Meet The New DT Members! :)

Wow! I can't believe it's already been three months since I started my own DT and hosting weekly challenges. Time has just flown by. As the end of the three-month design team rolled around, I was sad to hear some of the members were leaving due to other personal and crafty commitments. I thoroughly enjoyed having them on the team and will definitely see them around here in blogland. :)

I'm pleased to announce that Made Especially For You has six new members joining the team. They are a fantastic group of talented and enthusiastic ladies that I'm so looking forward to working with. :) Take a moment to check out their blogs and say hi! :)

Gabrielle - Gaby's Papery

Georgiana - Carson's Creations

Jessica - Craftin' and Stampin'

Michelle - Cards by Mee Chelle

Pam - Scrappin Fab Pam

Tabitha - Zippity-Do-Dah

Please also give a warm welcome to the returning members of the team:

Abby - Scrappin Abby

Beckie - Just B Creative Crazy

Sponsor Coordinator & Sketch Designer

Becky - Becky's Sweet Creations

Eileen - As The Cricut Cuts...

Their information can always be found on the 'Design Team' page here on the blog. Their first challenge is this upcoming Sunday February 5th, stop by to see their wonderful creations!

Ashley

First Sketch Challenge!

This week is Made Especially For You's first-ever sketch challenge! Thanks to our new sketch designer, Beckie, for creating the sketch for this week! :)  Starting in February, there will be a sketch challenge the second week of each month.

Isn't it super cute?! :) The hearts definitely caught my eye, right away I knew I had to make a Valentine's Day card, even though the hearts could definitely be substituted with something else. Here's my take on this lovely sketch:

What I Used To Make The Card:

- Patterned 'love' paper with red, pink, white and black cardstock

- Cuttlebug with 'D'vine Swirl' embossing folder

- Foam hearts

- White and pink brads

- 'Pink lemonade' twine

- 'Love' sentiment in black ink

The design team and I would love if you participated in this week's sketch challenge! The winner will receive their choice of 3 digital images from our wonderful sponsor, K 'n K Designs. 

Thanks for reading!

Ashley

Liebster Blog Award

I am so honored to accept the Liebster Blog Award from a great friend of mine, Becky from Becky's Sweet Creations. I designed on Becky's DT for a while and now she designs on mine. :) Thanks so much, Becky! :) 

"The origins of the Liebster Blog award are somewhat unclear but the general consensus is that it originated in Germany, Liebster meaning favorite or dearest, to showcase bloggers with fewer than 200 followers. Upon accepting the award the recipient must then pass it on to five more blogs of note."

Here are the rules:

1- Choose FIVE up and coming blogs to award the Liebster to. Blogs must have less than 200 followers.

2- Show your thanks to the blogger who gave you the award by linking back to them.

3-Post the award on your blog. List the bloggers you gave the award to with links to their sites

I am passing this award on to the following five wonderful ladies and their blogs:

Pam - Scrappin Fab Pam

Michelle - Cards by Mee Chelle

Jessica - Craftin' and Stampin'

Gabrielle - Gaby's Papery

Tabitha - Zippity-Do-Dah

Thanks again, Becky! It's been a while since I've received a blog award. :) I'll be adding this award to my 'Blog Awards' page here on my blog. 

Ashley

PSC #16: Friendship Sketch

It's all about friendship this week at The Perfect Sentiment! This is my last week as a guest designer and I'm grateful for the new friends I've made during this past month. :) The challenge is to create a friendship inspired by the following sketch:

This sketch is for a circle card. If you do not have the ability to create a circle card then create a square card and include the circles as layers. 

I had a lot of fun using this sketch as inspiration for my card! Here's what I came up with:

This week's sponsor is Pattie's Creations, and she will be giving away the winner's choice of one digital image. 

For more inspiration for this week's challenge, check out the creations of the other designers:

Jennipher

Sarah

Jan

Sassy

Abby

Theresa

Jessica

Maggie

Guest Designers:

Karen

Tabitha

You can also create a friendship card (or kill two birds with one stone and use the same one, like I did) to enter my blog's friendship card challenge this week. Thanks so much for stopping by! :)

Ashley

PSC #15: Resist-Embossed Birthday

The challenge this week over at The Perfect Sentiment is to create a birthday card using the resist embossing technique. This is a new technique for me, seeing as the only embossing I usually use is dry embossing with my Cuttlebug. I enlisted the help of my good crafty friend Tammy to help me out. :) Thanks, Tammy!

