That's Amore!

♥ Wedding Card~ Punch Art ♥

2012-03-06T21:01:00.002-08:00

Hello Friends in Blogland,

I was recently asked to make a wedding card for the upcoming nuptial of one of my collegue (Val)
- to share with other invited collegues - and this is one of the two choices I made.

I took in consideration that her wedding dress color is amethist/light blue and that she loves daisies;
so much in fact that she used them on her wedding invites as well....

Luckily I had some leftover SU textured amethist c/s which I paired up with a

beautiful dotted white c/s as the base of this card. The designer paper

is from SU 'Specialty Paper Bride' . It was used for both daisies , the lovebirds and my lil handmade rolled rose , plus the inside of the card too. Love such beautiful and shimmery looking d/p!

Close up of front and inside of card

There are four overlapped layers for each daisy.

Too bad that it doesn't show too well how glittery it is around

the diamond shape and the smallest nestie edge,below.

I used a new sentiment stamp for the inside. It is 'Best Wishes Wedding' from Paper Parachute, inked in Almost Amethist from SU. Unfortunatly it was not inked quite straight, but I had no time to make a new inside panel ...oh well...it adds some character....lol

Other items used to make this card, besides the ones already mentioned, are:

CB folders: Swiss Dots, Victoria, Just my Type.

Punches: MS heart border punch , SU two steps bird punch

Sizzix : Daisies #2 , sizzlets alphabet letters

Several nesties from Spellbinder, white satin ribbon, pearls, beads, glitter, dimentionals.

This is it for now....I will be posting the other wedding card at another time....

Sending blessings and love to ya all...thanks fo visiting!

♥ Pretty in Pink ♥

2012-03-02T19:33:00.001-08:00

Hello friends,

I decided to do some 'catching up' tonight and post one of the many cards made a while back but never yet uploaded...

this one ,in fact, was made last November and sent all the way to

Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates for the birth of one of our friend's lil daughter.

For this pink cutie I used an old SU stamping set 'Pretty Princess' (2004), SU markers, lots of Spellbinders' nesties, pretty pink satiny ribbon, 'Girls are Weird' Sizzlets dies (for her name), baubles, stickles, flowers from Jolee, dimentionals.

{Inside the card, I also added a decorated square tag with a written personal message}

I really like the soft pink and ivory combo of this lil girl's card and its overall appearance...apparently it was appreciated too by the baby's parents.♥

oh...did I ever tell ya that I was offered a chance to go to work in Abu Dhabi a few years ago??....true true! *wink & smile*....

♥ Thanks for visiting ♥
♥ Many Blessings to you all! ♥

I was blessed with a Blog Award...time three! ♥

2012-03-01T09:57:00.008-08:00

My stamping friends Tami ( http://blueinksdesign.blogspot.com/ )

Terry ( http://itstotallyterry.blogspot.com/ )

and Athina (http://stellarooandfenatoo.blogspot.com/)

surprise me with the Liebster Blog Award a few days from each others...

woww!....so totally unexpected!

Feeling so grateful to be blessed not once,

or twice but three times!! wowww...

♥ Thank YOU : Tami * Terry * Athina - for thinking of me ♥

The idea behind the Liebster Blog Award is

to bring attention to blogs with less than 200 followers.
In the spirit of good fun, I am passing this award on to five other bloggers. Please stop by and encourage them by leaving a little love on their creations.

For the five blogs that I am presenting this award to, please.....

1. Show your thanks to the blogger who gave you the award by linking back to their blog.

2. Reveal your five blog picks for the award and let them know.

3. Post the award on your blog.

4. Bask in the love from the most supportive people on the blogshare - other bloggers.

5. finally the best rule of all....have fun and spread the love!

It took me a couple days to think of blogger's friends whom to pass on this award to, it was hard to chose , as some have been already awarded and others passed the 200 followers mark...sooooo I did a bit of checking (aka snooping...lol) and these are the creative friends I am very excited to pass on this blog award to :

Susan : http://pinkflannelpajamas.blogspot.com/

Nancy : http://bitsbynancy.blogspot.com/

Sam Swindle : http://cardsbysam.blogspot.com/

Imke : http://craftingcreationsbyimke.blogspot.com/

Linda Hart: http://hartstamping.blogspot.com/

♥ Congratulations Ladies! ♥

Fresh, Springy and.....punchy :o)

2012-02-29T10:35:00.005-08:00

This simple fresh looking card was made for todays challenge posted in my 'Punch Art' swap on SCS. Every Tuesday we have a new challenge and partecipants have until midnight on Thursday to make and show their creations...we call this T-DAY ♥
This week's hostess is April and she challenged us to make a card using the criterias listed below....I encourage you to check her beautiful card here:
http://aprilsalley.blogspot.com/2012/02/just-little-punchy.html

In April's own words:
"...I would like you to take a non-border punch and use it to make a border. Think out of the box...it doesn't need to be a traditional border, but some sort of divider between papers, cards stocks, or layers..."

I started selecting a couple pieces from my designer papers scrap pile and came up with these two, just perfect for what I had in mind....

I thought this simple card looked simply cute as is, I even finally got to ink that cute stamp I had like forevahhh.....but wait to see it with all the lil punched out circles serving as a cute frame for this sweet lil flowery immie.....

See?? It completely transformed the look of the pretty card ♥
I just added some stickles to the

flowers' crown to make them sparkly and voila'!....Card is now completed...

.... and I LOVE IT!!!

Thank YOU for stopping by and check this out....I hope you like it too ....

I, for sure, will never look at my scrap pile the same way as before discovering

this, and many other ways to create with some useful punches....♥

Thanks for visiting...have a GREAT blessed day on this LEAP DAY of the year!!!

Pet's Love~~~February CG challenge

2012-02-28T04:55:00.003-08:00

Hello dear Friends and Peeps,
as every month, on the 28th, here we are with the Calendar's Girls
challenge....this month's hostess is Kelly and -in her own word belows-
these are her request for this month's challenge :

Our February Theme
** Show us how FURRY you are! **

Hee hee! It’s February, a month that symbolizes
LOVE. When thinking of a theme for this month’s
Challenge, I knew I wanted us to get happy with
the furry ones! My challenge for you this month is:
Show some LOVE to our furry animals! I love them great and small,
Short and tall – furry and fluffy! I am also
sure at one point we have all had a special pet that we have loved,
or maybe still do have a pet (or a bunch!) So let’s show them
some love! I challenge you to show us fur, your fluff, your waggin’ tails! The possibilities are endless – from doggies to cats, mice to turtles – in one case, a spider! (lil dj!!) LOL! Let’s bring some creativity to making a card (etc) with any image showing us a pet (including if you don’t actually own one!)

** For an extra part of the challenge, since it is February, please try to include the color RED on your card somewhere (coloring of the image, your DSP, cardstock, embellies – just a touch (or a lot!) of red.

Please post your cards to your blogs on February 28th ! I hope you LOVE
this challenge this month and LOVE creating with FUR and FLUFF!

Kelly (Miss February)

I chose to color a cute, simple cat image from AMUSE and color it

in shocking pink as I am sure my dahlin cat (Kahlua) would be if she could have it her way....she can be such a diva!! lol

BTW this is my first ever Amuse card....'bout time eh! lol

For the touch of red, I colored the kitty's collar in red and added red stickles to it to make it a tad more dazzzlingggg.....eheheh

For cretaing this card I used : all SU cardstock, 'Pets' d/p from DenverCraft UK,
grosgrain stitched ribbon from Michaels, red stickles, Memento black ink, SU markes,
faux lrg pearl, EK dimentional flower punch, LRG scalloped circles nesties and dimentionals.

What do you think?

Does my kitty look pretty in pink??.....I think she does....

I should have taken a picture of my Kahlua to post here as well....

she's sleeping so contently now ,on top of a lil mat right by the furnace vent in the kitchen....she's a happy camper...wish I was asleep too!!

Thanks for stopping by....please make sure to visit all the other Calendar Girls (links are provided below) and check what they've been up to....

♥ Blessings To You All....♥

xox Paola xox

Paola (SCS - Sama) That's Amore >>>> *you are here*

Tami (SCS - BlueInks) BlueInks Design
Terry (SCS - terry0926) It's Totally Terry

Punch-Negative Tecnique .... again ♥

2012-02-23T19:23:00.001-08:00

Ok folks...this is my second punched card in as many days,using the negative tecnique....

(for my first card please see previous post...txs...)

I REALLYYYY like this tecnique.....a LOT! ♥

Such a great way to use your scrap card stock and designer paper...

I know I will never run off of mine as I have a stack a mile long....ok ok ...I am exagerating a bit but you get the idea....LOL

This card was also entered on SCS challenge: Way To Use It (WT363)

The idea was to use BUTTONS for such challenge.

♥ Again, I must thank my stamping friend Melina for her creative inspirations ♥

For this card I used Soft Suede ink, 'Favorite Words' from Studio K for the sentiment,

butterfly die from Provo Craft, buttons and twine.

All of the paper used here,including card base, was from scrap.

Tecnique: distressing, punch negative.

I hope you like this card created from just .....leftovers.....♥

Thanks for stopping by, bless you all!

Paola

Punch Art is sooo FUN ♥

2012-02-21T21:24:00.002-08:00

                             ***Click on any picture if you wish to enlarge***
       ~*~ Hello darlin peeps,
today I am showcasing my first punch negative card....
It was created for the 'PUNCHY CHALLENGE' on my own
punch art swap, currently running on SCS.
Every Tuesday a new hostess will post a 'punchy challenge'
and partecipants have until Thursday to post and show off their creations.
                             ♥ I call these T-Days ♥
Here are the complete details in regards to today's challenge;
it is the first one and I am hosting it ♥

TUESDAY,FEB 21 *CHALLENGE** To make a card using Melina's as a sample. See links below.
Striped Butterfly by mepylant - Cards and Paper Crafts at Splitcoaststampers

Punchy Easter Eggs by mepylant - Cards and Paper Crafts at Splitcoaststampers

*You are to case ONE of her cards OR come up with your own design, using the same punched out (negative) revealing tecnique.

*Please have YOUR own card ready and posted by THURSDAY before midnight.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

At first , I wanted to make my card exactly as Melina's Easter card, but then I thought I really should try to come up with my own 'scene' - as long as I was still following the punch negative rule - and this is the result. I used lots of lil pearls as embellies and finally also used some of the foliage ribbon I bought over a year ago and left, totally forgotten, until tonight :o) This tecnique is great for using lots of scrap designer paper!....For sure I will do many more punch negative cards as they are truly a LOT of fun to make ♥

I loved creating these flowers and to give some of them a 3-D effect also. The larger pink flower is none other than a punched out circle and the surrounding petals are the same from the punched flower shown here on my left. Each single petal was cut out , after being sponged in pink, and positioned around the circles.

The inked 'grass' comes from an old (1997) SU stamps set called 'Sensational Scenery'....I love this old set! ♥

The cut out sentiment is actually from the reverse side of the red polka dotted leftover piece of designer paper.
I think it is a perfect addition for the front of this card....

