Nothing is harder..

..than saying goodbye to someone you LOVE.. So true!! And it is also hard to make the cards for this occasion...

This is one of the cards for my upcoming "JustRite Sympathy" card class at Cranberry Hill Mercantile. We will make three cards in this class, still working on the other two. This class is scheduled for:

Thursday, September 24th, 11 am to 2 pm
Thursday, September 24th, 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm
Saturday, October 3rd, 11 am to 2 pm

Please bring your Cuttlebug with shims and rubber mat for Nestabilites (if you have them), pop-up dots (foam tape) and your favorite dry adhesive to the class. All other supplies will be provided.

$30, 10 participants max

Class kits are available until October 3rd, $35 each.

Please call Cranberry Hill Mercantile at 408-736-9151 to sign up for the class and/or purchase your kit/s.

This card measures 6" x 6".



This card looks nothing from what I started, it completely took over the creative control!! I do like how it turned out though ;-)

The sentiment is from the oval set called "Thinking of You". I wanted to show that you don't have to use JustRite stamps in the shape that they come in.

I have used four different Spellbinders dies on this card!! Labels Four, Labels Eight, Curved Rectangulars and Fancy Tags (behind the sentiment layer).

The tree on the background layer is the DesignBlock from Hero Arts, I used it sideways. Flowers are by BoBunny and the swirly things behind the flower are the Fiskars Swirl Florish punch. The sentiment inside of the card is by Daisy Bucket.

All of the supplies used to design this card are available at Cranberry Hill Mercantile. If you don't live in the area, please call the store at 408-736-9151 to place your order over the phone.

Weekly Challenge at La-La Land Crafts, this week's challenge is Bling-Bling!! For details and to enter check out this post.

La-La Land Crafts Shipping Special for the month of September!! All orders over $50 within US receive FREE Shipping, our International friends will receive a shipping discount.

Hugs!!

JustRite Nature Sings and a few ANNOUNCEMENTS

Before I start with the card there are a few thing that I wanted to share with you.. First one is about my La-La Land Crafts online store.. We are having a Shipping Special for the month of September!! All orders over $50 within US receive a FREE Shipping, our International friends will receive $6 off of the shipping charges!!! Now, just a few more things before you run off shopping ;-) ..

I got an email yesterday from the CardMaker Magazine, they have accepted two more of my cards for publication!!! Woo Hoo!!! They cards be published in their May 2010 issue, long wait, I know.. But I am EXCITED!!

Blog Candy at La-La Land Crafts along with the Halloween Stamps sneak peek, you have until September 3rd 10 pm PST to enter (only a few hours left, hurry!!). Click here for details and to enter.

Weekly Challenge at La-La Land Crafts, this week's challenge is Bling-Bling!! For details and to enter check out this post.


Now.. onto the card.. This is the third card for my upcoming "JustRite Christmas" card class at Cranberry Hill Mercantile. We will make three cards in this class, to see the other two please click here and here. This class is scheduled for:

Thursday, September 10th, 11 am to 2 pm
Thursday, September 10th, 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm
Tuesday, September 22nd, 12 pm to 3 pm

Please bring your Cuttlebug with shims and rubber mat for Nestabilites (if you have them), pop-up dots (foam tape) and your favorite dry adhesive to the class. All other supplies will be provided.

$30, 10 participants max

Class kits are available until September 22nd, $35 each.

Please call Cranberry Hill Mercantile at 408-736-9151 to sign up for the class and/or purchase your kit/s.

This card measures 6" x 6".




I had this card laying on my desk in the "almost done" condition for a few days.. That actually almost never happens to me.. It was missing that "something", you know.. I was at Cranberry Hill today, and Geri (the store owner) had a huge spool of this beautiful lace that she didn't know what to do with.. I said, cut me a yard of that.. Guess what!! This is just what this card needed!! Isn't that funny??!! Now the lace and the cord pull it all together for that perfect "nature" look I was after!!

Supplies Used:

- Paper: My Minds Eye, Metalic Bazzil

- Stamps: "Christmas Treasures" by JustRite

- Ink: Memento

- Copics for coloring

- Misc: Diamond Glaze (on the bird, berries and the leafs), Circle and Scalloped Circle Nestabilites, BoBunny Silk Flowers, Red Dew Drops, Hero Arts Adhesive Pearls, Twine, Lace

All of the supplies used to design this card are available at Cranberry Hill Mercantile. If you don't live in the area, please call the store at 408-736-9151 to place your order over the phone.

