Let's scream it from the rooftops!

Here is a fun card I made using another great

Hambo image and sentiment.

I clear embossed the Hambo ghosts after I colored them

with Copics and then cut them out with Nesties.

I used a transparent stardust embossing powder and a

Versamark pen to do this.

 

The sentiment ended up being my favorite part of the card.

Once I had it colored, I used thick embossing powder,

and added a couple of layers of it before I cracked it.

Then I added a bit more Versamark from the pad this time,

and added more transparent stardust to the edges.

Nice, right?

Stop by Hambo and check out their new Christmas images and

fabulous sentiments.

They are still running that insane ribbon sale too!!

Okay, totally random but....

So, the other day I drove by a neighbor's yard sale

at least 4 times throughout the day.

Finally, I decided to stop and limit any purchases to the $6 in

my car's ashtray, a.k.a. my coin purse.

I located a box of old books and camped out for a few.

Loved the spine and the cover on this one at once,

  

and then the copyright

Nice. And sold! 

Cute and small. Besides, I liked the way it felt in my hand.

 Oh, and the copyright.

 

1867. Sold!

"How much?", I asked the lady at the yard sale.

"Fifty cents each".

There is something comforting and sacred about a book

that  is well over 100 years old.

Kinda afraid to actually smell  them though. 

That was a good day.

Animal Crackers!

Hambo is at it again!

They have created some of the most fun images that all go so well together.

I have used a bunch of their animal stamps for this card.

I've incorporated their giraffe, owl, chick tower, and party sheep images for this card.

 

So much fun to color and play around with!

I wanted to add more of their crazy animals, but ran outta room!

This is one of their new sentiments and it kills me!

I just love this kind of humor!

Hambo is having quite a sale on May Arts ribbon. I just stocked up myself.

I got 5 yards of this delicious grosgrain ribbon in 6 colors (they have more) for $1each!

That's 50% off!

Did you know that you can color the white (or lighter colors) with your Copics to match your projects?

Just a tip if you haven't tried it yet.

Stop by Hambo, check out the ribbon, and also take a look at all of their new and old (sale and retiring pages too!) stamps and digis.

You can thank me later. 

Simian Vanity

What a perfectly narcissistic sentiment.

The silly monkey image and the accompanying sentiment

are both new releases from Hambo Stamps, due out next week.

Fun to color and a good card to have in the stash for those last minute

well wishes.

Drop by Hambo and check out all of the new images and creative

sentiments they are unveiling next week.

It takes a long time to grow old friends

When I was 16 years old I placed an ad for pen pals in "Metal Forces",

a heavy metal magazine (we're talkin' 1986) from Europe.

Well, that summer I got a TON of mail from all over the world from metal heads, punks, skinheads, straight edges, etc.

You name it, I got a letter from that country and a kid in a black concert tee.

Over the years I have stopped writing to all of these people, but there is this one kid that just wont go away. 

His name is Corey, and we have been corresponding for almost 25 years!

We have never met, but we are still close after all is time.

 

This week Corey is celebrating his 7 years of sobriety.

Over the years Corey has not treated his body as a temple, and abused it considerably with sex, drugs, and rock 'n roll.

He always said he was going to die before he was 30 and I think he really meant to make that prediction come true.

 

Now, he has 7 years of sobriety, a beautiful wife, 4 gorgeous kids, a career that he finds truly fulfilling, and a 39th birthday on the horizon next week.

He is truly an inspiration to me and all of the people who have had

the honor of knowing him.

I love you Corey!

Your Dad would be so proud of you and the man you are today.

In case you haven't noticed the trend, this card was made entirely of Hambo Stamps.

Well, and a little help from my MS iron gate punch and some yummy velvet ribbon.

Just bee-cause

How cute is this card?

I think it is really cute and fitting for a masculine card.

I used to have such a hard time making cards for boys.

I am rather proud of my tree.

I get a little intimidated when there is a large area to color,

and I decided to try this dot technique on the tree for texture and shading.

  

This is the inside sentiment.

I just LOVE this little fat bee!

All of the stamps I used on this project, including the sentiments, are from

those fine folks at Hambo Stamps.

Their shop is closed down for a few weeks for summer vacation, starting this Friday,

but feel free to peruse their wares and get inspired! 