These are the punches that were used
to accomplish my floral spring scene as well as the other items below....

I hope YOU like my first punch negative card....do YOU think it
fits today's 'punchy' challenge?
*wink & smile*

♥ THANK YOU FOR STOPPING

BY AND VISIT ♥

Please take time to comment and let me know what YOUR thoughts are in regards......

xox Many Blessings To You! xox

~*Paola*~

This card was submitted for the following challenges:

http://craftyannschallengeblog.blogspot.com/

http://crazychallenge.blogspot.com/

♥ Let Me Call You Sweetheart ♥

2012-02-15T03:27:00.000-08:00

Hello Friends and Bloggers....
Yeahhh! It's THAT time of the month again! :o)
Each month, on the 15th day to be exact, we Dueling Dazzlers 'battle' with the Dueling Divas
to compare ideas, learn new tecniques, and creating DARLING cards together .
If you're new to my blog and like to read more details about what it's all about, please check the link here provided :o)
http://paola-sama.blogspot.com/2010/10/its-duelling-darlings-timeo.html

This month our wonderful dueling hostesses were Debbie (for us Dazzlers) and Carol (for the Divas) They provided both groups with a love themed challenge and kits to boot ♥

Debbie's kit was full of wonderful stuff and embellies plus two choices of images...and this is what I created with my selected image. Sentiment was provided too....but I remembered

about it only AFTER I already stamped the inside of my card....yikes...:/

I decided to go out of my comfort zone a wee bit and make my card somewhat masculine,

and kept it more simple ,so that it would serve a dual purpose and gave it

to my darling hubby on Valentine's Day -without too much frilliness or mushiness...

(the latter is usually my style) LOL

Kit from DebBie:

Everything to make this card (unless specified) and so much, much more! ♥ THANK YOU DEB!! ♥
I added the following:

Grey C/S for the base, dimentionals (raised image)

Ink:Real Red,Soft Sky,Baja Breeze; SU markers

Tecnique:distressing,piecing,sponging

Hope you like my contribution for this month's *DDD Club*

I'd love it if you could leave a sign of your visit...I sooo appreciate hearing from you and reading all of your comments...*wink & smile & thanks*

*~*♥Blessings to all of you♥*~*

Please check all the other amazing creations by:

The DAZZLERS

♥ Jeanette ♥ April ♥ Debbie ♥ Melina ♥ Michelle ♥ Terry ♥ Darlene ♥ Paola <---you are here

The DIVAS

♥ Barb ♥ Carol ♥ Jamie ♥ Joan ♥ Judy ♥ Kelly ♥ Laura Jean ♥ Tami ♥

Funny & Wild

2012-02-08T16:16:00.000-08:00

Hello friends and peeps...

I am currently partecipating in a humorous swap on SCS.

April, the swap hostess, is expecting funny, punny cards for any occasions....

Originally, I had another image in mind for this, but then I just happened to

come across this funny gal on a Vespa scooter and I just HAD TO get her!☻ ♥

As a chil, growing up in Italy, I often went for rides with my Dad in his Vespa...

lots of good memories were flooding to the surface as I was coloring these images...

Of course I had to give the scooter on this image the Vespa's name brand too...lol

Inside (below) I kept the cards fairly simple and d/p coordinated and purposedly left it blank for the recipient to fill it with sentiment of their choice...

What will probably surprise YOU, is that last year I almost bought a shiny,

dark red, gorgeous looking scooter that I could mainly use to and from work....*sigh*....Unfortunatly I took too long to decide and by the time I was ready to put forward an offer, IT had a sold sign on it. *dang!*

.....oh well...IT was clearly not ment to be.....

Deets: Stamp:'Mad Rider' by Art Impressions UM4101 Ink: Versafine Onix Black , SU Markers Card Stock: Real Red, Certainly Celery D/P:Unknown Accessories: Nesties, buttons, gingham ribbon, twine, Sakura Gelli Pen I hope you like these tent toppers cards... I know I do.....they make me giggle and smile...and that's a good thing don't you think ? ☻ Thanks for stopping by.... ♥ Blessings! ♥

MIX IT UP CHALLENGE

2012-02-06T01:33:00.000-08:00

First set of cards:

Stamps: All About Gratitude (lrg wheel); Wonderful Words; Bliss

Ink: Old Olive; Tangerine Tango

Mix It Up Challenge ----what is it????-----

It's the title of a FUN thread on SCS, initiated by Lisa (Ashdale on SCS), where partecipants take part to a weekly challenge----->every Sunday<----
There are no winners or losers but there is for sure a LOT of chatter and FUN gUrlZ too! LOL
Each partecipant can 'play' at being the hostess of the week, and put their own spin on the challenges ,therefore it's a surprise every week!!! How fun is that????? Cool eh!? :o)

This week hostess is Donna (aka SCS: Donnaml)
...and this, in her own words, is what she challenged us with:

"....Your challenge is to make a one layer CAS card. This means your cardbase ONLY. You may choose any color cardstock you want but....absolutely no other layers. No 3D, No Butterflies, No ribbon, No nothing. Also, you may use only 2 colors of ink on your card with no coloring with copics, colored pencils or any other coloring medium.
So basically, you can only use stamps. And only 2 colors of ink on it. Got it?....."

OH MAN DONNA!!!.....really?? NO blings , just plain CAS...no NOTHING?! :o(

well...BRING IT ON.......I ♥ challenges!! ♥...eheheheh :o)

Second Set of cards:

Stamps: Busy Blocks (lrg wheel); Fresh Cuts; 'Just Because' sentiment by: Paper Salon

Ink: Night of Navy; Sahara Sands

(alternated w/ Marvelous Magents on second card of same set)

Third Set of cards :

Stamps : Sweetheart Candy II; Seasons of Friendship; Wonderful Words II

Ink: Close to Cocoa ; Positively Pink

Fourth Set of cards :

Stamps : Easy Elegance ; Bliss ; Inspired by Nature

Ink: Almost Amethyst; Kiwii Kiss

Last Set of cards:

Stamps : Dream Gardens ; 'Konnichiwa' sentiment from Hanna Stamps

Ink : Cranberry Crisp ; River rock

Well my friends,....those are all the cards I came up with tonight....what do YOU think of the outcome??

I kept the base of each card all in white this time around, for a cool, clean & pristine look :o)

Thanks for visiting! Please leave a comment and come back again, soon :o)

♥ BLESSINGS TO ALL!! ♥

January SOTC challenge

2012-01-30T18:03:00.000-08:00

Hello my friends,

today I am showing you the card made for the SOTC January's challenge.

Judy (known in the stamping SCS' world as JAM123) was our hostess with the mostest

and encouraged us to create the following....

In her own words:
" ....It’s the ending of an old year and the beginning of a new year. It’s a time of reflection, a time of celebration and a time when many look forward to new beginnings. So in the spirit of the season, the theme for December/January cards is INSPIRATION!
Create a card that reflects YOU…your dreams, aspirations, and/or accomplishments. Include your favorite colors, embellishments, images and sentiments. Create something that will lift the spirit of your Sistahs! As an added challenge I would love to see you incorporate a picture of yourself......"

There are so many possibilities and interpretations for this latest challenge...and, as such, I found myself to be at a standstill as what to create.However, I remember thinking that, IF I had a hot air balloon stamp, I would have used it for sure...

you see one of my many dreams has always been to try and go up in the sky

in a hot air balloon....♥

On the inside, I kept it simple
by using a pretty glittered
designer paper panel and
punched out a string of heart with
my MS punch ,added another punched
out heart and a scalloped nestie heart
to use for a sentiment of choice...

Stamp: 'Forget Me Not' M4723

by Stampington & Co.

Sentiment: 'Warm Words' by SU

Ink: Purely Pomegranate, Rose Romance,

Onix Black

Card Stock: Bravo Burgundy

& wine red dotted c/s)

Designer Paper: 'Think Pink' by Making Memories,

'Eskimo Kisses' by Basic Grey

Accessories: burgundy lace, 'Allegro' EF, brads,

dimentionals, Lily white glitter, Gelli roll Sakura pen,

blings, pearls by Kaiser Kraft

Tecnique: Paper Tearing, sponging, antiquing

This card is ment to be a reflections of some of the things that are important to me, in my life...Love for family, love for music, love for glitter and blings -some of my favorite embellishments- (btw oh yes I also like REAL glittery BLINGS too!), love for lacey things that remind me of a long ago era....You can say that I also love shabby schick...it's totally me...sometimes casual, sometimes elegant....but overall....under all those layers...there is 'just' ME!

♥ Can you tell which is my MOST favorite color yet? ♥

Thank YOU Judy for a wonderful challenge...admittedly it was not an easy one...lol

Oh...and no, there is no mug shot included , didn't want to scare anyone! *wink* LOL

I sure hope that whomever receives these cards will feel uplifted with L♥VE!

Thanks for stopping by, please come again soon.

♥ ♥ ♥ BLESSINGS TO YOU ALL ♥ ♥ ♥

Something New Using Something Old!

2012-01-28T02:51:00.000-08:00

It is the 28th!!!.........and if YOU follow my blog regularly then you must know what that means....YUP...It is Calendar Girls time!!...wowww....this month Jeanette had a pretty darn nice challenge for all of us and I am excited about it...

From Jeanette's own post:"....It’s time for our first challenge of 2012. Can you believe we’ve now been together as a blog group for an entire year? That is exciting! I want to celebrate who we are and the fun we’ve had together. Sooooooooo my challenge for January is this:
Something New Using Something Old!

What do I mean by that? This isn’t exactly what it seems. It’s not a vintage theme, though you can make your card/project vintage if you’d like. What I do want you to do is look back over your Calendar Girl posts/creations from the year 2011 and choose one of the images you used. Then I want you to create something entirely different with the same image. It cannot look at all like the previous Calendar Girl creation; nor can you use the same papers/embellishments/etc.

Inside of my card.....plenty of room for another sentiment or more....

Below you can see the shiny surface from the wet heat embossing tecnique used on the panel and the hummingbird.

