TGF Release Day!

Happy Tuesday everyone! It’s finally here…..RELEASE DAY for two of our Super Secret Stamp Club stamps: Willow and Ezra as well as a totally owl-mazing clear set, Owl Yours! You've seen the previews and teases all week long and I'm sure you can't wait to get your hands on these. in honor of this awesome release, I created a treat box using the Owl Yours set:

Owl Yours Clear Set

Isn't this little guy just handsome? I'm in the process of making tags for Valentine's day goody bags using this handsome fella and his cutie pie counter part. Originally the plan was to make lots of mini pizza boxes and use those for Valentine's until I realized I'd have to make 40! As fun as that would be to say that I completed such a large project, life tends to happen (especially with the hubby not here for help) and things get put off. Nope, instead I purchased some cellophane treat bags in red and white and some red and white bakers twine to take some of the stress off of myself. They're going to be gorgeous, so keep an eye out for that project coming soon!

 All of these are now available in The Greeting Farm Store but hurry, I just know they'll go fast cause after all, who doesn't love a new stamp or 2...or 3 I know I do!  Like winning free stuff? Well guess what? here’s your chance!! We are having a OWL YOURS BLOG HOP! Be sure to leave a comment on each designer’s blog and then head back  to the TGF Blog to let us know you completed the hop. You have until Friday, December 18th at 12pm CST to leave your comments below. We will announce our random winner next week!

TGF Design Team:

ALYCE

ANITA

HOLLY

KELLI

KRYSTAL (ME!)

STEPHANIE

JONI

THE GREETING FARM BLOG

Get Hopping!

December Farm Fresh Challenge

Happy 1st of December! You know what that means right? Yes, that's 24 days till Christmas! I know I should be excited but this post is bittersweet. This is the last Farm Fresh Challenge that I'll have the pleasure of being on The Greeting Farm's design team and inspiring you guys to join in and play along :( Although I'm sad that my term is coming to an end, I know that TGF likes to give other farm friends a chance to shine and be part of a great team. Without TGF changing things up, I never would have had the opportunity so I'm thankful from the bottom of my crafty little heart :D

For December's Farm Fresh Challenge the Theme is Christmastime! So for my card today I decided a sweet treat would be a perfect way to start my countdown to Christmas so I paired my totally cute new Christmas papers with the adorable clear winter sets Sing Hello and Happy Winter, released this year from The Greeting Farm.

Sing Hello, Happy Winter

I stamped one of these cuties once on my paper and then again on a sticky note so that I could use it to mask of my original stamped image. I inked up another two of those adorable winter cuties and stamped them on either side with the mask in place so that the center image would appear to be standing in front. I colored each with my copic markers and fussy cut the group image out. I mounted them onto my card front using foam dots. The sentiment also came from the Happy Winter set. To finish the look I used my martha stewart alpine snowflake punch on a scrap of kraft cardstock and used a little diamond stickles and a pearl in the center.

With Christmas fast approaching, this challenge was so much fun I can't wait to share my next holly jolly project, its gonna be great so keep an eye on The Greeting Farm's page this month, all of us DT ladies have some great inspiration to get you in the holiday spirit! See you guys soon!

-Krys

The Greeting Farm November Release!!!

IT'S RELEASE DAY!!!!! If you couldn't tell by the title, ooor the fancy banner up yonder ;)

That's right, you know what day it is, the day where all those adorably awesome stamps that we teased you guys with previews of are finally available in The Greeting Farm Store. And because it’s Release Day we are having a BLOG HOP, where 1 lucky person will win this entire release!

Sorry my post wasn't up by midnight guys, My oldest gremlin had an award ceremony I attended Thursday afternoon. Needless to say, visiting an elementary school during flu season on a rainy windy cold day was just asking, no, begging to get sick. All the hand sanitizer in the world couldn't have saved me from the last few days of fever, sore throat, stuffy nose, and an assortment of other unpleasantries. I spent yesterday asleep on the couch, waking only long enough to feed the kiddos and returning to my nest of blankets on the couch :D By the time I remembered my hop post wasn't up, it was already 6 a.m.! Lucky for me, my card was already complete!

So for my blog hop card I wanted to use both the Lucky Dogs and Purfect Cats clear sets. These two sets work great together and with the right amount of masking, they stack wonderfully together for tons more fun and many more combinations! I stamped and masked and stacked all of my cuties in tuxedo black memento ink. Next I colored them all up using my trusty copic markers. Of course the top dog had to be the little Pomeranian looking stamp, they are the best breed in the world...of course I could be a little biased (especially since my favorite dog ever was my little pomeranian, Piggy :D). I went back in and added a collar with a little rhinestone much like the one my beloved little ankle biter used to wear. After fussy cutting them out, I mounted them to my card front using foam dots. I also stamped the little water bowl directly onto the card front and colored it with my copics as well as adding a little wink of stella for a hint of sparkle. Deciding the card was still missing something, I took one of the accent stamps from the clear sets, a little arrow, and stamped a repeating pattern on either side in the same tuxedo black I used for my other images. I finished the look off with a little bling by using a few doodle bug sequins and bakers twine bow. Don't forget, when you leave here be sure to leave a comment on each designer’s blog as you complete the hop. End at TGF Blog page to let us know you completed the hop for your change to win the entire release! So what are you waiting for? Get hopping!

