Happy Birthday Jodi!!!

Hello again everyone! Today I am here (along with a few friends :) ) to celebrate the birthday of one of the sweetest girls here on the net!!! Our Long Island Stamper Extraordinnaire, JODI COLLINS is celebrating a birthday today and we just had to be a part of the fun!! And, I may have shown this card before...I don't quite remember...but either way, it's cute and fun...just what I think of when I imagine Jodi and her gorgeous smile and bubbly personality. :)

And since there are a "few" of us celebrating, please follow along to the next birthday blog hopper, Joanne with Just a Little Something, to see what she has to share about the ever lovely Jodi!!! And of course, share a little birthday raz with Jodi over on her blog. :)

Happy Birthday Jodi...I hope you are having a GREAT BIRTHDAY!!!!

Merry Christmas!!

Merry Christmas everyone!!! Please consider this my e-card to you...whether you are visiting for the very first time here, or if you have been a frequent visitor of my shenanigans. :) Ok, it's pretty tame here, but I try to interject some humor when I can! This past month I've been somewhat vacant around here...I'm sure that you are totally relating. Aside from the regularly scheduled days to the nth degree because of the holidays, I've managed to go on a huge trek with the family to Fort Davis, Texas for some more camping in our RV. We had such a wonderful time and I highly recommend this place for some gorgeous camping and plenty of activities to keep you busy...even in the winter!

I created this card for the Taylored Expressions Newsletter, so you may have already seen it there, and if not, you can subscribe to it at the top right of the homepage HERE! This was my last Christmas card for the season...the last hurrah of Christmas cards, if you will! I used my most adored Holiday set, Sparkle & Cheer coupled with my most faaavorite Tinsel and Twig Project Pantry kit. I stamped my tree with Colorbox Olive Pastel and Dark Brown. And of course, dressed everything else up with ribbon, glitter, and pearls. :) Wouldn't have this any other way! Now I must return back to the hustle and bustle of the household....

Hope you are enjoy a most beautiful holiday with your family and I thank you sooooo much for your visit.

Merry Christmas again!!

Cupcake Album Cover with Want2Scrap

Hey everyone! I'm so excited to be sharing with you a new chipboard album that I discovered at the Want2Scrap booth a few months ago and have finally had the chance to play with....meet the Cupcake Chipboard album!!

Ack! I just absolutely adore this album! Now, this is just the cover of the album...I plan on finishing out the inside pages and sharing with you in upcoming posts. :) I used quite a bit of Want2Scrap products here....of course some bling...but can you notice something else chipboardy here?


Mmmm...some new assortments of Chipboard flourishes. I simply sugared it up and layered it on top of some bling flourish that I cut from this little number HERE. I think they make such a beautiful pair together and you will probably see this again! :)


And can you believe that I snagged some of this lovely crochet trim from Want2Scrap as well? They seriously do carry everything for your scrappin' needs! Now, I need to get cracking on the inner pages...I'm so excited to play more with this...and there are more little cute items to show that are included in the book!

Thanks so much for looking!!!

Clean and Simple Sewing

Hey everyone! My title for today's post is completely misleading...sorry about that! I DO sew, however, if I were to show you one of my projects, the word "clean" would not be in the title, LOL!

Ever since I got the petite sets from Taylored Expressions, I've been wanting to play with one of the images from Sew Happy. I've already stamped the dress form and I had a total vision of making a project using the pin cushion while also creating my own to match my card....yeah, that part didn't quite happen! My cardmaking has been occurring, I swear, in slow motion! It takes me almost 3 days to make ONE card because of all the interruptions and schtuff that just needs to be done. Ok, enough of my whining...

I used another Clean and Simple challenge from over at Splitcoast as inspiration from my card because they just have great CAS challenges. I pulled out an oldie but goodie Project Pantry kit that I just LOVE...the Garden Variety Project Pantry. It features one of my all time favorite lines from Cosmo Cricket and this kit is still available in the TE store! I fulfilled a small Copic fix and finally colored with them...I haven't done that in a while! I swear, coloring is soooo relaxing...but I digress. :) I topped my pin cushion with some Taylor Tiny Twinkle gemstones for pop. And what a wonderful sentiment to finish it all.....

