Yard Sales

I love to go to yard sales. There was a time when I went with an open mind and brought home kitchen gadgets, pretty dishes, books, and everything and anything I thought my children or grandchildren could use (in my opinion). Then the day came when I developed a passion or obsession with cards and now it is hard to concentrate on anything besides are there any stamps, paper, ribbon . . . you know the drill. At one yard sale, in particular I found an old book filled with wonderful examples of cards similar to the card I am posting today. Very simple and elegant.

Dude Time Doodles New Release Blog Hop

Apple Pie Sam

The last Wednesday of the month can only mean one thing, its new release time for Dude Time Doodles premiering the latest images by Bonibleaux Designs! Our fabulous design team has assembled to form a hop so you can enjoy each of the new images. And if you are like me, you are going to want them all!  Along the hop you will meet Herman Hustle, Last Call Leonard, Kyle Karate, Vicky Viking and Apply Pie Sam.

This blog hop is especially exciting since along the way you will get to meet the newest Dudettes to join the team, Janet (former guest designer), Michelle, NanaConnie, Dawn, and Linda. As you travel along the hop, remember to leave some love because one of us is the MYSTERY HOSTESS.

If you came from Linda's blog or if you just joined, your next stop will be Ginny's blog. The hop is a loop so keep going and you'll see it all. Here's the list in case you get lost.

Anne

Janet

Cleota

Michelle

Ruth

NanaConnie

Boni

Dawn

Lynn

Linda

Tammy

Ginny

Dude Time Doodle

Man's Best Friend

This image absolutely makes my heart smile. In my world, there is nothing like the companionship of a dog or two. The artists at Just Inklined's have created many wonderful images of dogs but the earnest expression of Man's Best Friend spoke to my love for the four-legged fur babies.

I Pledge Allegiance

Big doings at Squigglefly today, it's the official start date of the new term and the new team. I am very pleased that I have been invited to stay on another term. Thank you Squigglefly! "Marlene's Marvels" is providing the inspiration for this week's Squigglefly challenge to use red, white, and blue and besides, we are about to celebrate this country's birthday on the Fourth of July. I used Cheryl Alger's "I Pledge Allegiance" to lend my support to the first challenge of the new term.

Slow Down

Sometimes I get so excited when I see what another person has created I want to stop everything and try to do the same thing. Usually in my hurry, I'm not reading the description of how it was done. Such is the case of my card today. I CASed a beautiful card by Joan of Stamping with a Passion. In my haste, I missed the word "embossed" so my flower does not the appeal of Joan's beautiful card.

TUIC June Challenge

This month the super lovely Lynn of Confessions of a Left Brained Stamper sets the parameters for Tangled Up in Creativities' challenge. There is only one rule, and that is to use torn paper somewhere on your design. I decided to keep it simple and used pretty design paper and tore the edges all around and add a sentiment. I used PaperTemptress' Pop Tones Cotton Candy cardstock for the background and ⅜ light pink/pink reversible ribbon also from PaperTemptress. Simple, pretty and very useful.

Summer Fun and Rupert Surfing

No doubt you are rubbing your eyes wondering if you really are seeing a dragon holding his surfboard at the beach. Your eyes are not deceiving you, you are seeing Rupert Surfing and Summer Fun, the images I used for the new challenge that starts today at Stamping with the Dragon. The challenge is a sketch, the theme is summer and is sponsored by Stamping Dragon Designs. You have two weeks to participate in the challenge and win the prize! Stop and see what the other design team members have created to entice you into joining the fun.

Sketch by Maya

Sunny Yellow Sunflowers

When I see an image of a sunflower I cannot help but think of summertime and bright yellow. For my card today, I used Sunshine Yellow, Olive Brown Bag and Metallic Copper. I stamped the image on Heavenly White 120# then used copper embossing power, colored it with copics, and added a touch of Copper Silky Satin Ribbon. Sunflower colors through and though and available at the PaperTemptress along with a tremendous variety of colors, textures and weight.


