Thank-you for your comments on Linda Duke's Guest Designer card designs featured during February! The following names were drawn to win Linda's prize which includes the Flower Girl stamp and A Muse Kitchen Blue 4-bar Note Cards:
Abbie in CO
Janet Sisk
Sarah C. (WAstamper)
Congratulations ladies! Please email your mailing address to Emily and we'll send out your goodies! Stay tuned for more fun Easter card ideas from our design team!
– Emily
We have one last set of Linda's cards to share with you. You can also now see all of Linda's guest designer cards in a special photo album!
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Princess
Princess Elzy is so sweet in her darling blue dress and rhinestone studded crown! I love the way Linda combined the patterns on this card and how she used hints of purple on Elzy's dress to give it depth!
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Fairy Girl
This fairy just *sparkles* with her glittery wings and glowing wand. Notice the way Linda alternated the polka dot layers on the background and on the large scallop circle - very clever! And a twinkle sticker on the word "Twinkle" adds the perfect touch!
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Knight & Princess
One of my favorite stamps and my favorite of Linda's guest designer cards! (Yup - I saved the best for last!) Love her coloring, the glitter, the layout, the colors - fantastic!
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We hope you have enjoyed Linda's designs as much as we have enjoyed sharing them with you! Make sure to leave a comment on one or more posts featuring Linda's work to enter the guest designer prize drawing! (One comment per post please.) Then we'll draw a winner later next week!
– Emily
It's time to share a few more fun cards from Guest Designer, Linda Duke! But first, a photo! I had the pleasure of meeting Linda at the CHA show, so here we are with Novell:
It was such a treat to meet in person! We chatted about the new spring Elzybells and Linda's coloring techniques - so fun! OK - and now on to her next group of cards:
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Girl on Swing
This is a fun layout and the ribbon frames it perfectly! Notice that Linda colored the sky and grass around Elzy to give her a background!
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Bossy Girl
This Elzy is so sassy! The pink twinkle sticker really sparkles against her black hair! And isn't her dress a beautiful blue? I'll have to find out from Linda what pencil color she used!
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Flower Pot
This is Linda's favorite of her guest designer cards! I love how she tied the ribbon on the side. She used her fun trick again of securing the ribbon inside the card with a little flower! To secure the ribbon on the back of the card, she adhered the ribbon and then covered the entire back with a coordinating layer.
Here's a closeup of the little flower securing the ribbon inside the card!
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And now a little more word fun from Linda:
First stamp – I don’t remember my first stamp, but the company was D.O.T.S.
Can’t live without – My stamp time.
Favorite product - The Wizard Die and Embossing System by Spellbinders.
Climate – I live in California, and the weather here is perfect.
Last purchase - Spellbinder Dies.
Proudest moment – When Julie asked me if I would join the Splitcoaststampers Design Team (Dirty Dozen).
Passion - My family and two dogs – Missy and Cassie.
Food - Italian
The future – I want to be happy regardless.
Time of day – 5:00 PM – I’m off work.
Stay tuned for the last batch of Linda's designs. And make sure to leave a comment to enter the guest designer prize drawing!
– Emily
We have more fun cards to share from Guest Designer Linda Duke!
Before we do, you'd love to know what she has chosen as the Guest Designer prize - right?! Linda's choice for a lucky winner is the Flower Girl 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 Linda's work (one comment per post please). We'll choose a winner at the end of February!
We gave Linda 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 Style - Colorbook, Vintage, 3-D.
Inspiration - I find my inspiration everywhere! Books, store displays, fabric etc.etc.
Color - Pink, Pink, and more Pink
Work space - I turned our third bedroom into my stamp room. I practically live there.
Perfect day - Stamping all day and watching the LA Lakers with my DH in the evening while eating popcorn.
First job – Working at a fruit packing house
Wildest dream – To have a career (paying) in papercrafting.
Ink – I’ve always used Stampin’ Up! But starting to look at other companies.
Family – Jim – DH, Tammy and Breia – Daughters, Jackie and Tommie – Granddaughters.
Beverage - Diet Dr. Pepper and Wine.
Biggest challenge - Keeping up to date with all the new products on the market with regard to Stampin. So many toys I want to play with!
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And now on to Linda's cards!
