You bring color to my life!!!

I'm playing catch up folks.  I know I've been a little quiet on the blog.  I've taken up some wool applique quilting.  I love the texture of that medium and as you know I love color so it's another great outlet for me.  I took a break from my Santa table runner to bring another colorful card to you.  It's somewhat motivated by my new quilting friends.  I chose to use a quilters square pattern for the background.  This cutie is a Mo Manning image released in rubber through Stamping Bella called Painter Meg.  She's heading to my young neighbor who is celebrating her birthday.  She's a regular in my craft room - she loves my markers and papers...a girl after my heart.

I colored Meg onto Bella's Bestest paper with a combination of copics and prismacolor pencils blended with gamsol.  Cardstock is Bazzil and yes, there is Bella's Kraft in there too!  Design paper is Happy Day by My Mind's Eye - I thought the bright colors would suit this image and Riley's love of orange and color beautifully.  Clouds were cut using a Memory Box die.  The sentiment comes with the image and I just framed it with cardstock.

Drats - I still had this in the original packaging before I colored her and now she's not in the shop!  There are plenty other Mo images that would fit this sketch easily.

Phew - hope you have a Happy Halloween.  And I'll be back tomorrow for our Bellariffic Sketch challenge.  Thanks for stopping by.

Cath

Oh to be a Bride!

Hello Folks!  I have a card to share with you today using Stamping Bella's Uptown Girl Brigitte the Bride.  I love this stamp.  I love the beauty and elegance of it.  We're in major wedding mode in our household, our son got engaged on the Fourth of July.  Since then we've been busy with plans.  The venue is Lake Placid next fall and we've visited the site and made arrangements to cater the rehearsal dinner and now I am on to preparations for the shower.  All that planning had me in the mood to color this Uptown Girl up.

I started by coloring her with copics onto Bella's Bestest paper.  Then I cut her out and applied lots of glitter.  Girls love sparkle right?  I placed her onto Graphic 45 Once Upon a Springtime paper.  The edging was cut with an EX Success border punch.  Kaiser pearls finish off the bouquet.  The sentiment is from the Uptown Couple Brett and Brenda Get Married stamp.  I hand cut it into a flag.  Everything then got placed onto Bella's Kraft paper.

Pretty easy!  Now I'm off to color this week's sketch challenge.

See ya back here later in the week.

Thanks for stopping by,
Cath

Trick or Treat

Another week has flown by which means it's Bellariffic Friday!  Our challenge this week was to use fall colors.  Well one of my favorite parts of fall is Halloween.  So I decided to color up one of the newest images in the Bella family from artist Christine Grove's Senior-itas line - this is one half of Trick-or-treat aritas.  Technically Halloween does bring to mind fall colors - right?

So I stamped this image onto regular paper first.  Then I cut away the side I really wanted to ink onto my card.  I inked the image up again using the thing-a-ma-jig for placement and stamped over the masked paper onto Bella's Bestest paper - thus leaving an impression of the character I wanted.  I colored the witchy with copics and shaded with prismacolor pencil blended with gamsol.  The sentiments was in my stash - sorry it doesn't come with the image.  I matted with Bazzil cardstock and placed it over Martha Stewart design paper from last year's collection.  Card is 5x7.  I added machine stitching along with festive holiday colored ribbon I found on my trip to Salt Lake City - I topped that with  a black button.  I love how this turned out!!!

Next week we are back to a sketch.  Hope you can find some time to play along with us.  There's Bella bucks up for grabs to one commentor and one contributor.  So stop on by the Bella Blog.

Hope you have some great plans for the weekend.  It's finally get so cold here that snow is not far off.  Ack, I'm not ready yet!  hehe.

Thanks for stopping by,
Cath

Time Flies

It's Friday again and that makes me happy.  Two days off to look forward to and it's Bellariffic Friday.  This week we had a fun sketch.  I decided to ink up one of Christine Grove's newest Senior-ita's Dolores.  She makes me giggle as she scoots on by.

I stamped her onto Bella's Bestest paper and colored her with copics then added shading with prismacolor pencils blended with gamsol.  I then cut her out and placed her on layered circles cut from Spellbinder dies.  The design paper is from the My Mind's Eye Miss Caroline Fiddlesticks 6x6 paper pad.  MFT Fishtail flags helped cut the banners.  I inked up the first part of the sentiment for the front of the card and framed it with the reverse of the flag.  The rest of the sentiment was stamped inside.  Upholstery tacks and machine stitching finish this.

Next week we are asking you to color up for Fall-tastic Friday!  Use fall colors for your creation.  Don't think you have to have a fall image - just use fall colors.  Can't wait to see what you come up with.  We've still got great color in our neck of the woods.  I can't wait to play outside tomorrow.

Happy weekend!

Cath

Life is Good...Still!

Hello Folks!  Hope you had as great a weekend as I did!  Mother Nature cooperated and Hubby and I played around in the High Peaks of the Adirondacks.  The sun was shining and while the leaves were past peak it was still a gorgeous few days.

I even found some time to hit the craft room.  In my happiness I decided to color up Diane Duda's Life is Good. 

