Christmas Paper Piecing Blog Hop Dec. 2nd & 3rd - Day 2

*Scroll up a post for the Christmas Cards hop by Nicolette*

Good morning Friends and welcome to the Christmas Paper Piecing Blog Hop brought to you by Nikki of Paper Piecings by Nikki.  If you happened upon my blog, please stop by and check out Nikki's blog and especially her store!  She has an AMAZING deal going on until December 31st... You purchase $25 worth of product and you get 50% off!!!  How can you beat that deal?  And, she has been designing like crazy lately!  In just the past couple of months she has added so mini digi stamps and SVGs to her store, I'm just amazed! :0)  Did I mention, she's picking her new DT from this hop??? I'm super excited!  Wish me luck!!! :0)  Oooh, ooh, ooh!  I forgot to mention Nikki's blog candy yesterday!!! My bad!  So, if you comment and follow every blog (there aren't many) in this hop plus "Like" Nikki's FB page (make a note if you do not have FB so you will still be eligible), you will be entered to win her special blog candy.  I'm gonna enter, you can count on that! :0)

If you arrived here today from Liz at Tryin 2 Craft then you are in the right spot!  Isn't her blog design the most hilarious ever?  I Love it!

Ok, so I know this blog hop says "Christmas"; however, at the time when I was picking what I wanted to use for this hop, Nikki didn't have her awesome Christmas creations up quite yet (I signed up really early.) ;)  So, of course, I picked my favorite holiday... Can you guess???  It's HALLOWEEN!!! LOL  Oh, you guys know me so well!

This adorable file is called Mischief Brewin' Halloween Pattern Set.  Thanks to all who stopped by yesterday. I really hope your patience paid off! :0)  This is my very first attempt at actual paper piecing!!!  I had so much fun with it.  I am very happy with how soothing this technique is to the mind... It's great to keep you focused on something other than normal worries, ya know?

I apologize that this is very picture heavy... Reason being, the pics with the flash show the paper piecings better and the ones without the flash show the true richness of the colors!  Someday I'll figure out how to take better pics! ;)

 I used an emery board on the printed rectangles and love how nicely it distressed them!

 For the lettering I used the regular font & cut that from the printed paper, then I did a separate layer with the shadow of the font (didn't change size or anything) in black and it made a nice little background to make the patterns pop!

Used lots of pop dots because I believe a great design must have dimension!  Ok, well, unless you're stamping... That's a different story! ;)

This layout will be for sale in about an hour at my new store!!!  Please check it out at AmyJRockstar's Store.  I will be posting my creations there from now on, if they are not already spoken for.  Please send your friends as well!  

DETAILS:  SKIP IF YOU WANT TO CONTINUE WITH THE HOP
For this project I used some of the awesome Studio G Goodies that I won a while back from Heather at Heather's Crafty Blog Space.  The "Beware" sticker on the front of the cauldron is from there, the cute polka dotted background is also from the kit I won from her.  Stop by her blog and show her some love for me! :0)

Most of my cardstock was stuff I had on hand, Recollections, etc... I used these amazing metallic fine tip pens from Creative Memories for the details on the cauldron.  Everyone should own that four-pack.  They are the smoothest pens I've ever used!  They never clog up or skip!  To make the goo "pop" I used Glossy Accents and I inked around pretty much everything with my favorite Cat's Eye dark brown ink by Color Box.  The "Happy Halloween" was created by using my SCAL 2.0 that I was so lucky to win from Ashley - Dirty Truth Reviews a while back.  So glad I was "grandfathered in" before the whole mess with Cricut and SCAL!  If you don't know what that's about, check out Ashley's blog...  Anyways,  I used K&Co.'s Halloween Specialty paper pack for the "Happy Halloween" and pumpkins.  Love that pack!!!  I used ribbon from my stash, a border from Pinecone Press, and the purple houndstooth background was also from my stash.

Thank you all so much for stopping by today.  I truly live for followers and comments. Leave me a comment and become a follower for a little blog candy, but please be patient with me (I take a while to send things out, but always do send them!).  Please do leave your email address or another way for me to get a hold of you!  Now you need to head over to Mandy to see what cuteness she has created for us!

