Crossing the Rainbow Bridge

I have a dear friend who refers to the passing of a beloved pet as their "crossing of the rainbow bridge".  Now I don't know if that is true but I'd like to think that it is. Especially since I just lost a sweet little pup who has held my heart for the last 12 years. My sweet Bruno was a dear little formerly homeless dog who found me on the street one day and I couldn't help but take him home and do my best to fill his life with love. He returned the favor by being a sweet little companion who was perfect until he breathed his last.
Losing my little buddy gave me some inspiration to do a tag for Tag Tuesday,  the theme is a scrapbook style tag using a photo.

I have also done my very first all paper and real photo scrapbook layout inspired by my little pack of ruffians. I made it with the help of a new friend who gave me some wonderful advice and a lovely sketch to work with. We will both be posting our pages soon so make sure you come back for this "Nancy's First Scrapbook Page" unveiling.

Even though my tag today is a more lighthearted interpretation of heaven, I do believe in heaven and I do believe we will be meeting God face to face one day. Greg Laurie's devotion for today is a wonderful look at Romans 8:26-29, putting into perspective our daily struggles and hope for the future. I would encourage you to check it out, even if devotions aren't really your interest. Truth sometimes can sneak up on you, and bless your heart. After you read Greg's devotion please come back and leave me your thoughts, I'd love to hear what you think!
Blessings,
nancy

Stamps: Hero Arts-K5209 Butterfly Garden, S5317 Starburst Lace (on ticket). Penny Black-2025M Music Background.
Inks: Distress Inks- Mustard Seed, Broken China, Blue Jeans, Tumbled Glass, Wild Honey, Bundled Sage. Ranger Alcohol Ink- Lettuce. Memories- ArtBrown ink.
Copic Sketch Markers: BG45,YG25, Y38
PrismaColor Water Color Pencils
Ranger- Inkssentials Glossy Accents, Stickles- Frosted Lace, Orange Peel.
Tickets- courtesy of Ivy
Tag- Eclectic Paperie
Punch- EK Success
Adhesive-Therm-o-Web, tape runner xl
Ribbon- Michael's Dashes, Dots & Checks collection.

It's August Card Chain Challenge Time!

I'm loving how small the world is becoming because of the friends I've made through the Card Chain Challenges. This month I sent my card to Janet in Mauritius, for those unfamiliar with this island in the Indian Ocean here's a map (I found it on Mapsorama.com) to it's location in the world.....

I had to do some research because I wasn't really sure of this island's location. I have friends who once lived in the Comoros, just off the west coast of Madagascar so seeing Mauritius on a map put it in perspective for me. (I'm kind of a geography geek, I love looking at maps and learning about other places. Funny, but I don't like to travel at all.)
So anyway, where was I? Back to the CCC and the fun of sending cards and making friends all over the world. Not only did I send a card to a faraway place but I received one from the lovely Dawn, who lives in New Zealand. Who'd have thought this little homebody would have such an international group pen pals.
On to the cards without any further ado!
I used the color challenge this time around using this color scheme...

 and made this card to send to Janet:

I used that wonderful Distress ink and water misting technique I first saw on Britta's blog HERE. I layered the hydrangea panel with a vintage image and mounted it all on kraft cs.

And here is the lovely masterpiece I received from Dawn:

Don't you just love how sophisticated this looks and that feather is so excellent! Thanks Dawn for sharing this wonderful card and all the goodies that accompanied it. You are a sweetheart!
And speaking of sweethearts (how do you like that smooth transition...) Deborah at Society of Stamp & Scrap-aholics hosts this fun little global adventure every month, check out her blog to get in on the fun!

Blessings to you!
nancy

You Make My Heart Happy!

Hi all...I had a busy weekend, how about you? I helped sweet Kelly Marie Alvarez on Saturday, she taught a class at Stamp Fever with a lot of young girls. It was so much fun to watch new stampers!
Then yesterday Al and I took the dogs for a walk at the beach. We are quite the sight with our humongous Golden boy, Digby and our teeny tiny little Tia. I thought I'd share some photos of the day...

Taking a water and rest break.....and apparently Digby needed a cuddle too!

Little Tia, she's a happy little dog!

You can clearly see the difference in size between them...oh, and that's me enjoying the ocean breeze.

So when I got home I checked out the Hero Arts Flickr group and found that my sweet friends were doing a wonderful job of CASE-ing my Black and Kraft card.....you have to see their gorgeous work:
Check out THIS one from Lin. Gorgeous use of the Dogwood stamp.
I love how Sheila added accents of green and blue HERE
And Barb totally glamed up the original with a stunning black bow. See it HERE.
I love how Judy gave it some gorgeous color, THIS looks wonderful on kraft.
And to top off my day, my sweet friend Jill featured one of my cards on her blog HERE.

