May Gallery Reveal @ Embellish-Online

Sniff! Sniff!!

With this blog post, I'm so very sad because its my very last gallery share with you girls for Embellish-Online.

This month, May, is my last month of my DT term with Embellish-Online. I can't tell you what a blast I've had with these ladies: Barb (owner), Suzy (DT Leader), Michelle, Debbie, Daniela, Cindy, Julie, and Norma. Embellish-Online was one of the very first Design Team positions I was selected for. I've learned so much and have grown so much, especially as a card maker. It is because of these girls at Embellish-Online that I jumped on the Copics bandwagon. So yes, I have them to blame for enabling me. :)

Barb and Suzy, thank you for choosing me 10 months ago. I was a complete DT newbie and now look at my blog!! lol....thank you, thank you, thank you!! I've so enjoyed creating with all the fabulous and yummy things you've carried in your store. I'll definitely be a continuing customer at Embellish-Online. Love that EIO always has a coupon code for 20% off - coupon code is "Glitter" folks!

I want to congratulate EIO's new incoming Design Team members who start their term in June:
1. Suzy Haghighi (DT Coordinator and DT Member)
2. Michelle Pearson (EI Blog writer, DT Member)
3. Julie Okada (Returning DT Member)
4. Cindy Motherway (Returning DT Member)
5. Christine Ousley
6. Kim Gruetzmacher
7. Danni Reid

Guest Designers:
June Lee Murphy
July Latisha Yoast
August Amanda Sewell
September Kim Prince
October Tracy Shultz
November Eva Dobilas *** Yeahhh!! Eva!!!
December Surpise! TBA

Ok, for this last month, I got to play with the new Craft Fair line from American Crafts for Embellish-Online.

My friends Susan and Kari have been going Cricut crazy since there was a HSN or QVC special on the Cricut Expressions the past couple of weeks, so with all the daily Cricut talk, they inspired me to pull out my baby bug for a spin. Hmm, well, I had to dust it off is more like it. LOL!

I knew when I saw this paper from American Crafts that I wanted to build a cityscape.


You can't see on my card that the buildings are pop dotted for dimension. The card base was made using my new Storybook cartridge.

For this second card, I had to cut out a smaller flower base from cricut again for this more teen inspired Pssst! Card.


Ok, I now have a few buildings cut out and was on the verge of creating a layout of being out and about, but then, well, I was at a crop at my lss, Scrap 'N Yap, when one of my friends' daughters came in before her playdate. Kamryn is a precocious as well as precious girl so I just HAD to create this stair step fold card that was inspired by her. You see, that day, Kamryn was going with her friend to the beach for a bike ride.

Now, while Kamryn is only 8 years old, here she is on this very cool vespa a la my retired SU stamp. This is my 2nd attempt at Copic coloring. I'm still having my color bleeding problem which I know is a paper problem.


So, I cut out my "Kamryn" and made her moveable by way of the pink grosgrain ribbon on this stair step fold card....he he he...its soooo much cuter in real life!! I also added in some die cut trees for a "Central Park" look with the new QK Reuse Limited Edition kit. (Its sold out at my lss, but thankfully, they had their small retailer kit that I got to use. I love those girls at the Yap!)

And here's a side view of little "Kamryn" scooting thru my Central Park in the City scene. Pull the little pink ribbon and she moves across the card. :)


This Kamryn in the City thinking about "Hello? Shopping for Today" card was inspired by the Bonus Sketch from 2 Sketches 4 You this week.

That was a fun card to make which I plan on giving to Kamryn. And I made this little embellished clear pillow box to hold some candies for her when I give her the card.

***COUPON CODE ALERT****

Don't forget....GLITTER is the magic word to get you 20% off of your entire order. Coupon code is available everyday, all year round making Embellish-Online the BEST place to shop!

If you enjoyed my cards and want the Craft Fair paper line from American Crafts that I used, please visit Embellish-Online here to get yours. Don't forget to use that coupon code!!



