Happy New Year 's Eve!

I want to take a minute to thank all of you who have been following me throughout the year. This year has had many ups and downs, but fortunately I made it through and with a lot of ideas to share with you. 

As you can see I changed the look of my blog a little and that is thanks to Holly Becker and her crew, because I attended her online course, called Blogging Your Way, which I highly recommend.

I made these little elves in cold porcelain as place cards. Those are my children's names and it took so long to mold them that I only made four, I know, what a shame for the rest of the family right? Shhh... don't tell them they're being left out!

The last card for 2013 is to wish all of you Happy New Year's Eve! 
Have a wonderful 2014!!!

I am back!!

It is hard to believe two months have past since my last post. I thought I would be back sooner! Well, I am here to dust off the cobwebs and share some projects I made for the holidays. I have been so busy working with cold porcelain and  attending photography and watercolor classes, that I had no time to work with my cards, sniff sniff. 

I made this card to participate in the Retrosketches challenge. Challenges encourage me not only to create something original, but also to keep my mojo flowing. 

I made the envelope using the Envelope Punch Board (133774). I had purchased it a while ago but I haven't used it until now. I loooooove it!!! It is an awesome tool that allows you to create your very own envelopes that match your cards. Isn't that great?

I hope you have had more time than me to make some projects for the holidays. 

Thanks for stopping by!!

Happy stamping!

These are the supplies I used for this card:

1.  Whisper White cardstock (100730)
2. Smoky Slate cardstock     (131202)
3. Festive Flurry stamp set   (Wood 131778 Clear 131781)
4. Winter Frost Specialty DSP (132341)
5. Festive Flurry Framelits Dies (132193)
6. Pool Party embossing powder (129398)
7. Stampin Glitter (102023)

Piece of cake!

Hello bloggers! Last challenge for me at the Friday Mashup as a designer! I am going to miss working with that talented group. This week Amy has a great challenge for all of us. We have to create a project with a cake and/or using Coastal Cabana, Crushed Curry, Smokey Slate and Basic Grey.

The sketch for my card is from retrosketches and the stamps are from Happiest Birthday Wishes (122617) and Make a Cake (126742).

Have a wonderful weekend! Happy stamping!

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project with the colors "Coastal Cabana, Crushed Curry, Smoky Slate & Basic Grey."
2. Create a project with a "Cake."
3. Or Mash it Up and create a project "with a Cake using the colors above."

Leafing Friday Mashup

This is my last challenge as a hostess at the Friday Mashup, sniff, sniff. I will no longer be part of the design team. I had a great experience designing for the Friday Mashup and it is time to move on with other endeavors. I learned a lot from these talented ladies from whom I got so much inspiration.

My challenge for this week is to create a project with leaves and because orange is my favorite color, you can mash it up with that color.

I am taking Chemistry 102 with Tim Holtz and I applied the Distress Stain Brayering technique on my card. To cut the leaves I used the Autumn accent die and for the background I used a sticky canvas sheet where I applied ink and stamped the En Francais stamp (127790).

Thanks for stopping by! Have a wonderful weekend!

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project with a  "Tree or Leaves."
2. Create a project using the "Color Orange."
3. Or Mash it Up and create a "Project with Leaves/ Tree & the Color Orange."

Spooky!

Halloween is around the corner, and Amanda at the Friday Mashup has a spooky challenge for us.

This old stamp set called House of Haunts is one of my favorites. I love that haunted house, and there are lot of possibilities where you can use this stamp. The house is also embossed in nlack embossing powder. I really enjoy adding washi tape whenever I have the chance, I think it gives a kind of informal look and I like that. The new candy dots are adorable (130931), they are the perfect touch for any project.

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great weekend!

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project using "the Sketch."
2. Create a "Spooky" project.
3. Or Mash it Up and create a "Spooky project using the above sketch. "

Fussy cut image!

Hello bloggers. Another challenge for the Friday Mashup, this week is Tara's turn to bring us a fun challenge, we have to rip the paper or cut something out.
I ripped the washi tape, I don't know if you can notice it in the picture, and cut the owl out. This is a non-traditional Halloween card, it is not spooky, it is pretty simple and the washi tape gives such a different look. I added yellow candy dots in the eyes and then I painted the center with a black Sharpie. I was inspired by the Paper & Crafts magazine, which by the way came with a lot of tricks and tips.

