Mickey has Birthday wishes

Today I have a just for fun post with a card to share I made for my nephew.  He adores Mickey Mouse - and at age 2 what child doesn't?  I found some Disney coloring book pages that I reduced in size so I would fit on a card.  Then I printed it onto Bella's Bestest paper so I could color with copics.  A little shading was done with prismacolor pencils blended with gamsol.

When my image was done I used a Nestie Square die to cut the image out but I left some of the balloons to extend over the edge.  Black Glaze pen was used to brighten up the black parts...I really think this helps make them pop.  I backed the panel up with black Bazzil cardstock.  The banner is MFT Fishtail flags which I cut with red Bazzil cardstock and topped with black brads.  I attached all this to October Afternoon Sidewalk red stripped design paper.  Pretty easy.  Finished card is 5x7.

For the inside I stamped an MFT sentiment along with the number "2" I cut using my Slice machine (haven't used that in forever!) I then placed them on a panel I cut using another Nestie. Check it out...

 

Phew...this is late but I like the way it came out.  Now I have to make one for nephew #2 and hopefully his will be early to offset the one I sent late.  Goal is to finish that this week too.  Let's see if I can stick to that.

 

Enjoy your week!

 

Cath

Uptown Girl Opal

Hello folks!  I have a birthday card to share with you today using a semi-new Uptown Girl!  This is Uptown Girl Opal by Stamping Bella and it's taken me a few months to color her up.  I had the need for a birthday card and the recipient is quite the wine drinker so I thought Opal was a perfect choice!  Actually there some other Uptown Girls who love their refreshments too!  I think it's why they're one of my favorite lines!

Opal was colored with copics but I did add shading with prismacolor pencils blended with gamsol as well.  As you can see I also added Tim Holtz Distress inks along the edge of the Nestie die while the die was left in place for additional shading.  I let my papers influence the color palette.  Soft yellows and greens can be found in the We R Memory Keepers Antique Chic 6x6 pack.

I've added some extras using MFT dies - the flag for the sentiment along with the flower die.  The border along the top and bottom is an EK Success die.  Finished card is 5x7.

Enjoy your week!!!

Cath

Molly ... over the miles

Happy Bellariffic Friday folks.  For today's challenge I decided to go square...yeah while I love the look of circle cards...I'm a little more adept at making them square.  So I pulled out Uptown Girl Molly sitting atop her luggage so she could send birthday wishes across the miles to my Sissy.  I was so surprised at how easy this sketch came together.

Once the image was stamped onto Bella's Bestest paper and colored, a Nestie circle die was used to cut it out.  Then I used a ruler and exacto knife to cut across the stacks of luggage...yes the image really does have more layers.  But with the half circle sketch, I thought her dangling feet would look neat. 

The paper is My Mind's Eye Lost and Found 3 - Ruby.  I added some wacky stitching along the edges and trimed out the hexagon border from the center strip.  A double sided satin ribbon topped with brad finishes this off.

Next week our challenge is a theme - Splendid Spring!  And boy am I ready for that!  Check out the inspiration on the Bella Blog and if you get a chance why not join us?  There's some Bella Bucks up for grabs every week.  Email a photo of your creation to Emily@stampingbella.com by Thursday night.

Enjoy your weekend!

Cath

Bellariffic Friday on Sunday

Hello folks...today we have Bellariffic Friday's post. I was a little challenged by this week's sketch but I decided to follow it and will tell ya I liked where it went. I choose to color Stamping Bella's Uptown Girl Bianca Loves her Big Cake. Of course with the sketch I would only be coloring a portion of this lovely stamp but I wanted to "fit in" as much as I could. I've built the layers behind using the Nesties I had available and believe it or not - a CD as a template for the largest one. This card is going to my niece who is heading to Spain for her next semester in college but will also be there for her 21st Birthday. I thought a little reminder of her roots in the red, white and blue theme and stars and stripes paper would be perfect.