Chief Hambooli

My friend the witchdoctor, he taught me what to say

My friend the witchdoctor, he taught me what to do

I know that you'll be mine when I say this to you

Oh, baby

ooh eeh ooh ahah, ting tang wallawallabingbang

ooh eeh ooh ahah, ting tang wallawallabangbang (come on and)

ooh eeh ooh ahah, ting tang wallawallabingbang

ooh eeh ooh ahah, ting tang wallawallabangbang

This card was so much fun to make.

I decided to use some colors that I don't usually reach for, and I like the results. 

This is the inside sentiment.

Very cute for either gender of recipient too.

Lots of fun to color, and I added some green pearls for accent and texture.

 

I put this guy on the inside to add a pop of color.

I colored the totem in brighter colors just because I was going for a 

painted hot rod look. 

All of these great images and matching sentiments are only available

from Hambo Stamps.

Drop by and check out their wares. They have some newly added digital images too! 

Don't Forget!

Don't forget this month's Hogs & Sketches challenge! You have until midnight on May 29 to submit your entry. Besides the normal prizes we award, this month all the eligible participants will win a special digital design, that won't be offered anywhere else. So are ya gonna play with us, or are ya chicken??

Pricks R Us

Somehow, I think the title pretty much sums it up.

Uber-cute porcupine image paired with a

cute matching sentiment, all brought to you from Hambo Stamps.

I colored him in with the Copics, added a couple of Primas, and

viola!

Cute card!

Think I'll use the title as my sentiment next time.

I've got a ton of qualifying recipients.

Dino in a Sandbox

How cute is this guy?!

Must be the beady little eyes. I'm a sucker for beady eyes.

I got him, the sun image, the sandcastle, and the "Hugs Sand Kisses" sentiment 

all from Hambo of course!

 

I used Copics to color everything in, and then I used a Sakura glaze pen to give the Dino some shiny texture and I put some on his shovel too.

Then I added Stickles to the sandbox sand and the sandcastle to make it sparkle. 

Oh no, there goes Tokyo.....

With a purposeful grimace and a terrible sound

He pulls the spitting high tension wires down

Godzilla!

Helpless people on subway trains

scream bug eyed as he looks in on them

Godzilla!

He picks up a bus and throws it back down

as he wades through the buildings towards the center of town

Godzilla!

Oh no, they say he's got to go

Go go Godzilla!

Oh no, there goes Tokyo

Go go Godzilla!

How cool is this card?! I am very pleased with how it came out.

Not too far off from what I had originally envisioned.

I have had the cityscape stamp for quite a while and never quite knew

how to incorporate it into one of my projects. I won the stamp (and others) from

the Hambo Hogs and Sketches challenge.

Once I saw the 'monster' image from Hambo I just knew I wanted to create a

scene using the cityscape and then the sentiment was just a fluke all together.

I think it's the perfect sentiment for this card.

 

I added my own smoke and then backed the whole thing up with this cool

flame paper.

I really like how vivid the colors came out.

In retrospect, I should have used some Asian inspired papers to give it

a touch of Tokyo, but no matter.

 

Looooooooooooong card!

I needed a wide angle lense to catch the whole thing!

                                                           

Hogs and Sketches #8

Well, it's that time of the month again.

No, silly!

Time for the Hambo Hogs and Sketches challenge!

We have here, a loverly sketch provided by the fabulously

talented, Midnight Scramper herself,

MacKenzie!!!

Here is what I did.

I really am getting some use out of this owl image.

Lately my son has been having some issues in school (and at home),

and sometimes he needs a little pick me up.

I always tell him that I will always love him, but I don't have to always like him,

or the shenanigans he pulls sometimes. 

So, on the inside I wrote:

"Everyone makes mistakes.

As long as we learn and grow from them,

we'll be less likely to repeat them."

I'm giving him this card today after school,

with a coupon good for a ride to the local

comic book store tomorrow, for FREE Comic Book Day.

Hope you are inspired to play along.

There are prizes to be won people!

What kind of prizes?!

Well, Timbo, the artist behind Hambo, is offering

a one of a kind digital image, free to everyone who participates!

That's right. An original digital image just for you! Just for playing!

