They shall be One Flesh

Happy Anniversary to ME!  I know that is a bit self-serving (sorry!!), but I wanted to draw your attention to these beautiful sentiments in the Wedding Sentiments digi set HERE!  This is the anniversary card (could be a wedding card, too!) that I made my hubby for our 9th Anniversary coming up on July 4th.  I plan to give it to him early on our first 'vacation ever together ALONE' this week!  We are vacationing in Chicago, taking in all of the museums and sites!  I looooove Chicago about as much as I loooooove this digi set that is just full of beautiful 'love' sentiments perfect for wedding and anniversary occasions!  So, be sure to check it out!

On a sad note, this is my last post at Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps.  I have decided to bow out gracefully to focus my attention on re-prioritizing my daily routine to have more time to include homemade meals, making fresh bread, taking better care of the house and enjoying my youngest child's last year at home before being in school fulltime in the fall of 2011.  They grow up so fast, so after giving it much thought, I have decided to slow down and really SEE and appreciate each and every moment I have left with my kiddos!

I want to thank Korin for this wonderful opportunity of being on the SNSS Design Team for the past 10 months beginning with my Guest Designing last September; it seems just like yesterday!  I will miss the entire SNSS team and the closeness we share every day.  I invite you all to visit me at my blog to say HEY now and then and really hope we will keep our friendships alive with a comment or two!

Blessings to you all!

Nicole

June Rose in CLEAR STAMP FORM!!!!!!!

HAPPY HUMP DAY!  Does it feel like Wednesday to you?  My body is all messed up from the three-day weekend!!  But, believe it or not, we are already half-way through the week!!!!!!! 

Did you get a chance to participate in the Clear Stamps Celebration BLOG HOP yesterday?  It is so exciting bringing back clear stamps to the Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps STORE HERE!  DIGIS are wonderful!  I LOVE THEM!! But there are some awesome techniques that can't happen with digis, so I am excited to be inking up again!

For my card above, I used the JUNE ROSE CLEAR STAMP along with a sentiment from the POPPIES AND GREETINGS CLEAR STAMP SET!  Don't these look great together!?  I used Copics to color and some Kaiser Scrapbook pearls to add a special, delicate touch!  The square scallops were made using punches by Stampin' UP!

Be sure to play along STILL TODAY with the blog hop CHALLENGES at the SNR FORUM HERE and see if you were the lucky winner of yesterday's blog candy, too!! 

Blessings on your day!! ~ Nicole

Something for Everyone!

Happy Hump Day!  Already we are half-way through the week, can you believe it!?  Well, it has been a while since I posted here on the digi-blog, so I thought I would update you on some cards using some NEW images as well as some oldie but goodies too!   Some of these may be repeat-cards for those of you who peruse my blog regularly, but if you don't.... here's a few you may have missed!

The Sweet 'n Sassy digis I used in each creation are LINKED UNDER each card! 

ENJOY!

Above: Birdie Bathtime and sentiment from Springtime Blessings

 Above: Forget-Me-Not and sentiment from Special Lady

Above: Sew Happy Cocoa and Sew Many Thoughts Sentiment

 Above: Super Dad and Super Dad Symbol

 Above: Molly's Flower

 Above: Milton Reading

 Above: Purrfect Friend

 Above: Thankful Turtle

 Above: I used Rainbow Scene and Purrfect Friend together!

Above: Rainbow Bird

Above: Lilacs for Cocoa and sentiment from Ice Cream Set together!

I hope my cards bring you some inspiration to your own craft-table!  Be sure to check out the newest challenge tomorrow to get a Freebie Digi or more!

Many Blessings on the rest of your week!

~Nicole~

Challenge with Poppies!

HAPPY FRIDAY!!!!!!!!!  My apologies for being repetitive and sharing another POPPIES card, but I just had to share this card that I made for this week's CHALLENGE!  This week's challenge is 'using Lace'!  Well, since I didn't have any real lace to use I used a Martha Stewart punch!  Be sure to check out this week's challenge at PaperCraftPlanet {HERE} and/or Scrapbook News and Review {HERE}; there is a great prize to be earned and many friends to be made!

Be sure to enter into this week's challenge!

A TRUE FRIEND!

