Monday, August 30, 2010

Happy H{ippity} Hop Halloween!



So glad to be back with you for 
H{ippity} Hop Monday!
I have a few different projects to share with you and
a special offer waiting for you at the end.


Before we get too far down the road, make sure
you stop by the Ippity blog to see all the great
Ippity 'chicks' and 'fans' who are hopping along today.


I have to say that I love the colors used here.
Fresh, bold and yet, subtle.

The Ippity stamps/sets that were used here:
 Dots for Sure
Thoughts from the Past
The Simple Things

The extras include DP from GCD Studios, 'Stylized Flowers'
EF from Cuttlebug, rick-rack and flower from Prima.

Now for a little Halloween inspiration.....



It's always fun to work make cards for this creepy holiday
using non-traditional colors.  Besides the stamped images, I think
the most effective part of this card is the shaded border.  I used
Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Spiced Marmalade.

The Ippity stamps/sets that were used here:
That's Creepy
 Book It

The extras include spider web border punch from Martha Stewart,
spider web image from Inkadinkado and copper mini brads.



Lastly, this little layered card.

The Ippity stamps/sets that were used here:
That's Creepy
Totally Happy

The extras include the same Distress Ink used on the previous card
as well as the little spider web image and a crackle background from
Paper Inspirations.

Here is a quick peek at the Ippity stamps/sets
along with my Ippity bonus deal of the week!






How would you like to have all of these
fantabulous stamps for just $49!!!
You absolutely can!
(that's $15 off the msrp)
Order this week, and you will also receive
a bonus embellishment package.

To order, simply email me at
julieranae@hotmail.com
and tell me you want The Ippity Bonus Deal.
(this offer is not listed in my Ippity store, you must email me)
I accept PayPal as well as USPS & Walmart money orders

You TOO can have fun with Ippity stamps
and remember, this specific offer is
only available here 
at Julie's Open Window.

To see more Ippity stamps available
Just click HERE!


Sunday, August 29, 2010

Just Sittin' Here Waiting for Autumn...



Well, I am making no secret of the fact that I am
very excited
for fall to roll around.
Mind you, as much as that is my favorite time of the year,
it's also a stark reminder of what's comes shortly after.
The brutal midwest winters are just not my thing
as I get older.  But I digress....

Thought I would share a couple of cards with you
today that are pretty different from one another.


I couldn't wait to have a play with my new 'Vampire Bat' punch
from EK Success.  The paper is from Martha Stewart.
You may recognize the Basic Grey in the background.  This is
from last year's 'Eerie' collection,  but it is one of my favorites.
I cut out some concentric circles using Spellbinders dies and
just 'layered it all up'.
The stamped 'Spooky' is from Inkadinkado (I think).

As the cast of Monty Python would say...
'Now for something completely different'


Thought I needed to pay homage to summertime as it is
still August, even if it's only just....
Everyone's summer favorite this year has been the
'On the Boardwalk' series from Graphic45.
These papers make it SO easy to put together fast but fun
cards because everything is SO coordinated.


Outside of a little sewing, I just added brads (see photo above)
and Stickles for embellishment.

Paige over at the CARDS challenge is calling for cards
with 'one word greetings' so I thought I would share both
of these little projects there as well.

It's Emmy Night and one of my favorite funny men,
Jimmy Fallon
is hosting, so it's going to be a party in my house.
Yes, I do watch all of the pre-show 'stuff'.
Love the red carpet...will watch 'E's' coverage
with Guiliana (whom I adore) and Ryan.

Just glad I have my H{ippity} Hop ready to go
for tomorrow's posting because I will be just a bit
sidetracked tonight.

Hope you will leave a comment and let me know
you were here...I LoVe to hear from you!

Enjoy your Sunday!


Better Late Than Never...



This past week, I was unable to complete a project for
the current challenge over at The Play Date Cafe.
You may have read that my computer crashed and learning
my way around my very first laptop was pretty time consuming.
Anyway...I managed to get a little something done and wanted
to share it with you just in case you were on the fence
about these wild and crazy colors...


I was totally inspired by a project I spotted in the
current 'CardMaker' magazine and thought it might be
a good way to incorporate the colors.
Most of the DP that was used on this was from
GCD Studios.  The stem is paper from Heidi Grace.
  The leaf images are from Inkadinkado were stamped using 
Ranger's Adirondack ink in 'Caramel'.

Here is a reminder of the 'color story' for this week.....


There is still plenty of time to play along with us.
Stop by The Play Date Cafe and check out the
amazing inspiration from the
world's best design team!


Friday, August 27, 2010

Down the Spooky Rabbit Hole with EIC



It has been such an honor and pleasure to have been
a Guest Designer with the talented team from the
EtsyInspired Challenge.