Hope you are doing well in this last week of preparations for the BIG holiday. :) I'm planning on completing some more projects to post in the next upcoming week during the chaotic hub-bub so I better get cranking!

Thanks sooooo very much for your visit and I shall see you next time!

Teacher's Christmas gift

Hello everyone!! Sorry for the sparse posts as of late, but Christmas is just coming up so quickly and there are still about 239847297 and 1 things that need to be done before then! We are planning a big trip in the RV (we've already been "camping" in it 3 times) so Christmas needs to be DONE prior to the trip! Plus, it really also requires a lot of planning for RV trips! My head's spinning so fast I don't know where I am from one moment to the next. It's all fun though and definitely makes life more exciting. :)

So one of the tasks I needed to get done before next Friday is the infamous Teacher's gift. I went with this little gift card/card ensemble, and I totally CASEd the gift box from the super duper fabulous Melissa Phillips on this one...


I went with the latest CAS challenge on Splitcoast (to use bows) and cut the box with my Silhouette. I stamped both projects with the gorgeous snowflakes from Winter Wonderland in Versamark ink and then embossed them with clear embossing powder. I love the subtle look it gave.

My card is just a 4"x4" square made from Riding Hood Red and Choice Buttercream cardstock. I stamped my greeting in Rich Cocoa ink first and then stamped and embossed the snowflakes on top after. I topped with some big fat striped grosgrain ribbon that looks kind of like a faux bow and then added some Tiny Twinkles for good measure. :)


And can I just say how much I love this box??! Perfectly small enough to put together quickly and fit a gift card in the most adorable little package. Before I assembled the box, I stamped the snowflakes again all over and then embossed with clear embossing powder. Then I simply tied some ribbon right to the top and added a flower to the front that I dazzled up with some Stardust Stickles. The perfect little tag came from the Tag You're It set and I distressed it up a little with some of my favorite Distress inks. :) Now all I need is the gift card!

So how are you coming along with the Christmas bustle? Are you ready? :)

Taylored Expressions December Release!

Hello everyone! Well, the sets and accessories that you have been seeing here and on all of the Baker's Dozen's blogs for the past few days are now available for sale in the Taylored Expressions store!! You can shop for all of the new goodies, plus new items to the store, right here at the Fresh Out of the Oven link. Now, have you enjoyed the new surprises to the store with the Crafty Petites and the new Impression plate? :) I think they are pretty cool myself!

So since all of the goodies are now available for you to purchase (and just in time for Christmas!), the team and I presenting a last round of papercrafted projects for you to see with a sampling of everything released! I will be sharing a card using the Crafty Petite, Collector's Anonymous.


I absolutely adore the sentiments and images that go along with this little set. The inside of the card says, "Crafter's Anonymous." I think we can ALL relate to that! And maybe a little bit to the hoarding too....which is another sentiment (not shown.) :)


I bought a couple reams of twill and then tea-stained them to give as a gift. And after looking at this photo...I definitely need to re-stain them! I used new paper from Cosmo Cricket's Circa 1934 mini deck to create my card and create a little belly band on my tape with. I have the perfect use for this card too! One of my friends hasn't scrapbooked in a loooong time and I think this will be perfect for re-introducing her to the craft, yes? :)

*ANNOUNCEMENT*
Taylor has just announced a limited time BUNDLE SALE!!! From now 12/3/10 through Sunday 12/5/10, you may purchase the entire Crafty Petites set of stamps at a discount of over 10%!

CRAFTY PETITES BUNDLE -- Purchase all 4 Crafty Petite stamp sets in this simple one click bundle HERE and save over 10%

You may also have easy one-click bundle shopping with the Friendship Blooms stamp set, and coordinating dies by clicking HERE.

Now let's check out what the rest of the crew has in store for you, along with our talented Guest Designer, Mona!

