Happy New Year!

Hello and Happy Hip Hop!!

Sorry for posting late!! 

I hope that you started all this fun at the Unity Blog 

so you haven't missed any special creations from the rest of the Unity or Ippity DT's.  

Hopefully you are coming to me by way of Karen Maldonado's blog!!!

I challenged you guys on Monday's Hippity Hop

to make a project that helps RING in the NEW YEAR!

Today I am sharing with you what I created for me to have as I head into 2011!

(But first I am going to get a little personal.. scroll down to skip that if you choose!)

Many of you who have been following me on my blog for some time now know that I have experienced some big changes in my life during the past year.  Namely, I became separated and eventually divorced after a very short marriage.  Since that time I have been struggling to find the real purpose in my life and I've been trying to find that inner peace within myself that helps me know that everything is going to be OK and that everything happens for a reason!  By nature I am not a very patient person and so it has been very frustrating for me to not know all the answers yet!  But that is what I am going to be working on in 2011!

I wanted to tell you guys that as I work on these things I have asked Angela if  I could take a little furlough from the Ippity DT to be able to put my focuses completely on where they need to be.  I need to sort some things out and put my uneasiness to rest!  So I will be temporarily off the DT and starting Melody Ross' "Soul Restoration" class beginning January 11th.  I am looking very forward to it.  I hope you guys understand!

Keep stopping by because I should be able to share some of my creations 

from the class here on my blog and I will be back as soon as I can... I promise!!

So, on to my project to help me 

"RING in the NEW YEAR!!"

Each New Year I try to think of ways to improve myself and I was so inspired by many of the quotes that our Ippity stamp sets have.  So I thought why not turn them into a little book and have them at my side for those moments when I feel down or alone (or whatever) and I just need a little jolt of happiness!!

So here is my book of inspiring Ippity quotes 

that will help me stay in the right frame of mind in 2011!!

It's an accordion style album that I have had in my stash for some time now! I think it was the perfect medium for this project!!  I love the stark colors and kept the stamping inside to a minimum because I really only want to focus on the meaning of the quotes anyway!

See what I called it???  "Quotes a la Happy!!"  LOL!!

I know after reading through these amazing quotes it will be very easy to get happy again!!

All of them are so uplifting and encouraging!

Here is a look at some of the accordion pages that are contained within my book!

Just let me know if you need to know which set any of these quotes come from!  I will be happy to share that with you!  But don't forget you can get any one of these quotes for yourself by finding an Ippity Chick near you to buy your stamps from!!

I promise not to be a stranger, but I hope when I come back I will be at more peace with myself and able to be the best DT member I can be.  I apologize for my lack of involvement lately and appreciate all of you who have stuck by my side as I have been going through these crazy changes in my life!

Next on the Hop please stop by the wonderfully talented and oh so sweet friend of mine,

Lisa Arana!!

I love you guys and wish you the best NEW YEAR you can have!!

Hugs and best wishes!

Hip Hop Ippity Gift Idea

Happy Hip Hop!!

I've missed you guys.  I've been a little busy these days trying to keep up with all the happenings going on at work and also preparing for the upcoming Christmas celebration!  My family LOVES Christmas and we like a lot of lights and we have two trees and even a Christmas Village that we put out!  So needless to say I have been trying to get it all done and it hasn't left me much time to blog or craft!  I hope you can understand!  :-)

Next on my list is to tackle my Christmas cards and some hand made gifts to give away this year.  And that's just what I have for you today!  We all need easy gift ideas for this time of year, don't we?  Well I have one to share with you that you can literally finish making in less than 30 minutes!!  Woohoo!!!

Maybe you have a co-worker or a neighbor that you'd like to give a gift to, but you don't have  a lot of money or time to spend.  Then why don't you make something like this beautiful candle cover made from vellum and a recycled jar!

I stamped Ippity's So This is Love winter trees stamp several times onto a length of vellum that  is long enough to wrap around the jar with a bit of extra overlap.  I used vellum tape to secure the ends together.  Ippity's Hybrid ink in the Burnt umber was the perfect color to stamp with and it dried well with just a bit of my heat gun applied to it.  (Take care not to burn the vellum or make it curl!)  To make the birds red I simply colored over the images with a Copics marker before stamping!

