thanks for a great year!

Hi there! I thought I'd pop in with a few end-of-year cards that I made. I haven't been card-making much (so, not blogging much either) but I'm working on making party decorations that I can't wait to show you.

Has the school year ended for your kids?  Ours drags on for another 3 weeks and 2 days... we're all counting down.  On the plus side, at least I still have plenty of time to get my teacher cards and gifts put together.

My first card was inspired by Cristina's stunner. (click!)

I added a book to the line-up,



and opted for the new "thanks" die instead of the individual letter dies.



My second card had me cutting more than stamping:



I downloaded a pencil-shaped card file from the silhouette store, and cut it out onto one 12x12 sheet of ivory cardstock. All of the colors were sponged on or colored on after the cutting. I find that so much easier than sending all of the different colors of cardstock through the machine.  I stamped the lawn fawn sentiments directly onto the pencil.

I hope you like them!

♥.

sweet havana {mama elephant stamp highlight}

It's the last day of Mama Elephant May stamp highlights! The design team is coming up florals today... with Sweet Havana.

I'm usually ho-hum about floral sets... I mean, I have a ton and I almost always prefer critters to flowers. Plus, most floral sets are fiddly. You have to break out so many clear blocks and inks to make anything with them. That's why I was surprised by how much I loved this set.



All of the elements came together rather quickly, and I love that the die-cuts made sense. You get me? It was easy to line them up for die-cutting after stamping.



I love the sentiment, but I didn't want to wrap the "thinking of you" banner in the front and hide the gorgeous pitcher, so I tucked it in behind.  It wasn't quite long enough, but it was easy to fool the eye by cutting the banner a tiny bit. There's a gap behind the pitcher that you'd never know about if I hadn't just told you. Sneaky, sneaky.

I hope you like it! Check out more from the design team over on the Mama Elephant blog this morning!

♥.

be awesome {mama elephant stamp highlight}

Hi there, and welcome back to another day of Mama Elephant May stamp highlights! We're showing off Splendid today, a beautiful follow-up to the popular hand-lettered set, Make a Wish.

I have two cards to show off today, both using my favorite sentiment:



My first card features the sentiment embossed in pink, framed in a light blue and tied together with a pink paper bow.  I stamped the stripes in the background in white ink and called it done.

My second card features the same sentiment and some original artwork:

I drew the girl, and her bird-shaped balloon with a 0.3 copic multiliner pen and then colored her in with copic markers.  She's naturally adjusting her crown.  The background panel was stamped with the triangle strip from on-point borders, and I threw on some paper confetti to finish things off.

I hope you like my cards! Click over to the mama elephant blog today for more splendid inspiration!

♥.

many thanks {lawn fawn inspiration week}

Hi, and welcome back to my last post of lawn fawn's summer release week. I hope you've enjoyed it! Today, I give you many thanks:



I created a folding card out of our new banner shapes, and then die-cut an extra layer out of clear packaging material (the stuff our stamps come in.)  I slipped in a bunch of "thanks" die-cuts before stitching the layers together on my sewing machine.



A little banner at the top, stamped with Milo's abcs, makes this card a tiny bit cheeky.

I hope you like it! Check out the lawn fawn blog today for some amazing inspiration!

♥.

love is the bridge {mama elephant stamp highlight}

Welcome back to another day of mama elephant may stamp highlights! Today, we're featuring sightseeing.

I used the double-decker bus for my stampede card, but I wanted to do something a little different today.



The critters are facing off at opposite ends of the bridge, and I've highlighted the beautiful sentiment by propping it up onto its own strip of paper.  I double-stamped the top of the bridge so that it looks seamless on the sentiment banner.



The critter silhouettes are from tree friends, and are just so cute.

I hope you like it! There's more to see on the Mama Elephant blog - click!

party banners 'n new alphas {lawn fawn inspiration week}

Lawn fawn is coming out with a set of party banners, and bigger alphas and number dies too! woot!  Welcome back to another day of lawn fawn's summer release week. Check it out:



I cut the new party banners out of lightweight fabric (you know, the kind you would use to line something heavier and costs next to nothing.)  I love that it cut cleanly, and you could even see the stitching lines - so cool!



I then use the freezer paper technique to stencil the new louie's abcs letters onto the banner pannels.  If you'd like to see how it's done, I happen to have a tutorial.  Click!



No, lawn fawn isn't coming out with new flower dies. I used the circle die that is included in the party banners die set to create this fun accent on either side.  To recreate this flower, you need 5 circle cuts.  One of them will be your base, and the other 4 are folded, folded again, and adhered with fabric glue.  I added some tiny pom-poms to the center for fun, and hand-cut some leaves out of lawn fawn let's polka paper.