• Charmaine Ikach

• Danielle Lounds
• Donna Baker
• Jackie Pedro
• Jodi Collins
• Karen Giron
• Karen Motz
• Mona Pendleton - Guest Designer
• Nancy McKinney - Super Duper talented Illustrator
  
• Regina Mangum
• Sankari Wegman
• Taylor VanBruggen
• Tori Wild

In Stamping Mode Supplies
Stamps: Collector's Anonymous
Ink: Tuxedo Black Memento, Distress inks
Paper: Choice Buttercream, Circa 1934, Doily
Accessories: Taylor's Tiny Twinkles, Copics, Striped Grosgrain, Button

Taylored Expressions Sneak Peek - Crafty Petites

Welcome back everyone! So glad you have stopped by for Day 2 of sneaks for the big December release of Taylored Expressions stamps tomorrow, Friday December 3! I hope you were excited about yesterday's sneaks and fully surprised of the new texture plate. Didn't see it coming, did ya!? :) Well, Taylor has yet ANOTHER new concept with this month's release and that is of new Petite Sets! Today, the Bakers Dozen, along with Taylor and our lovely Illustrator for these sets, Nancy McKinney, are going to show you FOUR variations of the Crafty Petites sets...a set focused on Sewing, Knitting, Baking, and our beloved Papercrafting. Now, I just KNOW you know SOMEONE that is into any (or all!!!) of these hobbies, and these little sets make the perfect gift for them! Great little stocking stuffers too, right? :) And with a price point of only $7.95, it will be hard to resist! And if you are new to Taylored Expressions, Taylor has created a video for you highlighting the different sized sets that she carries as well as showing that deeply etched high quality rubber! You can view it HERE.
Now you are probably itching to see some samples now, yes?


I just HAD to make something with the Sew Happy Crafty Petite set. :) A little card with coordinating dress form made with all the girlie things I just love. Yes...more Thrift Shop papers...I can't help it, I love them!


I created a little 4"x 4" card using some fun embellishments from the TE store as well as two other TE stamp sets...the border from Take Note and the faux stitching from Borderliscious. My metal flower was originally a white one, but I simply colored it with a Copic R83 marker and made it my own kind of pretty pink. :)

And finally my favorite little 3D item....created from a dress form I cut off my Silhouette. I adhered it to some chipboard to give it some sturdiness and then embellished from there. I think it's a nice little touch to go with the card...maybe even a tag to add to a bag?? And yep, more Thrift Shop paper here. :) So what do you think? Pretty cute?? Let's check out what everyone else has created with the four different petites...I know they will knock your crafty socks off!

Charmaine Ikach
Danielle Lounds
Donna Baker
Jackie Pedro
Jodi Collins
Karen Giron
Karen Motz
Nancy McKinney
Regina Mangum
Sankari Wegman
Taylor VanBruggen
Tori Wild

In Stamping Mode Supplies
"Sew Happy" card
Stamps: Sew Happy, Take Note, Borderliscious
Paper: Choice Buttercream, Thrift Shop by October Afternoon
Ink: Tuxedo Black Memento, Creamy Brown Colorbox Chalk, Blush Blossom marker, Distress inks
Accessories: Sew Cute Mini Chipboard set, Making Memories Metal Flowers White, Raspberry Soda glitter, Seam Binding, Taylor's Tiny Twinkles

"Sew Happy" Dress form
Stamps: Sew Happy
Paper: Choice Buttercream, Thrift Shop by October Afternoon
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Distress inks
Accessories: Prima Flower, Vintage Crochet Baby Pom Trim, Taylor's Tiny Twinkles, Spellbinders Tags Trio, White Tulle

See you back here tomorrow morning for the release at 8 AM PST and the final day of peeks!!!

Thanks so much for your visit!

Taylored Expressions Sneak Peek - Friendship Blooms

Greetings everyone! Can you believe that the first of December is already here?! Why does it feel like the last couple months of the year just feel like everything is in fast forward?? What a complete rush! It honestly seems like just last week we were doing sneaks for the November release, but I'm back here for a week of December sneaks now!

I am soooo excited to share with you a beautiful all-occasion set, designed for the Whimsical Wishes line by Ms. Nancy McKinney!! You are definitely going to NEED this set in your stamping arsenal! And let me tell you...when you see the coordinating dies, your socks are just going to be KNOCKED OFF! I made a couple of samples for you today so we can play, "can you spot the die?" See how many you can find!