Jeanette also said:"...When you post to your blog – on January 28 – I want you to also post a picture of your 2011 card/project that used the same image so we can see the two and how different they are. "

I am not able to pick just one picture, so I am adding the link to my 'old' pictures here for you to check and compare the 'Old and New':

http://www.paola-sama.blogspot.com/2011/05/calendar-girls-may-challenge.html

What do you think ? ♥
Leaving ya with something to ponder eh? :o)
Blessings and Sweet Dreams wishes to you all...
it's past 2:30 am here and I am in dire need of some sleep after the long
( yet fruitful and rewarding day) I finally had ...PTL ♥

Deets:
Stamp:SU- Elements of Style
Ink: Onix Black; Versamark
C/S: SU-Black
D/P: DCWV- Glittered Alphabet Premium Stack
Accessories:Fleur de Lis Stampbeatility, oval nestie, black organdy ribbon,
silver cord, self adhesive black pearls ,silver pearl, clear embossing powder,
dimentionals,diamond stickles,
Tecnique: wet embossing
Now go and check all the wonderful creation from the other Calendar Girls
feast your eyes on their links below and leave them some luv too! ♥

April (SCS - Aprilo) April's Alley
Barb (SCS - barbaralynn) Barb's Inkin' into Retirement
Carol (SCS - momcgw) Lost in my craft room
Debbie (SCS - djones) The Ink Igloo
Jeanette (SCS - Forest Ranger) Cre8tive Play
Kelly (SCS - MiamiKel4) Sandcastle Stamper
Michelle (SCS - pattem) Ink'n General
Paola (SCS - Sama) That's Amore *you are here*
Tami (SCS - BlueInks) BlueInks Design
Terry (SCS - terry0926) It's Totally Terry

♥ Snowman ♥

2012-01-26T17:18:00.000-08:00

Hello peeps....

do you like snowmen?? I sure do!

My friend Vivian (SCS: blusky) hosted a snowman's swap

recently and that gave me the perfect opportunity to ink

one of my latest Whipper Snapper rubbah's friends...

Isn't he just adorable ? ♥

His name is ' Frappe the Snowman' (WS:CY766)

Even its name sounds cute eh! :o)

UH OH!...I just re-read the swap's page and realized that I was supposed to add a funny sentiment too....yikes! Oh well...these cards are already postal...I sure hope Viv and the other recipients likes them regardless...♥

Thanks for stopping by my friends

♥ Hugs & Blessings to you all ♥

Deets:

c/s Pear Pizzaz (SU)

ink: Night of Navy

d/p: Basic Grey

Accessories: glitzy large snowflake, bling, MS punch, stickles.

Colored with pastels and markers

Neglected Stamps...

2012-01-24T21:12:00.000-08:00

Our wonderful SOTC leader Kadie, suggested -a while back- to have an exchange of

uninked stamps amongst us sistahs and show those long neglected stamps some luve...

The idea took off with a bang, we were then paired off and I received the above adorable stamps from Maryann (mastuff) while I sent off some of my too many

neglected stamps to April (Aprilo) for some inking fun of her own.

I got to tell ya...INCHIES are not my forteee!...LOL....In fact I had no creative idea how to incorporate them on a card...but I am stubborn enough to persevere once I'm on a

'mission'...lol...Decided to start off with a red on white combo,followed with a black background base...

There's glitter as well but the pict doesn't show it...darn! :/

I kept the inside of the card fairly simple, with plenty of room to add another sentiment

of choice....

Well....started to get on a roll, so I decided to make a second card with so many choices of inchies left, and here belows is the result...

I was determined to do a better, more creative job of it. I also chose to 'panel'

the card (size 5x5.5") with six different lovely flowered images stamped on white c/s and mounted on red bazzil squares placed -with dimentionals- on a 'bed' of double sided designer paper background, ending with red bazzil c/s as the base.

A large cuttle bugged and die cut butterfly was added on ,as well as organdy black ribbon , for some balance and dimensions...Glitter galore too, pearls, and just a touch

of red stickles was added to the inchies for that pop of color....

On the inside, the set's three sentiments were strategically stamped around the outside edges, leaving the centre of the card free to add more options...

All in all a total of FIFTEEN lil images and sentiments were used (out of twenty three!) to create both cards....I hope Maryann likes the final products she'll be receiving soon....

It sure was another FUN challenge and hopefully we'll get to do another inking exchange soon! :o)

Please let me know what your thoughts are in regards of these 'inchy cards' :o)

♥ Thank YOU friends... sending many Blessings your way ♥

January Mystery Revealed

2012-01-18T00:05:00.000-08:00

Hello Friends ♥
Today is the day when we can finally reveal the 'Mystery Image' for our swap on SCS
(Split Coast Stampers). This is so much fun to do with a great group of partecipants...
We take turns to host and to send some 'mystery' images to all the gals in the group and every other month we showcase our work through our blogs. All of this was possible through Jeanette's clever idea and for starting this group...♥

The fabulous hostess for this round was Darlene; she sent us absolutly GORGEOUS
images depicting some of the work from artist D.Morgan: http://www.dmorganart.com/
I must admit that I was hoping Darlene would send some iages from her extensive D/Morgan's stamps collection and was thrilled to receive them...but once I started to work on them I became a bit apprehensive and unsure on how to approach this new challenge without diminishing such great gifted image. Hopefully Darlene will like
my own interpretation of such wonderful artist's drawing....

The first challenge, for me, was to try color all the hills the same..then I gave up as I wanted to be more creative and 'free' to pursue different coloring angles, thus most of my images have a slightly different color approach from one another....quite frankly I was thinking of the beautiful Tuscan hills as I was coloring....

I decided to cut out the sentiments and repositioning them according to my creative 'vision' of the moment....I sponged them individually to give them some dimensions and add a touch of popping color as well.....the bottom end of the kitties was cut out too to make the whole scene a tad 3-D. (I also wanted to brush the kittens w/ Crystal Effect but unfortunatly I couldn't find it anywhere when I needed it!! arghhhh!!) :/

Since my goal was to make my card look like a picture,I used rectangular nesties to
aid me in that intent both on the front and on the inside as well...

In these two photos you can see the card front opening better....

The card front was embellished with a blue flower on which I used a Sakura Gelly Roll and added a bright green button w/orange thread. The beautiful nestied tag ,with the first part of the original sentiment completes the 'look'.

♥ That's it folks!! ♥ I hope you like the end result as much as I do...

Darlene, hopefully you don't mind too much that my interpreation of your beautiful images included cutting up the sentiments three ways....

Thank you for such opportunity to color my first ever D.Morgan's incredible images.

♥ Hugs and Blessings to All ♥

One Hundred Year Birthday Celebration!

2012-01-15T16:17:00.000-08:00

THIS IS MY SECOND POST OF THE DAY....
for the DUELING DARLING CHALLENGE PLEASE SCROLL DOWN...♥

.....well...it's 100 yrs celebration for TWO people that is!.....ehehehe

Our wonderful neighbours ,Bill and Kathy, celebrate their Big FIVE-O
Birthday on the same day...yesterday to be exact....and had their house filled
to the rim with friends,children and balloons....plus food galore too!
Hubby and I joined them a bit later as we ended up with unexpected company
as I was putting the finishing touches on the birthay couple's card...
(mmmm nothing like the eleventh hour eh! yikes....)

Yup...lots and lots of black and white dots here with just a touch of color thrown in the mix...

sorry for the writing....

I forgot to take a picture of the inside of the card BEFORE I added a few words to it :/

Yes, I am sure U noticed a missing 's' on the word 'birthday'....but be as it may and since I was in a rush, I was counting on the happily celebrating couple NOT to notice it too much....ehehe...
They were way too busy having fun to pay attention to a lil silly extra 's'....Yeah!!! * wink*

Card Deets:

Stamps:SU 'Happy Everythig' ; SU 'Elements of Style'; SU 'Fresh Cuts';
SU 'Classic Alpha Numbers' and 'Whimsical Numbers'
Card Stock: SU Black and SU Vanilla
Designer Paper: 'Black and Ivory Fusion' by K & Company ; 'Premium Alphabet Glittered Stack' by DCWV
Ink: Onix Black, Rocket Red and Versamark
Accessories: Embossing Powder: White, Drk Red, Clear ; Heart nesties -scalloped and plain- ;
Label Ten nesties ; scalloped punch ; 1 1/4 circle punch ; satiny ivory ribbon ; Merlot and Regal Red fine glitter ; Lily White glitter .
Tecnique: wet embossing

Sure glad Bill and Kathy liked my labour of paper-love made just for them!
We are very fortunate to have them as our neighbours!♥
Hope you liked my take on this card too :o)

♥ Sending a multitude of blessings your way ♥

THIS IS MY SECOND POST OF THE DAY....
for the DUELING DARLING CHALLENGE PLEASE SCROLL DOWN...♥

'Duelling' about the LITTLE THINGS....

2012-01-15T00:05:00.000-08:00

♥ Hello my Darling Peeps and welcome to the first Duel of 2012!! ♥

This month the wonderdul hostess for us Dazzlers was Melina while for the Divas miss Joan took the helm. Both hostesses decided to challenge us in a duel with 'Little Things' in mind.
Melina provided us Dazzlers with an awesomely sweet kit, as you can see in the following picture:

Well, I don't usually feel too comfortable working with such small size images, so that fact alone challenged me even stronger to produce a decent card, and then....WHAM!! an idea popped in my mind and voila'....I acted on it using one of my Whipper Snapper's stamps as my creative muse.....*wink*.....I think this idea worked out rather nicely....♥

Melina also wanted to know what our thoughts were once we opened our kits and discovered this month's theme. Well, for me after the first "wowww these are tinyyyyy....lol" I also thought that
"good things come in little packages..." and that was it...I do think that the result turned out quite good actually....LOL....Did I tell ya how much I LOVEEEE challenges??? ♥

Another good challenge was to use ALL the items included in the kit and, after a few hummms and ahhhhmmmssss, here how I used them on the card...can you see where I placed the three little circles ? The only thing I added on this card is the card stock (Marina Mist from SU!), Label ten nesties, the fun googley eyes for the lil crab,dimentionals, and the funny sentiment (from Bella) which I cut out with two punches and then 'balanced' it within the lil crab's claws. { A witty sentiment to be added on the card was also a requirement from our hostess.}Check ,check...all done! :o)

Here's a peek of the inside of the card too....
(ooopsss! I just realized that I missed placing the yellow paper clip with the kit picture posted above)

Well, girls....this is it...I hope you enjoyed browsing through...

Let me know your thoughts please...I always appreciate your feed back.

This was a FUN challenge Melina....I hope you like what I came up with...oh and by the way..

.I am sooooooooooooooo happy that my dueling card can be posted right on time, along with all other dueling darlings sistahs.....it's a good feeling posting all together for sure!!

Tecnique used: sponging , precise cutting , pleating.

THANK YOU FOR VISITING MY FRIENDS!!!....please take time to visit all the other Duelers too and see what they've been up to!!

♥ BLESSINGS TO ALL! ♥

Punched out Santa

2012-01-11T23:38:00.000-08:00

Ohh Santa babyyyyyyyyyyy ♥
(how does the song go??) :o)
YES, I do know Christmas is OVER, but since I didn't have a chance to post some cards made last month
I decided that there is no better time than the present ...therefore this is one of them*wink*

This lil star shaped Santa card was made as a prototype to use as name-tags for my Christmas table...however I never finished my tags this year....I suppose I can look at it as being 'ahead' for next year already eh!? :o)

This cute idea was cased from uber talented Mothermark....I absolutly loved her original seen here:
http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/2106796?&cat=500&ppuser=80269

Since I don't have the SU ornament punch to make Santa's face, I did what I could w/the punches I do have as well as nesties...I also decided to do his beard a bit different to which I addes some MS tinsel glitter...

