Schparkly Stars and a Spiffy Schnowman!

Hello Stamplings!

I hope you are doing well with your holiday preps. The kids will be out of school soon, so you don't have long to finish up your secret shopping and wrapping. It's the hiding of the gifts that's the hardest part of all. Children suddenly develop bloodhound noses for locating presents this time of year. Have you ever hidden gifts so well, you still haven't found that Magic Card Game you hid back in 1988?! You should look again in the back of your sock drawer.

Things are calming down in Chez Playhouse. Thank you for all your good wishes following my torquing of the torso business. I'm fine. I mean, generally speaking, in the very broadest of general terms not counting psychic logically.

Today I'm playing in a few challenges as the year is wrapping up with a bow. You can read that bow as in ribbon or bow as in curtsy. You have to love a language that's so versatile. Anyway, it's nice to have a head-start on next year's cards or have a few in Abeyance in case I forgot someone this year.

My friend Barb sent me this awesome NBUS "Shooting star" die from My Favorite Things for my birthday last summer.  I paired it with some pretty pink paper cut with an Avery Elle "Dotted Die" and a silver heat-embossed sediment from PTI. The silver lamé panel is from Christmas Dior. QACAS!

Challenges

• ABC Christmas: Y and Z. Z for zero embellishments.
• CAS Christmas Card: Stars.
• SSS Work It Wednesday: Ho Ho Ho.

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The companion gold lamé panel (both gifts from my friend Lottie) was used as a backdrop for this adorable NBUS wooden stamp from Stampendus that I purchased on my trip to Indiana in October. The sediment is from Stampabilities. Both were gold heat-embossed and the coloring was done by Ziggies. Hammy winked the gold star as he is wont to do.

Challenges

• Cards in Envy: The spirit of Christmas.
• Simon Says Stamp Monday: Warm winter wishes.
• TIME OUT: Joyful.

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And here we have a super cute and preppily dressed little NBUS snowman! He was stamped and die-cut and Ziggified. The snowflake stencil, brushed with Salty Ocean Oxie, is from my friend Lolly. The snowman, birds, and sentiment are all NBUS from My Favorite Things's "Cooler With You" set. I thought it would make a sweet holiday thank you card.

Challenges

• City Crafter: Snowflakes.
• Just Add Ink: Just add "I." As in ink.
• MFT Sketch: below.
• Paper Players: Color challenge: red, green, and my choice of blue.

 

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NOTE: There will be no Twofer Card Challenge this month as we take time off for the holidays, but I did do a comprehensive post over on the blog explaining the concept of the challenge and giving examples. I wanted to let you know Justin Case you're interested and would like to check it out: Illuminating Definitions. Thank you!

Enjoy your day! No, seriously, enjoy! LITS!*

As always, thank you for coming by to visit the Playhouse and special thanks to you if you take the time to join as a follower! Please let me know you came by so I can be sure and return the flavor!

*Life is too short!

To open the pop-up comment box that let's you jump to the end w/o scrolling: Click CTL + Home. Click the Home tab under my blog banner which resets the post. Click Page Down to reach the end of the post. Click Comments and a pop-up box opens. Click "Jump to Comment Form" and wallah, no more car pool tunnel! Mwah! (p.s. If you ask me a question in your comment, please remember to leave me your email address so I can respond. Thank you!)

Birthday Sunflower

Hello, my friends!

If you are looking for my NBUS Challenge #5, click here!

Thank you to all of you who have already played and left appreciative and supportive comments! I am way behind on commenting, but I have noticed that a lot of you are visiting each other and the sponsors and leaving some love. That makes me very happy and sends Hammy squeeing off the walls!

We are halfway through the ten-day NBUS Challenge #5, so head's up if you are intending to join in the fun! Which I sincerely hope you are! It ends at 11:55 PM PST on September 18, 2015.

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Today I only have a onefer for you. I have several friends with September and October birthdays and I love using My Favorite Things "Splendid Sunflower" Die-Namics die and coordinating stamp for fall birthdays.

All the papers are snippets from my stash. The e/f is "Distressed Stripes" by Cuttlebug. The sediment is also MFT from the "LJD Pretty Poppies" set.

You knew that sunflowers turn their heads to face the sun throughout the day, but did you know that the sunflower head is actually composed of hundreds of individual flowers joined together?

Challenges

• Addicted to Stamps and More: Anything Goes.
• MFT Wednesday Sketch Challenge
• MFT Card Design Superstar Card Contest
• Pixie's Snippets Playground: Use your snippets.
• Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Coordinating Dies and Stamps.

Surgery Update

The Mister came through surgery just fine! I'm not gonna lie, it's a bummer being him, except for he's lucky to have Nurse Nelly shower him with love and attention! I'm happy to report that he has been an excellent patient. Thank you for understanding that I'm a bit scattered and distracted and not managing much time on the computer. And thank you from both of us for the fantastic cards he is receiving!

I did sneak out to make today's card while he was napping. It was another blistering hot day here today. I glanced out my window at one point and saw this:

It truly made me giggle out loud! I was so happy I had the camera on the desk so I could take pictures. It was as if this little squirrel friend was expressing sympathy for the Mister's temporarily useless leg! 

No? Well, okay, he was just hot as blazes and stretched out on the cool(er) limb in the shade. Here are a couple more shots I took:

When I stepped out of the Playhouse a few minutes later, the little squirrel just stayed there, only a couple of feet from me. We had a lovely conversation while Hammy watched from inside on the window ledge. It's good for him to see me talking with other furry critters once in a while so he doesn't take me for granite.

It's possible I'm battier than normal and we are only on day 4 of a 42-day recovery. Whee!

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Enjoy your day! No, seriously, enjoy! LITS!*

As always, thank you for coming by to visit the Playhouse and special thanks to you if you take the time to join as a follower! Please let me know you came by, so I can be sure and return the flavor!

*Life is too short!

To open the pop-up comment box that let's you jump to the end w/o scrolling:

Click CTL + Home. 
Click the Home tab under my blog banner which resets the post.
Click Page Down to reach the end of the post.
Click Comments and the pop-up box opens.
Click Jump to Comment Form; no more car pool tunnel! Mwah!
If you ask me a question in your comment, please remember to leave
me your email address so I can respond. Thank you!