You are all so sweet and you've totally put a smile on my face so I made a card today that shows just how I feel...

I used the new Fabulous Flourish...it really is so FABULOUS! I white embossed it on a background created with Scattered Straw Distress ink. I stamped La Letter in Vintage Photo, then stamped the flower stems from Earth Flowers and the dragonfly from Antique Engravings in Scattered Straw. The panel is layered over a panel of brown Coredinations paper from the Chocolate Box collection (I've been hoarding these papers for a while). The yellow on the back perfectly matched the Scattered Straw ink. I distressed all the edges to bring the yellow core out and then added the sentiment strip. It has the Fabulous Flourish stamped in Scattered Straw and the sentiment stamped in Memories ArtPrint Brown. Hero Hues Earth Mixed Accents finish it off.

Psalm 143:1 ~" Hear my prayer, O Lord; listen to my plea! Answer me because You are faithful and righteous."  ~ Thankfully, answered prayer does not depend on my faithfulness or righteousness.
Blessings to you...thank you for blessings you are to me!
nancy

Stamps: Hero Arts- S5449 Fabulous Flourish, K5344 La Letter, CL383 Antique Engravings, CL428 Earth Flowers.CL129 Anytime Messages.
Ink: Ranger Distress Inks- Scattered Straw, Vintage Photo. Versamark Watermark Ink. Memories ArtPrint Brown ink.
Paper: Core'dinations The Chocolate Box collection.
Hero Hues Earth Mixed Accents.
White Embossing Powder.

Another CASE Study Card....

I had so much fun with the very first CASE Study Challenge and was even selected for the Top 3, so I had to play again with Challenge 2. Check the link to see the wonderful inspiration card by Makiko Jones.
I think I'm going to need to set up my card a bit...it's a little out of my usual.
So I got THIS Hero Arts Clear Set...

The stamp of the stylish career woman in the middle reminded me of Renee Zellweger in the movie "Down With Love". She played a very independent woman in the 60s when independence in women was not so embraced. She also was very misguided in her own philosophy, but that's a discussion for another time. I decided to do a little homage to my sister (yet again) who is the closest thing to a career woman I know. She's the Vice-President of a large national home builder. She worked very hard to succeed in a man's industry, while raising her son alone after her husband died. Needless to say I'm very proud of her and look up to her.
She didn't start out as a secretary as depicted in my card, she started out writing environmental impact reports and coloring plans......

I was actually the one who was a secretary (among many other things). I could make a great cup of coffee, served to the company president in his favorite china cup. (Oh I really hated that!) I was not cut out to be a secretary, and I had no desire to be a business woman either. For the card, I went for a fun feminine look and combined the Hero Arts stamps with some from Lawn Fawn. This was my first attempt using Nancy Taylor's coloring technique found HERE; I colored the typewriter and telephone. I paper-pieced the stylish 60s suit.

Hebrews 10:22 ~ "Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith....."

Blessings to you!
nancy

Stamps: Hero Arts-Cl452 Sew Stylish. Lawn Fawn-Just My Type. 
Ink-Memento Tuxedo Black, Ranger Distress Ink-Worn Lipstick, Spun Sugar. 
Paper: Neenah Solar White, Cosmo Cricket-DeLovely.
Spellbinders Nestabilities-Labels 8, Classic Scalloped Circles large.
Cuttlebug- Swiss Dot Embossing Folder
Copic Markers, Prisma Watercolor Pencils
Ranger Glossy Accents (on telephone and typewriter)
Random ribbon and gems.

Thinking of You Cards

I just realized I posted these to Flickr but didn't post them to my blog so here's just a quick share.....

All three are made using Hero Arts stamps for their August Challenge of "Keeping in Touch".

I saw a card on the web today that was the spitting image of the above card...my first thought was, "Hey, that's mine!" It didn't include an "inspired by" disclaimer and I wanted to say something, but thought better of it. I really admire this lady and believe her card making abilities to be superior to mine.
While making this card I really agonized over it...it was the one to be featured on the Hero Arts blog and I wanted nothing short of perfection. The first two cards above were my initial attempts, and although I really like how they turned out I didn't think they had the Wow factor that the Kraft and Black on White one has.
So anyway today I'm learning a lesson in humility and realizing that once I put something out there, it's no longer mine.

