Welcome to the World...Inspirational Wednesday at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps

It's INSPIRATIONAL WEDNESDAY at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps!

I stamped this adorable image from Welcome To The World in Totally Taupe ink on Arches cold pressed paper and watercoloured the scene. I distressed the edges and inked them with Marvelous Mocha. The sentiment was stamped in Wicked Black ink and I added a few pearls for a finishing touch.

Products used:

Stamp: Welcome To The World

Ink: Totally Taupe, Marvelous Mocha , Wicked Black

If you want to add the Welcome To The World stamp set to your collection,

visit the KKS Shop

and find it at 40% OFF this week!

Thanks for visiting...blessings!

 

Sweet Cheeks :)

Good afternoon! I've got a card to share with you today featuring one of the brand new stamps from The Peekers Collection 2 which is now available for purchase exclusively at SCACD and at Quixotic Paperie for our UK friends. This adorable little girl is appropriately named "Sweet Cheeks Peeker". This is the age that a little "cheek" is still seen as cute...not so much when we're talking about teenagers or adults. :S lol I just adore artist Elisabeth Bell's style and she has done such a fabulous job on this new set of Peekers.

I decided to make a shaped card using my circle Spellbinders as a base. I then cut an additional panel with Spellbinders Lacey Circles to adhere to the front of the card. I used two sheets of design paper from a fantastic SEI pack called A Fair Day. This paper collection features soft pastel designs and some of the papers have a beautiful shimmer...and it's on sale right now for 20% off! (You can check out Susana's entire selection of 6x6 paper pads HERE.) As much as I love to add machine stitching to my cards, I cannot sew around circles...it always turns into a big mess. :( My solution-hand stitching. Yes it is more time consuming, but it's much easier to work around tricky curves and shapes. Before stitching, I left my paper in the Spellbinders die and used a paper piercing tool to make the holes. (I used my Sew Easy foam mat to protect my table.) This helps to keep your stitching in line, but you could always free hand it if you prefer. I didn't worry about the holes being perfectly spaced as I think it kind of adds to the charm of hand stitching. I used white floss and went around the paper with a simple back stitch. I used to do a ton of cross stitching years ago, so I have quite a stash of embroidery floss. However, if you are in the need of some floss, Susana has a wonderful selection of Sew Easy Floss...the colours are fabulous, and they are currently on sale for 20% off! (I absolutely love the bakers twine.) The flower is a Prima Hydrangea (you can find these flowers in Tan and Purple HERE). The button, ribbon and crocheted trim are odds and ends I found in my embellishment bins...although, now I am wishing I had fished around for a green button instead just to tie in with the green skirt and stripe in the paper.


Sweet Cheeks Peeker was stamped on Neenah cardstock with Memento Tuxedo Black Ink and coloured with Copic makers. She was adhered with some foam squares for a bit of dimension.

Colours: Skin: E000, E00, E11, R20 Hair: E50, E30, E31, E33, E37, E59 Clothing: RV000, R81, R83, R85, R89, YG00, G20, G21, G28, C5, C7

The Peekers Collection 2 is now available at SCACD (and at Quixotic Paperie). Oh, and have you seen the newest products to arrive at SCACD??

Authentique 6x6 paper pads (just wait until you see the Halloween pack!!)

New Holiday 6x6 paper pads (Bo Bunny, Authentique)

Holiday Bo Bunny Trinkets

No More Shims Embossing Mat from Scor Pal

New Winter Gorjuss Girls are now in stock!!

Oh, and sit down for this one folks...ready for it???

18 NEW 6x6 PAPER COLLECTIONS FROM MY MIND'S EYE!!!

So after hearing that news, I promptly asked Susana how large her shipping boxes are, lol. She has assured me that she has packages large enough to accommodate all your crafty wishes...so order away my friends!! Honestly, her pricing on 6x6 paper pads is amazing...just make sure to leave a few in stock for me, ok? ;)

Have a wonderful day...and thanks so much for taking the time to stop by for a visit!

