Sprinkles on a Sweet Day

I just bought a cute picture for my kitchen/hallway. It is a dessert on a table and it says, "life is sweet." I guess that's why I decided on this message today.

I love the sprinkles in this stamp set. I thought they would make a great background. I am sure I will use these a few more times before I move on to something else...watch for more!

This is a loose translation of Heather Rolin's layout challenge . My new home is decorated in a contemporary theme, which is probably why I went with this design.

The sets I used are, All About Birthdays (sentiments), and Christmas is the Time for Cookies by me for

H &M Stamps



Thanks for visiting...come back soon!



~Bev

My Saltbox

I am working four days a week...

How's THAT for an excuse to not blog? I did get up at five this morning to draw. I decorate cakes all day at work, so for three weeks (that's how long I have worked this job) I have been TIRED. My body is finally getting past the aches and pains of being on my feet for 8 hours...so I am FINALLY getting into a routine which includes ART.

I made this card when I enjoyed an afternoon of stamping with two of my new friends here. These two women are AMAZING. They are both legally blind (not blonde...) and have to use special machines to see what they are doing. Their dedication and persistance put me to shame.

The paper background is by Reminisce. The other side of the paper is the same pattern in red. I LOVE black. I use it on almost all my cards, except for the vintage ones. I prefer to use a dark purple...almost black on those, so the image isn't as harsh.

George and I are getting settled in. He dug up the whole front yard and bagged it. SO MUCH red mulch. I prefer dark mulch. We also need to replace a whole lot of plants. Tropical plants are a whole new thing for us. We love them, we just need an education in them!

For this card, I also embossed the brads with green and yellow. The stamps are from my Old English set for H&M Stamps.

Well...off to work. It's MY Friday!

~Bev

A Little Cottage is Always Very Snug...

You would be surprised how different it is, to take a stamp image you yourself designed and turn it into a card...

This card began as a whole scene, then I actually cut off the beautiful sky I chalked and turned it into this oval window. I love the feel of looking into a frame like this. It makes me feel like there's a world in there (think I said that a couple of cards ago...).

The background is stamped with little stamps from this set, which is called, Old English. The accessories (fence, tree, path and many more) are from the accessories set is sold separately.

This cottage reminds me of a cookie house. And speaking of cookies, I just got a job decorating cakes at the local WalMart! Hmmm...maybe I will get inspired and do a cake set...not that THAT hasn't been done before!

~Bev

I Love Autumn!

If I only had more storage! I am still working on organization, so my work is sporatic at best...hang in there with me. You guys know how we stampers need a place for EVERYTHING! Without that, I have PILES upon PILES...everything gets buried...

OK, enough excused...

This card is has a touch of Autumn, as I am experiencing Autumn without the colors I am used to up North. I usually go straight for the oranges, reds and umbers, but this year will be different...as I have a new venue.
I brayered the plum gingham, vintage CTMH B&T paper, with River Rock ink from SU!. The lace edge is from Crafty Secrets' Kitchen Classics. I stamped the cs with the flying crow from "Old Fashioned Hayride", one for the sets I illustrated for H&M Stamps...actually, the very FIRST set I ever designed.

I curved the font, to make it fit the oval, which I cut with Coluzzle. The little glass beads are from Walmart.

Gotta go...got some drawing to do.

~Bev

Finally...I am back, and armed with stamp sets!

Hey Everybody!



Big News! My very first original stamp sets are available online for purchase! There are five of them, and I am working on 10 more for release next year. Check them out! Right now you can get FREE SHIPPING! Go to: http://www.handmstamps.com/


As for my move to Florida, we're "in". George and I still have alot of loose ends to take care of, but we did manage to take a trip to IKEA to purchase tables for me to work at in my very own craft room. Storage pieces will have to wait, and I have to try a different connection for my computer (wireless doesn't work here), but other than that I am able to function enough to get back to blogging...



Here is a card made with my stamp set, "Old Fashioned Hayride". What fun!


My camera is charging, so as soon as I can, I will post more angles and close-ups of this card. Finally time to use the Fall stuff (although it's in the 90's here and doesn't feel at all like Fall!)


This card is for Heather Rolin's layout challenge, HMSC11. It's a loose translation. Rocking stamps is one of my favorite things to do. I used three colors: Old Olive, Summer Sun and Bravo Burgundy. I curved the cute sentiment and cut the three corn cobs out of glossy paper. I used a sponge here and there, and edgers to make the scallops. The image in the oval is chalked, and the sky was done with my good 'ol CTMH cloud stencil. The paper and cs are vintage CTMH.


With all the adorable cards I have seen on this blog, I have some catching up to do!


Have fun with your stamps,
~Bev

Molly and Me

I must apologize for not posting for the last several weeks. I have been busy getting ready for my move south. Packing, cleaning and closing on property...Goodness!

However, I had to send you a picture of my grandbaby Molly who is nine months old already. I am going to leave her behind, along with Noah, my grandson.

It will be hard.

So until I have a minute to create, have fun. Oh! And in September I have a BIG surprise to share with all of you...stay tuned...~Bev

Happy Birthday to my George

George is my hero...this card is for him. We will be moving to Florida to retire, by the end of the summer. This is a BIG birthday!
I used Crafty Secrets Layout Challenge for this week: CSSC25. I finally got some new stamps sets! OH! This layout is also special because Darlene used it to make a card for the last challenge, and then Pammyjo used it to honor Darlene on her birthday which was also this week...Happy Birthday to you, Darlene!

One thing I seem to always do on chalked images when using vintage stamps...I erase some of the chalk to give the image a shadow.
I used two of my newly purchased CS sets: Hardware, and Card Sentiments. The paper is from Leisure Arts (Elements) and Karen Foster Designs (Old Script) The black cs is really cool...it's called Core'dinations. The core of every sheet of black cs is a color. This one is beige. I sanded it to bring out the core. Not all their cs is black, this series is called, Black Magic.

I discovered something cool when I sanded the edges of my focal point square...the inked edges sand away, leaving the edge looking torn and really vintage. I was so excited to see an inked edge to that...I have done it with white core cs before, but never this! I also sanded the brads and melted the ribbon.
The lock and key represent my heart, and that George holds the key...so romantic...

I love Crafty Secrets stamp images. I guess I really am a romantic at heart!

~Bev