~A Few More Things~

Forgot to post these two cards last night! So silly of me. 

So it's a very quick post tonight as I had planned to show you these two cards last night, but remembered only a few minutes ago that I didn't post these!

Of course, this happened right in the middle of other important stuff I was working on, so hence the short post. 

 If you have any specific questions about other items used on this card, shoot me a quick email and I will be sure to dish out all the details. 

For now, here are the cards!

This card features the Owl See You in the Spring stamp set from TCM, and some more lovely prints from Bety's shop. 

I've added in some fabric and a pretty resin heart, as well as a beautiful pin from Maya Road.

Next up, a little anniversary card...

For this card, I used the I've Got Your Number set (also from TCM), to stamp the anniversary title. It is a set that I've enjoyed playing with many times since it first arrived at my doorstep! It is so versatile and lovely to have - truly a staple for any stamp collection.

Just below all the layers, I've also used the Sew Lovely stamp set to create the black label. 

The papers on this card are by My Mind's Eye and Echo Park.

And no card of mine would be complete without a flower or a ribbon, so they have both made an appearance on this card! 

So that's it for tonight my friends. I am rushing off the computer before I get completely off track with my goals for tonight :) 

Sending the happiest, loveliest thoughts your way!

*Ivana*

~Shabby Cards~

Created these cards while I was at home. 

Amongst all the down time, I loved some creative time with my mom...
It was so fun. She is not really that interested in paper crafting, but enjoys indulging in the simple act of snipping paper and stamping as a way to spend time with me.

She is such a sweet soul.
{I love you, mom}

Now before I move onto the cards and get all sentimental on you - A very big thank you to all of you for the suuuuuuper sweet comments on my last post. Astrid, Vicky, Nadia, Jann, Ros, Cayla, Patty - Thank you so much for your kind words! Reading your comforting thoughts always brightens my day.

I am so happy to show you now what I worked on this past week while at home.
It was a true treat - creating from the heart :)

I played with these adorable stamps from TCM's Tweet of You set, stamping the birdcage, sentiment and darling little birdie onto some cream cardstock. The beautiful embossed label is from TCM's Season's Greetings stamp set.

I added in some lacey elements with a paper doily, lace trim, and a die-cut doily using this MFT die. 

The paper on this card, is from Bety's shop, and you can find the design right here. You will love her vintage collages. They are stunning just as they are, but even more fun and beautiful to create with.

Here's another little card using Bety's pretty collage sheets. I've simply printed them onto white cardstock and used over and over again on these cards. You can find the pretty paper collage here, and the beautiful adore tickets here.

I've used Maya Road chipboard wings, and a lovely button stamp from this TCM stamp set. 

Next up, another creation using Bety's beautiful artwork. This time, I used the flashcards. 

I added a couple of doilies...some pretty paper flowers and pearls, as well as a wood button, which I've painted with a soft petal pink.

The postage stamp die from MFT is just the perfect size for framing sentiments on cards. The one on this card is cut out of cream cardstock, and slightly inked around the edges.

There is something about creating these cards that made my heart all warm and fuzzy. 

I am so thankful, my dear friends, that I get days like that, to simply create. 

There is nothing quite like staring at a blank paper, wondering where it will take you... Then, with some paper, a few ribbons, buttons, and stamps, (and a bit of imagination) pulling all the pieces together into something entirely new and unexpected. 

I often create shabby chic things because I love the beauty of misfits. Nothing gives me more joy than taking items that have lost their luster, and might otherwise be headed for the dreaded disposal unit, and re-purposing them and giving them a home on my shabby creations...I love using up my little bits of scraps & treasures so much, that over time, my scrappy pile has dwindled down to almost nothing. I've strained my pile of 'junky treasures' so much that I now need to re-create shabby, worn trinkets in an attempt to mimic old and mismatched bits. But it is all a part of the fun. 

Once I have all the desired pieces I want to use, I love to pull them together, with a splash of white-washed tones, and see what comes of them.

Over the years, I've been asked so many times to re-create my cards into shabby-style classes, but with items I use, which are so rare and usually one-of a kind items from my stash, a replica class of my projects has been an unreachable goal for me. 

Until now :)

Recently, with a hope to share my shabby love, I ventured into something completely new. In an effort to make shabby chic design techniques accessible to everyone, I designed a Shabby Card & Box Kit for TCM.

  I was so worried about ordering the products without seeing them, designing a kit based on these products and not knowing if they would capture the essence of my style, and I was mostly worried about the instruction process, because I am such a hands-on person myself. I was also worried about how difficult it would be for you all to replicate it. 

