Hey there!

Wow! It feels SO good to have an internet connection, but I really should be working. So I'm just going to take a minute and let you know what's going on.

I've been calling Time Warner (RoadRunner) every time there's been an issue with my connection. And, actually, it's nearly any time there's weather in the area. Meaning, if there's a power outage, if it rains, snow... you get the idea. So I called last Thursday night and was told that everything looked fine, but we had no internet. So then I called again at about 10 PM and a very nice associate told me that I had irregular levels and a service call had to be performed. So I went back and forth about dates and FINALLY got one for this wednesday (the 2nd) after 6 PM.

Headache, anyone else? My migraines are a little back. And just when I think it's over, the weather changes (especially barometric pressure), which prompts a few more problems.

Anyway, if all goes well I SHOULD have internet access Wednesday night. After fighting with the company and telling them I've had issues for over 6 months. And once that happens, I'll let you know. Right now, I'm trying to be crafty at work, cutting out 2,000 stars with my cricut over the course of the next two weeks. Eeek!

Blog Hop!!!!

Wow oh Wow! 2009 has definitely been a year full of new and wonderful things--both off and on the blog. I'm writing to you today as a participant in my very first blog hop. Yes, I'm FINALLY on a blog hop. I took the plunge with Ildi Co. and here were are.

So now, I have a great card to show you. I am sending it to someone who isn't a part of the team, but that is a dear Online Creative friend. I'm totally ruining the surprise. So, I'm sorry.

This is a new little girl and she's really darling. She's a Clownkins, and it's the newest release from Ildi Co. Isn't she cute? You'll of course be looking for a letter that you can collect for the last leg of your journey and *I* think you'll be able to find my letter very quickly. Did you see it amongs the *???? Write down that letter, as well as the letters in the entire blog hop and you can get 10% off at the Ildi Store the night of the new release. You are not to pay for your order when you use this code until you receive a manual invoice from paypal. This invoice will have the adjusted price.

You should be joining me from Shannon's blog and next in line is April's blog. If you haven't started the blog, check out the very first stop at Jenny's blog.

Oh, and if you'd like to get the chance to win some surprise blog candy from me, you just have to become a follower and then post a comment on this blog. There's a little bag of goodies I've been collecting, that I'm sure someone will fall in love with. And it could be you! Please note, if you're already a follower, simply say that in your comment. And, if you comment and let me know you bought something at the Ildi store, I'll add another entry for you, that's right TWO entries for this special and amazing blog candy if you buy something from Ildi's amazing store.

I have a lot more to post, but I've had major computer issues. In fact, I will be without the internet at home until at least Wednesday evening. Time Warner Cable is sending someone out then, but I've been telling the associates there's been a problem for the better part of 6 months. Eeek!

Anyway, in the interim, I will be working on a tutorial and some other really neat things for you.
Please be sure to check out the Ildi Co Blog Hop. Thanks so much for checking me out and Happy Creating!

Ildi Work

Wow, oh wow! I'm having such a fun time with my Ildi DT work. Apparently this project didn't post yesterday, so I'm reposting it.

Ildi stamp, colored with markers
American Crafts patterned paper
Bazzil Jetstream Cardstock
Letters cut out of Cricut Plantin Schoolbook
Stitched accents (on letters) drawn in with Signo White Pigment Pen
Small pieces of glitter are miscellaneous
Also used foam squares and Transparency paper to make my window. When it moves, the glittery stars really do move. I tried to make sure they went up top so everyone could see them.

This is the result:

I was inspired by all of the cards I've been seeing lately with techniques, so I decided I HAD to do a technique card. I really like how it turned out, and I think it's perfect for a more masculine feel that I was hoping to achieve. Be sure to stay tuned, we're having a blog hop for Ildi on Saturday... Woo HOO!

And Another Goes into the Mix!

Last week was Farmer's Market at the Greeting Farm and I picked up a stamp... It's another Wild Sprout! Annika is her name and I'm thinking of a couple of back to school projects for this cutie as well as possibly some Book Group related stuff.

Will post some projects later. Don't forget, tomorrow is my day to feature some awesome Ildi Co. designs.

Happy Creating!
GothamGal

SPCC # 11

Wow! I was inspired by this week's color challenge to do not one but two cards for the SPCC Challenge. Here's what the color challenge colors were:

And on each of these cards, I used a soft suede card base. The white was an accent, as was the green. I'm so glad I was able to color my images to attain some of the colors in this week's combo.

I love that green fiber. It's like that stuff I've seen in cars, know what I mean? Have an Imaginesce tree stamp (from the fairy tale collection, I think) stamped on whisper white. Then that was stamped with the two inks on the challenge. It's one of the first times I've actually done different ink colors on one stamp. You can't see it, but the flowers have diamond stickles for accent.

