Shannon's Sentiments

SU! Sets for Sale

2011-06-16T12:28:00.006-04:00

These are a list of every Stampin' Up! set I have. Yes, I am selling them all. If you don't see a set listed, I do not own it and am not selling it.

I do not have pictures of the sets. If you would like a picture to see the condition of the set, please email me and I will take one and send it to you. If you would like a picture just to see the images in the set, I will direct you to SCS or Ebay or another site for that information.

Purchases are first come first served. There will be no negotations on prices, as these are already rock bottom "garage sale" prices. If you can find it cheaper elsewhere, please buy it there.

Purchases are made by emailing me at ShannonsSentiments@gmail.com with "SU! Sets for sale" in the Subject line. Shipping will be calculated based on total number and size of sets purchased using USPS Priority Mail flat rate packages.

Payments can be made via Paypal (preferred) or by mailing me a check. Purchases made by personal check will be shipped once payment clears.

All sets are very gently or never used. Sets are mounted unless otherwise stated.

Ok.....here are all the sets by price.

$3.00
Sporting - Pending
~~Best Yet - Sold~~
Itty Bitty Backgrounds
Petite Patterns
Art by Design
~~Just Golf - unmounted - Sold~~
Bitty Basics - unmounted
Small Script
Happy Birthday Frame
Flowers of Gratitude
Always in my Thoughts - unmounted - Pending
Little Pieces
~~Simple Type Alphabet Numbers - Sold~~
Cute Cues
Calendar Cues

$4.00
Wonderful Words II - Pending
Love Ya Bunches
In The Sky
Say It With Scallops
~~Pocket Silhouettes - Sold~~
Spotlight on Christmas
Happy Blessings
~~Snow Burst - Sold~~
Best Blossoms
~~Full Calendar - Sold~~
Botanical Blooms - unmounted
Live Like You Mean It
~~Scene in a Garden - Sold~~
Oval All - Pending
Sincere Salutations - Pending
Too Terrific Tags
Gently Falling
~~House of Haunts - Sold~~
~~Stipple Shells - Sold~~
All I Have Seen
Cute and Curly - Pending
~~Peace Within - Sold~~
~~Halloween Smiles - Sold~~
Take Three
Yummy
Paint Prints
~~Warmest Regards - Sold~~
Terrific Tags

$5.00
Weather or Not
~~Branch Out - Sold~~
Punches Three
~~Thanksgiving Blessings - Sold~~
~~The Art of Life - Sold~~
Totally Tabs
Occasionally
~~Happiest of Holidays - Sold~~
The Fine Print
Bird on a Branch - Pending
It's a Date
Loads of Fun - Pending

$6.00
Terrific Tulips - Pending
Fun Filled
Simply Said - Pending
~~Crab and Company - Sold~~
Quick & Cute
Sweet of You
Oh So Sweet
Circle of Friendship - Pending
Sketch a Party
~~Harvest Home - Sold~~
Fishy Friends
Sweet Shapes
In Full Bloom
~~Pendant Park - Sold~~
Haute Couture
Botanical Garden
Sparkling Summer
~~Totally Cool - Sold~~
Something to Celebrate
Simple Shapes
Flower Garden
Please Come
~~Baroque Motifs - Sold~~
~~Along the Shore - Sold~~
~~Balmy Breezes - Sold~~
Enjoy Every Moment
Taking Care of Business - unmounted
Friends are Like Flowers

$7.00
Watercolor Garden II
On the Beach
Business Memos
Flower Fancy
Flower of the Month - Pending
~~Herb Expressions - Sold~~
Asian Artistry
Heartfelt Thanks
~~On Gossamer Wings - Sold~~
Simple Sketches
Everyday Flexible Phrases - Pending
~~Thoughts and Prayers - Sold~~
All Year Cheer III
Bold Butterfly
~~Inspired by Nature - Sold~~
Daisy
~~Do The Hula - Sold~~
Bloomin' Wonderful
Petal Prints
Fine Lace
Simple Type Alphabet
~~Well-Worn Words - Sold~~
Calendar
~~Medallion - Sold~~
Holiday Tag Team
Serene Sunflower
Print Pattern
Mini Mates

$8.00
All Year Cheer I
All Year Cheer II
~~Christmas Gift Tags - Sold~~

$2 Wheels
By the Sea - Pending
Sweet Feet
Fishy
Island
~~Kitty Kapers - Sold~~
Busy Bees
Chocolate Chips
Bloomin'
Lovely Ladybugs
Whirly-Twirly
Tailgating
Watercolor Joy
~~Sandy Shells - Sold~~

$3.00 Wheel
Haunting
Snow
Watercolor Vine
Scatter Sunshine
Poinsettias Awash
Poinsettia
Spooky Skyline
~~Wash Day - Sold~~

It's Release Day at Shannon's Sentiments!!!!

2011-05-15T06:00:00.001-04:00

Today's the day!!!!!!!! All the May release sets are now available in the store. And the design team has some amazing projects to share with you today. Including all our new members!!!! Please welcome them to the team along the way.

If you're just popping in here, start back at the Sentiments Storefront blog so you don't miss all the goodies along the way. If you're here from Linda's blog you're on the right path.

Once you've finished the hop, swing over to the Shannon's Sentiments Store to pick up all the new sets.

This card features the new Spring Door image. I colored it with Prismacolor Pencils blended with OMS. I added a sentiment inside the oval from Lots of Thanks.

Sale: May 15th - 22nd
25% off
Use code: MayRel25

Chat tonight......at our CDAC group page. Starts at 8pm EDT and goes until we all get too sleepy to type. We'll see you there!!

Sentiments Challenge and Final Preview Day!!!!!

2011-05-14T06:00:00.003-04:00

Welcome to our final preview day!!!!! We're combining it with our usual Saturday challenge today so you'll get lots of eye candy for the new releases.

Today we're featuring the Getaway Car and Bride and Groom images as well as the Just Married and Lots of Thanks Add-on sets. The full sets with a blog hop will be starting at 6am EST on April 15th at the "Shannon's Sentiments" blog. We will also be hosting a chat at our CDAC group page at 8pm EST on the 15th as well.

Cindy is hosting the challenge this week and has challenged us to create a card featuring 3 flowers and no patterned papers.

I wasn't sure what I wanted to create for this challenge....since in my head I was going to go in a totally different direction with these sets. I opted to use the "Just Married" set and create a thank you card. I changed the color of the dress outline to green before printing it along with the wording. I then added 3 tiny white flowers to the waist of the dress.

Check out what the other members of our team have created with these images.

Shannon Hawkins

Michelle Single

Christy Dillman

Jen Leeflang

Laura Visser Anderson

Tammylee Newberry

Qadirah Gomez

Pankti Modi

Linda Bowman - Guest Designer

Stop back tomorrow for our big Release Day blog hop stating at 6am EDT!!!!

Release Day #2!!!!

2011-05-13T06:00:00.002-04:00

It's finally time for the "Shannon's Sentiments" May release!!! This month we are releasing 4 large individual images along with 4 Add-On sets, and 2 full sets.

Today we're featuring the Calla Frame and Spring Door images along with the In Sympathy and Friendship Add-On sets.. The full sets with a blog hop will be starting at 6am EST on May 15th at the "Shannon's Sentiments" blog. We will also be hosting a chat at our CDAC group page at 8pm EST on the 15th as well.

I created this soothing card using images from the Friendship set. I printed off a 2nd rose and popped it up on top of the one on the oval panel. I colored the rose with Prismacolor Pencils and added some Diamond Stickles for sparkle.
Check out what some of our other design team members have created using these images.

Shannon Hawkins

Cindy Groh

Christy Dillman

Qadirah Gomez

Linda Bowman - Guest Designer

We'll see you again tomorrow for the final set of previews and our next challenge.

May Release Day #1!!!!!

2011-05-12T06:00:00.004-04:00

It's finally time for the "Shannon's Sentiments" May release!!! This month we'll be releasing 4 large individual images along with 4 Add-On sets, and 2 full sets.

Today we're starting out featuring the Puppy Love and Independence Day sets. The full sets with a blog hop will be starting at 6am EST on May 15th at the "Shannon's Sentiments" blog. We will also be hosting a chat at our CDAC group page at 8pm EST on the 15th as well.

I created this fun card using the new Independence Day set. I love this set since it's so easy to interchange all the images. I colored the flag heart with Copics and paired it with some textured and patterned papers. I added some Antique Linen distress ink around the image panel edges. Then punched holes on the side and tied on some blue ribbon. For some sparkle I added Moonlight Smooch to the stars.

Check out what some of our other design team members have created using these images.

Shannon Hawkins

Michelle Single

Cindy Groh

Christy Dillman

We'll see you again tomorrow for another set of previews.

Introducing a special release!!!!

2011-05-01T06:00:00.002-04:00

Over at SplitCoastStampers they host a monthly thread entitled Cards for a Cause. Our very own Design Team member Michelle is hosting this month's charity. She's choosen the Landstuhl Medical Facility in Landstuhl, Germany. While Walter Reed gets most of the attention, it is Landstuhl that houses our most critically wounded servicemen and women.

In honor of her hosting this month, I've created a special release Get Well Set. $1 from the sale of each set will be donated to the USO, as they also support our troops here and abroad.

Shannon's Sentiments Challenge

2011-04-30T09:00:00.007-04:00

Happy Saturday!!!! It's time for this week's Shannon's Sentiments challenge. This week our guest designer, Denise, has challenged us to create our own handmade embellishments.

Wow.....quite the challenge right!!! When it comes to embellies I just grab something already premade.....have never thought of creating my own. So, I had to put some thought and research into this one. And here's what I came up with.

I used a flower pot from the "Garden Time" set and the "Relax" sentiment from the "Summer Time" set. I created the flowers from ribbon by running a line of stitches down one side and pulling it to gather it together. I then glued a button to the center of each. The pot is colored with Prismacolor Pencils blended with OMS.

This is the last April challenge, so make sure you get all your entires in before May 6th for your chance at one of the monthly prizes.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

Today's 365 Cards Challenge!!!

2011-04-27T07:42:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone!!!!! It's time for today's 365 Cards challenge. Have you seen all the Shannon's Sentiments images their design team has been including in their samples this week? Amazing!!!!

Today's challenge is.....

You know how when you go to the movie theater they flash yummy looking images of popcorn, soda and candy all over the screen? You'd think they were sending subliminal messages. Your challenge is to use an image of food or beverage that looks good enough to eat/drink. It should be large and the focal point of the card.

And since I have 3 weddings coming up, I knew exactly what to create for this challenge. (Sally I hope you're not looking....)

I used the cake from the "Party Time" and sentiment from the "Shower Time" set. I colored the ribbon and swags with Copics and then added Moonlight Smooch to the inside of the swags.

So head on over to 365 cards and join in on the challenge where you can win a $10 gift certificate to Shannon's Sentiments store.

And don't forget....you only have a few more days to get your application in for our Design Team call.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

Sentiments Challenge - ABC!!!!

2011-04-23T09:47:00.000-04:00

Happy Saturday!!!! It's time for this week's Shannon's Sentiment's challenge. This week Michelle has challenged us to create anything but a card. I was going to do a cute little candy packet, but didn't get it done in time. And I forgot to take pictures of the tag and stationary set that I made for my cousin -to-be for her bridal shower. So, I decided to make a digi layout from the beginning of my kitchen remodel.

This has been my life for the past 3 weeks now. It all started when were decided we wanted to add some additional storage in our kitchen where the fridge was. So, DH moved the fridge over to the side of the kitchen that didn't have any cabinets on it. And we bought some wall cabinets and built up a sweet little corner unit complete with a large panty cabinet for food storage. In doing so, the switch for the disposal needed to be moved. In removing that box from the wall it was discovered that it was a false wall. The original plaster wall had 2x4 firring strips over it and they drywall. We also discovered water damage on one of the drain pipes coming from the upstairs bathroom. After that it was a domino effect of poor building practices, rusting plumbing, leaking pipes, and ancient electrical. So, we ended up having to tear out over half of the kitchen down to the original studs. And we had to replace all the plumbing in the upstairs bathroom, so that's torn up now as well. And my tiny half bath that was in the kitchen is being moved and replaced with one large enough for anyone to fit in.

For the layout I used the "Spare Change Jar" with the home repair label. I also used tags from the "Vintage Tags" set for my journaling spots.

You have about a week to get your design team application in to me to join our team. You can find all the details here at this page.

Happy Stamping!
Shannon

Earth Day Blog Hop!!!

2011-04-22T08:00:00.004-04:00

Welcome to our very first public blog hop!!! Today is Earth Day and to celebrate we're hopping along showing off projects we've made using only scraps from our stashes. My scrap pile is huge!!! So this theme is perfect for me.

If you're just popping in, stop back at the Shannon's Sentiments Store blog to start at the beginning. If you're here from Denise's blog, then you're on the right track.

Here's the card I created with images from the "Peace, Love and Stamping" set.

I colored the branch image with Prismacolor pencils blending with OMS. I then added some Diamond Stickles for bling.

This is the last stop on the hop. Did you remember about the giveaway on your way thru the hop? Leave a comment on each of the hop blogs and a random winner will receive one image or set from the store of their choice.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

Easter Sentiments challenge

2011-04-16T09:00:00.018-04:00

It's Saturday.....and that means it's time for another Shannon's Sentiments challenge. This week it's my turn to hostess the challenge. And with Easter a week away, that's the theme I've chosen. So, take this opportunity to get all your cards made for next weekend.

Here's the card I created......

