Stempel Spass

I am an old copy cat.....I saw a lot of people going through their card creations of 2012 and though that is such a neat idea! My blog only exists since October, but I certainly have cards from every month. And here are my favorites from 2012: January: February: March: April: May:    June: July:   August:   September:   October: November:   December:   As you can see, I could not decide on single cards for each month, so I choose two. Oh well... Lots of pictures, I know. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoyed them. But regardless - I wish you a HAPPY NEW YEAR and lots of crafting fun for 2013!!!!

This card I made for the Ellen Hudson clear stamp give-away . The stamps are Hero Arts (Just saying Hi). Quick and easy :)  I don't really have time to blog - I am on vacation right now and the internet connection is kind of slow....

My nephews are both teenagers and its is quite difficult to get them something they like. So I have reverted to giving money instead. This year I made them this money holder: So, first you need to slide over the red band  - and you see Merry Christmas  (from Papertrey - Mixed Messages) under a red, clear embossed bow from Prickly Pear) Then you pull out the ribbon labeled "2" - playing a little word game here with Ulysses S. Grant, who adorns the $50 bill. Once you pull ribbon labeled "3", you actually get the money. Here is a close-up. The scalloped oval is from Spellbinders, the grey oval a punch and the felt tree I picked up some years ago in Germany. The envelope is made out of patterned paper. I linked this up with the Anything goes challenge from Simon Says stamps .

That Ellen Hudson give away  is too tempting, not to play in. This card I made with the Plano stamp from Hero Arts/Studio Calico. I do fall for geometric shapes and this stamp was in dire need of being inked up - haha, just another excuse to play....I colored it with Copics, the sentiment is Papertrey (Happy Trails).

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU! I wish all of my followers a very Merry Christmas. I am so honored, that you felt brave enough to become members on a brand new blog! Thank you so much. I appreciate your kind comments - they brighten my day. I hope you continue to like my blog. This card I made for good friends of ours, which somehow escaped my Holiday card list. Thank goodness for New Years - if you are late for Christmas, you can always send a New Years card............Of course I also linked it up with Ellen Hudson's give-away  All stamps are Hero Arts, heat embossed in white. (Dazzling Snowflake, Holiday Wishes). I mixed in a smidgen of Perfect Pearls, which give it a nice glimmer, put it does not come out on the Photo. I put a small gem in the center and some Stickles near the ends of the snowflake.

Finally done with my Christmas cards - time to move on to New Year cards. This one I made for the KIS challenge "Pelzig" , which means furry. The mouse is from stampabilities (Oh Happy Days), the "firework" is a chrysanthemum form Sparkles and Sprinkles and the sentiment is Hero Arts (Holiday Wishes). I colored the mouse with Copics and put Stickles on the firework.   I also linked this up with the Paperminutes Happy New Year challenge.

I really like this inspiration photo form this month Runway inspired challenge . Isn't that dress gorgeous?! I tried to recreate it on my card, which I made for my sister. It's the first time I tried my alcohol inks, which have been festering in a drawer now for about 9 months....I like the result - I guess I will start using them more. The star/snowflake is from Penny black, the sentiment is Hero Arts. I also liked it up with CASology  #24 "Star" challenge.

I am getting close to be finished with my holiday cards, just a few more to go....The first card is made with stamps from Michaels, the tree is Memory Box and the sentiment is Hero Arts (Merriest Wishes). I colored  the stamps with Prismacolor pencils. The patterned paper is Martha Stewart.  The second card is made with a Hampton art stamp from Michaels, the little snowflakes are Rubber soul and the die cut border is from Memory Box.

 Toady was my son's son's last piano lesson before the New Year, so I needed a card for his teacher. Its just a variation on the  card I made 3 days ago , so it was quick to make. He also got a bag of cookies, which he liked very much.  I linked this up with the Simon Says challenge - Anything Christmassy! And here is an update on the bread - shortly before I put it in the oven and after it came out. The cookies on the left are the Pfeffernuesse from yesterday;'s dough, the cookies on the right are chocolate cookies sprinkled with crushed candy canes.

I started in the late afternoon starting my bread dough- to be baked tomorrow. My next project were cranberry pistachio biscotti - my favorite biscotti recipe. I was a little short on the pistachios so I decided to throw in a few dried cherries - I think they are even better than usual. While the biscotti were baking I started to make the next dough. Those stars are coffee almond cookies. A cool recipe I got a few years ago from a German friend of mine. They are just almonds, powdered sugar and coffee. they are air dried instead of baked. They would last forever, if they would not be devoured by my family.... And here is my project for tomorrow - Pfeffernuesse, that means peppernuts. the dough needs to rest over night - its in the fridge right now. No time for cards today, perhaps tomorrow....