Sneak to a Big Announcement!!

It this a terrific image or what!? Do you want to see more? Do you want to know how to get one of your own? How about a towel-wrapped busy beauty? Or a sad little Halloween trick-or-treater? Even a champagne bottle of bubbly --- but what kind of bubbly?
Check back tomorrow for the scoop!! That's all you get for now!! Bwahhahahahah!

Barb

In God We Trust

Matted and Ready for Framing

This project is one I have been wanting to do for awhile. It has a hidden secret! Looking at the front you see this adorable couple from Sarah Kay exchanging holiday greetings. They are framed with a mat; all they need now is a lovely gold frame to make it a special Christmas accent for a side table or wall. So, what is the secret? Behind the image is a full sized card, lined with white parchment for a personal note. It all fits into a 5 x 7 envelope, ready for mailing or personal delivery.

Images like these are just so beautiful when colored that they are frameable. Every card we make, with a creative layout and pretty embellishments, are works of art and worthy of display.

When I named my creative venture "Made For Keeps" I meant it. What better way to keep a special card than to frame it?

I hope you like my "frameable-mailable" card. Give it a try! I'll bet your recipients will love it!

Thanks for stopping by! Your visits and comments are very much appreciated!

Barb

In God We Trust

Harvest Time Colored With Copics and Prismacolors

The trees here in southwest Missouri are taking on some pretty colors, showing the promise of a beautiful autumn. With the nights getting quite chilly I am beginning to smell the warm aromas from fireplaces. What a great time of year!

The Fall 2009 stamps from Whiff of Joy provide the perfect images to celebrate this colorful turning point of the year. For this card I chose Willow with a Basket of Corn and masked the image against the fence, one of their new accessory stamps. With red gingham paper from the Recollections collection of fall prints I cut the background with the Nestibilities large label, and cut the image a size smaller. The card base is Kraft card stock and the corner leaves are from scraps cut with Cuttlebug leaf dies. The gingham ribbon is some I have used before and was a perfect match for the paper. I love this ribbon and hope to find more before I run out it.

Copics used for Willow: Skin E00; Hair E49, E41; Dress R39; Blouse C01, C03.
For the fence I used so many Copics trying to get the effect I wanted that I lost track. I also added PrismaColors to sharpen the grain in the wood. The blades of tall grass are also sharpened with PrismaColors. I like the effect I am getting with the combination of the two mediums. It is subtle yet the PrismaColors add just the right finishing touch.


I hope you all are having a good week and that fall colors are decorating your lives, wherever you are. Lots of holidays coming up! Busy times, good times!

Thanks for stopping by!

Barb

In God We Trust

Inky Impressions Challenge #17 --- Gift

Through the month of September Nicole (Inky's Mama) has been celebrating her birthday. This week's challenge wraps up this fun celebration with the theme "gift". So, instead of making a card I made this Sleep-Over Party Favor. What better way to celebrate a birthday than an all-night sleep-over? Remember, no sleeping allowed!

Here Lili is all set with a big bowl of popcorn and her bear. I wonder what is in the box? A carmel apple? A noise maker to keep everyone awake? Or an adorable Inky Impressions stamp to color into the wee hours of the night!

Happy Birthday, Nicole! I hope you had a great month!

Thanks for stopping by everyone! I appreciate the time you spend on my blog and the comments you leave.

Barb

In God We Trust

House Mouse Challenge #53 --- Buttons!

I haven't done a House Mouse challenge for awhile. Actually, I've had the cards made, just didn't get them on the blog in time. Well, this time I am ready! Not only do I have a card for Challenge #53, but also a matching gift tag! The theme is buttons and I have them --- and they are BIG! This was a fun project!

If it seems I'm on a Christmas theme, well, I am, sort of. I need to have a lot of cards in my shop by next month since many people start their card sending right after Thanksgiving. So, this card features those adorable mice busily wrapping a pile of packages. (They must be in a whole different economical universe!)

Making a matching gift tag is a great use of scraps. This tag is a bit large. I'll be making them a tad smaller in the future. The template for the tag is cut with the Cricut. If I use paper scraps rather than card stock, I put a light weight card stock as a backing. The back of this tag is white with plenty of room for the "To" and "From" and a short note.