Lisa was such an amazing help during the design process and made sure I had all the supplies I needed to pull off the look I so desperately wanted to share with you. I couldn't have done it without her help.

So, the kit has finally been released and I am so excited about it!

I hope at the very least that my kit will inspire you to give this beautiful style a try! And give you an insight into my shabby creations.

If inspiration is not enough and any of you nice ladies would like to try the kit itself,  Lisa has mentioned that she has a very limited amount of them, so I hope you can snatch one up before they are all gone. 

I hope to (one day soon) venture out of my own comfort zone and try a different style for myself. I have been very intrigued by all the mixed media art these days. 

But for now I must be getting off the computer...It is strange how quickly time flies when you are having fun. 

I promise I will be seeing you back here in a few days. Until then, I am going to keep chipping away at my to-do list.

Many wishes to you all for a lovely evening :) 

*Ivana*

~Home...~

Decided yesterday that I would drive home for a few days. I took these few days off work as far as last August, thinking that this week we might plan some type of a get-away. Mark got pulled away on a business trip, and I realized how much I needed to get done. So I kept my time off, scurrying this past weekend to tie up all the loose ends, accomplish all the little things that have been put off for far too long. It was a productive weekend, and a pretty emotional one too.  

By the time Tuesday rolled around, I realized that all I really needed...I mean really, really needed, was some time off. Real time off. Not the kind that is filled with menial little tasks and a huge to-do list.

I knew if I stayed in the city, I would probably find ways to occupy my time and fail to do what I really need right now....Relax.

So I drove home yesterday. It was so strange. I can't remember the last time I had done that myself. Mark is always with me. It was nice in a way. I listened to girly music. Did a lot of thinking. Good thinking. 

Got excited for many of the wonderful things coming up in my life. {I really needed that, by the way} 

Got excited about a few days at home with my mom. 

I love spending time with her. She is so warm and kind. Passionate and a good kind of crazy. 

I picked up a couple of coffees before pulling up to the house. We had a great conversation about a lot of these things that have been on my mind. I always think being busy is good, but it's good to have nothing to do except talk once in a while too. 

I also brought my scrappy bags home. I love our kitchen table and how bright and lively it is. It has always been my favorite place to craft. Not to mention the subtle sounds of family, love and comfort in the background, like a gentle reminder of the simple joys of life. 

I really love my family, my home, my life. Sometimes I need a reminder and coming here always does the trick.

I also really love you all, and treasure how you fill my heart with a sense of belonging and happiness. You give me purpose to write and to create. Thank you.

 I also love reading your comments. So kind and encouraging. They make me tear up. Happy tears, of course :)

I love getting your emails. I love staying connected and making friends from all over this beautiful world. 

I love creating with you mind.

But today, I'm unsure if I will create anything... If I do, I'll post :)

For now, I am simply going to enjoy this day. 

I hope you all do the same!

*Ivana*

~TCM Reveal Blog Hop~

Welcome to the TCM blog hop! So happy to see you here!

The previews have been a blast! Thank you all for the lovely visits and wonderful comments!
Now it is time to move into the real festivities!

Today is all about showing off the gorgeous stamp sets that were lovingly designed by some of the most talented ladies in the industry. I am of course talking about Jenny Suchin, Nina Brackett, and Kaitlyn Ord! The fabulous designers of TCM stamps.

I've so enjoyed playing with all of your beautiful sets girls, and here is one card that features two stamp sets by Nina B: Sew Lovely and Tweet of You (although I wish I could have used all the sets!)

Created with a wedding congrats in mind, I used the beautiful Sew Lovely stamp and embossed in white for a sweet tag background. I added the sentiment to the paper hexagon and finished it off with a little stamped birdie from the Tweet of You stamp set...Which is simply too cute for words.

For the top of the card, I added my hand dyed ribbon and a pearl brad, as well as a white leaf (from my awesome friend Cayla who loves to spoil me - thank you sweets!!!)

Oh and I forgot to mention, the beautiful heart is also from Cayla and all the paper on this card is by MME.

To continue along with us, visit


Iwona Palamountain

who is next on the hoppy list, and check out her beautiful creations!

There are a total of 11 blogs to visit, and by simply leaving a comment on each of the blogs, you will be entered in for a chance to win the beautiful stamps!!!

You have until Tuesday to play along to win the ENTIRE release (yes, that means, FOUR beautiful stamp sets!)