Next week's Bellariffic Friday challenge is a little photo inspiration. Take whatever you can from this photo to motivate you. You can use the colors, the patterns or whatever else you "see" in it to make a card or project. Don't forget to share a photo of your creation by sending it to Emily@stampingbella.com by Thursday night so we can see what you've come up with too. There are prizes up for grabs to one lucky participant and one commentor as well so hop on over to the blog and leave some love.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Cath

Card Supplies:

Stamps: Stamping Bella Uptown Girl Bianca Loves her Big Cake
Paper: Bella's Bestest for image, Bazzil cardstock, Neenah Classic Crest solar white for card base
Design Paper: Blues - Authentique Geniune, Red - Cosmo Cricket Baby Jane
Color Medium: Copics, Prismacolor pencils blended with Gamsol
Extras: Nestie Classic Circle dies, glitter applied with Quickie Glue pen
Finshed card size: 5 1/2 square

Posh drops in with Presents...Again!

Hey all!! I have a quick post to share with you. We were invited to a Sweet 16 party today and I decided that Uptown girl Posh has a Present would make the perfect card. So I started by stamping the image onto Bella's Bestest paper and colored her with my copics and then I cut her out. I couldn't help it, I love the way it looks!

So I've had the dp for about 2 years now, it's a soft purple and pink plaid 12 x 12 sheet from My Mind's Eye on Kraft called Life's Stories. I added a little shading with Tim Holtz Antique Linen Distress Ink around the edges after cutting it with a Nestie die. The background is cut with another Nestie and I inked the edges of that too!

The sentiment comes with the image so I simply distressed around the edges again and placed it over Posh's legs - hated to hide them but I needed to put it somewhere. Of course Posh wouldn't be complete without some glitter so I piled that on too!

Hope you're doing something fun this weekend too!

Cath

Fall Birthday Bling

Happy Bellariffic Friday - again! Today's challenge was to bling it on! Ya know what I've learned, if you tell me to use bling - I can't quite get it to work in - just sayin! Same with color, ribbon and other embellishments. Give me a free spirit and I can come up with lots of ideas. I guess that's why it's called a challenge. Hmpf!

Today I colored Bessie Lulu from Stamping Bella. She's one of my favorite original Lulu's. And in the tradition of fall, I brought in some golden yellows, rusty browns and teal. I stamped her onto Bella's Bestest paper, colored her with copics and cut her out. She's sitting atop a frame cut with my new Nestie Resplendent Rectangle die. The dp is Authentique Gathering - and it's stamped with a sentiment from my old Stampin' Up! stash.

The background dp is from Simple Stories Fabulous 6x6 pack and it's matted with a rusty red/brown from Bazzil. Glitter adorns the sunflowers and rhinestones embellish the lower right corner. I topped that with a ribbon to match and made a simple bow. Bessie's dress is decked out with teal half pearls from Recollections.

For a little change of pace, I rounded all the edges with a corner punch. The center mat was cut with an EK Success border punch called Fancy Flight.

There ya go, now head on over to the Bella blog to see the other Babes came up with. If ya have time to play along next week we have another sketch for you. Hmmm, what should I color? I'm thinking - are you?

Enjoy your weekend and keep checking Em's blog - her new release is due out soon (not even we know the images or date) and I've seen quite a few I've put on my wish list already!

Ciao,
Cath

Caitlin is bringing on the cupcakes...

Well I guess everyone knows my love of cupcakes...even Bella Boss-lady Em, for she sent me this great image to color for the new release. Yes, Stamping Bella is having another release soon, this week I hope!

Meet Caitlin, the newest member to the Uptown Girl family by designer Lulu. Isn't she fun? The image and all the cupcakes are so fantastic that I wanted that to be the focus of the card...I know I have tons of paper around and I had tons on my desk as I was making this but the papers moved and I was left with the image bordered in Bazzil cardstock and simply loved the simplicity. So I hunted down a sentiment from Uptown Girl Posh has a present and added some red half pearls. There's a ton of glitter sparkle on the skirt, present and Caitlin's hem as well.

The table cloth was stamped onto Authentique 6x6 bundle - Carefree. I found about 8 new paper packs on my trip to Mary Maxim in Port Huron, MI over the weekend. Of course, this one seemed perfect for a table covering and the contrasting bright blue seemed to pop.

I know that the rest of the babes are showcasing new images too so keep checking their blogs as well...I can't wait to shop.

