another encouraging word…

made possible by Unity and Basic Grey’s Wisteria.  So I have been trying to make up some card sets, so I can sell them.  I like being able to grab a stamp set, like Unity’s “Something Within” and some pretty papers and accents, like Basic Grey’s Wisteria Collection, and make a fabulous set of cards…  I generally stick to a set of five…so here are the other three in my Encouraging Wisteria Series.  I also apologize to all my Hip Hop friends, I meant to post this much earlier today…but alas, our Verizon FiOS went down…I think someone thought it would be fun to bury an M80 or something…gotta love the 4th of July!

On with the crafty goodness!  I have a lot of eye candy…that I hope you enjoy.  We first start with this simple layout featuring Psalm 28:7 “the Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped.  My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to Him in song.”  Doesn’t that verse just make you smile…I know it does me.   So often, I personally rely on my own  strength…when I finally give it to Him, I know that I feel so much better, and things seem to a lot smoother.  I wasn’t sure about the open space on this card at first…but the more I look at it, the happier I am.  As for the inside…here’s a little peak.  I used this fabulous Basic Grey Rub-on…along with a strip of the fantastic Wisteria paper that I used on this card.  I was tempted to throw out the bits and pieces left over after making said card…but I am thankful that I didn’t, since it really added a lot to the inside of this card.

For my next card, I used the Psalm 27:14 verse from Unity’s “Something Within” Kit…another verse that really speaks to me…hmmmmm, it is so hard to wait isn’t it?  I used some beautiful paper that reminds me of Zinnias.  I just love the watercolor look of these floral images.  To keep with the soft theme, I just added a bit of Organza Ribbon by Stampin’ Up!.   I love working with this ribbon, as it is so easy to tie and the bows always turn out perfect!  A super bonus…nothing is worse then having ribbon that does not tie or lie properly.

For the inside of this card, I used one of  the Rub-on’s that looked like the Zinnia paper.  I also added a strip of the paper for added dimension inside.  I really like to decorate the inside of the card, ’cause I think it really adds to whatever you have to say to your recipient.  I left these cards “sentiment” free, so that the sender could feel free to write whatever words they want to inside.

For my final card…I used the FANTASTIC Mushroom Rub-on’s…can I just say I really have a thing about Mushroom images…and gnomes…I have NO IDEA why but, I just think they are so whimsical and cute.  For this card I kept the layout very simple…with very little layering.  The card-base is SU! Elegant Eggplant, and I stamped out 1st Chronicles 16:11 with the same color ink.  To set off the image I added another Rub-on.  I love how Rub-on’s can add so much umph with-out adding extra girth to your card.

For the inside of this card, I used another whimsical Mushroom Rub-on…how cute is the super tall one?  I love how the Basic Grey Rub-on’s in this collection incorporate the different patterns from the papers in the images…TOO FUN!  I also added the butterfly for fun, while leaving plenty of space for that perfect word or two from the sender.

So, that wraps it up!  I have a lot more to share with you all…so I may be back tomorrow…if the fam allows!  Happy and safe fourth to you my friends.  Good-bye for now!

Encouraging Words and Wisteria

Hello and Good Morning my crafty friends!  I have some delightful cards to share, inspire and hopefully encourage you today using Unity’s “Something Within” Kit and the beautiful Basic Grey “Wisteria” Collection.  Can I just say how much I LOVE those little 6″x6″ paper pads from Basic Grey…they are a card-makers best friend I tell ya!  Now on with the cards!

For my first card I used the Proverbs 17:17 verse – “A freind loves at all times.”  I took a piece of the “Wisteria” DP, that has the flowers hanging from the top, and cut it down to fit on my card front.  I like how you can get the full effect of this beautiful paper.  I then used my Slice to cut out a sweet taggy, using the “Noteworthy” collection, on which I mounted my stamped verse.  For the scalloped strip, I used my EK Success Dot Scallop Punch.  And, for the finishing touch I added a bit of SU! Whisper White Taffetta and a lovely Hat Pin adorned with pearls and crystals…so pretty!  On the inside I used some more “Wisteria” paper, and added a larger version of the tag from the front, so someone can include a nice little note.  I love decorating the inside of my cards too…it just adds that little extra touch.

For my second card today, I used Ephesians 3:11 – “He has made everything beautiful in its time.”, from Unity’s ” Something Within” Kit.  I kept this card rather simple and natural.  I used a bit of “Wisteria” Designer Paper for the strip on the side, and the flowers are from the coordinating “Wisteria” Rub-On’s.  I just LOVE using rub-on’s on projects, as they add a sweet touch, with very little effort!  To attach the verse I used some fabulous SU! Linen Thread…this has got to be one my most FAVE products available through SU!…I use it on MANY of my projects!

