Happy Thursday everyone! We’re gearing up for a busy weekend here in the Desert – my MIL is coming to visit, and we’ll be celebrating my birthday with her and my parents/younger brother on Saturday.  Nadya and I spent Tuesday tidying up around the house, yesterday crafting and playing, and today we have laundry, errands, and playdate – never a dull moment. The Patriotic digital stamp collection by Lindsay’s Stamp Stuff is the featured kit for this week’s challenge at MyGrafico – in order to play along, all you have to do is create a card/project using one or more of the images in the set.  The image I chose has always reminded me of a quilt block/fabric piecing, so I stepped outside my comfort zone and played along. In the “spirit” of piecing, I opened my image in Photoshop and paired it with several lovely papers and elements from Kalo Designs’ Americana kit. I printed 2 copies of the pieced stamp so that I could trim the “sewing” and pop it on it’s own layer, which I then added to the the mat layer (where I stamped the ribbon).  I had to add some bling, so after printing, I used my Spica markers on the glitter stars, Clear Glaze pen on the stitching, and Glossy Accents on the buttons.  I used my Bravo Burgundy and Not Quite Navy markers (SU) to seal the edges of my layers and then added the brass nails using my new I-Rock tool (Imaginisce) – I was hesitant at first, but am so glad I found it – and on-sale too! (I turned the flash on so you could see the sparkle – hence the color variance)My “ribbon” is part of the Ribbon Factory 5 Collection (Clear Dollar Stamps-retired) that I stamped in Bravo Burgundy (SU) ink. I added the pearl strand (Michaels). I used a MS Punch-Around-the-page set to scallop my textured card base (DCWV – Holiday Box) and then attached everything with glue dots (Fiskars) and mono adhesive (Tombow).

Challenges I Played In:

• My Grafico #55 – Use LSS Patriotic Stamps
• Card Patterns – Sketch #70
• ABC Challenge – X-tra Dimension
• ABC Design Blog – Red, White + Blue
• Challenge Up Your Life – Vintage
• Crafty Cats Weekly – Let’s Go Digital
• Creative Craft Challenges – Stamp It Up
• Alice in Wonderland Challenge – Twinkle Twinkle
• PaperCutz Challenge – Circle, Stars or Squares
• Practical Scrappers – Border Punches

That’s all from me! If you haven’t already been to Lindsay’s blog – be sure to stop there for treats and inspiration! Have a fabulous week-end, and if you’re in the USA – thank a soldier for your freedom!