I had originally planned to do a digi card, but my computer kept freezing up last night on me. So, I got up early this morning and created this card to share with you today. I used images from the "Easter Time" set. I colored the basket with Copics, and the eggs with Prismacolor Pencils. I cut out the eggs and the basket. Then adding a slice to the basket I stuck in the eggs so they are actually sitting in the basket. I finished it off with some Diamond Stickles on the eggs, because who doesn't love sparkly eggs?

Don't forget to sign up for our customer blog hop on the 22nd. All the details can be found here. There's only a few more days to sign up, so get your email in to me today.

We also have a design team call going on. You can find all the details at this post.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

It's Release Day!!!!!

2011-04-15T06:00:00.002-04:00

It's finally here....the huge reveal of this month's release!!!! Have you enjoyed the preview days? The design team just amazes me with all their wonderful creations.

Did you hit all the design team member blogs on your way here? If not, go back to the beginning and hop along. I'll wait for you to get back to here.......
Sentiments Storefront
Kapree Clark
Cindy Groh
Michelle Single
Christy Dillman
Guest Designer - Denise Pettingill
Shannon Hawkins - Owner
Shannon's Sentiments Store

You're back!!! Good!!!!

You can see the full sets and all the new images on the front page of the Shannon's Sentiments Store.

I created this card using the "Potting Bench" image and a sentiment from the "Summertime" add-on set. Yes, that's my handwriting! That's one of the great things about having a tablet laptop....I can write on the screen and it smooths out all the bumps. I colored the bench with Prismacolor Pencils blending with OMS. Then I layered it up with some printed vellum and a kraft base.
You've reached the end of the hop!!!! Next, pop on over to the Shannon's Sentiments Store and pick up the new images and sets.

Special Release Sale!! 20% your total order using code AprRel20 until Apr. 22nd.

Don't forget.....We will also be hosting a chat at our CDAC group page at 8pm EDT tonight. There will be 2 challenges and some giveaways so I hope you'll come join us!! There will be more challenges, chatting, giveaways and general good times!!!!

Final Preview Day!!!

2011-04-14T06:00:00.003-04:00

It's time for the "Shannon's Sentiments" April release preview day #3!!! Tomorrow we have the blog hop so make sure you come back to see even more amazing projects from each of the team members.

Today we're featuring the Fence with Birdhouse, and Dress Form images along with the Days Gone By Add-On set and the Follow Your Dreams set. The full sets with a blog hop will be starting at 6am EST on April 15th at the "Shannon's Sentiments" blog. We will also be hosting a chat at our CDAC group page at 8pm EST on the 15th as well.

The design team call is still open until the 1st. I hope you'll all apply!!!

We also have a guest designer challenge going on that you'll want to check out and participate in. The deadline to enter is the 18th, so hurry and link up your project.

I used the new "Dress Form" image on this card, coloring it with Prismacolor Pencils. The quote is from the "Days Gone By" add-on set.

Check out what some of our other design team members have created using these images.

Cindy Groh

Michelle Single

Christy Dillman

Denise Pettingill - Guest Designer

We'll see you again tomorrow for the blog hop.

Preview Day #2!!!!

2011-04-13T06:00:00.003-04:00

It's time for the "Shannon's Sentiments" April release preview day #2!!!

Today we're featuring the Lighthouse, Pier and Floral Frame images along with the Mother's Love Add-On set and the Father's Love Add-On set. The full sets with a blog hop will be starting at 6am EST on April 15th at the "Shannon's Sentiments" blog. We will also be hosting a chat at our CDAC group page at 8pm EST on the 15th as well.

The design team call is still open until the 1st. I hope you'll all apply!!!

We also have a guest designer challenge going on that you'll want to check out and participate in. The deadline to enter is the 18th, so hurry and link up your project.

I created this card using the new "Floral Frame" image. I think this one is my favorite from this release. I colored it with Copic markers and added Diamond Stickles for some bling. The quote is from the Summertime add-on set.

Check out what some of our other design team members have created using these images.

Cindy Groh

Michelle Single

Christy Dillman

Denise Pettingill - Guest Designer

We'll see you again tomorrow for the last set of previews.

Sentiments Preview Day #1!!!!

2011-04-12T06:00:00.003-04:00

It's finally time for the "Shannon's Sentiments" April release!!! . This month we're switching things up a bit from the releases we've done the past few months. This month we'll be releasing 7 large individual images along with 4 Add-On sets, 1 mini set, and 1 full set.

Today we're starting out featuring the Chaise Lounge with Umbrella and Potting Bench images along with the Summertime Add-On set and the Spring Branch mini set. The full sets with a blog hop will be starting at 6am EST on April 15th at the "Shannon's Sentiments" blog. We will also be hosting a chat at our CDAC group page at 8pm EST on the 15th as well.

The design team call is still open until the 1st. I hope you'll all apply!!!

We also have a guest designer challenge going on that you'll want to check out and participate in. The deadline to enter is the 18th, so hurry and link up your project.

For this card I printed the new "Chaise Lounge with Umbrella" image along with a sentiment from the "Summertime Add-On" set. I colored the image with Copic markers and paired it with some fun colorful paper from Basic Grey.

Check out what some of our other design team members have created using these images.

Cindy Groh

Christy Dillman

Denise Pettingill - Guest Designer

We'll see you again tomorrow for another set of previews.

The zoo's been released....

2011-04-09T09:00:00.002-04:00

For this week's sentiments challenge!!!! Kapree has challenged us to include an animal on our cards. And..............it's her birthday!!!! Happy Birthday Kapree!!!!!!! I made this "chick" card just for you!!!

The chick and sentiment are from the "Easter Time" set. I printed everything onto a sheet of white paper before layering it onto the aqua background. I colored the chick with Prismacolor Pencils. Then added a fun/colorful strip of paper and ribbon across the top.

Don't forget.......we have a few things going on right now that you don't want to miss out on.
May Guest Designer Challenge - Deadline Apr. 18th
Customer Earth Day Blog Hop - Apr. 22nd
Design Team Call - May 1st Hope you'll come play along and wish Kapree a "Happy Birthday" too.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

1st April Sentiments Challenge

2011-04-02T09:00:00.000-04:00

Happy Saturday!!!!! It's time for our very first April Sentiments challenge. This time, Cindy is hosting and she's challenged us to create a card incorporating an oval. Easy peasy!!!! I hope you'll all play along with us!

It's Christy's birthday today so I created this birthday card just for her!!! Hope you have a wonderful day Christy!! I created it using the candle images from "Party Time". I simply placed several side by side before printing. I colored them with Copics and added Distress Stickles to the flames. Then added some pretty silk ribbon and pearls.

Don't forget.....we're having a design team call. Details can be found here.
And make sure you sign up for the Customer Earth Day blog hop!! It's going to be so fun to see what everyone makes with their scraps and recycled items.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

The April Newsletter is now available!!!

2011-04-01T06:00:00.004-04:00

Happy Friday!!!! TGIF!!!! April is going to be a busy month for us here at Shannon's Sentiments. The monthly newsletter published this morning. If you're not already signed up, please do so. There is a link on the sidebar at the storefront blog. That way you won't miss out on anything going on around here. And you get a freebie image!!!! And that image is featured here...

For this card I colored the glasses and pitcher with Copics and added shadowing with Prismacolor pencils. Then I added glaze to them for shine.

A quick snaphot of what's in the newsletter....April calendar, preview of the upcoming Guest Designer challenge for a spot on the team for the May release, info on the Earth Day blog hop, reminder about the Open Design Team call, an article on storing and organizing your digi files, and more!!!

This month we have some exciting things just around the corner! The April challenges start bright and early tomorrow morning and the winners for the March challenges will be announced on Sunday. Make sure you get your submissions linked up by tonight. Then before you know it, we'll be heading to the preview and release days for the April sets. I switched it up a bit this month and will be offering 7 large individual images and 6 matching add-on type sets. These images were sooooooooo much fun to design! I can't wait to show them to you. I designed all the large images using the tablet feature of my laptop. The screen is a touch screen and using a stylus, I can draw right onto the "paper". I can then edit the line or shape as needed. And adjusting the "smoothing" the software takes out the wiggles my shaky hands make automaticially. Or, I can turn the smoothing down and make a wobbly line like I used in the daffodil image. Oops....did I give something away there? Guess you'll just have to stay tuned to find out.

We're also sponsoring the 365 Cards challenge blog late this month, so watch for that to pop for your opportunity for a store gift certificate.

The voting is also going on this week for the CDAC Digi Design contest (details and links below) so pop over there and vote for your favorite images. Ok, I've babbled enough on here for today. And my kitchen is still in "construction zone" mode and needs my attention. Wish me luck!!

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

Come vote for my images......

2011-03-31T10:24:00.000-04:00

for the CDAC Digi Drawing Contest. I have these 3 images entered. I hope you'll all go vote for your favorite!!!! All CDAC members can vote for one "professional" image and one "amateur" image.

Sentiments Color Challenge

2011-03-26T09:00:00.000-04:00

Happy Saturday!!!! It's time for this week's Sentiments challenge. And this week Michelle has challenged us to create a project using the spring colors yellow, green and pink. I love this combination, but I don't use it very often. I created this card using images from the "Springtime" set that I released in February. I had the images still sitting on my desk and thought they'd be perfect for this challenge. I colored the flower heads with Smooch!! It was so much fun using some fun new toys. I paired it with pink cardstock and designer paper from My Mind's Eye. And of course I added some ribbon, a button and some fun baker's twine.

Stop over to the Sentiment's blog and play along with us!!!! This is the last challenge for March, so make sure you have all your entries in before Apr. 1st.

Other items you won't want to miss out on.....
Design Team Call......details at the post here.
Public blog hop for Earth Day......details at the post here.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

Sentiments Earth Day Blog Hop!!

2011-03-25T11:37:00.000-04:00

Now's your chance to join with our design team in a blog hop for Earth Day.

Wanna join us? Just send an email to Shannon at shannonssentiments@gmail.com with "Earth Day Blog Hop" in the subject with your full name and the link for your blog. You'll get a confirmation email back ensuring your place along the hop. Sign ups end Apr. 19th. You'll then receive a list on Apr. 20th with the hop order so you'll know who you need to link to.

Just set your post to go live at 8am EDT on Earth Day April 22nd. Ensure your post stays at the top of your blog for at least 24 hours.

Your only challenge...you have to use recycled products on your cards. I know it's so tempting to cut into that fresh sheet of cardstock for a base, or that new designer paper you just picked up the day before from your favorite local stamping store. But I want you to use your leftovers!! Grab up those scraps that end up taking over our desktops and put them to good use!!!

We also ask that after the hop, you donate your card to a local charity. 2 good options are Operation Write Home and the SCS Cards for a Cause monthly charity.

Help spread the word by adding the badge above to your blog.

Shannon's Sentiment images aren't required, but are encouraged.

Sentiments Fold Challenge

2011-03-19T09:00:00.000-04:00

Happy Saturday!!! It's time for this week's Sentiments challenge. Christy is our hostess for this week and she's challenged us to create a card using an unusual fold. To play along with us, just leave the link to your creation with Mr. Linky in the sidebar at the Sentiment's blog. I was going to go with a criss-cross card at first, but ended up having this idea for a gatefold card.

The base is white and I added a layer to each side of embossed white cardstock that I rubbed with Distress Inks in Antique Linen and Frayed Burlap. I then added ribbon threaded thru eyelets to hold the card closed and paper flowers and rhinestone brads for some bling. When you open the card this is what you see. I just finished this Floral Hat image for the CDAC digi design contest. I paired it with one of the tags from the "Vintage Tags" set and the Easter greeting from "Easter Time".

I also opened up a design team call for Shannon's Sentiments. Details can be found here. I hope you'll all apply!!!

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Special QKD Blog Hop!!!

2011-03-16T01:59:00.000-04:00

We're having a special blog hop today to welcome a new artist to the QKD family Myka Jelina. If you're just popping in here, start back at the QKD blog for all the details.

I was able to work with "Alexis" for this release. She's so pretty!!! Now, normally I would spend hours coloring these images....but I just haven't had the time. So, I highlighted bits of the image with pink Prismacolor Pencils. I did a simple layering on paper by Basic Grey and some paper flowers.

The next stop on the hop is Jan's blog. Make sure you leave lots of love along the way.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

March Release Blog Hop!!!!

2011-03-15T06:00:00.004-04:00

It's finally here!!!!! It's time for the March release blog hop for Shannon's Sentiments!!!! This is a huge release, complete with a few special images. If you're just popping here, swing back to the Sentiments blog so you can check out the new sets and all the design team creations along the hop.

This first card uses one of the special images this month. I created this "Garden Barrel" image for the Digital Drawing contest at CDAC. I colored the image with Copics and Prismacolor Pencils. This image is the first one I've drawn using my laptop as a tablet! It took a little time to get the hang of using the touch screen with the stylus, but in the end I love how it turned out. This card uses one of the quotes from the "Peace, Love and Stamping" set. I actually had another plan for this quote, but I really liked how it looked as the main focus on this card.

The next set uses the shopping tote from the "Re-Cycle" set. I printed it out large enough to fit 1/2 a sheet of paper. Then I cut it out. I adhered the sides together forming a pocket for the set of 4 cards to fit. The cards each feature the lotus from the "Peace, Love and Stamping" set.
This card features the greeting and branch from "Easter Time". I colored the leaves with Prismacolor Pencils blending with OMS. I created the background paper by spraying Olive Vine Glimmer Mist all over glossy cardstock and then laying cling wrap on top forming the lines where the color and shimmer settled. It's hard to capture the shimmer in the photo, but in person it's a really cool effect.

You've reached the end of the hop! Now head on over to the store to get all the new sets and images. Don't forget....the freebies for March are only until the next release.

We will also be hosting a chat at our CDAC group page at 8pm tonight as well. I will see you then!