For the inside of this card I added another rub-on to accent the place for someone to leave a sweet note.  A few more layers of “Wisteria” DP and the inside is finished!  I have to say another FANTASTIC reason for using rub-on’s is they don’t had girth to your project…so this card is nice and flat for mailing purposes!

Well, to finish things off…I have sweet pic of my Missy Maya…we spent the past weekend in Oregon visiting family and I snapped this pic in my mom and dad’s backyard…My mom has REALLY outdone herself this year, and the yard is overflowing with gorgeous blooms!  Hope you enjoyed todays crafty installment…I am sure I will be back soon with more!!

Jorjie…Rae of Sunshine!

Today I wanted to share with you all a sweet 8″x8″ Wall Hanging that I made featuring my Jorjie Rae!

Here is the crazy story behind the pic…I was totally shocked when I stepped out into the backyard a couple of months ago to check on the kids, and found Jorja climbing the ladder up to the slide!  She is only two!  and it is a BIG ladder, as we have one of those very old school swing sets.  The look of satisfaction in Jorja’s eyes was fantastic, and she was all smiles when I broke out the camera!

I really felt that the yellow in the “Buttercup” DP from Jenni Bowlin was the perfect accent to Jorja’s shirt.  I cut out a few butterflies using my Slice and the Buttercup paper.  I then adhered the body using Tombow Multi Adhesive.  After curling up the wings, I added some pretty Twinkle Stickers.  For the embellished corner, I cut out a bunch of Buttercup butterflies, and used a bunch of buttons from my stash along with an assortment of ribbons from my stash.  I also used some pretty paper flowers by Prima.  For a little added bonus I used some of the FABULOUS Jenni Bowlin ChipBoard Buttons. I just love the vintage feel of these sweet images…and I really like how they meshed with my color scheme.  The finishing touch has to be this fantastic Red/White Gingham!  Isn’t it FANTASTIC!!  I love how wide it is!!

My plan is to make a couple more of these featuring Miss Maya and Mr. Will, so I can have all three hanging somewhere together!  I hope you enjoy this crafty installment…there will be more to come I am sure!  Until then, happy crafting!!

another challenge…and MORE unity!

Okay…let me just come out and say it…I am a paper hoarder!  I LOVE PAPER!!  And thus…I have TONS of it!  That leads to the fact that I was at Michael’s the other day…and I found this totally awesome Caroly Gavin “Grennhouse” Designer Paper pad from K&Company!  Oh My Word…looooooooooove it!  The colors are so up my alley, and the funky patterns are pretty much awesome. Oh, and did I mention that mesh perfectly with SU! NEW Melon Mambo Textured Cardstock….Super fantastico!!  and SU! Baja Breeze and Kiwi Kiss are also spot on!

So, when I sat down to make a card, I decided to give this weeks Sketch Challenge over on SCS a go.  I thought that the super sweet Cuckoo Clock image from Unity’s Folk Inspired, would be perfect…can I just say that I boought this set for that cuckoo clock!  Too cute!  I had so much fun coloring it in with my super yummy Koh-I-Noor pencils and then blending it with some OMS.  I had not used this coloring medium for quite some time…I think you might be seeing it a bit more…I just LOVE how it worked.  I have the Prismacolor Pencils, but they don’t seem to blend as well for me as these smoooooooth Koh-I-Noor pencils do!  Of course you do get a smaller selection of color…but I do not find myself lacking, as you can layer to get the desired shade and effect.

I then decided to snip out the colored image and pop it up…for added umph.  I also added some A*Muse Twinkle Stickers for a little bling…gotta love the bling!  You see those super cool orange flower centers…well Twinkle Stickers do not come in orange…but they do come in clear…so I just colored those babies with my Chinese Organge – YR09 Copic Marker…voila!  Orange twinkle-y stickers!  After layering all my pretty papers, I added a little Pale Orange Satin Ribbon from my stash (don’t even get me started on the whole ribbon thing!).  I added a sweet little SU! Rub-On, and underlined it with more Twinkle Stickers.

My final touch was the super cool vine Rub-On’s from the Amy Butler line by K&Co….I think they really make the vine behind the clock kinda pop.  Hope you all enjoy this bit of Unity Goodness!!  Can you tell I am lovin’ my Unity!  If you haven’t checked out this FABULOUS company you should totally check out my post here!

Thanks for stoppin’ by, and happy Saturday!!  We are on our way to Oregon…to visit family, should be fantastic…all seven grand-kiddos will be together, something that does not happen often enough!  Happy crafting!!

