what's in YOUR pocket?

Charisma's got a new challenge, kids, and i had NO idea what to do for this one, but was hell-bent on making graduation cards, so this seemed like the perfect way to incorporate our challenge into my project.

wanna play along? we're looking for POCKETS on your projects! any kind of pockets, any kind of paper craftin' projects! i opted for a gift card holder:

and carried the paper through to the inside:

(and that's a giftcard for the bookstore that my son gave me for Christmas - think i'll go there tonight!)

SO. pocket card. piece of cake, right? we know you'll rock this one, and we can't wait to see your fabulous creations! annnnnd, because our sponsors truly do ROCK, here's what's up for grabs...

WOOT! thank you, Stamp Fairy! they have seriously CUTE images, great for colouring and paper piecing, and our winner will have NO problem spending that prize! :)

so CLICK HERE to see what other fabulous pockety things my fellow Charisma Galz have whipped up, and see what our special guests have created, and join us! you have until next WEDNESDAY to play along!

annnnnd, i've played along at Mojo Monday - here's their sketch (i used it partly for the outside and also for the inside):

happy Thursday, folks. that means we've almost made it to FRIDAY. :)

Moxie Fab wants you to use your SCRAPS? oh yeah. i'm all over that.

absolutely one of my biggest DOWNFALLS when it comes to crafting is that i don't let go of ANYTHING. i always have loads of teeny bits of paper - patterned, cardstock, negatives from die-cuts, you name it. I KEEP IT ALL. so when i saw that the challenge at Moxie Fab World actually EMBRACES the use of scraps, i felt just a little less SILLY and a lot less MISERLY! ;)

so to play along, i used the fave technique discovered late last year, and went to town.

here's the result:

so. papers from no less than, oh, 4 different manufacturers, a bit of Unity goodness, a teeny splash of bling, a little punch, and much, much love for Martha, 'cuz i do love to score.

have i mentioned i LOVE this technique? oh, but i do. and it's gonna get lots MORE love after this weekend's craft fair, because i'll have lots of patterny scrappy goodness left from my current projects! beware, readers. you may get sick of it. :)

i simply cannot WAIT to get my paws on a copy of Practical Solutions for Paper Crafters, because while i am a thrifty kinda gal, i am ALWAYS looking for ways to cut my budget even more!

i went for the "3 in a row" challenge at Allsorts - 'cuz i thought the 3 little gems were just enough
"let's see circles" at Crafts and Me
and "going around in circles" at Cupcake Craft Challenges...

how's your week, chickens? and happy first day of spring. xo

eBay! i'm sellin' stuff - Magnolias, Kraftin' Kimmie, BasicGrey, Ranger, more!

i've GOT to downsize a bit, and this is one way to do it. i figure, i PAID for the stuff, i might as well get SOMEthing back, right? espesh if it's brand-spankin'-new!

so take a peek at my eBay stuff - it all ends Friday night. support me and the fact that i may be NEEDING money soon, for reasons untold. *sigh* for example.....

CLICK HERE to check out my wares! Magnolia, Ranger, Cosmo Cricket, Kraftin' Kimmie, BasicGrey, K & Co.... and i'll be posting more soon.

HEY THERE! it's a new KAYLEEEEEEE!

and i love her! (but you're not surprised, right?)

it's new release time at Some Odd Girl, and this is day 2 of our clear stamp reveals. yesterday, we had the gorgeous Thank You Mae, and today, my FAVE of the release...

