We have more fun cards to share from Guest Designer Sarah Bertolino!
Before we do, we bet you'd love to know what she has chosen as the Guest Designer prize - right?! Sarah's choice for a lucky winner is the "A Winter Song" stamp and a pack of A Muse Kitchen Blue notecards!!!! So make sure to enter by leaving a comment on any of the posts featuring Sarah's work (one comment per post please). We'll choose a winner at the end of December!
We gave Sarah a list of words and asked her to share what came to mind so we could all get to know her better. Here is a portion of the list and her replies (we'll share the rest in her next post):
Stamping - My therapeutic, sanity regaining, sometimes compulsive, most sustained hobby.
Style – I think my style is pretty simple with a kick. Any card I make feels incomplete without a little bit of sparkle or embellishment (though I try not to go TOO over the top.) Currently I am addicted to open images and love improving my watercolor skills. When I found A Muse about a year ago, I absolutely fell in love with the simple, humorous designs and I haven’t been able to stop “collecting” since.
Work space - I know it goes against the tried and true "clean as you go" advice my mother tried to instill in me but I don't and subsequently my usable workspace shrinks proportionately to the number of projects at hand. I find my self at the end of the night stamping in a 6 inch square spot with piles of paper, stamps, ink pad and ribbon all around me.
First job – Aside from babysitting, I worked in the floral department at the grocery store 3 blocks from my house.
Wildest dream - To own my own stamp store.
Color –Blue is my favorite color and I’m obsessed with any shade of turquoise from pale to dark lately.
Family – My husband, my son who’s almost 5, my daughter who’s 2 ½ and another one on the way due in June (Congratulations Sarah!!) and two cats that like to keep me company when I’m stamping.
Beverage – Since it’s been getting colder lately, I’m all about Sleepy Time herbal tea with a little bit of honey. We drink hot tea so much here at home we just call it “sauce” and don’t go a night without it. When I’m not pregnant, my favorite adult drink is a really dirty martini with big green olives. YUM!
Biggest challenge - Lately it's been morning sickness. You won't hear me complain about being over heated, having heartburn and sciatic pain but I’m the biggest wimp about 24/7 nausea. Ugh. When it comes to being crafty though, I think that not second guessing my creative abilities and instincts is sometimes a struggle for me. I fight the “is it good enough” thought process a lot and sometimes I win and sometimes I get totally stymied! Most of the time though my motto is “hand made with love” and a few imperfections are no big deal.
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And now on to Sarah's Christmas cards!
Bethlehem
This monochromatic design is so beautiful! The bottom of the card is folded up and adhered to make the perfect area for the sentiment. Notice the subtle ink on the edges at the bottom and around the scallop oval that really adds definition to those areas. And there is glitter over the entire scallop oval which adds lots of gorgeous sparkle!
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Girls with Tree
This is one of my favorite Elzybells stamps and it is so cute in these colors on the Madiera blue notecard! Sarah made the girls just *sparkle* by adding glitter to their coats, hats, and gloves. Also notice a couple of Sarah's clever details - she used twinkle stickers in the corners of the scallop square and wrapped the ribbon around just the right side of the card.
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Just Hanging Around
This is a fun Christmas card in non-traditional colors. I love Sarah's coloring and shading on this. Here is a close-up so you can see the details and sparkle!
We're glad you are enjoying Sarah's designs and are looking forward to sharing the next batch with you so stay tuned! And make sure to leave a comment to enter the guest designer prize drawing!
– Emily