This little guy (From the Greeting Farm, his name is Edward) is colored kinda funky, but totally along with the challenge, then I added him to some Making Memories Spellbound paper and added some accent ribbon. I created depth by placing some of the designs over the ribbon. Used my trusty corner rounder.

Wednesday Means Ildi Co.!

It's Wednesday, which is the day I get lucky enough to feature work for Ildi Design Co., a digital stamp company that's relatively new and totally AWESOME!

I decided to make a card featuring the adorable bear (KUMA?) flying a kite. I personally, love flying kites and can remember taking my little brothers to the park to fly kites a lot when I was growing up. Maybe Mary Poppins had way more of an impact than I thought it did (they sing a song about Flying Kites just before the end credits, LOL). Here is my card:

I actually took off the end string, so that I could give the illusion of movement. This is from personal experience, as sometimes kites will not behave! I added some ribbon to the thread. I bought thread similar to what we use when we fly kites--the clear stuff (I think it's similar to fishing?). Anyway, I like the way it turned out, but I'm thinking of a bigger card next time, with maybe a few more bells and whistles--clouds, a sun... you get the idea.

Be sure and check out Ildi Co and snag your set of these adorable stamps--you can save $6.50 when you buy all 10 stamps for $20. Why are digi stamps so great?

• Well, for one thing, they won't clutter up your desktop because you store them on a computer, flash drive, etc (just make sure to back them up!).
• Digi stamps are just as fun (if not more fun) to color--no waiting for ink to dry or trying to figure out placement (you can open your photo editing software and print out an entire sheet filled with digi stamps).
• Digi stamps can be sized to fit nearly any project! That's right, when was the last time you wanted that physical stamp to be just a tiny bit smaller, but it couldn't be because you didn't buy the smaller size in addition to the bigger one?

I'm definitely not tossing out my rubber stamps, because I really love them. But I will say that digi stamps are becoming a lot of fun for me. They're really cool to use, and I love the idea of a hybrid type stamping project. I like the ease of use and the control I can have over the image.

Seriously, if you haven't yet tried digi stamps, I would suggest you try out Ildi Co. They're a really great, small company that's making leaps and bounds. Get in on the ground so you can snag some really great deals. Check out the links in my sidebar to see some other really great projects that showcase the functionality of these cuties.

(By the way, there's some really cool stuff coming along from Ildi Co. Check back next week for my Wednesday card AND you might also want to check back next weekend, but more on that exciting news as it develops!)

Happy Creating!

My First Wild Sprout!!!

I finally took the plunge and picked up my first Wild Sprout stamp from The Greeting Farm. I had such a hard time picking, but ended up with Edward, because he was just so adorable. Once I had nailed down that it was Edward, I had the hardest time finding him in stock at stores--so I ended up checking out Summer's shop, Roses on Paper.

Roses on Paper features a wide selection of Greeting Farm stamps, as well as Alota and Magnolia. Shipping is quick and affordable (ordered at the end of last week and got it last night!), through the US postal service--FROM HAWAII!

Seriously, check out Summer's shop and maybe you could snag one of these cuties:

New Stuff!!!

I went to Archiver's last week, on Friday and then on Saturday. Yes, I really do have a problem. Seriously it's not as bad as it could be because I had COUPONS!

Picked up some hot spot items, including some really cool Hero Arts stamps, which I cannot find an image of. They're really cute, feature some gems as well as one little image. I got the cluster of bats (because I'm GothamGal, after all) and a little trick or treater dressed up as a ghost. I want to say the ghost costume probably has an owl underneath it.

I also got to use a coupon for buy 2 hot spot items, get 2 free. So I got some stickers and brads featuring the character that is one of my favorite Imaginesce characters:

Some rubons and a package of straight pins--I think they're fancy pants (both of those items were). Some cardstock (buy 5 sheets, get 5--I got the 8 1/2 by 11 so I can finish some cards)...

I also got some BG rubons, which were on sale. I think they'll work really well with my Lime Rickey paper. I have a couple of ideas already, so you might want to get scared, LOL.

I tried that big blue one on my Crate Paper page that I'm making (pictures soon) and I was really impressed with it. The whole thing went on really smooth (NOT like the other set I bought that I mentioned previously), and I could stop and check my progress really easily on the BG ones--overall it went much better than the last American Craft rubons I tried.

Oh, and I FINALLY got a White Signo pen! Yes, the pen that people have been talking about for ages, I finally picked up. It's a white pigment ink pen and I like using it, been able to make eyes pop, as well as certain elements on pages. My big issue with it, though, is an occasional blockage. Is anyone else experiencing this?

