Pack Your Bags…

Posted by Jen | CAS, Market Street Stamps, cards, just because | Wednesday, January 25, 2012

**just realized that I forgot to announce the winner of the COMFORT FOOD set from my January 14th post** **And the {random} winner is #27…VALARIE FLORER** Val, email me {link under my pic} your info and I will get this out to you ASAP.

It’s release day at Market Street Stamps and there is a whole lotta new cuteness on the shelves! The travel theme sets were tons of fun to work with as I had my CHA trip for inspiration. For those of you going, I can’t wait to see everyone! For those of you not going, I know how you feel {I think}. My stomach has turned every time CHA rolled around the past few years! I would even step back from the computer for a few days because I felt like I was a 5 year old looking into Disneyland from across the street…not a fun feeling!

I am so thankful and delighted that I get to go again and with that in mind, I made this card using the new BON VOYAGE and TRAVELSCAPES sets {along with Vintage Notepad for the background}…

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Skyline and embellishment…

packyourbags_skyline

Detail of images…

packyourbags_detail

Sentiment flag…

packyourbags_sentiment1

Well, I guess I better go start packing my bags! All of the new stamps are available at Market Street Stamps. I will be working the MSS booth for a little on Monday, so be sure to swing by and say “Hello!”

Birds of a Feather…

Posted by Jen | Love, Market Street Stamps, tags | Monday, January 23, 2012

Monday…again! Funny how Monday keeps popping up like that! I won’t be saying that next Monday when I am having a blast with some of my fellow Market Street Stamps peeps at CHA! If you are going, be sure to stop by the MSS booth. I will be there for a bit on Monday afternoon and I am looking forward to it very much! It’s been 4 years since I’ve been to CHA and I can’t wait to see all the product and hang out with friends, old and new!

Market Street is launching FOUR new sets this week {Thursday is release day} and the design team is featuring BIRDS OF A FEATHER today. It’s totally cute and fun and funky! Don’t ya think?…

loveytag

Now I have to admit something…

I can’t say this sentiment aloud without using a {terrible} British accent! Why?…I don’t know, but it makes me giggle! Try it…it’s fun! Hehehe!!

Detail shot of my tag made with Crate Paper-Paper Heart Collection {love this line!}…

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Want more BIRDS OF A FEATHER? Be sure to check out the Market Street Stamps blog for peeks and links!

Perk Up!…

Posted by Jen | CAS, Verve, cards, just because | Saturday, January 21, 2012

* * * Scroll Down for SFYTT Post Below * * *

While browsing through blogs and such the other day, I came across THIS set of cards from Val Stangle. Needless to say, I fell in LOVE with them. Simple style in a dynamic card…not to mention pretty cute, too! Val’s cards were definitely my inspiration for this Verve clean and simple creation using BETTER WITH YOU

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I paper pieced the cup snuggies and used a combination of the coffee splat, steam and sentiment on the main image panel…

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Detail shot of the pattern paper panels {say that 3x fast!}…

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There are lots of fun sentiments in the BETTER WITH YOU set and since this card is so sweet and simple, I am thinking that a card gift set might be in order for a coffee lover!

I hope you are having a great weekend. I’m keeping this short and sweet so I can have some family time!! See ya’ll Monday!

January SFYTT…

Posted by Jen | SFYTT2012, The Cat's Pajamas, cards, challenges | Saturday, January 21, 2012

* * *Only 10 more days to play along with this month’s sketch!* * *

I’ve noted the changes {upgrades?} that we made this year to SKETCH FOR YOU TO TRY {SFYTT}, but I am going to go over them once more in case you are new here or missed them last time they were posted…

{pasted from the Jan. 7th post}…
Just so you know how it will work…All of the Sisters will post on the first Saturday of the month, then 1/2 will post on the 2nd Saturday and the other 1/2 will post on the 3rd Saturday and then we all come together again during the last week {not necessarily the last Saturday for all of the designers} of the month.

The January 2012 SKETCH FOR YOU TO TRY {<--link to original post with linky system}...

jan2012sketch

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This month, The Cat’s Pajamas is our sponsor {happy dance!}. Did you see that my TCP Tuesday card from this week used this month’s sketch? Here it is once more…

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This month’s Designer of the Month, Christyne Kane created this cutie using the TCP set, You Sick Thing

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The SFYTT Sisters strutting their stuff this week ;)
Jodi
Carole
Susan
Jen T.
Kerry

Want to play along? CLICK HERE for the post with the link system to upload your card and below are all the deets you need to know. Happy stamping and good luck!

details

Fun Friday with Your Next Stamp…

Posted by Jen | Tutorials, Your Next Stamp, cards, just because | Friday, January 20, 2012

It’s FUN FRIDAY with Your Next Stamp! Each Friday some of the design team members will be sharing both their creations and a tip or two about a technique or their creative process.

First, let me start off with my card using the darling APPLE CUTIE

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Detail shots…

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I used an older Mojo Monday sketch for this card…

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I often get asked, “Where do you begin when creating?” Truth be told, there are lots {and LOTS} of places I start. I think that if I always started at the same place my work would get boring. Sometimes I start with an image, or an inspiration piece. Other times I have papers that I want to work or continue to work with. More often than not, I have a color scheme or sketch in my head. While I could go on and on about each of these, I am going to stick to one that I know pretty well…starting with a sketch.

I am always looking for a great sketch {also known as a layout}. I feel that it can really make or break a card {along with paper choice, but we’ll leave that for another day}. So, first find a sketch that you like and you feel that you can work with. An elaborate sketch can both trigger and hinder the creative mind, so be sure that you think that the sketch is “do-able.”
If you already have an image in mind, double check that the image will play nice with your main image panel. If not, you might just need to re-think either your sketch or image selection. For instance, a tall skinny image would not have worked well on the sketch above. I’m not saying that it couldn’t have been done, but I probably would not have liked the outcome.
The key to working with a sketch is the ability to make it your own. If a sketch shows a star as embellishment, don’t feel that is what you have to use. Think about what works for you and your card. Add ribbon, layers {note that I did not say ‘panels’} and other embellishments as you see fit, as long as it works with the parameters of the sketch.
You may have to make the sketch “work for you.” Making it work does not translate into making it look nothing like the original sketch {hopefully you know what I mean by this}. On my card, you can see that the 3 small round panels on the left side are slightly different from how they are shown on the sketch. I could have made them smaller on my card, but I did not like the way that it looked, so I altered it slightly to “make it work” for me.

Hopefully these tidbits about working with a sketch have helped. You can find sketches on lots of sites, like HERE on the first Saturday {and EVERY}of the month. Yep, shameless plug and I am ok with it ;)

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