I have found that the older I get, the time
absolutely zooms by and the month of August
has been consistent with that statement.
I thank the girls at EIC for their kind comments
along the way and hope that I was able to bring
'just a little something extra' to their challenge.

For this week's challenge, we were inspired by the
beautiful shop known as 'The Caged Fairy', which
features some beautiful handcrafted jewelry.
I chose this pendant for my inspiration.....


.....and I have been dying to pull out my newest
Graphic45 collection that picked up at CHA last month.


Halloween can't come fast enough for me...well, I don't want it to be
here quite yet because I want some solid 'play time' to create some
spooky creations.
This is hardly spooky, but it is from Graphic45's
'Halloween in Wonderland'
I inked up the borders of this fabby paper with black ink to
create some spooky shadows (ok, so a little spooky)
I cut some concentric circles using my Spellbinders Nesties
and topped it with a wonderful die-cut which is part of the collection.
The embellishments are from Making Memories 'Spellbound'.

Make sure you stop by this lovely shop to see all
the wonderful pendants that are available there and
of course, please visit the girls from EIC.


Here are the links to the talented girls of the
EtsyInspired Design Team....

{many thanks}

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Really? Seriously? Yep!



Before you 'ooh and aah' and congratulate me on such
a stunning piece of work....
it doesn't belong to me!

Nope...this one isn't mine either...
But they are both fabulous, aren't they!?

I thought I would show you the beauty that can
come from even the strangest of combinations...

That's right...it's the Play Date Cafe's first...
'Colour Horribilis' Challenge.

You will be absolutely amazed at the stunning
work that the world's best design team have done to 
bring you the most beautiful projects using this color story.
So make sure you get on over and see what's behind this
unique idea, who created these lovely pieces 
and check out this week's prize sponsor.

We are also saying goodbye to one of our first term designers.
Stephanie Kraft will be greatly missed as an inspiration to
our players and a friend and encouragement to our team.
We wish her so much love and best wishes for whatever
is next in her creative endeavors.

Before I go, I just wanted to thank you for your patience
as I have been MIA for over a week.  The hard drive on my
computer decided it was time for a permanent rest, so I had
to do some computer shopping, which I wasn't prepared to do.
It took a few days to make a decision and I am now the
happy owner of a fabby laptop.  My first laptop and I
love the freedom!
I spent some time today out on the patio
working on the PDCC post and then took it on it's
first road trip to Barnes & Noble.  The great thing
is I can take it there under the guise of 'working'
but my true motive is to stare at my husband
while he is working  : )
Happy to be back online, getting caught up on things
and hoping to bring you lots of new projects soon!


Thursday, August 19, 2010

A Pocketful of Posies...



I am in love.....with this color combo!

Now having said that, I am also pleased to tell you
that I am this week's design team host for the new challenge at


Sometimes I think Martha and I were sisters,
separated at birth.  I love the colors she puts
together (or at least her 'people' put together)
and this was one photo inspiration I knew we had to use.


I was thinking about all the different types of flowers there
are to make (because Paige over at CARDS was calling for them)
and I thought it would be fun to make these 
funky posies using this color scheme.
You may recognize that DP from Cosmo Cricket's
'Early Bird' collection.  The stems were stamps
from Heidi Grace and the senitment is Impression Obsession.

Creative Inspirations Paints
Hey!  We've got a brand new sponsor this week!
Creative Inspirations Paints...and you could win
12 jars of paints in your choice of colors!

And....a big announcement awaits!
Who is the next....
Head on over to The Play Date Cafe
and find out who is joining 
The World's Best Design Team!


Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Layers, Scallops & Thanks



It's a busy day for me, so I only have time to share
one card today.....

This one is lots of fun scalloped layers and
one mighty big handmade paper flower.


I love using kraft cardstock with these types of colors.
It's such a versatile neutral.
The paper flower is made from 2 types of handmade papers,
the off-white with specks is 'tobacco paper' which I have
had for years, along with the peachy-pink paper.
I guess that's using some BOO, isn't it?!
The periwinkle blue in the flower is good-old-fashioned tissue paper.

I made the flower using the Dahlia die from Spellbinders.
There are about 21 layers altogether.
I also used the Labels 4 for the sentiment.
The other scalloped punch is from Fiskars.
The sentiment is from Unity.

Thought I would enter this over at the
Paige is calling for unique, handmade flowers.

In the meantime, you still have until
midnight EST tonight to enter this week's
challenge over at The Play Date Cafe.


Oh...one more thing...
I have just one more complete set in stock
of the 'Ippity Triple' deal
from yesterday's post.
You can read about it here.

Have a terrific day!

