RAK's and an Award

A wonderfully talented and special lady........Lee........has awarded me a VERY cool and awesome award!!! It is given to bloggers who share their art and creativity making their contribution to the blogging world. Here are the rules:
1. You pick five blogs that you consider deserve this award for their creativity, design, interesting material, and also contribute to the blogging community, no matter what language.
2. Each award has to have the name of the author and also a link to his or her blog to be visited by everyone.
3. Each award winner has to show the award and put the name and the link to the blog that has given her or him the award itself.
4. Award-winner and the one who has given the prize have to show the link of Arte y Pico blog, so everyone will know the origin of this award.

So in keeping with the rules, I am awarding this to my pals

1. Laura(she just got named to the Verve Visual design team, woohoo!!)

2. Carolina(she is so super sweet and talented!!)

3. Chat(she is AMAZINGLY talented and sweet to boot)

4. Linsey(one of the most supportive and sweet people I know)

5. Lee(cause you rock, what can I say!!)

6. Silke(I love her style and her fabulous use of color)

7. Lesa(she is my pal, and fellow guest designer for good reason, she ROCKS!!)

Well, now that we have established that I can't count(since when does 5=7??), onto my RAKS!! The first one comes from my pal Lesa. It is from the Bella swap hosted on the Paper Pretties forum. Isn't she cute!! I think I need to send this one to Lee!! Lesa is also one of the new guest designers with me at Paper Pretties and I am so excited to see what she comes up with!! I know it will be fun though!!! She is also the one of the reasons I got talked into going to Texas for a shoebox swap!! I am going to go see my brother while I am there too, but I am also excited to get to meet some of my stamping idols!! Truth be told, she is the reason why I went to the Paper Pretties release party, so without her, I wouldn't be guest designer!!

The second one comes from Christie Ortman, who hand picked me to be a guest designer and completely rocks my world!! Her coloring on this is UNBELIEVABLE!! The colors are so bright and vibrant, you should see it in person!! When I recieved Christie's email about being one of her guest designers, I was overjoyed. I had just talked to my mom that day about trying out for guest designer spots, so when I got her email, it felt so good!! It made me think about one(or many) of the Oprah shows where they talk about sending positive energy out into the world to get what you want. Maybe they are onto something!!

Last, is from Charmaine thanking me for sending her a card and for her MIL. Isn't it fabulous!! She is so incredibly talented and such a gifted stamper. I go to her blog daily for inspiration!! She has such a fun style, and is so talented it isn't any wonder so many people want her on their design teams!!

Well, that is all for now, thanks for looking and have a great day!!

Time for a Sketch

The first time I saw this little( and I do mean little, it is so tiny)bench on one of Beate's cards, I knew I had to have it. I tried to be strong and not order it, then Jodi(kharmagirl) and Carolina(craftycaro) posted the cutest cards with the bicycle from this set. I was hooked!! I immediately went to buy it, and as soon as I received it got it all mounted up and ready to use. That was weeks ago, and I am just now getting around to use it. Do any of you have that problem? Do you get to the point where you have so many options, it is hard to narrow down what you want to use. I think I tried 4 different versions of this sketch, before this card popped in my head( and thank goodness it did when it did, because I was about to give up and go to bed)!! I stamped the bench(tiny tiny) on a piece of Whisper White and colored it in with my SU markers and ink pads. I used my aquapainter to blend it, and then outlined the main image with a prismacolor cool grey marker. The paper is Afternoon Tea by SU and it is paired with Chocolate Chip, Always Artichoke, and Groovy Guava. I sponged all the edges with Chocolate Chip to soften it up. Me being me, I put silver brads all over it!! I used some of my beloved Chocolate Chip satin ribbon, since someone so generously pointed out to me that they have it in one of the SU ribbon original packs(it's sad that someone had to tell me that, I am a demo ya know). Well, that is it for now!! Thanks for looking and have a great day and remember, if you want to send Leanna an RAK, just email me or check out the Need a Lift forum on SCS!!

stamps-All Holidays and Time for You

paper- Chocolate Chip, Always Artichoke, Groovy Guava, Whisper White and Afternoon Tea DSP

ink-Black Stazon and Chocolate Chip

tools-stylized silver hardware, aquapainter, SU markers, prismacolor marker, chocolate chip satin ribbon

