Allow me to Espresso...

mornin', CHICKENS!  it's Monday, and while Mondays have a bad reputation, they hold a totally different meaning when it comes to Paper Issues!  we have a super fun issue going on right now, and today, it's part TWO of our Creative Team's inspiration! 

today's theme is "Let Me Espresso my Gratitude"... which means you're welcome to submit any NEW or OLD creation that fits the theme, and that can be PRETTY broad...  stuff like COFFEE (!!!), anything for which you're thankful, Thanksgiving (natch!), embellish with coffee-related stuff (have you seen the PaperPOPs in the Paper Issues shop?!), use our free printables and/or cut files (there's a new "Thankful Watercolor" printable available now!)...  make scrapbook pages or cards or anything that fits the theme!

i decided to give a little shout-out to my biffy for the last 15+ years for my page.  he's been a HUGE support through all the crazy stuff going on in my life, he's seen me through a move to New Jersey, a few great losses and job changes, and some very happy moments (there are some going on RIGHT NOW!).  i am totally grateful for my best friend, my Smudge-Paw...

this page uses some awesome papers from Basic Grey's "B-sides" line, Elle's Studio "Joyful", Seven Paper's "Clara" line, plus some goodies from Maggie Holmes' Shine and Pink Paislee's Cedar Lane and Memorandum.  OH!  and mustn't forget the Swag Bag bits!  don't know what a Swag Bag is?  have you been living under a rock?  ;)  CLICK HERE and grab yourself a subscription!

entering this challenge (do it by CLICKING HERE) means you're eligible to win a $20 gift certificate to the Paper Issues shop (and lemme tell ya, it can go a LONG, LONG way, especially when you combine it with a discount!).  you have until December 6th to play along!  just remember that when you link, your entry (blog post, Facebook post, whatever) needs to also link back to us.

so there you have it!  CLICK HERE to check out today's post and see what my teamies did to rock this challenge.  Jennie and Sherri kicked it hard, and have some gorgeous inspiration for you!

and when you win that gift certificate, or decide to shop for some of the new fabulosity in the shop, remember the code!

  

you're just a Chip Off The Old Block!

hey chickens!  it's Monday, it's 8 am, it's time for a brand new issue at Paper Issues!  

our theme for this go-round is "A Chip off The Old Block"...  

so we're playing with chipboard, anything to do with boards (surfboards, on board a ship, skateboards, etc.), being bored (or things to keep from being bored), blocks (colour blocking, building blocks, around the block...), chips (the potato or poker kind, or maybe veggie chips or wood chips?)...  family traits, or just go ahead and use the July, August or Chip Off The Old Block free printables from the Paper Issues shop! 

i made the first in a series of paper blocks to decorate my cubicle at work, and i used papers and stickers from the October Afternoon "Summertime" collection, along with some chipboard pieces from older October Afternoon, new Dear Lizzy, Simple Stories, and much older BasicGrey and Echo Park. added some enamel bits and fussy-cut some other bits, adhered them all, and voila!  mood blocks!

i have a pretty roomy cube at work, so i can place these strategically and choose which sides show based on my mood on any given day.  or as messages to passers-by.  i just love adding my personal, crafty little twist to the otherwise-boring decor in there.  

do you decorate your workspace?  i'd love to see what you have in your work area (home office doesn't count - you're not nearly as restricted with fixtures and colours there!)...  

CLICK HERE to see what the rest of the Creative Team have done with this new theme...  there are some seriously fun packs of chipboard frames in the shop right now, so maybe those will help inspire you?   (not like the CT's projects won't wow you enough!)

you're going to want to bust out your chipboard and whatever else might work for this theme, download your free printables (CLICK HERE to see them all!), and get in on the action by linking up on the blog by August 2 and you might be the winner of a $20 gift certificate from Paper Issues!  because have you shopped lately?  er. mah. gerd.  LOADS of new stuff coming into the shop nearly every day.  and THIS will  save you 20% off all of it, ANYTIME.  use code ORANGE whenever you shop - ENJOY!

there's something charming about our latest ISSUE!

hey there, chickens!  