Noticed the pom pom on top of Santa's card?? welllllll....let me tell yaaaa...
Some fun Christmas crackers may have them on the inside, perhaps attached to a wee gift??Then when U pull them everything comes out flying....including -in this case- some pom poms...
Yup...I do {{{HEART}}} recycling...and this is one perfect lil examples to which I added a dusting of glitter.....cute eh ? :o)

Now...look at these cuties....they were made with the intention to use them for gift tags OR even as tree ornaments...I know for a fact that my grandchildren realy like them, so I'm already thinking that, this summer, we will all have fun together making gift tags and Christmas paper ornaments full og glitter!!
Of course I will make sure that this will be an OUTDOOR activity for sure!! LOL

The inside of the circled card shows a pretty (and glittery) sentiment from an

acrylic set I own, but have no clue as to who makes it :/

♥ I LOVE punch art....don't YOU?? ♥

Thanks for visitinggggggggggg....*mwahhh*

Sending ya all special blessingggsss, until next time.....

Vintage Valentine ATC

2012-01-06T17:18:00.000-08:00

Hello friends,
my first project of 2012 it's an ATC (Artist Trading Card)
What are ATC one may ask? Here's the perfect visual explanation of such, compliments of SCS
aka Split Coast Stampers :
http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/artist_trading_cards_atc/

Here's a close up....

Specifically, the theme for these cards was Vintage Valentines.....

Yikess!!...I sure got a bit intimidated by the whole thing as I don't do ATC well...

I believe this is only ,perhaps, my third ATC I ever made as I definetly much prefer

working on regular size cards , if not larger ones even....

Having said that, I hope that the wonderful and witty swap hostess whose swap I joined,

likes the end results , as well as the swappers who,ultimatly will end up receiving these.

Not sure why in the 'group photos' the lil heart brad appears black...they are certainly not black, although I did smear a bit of black Staz-On on them, to make the brads less shiny and appear more vintage, and it worked well. Unfortunatly though, my pictures turned out not as well as I hoped, this time around...arghhhhh me... :o(
Please let me know what YOU think...YOUR comments are ALWAYS apreciated! :o)

♥ G'NIGHT and Special Blessings to you!!! ♥

Deets: Ink: Versafine Onix Black, Cranberry Crisp,Sahara Sands, Black Staz On Stamp: Great Impressions #F424 C/S: from SU D/P : 'Lovely' from K&C (cut out sentiment), 'Red Valentine' from K&C Accessories: Adhesive gems or pearls, doily, sm paper flowers (smudged w/cranberry crisp and glittered),heart brads, Glamour Dust glitter,plain and scalloped nesties, dimentionals, ribbons Tecnique: sponging,antiquing

I'm late...I'm lateeeeeeeeeeee!...

2012-01-04T20:22:00.000-08:00

....for a very important (to me) 'date'....
Ya see, I wanted to post what is to follow ,last Dec 30th actually...mmmm....that makes it LAST year now...LOL...but,alas, I didn't have a chance to do it...until now.
Anyways...I REALLY liked what I saw last year (and the previous one too) in some of the creative blogs I visited, where the hosts
posts what I like to call a 'Memory Lane Review' of her year' most favorite creations...

Without any further delays here are mine...selected by month :

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

THERE!! I've done it...and....as 'they' say...

"better later than never!!" ♥

Hope you have enjoyed going down my lil 'Memory Lane'.

sooo...which one ,of the 12 cards above, you liked best?

Looking forward to this brand new year just started, and the

possibility of many new inspirations and paper inking...

♥ Thanks for stopping by ya all!! ♥

2012 - A Brand New Year!! -

2012-01-01T02:21:00.000-08:00

WISHING ALL MY WONDERFUL & FRIENDLY FOLLOWERS A MOST AMAZING NEW YEAR 2012!!
♥ Cheers Everyone!!♥

Calendar Girls December Challenge

2011-12-28T10:44:00.000-08:00

Yeahhh! It's that time of the month for the Calendar Girls to reveal their challenge...

Who are the Calendar Girls? ♥ You can check them out here:

http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/forums/blogging-groups-f290/calendar-girls-blog-group-full-10-members-t512917.html

Look what our dear Jeanette had in mind for this month....that woman is a GENIUS I tell ya! *wink*

"Who loves a secret? I know I do! Let's have a secret ONE-WORD challenge for the month of December. This is how it will work. Each Calendar Girl will come up with a one-word challenge for the Calendar Girl who follows her on the list. It can only be ONE WORD, but it can be any word (glitter, three, apple, blue, holiday, sponging, friendship.... whatever word you choose!) Then secretly email or PM that ONE WORD challenge to the next person on the list and she will create a card that in some way represents that word. On December 28th, she will post to her blog a picture of her card and the ONE WORD secret that she has used. Because it's a busy time, please email or PM your ONE WORD to your secret partner no later than the 28th of November so she will have ample time to create during the busy holiday season. Okay? "
So as not to confuse anyone:

Jeanette will send a word to Kelly
Kelly will send a word to April
April will send a word to Terry
Terry will send a word to Barb
Barb will send a word to Carol
Carol will send a word to Michelle
Michelle will send a word to Debbie
Debbie will send a word to Paola
Paola will send a word to Tami
Tami will send a word to Jeanette

This is the inside of the card....Noticed what I used as a golden strip for the inside of the card?

Yup! the gold sticky strip from a Ferrero box of chocolate that was opened

in front of me as I was creating and...voila'! Another recycling idea was instantly born...LOL

Final result:
If you observe the first photo posted, you can compare it to this one and see that something was added to the card....I thought it needed something and this morning I added some golden baubles and a cute lil red and gold star. I hope you can see how beautiful this designer paper truly is....it embodies lots of joyful cherubs and heavenly stars....

Would you like me to reveal the secret word given to me by lil dj?? It's about time eh?? ♥
The special word Debbie kindly gifted me with is ♥ CELESTIAL ♥
and I simply LOVED her choice! ♥ Thank you Debbie .

I didn't want to use any blue (sky) background though....I chose to use one of my favorite colors instead (dark red) ....hope you like the result.

Can't wait to hop along and check what all the other Calendar Girls' words challenge were!!

Thanks for stopping by.....I always appreciate your visit and your comments....

Blessings to all!!

Card Deets:

Acrylic stamp sets from a garage finding-don't know its name

Versamark & Versamark pen

Designer Paper from Kaisercraft 'December 25th Collection'

Designer Paper from 'My Mind's Eyes'

Card Stock 'Cherry Cobbler' from SU

Accessories: Gold Glory embossing powder,scalloped punch,

gold baubles, red/gold star,dimentionals, gold tape (recycled from Ferrero choc. box)

Tecnique: precision cutting, wet embossing,

__________________

November SOTC Challenge

2011-12-13T17:05:00.000-08:00

Hello wonderful peeps, I have a different card for you to view today...

it's a round GIRL card!...specifically a TEEN's card...

November SOTC hostess, Maryann, asked for us to shower her with girls cards in honour of her

14 yo grandaughter's birthday which occured last November.
(I know I know...made this card in December instead!) *sigh*
Maryann also requested for something 'twisted' incorporated on the card...such as twine or a twisted placed image etc... well folks that's the part I forgot to implement....
yet I can easily say that my card DOES twist from side to side

so there! *wink & smile*

I am sticking by this version....hoping that IT counts...LOL *wink*

Above it's a peek of the inside of my card...

I absolutly LOVED inking and coloring this

sweet image from Mo Manning...

Will definetly work with more Mo Manning's

beautiful stamped images in the future. ♥ Love them! ♥

Sakura Gelly roll was used to add a bit of shine and sparkle to the teens outfits.

Hoping that whomever will receive these cards in the swap,

will enjoy them as much as I did creating them :o)

                                    ♥ THANK YOU FOR VISITING ♥
                             ♥ Please come again soon ...♥

Card Deets:
Stamps: Psst Dani & Taylor by Mo Manning
               Warmest Regards by SU *inside sentiment*
               Paper Salon/Taylored Tins *front sentiment*
Ink:       Memento Black, SUmmer Sun (SU), Only Orange (SU)
               SU Markers
Accessories: gemstones , silk flowers from Michaels, dimentionals,nesties, Sakura Gelly Roll

My card was entered for the following challenges:

http://corrosivechallengesbyjanet.blogspot.com/

http://squigglestamps.blogspot.com/
http://craftycatzweeklychallenge.blogspot.com/
http://pennyblackatallsorts.blogspot.com/
http://basicgreychallenges.blogspot.com/2011/12/challenge-58-anything-goes.html
http://craftingwhenwecanchallenges.blogspot.com/2011/12/thats-friendship-challenge-8.html
http://totallypapercrafts.blogspot.com/
http://craftycreationschallenges.blogspot.com/

Happy Birthday Lil Man...& Candy Winners...

2011-12-11T23:14:00.000-08:00

♥♥ Well, today was my youngest grandson's Special day.♥♥

I cannot believe that our little Noah is already NINE years old....where did time go???!! *sigh*

For his birthday I decided to make his first tent top card using a new clear stamp in need of inking

that basically says 'allboyalloverit'....LOL

....in a matter of speak...lol

Card Deets: I used a clear stamp 'Skatebard Dude' (Gillian Roberts 2010) by Stampavie, inked in Versamark Onix Black. Image was colored with SU markers. Soft Sky was sponged around the colored image which was encased in inverted scalloped nesties and regular circles nesties. I wanted to personalize the image a bit, therefore I added my G/Son name on the boy's cap and a 9 depicting his newly acquired number, on the skateboard. Other items used here: Su markers,Soft Sky ink,nesties,dimentionals, red heart brad,grosgrain brcade bue ribbon and red satiny ribbon.Card stock from SU (Always Artichoke) and DP from Basic Grey ('Mellow') and from Michael's. Decided also to use part of the DP printed words as sentiments outside and inside the card...

Photos did not turn out too good, my camera's batteries

died shortly after these were taken...dang! :/

     ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Happy 9th Birthday
   my sweet Noah!
Love you bunches!
xox Nonna xox

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

AND NOW ON TO DISCLOSE THE SIX WINNERS OF MY OWN BIRYHDAY CANDIES...

(see blog post dated November 30th)

Ladies, sorry about the delay but ya know how it is...LIFE sometimes gets in the way....*wink*

I had my hubby pulled out SIX numbers from a total of 32 responses;

Please note: each number represents each person who left a comment.

AND THE WINNERS ARE:

# 28= jhj24 - winner of House Mouse 'Throwing Daisy Petals'

# 8 = Kathy - winner of Summer Swiss Floral clear stamps set

# 20 = Terria - winner of 'Eerie' D/P from BasicGrey

# 6= Darlene - winner of Santa Sleigh clear stamp by Stampavie

# 1= Lauren - winner of MFT set and designer fabric collection

# 25= Nancy - winner of everything else!(20 items in total!)

To view pictures of the candies,please check here:

http://paola-sama.blogspot.com/2011/11/blog-candy-give-away.html

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL!

