Pickle Post #44 - Christmas in July!

Hi friends! Happy Tuesday to you!

Today I created a Christmas card in July for the current challenge over at the A Muse Studio Challenge Blog! This is to celebrate the new Christmas catalog full of holiday stuff that will be available on August 1 - I will have a link in my sidebar when you can sneak a peek at the new goodies!

There's still a week left to enter your crafty Christmas creations to win some A Muse Studio goodies! So I hope you will come on over and join us! Here is what I created for the challenge.

My 'Christmas in July' Card:

I love the traditional stuff for Christmas - red, green and kraft are perfect. The buttons and twine give that old fashioned Christmas feel. Just simple happy holiday wishes - a reminder of home and family! Even if it is 99 degrees and I am in a tank top and shorts, which is cool July weather for us LOL! Arizona is not the place you think of when you think of Christmas - even in December when it's dry and cold, it sure isn't the North Pole!

Stuff I Used (all A Muse Studio products):
Stamps - Say It With Style
Cardstock - Kraft, Candy Cane Stripe, Evergreen
Ink - Cherry, Evergreen
Other Stuff - Toffee Twine, Cherry Buttons

I hope this gives you a little pre-holiday spirit to get a jump start on your Christmas cards and crafty creations!

 

Pickle Post #43 - Yoo Hoo! We have a winner! :)

Hi there! How are you, my friends?

Sorry I have been SO absent. Again. A lot of stuff drops onto my plate sometimes and time gets away from me. Between allergy headaches (evil twins of MIGRAINES), work, the lovely Arizona heat (up to 113 degrees this week) and a very sick kitty, I have been pretty tapped out.

So I haven't posted ANY birthday cards. Great way to celebrate my own blog birthday, huh?
I also realized I forgot to choose the winner of my blog candy! UGH...SO SORRY.
Well, I always say better late then never! So let's play catch up!

This birthday card was created for my brother - created with a private joke between us in mind.
The sentiment (by Paper Smooches) actually reads 'Woo Hooo', but I changed it to 'Yoo Hooo' as this is how we say hello to each other LOL! Here's what I created.

My 'Happy Bird Day' Card:

Some of my favorite techniques are used here - paper piecing, Copic coloring...and my favorite kraft cardstock. I just LOVE this chubby owl. And the party bird on the inside just cracks me up! Paper Smooches are by far some of my all time favorite stamps. So fun and so darn cute!

Stuff I Used:
Stamps - Paper Smooches Chubby Chums & Birthday Buddies
Paper - Basic Grey Offbeat & Marjolaine, A Muse Studio Kraft CS
Ink - Memento Rich Cocoa
Dies - MFT Die-Namics Branch with Leaves, Nesties Circles
Copics - BG72, BG75, BG78, YR12, YR65, E47


**Without further delay - the winner of my Blog Birthday Candy is...ELINE JANSENS!**  
She is one of my new blog buddies! Please check out her new blog - she is VERY talented!
Eline - please contact me (there's a link on my sidebar) with your mailing address.  Congrats!

A HUGE THANK YOU to all of you for your kind comments, for sharing my blog candy, for following me and for being my crafty friends! You are proof that it's a small world after all!
I have more posts in the works, so stay tuned! Thank you for stopping by!

Pickle Post #42 - A Muse Studio Challenge - Hot Diggity DAD!

TO VIEW MY BLOG CANDY - CLICK HERE. Check it out - there's crafty fun stuff to be WON!

Hi there! How are you today, friends? :)

I am a little behind on my post for the current A Muse Studio Challenge, but I always say better late than never! The challenge theme is Father's Day. I have said before that masculine cards are NOT my forte', but I like the challenge. It makes it that much harder because my dad is not the easiest to create for. I aim for humor when I create for Dad and I thought my card turned out rather cute... *ahem* FUN. :) Here is what I created!