HEY KAYLEE!

this set is chock full of CUTE, and i actually went ALL Copic on this card!
check it out:

Kaylee, her little slimer friend, and the sentiment are all from the Hey Kaylee set... the banner comes from yesterday's release - click here for more fabby examples of the banner stamps on our Odd Girls' projects!

here's a close-up of my gal:

i was QUITE pleased with this Copic effort, but i've had a bunch of others before and after that have been less, um, successful (to say the least!). maybe if i'm brave enough, i'll share! i know that PART of my problem is that i don't have enough colours to blend, so my skin, unfortunately, is pretty much going to look the same in every single picture. the other part of the problem, of course, is the ARTIST! :) i'm not quite THERE yet....

anywho, that's my Hey Kaylee, and i love the bajeebus out of this girl (and i rather like the card, too!)... CLICKIE to see more Hey Kaylee love, and join us tomorrow for the last reveal for this week (which you've likely seen, and which is now available in the shop!).

see you tomorrow, kids! xo

and because i leave for work literally FIFTEEN MINUTES before our Some Odd Girl posts go live, i can't get a link and post the challenges i played along with. so i'm doin' it now! :)

Kaboodle Doodles - "How cute is that?" (well you tell ME! i'm rather smitten by the little slimer!)
Jellypark - fave technique (this is a tough one, but i think it's PROBABLY fussycutting!)
Raise the Bar - "4" leaf clover (use 4 of something) - my little banner has 4 pennants and 4 gems

a SOGgy winner (7 of them!) and our new release!

welcome to Monday, folks!

i'm gonna make this super quick because i have lots going on this week...

THANK YOU for all the sweet comments left on my Blog Hop post over the weekend! i had loads of fun learning about what makes you all TICK... and in true Some Odd Girl nature, because we aim to spread the love, we have a slew of winners announced at the Some Odd Girl blog this morning!

the winner from MY blog, who will be sent the lovely Gwen in Bloom set, is none other than....

TRUE! of True's Gifts from the Heart!

congrats, girlie! will this be your first Some Odd Girl stamp? i can't wait to see you rock it!
and CLICK HERE, folks, to see the rest of the winners announced, and to check out today's post that kicks off our 3 clear set releases! Thank You Mae is today's featured set, and she's fabulous! :)

a springy SOME ODD GIRL blog hop!

just to put a little extra spring in your step today, we've got some extra speshul stuff to share with you! :)

you're gonna LOVE this one - not only are you getting sneaks of all of the new clear stamp sets that will be available MONDAY at SomeOddGirl.com, but we're giving away a set at EVERY SINGLE stop along the way! there are SEVEN Odd Girls participating in the hop today, and we are giving away SEVEN of the new clear sets! so leave comments everywhere you go (be sure to answer the questions!), and you might be one of the lucky winners! :)

SOOOOO, without further ado, WELCOME to our March Spring Clear Stamp blog hop! you are hereby invited to hop along to some of the Odd Girls' blogs where you'll catch our peeks using 3 new sets hittin' the shop this Monday. we have SOOOOO looked forward to this release, and we know there's been some curiosity about the "friends" that have been spotted around town. ;) shall we kick things off? let's GO!

if you've arrived via Iwona, then you're probably already off to a great start and you're almost at the end! but if you're just dropping by to visit me, and you want to make sure you hit all the stops, you'll want to head on back to home base... here's the order:

Some Odd Girl Blog
Melissa
Leah C
Faye
Iwona
***ME!***
Annette
Kristy

SO, not only do we expect that there will be lots of drool on your keyboards as you hop along from one gorgeous project to the next, but your fingers might get sore from typing so fast! 'cuz here's the catch... to be eligible to win you must leave a comment answering the Odd Girls’ questions at each stop before SUNDAY, March 18th (midnight EST).

since we are SO excited about this release, we are going a little over the top with giveaways, so we hope you enjoy hanging out with the Odd Girls today!

for my project, i couldn't wait to share this little beauty, who's been peeking around Kristy's blog for a while and you may have seen her. well, Gwen is lookin' sassy with her cute strapless dress and those hot boots! check her out:

i went TOTALLY simple with my card - using the beautiful MME Vanity Fair paper and just highlighting a couple of things by cutting a couple of butterflies - one from the same sheet, and one from another in the pad. one little sentiment stamp (from Fiskars) and a handful of teeny dots of bling and i was READY!