Shopaholic
I love how Linda layered the pinks and whites in this design and then made Elzy a contrasting blue so she pops! And of course, all of Linda's designs feature her amazing coloring skills! Her cards are even more amazing in person - trust me!
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Birthday Girl
This is such a cool layout and I am so gonna have to try it! I love how she used a heart twinkle sticker on the gift. And the double ribbon and bows are so fun!
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Flower Girl
This adorable design is sure to make anyone feel better! The flowers are so cute matching Elzy's dress with orange centers to match her hair. Makes ya just wanna hug her! And the pink twinkle sticker in her hair is the perfect finishing touch!
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We're glad you are enjoying Linda'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
It is a pleasure to introduce our Elzybells Guest Designer for February 2008! Please welcome Linda Duke! We are excited to share her designs with you, but first here is an introduction from Linda:
Hi everyone! My name is Linda Duke, known to most as Linda D. I’ve been a crafter as long as I can remember, but discovered paper crafting about 14 years ago when a friend invited me to a Stampin’ Up! Party and I’ve been stamping ever since. One of my biggest accomplishments was being asked to join the Splitcoaststampers Design Team (Dirty Dozen) this past year. What a wonderful experience, and door opener that has been for me. I’m currently on Crafty Secrets Design Team, and just recently joined Spellbinders Design Team. I love every one of these little Elzybell stamps!!! I am so honored and grateful to A Muse and Elzybells for this wonderful opportunity to be a guest designer. Thanks Emily *wink*.
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Linda has created beautiful cards that we'll be sharing with you during the month of February. As part of our Guest Designer program, we ask each designer to choose a stamp and pack of notecards for a lucky winner! So stay tuned to find out what Linda has chosen! To enter for a chance to win, leave a comment on one or more posts featuring Linda's work. You are welcome to leave comments on each post but only one comment per post please.
The first of Linda's designs is one of my favorites! As you can see, Linda has awesome coloring skills! I just *love* how she gave depth to Elzy's hair and dress by using yellow highlights. And if you look closely, you can see blue shading in the background. Another thing I love on this design is her placement of the ribbon. Instead of wrapping it by the top or side edge, she brought it down closer to the scallop oval and placed the bow in a perfect spot on the side. Linda also has a fun way of securing the ribbon on the inside of the card... check out the bottom photo to see!
When you open the card, there's a surprise little flower inside!
Stay tuned for more of Linda's designs and make sure to leave a comment for a chance to win!
– Emily
Thank-you for your wonderful comments on Guest Designer Sarah Bertolino's designs featured during December! The following names were drawn to win Sarah's prize which includes the "A Winter Song" stamp and A Muse Kitchen Blue 4-Bar Note Cards:
Mary Duffek, Dec 3, 7:00pm
Susannk, Dec 26, 4:28pm
Congratulations Mary Duffek and Susannk! Please email your mailing address to Emily and we'll send out your goodies!
– Emily
Happy Holidays! We have one last set of Sarah's cards to share with you. This group features fun wintery designs! You can also now see all of Sarah's guest designer cards in a special photo album!
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Ice Skater
This color combination is so sweet and the liquid applique really adds dimension to the skater's pink coat! If you look closely, you can also see a glittery figure eight in the ice!
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Peace, Dreams, and Wishes
Lots of glitter, sparkle, and shading on this design! The twinkle stickers fit *perfectly* on the stars and the scallop oval ties in with the cloud sooo nicely!
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Penguin Snowflakes
Sarah used a scallop square sticker with the penguin image and added glitter around the edge. This is such a fun trick and really gave the design an "icy" look.
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Sending Winter Wishes
This last card is one of my favorites of Sarah's designs. The colors just pop! Sarah stamped the "sending winter wishes" image on white cardstock and then punched out the bird portion with a circle punch. Then if you notice, she also stamped the image on black cardstock and then white embossed the words! I also love how she wrapped the ribbon around both sides of the window to make it appear that the ribbon goes all the way across. Here is another view too so you can see the window better.
We hope you have enjoyed Sarah's designs as much as we have enjoyed sharing them with you! Make sure to leave a comment on one or more posts featuring Sarah's work to enter the guest designer prize drawing! (One comment per post please.) Then we'll draw a winner later next week!
– Emily
A few more fun cards from Guest Designer, Sarah Bertolino!