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Last Day of March Previews.....

2011-03-14T06:00:00.002-04:00

It's our last day of previews for the March "Shannon's Sentiments" release!!! Today we're featuring "RE-cycle" and "Easter Time".

The full sets with a blog hop will be starting at 6am EST on Mar. 15th at the "Shannon's Sentiments" blog. We will also be hosting a chat at our CDAC group page at 8pm EST on the 15th as well.

There are unique giveaways this month that I promise you won't want to miss out on. We also have a guest designer challenge going on that you should all participate in.

My first project is a mixed media project. I've seen these canvas art pieces floating around the web and thought "Hey, I can do that!!!! I love making a big mess in my studio." And so off to Michael's I went in search of some canvases, paint, and Mod-Podge. I already had the design in mind using images from the "Easter Time" set, so once I get all the images printed out I got down to work. I started with blue printed paper on top, then blue paint over that, then the white paint on the side. Each I took some off with tissue paper or paper towel. Then I applied the basket and eggs, sun (created from designer paper), the quotes and the doves. I added the grass which I printed off on green designer paper, added various green paints to it, and then the flowers on top. I finished it by adding doodles here and there.

I created this card using the bare tree from the "RE-cycle" set, along with the "Go Green" sentiment. I printed the tree on white cardstock and created the background using the direct-to-paper technique with Distress Inks.

More inspiration from our design team to get your creative juices flowing for this challenge.

Shannon Hawkins

Cindy Groh

Kapree Clark

Michelle Single

Christy Dillman - Guest Designer

We'll see you again tomorrow for the release hop and chat.

March Preview Day #2

2011-03-13T06:00:00.003-04:00

It's the 2nd day for the March "Shannon's Sentiments" release!!! . Today we're featuring "Vintage Tags" and "Colored Vintage Tags".

The full sets with a blog hop will be starting at 6am EST on Mar. 15th at the "Shannon's Sentiments" blog. We will also be hosting a chat at our CDAC group page at 8pm EST on the 15th as well.

There are unique giveaways this month that I promise you won't want to miss out on. We also have a guest designer challenge going on that you'll want to check out and participate in.

For this first set I used the movie tickets from the "Vintage Tags" set. I combined it with the Spare Change Jar and the Coffee Time CDAC freebie. I colored all the images with Copics. The "Vacation" pocket contains a mini bag of popcorn and the "Coffee Time" pocket holds a Starbucks gift card.

This 2nd creations is a digital scrapbook page using one of the "Colored Vintage Tags" for the journaling area. I used various backgrounds and brushes to create the rest of the page. The pics show my studio in it's usual state of disaster, and the rarely seen after cleaning mode. I love creating in my "Fortress of Solitude" when it's clean and everything is put away. Too bad it doesn't happen more often. Usually I just pop in there, get done what needs to be done, and leave the mess to work around later. Only when it gets really bad do I take the proper time to clean it all up. How do you prefer to create? Amongst a mess or when everything is put away?

More inspiration from our design team to get your creative juices flowing for this challenge.

Cindy Groh

Kapree Clark

Michelle Single

Christy Dillman - Guest Designer

We'll see you again tomorrow for the last set of previews.

Sentiments March Preview and Challenge

2011-03-12T06:00:00.003-05:00

It's time again for another "Shannon's Sentiments" release!!! It's another big reveal this month so we're previewing the sets over 3 days. Today we're featuring "Peace, Love and Stamping" and "Spare Change Jar".

Today's preview is also being combined with our weekly challenge. Our hostess this week, Kapree, has challenged us to distress our cards.

The full sets with a blog hop will be starting at 6am EST on Mar. 15th at the "Shannon's Sentiments" blog. We will also be hosting a chat at our CDAC group page at 8pm EST on the 15th as well.

There are unique giveaways this month that I promise you won't want to miss out on.

For my first card I used the jar from "Spare Change Jar" along with the "Craft Fund" label. Notice the jar is empty......I've been adding to my supplies lately. In fact, I just hit up Michael's for some canvas and paints for a multi-media project for later in the release. I printed this off on white cardstock and them used Distress inks and Copics to color the jar and label. Then added some distressing to the edges. I added Crystal Effects to the label area.

My second card isn't distressed, but it is a preview for the "Peace, Love and Stamping" set. I just love these candles! If you
played along with the VSN challenges, then you probably saw them as part of the special preview since I used them on one of my cards.....that ended up in the Honors Gallery!!!! Yippie!!! I printed off the Bamboo images on white cardstock and added shadowing with Prismacolor Pencils. The candles were also printed on white cardstock and colored with Prismacolor pencils blending with OMS.

More inspiration from our design team to get your creative juices flowing for this challenge.

Cindy Groh

Kapree Clark

Michelle Single

Christy Dillman - Guest Designer

To play along, just add your link to the Mr. Linky widget on the sidebar for the March challenges. Mr. Linky will close for the month on Friday, April 1st at 11:59pm EST.

The rules are the same as always.....
At the end of the month one $10 gift certificate to the Sentiments store will be given to one random winner picked from all participants each month. There will also be one free image ($3 value) given to the one player that participates the most each month.

Rules:
1) You are encouraged to use an image from Shannon's Sentiments, but it's not required. (Check out the many freebies available at the store.)
2) Each player may contribute as many entries as they'd like for each challenge.
3) Blog posts must be linked back to the challenge post with your actual blog post, not your general blog link, or gallery link.
4) Your entry must be new art created for this challenge. You can combine it with other challenges.

Stop by again tomorrow for another set of previews!!

Special QKD Release Hop!!!

2011-03-09T01:59:00.000-05:00

Welcome to a special QKD release hop for Diana Vick's images. If you're just popping in, swing back to the start at the QKD blog. If you're here from Jan's blog, than you're on the right path.

I was able to work with Artemis for this release. How sexy is she?!?! I colored her with Prismacolor Pencils blending with OMS. I added some glitter pen to her arrows. I then paired her up with some neutral papers to ensure she took center stage. Your next stop on the hop is Linda's blog.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

OWH Hop and Sentiments Challenge!!!

2011-03-05T09:00:00.002-05:00

Welcome to another Sentiments Challenge! We're beginning our March challenges this week....and we have something very special for you!!!! We're participating in the Operation Write Home Blog Hop!!!!!! If you're just popping in here, start back at the OWH blog so you don't miss any of the fun along the way.

For those of you not familiar with Operation Write Home, they are a charity organization that sends cards to deployed servicemen and women to send back home to their families and friends. They are always looking for cards, so take those extras you have lying around, and send them off, but PLEASE follow the Card Guidelines they have listed. Some of these guidelines are in place to protect our heroes, and others just keep them from being frustrated. For those of you wanting to send in cards.....the Easter deadline is Mar. 18th and the Mother's Day deadline is Mar. 31st. Don't know who or where to send them to? You can find a list of OWH shippers here.

This week's Sentiments challenge was to use Spray Misting....and we combined it with the OWH challenge of a springtime card. Now, my card isn't all bright and colorful and all that. Because that's not really what spring is around here. In MI, spring (especially early spring) is still brown with just hints of green and color starting to pop up. We still have to rely on storebought flowers since the ones here won't be blooming for another month or 2. So, that was my inspiration for my card. I used Olive Branch and Coffee Shop Glimmer Mists on the kraft cardbase as well as on the designer paper. The flower vase and flowers are from my "Garden Time" set. Hope you'll stop by and play along. There's a $10 store gift certificate and free image prize up for grabs this month.

The next stop of the hop is Darlene. Don't forget to leave some love along the way.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

T3 Royal Hop!!

2011-03-01T06:55:00.002-05:00

Welcome to this week's T3 hop!!!! This week we're to use alcohol inks or distress inks in our creations.

Here's how it goes:

- Each week 3 Royal Court Members host a challenge on their blog. (the same challenge)

- You start at the QKD blog and visit the 3 challenge hosts on their personal blogs. (Leave us some love and a link to your project so we can return the favor. *wink*)

- QKD will offer up a $25 stamp gift certificate for you to compete for each month. So if you enter each week, you have 4 chances to win the monthly prize of $25.

Here's my card for this week, using one of the March releases "Sweet Peony and Poppies". She's too cute sitting there amongst her heart shaped flowers.
I used Alcohol inks in purple and silver to create the background paper. I embossed it with "Distressed Stripes" for added texture. I colored her with Copics.

Swing by the Valerie's and Gretchen's blogs as well to see their creations. Then link up your creation at the QKD blog for a chance to win a $25 gift certificate to the QKD store.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

VSN Cards.....

2011-02-27T16:06:00.007-05:00

I did it!! I made time this weekend to play along with a bunch of the VSN challenges over at SCS. It was nice to sit down in my studio and just stamp for the pure fun of creating. Of course....these cards were all created with my digital images, so I guess there was no actual stamping going on. Just lots of coloring, cutting, glueing, embossing, punching, and trying to get inks off my fingers.

This first card is for the "Read the Music" challenge. Haven't seen this image in the store yet? You're right! It's a special sneak peek from my March release that I allowed my DT to work with just for this weekend. You're see these candles and "Harmony" sentiment in the "Peace, Love and Stamping" set that will release on Mar. 15th!!!! I promise you won't want to miss out on this one.

This next card is for the "Heart Songs" challenge.

I created this card using images from the "Loving You" and "Holiday Postal" set. The panel on the side is actually a red metallic paper which just didn't want to be photographed today. I created the Love stamp by combining a bunch of the images together in PSE and cutting out just one stamp from the bunch.

My next card is for the "Heart on Your Sleeve" challenge.

I don't use vellum very much.....and to emboss it really pushed me out of my box. But I love the way this card turned out. I used one of the quotes from the "Shower Time" set as the main focal point and kept the rest simple with the die-cut and embossed butterfly.

This next one is for the "Heart Health" challenge.

I wasn't sure what I was going to do for this one....since I have a ton of dress stamps laying around unused. But I decided to work with the dress from "Shower Time" in PSE and color it red. Then using one of my new Nesties dies I cut it out and threaded ribbon along the edges.

This quick card is for the "Mash Up!" challenge.

I set up all the elements from the "Cheers" set in PSE, then colored them with Prismacolor Pencils and OMS. I added some dry embossing and paper piercing as my additional techniques.

The next one is for the "Love Is" challenge.

This card is created using the newest freebies!!! I used the image I created for the St. Patrick's Day t-shirts and the clover image. Yes, that's actually wood.....it's a thin piece of veneer that I found at one of my local stamping stores. Very cool to work with.

This last one is for the "Dream Come True" challenge.

Now that DH and I are married, our dream is to start a family. Which has turned out to be more difficult than we expected. I created this one with images from the "Shower Time" set.

The deadline isn't until tomorrow night, so I may try to get a few more of the challenges finished up....

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Sentiments challenge -- Fussy Cutting!!!!

2011-02-26T09:00:00.001-05:00

Welcome to this week's Sentiments challenge!!!! Cindy is our hostess for this week and she's challenged us to Fussy Cut!!!! Yipes! I'm not all that great with a pair of scissors anymore......so this was quite the challenge for me. I've gotten into such a rut of using dies and punches for stuff.

So, for this card I layered up 3 of the teacups from the "Winter Images" set, printed them on ivory and printed paper and then cut out both layers before adding it to my card front.

I distressed the edges and added some slate pearls.

This is the last challenge for this month so make sure you get all your projects for all the Feb. challenges linked up to the Mr. Linky at the challenge blog.

For those following my weight loss journey....it was a big week this week.....2 lbs lost!!!!! I'm super happy and I'm loving this plan!!!!

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Sentiments Challenge!!!

2011-02-19T09:00:00.001-05:00

Happy Saturday!!!!!!! Today's the day for this week's Sentiments Challenge. Becky is the hostess for this week and she's challenged us to use only sentiments. Embellishments and that are allowed, but no images.

Once I started thinking of cards to make, I just kept coming up with different designs, so I ended up making these two to share today.

This first one uses a sentiment from the "Spring Time" set. I printed it off, cut it out with a Nesties die, sponged on some Distress Inks, and layered it with some fun new spring paper and flowers.

This next card is an elegant wedding card created with a sentiment from the "Shower Time" set. I printed it out in position on white cardstock. I then topped it with the printed paper, punched white cardstock, and brown satin ribbon.
I hope you'll play along with us!!!! There's a $10 gift certificate to the store up for grabs!!!!

For those interested in my continuing weight loss journey.....here's the update.... Last week I lose 1.2 lbs and 1 inch!!! Yippie!!! This week I lost 0.2 lbs....boo....and 1/2 inch from my waist....yea!!!! With Flo visiting on being on progesterone and being sick I wasn't expecting much scale movement this week. But I've still loving the 4-Hour Body Slow Carb Diet!!!! Today is my "Dieter's Gone Wild" day and I'm really looking forward to having some donuts and Girl Scout cookies!!!!

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

Clarity on Thursday

2011-02-17T10:43:00.003-05:00

Happy Thursday!!!! Where did this week fly away to? I think because I was so busy with my new release, I've had my head in the sand since the weekend. I tried to play a bit of catch-up yesterday, but was totally unsuccessful at it.

So, I have this card to share with you today. This is "Clarity" and she's this month's WIS kit from QKD. And....since she's a kit, you get some cute additional items and sayings to go with her....such as the "Got Beads?" one I used for this card.

For my card, I started by coloring her with Copic markers. Then I layered her on some colorful papers and added the big triple flower and ribbons.

I punched out the saying and popped it up on the bottom.

I hope you're playing along with the weekly T3 challenges at the QKD blog!!!!

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

Sentiments Release Day!!!!