how was your weekend?  i got my craft on, i picked up some free swag from the casino, i drank wine and conspired with my nifty friend, Orange Gearle, about how we're going to entertain the masses during our Scrap & Chat event in the Paper Issues Friends and Fans Facebook group on the 24th.  all in all, i had a pretty good weekend! 

so let's kick off an awesome week celebrating a new season (it's really TRYING to be spring here!), new life, new perspective, and a NEW ISSUE!

the very awesome Scrapbook Circle is sponsoring the latest link party at Paper Issues and i had a LOT of fun playing with papers and elements from their March kit, as well as their printables!

our theme...  "Prints Charming" - EASY one, right?  printed papers!  charms!  Disney!  a little prince or princess who might just own your heart.  maybe even a favorite book from childhood (Le Petit Prince comes to mind).  anything to do with prints (printables - we have them free in the Paper Issues shop!).  paw prints.  art.  WHATEVER!  it doesn't even have to be a new project - just LINK HERE and remember to link back to Paper Issues in your blog post.

here's what i did with their fantastic March kit:

EVERYTHING except the Thickers and the twine are from the kit - the black flags are actually cut from the printable and the circles and dragonfly are punched from the same papers as the page.  there are goodies from Simple Stories, Pinkfresh Studio, Bella Blvd and My Mind's Eye, and there's still SO much more i barely touched!

ZOOM because dimension and critter!

isn't he cute?!  his body and legs were all stripey and i kinda wished he was on MY car so he'd come home with me.

CLICK HERE to see what's cookin' on the Scrapbook Circle blog, and join the link party at Paper Issues to be eligible to win their March kit! 

ANNNND there are LOADS of hot new items in the Paper Issues shop you're going to watch to check out.  kinda MAD crushin' on a few of them and i'm STRONGLY anticipating some of the forthcoming arrivals, so keep checking and remember that using my code ORANGE always (!!!) gets you 20% off everything in the Paper Issues store!

Paper Issues has Halloween Witches with SRM Stickers!

it's time for a brand new ISSUE on the Paper Issues blog!  we are sponsored this time around by the lovely and TOTALLY versatile SRM Stickers (seriously, they have something for EVERYTHING)...  but they don't JUST do stickers!  oh no, there's more!

first, lemme tell you about the issue.  our theme - "Witchin' You a Happy Halloween!" - with a TON of things you can do with it!  share your projects featuring:  Halloween events or characters, costumes, creepy things, dark Halloweeny colours, Halloweeny embellishments, spiders, bugs, creepy or haunted buildings, ghosts, scary movies, HAPPY things (literally anything that relates to happiness, since the word "Happy" is in our title!), all about YOU pages, SRM products (stickers, borders, doilies, bags, etc.)...  

i used a slew of cute SRM Halloween Stickers and included two of their pillow boxes and a bag (the corrugated pillow box is repurposed from my stash) and i created some little borders and tags from the stickers.  here's my Halloweeny ensemble!

you might spy a little Doodlepop on there, some Limba white woodgrain vellum (on the little batty box), as well as a piece of Toni From Designs flair! 

this kind of project is a little outside of my usual comfort zone but i can't wait to give these to the next-door neighbour kids on Friday! 

CLICK HERE to see what else the Creative Team did with these awesome SRM products, and join our link party for your chance to win an awesome gift pack from SRM Stickers!   you have until November 9th to play along, and remember, even though Halloween is Friday, the theme is WIDE OPEN for you to interpret and link up new or old projects!  (just remember to link back to the Paper Issues blog to be eligible for the prize!)

and THIS, folks, is yours forever! 

grab the newest crafty goodies before they're gone (like the new stuff from Gossamer Blue, Amy Tangerine and We R Memory Keepers), and subscribe to the awesome Swag Bag and be one of the cool kids!  :D

new Link Party at Paper Issues, sponsored by Jillibean Soup!

hey there, crafty friends!  today kicks off a branch new Link Party at Paper Issues, and we are sponsored by the ever-fab Jillibean Soup!  our theme?  those of you old enough to know it will have it stuck in your heads for days...