Color Me Embarrassed

I have never been so embarrassed, well, that's a bit of a stretch, but it has been awhile!!LOL If you read my 7 random facts you know that I hate to be wrong. Well imagine my surprise when I realized today that the color challenge card I made for last night, was WRONG!! Can you hear the challenge police coming to get me?LOL I was supposed to use Apricot Appeal, and for some reason, I used Pretty in Pink, duhhhhh. The only excuse I can come up with is that I was stamping at 2am, what more can you expect, really!! Some good did come of it though because as I was going through the gallery, I stumbled upon Cindy(mothermark)'s card. She had made it to send to a special little girl named Leanna. By now, I had realized my mistake in the color combo, so I decided I would redo the challenge and make a card for her. If you are interested in sending this special little girl an RAK, check out this thread in the Need a Lift forum on SCS. I am a huge fan(stalker) of the NAL forum because I try to send out atleast 5 cards a week to people I don't know, and who aren't expecting it(speaking of that, I need to get my butt to the PO). I like to send happy mail but I really love to send them to people that need a lift!! I had talked before about a RAK group, but really only had 6 or 7 people interested, so what I had thought about doing is posting a link to a certain thread once a week and all of you that are interested can contact me or the author of the thread and send the person in need a card. What do you think??? Also, I have quite the collection of addresses, and am not shy about asking for them, so if there is someone you want to RAK, let me know, and if I don't have the address, I will get it for you!!!(I've got connections)LOL

Anyway, onto my card!! I used this weeks color combo and Julee Tilman's mojo Monday sketch. I wanted to use my other stamps that I got in the mail from Paper Pretties yesterday, so I stamped the image from Cuddle Me on Whisper White with Black Stazon and colored it in with my SU markers. I went over the whole dress with Perfect Pearls to give it some shimmer. The rest is pretty easy to figure out!! Thanks for looking and have a great day!!

stamps-Cuddle Me by Paper Pretties

paper-Apricot Appeal, Cameo Coral, Creamy Carmel, Mellow Moss, Prints Pack and Whisper White

ink-Black Stazon

tools-Nesties, cuttlebug, swiss dots folder, white taffeta, aquapainter, perfect pearls, big white brads

Prettie Tuesday

Today marks my first "official" day as a guest designer for Paper Pretties. Christie Ortman was so kind to ask me to work with her and her fabulous design team, I am so excited!!! You want to know what is even more exciting...my new Paper Pretties stamps(the ones I ordered at the last release party where Christie noticed me) arrived in the mail today, so I got to use them for this card!!! If you haven't been to see their fabulous store, you should check it out NOW!!! This card is also for the color challenge over on SCS. I usually love doing the color challenge, but this one was hard for me. Usually we have three colors to work with plus neutrals, but tonight's challenge has 4 colors!! Super tough!!! I really like what I did with it though!! The base is Creamy Carmel and layered with Mellow Moss and Whisper White. I put a piece of the Pretty in Pink DP from the Prints Pack on the bottom and then created the layered scallop panel using Cameo Coral, PinP and Whisper White. I then tied a piece of pink and moss taffeta around it and added a piece of pink and moss gingham to them. The main image is stamped with Black Stazon and I used my SU markers to color it in. I highlighted the necklace, butterfly and bracelets with my Sakura glitter pen. The oval shadow on the ground is from the Sassy Circles set by Paper Pretties. It is great for grounding images!! I masked the feet on my main image and stamped the oval in Creamy Caramel. I made a boo boo in the bottom corner of my image so I used the spiral clip with some kraft taffeta and caramel gingham on it. The white brads in the bottom corner came with my Paper Pretties order today, which was a good thing, because I used so many making my Easter cards I was out!!! Well, I really need to get to bed, so that is all for me now!! Thanks for looking and have a great day!!

stamps-Flutterbys and Sassy Circles

paper- Creamy Caramel, Mellow Moss, Cameo Coral, Pretty in Pink CS and DSP, and Whisper White

ink- Black Stazon

tools-Sakura glitter pen, white brads, pink-kraft-moss taffeta, pink-moss-caramel gingham, SU markers, aquapainter, spiral clip and corner rounder

Why Oh Why...