HAPPY MONDAY!  It's Nicole here, again!  And this is the last time I will be posting on MONDAY'S!  But don't fret!  I am not going anywhere, thank goodness!  We are just going to be switching up the posting schedule a little bit to give it a bit more variety with ALL of the DIGI DIVAS able to post here at Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps!  SO, HOW exciting is that!?!?!?!?

I thought I would create a card that is more similar to the cards I used to create when I first began card-making years ago!  If you know me, you know how I am a huge fan of SENTIMENTS!!  And when you think of digi companies, you always think of images of cute little creatures, children and things of the sort that you color in...  Well, we tend to forget that Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps has a wonderful line of SENTIMENT digis!!  These are awesome because you can keep them small to coordinate with another image, or you can enlarge them (like above) to make them your focal image!!

I used a sentiment from the 'A TRUE FRIEND' sentiment set on my card and adorned it with a array of paper flowers and lime green pearls!  Pretty simple, but doesn't it showcase the sentiment digi??  I LOVE IT!  So, the next time you think 'digi', don't forget about those sentiments that are also available to go with your digi images!  They are available for ALL occasions in tons of different fonts, too!  SHOP HERE to see more!

BLESSINGS ON YOUR DAY!!

Flowers from Cocoa

Can anyone feel the SPRING FEVER like I can?  OH MY GOSH!  The trees are budding, the sun is tingling my skin, the birds are finally chirping at day break again! YEA!  It is SPRING! 

If you haven't figured it out by now, I am a HUGE 'Cocoa' fan!  He's just adorable and so fun to color with my Copic markers!!  With this wonderful feeling of renewal, I just had to color Cocoa with his bouquet of flowers!  Perfect for Mother's Day, a girlfriend's birthday or just to say, "I love you!", this FLOWERS FROM COCOA digi is so versatile!  You can pick him up in the Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps store {HERE} for just $3.00! 

Be sure to come back tomorrow to see a brand new wonderful Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps creation!

ENJOY YOUR DAY!

These are the Copics I used in creating this card!

AH, Wedding Cake!

Happy MONDAY Again!  This weekend was fun for me and my family!  My parents paid us a visit from Tennessee!  We didn't do too much, really, but some of the best times are had just by sitting around, sharing and visiting! 

I colored this really pretty digi by Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps called WEDDING CAKE, but didn't have a card layout in mind until I saw this past sketch by Unscripted Sketches (#44 Here)! PERFECT!  Now if I could just find someone getting married to give this to!!!!! HA!  Really, this image (having been colored in reds) could be for an anniversary or birthday, too!  I think I am covered now for my parents anniversary this summer!

Come back tomorrow for another card inspired by Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps!

Enjoy your Monday!

These are the Copics I used in creating this card!

I "WOOF" You!

Happy Monday!  How was your weekend?  Well, I hope your weekend was half as exciting as mine!  I had a wonderful weekend with a surprise 24- hour visit from my son in college!!  He'll be back in 6 days for Spring Break, but it was still nice to have him home!  This one is for him!  After about age 10 it seems that boys don't like to say "I LOVE YOU" anymore!  So, here ya go, Josh, "I WOOF YOU!"!!

This digi and sentiment are from the PUPPY LOVE SET available in the store HERE for a mere $4.00!!  An incredible deal considering you can resize and reuse these images to your heart's content and it leaves room on your shelves for more paper and embellishments! HEE HEE!

For supplies used on my card see my blog GottaHavePaper HERE!

Enjoy your week!

7 Layer Cocoa!

Happy Monday!!!!!!!!  It's Nicole here!  Just having celebrated my 39th birthday over the weekend, I thought it would be appropriate to post a birthday card!  And there is no one I would rather celebrate with than our Cocoa!!  Well, maybe my hubby and kids, but Cocoa is just too cute, you know!!

Here's CUPCAKE COCOA, along side a sentiment found in the SWEET BIRTHDAY WISHES set!  If you haven't picked up a Cocoa image yet, you should!  He's just entirely too fun to color and gives such sweetness to everything you make!  Maybe that is why he's called COCOA! HA!

I used a simpler layout in this card.  I am always layering, layering and layering some more, so I challenged myself with layers under the amount of five!  I almost managed if you start from the pop-dotted flower.  That would make seven!  Hee Hee!  Below, you can hopefully see how I outlined the word 'sweet' in pink marker... gives it a nice touch I think!

