Yankee Belle Stamper

Good Morning! I'm popping in with a birthday card using the Mama Elephant Rain or Shine stamp set. My sister-in-laws birthday is today so I thought this would be a perfect card to send her. I created the background by blending the distress inks and splattered a little watercolors for the rain. I used my watercolor pencils to color in the cute little images. Speaking of rain, are any of you watching the hurricane coverage? It is so scary watching what mother nature can do. The force of the winds and waves are terrifying. Being from the south and living in Arkansas / Louisiana, I never really experienced a hurricane in person. It wasn't until after I moved to NY that hurricane Katrina hit Louisiana hard, how devastating. I'm thinking about all who are going through this tough time. Until next time, Brandi

Good Morning! Are any of you following the Stamptember festivities over at Simon Says Stamps? Last year I was able to snag this adorable Mama Elephant / Simon Says collaboration set called Rain or Shine, which I used on the card I'm sharing today. I've been eagerly checking the SSS site every morning to see all the new sets and a cute set by Neat and Tangled came out this morning, which I bought! Now if they would just release the Mama Elephant one! I'm so impatient!!!! On to the card....I used some distress inks to fade the background sky in blue and added a little watercolor drops to look like rain. I colored all of the cute little images with watercolor pencils from Stampin' Up. This card is fitting with all the rain we've been having in upstate NY but now it is clearing. My inlaws on the other hand are located in Hilton Head, SC at the moment and just heard that there will be an evacuation due to the pending hurricane, so they are headed back to NY. An...

Good Morning... I'm popping in with a watercolored card using this beautiful hibiscus image from Wplus9's stamp set Hibiscus Bouquet. The watercolors are from the latest Altenew release. As I mentioned in the last post, they are my go to medium! This card brings a little color into this dreary day here. It's been raining nonstop for the last 24 hours. I really can't complain though because we have needed the rain here in Upstate NY. It makes the grass so green after the heat waves we've been having. Hope you have a great day! Brandi

Hello! Long time no post! I'm not even sure if anyone still visits this little ole blog but I can't part with it because I know I will eventually be able to come back regularly. The quick back story is that life (2 kids, studying for my architectural license, full time career, friends and family) has gotten in the way of crafting. I feel like I'm starting to get my crafting groove back and hope to pop in more. You can always find me more on Instagram @yankeebellestamper too. On to this fun card using the latest Grateful for Everything stamp set from Concord and 9th. I love this company and all their original designs. They are actually on the Simon Says Stamp blog today with a fun collaboration stamp set. SSS is giving away a 100$ gift certificate to a lucky person for sharing a card on their site using an image from Concord and 9th, so I wanted to take a shot at entering. I colored the beautiful flower image with my newest watercolors from Altenew. They ink up ...

Merry Christmas (a day late but still in the festive spirit)! I was a little busy yesterday so I didn't have time to share this on my blog and wanted to do it now. I hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas yesterday. The family and I did. We have two children ages 3 and 5 months. This was the first Christmas our little three year old understood Santa and was so excited for his arrival. All he wanted was a Paw Patrol Sea Patroller, which Santa magically knew! Thank you Santa! I created this card using Mama Elephant Labeled Messages and Alpine Carolers stamp sets. I bought so many holiday stamps for the Christmas Season and barely used any because I've been so busy. You know what? I don't care that Christmas is over, I'm going to continue to use them because I don't want to lose that magical, peaceful spirit that the holidays bring. I wish you nothing but happiness this holiday season and throughout the coming year! Brandi

Hello... I'm popping in with a bright and fun card using Avery Elle's Be A Unicorn stamp set. This set is so adorable and reminds me so much of My Little Ponies from the 80's! I spent a lot of time on the background for this card. I water colored the sky and clouds and when it was dry I took some black paint and splattered it throughout. I colored all of the images with Copic markers, popped them up and added a few sequins. My niece saw this card lying around and told me it was one of her favorites. Thank you so much for the sweet comments yesterday on my card and new family member. Until next time, Brandi

Hello fellow crafters! I know, I know, it's been forever since my last post. I've been so busy this year. We added a new addition to our family in July with a baby girl named Marley Quinn. It is so hard to do much card making when adjusting to a newborn and raising a toddler! I feel like things are starting to slow down a little and I'm able to devote a little time to my hobby, because I sure do miss it. Although I haven't been crafting much, I certainly have been buying up all the cute Christmas stamps that have been coming out on the blog scene lately! One of my recent purchases is this cute Fa La Llama set from Neat and Tangled. Seriously who doesn't adore a llama in a scarf? I colored this image up using watercolor paints for the latest Little Tangles Challenge #86 . Thank you so much for stopping by for a visit! Until next time... Brandi

Hello crafters... Hope you're having a great weekend. The inlaws took our son for the night so the hubby and I have been able to have a fun and relaxing weekend. We went to one of our favorite restaurants (P.F. Changs) and had tons of dynamite shrimp. I just love their spicy shrimp! The best part of yesterday was being able to take a two hour nap! Anyone who's a parent can relate. Bahahaha! Today I'm sharing a card I made using the Lumberjack Love stamp set from Neat and Tangled. The images in this set are absolutely adorable with a capital "A"! I colored them in with my Copics and blended the background with distress inks to create a scene. What do you think? Thank you so much for stopping by and have a great rest of the weekend. It is supposed to be in the 60's today which is super warm for us! Until next time, Brandi