I also used the letters on a card, and double-stamped the bunny onto both the white panel and the "a."  I think it looks sweet.  Oh, and a little trick: die-cut your letters out of white cardstock and then color them with the chisel end of copic markers.  It's a great way to fake more colors! I learned that from my friend Laurie.

I hope you like it! There's more to see on the lawn fawn blog today.

♥.

washi monograms

Hi there!

I don't usually post so late in the day, but i'm sliding one in for the Paper Crafts gallery idol competition.



This card set is going to someone special, and I know she'll love it.



I laid washi tape onto white cardstock, careful to repeat the pattern properly, and die-cut a huge monogram M out of each.



I then colored and die-cut the cute storybook critters, before using their dies to cut into the monograms.  I wanted the letter and the critter to sit flush on each card.



I mounted the monogram and the critter with foam squares onto the stitched mat, and then again with foam squares onto the scalloped card base.



I hope you like it!

♥.

Around we go {mama elephant stamp highlight}

Hello, and welcome to the first day of mama elephant may stamp highlights!  Today, we're showing off around we go.

I made a card with a spinning ferris wheel!  I stamped and die-cut the ferris wheel layers, and then popped them up and mounted them with a sewing pin so that it spins.



The sentiment is so perfect.

Wanna see it spin? It's the most boring video in the world, but enjoy!

I hope you like my card!  Visit the mama elephant blog for more around we go inspiration.

♥.

life is good! {lawn fawn inspiration week}

Are you loving the new lawn fawn release so far?  Today, we're putting you in a beachy state of mind (it has to be a state of mind, because the temperatures haven't quite warmed up in Montreal yet.)



I absolutely love this set! I couldn't pass up using that cute crab, but the sandcastle and other elements are perfect for summer. I see a beach-themed lawn fawn party in my future.

I used the say cheese lawn cut, and built a snapshot of summer within its frame.  Because, isn't that what vacations are really for? making people at home feel jealous with amazing pictures? ha.



The crab in the hammock is my fave.

Click over to the lawn fawn blog today to see more amazing projects by the design team!

♥.

Chit Chat {lawn fawn inspiration week}

Welcome back to another day of lawn fawn's summer release inspiration week! I hope you like what you've seen so far! Today, we're showing off a fun speech bubble set, apty named "chit chat."

This card is the only proof that I've enrolled into the online watercolor class. I am so behind, but will definitely catch up soon - it's such an amazing class! I was working on my design team assignments and watching day 1 or day 2 of the videos when I decided to watercolor the background.

I started out with a polka dot stencil (from Simon Says Stamp) and squished versamark ink into all of the crevices before heat embossing the pattern with clear embossing powder.  Then, I went over the entire thing with some blue watercolors.



I paired the "thinking of you" bubble with the ferris wheel, and added glossy accents to each ferris wheel compartment. I wish I had a better picture of that.

I hope you like the card!  There's more chit chat over on the lawn fawn blog!

♥.

hello baby {lawn fawn inspiration week}

Welcome back to another day of lawn fawn inspiration!

Today, the "hello baby" showcase. When I saw this set, I was smitten.  It's such a different look for lawn fawn (dare I say, the tiniest bit vintage looking?) with the critters looking like they came out of a children's storybook.



I came up with a baby shower card, all soft and pretty, to match what I see in the images.

I watercolored the pink stripes on the background panel, using a wide brush and Sofia's cheap watercolor set.  No fuss, no muss.  I then used the no-line coloring technique on the bunny and the umbrella.  The polka dots were created by dabbing the colorless copic marker over the burnt yellow of the umbrella.



At the end of it all, I dotted a darker brown eye on the bunny with a fine-tipped marker and added some glitter-pen detail to the raindrops.

I hope you like it!

There's more to see on the lawn fawn blog today. click!

♥.

everything is s'more fun with you {lawn fawn inspiration week}

Hi there! and welcome to the first post of lawn fawn's summer release week!  We're featuring the adorable, camping-themed set "love you s'more."



I made a little scene with the images.  The curved lines make it easy to have rolling hills in the background - you know, with a few sparse trees in the distance... come to think of it, this may be more "backyard camping" than "camping camping."  haha.



Plus, if the s'more is in on the fun, what will they be roasting?  The set does have a squirrel... hmmm...

It's hard to see in the pictures, but I added some glitter to the flame, around the outside.  I tried to emphasize it a bit in post-picture-editing, but it's still faint.