TGF Design Team:

ALYCE

ANITA

HOLLY

KELLI

KRYSTAL

STEPHANIE

THE GREETING FARM BLOG

We’ll have more inspiration in the upcoming week using these awesome new stamps!  Don’t forget you have untilWednesday, November 18th, 12pm CST to leave your comments below.

New Release Preview: Day 3

Yep bloggers it's that time again, another awesome preview for The Greeting Farm! So far pretty great right? Well today's 3rd and final preview is no exception, today I give you my favorite of the entire release, Anya Nerds Out:

For a sassy girl as adorkable as Ms Anya, I knew right away that I wanted her on a bookmark. The papers I used are from a DCWV pad called the Homeroom Stack and I feel like these papers were just made for Anya! Doesn't she look sheekly geek in her argyle print skirt and leg warmers? And the sentiments that come along with this little lady are to die for, seriously super cute! I confess having a hard time trying to decide which of the sentiments I wanted to use, they're all fabulous! And I can't wait till next year to do a back to school challenge using this set!!! This set was heaven sent because I can never find a good stamp or stamp set to use for the back to school challenges so every year since I've been making cards I always find myself scrambling and improvising to make something work. I stamped Anya onto my cryogen white cardstock using memento tuxedo black ink. Of course I pulled out my trusty copics to color up this cutie, with a little dazzle of diamond stickles here and there for a little sparkly accent. I also stamped the sentiment in tuxedo black (though I played around with the idea of different colors too). Anya Nerds Out was the perfect missing addition to my collection and I know you guys can't wait to grab her from the store on the 15th. Not convinced you NEED this stamp set yet? Well stop on by The Greeting Farm and see what the rest of the ladies on the design team have come up with for your viewing pleasure!
lots-o-love,
-Krys

TGF November Release Preview: Day 2

Welcome back for day 2 of this month's new release previews with none other than The Greeting Farm! If you're a dog person like me then I know you positively adored yesterday's preview, weren't they just DOGgone cute? (I soooo couldn't help myself :D) Now, if you're a cat lover, don't fret 'cause we're not done yet, believe me when I tell you this next set is definitely the cat's pajamas! Tired of my silly puns and word play? Well wait no longer, here for another dose of adorable, the new clear set 'Purfect Cats'

Now I gotta admit, this card had me a bit stumped because I'm not a big cat person so I didn't have much to go on while I was coloring this lazy little furball, but that didn't stop me from trying! I love the way she looks so pleasingly plum lounging with a happy little smile that practically sighs that there's nowhere in the world she'd rather be than here on this card telling you how much she adores you (except for maybe in your lap!). This cute kitty is just one of three in the set and I'll admit, they've won even the heart of this dog lover! I stamped and colored little miss kitty with my copic markers (W3-W9) on a piece of curious metallics cryogen white cardstock. Normally you can't see the irridescent shimmer of this paper so well but I guess the grey copics just bring out the best in this paper! Seriously don't you just love how sparkly my little kitten came out! There's lots more creativity with kitties going on over at The Greeting Farm's blog so be sure to stop by and feast your eyes on what the rest of my teamies have come up with! Remember, this set as well as the rest of the sets in this month's release will be available in the store on November 15th!
lots-o-love,
-Krys

Farm Fresh First; Give Thanks

Hey there my lovelies!!! It's officially the 1st of November and you know what that means right? That's right, a brand spankin new challenge over at The Greeting Farm!!! This month's theme has a lot to do with the upcoming holiday, can you guess what it is? That's right, you guessed it! November's Farm Fresh Challenge is 'Give Thanks'. With all the things I've been blessed with this year I have plenty to be thankful for, including each and every one of you guys and gals who pop in and follow my blog! Even though I haven't been blogging like I used to, you guys are still here and I really appreciate it, so today I want to share a card that I made with all of you on my mind.

Secret Santa 8x10 set

For this card I used one of the new cutie pies from what may very well be my favorite TGF stamp kit so far, Secret Santa. If you missed your chance to pre order, no worries, this amazing little set is now available in the store and I assure you, you won't regret buying it but you WILL regret missing out so run and get yours before they're all gone! It's been a while since I pulled out my distress inks and with the leaves all changing here in upstate NY, I felt inspired to see what the watercolor smooshing technique would look like in a fall color palette.

