First Stop on the Inspirational Tour of the World

Hope you have been a follower of my blog

for awhile, because I have a question for you.

Where in all the world would I

most like to visit?

The reason for my question is it's the first stop on my  

'Inspirational Tour of the World'

over at The Play Date Cafe. 

Not only would I love to visit, but being an avid

'student' of Provence, which is in the South of France,

I would love to live there in a farmhouse surrounded

by vineyards and lavender fields.

For now....the rest of the design team and I

want to inspire you to create with the colors used in

this wonderful, Provencal kitchen.

I love these simple designs from Ippity.

I used 3 different stamps from 3 different collections

(all available from my Ippity page HERE).

The Prima flowers and the Debbie Mumm ribbon

add to the bold and luscious colors, to be sure.

We have a NEW celebrity guest designer

this week, Mariana Grigsby, who brings her wonderfully

bold style to The Cafe.

So get out your box of 64's (crayons, that is) 

and start creatin' because the sky is virtually the limit!

I Love a Great.....

I love a great mocha, do you?

What about a great latte?

A great Cappucino?

How about a great challenge!

I must admit, although I am this week's host over at

The Play Date Cafe

I don't usually have a 'theme' in mind when 

I choose the inspiration color photo.

It sorta happens 'organically'.

These colors ScReAmEd 'cafe theme'.

How appropriate.

Here's what I used.....

The DP is from DCWV's 'Linen Closet'

The stamp is from The Paper Company

The coffee-themed ribbon is Debbie Mumm
It's difficult to see in the photo,
but I did add some texture with sewing
around the inside edges

Oh...the coffee cup is covered with...

wait for it...

CHRISTMAS DP

from Basic Grey's 'Eskimo Kisses' line.
It was just the red I needed, so don't hesitate
to check your holiday stash when you are looking
for just the right fit   : )

So how do YOU plan out your projects when

you work a color challenge?  

I share how I do it over in The Cafe, 

but I would LOVE for you to share

with my followers your method of madness...

You know what to do...leave a comment.

Thoughts of Britain with Memory Box

 I just have a quick post for you today....

I am gettting ready for all of the 'doings' over at

The Play Date Cafe.

Hopefully as I write this, it will make sense.

I am listening to an NPR interview with

Ricky Gervais, the British comedian and

creator of the original 'The Office'

series from Great Britain.

I think the guy is not only hysterical,

but really intelligent with so much of 

his humor and in his interviews.

Funny guy.

So, my bestie Sarah, who is also from the UK

has been away for a couple of days with Sue Roddis

doing a fabulous workshop with Dina Wakley.

Although we live an ocean apart, when she is even

further away from her home in Cheshire,

I really, really miss her.

So I made this card for her.

 

You may recognize the fabulous vine border stamp from

Memory Box.  I stamped the vine in Momento Ink in

'London Fog' (no coincidence with the British-theme here).

Then used VersaMagic in 'Agean Blue' for the flowers.

The sentiment is a $1 wood mount from Hampton Arts.

The rick-rack is from Debbie Mumm

The flower from Prima

The rhinestone is Martha's.

Hope you are having a fab time, my friend...

How Has Your Day Been? DESIGN TEAM REMINDER!

As I was thinking of a title for this post, I decided to ask myself the very same question...and my day has been TERRIFIC! What I especially liked was that I had accomplished the following all before noon: two loads of laundry...prepared 12 packages for the post office...returned 2 quite lengthy phone calls...dropped Paul off at B&N...dropped said packages off at USPS...stopped at the dollar store to see what I couldn't live without...made a quick trip to Walgreens and treated myself to a $4.50 blended ice mocha...
ALL BEFORE NOON!

So tonight, I decided to play a little and can you tell what I have been playing with? Yep, 'the bug'! I have been so excited about making fall cards and I love the 'pumpkin spice' EF. I stamped these fabulous Inkadinkado 'pumpkins on the vine' with Versamark. The greeting is from the same set stamped in Versamagic 'night sky'. Couldn't resist some embellishments with the vintage, single-hole button and the extra-large rick-rack by Debbie Mumm.

Just a quick reminder.....tomorrow is the deadline for the DESIGN TEAM CALL for the new 'Play Date' Challenges from The Open Window. I am so excited about these new color challenges and I know there are those of you who may be on the fence...."should I or shouldn't I?" Let me remind you that we all started somewhere, so if you are interested, click here for the details.

Now...here's what I would like to know...WHAT DESIGN STYLE DO YOU REALLY ADMIRE BUT HAVE YET TO TRY? Is it clean and classic...vintage or retro...shabby chic with lots of lace, buttons and details...bold and bright...soft and subtle...? Do you like to pile on the layers not knowing when to stop or are you pretty much a 'minimalist'? All paper and no stamping? What about the new 'digital' craze...do you download images
or are you 'old-school'?

Leave a comment and be as descriptive as possible...it's my way of getting to peek in Your Open Window.....see you tomorrow with the Color Dare Challenge, a project from Artful INKables and my Wednesday Night Favorites list. I will also share my answer to the design-style question. Enjoy your evening!

It's Gettin' Busy Here...I Like It!

My day didn't go quite as I had planned. My son called not long after I posted my message to you this morning and said they had a change in plans. So instead of running around with a little one in the car, I ran around on my own. I had lunch with Paul, then I drove over to JoAnn Fabrics to see what's new. They are offering 40% off clear stamps right now, so I had to add to my collection. I also picked up some very cool Heidi Grace papers for fall and found some Debbie Mumm ribbon on the clearance rack.

I have been in touch with the rest of the AI (Artful Inkables) design team for a better part of the evening. We are close to announcing our first blog hop which coincides with the new release stamp sets for August and our bi-weekly challenges, so there are some fun things for you to look forward to.

So what else is going on here at The Open Window? I am in the process of putting a new design team together in time for fabulous new challenges you can take part in. I hope to announce those names and projects in the next couple of weeks or so. I know many of you are looking forward to playing and I can't wait. I am also starting a second blog that will have online classes and tutorials available just for you. So spread the word....THE OPEN WINDOW IS THE PLACE TO BE!

As for now....I hope you will come by tomorrow and see my new favorite blogs list. I also have several new creations in my Etsy store, which includes this card. I hope you will check those out. Last but not least, the participants in the tag swap are putting the finishing touches on their offerings and I am looking forward to receiving those soon. I will post a photo of the entire collection for all to see.

The day is coming to a close here at The Open Window....so I will see you tomorrow!

Just to Say Hello

Thought I would share these little tags that I just finished. They're going straight into my Etsy Store. It's that time of year to think ahead for those who are early birds when it comes to holiday preparations. These were really fun to do. I used mirror card and the 'bug' to emboss the dots. It doesn't show as well in my photo, but the reflection makes these really unique. I also used the brand spankin' new Harvest & Holiday Mat Stack designed by Debbie Mumm. These weren't even on the shelf yet when I stopped in at JoAnn Fabrics the other day. I saw the box on a cart with the description and said "I'll have that please". It's full of fun designs for Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. I love the ribbon with the miniature snowflakes from American Crafts.

If you are still on the fence about the tag swap, we'd love to have you join us. I have 4 spots left, so click here, make your decision and let me know. Those of you who have signed up, I will be getting in touch with you later in the week. Please send me a private email with your email address. You can reach me at here.

I'll be back a little later, but in the meantime I hope you will pop over to Etsy and see what's new!