Pictures are forthcoming. I spent a LOT of time over the weekend making some pretty things. They will be pictured soon, I promise.

Also, please be sure to check out Ildi Co. (the link is on the right and column)--they've got some really great images, and some fantastic deals that you need to check out. It's really cool seeing a stamp company grow from square one.

Happy Creating!

Color Challenge Time

I read Scrapmaster's Paradise pretty often, and I even buy stuff from her from Stampin Up on Occasion. So when I saw this particular color challenge, I knew I HAD to do it!


Look at those lovely colors! Since I've never really participated in one, I figured there was no time like the present. So this is what I came up with:

The colors are all featured, but the picture doesn't do the Anya justice. She's got sparkly lilac and darker purple hair, colorful wings and the paper is really just the right color, too.

If you've never participated in a color challenge, I would suggest you try it out. This week's prize is some AMAZING copic markers. Good luck and Happy Creating!

Blog Candy Opportunity

Stephanie at Where'd All My Money Go?! is having a FANTASTIC and GENEROUS blog giveaway--the winner will receive one $150 gift card to...a place of your choice! How fantastic is that?

Before August 28th at 10 pm, please make some time to visit her site and you can sign up to win. Thank you very much for the opportunity, Stephanie!

Wow!

Okay, so a few days ago, I talked about a new company that produces some really great digital stamps, Ildi Co. Digital Stamps.

Well, as it turns out, I made it onto the design team with this little card that featured their adorable bear, Kuma. The stamp is called Cuddles-Kuma Picnic:

I've added links to the other members of the design team on my sidebar, as well as a link to the store. For those of you who want a great deal, be sure to take advantage of Ildi Co's limited time offer. You can get 10 images for $20.00. Check out the Etsy site and check out the stamps. When you decide to buy them (because you totally should!), click on the 'Contact Ildico3' button on the sidebar or you can email her directly by clicking here. The link opens in a new window and will be in your email program. Just say you want to take advantage of this wonderful opportunity. This is a fantastic opportunity, you save $6.50 by buying all ten directly.

Okay, well that's my post for now. I'll be back as soon as I can with more wonderful things. If you have time, check out the rest of the design team at their links on the sidebar--you won't be disappointed.

You Asked, I am delivering

I've been playing around with techniques, and, as one awesome web friend (::cough:: Anne at Gaal Creative ::cough::) asked what I'd been doing lately. So, without further ado, I'm adding some pictures of some different techniques.... Will try and post some more of my layouts in a bit...

I wanted to make a simple card, and I was inspired right after I bought the DCWV Summer Glitter mat stack from JoAnn's. I used my Hero Arts stamps and used StazOn. The tree is stamped on a transparency, it was colored in with Copics. I added some paper flowers to give some dimension. The whole card is kraft, as I've been addicted to it ever since I bought the Stampin Up package.

Kraft paper again, but this time there's a Hero Arts owl, tree branch and sentiment. I colored this little guy with Prismacolor pencils, and added some K and Company rubons to the side. A very simple, quick card.

I don't know if I've shown this layout before. It features Max and Evie (Peeves), and I was inspired by a Jessica Sprague tutorial. I really liked her emphasis on the corner rounder--and I have had to buy 2 (okay, lost one and then found it after I'd used the second one) of these awesome babies. Bazzil cardstock (and Bazzil edge), DCWV cardstock, printed journalling from the computer (again, something from the Sprague hybrid class). I really like the idea of hybrid scrapping, may have to try some more!

Wow! This was another inspiration from the summer glitter mat stack. This time I took some of the images from one of the Greeting Farm 's sets and colored them in with markers. Then I added them to the card. I think it needs something, some sentiment, but then again, I kind of like how simple it is. I'm thinking I might leave this empty until the opportunity presents itself to give it.

Okay, so I should have a few more things to add to the blog tomorrow. Next time, prepare for the emphasis on layouts! Take care, and happy creating!

Just Magnolia Challenge

I felt a little brave today, partially because of the heat, and decided to create a card based on a challenge posted at Just Magnolia.
It's my first time entering the challenge, but overall I'm pretty happy with my result. I used my Prismacolors to color the image and then used some Making Memories paper from a 6x6 stack, some buttons, a Heidi Grace rub on, flowers and stickles and some ribbon. I think I followed the sketch pretty faithfully, but mixed it up a bit. The sentiment has the corner rounder I'm so fond of, LOL. And behind the little girl is a little tag/bookmark that I really enjoyed putting together. I think it would be awesome to get a card with a bookmark on it, LOL.

Call for Ildi Design team AND a digistamp freebie!