Here's my verse for today: Romans 12:2 ~ "Be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will God."
Blessings to you,
nancy

All Stamps by Hero Arts
Card 1: Stamps- CG172 Garden Bouquet, K5333 Rectangle Doily, S4878 Old Letter Writing, CL129 Anytime Messages. PTI Kraft cardstock. Hero Hues and Distress Inks, Memories ArtBrown ink. Prismacolor Pencils. Doodlebug Lace Trim. Spellbinders Labels 8. This Jute Twine. Marvy Circle Punch.
Card 2: Stamps- CG172 Garden Bouquet, K5333 Rectangle Doily, S4878 Old Letter Writing, CG125 Friend Definition, CL342 Everyday Sayings. Distress Ink-Scattered Straw, Worn Lipstick. Prismacolor Pencils. Mememto Tuxedo Black ink. Flocked Flower trim from Sue Czosek. Spellbinders Labels 8.
Card 3: Stamps- CG172 Garden Bouquet, K5344 La Letter, CL383 Antique Engravings, CL371 Essential Messages. PTI Kraft cardstock. Versamark Watercolor ink. Stampendous Midnight Black Embossing Powder. Memento Tuxedo Black Ink. Ribbon from Stamp Fever.

ATC Swap Photos and A Personalized Wedding Invitation

I finally got my photos uploaded and edited from Sunday's Grand Opening event- the ATC swap. We had a whole crowd of artsy types at Stamp Fever, here's a look at some of the fun.....

Happy Stampers, Kathy and Mary

This table is a stamper's paradise, look how intently everyone is working.....

more happy stampers!.....

you can't have a party without refreshments.....mmmm lemon cupcakes!.....

That's me hanging out with sweet and talented Sylvia.

Well somehow in the midst of getting ready for the Grand Opening and being under the weather for the last week, I managed to help a friend and her soon-to-be daughter in law customize some store-bought wedding invitations. They have some really lovely designs at Michael's and with just the right Hero Arts stamps you can personalize them really nicely. For this I used the Stencil Art clear set and stamped it with Rusty Hinge Distress Ink.

I love this passage of scripture.....James 1:16-18 ~ "Don't be misled dear brothers and sisters. Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes. He chose to give us life by giving us His True Word. And we out of all creation became His prized possession!"
Blessings,
nancy

Announcing the Winner of the Stamp Fever Blog Candy!

I compiled the list of all of you who entered to win the Hero Arts $25.00 Gift Certificate Blog Candy, then I checked it twice to make sure I didn't miss anyone. Then since I wasn't ready to do the drawing yesterday at the store, I did a very "scientific" random number pick. I made a phone call to Stamp Fever and had Linda ask a random customer in the store to do a "pick a number between". So from my listing of the entries and the randomly chosen number of SEVEN. The winner is:

Anne, of Anne's Cabin Creations

Congratulations Anne! I've contacted you via Flickrmail with all the specifics.
Thanks to all of  you who spread the word about Stamp Fever, you are all very much appreciated!
I'll be back with a regular post later this evening when I have all my photos uploaded and ready to share.
blessings,
nancy

Fun at Stamp Fever!

Well yesterday was a whirlwind day at Stamp Fever and I'm getting ready to go back for some more fun today!
Check out the Stamp Fever Blog for some photos of the fun and fabulous people who came out to celebrate our Grand Opening!
Here's just a sampling of the fun:

Me with my Hero Arts Flickr group buddies Tiffany and Ivy. We are posing in front of the new Hero Arts Holiday products which we couldn't keep on the shelves. They were very popular!

Cupcakes....it's not a party without cupcakes!

A few of my favorite people...Kathy, Tiffany and Margie enjoying the munchies and the fun atmosphere!

One of the signs decorating the bathroom....wear your reading glasses when visiting the loo at Stamp Fever.

I will have more to share tomorrow, going back for the ATC swap and I've got more cupcakes to frost!

Philippians 4:4 ~ "Always be full of joy in the Lord, I say it again-Rejoice!"

bless you,

nancy

It's the BIG Day!

Today is the Grand Opening celebration at Stamp Fever! I'm on my way but I had to do a post first to thank you all who have helped make this a really happy day! Thank you to everyone who has posted our Blog Candy and left such sweet comments. Stamp Fever is striving to be THE place for stampers and your support will get us there.
I woke up this morning with some ideas for cards using the brand new Holiday stamps from Hero Arts. I'm taking them to the store to display but here's my sneak peak for all my favorite blog buddies....

 This one uses the brand new Decorated Tree wood mount stamp, I love it! It's colored with Copics. I added last year's Holly Flourish Border stamped in Hero Hues Snow Chalk ink. The sentiment is from CHF.

I love this new Cling stamp called "Starry Night". First I stamped the sentiment from Penny Black with Versamark and clear embossed it. Then I stamped Starry Night with Chipped Sapphire Distress Ink. I finished by blending Stormy Sky distress ink over the image to bring out the trees and the character of the sky. A few felt snowflakes and the Holly Flourish Design Block stamped with Versamark and there you have it.