2011-02-15T06:00:00.003-05:00

It's finally here......release day!!!! The hop starts over at the Storefront blog, so swing back over there so you don't miss out on any of the amazing creations along the way.

I have 2 new projects to share with you today. This first one is a card using images from the "Garden Time" and "Spring Time" sets. I printed out the image and quote and then colored it with Copics. I added some bright pink flower soft for some extra texture.

This next project is a digi scrapbook page created in Photoshop Elements using various background and brushes along with some of the images from the "Garden Time" and "Hands of Time" sets.

We will also be hosting a chat at our SNR group page at 8pm EST tonight as well.

There are unique giveaways this month that I promise you won't want to miss out on.

You've reached the end of the hop, so pop over to the Shannon's Sentiments store to get all the new sets. Then, go over to the Cafe Press store to get the new clothing and other merchandise.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

Final Sentiments Preview Day!!!

2011-02-14T06:00:00.000-05:00

It's the last day of previews for the "Shannon's Sentiments" release!!! It's a big reveal this month so we've been previewing the sets over 3 days. Today we're featuring "Hands of Time" and "Shower Time".

The full sets with a blog hop will be starting at 6am EST on Feb. 15th at the "Shannon's Sentiments" blog. We will also be hosting a chat at our SNR group page at 8pm EST on the 15th as well.

There are unique giveaways this month that I promise you won't want to miss out on.

Here is my digital scrapbook page using "Hand of Time". I'm really loving digi scrapbooking these days!!!

I started by using various fills and overlays to create the background paper, along with some grunge brushes for the edges. Then I layered on the swirls I created, the picture, and the compass and quote from the image set. I was sooooooo much fun and much easier than I expected it to be working in Photoshop Elements 9.

More inspiration from our design team to get your creative juices flowing for this challenge.
Shannon Hawkins
Cindy Groh
Kapree Clark
Michelle Single
Becky Givans - Guest Designer

Stop by again tomorrow for the full reveal and blog hop!!

Sentiments Preview Day 2!!

2011-02-13T06:00:00.001-05:00

It's Day 2 for the previews for "Shannon's Sentiments" release!!! It's a big reveal this month so we're previewing the sets over 3 days. Today we're featuring "Party Time" and "the Freebies".

The full sets with a blog hop will be starting at 6am EST on Feb. 15th at the "Shannon's Sentiments" blog. We will also be hosting a chat at our SNR group page at 8pm EST on the 15th as well.

There are unique giveaways this month that I promise you won't want to miss out on.

I have the front and back of a card to share with you today to showcase 3 of the new freebies that will be available on the 15th.

Here is the front of the card using the "Happy St. Patrick's Day" sentiment and the "Clover" image. I created the main panel in Photoshop Elements, then printed it and layered it on a black cardbase and added the rivet and ribbon.

Here is the back of the card with the new freebie for signing your artwork that includes the copyright information.

More inspiration from our design team to get your creative juices flowing for this challenge.
Shannon Hawkins - You're here

Cindy Groh

Kapree Clark

Michelle Single

Becky Givans - Guest Designer

Stop by again tomorrow for the last set of previews!!

Sentiments Challenge and Preview Day 1

2011-02-12T06:00:00.002-05:00

It's time again for another "Shannon's Sentiments" release!!! It's a big reveal this month so we're previewing the sets over 3 days. Today we're featuring "Spring Time" and "Garden Time".

Today's preview is also being combing with our weekly challenge. Your hostess this week, Kapree, has challenged us to use 3 brads or eyelets on our cards.

The full sets with a blog hop will be starting at 6am EST on Feb. 15th at the "Shannon's Sentiments" blog. We will also be hosting a chat at our SNR group page at 8pm EST on the 15th as well.

There are unique giveaways this month that I promise you won't want to miss out on.

I created this main panel in Photoshop Elements. After printing it off, I added 3 silver brads to the flower centers. I created the background paper using Tim Holtz Alcohol inks with silver metallic blended in.

More inspiration from our design team to get your creative juices flowing for this challenge.
Shannon Hawkins

Cindy Groh

Kapree Clark

Michelle Single

Becky Givans - Guest Designer

To play along, just add your link to the Mr. Linky widget on the sidebar for the February challenges. Mr. Linky will close for the month on Friday, Mar. 4th at 11:59pm EST.

The rules are the same as always.....
At the end of the month one $10 gift certificate to the Sentiments store will be given to one random winner picked from all participants each month. There will also be one free image ($3 value) given to the one player that participates the most each month.

Rules:
1) You are encouraged to use an image from Shannon's Sentiments, but it's not required. (Check out the many freebies available at the store.)
2) Each player may contribute as many entries as they'd like for each challenge.
3) Blog posts must be linked back to the challenge post with your actual blog post, not your general blog link, or gallery link.
4) Your entry must be new art created for this challenge. You can combine it with other challenges.

Stop by again tomorrow for another set of previews!!

Fun with new toys....

2011-02-08T11:56:00.002-05:00

I just love getting new toys to play with!!!! Here I have a couple items that are new to me.

First....the WIS February kit "Clarity". Love her!!!! I colored her up with Copics using all earth tones to keep with the background I have already created.

Second....do you see that shiny piece of copper peeking out from behind the main image? It's "Glue Foil". And it's so super cool!!!! It's a shiny metal foil with adhesive on one side. To adhere to a surface, you heat it with your heat gun to melt the adhesive to allow it to adhere. How brilliant is that? Here I embossed it with the "Distressed Stripes" folder before adhering it to the background.

Third....alcohol inks and blender!! Ok, so I've been eyeing these items for quite some time. But could never decide on the colors I wanted. I finally broke down and picked up the Cabin Cupboard collection along with the blender and application tool. Then had some fun on glossy paper. That's how I created the background paper for this card. When it was done I even spritzed it with Glimmer Mist for added shine. The "Cherish" charm is also a Tim Holtz product.

I hope you get some new toys to play with soon too!

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Sentiments Challenge - Etsy Inspired

2011-02-05T08:46:00.003-05:00

Welcome to another Sentiments Challenge! We're beginning our February challenges this week....and we have something very special for you!!!!

We're sponsoring the Etsy Inspired Challenge!!!!! Yippie!!!! I was on the design team there for awhile, and I'm so thrilled to be able to sponsor this great challenge now.

The shop for this week is Daisy Petal Designs. The challenge for this week is to surf thru the shop, find a product for your inspiration, and create a card or other project based on your inspiration. You can use the colors, objects, textures, anything that inspires you.

Then link up your creation at the Etsy blog for your chance to win one of this week's prizes. And link it up here as well to enter it into our monthly giveaway.

Here are some pics from the shop to get your creative juices flowing....

Here is my card....

I was inspired by the layers and colors of the red flower pictured above. I used the "Loving You" set along with the freebie "Love Script" and the set from Dec "Holiday Postal" for the stamp outline. I printed everything out, then distressed the envelope and stamps with Tim Holtz distress inks, as well as the white layer around the edges. Then using a Sizzix die I cut out the large scallop circle and adorned it with light pink pearls. Then I layered everything onto a red cardbase.

I hope you'll play along with us this month!!!

Onto the dreaded topic of weight loss......I'm down another pound this week!! But what I think is more impressive is that I'm down 2.5" overall!! 1" each from my hips and waist and 1/2" from my thighs. It's an easy plan to stick to as well, which makes all difference to me. The only exercises I did this week was the squats/presses/pulls recommended in the book. Never before have I been able to lose weight without exercise and without feeling hungry. DH even commented a few nights ago on how much food I was eating. Of course it was mostly edamane and a salad with spinach and romaine and some cucumber. That's all basicially just to keep me full. Most of my calories during the day comes from lean protein and legumes. My free day is tomorrow and I'm really looking forward to having some french toast for breakfast and snacks during the Super Bowl.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Royal T3 Hop!!

2011-02-01T01:59:00.000-05:00

Welcome to this week's T3 hop!!!! This week we're to use embossing (wet or dry) in our creations.

Here's how it goes:

- Each week 3 Royal Court Members host a challenge on their blog. (the same challenge)

- You start at the QKD blog and visit the 3 challenge hosts on their personal blogs. (Leave us some love and a link to your project so we can return the favor. *wink*)

- QKD will offer up a $25 stamp gift certificate for you to compete for each month. So if you enter each week, you have 4 chances to win the monthly prize of $25.

Here's my card for this week, featuring the WIS kit for February "Clarity". Isn't she beautiful? I colored her with Copics and paired her with some diamond Core-dinations paper that I embossed and then sanded down.
I finished her with some satin robbins and a bit of Tim Holtz bling.

Swing by the Valerie's and Gretchen's blogs as well to see their creations. Then link up your creation at the QKD blog for a chance to win a $25 gift certificate to the QKD store.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Sentiments Challenge #11 - Color

2011-01-29T09:04:00.002-05:00

Ugh.....I'm not sure where my head has been this week. It's flown by and I still have so many things I want to do. It's gonna be a busy weekend!!! I even forgot about writing up this post last night. I got the one for the store all set, but totally forgot to put this here on my own blog for this morning.

Welcome to another Sentiments Challenge! I'm hosting today and I have a color challenge for you. With Valentine's Day right around the corner I've choosen pink, white and red to work with.

Here is my card using "Shout Out", "Swirl Heart" and the "Nothing" quote.
I started with grey for my base, and layed with Pink Pirouette cardstock. I applied Tattered Rose Distress ink to the edges of the pink CS and to the banner. I cut out the Swirl Heart and banner and layered them on top. Finally I added some quick doodles in the corners.

I hope you'll come play with us!!!!!

Onto other topics.....for those that care to read on. If not, go run to your studio and create a card for our challenge. There are prizes up for grabs!!!

I've been working on getting fit and trim since about mid-Dec. I started just by changing up my diet to included more whole grains, lean protein and less processed foods. I started working out about 3 times a week as well with my Wii and EA Active Sports. Well, the scale wasn't moving. At all!!! I'd go down, then back up and down and up and stay up.... You get the idea. Something just wasn't working. I was tracking my food/calories/etc. online even just to keep myself honest about what I was putting into my body. My co-worker mentioned a book to me "4-hour Workweek" by Tim Ferriss. Sounded interesting, so I bought the e-book and started reading. Very interesting!!! When I bought the 4HWW book, I noticed he also had one called the "4-Hour Body" as well. So, of course I got that one as well. It sat unread for about 2 weeks. Then I finally got frustrated enough with the lack of change I started doing some online research on the book and found a few forums. Did some more reading and discovered in the book is a plan for a Slow-Carb Diet. Sounded similar to the meal plan I was working from when I had a trainer and managed to lose some substantial weight and gain muscle at the same time. So, on Monday I started the plan....of course I had to splurge on Wed for my birthday....and today is my first weigh-in and my first cheat day!!!! I'm down 1lb since last week!! And I only worked out one day this week!! My EA Sports Active isn't going to be happy with me...... I also took measurements this morning, so I'll have that to track weekly as well. So, if you're interested, I'll be posting on my progress on Saturdays.....

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

QKD Special Release!!!

2011-01-26T01:59:00.000-05:00

It's a special QKD blog hop to welcome a new artist, Samantha Nowak!

If you're just popping in start back at the beginning at the QKD blog so you don't miss any of the creations along the way. If you're here from Nina's blog, then you're on the right path.

I was able to work with European Princess for this hop. I colored her with Copics and paper pieced her dress. I layered her on one of the eyelet Nesties die that I ran ribbon thru. I then added a few fancy white flowers to the bottom.

The next stop on your hop is Wynneth's blog. Don't forget to leave some love along the way!!!

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

Sunday Starz - He Loves Me

2011-01-23T12:46:00.001-05:00

Happy Sunday!!!! I'm posting on the WIS blog today!!!!

Today I have a lovely card to share with you made with "He Loves Me He Loves Me Not".

For details come over and see how I created her.

Are you playing along with the weekly challenges posted on the QKD blog? I hope so!!! Is there a challenge type you'd like to see? Leave us a comment and we'll try to get it into the rotation.

Wanna join our team? The design team call has been extended.....details can be found here.

Happy Stamping!
Shannon

Sentiments Challenge!!!

2011-01-22T09:00:00.002-05:00

Happy Saturday!!!! Is it as cold where you are as it is here? It's CRAZY cold outside this weekend. Makes me want to just stay inside and curl up with my hubby and my cats and veg-out all weekend. But, too much to do for much of that to happen. Bummer!!

Today's Sentiments Challenge is brought to us by this month's guest designer....Tiffany Johnson. She's challenging us to create a scrapbook page....any medium....any size.

I'm not much of a scrapbooker. I started into this crazy hobby via scrapbooking, but once I got into cardmaking I kinda dropped the scrapbooking. So, this was a challenge for me. I knew what I wanted to scrap, just wasn't sure where to start. As I was going thru our wedding pictures I came across one that I had taken that was a closeup of my bouquet. Well, that picture ended up being turned into one of the new digi papers I released last week. Once I created that paper, I had a better idea of what I wanted the page to look like. And since I was going to be creating digitially, I didn't have to worry about changing it 20 times and all the papers and accessories that would end up laying all over my studio until I finally decided it was complete.

I started with the Bouquet paper as my main background. I then inserted filled rectangles to create the photo mats, and placed the picture on top of them. The "H" is simply black text. I then added the "Love Script" image above the picture (changing it to white fill) and the line I created using one of the brushes in my digi software. I even included our wedding date, again just regular text, so my loving husband will have a subtle reminder. Now I can print off my newly created page, or leave it just on the computer in our wedding folder. I think this one deserves to be printed.

I had so much fun creating this page. Even if it did force me out of my usual comfort zone. I hope you'll play along with us. You have until the end of the month to enter your creations. Just link up your blog post or gallery page with the Mr. Linky widget at the Sentiments Storefront blog.