Isn't that Leafy Branch Die fantastic?! I stamped it with Olive Colorbox ink on Kiwi cardstock and easily die cut it out....such GREAT detail and I am so in love with it! And a little hint here....there is another die on this card...see those yummy large scallops? :) Notice anything else?? Maybe a little texture on the base panel?? Yep, Taylor is introducing her very first double-sided Taylored Impression Plate! I just love it!

And how about this little lovely?? A whopping FIVE dies I used on this one...can you see them all?? :) Another little hint...more flowers, more scallops!

So what do you think?! You are definitely going to want to see what the rest of the design team has to share for you....I've caught a little peak and there are some FABULOUS samples made with this set...it's so easy to do!

Come check them out with me...

• Charmaine Ikach
• Danielle Lounds
• Donna Baker
• Jackie Pedro
• Jodi Collins
• Karen Giron
• Karen Motz
• Nancy McKinney <-----Illustrator Extraordinaire!!
• Regina Mangum
• Sankari Wegman
• Taylor VanBruggen
• Tori Wild

See you back here tomorrow for Round 2 of Sneaks!!

In Stamping Mode Supplies
"Friends Are Flowers" Stamps: Friendship Blooms Paper: Kraft, Riding Hood Red, Kiwi Kiss, Thrift Shop by October Afternoon Ink: Olive Colorbox Chalk, Memento Tuxedo Black Accessories: Leafy Branch die, Scallop edge die, white satin ribbon, Taylor's Tiny Twinkles, Taylored Impression Plate
"Thankful for You" Stamps: Friendship Blooms Paper: Choice Buttercream, Thrift Shop by October Afternoon, Old Olive, Vellum Ink: Olive Colorbox Chalk, Berryliscious Colorbox Chalk, Tuxedo Black Memento, Distress ink Accessories: Friendship Blooms Dies, Leafy Blooms Dies, Scalloped Border Dies, Glitter, Seam Binding

Passionately Artistic Blog Hop

Want2Scrap, Scrapbook Manufacturer is proudly sponsoring the Passionately Artistic blog hop! We have joined forces to bring you an amazing hop filled with creative goodness to inspire you for 12 full days!!! We are so excited to bring you such wonderful inspiration leading you into the holiday season. To start from the beginning of the hop, please visit the Passionately Artistic blog for all the details . . . . otherwise you have come to the next stop in the 12 days of Christmas hop."

And hello there everyone!!! So glad you are visiting on your stop through the hop, or if you are even visiting me directly....love that too. :)

I hope you've been enjoying reading all the wonderful traditions we all share in celebrating this most joyous holiday. I know that I'm looking forward to reading them and getting some great ideas of traditions to start!
Until then, I know that one of my most favorite traditions of the season is bundling the kids up in the car, putting on some soft Christmas music, and going for a drive to see the display of Christmas lights! Whether it be in a neighborhood, park, or in the middle of downtown, I just love it all! I truly relish seeing the kids light up as they excitedly see how proudly, and differently, everyone has displayed their lights. I think I get just as excited as they do! :)

So I decided to make a card featuring this favored tradition....Christmas lights!


Ok, so I only showed one light, but you get the picture! :) And since lights truly sparkle, I just HAD to make my card sparkle with some Silver Rhinestone Swirls bling. I cut my swirl into two pieces to make the appearance that it continued under my raised panel (save on your bling that way!) and I looooove how the swirl still held its shape...just in case you were wondering. :) I also used Silver Rhinestones on my stamped bulb. And since I didn't have the red rhinestones, I simply colored them with my Copics...just a little tip that you can do with your clear ones if you want to stock up on those. :)

My adorable little bulb and sentiment come from Technique Tuesday's set, Good Cheer....I know, I know, I use that set a ton, but it has so many wonderful images to choose from!

Now, I hear that if you leave a comment here, and on all of the participating hoppers blogs, one of us has been chosen to give some FABULOUS blog candy from Want2Scrap! I, personally, would love to hear what your favorite family tradition is. AND....I'll throw in some pretty fabulous candy from myself if you share a tradition AND show me a project you've created from it. How's that sound? Looking forward to reading and seeing!!!