I have another Cocoa image coming up on Thursday for our SNR challenge!  Be sure to pop in our forum group HERE and see all of the exciting things that are happening!!

Enjoy your MONDAY!!

FOUR Spring Images in ONE!

It's another Monday with little ol' me, Nicole!  And if you are a follower of THE SWEET STOP sketch blog, you may have already seen this card!  I don't know about you, but Spring can not come fast enough to my home in Indiana!  So, I am just in love with how this card came out using four different Spring digital images by Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps!  It looks like ALL four of these images could be from one larger set! 

You can see KATE PLANTING HERE, the butterfly on the flower in FLUTTERING BY HERE, the large daisies in the FLOWER BOUQUET HERE, and also find the SENTIMENT HERE from the Springtime Blessings sentiment set!!

Above is the latest sketch from THE SWEET STOP sketch blog, which my card was inspired by!  When I first saw this sketch, I was of course trying to incorporate the 'SPIN of using flowers' in my card.   At first I thought I would use paper flowers or diecuts in the shapes, but then I got to thinking how I could make a little 'scene' in each using a few of the new Spring-inspired stamps by Sweet 'n Sassy!!!  CLICK HERE to see all of the NEW images in the store, but be sure you are sitting down, because there are TONS!!

I hope you take a moment to drop by The Sweet Stop to browse the beautiful cards by the Sugar Babies Design Team!  And while you are at it, why not play along with us!?  IF you do, you could just win the PRIZE of a $20.00 gift certificate to SWEET 'N SASSY STAMPS STORE! 

Make it a great MONDAY! 

One of a Kind!

 

Happy GREAAAAAAAAAAT American's Day!  Can you believe it is yet another MONDAY!?  I am always feeling so blessed when I get to post something new on this wonderful Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps DigiBlog because it means that I survived another week of winter with snow!  Sometimes being homebound with my three kids!  HA! 

I thought I would bring some "SPRING" into your step with this Spring-inspired digi called 'One-Of-A-Kind' that you can find HERE in the SNSS store!  I love this digi because not only does it bring warmth and the remembrance of the season to come, but it also reminds me a bit of myself!  I have never been one to want to fit into a 'mold'.  It seems that I have always wanted to make a statement, of sorts, and go against the grain... so I really love this image and the sentiments that go with it!  I have been trying to teach my three younger children that it is no fun being like everyone else!  However, it IS SUPAH FUN being yourself and believing in who you are!  I hope they grasp that some day because it really will help them in this competitive day and age!

I hope you all are staying warm and surviving the snow!  We're half way through February!  Hang in there!

Hugs to all!   ~ Nicole ~

You Strike My Fancy!!

Happy MONDAY to you! Isn't this the sweetest? I made this card using Sweet 'n Sassy's Bowling Strike image (illustrated by Korin's 12 year old son!) HERE and one of the three Bowling Sentiments HERE! I kept my card simple and stream-lined so it would look more masculine. This way I can give it to my hubby for Valentine's Day! Good thing he never checks out MY blog, otherwise he would know he's getting this adorable card! HA!

There are so many new digi images at the Sweet 'n Sassy STORE now that we have gone ALL digital! Don't forget to pick up some clear stamps while they last, though! There are some really awesome deals, perfect for you and those stamping friends of yours!!

Blessings on your day!

Blowing you {MORE} Kisses!

HAPPY MONDAY!!!!  Sorry I missed you guys last Monday!  I ended up having an awful migraine that lasted forever!  {Thank You, Sandy for covering me!}  One of these days I will get ahead! LOL!

It was a FUN yet busy week at our Paper Craft Planet group HERE!  Our Princess and Frog Challege HERE was inspired by the latest digis released and you are invited to still play along and show us your creations!!  Korin also picks our monthly guest designer from our challenges, so you may just want to try your hand at it!

For my card today, I used BLOWING KISSES!  This set features this super sweet teddy bear (in full length) and three sentiments!  Just $4.50 for the entire set; perfect for Valentine-Card-making, don't you think?  Begin NOW, because Valentine's Day will be here before you know it!!