(Park near my house)

 I started off with a piece of watercolor paper and a few different oranges, reds, browns, and yellows from my distress markers and began "smooshing" the different shades onto my paper. I played around with different shades and layers until I was satisfied. Once it completely dried, I used a leaf from an old SOG clear stamp set and tried to create two and three tone fall leaves by inking up with two or 3 different inks. To keep from ruining my nicer ink pads, I used a couple of old cheapie ones I bought for $1 at my local Walmart. Once I'd finished stamping my leaves I used my TH walnut stain distress ink and inked the edges of my watercolor paper to better match my fall theme. Because I can't seem to leave well enough alone, I took an old script stamp and inked it up with my TH antique linen and stamped here and there to add a bit more detail to the background. Toward the bottom I inked up the same script stamp with my walnut stain ink and stamped again. To finish this card I colored my image with copic markers and added a touch of wink of stella to all the orange parts of her outfit to give it a bit of shimmer. I mounted her to the front of my card with some foam dots and stamped a sentiment from both the SOG set I got the leaf from (So thankful) as well as the new Secret Santa TGF set (for you), also in walnut stain distress ink. So how about it blogland, what are you thankful for this year? Stop on by The Greeting Farm and check out the ah-mazing projects the DT gals have for you and don't forget to join in on the fun for your chance to win an awesome prize! Thanks for stopping by!

-Krys

The Greeting Farm September Blog Hop!!!

Happy Tuesday everyone! It’s finally here…..RELEASE DAY for our new September stamps!! We had previews of these awesome stamps last week, and NOW they are available in The Greeting Farm Store. Because it’s Release Day we are having a BLOG HOP, where 1 lucky person will win this entire release! Here's my little card using the Let it Snow clear set!

For today's hop I thought I would take one of the super cute penguins from the 'Let it Snow' clear set and color him up with my copic markers. To me it looked like the little guy was out for a walk and slipped and fell on his little tooshie so I ran with the idea and drew a little ice-flow/glacier around the stamped image and colored it to resemble a glacier. To further emphasize his precarious predicament, I stamped and colored the little hat from the set and placed it crooked on his head covering up one eye to look as though when he fell his hat went askew. I think I had a bit too much fun with this set, but can you blame me? It's super stinkin cuteness! I used the sentiment from the Happy Winter clear set and mixed and matched the snowflakes from each set as well. The papers I used came from my stash and though you can't tell from the picture, this card is loaded with stickles and wink of stella bling! This little card is gonna make some sparkle lovin' soul very happy :D. I also popped the ice-flow up on a bit of  sticky back craft foam to give it a slight bit of dimension. Now it's time to pop along over to the next stop and check out the rest of this awesome hop. In case you didn't start from the beginning here's all the stops in order:

ALYCE 

ANITA

 HOLLY

 KELLI

 KRYSTAL (ME!)

STEPHANIE

 THE GREETING FARM BLOG

Be sure to leave a comment on each designer’s blog and come back here to the TGF Blog to let us know you completed the hop. You have until Sunday, September 20th at 12pm CST to leave your comments below. We will announce our random winner on Monday, September 21st!

TGF Preview Day 3: Sing Hello

Last day of previews before the big blog hop! If you haven't been following along you can stop by The Greeting Farm's blog and start from the beginning of the previews to absorb maximum awesome adorableness! If you have been following along you know this is the last but not least set in the release (which will be in stores on the 15th!) Today's clear set is called Sing Hello and it may well be my favorite of all three!

I used a no line watercolor technique and my distress markers to give this little cutie pie a soft look. The papers I used are actually scraps of paper that I stamped the little stocking from the set in a repeating pattern and added shadows and light with my copic markers and a white gel pen. The candy cane striped paper was made by using a ruler, a versamark pen and white embossing powder, fun right?  The dies I used are spellbinders lacy circle and lala land crafts stitched circles. I used my TH spun sugar distress ink to ink around the edges of the die. The best part about these adorable little sets? I forgot to mention, they all come with their own dies, so no more fussy cutting! The sentiment I used is actually made up of two separate sentiments included in this stamp set, combined to make one adorable new sentiment that goes so well with this adorable kiddo. Remember, this is the last preview before the hop so keep an eye out on TGF's page for your chance to win the whole release during the blog hop!

lots-o-love
-Krys

TGF Preview day 2: Let it Snow

Can you feel it guys? The excitement in the air, the buzz that comes knowing winter is only a hop skip and a jump away? Can't stand the wait? Well I've got great news, another wintery preview and the best news is that you won't even need to wait till Christmas to get your hands on these awesome little clear sets. Excited yet? Well wait no longer, here's my preview for you guys of the new Let it Snow Clear set from The Greeting Farm!