TE Black Friday Special!!!

Happy Black Friday everyone! This post is coming at ya bright and early (in the middle of the night after Thanksgiving) with a fun and exciting announcement! The Taylored Expressions store is having a HUGE Black Friday through Cyber Monday sale with a ton of awesome specials!!

You can begin your perusal of specials by visiting the Black Friday Blowout Department...OR... see all the specials individually via the following links!

• Stamp Sets - Purchase any 5 full sized Stamp Sets and GET ONE FREE!
• Taylored Expressions T-shirts (3 styles to choose from) at 25% off!
• Twinkles Special - Buy 2 Multi Colored Twinkles and get a Free Package of Crystal Twinkles.
• Stickers and Tags - Purchase either the Sweet Season or Waiting for Santa sticker sheet and receive a set of 10 coordinating die cut tags free.
• Key Ingredients Subscription - TE is lowering the monthly subscription fee for a 3 Month KI Subscription from $25.95 per month to $23.95 per month just for this 4 day sale. Normally you would need to subscribe for 6 months to get that monthly rate. This is a great time to give Key Ingredients a try!
• 
  A la Carte Stamps - Purchase any 3 Animals in Love A la Carte stamps and GET ONE FREE!

AND SO MUCH MORE!!!! Click over to the Black Friday Blowout Department 12:01am CST Friday through Tuesday at 12:01am CST to take advantage of these incredible deals. Some quantities are limited, so for best selection shop early!

And to inspire you just a teensy weensy bit, I made a card using one of my all time favorite loved sets, Discover Your Wings.



I followed the latest Mojo Monday sketch for inspiration and used a new adorable paper pack I bought in the TE store called Indie Girl. I snuck another stamp set in there....another one that I loooove and is also part of the buy 5 get 1 free bundle, called Miniature Motifs. It's very subtle, but I stamped my main flower panel with one of the solid motifs in a stamped off River Rock ink. I enjoy stamping main panels on patterns and this just worked beautifully together....at least I think it did! :)

Ok, enough with the chatter! It is definitely time to shop. Go forth, shop, and have fun! :)

And thank you so sweetly for your visit.

Technique Tuesday's Terrific Tag Challenge

Hey guys! There is another chance over on the Technique Tuesday's forum on Splitcoast to win some free stamps! The challenge, if you so choose to accept and partake, is to create any kind of tags which have stamping on them. Easy peasy, right? Post up your creations and you'll have a chance to win the lovely Pointed Perfection set...perfect for Christmas!

I wanted to play along because I haven't made a single Christmas tag yet and I know I'm going to need them. So I pulled out my most favorite TT holiday set, Good Cheer, and knocked out a couple of quickies.


I'm just in love with this tag! It's always a challenge parting ways with such lovelies, but I'm going to have to manage. :)

And this one was totally CASEd by the super talented Michelle Wooderson over at her blog Mish Mash. I stamped the the bottom of the tag with the super gorgeous border set Vintage Lace. And boy was I tickled when I discovered that both the Good Cheer tag and Believe tag stamps perfectly into my silver encased tabs (which were bought like 6 years ago when Stampin' Up! used to carry them)...GREAT way to use them after they've been collecting dust all these years!

Ahhh....2 tags out of the way...230894230843028 more to go! HAH!

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving for all of you in the states. And for the rest of you...have a wonderful week!! I'll be back on Friday with a post you won't want to miss!

TESC 134- Thanks for Dinner!

Happy Friday everyone! Can you believe that this is the last Friday before Thanksgiving? Oh my goodness, I'm so ready to start getting out Christmas decorations, but I'm not sure if I'm ready for Christmas to already be around the corner! I'm honestly contemplating doing some hybrid Christmas cards so I need to get some cute pictures of the kids put together. Oy! Just another item on the "to-do" list!

Well, for the last hurrah before the Thanksgiving holiday, Taylor has another challenge sketch for you....