"Call Me, What's Up?"
Paper: American Crafts "Craft Fair" & "Teen" PPEmbellishments: American Crafts "Teen" Stickers
Accessories: Cricut Storybook Cartridge; Sizzix Scallop Circle Die; Foam Pop Dots

"Psst!"
Paper: American Crafts "Craft Fair" & "Teen" PP
Embellishments: Misc Ribbon
Accessories: Cricut Storybook Cartridge; Sizzix Scallop Circle #2 Die; Quickutz Thought Bubble Die; Foam Pop Dots

"Hello Shopping!...Today"
Paper: American Crafts "Craft Fair" & "Teen" PP; Bazzil CS; Prima (leafy trees) PPEmbellishments: American Crafts "Teen" Stickers; HS Bling: SU Pink Pirouette Grosgrain Ribbon
Accessories: Copic Markers; SU Retired "Spring Into Paris" Stamp; Quickutz "Reuse" Limited Edition Die Set; Foam Pop Dots

Embellish-Online Gallery Reveal & 2 Sketches 4 You Card Challenge

Its Spring Time!!! I see baby spiders and daddy long legs!! Ewww!! Yes, its spring time and I'm afraid of bugs, lol!

But Spring also brings April flowers and the promise of a new beginning. :) The DT took a breather last month as we were waiting for new CHA product to arrive and we're back with some fresh projects to hopefully spring your imagination.

Yes, our theme this month over at Embellish-Online for April is "A Change in Time - April Flowers." We got to work with all the new Basic Grey and Prima releases from Jan '09 CHA.

Here's one of my projects I'd like to share with you. I based this tag card off of this weeks' 2Sketches4You card sketch.

I repurposed the packaging of one of the Prima flowers packets and used it as a base for my tag card here. It just seems too pretty to throw away!! First of all, there's that really pretty green teal color. It has that pretty decorative edging on the top and bottom, and it already is decorated with those very sweet swirly-dos all along the edges! Yes, too pretty to throw away. It does have some kind of coating on it, so it proved very stubborn for me to Glimmer Mist it to give it a bit more sheen! Oh well, I still really like my tag card. It definitely screams S-P-R-I-N-G!....no?

I'll post my other projects for you tomorrow as I'm running short on time today (work is definitely keeping me busy!). Definitely come on over and check out all the new Prima, Pink Paislee, American Crafts, etc goodies that Embellish-Online has been receiving in lately! And DEFINITELY don't forget to check out our DT Gallery to see what our other DT's have created this month!

***COUPON CODE ALERT****

Don't forget....GLITTER is the magic word to get you 20% off of your entire order. Coupon code is available everyday, all year round making Embellish-Online the BEST place to shop!

Lastly before I sign off, Embellish-Online currently has a Design Team call. You couldn't ask to work for a better Owner and DT Leader, girls, in Barb and Suzy. I hope you consider submitting!



"Spread Your Wings Today" Tag Card
Paper: Prima Packaging; Prima "Flirty Little Secrets" Shimmer PP; BG Porcelain PP
Embellishments: Prima Flowers; Cream Tulle; Kaiser Bling; MM Tiny Alphas; Webster's Lace; Marcela By Kay Sentiment
Accessories: Glue Dots

Fit for a Princess Gallery Reveal @ Embellish-Online

Fit for a Princess is our monthly DT theme for November at Embellish-Online.

How can anyone NOT love this super adorable line from Imaginisce aptly called "Fairest of Them All?" Yes, if you can hear me, my voice is officially in a tones only dogs can hear whenever I talk about this line. Its just THAT super cute!!

This past Wednesday, Nov 5th, was our DT Gallery reveal day, so come on by to check out ALL the Design Team's work featuring this very pretty girly line and leave us some love. I absolutely looooved working with this line. (Yes, the dogs are having a field day with my voice!)

I was inspired to create this cute little birthday party invitation for my neice who's turning ONE later this month. I'll have to show this to her mom to see if they like it, but I'm sure they may already have something in mind for Addison. I based this card design on a card sketch over at 2 Sketches 4 You.

I used my "Diamonds in the Rough" Cuttlebug folder to create the textured embossed background. The card itself is a tri-fold pattern, but I glued the two flaps together to create an envelope that the castle invitation slides out of. I used a very small punch to create the window opening (by tracing the actual physical punch shape) in the castle. Hmm, does that little black haired princess peeking out the castle window look like a little Chinese girl? lol....I obviously had Rapunzel in mind when I was tinkering with this card idea.



And here's a close up so you can see the texture! I love my Cuttlebug Embossing Folders!!



And this is the little princess that inspired this card who's turning ONE right after Thanksgiving later this month.



This next one I made was inspired by my friend Kari who lives down the street from me. I've never had a friend live in the same city as me much less down the street from me!! I'm totally happy for her and her hubby as they just bought their first home, but am bummed that she's moving. Yes, it'll be just approximately 15 miles from me, but still...the novelty of having a friend live right down the street just doesn't happen all too often. Sooo, I have been dying to try the Free Standing Pop Up card ever since I saw Karina, a fellow instructor over at Scrap-N-Yap, do one.