I'm still on this mission to color the HM & friends with Copics, but I really do have so much more success with the Prismacolors. This image is colored in Copics. In the near future I will be posting images that are a combination of both Copics and Prismacolors. What a great combo that is!

Thank you for stopping by! I hope you hop over to the House Mouse & Friends blog to see what the Design Team has come up with. They are a-m-a-z-i-n-g! Join in the fun, too!

Barb

In God We Trust

Whiff of Joy Challenge #50 --- Rachel's Sketch

This week's Whiff of Joy Challenge is a sketch by the wonderfully talented Rachel. Her sketch was fun and a definite keeper.

For my card I used the beautiful Shy Willow from the Summer Stamp Kit. She is one of my favorites for coloring because her skirt is so full of folds and appears to sway.

I have a somewhat unorthodox method of making my cards. Some days I just sit and color images with no particular patterned paper in mind. I just put together colors that appeal to me at the time, or I am eager to use some new Copics. So, that creates a challenge when choosing the papers for the card. Thankfully I have quite a stash of paper and usually find just the right pieces. This card is quite a combination of designers but I am very pleased with it. I hope you like it, too.

Materials:

Designer Papers: June Bug by Basic Grey and Chloe's Closet by Making Memories

Tag: Chloe's Closet by Making Memories

Strawberries: Martha Stewart

Copics: Skin E000, E00; Hair E08, E41, E29; Dress R0000, R00, R02; Apron YR0000, YR00, YR04; Berries R20, R17; Apples YG00, YG03

Ever since I got the new Copics pastels I use them often. I love the translucence of the colors.

And here is Rachel's wonderful sketch -- easy and elegant!

There is more exciting new from Whiff of Joy: the Winter Stamp Kit is now available for pre-order! If it is anything like the others it will be over-the-top awesomely gorgeous! (I've ordered mine!) Remember Willow's flowing gown from last year? I can't wait to see what she is wearing this year!

Thanks for stopping by and be sure to visit the Whiff of Joy Challenge blog to see the Design Teams amazing cards! Join in, too! And, there is a blog hop going on today (Oct 3) to celebrate their one-year anniversary! The fun just never ends!!

Barb

In God We Trust

Sunday Sketch and Stamp Challenge #12 --- My Sketch!

I haven't been a very good blogger lately; no post for over a week! Shame on me! But I hope I make it up with today's post.

Sunday Sketch and Stamp is on Sketch #12 already! This week the sketch is mine --- whoo hoo --- I went a little Christmasy and a lot sparkly. Below is the sketch and though it looks very Christmasy you can adapt it to fit whatever occasion you wish!

Now, here is my card:

.... and a close-up:

I started with a blank white card base and covered the front with a bright gold moire metallic paper. The white tag is cut from glitter paper --- very snowy! The tree is from the Tree and Poinsettia stamp set at Impression Obsession, as it the poinsettia on top of the tree. I colored the tree with Copics then coated it with Pine Shimmerz. With diamond Stickles I followed the lines of the stamp on the tree, then added white glitter snowflakes die cuts and red rhinestones. The poinsettias in the lower corners are from Prima and are gorgeous. I made the bow with wired ribbon (I love gingham at Christmas) and set it on a bed of pine boughs made with the MS punch. A few more sparkles and some Joy, and there you have it!

I apologize for the yellowish color and blur in the photos. I guess all the glitz and glimmer was just too much to focus on! But I hope you get the idea and enjoy the card, nonetheless.

Now, off you go to Sunday Sketch and Stamp! You won't want to miss the other designers' cards and some big announcements!

Thank you for stopping by! Here's wishing you a wonderful week!

Barb

In God We Trust

Whiff of Joy Challenge #48 - Heather's Sketch

This week's Whiff of Joy Challenge is a fabulous sketch by Heather. Her sketches are always so interesting and fun! I've been coloring a lot of images from new Fall Stamp Kit! I love 'em so much! So, you might have seen "Willow sitting with a loaf of bread" in my last post; she is one of my favorites.