P.S. Did ya hear? George and his girlfriend split. I knew he'd never be happy without me!

What a gas!

That's our girl, Fanny Fart as only our Marlooney can create. Fanny loves to get all dolled up, go to fancy restaurants and hobnob with the rich and famous. Unfortunately, when the rich and famous see Fanny coming, they clear out because of her continuous tooting and she's proud of it!

When I say "our Marlooney" I mean Dude Time Doodles' Marlooney, mother of snarkism, because we are proud to announce that as of today she is a full-fledged artist at Dude Time Doodles. The whole town of Dudeville is so excited and remarkably, the announcement has made national news. In fact, the interviews of resident artist, Lou, Dudeville's Mayor Boni and Marlooney are happening now at Dude Time Doodles. Be sure to check it out and the blogs of my fellow Dudettes!

The Mad Hatter

If you are a fan of Alice in Wonderland, you've got to love the Mad Hatter from Just Inklined. By chance you are looking for any of the other Wonderland characters, Just Inlined has seven different Alice in Wonderland images sold separately or as a pack.  Now, what's in his teacup that puts such a smile on his face??

Time to say hello and goodbye

Today is the day that the new teams get in position at Squigglefly to start a new term and sadly some of the designers have decided to step down. So I say farewell to my teammates who have decided not to continue and hello to my new teammates.  I've gained friends and I look forward to making new friends.

Today's challenge at Squigglefly is the last challenge that Chelsea's team as we know it participates and the challenge is Playing Favorites! As far as I'm concerned, this is an unfair challenge inasmuch as how can you possibly have a favorite image from Squigglefly, each image is my favorite. That being said, I used Cheryl Alger's Land Swimmers.  I can relate to this image so easily, because when I was a youngster (a short time ago *choke*) we didn't have a nearby pool. We had the Susquehanna River to swim in but because of where I lived at the time, it was too far to go so we played in puddles. And then came the dreaded outbreak of polio and experts believed that polio was spread in the water so we weren't allowed to step in puddles. That summer was a very long summer!

Be sure to stop by and say farewell to Chelsea's team and hello to Heather and Marlene's team. And you might want to tighten you seatbelt because with Heather and Marlene as team leaders, it is going to be a fun ride!

Happy Father's Day

Just stopping by to wish all the dads of the world Happy Father's Day! And for moms everywhere that wear both mom and dad hats, Happy Father's Day to you too!

CDAC Sketch Challenge

Just Inklined is hosting a sketch challenge at CDAC. To see the sketch, grab the freebie and for all the details visit here. In the meantime, I thought I would share with you what I have created as a guest member of their design team for the challenge (I am still in a tailspin from the thrill of working with such talented women). To see what Just Inklined's design team members have created, please visit here and if you pay close attention, you will notice that my bottle of wine is the only bottle of wine that is empty. Now who drank it?  I love cheese, grapes and crackers but I drink beer. Must have been my beautiful Goldens, Rozie and Xena, after I've gone to bed because George and Harrison are out of town.

Spotty Puppy

When I saw Spotty Puppy at Stamping Dragon Designs it was a must have. I decided to print it on designer paper, add a few polkadots and give it a shiny heart.

Don't forget there is still plenty of time to join the friendship challenge at Stamping with the Dragon.

Typewriters

I'm not complaining but I haven't had a need to use a typewriter in years still, I thought this was a cute image. The stamp includes "old school" but I carefully avoided getting ink in that area and put my own thoughts on the paper.

Grease Monkey Mike

Grease Monkey Mike by Bonibleaux Designs is trying to become an ace mechanic but he doesn't know the difference between a spark plug and a tire iron. Mike is always friendly, courteous and as he tells his boss, customers love him because they keep coming back. Fortunately, Mike's boss is a decent fellow and not wanting to burst his bubble doesn't tell Mike that customers keep coming back to get their cars fixed after Mike has repaired them.  In the meantime, boss man is secretly hoping that Mike changes careers in the near future to something more suitable for Mike like maybe a brain surgeon.

