Happy Holidays from HDH!

My last Winter holiday card for you this year... and actually it isn't really THAT holiday-ish... me thinks I could send this anytime.  And let me say that every time I use Stickles or glitter, I can't get the color balance & lighting right, so once again we have photos of the sucky variety :)

Nice sentiment, right?  Yeah.  I like it, too :)  It's from Stamp Insanity.  I'm picturing the adorable little Octopode Factory Angel yelling at the Christmas tree... like a few bulbs are out or something :)  Yes... yes... I like to make up little stories for my cards.  And that's just one of the MANY reasons why y'all come back to HDH all the time, right?!

I hope you and yours have a very Happy Winter holiday, and a joyful & prosperous New Year!

~Barb

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New Simply Betty Release - Christmas Emos Preview Day 2

How did you like yesterday's preview?  Well, on to Day Two:

Elfin' Miller is in da-house!  I swear I giggle every single time I see him :)

 VERY simple card, but I just couldn't foof it up.  Me thinks I need some red/black embellies.  Believe it or not, I just don't have any!  A room full of papercrafting schtuff & I couldn't find something that worked with this... CRAZY.  Time for a room re-org!!!

Please note:  Elfin' Miller does NOT come holding the pair of tidy whities... 

THAT little gem was added by me :)

And soooooooooo totally perfect for this image, dontcha think?

 And in case you can't see the sentiment, the front says:

WTH... I was good all year & all I got were these tidy whities?!

The inside reads:

Don't EVEN tell me what's in my stocking.

 I really wanted a wittier sentiment, but I just totally blanked.  The possibilities really are endless... 

• chestnuts roasting
• jingle bells
• snowballs
• you really shouldn't re-gift certain things
• roomier than the tights he's wearing...

   

A good friend of mine DID come up with this little bit of wondermousness:

"Well, I was ACTUALLY thinking of Santa's List

when I said that I wanted to leave a good mark."

bwaaahhhh haaa haaa... thanks, Beverly!

I would LOVE to hear some funnier ideas from you all.  Please leave me a comment with some off-beat sentiment that could be used for this image (with the tidy whities) and I'll select my favorite and send the winner a little sumpin' sumpin'!!

Well, tomorrow is the big Release Day Hop!!

Be sure to start over at the SBS blog for all of the details!

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HDH056 - Monochromatic Monstrosities

HDH Macabre Monday Rules:
1. Create a dark and macabre SOMETHING (card, scrap page, altered item, whatever) that follows the specific Macabre Monday challenge given. Cutesy is fine, but creepy is better :)
2. You have until the following Sunday night @ 5pm central time to post your creation and please leave a direct-link back here.
3. If you upload to any online galleries (TACPCC, S&S, PCP, SCS, etc.), please tag the title using HDH056.
4. Weekly giveaways! Some weeks will be loaded with loot, others not-so-much... but the thrill is in the win, right?! Some prizes shall be by random drawing, others hand picked... and I'm not telling you ahead of time :)
5. I'll be selecting a weekly Gruesome Twosome (my top two favorite creations) from all the players. At the end of every month these will be compiled and a Master of Macabre will be selected and will receive a little giftie from me... this could be stamp sets, handmade items, papers, halloweenie embellishments... you just never know.

Ok, my little pretties... your challenge this week:

Monochromatic Monstrosities

We want to see the grotesque and the monstrous, and we want you to do it in shades of only one color.  But you can only choose from the following: black/grey, green, orange, or purple.

And check out what the Macabre Minions have in store for your viewing pleasure:

Macabre Mistress Lynx:

Ahh... a pumpkin fairy :)  LOVE the bat wings on her, don't you?!


Concoctor of Chaos, Creepy Glowbugg:

Uber-creepy vamp, Glo!  LOVE the ornate frame, too!!


Creepy Cricut Cween Donna:

LOVE the masking job on this, Donna!  Great new faces for Bowtie & Moth Fab from Stampotique, no?!

Digital Demon-ess Susan:

Serious fantastic digital invite!!!  LOVE the imagery, and of course you can't go wrong with anything purple :)


Ok... your turn... show us your monstrosities!  And no, I'm not asking you to flash us :)

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HDH054 - Creepy Cute Happiness Fairy

**note:  Please scroll down for Fiendishly Fun Friday posts!!!  They are worth it :)

I finished my challenge card, Christy!  Can you believe it?!!  Quick, what's today's date again?  :)  I was so excited to color up this house from Tiddly Inks... doesn't it make a delightful Halloweenie abode?  And there is little miss Autumn Bugg... cute, right?