Good morning Crafters... I'm popping in this morning with a super fun card I created using Mama Elephants Tiny Heroes stamp set. This is literally one of my favorite sets of all time. The little super heroes are just the cutest and they threw in a couple of super hero animals too. The sentiments are great for lifting spirits type of card, or just to let someone know how awesome they are. As far as super heroes go, my 2 year old son has become obsessed with them lately. He is so into this cartoon called PJ Masks and this weekend we bought him the action figures. He won't let them go. He takes them to daycare, around the house and to bed. We have to give his little action figures kisses when we give our son kisses...honestly it's pretty cute. That's it for me today. Hope you enjoy the card and until next time... Brandi

Hello crafty friends... I'm back today with a sweet card using Mama Elephant's Bear Hug stamp set . The sentiment with this image is great for a Papa Bear or Mama Bear. I colored the bears using Copic markers. I've been working on my Copic coloring skills and trying to grow my marker collection. I'm so addicted to Copics because they blend so well! What is your favorite medium to use when coloring? Besides Copics, I absolutely love using Zig Clean Color Markers. Until next time... Brandi

Hello my crafty friends! It's been so quiet around here for months! Too many of them! My last post was in October and since then I've been so busy with major changes in my personal life. Things are finally starting to settle down and I've been having the itch to create again. What are the major changes you maybe wondering? Building of a new home, moving into home and last but not least...a new bun in the oven! That's right! The hubby and I are expecting a baby girl this summer to add to our little toddler son! My life has been a whirlwind of sorts! So back to the reason you guys stopped by...the card! I created this card using the adorable Be a Unicorn stamp set from Avery Elle. The thing I love most about this set is that there are little designs that can be added to the Unicorn's tush similar to My Little Pony from the 80's! Oh how I loved those dolls! I hope some of my readers are still out there and if you are...thank you for sticking with me! Un...

Hey friends... I wanted to pop in to share a card I made for the latest Retro Sketches Challenge #31. I finally pulled out some Lawn Fawn stamps that I've been meaning to ink up but never got around to it. I just adore LF's cute images. Lately I've had the urge to refresh my stash of stamps and went on a little online shopping spree with Simon Says Stamps and Deasy Designs. I am just on pins and needles waiting for my new goodies to arrive. :) Thanks for stopping by, Brandi

Hey friends... I am so happy to be popping in with a new card. I was able to do a little crafting during the day today because I am on vacation. Or should I say Staycation? LOL! The hubby and I decided to take a week off together to just hang out. We had no specific place to go or plans on the agenda, just wanted to spend some time together and take a mental break from work. We have had such a great time cooking and working on the house. We bought a deep fryer and decided to make shrimp and veggie tempura for the first time. It turned out great and soooo yummy. Tomorrow we are going to try to cook homemade pizza on the grill. Now on to the crafty part of the post. I created this card for the latest Colour Q Challenge #154.  Thank you for stopping by to take a look and listen to me ramble. Hugs, Brandi

Hello friends, I'm popping in today to share a card I made for the latest DYSU Challenge #88. The theme this week is birthdays. I bought this sweet little stamp from Michael's and thought it fit the theme. I picture these little kids on their way to a party full of presents, balloons and fun. Thanks for stopping by and have a great Friday! Brandi

Hey friends, I wanted to pop in to share a card I made for the latest Retro Sketches Challenge #27. I went out of my comfort zone a little and used actual rub-ons. I am surprised they applied so smoothly considering they are like 3 years old. LOL! I'm off to catch up on some shows with the hubby. Anyone watch Big Brother? Hugs, Brandi

Hey friends, I'm popping in today to share a card I made for the Paper Sparks Trend Challenge. The theme this week is "Retro". I used my boob tube set to create a retro feel. How cool would it be to have a television like this? I remember when I was really young (about 8), I had a black and white television and used to catch reruns of Laugh In. Did any of you watch that show? I don't remember to much about it but I do remember scenes where people would pop out of holes in a wall and tell jokes. LOL! Good times! Take care, Brandi

Hello... Thank goodness it's Friday, right? I've been looking forward to this day all week. Tomorrow starts a three day weekend for us and I am so excited. Do you have any fun plans this weekend? I wanted to share a card that I made for the latest Color Throwdown Challenge #207. I thought the colors this week were so bright and fun. Hugs, Brandi

Hey friends, I hope your doing well and enjoying your week. I wanted to share a card with you that I made for the latest Colour Q Challenge #152. I just love the colors this week because it gave me an excuse to bring out my PTI dotty biscotti patterned paper. I can't seem to get enough of polka dots. I've been practicing a little more with prisma pencil coloring but this time on a kraft background. Thanks for stopping by, Brandi

Just wanted to pop in with a card I made for you. Just to say thank you for coming by my blog every once in awhile and leaving such sweet comments. :) Hugs, Brandi

Hello, I am popping in to share a card I made for the latest DYSU Challenge #85. The theme this week is to use buttons. I have been on a bird kick lately, so I have just one more to share with you. Hope you have a great Friday. Brandi