International Bazaar too

I promised I would show you the other card I made using the International Bazaar DSP, and here it is:

I was sifting through a bunch of papers and notes I had and found a sketch I drew of a design I made a while back. I looked at the sketch, and all of a sudden, this card was born.  It looks really pretty in person.  I don't know if you can see, but I used the postage stamp punch for the squares and topped them with squares of the international bazaar dsp.  I added some texture to the whisper white over the midnight muse card stock, punched out the mixed medley flower both stamped and on midnight muse, and whola!  Hope you like it.  I do!  Thanks for stopping by!

Coloring Down the Lines - Always Artichoke

Welcome back to our weekly blog hop.  Hopefully you just came from Carol's blog.  As usual, Carol always knocks your socks off with something nice, doesn't she?  It's hard to keep up sometimes, LOL.

This week's challenge was to come up with a creation using Always Artichoke, So Saffron, and Cajun Craze, or Always Artichoke, Bashful Blue, and Crumb Cake.  I actually created a card using both color combinations, but for this entry, I chose to show you a card I created that I CASed from Teresa Saathoff.  I selected  the Fall Foliage stamp set using the first color combo.  I changed up a few things and added a little texture, and here's what I came up with:

So what do you think?  Pretty, isn't it?  I'm happy with the way it turned out.  Although I really liked Teresa's card, I didn't have ribbon that matched to add to the card, so mine is a little different.  Never-the-less, it's still nice and I love the Fall Foliage stamp set.  This was the perfect opportunity to use it.  Now, drum roll, please ... it's time to head on over to see what Pam created for us this week.  I can't wait to see.  Let's go .....

International Bazaar

I decided to break out the International Bazaar DSP and see what would inspire me.  I was on a roll and ended up creating this:

I really like this paper.  It's got a lot of colors in it and there's endless possibilities.  This was one of the two I created.  I'll share the other one after my blog hop.  Stay tuned, and thanks for stopping by.

Rachel's Birthday Card - 19 Years Old

My niece Rachel turns 19 on September 4th.  My sister had a birthday party / cookout for her today, and it was nice getting together to celebrate.  Rachel is the youngest of my parent's grandchildren, so watching her grow up right in front of our eyes and turn 19 is unbelievable.

Of course I made her birthday card.  I pondered what to make for a 19 year old, and then I decided that pennants was the way to go.  Here's what I made for her:

I thought it turned out rather cute.  I let the pennants dangle from the string and it gave the card a little bit of flare.  Hope you liked the card as much as I do.  Until tomorrow ... 

Pictures from Europe

I received 4 pictures from Drew this morning and thought I would share them.  They are so beautiful, and it's so nice to see Tj and Drew so happy.  Check them out ...

It's so nice to see actual photographs with your son in them ~ you can actually see how much fun they're actually having and that things are ok. I'm not quite sure where this last picture was taken, but when I find out, I'll share.

I can't believe Tj and Drew will be entering their 5th week abroad.  WOW, time went by so fast.  This Wednesday, they will have 3 weeks left and then they'll be home.  I just can't imagine having all that time to be as "free" as a bird and enjoy traveling and seeing the beautiful country God gave us.  I'm so happy they had the opportunity to make this trip ~ a trip of a lifetime.

Hope you enjoyed the pictures.  I'll post more when I get them.

Dahlias, Dahlias, Dahlias

I saw this really cute card created by Judy Conroy and had to create one myself.  Mine is a bit different, as I used another stamp set for the leaves and added the new gumball green satin ribbon.  I like it a lot, however, looking at hers, then comparing it to mine, my dahlias are up a little high on the card.  Never-the-less, I'm pleased with it and thought I would share it anyway.  Here it is:

You know how much I love "dahlias" ... hummm, do you think that's why I named my blog Blue Dahlia Designs?  I just love the little dahlias from Stampin Up, and you'll be seeing more of them in the days to come.

I hope you like my creation.  Thank you Judy Conroy for your lovely inspiration.  Until tomorrow, happy viewing. 

Update from Tj

I finally heard from Tj today via email.  I was getting a bit worried since I hadn't heard from him in 8 days.  The last I heard he was camping in the Swiss Alps and they were expecting snow.  Well, here's what I know now... they are in Croatia.  He said they heard the beaches were awesome, and he said they were right.  There are storms predicted for the next three days, so they are heading to Budapest.  After Switzerland, they decided to to to Nice, France, which is located on the Southeast Coast of France.  They also quickly breezed through Northern Italy but decided that they would like to explore Eastern and Northern Europe instead.  All is going well with him and Drew and their travels, and still having a wonderful time.  They met "loads" of people and have a lot of stories and pictures to share when they return home.  Some of the places they are visiting do not have good "wifi" connection, so wherever he gets good reception, he writes me then.  In Croatia, the wifi is good, so that's why I got an email today.  YEAH!  Tj promised to send me more updates and hopefully some pictures tomorrow before they leave for Budapest.

One of the gals I correspond with on the Sunny Morning Chat is leaving for Europe tomorrow for 2 weeks, and she is headed to Budapest too.  Her and her husband are taking a River Cruise.  What fun.  Wouldn't that be even more fun if she met Tj while in Budapest?  I've never met Sandy yet, but will get to meet her when we have our "stampin weekend" in October.  I can't wait.

Well, that's it for Tj right now.  I'm still planning on posting another creation .. that will be next.

Happy Labor Day Weekend everyone.  Thanks for stopping by.