isn't she a little darlin'?

there's much more to the set, but you'll just have to take my word for it when i tell you it's FABULOUS! so, now it's time for my question. i'm gonna make you do some work, of course, 'cuz i kinda feel like we're giving away the farm anyway, and i can't wait to read your answers...

tell me, dear crafty bloggy visitor, what fuels your passion for paper crafting? is it inspiration from fellow crafters? your family? new supplies? special events? recognition for a job well done, or perhaps a prize if you're a challenge participant? i wanna know WHY YOU CRAFT! :)

leave me your response by midnight on Sunday (EST) and i'll have a winner on Monday when our new sets go LIVE! have a wonderful weekend, folks!

playing along at Paper Sundaes - their theme is "feminine flair"

RIBBONS, RIBBONS, EVERYWHERE!

Charisma challenge time, peeps. and yep, we're looking for you to spill ribbon ALL OVER your creations this week. our Charisma Galz have really gone over the top with their prodgies, so you REALLY need to CLICK HERE to see what i'm talking about. the more ribbon, the better. i have been perusing some of my older magazines while on lunch break this week, and i was totally inspired by one of the articles which featured GREY as the new black, so this little prodgy was born:

i'm quite diggin' the colour combination, although it's not one i would have chosen AT ALL were i not inspired to step outside my comfort zone by this article and our challenge. some gorje AC swiss dot ribbons that coordinate perfectly (13 pieces of the good stuff), a Glitter Cut from Crate Paper, a journaling spot from Elle's Studio, a resin flower from Making Memories, paper die cut with a Nestie, thrown down on a Recollections card and HELLOOOO Unkie Bob.

need more inspiration? JUST ONE CLICK and you'll see how our Charisma Galz rocked this. it's amazing how much you can DO with some ribbon and glue.

prizes? yep, and a special one up for grabs this week for the person who uses the MOST ribbon on their project. (leave a number beside your name in Mr. Linky to let us know how many pieces you've rescued from your stash)...

here's what our fabby sponsors are offering up:

a £10 voucher to

HiFi Tower is offering up this awesome neon magnifying lamp designed espesh for crafters:

seriously -COOL. i'd be lost without a good lamp for my workspace, and this one looks out of this world. and there you have it, kids. join us and BRING ON THE RIBBON. yes, you can enter a project that simply HAS ribbon on it, but what kind of lame challenge would that be, right? throw down the gauntlet and show us creative uses for ribbon, or use gobs of the stuff, and wow us. can't wait to see what you're gonna do........

and i've played along at:

PolkaDoodles - they want Polka Dots or Stripes or BOTH (check!)
Crafts & Me - their theme is "Things with Wings"
Crafty Creations - they're looking for STRIPES (and i certainly made some!)

and that's all she wrote for now... bring on the weekend!

hello there, shy girl

it's a Kaylee kind of day.

we have new stuff at Some Odd Girl allllllll week, and you got the Geek experience on Monday, so TODAY, we've got the shy girls...

here's Shy Kaylee, looking totally adorbs in her little stance, and having that hair i WISH i had when it was short. mine just sticks to my head and looks ridic.

and a close-up of my fave girl:

you're gonna wanna CLICK HERE to see what else the Odd Girls have done to show off this sweetheart, as well as our new Shy Mae, and leave your comment at the Some Odd Girl blog for your chance to win 'em both. but HURRY! comments must be left by midnight EST 'cuz we're gonna do it all over again tomorrow.

playing along at...

Crafty Calendar Challenges - their theme is "Spring Clean"... i used a K & Company adhesive pad (from which i cut the flowers and the little stitchy embellie) and Cosmo Cricket's Material Girl mini deck - both of which i've had for easily 2 years, and neither of which i had busted open AT ALL until yesterday. sad, right?