Well, I'm off to get some more stamping done today before my birthday dinner tonight.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

Sentiments' Release Day and Challenge #9!!!

2011-01-15T06:00:00.001-05:00

It's all rolled into one today!! Yippie!!!!! I can finally share all my secrets with you!!! It's a big release day at Shannon's Sentiments. And...since it's a Saturday...it's also time to post our next challenge....DT challenge #9 - Sketch.

We're hopping along to celebrate this new release! Go to Sentiments Storefront blog to start at the beginning so you don't miss any of the creations along the way.

We're releasing 3 new digi stamp sets, 2 new freebies and 5 new sets of digi papers!!!!

For the hop today I created a card using the new Cheers set.

I first combined the quote and the glass and printed them on white cardstock. I colored the glass with Prismacolor Pencils blended with OMS. I added white gel pen along the top edge and glitter along the side to represent the bubbles. After printing off the "BAR" saying I cut it out with a Nesties die and added some shading along the sides. I also used this week's sketch as the layout. I hope you'll play along with us! You have until Jan. 31st to play with all of the Jan. challenges for your chance to win.

You've reached the end of the hop, so pop on over to the Shannon's Sentiments Store to get the new images.

If you've been watching closely the last few days, you'll notice that some of our designs are being offered on t-shirts, notecards, mugs, water bottles, etc. at our Cafe Press store. And that's our blog candy for this hop!!! A random winner will receive a set of 8 Valentine's Day postcards. Drawing closes on Jan. 21st at 11:59pm. I'll announce the winner on Jan. 22nd...one week from today just before the next challenge is posted.

Become a follower to the storefront blog and leave a comment here on the release post for your chance to win. There's also a stamp set giveaway going on today on our Facebook page. Become a fan of the page for your chance to win.

20% sale at Shannon's Sentiments now thru Jan. 22nd. Use code jan20sentiments during checkout for your discount.

If you want to be part of the fun....apply to join our design team!!! We're accepting applications now thru Feb. 1st. The new team will be announced on the 4th...and will be joining us for the Feb. release. Details at this post.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

It's a White Out!!!!!

2011-01-11T02:00:00.000-05:00

It's a White Out for today's T3 challenge at the QKD blog!!!!!

To get in on all the action and enter your creation for a chance at a $25 gift certificate, swing over to the QKD blog. I used the new "Bryn" image to create my card. I paired it with embossed cardstock, vellum, and white ribbon. I colored her with Prismacolor Pencils blended with OMS.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

Sentiments Challenge #8

2011-01-08T00:30:00.000-05:00

Happy Saturday!!!!!! How was your first week of the new year? Mine was just exhausting! Getting up at 4:30 every morning just isn't my thing. Especially after a long holiday off of work. At least after a week I'm feeling a little more into the regular groove of things.

Today we have a new challenge for you at Shannon's Sentiments. It's super simple and I hope you'll all play along. After all....there's a $10 gift certificate up for grabs for a random winner....and who don't love free stuff?

Kapree has challenged us to use ribbon on our project. Super easy for me, since I think I put ribbon on just about all my cards. I created this care with images from the "Winter Images" set. I then added some Diamond Stickles for extra bling.

We're also looking for a few good stampers. If you want to be a part of all the upcoming excitement, apply for our design team. Details can be found here.

Previews for the Jan. release are also coming this week....and it's not just digital images....I've been having fun playing with my digital design software!!

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

New QKD Triple Tiara Blog Hop!!!!

2011-01-04T01:59:00.001-05:00

Happy New Year!!! We have lots of exciting things happening at Queen Kat Designs for 2011.....starting with the new Triple Tiara Tuesdays!!!!

For the New Year, we'd like to introduce Triple Tiara Tuesdays right here at the Official Queen Kat Designs Blog as well as the blogs of our very special Royal Court members.

Here's how it goes:

- Each week 3 Royal Court Members host a challenge on their blog. (the same challenge)

- You start at the QKD blog and visit the 3 challenge hosts on their personal blogs. (Leave us some love and a link to your project so we can return the favor. *wink*)

- QKD will offer up a $25 stamp gift certificate for you to compete for each month. So if you enter each week, you have 4 chances to win the monthly prize of $25.

This week we're kicking off the challenges with a sketch challenge based on this sketch from QKD.

My first card features "By the Seashore with background". I colored her with Copics and Prismacolor Pencils. I then added Diamong Stickles and Smooch accents.
My second card features Bryn. I colored her with Copics and Prismacolor Pencils as well.

Swing by the Valerie's and Gretchen's blogs as well to see their creations. Then link up your creation at the QKD blog for a chance to win a $25 gift certificate to the QKD store.

There's still time to get your application in for the design team call.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Happy New Year!!!!!

2011-01-01T09:00:00.001-05:00

Can you believe it's 2011 already????? Seems like just yesterday we were ringing in 2010. This has been an amazing year for me. I meet and married the man of my dreams, started my own company, and went on an amazing cruise. And those were just the main highlights.

We're ringing in the 2011 at Shannon's Sentiments with a new challenge that Cindy is hosting. She's challenged us to use mostly blue on our card/tag. My first card uses 2 of the new freebie images...the calendar page and the "Happy New Year" greeting. I paired it up with the Cruize Ink "Bare Tree" image since around here we're very much in the middle of a deep freeze!!! My next card I created using images from the "Holiday Postal" and "Winter Images" sets. I put all the images together in PowerPoint and then printed it out, before layering it up with some floral paper.

Come play along with us! There's a monthly prize of a $10 gift certificate up for grabs....and who doesn't love free images? All you have to do is link up your blog post or gallery pic to Mr. Linky in the sidebar at the Sentiments Storefront blog.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Last QKD Hop of 2010!!!!

2010-12-28T01:59:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Queen Kat Designs blog hop. If you've just wandered in, make sure to start back at the beginning at the QKD blog so you don't miss any amazing projects. If you're here from Lara's blog than you're on the right track.

This week's challenge is a free-for-all!!!! So, instead of creating a brand spanking new card.....I thought I'd do a 2010 year in review. It's been an amazing year on the QKD team and I can't wait to share all the excitement of the upcoming year with you.

If you want to join us for the excitment, QKD is hiring new DT members. All the details can be found at the blog post here.

Your next stop on the hop is Dark Ink Sorority blog.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

QKD Blog Hop!!!

2010-12-14T01:59:00.000-05:00

Sentiments Challenge

2010-12-11T09:42:00.003-05:00

Happy Saturday!!!!!!! Are you all getting ready for the upcoming holiday madness? I'm sure not. I still have our Christmas cards to make and get sent out today. But since I've been re-organizing my studio there's still a bit of work to do in there before much cardmaking can actually get done.

The card I have to share with you today is for today's Sentiments Challenge. It's a color challenge using red, green, and white. I decided to use the North Pole image from the "Holiday Images Set". I colored the stripes with Copics and added Diamond Stickles to the snow.

To play along all you have to do is link up your red, green and white creation to the blog post at the Sentiment's blog. Easy Peasy!!! You have until the end of the month to play along with each of our weekly challenges this month. There's a $10 gift certificate up for grabs for one random player this month.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

QKD Royal Hop!!!

2010-12-07T01:59:00.001-05:00

Sentiments Release Day Hop!!!!

2010-12-01T06:00:00.002-05:00

It's time again.....it's Release Day at my digital stamp store "Shannon's Sentiments". And we're going a hop to celebrate. If you're here from this month's Guest Designer's blog - Patti Gilliam than you're on the right track. If you're just popping in make sure you start back at the beginning on the Storefront blog so you don't miss anything and for a view of the 3 sets releasing today.

I've had a blast first creating and then creating with these 3 sets!!!! I went a little crazy with the creating, so stick with me here.

My first cards combine the Winter and Holiday image sets. These are super quick cards that just make me happy!!!

This next set of images uses the new "Personal Planner" set. I was so frustrated by never being able to find a planner set that fit all my needs. I've settled for too long. So, I created my own. It has 18 different unchangeable sections!!! How amazing is that, right?! I can finally have just want I want....and you can to.

First I created the pages I'll be using daily. It's a 2-page per day layout with lots of room for jotting down to-do lists, my meals plans, and quick notes. Each page is 5-1/2" x 8-1/2" but can easily be scaled up or down depending on my needs....or my mood. I have planner binders in lots of shapes and sizes.

The second is a weekly view using 2-pages per week. I like this layout for those lazy days of summer where my weekends tend to be busier than the weekdays and there's lots of vacation and holiday time.

This next one I created for the busy mom....that needs to let everyone else in the family know what's going on at a glance. It's a week's look one one full sheet of paper. You could even divide up the days into different schedules for households with super busy schedules.

Now that you've seen the sets, and the design teams amazing creations, hop on over to the store and save 20% using the coupon code "" which is good until Dec. 8th.

Don't forget.....there's a weekly challenge on the Storefront blog every Saturday for a chance to win a $10 gift certificate once a month!!

I've also added a ton of handmade cards to the store as well. Buy 2 Get 1 free!!!! Simply add the name of the card you'd like for free to the comments section at checkout and it will be included in your order. Free card must be of equal or lesser value than the least expensive card in your cart.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

QKD Release Hop!!!!

2010-11-30T01:59:00.000-05:00

For this card I colored the fairy with Copics, and paired her with papers from Making Memories. I added Diamond Stickles for bling along with metal accents.

And one of the new zodiac mermaids Taurus.

I colored her with Copics and added the white details with Copic Opaque White paint. I just got it and it's so much fun to play with. I applied it with a tiny paint brush. The papers are from Making Memories.

Your next stop on the hop is Dark Ink Sorority blog.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

Happy Birthday QKD!!!!!!

2010-11-19T01:59:00.001-05:00

Welcome to the Queen Kat Designs 4th birthday celebration blog hop. If you've just wandered in, make sure to start back at the beginning at the QKD blog so you don't miss any amazing projects. If you're here from Melia's blog than you're on the right track.

One of my favorite party ladies is the Mad Hatted Mermaid. Here I colored her with Copics and Prismacolor Pencils.

Hop along over to Chris's blog to see her creation.

Don't forget...there are a bunch of challenges and prizes on the QKD blog!!!!

Happy hopping,
Shannon

QKD Royal Blog Hop!!

2010-11-16T01:59:00.000-05:00

Your next stop on the hop is Dark Ink Sorority blog.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

Special Sentiments Release

2010-11-15T06:00:00.000-05:00

Happy Monday!!!!! I'm featuring a special mid-month release today for my store Shannon's Sentiments. I'm releasing 3 image sets, 4 new Cruiz Ink images, and a Sentiments set full of fall quotes and sayings.

This first card is 100% digital!!! Love that!!! I used the new ornament group from the "Ornaments" set and the sentiment from the "Wine Labels Set". Then added the starbursts and dots for some dimension. This card was created digitally, then printed onto cardstock. This is the 4 ornament set from the "Ornaments" set. I then added the Diamond Stickles and gel pen to the ornaments.

This card features one of the quotes from the new "Fall Sayings Set" and one of the new Cruiz Ink images "Leaves and Acorns". I printed out the images and sentiment, colored them with Copics, and layered them with red and green cardstock, green silk ribbon, and copper adhesive buttons.

The last card I have to share with you today uses the "Cornucopia" image from Cruiz Ink and the "Happy Thanksgiving" saying from the new "Fall Sayings" set. I simply placed the images together, printed them on cardstock, colored with Copics and added the ribbon and neutral button.
There's a one day special at Shannon's Sentiments going on....save 20% using the code SSDECSpecial20 for today only. Happy shopping!!!!

Shannon

Special QKD Amy Brown Release hop!!

2010-11-10T01:59:00.000-05:00

Happy Wednesday!!! Today we're having a special release hop for the fairies and elfs from Amy Brown. If you're just popping in, hop back to the QKD Blog so you don't miss any of these amazing projects.

I was able to work with "Mushroom Elf" for today's release. I colored her with Copic markers to match up with some Basic Grey papers. I then added Orange and Diamond Stickles to her wings. I added the blue shadowing and grass with Prismacolor pencils. The yellow glow was created by sponging on chalk ink.

The next stop on the hop is Valerie's blog.

Enjoy the rest of your day!

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

QKD Royal Hop!!

2010-11-09T01:59:00.000-05:00

Sentiments Label and Challenge Card

2010-11-06T10:40:00.004-04:00

Happy Saturday!!!! It's a day that will be filled with lots of cleaning since my SIL, BIL and niece are coming over to our house for the very first time tomorrow!!! I'm super excited for them to see the house....but it's a bit of a mess at the moment. Especially my studio!!!!! Yikes!!! Lots of work to do in there today to get it looking decent.

So, before I go getting to all of that....I have a few projects to share with you. Remember how I mentioned that I had created some holiday labels for those wine bottles you take for the hostess for all those holiday parties? Well, my printer and computer decided to finally like me....and here it is. It's generic enough for any bottle of wine and any type of party.

I started with the main label image from the "Wine Labels" set, added the "Happy Holidays" and "From the Home of" sentiments. I added one grape bunch, and another flipping it horizonally. I colored them with Copic markers and then distressed the label with Distress Inks in Antique Linen, Crushed Olive and Weathered Wood. By printing the label right onto sticker paper I can apply it right over the bottle label.

This sparkly holiday card is for today's challenge on the Sentiment's Storefront blog that Cindy is hosting!!!! I created the panel in my drawing software with the "Snowflakes" set and printed it out onto white cardstock. I added the adhesive rhinestones and the Diamond Stickles for some bling.