Have a wonderful weekend, and thanks for stopping by!
Happy stamping!

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project with "Ripped paper."
2. Create a project with a "a fussy cut image." (Cut something out)
3. Or Mash it Up and create a project "with some Ripped paper & something Fussy Cut."

Get inspired by fruits!

A new challenge at the Friday Mashup, and Erica wants us to create a project using some colors and a fruit image. I created my card using old stamp sets Happy Blessings and Holiday Best, which haven't been used for sooooo long and this was the perfect time to use them.

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful weekend!
Happy stamping!

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project with using the colors "Cherry Cobbler, So Saffron & Early Espresso."
2. Create a project using a "Fruit Image."
3. Or Mash it Up and create a project using the above "Color Combo & a Fruit Image. "

My Adventurous Story

Hi there!! After my absence for a while I am back in business. I am going to tell you my adventurous story. Everything started with my crazy idea of moving out of Miami, FL.

In Miami, the landscape is beautiful, the beach, the sun, the palm trees, the subtropical atmosphere,  there is a huge mix of people coming from different countries and with different cultures. It is a very rich cultural mixture, and the weather for most of them is gorgeous, around 80 F in winter time and 90 in summer, which lasts for 6 months more or less. I have been living here for almost 12 years because my husband has been transferred by the company he is working for. This is the perfect place for a lot of people but unfortunately not for me, especially because the weather drives me crazy with so much heat throughout the year. I am an outdoors person and I can't stand that kind of heat all the time although I live with air conditioning in the house all year long. A lot of people who come from another country or even from another state can suffer from heat stress, if they don't know how to get prepared. Especially because of the weather,  I decided I wanted to move out.

Around two months ago I had the opportunity to work in Bangor, Maine, at a friend's store, so I considered that my perfect chance to move out to New England, where I really liked to go. One of my daughters decided to come with me and work together so we went driving from Miami to Bangor, almost three days on the road. Of course we stopped to rest and eat.While I was working in Bangor I tried to find a house in Portland, Maine (2 hours south away from Bangor). After work some days, I would drive all the way to Portland to see some houses or apartments. My original idea was that once I found the house, my youngest daughter, who had stayed in Miami with my husband, would join me and she could start high school up north. We were planning to live in Portland for around a year and if everything went fine, the rest of the family would move up there as well. We spent 40 days in Bangor and driving to Portland to find a house. Maybe you are wondering by now why we didn't try and find a house or apartment in Bangor. Bangor is beautiful but small town, and Portland is a beautiful city with more activities. There was no luck and we couldn't find a house nor even an apartment to rent. It is unbelievable, right? It is weird, believe me I tried everything I could but it didn't work. So we decided to drive back to Miami and I accepted everything as a great experience. That wasn't the right time for us, and as I always say when the fruit is ripe, it falls from the tree at the moment it is supposed to, right? When it is the right time everything falls into place, and everything goes smoothly. So here I am back in business in Miami, waiting for my right time to move out.

I consider that I had to tell you my story because I was so excited about everything I went through that I told you in other posts that I was going to show you photos of my new place. Anyways I am happy where I am right now in life and the experience was awesome. I learned a lot and met wonderful people, and after all that is what matters.

This is Paula, my daughter who came with me. 

I love New York City 

New York City from New Jersey

There were many more states we passed, I would have liked to take pictures of all of them but for one reason or the other I didn't and by the time we went through New England it was day time and we were getting closer to Maine. 

Bangor, Maine (downtown)

Stephen King's house in Bangor

Pushaw Lake, Bangor 

Have a wonderful weekend! God bless you all!

Tip of the day: 

If you like to read I recommend the Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle. Excellent book and once you finished it, leave it in a place where you can find it easily because that is a book that you will want to read more than once. It is very profound. 

Washi Tapes Gallore!!

I love washi tapes!!! They give such a casual look to the cards or scrapbooking, and they are the perfect addition to your project. Holly challenges us at the Friday Mashup to create a set of 3x3 cards using washi tape.

I got inspired by some cards I've seen in our Stampin' Up Magazine. Hope you get inspired as well with the creations the design team has prepared for you.

Have a wonderful weekend! Happy stamping!