Hugs!!

Lala and the Butterfly - Bling Challenge in La-La Land

This card is for this week's challenge at La-La Land Crafts Blog, Kim Yu is hosting the challenge this week. Here is what Kim has to say:

"This week's challenge is BLING, BLING! I would like everyone to add some blings, sparkles, glitter, anything that blings to your creation! There are so many blings out there these days so the possibilities are endless! So take all those BLINGS out and play along!"

The design team will select the top 3 favorites for each challenge...The Top 3 will get an adorable button on their blog and the one with the most votes will also get 25% off at La-La Land Crafts online store!

Please visit our blog for details on how to play and to see all the projects from our Design Teams.

And here is my card for this week's challenge... I've seen some of the corner bookmark cards and really loved the idea. Really wanted to try it one of these days, and decided that today was the day!! This will be one of the cards for my upcoming "Bookmark Cards" class at Cranberry Hill Mercantile. We will make three cards in this class, all with different style of the removable bookmarks. This class is scheduled for:

Sunday, October 4th, 12 pm to 3 pm
Tuesday, October 13th, 12 pm to 3 pm

Please bring foam tape (pop up dots) and your favorite adhesive to the class. All other supplies will be provided.

$30, 10 participants max

Class kits are available until October 13th, $35 each.

Please call Cranberry Hill Mercantile at 408-736-9151 to sign up for this class and/or purchase the kit/s. *Please wait until tomorrow to call, the store does not have this class on their schedule yet..

This card measures 6" x 6".






I really enjoyed making this card and really pleased with how it has turned out!! Lala definitely looks like she is sitting somewhere in La-La Land ;-) .

Along with Lala stamp from La-La Land Crafts, I used the clear stamp set from BoBunny called Harmony. This set coordinates with the BoBunny Designer paper that I used on this card. I stamped butterfly twice, cut it out and placed on the triangle bookmark. The swirl from the same stamps set was stamped behind the butterfly, in the cirlce behind Lala and also inside of the card. Flowers are from BoBunny as well. The "bling" in the centers of the flowers and inside of the scallops of the circle are from Hero Arts. Crystal Stickles on Lala's shoes, dress and headband.

This Lala stamp is available in our online store, click here. All other supplies are available for purchase at Cranberry Hill Mercantile. If you don't live in the area, you can place your order over the phone, 408-736-9151.

Now, don't forget to visit La-La Land Crafts blog and enter into this week's challenge!!

I am also entering this card to a few other challenges:
Crafty Creations - to create a project using 3 or more decorative/patterned paper. I am so there, I used 4 different designs!!
Pile it On - this week the challenge is, ROUND! I have something round on my card, the cirlce behind Lala!!
ABC Challenge - C is for Circles. I think the cirlce behind Lala should qualify my card for this challenge.
Secret Crafter - Flights of Fancy, anything with wings. I got the wings on my card, the butterfly!

Hugs!!
:) Irina

Surprise Gift Box Card

Check out my La-La Land Crafts blog for a sneak peek of the new Halloween release and to enter into the Blog Candy!!

I couldn't decide what to do for the third card for my "Shaped Cards" class at Cranberry Hill Merantlie, so I turned to Splitcoaststampers for ideas.. I found this card by Valita, followed to her blog post for this card and then from there to the instructions on the Stampohmania website. It looked interesting and I decided to give it a try.. The template from Stampohmania was for a smaller card, and I of course just had to make a bigger one. I used their template as a reference and made one of my own.. My card measures approximately 5 1/4" X 6".

This is the third card for this class, to see the other two cards please click here and here. This class is scheduled for:

Thursday, September 3rd, 11 am to 2 pm
Thursday, September 3rd, 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm
Sunday, September 6th, 12 pm to 3 pm

Please bring pop-up dots (foam tape) and you favorite adhesive to the class. All other supplies will be provided.

$30, 10 participants max.

Class Kits will be available until September 6th, $35 each.