Monday, August 16, 2010

Summertime is Meant for Color



You know it's H{ippity} Hop Monday
here at The Open Window and it's gotten
a whole lot more fun this week with
the brand spankin' new images that
were just released!


If you are new to the H{ippity} Hop,
after you get done checking out my little
offering for the day, pop back over to
The Ippity Blog here and check out the
other talented people who are creating
new things to share with you today.


I had a great time creating this card because
I used the challenge of the 'Dog Days of Summer'
that was issued this past Monday on the Ippity blog.
When I think of the 'deep days' of the summer
here in the Midwest, I think of all the flowers
that are in full bloom.....
patio pots full of flowers.....
and bright blue skies.

It's hard to make them out, but if you click
up close, you just might see all the tiny
white pearls that were used as the flower
centers and on the sprigs in the potted plant.

I'm very happy to tell you that all of the stamps
that I used on this card are
in-stock and available 
to purchase from me.

Here's what I used.....

 'So This is Love'

'You Deserve'

'Book It'

I love sharing these cheerful stamps
sets with you and I would love to be
your 'Ippity Chick'!

Order the first two sets from me
anytime this week
for only $22.50 (+ $3.50 postage)
and you can get 'Book It'
for just $3 !!!

{International orders inquire for postage rates}

That's over $11 off the msrp
Just email me at julieranae@hotmail.com
and let me know you want this week's
'Ippity Triple'
(I accept Paypal & postal or Walmart money orders)

While I update my Ippity store, please
feel free to email me directly
with any questions.

Hope you have a terrific Monday!

Saturday, August 14, 2010

'Baby Love, my Baby Love'



I am guest designing for the entire month of August
over at EtsyInspired.  It's such an honor to design
with such a talented group of girls!
They celebrated their 100th challenge last week
and it was so fun for me to be included in the celebration!

Speaking of which....
Before I get to this week's challenge, 
I need to announce the winner of the amazing
'ribbon stash' from May Arts.

Congratulations goes out to.....
#13
Terri E. said... "Those funky owls are perfect for the inspiration.
It's a good life."
Terri....send an email over to stampindeva@bellsouth.net
 and let her know you won on my blog.


This week's Etsy store featured is

Lover Dovers Homemade Goodness
What a fun little place to browse and buy!!!

You have an opportunity to win one the
fabby handcrafted aprons from this 
sweet little shop.

Here is the apron I chose as my inspiration...


My teenage days were spent smack
in the 70's.  I spent every single year
from 10-19 in that decade and to this
day, I still love me some good disco!

Another big part of the 70's were the
fun and funky 'mushroom' motifs.
So this apron was a perfect fit for me.


Cosmo Cricket's 'Earth Love' was the first thing I
grabbed out of my stash.  I think it's fun to
create 'unusual' cards for baby showers.
There's no stamping on this card...just a little sewing 
and embellishment...easy peasy!

You definitely need to make a visit to the
EtsyInspired Blog to get all the details on
the prize from the featured shop, but also 
check out the sponsor prize from
Sassy Studio Designs.

Here are the links to the talented girls of the
EtsyInspired Design Team....

{love my guest spot!}
Virginia

Enjoy the Day!

Thursday, August 12, 2010

YAY! Ippity's Summer 2010 Release is Now!


You'll find the
The Play Date Cafe
Challenge here!



Today is the day!

It's Ippity Release Party for the
new Summer 2010 Collection
and I am SO excited to share it
with you.

I hope you have a cup 'o something
in your hand because I am going to share
every new set with you right here!

Your cost only $15 (msrp $18)

 Your cost only $15 (msrp $18)

Your cost only $20 (msrp $24)

Now...just those new
goodies would be enough
for me!  But wait....

 Your cost only $7.50 (msrp $10)

Your cost only $15 (msrp $18)

Your cost only $20 (msrp $24)

So...what do ya think?
Oh Wait......

Your cost only $15 (msrp $18)

Your cost only $7.50 (msrp $10)

Your cost only $7.50 (msrp $10)

And there you have it!
Yeah right..... 

Your cost only $4 (msrp $6)

Your cost only $4 (msrp $6)

Your cost only $4 (msrp $6)

And....how about some
fabby paper from Echo Park!

 Your cost only $5 (msrp $6.50)
          FREE w/any $45 purchase!

Total order of $50 & up = FREE shipping
Total order $20.01-$49.99 = $5 shipping
Orders up to $20 = $3.50 shipping

I am so happy to be
an 'Ippity chick' 
and I would be glad to take your order!

Many of these sets are on the UPS truck
right now on the way to my house!

While I update my Ippity store, please
feel free to email me directly at
julieranae@hotmail.com
to place your order : )

You are welcome to combine your order 
for new stamps with other stamps
from past collections featured in 
my Ippity store here.

I am standing by 
to take your order!