I heard about a new digistamp company over on SplitCoastStampers this week. They were not only looking for a design team, but they were giving away a digistamp. An adorable digital stamp featuring a teddy bear. The name is Ildi Co.

Needless to say, as soon as I saw it, I thought about coloring it. I've been doing a lot of coloring lately. So, I followed the instructions on their site and then went ahead and got the image and colored it. Wow, I really like the way it turned out, I think I am really getting the hang of coloring with markers (not to be snotty--I'm pretty sure there are a LOT of other tricks I need to learn.

Anyway, here's my card. I used Making Memories paper (from a few years old 6x6 pack), a Hero Arts sentiment and my Fiskars Threading water border punch--I used a EK success corner rounder on the sentiment, stamped in Black Memento ink. It also represents the first time I made a succesful bigger card in my opinion. The card measures about 5 & 1/2" by 5 & 1/2"--I usually do the cards that come out of cutting a piece of 8&1/2 x 11" in half.

Go on and check out Ildi and try your hand at coloring the image, see what you can come up with. I CHALLENGE you!

ABC Design Blog: Win a Gift Certificate!

ATTENTION:"A Set a Day Giveaway"

Featuring the NEW sets from "MY CUTE STAMPS"

Starts August 3rd and ends August 7th.

Go and comment daily on the ABC Design Blog post and you could win the stamp set featured that day. Just go to ABC Design Blog for all the details.

Also, the store owner, Julie, has a $25 Shopping Spree to the STORE to give away this week. So check out the Store Blog and see how to win.

Another Blog Candy Opportunity

Nilla is giving away a fantastic blog candy with some really cool stuff. Check it out Here.

Wow!

Wow, I can't believe it's already Tuesday. Can anyone else?
I have tons of things to post, but I will be brief. I heard about a really great candy today, and wanted to pass along the info, as I know there are some really talented Magnolia ladies...

Inked Inspirations is giving away Magnolias to 6 Lucky People, and you could be one of them. Check it out now by clicking here and good luck!

One Sheet Wha--??? Challenge

One of the buzzwords I've heard in the cardmaking arena that I keep meaning to ask about is the 'One Sheet Wonder.' What is a One Sheet Wonder? How can it help my creations? Well, the answer is simpler than you think.

Bear with me, you probably already know what a One Sheet Wonder is, and for that I'm sorry that I'm going over something you might already know about, but check out the links toward the bottom of the post for links you may not have seen before.

Okay, say you have 1 day to make 15 cards. Yes, we've all been there. We've all procrastinated. We've said things like 'I can cut out the cards tomorrow, then stamp and color. I'll be fine.' But then life happens, or that book you're reading gets really good or you need to take the kids to the mall--whatever the case something happens and it distracts you from your intentions to make a card. Now, it's 9 pm and you have until 9 am tomorrow to make those cards you promised someone. What do you do?

Okay, this is a sort of emergency, but as much as you might want to call Jack Bauer (we ALL love Keifer, right?), it's not THAT kind of emergency, and in fact the issue can be solved with some paper, glue, your trusty scissors, your trimmer and some stamps/ink. And chances are, you'll be done in time to catch 'The Late Show.'

That's where One Sheet Wonders come into play. The OSW process allows you to create a bunch of cards with different templates from one master coordinating set--saving you time, frustration and sanity.

If you're familiar with the SheetLoad of Cards, this is similar. Where Sheetload has you use multiple papers, OSW has you cut everything from one 12x12 (or an 8 & 1/2 x 11) sheet. A few cuts into your paper (after measuring of course), and low and behold you have enough supplies to make anywhere from 6 to 15 cards.

I think this would be a great idea for those of us who have some time on our hands to showcase some really cool new stamps, or even a really awesome paper that we just HAD to have, but it's too pretty to cut up. If you want to send some cards to a good cause, why not make a set of One Sheet Wonders and send them to Cards for Heroes (restrictions apply, no glitter, please).

So, I'm posting this challenge to you--check out the tutorials below or find a different one AND make your own set of One Sheet Wonder cards. And then write about these in your blog or on a message board. Then you'll need to leave a comment below, with the details, and I'll visit your blog! Everyone who does this before September 1, 2009 will be entered to win some goodies from me--more on that later.

So come on everyone, show me your wonderous one sheets! I'm going to work on a set as well. It'll be featured here on the blog in the coming weeks. Good luck, and be sure to spread the word!

Ink It Up With Jessica tutorial--really detailed.
Mae Collin's OSW Workshop--format for a smaller sheet of paper.
Mish Mash Card tutorial--Patriotic cards with own background.
Another template--8 and 1/2 by 11 template.
Stamping With Mia--The 6th in a multi part series about OSW