Blessings,

Melanie

Stamps: SCACD's The Peeker Collection 2: "Sweet Cheeks Peeker"
Paper: Neenah, Bazzill, SEI
Ink: Memento, Copics
Embellishments: embroidery floss, crocheted trim, ribbon, button
Tools: Spellbinders, Scor Pal, piercing tool, Sew Easy mat

Stripes

Good morning folks! Today is an exciting day over at the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Challenge Blog...please join the Krafty Girls in extending a VERY warm welcome to our April Krafty Guests!!! As most of you know, Kimmie held a contest for a guest designer spot in April. Well, upon receiving such amazing submissions, she decided to have not one, but FIVE guests!! The five lovely ladies joining us as Guest Krafty Girls are:

Amanda, Deborah, Jenny, Krista and Tanjii!

Congrats ladies! A big shout out as well to each and every stamper who entered Kimmie's contest. I know that it was not an easy descision, as EVERYBODY submitted such fantastic work. :)

Ok, our lovely hostess for the first challenge in April is Donna Wardle...I always drool over Donna's work. Not only is her colouring gorgeous, but she has such a fantastic style as well. Donna's challenge is to use "Stripes" on your project.

Well, it just so happens that I had yet to ink up "Stripes The Zebra"...how perfect is he for this challenge?? The striped design paper is from Prima. The "Just Wanted to Say Hello" sentiment is from the Everyday Sentiments set...this is a fantastic set to have in your stamp collection. It includes a ton of sentiments to suit so many different occasions. I stamped the sentiment on white cardstock and then applied some Antique Linen Distress Ink, as the white cardstock would have been too stark against the design papers. The sentiment was then mounted on a Spellbinders Ribbon Tag.

I stamped Stripes on Neenah paper with Memento Tuxedo Black ink and coloured him with Copic markers. I added in just a little extra shading with my Conte Crayons and a paper blending stump. The sky was created with a handcut cloud template, a make-up sponge and Memento Ink in Summer Sky. Stardust Stickles were applied to the butterfly wings.

Copics: Stripes: E50, E53, E57, C9, C5 C3, C1, C00 Butterfly: RV000, RV10, R83, YG11, BG0000, BG000, BG01, BG09, E25, E29, E50 Grass: YG00, YG03, YG63, YG67, G21, G95, G99

Wanna play along? You could win yourself the stamp Donna used on her stunning card this week. Just make sure to include a Kraftin' Kimmie stamp on your project...you can go shopping HERE. Make sure to stop by the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamp Challenge Blog to check out all the beautiful projects by the Krafty Girls and our Krafty Guests. (just click on the links to visit their individual blogs to leave them some love!!)

Just wondering...how many of you "locals" are heading to Scrapfest in Kitchener next weekend?? Well, if you are planning to attend, make sure to stop by the Kraftin' Kimmie Booth (#220)! You can stock up on your Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps, meet Kimmie and spend some time hanging out with all of us in the booth! Several of the Krafty Girls will be there doing colouring demos throughout the day. We look forward to meeting everybody attending! Make sure to stash some cash into your wallets, as Kimmie's booth will be CASH ONLY!!

Thanks so much for taking the time to pop in for a wee visit! I'll be back on Monday with a very special post for a very special cause. I hope to see you then. :)

Blessings,

Melanie

Stamps: Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps "Stripes the Zebra" and "Everyday Sentiments" Paper: Neenah, Bazzill, Prima Ink: Copics, Memento Embellishments: Stitching, Stardust Stickles, buttons Tools: Spellbinders Ribbon Tag Trio

So Precious!

Happy Saturday folks! Are you ready for another Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Challenge?? Your hostess this week is the lovely and very witty Andrea Murdock...she wants to see you using "Spring Colours" this week.

I inked up "Tiny Miles and Maisie"...how cute is this little pair?? The paper is from October Afternoon and the little sentiment tag is from the dollar store. The punched border was created with a Martha Stewart punch and I added a bit of machine stitching and some pearls to finish it off.

"Tiny Miles and Maisie" were stamped on Neenah paper with Memento Ink and then coloured with Copic markers. I cut them out and popped them up on foam squares for just a bit of dimension.

