STAMPlorations lovely ladies

I went retro chica again. Aren't these Retro Femme girls just beautiful?

Retro Femme ATC

 Faces: Chic stencil

Birthday Word Art clear sticker

Trendy Spring Blooms die

This card just kinda came together. That retro femme gal seemed to be looking at something. The Faces stencils came to my mind and I decided to add this chic lady to a background from my stash, inking her with black ink. I fussy cut the retro femme and added her to the lower corner. I thought a big flashy sentiment sticker would work well and when I fussy cut it a bit, I added the party hat from it as a cigar for the chic lady. Artistic license, ya know? I also felt a die cut bloom on her hat would add a bit more carefree feel to the card. Although there's lotsa white still visible, there's certainly a lot for the eye to take in ;) What do you think?

Don't forget about my STAMPlorations discount code STAMPGIRLMARIA for 20% off should I ever inspire you to do some shopping ;) Have you seen the new Perfect Pairs product line over at the store? Good stuff for easy peasy cardmaking. Just sayin.

STAMPlorations retro femme beauties

I love CAS, but sometimes I love overload. And I certainly love these retro chicas from Retro Femme ATC pack. Aren't these girls just beautiful?

Retro Femme ATC

Patches stencil

Feeling very Rosie the Riveter, I went red/white and blue. With a touch of yellow. Embossing paste on the cardfront, mat for her and a little swatch of red/white gingham ribbon. Ta da!

If you ever decide to pick up a pack of these beautiful gals, please use my STAMPlorations discount code STAMPGIRLMARIA for 20% off, ok? Have a good one.

STAMPlorations anything goes may reminder

Joining in on the fun over at STAMPlorations monthly Anything Goes challenge over at the STAMPlorations blog? There's still time.

Anything goes. I went coffee and snark.

Retro Femme ATC

Coffee Happy stamp

Hot Mess stamp

I chose this beauty with an attitude and paired a coffee theme with her. The touch of red outlining the ATC really shows off her lipstick. And don't you love the snarky sentiment?

Check out the card creations this month! There will be prizes ;) a $25 prize code for a chosen card using STAMP products and two $10 prize codes chosen randomly from the entries (need not feature a STAMP product.) Please be sure to read all the challenge rules here.

Don't forget about my STAMPlorations discount code STAMPGIRLMARIA for 20% off should I ever inspire you to do some shopping ;)  See you over at the gallery. 

STAMPlorations spring fling

Spring is in the air! Gotta love it. And gotta love how the newest ATCs over at STAMPlorations help celebrate that spring has finally arrived.

Join us for a hop and linky party with the chance to win some prizes!

I could not resist pairing Shirley B.'s tiny houses with this ATC.

Houses stamp

Whimsical Homes ATC

New Day clear stickers

distress ink, washi

Used an old technique to create the watercolored row of houses. Anytime you have a fairly symmetric stamp shape you can use the reverse (flat side) of it to stamp your color layer and then use the outline side of the stamp to stamp the crisp image. Added a spritz of water to the inked reverse side gives you the desired watercolor effect.

Other than that, the ATC is the dreamy star of the show. Added a sticker sentiment and a thin washi strip and called it good.

Get creative and be a part of the linky party. Or hop around and leave comments to win. Join us, won’t you?

STAMPlorations anything goes may challenge

Joining in on the fun over at STAMPlorations monthly Anything Goes challenge over at the STAMPlorations blog? Shery is so generous with prizes why not play along?

Anything goes. OK, how about I clean up my desk a bit. What do you think?

Color me Spring ATC

Analog Grunge collage paper

Feathery stamp

I love these ATCs with a spring-y feel, but more neutral colors. I chose the ATC with the basket of flowers and paired it with a torn scrap of the collage paper. Added a couple punched hearts and a heat embossed sentiment. Voila!

I'm looking forward to your seeing your card creations this month! There will be prizes ;) a $25 prize code for a chosen card using STAMP products and two $10 prize codes chosen randomly from the entries (need not feature a STAMP product.) Please be sure to read all the challenge rules here.

And watch the STAMP blog for our Spring Fling event coming up. Lots more ideas with these ATCs.

Don't forget about my STAMPlorations discount code STAMPGIRLMARIA for 20% off should I ever inspire you to do some shopping ;)  See you over at the gallery.  

STAMPlorations anything goes april reminder

Joining in on the fun over at STAMPlorations monthly Anything Goes challenge over at the STAMPlorations blog? There's still time.

Anything goes. I went coffee. Again.

Tag o Coffee die

Retro People ATC

All you need is Coffee stamp

Coffee Tiles ephemera

I used the Coffee Tiles from the Paper Goods section of the store and die cut latte cups from them (even with shiny black straws!) and used them to add interest to the retro ATC gal. I thought the snarky sentiment fit perfectly with the telephone theme.