Please contact me asap with your address.

Please note: Ladies, IF I don't hear from you by Dec 20th,

you will, unfortunatly, lose your candy.

Thank YOU for your partecipation!! ♥

BLOG CANDIES GIVE AWAY

2011-11-30T00:02:00.000-08:00

November 30th, 2011

IT's MY PARTY AND I DO AS I WANT TO.....

I DO AS I WANT TOOOOO.....*WINK*

ehehhe just changing a couple words to uplift the original lyric of such song...*wink*

YES my Friends and Peeps...it is a BIIIIGGGG day for me today...Yikes!!

BIG 60th!!

I decided it was time to have a Blog Candy...or..in my case..CANDIES...oh yeahhh...

There will be SIX names' drawn on DECEMBER the 6th
SIX of you may win some of the prizes you see posted below ... sooooo do YOU wanna know what you need to do in order to be eligible?

2 SIMPLE THINGS:
1) Just write a comment on this blog...no need to become a follower...however, should you decide to follow my blog too...well ,of course I'll be happy...BUT it is STRICTLY YOUR decision....I just want to *S*P*R*E*AD* out some cheerfulness....and give away some fun candies on MY Special Day...

2) Please pass the word in any way U can about this blog candy giveaway...weather on your own blog or your SCS swap thread or both....just SHARE IT pleaseee....

THAT's IT Gals!! Simple eh??? :o)
OHHH and pleezzzz don`t forget to also let me know HOW to reach YOU, should your name be amongst the winners...*TXS!*

Here are the prizes : Let`s start with * The Four Seasons *

*1st prize* SPRING* : House Mouse 'ThrowingDaisy Petals' (Monica)

*2nd prize *SUMMER * : BasicGrey 'Swiss Floral' Clear Stamps Set

*3rd prize *AUTUMN* : BasicGrey 'Eerie' 6x6 designer pad 36 pcs.

*4th prize*WINTER* : 'Santa's Sleigh' clear stamp -Lawerence Collection- by Stampavie

*5th prize* : 'So Inviting' Clear stamps set by My Favorite Things, plus 21 yards of Designer Fiber Collections

*6th and final prize: takes all the rest!!!* :o)

`Believe20 ITEMS : `Doodles Dings` Clear stamps set by SASSAFRASS * `Singing Tree`Clear stamp by Rachelle Miller * Bling it on from BasicGrey * `Happy Holiday` clear stamp by Imaginisce * `Eskimo Kisses` 6x6 Designer paper by Basic Grey * Pop Dots double sided adhesive * Alphabet Glittery Stickers from Fiskars * Fine Glitter Palette set * Bag of felt flowers & chipboard cut outs * `Believe` blue rhinestone word * Metal words trio * Self adhesive pink pearls * self adhesive ivory pearls * Brads, Buttons , Ribbon set by Autumn Leaves * SU rub ons * Epoxy 3D trees stickers * Lrg black eyelets by WE- R- Memory keepers * Neutral Felt ribbons by Paper Studio * Paisley Chipboard * `Be Mine` Clear stamps set by Fiskars *

And to wrap it up..here`s a few pictures of my husband`s early surprise last Saturday evening , when I returned home after watching `Breaking Dawn` with friends....these 60 flamingos and huge display are STILL `posing` on my front lawn!!! *LOL*

Last picture was taken after returning home from my surprise luncheon party on Sunday.

THANKS FOR STOPPING BY AND MAKE MY DAY EVEN MORE SPECIAL!! XOXOX

Sending you all wonderful wishes and blessings!!

Paola (still young at heart...)

Calendar Girls: November challenge

2011-11-28T20:29:00.000-08:00

Hello friends and followers,
I just finished this easel cards tonight, literally minutes ago!
It is for the November Calendar Girls' group challenge.

In Jeanette's own word- she's our wonderful leader and organizer of our group - here's her challenge :

"... Because we post on the 28th, the end of the month... and most of us will be in Christmas mode... how about if we post a Christmas card for our November posting? That should be easy, since we are probably all making a Christmas card or two anyway. I also think it might be fun to post a picture of our workdesk/space with all of its creating clutter... you know, the Christmas cardmaking frenzy in all its messiness..."

YIKES!!! did you READ that?? I am the undiscussed queen of clutter..*sigh*...and, as I told ya above...I JUST finished making the card so, of course my space is utterly messy and in total disarrey!!:/ ok ...I wil take a deep deep breath and take the plunge to post those photo of my creative messiness....(and yes it WIL BE CLEANED UP before I go to bed!)

Card Deets: 'Wreath Stamp' by Inkadinkado # 99446 DD 'Winter Wonderland' sentiment from Paper Salon Card Stocks all from SU Designer Paper 'Eskimo Kisses' from Basic Gray/// Accessories: Fancy Tags, Plain Round nesties, Eyelet Circled nesties,rhynestones from Kaiser, Lily White glitter,micro fine red glitter

And now to the worst possible pictures ...and don't tell me YOU weren't warned!!
By the way...I must add that it's even messier than usual 'cause I am in the midst of doing some
stamps' inventory as well...plus my DH just opened my new BS tonight as well...so there is LOTS of extras on my table tonight....yikess... HERE GOES NUTTING>>>>

Now I can go in my hiding corner...call me back when this is OVER!!! LOL

G'NIGHT my friends and BLESSINGS to all!!

PPSSSSSSTTTTT...do NOT forget to come by for a visit on WEDNESDAY!!!

sshhtttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt! it is a SURPRISE!!!:o)

Penny Black in the Forest...

2011-11-26T00:44:00.000-08:00

Hello Friends and Peeps,
this time I have a Penny Black card to show you...(I LUV PB stamps just as much as WS!)
This was made for the latest Forest's swap. Forest (Ranger) is Jeanette's SCS nickname .
She's a wonderful stamping friend, fabby hostess and all around caring and kind person, not to mention the best prayer warrior one could ask for... One can count on Jeanette for practically everything...oh yeah...I forgot one thing...She's also VERYYYYYYY chattyyyyy!!
(but don't tell her I told you so.....lol)
Her swaps are the chattiest one can imagine....so much 'traffic' and a load of fun! :o)

In Jeanette's own word to describe her swap: "...For this round in ' WHAT CAN WE DO IN THE FOREST ' swappers are asked to create full-sized cards that show something one does in the forest. In those beautiful natural habitats called forests, we might go camping, fishing, or hiking, making s’mores, animal watching, canoing, boating, picnicking… the list goes on and on..

I decided to add some pretty lace on my cards...wondering now if the final result could -perhaps- be dubbed 'shabby-schick' ? I hope you could tell that the scene I wanted to create was that of going to pick a perfect Christmas tree in the forest....at least this is what my hubby and I do yearly and loving it... Many times we thought to go 'artificial' yet every single time we seem to change our minds at the very last hour...:o) For this card I chose an image from Penny Black's clear stamp collection called ' The Wonder' (30-040). I added a background of trees cut out from nesties. Then I chose a CB folder and literally smooshed it with Cranberry Crisp and Green Galore inks on it before proceeding to dry emboss the small tree.
Glitter, of course is reigning supreme! :o)

Card Deets: PB * The Wonder* ; sentiment from: Winter Silhouette clear stamps by Inkadinkado , Versamark ink:Onix Black, Tree dies nesties, CB folder:'Christmas Ornaments' by ProvoCraft; Card STock: all by SU!, Designer Paper:'Christmas Glitter book' by My Mind' Eyes. Accessories:Pop dots,glitter, lace, hairspray. Tecnique: Sponging/Dry embossings, detailed cutting, chalking

Lastly, here's the greeting embellishing the inside of each card...

Hope you enjoy and please feel free to comment in regards....

Sweet Dreams

and Blessings

to All!!....

ANNOUNCEMENT: Log into my blog on WEDNESDAY, November 30th, and check what's goin on....

I will have several surprises for YOU!!!...yes...YOU!!!

DON'T MISS IT!! :o)

Cheese pleezzz!

2011-11-22T17:45:00.000-08:00

Here another set of tent topper's swap cards created for my stamping friend Barb's Whipper Snapper & PB swap.

This lil critter won me over a couple wks ago and ,along with some other cute lil fellows, is now part of my Whipper Snapper stamps' collection. :o)

This cute mouse was colored using chalk and embellished with a lil pompon for his hat and yellow stickles was used to bling up the tree top. Crystal Effect was used for mousey's nose.

The sentiment below is from Whipper Snapper Design cling mount stamps (illustrated by A. Wright) Set name: 'Celebrate Nature'.

I drew an oval with Old Olive marker, using an oval nestie as a

template. Clean. Simple. Effective.

Card Deets:                                              Stamp:'Swiss Cheese Tree' by WS ; 'Celebrate Nature'cling set by WS
Card stock: Cherry Cobbler by SU ;           Designer Paper: 'Holiday Avenue'                          by My Mind's Eyes & 'Eskimo Kisses'                   by Basic Grey.                                                           Accessories: punched out trim, pom poms, red bling, pewter snowflake brad , hairspray  (to set the chalk)
                                                   Tecniques:                                                      Sponging, Coloring using chalks (from SU)

THAT's IT FOLKS!! :o)

THANKS FOR YOUR VISIT AND PLEASE DO LEAVE YOUR COMMENTS , and or CRITIQUE....I LOVE READING ALL OF YOUR OPINIONS!! :o)

Gold and festive

2011-11-21T20:02:00.000-08:00

This card was created for Barb's WS and Penny Black's swap.

The image of this festive Christmas ornament ball and the sentiment are from Penny Black's

clear acrylic set : 'Banner of Joy'

Absolutly love this PB set I recently purchased for just a few dollars at a Stamping Garage sale at my favorite craft store 'Paper Nation'.

Here are some details of my new favorite CB folder 'Flourish' ,from Sizzix

I never used gold foil before (and probably can't afford to use it too often either)

but oh myyyy...I DO like embossing with it for sure!

The end results look so rich and elegant...at least to me it does :o)

This is a close up of the gold embossed ornament...in these picture the color looks more like a

deep rose'...but in reality is a deep red....

it is nestled atop a black punched out circle which in turn was positioned atop a gold circle.

Golden thread finishes up the festive look...

I left the inside pretty simple with double circles (I used two nesties and a golden pen to trace them) encasing a festive embossed sentiment .

I hope my friend Barb likes these cards...

Stay tuned, I also have a Whipper Snapper card to upload...*wink*

Please let me know what YOU think... also...

what else can you do with foil?? Please share! :o)

Blessings to all!

Tecnique: wet embossing, dry embossing, detailed cutting.

