Happy Mother's Day to all the mom's out there...

... whether you are a mom of kids or pets you're still a mommy!

This year with the added responsibilities at work, it has been a struggle to get my cards done on time. But done they are - and this year I got two completed for both my Mom and my Mother-in-Law. I really hit the jackpot with my inlaws as we get along very well.

Today's inspiration: Case Study #139 : Buttons & Bling - Maureen Plut

I was determined to use a button and add some sparkle. Originally I had tied the ribbon in a bow but it overpowered the flower that I had painstakingly colored with Copic markers. So instead I trimmed the ribbon for something smaller and cuter. You may not be able to see in the photo, but the colored flower and the three red words "Hope, Love, Joy" are embossed.

This is when I realized I didn't have any decent sentiments for Mother's Day so I left it blank, but you can see the same flower from the front peeking around the corners of the card. I love bringing images towards the inside of the card. I had better fix that with my next CTMH order!

Other: 
* Solid cardstock
* Embossing Ink
* Embossing Gun
* Button
* White Ribbon
* Copic Markers R22, R24, R29

CTMH:
* Friendship Bouquet (retired, May 2012 SOTM)
* Artiste Cricut Package Stamp Set
* Black Embossing Powder
* Red Embossing Powder
* Sponges (for distressing)

Hope you all had a Happy Mother's Day with your moms!

Nothing like arrival...

... Of new products to get you revved up again and your creative juices flowing. The new catalog has been released to consultants and will be rolled out to everyone else Aug. 1. There are a lot of gorgeous new stamps, and my favorite two new things yet - a workshop to go geared towards making cards alongside the popular scrapbooking workshop to go, and a brand new Cricut cartridge! I can't wait! My mom's birthday is coming up next month and my sister in law is visiting, so posts next month may be sporadic but time will also be precious.

Want to see what's in Artiste - the new cartridge? Provocraft has just released the digital handbook for a peek!

The inspiration for this week's card is from Got Sketch : Sketch 145.

I just found out that I can't upload images from my iPad to the blog (or even to Facebook). Boo to the fact that Flash is not supported on Apple mobile devices.

I took this opportunity to check out some of the special effects that the iPad Adobe Photoshop app has. Kind of neat, but lacks the entire force of what you can do with the full package. I also wasn't able to watermark the images. I combined two paper packs here - Stella and Florentine and the border with the rhinestones is the back side of Florentine.

The ribbon is sourced from Crave Cupcakes :) I never throw away free ribbon! I have been slowly collecting Copic markers based on a starter list that I mentioned in a previous post. This time I have actually three shades of red that I used on the flower.

I used the same flower on the inside and decided to use Stella patterned paper on the inside as well. The little flourishes and sentiment are from Pair A Phrase, a retired set.

I am still battling technical issues so you may see more iPad based photos for now.

Michaels etc:
* Ribbon
* Solid color cardstock
* Copics R29, R24, R22

CTMH:
* Stella Level 2 Paper Pack
* Florentine Level 2 Paper Pack
* Friendship Bouquet - May 2012 SOTM
* Opaque Adhesive Pearls
* Bitty Sparkles
* Pair a Phrase - Retired
* Cocoa Ink
* Smoothie Ink

First try with Copic Markers...

I only own four, of which two of the markers are the same color but different shade (because I had no idea what I was buying). Thank you Suzanne Dean for providing a basic starter list! She also has great tutorials as well on how to get started.

This was actually inspired by a layout I had done previously for a housewarming card but sticking to the cleaner colors of a wedding card I did before the card workshop.

I wanted to stick to bright, spring colors to reflect the sunflowers from May's stamp of the month, and the yellow ribbon I had picked up somewhere on sale was the perfect compliment. It's a gentle shading, but I used Y11 and Y13 and then used a brush and chocolate ink for the middle of the flowers.

I always like to decorate the inside of my cards, something I started doing after I discovered Teneale Williams' blog. I took the same sunflower and inked up two of the corners, coloring with the same technique.

I will be off for the next few weekends as I'm finally on the trip to celebrate my father-in-law's 60th birthday in Portugal! Hope that the sun comes out by the time I am home!

Michaels, etc:
Ribbon
White cardstock
Copics Y11, Y13

CTMH:
Friendship Bouquet - May 2012 SOTM
Cocoa Ink
Chocolate Ink


Listening to the birds chirp and the echoes of the Denmark vs. Netherlands Euro 2012 game,