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project with "Washi Tape."
2. Create a "set of 3x3 Quick Note Cards."
3. Or Mash it Up and create a "Set of 3x3 Note Cards using some Washi Tape".

Card Recipe

Let's create a very original card for the Friday Mashup this week. Amy, our hostess, has a recipe for us. It is going to be a very interesting challenge.

I created my card using the following ingredients (lol): A for the letter A on the designer paper, B for Baked Brown Sugar cardstock and ink, and C is for Coastal Cabana cardstock and ink. I used 1 embellishment which is the button, 2 stamp sets: Mosaic Madness and Tape it, and 3 colors: Coastal Cabana, Baked Brown Sugar and Crisp Cantaloupe for the 1, 2 and 3 part of the recipe. It was so much fun!!

Thanks for stopping by! Have a wonderful weekend!

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project with using "A-B-C (use elements on your projects starting with the letters A, B, C). "
2. Create a project using a "1-2-3 card recipe (1 embellishment, 2 Stamp Sets, 3 Colors) ."
3. Or Mash it Up and create a project "A-B-C & a 1,2,3 card recipe. "

Back to School!

Hi there! It is amazing how fast the summer flew by, actually it is the same period of time every single year (lol) but when you are on vacation or relaxing it looks like the time flies faster, right? But anyways we are back to school in a couple of weeks, and for others school started already. I will be the hostess for this week's challenge at the Friday Mashup, so my challenge for you is to follow the sketch or if you want to mash it up, use school elements.

Because I am in the process of moving, I don't have all the materials to work with my cards with me so I added some stickers instead of using only stamps. I like the way my card came out after all.

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great weekend!

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project with the "Sketch Liliana created."
2. Create a project with a "School Theme (books, pencils, rulers, numbers, etc."
3. Or Mash it Up and create a "School themed project using Liliana's Sketch. "

Color blocking

Hi there! I haven't posted anything lately and the reason why is because I am moving. As soon as I settle in I will post some pictures of the place and house. So far I am a little bit here and there trying to find a house, but I wanted to post a card anyways. The challenge for next week for the Friday Mashup is to create a project using your acrylic block as a stamp. That gives an interesting look to your project. Check out the creations of the rest of the team at the Friday Mashup blog.

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great weekend!

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project using "Clear Block Stamping (use your clear block as a stamp)."
2. Create a project using "Color-blocking."
3. Or Mash it Up and create a project using "Clear Block Stamping & Color-blocking."

Happy dots!

This week at the Friday Mashup we have a challenge with polka dots and the word Happy. 

I got inspired by Make it Monday#147 Double Backgrounds. It is fun and easy to do. 

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great weekend!

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project with "Polka Dots ".
2. Create a project using "the Word Happy".
3. Or Mash it Up and create a project "with Polka Dots & The Word Happy on it ".

Christmas in July!

It is amazing that we are talking about Christmas in the middle of the year right? This week, Lisa at the Friday Mashup wants us to create a project with a Christmas theme and stripes.

I got inspired by Make it Monday#126: 3D Die-Cuts Sentiment . This is my first time doing this technique and as usual, first timers cannot perfect the technique. Although there are mistakes, I am quite pleased the way it came out.

Have a great weekend! Thanks for stopping by!

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project for "Christmas / Hanukkah".
2. Create a project with "Stripes".
3. Or Mash it Up and create a "Christmas / Hanukkah project with Stripes".

Get Sketchy with your favorite stamp!!

We have to follow a sketch at the Friday Mashup this week, and Heidi our hostess challenges us to use our favorite stamp with that sketch.

One of my favorite set is Oh Hello! I love every single stamp in that set and as you can see I used almost all of them in my card.

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project using the "Sketch".
2. Create a project with a "Favorite New Stamp Set".
3. Or Mash it Up and create a project "using the Sketch with your Favorite NEW Stamp Set".

Stampin Up! Supplies:

Stamps: Oh Hello (Wood 131931 Clear 130733)

Cardstock: Coastal Cabana (131297), Whisper White (100730)

Inks: Baked Brown Sugar (131174), Sahara Sand (126976), Crumb Cake (126975)

Markers: Calypso Coral, Wild Wasabi, So Saffron, Pool Party (131263)

Embellishments: Rhinestone Basic Jewels (119246)

Click here if you want to order Stampin Up! Products 24/7 

FM# 118 - A touch of nature

Hi there!! Time for another challenge at the Friday Mashup. Holly has brought us a touch of nature using these colors: Crispy Cantaloupe, Pool Party, Calypso Coral and (Smoky Slate or Soft Suede).