My Father's Day Card:

So my dad is a 'grill king' - this is what I call all men who master the art of the grill! He is not a hot dog eater, but 'Here's To The Burger King' isn't an A Muse sentiment YET. :) Still - isn't it fun? Gotta love the ketchup red and mustard yellow chevrons! I stamped this on kraft because it is eternally masculine AND I didn't have to color the hot dog buns. There is a method to my madness. :) The yellow pennant seemed to fit in perfectly. Since A Muse doesn't have 'Dad' as a sentiment, I took another stamp that said Happy BirthDAy and used the letters to create it as well as the exclamation point. Ah, the art of crafty improv!

Here is the inside of the card:

See the beer foam? That's Le Pouf, a dimensional 'paint' that puffs when you heat it! LOVE that stuff - great for Santa hats and snow on Christmas cards, too! :)

Stuff I Used (All A Muse Studio Products):
Stamps - Hey, Man!, Say It With Style, Birthday Greetings (letters used for DAD)
Cardstock - Kraft,Buttercup, Cherry
Ink - Papaya, Cherry, Memento Tuxedo Black
Copics - hot dogs Y17, R24 beer E33, E37
Other Stuff - Cupcake Toppers Dies, Le Pouf Dimensional Paint

I hope you will enter your Father's Day creations into the challenge - you don't have to use A Muse products, but if you do, you get two entries per link! So come on over and join in the fun for your chance to win some A Muse goodies of your very own!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I really appreciate you being here! :)

Pickle Post #41 - Picklelicious Candy for My Blog Birthday!

Hi there! Happy Sunday to everyone! :) It's my Blog Birthday TODAY!

Hard to believe it's been a year since I embarked on my blogging journey. To thank all of you for your sweet comments and kind support, I am giving away some 'Share Crafty Love & Pickles' blog candy! :)

My goal has always been to increase my base of crafty friends (I do consider my followers as my friends!) and just have fun with my blog. I don't want a center stage spot in the crafting world - I just love being a part of the crafting world! Making new friends and sharing creative ideas with other artists is most important to me - cuz THAT is what we are - ARTISTS.  :) And who doesn't love some kudos along the way?

I would be over the moon if you would help me spread the word and meet new friends by posting my candy to your blog or wherever your crafty friends are. I am opening this to my international friends because I have many of them too! :) Hooray!

If I can double my follower base in the next 30 days, everyone will get double the chances to win! If you can't follow me through Google, you can sign up for my posts via e-mail - let me know if you follow or subscribe to my posts in your comments. If you post the candy to your blog or somewhere else like Facebook to give your crafty friends the chance to win, please leave me a comment and that will give you extra chances as well.  

Sharing the candy will help you win! I will choose the winner on Sunday, July 8.
I will post birthday cards throughout the next few weeks to celebrate, so watch for those posts as well.

I just really appreciate each and every one of you - there are so many things I have learned because of YOUR shared creativity. This blog would not exist if it wasn't for all of YOU inspiring ME each and every day!

Thank you for your love and support this past year! Here's to many more! Happy Blog Birthday to ME. :)

Pickle Post #40 - In Sunshine & In Shade

Hi again! Today I am staying indoors to avoid the lovely summer heat here. 

YIKES - the forecast for Phoenix is 102 degrees. So there's no better time to get some crafty things done, right? All while enjoying the nice air conditioning in my craft room! :)

So if you are somewhere there's rain or chilly weather (like Alaska LOL), here's a little card to brighten your day! It's another simple card with the focus on the sentiment using A Muse products. I have a special friend in mind for this one.

My Friends in Sunshine & Shade Card:

I used my circle Nesties and nice bright cardstock to create this happy little card. I think I will make another one where I emboss the little orange sun on the front and use some different colors, but this one still makes me smile. :)

Stuff I Used (all A Muse Studio Products):
Stamps - Sunshine & Shade (sentiment), Calendar Fun (smiling sun)
Cardstock - Buttercup, Orange
Ink - Bellini, Memento Tuxedo Black
Other Stuff - Spellbinders Circles & Scalloped Circles, White Pearls (colored with Copic marker YR09)

So please enjoy a little sunshine cuz we have more than enough! :) Thanks for stopping by!