LOL - yes, the little black haired Princess is me and the little red haired Princess is Kari (yes, I can't wait for her to, one day, give me a little red haired baby to covet and pet). We have spent many a late nights at her house planning and looking through various sb mfg catalogs to create her monthly kits for her site, Urban-Anthology. So, Miss Kari..I will miss you!!



Those little chipboard Princesses are to die for!! omg...if I could have dressed them all up and created a little puppet theatre, I would have!! If I just only had had all the time in the world!

For my third card, I just want you to know that I've been coveting these little mirrors from Heidi Swapp for some time now. So when I got these little chipboard princesses, I knew I'd HAVE to use those mirrors! I used some old Scrapworks pink alpha rubons (because the color and size fit what I needed) to create the sentiment onto the little mirror. I learned this technique at Creative Escape 2007 from Ms. Heidi Swapp herself. I added a chipboard princess and frog along with some sheer fabric flowers from my own stash. Since I had Heidi Swapp on my mind, I decided to frame the entire mirror onto a few large pink blossoms to give my card a more girly look.



Finally, my last card was inspired by Cindy, otherwise known as Mothermark, a fellow DT at Embellish-Online who never ceases to amaze me with her story telling prowess that usually accompanies each of her creations. LOL...so here's my lame attempt at some humor that's more indicative of my cynicism.

As I envision our fair princess head off to the ball in her glass magical carriage, she leaves behind a trail of (chipboard) frogs in search of her prince for her happily ever after. Hmm, I can't help but hear Carrie tell Lily "You know that's just a fairy tale, right?" (You'd have to be a SITC fan to get that.) He he, I also finally got to de-virginize my Circle Nestabilities on this project too! They're so easy to use so I'm not sure what took me so long to crack 'em open. I obviously need to work on my piercing skills.



Thanks for looking. If you have fallen in love with this adorable line of papers, please stop by Embellish-Online to stock up on "Fairest of Them All" line by Imaginisce. We just got Copic Pens, the two new Pink Paislee lines and lots of pallette ink pads in the store! And please do check out the rest of the projects from the other DT's as well. It'll make you coo....




Princess Castle Invitation
Paper: Royal Procession and Be Back by Midnight from Imaginisce "Fairest of Them All" line; Bazzil Tiara Bling (Grey) CS
Embellishments: "Fairest of Them All" Imaginisce Rub On's
Stamps: SU RETIRED Elegant Invitations
Ink: Versafine Black
Accesories: "Diamonds in the Rough" Cuttlebug Emboss Folder; SU Word Window Punch; SU scalloped border punch; Foam Pop Adhesives;
Size: 8" x 4" rectangular tri fold pocket card

A Princess Play Date
Paper: Magic Meadow and Royal Procession from Imaginisce "Fairest of Them All" line; Bazzil Tiara Bling (Grey) and Glass Slipper Bling (pink) CS
Embellishments: "Fairest of Them All" Imaginisce Dress a Princess Chipboard Stickers and Rub Ons; Fuscia Scrapworks Alpha Rubons
Accessories: CM Corner Rounder; Scoring Tool; Exacto Knife; QK Frame (Rev-0090)
Size: 4.25" x 5.25" rectangular Free Standing Pop Up Card that folds down flat

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall, Who's the Fairest of Them All?
Paper: Be Back By Midnight and Royal Procession from Imaginisce "Fairest of Them All" line; Bazzil Edged CS
Embellishments: "Fairest of Them All" Imaginisce Dress a Princess Chipboard Stickers and Rub Ons; Heidi Swapp Mirror and Blossoms; ribbon flowers source unknown; Fuscia Scrapworks Alpha Rubons
Size: 5.25" x 6" rectangle

Believe
Paper: Magic Meadow, Be Back By Midnight and Royal Procession from Imaginisce "Fairest of Them All" line; Bazzil Glass Slipper Bling (pink) CS
Embellishments: "Fairest of Them All" Imaginisce Dress a Princess Chipboard Stickers; AC Daiquiri White Thickers; Blue checkered ribbon
Accessories: SU Curly Label Punch; SU Word Window Punch; Piercing Tool; Spellbinder Nestabilities
Size: 4.25" x 5.5"

My Guest DT Gallery Reveal @ Moments-2-Remember

I'm still pretty giddy about being chosen as the October Guest Design Team Member for one of my most favorite sites, Moments-2-Remember, which I dub the "Charmed Place."



