MDS Blog Hop-My Favorite Things

Happy Friday and Happy MDS Blog Hoppy day. I can barely contain my excitement about my layout I'm sharing today and it all boils down to the theme.  It's all about My FAVORITE-MUST HAVE downloads. I'm also excited to share this because it goes down in the record book for the longest layout I've ever worked on.  Typically I can work on layouts rather quickly.  NOT this one.  My "Z" key (otherwise known as UNDO) on my computer has been given a workout.  It wasn't that the layout was difficult. It was trying to show you all my favs in one layout. LOL. Let me share because I'm excited. 

I've included a PDF below that you can download that will have the complete list of downloads I used. I want to talk about a few because they are just too great not to share. 

Hexagon's and Chevrons are all the rage in the crafting world.  I love the Hexagon digital punch even more because I don't have a "real" one. I can use it on digital pages or just print on plain cardstock and cut it with scissors.  Chevrons are EVERYWHERE and they are even better when you can download a digital format of Chevrons and change them to ANY color you want. 

Another favorite download of mine is the Downtown Grunge Kit.  This has to be my favorite kit ever.  I only used a small piece of the Downtown Grunge on this layout.  If you look at the left bottom corner you will see a little piece of script.  That is a part of the kit and it's a stamp brush.  The rest of the kit is amazing with frames, stitching and lots of other great fun things.  Make sure you check out my supply list that will direct you to the links to find them. 

My next favorite kit is Back to School. LOVE everything in this kit!  On this layout you will see the stamp brush Grunge (looks like a big splatter).  The frame on my photo is also from this kit. 

One last kit I love is called Bandstand.  You can see the pennants next to my photo.  This is a stamp brush and I like it that way because I can change the color of the pennants to fit the need of my layout or project AND I can also use the brush tool to change each pennant to be different colors. Isn't that great? 

A few embellishments that I use the most are stitching, buttons and ribbons.  I love the pleated ribbons especially and with MDS 2 you have the ability to CROP these embellishments to your liking.  WHOO HOO!

There ya have it.  Honestly, these are just a few of my favorites.  I could have written forever on more of my favorites!  What are your favorites? I'll be sharing more of my favorites on my Facebook Fan page.  Make sure to check them out.

Click HERE to download the list of downloads I used. 

Now it's time to take a HOP and see what the other amazing MDS Designers have listed as their favorites.  I can't wait. 

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Gearing Up for the Holidays

The title of my post this morning just sounds wrong! I can't believe that ALL the holidays are just around the corner.  It doesn't seem possible.  I feel like we just did it. This must mean my Summer went by WAY too fast and I've had WAY too much fun. 

This card is super simple to duplicate and uses lots of fun new products from the Holiday Mini.  One of my favorites was the Designer Series Paper called Snow Festival.  I love all the patterns in this package and my favorite is the houses. 

Super cute, isn't it?  You can find the Snow Festival in the Holiday Mini.  It's part of a product suite called Snow Festival. Click HERE to see more great products that go with this paper.

For the remainder of the card, I embossed the mitten image from the Make a Mitten stamp set.  The best part about this stamp set is you can use the Builder Punch-Mitten to punch out your mitten's.  NO CUTTING.  WHOA!  I used our Gumball Green Embossing Powder over the mitten to make it stand out just a wee bit more.  It's bright, isn't it? I also used our new 1/4" Sweater Trim to pin the mitten to after I wrapped it and tied in a bow.  LOVE this trim. 

As you can see there are lots of fun products used, but overall this card is simple to put together.  Below you will see  a complete list of supplies that I used. 

Supplies Used:

Stamps: Make a Mitten (127943), Seasonal Sayings (128009)

Cardstock: Crumb Cake

Ink: VersaMark, Cherry Cobbler

Accessories: Mitten Builder Punch, Gumball Green Sweater Trim, Snow Festival DSP, Vintage Trinkets, Gumball Green Embossing Powder, Corner Rounder

For my MDS lovers, you can also create using this paper with an awesome digital download.
Snow Festival Designer Series Paper 129831

A few other fun digital downloads you may like that would compliment the digital download above:

This one below is called Home for the Holidays

Home For The Holidays Ensemble – Digital Download
128885

Here is a fun Stamp brush set for MDS:

Christmas Village Stamp Brush Set – Digital Download
127766

I hope this inspires you to gear up for the Holidays.  Again, they are just around the corner and I think it's time we start getting excited about it. You can check out my Online Store and create away. 

Have a fantastic day!

XOXOXOXO

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Rustic Style Stamping

Good morning stamping friends.  After a late night of watching the storm I'm trying to keep my eyes open by filling up on coffee this morning.  My parents are doing fine and just getting a few wind gusts and lots of rain. I spent the day yesterday trying to regroup and get back into my "normal" routine.

