Taylored Expressions June Sneaks - Day 1

Good morning! Well, the calendar doesn't officially say that it's June, but we decided to start a little early with our June sneak peeks today. Speaking of June, can you believe it's almost here!? I think I say that every month, but the months just fly by so quickly these days! We have lots of fun summer stamps and dies to share this week and I can hardly wait to show you! And I want to make special mention of our June Release At a Glance for everything you need to know about this month's release, including how you can win some awesome prizes!

June Release At a Glance

• We have sneak peeks to share Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.  All of the new products will be available for purchase on Friday, June 3rd at 8 am PST. You'll find it all in the Fresh out of the Oven Department in the Taylored Expressions Store.
• Join us as a fan on Facebook for an early peek at the stamp sets on Thursday night beginning at approximately 6 pm PST.
• Special Early Bird Offer on Release Day for the first 15 orders over $100.  It's TOTALLY SWEET!
• Mystery Baker's Dozen Blog Giveaway: Each day one lucky blog commenter will be chosen by random draw to win a $10 TE Gift Certificate.  Winners will be chosen from a different Baker's Dozen blog each day and all will be announced on Taylor's blog on Release Day!  Be sure to hop around to see all the sneak peeks and leave comments on each and every blog for more chances to win. Limit one comment per blog per day. Comments close Thursday 6/2 at 7pm PST for the drawings.

For my first card I used Moka Lani, the newest addition to this sweet collection of characters illustrated by Nancy McKinney. Isn't she the cutest with her Hawaiian tan and grass skirt? The Petite set includes 5 images and sentiments on a full-color storage panel. I also used two new dies on this card, the Wave Border die and the Palm Tree die. The Palm Tree die was designed to coordinate with the palm tree image in the previously released Hangin' Out at the Beach set and happens to work perfectly with Moka Lani too! I grabbed my new Echo Park Splash patterned papers. I cut the wave border die out of three different patterns and layered them on the bottom of the card with some yellow polka dot ribbon. I also added Crystal Stickles to the wave caps. The white image panel was cut with Spellbinders Labels 17 and airbrushed around the inside with Copic marker. The finished size of the card is 3.5" x 6.

For my second sneak peek project, I used A Day in Paradise, a gorgeous Cape Cod themed stamp set illustrated by Nancy McKinney for the Whimsical Wishes collection. The set includes 21 images and sentiments in a combination of solid and open line images. It'll be great for preserving summer memories,  home decor projects, and even for retirement cards which is what I decided to create. I love the soothing colors in the Cosmo Cricket Salt Air collection and thought they'd be perfect for the card I was envisioning. I started by embossing the sailboat with white embossing powder onto the orange patterned paper (I thought it looked like a sunset!). I trimmed the image with a Spellbinders circle die and then created a frame with a scalloped circle and popped that up over the top. I used the same Wave border die on this card and added the Crystal Stickles to the wave caps as well. I added a bit of scalloped crochet trim from my stash and finished it off with some Island Lagoon rhinestones and the sentiment.

And last (at least for today!) our lovable penguins are back in their adorable summer attire! Today we're sharing two penguin Petite sets, Beach Belle & Surf's Up, illustrated by Doug Applegate for the Apple Doodle Ink collection. The penguins can be used separately or combine them to make a cute beach couple. I stamped the images in Memento Tuxedo Black ink and colored them with Copics to match the Echo Park Splash patterned paper. I cut the penguins out and popped them up on a Spellbinders circle. I airbrushed inside the circle with Copic and then mounted it onto a scalloped circle die cut. As you can see, I had trouble putting down the wave border die and I used it again on this card. I was trying to follow Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch, but it took a bit of a turn somewhere along the way! Why do my sketch cards always take a turn!?

Here are the dies I used on my cards today:

I'm already looking forward to sharing my projects for tomorrow, but in the meantime join me in hopping around to see what our amazing design team has created. Don't forget to leave comments along the way for a chance to win a gift certificate to the TE Store!

• Charmaine Ikach
• Danielle Lounds
• Jackie Pedro
• Jami Sibley
• Jodi Collins
• Karen Giron
• Karen Motz
• Melissa Sauls
• Nancy McKinney
• Regina Mangum
• Sankari Wegman
• Tori Wild
• Wanda Guess

Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge #139

Good morning and Happy Friday! I can hardly believe it's Friday already, but I'm totally ready for a long holiday weekend! Do you have any fun plans? I'm on my way to Omaha for a girls weekend filled with shopping and tickets to see Wicked. It will be my third time seeing it, but it never gets old! Maybe your plans include staying home and enjoying some time with your stamps!? If that's you, I hope you'll take a stab at our sketch challenge! Here it is:

Just create a card using the above sketch as inspiration. You're not required to use TE stamps to play, but there's a bonus prize if you do! To be entered into the prize drawing you must upload your card to Splitcoaststampers using keyword TESC139 by Thursday, June 9th (that gives you two weeks to play along!). And here's the prize that's up for grabs:

1. I will randomly select one person from all of the challenge uploads to receive a $10 gift certificate to the TE Store!

