~~~Sneak Peek Stamp Set Party...day 4~~~

Good morning Y'all !!! I hope y'all are enjoying all the great projects that Kimberly and the DT have put together, using all the great new stamps sets, Crinkle Ribbon and Baker's Twine !! My Projects were made using the fun Happy Hauntings stamp set and I had SO much fun !! For the Broom Parking card, I kinda borrowed the All others Toad from some paper I had seen at Joanns! I knew it would be perfect with the stamp I had in mind to use! I used lots of tulle on the cards and banner and that was fun to play with too! I just had to add that funny lil skeleton to the haunted house card, he just makes me chuckle and I will be using him alot more !! Be sure to check out all the other great projects and don't forget to leave some love on each blog for a chace to win some great prizes, that Kimberly is offering all week!!  Stop back by tomorrow and see what I have for you too...I think you will love it !!! Thanks for taking a peek!!!
Recipe for Cards and Banner:
Broom Parking card.... The stamp is from the Happy Hauntings Stamp Set that you can find here!
Witch...Happy Hauntings cartridge
Frog... Paper Doll Dress Up
Moon...Camp Out

Haunted House Card:
The darling stamp is from the same Happy Hauntings stamp set!
Haunted House...Happy Hauntings cart
Skeleton, cat and bats.....Paper Doll Dress Up
Baker's Twine....than can be found here and it comes in some great Halloween colors!

Boo Banner:
The cute Oct 31st stamp is from the Happy Hauntings stamp set that can been found here
Banner Base...I used the Happy Hauntings cart for the base of the banner
BOO....was cut using the Happy Hauntings cart as well. I used the regular as well as the shadow feature and stamped and embossed each letter with a spider web stamp from the dollar bin at Michaels.
Rosette... I made the rosettes using my Martha Stewart score board. You can find many tutorials for these on Youtube.
Baker's Twine....I just love the black and orange color of this twine and you can find that at My Craft Spot ( see the link above )

~~~ For John Allen ~~~

Good morning Y'all !!! Some of you may know that I have only one child, my precious John Allen!! He lost his job due to downsizing, several years ago and he tried to make a go of owning his own business in the Forestry world.  Some months were great but then some months, not a penny in his pocket. It's hard to feel safe and secure with the rollercoatser ride he was on, so he had applied for several jobs in ther last few months. He was offered and accepted a job in Monroe La !!! The best part for me is that he wont be cruising timber in the woods anymore....wooohoooo I always had a horror of him getting snake bit out in the woods alone !! The worst part is that he will be 6 hours away!!! I am one sad puppy. He lived out of state while he went to college at Mississippi State, but that was only 4 hours and many years ago. I'm too old  now for all the fretting I know I will be doing! lol Anyway, I found this beautiful poem on Bluemountain.com and it was perfect!! It conveyed everything that I wanted to say to my sweet son! I wept as I read it.
I kept this card simple and only used Create a Critter for the kite. I used a Spellbinders die for the poem mat and a Martha Stewart punch for the border. I added some gorgeous Crinkle ribbon that you can find here!! Did lots of inking and distressing and stamped the background with some postage stamps from Fiskars.Added some brads and a heart from my stash. Thanks for taking a look..please say a lil prayer for me, cause my heart is aching!! Say a lil prayer for John Allen too, please!!

~~Sneak Peek Stamp Release Blog Hop~~

Hi Y'all!!! The much anticipated release of the new stamps, created by Kimberly, the multi talented artist, has arrived... well almost !!! You will get to enjoy some great projects, all weel long, using all 4 of the new stamps Kimberly created, as well as some new,fun Halloween inspired Crinkle Ribbon and Baker's Twine !!This is just a sneak peek!! For my project today, I used her new Friends & Neighbors-Inside & Out Sentiment Set. This set is so versatile,it can be used for many occasions! Y'all know that we had some bad weather back in April and we have to go to the lake every few weeks to check on things and our wonderful neighbors always watch the fur babies for us, so I made them this lil card set to show my appreciation!! I'm going to tuck a Blockbuster's gift card into the holder and add several packs of popcorn to the box.

Here's the recipe for my project:

Stamping.... Friends and Neighbors- Inside and Out Sentiment Set...http://craftspotbykimberly.blogspot.com

Tags Bags Boxes and More ....Popcorn Box

Wild Card.... Gift Card Holder

Paisley.... Frog ,Mushroom and Flower

Crinkle Ribbon and Bakers Twine...http://craftspotbykimberly.blogspot.com

Be sure to hop on over to the other talented Design Team Member blogs and feast your eyes on their wonderful creations !!!