Kaboodle Doodles wants to see FLOWERS! yep, spring's around the corner, so i've got the itch over here, and nothin' says spring like some floral goodness.

celebrate your inner geek with me!

'cuz there's a new MAE in town and i'm rather smitten. usually i'm a Kaylee kinda gal, but of course i couldn't resist this beauty and her smartsy specs and that braid! *growing my hair so i can do THIS, and little nerdy pigtails!*

so please welcome Geeky Mae to the Some Odd Girl family!

love her? HECK YES!

i hope there are people reading this post, because you have about 2 1/2 hours left to COMMENT at the Some Odd Girl blog, for your chance to win this little digital darlin', as well as this one, Picnic Mae!

don't waste time! go comment! and check out what a couple of the other Odd Girls have done to show off these purdy little ladies today! it's NEW RELEASE WEEK, and we've got loads of eye candy all week to inspire you. but don't take my word for it! :) just keep watchin', and we promise to deliver. ;)

i played along with the JUGS 126 sketch because when i busted out that fabby chevron paper from MME, i knew it was just what i needed! (the pencil is a chipboard embellie from Cosmo Cricket - "The Boyfriend"). here's the JUGS sketch:

so. where ya gonna go from here? hmm?

;)

my first La-La Land image and gettin' ready for EASTER!

oh my goomie, is it REALLY almost Easter? 2012 is well underway and i can barely catch my breath. i just hope it gets easier, because the year has gotten off to a very rough start. hanging in there though! and thank goodness for feral kitties eating in our laundry room! ;)

okay, so when i went to CHA, i got to meet the gorgeous Irina from La-La Land Crafts (as well as a couple of her amazing designers, the delightful Sandie and the charming Rosemary). i picked up my very first La-La Land image and started to colour, partly because i was excited to be playing with Copics, and also because the images were printed on REAL PAPER (not the cheap GP stuff i've been using, which does not get along well with Copics!), but MOSTLY because the La-La Land gals were so sweet and lovely that i just wanted to sit and get my craft on with them. :)

so i coloured a bit of Easter Marci's hat while i was there, and ended up finishing the image much later. FINALLY got the inspiration i wanted when La-La Land Crafts posted their Friday Inspiration, and i set to making a tag! lookie!

(click to enlarge, because i don't know what the heck is up with my photo uploader!)

here's a closer view of Marci:

ooooh, she was FUN to colour! i wasn't sure how i'd feel about working on something that wasn't SOGgy (and i often feel GUILTY about it, because you all know where my loyalties lie!), but since La-La Land's images are so different, it was a fun little step away from my usual comfort zone! i did work with minimal colours, so i know there's not a whole lot of depth to Marci's dress, but i'm okay with that until my giant order of Copics comes in. ;) (no, i haven't placed my order yet, but i'm gonna!)

okay, so there that is. my first project for EASTER! i have a craft fair coming up in a couple of weeks, so i should probably get to work, shouldn't i?

uploading this little taggie to the La-La Land gallery, and playing along at There She Goes - they have a Tag It! challenge going on right now. :)

WOWZA.

so i had nasty migraines kickin' me arse this week, a couple of busy nights, a couple of very ROUGH nights, and i have a bazillion things to do today. grock shopping, trip to Michael's to get my Copics picked out (placing my order through Oozak - woot!), got some stuff for sale that i need to post here, got some colouring to do, planning to go to the gym and start my week off right, and NEED to do some maintenance on my poor nails. :)

that said, i just want to inform you that we have some new stuff hitting the store at Some Odd Girl tomorrow. you're gonna wanna come around to check it all out. that's all i'm sayin'. oh, and maybe i'll give you a little teaser.....

um, YAY. can't wait to share!

oh, also... for those of you who can get to a Marshall's store, i picked up 3 packs of AC alpha thickers for $1.49 each! they had LOADS of them - i just bought all of the small ones. ;) nifty!