September Mystery

2011-11-21T01:17:00.000-08:00

Click on any pictures if you wish to enlarge

This post is quite, quite late...but I am trying to catch up and post many 'cards-in-waiting' , made a while back when I had some technical issues w/my camera vs the laptop....
This cutie was made for the Mystery round of last September. The sweet image was sent to all of us partecipants by our stamping friend , and hostess for this round , Karly.
The stamped image is called 'Acrobat' and it is from the Penny Black stamp line...can you tell? Usually PB are famous for their cuter than cute hedgehogs stamps among many other wonderfully inspiring rubber collection....THANK YOU KARLY....I {{{heart}}} PB !! :o)

On my image, I decided to fill the flowers with triple colors combo, then I added some

sparkly glitter and finished it off with a touch of Crystal effect here and there...

Isn't adorable? I don't own this particular stamp but I am now sure tempted to get one ....
being part of such fun, mysterious images exchange , at times, also 'enables' us to want to purchase new 'toys'...and if YOU are a stamper, you know exactly what I mean...*wink*

On the inside of the card I added the same nestie as the front, sponged it with Luscious Lime

( wich is an older line from SU ) and added a sentiment from the Bella's collection.

I think this sentiment is just the cat's meow and it goes rather well with this image....

Here you have it....a simple post long overdue:o)

Sending Blessings to all!

G'Night...time to rest and dream now...:o)

Card Deets:Image by :Penny Black 'Acrobat' -colored with chalks and markers combo
Sentiment by :Bella
Ink used: Bashful Blue, Luscious LIme, Melon Mango -chalks by SU-
C/S & D/P all from SU supplies
Accessories: Label Ten nesties, Scalloped Oval nesties, Bella baubles, lili white glitter,
Crystal effect, hair spray, double stiched grosgrain ribbon .

November Dueling Darlings

2011-11-18T19:07:00.000-08:00

Hello my friendly peeps...Guess what??

On the 15th of each month, the usual 'blog-get-together'
of the triple *D*'s (Dueling Darling Dazzlers/ Divas) showcase their wonderful creativeness
See link below for details, if you are a new follower and have no idea what I am talking about...

http://paola-sama.blogspot.com/2010/10/its-duelling-darlings-timeo.html

Well, here's my card, of course we all know it's past the 15th...ya see...living in Canada has its plus and minus benefits...the 'minus' is the distance which means waiting for the mailman to deliver the monthly kit always AFTER everyone elses has already posted theirs...BUT..the 'plus' is to see firsthand what everyone did before me, thus also seeing the revealing of the kit before I even receive mine...*wink* ...Gotta love that eh!? LOL

On to the duel: the Darlings' hostess this month is my friend Jeanette, aka 'Forest Ranger', as she's lovingly known amongst the stampers group.

Jeanette and Kelly (the DIVA's leader) came up with a wonderfully FUNNY theme for this month ,precisely 'WHAT NOT TO WEAR' ,based on the popular TV series...

Jeanette sent us (the Dazzlers) a funky kit full of veryyy diverse and mismatch items...the challenge was also to try to use all, or almost all, to create our cards.

The kit was soooo full and fabulously 'wild and wacky' ....so wished I took pictures before using it!

This is what Jeanette's said about her 'very diverse' kit :

"...I hunted for wild papers, mismatched embellishments, and a humorous image. I think I succeeded in sending the Dazzlers a "classy" (NOT!), elegant (NOT!), outlandish (DEFINITELY!) kit with which to create. Tee Hee!..."....That's pretty well sums it up my friends...LOL

This is the inside of my card...I cut out a whole bunch of strips from the wild d/p collection received. At first I wanted to line everything up quite precisely then I thought to purposedly mis-align the strips to obtain a more interesting wacky design, and used a dark brown marker to draw lines in between each strip,making the whole backgroung pop. The centered sentiment was punched out from one of the d/p. The 'remember' ribbon was strategically placed on each side with the addition of the vintage key, floss and smallest button.

I loveee this fun (and funny) image and its humorous sentiment...I thought it would look 'complete' amongst the chocolate chips d/p. The punched out hearts seem quite appropriate since I absolutly LUV chocolate (the darker the better!!) The image was colored with SU markers and a bit of stickles were applied on both the hat's flower and the neckalce. The nestled ensamble was gently sponged with Certainly Celery ink.

This month challenge was truly a HOOT!.....
Fun ,Funky, Wild, Wacky! Thanks Jeanette & Kelly!
In two words....DEFINETLY DIFFERENT than what most
of us are accostumed doing....but ya know s'thing??
I think it turned out cute....in spite of all the odds :o)

Please let me know what YOU REALLY think, Ok?
Ya know I like to read YOUR comments....*wink*

***btw IF you are looking for the Mystery swap card, please check previous post...Prescott is waiting....LOL...thank you &
C'Ya real soonnnnnnnnnnn!:o)

Kit Contents:
Image: American Art Stamp Body By Designer Papers: Colorbok Beautiful Music; Paper Company Double Sided Mulberry; Paper Pizazz Yummy Chocolate Chips; and Paper Studio Girly Graffiti, Hibiscus Flowers, Multi Colored Bursts, Watercolor Floral and Watercolored Balloons

Embellishments: Eyelet Outlet Brads, Heidi Swap Anywhere Stickers, Karen Foster Designs Scrapper's Floss, Making Memories Ribbon Words, Simplicity Buttons, and a vintage key.

November Mystery Solved...

2011-11-18T00:15:00.000-08:00

Hello Friends,

November 18 means it's time to reveal the mystery image challenge and here it is: a winter card showing off PRESCOTT ,one of the adorable snowman from Whipper Snapper Design, wonderfully provided to all of us partecipants by our 'Mystery' hostess Barb.

I {HEART} Whipper Snapper stamps! Their images are soooo adorable,hard not to fall in luv with any one of them :o)

I never made a tent topper card before (at least I believe that's what's it called) so I decided to finally give it a try and this is the result. I colored the cute image with a combination of SU chalks and SU markers then sprayed it w/ hair spray. I also sponged the square nestie with SU Soft Sky. Card stock used is Bazzil - dual combo of blues and the D/P used is from My Mind Eyes Winter Glitter Collection. Added some punched out snowflakes, some Bella baubles and ribbon from Michael's. The fake snow applied on Prescott was from Arleene and glitter from SU completed the ensamble.

Barb also requested that we add a sentiment,

on the inside of our card that would reveal how we are interpreting the image she sent us.

For this purpose I used a combo of two separate sentiments to make one of my own.

I also used oval nesties, and another punched out snowflake from the designer paper to finished up the inside. Hope you like the result as much as I do :o)

THANKS FOR VISITING AND BLESSINGS TO YOU ALL!!!!

By the way....it is **SNOWING** in my Valley!!!!! woooottttttt!!.....

How appropriate to showcase this card today!!! lol

*Also:this is my second posting tonight...wanna see what else I posted? Check previous card ...*wink & smile*

Feeling Upside Down?

2011-11-17T23:53:00.000-08:00

Interesting that I am finally posting this

'get well' card made several weeks ago for someone I know who had knee surgery...

I said 'interesting' because I am home feeling a tad upsidedown myself...yup....

My wheezing caught up with my lungs -result: a fully developed bronchitis that I tried invane to ignore and that my Doc is actually suspecting it's pneumonia....*sigh*

we will see what my X-rays result may show....Meanwhile I am taking it easy and relaxing a lot!

And yes...chicken soup DOES help too! Hubby is taking GOOD care of me for sure! :o)

KEEP WELL AND HEALTHY and bundle up...it is that time of the year.....

Mr. Winter is already knocking fiercely!!! bbrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.....

Card Deets:

Stamp: Farm Fever from SU

Ink:Versa Fine Onix Black

Card Stock: Barely Banana & Pear Pizzazz

D/P: used the front of some green plain cards I had in the house

Accessories:Labels Eight nesties,Bella pearls, Barely Banana grosgrain ribbon from SU,

Aleens True Snow (on sheep's coat) , CB folder'Swiss Dots', Crystal Effect.

Making The Grade

2011-11-05T20:34:00.000-07:00

This card was made last September for the monthly SOTC (Sisterhood of the traveling cards)

which is a group of wonderfully creative ladies who share the love of cardmaking and swap themed cards with each others regularly.

Jeanette (aka Forest Ranger) was the lovely hostess and her chosen theme was 'Making the Grade'. We were also challenged to use a school supply somewhere in the card. As you can see I used a paper clip on the outside....and on the inside I used colored pencils (from my grandchildren supplies) to print the first three letters of the alphabet and the first three numbers , on the inside of the cards...

Luv this image...isn't she cute?? :o)

Thanks for stopping by....I love it when YOU do!

Blessings to all!

~Paola~

Card Recipe:

Stamp: Me And My Big Idea by Inkadinkado 91906-0

Designer Paper: Me And My Big Idea -Mambi Sheets

All card stock by SU

Ink:Versamark Onix Black, SU Markers

Accessories: label twenty nestie, rectangular scalloped nestie, scalloped edge punch,

colored paper clips, orange shimmery ribbon, pencils'crayons.

Tecnique:sponging, layering

Calendar Girls: September challenge

2011-11-01T20:51:00.000-07:00

Hello there Friends and Peeps...

I just like to introduce to you a fall card made a lil while ago, when I happily hosted the

Calendar Girls Challenge for September....

I LOVE FALL MONTHS...and cannot say this enough....:o)

For the wonderful, and very creative, Calendar Girls' Group I decided to have the gals pick their own challenge amongst the three choices I provided, such as the followings:

choice one* MUSIC:
Select one of the three youtube songs I added below, and have your card reflecting part of the lyrics from your song of choice.
The possibilities are absolutly ENDLESS! )
I would also like YOU to gift your finished card to a close neighbour, or a friend that lives close to you that could use a 'pick me up'.

'September' by: Nat King Cole
September Song - Nat King Cole & George Shearing - YouTube

'September in the Rain' by: Dinah Washington
Dinah Washington - September In The Rain - YouTube

'Wake me up when September ends' by: Green Day
Green Day-Wake Me Up When September Ends lyrics - YouTube

*choice 2* EDUCATION:
Create a card with a special teacher in mind, and please remember to add at least one apple somewhere in your card. Teacher's {heart} apples! )
I would also like YOU to gift your finished card to a teacher (past or present) who has been a true inspiration in your life. (or in your child/children life/lives)

*choice 3* CHILDREN:
Your card should reflect anything a child may like to do: playing, reading, toys,sports etc....but with a twist!
It should be both cheerful and also reflect the fast approaching Fall, a colorful season I love very much. )
I would also like YOU to gift your finished card to a child (other than your own!) that could use a little lift, a lil smile.....just because....

I also added that once September creative cards were posted, the Calendar Girls needed to explain the reason of their choice and also who were they going to gift their cards to, plus the reason why..............

Can YOU tell what was MY choice?? :o)

I chose MUSIC, and specifically the second song:

*September in the Rain*

For my card I used the following supplies:

Stamp: Hanna Rain and Fall Season (from Stampendous)

Ink: Versafine Onix Black, Pumpkin Patch Spectrun (SU), Markers (SU) and pastel chalks (SU)

Accessories: Label eight nestie,CB folder 'Allegro',rafia, dimentionals, punch, silk leaves from Michaels.