Hope you play along! Best of luck!

*Ivana*

BUT WAIT!
That's not all!
Remember that surprise I was talking about yesterday!?

Today, TCM is officially releasing my Shabby Chic Card & Tag class kit! Check it out!

I am beyond excited for the release of this kit! It is designed with a shabby look in mind, using beautiful Prima papers & flowers, lovely Melissa Frances frames, a lot of beautiful trim & ribbon, and so much more!

The kit is designed like a class, so you will receive all the product you need, with full instructions ( including pictures) on how to re-create these 3 cards, 3 tags and box!

For more details, visit the TCM blog here! Or you can directly find the kit here.

~TCM Day Four: Sew Lovely~


I've been on a creative frenzy lately with these papers and beautiful TCM stamps and I am sad to say that this is our last day of previews. But with most bad news, there is a good part...And that is...That starting tomorrow, TCM will be hosting a fun blog hop with spectacular creations, full stamp reveals AND chance to win these lovely stamps!

So bear with me as I show you this last card, and then join me back here tomorrow to check out what all the buzz is about!

For this last card, I decided to play with one of my fave mask designs by Pink Paislee, and some Distress Ink.

After inking the design onto the card base, I outlined it using a brown maker. I love how this makes the design even more prominent. On either side of the masked designs, I stamped the oh-so-adorable little buttons from the Sew Lovely set. I went a step further and added stitches to the buttons as if they were the real deal :)

I wanted to do something else with the button stamps in the set, so I stamped a button with some soft pink ink, and then glued a clear button over top. I really love the way it turned out! It's a great way to add a splash of color to plain, clear buttons and a great way to add some stability and dimension to stamped button images. 

I stamped a tag from the Sew Lovely set using brown ink and cut out both the outside and inside portions of the cardstock so that I would have a polka-dotted frame. Of course, what is a sew-y card without some pretty ribbon and pins, so I added those too! :)

I have one last creation to show off tomorrow, during our blog hop! So join us for a chance to win these beautiful stamp sets and to see all the lovely creations from the DT!

See you tomorrow!

*Ivana*

p.s. For a chance to win this stamp set, leave me a comment here by 9 pm PST! 
All winners are announced on the TCM blog the following day!

Also be sure to check back here tomorrow for

A BIG SURPRISE!!! 


I will post more details tomorrow!

~TCM Day Three: I've Got Your Number~

It's Day 3 of TCM stamp previews and I am so glad you stopped by for a little visit!

Wow! Your wonderful comments yesterday made me smile from ear to ear. Thank you all for your love and support (on my blog, on other galleries, and even on Pinterest - Betty Sue - I thought I recognized your name!)

I have a special card to share today, as it is in honor of my little niece, who will be turning 5 this year!
As I say that, I cannot believe how quickly the time has gone. It seems like only yesterday that she entered our lives, and she is now well on her way to becoming a grown-up...Well, not quite, but you get the idea!

I love her so dearly and I love making projects inspired by her. In a way, we are both so similar and love many of the same things.

So here is a card I've created with her in mind :)  

A few more papers from MME's Follow Your Heart collection, along with a die cut star from this MFT die, and some white flourishes from my dear friend :) 

I added a Prima Gillian Rose (love the frilly petals and the subtle glitter of these flowers), and a button from this Fancy Pants collection.

I used a beautiful number stamp from the 'I've Got Your Number' stamp set by The Craft's Meow, and I think this is my favourite numbers set by far! The numbers are a perfect size and the style of the numerals is so lovely.
I love how the set is perfect for those odd-ball anniversaries or birthdays...
I have a feeling that this stamp set is going to get a lot of use.
Seems like no matter how much I search, I seem to only find stickers and paper for 25th or 50th anniversaries... When we all know perfectly well, other birthdays and milestones are just as important and deserve to be celebrated all the same.

On the card base, I used another TCM stamp set, Lovely Labels 18 which I loooooove so much!
The labels are a constant I use in a lot of my creations and the best part is that they coordinate with Spellbinders dies!

Well, yet another post is over, and I am already looking forward to the next!
Join me back here tomorrow for Day Four!

*Ivana*

p.s. For a chance to win this stamp set,  leave a comment here by 9 pm PST! 
All winners are announced on the TCM blog the following day!

~TCM Day Two: Owl See You in the Spring~

Hello again! Glad to see you've come back for Day 2 of TCM previews!
As you might have guessed, I've stuck with many of the same products for this card as the one yesterday.
If you know me, you know that I love to create card sets and love how easy they are to pull together because all of your colors are tried and true and pretty much fool-proof.
Not to mention that when you are creating with limited time, it is a huge life-saver!