I thought the sentiment matched Autumn's attitude perfectly... the inside says:
"this sh*t is expensive!" :)

If I were a fairy, this would be me :)  LOL, right?!  Just look at that face... doesn't she look a little irritated?  Either that or pissed off... I can't decide :)

Digi's:  Home Sweet Home & Autumn Bugg (Tiddly Inks)

Stamp:  sentiment (Viva Las Vegas)

Paper:  K & Co. pp, TAC black & Neenah white cardstocks

Ink:  VersaFine Onyx

Other:  Diamond Stickles, MS edge punch, foam tape & pop dots

Copics:  E000, E00, E11, E15, R02, V0000, V95, V99, YG11, YG13, YG17, YR0000, YR15, YR18, YR20, YR23, YR24

Don't forget, you still have time to play along with this week's challenge and a chance for some free goodies from Tiddly Inks!!  Go HERE for the challenge info, and go HERE for the Tiddly Inks store!

What do you think?

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Simply Betty Double Whammy Blog Hop!

Have I told y'all lately how much I LOVE this time of year?  Huh?  Have I?  You know, when all of the Halloweenie goodness starts showing up in magazines, store shelves, and of course in rubber stamps & digi's?!!!!

Can you say:  HELL-to-the-YEAH!  :)

And Betty, being my Halloweenie Soul Sistah, is making me smile even more... she's releasing TWO new Halloween-themed digi/stamp lines today, with MORE coming soon!  That's what I'm talkin' 'bout.  Today's new lines from Simply Betty Stamps are:

Jude and his Shenanigan Crew and Punky Teens. 

(note:  please click on photos for clearer view... Blogger is sucking the life out them here...)

 First up, this is Peter... buddy of Jude, and just as ca-yoot as can be!  And you know I usually try to creep-out any cuteness... well, I just couldn't do it.  I KNOW!  Am I getting soft?  WTH?  :)

Peter is colored a la Copics, but I forget which ones I used... my bad.  I used a Tim Holtz texture folder, Neenah & TAC cardstocks, VersaFine Onyx ink, & a retired alphabet stamp set from TAC.

Next up, Punky Teen Tootsie!  Freakin' adorable, but I didn't feel bad at all giving her green skin and purple hair... that's just how I roll.

More Copics, Tim Holtz edge die, Delightfully Spooky stamp set (TAC), VersaFine Onyx ink, PTI canvas texture plate, purple rhinestones, Bo Bunny paper(?), misc. ribbon; Bazzill, Neenah & TAC cardstocks.

And finally, my FAVORITE of the entire release :)  Punky Teen Freddy!  I'm sure you can tell why, right?  How fun is this?!  I tried to icky-up his face a bit, but OBVIOUSLY it does no justice whatsoever to the real Freddy... just sayin'.

Copics, Studio G rubber stamp sentiment, Background Soup rubber stamp (TAC), Moulin Rouge Palette ink, VersaFine Onyx ink, Stardust clear glitter pen, Neenah & TAC cardstocks.

Now, more on this Double Whammy Blog Hop... if you've arrived here from the SBS blog, you are on the right track!

To continue on your merry way, you should head off to SBS's September Guest DT's blog:  Calie!

Four lucky winners will receive three free digis of their choice from these two lines! All you have to do is leave us some loving on the Simply Betty Stamps blog! Of course it is always appreciated when you leave everyone a little lovin', however the four winners will be chosen from the Simply Betty Stamps blog!  Have fun hoppin'!

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HDH054 - Creepy Cute

HDH Macabre Monday Rules:
1. Create a dark and macabre SOMETHING (card, scrap page, altered item, whatever) that follows the specific Macabre Monday challenge given. Cutesy is fine, but creepy is better :)
2. You have until the following Sunday night @ 5pm central time to post your creation and please leave a direct-link back here.
3. If you upload to any online galleries (TACPCC, S&S, PCP, SCS, etc.), please tag the title using HDH054.
4. Weekly giveaways! Some weeks will be loaded with loot, others not-so-much... but the thrill is in the win, right?! Some prizes shall be by random drawing, others hand picked... and I'm not telling you ahead of time :)
5. I'll be selecting a weekly Gruesome Twosome (my top two favorite creations) from all the players. At the end of every month these will be compiled and a Master of Macabre will be selected and will receive a little giftie from me... this could be stamp sets, handmade items, papers, halloweenie embellishments... you just never know.