I hope you'll play along with us!!!! Up for grabs is one $10 gift certificate to the Sentiments store to be given to one random winner picked from all participants each month. There will also be one free image ($3 value) given to the one player that participates the most each month.

Please post with each challenge.....
Rules:
1) You are encouraged to use an image from Shannon's Sentiments, but it's not required.
2) Each player may contribute as many entries as they'd like for each challenge.
3) Blog posts must be linked back to the challenge post with your actual blog post, not your general blog link, or gallery link.
4) Your entry must be new art created for this challenge. You can combine it with other challenges.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

November QKD Release Hop!!

2010-11-02T01:59:00.002-04:00

Shannon's Sentiments November Release!!!!

2010-11-01T06:00:00.006-04:00

It's time!!!!!! Today's the day for the November release at Shannon's Sentiments. Each of the images released today was designed by me!!! How cool is that????? If you've just popped in here, start back at the beginning of the hop at the Sentiment's Storefront blog. Remember.....leave a comment at each blog along the way to be entered into a drawing for a $10 store gift certificate.

This first example uses the new "Snowflake Set." I created it completely digitially using drawing software. The first consists of a blue gradient rectangle with the snowflakes (changed to white) and resized to various sizes. I also used the "Happy Holidays" sentiment from the "Wine Labels Set." It's great how all these sets work so well together. Here's the inside of the card, using the snowflake outlines and the "Spirit of the Holidays" set.

My second example uses the "Wine Label Set" images. I started by setting up the main wine label and adding some creepy wine names for our Halloween party. I printed them off on printed paper and distressed them with Tim Holtz Distress Inks. They looked so good, our guests thought they were strictly for decor, but I was drinking from them all night. It was fun!!!

I also created a set of 4 holiday labels to use for those "unexpected" holiday party invites or those "drop in" guests that bring you a gift. These take that typical bottle of wine and ramp it up a bit. Just slap on the decorated label and add a cute wine stopped tied on the neck of the bottle and you have a very useful, thoughtful, and personal gift to give with very little effort. And who doesn't love a gift that almost puts itself together. And since the labels don't have the wine type, I can buy reds and whites and give exactly the one the receiver wants.

The next stop is the store!!!!! Make your way there and use the 10% off coupon NOVSSREL2010.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Inspiring Royal Hop!!

2010-10-26T01:59:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Queen Kat Designs blog hop. If you've just wandered in, make sure to start back at the beginning at the QKD blog so you don't miss any amazing projects. If you're here from Lara's blog than you're on the right track.

This week's challenge is an inspiration challenge.....with SHOES!!!!! OMG...I love shoes!!!! And I love nothing better than a sassy pair of black booties! I found this pair at Victoria's Secret as my inspiration for this week.

I created this weeks card using the "Whimsical Ink Club kit" Luma de la Mer.

Your next stop on the hop is Dark Ink Sorority blog.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

CSS Alumni Hop!!

2010-10-22T23:00:00.002-04:00

Happy Friday!!!! Welcome to this simple CSS blog hop.....clean and simple that is! If you're just popping in, swing back to StampTV to start at the beginning. If you're here from Miesje's blog than you're in the right spot.

Carolina challenged us with a CAS challenge. I'm in need of more holiday cards, so I decided to work with Rupa's "The Magic of Christmas".
I stamped the sleigh in metallic silver on a metallic striped cardstock, than embossed with clear detail embossing powder. I made the card base with a metallic red cardstock. I stamped the "Merry Christmas" sentiment in Memento Tuxedo Black ink. I added the silver ribbon to tie it all together.

The next stop on the hop is Tina's blog. Make sure you leave some love for her before hopping on.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

StampTV Hostess Thank You Hop!!!

2010-10-21T23:00:00.002-04:00

Tonight we are having a special blog hop to thank our recently retired StampTV Challenge Hostess Team members:

Carla Suto

Melissa Shultz

Brenda Turner

Linda Payne

Giovana Smith

These 5 designers have provided StampTV with a challenge each week during the months of June, July and August.

If you're just popping in, start at Lee's blog so you don't miss any of the amazing creations along the way.

We have a special StampTV Challenge Magazine Volume 3* located on the Freebie Tab, where all of their challenges are shared in a download PDF that you can save to your computer and print out at your leisure!

Please join in our Thank You Discussion on Stamp TV and feel free to play along and say thank you with your own take on one of their challenges!!!

I managed to pull together a card of each of the hostesses for this hop!!!!!

This first card is for Melissa's sketch challenge #6. I just turned the sketch on it's side. I colored the flowers from Melanie's set "A Year of Flowers" with copics and added Stickled glitter. I paired it with Smoky Slate, Pumpkin Spice and printed paper by Basic Grey. The sentiments is from Gina's "Tropical Windows" set. The charm is one I picked up from the jewelry section at Michael's.
My next card is for Brenda's Inspiration #13 challenge using a very fall image from Martha Stewart.I colored the door image from Asela's "The Journey" with Copics. Then added some fun printed paper from one of the first StampTV sets, Pumpkin Spice that's been swiped with Distress Ink, twill tape and chocolate ribbon. The pumpkins from Theresa's "Autumn Beauty" are also colored with Copics and then popped up in front of the door.

This card is for Linda's Blast From the Past challenge #7 - Gatefold with scraps. I started by coloring the flowers from Gina's "Spring Florals" set with Prismacolor pencils and adding some Stickles for bling. I found the rest of the card in my scrap bins....paper from SEI and even the green silk and ivory ribbon were from my scrap stash!

This one I had a ton of fun creating!!! It's for Carla's #2 Color challenge - Orange, Pink and Green. I stamped the butterfly from "Hope is Faith" and colored with Copics. I then cut it out and mounted it onto the cardfront. Added the matching sentiment on paper from Basic Grey, some bling and called it a day.

My last card is my favorite from my bunch. It's for Giovana's "Show my your Christmas style" challenge. I've always done a blue, silver, and white tree....although with a new husband that might change this year. So, I looked all over my craft room to try to decide how to make what I had going on in my head for this challenge. I happened across some funky clear 3-D looking "paper" that I got a couple years ago at Mega Meet and the idea popped! I used some big punches and punched out ornaments from the crazy paper and silver reflective paper to layer behind each one. I then stamped the swirl's from Nina's "Grand Damask" in white Staz-On ink onto the crazy paper. I punch holes in each set and added the ribbon hangers, and then the bows. I stamped the sentiment from "XXX" onto white cardstock and punched it out with its matching scallop oval in the reflective silver. It's a very hard card to photograph well with all it's reflective and opaque surfaces!

Thanks for hopping along with us today! The next stop on the journey is Miesje's blog.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Royal Court Hop!

2010-10-19T01:59:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Queen Kat Designs blog hop. If you've just wandered in, make sure to start back at the beginning at the QKD blog so you don't miss any amazing projects. If you're here from Lara's blog than you're on the right track.

This week's challenge is a color challenge using... Chocolate, ginger, taupe and cranberry.

I created this weeks card using the "Flying High with You" set.
I started by stamping and embossing the blimp-type image on white cardstock. I then used the wrinkle-free distressing with Tattered Rose and Rusty Hinge. I then stamped and embossed the watch image. Then distressed with Frayed Burlap and Fired Brick. I stamped the sentiment on white cardstock in Rich Cocoa and whipped on Antique Straw and Fired Brick Distress inks.

Your next stop on the hop is Dark Ink Sorority blog.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

Lolli Pop Labs Special Blog Hop!!!

2010-10-13T01:59:00.001-04:00

Yippie!!!! It's finally here......the release of Lolli Pop Labs at Queen Kat Designs!!!!! If you're just popping in, swing back to the QKD blog to see all the projects and the overall hop list.

I worked with 2 of the images for this hop. I just couldn't resist making a card with "Lady in Waiting". I colored her with Copics and added shadowing with Prismacolor pencils. Then I paired her with some paper from Core'dinations and a bright pink ribbon. She's the perfect image for someone you know that's going thru a tough time.
The second image I used is "Lady of the Rose Bush". I colored her with Copics and Prismacolor pencils. I used the same Core'dinations paper and some soft green printed paper as well. Adding some paper flowers for a little bling.

The next stop on the hop is Jules's blog......leave her some love before continuing on....

Happy Stamping!

Shannon

QKD Oct. Release Hop.....Take 2!!

2010-10-12T01:59:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Queen Kat Designs blog hop. If you've just wandered in, make sure to start back at the beginning at the QKD blog so you don't miss any amazing projects. If you're here from Lara's blog than you're on the right track.

This week's challenge is a sketch challenge.

I created my card this week with Gypsy Momma. I just adore this image. I turned the sketch on it's side and didn't include the sentiment circle since I didn't feel it was needed with her. I colored her with Copics and paired her up with papers from Basic Grey.

Your next stop on the hop is Dark Ink Sorority blog. Don't forget to welcome the new Royal Court members along the way today as well!!

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

CSS Alumni Blog Hop!!!

2010-10-08T23:00:00.002-04:00

Happy Friday evening!!!!!! Today is another fun hop with the CSS alumni! If you're just popping in, start back at StampTV so you don't miss all the goodness along the way. If you're here from Miesje's blog than you're on the right path.

This time around Carolina gave us a sketch to work with. It's such a great sketch and I had a hard time deciding what stamp to use. I ended up using the flower stamp from Theresa's "Purrr-fectly Delightful" stamp set. I colored the flowers with Copics and added shadowing with Prismacolor Pencils. I created the background paper by using the faux letterpress technique.
The next stop on the hop is Sharri's blog. Make sure you leave her some love!

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

First Public QKD blog hop!!!!

2010-10-07T01:59:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Queen Kat's very first public blog hop!!!! If you're just popping in, make sure you hop back to the QKD blog to start at the beginning.

With the theme of fall I decided to ink up Una Mermaid and create a Halloween card. I colored her with Copics and Prismacolor Pencils. I then paired her with some fun papers by Rusty Pickle and ribbon from Michael's. I added Orange Stickles to her bubbles for fun! Hee Hee!!!

The next stop on the hop is Jenny Johnson. Make sure you leave her some love.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Budget Friendly Gift Idea!!!!

2010-10-06T20:27:00.005-04:00

Happy Hump Day!!!!! I have a great gift idea for a loved one, or just for yourself, to share with you today. With budgets tightening and the cost of food and household supplies not getting any cheaper I've decided to start clipping coupons. After going thru the paper on Sunday morning over coffee with the husband I had quite the stack next to me. I grabbed a clear envelope from my studio and put them inside. Shawn turns to me and says, "Aren't you going to make some cute holder or something for them?" And this idea was born. And.....it just happens to fit perfectly with today's SCS Hope You Can Cling to challenge...something old, something new and the Season's Giftings Challenge in the Moxie Fab World.

I knew I needed a place to sort the coupons....and I decided that I should pair it up with a grocery list and a cute little wallet type enclosure. Then I needed a message center for the kitchen for that week's list and coupons and any other quick notes. I decided to use an old clipboard that I had been using around the house for the wedding invite and thank you list and alter it. I started by choosing the papers I wanted to use and adhered them directly to the clipboard. I punched the 2 holes in the top with the Crop-a-Dile to thread ribbon thru to hang it from since I turned it sideways and the hanger was now on the side. The clip now holds our grocery list and coupons for the week. The right side is a magnetic board. I took a 5"x8" magnetic sheet I picked up at Michael's and covered it with cardstock and stamped the swirls from Nina's "Grand Damask" stamp set on the top and bottom. I then adhered buttons to 2 magnets using Superglue coordinating with the one that's adhered to the ribbon. I created the grocery list on the computer in PowerPoint using the "Fall Kitten" image from Mo's Digital Pencil. The images are my something new.

I started the coupon wallet by figuring how big I could create it with a single sheet of cardstock. It measures 4"x8.5"x1/2" when closed. Perfect size to fit into my purse. I scored the cardstock first, then adhered the patterned paper to it. It's held together with a small magnetic closure that hidden between the paper and cardstock and under the ribbon inside the flap.

Here's the coupon wallet open. The coupon organizer is on the left with the grocery list in the middle. The list is held on with large brads so I can print off more and attach them when I run out. I also adhered 2 ribbon loops for a pen to fit in.

Inside the coupon pocket I created 4 slots that accordian out....food, household, restaurant and other. I stamped the swirls from "Grand Damask" here as well.

I hope this inspires you to get your coupons and grocery lists into a cute gift/decor idea for your house. I need to find some Superman paper now to make Shawn one.....he refuses to take this one to the store and wants his own. ;-) Just another reason I love him so much.

Happy Stamping!

Shannon

QKD Oct. Release Blog Hop!!!!!

2010-10-05T01:59:00.002-04:00

Welcome to the Queen Kat Designs blog hop. If you've just wandered in, make sure to start back at the beginning at the QKD blog so you don't miss any amazing projects. If you're here from Lara's blog than you're on the right track.

This week's challenge is a sketch challenge.

And I have 2 cards to share with you today....one with the new Oct. WIS kit, Lune De La Mer... I created the background paper her by swiping chalk ink onto a Cuttlebug folder before embossing with it. I paired it with the striped SEI paper and fun aqua and silver ribbon.

And the other with Gypsy Momma. I used the faux letterpress technique to create her background paper. Then I paired it with some of my favorite paper from Basic Grey and a borwn satin ribbon.

Your next stop on the hop is Dark Ink Sorority blog where Alex will share her project with you. Don't forget to welcome the new Royal Court members along the way today as well!!

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

SCS Breat Cancer Awareness

2010-10-04T06:00:00.001-04:00

Happy Monday! It's been a crazy weekend of stamping for me!! But good crazy! After making 10 cards on Saturday I managed to pull off another 3 on Sunday. I think I'm set for a few days now.....well, maybe not. I love that my mojo has finally returned full steam!

