MFP Blog Hop Day 4 - Please Snow

Welcome to the Marks Finest Papers, a Heinrich Company

June Blog Hop! 

This month's New Stamp Set Releases are

 Featured June 10
Gears To You and Gear Up 

Featured June 11

Pretty Pears

 Featured June 12

Great Flowers and Flower Blocks

Featured June 13
Please Snow

Please hop along with us! You have a chance to win one of the above stamp sets! Just comment on the following blogs (don't forget this one), each day for more chances to win! (You do NOT have to comment on all the blogs each day! The names are drawn randomly!) 
All six winners will be announced on 

June 14, 2014, on the Mark's Finest Papers blog. You can go back and comment if you missed a day. (HINT: The more you comment, the more chances you have to win and comments on the MFP blog count twice!) 
The deadline for 

commenting is 10 PM EST on Friday June 13, 2014.

As I write this post, it is 80 degrees outside, promising to go to 88 degrees by mid-afternoon.  Despite that, today's featured set is Please Snow, and I have two cards for you.  

For my first card, I stamped and cut out two of the snow people and mounted them in front of the cute little pine tree.  My sister recently gave me a whole stack of 12 x 12 Christmas card stock she no longer wanted. The snowflakes were the perfect background for my card.  I added some Polar White Flower Soft for the snow. 

My second card is the other snowman in this cute set.  I love his bow tie and furry hat.  

I decided to use this card for my June Christmas Card challenge cards over on Speedy TV, so I made four of them.  They actually went together pretty quickly.

I hope you've enjoyed this month's blog hop and will try to use some of our cards as the starting point for your creativity.  Be sure to check out the rest of the blogs in today's hop.

Here's the Design Team for today:

Lois (that's me)

Kelli Jo

Karen 

 Kathy

Toni

Janine

Shirley Q

Vickie
Sandy

Marks Finest Papers, a Heinrich Co.

Card #1Stamps:  Mark's Finest Papers - Please SnowInk:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Ranger Tumbled Glass

Paper:  Mark's Finest Papers - Premium Heavy White, Snow Storm Smooth; AC Moore Jolly DP

Accessories:  Copic markers, Labels 25, Gold pen, Flower Soft, Word Window punch, Foam pop dots

Card #2

Stamps:  Mark's Finest Papers - Please Snow

Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Ranger Tumbled Glass

Paper:  Mark's Finest Papers - Snow Storm Smooth, Sherwood Forest

Accessories:  Copic markers, Classic Oval and Scallop Oval dies, Snowflakes embossing folder, Foam pop dots

Speedy TV Tutorial Time -- Faux Flower Soft

This week's Tutorial Time challenge on Speedy TV is Faux Flower Soft.  I've made faux Flower Soft using a couple of pieces of styrofoam before, but the tutorial for today is to use a sponge and blender.  I have to confess that I did not make this Flower Soft.  My blender is broken, but Pat Garvin was kind enough to send me some in the mail so that I could participate in today's challenge.  Thanks, Pat!

If you'd like to try this technique, check out the tutorial and link up your card at the end of the post over on Speedy TV.  You might win a free stamp set.

CCEE 1219 - Make Your Own Buttons

Once again Charlene (LilLuvsStampin) is our hostess for the CCEE challenge.  This week she wanted us to make our own designer brads or buttons.  Last year I bought the Sizzix Embosslits Sweet Buttons from Stampin' Up.  I had some fun with them for this week's card.

I followed the tutorial on Splitcoaststampers for making your own buttons, although I used the diecuts rather than punched circles.  I chose cardstock to match my daisies, cutting them out five times and gluing them together.  My daisies, a sneak peek of a soon-to-be-released set from Mark's Finest Papers, a Heinrich Company, called Oopsy Daisy, were colored with Copic markers.  Look for this set next week.  

If you'd like to get creative and play along with us, check out the CCEE Blog.

Stamps:  Mark's Finest Papers - Oopsy Daisy
Paper:  MFP Lily Pad, Snow Storm Smooth
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Bamboo Leaves
Accessories:  Copic markers, Sizzix Embosslits Sweet Buttons, Cuttlebug Wedding Set embossing folder, Burnt Sienna Ultrafine Flower Soft

MFP Blog - New Pines

Hello! Welcome to Mark's Finest Papers a Heinrich Company's December Blog Hop!

This month's New Stamp Set Releases are

Pucker Up Featured December 13
Pussy Willows Featured December 14
Ice and Snow Featured December 14
New Pines Featured December 15

I'm still making Christmas cards, so in addition to an image from today's set, New Pines, my first card has a Christmas sentiment from another MFP set, Greetings of the Season mini set. I still had some MFP Robin's Egg cardstock on my desk from one of yesterday's cards, so I stamped the two trees onto it rather than on white. To "cover up" the blue on the trees, I added some snow -- by way of Polar White Flower Soft.