Ok, my little pretties... your challenge this week:

Creepy Cute

You are to create a dark, Gothic, or Halloween page, project or card using cute images, but on the darkside. Turn something adorable into something abominable... something delightful into something devious... something cute into something creepy. Or just grab one of TI's Gothic cute images and start coloring ;)

Bonus: This week's challenge is being sponsored by Tiddly Inks! Christy Croll is a children's illustrator who also happens to have several delightful lines of original digital images & papers... of the cute & whimsical variety :) Christy has so generously donated a $10 & a $5 gift certificate for two winners! We'll do a random draw for the $5, and the Best of the Best will get the $10 one :) The link above will take you directly to Christy's store, but she also has a blog site here: Tiddly Inks Blog

I'll have my challenge card for you later this week (ha! maybe...), BUT some of the other Macabre Minions have some wonderful eye candy-corn for you today!!! To get the complete 411 on all of these fab projects, be sure to stop by each of their blogs and don't forget to leave the Minions a little lovin' :)

Macabre Mistress Lynx:

Another fab little box, and what is that inside?! Hmmm...

Concoctor of Chaos, Creepy Glowbugg:

Super cuteness.... LOVE those trees, and hellooooo... purple hair... what's not to love about that?!

Creepy Cricut Cween Donna:

Another Cricut card... from the darkside, and check out how Donna modified this cute digi!

Digital Demon-ess Susan:

Digi-on-digi action... wait, that sounds kinda funny... YOU know what I meant :) This house image is by far one of my personal faves from TI!!


So, wanna get your mitts on some ca-yootie patootie digi's from Tiddly Inks? Join in the fun!!

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HDH052 - Graveyard step card

Freakin' finally, right?  I stayed up late last night finishing this little baby off.  I've seen step cards around for awhile now, and just never tried one out... this HDH052 challenge gave me the perfect reason to do one :)  I mean, sometimes it's tough to get three or more images on one card unless you have just a little bit more room to work with :)

Have I told you lately that I LOVE my MS grass border punch?!  I think that is clear on this little graveyard scene!

I stamped the iron gate on a transparency and then glued it at the bottom & covered it with another grass strip to conceal it.  Works well me thinks!

I'm not sure you can tell, but there are a bunch of little stars in the night sky that I made with a glitter pen.

How do you like the kitty hiding behind the grass?  That would be a "whoopsie-turned-wonderful".  I took a marker to color the white around his whiskers green, so that it would blend a bit.  UGH!  Do NOT do that.  So I covered it all with the bunch of grass... genius me thinks :)

Don't you love the orange bubbly wondermous oozing from the cauldron in the background?!  Me too :)  And the gravestone border punch from MS... love love LOVE.  Love even more when I add a little Stickles to them :)

Stamps:  Skull Gate, Girl w/ Skull, Creepy Tree, Silhouette Cats - PET 32 & 33 (all Stamp It Crazy), 

Delightfully Spooky (TAC sentiment), witch/cauldron silhouette (unknown)

Paper:  Bazzill & Neenah white & TAC black cardstocks

Ink:  StazOn black, Memento Tuxedo, VersaFine Onyx,

Raw Sienna, Orangerie, Noir & Violete Palettes

Other:  MS border punches, orange & Concord Distress Stickles, clear Stardust glitter pen, Copic markers

What do you think?

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HDH051 - Netherworld Nymphs... by Barb

**If you are looking for Simply Betty's Back to School Emos Blog Hop,

please scroll down to next post!** 

Can you believe it... I made it just under the wire!  The Queen of Procrastination strikes again.  I should have already had next week's card done by now... HAAAA HAAA... yeah right.

This little nymph image is from Stamp It Crazy... which is still one of my absolute faves.  I squeezed her onto a regular A2 sized card... she really needs a little more space though... no room for foof.