My mom's birthday is coming up and I decided to make this card for her. I wanted to use her two favorite colors, purple and orange, but didn't have any papers that looked good together. So, I used the multi-colored paper from The Birthday Extravaganza mat stack by The Paper Studio and emphasized the resist-embossed purple sentiment and the orange balloons. 

The awesome sponsor this week is My Little Somethings, and they will be giving away a grab bag of crafting supplies at a minimum of $15! This giveaway is limited to US participants, but in the event a non-US resident wins, they will be awarded with digital images, instead. 

Thanks for reading! Make sure to stop by The Perfect Sentiment to enter the challenge and also view the fantastic creations of the other designers and guest designers! Happy Wednesday! :)


Ashley

Three Ribbon Challenge Card & A Blog Candy Winner

Happy Monday, everyone! I'm excited to share with you the card I made for this week's challenge here at Made Especially For You - create a card featuring three ribbons. Every third week of the month will be a challenge to create something using three of a certain item. The sponsor this week is the wonderful Pattie from Pattie's Creations, and she will be giving away the winner's choice of three images from her site. I used one of her adorable images in my card I made for the challenge:

I'm very new to using digital stamps, so please bear with me as I know my coloring isn't spectacular. They're really fun to color, though, and I look forward to experimenting with them more in the future, and hope to one day add some Copics to my collection. 

I would also like to announce the winner from the Based On A Book blog hop I participated in this past weekend. The randomly chosen winner of my blog candy is...

#1 Carri said: "I can see why you love this one! It is so adorable! Pooh is just too cute!"

Thanks for reading! Make sure to check out this week's challenge (and design team call) if you haven't already! :) 

Ashley

Based On A Book Blog Hop

***Interested in becoming part of the Made Especially For You design team? Click here***

Welcome to the Based On A Book Blog Hop! 

Thanks so much for joining us! This hop is all about books, along the way you'll see many book-inspired projects and have the chance to win some blog candy! If you've come from Amy Jo's blog, then you're in the right place. :) If you've just come across the hop and would like to start from the beginning, please visit Ashley's blog.

I'm so excited to be participating in this hop because I have always loved to read and currently work at a library, so this was definitely a hop I knew I needed to sign up for. I have so many favorite books, and had a hard time choosing which one would be the best inspiration for a card. Part of my job is helping out in the children's department of the library, and I thought it would be fun to make a card based off a children's book. It just so happens that I got the Winnie the Pooh Font cartridge for Christmas, and as soon as I saw it I knew a Winnie the Pooh card was going to be my project for this hop.

I'm absolutely in love with this card - I'm so happy with the way it turned out! The quote is an actual quote from the book (I plan on decorating the inside later using another quote). Pooh was cut at 3" and the pot of honest was cut at 1.5", both images are from the Pooh Font cartridge. 

And now for the fun part of the hop... blog candy! I'll be giving away the following crafty goodies:

Sorry about the glare! 

- 1 package of oranges flowers from Studio G

- 1 set of clear stamps with gems by Studio G

- 1 package of green rhinestones

- 1 spool of glittery purple ribbon

Entering to win is easy! Here's what you have to do:
1.) Become a follower (if you aren't already)
2.) Leave a comment on this post with your contact information
3.) 'Like' the Made Especially For You Facebook page

The winner will be announced on Monday January 16th, entries should be submitted no later than Sunday at midnight US Central Time.

Thanks so much for hopping along with us! Now hop on over to Charity's blog to see another book-inspired project. :) 

PSC #14: Photo-Inspired Sympathy

I'm back again with another guest designer card for The Perfect Sentiment. :) The challenge this week is to create a sympathy card based off the following photo:

I absolutely love doing these photo inspiration sketches. They're so much fun! Here's my take on the sketch:

The card is really simple, I didn't want to do anything too over-the-top for a sympathy card. Plus, the picture is very calm and tranquil, and I wanted to keep the card that way, too, rather than making it busy. The white paper flowers are handmade, and the blue accent piece is embossed with the D'vine Swirl embossing folder.