Isn't this little polar bear just the cuddliest thing you've ever seen? I wanted to keep his coloring soft so I pulled out my distress markers and watercolored this little guy. After adding a bit of diamond glaze to the cocoa in his cup and his adorable little pink nose I decided something was missing still. I stamped a little hat from the same set onto a small piece of watercolor paper, watercolored it with my distress inks also, fussy cut it out and adhered it with a dot of diamond glaze. As usual, I couldn't resist adding a bit of sparkly cheer, so I added stickles to the white parts of the little hat and my wink of stella brush pen for a subtle shimmer on his scarf. These new releases are seriously making me excited for the winter season, even though I actually HATE the cold, crazy huh? See you guys tomorrow for one last preview before the blog hop!

lots-o-love,
-Krys

TGF Preview day 1: Happy Winter

Hi there bloggers! It's that time again, time for a new release preview and as usual stay tuned all week for your chance to win the entire set! First up is this super fun set that gets me in the mood for hot chocolate and toasty warm flannel pajamas, the Happy Winter clear set from The Greeting Farm! This set comes with so many different pieces to mix and match and play around with, you can seriously get many different looks from this one set. For my card today I decided to forgo the adorable kiddos in their marshmallow jackets (part of the set) and go for a CAS card with no coloring GASP! No coloring? Yes even I must try something new. Besides, these kinds of cards are great for mass production when you want to make a bunch of cards but don't have much time!

I chose the two trees from the set and stamped them on a piece of bazzill heavyweight cardstock in the color marshmallow. I added a bit of sparkly green chevron cardstock from my scrap pile to the top and bottom to add a bit more character. The tall tree in the middle was stamped in Lilly Pad dye ink by Ranger and the smaller trees were masked off and stamped repeatedly in Electric Lime dye ink (also by Ranger) I used a small star from the set to stamp a yellow star at the top of my tree and added a bit of yellow stickles to make it sparkle. I also added some christmas red stickles to the heart shaped bulbs on the tree because I truly cannot help myselfe :D

Ok I know I said I decided to forgo using the adorable kiddos in the marshmallow jackets from the set but I just couldn't resist! Here's a quick book mark I whipped up using the same set! Enjoy!

Remember to pop over to the rest of the DT's blogs and check out their cute creations!

Lots-o-love
-Krys

Splash Collection continued

Ok guys it was my little lady bug's first day of school and when I tell you I got no loves from my baby, who has never been away from mommy for longer than an hour or two even with daddy! She didn't give me a second glance when she hopped on her bus like a big girl. As much as I missed my little minions today I did enjoy the chance to craft without being disrupted for the first time in months, you guys are in for a treat for this month's release and that's all I'll say for now! Right now though, I want to get back to the splash collection and my mini notepads created with those adorable little merbeans. Today's mini notepad features little Sealia (Sea-Lia, get it? :D ) and boy is she a cutie

This fintastic friend was also colored up with my copic markers, like the other two so far, glittered up with diamond stickles and mounted on a stitched circle inked with pigment ink. I wanted her to look like she was inside a bubble and didn't want to overly decorate this notepad (It still needed to be practical for use) so I resisted the urge to cover the whole front in sparkly baubles and doodads. Instead I used one of the delicate words dies Smile (retired, sorry!) and a couple of doodlebug sequins. Like the others, I used a bit of matching baker's twine to secure the little notepad closed when not being used.
Three down and one to go right? See you guys tomorrow with one more notepad to complete the set!

lots-o-love
-Krys

Farm Fresh First: Back to School!

Happy First of the month crafters! Ok I know, its not the first and I'm super late but I swear I have a legit reason for being soooo late but I have an adorable card along with an awesome project for the new September challenge, Back to School, over at The Greeting Farm to make up for my tardiness so hopefully you forgive me! I'll even show you my card before I explain, will that help? :D I knew you loved me!

SSSC Poppy

Isn't she adorable? Her name is Poppy and she's one of the adorable girlies I got from my last SSSC subscription (you can find out more about the SSSC here!). She's not available yet but should be soon so be on the lookout! Normally I have a horrible time with back to school challenges but this year I was prepared, armed with DCWV's Homeroom Stack dp, I was ready and up for the task of creating a fun back to school themed card! I colored Poppy using my copic markers on curious metalics cryogen white cardstock and used a sentiment from an older TGF stamp set, Creepin Kit (now retired). I chose this sentiment because a lot of time we are harder on ourselves than need be and sometimes we just need to be reminded that we totally rock, especially when it comes to academics.
Now on to my excuse! While school has already started in many places, my girls don't start school until next Tuesday. We've been in NY for a year and my girls have not needed a check up or gotten sick enough to see a doctor so I hadn't found a PCP for them (bad mommy, shame on me!) Well my baby girl starts school for the first time EVER and she needed her immunizations before she could start...unfortunately it was easier said than done. Turns out the pediatricians here will only give immunizations to your child if he or she is already a registered patient. So  after much searching and deliberation, I found an office nearby with glowing reviews and I was able to get both girls early morning appointments, one on the 31st and one on the 1st (annoying right? why not the same stinkin day?!) And though my card was ready waaaaay in advance, I was a bit preoccupied with getting my girls in school so it slipped my mind to schedule a post :( . Since you guys have been awesome enough to sit through my long winded excuses, here's my ultra mega awesome (to me anyway) bonus back to school project:

Jeremiah (Twisted Kit)

Ta Da! What is this amazing complex lookin thing-a-ma-jig? Its an easel card BOX! I used a little handsome guy from  The Greeting Farm's Twisted kit by the name of Jeremiah and more of that fab DCWV homeroom dp. Like it? I have a pic tutorial coming later next week so be looking out for it, along with the last 2 mini notepads using the splash kit cuties! Till next time

-Krys

Makin' a Splash pt.2

Hi there blog land I told you guys I'd be back with another adorable Merbean from the Splash Collection. Today is another mini notepad from a set of four (since there are 4 little Merbeans in the collection) using little Oona Merbean:

Oona Merbean (Splash Collection)

I colored this fintastic gal with my copic markers and I guess I've been missing my friend and her kiddos, cause this little lady came out looking like one of her daughters :D I used a couple of concentric stitched circle dies in red and white, inking around the edges of the white circle with orange pigment ink (one of my fav techniques) to create a background. The papers I used are scraps from my stash so I have no idea what company they are made by, sorry! I stamped a quick sentiment from the SOG Under the Sea clear set onto a banner cut from one of the newer clear sets from TGF, Make a Wish. I love those clear sets! As usual to finish off the look without overshadowing the image, I kept it simple and added a few matching sequins and a piece of matching twine to keep the little notepad closed. I couldn't resist adding a crap ton of stickles to her jewel bright tail and seashell crown, I mean how could I not?! Don't these bright fun colors just scream fun in the sun? Speaking of, don't forget the Summer Time challenge is still in full swing for a few more weeks over at The Greeting Farm so if you haven't joined in there's still time!
Lots of Love

-Krys

Make a Splash Pt 1

Hey there blogland! Its been a while since I did a blog post but I've still been getting crafty in my spare time (which seems scarce since the deployment started). I've been super busy now that I'm the only parent and school is out. That means every little task falls on mommy for a change and I'm telling you, I never realized just how much help it was for him to occupy the girls when he got off work, or the handful of times he cooked dinner, took care of bath time or even did laundry but boy oh boy do I miss those brief moments of respite! Somewhere in the madness of registering the girls for school setting doctor and dentist appointments and back to school shopping (yup its that time of year) I managed to squeeze in time to play with those sensational sweeties from The Greeting Farm's newest collection available for pre order. Today I'm sharing another mini notepad, this time featuring little Mishell Merbean

Mishell Merbean (Splash Kit)

I love making these notepads almost as much as I love these little merbeans! The hardest part honestly is waiting for the rubber cement or whatever you use to bind the papers to dry. For an added something special, I stamp the corner of each page with a second generation stamped image with a matching stamp. This time I used a beautiful hibiscus flower stamped in orange but completely forgot to take a picture, sorry! I colored her up with my copic markers and fussy cut her out. I used two  concentric stitched rectangle dies from My Favorite Things and inked around the edges with a dusty pink pigment ink, fading lighter toward the center. The papers I used are from the Everyday Eclectic pad by echo park. I really love those fun bright and pretty papers! I used a sentiment from the SOG Under the Sea clear stamp set. To hold the notepad closed I always attach a bit of matching bakers twine and pop up the image on foam dots to wrap the twine around and secure the notepad closed. Since there's not much room left for lots of embellishments and I also had no desire to take away from the image itself, I finished of the card with my wink of stella glitter brush pen and a few pearls. After taking a few pictures I realized the shimmer from the wink of stella was too subtle. I wanted this girl to sparkle like diamonds so I went back over her tail fins and seashell crown with diamond stickles, and can you say FAB! I felt this cool beachy color palette is a perfect addition to the Sumertime challenge going on over at The Greeting Farm and I'd love to see your fun in the sun projects! This will be one of a set of 4 that I'm working on so keep an eye out for the rest! Till next time,

-Krys

New Farm Fresh Challenge: Summer!