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Reindeer Tidings
This card is so peaceful and sweet. Sarah stamped the reindeer star image on the Cabana band notecard and then paper-pieced the star, reindeer, and bird to make them stand out. I love the way she colored the reindeer and added the twinkle sticker to turn him into Rudolph!
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Girl with Sleigh
This design just shimmers! Sarah used glitter pen around the edge of the white layer as well as on the girl and sleigh. She also went over the word "gift" with glitter pen to give it even more emphasis. Rounded corners and the soft color combination make this a very "happy" design. And the sentiment is perfect!
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A Winter Song
More sparkle! Lots of glitter and shading on this design. Using glitter for snow is one of my favorite ways to use glitter. I also like how Sarah used two shades of brown on the girl's hair to give it a little more depth.
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And now a little more word fun from Sarah:
First stamp - I think it was a little cat paw print from Paper Source and I'm pretty sure I still have it. My first A Muse stamp was the Seattle girl.
Can’t live without - my small clear making memories ruler. I’m fanatical about measuring and use that little ruler every two seconds. I really start to panic when it get's buried under something on my messy desk.
Favorite product - I love to try trendy new stamping doo-dads. I have more duds of this variety than I care to admit but the hands down greatest product I've found recently is the Sakura quickie glue pen. It’s phenomenal for glitter -- which is something else I can't live without!
Climate – Kansas, hands down. We have a little bit of everything here and the loveliest fall and spring seasons.
Last purchase – craft-related: the little line of snowmen stamp from A Muse; non craft related: the most adorable red Christmas dress for my daughter to wear at her holiday music program
Passion – My family and friends, absolutely. They are all the truest and biggest blessing in my life.
Food – Japanese/sushi and Indian
The future – With two kids and one on the way I can only think of one word for my future … busy!
Time of day – All of it … I’ve never minded getting up early (and especially now when I don’t have any choice with the kids) and I am up late many evenings getting crafty. I do most of my stamping late at night.
Stay tuned for the last batch of Sarah's designs. And make sure to leave a comment to enter the guest designer prize drawing!
– Emily
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
It is a pleasure to introduce our first Elzybells Guest Designer! Please welcome Sarah Bertolino! We first noticed Sarah's work during A-MUSE-A-PALOOZA and are excited to share her Elzybells designs with you. Here is an introduction from Sarah:
Hello all. My name is Sarah Bertolino. I first fell in love with paper crafting 8 or 9 years ago. A coworker made her own wedding invitations and this inspired my husband and me to do the same. I found rubber stamping through Stampin’ Up a year or two later thanks to one of my very close friends (and A Muse DT member) Tisha Welch. I was totally hooked and still use the ink pads I bought back then. One of the biggest highlights for me over these past years of paper “collecting” and crafting was a trip to Tokyo in 2000. What an amazing life experience that was and holy smokes how incredible was all the paper I found!!?? I am still hoarding the gorgeous papers and doodads I bought. From the beginning I have loved card making – birthday invites, Christmas cards, friend's' wedding invitations, birth announcements, etc. I resolved a long way back not to buy pre-made cards and I can’t remember the last time I stepped foot in a Hallmark. Now this is not to say that I send all the cards I make or even get the ones I do send out on time but at least it’s handmade, right?! I am so grateful to everyone at A Muse and Elzybells, especially Emily, for this wonderful opportunity to be a guest designer, let alone the FIRST! It is such an honor and a true compliment and I am so humbled by it. I feel so blessed in my life in so many ways and this chance to see my name in “lights” is so special to me. Thank you.
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Sarah has created some wonderful cards that we'll be sharing during the month of December. As part of our Guest Designer program, we ask each designer to choose a stamp and a pack of notecards to share with one lucky winner! So stay tuned to find what Sarah has chosen! To enter for a chance to win, leave a comment on one or more posts featuring Sarah's work. You are welcome to leave comments on each post but only one comment per post please.
This first design is one that made me "oooo" when I opened her package - the black mat layer and bow make it just "pop"! Then the twinkle stickers and glitter pen add lots of sparkle! Sarah's designs all include glitter that looks so pretty in real life. I also love her choice of colors here and that she added some shading to areas on the girl and ground.
Here is a close-up so you can see the sparkle and shading better!
Stay tuned for more of Sarah's designs and make sure to leave a comment for a chance to win!
– Emily
Next week we'll reveal our first Elzybells Guest Designer! Stay tuned...