I created this card for one of SplitCoastStampers Hope You Can Cling To! challenges....Unsentimental. The challenge was to create a card without any sentiments on the front. It's actually a pretty easy challenge....but I have to say....this card would be perfect with a sweet little sentiment on it. I started by using the faux silk technique with a facial tissue for the main panel. I cut out and colored one of the Awareness Ribbons from my store and adhered it to the side. I finished with some small white eyelets. An embellishment I rarely use, but seemed just right for this card.

I'm hoping to play along with the other challenges....4 up already with another new one each day this month. Each card will then be sent off to the Anderson Cancer Center. You should join in with the fun too. There are even a ton of prizes up for grabs.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

Happy Hangover Day......

2010-10-03T10:41:00.003-04:00

for yesterday's World Cardmaking Day craze!!!! I managed to get 10.....yes 10....cards completed yesterday!!!! I can't show them all to you right now, as 4 of them are for the Oct. Release for QKD, but I can share these 3 with you that I created last night after I posted yesterday afternoon.

This first card is for Lee's Image Set Challenge. She challenged us to create a card using one image for a set as a background and one or more image from that same set at the focal point. I knew exactly what I wanted to do for this challenge....as I've had this idea in my head for awhile. I grapped Rupa's "Welcome Home" set and got to work. I stamped the houses and colored them with Prismacolor Pencils blended with OMS. I wanted to keep them light and whimsical to keep them as a background image so I didn't use Copics. I then stamped the sentiment and punched it out. I stamped and colored the keys and then cut them out. The layered up the sentiment and keys as my focal image. Once i was done, I wrote a sweet note inside and gave it to my husband.....because he makes me and our home happy!

This next card is for Kraftin' Kimmie's Celebration Challenge.

I can't believe it's been a year since Kimmie started her very own stamp store. I remember being over in Canada stamping with Paula, Mary, Linda, Pauline, and Kimmie when she told us. She also had her new rubber there for us to play with and buy before she officially oppened her "doors". So we stamped and colored and joined in on her very first hop. Last weekend I spent the day in London at Kraftin' Kimmie's stamp day with Mary. We had such a blast chatting and coloring for the day. Kimmie had a special surprise for us.....the ability to purchase the Oct. release!!!!! Of course Mary and I both jumped all over it! And this is one of the new ladies! I just couldn't resist using her for this challenge. I colored her in Canada last weekend using Copics with shadowing added with Prismacolor Pencils blended with OMS. Then I paired her up with some kraft cardstock and patterned paper from Basic Grey. I didn't have any sentiments to match, so I simply wrote out my own. Congrats Kimmie on your one year anniversary!!!!! And make sure you check out her Anniversary Sale at her store this weekend.

Here's one last card that I created for my post today at the WIS blog. Go over there to check out how I created her sunset background with the Copic Airbrush System.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Happy World Card Making Day!!!!!!

2010-10-02T17:06:00.004-04:00

Happy, happy day!!!!!!!! It's here......it's World Card Making Day!!!!!!!!!!!!! I've been in my studio almost all morning. Ok...I took a break and ran out to Target to pick up a few things....like laundry detergent so I could do laundry in between cards...

I've been busy working on my Oct. release cards for Queen Kat Designs. OMG....these girls this month are just amazing and I've loved working with all of them. I still have a few more to do as well that I'm even more excited for.

After I finished those 4 cards I played along with Gina's Release Party Challenges. I was able to chat for a bit before calling it a night and hitting the NyQuil. The projects the design team created were just amazing and I can't wait to get my hands on several of the sets from this release....just going to have to wait until the bank account recovers from Krafty Kimmie day last weekend.

This first card I'm sharing with you today is for the Recipe Challenge. Cathy gave us quite the unique challenge.....
1) No DP allowed!
2) One layer, in addition to the card base
3)2 rounded corners
4) at least 3 bling items. I created this card on a base of Fresh Asparagus Pure Luxury cardstock. The image layer is layering weight white Pure Luxury cardstock. I edged it with silver paint pen to give the illusion of an additional layer and a bit of shine. I stamped the tree image from Theresa's "A Very Merry Christmas" set in Tuxedo Black and colored it with Copics. I added the shadowing with Prismacolor Pencils blended with OMS. I added the sentiment and 3 self-adhesive rhinestones. I then finished it with some silver pen on the beads on the tree and yellow stickles to the flower centers.

This next card is for the same recipe challenge.

For this card I started with a base of heavyweight white Pure Luxury cardstock. Then I took my Flourished Frame Cuttlebug folder and applied Pumpkin Pie ink to one side. I layed a piece of layering weight white Pure Luxury cardstock inside and ran it thru my Big Shot. This inked the flat areas and left the raised embossed portion white. I added some additional sponging in Really Rust and Dusty Durango to the corners. I then carefully cut out the inside of the frame before adhering it to the base. I stamped the sentiment from Gina's "Thanks a Million" set in Tuxedo black into the center of the frame. I added 3 brown rhinestones and the layered flower.

This next card is so super cute and it's for the Note Card challenge. Jessica challenged us to create a note card starting with a cardbase sized 4-1/4"x5-1/2" that's scored at 2-3/4".

I started with a cardbase of Kraft Pure Luxury cardstock. I then added a layer of printed paper by SEI. I stamped the image from Rupa's "So Grateful" set on layering weight white Pure Luxury cardstock in Tuxedo Black. I colored the image with Copics and added the shadowing below the image with Prismacolor Pencils blended with OMS. I cut it out using an oval Nestabilities die and sponged Wheat chalk ink around the top and sides. I adhered it to the card with pop-dots and added the branch punch outs to each side.

I also wanted to share with you my new pocket size Copic chart. Before when I'd make a visit to my local Blick art store I'd take along my regular chart that I use in my studio for color matching. And I was always afraid that I'd end up bending it or getting something on it to ruin it. So I created this chart in Powerpoint that I could take along with me.

Each section is the size of an Trading Card....2.5"x3.5". I printed it on layering weight white Pure Luxury cardstock and colored in all the rectangles for the colors I currently own. I trimmed off all the excess then folded it in half, then into an accordian shape.

I have 4 sections on one side and 4 on the other. And it folds up perfectly to pocket or purse size and I don't have to worry about ruining my good chart.

I'm going to finish watching the U-M game....then back into the studio to work on some more cards!!!! Such a happy, happy day!!!!

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Design Team Call!!!!

2010-10-01T11:43:00.003-04:00

My online digital images store is having a design team call!!!!!

The details can be found here.

The deadline to submit is Oct. 15th. Hurry and get your application in today! I can't wait to get the new team up and running for the next release.

Royal Court Hop!!

2010-09-28T01:59:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the Queen Kat Designs blog hop. If you've just wandered in, make sure to start back at the beginning at the QKD blog so you don't miss any amazing projects.

This week's challenge is Back to School. Since I don't have kids, I don't think of paper and pens and school supplies. I think about football, apples, orchards, and pumpkins in the fall. And what better image to use in the fall than Autumn.

I colored her with Copics and Prismacolor Pencils.

The fall stamp sale is going on at the store right now. 30% off rubber stamps.

Don't forget to sign up for the public blog hop on Oct. 7th.

Your next stop on the hop is Dark Ink Sorority blog where Alex will share her project with you.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

Heart to Heart......

2010-09-26T10:13:00.001-04:00

Happy Sunday!!!!!

Today is a very special day for a very special stamper. I'm sure many of you know who Carolyn King is....or Cammie as she's commonly called. Her grandmother's birthday is today, but she's no longer with us to celebrate. She passed away after suffering from Alzheimer's. After she passed Cammie got to work and put together the Heart to Heart Card Drive. All in an effort to thank the caregivers of Alzheimer's patients. My grandfather suffered from this terrible disease so I know the patient and caring nature these caregivers provide to not only the patient, but also their family.

I created this card and will pass it on to the home that Cammie's grandmother lived in for her last years. I used the Awareness Ribbons and matching sentiments. I used purple because that's the color of the Alzheimer's Awareness ribbon.

I hope you'll join in her card drive. She has an amazing blog candy package worth over $1000 for one lucky winner!!! There are a ton of companies participating including some of my personal favorites....Gina K. Designs, Stamping Bella and CardMaker magazine. There has also been a huge basket of handmade cards from people like Theresa Momber, Kim Hughes, and Kimberly Crawford. I think my jaw hit the floor when I saw all the prizes listed off. Just amazing!!!

I was going to use this card to create a color challenge here, but instead of that.....I challenge you to create a card for an Alzheimer's caregiver. And if you want, and why wouldn't you, enter it for a chance to win Cammie's blog candy package.

Enjoy your Sunday!!!

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Inspiring Blog Hop!

2010-09-24T23:00:00.007-04:00

Welcome to our CSS Alumni blog hop! If you're stopping in from Melissa's blog, than you're on the right track. If you're just popping in, swing back to the beginning at StampTV so you don't miss any of the ladies amazing creations.

This time Carolina challenged us with an inspiration challenge based on this yummy cupcake picture. When I saw it, I knew exactly what stamp set and color scheme I wanted to use....only one problem....I didn't actually own it yet.
Well, I quickly changed that! And ordered Nina's new set "Grand Damask".

I started with a base of Chocolate Brown Pure Luxury cardstock. Then pairing it with a layer of Innocent Pink Pure Luxury cardstock and printed paper from Basic Grey. I stamped the main image with Memento Cocoa Brown ink on paper from Basic Grey. I then sponged Tattered Rose and Fired Brick Distress Inks around the edges after cutting it out with a Spellbinders Die. I added a self-adhesive rhinestone and some white highlights with a gel pen.

The next stop on the hop is Sharri's blog. So hop on over to see her amazing creation.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

It's a.........Bellariffic Friday!!!!

2010-09-24T08:00:00.000-04:00

Happy Friday!!!!!!!!

It's time for another Bellariffic Friday challenge. And I just couldn't pass up playing along with this one....Faux or Sew!!!

I started with "dogwalkabella". I colored her with Prismacolor Pencils blended with OMS. I even added some fun white dot designs to her jeans. Once cutting it out with a Spellbinders die and sponging around the edge, I sewed it to a piece of Kraft cardstock. I also sewed down the printed paper from Basic Grey to the Kraft cardbase.

Swing over to Bloggabella to see all the Bella Babe creations and everyone else who played along.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

GKD Sketch Challenge

2010-09-22T16:59:00.002-04:00

I was itching to play along with this week's sketch challenge at StampTV. I just loved the simplicity of it....and with my new stamp set I wanted to whip up a simple Christmas card.

Using Theresa's "A Very Merry Christmas" I created this simple version first. I stamped the image and sentiment on layering weight white Pure Luxury cardstock. I used Lipstick Red Pure Luxury for the accent piece. Then, I upgraded the card to the more complex sketch. I added the printed paper and the ribbon under the image panel. I also added white highlights to the ribbon with a gel pen and silver glitter to the bells.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Royal Court Hop!

2010-09-21T01:59:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Queen Kat Designs blog hop. If you've just wandered in, make sure to start back at the beginning at the QKD blog so you don't miss any amazing projects.

This week's challenge is a color challenge using Halloween as the inspiration. orange, green, purple, black and white. Use 2, 3, 4 or all 5.

As you can see, I opted to use all 5 on this card featuring Una mermaid. I used both Copics and Prismacolor Pencils to color her.

Don't forget to sign up for the public blog hop on Oct. 7th. Details are in the post below.....

Your next stop on the hop is Dark Ink Sorority blog where Alex will share her project with you.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

QKD Public Blog Hop!!!!

2010-09-20T13:31:00.003-04:00

Join our Blog Hop

Fall is in the air… Summer is coming to a close and the weather is changing! Queen Kat Designs cordially invites you to sign up to participate in our first public blog hop. We are inviting all of our friends to join in the fun. The hop will be held on October 7-8th.

If you’d like to join us:
1. Send an email to bloghop@katstamps.com with your first and last name and your blog address. (Sign ups end on October 1st)

2. Make a Fall themed hand stamped card or tag for your blog post.

3. Make a blog post on your blog and set it to post on October 7th at 12:01 AM MST

4. Make sure the blog post stays at the top of your blog until midnight on October 8th so the hop isn’t broken for the hoppers.

5. Between October 1st and 3rd you will be emailed back with the person’s name and blog to hop to after yours. Make sure you add this info to your blog post so the readers know where to go next.

6. Add this blinkie to your blog so others can sign up too.

That’s it! In 6 simple steps you can be on the hop! Vicki will send out reminder emails a couple of times before the hop. If you cannot participate please let us know so we can take you off of the hop list.

Each person who participates in the blog hop will be entered to win a $25 rubber stamp shopping spree at Queen Kat Designs!!

BONUS: Use QKD stamps on your creation and get 2 entries into the drawing!

What are you waiting for? Sign up and share this with your friends.

Fall Memories

2010-09-19T14:45:00.005-04:00

Happy Sunday!!!!!

With football on the TV, I took some time to stamp out some of my favorite fall memories for Gina's challenge for this month's Spotlight designer. My favorite memories revolve around heading out to the orchards to pick apples and pumpkins. Then we'd come home and make a yummy apple pie and carve up the pumpkins for Halloween. I started by stamping out the trees and fench image from Theresa's new "Farm Life" set. Then I stamped the pumpkins from her "Autumn Beauty" set, masked them off, and stamped the apple cart from Rupa's "So Grateful" set. The sentiment is also from the "Autumn Beauty" set.