Hi guys!!! Oh my wow it has been a super busy summer and it is certainly flying by to say the least! It seemed like just last week we were previewing and hopping along with The Greeting Farm for their newest release and now, here we are at the beginning of August, heading into back to school season! (p.s. if you missed the fun on the farm, you can check it out here or purchase the newest release here!) There is definitely one big plus to this month flying by and that's the fact that I have one month down before the end of this deployment! I've been running around so much lately and trying to keep my kiddos entertained while maintaining my sanity in the process that my poor blog has been sorely neglected, which I'm sure you've noticed. This weekend I plan to do nothing but channel surf from my big comfy couch, just hang around the house and basically just chill because after all, that's one of the main things summer means to me. Speaking of chillaxin' in the summer, this month's Farm Fresh First challenge is all about Summer! This could mean anything from popsicles and pools to backyard barbecues with buddies, whatever you guys are feeling, show us your summer spirit! For my card, I decided to use a digi dude that's just as chill as my mood, Summer Ian

I colored him up using my copic markers and a white gel pen to decorate his swim trunks. I adore the sentiments in the Ice Cream Dream clear set from Simon Says Stamp and couldn't wait for an excuse to use this one! The papers I used are from Bo Bunny called Key Lime, layered on top of some Bazzill Card Shoppe heavyweight cardstock. I also used the puffy clouds die from memory box and a  few doodlebug sequins to finish it off. This challenge will run all month long and we would love to see your summer fun projects so don't forget to join us! Stop by The Farm and check out some more inspiration from the DT gals!

Lots-O-Love,
-Krys

The Greeting Farm July Release Blog Hop!

Happy Wednesday everyone! It's finally here.....RELEASE DAY for our new July stamps!! We had previews of these awesome stamps on Thursday, Friday and Monday, and they are NOW available in The Greeting Farm Store. Because it’s Release Day we are having a BLOG HOP! This time around we will have 1 winner of all 3 stamps! Since Papa Bear from the new Always a Party set didn't make it onto my preview day card. I thought I'd show him some love this go 'round and use him for my blog hop card. He's just so adorable, I couldn't resist making a shaker card to show him off

Always a Party

I colored Papa with my copics, used the coordinating dies to cut him and his little party hat out, and even used a few of the party hats inside the shaker part!

Be sure to leave a comment on each designer’s blog and come back here to the TGF Blog to let us know you completed the hop. You have until Sunday, July 19th at 12pm CST to leave your comments below. We will announce our random winner on Monday, July 20th!

TGF Design Team:

ALYCE

ANITA

HOLLY

KELLI

KRYSTAL (ME!)

STEPHANIE

THE GREETING FARM BLOG

Have an awesome Wednesday! We'll have more inspiration the rest of the week using these awesome new stamps! Don’t forget you have until Sunday, July 19th, 12pm CST to leave your comments below.

Lots-O-Love,
Krys

TGF New Release Preview #3: Make a Wish

Howdy farmer friends, hope you had a great weekend! If you're anything like me you loathe Monday, the start of most work and or school weeks and the end of rest and relaxation with family and friends. Well fret not, I've got just the thing to get you out of the mundane Monday rut! What better way to combat boredom and blah than a sugar rush? This next set from The Greeting Farm, Make a Wish, is so sugary sweet it may land you a trip  to the dentist. Ready for today's preview huh? Well eat up!

Make a Wish clear set

Since cupcakes are all the rage, I figured I would pair this fabulously scrumptious set with a few techniques that are trending everywhere. You guys know I can't resist trying out a new technique and watercolor smooshing is one of the latest and greatest, along with no line watercoloring. I personally feel that these two techniques compliment each other well and can make just about anything look like a work of art and if you haven't tried it yet, you simply must! I wasn't sure how this technique would come out because I've never seen it done with distress markers, only ink pads, I'm glad I gave it a shot because I love the results! This scrumptious set will be available on the 15th with the rest of the release so be sure to grab it 'cause its gonna go FAST! Don't forget to head on over to The Greeting Farm to see what sweet treats the rest of the DT has cooked up!

Lots-O-Love,

Krys

TGF New Release Preview Day 2: Starfish Anya

TGIF crafty pals! Today makes day two of previews from The Greeting Farm, and this little lady will have you seeing stars. I know you guys can't wait to see what the next adorable stamp in this month's release so lets get star-ted! (see what I did there :D)

Starfish Anya

Isn't she sweet, with her little starfish? I couldn't wait to pair her with some sunshine-y beach-y papers! I also used this stamp to practice my hair coloring, love the way it came out! I colored her up with my copic markers, used my white gel pen for polkadots and fussy cut her out. Paired with some matching sequins, this card came together so quick and could be used for anything really. I'm adding this one to my collection of cards to be sent to my hubby while he's gone, this bright sunny gal is sure to cheer him up when he's feeling down! Don't forget to stop by The Greeting Farm if you haven't already and check out the projects from the other DT gals. Starfish Anya will be available, along with the rest of the release on the 15th. Be sure to stay tuned, we have one more release preview for you guys that's sure to be a sweet treat, as well as a fun blog hop with a chance to win these awesome releases! See you guys Monday!
-Krys

The Greeting Farm Preview Day 1: Always a Party

Happy Thursday all, today is a good day for a party! What are we celebrating? A new release coming soon to The Greeting Farm's store, how awesome is that? I hope you guys are as excited to see this preview as I am to show you guys! Without further ado, check out the Always a Party clear set!