Here's my card, again in keeping with the autumn season. This DP has more rose color, but I couldn't get very good lighting for the photo tonight.

All the edges are distressed then touched with walnut alcohol inks. When I do Heather's sketches I like to add lots of textures and colors.

Materials:

Copics: Skin E000, E02; Hair E41, E53; Blouse YR0000, YR00; Apron YG03; Jeans YR21, YR24; Straw Y21, E33; Towel B000, B34.

Paper: K & Company

Flowers: Prima from Michaels

Brads: Autumn collection from Oriental Trading

Twine

And here is Heather's sketch! I just hope I did it justice.

Thanks for stopping by! Please feel free to leave your comments. It's nice to know you were here. Oh, and don't forget to hop over to the Whiff of Joy Challenge #48. You've just gotta see the design teams' projects! Be sure to add your own, too!

The WOJ Guest Designer Call is coming to an end in just a few hours. I think I'll add this one, too.

Barb

In God We Trust

Whiff of Joy Guest Designer Call!!

Here's a very exciting opportunity! Whiff of Joy is having a Guest Designer call! As an avid fan of these remarkable stamps it would be such a thrill to be part of the incredible team that turns the images into works of art.

Ever since I received the new fall kit I have been coloring like crazy. So, rather than try to choose just one image for a card, I chose three. Thus, three cards. I have used all the images so far and just can't pick a favorite!

Here is the first card featuring "Willow with Grapes" and the "Fall Corner" (I guess that makes four images). I love the vintage harvest feel of this stamp and like to draw color from the grapes.

Materials:

Copics: Skin E000; Hair E31, E33; Dress G00; Apron E33; Grapes and Leaves BV08, R59, B32, YG25, YG67

Papers: Vintage prints from stash

Flowers: Primas with ivory roses.

Embellies: Gold self-stick pearls and pewter sentiment.

-----------------------------------

The second card features "Willow Seated with Bread". I found the background paper with such full rich autumn colors and everything just came together.

Materials:

Copics: Skin E000, Hair E77, YR24; Blouse E07; Apron YR24; Pants YG95; Linen B0000; Bread - a variety till I found what worked!

Flower and leaf: from a fall bunch from Michaels, but I added the metal flower center for sparkle.

Papers from my autumn stash

Sentiment is embossed in white

---------------------------------

Card #3 is for a little boy I know who is having a birthday. The stamp is "Sitting Farmer Oakley" who is so cute! Oakley is sitting on an actual pocket. Quite some time ago I bought a bunch of these pockets on sale, knowing they would come in handy some day. Well, that day has finally arrived. The pocket has a velcro seal at the top so little gifts can be safely hidden inside. I inserted a little card here.

Materials:

Copics: Skin E000, E02; Hair E08; Hat E37, E41, YR24; Shirt B99, B45; Overalls E07, E11, E33

Papers: 7 Gypsies

So, these are my entries for the Guest Designer Call. I hope they stand up to the fantastic entries already submitted. If you know me, you know I love Whiff of Joy and I would be so honored to be in the company of such creative people. So, please wish me luck!!

If you love WOJ and want to be a part of their team for the next few months, pop on over to Katarina's blog for the details and enter your cards and projects!

Thanks for stopping by!

Barb

In God We Trust

Sunday Sketch and Stamp Challenge #11

What an awesome two weeks this has been over at Sunday Sketch and Stamp!! The response to our challenge #10 was phenomenal; broke all records! And what fantastic cards and projects! Thank you everyone who participated and you will want to join us for Challenge #11, too.

The sketch this week was provided by our lovely Arianne and sponsored by Pink Petticoat Digital Stamps. We all used one of the fun and fanciful images from Pink Petticoat. You just have to smile when you see these images!


I've been doing several cards with autumn colors and this wasn't any different. I love working with the rich colors. I used Cuttlebug die cut leaves and Nestibilities deckle rectangle die for the green background for the image.

I colored her with my Copics: Hair E08; Skin E000; Dress YR65, YG25. A few self-stick rhinestones for bling and she is ready to rock! She's so cute!