XO ~ Amy Jo

Christmas Paper Piecing Blog Hop Dec. 2nd & 3rd - Day 1

Good morning Friends and welcome to the Christmas Paper Piecing Blog Hop brought to you by Nikki of Paper Piecings by Nikki.  If you happened upon my blog, please stop by and check out Nikki's blog and especially her store!  She has an AMAZING deal going on until December 31st... You purchase $25 worth of product and you get 50% off!!!  How can you beat that deal?  And, she has been designing like crazy lately!  In just the past couple of months she has added so mini digi stamps and SVGs to her store, I'm just amazed! :0)

If you arrived here today from Liz at Tryin 2 Craft then you are in the right spot!

Ok, so I know this blog hop says "Christmas"; however, at the time when I was picking what I wanted to use for this hop, Nikki didn't have her awesome Christmas creations up quite yet (I signed up really early.) ;)  So, of course, I picked my favorite holiday... Can you guess???  It's HALLOWEEN!!! LOL  Oh, you guys know me so well!

This adorable file is called Mischief Brewin' Halloween Pattern Set.  Now, here's the tricky part... I am posting my project TOMORROW, not today.  Soooo, that means, you will have to come back and see my creation then!  In the meantime please head over to Mandy to see what cuteness she has created for us!

Thanks for stopping by and hope to see you all tomorrow!

XO ~ Amy Jo

13 Days of Halloween Blog Hop - Day 10

*Please scroll down for Days 1 -9 of the hop*

Welcome to the 13 Days of Halloween Blog Hop.  This is DAY 10 of the hop. This hop is scheduled from Oct. 19 at 8:00 am through Oct.31 at 11:00 pm (central time).  It's that time of year when the nights are all spooky and creatures are known to wander the forests.  So sit for a spell with a nice cup of hot apple cider and check out all the great projects.

If you just happened upon my blog, you will want to start with Lisa Peters @  http://handmadewithlove-lisa.blogspot.com/.  She is the awesome lady who pulled this hop together (thank you Lisa!) and is your first stop.  If you came here from the awesome Tami, then you are in the right spot!

We're so excited to be doing this hop and we have a fabulous lineup with some very talented ladies. There will be lots of fun projects, along with some great blog candy, and a great grand prize for this hop.

The hop is a 13 day hop with only 13 blogs to visit so you will have plenty of time to make it through the whole hop lineup 13 times.  Check out each blog and see what blog candy you can win at the individual stops.  Please come back all 13 days to see great projects.  

Here is the complete lineup:

Lisa - http://handmadewithlove-lisa.blogspot.com/

Pam - http://pammejo-scrapbookflair.blogspot.com/

Janet - http://createatdreamscrapbooks.blogspot.com/

Doris - http://mybugandmecreate.blogspot.com

Kristen - http://huneebcreations.blogspot.com/

Nicolette - www.beyondscrapin.blogspot.com

Jearise - http://lorbysworld.blogspot.com/

Tami - http://www.tamboscreations.blogspot.com/

Amy - http://lv2scrapandfibrofacts.blogspot.com/

Brynn - http://www.flairandfrillscreativity.blogspot.com

Scraps to Treasures - http://scraps2treasure.blogspot.com

CallyAnn - http://callyanncraftycreations.blogspot.com

Gill - http://creationsbygillm.blogspot.com

I'm going with a non-traditional theme here (again) and was totally inspired by this page from the official Cricut Blog.  Be sure to check it out!  They provided some awesome inspiration.  Here is card two from the set of 3 or 4 that I'm doing... I am hoping to feel better later today to create my last few projects for the hop and for Halloween. Hope this has been a fun hop for you all!  It has definitely been for me. :0)  I am soooo sad that Halloween is almost over. :(

I used the Oct. 31st Cricut Cartridge for that wickedly cool witch.  2 stamp sets from A Jillian Vance Design were used (one for the cat, which is pop-dotted, and one for the awesome sentiment), seasonal paper pack for the witch and background, yellow cardstock inked with chalk ink for the moon and actual card, the white vine on the bottom (look closely) is actually ribbon from Really Reasonable Ribbon, inked the edges of the card with black ink as well.  Other adhesives used were Tombow liquid glue and my ATG.