As you can obviously tell, I used the colors in the photo on my card. I tried to use the same amount of each color as there is in the photo (a lot of white, a decent amount of turquoise, and a touch of black). I also used the shape of the pond for the bottom half of the card and embossed it to give it the effect of the gentle ripples.

Our awesome sponsor this week is Shelly's Images. The winner will receive one digi image of their choice.

This card is also my challenge creation for the weekly challenge this week here at Made Especially For You - create a card featuring machine embossing. Click here to check it out, I would love if you played along with us! Thanks for reading, check back next Wednesday for another The Perfect Sentiment guest designer card! :)

Ashley

My First Scrapbook Layout!

Well, I did it... I finally made my first scrapbook layout! :) I am not yet a scrapbooker, but plan to be one day when I actually have events to scrapbook that don't include waking up and either going to work or to school, LOL. I made the layout for the holiday layout DT challenge this week at Becky's Sweet Creations.

What I used to make the layout:
- Fancy-Filled Trees paper by The Paper Studio
- Red, green, cream, and gold cardstock
- Chipboard letters with gold acrylic paint
- Winter Lace cartridge 

I had a lot of fun making the layout and can't wait until I can really start scrapbooking one day. I don't plan on putting pictures on it because I don't have any, but I thought it was good practice, at least. 

Thanks for stopping by!
Ashley

Snow Days Blog Hop Winner

And the winner is...

#16 Tina said: "Simple is so elegant! Beautiful card!" and "Gorgeous!! What a pretty banner! And I actually have this cartridge!! Yay!"

Congratulations, Tina! I'll be sending you an email shortly so you can claim your blog candy. :)

Thanks to all who participated in the Snow Days hop! Come back this Friday, January 14th, for the Based On A Book blog hop. We have lots of fun book-themed projects to share with you!

Snow Days Blog Hop - Day 2

Welcome to the Snow Days Blog Hop!

We're so happy you could join us for this super-fun hop showcasing cards, layouts and projects that featuring everything about Snow Days! You'll find an array of ideas throughout the hop - we hope you enjoy each and every project along the way! 

If you'd like to join our Snow Days fun, then you're in the right place. Keep alert for blog candy along the way, as some hop stops will be offering some goodies. 

For the second day of the hop, I created a snowflake banner. This was actually the first project I made using my Cricut, so I'm super excited to share it with you! I used the Winter Lace cartridge to make all of the layers of snowflakes.

Sorry about the gold background, we actually don't have any white walls in my house, so I had to go with hanging the banner against a sandy beige color paint, even though it looks much more gold in the picture. The colors of the snowflakes are pretty exact, though. 

Here's a close-up of each letter. None of these snowflakes are the same! :) The bigger snowflakes were cut at 6 inches and I believe the smaller snowflakes were cut at 3 inches. The letters are from the Pooh Font cart and were cut at 2 1/2 inches, I believe. They look black in the picture but are really dark blue.

And now for the fun part of the hop... blog candy! I'm giving away the following winter goodies:

- 1 spool of light blue ribbon

- 1 package of snowflake stickers

- 1 package of blue flowers by Studio G

- 1 bottle of silver glitter glue by Studio G

- 1 package of blue rhinestones

Entering to win is easy! Here's what you have to do:
1.) Become a follower (if you aren't already)
2.) Leave a comment with your contact information on either day of the hop (you'll be entered twice if you comment both days! :)
3.) Like the 'Made Especially For You' Facebook page

The winner will be randomly chosen and announced on Monday January 9th.