A little bit o’ Unity and…

…a challenge, all rolled into one!  So, I have been out of the challenge loop lately, but have been checking out the Etsy Inspired Challenges over at Heart Hugs Designs…and well, this weeks feature shop, Naturally Felt, really caught my eye.  Especially this super sweet lunch tote, covered with ladybugs!  The best part is, I got my Unity June KOM and well…who else loves that little row o’ ladybugs?  They are so stinkin’ cute!

I went ahead and used my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig to get perfect ladybug placement…YAY!  The cool thing, is the first and last ladybug match up perfectly…someone was thinkin’ when they designed that one!  Way to go!!  I also used the “Celebrate” sentiment from Unity, that I think I got from a grab bag a while back.  I colored in the ladybugs with my trusty R29 “Lipstick Red” Copic marker, and then covered the wings with Christmas Red Stickles…so sparkly!  I used some fabulouls Red and White Gingham that I picked up at Michaels, I just love that country look!  The dotted background paper is from the Reminisce “French Kitchen” Collection and aptly called “Salt & Pepper”…I thought the weathered look was kinda cool!  For the sentiment, I stamped out “Celebrate” with SU! Real Red Classic Ink, and punched it out with my SU! Oval Punch.  I then dragged around on my Real Red ink pad…and mounted it on a SU! Basic Black Scallop Oval.  I think this will make a great birthday card for my niece….and it matches the sweet Gingham Bags from A*Muse that I seem to have a plethora of!

And just for smiles, here is a cutie patootie shot just for you!  This is my Jorja…we were messing around this morning, and of course she wanted me to snap a shot…too fun!  What a sweet sweet girl…and a ball of fire…all wrapped into one!  Hope her little giggly smile brings a bit of sunshine to you today!  Have a spectacular weekend friends!

If you want to see some more Unity Goodness, scroll down to the previous post…there is more to be seen…WOO HOO!!  Thanks for stopping by!

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Did someone say hangover…

Not THAT kind of hangover…I mean a UNITY HiP hOp Hangover!    First off have you been over to the Unity Site to check out the AWESOME specials going on this weekend!?!?  Okay…so here is the deal, if you go to the site and give them these details (my name: Rhiannon Christianson, my email: rhiannon.christianson@gmail.com, and the words I AM NEW)  in the comment section when you check out…YOU get free stuff!  How cool is that!!  So what are you waiting for…click ——>here and check it out!

Now onto some crafty goodness!  To start you all off with, I wanted to show you this super cute card that I did for Jeanne’s “Unity Takes the Cake” Challenge yesterday.  I am hoping to get at least one more card done, but for now this will have to do.

I have seen this “Stair-step” idea a bit on SCS, and thought I would give it a whirl.  Let me say that it worked PERFECTLY with my brand spankin’ new “Jolly Winter” set!  I was able to use my cutie patootie penguins and the little igloo, to create this super fun little winter scene!  Of course the “May your house…” sentiment from the September ‘08 KOTM was the bestest greeting for my little penguin friends.  I think I might be crazy enough to make a few more of these…they are just too cute…time consuming…but cute!

So here are the details.  As I said above, I used the super duper cute “Jolly Winter” kit from Unity Stamp Co.  I stamped out all my penguins on A*Muse White Classic White Cardstock using Memento Tuxedo Black Ink…fabulous ink, in my opinion…especially when stamping line art images!  I then used my Copic’s…if you really want to know the colors, the deets are at the bottom of this post.  After coloring all my penguins I went ahead and snipped them out…I know, crazy lady who likes to snip…that’s me!  I then stamped out three different “hill” panels, and snipped them out…a little Quickie Glue and SU! Dazzling Diamonds…added the perfect “snowy” touch!  I also stamped out the igloo’s, colored and glittered them.

I then set to assembling everything…on the back panel I did double stamp some of the images…so the fishing rod and antenna would be visible, without me having to try to snip them out…that would not have been fun!  When it is all said and done, I added “the road to a…”sentiment, by stamping it on white, using a strip of October Afternoon “Tinsel” Paper for the background.  I then added a couple of brads and some Baker’s Twine (Martha Stewart).  And that pretty much wraps it up.  If you were to send this to a friend, you could write on the back of the back panel, as there is plenty of space there for a nice little note.

That wraps up this edition of HHH, ringslikeabell style.  I am hoping to get one more card up for the weekend…but we’ll see…gettin’ ready to head to Oregon tomorrow, which means, laundry, packing…you know all those sorts of fun things!  I hope everyone has a Fantastic Weekend!!  Thanks for stopping by!