"Tell me dies, tell me sweet little dies!"

yep, i know!  enjoy that!  :)

i had the pleasure of working with some awesome pieces from their Spicy Social Soup and Sightseeing Stew collections, and it all came together for a fun little pairing.  here's what i made; all i added were an image, a paper clip and little enamel arrows (plus some mist on the die-cut).  otherwise it's ALL Jillibean Soup (and i'm loving these lines!)...

SO!  a pillow box with little improvised taglets using the papers with which i was working:

and my girlie, Strolling Mae, who is pretty much me:

now if YOU want to get in on this action and win an awesome prize pack from Jillibean Soup, you'll want to CLICK HERE.  then you'll want to link up old or new projects that fit the theme "Tell me dies, tell me sweet little dies" - and really, who doesn't have a die-cut shape?  use a pre-cut shape or die-cut your own...  or use a song title (like the Fleetwood Mac one that's repeating in your brain right now), or incorporate something that's dyed (hair? t-shirts?), or stretch it a little further and go for William Tell with the whole apple thing or archery - really, it goes on and on!  just be sure to link back to the Paper Issues blog in your post and you could be our lucky winner!

go like Jillibean Soup on Facebook and tell them the Paper Issues gals sent you!  

and shop in the Paper Issues store for some cute Jillibean Soup stuff HERE!

use my code ORANGE and take 20% off these and everything else in the shop, ALWAYS! 

playing with TAPES from Hazel and Ruby at Paper Issues!

hey there, friends!  brand new issue up NOW at Paper Issues, and this one's sponsored by the fab Hazel and Ruby...  we got to play with a bazillion different washis in different widths, some with scalloped edges, all quite lovely.

WELL!  Hazel and Ruby are also generously giving away a fun goodie bag of some of their products, and if you haven't played with their extra wide washi yet, JUST YOU WAIT!

our theme?  "MIX TAPE", which i think is just a TON of fun...  mix up your tapes, do a music-themed project, show us a fun mix of themes, mix up some ingredients for a favourite recipe, whatever!  there are TONS of ways to interpret this!

i wanted to mix up my tapes, so i made a page with 'em...

taaaaaaapes.  wide rolls?  scalloped?  yes, please!  i used 4 different tapes on this page, added some "animal" dots (hi, Lenny!) and stars, some floss, a couple of Pinkfresh Studio shapes and some doodly little speech bubbles - that's IT!

zoom!

i'd never stitched on a page before, so i had a little fun with a stencil and glitzed it up just a smidge.  i love how the tapes replace patterned papers here and all i had to do was add my embellishments! 

wanna link up?  CLICK HERE to check out the rest of the Paper Issues Creative Team's projects using these fun Hazel and Ruby tapes, and you could win a bunch of them for yourself!

just be sure to link back to the Paper Issues blog to be eligible - you can link up new AND old projects!  annnnnd, i'm pleased to say that there are some AWESOME new Heidi Swapp Mixed Media goodies in the shop, so if you're hankerin' for some new crafties, CLICK HERE to check out all the newest arrivals, and use this for a sweet, sweet deal!

Paper Issues is getting their NAVY on!

new issue, chickens!  Paper Issues has a brand new link party and you're invited!  this one's sponsored by the super fantabulous Echo Park Paper and they are offering up TWO collection packs to one lucky winner!

i created a card for a friend who just had a baby boy, and i was SO excited that the theme of the baby's room is all nautical cuteness.  here's my card:

i threw down some paper from Bella Blvd, added in some alphas from Doodlebug (and the tiny ones from my stash), and wood and cork bits from Studio Calico, then some burlap trim from Maya Road and twine from The Twinery. 

you wanna play along?  link up your projects that follow the theme (they can be NEW or OLD, as long as you link back to the Paper Issues blog!)...  go for some blues in your project, an aquatic or nautical theme (sea creatures, boats, beaches, marinas, the beach, cruises, water, etc.), military subjects, bath time or showers, use water on your project (i.e. WATERCOLORING!), something 4th of July related or anything using Echo Park products!  seriously, we don't mind how loosely related it is, we just want you to share!  CLICK HERE to see what the Creative Team did for this issue, and have FUN!