Please call Cranberry Hill Mercantile at 408-736-9151 to sigh up for the class and/or purchase you kit/s.

I have had hard time photographing this card.. This is the best I could do.. The lines of the card are straight in real life, I did work hard on my angles :-) It is a pretty cool card, I am very pleased how it has turned out.. When you lift the top of the box up, the tag inside pulls out!! I have not seen anything like this before!! I LIKE it!!


Designer paper is by Imagenisce, it is from their new Christmas collection, but I do love the sparkly dots and stripes and I think it worked quite well for the Birthday Card. The embellishment on the top of the box was made with Scalloped Cirlce Punches, I used two sizes.. I cut into every scallop and then folded cirlces in half. The Birthday Mice stamp is by Penny Black, it's called "Cheescake Party". The image was colored with Copic Markers and I added Stickles for the sparkle. The sentiment is by Savvy..

All of the supplies used to design this card are available for purchase at Cranberry Hill Mercantile. If you don't live in the area, you can call the store at 408-736-9151 to place your order.

Check out my La-La Land Crafts blog for a sneak peek of the new Halloween release and to enter into the Blog Candy!!

Hugs!!
:) Irina

Best Witches

Check out my La-La Land Crafts blog for a sneak peek of the new Halloween release and to enter into the Blog Candy!!

I feel like I am all over the place trying to catch up with all these new classes that I had put on the schedule. I was working on the Christmas cards for a few days, tomorrow will be working on a Birthday card, but today it was all about Halloween!!

This is one of the cards for my upcoming "Impression Obsession Halloween" card class at Cranberry Hill Mercantile. We will make three cards in this class, I am still working on the other two. This class is scheduled for:

Thursday, September 17th, 11 to 2 pm
Thursday, September 17th, 4:30 to 7:30 pm
Tuesday, September 29th, 12 to 3 pm

Please bring pop-up dots (foam tape) and your favorite dry adhesive to the class.

All other supplies will be provided.

$30, 10 participants max

Class kits will be available until September 29th, $35 each.

Please call Cranberry Hill Mercantile at 408-736-9151 to sign up for the class and/or purchase your kit/s.

This card measures 6" x 6".




This is not one of your cutesy Halloween cards, this one is pretty sophisticated, hehehe. Isn't that funny how the witch is taking a bubble bath in her cauldron. And doesn't it look like she has an avocado facial mask on her face ;-). This stamp is from Impression Obsession, love it!! The image was colored with Copic Markers, then I added stickles in Orange Peel, Purple and Lime Green. Ovals were cut with Nestabilites. Designer paper is by Best Creations. Black swirls on the bottom of the card and also on the inside are the Fiskars punch. Orange Dew Drops for the bubbles and black ones in the corners and on the swirls. The sentiment inside of the card is from Whipper Snapper.

All supplies used to design this card are available for purchase at Cranberry Hill Mercantile. If you don't live in the area, you can call the store to place your order over the phone, 408-736-9151.

Hugs!!
:) Irina

JustRite Joy of Christmas

Still playing with my new JustRite set called "Christmas Treasures" and yet another new set of Shapeabiliteis Fleur de Lis Pendant. I was resisting so hard and did not buy any of the Shapeabiliteis until I saw this JustRite Set, I couldn't stand it any longer, they are a perfect pair!!

This is the second card for my upcoming "JustRite Christmas" card class at Cranberry Hill Mercantile. We will make three cards in this class, I am still working on the third card. To see the first card, please click here. This class is scheduled for:

Thursday, September 10th, 11 am to 2 pm
Thursday, September 10th, 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm
Tuesday, September 22nd, 12 pm to 3 pm

Please bring your Cuttlebug with shims and rubber mat for Nestabilites (if you have them), pop-up dots (foam tape) and your favorite dry adhesive to the class. All other supplies will be provided.

$30, 10 participants max

Class kits will be available until September 22nd, $35 each.

Please call Cranberry Hill Mercantile at 408-736-9151 to sign up for the class and/or purchase your kit/s.

This card measures 6" x 6".

Really, this card looks SO MUCH better in real life!! Believe me, it's looks so pretty in metallic navy blue cardstock and the white cardstock has pretty shimmer in it!!