2. If you used predominantly TE Stamps on your project you’ll receive an extra $10 bonus for a total $20 gift certificate!

Thanks to everyone who participated in the TESC138 sketch! Once again there are so many inspirational entries! You can see all of the entries HERE. The winner of a $10 gift certificate to the TE Store is:

hollz77. Check out her spooktacular card here!

Just like always, the fabulous sketch crew is back at it again with beautiful samples to inspire you!

  Created by Dawn Easton: Treasure Oiler Designz

 Created by Jami Sibley: More is More 

 Created by Lisa Hjulberg: The Craft's Meow 

  Created by Lori Craig: Make a Difference 

 Created by Melissa Sauls: In Stamping Mode 

 Created by Monika Davis: M.A.D. Stamper

 Created by Rachel Sztonyk: Gingerbread Gal

Created by Tracy Clemente: Eat, Sleep, Stamp

 Created by Taylor VanBruggen: Taylored Expressions

A few months ago when I was searching for new members of the sketch crew there were so many fabulous entries so I decided to invite all of the participants to join us as Guest Designers on the sketch crew at some point during the next several months. This week I'm so excited to welcome Rosemary (rosigrld on SCS) and Kelli (KelliJo on SCS)!. Here are their fabulous cards:

 Created by Rosemary Dennis: Hey There Rosigrl

Created by Kelli Hull: PP's Paper Palace

TESC138 - Baby Thank You

Somebody pinch me! Is it really Thursday already!? I've been buried under a mountain of junk treasures this week cleaning out closets and digging in every nook and cranny to get ready for our garage sale in a couple of weeks. It always feels good when the closets are clean, the garage sale is over, and the leftover stuff is packed up and off to Goodwill, but preparing for the event is not my favorite thing!

This morning I took a break from spring cleaning to make another card for the TESC138 Sketch Challenge. There's still time to upload your card using the sketch for a chance to win a gift certificate to the TE Store (you have until tonight at 8pm PST )! You can find all the details along with this week's sketch HERE. That also means that the next sketch challenge will be posted tomorrow morning so I hope you'll come by and check it out!

It's time for me to start building up my 'baby thank you' stash so that's what inspired this card. I'm one of those people who just can't stamp the same card twice so I figured I better start early! And the Welcome Little One stamp set was just too perfect for this sketch. I stamped the three icons in colored ink Memento Rose Bud, Colorbox Lime Pastel, and Versamagic Aquatic Splash. I cut out each of the images, popped them up on a Buttercream panel, and added a little piercing for detail. The patterned papers and cardstock are from the Alphabet Soup Girl Collection. I've had baby on the brain lately so all of my projects using this kit have been baby-themed, but the papers are so much more versatile than just baby! The sentiment is from Branching Out and the little flowers are from my stash. I also used the Corner Chomper to round the corners on all of my pieces as well as the Open Scallop border punch.

Thanks for stopping by today! I hope you all have a wonderful day!

Happy Birthday, Barbara!

Good morning! It must be the week for birthdays! Today I'm joining in a blog hop with friends to celebrate a very sweet and talented lady! I'm sure y'all know Barbara Anders! Happy Birthday, Bar! I hope your day is filled with some rest and relaxation and lots of cake with even more icing! *grin* If you traveled here from Kim's blog, then you're on the right track! Our hop hostess Tammy has the full hop list on her blog in case you missed some along the way. Since Barbara provides such fabulous inspiration on the TE Key Ingredients team I thought it would be fitting to pull out my May Key Ingredients kit to create her birthday card. The layout is one of my simple go-to layouts. I used Spellbinders Labels 17 and sponged inside it with a Angel Pink ink. Then I stamped the stem from Garden Party Party Blooms in Lime Pastel ink and die cut it with the Garden Party Blooms Set 2. I popped up the stem and added one of the flowers from the matching Happy Go Lucky layered chipboard flower pack. The sentiment is from Make a Wish and I added a bit of ribbon and some red rhinestones to finish it off.

Now you can keep right on hopping to the next stop, the fabulous Kirsty McIntyre! And don't forget to stop by and the birthday girl's blog with your happy birthday wishes!

Thanks for stopping by today! I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! We're out of town this weekend, but I'll be back on Monday to share some pictures of the Orange City Tulip Festival!

