Happy Birthday, Nami!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, NAMI!

Today is a special day to honor the incredible and inspiring Nami (of DeNami Design fame, of course!).  You should have arrived here from Emily's blog: My Little Slice of Bliss.  How fabulous is Emily?  She always creates such beautiful projects! If you want to start this blog hop from the beginning, go back to DeNami Design's Blog.

I am so incredibly honored to be included in this blog hop, and while I have never met Nami face to face, I am inspired, motivated, uplifted, and sincerely moved by this woman's kindness, creativity, and overall sheer genius.  On top of all that, she runs a successful business with her amazing family!  WOW!  Is there anything she can't do?  I sure don't think so.  I'm pretty certain there should be a superhero named after her 'cause she is a dynamo of talent and warmth!  

Personally, I was going through a really rough time a few years ago, right after I moved from New York City to a teeny, tiny town in Indiana.  It was quite a change and culture shock.  I just didn't know what to do.  It was the fall of 2009 when I first discovered DeNami Design stamps.  I was in my favorite local stamp store (Papertrix, of course!), and I saw the most beautiful cards in the world.  So elegant!  So whimsical!  SO MUCH GLITTER!  They were mind-boggling!  They were also the sample cards for an upcoming class.  I was floored.  I have never seen cards that spoke to me the way those did.  I was instantly in love with their stamps.  Since then, my love has grown to a full-blown obsession (almost 500 stamps!).  Seeing those cards and stamps completely changed the way that I made cards.  I had new motivation...new ideas...new techniques!  It wasn't long after that when I discovered there was a blog with challenges!  I soon started entering challenges, and that is what lead to my creating the blog you are reading right now.  All of this is thanks to Nami and her wonderful business.   I am so grateful.  That was such a tough time in my life, and (I know this sounds cheesy, but it's true) finding those stamps gave me focus and hope.  These images warm my heart and give me "warm fuzzies."   I just always smile whenever I see a DeNami image.   So, thank you Nami...thank you for the smiles...thank you for the inspiration...thank you for the hope.   

Now, I have a confession to make regarding the card I made.  As I've mentioned before recently, I am still in the process of moving from Indiana to Michigan, so I only have a "DeNami Survival Kit" with me.  I am staying with friends until I can get my own apartment, and there just isn't room for my abundant craft supplies.  So, I created a little survival kit of card-making basics and an assortment of DeNami stamps.  Well, guess what?  I forgot my "Happy Birthday" stamps!  DOH!  What was I thinking?!  However, I decided the perfect sentiment would be "Sending You Love."  That is one of my all-time favorite DeNami sentiments because it works perfectly for almost any situation, including this one!  I am sending all sorts of birthday love to Nami!

Closer Look:

My inspiration actually came from that green leafy vine paper (by Hambly) used as the background in the photos.  I bought that paper recently, and it inspired me to have the new Swinging Chickie hanging from some leafy vines.  I also decided to add some lime/teal twine to the vines to give them some more texture.

Again, I am soooooo honored to be a part of this blog hop.

Nami, thank you so much for all that you do.  I look forward to actually meeting you one of these days.  I hope your birthday is filled with love, laughter, joy, and tons of smiles.  I am indeed SENDING YOU LOVE...and lots of it!

Happy Birthday!

Amy

Next stop on the blog hop:  The AMAZING Wendy Elliot, whom I was fortunate enough to meet and take her DeNami Design national classes.  She is so sweet and fun, and her projects are always outstanding!

Stamps:

CL-D146 Swinging Chickie

PF 27 Whimsical Flowers petit four set

F171 Sending You Love

G153 Ornamental Vine

September DeNami Design Blog Hop: BACK TO SCHOOL

I'm BAAAAAAAAAAAACK!

It has been several months since I've participated in a DeNami Design Blog Hop, and I am THRILLED to be back!  Feel free to scroll down to previous postings on my blog if you want to learn about my life and what I've been up to this year, but I'd like to just dive into the reason for this post.

You should have arrived here from Jennifer's blog: Jen & Paper.  I am so impressed with her.  She is incredibly talented, and she seems so sweet, too!  If you want to start hopping from the beginning, go to DeNami Design's blog.

I must take the time to comment on DeNami's newest releases, though.  Seriously, how cute are they?  I squealed with delight when I saw them!  SO CUTE!  SO ELEGANT!  SO WONDERFUL!  Let's get back to the task at hand, though: the Back to School Blog Hop!

Now, my card may seem a little unconventional for this theme, but when I heard "Back to School,"  it made me think of Harry Potter and Hogwarts.   How do they get back to school?  On the Hogwarts Express train, of course!  Now, my card doesn't have a Harry Potter theme to it, but it was that image that inspired my project.  So, I am thrilled to present this card using the new Chickie Train stamp!   I made the train longer by stamping the full image once and then only inking up part of the image two more times.  (Side note: while I miss the aesthetic of the wood block stamps, the new cling stamps really are easier to line up, and they are so much more portable!)

