"Watermelon Bee" SNSSC1209

Happy New Year! Hope everyone is having a great 2009 so far. I began the year with a few stamping/paper-crafting goals and so far I'm failing miserably. One was to buy less and use more. How can one accomplish this with Michael's having a 50% off paper sale? If only they would put out the Martha Stewart and K&Co. Valentine's items. I also had to take advantage of the amazing sale H&M stamps had on the 6th & 7th. They had all of their stamp sets marked $5.00 (or maybe 6) or less. Fantastic deal, right? Who could pass that up? I picked up the adorable My Favorite Valentine set. I can't wait to get it. I really don't have any V-Day style stamps. There have been so many incredibly new releases this past week or so. It's so hard to resist. Another goal was to blog more - at least 3 times a week. Not doing so well with that one either so far.

Anyway, I do have a card to share. I followed Sweet N Sassy Stamps weekly sketch (SNSSC1209) for this one and I'm pretty happy with the finished product. I love this stamp. It's from Stampendous' "Bee Happy Collection" and is called Watermelon Bee. I colored the image using my Prismacolor pencils, odorless mineral spirits, and blending stumps then I cut and layered it with Nestabilities. The printed paper is from DCWV's Summer Stack. I thought it was perfect for this image. I'm not sure what brand the green and deep red cardstock is. I used two of my Christmas presents on this one as well - the Cuttlebug & Scor-Pal. I love them both! I don't know how I paper-crafted without them before. For accessories, I added some Primas and skittles. For the salt, wings, and antennas I added some sparkle with Stickles.

Before I go, I want to mention some blog candy! Michelle over at Stamps, Paper, Scissors, and Donkey Smiles is giving away a great assortment of goodies perfect for any Valentine's Day crafting. So head on over and check out her awesome blog for your chance to win. You have until January 15th. Also, Lim at The Voices in my Head... Lim's blog is sharing some fantastic candy as well. Wow, how kind is she?! I just adore those cute Hanglars. I wish they were available for purchase here in the U.S. So hop on over to her blog to find out how to win, you have until the 24th.

Well, that is it for me today. I hope to spend a lot of time working on some cards tomorrow. There are a few other challenges I want to try before the week is out. Take care everyone!