That ribbon is about a 100 million years old and is some cheap crap from Target $1 spot or something.  But, the color was perfect... though the bow won't poof up because it's kinda crispy feeling ;)  So I topped it with another GlowSkullz embellie.

Stamps:  MS182 LG Gothic w/ Branch Wings (Stamp It Crazy), Thinking of You (TAC)

Paper:  Bazzill and Neenah cardstocks

Ink:  Memento Tuxedo

Other:  Scor-Bug, Tim Holtz edge die, GlowSkullz, cheap a$$ ribbon

Copics:  0, BV20, BV23, G12, G21, G24, G85, V93, V95, V99

Look, Oz... Barbi-dots just for you :)

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HDH051 - Netherworld Nymphs

HDH Macabre Monday Rules:
1. Create a dark and macabre SOMETHING (card, scrap page, altered item, whatever) that follows the specific Macabre Monday challenge given. Cutesy is fine, but creepy is better :)
2. You have until the following Sunday night @ 5pm central time to post your creation and please leave a direct-link back here.
3. If you upload to any online galleries (TACPCC, S&S, PCP, SCS, etc.), please tag the title using HDH051.
4. Weekly giveaways!  Some weeks will be loaded with loot, others not-so-much... but the thrill is in the win, right?!  Some prizes shall be by random drawing, others hand picked... and I'm not telling you ahead of time :)
5. I'll be selecting a weekly Gruesome Twosome (my top two favorite creations) from all the players. At the end of every month these will be compiled and a Master of Macabre will be selected and will receive a little giftie from me... this could be stamp sets, handmade items, papers, halloweenie embellishments... you just never know.

Ok, my little pretties... your challenge this week:

Netherworld Nymphs

 You are to create a dark, Gothic, or Halloween page, project or card using images of feminine nature spirits from the darkside.  Goddesses, sprites, mermaids, pixies, fairies or fay... as long as they look slightly sinister ;)

I'll have my challenge card for you later this week, Lynx is on vacay,  BUT some of the other Macabre Minions have some wonderful eye candy-corn for you today!!!  Check it:

Chaotic Creepy Glowbugg:

 Definitely pickin' up the nymph vibe here... not to mention, Netherworld :)  Fabulous work, Creepy Glo!


Creepy Cricut Cween Donna:

I just love purple... and pairing it with this lovely sad fairy is perfect!  Beautiful, Donna!


Digital Demon-ess Susan:

LOL!  Love this sentiment and all of that teal... mmmmmm.  She's definitely a bit sassy, which works great around here :)  Great job, Susan!
 
Be sure to go check out the Minions' blogs for more details on these nymphs from the Netherworld!
Now... are you up for the challenge?!

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HDH050 Ice Queen Angel

Well, after seeing all of the fantabulousness from the Minions, I am embarrassed to show this piddly thing, but I will!

I needed something quick and easy, and since Torrente's images are so skinny, there isn't much room for a lot of coloring :) 

Bonus:  another winter holiday card done!  Yeay!  That makes, what, like four that I've done so far... good grief... I need to pick up the pace!

Stamps:  Angel (Stampotique), Merry Words (retired TAC)

Paper:  Bazzill, DCWV, black & Neenah white cardstocks

Ink:  Memento Tuxedo, Cote d'Azure Palette

Other:  Nesties, Tim Holtz edge die, EK Success edger punch, misc. rhinestones

Copics:  0, BG02, BG05, BG07, BV20

Tune in tomorrow for Fiendishly Fun Friday AND a Simply Betty Bloghop!!!

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Halloween is Hoppin' at Tiddly Inks!

I was so happy to get this done in time for Tiddly Inks Halloween Hop!  The hop is running 6pm CST on July 22 to 6pm CST on July 24... and I have a feeling there will be a TON of participants for this one :)  For additional deets or to start hoppin', just pop over to the TI Challenge blog!

Now, on to the show :)  I chose Gossmere for my very first EVER TI image... I know!  Can you believe I've waited this long?  Isn't she freakin' cute?!  I just can't decide if she is a vamp or a witch... either way, she's got a princess complex, right?!