I hope you enjoyed my post today.  Please come back tomorrow to be eligible for the grand prize (see below) and to see my next project.  Only 3 more days of awesome Halloween projects to go!

To be eligible for the grand prize, you must visit each blog and leave a comment. You also MUST visit Lisa's blog and leave a comment on her blog for the day and also become a follower at "Scrapping With Lisa" and her facebook page:http://www.facebook.com/pages/Scrapping-with-Lisa/130882060268842. Please let her know if you don't do facebook and she won't count that against you for the blog candy.  Now for the blog candy, I bet you are wondering what it could be.   It will be a big treat bag full of goodies.  She will also be posting an individual prize for each day of the hop also that everyone who hops that day will have a chance to win.

As far as blog candy from me.  Well, I'm gonna scrounge something up. LOL  I'll get a picture posted as soon as I can.  It will be some fun goodies for sure.  Please leave a comment and become a follower or note that if you already are one, if you would like to be entered to win.  Please include a way to contact you.   I only give treats to my followers. ;)

Your next stop is the lovely Brynn.  She's a great friend, fellow fibro sufferer, (as is our sweet hostess, Lisa) and an uber talented gal!  


Don't forget to enter my 500 followers give-away!   Btw, Cricut owners - one of the prizes in the box will be some Cricut markers.  If a non- Cricut owner wins, I will add something else equally as fun.  (This is only a little of what's gonna be in the box)... There will also be some stickers and hmmm... Maybe I'll reveal a little more in tomorrow's post, so I guess you'll just have to come back!  Trick or Treat!!! Ha ha ha! 

XO ~ Amy Jo


P.S.  I'd  love it if you would check out (and I'd be oh-so-happy if you follow) my new blog, Best Things I've Found in [Maga]zines

13 Days of Halloween Blog Hop - Day 2

Welcome to the 13 Days of Halloween Blog Hop.  This is DAY 2 of the hop.  Please scroll down one post for Day 1. This hop is scheduled from Oct. 19 at 8:00 am through Oct.31 at 11:00 pm (central time).  It's that time of year when the nights are all spooky and creatures are known to wander the forests.  So sit for a spell with a nice cup of hot apple cider and check out all the great projects.

If you just happened upon my blog, you will want to start with Lisa Peters @  http://handmadewithlove-lisa.blogspot.com/.  She is the awesome lady who pulled this hop together (thank you Lisa!) and is your first stop.  If you came here from the awesome Tami, then you are in the right spot!

We're so excited to be doing this hop and we have a fabulous lineup with some very talented ladies. There will be lots of fun projects, along with some great blog candy, and a great grand prize for this hop.

The hop is a 13 day hop with only 13 blogs to visit so you will have plenty of time to make it through the whole hop lineup 13 times.  Check out each blog and see what blog candy you can win at the individual stops.  Please come back all 13 days to see great projects.  

Here is the complete lineup:

Lisa - http://handmadewithlove-lisa.blogspot.com/

Pam - http://pammejo-scrapbookflair.blogspot.com/

Janet - http://createatdreamscrapbooks.blogspot.com/

Doris - http://mybugandmecreate.blogspot.com

Kristen - http://huneebcreations.blogspot.com/

Nicolette - www.beyondscrapin.blogspot.com

Jearise - http://lorbysworld.blogspot.com/

Tami - http://www.tamboscreations.blogspot.com/

Amy - http://lv2scrapandfibrofacts.blogspot.com/

Brynn - http://www.flairandfrillscreativity.blogspot.com

Scraps to Treasures - http://scraps2treasure.blogspot.com

CallyAnn - http://callyanncraftycreations.blogspot.com

Gill - http://creationsbygillm.blogspot.com

First off I want to thank all of the wonderful friends that left me comments yesterday.  I so appreciate that! I feel very blessed to have you all as friends and followers.  You ladies make my day, seriously.