Thanks for stopping by!
Cath

Daisy Lion

Hello folks, today I share another card using Daisy Lion stamp by Stamping Bella. I love this little guy. He's perfect for circle layering. Last year I colored it on Kraft, but today I used Bella's Bestest paper.

Of course, my coloring medium was still copics while the ground shading was added using prismacolor pencils blended with gamsol. The surround shading is VersaMagic chalk ink applied with a sponge while still left in the Nestie die. I then layered circle dies with cardstock.

Design paper is from some older 12x12 paper I've had in my stash for eons but I don't have the manufacturer name. This card is heading to my 1 year old nephew and I thought the lion engineer on the design paper would tie to the lion stamp perfectly. I love the carefree feel of this ... right down to the wacky machine stitching along the edges. The sentiment was applied with Versamark, black embossing powder and a heat gun.

Simple and yet colorful enough for any young child (I hope).

Thanks for stopping by,
Cath

Cupcakes are in!

I don't know what it's like in your neck of the woods but cupcakes have become the "in" thing around here. There are quite a few bakeries that have opened by us that are dedicated to cupcakes. Personally I love them! They're a few bites of luciousness and then you can move on to the next flavorfull medley. This image titled Cupcake Thief and designed by Mo Manning to be released in rubber through Stamping Bella had me wishing my birthday would come a little quicker. And since this week's challenge is Birthday's - it was a winner!

I started by stmaping the image onto Bella's Bestest paper and colored with copics. As you can see, I then cut the image out and placed it onto a panel cut with Nestie Petite Ovals dies - large and small. I then distressed the edges with Tim Holtz Distress ink in Tea Dye and finished it off with machine stitching. The design paper is a combination of October Afternoon - the yellow is Farmhouse and the green is Campfire. They were matted with kraft colored Bazzil cardstock. The sentiment is also by Stamping Bella and was cut using the edge of a Nestie Labels 25 die. A bright green ribbon and twine adorned button finish it off. I did add some glitter to her wings and mask and some Clear Glaze pen to the cherry and stars on top of the cupcakes. You'd better protect your cupcakes or you never know who will come stealing by.

Next week we're back with another sketch challenge. Give this a try and send a photo of your creation to Emilly@stampingbella.com by Thursday night to be included in the Friday blog lineup and a chance for some Bella Bucks. Just want some inspiration, head on over to the blog and leave a comment - Em loves to hear from you and she gives away $10 each week to one lucky commentor.

I have a packed weekend ahead. Some family from home stopping in and dropping off their puppy for us to dogsit while they enjoy the lovely Catskill mountains, a party on Saturday and a trip to NYC on Sunday to see some of our Michigan friends. Enjoy yourselves and I'll see ya back here real soon.

Cath

Biker Babe

Here we are again ... another Bellariffic Friday. And today's challenge is a color challenge, yellow, blue and black. I'm currently on a yellow kick so I was totally cool with that. I'm a little behind with everything these days and this card is no different. It's for my daughter's birthday which was May 4th. We LOVE bike riding. It's become a great form of exercise for us and has made me feel so much healthier again. When I saw Uptown Girl Flora by Stamping Bella with her awesome bike, I knew she would adorn Jess's birthday card.

Now you aren't likely to see us riding in a skirt but this Uptown Girl is tres chic and looks fabulous wouldn't you say? I started by stamping her onto Bella's Bestest paper using Memento Tuxedo black ink and colored her with copics. I also added shading with prismacolor pencils blended with gamsol. I used my new Simple Stories Summer Fresh 6x6 design paper from the Bella shop. I saw this on Em's post and couldn't wait to have it to create with. I also bought the new Queen & Co. blue and white twine. I must admit that part of my infatuation with this find was the neat wooden spool it came on. Hehe. But it also was perfect for this week's color challenge. The seam binding ribbon has Happy Birthday stamped onto it. I adorned the bow with a yellow button and the twine.