I'm remembering that cold evening in February when Linda Foley (Stamp Fever's manager) and I sat in the parking lot of the Eldorado Plaza and prayed that God would allow Stamp Fever to move to the unit we had just looked at. It took lots more prayer and reminding each other that God was in control and He worked it out. This weekend is the culmination of prayer, faith and not a little hard work. Praise to God and thanks to our wonderful fellow stampers!
Romans 8:28 ~ "We know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose."
Blessings to you all!
nancy

Another Color Challenge at Play Date Cafe.....and a New Challenge

As always I was completely inspired by the wonderful Lin at Sending Hugs. You can't visit her blog without being so blessed by her creative genius. Well I was completely stumped by the Play Date Cafe Challenge #42 colors this week, but after my visit to Lin's blog I started looking at the colors a bit differently. And following her lead, I'm joining the inaugural challenge of CASE Study also. As a fan of the wonderful Carole Kisch, who just happens to be on the Design Team, I had to give it a try.
 So here's the PDCC color inspiration.........

and here's my interpretation of them.......

I guess I was inspired by the camels to depict a mode of transportation, one better suited to the neighborhood where I live. I really do like this color scheme with a green that has a bit more life to it. These papers from the Que Sera collection by K&Company really helped to find the right shades to use. As for the CASE Study challenge, I think this is a loose take on the inspiration. I had some fun with the ruffled paper instead of a ribbon bow. Anyway there you have it, I'll be looking to both of these wonderful challenge blogs for inspiration in the coming weeks and months. Thanks to the designers at both Play Date Cafe and CASE Study for keeping the challenges and creativity coming! And a special thanks to my friend Lin and her amazing talent!

Here is my paraphrase of James 5:8 "Be patient (as a farmer patiently waits for his crops to grow). Establish your heart- be brave and courageous. Work to further God's kingdom (be an asset in spreading the gospel) for Christ is coming back soon (live with this certainty as my hope for the future).
Blessings!
nancy

Stamps: Hero Arts-F5293 Bicycle, CG118 Stripes Pattern, CL151 Share Laughter (sentiment).
Ink: Memories ArtPrint Brown, Ranger Distress Vintage Photo.
Spellbinders Nestabilities Dies: Standard Circles Large, Labels Three.
Paper: K&Company Que Sera Collection, Cardstock-Cream from Michael's, Kraft card base-PTI.
Gems: Recollections from Michael's.
Scrapbook Adhesives 3D Foam Squares, regular size

Brave Girl ATCs

I found this set of stamps by Melody Ross at Unity Stamps. It's called Brave Girl and I just love the inspiring message. I tend to be a shrinking violet and a bit fearful at times so this message really encourages me.
We are having an ATC swap at Stamp Fever on Sunday so I used this set to make a collection of ATCs.

I used a bunch of Hero Arts stamps to make the backgrounds. I found a really great technique using Distress Inks HERE. I added Perfect Pearls to the misting water.

Here's a few close ups of some of favorites:

For this one I stamped HA "A Village" with Vintage Photo Distress Ink (I inked the stamp with Versamark 1st so I could clear emboss it). Then after embossing I blending over the image with Spun Sugar and Tumbled Glass Distress Inks.

This background uses Worn Lipstick, Mustard Seed and Wild Honey Distress Inks. I used the HA Starburst Lace spritzed with the pearlized water to make that great background detail! I love it! HA La Letter finishes the background.

All the rest of the ATCs have the same background: Victorian Velvet and Wild Honey Distress Inks, over stamped with the Starburst Lace using the distress inks and pearlized water. I also used the Silhouette Grass stamped with Wild Honey. The Brave Girl Stamps were all stamped with Memories ArtBrown Ink. I added the small flower from the Speckled Ornaments set stamped in Victorian Velvet.

Zechariah 4:6 is a good reminder for me and hopefully for you too!
"Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit", says the Lord of Hosts.

Blessings to you!
nancy

Stamps: Hero Arts- K5344 La Letter, S5317 Starburst Lace, S5316 Silhouette Grass, S5432 A Village, CL383 Antique Engravings, CL401 Speckled Ornaments.
Unity Stamp Company-SBC-106 Brave Girl.
Inks: Distress Inks- Victorian Velvet, Spun Sugar, Wild Honey, Mustard Seed, Worn Lipstick, Vintage Photo, Tumbled Glass. Memories Dye Ink ArtPrint Brown. VersaMark Watermark Ink.
Canson 96lb Bristol board for ATC backing. Ranger Perfect Pearls Powder-Perfect Pearl. Ranger Mini Mister. Clear Embossing Powder.