Check out the card creations this month! There will be prizes ;) a $25 prize code for a chosen card using STAMP products and two $10 prize codes chosen randomly from the entries (need not feature a STAMP product.) Please be sure to read all the challenge rules here.

Don't forget about my STAMPlorations discount code STAMPGIRLMARIA for 20% off should I ever inspire you to do some shopping ;)  See you over at the gallery.

introducing STAMPlorations new spring ATCs

Are you a fan of the ATCs in the STAMPlorations shop? There are a few new spring-themed products (think floral, coffee, sweet little houses and some boss women!) and I've got a couple projects to share with you.

Let's start with the boss women, shall we? I loved this 70s looking leading lady, so paired her with some groovy stamps in the supporting role. I stamped with orange, yellow and brown inks of course ;)

Retro Femme ATC

Groovy Shoes stamp

For my next card the butterfly from the Color me Spring pack immediately spoke to me so I paired it with some watercolor PP and die cut Flutterby. The die cuts are nice and sparkly thanks to Wink of Stella but you can't see it in the photo. I distressed the edges of the ATC and PP on my card front. Seems like ages since I've done that!

Color me Spring ATC

Flutter Zen 1 die

World Birthday Cakes stamp

My last project today features an adorable birdhouse ATC and it immediately reminded me of one of Shery's older stamp sets so I paired the two. I also added some wispy leaves to the background and some washi.

Color me Spring ATC

Crazy Stitched Rectangle die

Country Rustic stamp

Life is Sweeter stamp

Be sure to stop by the STAMPlorations blog regularly to see what the other DT girls are making with the new ATCs as well as the recently released collage papers. Should you find yourself making a purchase from the STAMPlorations store, you can use my code STAMPGIRLMARIA for 20% off. Have a lovely day.

STAMPlorations paper goods bundle

Hi there friends. I'm sharing a few cards I made with a bundle being offered at a super price over at STAMPlorations right now. 

You're probably aware that STAMPlorations owner, Shery, is battling cancer at the moment. She's always been an inspiration with the energy she puts into her work and she's amazing in her battle now too. Her faith is amazing. Lots of virtual hugs and prayers headed Shery's way as she fights the fight.

To help bring a bit of revenue to her family while minimizing the amount of energy she has to put into packing and shipping, Shery has bundled some products and is offering them at great prices. You can check out all the bundles on offer here.

I've worked with some ephemera which just might be included in the Paper Goods grab bag - over 100 pieces for $15.

First up a hers and a his using some cool retro ATCs in a freestyle collage fashion.

STAMPlorations stamp and stencil

Funky Fossil stencil

STAMPlorations ATCs and ephemera

 patterned paper

inks, stickers, washi

Can you tell I'd been watching some Jamie P. videos? A bit of this. A bit of that. All the things ;)

Next up...

STAMPlorations ATCs and ephemera, border die and stickers

embossing powder

More inspiration from the memory planner world here... cut apart sentiments. And if you can cut apart sentiments, why not ATCs too? This time I've used the watercolor ATC pack.

I'm taking card #2 to Happy Little Stampers November Stencil challenge as well as Creative Friday's Masculine Cards challenge and  #4 to Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge where it's a Thinking of You theme.

Appreciate you stopping by. Enjoy your weekend.  

STAMPlorations new release - hot mess

Welcome peeps! There's a new release in town. Over at the STAMPlorations shop. And with a new line of snarky stamps from our own Chris Dring. Today we're introducing Hot Mess (the set on the left).

I've paired Chris' snarky sentiments with some of STAMPlorations paper goods (ATC). The vibe couldn't be more perfect.

Hot Mess stamp

Retro Fashionistas ATC

Art Border #3 die

watercolors, Copic markers, white embossing powder,pearls

Do you not love that sentiment? They're all great. A watercolored swatch, a Copic colored lady to match, a few pearls and a snarky sentiment. Oh, and a bit of die cut interest on the cream cardbase.

How about this next one. "I don't have mood swings. Darling, I own the playground." Just look at her admiring herself in the mirror.

Hot Mess stamp

Retro Fashionistas ATC

Spellbinders Rebel Rose die

Copics, PP, silver embossing powder

Layout's a bit different - PP mat and a fancy die cut to back the ATC - but the lady and the sentiment say it all.

So, that's it for today. Be sure to check out all the DT's creations over at the STAMP blog. And leave comments all around and you might win one of Chris' new stamp sets.

Hope you're having a nice day. 

STAMPlorations cas cards challenge march

Did you miss us last month?!? Welcome to the March STAMPlorations CAS Cards challenge!

As always the challenge is to create any CAS card but we always give you an optional color twist. This month's is pink and green (takes me right back to my preppy college days in the 80s!)