I wanted this a little girly so I also embellished with glitter applied with a Quickie Glue pen. I used a MFT die to cut the blue floral dp scallops on the right. The image panel was also cut using a die but this time a Nestie - the Large Petite Oval. Oh and the clouds were cut using a Memory Box die. The sentiment is an old Bella stamp I received ages ago but I remembered I had it (miracle there) and knew it would be perfect for this image. Machine stitching once again finishes this off.

Next week we have another sketch challenge. Hope you can find time over the holiday weekend to create and play along with us. Don't forget to visit us at the Bella Blog to see what the rest of the sistahs have come up with. And remember that a comment might just win you a $10 Bella Buck card. Woo Hoo.

Thanks for stopping by and enjoy your weekend.

Cath

Fixer Girl

Here we are again...with another Bellariffic Friday. With this week's sketch challenge I pulled a Mo Manning designed image released in rubber through Stamping Bella. I might actually call this a color challenge for me as well since I was so tempted to pull out my primary colors to bring this to life. I instead pulled a soft yellow and purple..not your typical tomboy colors 'eh? Well a couple weeks back Reganbella used purple for a geranium scene and I was like - Huh, that is so unconventional and yet lovely. So I set out to try something new.

I started by stamping Fixer Girl onto Bella's Bestest paper using Memento Tuxedo black ink and colored her with copics. I did add some depth shading using prismacolor pencils blended with gamsol. I then cut the image out and adhered it to design paper from the My Mind's Eye Miss Caroline Fiddlesticks 6x6 pack. Since we were given the awesome sketch from Ebrubella I simply had to piece the design paper in and added some ric rac to soften the edge. The sentiment is also from Stamping Bella and I embellished it a little with a girly flower and half pearl center. Of course I whipped some machine stitching on this too. Phew!

Next week we DO have a color challenge for you - Yellow, Blue and Black. You have lots of lee way on the shades of yellow and blue so pick your favorite Stamping Bella image and share your project with us. Send a photo of your creation to Emily@stampingbella.com by Thursday night. Not only will she post it in the Friday blog lineup, but you may have a chance at the weekly $20 Bella Bucks giveaway.

We have some awesome weather forecast for this weekend...can't wait to get outside and play.

Enjoy and thanks for stopping by!

Cath

Bellariffic Friday on Monday...

Ugh, Bellariffic Friday posted on Monday! Folks, I have never done this before so I hope you can have a little compassion...I was under the weather most of last week. I came home from Columbus with a stomach bug that had me stuck in bed for days. About the only bright spot to that was I lost more weight cuz I couldn't eat. I hated the feeling of not being able to do anything other than lay in bed thugh. I finally felt somewhat normal on Saturday and then had to catch up on all the household chores. So here I am groveling to you and hoping you'll understand.

Our challenge was to use stitching. That's not really a challenge for me - I love to add stitching to my cards. I think it gives them a finished look. What I should have done was to add faux stitching - now that WOULD have been a challenge but alas my spirits just weren't with me last week. I pulled Uptown Girl Posh off the shelf and made her into a Birthday card. I have a Bizillion birthdays in May to prepare for and the Uptown Girls are so dang gorgeous I couldn't resist using one.

You've probably guessed that I stamped Posh onto Bella's Bestest paper using Memento Tuxedo black ink and colored with copics. I added some glitz to the packages and her dress with glitter applied using a Quickie Glue pen. A Sakura Gelly Roll pen was used on the dots of the bag. The design paper is My Mind's Eye Fine and Dandy Girl 6x6. The cardstock is Bazzil and the card base is Neenah Classic Crest Solar white. Ground and surround shading was added using prismacolor pencils blended with gamsol and two pink Dew Drops in the lower right corner finish this off.

Next week we have another one of Ebru's fabulous sketches. I really have enjoyed all the sketches she's made for us throughout the year. I used to be so afraid of a sketch and now I look to find one before making just about every card I do. I'm pretty sad though because Ebru has had to step down as a Bella Babe. She's started back to work and like most of us I'm sure, has found it difficult to balance all that needs to be done each week with family, home and work. I truly wish her the best of luck as she begins this new chapter in her Life's Adventure. And with that I'd like to share that we have a new Babe in the house. Help me in welcoming Katarina Menzies! She's gonna WOW you with her coloring!

Enjoy your week and thanks for stopping by!

