LONG time...

It's been a VERY LONG time since I posted here. A year and a half ago, I ex-patriated from Canada to the beautiful tiny Latin American country of Ecuador, and now live happily, high up in the Cajas Mountains.  Relocating to another continent is complicated, to say the least. I still don't have all my precious crafting supplies, but try to use what I can find here, and what I find on my travels back to North America.

I'm posting a current card...doing beading and embroidery these days...and hope I'll be more active in blog postings as time goes by.

I'll enter this card for these challenges: 

Alphabet Challenge Blog "L" is for "Lacy"  

Inky Chicks Summer Colours

That Craft Place "It's a Girl Thing"

Papercraft Challenge...Use Lace 

 "One Stop Craft "# 236 challenge..."flowers and ribbons" 

Ladybug Challenges...use your favourite embellishments...mine are beads!) 

Penny's Challenges and Crafty Sentiments...Bling it On
Dream Valley Challenge 62...Summer Days

THANKS for the challenges, and THANK YOU SO MUCH for still coming to visit! Hope you'll let me know you were here.

LOTS of winter fun!

Thanks for visiting my blog! This will be my last entry until the end of April. I'll be travelling to South America and western Canada for several months...getting adventurous in my dotage .

I decided to use several challenges to create some of my Christmas cards this week. What FUN!

The Simon Says and the Fab and Funky challenges...anything goes...so I'm entering all these cards!

The Dreamweaver challenge is to use silver and turquoise...what a lovely combination! I used the same snowflake stencil (LL399) twice. For the first card, I used Glossy White embossing paste, then sprinkled glitter over the paste while it was still wet. The stamped sentiment is an old Anna Griffin design from Plaid.

I loved how the snowflake embossed on foiled cardstock! This sentiment stamp is from Cornish Heritage Farms...so sadly now out of business. The current Alphabet Challenge is "vibrant." Hope this qualifies!

Hope you'll consider playing along with the Dream it Up challenge too. You can find it here!

Over at Impression Obsession, the challenge is "something we drink."

You can play along, and be entered into the competition to win a $25 credit to the Impression Obsession shop! Click here for all the details. For this first card, I used a Cricut image of wine glasses over a stamped background with the Cover a Card Medallion stamp CC032, stamped with Memento Bamboo Leaves ink. The sentiment stamp is from one of the newly released clear sets All I Want for Christmas CL 304.

The Crazy Amigo challenge is...PARTY!

This card uses the Martini Tree F2352, paired with diecut pieces from Spellbinders and Sizzix. The Sisterhood challenge is polka dots, and the Charisma Cards challenge is seeing spots. The challenge over at Our Creative Corner is...Christmas trees! Here's a different one!

This one uses the Marshmallow Mug stamp (E6755) paired with a sentiment stamp from one of the newly released clear sets All I Want for Christmas CL 304.

This last Impression Obsession card uses a bottle with a wreath along with a sentiment stamp from the set CL282 The Miracle of Christmas.

Over at Art Journey, the challenge is...you guessed it...winter! Here are several cards for that challenge. Art Journey is Louise's company in the Netherlands, and they've recently translated their website into English for easier exploring. Their stamps are particularly suited to altered art, which is how many stampers use them.

Isn't this a BEAUTIFUL stamp!? It's from the Gorgeous Kids set. The Creative Card Crew challenge is...monochromatic!

This holly stamp is from the Christmas set.

This one uses a stamp from the Christmas set too. Lovely 'eh?

Thanks SO MUCH for visiting today! Wishing you times of happiness, doing what you love to do, and spending time with people you love.

Have I told you lately...

...how much I LOVE challenges!? They get us out of our creative doldrums, right?

We're currently in the midst of our first snowstorm of the season here in Nova Scotia, and I spent SUCH a lovely day in my craft room...lots of lattes, snow falling outside, and all my Christmas card supplies all around the room.

The ABC challenge this week is "D for Dazzle..." bling, bling and more bling! The Moxie Fab World challenge is red and rustic. I used Impression Obsession Cover a Card stamps for the ornaments (Music and Holly), and a sentiment from this Impression Obsession set (CL347 Christmas in the Heart). The Sisterhood challenge is polka dots. I used the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots folder to emboss one of the ornaments.

The Creative Card Crew challenge is monochromatic. I used blue with white for this one, along with the Impression Obsession Cover a Card Snowflakes stamp and a sentiment stamp from this Impression Obsession set (CL 282 The Miracle of Christmas). The One Stop challenge is BLUE!

The Papertake Weekly challenge is "Christmas Faves." I've used several versions of ornament cards for Christmas this year, with Impression Cover a Card stamps. This one uses a sentiment from the new Impression Obsession Christmas in the Heart clear set.

There's a HOT sale happening over at Impression Obsession...click right here for all the details!

The Dreamweaver challenge this week is a circle sketch with a Thanksgiving theme. I used one of my very favourite Dreamweaver stencils (LL 318 Leaf Heart) with Dreamweaver White Embossing Paste sprinkled with Metallic FX Eye of the Tiger. Then I used an Impression Obsession stamp from the CL287 Live in Thanksgiving clear set.

Thanks so much for stopping by today. I sure do appreciate it! I'll visit you too, if I have a link.

Challenges...

I absolutely LOVE fall!! Ours here in Nova Scotia has been spectacular, with unseasonably warm temperatures, and a prolonged extravaganza of our leaves changing colours. Another reason I love fall is that I begin to "nest" for the winter, getting back into stamping and playing with papers, doing indoor things, and I've really enjoyed a delightful few days in my hobby room.