Tecnique: not sure of the proper name but I simply call it 'CB folder's smearing' ,distressing

I hope you like my interpretation of a fall card reflecting 'September in the Rain'....I just love walking amongst rustling colorful leaves fallen to their last destination, ready to crumble away....

I gifted one of the cards (I made two the same) to a girl friend who has being going through a rough patch lately, and am so glad I was able to bring her a lil smile to brighten her day...

THANKS FOR VISITING!!! :o)

~~~* BLESSINGS TO ALL*~~~

~Paola~ aka sassy miss September :o)

AUGUST DDD

2011-10-30T21:17:00.000-07:00

Soooo I gave ya a wee 'teaser' with the part- image of the inside of my card....after all it's Hallowee'en in a few hrs..... so perhaps this is my (very lame) trick?? LOL....Naaaaa....here it is the full card front:

Tadaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa-----here's my card for last August duel,finally!Truth is I already had started to post this one before my previous two cards ,then I lost everything with a quick klick of the wrong keyboard tab and was too upset to even try to repost....arghhhhh...You would think I had learned my lesson(s) by now, after several posts of mine went poofffffffffffff both here in blogland and on my favorite cards' site!! :/

Anyhow....on with it: my friend Judy (from the Divas) and I (from the Dazzlers) were the hostess (last August) for the monthly duel between these two creative group of chicks...(pardon the pun...could not resist it...lol)

We decided on: 'It Is Hot, Let's Keep It Cool' theme, being smack in the middle of summer we deemed it quite appropriate. For my group, I chose to send images of this cool chick relaxing in the water sipping a favorite beverage. It is by Penny Black, one of my favorite stamping company . Judy and I also asked our groups to tell us one of their favorite summer drinks and their favorite things to do during the summer months.

For me, I like to sip on a half glass of beer mixed with same amount of seven up...It is called a Shantee (sp?) and it is very refreshing during a heated day or evening. The thing I love to do in the summer is camping...I absolutly LOVE it! Hubby and I re-discovered our love for camping last year, -after about 25 yrs- when we used to take our kids camping with an old tent trailer but now ,instead,we take our grandkids with us sometimes,it is soo much fun for all of us!

This year, we haven't yet winterized our RV....I sooo would like to go camping in the snow!!!!
At least once! :o) What do YOU think?? Too crazy of an idea?? ehehe LOL

*KITS 's SUPPLIES sent to the Dazzlers* :
*Stamped image : 'Poolside Chicken' by Penny Black

*Designer Papers: DWCV + K & Company

*strip of bazzill card stock -dry embossed with 'Divine Swirls' CB folder-

*Vellum Quotes by : DWCV (playing on opposites *hot/cool*)

*SIzzix cut out leaves

*Orange satin flower from Michael

*Faux button

*Orange/Yellow thread

*Brocade blue 5/8" grosgrain ribbon from SU!

*Green velvety zigzag ribbon from Michaels

*Red zig zag c/s border

*Dolphin and Star fish stickers (thanks to Barb!)

To create my card I also added the following:

Card Stock Pear Pizzazz (SU),Big SCallops Circles nesties, Wonky Squares nesties, chalks,hair spray, crystal effect

I hope you'll enjoy my VERY LATE August card...I think it turned out rather cute....but that's just because I soooo loveee PB chicken adorably fun images!! *wink* :o)

Thanks for stopping by...please DO leave a comment...I truly DO appreciate reading them all!

xox Blessingsssssssss and Smiles xox

Paola

Calendar Girls : October

2011-10-27T23:32:00.000-07:00

Yeahhhh...'this the 28th of the month and do you know what THAT means??
It mean it is Calendar Girls Time..woooooooooott!
Our misss October -aka fabby stamping pal Tami- gave us a Halloween theme to incorporate on our cards this month....In her own words here are the details:

" Theme: Halloween

Layers: At least three layers somewhere on the card, one layer being a designer paper {I love me some DP}
Colors: Somewhere on your card please use the color purpleEmbellishments
Embellishments: Two for sure - and one needs to be a glitter product

Blog Post: Please share what your favorite candy is to receive in your trick-or-treat bag and if you participate in this holiday, please include what fun things do you like to do for Halloween. "

Can you see where I added the onix glitter here?

It's on the tree leaves and on the witch...

and the lil dimentional ghost I also added ,is glittery as well:o)

**this is a very simple layout of the inside of the card**

I loveeeee Halloween and creating this card was a load of FUN!
Thanks so much for this challenge Tami! Great theme....even though my supplies
of Halloween's stamps are quite limited at the moment...:o)
Hopefully U'll like my interpretation on the subject **muwahhh**

My favorite Halloween candie is, without a doubt, Reeses Peanut Butter cup....
and things I like to do on Halloween, besides dressing up, is to
give out candies, especially to the wee ones...they are sooo adorable in their lil
Halloween outfits! For the last three years I have been taking photo of some of
the kids coming to my door (always with the permission of their parents of course,
to whom I explain that such photos are sent overseas to my friend Tiziana
remember her? If not, check this post here:
http://paola-sama.blogspot.com/2011/07/garden-of-friendship-junes-dueling.html
to show her our yearly Canadian costumes and share our traditions.

Can't wait to see what all the other supah talented Calendar Girls created!!

SWEET DREAMS EVERYONEEE!! **blessings**
Paola

My Card Deets:
Stamps:Home is Where The Haunt Is (SU,2005)
D/P: Wicked Fun (double sided) ; C/S Rich Razzleberries,Pear Pizzazz (all from SU)
Ink: Versamark Onix Black, Orchid Opulence, Eggplant Envy, Kiwii Kiss
Accessories: Nesties, Self adhesive black Pearls from Kaiser, MS Onix Glitter,
black satin ribbon, orchid opulence grosgrain ribbon, dimentionals,
MS punches, dimentionals stickers (velveteen spiders & glittery ghost)

Tecnique: Sponging,layering,glittering

September 'Back To School' DDD card

2011-10-25T23:54:00.000-07:00

My apologies to my darling dueling friends for the lateness in posting...
You all know that I had trouble uploading pictures to my blog due to camera issues...
Anyways here it is the card I made with the fabulous kit sent to all the Dazzlers from
our wonderful September hostess: April, while Jamie was the hostess for the Divas 'rival' team :o)

I HAD to add the lil apple (for the teacher...lol)

on top of Changito's book pile....ehehehhe

(the cute lil monkey, the books and the apple

were all treated with a couple coating of Crystal effect)

Included in April's awesome kit was:
me & my BIG ideas and DCWV cardstocks;
Reflections blue star glitter tape;
CTMH red abc ribbon
Assorted clips
School bus courtesy of Jamie;
Stamps by Perfectly Clear Stamps/Stampendous ~"School for Changito"
Black waffle paper from SU!
I added just the following: red bazzil card base, SU Pacific Point c/s , crystal effect , regular and scalloped oval nesties from Spellbinders and dimentionals (centre ovals).

I hope April and all of YOU like the end results you see...
I sure ejoyed this challenge, as always! So much fun to be part of
such creative group of gals! :o)

TOMORROW I WILL POST THE *DDD* CARD I CREATED FOR LAST AUGUST'S CHALLENGE....so pleeezzzzzz DO
come back and check that one out too!! *wink& smile* :o)

***BLESSINGS TO ALL!!***

OCTOBER DUEL

2011-10-17T19:50:00.000-07:00

Hello wonderful friends and visitors...

It has been quite a LONGGGGGG time since I posted last...

I tried to explain all of the reasons in my previous 'disappeared' post (where I was showcasing my DDD card for August *sigh*) Anyhow..new post now...new beginning...no need for me to still be frustrated just because my whole august blogging got totally lost-TWICE-!! *sigh* :o(

Let's now concentrate on this month, specifically dedicated to the FALL season...

OH HOW MUCH I LOVEEEE FALL

with all its wonderful ever changing colors!!

The wonderful hostesses for the month of October are:

Darlene (for the Dazzlers) and Tami (for the Divas)

Darlene gifted us with an absolutly incredibly *AMAZING* kit full of soooo many

delightful items that I decided I 'NEEDED' to hoard some for later days

'creative-consumption'....LOL

Her kit consisted of an incredible amount of d/p from mixed companies, lots of embellishments including ribbons, brads, and Balsa wood oval shapes.

The sweet images she sent us are from a set called 'Sweet Seasons' from SU.

CAN YOU TELL THAT I LOVEEEEE EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS KIT ? :o)

Here's what I created with it...I love this sweet boy seemingly without a single care in the world!

I used one of the Balsa oval on the inside of the card and stamped a sentiment

from SU 'Elements of Style' ,after sponging off the wood with SU! Pumpink Pie ink ,and also added some colorful silk leaves as well, see better closeup below...

I hope you enjoyed this Fall card...I absolutly love all the colors about it, thanks

for such seasonal challenge Darlene!! :o)

Wow..I am actualy ready to press the 'Publish' button without a hitch this time around...

YEAAHH!! Until next time my darlin peeps (ssooner than sssooon!!)....

Thanks for stopping by, please do come again..I have LOTS of cards to upload!! *wink*

God Bless Ya All!

Paola

OOPPSSS! I realized I forgot to add a favorite fall recipe as requested by lovely Darlene. Here it is:

I love peppers, and the fall season is the best to find colorful peppers at a very good price.

This recipe I do always in great batches without any measuring, therefore I tried to

adjust the number of each ingredients to make it easier to follow but you can adjust to your taste.

Peperonata can easily be used as a side dish to accompany any meats,including bbq, oven roasts ,chicken etc...(it freezes well too)

**I also like to use it as an appetizer spreaded over toasted baguette bread and cut out into bite pieces. If you wish, you could also add fresh chopped parsley as a garnish on top.**

*Paola's Peperonata*

I medium sized onion

3 cloves of garlic

2 carrots

1 or 2 lrg stalk of celery

3 peppers (1 red, 1 yellow, 1 orange)

fresh parley (a hand-FULL)

4 tbsps. of crushed tomatoes'

Vegetable oil

salt & pepper to taste

water as needed

crushed dry red peppers seeds (optional)

Finely chop onion and garlic cloves together (I use starfrit with all my veggies in need to be chopped,except parsley) Saute’ onions in veg. oil; meanwhile add the other ingredients one at a time, as provided above; leave peppers last. Chop parsley well (you may add more garlic too if you wish) Add to all the ingredients bubbling on the stove,then add crushed tomatoes, stir and add about half cup of water. Let it simmer on the stove. Adjust w/salt & pepper and a bit of heat too if you so wish (aka dry red peppers) *Enjoy* :o)

Card was submitted for the following challenges blogs:

http://abcdtchallenge.blogspot.com/2011/10/october-challenge-pumpkins.html

http://sweetstampsblog.blogspot.com/

http://www.thehousethatstampsbuilt.com/