I used my Scor-Pal to make the grid on the background layer. To create the snowflake medallion behind the image, I cut and embossed two squares with Shapeabiliteis Fleur de Lis Pendant, I then layered them together by offsetting one over the other. Sentiment inside of the card is from the same JustRite stamp set. Both sentiments and the image in the circle on the front of the card were heat embossed with JudiKins Embossing Powder in Lapis Lazul, it looks oh so beautiful in real life!! You might be able to see it better if you enlarge the close up photo of the medallion. Circles were cut and embossed with Nestabilites.

I wanted to show you how I made these beautiful filigree corners. I took some photos too so you can see.. First I cut and embossed squares with the smaller die from the same Shapeabiliteis set and then cut the squares diagonally in half. The last step is to clean them by trimming, see photo 2. Those swirly things on the top and the bottom of the sentiment inside of the card were done the same way, but I also cut off the sides of the triangles. I don't know if I am making much sense, it is late at night, around 2 am ;-) .



You just have to check out La-La Land Crafts Blog!! There is a Sneak Peek for you there of my new Halloween Stamps and also a Blog Candy!! And, while you are there take a look at our Challenge this week, it is Stitching!! Everyone can participate, you don't even have to use our stamps!!

Hugs!!
Irina

Hand Stitched Banjo Maya

This week's challenge at La-La Land Crafts is Stitching. Our Design Team member Lisa is hosting the challenge and here is what she had to say:

"Hello everyone! My name is Lisa Hjulberg, and it's my privilege to host the La-La Land Weekly Wednesday Challenge. The challenge this week is Stitching. Please use stitching somewhere in your card or other papercraft project. It can be machine stitching, hand stitching or faux stitching. Personally, this is one of my favorite things to do when making a card. I hope you do too... or will, once you've tried it. Remember, anyone can play!"

I really wanted to participate in this challenge, I have not done stitching on my cards ever, used to do it all the time on the scrapbook pages, but never on the cards. That's because most of the cards that I make are designed for my classes, and there is no way we can stitch the cards during the class.. So, I asked my son to pull the boxes out and find my sewing machine (we have moved about a year ago, and the sewing machine was one of the things that had never got unpacked ;-) ).. I got all excited, even cleaned out the place on my not so neat table to put the sewing machine on!! Opened the box.. machine was there, but not the peddle!!?? I was so disappointed!! I am sure I have it in some other box.. just don't which one.. So.. what was girl to do??? I was really determined to stitch my card and just couldn't settle for faux stitching.. Then I thought, if my Design Team can do it by hand, so CAN I!!! I first pierced the layers and then made every single stitch by hand with the needle and the thread, one by one..

Please visit La-La Land Crafts' blog for more details about this Challenge. Everyone can participate, you don't have to use our stamps!! You have until Sunday night to enter.

I used this week's sketch challenge on Splitcoaststampers, just turned the triangle a bit to fit my card better..

This card measures 6" x 6".




I really like how this card has turned out!! Paper by BoBunny. Fiskars Border punch. Martha Steward Flower and Leaf punches. Marvy small flower punch. Memory Box pearl stickers in the centers of the flowers. Maya was colored with Copic Markers and cut out. What about the flower in Maya's "hair", I think she looks so cute!!

You can purchase this stamp at La-La Land Crafts online store, click here.

Hugs!!
:) Irina

JustRite Christmas - Peace on Earth

Have you seen this new set from JustRite, it's called "Christmas Treasures". I fell in love with it the minute I saw it, you can call it love at first sight!!

This will be one of the cards for my upcoming "JustRite Christmas" card class (I know, I am just too clever with the name of the class... not!!) at Cranberry Hill Mercantile. We will make three cards in this class, I am still working on the other two. This class is scheduled for:

Thursday, September 10th, 11 am to 2 pm
Thursday, September 10th, 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm
Tuesday, September 22nd, 12 pm to 3 pm

Please bring your Cuttlebug with shims and rubber mat for Nestabilites (if you have them), pop-up dots (foam tape) and your favorite dry adhesive to the class. All other supplies will be provided.

$30, 10 participants max

Class kits will be available until September 22nd, $35 each.

Please call Cranberry Hill Mercantile at 408-736-9151 to sign up for the class and/or purchase your kit/s.