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project using the colors "Pool Party, Crisp Cantaloupe, Calypso Coral & (Smoky Slate or Soft Suede".
2. Create a project with a "Nature Theme".
3. Or Mash it Up and create a "Nature Themed project using the Challenge Colors".

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great weekend!

Stampin Up Supplies:

Stamps: Simply Sketched (Wood mount 129669- Clear mount 129672), French Foliage ( Clear mount 121166 discontinued), Watercolor Vine wheel (discontinued)

Inks: Soft Suede (126978), Pool Party (126982)

Details: Tea Lace Paper Doilies (129399), Linen Thread (104199)

Cardstock: Soft Suede (115318), Pool Party (122924), Crisp Cantaloupe (131298), Whisper White (100730)

Click here to order STAMPIN UP!  products online 24/7

My favorite things

What a fun challenge we have at the Friday Mashup this week! Amy our hostes is bringing us a challenge with several options. It is a Tic Tac Toe challenge where you have to pick a line from the grid. I picked pearls, butterflies and coloring. Those three things are my favorites. I try to add pearls to my cards all the time, butterflies are so delicate and beautiful that very often I add them too and coloring is my strong point. I loooove to color images in with watercolor, pencils, markers.

I created my card based on the sketch from CAS(E) the sketch challenge.

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project using a "line from the grid".
2. Create a project with a "few of your Favorite things ( Stamps & Colors)".
3. Or Mash it Up and create a project using the "Tic Tac Toe grid with a few of your Favorite Things".

Thanks for stopping by!! Happy stamping!

Buy 3 Get 1 free Promotion!!!

As the flyer says, buy 3 designer series papers and get 1 free. It's a very good opportunity to stock up and save. Don't let this chance slip through your fingers and take the advantage of this offer now!!

Summer time!!!

It is summer time in this part of the world. When I think summer I picture the beach, the sun, the sand and everything related to it. This week I will be the hostess for the Friday Mashup challenge, so my challenge for you is to create a project with beach elements and/or masking technique.

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great weekend!

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project using the "Masking Technique".
2. Create a project with some "Beach elements".
3. Or Mash it Up and create a "Beach'y project using Masking".

Another interesting technique!

Happy Friday! It is time for another challenge at the Friday Mashup. This week we have a technique with a great look. Amanda our hostess, posted the step by step "triple time stamping technique" in her blog, but you can find the link in the Friday Mashup blog too.

I used the Swallowtail stamp set (129213) and colored it in with Pacific Point and Summer Starfruit markers. The sentiment is from Express Yourself stamp set (130339) which you can get as a hostess reward when you place a qualifying online order.

Thanks for stopping by and happy stamping!

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project using 3 of the following colors "Crumb Cake, Summer Starfruit, Pacific Point or Daffodil Delight".
2. Create a project with the "Triple Time Stamping Technique".
3. Or Mash it Up and create a "Triple Time Stamped Project with 3 of the above colors".

Sketch and the Brickwall technique!

Hi there and happy Friday! This week at the Friday Mashup you have to follow a sketch and if you want. apply the brickwall technique. Our talented Tara is the hostess this week. This technique is so fun to make, although it takes a little bit of time, it is worth it.

I used the colors of the ColorQ challenge and combined them with our challenge at the Friday Mashup. I stamped the poppies  from Pleasant Poppies (129499) with StazOn (101406) on watercolor paper (122959). I painted the poppies with some watercolors and the acuapainter brush (103954).Once dried I applied the technique. I distressed the edges of each brick using the daubers (102892) and crumb cake ink (126975).The sentiment is from Itty Bitty Banners (W 132022 C 126257). I hope I inspired you enough to participate in the challenge.

Thanks for stopping by! Have a wonderful weekend!

Here's your Mashup Challenge:

1. Create a project using the "Sketch".
2. Create a project using the "Brick Wall Technique".
3. Or Mash it Up and create a project using the "Sketch with the Brick Wall Technique".