Ally's Blog... www.rockpapercricut.com

Kate's Blog...http://smallbitsofpaper.blogspot.com

Jenny's Blog...http://jennyplace26.blogspot.com

Kimberly's Blog...http://craftspotbykimberly.blogspot.com

~~~ Celebrate ~~~

Good morning Y'all!!! It sure has been HOT here in Alabama and the theme for this weeks challenge over at http://craftspotbykimberly.blogspot.com/ is very fitting...It's Hot Out There !!! Bright, hot colors are to be used on the cards or LO's this week. I used the cute lil gator from Birthday Bash and the balloons are from the same cart. I used a bright orange card stock for the base and then a layer of purple and then I used my pinking shears to cut out another layer of designer paper, from KnCompany.I used a punch for the diamond shape border in the back, I like the way it mimics the alligator. I used several different embossing folders through out the card, did a lil doodlin, added googly eyes and a cute lil cup cake punch. I used several layers of UTEE on all the balloons to give them that shine.The balloons are tied to his tail using some really fun colors of Bakers Twine and the sentiment was stamped on a balloon using the Inside & Out , Set 1 that Kimberly created!!! The inside stamp reads, It's like an annual event for you! Isn't that too cute ?!? Both the twine and stamp set can be found at http://craftspotbykimberly.blogspot.com/. Y'all need to stay inside out of the heat and make a card for this fun challenge!! Kimberly has some great goodies for the winner ! Thanks for stopping by !!! xoxo Joy

~~~ Hoppy Birthday ~~~

Good morning Y'all.....TGIF!! Dan had asked me weeks ago to make his sister a birthday card and I toadally forgot until he reminded me Wed, that he need the card today! She loves frogs so I knew that was going to be on the card. I used Create a Critter for the frog and Birthday Bash for the present and sentiment. The papers were part of my goodies that Tatiana sent to me ( THANKS T !! ) arent they the sweetest papers ?? I added lots of pearls to this one, cause Dan is giving his sister a sweet set of saltwater pearls for her birthday.I used several different embossing folders, did a tad of inking and popping. Thanks for taking a peek...Have a great weekend !!! xoxoxo Joy

~~~ Your SEW Sweet ~~~

Hi Y'all!! Happy Hump Day ! A sweet friend of mine on this MB sent me some goodies and this beautiful Webster's Pages paper was just some of the gorgeous paper she sent to me, so I had to make her a card!! I used French Manor for the dress form ( another gift from a dear friend...thanks D !!) and I used Bloom for the butterfly.Y'all know I am always looking for new things to try,so I added a handmade tulle flower with a vintage button in the center. There are many tutorials on Youtube for making Tulle Flowers and they were pretty fun to make.Lots of inking and layering on this card and I added a bit of lace to the tag and used a punch for the bottom edge. The sentiment is from the Sweet Sentiments Collection by Kimberly that you can find here.Thanks SEW much for taking a peek and THANK YOU, Tatiana !!!

Hugz and Kissez, Joy

Thank you ALL for the thoughts and prayers for my Mother!!! She still seems to be doing just fine.....thank the Lord !!!

~~ Just Because ~~

Good morning Y'all !!! It's Monday and that means there is a new challenge over at My Craft Spot and this week the theme is Emboss It ! I love to use embossing folders, and I used several on this card and I also used a technique I saw on UTube, using embossing powders. As I am always the last to find new techniques, I'm sure many of you have done this before, but this was my 1st attempt. I used a glue pen to trace the fancy pattern on the paper in the upper portion of my card and then covered it with embossing powder and used my heat gun to melt it. I really like the effect, I just wish I had a steadier hand when it comes to tracing!!I used the Swiss Dots folder on the solid blue Core'dinations paper and sanded down the edges and each small dot. The frame was cut from the Bloom cart, I added some vintage seam binding , small brass brads and a vintage button. The sentiment is from The Sweet Sentiments Collection, Set 1 and I used brown Bakers Twine, both of which can be purchased at http://craftspotbykimberly.blogspot.com/ . Y'all be sure to check out all the other projects this week and find out what goodies Kimberly is giving away!!! Get out your embossing folders and embossing powders and Emboss it !!

Thanks for taking a peek!

~~ Happy Birthday Bird ~~

Hi Y'all...Happy Friday ! I finally convinced myself that I needed Birthday Bash...I'm always a day late and a dollar short ! lol I used that funny little bird as the focal point for this card, which is for my X Husband. Yep, My X. Allen's nickname used to be "Wildman" back in the day and we always assumed that his peculiarities were just his way of living up to his name.Little did we know, that Allen suffered from Schizophrenia. Allen dealt me fits during our 30 years of marriage,but he and I had some good times and we did produce the apple of my eye, John Allen. Right before Allen and I divorced he really started acting strange. I had already moved out of our home and he would call me at least a dozen times at work, asking me if I would always love him and if I would come to his funeral when he died. Well, that freaked me out about the funeral business, but he was always threatening suicide, so I said a prayer and convinced him that yes, I would always love him and I would attend his funeral. He would call to tell me that people were breaking into his truck and leaving him notes. I really assumed that Allen was trying to get my attention, with all these crazy stories. Not until a year or more after I was married, Allen was finally diagnosed. John Allen did his best to look after his daddy, but Allen would always become euphoric and stop taking his medications, so after many failed attempts at him living alone, John Allen resorted to placing Allen in a half way house . He seems to be pretty content there and they make sure he is well taken care of. For years now, I have wanted to go visit Allen, but John Allen and his uncles thought that was a bad idea. Everytime he spoke to me or saw me in town, they said it always set him back. Here lately though, I have had this strong urge, almost an obsession to see Allen. I was afraid that he would die without knowing that I still have compassion for him and that I will always love him and be there, even at the end. FINALLY, last week John Allen took his daddy to a funeral ( of all places ) and I got to see ole Allen !!! I didn't recognize him at 1st. Then I realized who it was and I almost burst into tears, I had no idea he was going to be there!! John Allen had a soft lil smile on his face and I think he was happy to see his Mama and Daddy together, if even for a short time. It was difficult to try and chat about the old days at a funeral, but it eased my mind and heart, to finally get a chance to see Allen! As we parted ways, I hugged his neck and told him that I loved him and always would. He smiled and said " then fix me something sweet to eat !" I just about hollared !! We all had a good laugh and I feel at peace, knowing I got to finally see my first love and reassure him of my love for him.

So, I will be baking up something sweet next week and with Dan's blessings. It goes without saying that I love Dan too and I have thanked him numerous times, for being so understanding!! For those of you that have read this, God Bless You!! lol Writing this was just some free therapy for me and I feel 100 lbs lighter !! Have a great weekend!!

Oh shoot, I forgot about the card ! lol I used Birthday Bash for the entire card. Lots of doodlin and poppin and tied 3 different colors of Bakers Twine around the top. I just love all the bright new colors Kimberly has at http://craftspotbykimberly.blogspot.com/!! You should go check 'em out ! Thanks for stopping by !!! xoxoxox