Once I had everything stamped out (in Tuxedo Black ink on heavyweight white Pure Luxury cardstock) I started coloring the images with Copics. I started with the trees and moved forward. I added a bit of orange into the trees and grass to give it a more fall like look. I colored the cart and the pumpkins and the apples last. Then I concentrated on the grass around the cart and pumpkins. Finally I trimed the image down to the size I wanted, mounted it on Black Onyx Pure Luxury cardstock and sewed around the edges. The printed paper is by Moxxie and the cardbase is Chocolate Brown Pure Luxury cardstock. I added a small ribbon tag to the left and the sentiment tag to the right.

There's still time to get your project in for Gina's challenge! You have until Monday at 8pm central to get your project linked to Gina's blog. I hope you play along because the prize is huge and it's a blast being able to play along with her design team for the release and the party.

As promised.....I wanted to show you all my new storage. Michael's had their Jetmax cube storage on sale 50% off this week, so I bought a few. Okay, 10! I couldn't help it.....they were on sale!!!!

I started out with just the 4 drawer ones for ribbon storage. Then I wanted new storage for all my cardstock, so I got 2 file drawer cubes. Then I needed to get some storage for misc. embellishments and it just went from there. And what can I say.....10 cubes later and I love it!!!!

I have loose woodmounted stamps in the bin on the top left, misc papers and cardstock on the top right along with my acrylic mounts and some SU! embellishments. Then I have all my clear misc. stamp sets that I have in DVD tins below that. But what I love most is my ribbon storage.

These drawers are perfect! I cut foamboard bobbins to 5-1/2"x6". Then I spent the majority of last Sunday spinning ribbons around all these bobbins. So, now instead of having a big bin of rolls and pins and balls and lengths of ribbon, I can see exactly what I have at just a glance. And each drawer is arranged by color...ROY G BIV....with neutrals in the last drawer.

And so I would know exactly what each ribbon is, I simply wrote the manufacturer and color on the bobbin. Love it!!!

Gotta run.....sounds like my Lions aren't doing so well right now.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Queen Kat Designs Royal Hop!!

2010-09-14T01:59:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the 2nd week of the Sept. Release for Queen Kat Designs blog hop. If you've just wandered in, make sure to start back at the beginning at the QKD blog so you don't miss any amazing projects.

This week's challenge was this sketch.

I choose to work with just Monarch Mia for this week's card. I just love how she turned out. I colored her using both Copics and Prismacolor Pencils. I paired her up with some fun papers from Basic Grey and some big buttons.

Your next stop on the hop is Dark Ink Sorority blog where Alex will share her project with you.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

GKD Weekly Challenges

2010-09-13T05:00:00.000-04:00

Happy Monday!!!! I have a crazy week of work coming up....ugh! So I made sure I spent some quality time in my studio this week. And I was able to get a TON of "work" done. Not only did the Sept. release at my store Shannon's Sentiments keep me busy, but my design team work for Queen Kat Designs and a Gina K. CSS Alumni hop were on the to-do list as well. Even with all that I made sure I spent some time just stamping for fun playing along with some of the Gina K. Designs challenges. I also re-did my Copic and ribbon storage...and I'll be posting pics of those later this week, just because I love them so much.

I was able to create a card for both of the challenges this week. For Janice's color challenge I created this CAS card. I stamped the image and sentiment from Theresa's "Autumn Beauty" in Tuxedo Black on ivory Pure Luxury cardstock. I then colored the image with Copics. I've loved using them again now that I have a much improved storage system for them. I added some paper piercing in the opposite corner. I layered it on Kraft cardstock and a black Pure Luxury cardstock base. This challenge has closed, but Janice will be posting a new color challenge today for you to play along with....and you'll have a chance at winning a free GKD stamp set. And I know how much we all love new rubber!!!!

These next 2 cards are for Vicki's sketch challenge. She added a twist as well. She created 2 sketches.....one simple and one complex, but both with the same elements. The first card I created is a birthday card for my father-in-law using the simpler sketch. I stamped the sentiments from Gina's "Masculine Messages" in Tuxedo Black and Brocade Blue. I cut it out with a Spellbinder's die and sponged on some Distress Ink in Weathered Wood. I paired it with papers from Basic Grey.

This card was created for the complex sketch with more layer and embellishments. I just turned the sketch on it's side to fit with the image I wanted to use. I need a card for my cousin's baby shower, so I knew this would be the perfect opportunity to create it. She isn't going to find out the baby's sex before delivery so I needed to keep the card neutral. I stamped the images from Melanie's "Wee Tees" set in Tuxedo Black. I cut it out with a Spellbinder's die and paired it up with some papers from Stampin' Up! and Basic Grey. And of course added the three "baby" colored ribbons at the bottom.

This challenge is still going on....you have until Wed. at 8pm central to upload your creation to StampTV. I hope you'll play along. And if you miss this week, check in on Thursday when she'll have a new challenge for everyone to play along with.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Shannon's Sentiments 1st Sketch Challenge

2010-09-12T02:00:00.000-04:00

Happy Sunday!!!! I have our very first sketch challenge for you today. Your challenge.....make a card using the sketch below....link your blog post or gallery post into a comment on this post at the Shannon's Sentiment's Storefront blog....all by next Sunday. Sept. 19th. I'll pick a random winner at 12noon EDT on Sunday. The winner will receive the 3 Awareness Ribbon images and the matching sentiment set. Bonus: if you use a Shannon's Sentiment image on your card, your name will be entered twice into the drawing.

If you upload to SCS or PCP or any other online galleries use the keyword SK01Sentiments. You can also include the keyword SSentiments to any of your cards so we can see all your beautiful work as well.
Here's a card I created using one of the ribbons from the Ribbon Awareness set and one of the matching sentiments.

I added some pink shading to the ribbon with Prismacolor Pencils blending with OMS. I printed off the sheet of sentiments, cut it in half seperating the 2 columns, picked the one I wanted, and used one of the label Spellbinder dies to cut it out from the sheet. I then used some pink chalk ink and sponged on the pink.

I've also added a fan logo for your blog sidebar. Let me know it's there by leaving a comment in any of the posts on the Sentiment's Storefront blog and I'll pick a random winner once a month for a special pre-release image. That person will get the image before the release and be able to participate in the sneak peeks and release day postings.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

It's Release Day!!!!

2010-09-11T09:00:00.000-04:00

It's here!!!!! It's release day at Shannon's Sentiments!!!!! And I have one last card to share with you. I created this little square card using the Cocktail Drink image and one of the free Shannon's Sentiments. I colored the image with Prismacolor Pencils blending with OMS. I paired it with some quirky papers from Cosmo Cricket and some Prima flowers.

All the images can be seen at the Shannon's Sentiments Storefront blog...and are available now at the store! Along with my card here, Mary also has a card on her blog for you to check out.

Also, there's a release special going on......Release Coupon: Enter SEPTSENTIMENTS and receive $3 off your order of $10 or more. Offer valid until 9/15.

Stay tuned for the sketch challenge coming tomorrow.....

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

GKD CSS Alumni Blog Hop!!

2010-09-10T23:00:00.005-04:00

Happy Friday evening!!!! Busy day here on my blog, huh???

Welcome to our first hop in Sept. for the CSS Alumni! If you're just wandering in, start back at the beginning at StampTV . If you're here from Miesje's blog than you're in the right spot.

I haven't had a chance to play along with the CSS alumni girls in awhile, so I figured this color challenge was the perfect time to jump back in.

Carolina challenged us to create a card using the colors, red, orange, brown and either white or ivory. I knew exactly what set I wanted to use for this challenge and set right to work creating this card to share with you today using Theresa's set Sending Sunshine.

I started by stamping the tree, swing and butterfly in Rich Cocoa. I then colored my images with Copic markers. I used a Versamarker and detail clear embossing powder to emboss the tree trunk and branches, swing and the butterfly. I created the grass and sunset using the airbrush Copic system. I masked off the grass and created the sky first, then reversed the mask and created the grass. I added some extra lowlights and grass tufts with Prismacolor Pencils blending with OMS. My cardbase and mat is Chocolate Chip Pure Luxury and the main image is stamped onto the heavy weight white Pure Luxury cardstock.

The next stop on the hop is the amazing Sue!!!!! Quick, hop over there and check out her amazing project.

See you there!

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

One last peek......

2010-09-10T17:00:00.000-04:00

before the release on Saturday!!!!

This is the Cruisin' image....isn't it the cutest? Makes me want to jump onto the Carnival site and book another cruise.

I colored the sun and the water with Prismacolor pencils blended with OMS.

For another peek, visit the Sentiments store blog.

And make sure you come back tomorrow morning for the release of all the images and quotes and sentiments.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Happy Bellarific Friday!!!

2010-09-10T09:00:00.000-04:00

Happy Friday!!!!!

I was able to get back to playing along with the Bellariffic Friday challenge. This week's challenge was Back To School.

When I was deciding on which image to use I was thinking of adult kids going back to college, or off to college for the first time. It also reminds me of fall weather with the crisp air, leaves, and cider mills.

I finally decided on Bookwormabella because she kinda reminded me of what I looked like in college, constantly surrounded by larger than life text books. I colored her with Prismacolor Pencils blended with OMS. I then paired her with some fun fall papers by Moxxie and Basic Grey.

Swing over to the Bella blog to see all the other submissions for this week.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Shannon's Sentiments Sneak Peeks!!!

2010-09-09T07:00:00.000-04:00

It's time............finally!!! For my Sept. release at Shannon's Sentiments. With the wedding and all it entails, including making my own invites and thank yous, I just haven't had the time to get to releasing these images. But life is back to normal here now. So, without futher delay......I present you with Cherry Blossom and the Einstein quote.

I love these 2 images together. And since they are digital images, I was able to place them together in Powerpoint and print them out. I then printed out one larger blossom and cut it out for some dimension. I colored the blossoms with Prismacolor pencils blended with OMS and added shading around the card edges with Tim Holtz Distress Inks.

The Sept release images will be available in the store on Saturday morning. Cherry Blossom will be joined by Scary Skull, Sugar, and many others.

There's 2 other peeks at the Shannon's Sentiments blog....and Mary will have some cards for you to drool over as well.

Come on back tomorrow for another peek!!!

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

QKD Sept Release.....take 2!!

2010-09-07T01:59:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the 2nd week of the Sept. Release for Queen Kat Designs blog hop. If you've just wandered in, make sure to start back at the beginning at the QKD blog so you don't miss any amazing projects.

This week's challenge was this sketch.

I choose to work with just Echo Lily for this week's card. I just love how she turned out. I colored her using both Copics and Prismacolor Pencils.

Your next stop on the hop is Dark Ink Sorority blog where Alex will share her project with you.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

StampTV weekly challenges

2010-09-05T15:39:00.003-04:00

Happy Sunday!!!!! I've been busily crafting my little fingers to the bone this past week....especially yesterday and today. And I have 2 cards to share with you today. The rest will just have to wait for their turn.

I was able to play along with this week's challenges over at StampTV. Gina's hosting both the sketch and the color challenge this week.

This first card using Nina's Lovely Shelf set is for the sketch challenge. I used the leaf stamp from Theresa's Autumn Beauty set for the background on the mustard cardstock and for the sentiment. This card is for the color challenge....brown, yellow, and ivory. I used Theresa's set again here for the corner accents, and Rupa's So Grateful set for the acorns and saying.

Hope you'll come play along with us over at StampTV. There are only 2 challenges a week now, so there's lots of time to play in between each challenge.

Happy Stamping,

Shannon

Queen Kat Sept. Release Blog Hop!!!!

2010-08-31T01:59:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the first Sept. release Queen Kat Designs blog hop. If you've just wandered in, make sure to start back at the beginning at the QKD blog so you don't miss any amazing projects. If you're here from Lara's blog then you're on the right track.

This week's challenge.....collage style ATC or Art Journal page....really made me stretch my mojo. But in doing so, my mojo returned to me! It's been missing for way too long.

I created this art journal page as a jumping off point for my Sept. cards for our weekly hops. Once I had this done, it was a piece of cake to put the cards together. I might just start doing this every month!

Since I was able to work with 2 images, Echo Lily and Una this month, I decided to put both of them onto this page...all colored up and ready to get put onto their cards for later this month.

The next stop on the hop is the Dark Ink Sorority blog where Alex will share her project with you.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

QKD Blog Hop!!!

2010-08-24T01:59:00.000-04:00

Welcome to this week's Queen Kat Designs blog hop. If you've just wandered in, make sure to start back at the beginning at the QKD blog so you don't miss any amazing projects. If you're here from Nancy's blog then you're on the right track.

This week was an inspiration challenge working off this trend collection from Crate & Barrel.

And here's my card using this month's WIS kit.

You can tell I really focused in on the stripes in the napkins and the aqua and lemon color, along with the wavy edges that I captured using the one of my Spellbinder's dies.

The next stop on the hop is the Dark Ink Sorority blog where Alex will share her project with you.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

QKD Blog Hop!!

2010-08-17T01:59:00.001-04:00

Here's my card featuring the Live, Dream, Believe stamp set. It's a simple card using just the sentiment with some embossing on the main panel.
The next stop on the hop is the Dark Ink Sorority blog where Alex will share her project with you.

Happy Stamping,
Shannon

I'm married!!!!!!!!

2010-08-16T14:42:00.003-04:00

If you've been wondering why my blog has been pretty quite lately.....well, Shawn and I took the big plunge this past Saturday and said "I do"!!!! I've been crazy, busy the last 6 weeks pulling everything together. I made my own invitations, RSVP cards, announcements, favors, thank yous, etc. so I've been very crafty lately, just haven't been posting much.

Here are a few pics from Saturday.

Me, getting ready before the ceremony.

The ceremony begins

The kiss!!!! Mr. and Mrs. Shawn Hawkins!!!!!

The flowers and rings

The very happy couple!!!!