And I totally had to get out my What's Cookin'? set along with coordinating apron and accessories dies to make a "thanks for dinner" card. I used that adorable matching Bon Appetite paper from Doodlebug to begin with and the rest of the card just practically put itself together. Don't you just love it when that happens? :)


I also pulled out my new yellow gingham fabric tape which was just AWESOME to use!! It is exactly as it says...tape, and therefore easy as pie to make a nice ruffle without having to fuss with stitching, or red tape, or any of that business!

Now be sure and check out what the rest of the super talented Sketch Crew has to show on their takes of the sketch.

• Alice Wertz
• Jami Sibley
• Lisa Hjulberg
• Lori Craig
• Monika Davis
• Rachel Sztonyk
• Sherrie Siemens
• Taylor Van Bruggen

Have a super fabulous weekend and hopefully I'll be able to squeeze in one more project before the upcoming holiday!

Mmmmm, strawberries

I thought I'd change things up a little bit, even though I'm so inclined to do nothing but Christmas cards for the new couple weeks, and make a fun and fruity card! When I attended CKC - San Marcos a few months ago, I just HAD to have the new set by Technique Tuesday called Fruit Stand. I'm such a sucker for fruit stamps and I just instantly had to own it. You know the feeling, right?? :)


I used the latest CAS challenge over on Splitcoast for my inspiration. And you know I love to tackle those clean and simples when I can. I first die cut my scalloped circle out and then stamped the strawberry with Raspberry Fizz ink. The leaf part was stamped with Certainly Celery ink and then popped up. I added some pearls and rhinestones for accents. And that's just about all I can say on this one!! I think it's totally cute. :)

Now, back off to work I go! It's been sooo busy lately and I'm currently on the hunt for an outfit to wear for a girl's night this weekend. Any suggestions on what to wear (and wear to shop!!) for someone in their mid-30s? :)

Happy Birthday Dear Nancy!

Today is the birthday of a very dear friend, Nancy McKinney, who is also the illustrator of the Whimsical Wishes line of stamps with Taylored Expressions! I'm positively THRILLED to be a part of a blog hop celebrating her wonderful day....just wish I could celebrate with her in person!! (When you flying to Texas Nancy???) :)

I had the pleasure of getting to meet Nancy at summer CHA 2010 and we instantly hit it off like two peas in a pod. She is the most sweetest, big-hearted, giving, sensitive, adorable, cutest dimpled person I have ever met! Girl, I hope you are celebrating big up there in Canada and know I'm missin ya something fierce!!!

Here's a card for Nancy and she definitely will be seeing it in her mail soon!


I thought it only fitting to use one of her sets, and an all-time favorite of mine, For the Love of Cupcakes. I stamped the stand full of cupcakes and easy peasy colored it with Copic markers in R81, E53, BG10, and W1. The stand also fit absolutely perfect in the Take Note Die #3. Paper was from the gorgeous line of Webster's Sweet Season, and I added a bunch of craft flowers from my stash. Oh! My new favorite transparent doily is hidden on the left side of my card...it makes such a lovely accent and I can't wait to hide more of them, LOL!

Inspiration from my card came from another super sweet lady, Karen Giron, who hosts the Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge.

I hope you will join me in hopping along to Michelle Leishman's blog, where she also has a fabulous creation just for Nancy!!! Also, if you have a moment to spare, I'm sure Nancy would love a little birthday lovin' on her blog....a little message to help her in celebrating that 21st birthday....for the ???? time. :)


Happy Birthday my dear, dear friend!!!!

Pink and white snowflakes

I just adore non traditional colors for a Christmas card. When I saw the latest Clean and Simple challenge over on Splitcoast to use pale pink, kraft, old olive, and white, I jumped at the chance to make a fluffy pinky krafty Christmas card. :) Because, the reality is, we have Thanksgiving in two short weeks, and then soon after it'll be time to start sending out those cards. I'm not ready! Clean and simple cards are my absolute favorites for mass production, and this one fits the bill.