Copics: W1, W3, W5, W7, W9, RVooo, R81, R83, R85, R89, E50, E30, E31, E33, E35, E37, E59, C9, C5, C3, C1, B91, B93, B95, B97, B99, G20, G82, G85

If you play along with the "Spring Colours" challenge this week, you could be the lucky winner of "Caroline", the stamp Andrea used on her gorgeous card this week. Just make sure to use a Kraftin' Kimmie Stamp on your project. Hop on over to the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Challenge Blog for some inspiration from the amazing Krafty Girls and our very talented Krafty Guests. :)

Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Blessings,

Melanie

Stamps: Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps "Tiny Miles and Maisie"

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Copics

Paper: October Afternoon, Bazzill, Neenah

Embellishments: Machine stitching, pearls, metal tag, Martha Stewart border punch

Anything Goes at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps...and another round of March Sneak Peeks!!

Release week is always a blast at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps...have you been keeping up with all the sneak peeks?? The March release includes a new Krafty Quotes set, some amazingly cute pirates from Steven Leary and the gorgeous Everyday Girls from Annie Rodrigue.

Today we're bringing you another round of sneak peeks with out weekly challenge. Your hostess this week is Miss Kraftin' Kimmie herself!! She's made it really easy for you this week...her challenge is Anything Goes!! So you have carte blanche this week...total creative freedom!!

My card features one of the brand new Everyday Girls by artist Annie Rodrigue. This lovely new mother is "Diana"...named after Kimmie's very sweet mother and Krafty Girl Diana Pickering!! Hmmm...I'm thinking this might very well be Baby Kimmie she's cradling in her arms. :) I just love this tender moment Annie captured so beautifully. The papers are from Prima. My card is pretty simple today...nothing fussy. I really like the patterns on these papers, so I didn't want to cover them up with a lot of embellishments. I think it also allows the image to really take centre stage. "Diana" comes with a baby rattle accessory stamp and two sentiments..."Sweet Little One" (which I used on the inside of my card) and "Precious Gift".

"Diana" was stamped on Neenah with Memento Ink and coloured with Copics. The folded baby blankets were paper pieced with some of the Prima paper and then shaded with Copics.

Copics: Skin: E000, E00, E11, R20 Hair: E50, E30, E31, E33, E37, E59 Shirt: G20, G82, G85, G99, C9 Pants: B91, B93, B95, B97, B99, C9 "Baby Kimmie's" blanket: E50, E41, E43, E47, B60, blender Bottle: B60, C3, Y11, Y17, E33, E37, E37

On the inside, I used one of the two sentiments that comes with "Diana". I also used the baby bottle accessory stamp that comes with Caroline.

If you play along with the Anything Goes challenge this week, you could be the lucky winner of one the stamps Kimmie used on her gorgeous cards...your choice of "Cap'n Charlie" or "Brigitte"!! (To be eligible, you must use a Kraftin' Kimmie Stamp on your project.) You can check out all the beautiful "sneak peek" projects by the Krafty Girls and our lovely Krafty Guests on the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Challenge Blog.

Are you loving these new stamps as much as we are?? They will be available for purchase tomorrow! We'd love to have you join us tomorrow for the release day blog hop...hope to see you then!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and enjoy the rest of your Saturday. :)

Blessings,

Melanie

Stamps: Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps "Diana" and co-ordinating sentiment, baby bottle accessory stamp for

Ink: Memento, Copics

Paper: Prima, Bazzill, Neenah

Embellishments: pearls

Tools: Spellbinders Labels 8

Introducing the "Everyday Girls"...Day Three of Kraftin' Kimmie March Previews!!

Oooohhhh...you are going to LOVE the new March Kraftin' Kimmie images by artist Annie Rodrigue!!! Honestly, you are going to want to add them all to your Krafty stamp collection! They are called the "Everyday Girls"...and that's just what they are!! They capture those everyday moments and seasons of life, and show down-to-earth gals like you and me just being themselves. These stamps are so versatile, and I know I will find myself reaching for them time and time again!

For my sneak peek today, I chose to work with Caroline...I think she is just gorgeous in all her baby-belly glory! The "You Glow Girl!" sentiment used on this card comes with Caroline...she also comes with a baby bottle accessory stamps and an additional sentiment that says "Expecting a package?" The sentiment was stamped with Victorian Velvet Distress Ink and matted on Spellbinders Fancy Tags. The pretty pink and green papers are from Prima. Finishing touches include machine stitching, pink pearls and some crocheted trim.