The nitty gritty details…for inquiring minds:

Stamps:  “Jolly Winter” and September KOM (both from Unity!!)

Paper:  SU! Baja Breeze (base), A*Muse Classic White Cardstock, October Afternoon “Tinsel”

Inks:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Copic’s (BG10, E59, R29, W4, W2, W6, N0, E37, YR16, YR18, Y38, E33, E57, E13, R39)

Embellishments:  SU! Silver Brads, Martha Stewart Baker’s Twine, SU! Dazzling Diamonds Glitter

Tools:  Crop-A-Dile, SU! Paper Snips, Quickie Glue Pen

Que Sera, Sera…whatever will be…will be…

Hello to all my bloggy friends!  What a crazy couple of weeks…  So here’s the low-down.  There was a Design Team call for my LSS, and I thought it would be a great way to get me back into scrapbooking.  Don’t get me wrong…I love to scrap…I just find that card-making is SO much more gratifying…’cause it is quicker (I know many of you can sympathize).  So, I saw this call and thought…what the heck…

So, I started with this two page layout…

We had a sketch to work with, but as far as color, composition, subject, etc. you could go with whatever you wanted.  So…I LOVE October Afternoon…and I LOVE these pics of my two oldest kiddos (Maya and Will), which of course led to this wonderful pairing of October Afternoon’s “Weathervane” collection and fabulous fall pics from 2007…seems like so long ago!  The sketch was a bit challenging, only because of that big ol’ circle in the middle!  But, once I found the right size template (the top to our Lincoln Log bin…thank goodness for children with too many toys!) I was rarin’ to go.  I went with a clean and simple Brick Red background, and then used the “Crunching Leaves” DP for the circle…totally diggin’ the whole woodgrain thing…that of course is super hot right now!  I also used some “Cozy Home” DP and the flip side of the “Crunching Leaves” DP for my accents.

As far as the journaling box goes, I decided to use some of the great rub-on’s that coordinate with this line…oh my word…have you tried October Afternoon’s Rub-On’s?  If not, you TOTALLY have to…they go on sooooooo smooth…and I just love the fonts that they use!  I started with these rub-on’s, to build my scene.  To get the different colored houses, I mounted the Rub-on’s on different colored cardstock, and snipped them out.  Super easy…and WELL WORTH the effort!  After that it was just a little layering here…and little layering there, until I got the desired scene…super easy…and way cute…if I do say so myself!

After my scene was created, I used these Rub-On’s for my journaling. I started with “Thankful for:”  and then added different phrases that applied to me.  I REALLY like how this portion of the page turned out…what do you think?

For my title I used my new SUPER FUN Slice, from Making Memories.  it has taken a bit of practice…but Oh My Goodness…talk about fun!  I used the Basic 1 cartridge font to make my title, and then embellished with bits of ribbon and some super sweet buttons.  I felt the linen thread and gingham ribbon totally added to the country fall theme I was going for.  I also used some rub-on leaves to to accent the title..too fun!

Now for the most important part…the photos.  These sweet shots were taken in our front yard, the first year that we were in our house.  William was a whole woppin’ ten months…Maya was three…yes…I said three…Oh, and did I mention that at this time I was three months pregnant…yep…certifiable am I!  We are fortunate to have this gorgeous oak tree on the property line between us and our fabulous neighbors…so one sunny, fall afternoon the kids and I went and did a fun photo shoot.  The best part, is you can see our new home in the background…conserving two memories in one.  Love that!  To add a little flair to the photos, I matted them and then wrapped ribbon around the bottoms, and embellished with some more buttons.  I also used some more rub-on’s directly on the gingham ribbon to kinda set the scene.

So…that be my entry for Phase 1…Good news…I made it through!!  Woo hoo!!  I will be sharing my submissions for Phase 2 over the next couple of days.  What do you all think?  Constructive criticism would be greatly appreciated…I am a pretty tough cookie…so, tell me what you honestly think.  Thanks for bearing with me through this loooooooooong post!  I look forward to sharing more with you all soon!  Take care, and have a fantastic Friday!

Cuteness from Unity…and a candy winner!

Hello all my bloggy friends…oh my word WHAT A WEEK!  I have been crazy busy with tons of good stuff…add that to end of the school year madness, family obligations and well, life in general…it pretty much equals not enough blog time!  I missed it!  But, I am back!

First things first…you all remember this bit o’ pink goodness  from last week…right?  Well I plugged the number of comments into random.org and it chose lucky number 5!  Which means that Jess K. is the winner!!  WOO HOO!!  You can check out some of Jessy’s super sweet work over on her blog “My Sanity Depends on Stamping“, don’t you just LOVE all the sweet baby pictures she has been scrapping!