Now that you've seen mine, pop over to the Sunday Sketch and Stamp Challenge blog for details of this new challenge as well as winners of challenge #10. Don't forget to look at the other designers' projects -- they are awesome!

Thanks for stopping by!

Barb

In God We Trust

Inky Impressions Challenge #14 - Pink and Brown, and MORE!

There is a LOT going on this week over at Inky Impressions! First is their challenge #14, which this card is for. No particular sketch this week but a color combination: pink and brown.

One of my scrapbook papers-of-old is this pretty brown and pink stripe with little blossoms and a distressed look. So, I added more distressing of my own along the edges. The paper flowers complement her skirt and the DP.

The image is colored with Copics: Hair E31, E33, E37; Skin E000; Skirt E77, RV04; Sweater and tights RV0000; bunny C01, C03. I always enjoy coloring this image.

Now, for the other big thing going on over at Inky Impressions: NEW RELEASES!! Not only is there a very fun blog hop going on but also lots of drawings! Ya just gotta see 'm. Oh, and the new stamps are available, too. I've ordered mine!

Thanks for stopping by!

Barb

In God We Trust

Whiff of Joy Challenge #47 --- Teal and Orange

The Whiff of Joy Challenge this week isn't a sketch, but a gorgeous color combination: teal and orange! This card came together quickly and was so much fun!

I have quite a stash of scrapbook papers from days gone by and this teal stripe nearly jumped off the shelf! Then came a couple of simple orange paper scraps and one of my favorite novelty ribbons. After that the images just took center stage and entered the spotlight.

Willow is colored with Copics: Hair E33 and E49; Skin E000; Dress BG13 and BG18, YR 21 and YR04.

I had colored the orange tree a while back so I don't have the list of colors. I added a few crystals for dew drops.

Thank you for stopping by. Please pop over to the WOJ Challenge blog. The Design Team's cards are amazing - ya just gotta see 'em!

Barb

In God We Trust

House Mouse Challenge #51 --- Song Lyrics

Last week when Carolyn and I were talking about our favorite country singers Trace Adkins came to mind first. So when I saw the House Mouse Challenge for this week I just laughed out loud knowing exactly whose song I would illustrate on a card, just not which one. I cranked up the ol' ipod to all things Trace and when "One Hot Mama" came on I immediately thought of this image. It's the same stamp I used for my Mother's Day card to Mom, who is a pretty hot Mama, by the way.

This hot Mama is colored with Prismacolors and glitzed with Stickles: Waterfall for the beads; Silver for the purse; Candy Cane for the shoes. Here's the rest of the materials"

Lettering: Cricut

Die cuts: Nestibilities on my Cuttlebug

Embossing: Cuttlebug Victorian folder on metallic paper

Flowers: Silk flower bunch from Walmart with black brads

Crystals: from my stash (meaning the label was missing)

Thanks for stopping by! Be sure to pop over to the House Mouse Challenge blog to see the Design Team's gorgeous cards. Why not enter one yourself? Got a song in your head?

Barb

In God We Trust

Inky Impressions #13 --- Birthday! And Candy!!

This is the second post tonight (please scroll down to see the Whiff of Joy card). This post is for the Inky Impressions Challenge #13. Birthday is the theme because September is the birthday month for Inky's mama Nicole! Happy Birthday, Nicole! She also has some scrumptious birthday candy, too! You've just got to check this out!

And here is my card for Nicole:

Since September is the sapphire month I chose to use primarily blue with some sparkle. The white card stock is shimmery white and for the center piece I ran it through the Cuttlebug with the dotted swiss folder. The blue paper is embossed using the Cuttlebug Birthday embossing folder.

As for the lovely Lili, she is serving up a yummy birthday cake, just for Mama Nicole. I colored Lili with Copics. Her hair is Y21, YR24; skin is E000; jeans are B54 with silver Stickles; sweater is RV 91 with more silver Stickles. The cake is YR0000, YR00, B0000, B29, B32 and silver Stickles.

I like the idea of having a birthday month. Since mine is October I'd better get the memo out to my hubby right away!!

Thanks for stopping by! More importantly, pop over to Inky Impressions and with Nicole a Happy Birthday! And be sure to enter to win her amazing candy!