http://shellysimagesblog.blogspot.com/

International Inkers :September Kit

2011-09-10T01:43:00.000-07:00

* Click on any pictures if you wish to enlarge*

Hello Friends and Followers,
and welcome to another round of INTERNATIONAL INKERS!
This month's wonderful kit was sent to us by Imke ,one of our hostess from Germany.
**Make sure to visit AND COMMENT on each of the Int. Inkers blogs -posted way below-
for a chance to WIN this month's kit straight from Germany!
See next picture what one of YOU will have a chance to win**

The cute image you see is from TGF,

sorry I can't find the written details Imke sent...oopsss...

I colored it with color chalks and added the sparkly chipboard flowers (found them as I was looking for dimentionals and they sort of 'call to me' ....they kind of look hawaiian ,right?? lol ...I also used the half daisy MS punch,Cranberry Crisp ink and 'Do The Hula' sentiment for the inside of the card.

Aside from the card stock and the chipboard flowers, everything else is from Imke's kit.

Hope you like it! Be sure to stop by from time to time and visit us Inkers!!
Have a very blessed week end...make it fun...make it wonderful...make it INKY!! :o)

xoxoxox
Paola

The International Inkers are:

Imke (GERMANY)

Tanja (GERMANY) *Please note: Tanja's card is posted on Imke's blog this month,as she has been having trouble with Blogger. Please make sure to leave comments for BOTH gals' cards there. TXS.
Michelle (USA)
Catherine (USA)
Karen (CANADA)

Paola (CANADA) ----> * you are here*

It's a CAS card.............

2011-08-30T02:37:00.000-07:00

*click on any pictures if you wish to enlarge*

Hello Friends and Followers....

It's past 2:00 am here and sleeps is eluding me...yet again....*sigh* so I decided to add the latest cards I made for this mont's Sisterhood of the Travelling Cards.

**Note,if you are looking for the Calendar Girls post for the month, please find it previous to this one...thanks! **

Soooo, maybe some are not aware what a CAS card is. It means a Clean And Simple type of cards with hardly any embellishments or layers. SIMPLE being the operative word here.

In Gael's words here below:

This Month's Theme was hosted by Gael (aka mamadwawa on SCS)
C.A.S. TIME!
In honor of simplifying---August's theme is Clean and Simple
More specifically, no more than two layers (card base is considered a layer) and no more than 2 embellishments (one if it is a large one); not two types of embellies, but two embellies ....

Card Deets:

Stamp:SU 'Botanical'-2002 ; sentiment is from Paper Salon

Ink:River rock (steepling),Cranberry crisp, 5 markers:More Mustard,Old Olive,Always Artichokes,So Saffron, Real Red,Bravo Burgundy

Card Stock: SU Bravo Burgundy,Very Vanilla

Accessories: oval nestie,scorepal,mini-pearls

Tecnique:

Steepling ,coloring drect on rubber stamps,using markers.

SEE?..What did I tell ya?

Clean and Simple it is! Hope U enjoyed it and pleezzzz come again!!:o)

I think I'm off to bed now...sleep has FINALLY decided not to keep ya awake :o)

Have a great Night ya all!!

'SEW' Glad We're Friends!

2011-08-28T13:22:00.000-07:00

Click on any pictures if you wish to enlarge

Hello Blogger Friends,
it is time for another round of Calendar Girls challenge, yeahh!!

Who are the Calendar Girls you may ask? We are a group of bloggers who want to have a place where friendships blossom, creativity abounds, and encouragement prevails! In keeping with that dream, this blog group has been created so we will have a place to interact and enjoy being fellow bloggers.

Darlin Debbie -lovingly known as lil dj- is our Miss August and she challenged us to do the following:    In Debbie's own words:

“SEW” Glad We Are Friends!!!
"Because I just love this entire group and it feels that we have been friends forever,
I just wanted to say…”Sew” Glad We Are Friends!
So for this month’s card here are the requirements:1. Please use the above sentiment on the card somewhere. Some of you may have a stamp with that sentiment-if so, that’s great!! But if not, just type it up on your computer and print it out. (Sorry…making you work.) LOL
2. Please use at least one button on your card. (Use as many as you like...but there has to be at least one.)
3. Please have stitching of some kind on your card. You can use a sewing machine, hand stitching or faux stitching using a pen. 4. Once your card has posted to your blog, please send your card to a friend telling them how much you appreciate them and that you are “sew” glad you are friends! If you want, you can tell us in your blog post who is receiving your card and how special they are to you.
5. I know there is a lot of cute DP and stamps out there with a sewing theme, so if you have those go ahead and use them. But if you don’t have them, don’t fret-they are not necessary. Just please have the sentiment, button and stitching on your card for sure...."

Card Deets:

Stamp: `And Everything Nice` from SU

Ink: Memento

Card Stock: Barely Banana

Designer Paper:Bo Bunny (A gift of love) & BG-SUgar Rush (Gum Drops)

Accessories:

Nesties:Label 1,Label 20,Fleur De Lis Motifs; buttons, rafia,needle,barely banana grosgrain ribbon,

Jolie`s Boutique flower sticker,corner punch,crustal effect, dimentionals,metallic pink Sakura pen (handwritten inside sentiment)

Tecnique: handstitching ,3D,coloring with chalk (and markers)

Debbie, THANK YOU so much for such FUN challenge...truly I didn`t have a clue where I was gonna go with this...lol...but once started the ideas kept on flowing...and loved it!

Can you tell what I used to hand stich on my card...:o)

Can you tell whom ,in my own eyes,the above card's image resembled ?? :o) AND, theye are such great friends to each other too!! Here's my beautiful lil grandaughters, just the day after they returned from their NY vacation,and already wanting to show me their new tutus and tattoos...of course they HAD to pose dramatically too...eehhe...so much fun to see them modelling just for me! :o) Thanks for stopping by ,I ALWAYS appreciate some friendly visitors:o) Please leave me some comments,they are so appreciated...xox Have a FUNtabulous Sunday you all! Hugs & Smiles!!

Center Step Card

2011-08-25T22:11:00.000-07:00

Lots of cut out cute lil feathery friends ready to be 'planted' solidly on a card :o)

Made these Center Step Cards for Barb's Fancy Folds swap and I must admit that I absolutly LOVE this fold...so much in fact that I made several cards after these, using the same fun idea :o) For these cards I used a sweet Whipper Snapper image called 'Farmer & Adelle' WS # MT 017. I find this particular stamp to be quite versatile as you can see (below) on a second card made for a friend's birthday where I cut out 'Farmer' completely and left 'Adelle' holding some balloons :o)

.....and here is chickee 'Adelle'...all by herself....LOL...she still looks quite ravishing though and so pretty in blue and razzleberry colors :o) For this card I added some heart nesties to its sides,the balloons to give it more of a 3-D look and some strings too...I also lacquered it by using Crystal effect on the image (as I did on the anniversary card too) and accessorized it with many lil bows and blings for a customized feminine look to it :o) I so liked the designer paper used here...it is from a Christmas glitter collection but it does'nt look christmasy at all, hence I chose it.

This last one I made it for my student's Parents recent 20th Wedding Anniversary. I added a lil glittery heart to the top and some blings throughout the sides of the card and by the front sentiment too. The word 'Cherish' was made glittery too...it is just too bad that this pict. it doesn't show it much here...but irl it is truly quite nice :o) Inside, the sentiment aptly says: "Forever and Always"......... I am so glad that Brenda and Steve liked it! :o) Thank you all for stopping by and visit!! Hope you like this fold too and that you may will to try it sometimes :o)

GOD BLESS TO EACH AD EVERYONE!!

Paola

DIAMOND FOLD

2011-08-07T12:37:00.000-07:00

HELLO FRIENDS AND FOLLOWERS....

I had no computer for a few days so I am a bit late with the below statement:

begore going to show you today's card I have an announcment...WOOTT WOOTTTT...

My hubby just picked a WINNER from :

http://paola-sama.blogspot.com/2011_07_01_archive.html

The International Inkers's Card Kit winner for the month of August is:

*APRIL*

On July 29th, this is what she wrote: "I love your card....and the kit you sent is fabulous! Lots of fun to play with, I am sure!
I would love to travel to Ireland to try to find records of my husband's great grandfather. From there, I would love to see Spain and France. There are so many closer places that I would love to see also....I'd love to come visit your moose and bears! "

CONGRATULATIONS APRIL!!!!! Please get in touch with me and I will send you, your travel card kit sooner than soon! :o)

Thank YOU to ALL who partecipated!! :o)

****************************************************

* you can enlarge each picture by cliccking on them*

This is my first diamond fold shaped card I evah made....woottt....

I sent six of these cute turles' for Barb's Fancy Folds swap recently.

I must thank Barb for her encouraging swaps for making me try s'thing new....

Must admit that a LOT of scoring was needed to make this card but sure was fun too

now that I have my own Scoring Pal...woot woottt.....(and what abargain at only THREE dollars...yeahh meee I think I scored a big one...ehehhe :o)

Card Deets:

Stamp: Whipper Snapper 'Brianna' NY860

Card Stock:Bazzill & Designer Paper by K & Company 'Urban'

Ink: Memento black

Medium:colored chalks

Accessories: green gems, doilies,crystal effect,nesties,MS punch, SU punch

*heart & flowers* wheel was used on the outside of each handmade envelopes sent with the cards.

THANKS SO MUCH FOR VISITING~~~~Hugs & Smiles~~~~~:o)

That's Amore!

♥ Wedding Card~ Punch Art ♥

♥ Pretty in Pink ♥

I was blessed with a Blog Award...time three! ♥

Fresh, Springy and.....punchy :o)

Pet's Love~~~February CG challenge

Punch-Negative Tecnique .... again ♥

Punch Art is sooo FUN ♥

♥ Let Me Call You Sweetheart ♥

Funny & Wild

MIX IT UP CHALLENGE

January SOTC challenge

Something New Using Something Old!

♥ Snowman ♥

Neglected Stamps...

January Mystery Revealed

One Hundred Year Birthday Celebration!

'Duelling' about the LITTLE THINGS....

Punched out Santa

Vintage Valentine ATC

I'm late...I'm lateeeeeeeeeeee!...

2012 - A Brand New Year!! -

Calendar Girls December Challenge

November SOTC Challenge

Happy Birthday Lil Man...& Candy Winners...

***BLOG CANDIES GIVE AWAY***

Calendar Girls: November challenge

Penny Black in the Forest...

Cheese pleezzz!

Gold and festive

September Mystery

November Dueling Darlings

November Mystery Solved...

Feeling Upside Down?

Making The Grade

Calendar Girls: September challenge

AUGUST *DDD*

Calendar Girls : October

September 'Back To School' *DDD* card

OCTOBER DUEL

International Inkers :September Kit

It's a CAS card.............

'SEW' Glad We're Friends!

Center Step Card

*DIAMOND FOLD*

BLOG CANDIES GIVE AWAY

AUGUST DDD

September 'Back To School' DDD card

DIAMOND FOLD