowflakes, and the snowman is textured using the Big Shot and a snowflake emboss folder. (You could use the Northern Flurry Emboss Folder - #120902.)

Please stay tuned for further updates...and possibly even some more cards! :)

Cheerful hugs,
Colleen

Happy Mother's Day from the Blog Hogger!

Hi there, everyone!

It's the Blog Hogger back after a long absence. I've recently been thinking about doing another posting but was told that today, since it was Kathy's birthday and Mother's Day, I was to make a posting! NOW!!! (Guess whose delicate voice I still hear echoing in my head . . . and she said it a few hours ago? Go on, guess! lol)

Actually, Kathy asked me to make a posting because I gave her a most fabulous card for her birthday and she wants me to share it with the world . . . or at least her blog followers. :)

Since this was a special birthday, and Kathy is a special sister, I wanted to really step up my game and try something I've never done before. I have one Stampin' Up item in my craft room that I've never used because I'm scared to death of it! What on earth could it be, you ask? Scroll down . . . way down . . . and you'll see what it is!

Yup! I'm deathly afraid of my brayer! How do I use it and not have horrible lines everywhere? I have tentatively tried it a few times and always threw the resulting mess away, frustrated beyond belief!

This time, however, I decided to channel my inner Michelle Zindorf (the Brayer Queen), follow one of her tutorials, and take another shot at it. And guess what?! I did it! I made a gorgeous card! It's even better than Michelle Zindorf's!!!

Now, before you think I'm obnoxious and full of myself, I will freely admit that I'm not! No, really! I am very self-aware and know that I'm not conceited! I am, however, delusional! lol

Not only do I think I did a better job on the card than Michelle Zindorf did, in my head I also think I sing better than Adele! Unfortunately, something happens between my head and my mouth and the resulting sound bears no resemblance whatsoever to Adele's singing! Oh well. They say the first step to improvement is recognizing your issues! lol

Anyway, back to the card. Here it is:

I closely following Michelle Zindorf's Tutorial # 598: http://zindorf.blogs.splitcoaststampers.com/2013/04/18/fly-away-stampin-up-card-tutorial-598/

I used Whisper White, Basic Black and Marina Mist cardstock (cs). The only changes I made from the original are the stamps sets (Elements of Style, Sweet Summer and Secret Garden), the embossing folder and the ribbon. Otherwise I stuck to the tutorial.

This is also a first for me in that it's a 5" x 7" card. I usually go for the standard 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" size. Therefore, I also made my very first envelope (which is the Pumpkin Pie thing the card is standing on). Wow, what a day of firsts for me! lol

I enjoyed making the envelope so much that I made a complimentary one for her gift (a coupon to a local inn). Here's the front of it:

I found another great tutorial on making envelopes at Splitcoaststampers. It shows how to make envelopes of any size. Check it out at: http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/anysizeenvelope/

Hey, I may not have been original today but I've sure been helpful! lol

Helpful hugs,
Colleen, aka the Blog Hogger & Kathy's sister