Here is a close-up, so you can really see the glitter!  

Unfortunately, the colors didn't photograph as well as I would have liked.  The orange is actually more peachy in person, but you get the idea.  Plus, I used some patterned paper this time!  Often, I will just stamp my own background, but I decided to use some of this cool paper by Bo Bunny.

Thank you so much for stopping by my blog today.  Please leave a comment below, and make sure to leave a comment on all the blogs for a chance to win a fabulous gift certificate to DeNami Design's website!

Next stop on the hop is Pattie's blog: Paper Silhouettes.  I can't wait to see what she creates this time because she always impresses with her use of colors and gorgeous layouts!  

Thanks again for hopping along!

HAPPY CRAFTING!

Amy

Supplies:

Stamps (by DeNami Design):  CL-N139 Chickie Train, F171 Sending You Love

Patterned Paper: Ambrosia Marigold by Bo Bunny

Glitter:  various colors of Sparklets Glitter by DeNami Design

Inks: Tuxedo Black by Memento, Copic Markers

Monochromatic Elegance

Did you know that September is National Stamping Month?  How awesome is THAT?!?  In honor of that, DeNami Design is hosting 4 weekly challenges!  Woohoo!   For details on each challenge, visit their blog HERE.

This week, I entered a card in their Monochromatic Color Challenge.  BUT, I need your help!  I need you to CLICK ON THIS LINK and "LIKE" my card on Facebook!  The winner is determined by the number of "likes," so I need your vote!

I wanted to create a card for a "black tie" affair.  I wanted to portray elegance and opulence through fashion and bling!  

Here is another angle.  I stamped the bottom of the dress three extra times so I could create a 3D ruffle.  Oh, and can you see all the sparkle?  I used Pearl Paper (by Darice), AND I used Stickles, Inkessentials Enamel Accents, and Liquid Pearls.  I wanted this card to look as "rich" as possible.

Oh, and don't you always need a little extra touch on the inside of the card?  So, I used the fabulous Harlequin Border stamp (seriously one of my all-time favorite stamps) and some white ink to add this little finishing touch.

PLEASE VOTE for me today!  Voting ends Sunday, September 9th!  

Thanks for visiting my blog!

HAPPY CRAFTING!

Amy

Stamps:
N93 Glamour Dress
N112 Harlequin Border
TR04 Sassy Shoes stamp set

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

I know it's early for Christmas cards, but I was so inspired when I saw this adorable new snowman stamp from Impression Obsession called Crafty Snowman.  The mittens stamp and sentiment also are by Impression Obsession.  I colored the images using the brand new Distress Markers.  This was my first time using them, and I  must say, they are pretty fabulous.  They are easy to use, and they really look great!  I love my Copics, but these are a really great product that is totally different from Copics.  I don't currently own a set, but that will probably have to change in the future, 'cause I really did enjoy working with them.  Lastly, I used some of the newest Jillibean Soup papers.  Aren't they bright and cheerful?  Oh, and I did add some glittery accents using Spica Glitter Pens.

Enjoy!

P.S.  I took this picture on my cell phone, and I just noticed that the sentiment looks crooked.  Hmmm.  It was definitely straight in person.  *shrug*  Oh, well.

Happy Crafting!

Amy

DeNami Addict Challenge #4: BUTTONS!

Who doesn't love buttons?  Seriously!  Not only do they help keep your clothes on, but they are fantastic embellishments to use on your cards!  And THAT, my friends, leads me to this blog post! The amazing ladies over at the Confessions of a DeNami Addict blog are hosting their 4th challenge, and the theme is to use buttons!

Now, buttons can be used in many different ways.  Big buttons...small buttons...focal points...accents...the list goes on and on.  I really do love to use buttons on projects (as you can tell from these past cards:  Here, Here, and Here, too).  While those past projects used buttons in very obvious ways, sometimes, I love just using one single button as the perfect finishing touch.  

TADAA!

I just love that cute little penguin, and those medium polka dots are a favorite of mine, but the card just wasn't complete until that little red button was added to the DeNami grosgrain ribbon bow!

Here's a look at how the card opens.  You can see how I used a scallop punch on the side of the card and stamped more polka dots on the inside of the card.

Lastly, here are some close-ups of that li'l cutie.  I'm showing both these pictures because the lighting is so different, and I just couldn't decide which photo I liked better.  LOL!  One shows off the coloring better (gotta love Copic markers!), and the other shows the glittery sparkle better (gotta love Stardust Glitter Pens!).  

Wish me luck with the challenge!

HAPPY CRAFTING!

Amy

Stamps Used (all by DeNami Design): 

E104 Peek-a-boo Penguin

I49 Decorative Frame

N136 Medium Polka Dots