The Impression Obsession designers are playing with the theme of "no patterned papers." If you're interested in playing along for the chance to win a $25 gift certificate for the IO shop, just check all the rules right here. Here are some of the Christmas cards I've done for friends. I enjoy repeating patterns/stamps in trios, which is what I've done for these two cards. The sentiments I used are new released IO stamps CL347 Christmas in the Heart and CL304 All I Want for Christmas). The tree (D8136 Curvy Tree) and the ornament (C 4600 Oblong Ornament) are older, favourite Christmas stamps. The Pile it On challenge # 46 is to do traditional Christmas cards, and the Fab 'n' Funky challenge is "Baby it's cold outside."

I really like this ornament...so many possibilities for colouring, glittering and embellishing!

I did this one for an American friend for Thanksgiving next week, and, of course, to meet some challenges: Our Creative Corner wants us to use the colours of pumpkin pie, Play Date Cafe has a fun colour challenge, and I used this fun sketch from Stampin' for the Weekend. The cupcakes stamp is another old favourite (MC181 Cupcakes Clear Set), paired with one of the new sentiments from the clear set CL331 Gratitude.

Here'a another card using a sentiment stamp from the same set, stamped on Jillybean Soup brown Kraft cardstock. The Simon Says challenge is thankful, as is the Sisterhood challenge. For this one, I used squares of watercolour paper prepared with spritzed Ecoline Watercolour Inks, and bordered with Krylon 18 Kt Gold Leafing Ink. The Impression Obsession stamps I used are CC029 Cover a Card Music and the F5549 Flourish, both embossed with Ranger Seafoam White EP, and the sentiment is from a newly released set called CL331 Gratitude. I used crystals from Duncan/I Love to Create.

This card was also created for an American friend who celebrates Thanksgiving, and to meet the Postcard Art challenge, which was to use poppies, in remembrance, and for the Creative Card Crew Thankful challenge. The card uses another sentiment stamp from CL 331 Gratitude Clear Set, and a poppy stamp from Hero Arts.

The current Wee Memories challenge is to create a birthday card. This is what I did, using the Cover a Card Music stamp CC029, along with a sentiment stamp from the Impression Obsession clear set CL39 Birthday Sentiments :

THANK YOU so much for taking the time to stop by today. Please take some time to stop by the other IO designers' blogs for some eye catching inspiration; you can find direct links on my sidebar.

I wish you a week of delight...do what you love, love what you do.

Nature...again...

The current Art Journey challenge is all about NATURE. If you'd like the opportunity to win a ten euro's gift certificate to the Art Journey shop, here's what to do:

-Create a new card, and put in on your blog with a link back to the Art Journey challenge.

-Put a direct link to your work at the end of the blogpost in the "Add your link" section over at thechallenge site

-Use mainly Art Journey stamps

Here's another card I did...just getting back into card making again, now that the cooler weather has arrived here in Nova Scotia...WOOT!!

The leaves border on the right is from this Art Journey Set, called "Inchies." That precious wee boy is from this Art Journey set, called "Kids."

I'm playing in these challenges:

Secret Crafters (flowers, ribbons, lace)

Our Creative Corner (masculine cards)

Three Muses (vintage collage/memories)

Papertake Weekly (anything goes)

Fallin' for You (I used fall colours for my take on the challenge)

THANK YOU for stopping by! Wishing you a week of delight, doing WHAT you love to do, with PEOPLE you love too!

Aaaahhh SNOW!

The Impression Obsession designers are enjoying "Snow Much Fun" this week! I used one of the new Alesa Baker stamps (Impression Obsession G7640 Snowman with Ornament), coloured just a little with Touch Markers, glittered, then mounted on a Spellbinders Lacy Circle diecut over embossed mirror cardstock. I stamped his hat twice, black-embossed one of them, cut it out and mounted it with dimensional foam for a little more dimension on the card. The embossing on blue mirror cardstock was done with one of my very favourite Cuttlebug folders, from the six piece set called "Love is in the Air.

If you like snow people, Impression Obsession has pages and pages of them for you!

If you would like a chance to win free stamps too, join the Impression Obsession challenge...just post your "Snow Much Fun Card" at the bottom of the post on the Impression Obsession Blog, from November 3rd through November 3rd.

The challenge guidelines are in the first side bar to the right on the IO Blog, near the top, under the "New Fall-Winter Card Album".

Please take some time to visit the other IO designers...always some delightful inspiration to be found.

Challenges can bring you inspiration too!

Papertake Weekly (anything goes, plus bling, this week)

Thank you SO much for visiting...I'll sure visit you back if there's a link to do so...wishing you time spent with people you love, doing the things you love to do!

Nature...

The current Art Journey challenge is all about NATURE. If you'd like the opportunity to win a ten euro's gift certificate to the Art Journey shop, here's what to do:

-Create a new card, and put in on your blog with a link back to the Art Journey challenge.

-Put a direct link to your work at the end of the blogpost in the "Add your link" section over at the challenge site

-Use mainly Art Journey stamps

Here are some cards I did...and had such FUN doing them!

Thanks LOADS for visiting! I'll visit you too if I have a link.

Partying here:

Crazy Amigo ("Time..." forever...)

Papertake Weekly (anything goes)

Simon Says (anything goes too)

"May your pockets be heavy and your heart be light.

May good luck pursue you each morning and night."

An Irish Blessing