I think my last card of the blog hop is my favorite. Masculine cards are always a challenge, but these pinecones made it so much easier. Stamped on MFP Corn Husk cardstock and colored with Copic markers, I matted them with several layers (MFP Deepest Mahogany and Corn Husk) and popped the panel up on pop dots. The background paper is from Basic Grey's Oxford paper pad.




Please hop along with us! You have a chance to win one of the above stamp sets! Just comment on the following blogs (don't forget this one), each day for more chances to win! We will announce all four winners on December 16, 2011 on the Mark's Finest Papers blog. You can go back and comment if you missed a day. The winners will be chosen at 11PM EST on Thursday December 15, 2011.

Lois (you are here)
Vicky
Anne
Connie
Linda
Karen H.
Patty P.
Geri
Dawn M.
Marilynn
Chrissy
Karen K.
Pam
Debbie
Brenda T
Bonnie
Harriet
Tammylee
Silvia
Mark's Finest Papers

Card 1
Stamps: Mark's Finest Papers - New Pines & Greetings of the Season mini set
Paper: MFP Greener Green, Robin's Egg; Basic Grey Jovial DP
Ink: Versafine Olympia Green
Accessories: Clear ep, Polar White Flower Soft, EK Success trees border punch, White gel pen

Card 2
Stamps: Mark's Finest Papers - New Pines
Paper: MFP Deepest Mahogany, Corn Husk; Basic Grey Oxford DP
Ink: Memento Rich Cocoa
Accessories: Copic markers, MS border punch, Baker's Twine, Pop dots

MFP Blog Hop - Little Birds With Big Mouths

This week's new releases are: Little Birds With Big Mouths, Planted with Love, Lilacs in the Summer, and Adirondack Summer. For your convenience, all these sets are available TODAY at Mark's Finest Papers.

So, do you want to WIN today's Featured Stamp Set: Little Birds With Big Mouths? (If you don't want to wait to win, you can always purchase the sets right away! We'll substitute a set from NEXT month's release if today's winner has already purchased this set!)

For your chance to win: Comment on the listed Design Team members' blogs TODAY before midnight EDT. There will be ONE random winner chosen from the comments on today's Blog Hop blogs. That winner will win Little Birds With Big Mouths. We will announce the winner's name on tomorrow's MFP blog post.

I used the Birdhouse image for my first card today. After coloring it with Copic markers, I cut it out and glued a straw (which I had cut in half lengthwise) to the back -- to serve as the pole. The DP for both of my cards today come from a K & Company pad called Julianne. I cut a blue piece with Labels 13 to back my popped-up birdhouse, matting it in white.



I punched some greenery using a Martha Stewart punch and popped on a flower at the base of the "pole." To add some texture, I put some Ultrafine Razzberry Fizz Flower Soft on the flowers cascading down the side of the birdhouse.

I used the nested birds for my second card. Aren't they rather funky looking birds? I brought in some turquoise with the sentiment, matting and brads for the eyes. I added some ribbon and a charm. The diecut is Labels 4 -- both regular and small. I like that Spellbinders added some "small" versions of the labels. It's a lot easier than tracing around the edge and cutting by hand.



Don't forget to comment on all the participating DT members' blogs today for your chance to win today's set.

Lois (that's me)
Vicky
Dawn
Anne
Peggysue
Connie
Emily
Karen
Patty
Roxie
Vicki
Liz
Geri
Lynn
Mark’s Finest Papers

Stampin'Bs Challenge -- Flower Soft, Liquid Applique or Glitter

The Stampin'B challenge hostess this week was Faith, and she gave us a choice. We could use Flower Soft, Liquid Applique or Glitter. I chose Flower Soft. Actually I chose three varieties of Flower Soft.



After I stamped the wheelbarrow from Mark's Finest Papers In My Mother's Garden and colored it with Copic markers, I then stamped the little grass images from MFP Tropical Vacation to create some "ground." I cut the image out using Spellbinders Labels Twenty-One and sponged the edges. I used Ultrafine Flower Soft in Citrus Crush and Raspberry Fizz, plus regular Flower Soft Fuschia on the flowers.

I have found that you can sometimes make a nicer mat (narrower) if you draw around the edge of the die and cut it out with scissors. By using the same die as your inside piece, you get a 1/8" border all the way around.

Stamps - Mark's Finest Papers In My Mother's Garden and Tropical Vacation
Paper - MFP Premium Heavy White, August Greens, Snow Storm Smooth; K & Company Julianne DP
Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black; Tim Holtz Distressed Bundled Sage and Tumbled Glass
Accessories - Flower Soft (Ultra Fine and Regular), Labels Twenty-One, Sponge daubers, Pop dot, Copic markers

Stampin'B's Color Challenge

Emily gave the Stampin'B's quite a challenge this week -- make a card using purple and turquoise, but also include something shiny or sparkly.