The background was creating using distress inks - I blended some green for the hills, and added a yellow glow above the fire, blending that into the starry sky.



For the sentiment, I simply stamped it onto a strip of paper and then fish-tailed the ends. I made it wavy and then adhered it to the card.

I hope you like it! There's more (or should I say S'MORE) inspiration on the lawn fawn blog today.

♥.

Mama Elephant May Stampede!

Welcome to the Mama Elephant Release Design Team blog hop!  The newest release is  now live and available for purchase in the store.

GIVEAWAY ALERT!  To celebrate the new release, Mama Elephant is giving away one of each of the new stamps released!  Winners will be chosen at random from the collective blogs in the stampede.  Winners will be announced on the Mama Elephant blog on the last Stamp Highlights day.  You have up to 3 chances to qualify for a win - just leave a separate comment for each:

♥ leave a comment on this blog post
♥ like/share Mama Elephant on facebook
♥ follow/tweet Mama Elephant on twitter

Ready to Stampede?



I used the brand new set called "sightseeing."  It features a double-decker bus, a london bridge, and the coolest sentiments.  I stamped a simple scene, and kept everything flat except for the bus.  I love having matching dies for my stamps.

The polka polka dot cloud layer at the top and the gold splatter are nods to rainy london.  I made a new friend at church recently who just moved to Montreal from London.  She told me how rainy it is in England, and that everything is always so damp that mildew is a common smell.  ew. I'm gonna need some confirmation on that one from my UK peeps.



I double-stamped the sentiment to create a more interesting focal point to my card.  Every time I do this, I think of JJ Bolton. hee.

That's all for me!  Here are your other stampede stops:

Mama Elephant ♥ Jennifer Mcguire ♥ Pamela ♥ Emily ♥ JJ ♥ Nichol ♥ Laura ♥ Geralyn ♥ Elena (that's me!)

rainbow party!

I'm so excited to share Maia's rainbow party with you today!



I always let my kids dream up their own party themes.  Once they settle on something, we type it into Pinterest and see what comes up.  Maia's eyes were bugging out when she saw all of the rainbow treats.  I tried my best to come up with a table that didn't look too busy, but that was still bright and happy for her 4th birthday.

Should we talk about the cake? It's the elephant in the room, isn't it?  I was supposed to make this petal cake with all of the rainbow colors, but on the morning of the party I felt overwhelmed and did some negotiating with the party girl. She'd already seen the layered jellos, so she didn't seem to care about much else.  I sold her on a blue sky and promised a rainbow on top.



The topper is so sweet.  I made the rainbow using circle dies, in the same way that I did for the party invitations.



Am I the only one who has never made a tissue-paper tassle before now?  I made two of each color, my own double rainbow hanging in front of our white backdrop.  In passing, the white backdrop is a diy project that my hubby made a few years ago: a length of beadboard and some moulding to frame the edges.  It costed us a mere 15$ and has served as the backdrop for many a party and photoshoot.

The dessert labels are 2-sided, and dangling by thread.  I grabbed some bbq skewers and stuck them to the top of our backdrop.  The dessert labels hang down and spin like a baby's mobile.  I thought it was the perfect, dreamy touch for a rainbow party.



This plate is rainbow-overload.  Shot glasses with 6 layers of jello pudding (I mixed jello with a bit of vanilla yogurt, but you could go the traditional route and mix it with cool whip for the same effect) and plated them on a bed of rainbow sprinkles.

They were time-consuming, I won't lie, but so worth it.  I love the pretty layers.



The view from on top, another double-rainbow.



I coordinated cupcake liners and flags for a simple, but effective look.



Marlyn worked her cookie magic for us again - when Maia saw all of those sprinkles, she literally squealed.  What kids doesn't like sprinkles?  Her how-to video can be viewed *here.* I've never seen this idea done before, Marlyn is so clever.

I mean, what kid wouldn't love the chance to eat 3 cookies in one? ha.

I can't just buy something at the store and leave it alone. I'm rolling my eyes.  I made little cloud embellishments to go on the front, and used leftover tissue paper to make poms for the tops of the hats.

There's a how-to video on the lawn fawn channel today: click!  Excuse my slight congestion, fact that most of the video is framed weirdly and the yelling you will hear in the background.  I filmed the video within an hour of the party starting.  Once this party was done, I knew I would be done too...

I'd love to know what you think of this party! I crafted it using lawn fawn dies, but no stamps! It felt weird to me, I won't lie, but the rainbow packed all the punch I needed.

I can't believe this little lady is 4. Time flies when you're having fun.

♥.