So let's move onto today's card featuring the 'Owl See You in the Spring' set by Jenny Suchin, an incredibly talented artist whose stamps always put a huge smile on my face! I love all the cute images in this set, and I especially loved the adorable chickadee in the half-cracked shell.
Seriously. Too. Cute.

I used a the same My Mind's Eye papers in for this card, from the Follow Your Heart and Miss Caroline collections. I seriously cannot get enough of this paper. 

I feel like it was made for me. Thank you, Rhonna and Jen for all the beauty you create :) (BTW - if you love Rhonna's images, check out her awesome online digi store where you can buy more of her beautiful artwork and use it over and over again)

Okay back to my card and to the stamps...I stamped the darlin little chick onto some subtle pattern paper and cut it out...My Honey-Bees also got a good workout cutting out all the lovely roses and the other shapes on this card.

I die-cut the little star using this MFT die,  and pierced it with a sweet Webster's Pages pin (have you seen all the beautiful Silhouettes, Pins and Sparklers by Websters?!?! I am dying to get me some!)

There I go again, getting off track...Back to the card.

I also added a pretty Gillian rose by Prima, and some liquid pearls here and there.

I couldn't resist my Prima sugarplum flowers (from way back when)  a soft yellow button from Fancy Pants Summer's End collection, and another awesome resin flourish from my friend, Cayla!

And of course, what is a card without a little bit of liquid pearls? So I've added a few here and there!
Thanks for joining me again and I hope to see you here tomorrow for Day 3!

Ciao!

*Ivana*

p.s. For a chance to win this stamp set,  leave a  comment here by 9 pm PST! 

~TCM Day One: Tweet Of You~


Hi everyone! Thanks for joining me for Day 1 of TCM stamp previews! I've created a little card featuring some lovely images from today's featured set. I completely and whole-heatedly love this stamp so much!
It is another design by Nina B. aka Stamp Creator Extraordinaire :)


Okie, so here is the card!

I was so excited to dig in and play with this month's stamps! How cute is that birdcage? And how about that saying? Now that I think of it, I should have probably used one of the cute little birds in the set...But I have a feeling they will show up on my other preview cards!

I was also itching to use this My Mind's Eye paper I just picked up at the shop.

The papers I used are mainly from the Follow Your Heart collection, and a couple from the Miss Caroline Howdy Doody line. I loooved this beautiful hex paper and this doily paper. I still have a few sheets of each of these, so I will be sharing a few more projects in the upcoming weeks with these beautiful papers.

I added some of my vintage pink shabby ribbon with a pearl brad, and outlined the lovely roses from this paper with a brown marker.

For the birdcage, I used a stamp from the Tweet of You set from TCM, I used a white pen to fill in some of the thicker horizontal 'bars'. I like the way this gives dimension to the image. I could have gone a step further to add some Stickles to the white parts, but that would have meant that I would have had to look for them...And that seemed like a lot of work at the time :) So I passed on the glitter.

I did, however, get to use a beautiful hand-made molded heart gifted to me by my sweet friend Cayla. (Thank you Cayla!!!) She has a wonderful blog that you should check out, and has a post here that features some more ideas with her resin shapes.

Thank you for joining me today for our first day of previews and I hope to see you back right here as we feature another beautiful stamp set!

g'nite!

*Ivana*

p.s. For a chance to win this stamp set, leave a comment here by 9 pm PST!

~Lovely Tags & A Wedding Update~

Howdy everyone! Remember a while back I mentioned I would show you my creation using Beatriz' (Iralamija's) beautiful tags (the one she so kindly gifted to me). Well, I've finally photographed my creation, and here it is!

In addition to the lovely tags, I used a pretty vintage cream paper from Echo Park, and a soft pink paper from the Cotton Tail Collection by WRMK.

I wanted to use one of my favorite TCM stamps on this card (from the Lovely Labels 18 set). It is such a versatile set with so many wonderful label designs and wonderful sayings. 

I embossed the image in white (although not very well - can you see my poor embossing on the upper corner? ooops) and then cut it (by hand) on the outside and inside.

The little pennant is from this Love Banner Maya Road set, painted in green and cream , and glittered with a chunky glitter.

For the lace, I tried I new technique...Sort of by accident. I wanted to add a bit of green to the card, so I inked the lace with embossing ink, and covered the lace with a lime green embossing powder. 