oh, and if you haven't already grabbed it, the July Swag Bag is available HERE.  AND a bazillion awesome new products (some are even nautical-themed!) like these:

and my code, as always, will save you some big bucks (that can be spent on more crafties!):

linked up for the May 11th issue, too!  because STARS and what better way to get one's party started than with a brand new baby boy?  :)

New at Paper Issues - Food For Thought! Sponsored by Some Odd Girl

it's a new issue at Paper Issues, and this one's rather near and dear to me!

we're sponsored by Some Odd Girl, and, well, it's kinda perfect, dontcha think?  :D

well we're inviting you to link up, and our theme for this go-round is "Food For Thought"...  share your projects (new or old, just be sure to link back to us!) related to food, ponderings/musings, recipes, restaurants, fave dishes, stresses and worries, dreams and things you think about, puzzles (they make you think!), cooking, dieting, etc...  OR anything you've made using Some Odd Girl stamps!  (easy peasy!)

we happen to have a brand new Some Odd Girl stamp release (which you may have seen if you follow us on Facebook or subscribe to our newsletter), but if not, well you're STILL in for a treat!  the prize for this issue?  two AWESOME sets of clear stamps!  i used the Fruit Salad set for my cards for the issue...

EEEEP!  love these little guys!  (there's a nanner in the set, too)  coloured them up with my Spectrum Noir markers, the main panels are from Polka Dot Party from Dear Lizzy, and everything else (EVERYTHING!) is from the May and June Swag Bags! 

so you wanna play along?  join the link party by CLICKING HERE, and see what the rest of the Paper Issues Creative Team did with these awesome stamps...  might give you some ideas how to incorporate the theme into your projects!  ANNNNND you could win these!

join us.  you know you wanna.  how cute would these stamps be for your kids' lunchbags?  or thank you gifts for teachers?  come onnnnnn, play along!  :)  and if you feel up to it, check out the Paper Issues Instagram feed - there's a contest and all you have to do is share photos of your crafty space and use the hashtag #icrafthere and you could win MORE fabulous stuff from Paper Issues! 

Paper Issues - new issue sponsored by Ruby Rock-it!

there's a new issue at Paper Issues and you are invited to join us!  our fab sponsor for this go-round is the radical Ruby Rock-it!  (i'm showing Ruby Rock-it lotsa lurve this week!)  our theme?  "The World is a Circle", which seriously can go just about anywhere!  places, circle elements (die-cuts, buttons, brads, gems, etc.), travel, your circle of friends, your family circle, any Ruby Rock-it products, etc...

i played with some of the soft and subtle East Coast line from their Essentials collection, and i added my bold pops of colour because that's what i do!  who says soft and pastelly has to stay that way?!

with the exception of the die-cuts and mist from Heidi Swapp, the grey and black alphas and the black pearl bling, everything you see is from Ruby Rock-it (i did add in some paper from their Color Fusion line from my stash), even those little teensy-weensy white alphas (which i LOVE!)...

zoom of me and mah bestie:

(the "ess" word started out as "blessed" but, well, this totally fit so i couldn't resist!)  get a little closer!

that journaling card - the most fav ever?  yeah, i love that (but i'd totally add an E to make it FAVE)

so that's us, CHA Vegas 2013. 

got some ideas to play along with this issue?  join the Link Party by CLICKING HERE!  you can share old or new projects, as long as they fit the theme.  and if you remember to link back to Paper Issues in your post, you're eligible to win this:

this whole fab collection (excluding the album) could be yours!  it's the lovely Essentials East Coast collection, which was the basis for my whole page, and it's so versatile!  i love the season cards!  

click here to see what the rest of the Paper Issues Creative Team did to show off this line, and be sure to link up to win!  you've got two full weeks to join us!

Paper Issues and a Pocket Full of Sunshine!

hey there, chickens! 

new issue today at Paper Issues, and i am DELIGHTED to share something slightly out of character!  i don't get tired of making cards, i assure you, but i got this set of photos from my Instagram feed, and i couldn't resist some of the new pretties i got with my last Paper Issues order.  i made a SCRAPBOOK PAGE!  yep.  craziness!

our theme for the next two weeks is A Pocket Full of Sunshine, and there are SO many fun things you can do with this!  sun.  son!  pockets.  pictures of pockets.  something that's FULL.  anything bright and happy.  whatever!

our sponsor?  the very fun Panda Eight Designs - specializing in some of the most AWESOME flair ever!  (go LIKE their Facebook page!)

here's my page...