Do I try to take pictures at night. I can never get a good one!!! I need to buy all the fancy equipment, but then I couldn't spend money on stamps and gas!!LOL This card is for the Technique Lover's Challenge over on SCS. The challenge was to do Paper Tole on a card, but the image could not be a flower. I had never tried this with a flower, or without, so I decide it would be a nice challenge to try. The idea is to do multiple layers of the same image to give it depth. I didn't do many, but the main image is on Whisper White and embossed in black(so were the other layers by the way). The second layer was cut out except for the antenna's that would just be ridiculous. The last layer is just the body of the butterfly. I colored the image in with my Pale Plum then my Perfect Plum marker. I then went over the whole thing with my aquapainter to take out some of the color. You can't see it, but the whole image is covered in Perfect Pearls to make it shiny. The background was created by inking the "reverse" side of the cuttlebug folder(back of the front) with Perfect Plum ink and running it through the cuttlebug. Then I took my Versamark pad and covered the whole thing and embossed it with clear embossing powder. My hardware is from the Stylized Silver hardware from SU. I colored it with my Sharpie first, but didn't like the way it looked, so I covered it in Versamark and embossed it with black. The rest is pretty self explanatory. The second picture is blurry, but it is of the layers. Thanks for stopping by and making my day brighter!!!
stamps- Circle of Friendship and Butterfly by Inkadinkadoo

ink-Versamark, Black Stazon and Perfect Plum

paper-Pale Plum, Perfect Plum, Basic Black and Whisper White

tools-hardware, black organdy and brads, black embossing powder, clear embossing powder, perfect pearls, SU markers, aquapainter, cuttlebug, textile folder

My Pal Laura

When I first started getting involved in SCS back in October of last year, I was so scared!! Funny, I know, but scared none the less. I had so many fears about posting cards, and participating in challenges. I was really afraid that people wouldn't like my work and since some of the "groups" seemed so developed, they would think I was butting in. Around Christmas time, when everyone was elf ing people, I longed to be elfed, but still didn't know anyone. Since a lot of time had passed, and they had announced that they would not be taking any more "elf's", I pretty much thought my chances were up(I know now that I should have just done it myself, but I didn't). Then it happened, I got the PM, You've Been Elfed!! I was so excited when I saw it, and after reading it, sent back a PM with my address saying I would be honored, and also that I wanted to know who had done it, so that I could send them something too!! Well, turns out, the pm came from my elf Laura(scrapnextras). She said that I was always so nice to her, and leaving her such wonderful comments that she wanted to elf me, plus she noticed that I hadn't been elfed yet, and didn't want me to miss out. I was so happy I cried. She was the first person to reach out to me on SCS, and the rest is history. I now have tons of people that I consider friends and I feel so blessed to have met them. So, by now, if you read this far, you wanna know why I am babbling about this, well, FINALLY, Laura has been chosen as the FS over on SCS. YAY!!!!! I nominated her a while back, and have been (im)patiently waiting for her to have her time in the spotlight, and it has finally come. So this card is a tribute to her. Her gallery is fabulous, and a great source of inspiration. There are so many cards in her gallery that I would love to CASE, but since I have an ever growing collection of cards(6photo boxes full!!), I try to limit myself to one challenge card a day. I loved this card when I first saw it and wanted to CASE it, so I took this opportunity to do that. I did make my required changes, which were the images, sentiment, dp(same pack, different print), added some more brads and some piercing, a couple of layers, cause you know I love them, and the ribbon. I had just used the chocolate ribbon last night, and it makes my heart hurt when I use it, so I couldn't stand the pain of using it two days in a row. Oh why oh why didn't I buy some extra when it was on sale, now I live in constant fear that I will run out!!!LOL!! Well, I hope you are having a happy Sunday!! Thanks for stopping by, and for your continued support!!