May Blast from the Past Blog Hop

Good morning! Are you ready for another Blast from the Past blog hop? Today we're getting crafty with this fabulous sketch that Sankari designed along with the theme "Make it Masculine"! Making cards for the men in my life is never easy so I always jump at the opportunity to participate in a masculine challenge!

Perhaps this is your first time stumbling upon our Blast from the Past blog hop and you're wondering what it's all about. Each month we issue a theme and a sketch to our fabulous customers and we all get creative with our 'older' TE stamps. It's a great way to get inspiration for the stamps already in your collection and meet fellow TE lovers along the way! We'd love to have you join us and you can find all of the hop details (including how to sign up!) on this page. I hope you'll come play with us next month!

And now for my manly masterpiece card. I thought 'manly masterpiece' sounded cooler, but 'card' is probably more fitting for this project. *grin* I started with my Boys will be Boys stamp set. This was one of the early releases in the Whimsical Wishes collection and it's still my go-to set for masculine cards. There is such a variety of images in the set that I can always find something to fit the men in my life. And with Father's Day just around the corner I'm working ahead (love that!). I started by stamping the ties in Memento Rich Cocoa. I color the two on the right with Copic markers and I paper pieced the polka dot tie with patterned paper from the Cosmo Cricket Lil Man collection (another staple item in my masculine collection). I tried not to get too glitzy with lots of embellishment, but I did use a small piece of red glimmer ribbon and some red glitter candy dots. The image was cut out with Spellbinders Deckled Rectangles and I traced around it with a thin brown marker.

Make sure you stop by and visit the rest of our Blast from the Past hoppers! I know they have some fabulous creations to share! I hope you all have a wonderful day!

Happy Birthday, Lori!

Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday dear Lori, Happy Birthday to you! I hope you have a wonderful birthday filled with cowboys and cupcakes! OK... maybe just the cowboys part because I know your willpower with cupcakes is much stronger than mine! *grin*

You deserve the most special and relaxing day of celebration! Thank you for all that you do for me, for your friendship and support as a Christian sister in this journey through life. You're a constant encouragement and whenever I need a smile I can close my eyes and imagine your giggle. It does the trick every time!

Here's the birthday card that I made for Lori! I used the Tweet Hearts stamp set and started by stamping the branch in Memento Rich Cocoa and the leaves in Lime Pastel inks. Then I filled in with the bird and flower stamps. The patterned paper is from the MME Lime Twist Life of the Party collection. I somehow resisted to use the cupcake patterned paper from the collection and decided to go with the flowery pattern instead. I popped the image up over a Spellbinders Lacey Square die cut and embellished it with ribbons and flowers and flower brads from my stash. It's hard to see in the picture, but I also included one of those pretty little butterfly stick pins in the flower. The birthday sentiment is from the Make a Wish stamp set. I hope you like it, Lori! It should be arriving on your doorstep soon! ;)

Thank you all for stopping by today! If you get a chance, head over to Lori's blog or Facebook page and wish her a Happy Birthday!

Marjolaine Masculine Monogram Card Kit

Good morning! It's a beautiful Tuesday and I have a beautiful new Monogram Card Kit to share with you! How many times have you complained about the difficulties of coming up with a handmade card or gift appropriate for a man? I constantly hear "It's so hard to stamp cards for guys!" Today I'm here to share the perfect solution for creating a masculine set of monogrammed notecards for your husband, father, pastor, teacher, or recent graduate! And with Father's Day just around the corner, this is the perfect time to spark some masculine creativity!

Introducing the Marjolaine Masculine Monogram Card Kit

For just $14.95 you'll receive:

• 10 card bases
• 10 envelopes
• Cardstock and patterned paper (from the Basic Grey Marjolaine Collection) cut exactly to the size you need to complete the project as shown
• 1 Perfect Package Card Box plus the cardstock and patterned paper to decorate it
• Monogram Download - full alphabet (to be printed out and used as many times as you'd like)
• Full-color instruction sheet

To complete the card set exactly as shown you may also want to pick up the following items:

• Stitched Plaid Background Stamp
• From the Heart Frame Taylored Die
• EK Success Arbor Border Punch
• We R Memory Keepers Scallop Corner Chomper
• Prussion Blue Chalk Ink
• Lime Pastel Chalk Ink
• 1 3/4" Circle Punch (monograms are sized for this punch)

Of course you have the option of making the cards exactly like the samples pictured or you can customize the cards with supplies from your stash.

Click here to purchase the Masculine Monogram Card Kit! Thanks so much for stopping by today! I hope you all have a wonderful day!

Father's Day Keepsake & Cinch Sale!