The snow was created first by tearing a plain white sheet of typing paper and applying it to the underside of the vellum.  Then I sprayed an adhesive using a mask cut to match the snowbanks and applied white cotton flocking powder on top of that!

Here is the candle lit up with a battery operated tea light illuminating it!  It has such wonderful glow and shows off these amazing tree silhouettes so nicely!!

Why don't you try one of these! I would love to see what you come up with if you do!

Here is the Ippity stamp set used to make today's project!

Do you need to get the Ippity stamp set that you see used here? 

 Please find an Ippity chick near you by clicking on the link below and order yours today!!

Next stop on today's Hip Hop is the talented Lisa Arana!!
Have fun!!

Have a great day and may your bucket overflow with the light and love of this Christmas Season!

Have your Cake and Eat it too!!

Happy Hippity Hop!!

I hope you stateside friends enjoyed your Thanksgiving Holiday!!  It was wonderful for me and I am sorry that we have to get back to the weekly routine!  However, since Christmas time is my favorite time of the year, I guess I can't complain that we are getting closer to that now!!

Eva is today's host for our Hippity Hop Challenge.  And she has given us a site full of inspiration to find some creative mojo from.  Her challenge is IHHC52 and she would like us to be inspired by one of the cakes at the website called Cakes for Occasions.

Boy was I getting hungry looking through this site!! LOL!

But I finally landed on THIS CAKE as my inspiration and here is what I created from that inspiration...

Ordinarily I wouldn't have chosen to put the garnet and goldish yellow colors together (mostly because I am a Florida Gator fan and not a Florida State fan,) but I have to admit this combo has a nice elegance to it!  I decide to use the "wishing you" sentiment from the So This is Love Ippity stamp set and create an anniversary or wedding card.  The inside sentiment (not shown) says "love and laughter."

Here are the three Ippity stamp sets I used to create this card...

And here is a closeup of the front...

I have to thank Eva again for this fabulous ribbon!!  She sent this satin ribbon to me as well and I love the size and feel of it!! It forms wonderful bows!!  And it was the perfect touch to finish off my card!!  Thanks Eva!!  ♥

That's all I have for you today, but be sure to start the Hop at the

Ippity Blog

where you will find the list of today's Hop participants

 and be sent around cyberspace to find some amazing Ippity inspiration!!

Enjoy your day and be sure to check out your

  Ippity Chicks and the Unity Blog/website

where you are likely to find some fabulous CyberMonday specials!!!

May your bucket overflow with Love and Laughter!

Hip Hopping Down Bella Blvd!!

Hip Hop!!!

So by now if  you started the Hip Hop at Unity's Blog

you have heard the amazing news that Unity Stamp Company 

is now co-branding with Bella Blvd!!  

Isn't that amazing??

Today we are also having a Flip Flop Hip Hop so the Ippity girls get to play with their Unity stamps!!  And I have chosen the new Bella Blvd Stamp collection called Bella Trees!!

I love this set because it has so much versatility!!!

And I decided to use the trees just a little bit out of the box to show you some of that versatility!!

The DT members have been challenged this week to BAG it and TAG it!!!  So I have created this fun gift tag for a wine bottle bag using the Bella Trees stamps a little bit out of the box!!

Here is the full view of my tag on the wine gift bag!  I got these cute little felt bags from the 1$ spot at Target.  They are so cute!!  And to add a tag is the perfect finishing touch.

Here is a closeup of my project!  Were you wondering where the TREES are???

Well, I used two different tree shapes to create the petals of the Pointsettia on the tag.  The larger petals were created using the tall tree in the collection, but first I stamped the base paper with the ippity stamp called Thoughts from the Past and then I cut the tree shapes out.

Next I stamped the smaller solid leaf onto white paper using red ink to create the smaller petals for the flower. I layered them all together and kept them held with a brad from a Making Memories kit that I had  on hand.

The Merry Kissmas stamp is from Ippity's Kissmas and Mistletoe set!

Next you are heading to the talented Lisa Arana's blog  for some more Bella Blvd Beauties!!

Have fun and be sure to have a very 

Happy Thanksgiving as well!!

New Ippity Stamps are now for sale!!!!

The three month wait for new Ippity stamps is over!!