Well, today, Oct 1st, is my DT Gallery reveal over at Moments-2-Remember!! Come on over and check out ALL the talented DT Work from Valerie, Holly, Zoa, Shannon and Sarah by clicking HERE. (Note: You may be required to register and sign in into the message board to view the thread.)

We got to work with the gorgeous "It's a Beautiful Life" papers from Bo Bunny this month. For those of you that know me and my style, you're probably thinking "Ching......Bo Bunny? huh??" Seriously, take a look at these papers and you'll know why I absolutely fell in love with this October BEAUTIFUL LIFE kit. The paper peicing is an exclusive designed by DT Member Shannon. And get this.....this kit is ONLY $15!!! What a deal, huh??

Celebrate Fall with this BEAUTIFUL collection of papers and embellishments! Our October kit includes: Bo Bunny Beautiful Life Leaf double sided paper (2), Bo Bunny Beautiful Life Stripe double sided paper (2), Bo Bunny Beautiful Life Dots double sided paper (2), 3 matching solids (various fall colors), Basic Grey Sublime Letter Stickers Sheet, Maya Road Chipboard pieces (5), Fall Silk Leaves (4), Hand Crochet Fall Flowers (3), Hat Pin with Bead, Jute, Journal Square and 2 pieces of fall colored mulberry paper, Apple paper piecing, Exclusive "Owl" paper piecing by Shannon Morgan, Cello Treat Bag. Perfect for ALL your fall photos and projects! Be sure to see what our amazing Design Team has done with this kit!

And here is what I created with the kit. Can you tell that I absolutely had a ball with all these yummy goodies??



I blame my good friend Karen for this. LOL! I was at a crop with her recently when she suddenly turned to me and said, "Do you have any corrugated board, or know where I can get some?" To which I replied, "Don't you just use boxes?"

Soooo, when I saw this Bo Bunny "Its a Beautiful Life" line of papers, I knew instantly that I'd HAVE to get my hands on some corrugated boards. I recycled an older box that was used to house items I had ordered to be delivered to home, cut off a large panel and started to peel the top layer to expose the corrugated areas. I wanted an uneven random look so I didn't spend too much time trying to neatly remove everything.

I decided to use my corrugated board as the base of my layout. I used some Glimmer Mist (in Moonlight which I got from Barb at Embellish-Online) and some metallic gold acrylic paint to customize it a bit to better match the mood I was going for in my layout. The colors also perfectly compliment the Bo Bunny papers I think.

Here's some close ups of my "imperfect" corrugated areas which were beautifully filled up with goopy shimmery teals and golds!! The glimmer mist and the acrylic paint really added a beautiful subtle texture to the corrugated board.







And here are some close ups of the details of the layout:





And here's a card, based on this week's sketch at 2Sketches4You, that I made with the adorable exclusive paper peicing that was designed by DT Member Shannon:



I really love these papers and I will be posting a few more projects later on this weekend when I have more time to play with this very yummy kit. Please do drop by Moments-2-Remember as we really do have a warm, fun and friendly community there. If you do, tell them Ching sent ya!! (You'll help me earn my October virtual charm bracelet!)

2 Sketches 4 You Card Challenge

I've been lurking on this wonderful card sketch blog for many months now and finally had the courage to give it a try as I was working with my Paper Popsicles Sept "The Year 1974" kit. So this isn't a sneak peek, since I'm not allowed to release anything before the official reveal date, lol, so I guess I'll have to squeeze out one more card for Paper Popsicles.

Here is this week's challenge from 2 Sketches 4 You.

And here is my take on it. Miraculously, I knew exactly where I had those straw hats that I've had for yeaarrs and was glad to give my little penguin some shade. It definitely has been both hot and humid out here in SoCal. This little guy just makes me smile from ear to ear cuz he's so darn cute!!!


Materials Used: All papers and alpha stickers are from the
Paper Popsicles "The Year 1974" Sept kit, Penguin stamp is from Imaginesce avail at both Paper Popsicles and Embellish-Online, Martha Stewart border punch and EK Success 1 3/4" circle punch, Ink was Versafine in Black. Flowers, buttons, ribbons, ric rac, chalk and straw hat are all from my own stash.

I did get to play with my new Cuttlebug embossing borders that I just got from Embellish-Online. I looove them and it was fun breaking out my Big Shot again!