Happy Monday! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! It was cold and rainy here, but we still got outside and participated in the CureSearch walk (in memory of Darrin) on Saturday. Despite the chilly weather it was a wonderful day of remembrance and fundraising in hopes that one day children will no longer suffer with cancer. After the walk I pretty much spent the rest of the weekend in my stamp room! One of the projects I've had on my list of things to create is a first Father's Day keepsake for Jon using some of my ultrasound pictures from the past several months. I started with the 8.5" x 11" Cinch Board Book, trimmed 3 pieces to 3.5" x 5", and rounded the corners with the Corner Chomper. Then I pulled out the Alphabet Soup Girl Project Pantry kit for all of the coordinating supplies. I started with the panel on the left and stamped the Heart Frame A la Carte in Colorbox Warm Red ink. Then I trimmed it out with the coordinating Frame it Up 2 die and added a sentiment and image from Welcome Little One inside the frame. All of the patterned paper, cardstock, ribbon, rhinestones, and die cuts that I used are from the Alphabet Soup Girl kit. The only other things I added were the stamp images (I spelled out my own messages using You're My Type Lower), large flower from the Happy Go Lucky layered chipboard collection, and the Spellbinders Labels 17 dies. The ultrasound picture on the middle panel was our first ultrasound when we determined we were pregnant at 8 weeks. And the ultrasound on the right panel is at 19 weeks when we found out that we're having a girl. I think Jon is going to love it. And he just better get used to lots of pink! Before you know it, I'll be dressing him in cupcakes too! *wink*

After finishing the panels I used my Cinch machine and 3/4" white binding coil to join the pieces together. I love my Cinch and I love the finished look of the coils between each panel! When I first got my Cinch machine I made a video to share some helpful tips and tricks for using this fabulous tool. You can check out the video HERE.

We're also offering a Cinch Sale (good while supplies last)! Head on over to our Cinch department where you'll find the Cinch machine and binding accessories including board book and coils all for 30% off. Once these supplies are gone, we won't be re-stocking so snatch 'em up while you can. Also, a frequently asked question is "Do the Cinch coils work with the Bind it All?" and the answer is yes! So even if you have a Bind it All you can still get a great deal on the coils and board book! And if you don't have a binding tool at all, I promise you won't be disappointed in the Cinch... it's the Cadillac of binding machines!

Thanks so much for stopping by today! I hope you all have a wonderful day!

Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge #138

Good afternoon and Happy Friday! Yep, it's Friday the 13th and I'm sure most of us are aware that Blogger (the service many of us use to host our blogs) was unavailable for over 24 hours! That's why I wasn't able to get the sketch challenge posted until this afternoon. I'm just so glad it's back! It's amazing how lost I feel without access to my blog or the ability to leave comments on other blogs! I hope your Friday the 13th started off better than mine and hopefully you can find some time to participate in this week's sketch challenge! You can find this week's sketch info both in the SCS TE Forum and right here on my blog:

Just create a card using the above sketch as inspiration. You're not required to use TE stamps to play, but there's a bonus prize if you do! To be entered into the prize drawing you must upload your card to Splitcoaststampers using keyword TESC138 by Thursday, May 26th (that gives you two weeks to play along!). And here's the prize that's up for grabs:

1. I will randomly select one person from all of the challenge uploads to receive a $10 gift certificate to the TE Store!

2. If you used predominantly TE Stamps on your project you’ll receive an extra $10 bonus for a total $20 gift certificate!

Thanks to everyone who participated in the TESC137 sketch! Once again there are so many inspirational entries! You can see all of the entries HERE. The winner of a $20 gift certificate to the TE Store is:

Jessica (JWill795) for this cute birthday card! Congrats, Jessica!

Just like always, the fabulous sketch crew is back at it again with beautiful samples to inspire you!

  Created by Dawn Easton: Treasure Oiler Designz

 Created by Jami Sibley: More is More 

 Created by Lisa Hjulberg: The Craft's Meow 

 Created by Lori Craig: Make a Difference 

 Created by Melissa Sauls: In Stamping Mode 

  Created by Rachel Sztonyk: Gingerbread Gal

 Created by Monika Davis: M.A.D. Stamper

 Created by Taylor VanBruggen: Taylored Expressions

 Created by Tracy Clemente: Eat, Sleep, Stamp

Remember when I was searching for new members of the sketch crew a while back? It was so hard to choose just too people from all the fabulous entries so I decided to invite all of the participants to join us as Guest Designers on the sketch crew at some point during the next several months. This week I'm so excited to welcome Iwona (Chupa on SCS) and Molly (mollyjoly on SCS)!. Here are their fabulous cards:

 Created by Iwona Palamountain: Random Acts of Creativity

Created by Molly Joly: Molly Joly

** Please note that because Blogger was unavailable for such a long period, some of our sketch crew may not have their posts up on their personal blogs yet. But don't forget to stop back later to check 'em out!