So I tackled this challenge head-on. The card base is purple and the nutcracker's jacket is turquoise. I love this nutcracker from one of Mark's Finest Papers' Christmas sets -- Christmas Postage Due. After coloring him with Copic markers, I added some Flower Soft to his hair and beard. And I don't know if you can see the detail of the brads or not. They have purple gemstones on them. (That was my shiny/sparkly item.) The DP is Basic Grey Marrakech.
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Stamps - Mark's Finest Papers Christmas Postage Due
Ink - Versafine Black Onyx
Paper - MFP Grandma's Favorite Purple and Corn Husk; Basic Grey Marrakech DP
Accessories - Copic markers, Flower Soft, Corner rounder, Clear ep, Gemstone Brads, Stamp scissors

MFP Blog Hop - Day 2

Welcome to the MFP October Blog Hop! This month, we’ve added TWO MORE STAMP SETS!!!

And…LOOK for a NEW LINK LIST TOMORROW!!!

We have 6 New Stamp Sets Released this month: Seasonal Poinsettias, Time to Chill, A Walk in the Woods, Greetings of the Season, Thankful for You, Snowman Country. For your convenience, all 6 stamp sets are available for purchase TODAY!

For your chance to win BLOG CANDY, (a set that will be released NEXT month), visit and comment on each of the design team members' blogs TODAY. On Saturday, (October 16, 2010), a winner will be chosen from those participants who visited all the blogs listed for today. (There will be four different winners, one winner for each day of the blog hop. You DO NOT have to comment every day. However, the more days you comment, the more chances you have to win!) If you miss a day, you can go back and comment on each day's blogs, as the winners will be chosen Saturday morning!

Again I have created two projects with today’s sets – A Walk in the Woods and Greetings of the Season.

My first card for A Walk in the Woods is a pretty simple one that needs very little explanation. I stamped the leafless tree four times and sponged the backgrounds. Then I put some Flower Soft on three of them to depict spring, summer, and fall. The fourth one I left alone. Because of the size of the four tree panels, I needed to make a larger than A2 card. My card measures 5 inches by 6 ½ inches.

Another rather simple card – this time one for Christmas. I love plaids, and Basic Grey’s new Christmas pad, Jovial, had this really pretty diagonal plaid which I wanted to show off. I cut the oval using my Creative Memories cutting system and then cut the solid red frame. I temporarily placed it onto the card base so that I would know exactly where to stamp the tree, which I then decorated with some bling. Finally I popped up the plaid layer with pop dots and mounted it on the card base.

My card for Greetings of the Season could encompass the entire Thanksgiving/Christmas season, but is probably closer to Thanksgiving than Christmas. The design is pretty self-explanatory, but the colors may be a little bit non-traditional. I like the blue/brown combination.

My second project is a calendar/note paper holder. I must confess that I have used ideas from several other stampers (Vicki Dutcher and DandI93 in particular) for this, making some subtle changes. After following DandI93’s instructions for making the box, I added the Basic Grey Indian Summer DP and mounted the cardinal panel, which is colored with Copic markers. I bought a calendar/note pad on sale for 50 cents at Michaels and separated the two parts. The calendar I glued to a Labels Four die-cut and mounted to the easel. The note pad I put into the drawer with a pen.

I have many “state” salt and pepper shakers. These shakers with the state bird of North Carolina seemed appropriate for today.


Be sure to visit the rest of the team to see what they did with these beautiful sets and comment on each blog. You have a chance to win one of the stamp sets to be released next month.

Here is today’s Blog Hop LINE UP:

Nancyruth

Lois (that’s me)

Vicky

Jeanne

Anne

Peggysue

Susan
Judi
Connie
Claudine
Dawn
Joanne T
Nicole
Marilynn

Mark’s Finest Papers

Stampin'B's Challenge #41 - Winter Fun

If this Stampin’B’s challenge had been posted a few days ago, my card could have been appropriate even for us Florida folks! It was COLD!!! There even were reports of snow flurries!!! Nicole asked us to make a card showing winter fun (skating, sledding, skiing). I chose sledding.

I love these little Penny Black hedgehogs. After stamping them with Versafine Black Onyx and clear embossing, I colored them with Copic markers and cut them out with the octagonal nesties, which are fast becoming a favorite of mine. As I didn’t want this card necessarily to be a Christmas card, you will note that their hats are not red. I added some Polar White Flower Soft for the fur on their hats and snow under the toboggan. To accent the snowflakes on the DCWV background paper, I punched out some snowflakes and attached them with brads. I certainly hope we don’t have any more of the frigid weather we experienced over the past several weeks. That’s not why I moved to Florida! But the hedgies sure look like they’re enjoying it!

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Stamps - Christmas Critters by Penny Black, Flourishes Sleigh Ride

Paper - Bashful Blue, Basic Black, GP White, DCWV Holiday Collection

Ink - Versafine Black Onyx

Accessories - Copic markers, Octagonal nesties, Flower Soft, Snowflake punch, Brad, Sponge dauber