Digi:  Gossmere (TI)

Rubber Stamp:  Delightfully Spooky (TAC)

Paper:  Bazzill, PTI white & Neenah cardstocks

Ink:  VersaFine Onyx

Other:  Tim Holtz embossing folder, EK Success & MS border punches, spider confetti, MM felt flower, black felt flower (handmade), misc. gems, Scor-bug, silver glitter pen

Copics:  0, BV0000, BV20, BV23, YG01, YG03, YG91, G24, V01, V06, V09, V99

These photos are horrible... even clicking to make them bigger might not help.  I really need a little spot to set up so I can take pics at night without them turning out icky... dang it.  Believe it or not, but the plum violet cardstock matches her dress perfectly.  And I'm really happy with how well her blue-violet skin turned out  :)

What do you think?

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Yet another little announcement :)

Are you guys jones'ing for an actual card on this freakin' blog?!!  Now that a lot of the housekeeping has been done, how about a little fun?!

I am super excited to tell you all that I am one of the newest members of the Simply Betty Stamps design team!  Yes, Lynx TOTALLY caught the new badge in my sidebar... clever girl :)

The SBS blog will be hosting monthly challenges AND there is going to be a new release on July 15th, so you might want to go follow to be updated!  In fact, Betty has a fun way to win all SIX of the new releases going on RIGHT NOW!

Yes, I know... SBS are a bit cute... BUT if you will notice there is a subtle appearance of skulls, bats & spiders!  Love it.  I call it creepy-cute.

Stamps:  London, sentiment (unknown source)

Paper:  black & premium white cs (TAC), green & amber cardstocks (Bazzill)

Ink:  Tuxedo Memento

Other:  Michael's $1 ribbon (I know!  effing fabulous, right?), pearls (Michael's), clear Stardust gel pen

Copics:  0, C1, C3, E000, E00, E11, E57, G12, G14, G17, G85, V93, V95, V99, YR20, YR23, YR24

So, what do you think?!  Don't you LOVE the sentiment?  I should probably make a stockpile of these ;)

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Cuteness alert...

Ok... I know you guys are into the dark side of things and all, but I have to share this super cute Kraftin' Kimmie card I made over at my "normal" blog :)

Please click HERE

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HDH044 - Noxious Toxins

HDH Macabre Monday Rules:
1. Create a dark and macabre SOMETHING (card, scrap page, altered item, whatever) that follows the specific Macabre Monday challenge given. Cutesy is fine, but creepy is better :)
2. You have until the following Sunday night @ 5pm central time to post your creation and please leave a direct-link back here.
3. If you upload to any online galleries (TACPCC, S&S, PCP, SCS, etc.), please tag the title using HDH044.
4. Weekly giveaways!  Some weeks will be loaded with loot, others not-so-much... but the thrill is in the win, right?!  Some prizes shall be by random drawing, others hand picked... and I'm not telling you ahead of time :)
5. I'll be selecting a weekly Gruesome Twosome (my top two favorite creations) from all the players. At the end of every month these will be compiled and a Master of Macabre will be selected. He/she will be asked to be a guest blogger for the following month, if they so wish, and receive a little giftie from me... this could be stamp sets, handmade items, papers, halloweenie embellishments... you just never know.

Ok, my little pretties... your challenge this week:

Noxious Toxins

 You are to create a dark, Gothic, or Halloween page, project or card using images & sentiments of a poisonous nature.   Arsenic bottles, killer ivy, venomous snakes, pollutants of nature...
... it's a toxic free-for-all.

Check it!  Another week of getting my card done on time :)
Oh, man... I probably just jinxed myself!

Is this not freakin' adorable?  I know... I REALLY like the dark & creepy, but I saw this image and had to have it.  I love the sweet & sinister look on her face :)  This image is huge... not much room for any extra schtuff.  I should have done a 5-1/2" square card... but that's out of my comfort zone :)

Stamps:  Perfect Poison (or is it Pretty Poison? -- Kraftin' Kimmie)
Paper:  Neenah white, TAC black & DCWV green cardstocks
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo
Other:  MS border punch, Crystal Lacquer, Offray & HL ribbons
Copics:  0, E000, E00, E11, V93, V95, V99, YG01, YG05, BV20, BV23

I added a little lacquer to the bottle, her eyes, & barrettes.  I know... ANOTHER dotty background... but it is totally in keeping with this image, no?!  Me loves it.

Ok.  Your turn.  Are y'all up for concocting a little sumpin' sumpin' for this week's challenge?

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