The furniture in the inspo stumped me at first, but then I thought pink... flamingo...and my card went from there. OK, so not a flamingo ;)

Birds of Paradise stamp and die

ATC Tag Builder die

gold embossing powder

Stamping, heat embossing, die cutting and a spot o' washi.

On a side note: Did you see Yana S. smearing ink on Yupo? Oh how gorgeous. I decided to give distress on cheapo photo paper a try. Guess what? It doesn't work! That's what my bird is made of. Pink DIs pounced onto photo paper after smearing didn't work :)

CAS card tip: Use multiple layers, like these two banners I created with the versatile ATC Tag Builder die, to add some extra pattern or texture without taking up more white space.

I'm looking forward to your CAS card creations this month! Your project might be chosen as one of the prize winners. Check out how the DT was inspired by this month's photo here.

And don't forget about my STAMPlorations discount code STAMPGIRLMARIA for 20% off should I ever inspire you to do some shopping ;)  Thanks for stopping over today. See you in the gallery. 

STAMPlorations inspiration #349

One last Tuesday inspiration post from the STAMPlorations inspiration team girls for you this year!

And my last Christmas card made with ephemera pieces. 

Here's today's card.

Christmas Backgrounds ATC 1

Christmas Sentiments die

Oh My Stars stencil

 white and gold embossing pastes

Again I picked an ATC from the package and used a stencil to add some texture to my background. "Christmas" is stamped inside.

As always, you could win yourself a $15 prize code to the store by leaving a comment on this month's inspiration posts! Check out today's post over at STAMPlorations. And if I should ever inspire you to order something from the store, I'd appreciate it if you used my STAMPGIRLMARIA discount code for an additional 20% off your order.  Have a great day!    

STAMPlorations inspiration #347

It's time for another Tuesday inspiration post from the STAMPlorations inspiration team girls. 

As we roll along towards Christmas, I've been making cards with ephemera pieces. Lately I'm working with ATC backgrounds. There are lots of ephemera options in the STAMP store.

Here's my card.

Christmas Backgrounds ATC 1

Patches stencil

Christmas Sentiments Phrase die

 Altenew inks

Like on my last card, I picked an ATC from the package and let its style and colors drive my design.

I thought the graphic style print behind the present looked like the Patches stencil so that's where my design took me. Stenciled some coral, pink and teals, then some splatters of water and called my background good. I die cut a word sentiment from inked cardstock, stacked it and voila!

I must admit I'm more of a "green and red Christmas" girl. But it was fun to challenge myself to turn this ATC into a Christmas card.

As always, you could win yourself a $15 prize code to the store by leaving a comment on this month's inspiration posts! Check out today's post over at STAMPlorations. And if I should ever inspire you to order something from the store, I'd appreciate it if you used my STAMPGIRLMARIA discount code for an additional 20% off your order.  Have a great day!    

STAMPlorations inspiration #346

Welcome to our Tuesday inspiration post from the STAMPlorations inspiration team girls. 

And welcome to December. Can you even believe it? I've been making Christmas cards with ephemera pieces lately if you've been watching ;) Now I'm working with another kind of ephemera from the STAMP store - ATC backgrounds. There are lots of ephemera options in the STAMP store.

Meet today's card.

Christmas Backgrounds ATC 1

Christmas Joy Laser Cut Shapes

Christmas Joy stamp

Circles All Over Texture Plate

 Altenew inks, gems, gold embossing powder, washi

Not CAS today.  I chose the bell ATC and let its style and colors drive my design.

I did some multi-color stamping of the poinsettia on the laser cut shapes, picking up on the colors on the ATC. Spritzed the inks with my mini mister to soften the image and added gems to the centers. I added washi to the ATC and heat embossed a sentiment on a die cut oval. Picking up on the ornament and bead circles on the ATC I embossed the circle texture plate onto my purple card front.

I must admit I'm more of a "green and red Christmas" girl. But it was fun to challenge myself to turn this ATC into a Christmas card.

As always, you could win yourself a $15 prize code to the store by leaving a comment on this month's inspiration posts! Check out today's post over at STAMPlorations. And if I should ever inspire you to order something from the store, I'd appreciate it if you used my STAMPGIRLMARIA discount code for an additional 20% off your order.  Have a great day!   

spotlight on easy Christmas shaker cards

Howdy peeps! Happy Thanksgiving if you're stopping by when this goes live. If it's after the fact, hope your day was great and your fridge is full of leftovers. Cuz then you can craft instead of cook!!!

I have a spotlight tutorial over at STAMPlorations for some quick and easy shaker Christmas cards. I put ephemera to work for me - ATCs to be exact. Check it out - just click on the Spotlight Projects category in the sidebar.

I had such fun I made four!