So, does anybody else struggle with colouring pinks?? I find pinks to be such a challenge! The R80 range was too intense for the look I was hoping to achieve, and they definitely did not match the design paper I had chosen ahead of time, so I needed to reach for a softer range. I ended up experimenting a lot to try to achieve the desired depth with my shading...but this proved to be difficult with these colours. I didn't want to add grays, as I knew they would likely "muddy" the soft pink hue. I tried some deeper pinks...but they were too red, and I was at risk of loosing that soft pastel pink shade that I wanted to keep. I added a touch of E99 to see if that would work...it helped a bit, but I only applied it with the tip-to-tip blending method so as not to completely alter the colour. After much time and effort to increase the depth of shading without altering the soft pink, I just decided to leave it alone before I ended up with a big mess, lol. To be honest, I'm not entirely thrilled with my colouring of the pleats of the pink portion of her gown...but that just means that I have some "homework" to do. :) I am going to have to work with my pinks until I become more comfortable with them and figure out some combinations that I really like. (Improving on weak areas always requires working outside your comfort zone. While it may be frustrating at first, in the end you will be glad that you spent the time to grow in these areas. Don't be afraid of making mistakes...it's often through those mistakes that we can learn the most!) Thankfully, the green part of her gown was much more cooperative! With darker colours, I always find it easier to build the deepest shadows without fear of "muddying" the colours. I often add a bit of gray marker (C5, C7 or C9) to the deepest shadows. In the end, I went in with my black and dark brown Conte Crayons applied with a paper blending stump to try to add just a wee bit more depth.

Copics: Skin: E0000, E000, E00, E11, R20 Hair: E50, Y21, Y26, E31, E33, E37, E39, YR31 Gown: R000, R00, R11, R20, R89, E99, G20, G82, G85, G99, C9, additional shading done with black Conte Crayon

Want to see more??? Then the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Blog is the place to be...you will find a list of links to the Krafty Girls and Krafty Guests who also have previews to share with you today featuring the brand new "Everyday Girls"!!

Please join us for one more round of previews tomorrow during our weekly challenge...and then again on Sunday for the official release day Blog Hop!! You know there will be gorgeous projects galore to get you inspired...oh, and I'm pretty sure Kimmie will be offering up some pretty sweet prizes as well!!

Thanks so much for stopping by today friends!

Blessings,

Melanie

Stamps: Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps "Caroline" and co-ordinating sentiment

Ink: Memento, Copics, Distress Ink

Paper: Neenah, Bazzill, Prima

Embellishments: Pearls, crocheted trim, machine stitching

Tools: Spellbinders Fancy Tags

Kraftin' Kimmie January Previews...Round Two!

Welcome to Day Two of the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps January Previews! Kimmie has a HUGE release planned for this month, so we are highlighting a different Krafty artist on each day of previews. Yesterday we shared sneak peeks featuring some adorable animals drawn by Crissy Armstrong and today the Krafty Girls will be showing you previews of the great new stamps from artist Stephen Leary!! Stephen has come up with some super cute baby-themed images this month.

I chose to work with "Buggy Full 'O Ducks"...I LOVE this cute image!! What a busy mama duck...I can't even imagine having to keep track of all those energetic little ones. One baby at a time was all I could handle!! (There are almost 7 years between our kids.) The design paper is all from October Afternoon. All paper edges were sponged with Antique Linen Distress Ink. I also pulled out my brand new Spellbinders Lacey Circles to create a mat for the main image panel and used my Bow Easy to tie the little bow. The border was made with a Martha Stewart punch. I saved the little flowers that were punched out from this piece and lined them up along the bottom edge...no sense in letting them go to waste! I also decided that it was high time to pull out a Viva Decor Pearl Pen that I bought way back in October at Scrapfest...crazy that I've left it untouched for this long!! I love the concept of this product...you can use it to make pearls of any size you require. I'm always running out of pearls in the size I need for a project, and this pen has enough product in it to make tons of pearl accents...definitely worth the money. However, my execution needs A LOT of work! lol Many of my pearls are not quite "pearl shaped"...they are wonky and smushy. (Yup..."smushy"...it's a very technical term you know!) I think I'll be investing a bit of time learning the right "touch" with this pen so I can eventually create the lovely pearls I've seen on other blogger's work. The "Happy New Baby" sentiment come with "Buggy Full 'O Ducks"...I think it's such a cute little sentiment!