stamps-Sweet Serendipity and Stampendous Changito Swing

paper- Close to Cocoa, Pretty in Pink, Whisper White and Berry Bliss

ink-Brown Stazon

tools-soft subtle brads, pink organdy, paper piercer and mat pack, SU markers

Paper Pretties

I am so excited about being a guest designer for Paper Pretties for the next few months, that I just had to make a card using their super cute set Look Who's Perky!! I originally fell in love with this set when I saw design team member Charmain Ikach's card here. It reminded me so much of Mrs. Potts from Beauty and the Beast, I just had to have it!!! I made this for a SCS friend that I haven't talked to for awhile. She is busy with life and work, and I just wanted to let her know that I haven't forgot her!!! I started with this yummy paper from DCVW Retro Stack. I got my colors from that paper. I didn't have quite the right blue to match, so I used Chocolate Chip and Sahara Sand. Normally, I don't do this, but I wanted you to see the sparkle on this image. The full picture of the card doesn't show it that well, so I wanted you to see up close what kind of sparkle it had!!! Don't mind my blurry picture, apparently I can't hold my camera still and hold the card at the same time!! My coffe cups were stamped with Black Stazon and colored with SU markers. I covered the Sahara Sand and the steam with my Sakura glitter pen. As you can probably tell, I am still loving my crystal effects right now, so I covered my cups with it to give them some dimension. It really changes how they look. For a little more depth I sponged the edges with Chocolate Chip ink and paper pierced around the image and under the sentiment. I added a row of white eyelets and a some chocolate satin ribbon and it was done. Hope she likes it, and I hope you all have a wonderful day!!Thanks for stopping by!!
stamps-Look Who's Perky by Paper Pretties
paper-Chocolate Chip, Sahara Sand, Whisper White and DCWV Retro Stack
ink-Black Stazon and Chocolate Chip
tools-eyelets, chocolate chip ribbon, paper piercer, SU markers, Sakura glitter pen, crystal effects

Saturday's Inspiration Challenge

First of all, I am so excited today....I bought my first gift for my new nephew!!! It is sitting here under my computer table and the more I see it the more giddy I get. yay!!! Today's challenge was to be inspired by something inside of your home. I decided to be inspired by this wreath on the wall in my dining room. My best friend from HS Kristen, and her family, sent it to me 2yrs ago when my second dad Mike passed away(step dad, but I like second dad better, it is definitely more fitting). It has been hanging on my wall ever since, and as long as it holds up, it will remain. I even think that when it gets too ratty to have on the wall, I will take it back to where they got it and have it reworked. I mostly used the colors, but the flowers had a little something to do with it too. The base of the card is standard A2 size in Chocolate Chip, then layered with Cranberry Crisp and So Saffron. The edges were sponged with CC ink. I then used CC ink and stamped both the French Script and Sanded background on Very Vanilla. i have seen a lot of people do this on SCS, and I love the effect it gives. The main image was stamped with Timber Brown Stazon on Very Vanilla and colored in with my SU markers and ink pads. The bucket was stamped separately, colored, and cut out. I used a gold pen to highlight the handle on the bucket, then glued it on top of my flower. And you know I can't not go around the image with my Prismacolor cool grey marker, it gives so much depth!!! I sponged chocolate chip on the edges of this too. The SU ticket corner punch was used on the corners of the main image so that I could add some brads from the Aged Copper Hodgepodge Hardware. The main image and sentiment are from the Whipper Snapper set Posies for You. I used some CC satin ribbon to tie my knot and then sprayed the whole card with Tattered Angels glimmer mist in gold. Well I need to get my butt in gear commenting. I have about a weeks worth of gallery entries to look at, and by now that could be 1000's of entries. Thanks for looking and have a great day!!

stamps-Whipper Snapper Posies for You, Sanded and French Script

paper-Chocolate Chip, Cranberry Crisp, So Saffron, Very Vanilla

ink-Timber Brown Stazon, Chocolate Chip and Cranberry Crisp

tools-aquapainter, gold pen, markers, hardware, chocolate satin ribbon, ticket corner punch

My Cup Runneth Over...