I used the gorgeous snowflake set, Winter Wonderland, coupled with the coordinating dies, Winter Wonderland Snowflakes. I don't know about you, but I'm head over heels in love with all these new sets that have the matching dies. Pure genius I tell ya! And I know you've seen me die cut the snowflake on acetate before and then glitter it up with Frosted Lace Stickles, but I just had to do it again. It's a nice subtle POP! :)

So a lot has been going on in my household that I haven't mentioned here. For one thing, we bought an RV!!! My husband has been begging me to go camping, and let's get real here, I'm just not a campy type. I need a comfy bed to sleep in...with air conditioning...and heating...and without bugs! So the compromise was the RV. :) We got a whopper of one measuring in at 33 feet long. The kids have their own area to sleep in with 2 bunk beds so they can invite friends later. We are planning our first trip and I am just THRILLED! Now that's MY type of camping!

Lot's to look forward to! Hope you are having as much excitement.

Thanks so humbly for your visit :)

Taylored Expressions November Release

Welcome back and happy TE Release Day to you! :) All of the new sets and accessories that we have been sneaking for you this week are now available for purchase right in the Taylored Expressions store! There are also many other brand new items to the store and you can find them (plus all of new sets and dies) right in the Fresh Out of the Oven section of the store.

But before you start your purchases, you may want to peruse the Bakers, plus special guest designer Mona Pendleton's blogs for even MORE inspiration using the new sets! I got to do another project with the What's Cookin' stamp set and I made a project that I intended to give as a Christmas gift....but I'm not sure if I can part with, LOL! I love all things to do with storing and presenting recipes, so with a Library Card holder in hand from 7 Gypsies, I got to work.


This is the title cover I created using more of that apron, that I just adore, and the "What's Cookin'?" sentiment.


And of course I had to begin my section with the most important recipe of all....Desserts. :) I stamped the hand mitt and die cut that out with a die from the Kitchen Accessories dies and added that as an embellishment in my ribbon treatment. I have a few more sections to finish off, but at least the Desserts are done!


And finally how they are presented in the library card holder. I just love the idea of being able to thumb through the sections to find your recipe and then quickly pull out the desired one. I know....I'm sooo not sure if I can part with it. Still a bit more work to be done, but what a GREAT project. And I just love the fact that this new set has wonderful images for creating adorable recipe cards.

Here's a visual of the dies I used so you can get a better idea of what they'll look like when delivered to your door. :)


I hope you have thoroughly enjoyed what you've seen so far!! There is plenty of eye candy to be seen on the rest of the Bakers blogs so I hope you'll hop around while you shop. :)

• Charmaine Ikach
• Danielle Lounds
• Donna Baker
• Jackie Pedro
• Jodi Collins
• Karen Giron
• Karen Motz
• Regina Mangum
• Sankari Wegman
• Tori Wild
• Jami Sibley
• Nancy McKinney
• Taylor VanBruggen
• Mona Pendleton - Guest Designer!
  

Stamping Mode Supplies
Stamps: What's Cookin'
Ink: Creamy Brown Colorbox Chalk, Colorbox Prussian Blue, Colorbox Dark Brown, Rich Cocoa Memento
Paper: Webster's Pages Wonderfall & Hollywood Vogue
Accessories: Apron & Pocket dies, Kitchen Accessories dies, 7 Gypsies library card holder, Lemon Yellow Vintage Brooch, Olive Mini Rose trim, White Fabric Thickers

Taylored Expressions Sneak Peek - Enjoy

Welcome back Wednesday and I thank you so much for coming by to visit! We have one last set to sneak for you today and the big release is bright and early tomorrow at 8 AM PST! All sets and accessories will be live and available for purchase at that time, but feel free to visit us tomorrow morning for a last round of "sneaks" for the big release.

Today we are sharing with you another GREAT gift-giving set that is able to be used all throughout the year. I'm so excited that our multi-faceted with talent, Jami Sibley, concepted this set with Nancy McKinney illustrating for her Whimsical Wishes line. They just create magic! :)

Ok, so this set includes 18 images (including a frame with coordinating die!!) with 11 of those images being gift icons. Each of the Bakers have chosen a different gift icon to work with and I chose the purse....mmmm, I have a slight addiction to purses. And I haven't yet mentioned that this frame with matching die TOTALLY fits the cover of an altoid-style tin. Check it...