Cath

March SFYTT - in the knick of time

Happy Saturday folks. I'm trying to sneak in Jen del Muro's March Sketch For You To Try before tonights deadline comes and goes. I have a list of Birthday cards that need to go out so I decided to send Izzie with balloons.Isn't she adorable? Can you tell I'm on an Izzie kick these days? Well Christy Croll's creation designed for Stamping Bella is so darn loveable.

First I started with Memento Tuxedo black ink and Bella's Bestest paper. I then colored her face and flesh parts with copics. The rest is all paper pieced and then shaded with Prismacolor pencils. Design papers saved the day today. I just wasn't feeling the coloring buzz. So My Mind's Eye Lost & Found Madison Avenue and Breeze 6x6 packs were used. I cut the image panel with Nestie dies and shaded around the image while it was still in the die with Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Victorian Rose and Tumbled Glass. The sentiment panel was stamped with my favorite Bella birthday font. I then cut it with Nestie Circle and Blossom dies and shaded with the distress ink again.

I think I stuck to the sketch with a slight modification on the placement. Machine stitching, some pink rhinestones and a little glitter on the sucker are the only embellishments.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend. I'm off to run some errands! (aka heading to shop for more goodies)

Cath

Sneaky Sneaky

I have the pleasure of sharing one of Stamping Bella's newest release images with you today. This is Fixer Boy, a Mo Manning image that will be released in rubber from my favorite stamp company. I was thirlled when I saw this cutie. He is full of detail and comes alive when colored.

I stamped him onto Bella's Bestest paper and colored him with copics....lots of them! And then I added prismacolor pencils blended with gamsol for shading. I mean really, what little boy (or big one for that matter) playing fix up comes away with a clean white shirt? I added French Grey 50% pencil to dirty him up. Of course his overalls are denim and he's wearing a red cap so he must have a pair of red high top Keds on too. My daughter had a pair of those when she was growing up. She never wore a tool belt but I did buy her a flexible tool box to store tools in for Christmas some years ago. I thought it might come in handy as she ventured off to college.

The design paper is from the My Mind's Eye Miss Caroline Howdy Doody 6x6 pack. I decided to keep this a little simple so I just added a blue cardstock strip adorned with a phillips head brad. The sentiment is from Billboardabella Words pack. I stamped and then matted with circle Nestie dies. This is going to my neighbor's son who is turning 3 this year. His Dad is a contractor and Sawyer loves to hang out and be just like him. He will love this!

I'm sure the rest of the babes have sneak peaks as well so make sure to head their way. And don't forget Emily, she's sure to have some things to share with you too! Woo Hoo this should be a fantastic week....shopping here I come!

Thanks for peaking!

Cath

Birthday Boy...

The Dear Husband has requested a birthday card for his brother. I typically find it hard to design a card for adult males since so many images in my collection are for girls and kids. But I think this one fits the bill. This is Beer Peep. He was released last January at Stamping Bella.

I colored him over the weekend while the family was skiing. I decided to stay in the lodge and color while they all had fun in the 6 degree F weather. And that was at the base lodge. It was -10 at the top and the snow machines were working non-stop. Nope, me and my Bellas had alot more fun in the lodge sitting by the fire place. I had stamped Beer Peep onto Bella's Bestest paper using Memento tuxedo black ink and colored him with copics. Shading was added with prismacolor pencils blended with gamsol.

In a totally unCath creative move - I just plain colored. No paper to inspire me just go with the flow and hope to find design paper later. Didn't take long, Out of the Blue design paper by My Mind's Eye Lime Twist collection came to the rescue. I paired it with Kraft cardstock and a Dark Teal Bazzil cardstock. Distressing was added to the image and sentiment panel using Tim Holtz Antique Linen Distress Ink. Machine stitching finishes this off. Done!

Now for some business...some of you might have noticed that your computers freeze up when you click the comment button when visiting my Blog. I have been dealing with this all week. Apparently Blogger rewrote code and rolled it out at the end of last week. Some Blogs are experiencing problems with the new Threaded Comments code - mine happens to be one of them. For some, there is no problem at all...for others the blog page freezes up. I'm trying to get it fixed so I appreciate your patience in the meantime.