(Front and side view)

Always a Party

Stinkin adorable right? This set has so much potential and like most of TGF's stamps, very versatile. And not only are they super adorable, they come with their own coordinating dies so there's no need to fussy cut! I adored the small bears (For some reason, they remind me of the honey Teddy Graham cookies) and couldn't wait to color them up with my copics. There's also a little boy and papa bear included in the set, but since my husband and I have to girls and this card is being sent to him while he's deployed I decided to use the little girl bear twice. I saw this awesome card fold on Youtube one day and decided to give it a try myself, the fold is called a triple easel card and I promise its not as complicated as it looks. The fold itself is fairly straight forward, the time consuming part is actually all the layers and cuts. A lot are actually totally optional, but you guys know me I like to make things difficult for myself as often as possible :D  

When all is said and done, it folds flat and fits inside an A4 enevelope, cool huh? I had to give this card a patriotic touch for my hubby, but also to remind you guys that this month's challenge is still going on at The Greeting Farm. There's still plenty of time to enter, so while you're over checking out the awesome projects the design team has cooked up, link up your project and join in on the fun! Remember, this clear set along with its coordinating dies will be available in the store on the 15th.

See you guys tomorrow for another awesome preview,

Lots-o-love

-Krys

Farm Fresh First: Red White & Blue

Happy first of July my blogging peeps! So I know I've been missing for quite a while, but I have a good reason, swearsies! (I've always wanted to say that :D ) Seriously though, we got news that my hubby was in fact deploying, so our leave took place about a month earlier than it would have. I had a lovely two week vacation in Texas visiting family and it truly went by too quickly! Have you guys gone on summer vacay yet? With Independence day fast approaching (3 days away) We over at The Greeting Farm decided to dedicate this month's challenge to celebrating our country's Independence. For the entire month of July, we wanna see your patriotic side, show us that RED WHITE and BLUE! In honor of our brave soldiers (especially mine :D ) I altered a TGF cutie for the occasion Double Cupcake Anya

Double Cupcake Anya

I'd actually altered and colored up this adorable little lady months ago, anticipating a red white and blue challenge. I loved the way she came out and could not wait to add her to a card. Last year I purchased the Bo Bunny "Anthem" 6x6 DP pad and of course, was not able to use it after the 4th, as is the case usually with themed paper pads. I knew I would hardly have a reason to use it but it was so adorable and perfect I couldn't resist. The image was colored up with my copics and a bit of stickles glitter glue. I didn't want to take away from the pretty white washed wooden background so I simply added a few matching sequins. The sentiment comes from the 4x6 Dollie with Kitty set (also from The Greeting Farm). I thought it was perfect considering my soldier is so far from home, I plan to send it to him and let him know that just because he's not physically here doesn't mean he's not on our minds and in our hearts. Be sure to stop by The Greeting Farm's Blog and see what the other DT gals have to show you guys, it'll have you seeing stars! Until next time,

Lots-o-Love,

-Krys

Shaking Things Up

Happy hump day bloggers, have I got a treat for you! I've been having a bit of a creative block lately and I finally figured out why, I've been wanting to make a shaker card for forever and didn't have the supplies I needed so I'd been forcing myself to make other stuff. As you crafty folks probably know, creativity can't be forced so I've been bummed out and hating just about everything I make. I finally got a chance to make a shaker though, and a baby themed card using the baby fox from the new Cuddly Thanks clear set from The Greeting Farm seemed perfect, especially delicately waterecolored.

Cuddly Thanks

For my first shaker in years, it turned out pretty well, I may have gone overboard with the sequins so next time I'll just stick to two colors at most. I may even watercolor the baby fox in a cute color like  a soft pink or blue next time to match even more. Because the paper had all those different colors, I figured at least most of those colors should go into the shaker window...I was wrong lol! I plan to keep practicing my shaker cards cause this one gave me a really hard time putting it together as well as trying to get a good picture (the lighting in my craft room kinda sucks!) If I stand it up, all the shakies fall to the bottom, if I lay it down the colors aren't as true and you can't see the sparkle of the glitter as well either. Once again I heat embossed the image onto watercolor paper in white embossing powder and watercolored using my TH distress markers. I love this technique because I'm not the best at watercolor but the raised edges of the embossed image helps the water and ink stay in its own section without much work on my part. I highly recommend this technique for those just starting out with this medium. Well that's all for now my crafty friends, see you next time! Don't forget, there's still a little more time to join in on this week's Embossing challenge over at The Greeting Farm!