~~~ With Sympathy ~~~

Good morning Y'all !! I made it through Atlanta without havin a nervous breakdown...yea me !! This card is for my X Daughter in Law.He father passed away last week and I wanted to make her a card and to use a new technique that I discoverd over at Scrapbook.com. I used a Prima flower for the butterfly !! Many of you may have seen this and used the flowers for butterflies before, but I had never seen it and I couldn't wait to try it out. Considering that it's my 1st attempt, I think it came out kinda pretty! There are several tutorials on Youtube if you want to give them a try.I think I keyed in "how to make butterflies from prima flowers." I used Cindy Loo for the frame and Wild Card for the sentiment. Added some pearls made with Liquid Pearls, did some inking and popping and added some Crinkle Ribbon ontop of the punched scallops.Thanks for taking a peek and for all the prayers that helped me make it through Hotlanta !! xoxoxox Joy

~~~ Smiling Flowers ~~~

Good morning !!! Theres a new challenge this week going on over at My Craft Spot and this week we are "Inking it up!" Most of you know I ink almost everything on my cards anyway, so I thought I would take it one step further and add some Peachy Keen stamped faces to my card. This was my very 1st time using these stamps and I was a little intimidated about using them, but I'm pleased with the outcome !! The flowers are from the Paisley cart and I stamped my smiling lil faces on patterned paper and then used a 1" punch to punch them out. I used a Copic pen to color the cheeks and added tiny white dots with a white gel pen. The picket fence is from My Community and the leaves are some green and white twine that I just tied into small bows. I'm loving all the bright summery Bakers Twine that Kimberly has for sale!!!The stamped sentiment as well as the twine can be found at http://craftspotbykimberly.blogspot.com. Y'all be sure to get out your ink and join us over at My Craft Spot this week!!! I know Kimberly has a great prize for the winner of the challenge!!! Thanks for taking a peek.....I'm off to South Carolina and I have my fingers crossed that I will breath as I drive through Atlanta !! Have a great week!

xoxo Joy