LOVE the gradient chevron paper from Chic Tags, and you might not be able to tell, but that pink and white polka dotted panel is actually the new Doodlebug Sprinkles Vellum in white over a piece of plain blush cardstock.  i'm in LOVE with the vellum.  i bought it in EVERY. SINGLE. COLOR.  and some multiples.  those cute little chevron stickers are also new from Doodlebug (get 'em here!). 

zoom!

used some goodies from the inimitable Swag Bag (random pieces appear on random projects), and the alphas are from Jillibean Soup (the title is in Grapefruit Pink, and so is the date, layered over Blueberry Teal), little Amy Tangerine stickers, giant Selfie title from some super old Cosmo Cricket stash, and that gold foil paper behind the sun rays cuts is new from Fancy Pants (and it's fabulous)...

zoom again!

loving the Panda Eight Flair!  (and my Dymo label buddy is always within reach)

AND not only is the lovely Panda Eight Designs offering up FIVE flair packs of the winner's choice (she even made one specifically for this issue!), but we have a DISCOUNT CODE for you, too!  use SUNSHINE20 at checkout for 20% off your order!

CLICK HERE to check out the rest of the Paper Issues Creative Team's creations for this issue and to get in on the action!  i'm still kind of in shock over the fact that i SCRAPPED.  :)

OH, and here's a little something for you!

...lastly, i combined the sketch AND the color inspiration challenge at Unity's {be inspired} challenge, because, seriously, how awesome is the sketch?! (i was pretty true to it, which is a first for me!)  and how perfect are the colors?!  the stamps i used are We Click (camera) and Could I Be Any Cuter? (rainbow) - and this is the first time i've used stamps on a scrappy page, too! 

Shiny and New at Paper Issues!

we've got a new issue, folks!  but we ALL have issues, right?  well for this we're looking for anything that follows the theme "Shiny and New" (interpret however you'd like!), but we also have a sketch if you'd like an extra push.  NOT necessary to follow the sketch!

for this one, we're also giving away an awesome $20 gift certificate to spend at the Paper Issues store, and WHOA, there's so much new stuff i'm having a hard time keeping up!  every time i place my order, new stuff comes in and i have to place another!  :D

here's what i made for the occasion:

i used the yummalicious Sweet Cherry Color Shine from Heidi Swapp (Paper Issues has LOADS of colors!) and Double Yellow Mister Huey's from Studio Calico to pretty up their mistables, Carribean Baker's Twine from The Twinery.  some paper from Echo Park (an older collection - Happy Days, but there's lots of EP available HERE!), ball trim (swoooooon) and a cheapie felt key from somewhere.  lullz.  bling.  alphas.  done.

so yes.  LINK UP HERE.  win this:

shop with THIS:

**linked up 4/3/14 to the new Pocket Full of Sunshine issue at Paper Issues!**

Christmoweenie - Paper Issues NEW issue comin' atcha!

okay, so the theme is NOT Christmas, but it's Hallowe'en, and i couldn't wait to bust out some of my new goodies, which are CHRISTMAS THEMED, for the most part.  and that's okay!  that works for me.

i made a Hallowe'en project for the occasion, and you should, too.  because you could win one of the very pretties that i used on my project!  CLICK HERE for the Paper Issues party.  here's m'card:

so.  that GREEN, that gorgeous green shimmery spritzy goodness?  that's the new Citron Heidi Swapp Color Shine, and you want it.  and you can WIN IT!  plus the rest of the new colors....

the other stuff i used?  Paper Issues goodness...  paper from the brand new Glitz hello december 6" paper pad...  brand new Pink Paislee Hey Kid Ephemera...  TCW Dina Wakley 6x6 template...  (that one's sold out, but there are PLENTY of other awesome options!) and Mister Huey's Color Mist in Manila.