I'll see ya back here for another Bellariffic Friday challenge - which isn't a challenge at all...simply ink up your favorite Bella image. I can't wait to see what's your favorite. Wanna know mine?

Come back Friday....
Cath

Posh in Blue

Let me tell you, this girl definately doesn't have the blues but I thought I would try a blue party dress for this Uptown Girl. If you haven't already met her, this is Uptown Girl Posh has a Present from Stamping Bella. She brings a smile to my face and a definate party atmosphere to these birthday sentiments.

Coloring was done with copics, so that meant I started with Bella's Bestest paper and Memento Tuxedo black ink. Shading below her feet was added with prismacolor pencil blended with gamsol. I tried to bring out some of the embellishments that have been gathering on my shelves so you'll find some Kaiser half pearls atop Prima paper flowers. Of course, this is a party so I had to bring out the glam too; you'll find some rhinestones bedecked in silver and some plain. Aaaannd I couldn't resist glitter. Yup, I actually started to photograph this and said, wait something is missing and sure enough it was the glitter sparkling on the bows and the skirt of this lovely dress. I applied this with the Quickie glue pen and lord knows how I lived in this craft before finding that wonderful tool!

The sentiment comes with the image so there's no need to hunt for one. I hand cut it into a tag and applied Tim Holtz distress ink to the edges. Design paper is a combination: the background is from Stella and Rose Hattie collection while the French Script is from a GCD pack called Ella Blue. Oh and I also added some shading along the corners of the image panel using Memento London Gray ink and Isabelle Norris' Eclectic Mini stamp called Bubble Mesh.


If you haven't heard the buzz, you now have two chances to participate in the Bellariffic Friday challenges. Now that Em is back on SCS we are linking cards in the gallery using keywords. This week it's BELLARIFFIC0112. You'll have until Thursday January 19th to link for a chance at a $20 gift voucher. But email a photo of your card to be included in Em's Bellariffic Friday post this week by 5pm Thursday January 12th and another $20 gift voucher is up for grabs. Yes, you can participate in both locations - and with the tease of a new release and some new Uptown girl images that sounds pretty cool to me. Here's Ebru's awesome sketch for this week. Hope you can play along!

Cath

Happy Birthday Dana...

Happy Birthday to you! So glad to be sending you these wishes my friend. I've chosen to color up a Cristy Croll image called Cuppycake with a Huggabugg on top. She's just so irresistible and I know she's sitting atop a mound of frosting and you hate frosting but it still looks pretty.

I started by stamping this Huggabugg onto Bella's Bestest paper with Memento tuxedo black ink and coloring with copics. I then added shading with prismacolor pencils blended with gamsol. The cupcake is adorned with glitter and her antennae with rhinestones. The sentiment (one of my favorite Bella's that isn't currently available) was stamped using the stamp-a-ma-jig so I could ensure the placement of each word. The sentiment panel was cut with various oval Nesties and was also adorned with rhinestones. The leaves were cut with an EK Success punch. The layout is another one from Karen Giron and the SSSC #148 and it looked perfect for my image.

The papers are also from the Echo Park Victorian Garden 6x6 paper pack. I couldn't resist the musical note paper...can't you just hear me singing Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you...

Have a great year Danabella!

Love ya,
Cath

Last Bellariffic Friday Challenge of 2011

WOW...I can't believe we've reached the end of another year. Now hold on to your panties...I know there are a few more weeks left before we hit 2012 but this is our last Bellariffic Friday challenge. Up this week was an awesome sketch by Robinabella...wanna see what I did with it?


I looooved this sketch. It was the perfect backdrop for Lulu's Birthday Cake, an image from Stamping Bella.

I started with Bella's Bestest paper, Memento Tuxedo black ink and copics. Of course lots of shading was added with prismacolor pencils blended with gamsol. Colors were inspired by the My Mind's Eye Lost and Found "Rosy" 6x6 design paper ...yummy chocolate browns and corals which I accented with kraft. After all the shading was done I added Stampin' Up! Cryastal Effects on the frosting for shine and glitter to the flowers and candles for sparkle. A seam binding tape ribbon and bow were topped with a button and jute. I also added Bella Birthday sentiments (this one is no longer available but there are plenty of others) cut using the Stampin' Up! Word Window punch.