I used Mike for the Inspiration Challenge at Dude Time Doodles that starts today. The challenge is to Make it Monochromatic and the inspiration is posted below.

Lastly, don't forget, today is the last day to submit your application for the Open DT Call at Dude Time Doodles.

Clean Windows

If you come for a visit, don't expect to see clean windows, rain works perfect for me. But for this card, I got over zealous and wanted a clean window so I stamped the image on clear plastic, again on white cardstock and on yellow cardstock. Don't ask me why, it would have been much easier and half the time to stamp it one time, add color and call it done. At least I can brag that I have one clean window.

OMGoodness!

OMGoodness, I hope it's tied tight and for heaven's sake, don't bend over! From the look on this man's face, I don't think he was expecting to see us when he stepped out of the shower. Hope it's tied tight is available at Squigglefly and has been created by none other then the famous, Marlene! Yeah, I love her creations. I colored him to participate in Squigglefly's new challenge to Make it Masculine! Perfect timing since Father's Day is Sunday. Visit the blogs of Vicki's team for more inspiration for this challenge and then play along.

Squigglefly also released a new image by Jane Beljo called Fairy Klara and all the proceeds from the sale of this image will go to Caylin's Cure.   


Thanks for visiting and as always, thanks for your comments, I treasure each one. 

Renie & Scrappy

I love everything about making cards but I seemed to struggle with pretty images because my heart belongs to comedy. Try as I might, I seem to focus on the life story of the image instead of just coloring. Such is the case for Renie and Scrappy from Just Inklined. There are several things about this image that has led me to determine that Renie is a grand lady, hence the white gloves, hat, fur collar and sensible shoes. However, Renie is also a free spirit otherwise we would not see that she her legs are bare above her support hose and her scooter would be a conservative black.  There is one more telling thing Renie is conveying. Because her feet are not on the floorboard, she is going extremely fast. Since I know she has a silver monogramed flask in her pocket, I think she was on her way home from the still when the revenuers caught sight of her and are now in hot pursuit. That's the story and I'm sticking to it!

Have a nice trip!

This fun image from Bonibleaux Designs, Fred Eccs, is about to encounter a problem. The packages are stacked over his head making it difficult to see the tennis balls waiting to be stepped on as he makes his way up the stairs. The bad news for this poor chap is that if he does make it to the top, the doorbell does not work, no one is home and he must traverse his way back down, hopefully avoiding the tennis balls.  I hope he has a nice trip. I must tell you that there is no double in my mind that the tennis balls were strategically placed by a cat in the hopes that the dog would be blamed and banished to the doghouse.

And don't forget, times' a tic'n, June 15 is the deadline to be considered to be a part of our amazing design team at Dude Time Doodles. Visit Dude Time Doodles for all the details.

Friendship

Friendships are so important to me. I count my blessing each day for my wonderful friends and that's why I was so pleased to see the theme of Stamping with the Dragons' new challenge is anything having to do with friendship. For my inspiration card, I used Penny's Discovery from Stamping Dragon Designs. The discovery won't come until you look back later and realize your friendship started with a smile or leaving a comment for someone online.

Join the challenge and you might be the winner of four images from Stamping Dragons Designs.  Please visit the blogs of my fellow teammates and see what they have created.  Most importantly, thank you my friends for visiting me!

Brown and ivory

A member of our blog group, Karen Gilbert, share a pretty card that was in different tones of brown that I admired. Good ahead, call me a copycat, but when I see something I like I have to try it or buy it!

Kurtis the Graduate

Since it is the second Wednesday of the month, its time for Dude Time Doodles Guest Designer/Freebie Challenge and this month's freebie is an absolute treasure! Meet Kurtis the Graduate from Bonibleaux Designs, just in time for all those graduates on our list. Kurtis is a very lucky young man, he made it through school by the skin of his teeth but he made it and I say congratulations!