It was lovely, but slightly over-powering for this soft card. So I turned it around, and found that the green on the other side provides an ever-so-slight shading, which is just the softness I was looking for!

I used Bety's tags a few different ways on the card. I separated the words from the rest of the tag so that I could add a little tab on the side of the card. I also cut out some of the pretty roses so that I could layer them onto the creamy card base. I love playing with these beautiful images and if you want to try it out, you can purchase the tags here, and once you have the file, simply print onto card stock and enjoy! 

Before I go I have one more thing to share...A continuation of my wedding blogging journey.

I was perplexed about what topic to cover next - nonetheless, I've added another post to the DRW blog, and you can find it here!

love and hugs, 

*Ivana*

p.s. I will be away from blogging for the next few days, but join me back here on the 16th - the first preview day for the new TCM stamp release!! I have a few projects to show, so be sure to come back and visit! 

~Every.Single.Day.~

Hello friends! Hope you are having a wonderful Wednesday evening.
We've been so focused on our wedding planning, that we needed to take some time out and get out of the city  and all the madness. So we escaped last weekend for a lovely visit at home. 

 Having a little break is always so nice...Especially when it is shared with family. 

While at home, I had a bit of time to go over some recent comments and emails from all of you and I am so thankful for each and every visit and all the sweet words!

 Also, I recently entered a card + box duo into a contest held by Bety! I was so excited to see my creations featured on her blog...So a HUGE thank you to Bety for featuring my card and for the lovely prize...What an incredible honour!!! I've been playing with the collage set she so kindly gifted to me, and I will have projects to show very soon. 

If you have a chance, visit her little shop on Etsy... It is so very lovely! Here are the beautiful tickets I picked, just in case you might want some too :)

Now onto my project for the day..

Another Valentine's card (really been loving all the love-day stuff) created with all of you in mind. 

I treasure your friendship and support every single day :)

I'm dedicating this V-day card to all of you

Created with few soft colored papers and a lot of layers...I used a few different stencil shapes (from years of collecting tags, which I keep in a pile to use over and over again as stencils).
I also used a beautiful new embossing folder by Tim Holtz, and a Prima rose.

For this card, I used the larger die-cut doily die from  this set from MFT stamps, and the smaller scalloped die-cut is from this Spellbinders set.

I used one of my fave stamps (the beautiful heart with all the text) from this Vintage Blue Glitz stamp set.
For the edges I used the Antique Linen Distress Ink and to ink the embossed 'love' I used Walnut Stain Distress Ink.

I am off to have a warm cup of tea and try and pick our wedding song...Wish me luck!

Nitey Nite

*Ivana*

~An Apple A Day...~

Hi friends, how are you all doing tonight?
We have had some bad news about a dear friend, and I have had a very hard time dealing with the news today...Mostly because I feel as if sometime the worst of things happen to the kindest of people.
I know that life is not always easy, but for some people, the hardships never seem to end...

My heart goes out to our friend, and makes me feel so blessed.
Sometime daily life can take away our perspective from all the blessings we truly have...I have to remind myself constantly to be thankful for all the treasures in my life. And I am.

I thankful for my family, my friends, for all of you who read my little blog, my art, my home...And so many other things that others can only dream of ...

So I thought I would pay tribute to something that I am thankful for...Despite how small...

I love apples and everything they represent.
I love budding apple blossoms in the spring, the warmth of apple cider on a cold winter's night , the smell of freshly baked apple pie, the tartness of fresh apple juice, and every once in a while, just a good, 'ole fashioned 'apple a day' :)

I found these adorable stamps that were just perfect for my apple card! So I decided to combine a Valentine's themed card, this card by this week's Color Room pallette, and my love of apples!

If you've never visited the Color Room, I would say you must! Every once in a while, when I am low on inspiration, I love to visit color challenge blogs and galleries and get inspired by some wonderful color combos! The Color Room has such beautiful color inspirations and creations by so many talented artists, that one cannot help but feel inspired when browsing through all the art...

Other products I've used on this card...Postage stamp chipboard by Maya Road, frame stamped in green from The Craft's Meow (Lovely Labels 18), apple stamp set from WRMK, and postage die from MFT.

For the trim, I've used Maya Road crocheted trim. For the sides of the card, I used green embossing powder to change the color. This is so easy to do! Simply ink your trim with clear embossing ink, and sprinkle your favourite embossing powder color, and use a heat gun to set. Hope you give it a try sometime!

Thank you all for visiting  and for listening :)

G'nite

*Ivana*