lots-o-love,
-Krys

Pretty as a Princess

Happy Monday, hope you guys had an awesome weekend! If you're anything like me, it ended all too soon. I wish hubby could take a day or two off mid week but then I would never get any crafting done. Alas, he's off on another week long training and I'm here with our youngest daughter *sigh* what's a poor gal to do? I'll tell you what, WATERCOLOR! And that is precisely what I've been up to. I was so in love with the way my princess journal turned out, that I decided to make a card in the same fashion but with different colors, tell me what you guys think

The Greeting Farm 

SSSC no3 Slumber

See what did I tell ya, gorgeous in any color scheme! Once again I started by heat embossed little Slumber onto some Canson 140# cold pressed watercolor paper using white embossing powder. Of course I used my TH distress markers to watercolor the image, finishing it off with a little clear wink of stella. The dies I used are corner hearts and stitched circles from la la land crafts (used for the banner as well), and Spellbinders lacy circles. I finally caved in and bought some sequins, I really do love them, they are a fab addition to any type of card for just the right amount of sparkle without being over the top, or filling for a super fun shaker. I admit I was hesitant for a while about buying sequins because they seem to be the latest trend in paper crafting and who knows how long those will last right? How often do you still see enamel dots? EXACTLY! I refused adamantly to hop on board the sequin express because when I finally hopped on board with enamel dots, they were history :'( The good news is I never wasted money buying them because I found a tutorial online for DIY ones but that's another story! I decided if I was gonna give sequins a shot I'd be smart about it, enter Doodlebug Designs Rainbow assortment pack! This little set is awesome, it comes with a great variety of 12 different color families, each individually bottled, can you say genius?! The bottles included are smaller than the tubes of sequins sold individually by the same company I believe. Since I just got the package I plan to order the larger tubes as I run low on the smaller one of that color, IF I use them that often. My local stores don't sell these so I found mine on Amazon. I did go out and buy some acetate so be looking out for a shaker card or two soon also! WARNING acetate is a bit on the pricey side, roughly about $1 per 8x10 sheet, I did NOT know that! So any time you can salvage the clear plastic from packaging and set it to the side trust me, DO IT! That way you'll always have a cost efficient option should you ever choose to make your own shaker! Well that's all today, hope I've inspired you to pull out your watercolors and embossing powder and get crafty! Don't forget, there's a new FFF challenge over at The Greeting Farm along with some inspiration from the DT if you haven't already checked that out head over!

lots-o-love,
Krys

Farm Fresh Friday: Embossing

Happy Farm Fresh Friday peoples! We've had quite a week over at The Greeting Farm and we've had a few winners so if you haven't already done so, stop by and make sure you weren't one of the lucky winners, you don't wanna miss your prize right? Now lets get down to business, this week's FFF challenge where the name of the game is Embossing (wet or dry). To be honest, I'm not entirely sure what 'wet' embossing is :D so I stuck with what I know and heat embossed the heck outta some watercolor paper and a few dies, check it out

SSSC no.3 Slumber

This is seriously one of those projects I wish I had bothered to take a before picture for. What started off as an atrocious lime green monstrosity is now a journal fit for a princess...or me! Now, I certainly don't have anything against the color lime green, it's just not for everyone, me myself, I'm more of a pink gal. The first thing I had to do was change the color of the outside, and since this was a hard cover fabric type material, that wasn't hard. A few coats of pink acrylic paint did the trick. Once that dried I picked a sheet of pink zebra striped patterned paper (secured with a thin layer of diamond glaze) and wrapped a portion of the cover, tucking the edges on the inside and gluing them down with more diamond glaze. I then added lots of different girly-licious dies cut out of shimmery and sparkly pink and pearl papers. I also heat embossed a sentiment from my stash onto my banner (created using la la land stitched circles) that I thought matched my pretty princess perfectly. As this journal came together I knew exactly which TGF princess would take center stage, so while the glue was drying on my cute little sequins, I put my journal to the side and heat embossed SSSC no.3, Slumber, onto my watercolor paper, pulled out my TH distress markers and painted her to match. I also went in and added a bit of shimmer to her crown of flowers and parts of her outfit. I love using my TGF stamps for projects other than cards, they can be used for many different projects! I've had a bit of a creative block lately so I decided to give the cards a break and try something I haven't done in a while. It helped a lot and I can't wait to show you guys what else I've been up to! Enough of my rambling for now, don't forget to stop by The Greeting Farm and see what the gals have for inspiration!
lots-o-love
-Krys