Hurry over to Dude Time Doodles and grab Kurtis the Graduate for yourself, he will only be available for a limited time. You have until June 15th to show us your creation and you could be our next Guest Designer.

Don't forget, there is still time to enter the Open DT Call. Please visit Dude Time Doodles for all the details.

Just because and more

Our blog group, Tangled Up in Creativity, has a monthly challenge. The hostess for this month's challenge is Monica and she is so clever and sweet. To entice us all into participating, she sent each of the members two sheets of paper to use. Now how can you resist that? The papers are absolutely beautiful and I'm pleased with the results.

Further news, I've had such an exciting Saturday, Marlene, a/k/a Marlooney, a/k/a Disguised as a Grownup, came to visit me on and we had what a fabulous time. She is absolutely as sweet and as funny in person as she is on her blog. We had a fun time spending money at the local craft stores and since it was such a gorgeous day, lunch on the deck of a nearby restaurant overlooking the beautiful Susquehanna River. The only downside to the day was that she had to go home! Thought I would share a couple of pictures.

Marlene waving at you!

Lunch on the deck

Cool Pool

Although it looks like a card to celebrate the 4th of July, in reality it is a card that will be sent to a friend of mine that revels in being a nonconformist and celebrates Christmas in July and the 4th of July at Christmas. This is my card for this week's Squigglefly Challenge to use an image for any holiday, but make it a card for a different holiday than it was intended.  I used Cool Pool by Teresa Ward of Squigglefly. Can you tell that except for her hat, she's totally naked? It is going to be a cold Christmas for her. 

Happy Day!

I am absolutely electrified. Seriously, I tingle from my head to my toes with excitement. Go ahead and ask me why? Because, I have been invited to be Just Inklined's Guest Team Member for June, July and August!  For me it's the equivalent to Broadway!

If you visit my blog often, you know I slant to humor and I've used several of Just Inklined's images. Now forgive me if what I am about to say sounds like a commercial, that is not my intention, but when I was invited to be on PaperTemptress' Design Team one of the first papers I used was the Cryogen White and discovered a huge difference in the blending ability using Copics. So I got a a little daring and purchased several of Just Inklined's floral images and was so pleasantly pleased and surprised with the results. In celebration of being chosen as a Guest Team Member I used Flowers Rose for today's card.

Online friends

One of the nicest rewards for having a blog is gaining new friends from around the world. When you get to work closely with others on a design team, that friendship becomes even more personal. I made this card especially for our "go to person" over at Stamping with the Dragons. She's had an unfortunate run of bad luck recently and the latest news is that she is in the hospital with a bulging disk, waiting for the surgeons to operate. This is for you sweet Beth, my prayers are with you for a speedy recovery.

Rupert's Bath Time

Instead of scrubbing, Rupert loves to splash around in the bathtub with his favorite rubber duck. I can tell you a secret about Rupert, he doesn't use bubble bath to make those bubbles!

If you love dragons, Rupert's Bath Time is just one of the many available at Stamping Dragon Designs. And while we're on the subject of dragons, Stamping with the Dragon's challenge to make an easel card is still going on.

For the gardener

My beautiful daughter-in-law has a birthday this month. Since she is an avid gardener and has a wonderful green thumb,  I used Clematis 2 from Just Inklined to create a card just for her.

Ask Gladys

Want some juicy gossip? Ask Gladys Salt from Bonibleaux Designs what's new and she'll be happy to tell you all the news that's unfit to print, even if you do not want to know. Gladys thinks she has it and tries to flaunt it so the sentiment by Marlooney is perfect.

I used the tenacious Gladys for my inspiration card for this month's sketch challenge at Dude Time Doodles. The winner of the challenge will receive a CD from our sponsor the Technique Junkies.

Be sure to visit the rest of the Dudettes to see what they have waiting for you. And don't forget, there is still time to send in your submission for Dude Time Doodles DT Open Call. Now, here's the sketch and you know the rules.