Barb

In God We Trust

Whiff of Joy Challenge #46 --- Bev's Sketch

This is the first of two posts tonight. I have two challenges that I want to showcase, even though new challenges will come out within hours. Gee, I dislike getting behind! I doesn't help that Blogger is running slow tonight!

Anyway, the first challenge is the Whiff of Joy using a beautiful sketch by Bev. I colored the new Fall Willow with a Baby Turkey using my indispensable Copics.

I'm in an Autumn kind of mood so I used rich fall colors for the image and the papers. The papers are from my scrap pile. I've been trying to use up a lot of perfectly good papers. The flowers were from a clearance sale at Michaels, but I dressed them up with shimmery blossoms from the bridal bunches.

Copic Colors for Willow's outfit are: Pants R39 with Candy Candy Stickles; Apron Y21; Blouse BV04. (I forgot to write down the hair colors, but I am pretty sure the skin is E000)

And here is Bev's lovely sketch.

Thank you for stopping by! I hope your week is going well and that you are finding lots of time for crafting!

Barb

In God We Trust

Lili's Prayer

Lili's Prayer from Inky Impressions is the perfect image for "get well" wishes, sympathy cards, and even encouragement blessings. She has appeared in a couple of my cards lately.

This card is of a color combination that I wouldn't normally use, but it does "pop"! If I was a red-head I would surely wear green and purple! Lili is beautiful in anything she wears!

Here are the details:

Colored with Copics: Skin E0000; Hair YR65, E08, YR21; Pants Vo9; Shirt V01; Vest YG17

Green Card Stock

Patterned paper from my scrap drawer.

Flowers: bunch of shimmery bridal bouquet from Michaels

Cross: Charm from Walmart craft dept

Stick on pearls

Scrap of purple ribbon

Thanks for stopping by! I hope everyone in the US is enjoying a lovely Labor Day! To you all, have a grand week!

Barb

In God We Trust

WOJ Wedding Carriage

Just a quick post tonight to show this simple (well it looks simple) wedding card. It really was pretty simple to make, once I got the gorgeous Flower Soft in place. It's the first time I've used it and it looks so pretty. I will definitely use it again, just not so much at one time --- near the ceiling fan --- with a dog on my lap!

The Nestibilities are the best things in my tool box. To keep the focus on the bride and groom in the carriage I repeated the die cut on the inside for a personal message.

As I finish up all the photos I took at my brother's wedding my card-making time is limited, but there are many projects I want to get to. This was one of them, and it turned out so pretty!

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great weekend and be safe if you are traveling for the holiday.

Barb

In God We Trust

I'm a Guest Designer for Copic Colour Challenge This Week!!

I've been keeping a secret for a few weeks.... I get to be a Guest Designer for Copic Color Challenge this week! This is so exciting for me because, as many of you know, I LOVE Copics!! My creativity soared when I discovered them less than a year ago.


The colors for this week are.................
And here is my card with those gorgeous, rich fall colors and one of the new images from the Whiff of Joy Fall Stamp Kit. I can almost hear the rustling of falling leaves!

Stop by Copic Colour Challenge and see all the other beautiful creations using these colors. Then, give them a try yourself. Even if you don't have the exact colors, chose some close enough and you'll have a wonderful fall pallette.

Thanks for stopping by! Have a grand day!

Barb

In God We Trust

Inky Impressions Challenge #12

Inky Impressions is one of my favorite challenges, but I have missed the past couple of weeks. Here I am, down to the wire, but I have this sweet little card for the sketch. To make sure it is posted quickly I actually put it on the scanner rather than take a photo, but it doesn't look too bad.

The paper is from one of my favorite stacks, La Boutique by K&Company. I used sheer ribbon along the left side and blue velvet across the botton. The image is colored with Copics: Hair, Y11, Y21, Y25; Pants, B0000; Top, R00, R22. The flowers are Fancystix topped with cream colored bunches of roses.

Please visit Inky Impressions as they will be previewing new images soon. I can't wait!

Thanks for stopping by! I'm off to get this posted and eagerly wait for the new challenge coming out tomorrow!

Barb

In God We Trust