AND if you see below, I am adding a new feature to my card-posts, I am taking pictures of the COPIC colors that I used in creating that card.  So, maybe this will hope those newbie Copic colorers out there!  If you would like to know all of the details (supplies) of my card, check out my blog HERE!

Hugs and Blessings to all! ~ Nicole

Make it a MAHVELOUS MONDAY!

Cocoa's Heart is for YOU!!

Happy MONDAY!  Was your weekend as eventful as mine?  I had to let my son head back for his second semester of college on Saturday.  MAN, talk about being a WRECK!  I don't know what my problem was, but I was worse that morning when he left than when he first left for college in August!  So, I took the rest of Saturday to just rest up and pray a lot.  I trust that the Lord is watching over him, but I guess it is just hard still since I am no longer there to even just talk to him everyday.  Anyhoo!  I am all better now and had some crafty time and conjured up this card for your viewing pleasure!

Cocoa's Be Mine IMAGE HERE is paired up with this sentiment from another digi set called ALL MY  HEART.  I think it is perfect for this Cocoa image, don't you?  SO SWEET!  I used this weeks sketch SSS38 from THE SWEET STOP sketch blog.  This is a great sketch!  EASY yet challenging at the same time, is that even possible?  HAHA!  Make sure you check out these and the rest of the awesome stamp images from the Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps STORE HERE; the prices are phenomenal and the quality is spot-on!  AND if you get some of your own crafty time this week, play along with us at THE SWEET STOP, you could just be picked as next month's guest designer! ~ Nicole

Have a great week!

Cocoa has the right idea!

It is the first Monday of the year! WOOHOO!! Are you looking forward to what this year is going to bring you?  I am so eager to have 2010 come into my life full force!  Last year was NOT "my year", to say the least {due to some minor medical issues that went sour and worsened}, so seeing 2010 on my calendar gives me such a refreshing feeling!

I can't begin to tell you how wonderful it has been for me to be associated with Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps and the wonderful women that come along with it!  These gals are just so sincerely supportive; and not just with my creative efforts, but with personal ones, too!  So, please allow me to THANK Korin, Sandy and ALL of the wonderful SNSS designers for being who they are!  Their prayers and caring emails are such a blessing to me and I just wanted to let them know!

OH! MY CARD!! HA!  Yes, Cocoa (which you can find HERE!) certainly is smart!  Look at him all snuggly between those mittens!  Yesterday when I woke up it was 5 degrees!  YES, FIVE!  NOT much fun to look at when you have a big new dog that needs to be walked quite often!  So, this digi came to mind right away when thinking about my card for today!  I hope you all STAY WARM today and I wish you all the best in 2010!  May God bless you and make this the best year EVAH for you AND yours! ~ Nicole

Happy New Year!

Sleepy Kitty with a Sketch to try!

Since Christmas is considered "over" (and I JUST got in from traveling) I thought I would show you a card that I made for this week's SWEET STOP SKETCH BLOG!  It isn't green and red or have an ornament or snowman on it, but it does reflect how most of us probably feel the following two days after Christmas!  I KNOW I have been napping like crazy!  So, in the spirit of Christmas-after, here's our Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps' new SLEEPY KITTY!

As for my cutie of a card above, I used THE SWEET STOP's Sketch #SSS36 as inspiration for this sketch and I used this just released sleepy kitty digi that you can find HERE.  I used some Basic Grey Ambrosia papers to give it that warm feeling with yellows, golds and deep reds.  Even the gray, while still a 'cool' color, makes you feel all warm and snuggly like a good furry blanket!!  Flowers by Prima, rhinestones by Basic Grey in gray, gold and orange, nestibilities for scalloped shapes.

OH, the sentiment is from a different set that you can find HERE at Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps, too.  I like that saying, don't you?  It's a cute one!

I sincerely hope that while you celebrated Jesus' birthday, your Christmas brought you wonderful times and wonderful memories!  I know it did for me! 

NOW, go take a NAP!!

I want a Hippopotamus for Christmas!!!

Monday is here and you know what that means, right?  AGK, Christmas is just four days away!  Are you practicing your lines for the Christmas play?  Are you baking to your little heart's content?  Are you finished shopping?  NO?  You still aren't done?  You forgot to pick up that hippopotamus you promised, didn't you?  HAHA!