Today my card is all about this cute little birdie.  The stamp set I used is called Tweet Leaves and it's a single wood mount stamp. 

Isn't the birdie a cute chubby one?  I love it.  I wanted this card to have a rustic feel to it so I used a few fun products to make it happen.  I started by using the Early Espresso   Core'dinations Colorcore Card Stock and used our new Woodgrain Textured embossing folder to give the cardstock even more texture.  Once I rolled this through my big shot I fell in love with the look because it reminded me of an old barn.  I LOVE old barns and this Woodgrain embossing folder was PERFECT for that rustic feel.  Yippie.  

Below you will find all the supplies used to create this card.  Take a stroll through my Online Shop today!

Supplies Used:

Stamps: Tweet Leaves, Fabulous Phrases

Ink: Baja Breeze, Early Espresso, Summer Starfruit

Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Early Espresso Core'dinations, Very Vanilla, Summer Starfruit

Accessories: First Edition DSP, Baja Breeze Seam Binding, Linen Thread, Glass Buttons, Vintage Trinkets, Pennant Diet Cut (Cirlce Scallop), 2 1/2" Circle Punch, Woodgrain Embossing Folder

Have a GREAT day!! 

XOXOXO

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Two for Tuesday~Vacation Over

Good morning! I arrived back in VA yesterday after a fantastic vacation in Florida.  It was bittersweet coming home.  I didn't want to leave my parents especially as they were preparing for a storm to come but I also know I have to face reality at sometime.  I didn't want the kids to be in the way as they prepared.  The storm is going to bypass my parents but they may get a few of the rain/wind bands from the storm.  It's always best to be prepared. I was also ready to see Russ.  He had come home a little earlier than us because of that thing called a JOB. 

The kids did fantastic on the trip.  They are great little travelers.  We also had taken their sweet little guinea pigs on the trip.  They were also great travelers. They fit perfectly in a travel cage and rode in the back.  When we were coming home we stopped overnight in a hotel in North Carolina.  The next morning before we got on the road I had asked Alexis to clean out the piggie cage so it wasn't smelly as I was packing up the car to go.  When I walked in the hotel room Alexis had a look of horror on her face and explained that she had cleaned the cage and put the piggie pooh in the toilet.  Only problem was the pooh clogged the toilet.  I needed to fix the situation so I went to the front desk to ask for the plunger and prayed they did not ask to do it themselves.  I had to sneak the piggies in as it was and didn't need them in the room looking at our mess.  She kindly gave me the plunger and off I went to de-clog the toilet.  Thankfully it recovered and so did Alexis.  She was pretty worried.  After that episode we quickly ran from that hotel. There is nothing better than making great memories on a trip.  This will be one I won't forget.  XOXO

Now I sit with suitcases to unpack and the need to get my kids ready for school that starts next week.  It seems like this Summer vacation has flown by and we haven't done nearly what I had planned.  Overall we've really enjoyed our time off and time together.  

Pray that the hurricane doesn't cause too much havoc for family and friends.  

Here is another layout from my Florida 2012 Album. You can download the PDF of all the supplies used too. 

  Click HERE for the supplies used. 

Also, thank you to those of you that responded to my digital question last week.  I appreciate your honesty regarding MDS and whats holding you back.  No worries, I will always continue to create with paper.  That obsession of mine will never go away. 

Make sure you check out my Facebook Fan page.  You can click on the link under Socialize to your left.  I've been sharing pretty artwork with fonts that are very inspiring. If you click "Like" on my Fan Page leave a comment there.  I'll be doing a drawing and giving away a little blog candy this Sunday, September 2nd from those that have "Liked" my page and left a comment. 

Thank you for always stopping by and listening to me ramble.  XOXOXO

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MDS- New Downloads!

Happy Tuesday and Happy Download day. 

I'm still working hard on my Florida Summer album in hopes of getting it to the printer before September 14th. YES, you read that correctly.  Stampin' Up! has extended the special print pricing until September 14th.  This made me EXTREMELY happy.  You can read all about the special printing prices HERE.  It's really too good to just let it go.  Take advantage of it while you can. 

As much of an avid photographer that I am, this vacation trip I almost exclusively used my iPhone to take pictures.  Many times it was just easier to carry with me and besides that it takes fantastic pictures.  I'm more limited on my editing (the wrinkle reducer) but you can't go wrong if you love Instagram or even Photoshop Express Apps for the iPhone. It can make most pictures look pretty darn good. 

My layout above tells the story of our day at the beach.  It didn't start well as we waited 40 minutes for a storm to pass. Once it passed it was a beautiful day and the kids and I had a blast. 

You can download the supplies used for this layout HERE. 

Make sure you check out the new Digital Downloads HERE. 

Have a GREAT Tuesday!

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