Are you ready to put your Party Hat on and celebrate???

The FALL 2010 Ippity Stamp sets are now available for purchase

 from an Ippity Chick near you!!!

Woohoo!!  Finally!!!

We hope that you have been wowed with all the DT samples that we have been sharing with you since last Sunday and that you have picked out your favorite stamps sets to buy.  But if you are like me, you wouldn't be able to choose just some of them and you would just want them all!!  LOL!!

Can I get a Hip Hop too???

It's Thursday which means that we are having our weekly Hip Hop with the Unity DT girls too.  But for Ippity's special day, all the Hip Hop fun is going to start at the Unity Blog as usual, but then make it's way through the Ippity DT girls' blogs first.

But it's easy for you because all you have to do is look for the

 "NEXT BLOG" icon

and click on it to be taken to the next blog on the hop!!

We also have some amazing blogs that you will want to visit from the Ippity Blog at the end of the Hop and that is the blogs of some of our amazing Ippity Chicks!!  If you need one to purchase your stamps from, please visit the link below to locate one near you!!


The card I have made for you today uses the following NEW stamps sets...

Party Hat

What you Doin

Gurnsey Gingham

I started by stamping the Gurnsey Gingham as my background using Real Red SU ink.  Then I stitched around it haphazardly to create a messy border.  Next I applied the cake bingo card and a strip of paper from We R Memory Keepers.  Then I added the cupcake from the Party Hat set as an embellishment that I popped up.  And then I finished it off with the "happy birthday" sentiment from the What You Doin set.

The cupcake was colored with Copic markers and then I added Distressed clear Rock Candy Stickles to the frosting for dimension and some glaze.

I love these sets... I know they are going to be seeing a lot of ink in my house!!

Please come by the Splitcoaststampers Unity forum for a full day of fun today!  Also be sure to check out all the challenges that we have in store for you to help us celebrate our New Release!!  It is going to be a day packed full of fun!!!  We promise!!

The winners from our comment contest will be revealed on the Ippity forum too! So be sure to check it out!!

Next on your way to seeing some more Ippity and Unity goodness

 is the oh so talented blog of Lisa Arana's!!

Have fun!!

And thanks so much for stopping by and celebrating our New Releases today!!

Ippity New Release Sneaks Day 4

Today is the last day of our Sneaks!!

Are you as blown away as I am with all these amazing new Ippity stamp sets???

You know you are going to want them all!!

And the best news is that

TOMORROW

you can have them!!!

And speaking of BEST NEWS... we have something exciting to share with you all today!

We enjoyed having Angie Blom as our Guest Designer sooo much that we have asked her to stay on board for another three month term!!  She is so amazing and her talents are so inspirational that we just weren't ready to see her go just yet!!  But we will be inviting a new guest for the Winter Release Term, so be sure to keep uploading your Ippity Creations into the SCS Gallery and participating in our Hops so we can see your talents.  You never know who will be our next Guest after Angie's next term is over!!

We love you Angie... thanks for staying on with us for another Guest term!!

Our NEW RELEASE PARTY is tomorrow!!!

Please come to SCS's and join us for the celebration!!

To see the last two sets we are revealing today

 and to start deciding which sets you are going to get,

 please start at the Ippity Blog!!

Then follow along the "Next Blog" icons to make it through all the DT girls' blogs for some more stampy inspiration with today's showcased stamps!!

The project I have for you today is a scrapbook layout!  (I know!!  I scrapbooked!!!  LOL!)

It uses the new Ippity Stamp set called

Here and Now

I chose to use the Sweet Moment Title/Journaling block stamp.  I stamped it in SU's Chocolate Chip ink to coordinate with the brown tones of the Bo Bunny Sophie collection papers.  It is hard to see it in this picture, but I added machine stitching to the layout as well.

Here is a closer shot of that cute stamp.  I love that you can personalize the date by adding in the month and circling the day!  I stamped it twice to allow myself a little extra room for journaling and to match the sketch that I was using.

Here is the Page Maps sketch that I created my layout from...

And because I added the scalloped border that is shown above, my layout also qualifies as a submission for Eva's "SCALLOPS" New Release Challenge!  (INRC2Fall2010)

You can see all the challenges for our New Release right

HERE!