Additional details can be found in the machine stitching, rounded edges cut with a corner punch and brown rhinestones in each of the four corners.

Hope you have some great weekend plans. Don't forget to keep checking the Bella Babe blogs over the next few weeks to see some more inspiration. We might not have challenges but we still have projects to share.

Ciao for now,
Cath

Birthday Girl

Today my cousin Michelle celebrates a birthday as well as one of my dear friends Connie. In their honor, I set about using a stamp that I've had for awhile but have never found the time to play with. It's by Loralie Designs aptly named Birthday Girl. My first glimpse of this stamp was at the stamp show in Novi. Then Mary Maxim started stocking them and I was psyched. The logo for the company claims that they touch the heart with fun art and I must admit that the images are full of fun.



Now if you've ever seen the packages, they appear to have lots of detail but when you stamp them they are void all the extra lines. You have to add some freehand artestry if you want to duplicate the package. Today I gave my shot at adding more detail to the cake, her hair, the party hat which is typically plain and paper pieced the top and capris. I had to mask the main image to add the packages but I love the effect.

Much of the coloring was done with Copics on Neenah Classic Crest solar white cardstock but some additional shading was done with the French Grey 90% prismacolor pencil blended with gamsol. I added some Canary Yellow around the candles and then topped it off with some glitter. The glasses got a good coating of Stampin Up! Crystal effects to enhance the look of glass.

These images are big so there isn't much room to add many extras but they are so full of life that I don't think you need much else anyway. I added some machine stitching, some blue rhinestones and a Happy Birthday ribbon bow from my Mary Maxim stash. Finished card is 5x7.

Happy Birthday girls!

Love Ya,
Cath

Happy Birthday Dana!

Woo hoo it's Saturday and fellow Bella Babe Dana White has a birthday. Dana's BFF Karen Motz asked us to celebrate with a BLOG HOP. How cool is that? If you've just stopped in, you'll want to head back to KAREN'S blog to start at the beginning. If you've followed the hop, then you should have arrived here via Jeanie.

In honor of Dana's special day, I pulled out Izzie has a birfday cake. Yup, she just looked too perfect with her yummy chocolate cake. At least that's how I envisioned it.

A Bella needs a Bella right? So I started with Bella's Bestest paper. Of course I had to pull my Copics. You'll never guess the colors I used. I was cruising some blogs the other night and found a combination I wanted to give a try...it was E08 placed on a glossy surface (I used an ordinary plastic bag that was in my craft room) and pulled it with R00 to apply it. Whataya think? Nice "pinky" color right? I pulled out my black Glaze pen to give Izzie's shoes some shine along with the dots on her dress and her headband. If you've never tried this tool - you must. You'll always reach for it to highlight black details. I know I do.

A Classic Rectangle Nestie die was used for the image panel and was matted with black prism cardstock. Big Scalloped Rectangles backed that with AC Cardstock. Design paper is October Afternoon's newest line titled Modern Homemaker. I picked this up in my last Bella order and couldn't wait to use it. The sentiment, also found at Stamping Bella, was framed in a Label 10 die. I added a distressed look by shading with Tim Holtz antique linen distress ink. Then I topped it off with tiny pink Swarkovski rhinestones. Every girl needs a little bling.

If you'd like to follow along on the hop your next stop is Michelle's. A complete list of the blog hop participants can be found in order below. I know that you'll want to stop by and see what all the gals have to share with us and don't forget to head to DANA's and leave her some Birthday Cheer so she knows you were thinking of her.

Karen Motz
Leslie Good (participating through Karen's blog)
Wendy Bond
Elaine Hughes
Linda Heavens
Joanne Basile
Jodi Collins
Paula Williamson
Ebru Vatansever
Nancy McKinney
Ann Kranitz
Janet Rossi
Jeanie Witmore
Cath Groden - you're here!
Michelle Leishman
And the Birthday Girl herself - Dana White
Hope you have a wonderful Birthday Cclebration Dana! We love ya!

Thanks for stopping by!
Cath