Here's a list of the entire hop, in case you get lost along the way or want to revisit someone:

Lisa P - http://handmadewithlove-lisa.blogspot.com/
Bonnie - http://scrap-n-away.blogspot.com/
Sherry -http://www.upordowntheyrebeautiful.blogspot.com/
Doris - http://mybugandmecreate.blogspot.com/
Theresa D: http://scrappinginheels.blogspot.com/
Beckie http://justbcreativecrazy.blogspot.com/
Erin - http://deeplyrootedlife.blogspot.com/
Amy - http://www.lovetocrop.com/
Eva - http://evasscrapsncards.blogspot.com/
Cathie-http://cathiescafe-scraphappy.blogspot.com
Ashley - http://especiallymade.blogspot.com/  <--- YOU ARE HERE
Lisa G - http://www.bljgraves.blogspot.com/ <--- YOUR NEXT STOP
Melissa - http://timeweavers.wordpress.com/
Kristen - http://fantabulouslypink.blogspot.com/
Theresa - http://scrappyartcrafters.blogspot.com/
anita- http://www.anitaandbugs.blogspot.com/
Lynne - http://slasewcraftiness.blogspot.com/
Barbara B. http://barbarab3.blogspot.com/
Amy Jo - http://lv2scrapandfibrofacts.blogspot.com/
Mickie - http://www.littlescrapcorner.blogspot.com/
Janet Royer- http://janetscreativeworld.blogspot.com/

Thank you for stopping by and checking out my project! Now hop on over to Lisa's blog! :)

Snow Days Blog Hop - Day 1

Welcome to the Snow Days Blog Hop!

We're so happy you could join us for this super-fun hop showcasing cards, layouts and projects that featuring everything about Snow Days! You'll find an array of ideas throughout the hop - we hope you enjoy each and every project along the way! 

If you'd like to join our Snow Days fun, then you're in the right place. Keep alert for blog candy along the way, as some hop stops will be offering some goodies. 


For the first day of the hop, I've created a simple snow card. 

And now for the fun part of the hop... blog candy! I'm giving away the following winter goodies:

- 1 spool of light blue ribbon

- 1 package of snowflake stickers

- 1 package of blue flowers by Studio G

- 1 bottle of silver glitter glue by Studio G

- 1 package of blue rhinestones

Entering to win is easy! Here's what you have to do:
1.) Become a follower (if you aren't already)
2.) Leave a comment with your contact information on either day of the hop (you'll be entered twice if you comment both days! :)
3.) Like the 'Made Especially For You' Facebook page

The winner will be randomly chosen and announced on Monday January 9th.

Here's a list of the entire hop, in case you get lost along the way or want to revisit someone:

Lisa P - http://handmadewithlove-lisa.blogspot.com/
Bonnie - http://scrap-n-away.blogspot.com/
Sherry -http://www.upordowntheyrebeautiful.blogspot.com/
Doris - http://mybugandmecreate.blogspot.com/
Theresa D: http://scrappinginheels.blogspot.com/
Beckie http://justbcreativecrazy.blogspot.com/
Erin - http://deeplyrootedlife.blogspot.com/
Amy - http://www.lovetocrop.com/
Eva - http://evasscrapsncards.blogspot.com/
Cathie-http://cathiescafe-scraphappy.blogspot.com
Ashley - http://especiallymade.blogspot.com/  <--- YOU ARE HERE
Lisa G - http://www.bljgraves.blogspot.com/ <--- YOUR NEXT STOP
Melissa - http://timeweavers.wordpress.com/
Kristen - http://fantabulouslypink.blogspot.com/
Theresa - http://scrappyartcrafters.blogspot.com/
anita- http://www.anitaandbugs.blogspot.com/
Lynne - http://slasewcraftiness.blogspot.com/
Barbara B. http://barbarab3.blogspot.com/
Amy Jo - http://lv2scrapandfibrofacts.blogspot.com/
Mickie - http://www.littlescrapcorner.blogspot.com/
Janet Royer- http://janetscreativeworld.blogspot.com/

Thank you for stopping by and checking out my project! Now hop on over to Lisa's blog! :) 

Design Team Call!

Made Especially For You is looking for five enthusiastic, passionate and committed crafters that would like to be part of a design team that contributes to weekly card challenges. Card makers of all skill levels are welcome!