Well, if I have lost you by now, don't feel bad!  I thought I was the only one on earth that hadn't heard the hippopotamus song!  Actually, I STILL haven't heard it, but will post the link to it anyways!  I am sure it can't be a 'bad' one, as Korin wouldn't have designed a stamp for a crude song, of course!  So, if you would like to hear it click HERE!

My fun little card is using Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps new digi "I want a Hippopotamus for Christmas" that was released last week!  Isn't this fella cute?  I colored him in using my Copics and paired it with some Eskimo Kisses Basic Grey paper and Prima flowers!  Pretty, don't you think?  OH, and I guess I should mention that this is a POCKET card using The Sweet Stop Sketch Blog's Sketch #SSS35 for this week!  I trifolded my card, so that there would be a pocket inside to hold some gift cards or a cash-present!  Click on over there next to play along!  There's even a PRIZE this week!!  An early Christmas gift, if you will!

ENJOY your MONDAY!

Born is the King of Israel!

HAPPY MONDAY!!!!  Wasn't it a beautiful weekend?  It was here in Jasper!  You know what they say, when you're in Indiana, if you don't like the weather, JUST WAIT AWHILE!  It changes so often!

My card is using Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps images from a set called the SHEPHERD BOY which also includes three sentiments/verses!  GO SEE THAT!  {For details of my card, go to my blog HERE!}

I sometimes wonder if people really put some thought into my cards... besides the green and gray papers implying ground and sky, 'NOEL' is the sentiment, right?  Well, how does the song go?  "Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel, Born is the King of Israel!"  So, I thought this card was a wonderful scene for the sentiment "NOEL" to be put at bottom! 

I love how this card turned out!!  I am READY for Christmas!

Have a very blessed day!

MORE Winter Love!

Yesterday, my little town of Jasper (in Southern Indiana) had its first snowfall of the season!  It was just a small 1" coverage that melted right away, but it was beautiful while it lasted!  It was so exciting for the kids to wake to snow and see them realize that it really IS winter after all!  BUT, let me tell you!  What was even better was seeing the puppy's  reaction when she first laid her paws in that cold white stuff!  SO FUNNY!  I just had to share that, it really has nothing to do with my card above obviously!!

{{Details on my card: My Mind's Eye/Wild Asparagus papers,

Big Lots ribbon, Robin's Nest dewdrops, Copics for coloring,

ticket corner punch by SUP; SNSS digi stamp: WINTER LOVE !}}

Any"WHOOO", all puns intended, here's a simple card using the new owl image called WINTER LOVE.  I love the feathery breasts, don't you?  AND what about those earmuffs and scarves!?  HA!  It really IS winter when you see owls donning their winter attire! HeeHee!  Scroll down the blog to see more cards using this image, it is a cutie!!  Go grab your own Winter Love; at just $2.25 it is a bargain, especially since there's no shipping or waiting time is involved!  No storage problem either!  Gotta love these digi's!

Have a wonderful
WINTERY DAY!

It's my clothes....

Good MONDAY Morning!!!!  WOW, the Thanksgiving Holiday has past and Christmas is JUST around the corner!  You know what that means, don't you?  YEP, Christmas DECOR!!!  And there's nothing like hanging a wreath on the ol' BUM, like Paulie the Bear above! HAHAHA!

Isn't he cute??  I would love to think that my butt looks big because of my clothes or something else that I put on my body!  Yeahhhhh, that's it.... it's not me, it's my clothes! LOL!!!!!!!! 

This image by Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps can be found HERE at their store, for a mere $2.81, INCLUDING the sentiment!  Gotta love those digi images, versatile and storage free, except for a few megabytes on the ol' computer harddrive! 

Well, I hope you had a blessed Thanksgiving holiday!  My family and I did, too, with my sister and her family and our parents in Tennessee.  The actual driving leaves something to be desired, but really, it was worth it to let my kiddos see their extended family and my Josh (college-kid!) was there, too, so it was great!  God blessed us with safe travels, great food that my sister prepared for all 12 of us and fun times playing some new card games!!  GOD is GOOD!

{OH, I nearly forgot!  My card: Basic Grey papers (Dasher); Copics for coloring, variety of buttons with metallic elastic SUP cording, and Nestibilities for scalloped and regular circles!}

Have a great Monday!