Now get busy!!!!!!   

Potty Humor

Every Thursday, over at Hambo's Talk to the Ham blog, they have what is known as a "One and Done" auction.

Tim draws a one of a kind image that they auction off throughout the day.

At 10PM CST, they close the bidding, and the high bidder comes away with a fabulous image all to themselves.

This was last week's image.

I took one look at this little guy and dropped a ridiculous bid right off the bat.

I talked some serious smack and scared everyone away! Ha!

I told everyone he would be mine.

Is this the best sentiment in the world for this image or what?!

I am sure this was not it's intended purpose, but man, that's funny.

 

I had the most fun coming up with the actual "turd-like" texture for the poo ball.

After trial and error with bronze glitter, and brown flocking, I had the bright idea to use Liquid Applique for just the right, chunky, texture.

I only have white LA, so I used my trusty Copics to add the right shades of brown to the perfectly textured ball.   

You can't get this image from Hambo, but stop by next Thursday and bid on your own, one of a kind image. The sentiment is available though, along with tons of other great rubber and digi images. Plus they are carrying the May Arts ribbons now, and even offer a ribbon sampler for those of you indecisive folks. 

   

Manatee, Manatoo

I know I have mentioned in the past that I am not going into my forties with my head held high, but rather with my head in the sand.

Just pretend it's not happening, and it will go away.

I know that really doesn't work, but sometimes it's the only way I can cope in the moment.

Which brings me to my card for Hambo stamps.

I have used their manatee image (who doesn't need a manatee stamp?!) and

paired it with a cute little quip about wrinkles and being gray.

Yeah!

Who the hell thought it was a good idea to sell 10X magnifying mirrors to women over 35?!

I digress,....

  

Here, I have used these purty fleurs that I found on clearance at Mike's.

$2.99 for a Calypso tin of Primas! Really?! I'll take two!

I used the great May Arts ribbon that I also got from Hambo, as a leaf accent for

my purty fleurs.

Cute card.

Nice and spring-like.

Now, where is that sun?!@

Home Sweet Home

I have been planning this card since I saw the release of this digi image

over at Hambo Stamps.

I just knew I was going to creep it out a bit, but my first attempt was to

paper piece it with Halloween papers. I am not a real labor intensive kinda crafter, so that was over before it really got too involved.

I was left with a partially colored image that didn't look half bad on it's own, so I finished coloring it in, and used it as the whole card, basically.

     

Not bad coloring for a non certified Copic user, 'eh?

I would love to attend a Copics class, but they are a bit expensive.

I would much rather have new pens, than a piece of paper

that tells me I know how to color.

There is a class being held within walking distance from my house,

but the lady that owns the shop is a stuck up prude, who is always less than helpful whenever I go to her store. Maybe it's the tattoos and the black tshirts with zombies on them that she doesn't care for, I dunno.

Too bad for her. I buy a TON of stuff all the time, just not at her store.

   

I like the door.

I want to paint my front door this color.

Don't think the husband will go for it though.

Oh! This is my entry for this week's Macabre Monday challenge which was

"Freaker's Free for all", or anything goes.

Little Chickadees

Tim, from Hambo, creates some of the cutest images ever.

I really like this sweet image, and once it's paired with the matching sentiment,

it's like 'insta-card'!

Not much room for error with this combo.

  

Oh, and check out this delicious ribbon also from Hambo.

Next thing you know, they'll be dropping by to put the card together for you! 

Check out all the new goodies over at Hambo.

Hambo Hogs and Sketches challenge #7 - Dogs rule. Cats drool.

I had almost forgotten to complete April's sketch challenge over at Hambo!

Thankfully, my friend and fellow DT member, MacKenzie, reminded me by asking how it was coming along.

How was what, coming along?

Man, getting old sucks.

Luckily, I had already colored in these digital images from Hambo, and only needed to put everything together according to the helpful sketch provided.

I came up with the witty little sentiment and typeset it on my computer.

 

I am so proud of my nearly perfect bow, but those little bone buttons( I removed the shanks on the back) are just the right touch. 

Head on over to Hambo's Hogs and Sketches blog and play along!

Lots of prizes up for grabs and even a free image or two to try before you buy.