 As a Design Team member, you will be required to do the following:

·      Create a minimum of four cards per month to submit as a design team sample for each weekly challenge
·      Be an active participant in the design team Facebook group
·      Have an active blog
·      Post your weekly challenge creations on your blog and promote our sponsors
·      Meet challenge and posting deadlines, also comment on challenge entries

Interested applications should submit the following information by email:

·      Name and short bio

·      3 cards you have created that you feel showcase your best talent and card making style

·      Link to your blog

Please submit your application to especiallymadeblog@gmail.com. The information must be submitted by Sunday January 22^nd in order to be qualified for a position. The chosen design team members will be notified on Monday January 23^rd and announced on the blog on February 1^st. Participation will begin immediately with the first challenge occurring during the week of February 6^th – February 12^th.

Any other comments, questions, or concerns can be sent to Ashley at especiallymadeblog@gmail.com. Thank you for your interest. 

PSC #13: Valentine with Vellum

Happy Wednesday, everyone! I'm excited to announce that I've been chosen to be a guest designer over at The Perfect Sentiment for the month of January! I've been playing along with them for a few weeks now, and I've come to really love their challenges. Check them out if you have the chance! :)

This week's challenge is to create a card with a sentiment for "Valentine's Day" AND use vellum on your project. How fun! :) After making nonstop Christmas and winter cards, it was nice to make a different-themed card for a change. Here's what I came up with:

Vellum was used for a layer on the heart, as well as the surface that the sentiment is stamped on. 

The sponsor for this the challenge over at The Perfect Sentiment this week is Eyelets Etc. They'll be giving away a sheet of vellum stickers to the winner! 

Thanks so much for reading! Check back each Wednesday in January to see my guest designer cards! :)


Ashley

And the winners are...

Out With The Old and In With The New Blog Hop

#16 Doris said... "ooohh love the beach scene card... wishing I was there right now.. feel the warmth :)"

"so love the moon and star card! what an awesome idea"

Congratulations, Doris! I'll be sending you an email so you can claim your prize. :)

Toast To Life Blog Hop

#18 Vicki said... "Very nice card! I really like the colors you have chosen. Family is so important and you have honored yours here."

Congratulations, Vicki! I'll be sending you an email so you can claim your prize. :)

Thanks to all who participated in either blog hop this past weekend, come back this weekend (January 7th & 8th) for a chance to win some more blog candy in a two-day Snow Days Blog Hop!


Ashley

A Toast To Life Blog Hop

Hi everyone! Welcome to the A Toast To Life blog hop. If you've come from Lina's blog, then you're in the right place. If you've just come across the hop and would like to start from the beginning, please visit Liz's blog.

The purpose of this hop is to make a toast to life by creating anything that represents the best things in our life. I'd have to say the best things in my life would be my family, my friends, blogging, and of course my boyfriend, who is also my best friend. Rather than making a project for each aspect of my life that I would like to toast, I decided to make a thank you card to express my gratitude for all of them.

This card is also being entered in this week's sketch challenge over at The Perfect Sentiment. 

I'd like to say thank you to my family for always being there for me and for always supporting whatever it is I want to do.

I'd like to thank my friends for being there for me when I need someone to vent to, and for always putting a smile on my face when I need some cheering up.

I'd like to thank my boyfriend for always, always being there for me and for putting up with me even on my worst days. He is always so supportive and encouraging and I can go to him with anything. 

And last, but most certainly not least, I'd like to thank all of the friends I've made since I started my blog this past summer. If it wasn't for your kind words and support, I wouldn't be here posting this today. Thank you for always answering my silly, amateur craft questions and for always finding something nice to say about my work, even when it may not be my best. Thank you to all my followers who have supported me in one or another, it is your encouragement and kind words that allow me to want to keep blogging. 

And now for the fun part of the hop... blog candy! :) I'll be giving away the following crafty goodies:

- 10 sheets of assorted mat stack papers

- 30 sheets of assorted 6 x 6 papers

- 2 rubber stamps

- 1 set of bling by Studio G

- 1 spool of blue ribbon

Entering to win is easy! Here's what you have to do:

1.) Become a follower (if you aren't already)

2.) Leave a comment on this post with your contact information (preferably an email address)

3.) 'Like' the Made Especially For You Facebook page

Your next stop is Mindy's blog! Thanks so much for hopping along with us!