This card measures 6" x 6".






I used metalic cardstock in Emerald from Paper Cuts with absolutely gorgeous paper from My Minds Eye. New Spellbinders Shapeabiliteis Pendant in Renaissance Hearts made a beautiful center piece for this card. I cut two of the larger shapes in this set and offset them. Corners are from the same set, I couldn't resist and added the same corners inside of the card.

The greeting and the main image were heat embossed with Superior Filigree Embossing Powder in Bavarian Bronze. Circles were cut with Nestabilites. Memory Box rhinestones in the centers of the corners and on the pendant.

All the supplies used to design this card are available for purchase at Cranberry Hill Mercantile. If you don't live in the area, you can call the store during business hours at 408-736-9151 to place your order.

Check out my La-La Land Crafts blog, there is a new Challenge this week!!

Hugs!!
Irina

Special Moments Tea Cup

I have mixed emotions about this card. It looks pretty and I like it.. BUT.. It does not have enough LAYERS!! It feels like I am missing something.. But the card turned out pretty. Believe me, the card was resisting so much and wouldn't let me add anything else to it.. I just had to let it be..

This is the second card for my upcoming "Shaped Cards" class at Cranberry Hill Mercantile. We will make three different cards in this class, I am still working on the third one. To see the first card please click here. This class is scheduled for:

Thursday, September 3rd, 11 am to 2 pm
Thursday, September 3rd, 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm
Sunday, September 6th, 12 pm to 3 pm

Please bring pop-up dots (foam tape) and you favorite adhesive to the class. All other supplies will be provided.

$30, 10 participants max.

Class Kits will be available until September 6th, $35 each.

Please call Cranberry Hill Mercantile at 408-736-9151 to sigh up for the class and/or purchase you kit/s.

This card measures 5 1/2" x 5 3/4".




Again, I had made the template for this card all on my own ;-) I used very pretty white cardstock from Paper Cuts, it is almost like Shimmery White from Stampin Up but a little bit heavier. You can't see on the photos but it has a very pretty shimmer to it when it heats the light. The front of the cup was embossed with the Diamonds Cuttlebug Embossing Folder. Ovals were cut with Nestabilites.

The flower and the sentiment are from the same Cling Mount stamp set by Hero Arts. I think this sentiment is just perfect for the tea cup!! Both the sentiment and the flower were heat embossed with Ranger's Embossing Pearl in Gold, this is the first time I have used this embossing powder, it matches the gold cardstock perfectly!!! I embossed the flower three times, cut out the flower to layer on the front of the card and another flower and the leafs for the inside. Image was colored with Twinkling H2Os. I also added a light wash of blue color to the cup for some dimension.

Hugs!!
:) Irina

a little birdie told me...

It's not too late to enter into La-La's Weekly Wednesday Challenge at La-La Land Crafts Blog, you can do it until Monday!! This week's challenge is "Flower Power".

I am back to making cards, and my head is exploding with ideas!! I have decided to write them down and try to make one at a time. I just couldn't concentrate otherwise, felt like I was all over the place :-) .

This is one of the cards for my upcoming "Shaped Cards" class at Cranberry Hill Mercantile. We will make three different cards in this class, I will make two other ones within a few days. This class is scheduled for:

Thursday, September 3rd, 11 am to 2 pm
Thursday, September 3rd, 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm
Sunday, September 6th, 12 pm to 3 pm

Please bring pop-up dots (foam tape) and you favorite adhesive to the class. All other supplies will be provided.

$30, 10 participants max.

Class Kits will be available until September 6th, $35 each.

Please call Cranberry Hill Mercantile at 408-736-9151 to sigh up for the class and/or purchase you kit/s.

This card measures 5 3/4" X 6".



I made my own template for the bird house. It is a "window" card. I used circle Nestabilites to cut out the opening. The sentiment on the scalloped circle was stamped and then cut and embossed with Nestabilites. All the stamps used on this card are from the clear stamp set by Impression Obsession. Martha Steward border, flower and leaf punches. Small flower is the punch from Marvy. Hero Arts pearls in the centers of the flowers. Mark Richards' Nailheads for the bird's eye. The designer paper is by BoBunny.

Hugs!!
Irina