For today's project, I kept it super simple.  This is another one from last year that didn't get posted.  Sure am glad I have a bunch of those for this hop. ;) This is Bazzill orange card stock, the blue square with the cat is cut from one piece of patterned paper (with other cutouts on it).  Can't remember what you call that - I guess a cut-out sheet? LOL Anyways, I added Glossy Accents to the cat to make it stand out a bit more and then added the Trick or Treat sticker, spiderweb with spider rub-on and another little cutout border, again with Glossy Accents.  There you have it.  Sweet and simple and took all of five minutes to make!  Had I done this one this year, you would have seen more bling and inked edges for sure! ;)  It's fun to take a look back and see how your creativity has developed.  I think mine has grown immensely.  In fact, it's just about this time last year when I first started card making!

To be eligible for the grand prize, you must visit each blog and leave a comment. You also MUST visit Lisa's blog and leave a comment on her blog for the day and also become a follower at "Scrapping With Lisa" and her facebook page:http://www.facebook.com/pages/Scrapping-with-Lisa/130882060268842. Please let her know if you don't do facebook and she won't count that against you for the blog candy.  Now for the blog candy, I bet you are wondering what it could be.   It will be a big treat bag full of goodies.  She will also be posting an individual prize for each day of the hop also that everyone who hops that day will have a chance to win.

As far as blog candy from me.  Well, I'm gonna scrounge something up. LOL  I'll get a picture posted as soon as I can.  It will be some fun goodies for sure.  Please leave a comment and become a follower or note that if you already are one, if you would like to win.  Please include a way to contact you.   I only give treats to my followers. ;)

Your next stop is the lovely Brynn.  She's a great friend and an uber talented gal!   Have a great day and please stop back tomorrow for another great project.

XO ~ Amy Jo

Freaky Friday with A Jillian Vance Design

Good morning everyone and welcome to the final Freaky Friday with A Jillian Vance Design.  Please head over to our DT blog to check out the other awesome projects!

For my project today, I decided to make a layout!  I know.... can you believe it? LOL ;0)  Granted, I only used two pictures from Halloween 2 years ago, but hey, at least I got them scrapped!

I let the paper and stamps do most of the work for me.  I used K&Co. Tim Coffey Halloween  12x12 paper (last years awesome pack) and Spooky, Eye on Halloween, and Witchy Poo stamp sets available to purchase at Jillian's Store.

I apologize for the quality of the pics.  I need a better editing software, better lighting and a better camera!  Aaak!  The colors are not nearly as vibrant as they are in person.  They are sooooo much bolder than how they showed up here so I apologize for the sub-par photos.  Will work on getting better!  Also, had to take a bunch so you can see all the little hidden stamped areas.  Be on the lookout for bats, cats, spiders, words, and little cracks in the tombstones (those were made with stamps!)  Aside from the photos not being the best, I still hope you enjoy my layout and will become a follower of our blog here.  We have some great things in store for the month of October and we would love it if you would participate in our challenge today.  So go on... don't be shy! ;)

Entire layout.  Includes two pics from Halloween 2009.  The rest is all paper and stamps!

 Don't you just love that witch!  I added the "This is how I roll" below it (they are separate stamps, but in the same set).  I crinkled he moon and inked it and drew around the bats, which I stamped in a navy color rather than black.

 Look in the tree for the bats and the spider!  The cat in front is one of my favorite AJVD stamps.  The little fissures in the tombstones are made by part of the eyeball set from "Eye on Halloween".  

 The raven/crow is not a stamp, but I thought it would be cool to add a spider hanging down from his mouth. :0)  Also, check out that other creepy spider!  Eek! ;)

 More closeups.  Love the Halloween stamp at the bottom.

 This is a better closeup of the actual picture.  This is from my friend's haunted house that they put on every year.  She makes the best props ever!  Thought it went well with the tombstone paper so I fussy cut the tombstones so they would hold the picture in without adhesive.  If you notice behind the main dude, there is a skeleton army.  Also not more spider stamps.  Those just creep me out, but I like 'em! ;0)

 Kitty!  And more fissures...

 Eye on Halloween Set

Spooky Set

Witchy Poo Set

Hope you like my layout!  I had some fun with it for sure. :0)  Be sure to head over to our DT blog to check out the rest of the awesome projects and don't forget... starting tomorrow, it will be Hop Mania over here on my blog!!!  Not one, not two, but THREE  hops!  Phew that's a  lot of work!  And a lot of fun.  Oh yeah, and  a lot of prizes ;) so be sure to come on back!

XO ~ Amy Jo