I just got done posting my 7 random facts and went to check my email . In it was a message with some big news that I have been DYING to share. I should have listed not being able to keep a secret in my random facts, but I have been really proud of myself lately. About a month ago, Christie Ortman from Paper Pretties contacted me. I had went to one of their new release parties and she saw someone new there and wanted to check me out. She sent me an email saying that she loved my work, and couldn't believe that she hadn't saw it before!!! She then asked me to be a guest designer for them from April to June!!! WOOHOOO!!! I wanted to explode, and am quite surprised that I didn't!! I had to keep it a secret, which was painful, but she just sent us an email announcing the big news on the Paper Pretties website and I am so excited!! I hope you will love seeing my samples from their wonderful products as much as I am gonna love making them!!! Thanks Christie for the wonderful opportunity!!! I am so excited to be given this opportunity, and honored to get to work with such a super talented bunch of ladies!!
On another note, I recieved this wonderfully beautiful, and truly heartfelt card from Carolina Buchting (craftycaro). I have gotten to know her through blogging and SCS and she is truly "one of the good ones". Not only is she super sweet and supportive, but she is so talented and wonderful. I really cannot think of enough adjectives to describe her. I had seen her post this card on her blog, and explain why she had made it, but I never thought that it would be for me. If the card wasn't special enough, the note inside of it is still making me cry. I won't share what it said, because I don't know how she would feel about it, but I will tell you that I am truly blessed to have ever "met" her. Her words touched my soul and I will remember them every time I feel like there is no hope for my quest to become a mother. Thank you for being who you are, and enriching my life. I have no idea how I will repay you, but I will find a way!! Thanks for stopping by again, and I hope you have a wonderful day!!!

Tagged Again!!

I got tagged twice more with the 7 random facts tag, so I decided I would post 7 new facts about me, so that we all can get to know each other better. I was tagged by one of my favorite stamp designers, Melanie Muenchinger. She designs for Gina K, and has a fabulous blog. The second tag was by Jana Weaver. She too has a fabulous blog, so go check her out too!! So the rules are, post a link to the people that tagged you-check. Post the rules-check, and now, post your facts. Okay here goes,



1. I can't swim. I know, sad, but true. I have tried, I even took lessons, but I think I stayed in tadpoles for like 2 years and finally gave up. Okay, so I can swim a little( I do a mean dead man's float-hehe), but I can't tread water, which is kinda important if you get in deep water. So to make a long story short, I can kinda swim, but if I have to stop, and I can't touch the bottom or hang on to something, CALL A LIFEGUARD(preferably a cute one)because I am gonna need one!!!



2. I was born in Germany, but left when I was 1 1/2. I would love to go back, but DH hates to travel(for fun, he will for business), so it will probably never happen.



3. I have a fear of being wrong. This fear is so strong, that even if I knew the answers in class, or whatever, I refused to raise my hand just in case. Seriously, it is so bad, that when I am wrong in front of people(or even when no one is watching), I blush so severely that I get super hot. It really holds me back a little in life, because I am terrified to fail.



4. This one is going to shock some of you, but I have a tendency not to pay attention to details. I watch a lot of crime shows on TV, and when the witnesses are asked to give details for a sketch, or what a person was wearing, or what they look like, I always think to myself, I hope I never lose anyone or witness a crime, cause I will be up poop creek without a paddle!!! I have to think about what color people's eyes are, and up until about a year ago when I forced myself to look and memorize their color, I could not tell you what my DH's eye color was.



5. I was a nanny for 5yrs for two beautiful little girls. I never wanted to leave them, but my boss could not accept the fact that I wanted a life outside of their home( I lived with them), so I had to move on. I still get a Christmas card from them every year, but I miss them with every fiber of my being. I started taking care of Emily when she was 11months old, and was there for the first 2 1/2 years of Olivia's life. When I left, it seriously felt like I was having my own children taken away from me. I will never forget the day I left for the rest of my life, it was one of the saddest days of my life. Olivia was too young to understand, and I am sure she has all but forgotten me, but I will never forget her.(BTW, I am crying now...I told you I am a cryer)

6. I can't stand to wear finger nail polish. Every once in awhile I will get my nails done(okay, have acrylic nails put on)but I always do the french tip manicure. I can't stand to see any color on my fingers(or my lips for that matter), it just never looks right.

7. I have secretly been in love(ya know, celebrity luv)with Matthew McConaughey since I saw him in the movie A Time To Kill. The movie was one of the most emotional movies I have ever seen(cried like a baby throughout a lot of it), but as a southern lawyer, well, he gave me the "vapors", so to speak!!! It was the first movie I ever saw with him, and can honestly say(with the exception of Texas Chain Saw Massacre) I try not to miss one with him in it. How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days, enough said!!!

Okay--check. Now I am supposed to nominate 7 more people, but I really had a hard time doing it the first time, so if you are reading this, and you want to participate, please do. Just be sure to link me to it, so I can learn more about you all!!