Now how many times have you tried to cover a tin...and you cut just the right dimensions for the lid and then crossed your fingers and toes that your corner rounder would not make your cover look totally "off?" I know you're with me on that...we have all done it! No more now! I cut my cover with patterned paper from the die and just embellished it all up with goodies straight from the TE store.

So, since I was working with the purse icon, I had my heart set on somehow acquiring a gift card from my favorite purse store....mhmmm...the Coach store. Well, when I arrived, they just wouldn't let me walk out with one, so I had to purchase a minimum $25 gift card. Well, push came to shove and I just used that gift card right up and walked out with a new purse, LOL! Thank you Taylor for this gift card set!!! HAHAH


And here you see the adorable frame and die in action with the purse image and some wordings from the set. Notice how I made it a gift to myself, ROFL!

And I die cut a couple more patterned paper pieces to make an accordion style gift card, card.


And to make sure my gift card stayed nice and snug to my paper, I used a notch punch on either side and punched really close to the edge and my Coach gift card slid right in! For my last little bit of the card...yeah, I had to add the sentiment, "you deserve it!" Yep, I think I do, if I say so myself, haha! I also used the new From the Heart frame die because it fit so perfectly on my doily and the 1 3/4" circle punch nests inside that frame perfectly.


And here it is all folded back up and tucked away for the recipient....good thing I know another Melissa! ;)

So are you as smitten as I am?! I just want to stock up on these tins now and horde them all, but I'll be nice and share and let you know that you can find them here, Small Hinged Tin.

Now I can't wait to see what the rest of the Bakers have done with their images...AND Jami and Nancy are playing along and you can check everyone out, so let's hop along...

• Charmaine Ikach
• Danielle Lounds
• Donna Baker
• Jackie Pedro
• Jodi Collins
• Karen Giron
• Karen Motz
• Regina Mangum
• Sankari Wegman
• Tori Wild
• Jami Sibley
• Nancy McKinney
• Taylor VanBruggen
  

Stamping Mode Supplies
Stamps: Enjoy, From the Heart
Paper: Webster's Pages Hollywood Vogue
Ink: Tuxedo Black Memento
Accessories: Crowns Mini Chipboard, Sew Cute Mini Chipboard, Grey Felt Pearl Blossoms, Brown Leaf Trinket pins, Taylor's Tiny Twinkles, Green Hearts Little Whimsies, Olive Mini Roses

Taylored Expressions Sneak Peek - From the Heart and From the Heart Funnies

Welcome back! I'm so happy to see you back here. Today I have more sneaks for you and these sets are perfect for any and all of your gift-giving needs. The sets are, From the Heart and coordinating From the Heart Funnies, and they were illustrated by our very own Taylor herself! I'm wondering if you are thinking...since this set is a gift-giving set, SURELY there is a tag included in the set. This is where you would be absolutely right...and we can't have a tag without a coordinating die, right?? Yeah, I'm pretty excited about this set. Especially since I needed a small gift to give to a new friend of mine. You see, it was her birthday last week AND she had just informed me that she was buying a house in my neighborhood...but not just in my neighborhood, only a street down from me! I'm just a little bit excited. :)

So I put a little something together for her...


Some 4x4 cards that she can send to announce her big move and new address....


A box (cut from my Silhouette) to hold them all and that adorable tag letting her know I handstamped every little bit of this gift.


Also a birthday card made using the coordinating From the Heart Funnies set


And the template allowed me to attach the card right to the back of the box. Pretty cool I think! :)

There are soooo many images in this set and each of the Bakers are using a different image, allowing you to get a peak at just about everything!

And just in case you are new to Taylored Expressions stamps, they are deeply etched highest quality RUBBER...I still find that rubber takes all inks better than anything....but that's just my personal opinion. :)

Now be off to check out even more from these fantastic sets and please join me back here tomorrow for even MORE!

• Charmaine Ikach
• Danielle Lounds
• Donna Baker
• Jackie Pedro
• Jodi Collins
• Karen Giron
• Karen Motz
• Regina Mangum
• Sankari Wegman
• Tori Wild
• Jami Sibley