The smile on this chicklet just makes my day!  I colored her with copics after stamping her onto Bella's Bestest paper.  Shading was added with prismacolor pencils blended with gamsol.  I then cut her out using a Marvelous Square Nestabilities die.  A little doodling with a black marker along the edges adds a little fun flair.  I backed it with black bazzil cardstock and placed it on top of Confetti design paper.

That's it.  This was nice and easy.

Hope you have a great week!

Cath

I'm in the mood to bake

The cooler weather has me searching Pinterest for new pumpkin and apple recipes .  I'm more of a cook than a baker but every now and then I get the urge to bake.  I think it has to do with the fact that we always have to eat but baking means sweets and the more I have in the house - the more I want.  It kind of defeats the purpose of going to the gym and watching what I eat all the time.  But I have a niece that loves to bake and this little number is heading her way.

Meet one of the newest Uptown Girls - Chanel the Chef. 

 

I was inspired by Julia Child's sentiment (which comes with Chanel) to decorate in Mackenzie- Child's style.  If you're not familiar with her ceramic pieces they are very colorful and have lots of shapes worked in.  So I pulled some paper with polka dots, bold teal and a two toned red square.  It's a mish mash of papers in my stash from Graphic 45 and My Mind's Eye.

 

Our challenge was to add stitching so I used black thread so it would stand out a little more.  Now that it's done I think I could have used a zig zag stitch and it would have stood out more.  Next time.

 

Next week we have another sketch to play with.  Hope you can join us!

 

Have a great weekend!

Cath

Reindeers are on their way...

As much as I had to admit it, fall is about to fade away and bring with it the next Holiday Season.  And that means snow and Christmas aren't that far behind.  I might not be ready for the white stuff yet, but I'm trying to get a start on my holiday stash of cards.  Again, I tend to color up some favorites every year.  This is one of those...  And you're in luck, Reindeer Circle is on sale in Bella land. 

 

 

I stamped this onto Bella's Bestest paper and colored with copics, added shading with prismacolor pencils blended with gamsol and sparkle with glitter.  Spellbinder circle dies were used to cut this out and layer up.  A Tim Holtz die was used to back it.  I stamped the sentiment from Uptown Girl Christmas Tree (which seems to be out of stock) and cut using the MFT Flag stax die-namic.  Dew Drops colored with copics to match and machine stitching finish this off.

 

Design paper is a combination of My Mind's Eye 12x12 and SEI.  Card is 5 1/2 x 5 1/2.

Thanks for stopping by - I'll be back on Friday for our "stitch it up" challenge.

Cath

Baby Bella Halloween

Happy Sunday folks!  It's been a rainy fall day here so I was able to get some crafting time in!  I've had this image on my desk for a few weeks now - I gravitate to some favorites every holiday season and this little cutie is sent to all my new young kidlets (nieces, nephews and friends).  But I have to say, as I searched Stamping Bella's shop to link it, it's now gone.  It was in the sale rack when I took it out to color but apparently you all decided to grab him up!  Drats!

Well here's the dets anyway:  I stamped him onto Bella's Bestest paper and colored with copics.  I then cut him out to place him on dimensionals.  The design paper is a combination of Authentique Enchanted and My Mind's Eye Mischievous.  Both are 6x6 pads.  Dies were used to cut the circles (Spellbinders) and pennants (MFT Flag stax).  A Sizzix embossing folder was used on the panel behind the Baby Bella Pumpkin image.  A Martha Stewart punch was used for the cobweb border. 

Pumpkin paper twine from Scrappe'rs Spools was used to make the bow and topped with a button.  The sentiment was computer generated.  Machine stitching finishes this off.  Card is 6 1/2 x 5.

I must say that the crisp fall air and leaves changing color has put me into the mood for fall!  I'm not looking forward to what comes next but it sure is pretty for the time being!

Have a great week and don't forget our challenge this Friday is to "Stitch it Up!"

Thanks for stopping by,
Cath

Senior-itas Mildred and Maude stick together!

Happy Bellariffic Friday folks.  This week we were given a sketch for our challenge.  And oooh I liked it.  I colored up Christine Grove's newest addition to the Bella sistahood...the Senior-itas Mildred and Maude.  What a hoot these two are!

I stamped the pair onto Bella's Bestest paper, colored them with copics and pencils and then cut them out with a Nestie circle die.  I backed that with Bazzil cardstock cut from a Nestie scallop circle die.  The papers are from My Mind's Eye Stella & Rose Hazel 6x6 pad.  The banner was cut using the Little Miss Muffet Stamps Party Banner.  The sentiment comes with the set.  I stamped the first part onto the front and the second in the inside.

 

Next week we are challenged to "Stitch it up".  And I've saved up for that challenge - no stitching on this card.  Hehe.  We also have some great news to share in Bella Land, we have a new Babe in the house.  Help me in welcoming Sandie Dunne.  You can view her blog and her creations here.  Now head on over to the Bella Blog and catch what the rest of the Babes have colored up!

 

Have a great weekend!!

Cath