Some Odd Girl challenges you with a SKETCH!

we know we told you we were changing the way we do things around the Some Odd Girl family, so today, you get a taste of what's in store!

not only have we been squealing over all the gorgeous new releases (both digital AND clear!), but we have changed our challenges to a monthly event. our first challenge was a photo/colour inspiration... the second in the rotation is going to be a SKETCH! so we'll be alternating (and maybe, OCCASIONALLY, tossing in a little something different to mix it up) between these 2 themes.

and, of course, our Very Odd Girls have dropped the hammer here, because they ruled this challenge something FEROCIOUS! CLICK CLICK CLICK to see what everyone did for this one - you WON'T be disappointed! :)

here's our sketch for March:

YEP! we went for a CAS kinda thing this month. that can be a smidge tricky for me, but i was up for the challenge, natch. :)

hellooooooooo Baker Mae!

and hellooooooo teeny tiny brown ball trim! you make my crafty little heart so very happy!
check out Baker Mae, lookin' all elegant, and gettin' her blingy on!

i just lurrrrrve those itsy bitsy blingy gems from CTMH and i am almost out! aren't they the perfect size for this cupcake?!

Miss Baker Mae is coloured up with my beloved Prismacolor Pencils (but i AM trying to get friendly with the handful of Copics i have, so once i've placed my order, i'll probably be posting lots of little guinea pig creations using them - i have a big hill to climb with markers!) and my card was created using nothin' but scraps. i am a thrifty bish! :)

so there ya be, folks. inspired? hope so! use the sketch, and use any Some Odd Girl stamp (digi, clear, Nouveau, sentiment - doesn't mattah!), and play along before March 29th at midnight EST and you could win this:

(OH MY GOOMIE, it's Fan! one of the brand new Nouveau Girls sets!)

or these:

(SHUT UP! Birthday Mae AND Baker Mae?!)

Random.org will choose our Fan winner, and one person who totally WOWS Kristy with their submission will get the Maes! how's that for a little something to sweeten the pot?! so click and join us!


i also decided to play along with the challenges at:

Allsorts - crafter's choice for this week!
Crafty Cardmakers - 1, 2, 3 recipe... 1 image, 2 patterned papers, 3 embellies (1 of them must have a heart) - i have the bling, the trim, and the cupcake sticker!

it's challenge time at Charisma!

and we're mixing it up this week, with something a little out of most people's comfort zones. THESE kinds of challenges always call to me, so even though it's Team Gem's week to host, i HAD to play along!

at Charisma this week, we want to see MASKING! :)
(if you're looking for a little bonus challenge, use 3 or more stamps!)

yep. not your usual colour combo or sketch or inspiration challenge, but something technique-based, and it's really not as difficult as it might seem!

we're sponsored this week by the very generous Simon Says Stamp ($20 to spend at their store!) and by Pink Cat Studio (5 digis - winner's choice!)

we are ALSO very pleased to introduce a couple of new Charisma Galz! welcome to the team, Melly, Carrie, Kelly and Carissa! Team Gem and Team Carly each have 2 new fabulous crafty gals in the family! :)

okay, so are you ready to mask? and are you ready to be inspired by our Charisma Galz who have rocked out this challenge? let's get our craft on!

here's my masked card:

and a close-up of my critters:

i have masked the deer and bunny, layering them up, adding some Smooch to the tree, and PRESTO! aren't these littles just the cutest littles?

so.... CLICK HERE to play along with the Charisma Galz for your chance to win the aforementioned fabulosity - you have until next WEDNESDAY to get your entry in!

i am joining in the fun at....
365 Cards - their theme is New Beginnings
Crafts & Me - this week they've got a "Pretty in Lace" thing goin' on - i opted for a lace doily stamp, which i had TOTALLY forgotten about!
Simon Says Stamp - ANYTHING GOES!

and i'll be back in a little bit to post my Some Odd Girl goodies, too! happy craftin', friends! xo