Now that we have the business taken care of…I have some more exciting goodness to share with you all!  First of all did you guys see this?!?!  I was totally shocked…and honored and all around excited to pop onto the Unity Blog and see my card…yes MINE…featured for one of this weeks Summer Garage Sale Sets, “Growing in Unity“.  So I feel terrible, ’cause I should have posted this a few days ago so all my friends could get their Unity…for cheap!  No worries though…next week Angela will hook you up with some more super duper bargains…so be sure to check it out.

With all that being said, here is some fresh Unity goodness!  I made this card using my super duper cute “Mix Up of Cuteness” kit from Unity (but of course!).  I love those little cherries…and well I had this great Designer Paper from October Afternoon’s “Honey Pie” Collection that was beggin’ to be used!  I also did some hand sewing to give some added definition…I am seriously thinking that I might have to try embroidery…I just love the vintage-y feel that it creates…and it is kinda relaxing…like knitting or cross-stitching.

So, that be my Unity goodness for today…hope you all enjoy.  I will be back in the next couple of days…promise!  Take care and TGIF…have a fantastic weekend!!

ahhhhhh…Sunday, Sunday…la laaaa la lala la

Today has been a VERY busy day…but I wanted to get a little post in before my day was done!  I am pretty proud of myself for being on the ball lately.  I think it might be the sun, ’cause I have had this fantastic energy that has made getting things done pretty awesome!

The week has a been a bit of a blur…I am stepping out my box, and have some very cool things up the pipeline…exciting stuff…that I hope to share soon!

As for the card I have to share today, this was my submission for the “Like a Ladybug Unity Challenge”.  I used the “Growing in Unity” stamp set which has tons of fun flourishes.  I really like how elegant this turned out…hoping to get it in the mail to a friend this week…

So, I took part in Hip Hop over on the SCS Unity Stamp Co. Forum on Thursday…are you familiar with Hip Hop?  Oh my word…WHAT FUN!!  You basically hop around the twenty or so blogs of the Unity DT, look at their fantastic projects, get inspired, make some cards…and possibly win some totally awesome Unity Goodness!  I scored big time last week…so this week I kinda laid low…wanna make sure everyone has a chance of their own!

Here were a couple of my fave projectst that I was able to take in on Thursday.  Okay, so my MOST FAVE project for the week was this super fabulous layout by Gina!  I just love the colors and simplicity of it…LOVE IT!!  I also enjoyed this minty bit of goodness from Natalie.   Lynn also shared a fantastic layout…I love how she made this boy page very sweet, but not too feminine!  Michelle is one of the Guest Designers for Unity this month, and I can I say I can TOTALLY see why!  I loved the beautiful card she made here, it has so many great elements…and the naturalness of it is fabulous!  The final post that just made me go W O W, was this one by Maren…Holy Smokes…talk about some serious gifty inspiration!

To say the least Unity is full of fun stuff, and they have a little something for everyone…oh and the KOM…you have to check out the deets here!!  The kit this month is fantastic…and with free stuff thrown in, you cannot go wrong!  Check it out…you will not be disappointed!!

So that is all for today…hope you enjoyed this little bit of crafty goodness…be sure to get your name in for some yummy candy, if you haven’t already!  See you all around the blogosphere!

Because everyone needs a little chocolate…

…and A Muse has the most PERFECT quote!

“Man cannot live on chocolate alone, but woman sure can.”

-Author Unknown

Isn’t that the truth?  I grabbed these super great treat bags at the A Muse Retail Shop, and thought they would be just the ticket to brightening the day for  some of the teachers and helpers at Maya’s school.  I love this Chocolate Assortment image that was released a while back!  It makes the most awesome background paper!  I just stamped the image repeatedly onto a piece of A Muse White Cardstock.  I then dolled it up with my Copic’s, Spica Glitter Pen and my Marvy Paper Trimming Buddy, and Scallop Blade of course!  Love that thing…and so much easier on my hand then my punch! I also used the Flourish Frame to add a little bit of pizazz to the right-hand side of my bag.  For a final touch I added some super yummy French Roast Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon and a couple of Red Micro Twinkle Stickers.

This was a super fun, easy to reproduce project!  Hope you have a chance to give it a try!!

That’s all I have to share for today…super short and sweet!  If you are in the Greenwood/Phinney area tomorrow, be sure to pop into the A Muse Retail Store and say “Hi”.  We have make and take from 11:30-1:30, and of course Rhonda and I would love to gab!  Happy Saturday to all!