Buggy Full 'O Ducks was stamped on Neenah Smooth cardstock and coloured with Copic markers. (and there's a good shot of those "smushy" pearls! lol)

Copics: Ducks: E50, Y00, Y02, Y06, Y17, Y26, E33, E37, E59, YR00, YR02, YR07, E08 Buggy: R000, R00, R02, R81, R83 R85, R59, C10, C9, C5, C3, C1, C00, BG0000, BG10, BG11, BG72, BG75, BG79

If you have not yet visited the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Blog today, please make sure to stop by for links to the rest of the Krafty Girls and Krafty Guests who have previews to share with you!

I hope to see you back tomorrow for our weekly challenge featuring another round of January previews..and then again on Sunday for the release day blog hop!!

Thanks so much for stopping by today friends, and I hope you have a wonderful Friday. :)

Blessing,

Melanie

Stamps: Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps "Buggy Full 'O Ducks" and matching sentiment

Paper: Neenah, Bazzill, October Afternoon
Ink: Memento, Copics, Distress Ink Embellishments: Machine Stitching, Pearls made with Viva Decor Pearl Pen in "Cream", ribbon
Tools: Spellbinders Lacey Circles and Petite Circles Small, Martha Stewart border punch, Bow Easy

Friday Sketchers (sponsorsed by Sweet 'n Sassy!!)

Korin Sutherland, owner of Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps, is sponsoring Friday Sketchers Challenge Blog this week! A few of the Sweet 'n Sassy Divas played along, and I decided to jump in for one last hoorah! (I posted yesterday, letting everybody know that I am stepping down from the Sweet 'n Sassy DT at the end of this month.)

I used the very sweet digital stamp called "Precious Baby" and paired it up with this pretty paper from Imaginesce. I did have to shift the one flower up a bit from the original sketch, as I ran out of room! The sentiment is part of the stamp...I just trimmed it out of the image and placed it according the the sketch layout.

Hop on over to Friday Sketchers to see what Korin is offering up as a prize for one lucky participant!

Have a fantastic Friday, and make sure to check back with me later in the day. I'll have another post for The Town Scrapper up around 12:00 noon EST.

Blessings,

Melanie

Stamps: Sweet 'n Sassy Digi Stamps "Precious Baby"

Ink: Copic markers

Paper: Imaginesce, Bazzill, SU

Embellishments: Prima Flowers, MM brads

Tools: MS border punch

One Post, Two Cards!

Today at Sweet 'n Sassy, you will find a bunch of new digis being released!! We've got several very cute images, and some fabulous sentiments to compliment them! Looking for inspiration? Well, hop on over to the Sweet 'n Sassy Digi Blog ...a different DT member posts each day! Make sure you become a follower so you will not miss out on anything! Today is my day to post, so you will find the cards shown below over at the Digi blog as well!

I chose to work with two different images. The first is called Puppy Love. What an adorable little doggy! This cutie comes with two different sentiments, one of which I used here, as well as two small bonus images (a bone and pawprints). I used the little bone from the set to make the background paper that the puppy is mounted on. I distressed all the edges, and antiqued them with Distress Inks. The puppy was coloured with Copic markers. I hand cut the large bone and antiqued that as well. Finally, the puppy was pop-dotted for dimension.

The second image I worked with is Birdie Delivery. I am totally in love with this cute image!! So, I decided that I needed a whole parade of them!! lol Now, I'm not usually successful with a "clean and simple" kind of look, but I thought I'd give it a go. It usually takes me forever to put a card together, so I was quite pleased that this one came together in about twenty minutes (not including the colouring time). As always, I coloured with my handy dandy Copics! I also had this metal embellishment kicking around in my stash...how perfect!! Gotta love it when that happens!

I had coloured the bundles different colours, so as not to be gender specific. However, if you know a couple expecting quadruplets, then this card just may be perfect for them! lol...can you image four babies all at once??!!

So, head on over to Sweet 'n Sassy to take a peek at all the new digis! Korin's digital stamps are such a reasonable price. That means you can pick up several without breaking your budget!

Have a blessed day friends!

Melanie

Stamps: Sweet 'n Sassy Digital Stamps "Puppy Love" and "Bird Delivery"
Ink: Copic markers
Paper: Bazzill, Neenah, Basic Grey, DCWV
Embellishments: Assorted ribbons, dollar store metal embellishment
Tools: Spellbinders, Bow Easy