We sure hope you will play along with us!!

Of course there are prizes to random winners!!!  :-)

 

I also should note that I stamped the corner embellishment from the Cherish Your Dreams set that we showcased yesterday.  I know I will be using that stamp A LOT!!  I love it!!!

So hop on over to Lisa's blog to complete your journey and be sure to be leaving comments along the way because we will be picking our comment winners tomorrow!  Each DT member will randomly choose one winner from all their comments during the Sneak Peeks!!  Good luck!!

Ippity New Release Sneaks Day 3

Okeedokee!!!  

Are you ready for some more???

Now you have seen 4 of the 8 Ippity stamp sets 

being released on Thursday

 and today you get to see two more!!!

Start HERE to see them!!! 

Then follow the blog hop icons to go through all the DT's blogs!

Today's sets are so wonderful!!!  

You are going to LOVE them!!!

The one that I am showcasing for you today is called 

Cherish Your Dreams

While the stamps in this set look very ornate and elegant, I decided to use two of them a little out of the box and give my card a masculine touch.  Once again it shows the versatility of these AMAZING Ippity stamps!!

The word happy and the oval frame are both in the Cherish Your Dreams set.  The word birthday comes from the Fall For You set.  I needed to make a masculine birthday card for a friend and I still had my October Afternoon sample packs sitting next to me so they were easy to grab and go.  I think the blocking and the colors and patterns lend themselves to make a card that a guy could even like!

The oval frame was stamped with SU's Not Quite Navy, the happy was stamped in Real Red and the birthday was stamped in Wild Wasabi!

The ribbon actually had a pink stripe through the middle but with a trusty red Copic marker, I was able to make it match the red on the card!!  LOL!

Next stop on the Hop today is Lisa Arana's Blog!!!

ENJOY!!!

Only two days until our NEW RELEASE PARTY!!!

I hope you will be there!!!  Lot's of challenges, prizes, chatting and of course
NEW RUBBER for sale!!!!!

Thanks again for your sweet comments!!  

Keep 'em coming each day for a chance to win a FREE stamp set.
Each DT  member will be choosing one to give away from all of the comments during our Sneaks!

Ippity New Release Sneaks Day 2

Welcome to Day 2 of the New Release Sneaks

 for Ippity's Fall Collection going on sale this Thursday!!

Wow!!  

How about those first two sets Ippity showed off yesterday!!

Aren't they amazing!!!

I am so glad that you came back today to see some more.  We have two more sets to show you today too.  So be sure to start at the Ippity Blog so you can see the whole sets being released on Thursday, and then follow the "next blog" icons to see all the wonderful creations the Ippity DT made for you today!!

And DON'T FORGET!!

The HUGE NEW RELEASE PARTY is Thursday!!!   Please come celebrate with us!!!

Today is also HIPPITY HOP!!!

  Woohoo!!!

And Eryn is our challenge host for today and her challenge (IHHC50)

 is to create a mini card!!!  How fun is that!!!

So, I have used one of the sets we are showcasing today to create some mini card sets!  This new set is going to be a major "GO to" type of set for all us!!  You HAVE to get this one!!  It is packed full of cute sentiments and little embellishment type stamps that are the cardmaker's dream come true!!!

The set I am using is called 

How You Doin

I had so much fun creating these little jewels.  The finished sizes are 2 3/4 x 2 3/4 inches and I used the sample packs of October Afternoon paper that I got from CHA this past summer.  Two little samples were enough to finish two of these cards and have them coordinate together perfectly.  

I think these are the perfect size to give away when you need a card to go inside a gift bag or want to attach a note to some baked goodies you are sharing at the holidays.

Here are some closeups for you...

These two also use the Party Hat from yesterday's set we showcased called 

Party Hat!

Do you see how versatile these stamps are??  

I know that they are going to see a lot of use in my stamproom!!!

So next you are heading off to the wonderful Lisa Arana's blog!!

Have fun and we hope to see you tomorrow!!

Thank you for all the love you left on my blog yesterday!! I really appreciate it!!

And....keep leaving comments because each DT member will be giving away a free newly released set on Thursday  and we will be choosing one random winner from the list of people who left comments on our blogs throughout the sneaks!!  

Good luck!!!