Midnight Madness Sketch #34

This is my design card for MMSC #34.
I chose a cute little image from Victoria Case for this wonderful sketch!
Please check out the home of the Midnight Madness Sketch Challenge for more
fantastic cards from our design team!

Just a little side note... I am having problems with my blogger list on the right side. It shows up under the comments but not on the original post. Hopefully it will get fixed soon!

Pixie Cottage Fancy Folds

For Saturdays showcase the design team did fancy fold cards. As I had never done one before it took me a really really long time. The papers that I used are sugar coated roses from g c d studios. My saying inside says: Every good and perfect gift is from above, James 1:17
Rejoicing in God's gift of you! Happy Birthday.
I used a cute little sweet pea stamp from Pixie Cottage that was illustrated by Alisa. I am pretty pleased with the way that it turned out. It is so sparkly and shimmery.

MMSC #32 BAKING PROJECT!

We hope that you enjoyed our Christmas Blog Hop last week and were inspired by our lovely Design Team's Cards and Projects! Remember you have until Midnight tonight to enter your name in Mr. Linky for the Blog Hop and the Sketch Challenge if you haven't done so already. Thank you so much to all of you that participated. We really enjoyed viewing all your wonderful comments and appreciated your flattering responses. We will be randomly drawing names tomorrow for the prizes and announcing the winners on Friday. Good Luck to all of you who entered and be sure to check back for the winners.

This week we have another little treat for you. Our design team chose to feature a "Baking" theme with our sketch this week. Lots of people bake for the Holidays and share their yummy goodies with family and friends. We wanted to share with you a way to present those homemade gifts. This is a tradition in many a households that sure has been made easier with today's premade cookie doughs found in your grocer's dairy case. But, there is nothing like the smell and taste of made from scratch cookies. They fill your home with the fragrance of spices and chocolate. They can be crisp, buttery, rolled, glazed, sprinkled, frosted, decorated, filled with jelly, coconut or nuts and even fried. So, with that in mind, be sure to check each of our Design Team's blogs because we have shared with you some of our favorite cookie recipes for the Holiday Season.

Our Gold Star Winner Winner this week is:
#73 Jessica G

Our Remarkables this week are:

#37 Mrs. Plum
#64 Vickie (basement stamper)

If you would like to be considered for this award, please make sure your card link is posted to Mr. Linky by Sunday of each week.



OUR MONTHLY BONUS SPONSOR FOR DECEMBER IS.....

Fran from the Frantic Stamper Inc. is the sponsor of our Monthly Bonus Prize Winner. You can visit Fran at her store at the Frantic Stamper Inc, your #1 source for rubberstamping and scrapbooking supplies. Friendly one-on-one service since 1996!! You can read about their store upgrading to a 6000 square feet warehouse with many new products at Frantic Stamper Happenings. Fran is offering a MEGA package worth $250 to one of you lucky players this month! Frantic Stamper is also an official vendor for Martha Stewart products and has the Largest Selection of punches online. Please browse the tremendous selection of scrapbooking and card making supplies at her shop. Wow, here is the picture of the MEGA prize package!!! Some lucky winner will receive this. Thank you so much Fran!

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OUR WEEKLY BONUS SPONSOR THIS WEEK IS.....

We are so happy to announce that this week we have the wonderful Simon Says Stamp sponsoring us for our weekly Bonus prize for MMSC32. They are always one of our favorite sponsors because they have over 100,000 items in stock and ship USA orders over $60 and International orders over $120 for free. We are please to have them as a reoccurring sponsor here at the Midnight Madness sketch challenge blog. Be sure to stop in and check out all they have to offer.

www.SimonSaysStamp.com

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THIS WEEK'S SKETCH

This is my baking project for this weeks challenge. I designed this cookie box for yummy homemade decorator sugar cookies! Every year I make loads of these cookies to give to family and friends. Included inside is the recipe for these yummy soft sugar cookies as well as the secret to my icing. It stays in place even if the cookies are stacked and yet is soft when bit into!
I used gingerbread men (themed chipboard stickers), found at my local walmart for only $1.50 per sheet. Martha steward punches both in gingerbread men and snowflakes were used for the cardstock trim. Ribbons were also Martha Stewart and were found at Archivers in the $1.99 bin. Of course I used my favorite bazzill card stock as well as designer cardstock from basic gray, eskimo kisses. I also did a coordinating bucket to hold those holiday chocolates! For the top of the bucket I used my circle spellbinders. They fit perfectly. For more fun projects please check out all of the other wonderful items done by our design team at the HOME of the Midnight Madness Sketch Challenge!

Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe

1 cup butter
1 cup granulated sugar
Cream these together
Add 1 egg, mix well with beater
add 1 tsp clear vanilla extract mix well
Add 2 teaspoons baking powder to 2 3/4 cups flour
slowly mix into creamed butter mixture
(dough should be stiff, add up to 1/4 more cups of flour only if needed)
DO NOT REFRIGERATE
Roll out dough to 1/3 inch
cut out shapes with your cookie cutters
Bake in 350 oven for 10-15 minutes until very light brown
Let cool Ice using recipe below!

Decorator icing
(I make a huge amount to separate into colors, as long as the icing is stored in the refrigerator in a covered container, it will stay fresh for up to 2 weeks)

5 pounds powdered sugar
2 cups crisco(vegetable shortening) (or butter but white icing will be slightly yellow)
milk (I use 2 percent)
2 tsp clear vanilla extract

In large mixing bowl (I have a stand mixer but hand mixer will work), cream together the crisco, powdered sugar, and clear vanilla add just enough milk until very thick but creamy
and here is my secret: Add 2 teaspoons cream of tarter
beat well. Separate into individual containers, add icing colors (I use wilton) mix in colors well.
Make sure that icing is covered, until use. I hand pipe my cookies but they can also be iced with a knife. Add sprinkles after decorating each cookie if desired. Icing will begin drying. I leave my cookies out for 1-2 hours to finish drying. Cookies can then be stacked on plates or in containers
By using the cream of tarter in the icing the outside is set but the inside stays soft.
Enjoy!

Holiday Blog Candy Winners!

The random generator chose:
1. Olga- Mechtayou's Art Studio- EXPIRED NEW WINNER CHOSEN is Shelly - Inky Hugz- contacted and mailed.
2. Kim-Me-Ma Kim's - contacted and mailed
3. Rosalee- Rosalee's Card Haven - contacted and mailed
4. Karen - Being Karen - contacted and mailed

Thank you so much for signing up for my blog candy! I appreciate all of your comments!

Winners please contact me via email at cayce22222@aol.com

Please put holiday blog candy in title of email

Must be claimed within 48 hours or another winner will be selected!

I will be giving away 2 new release rubber stamps from Pixie Cottage in January. I will also include some other goodies with this. There will be 2 winners! Make sure that you check back!

Midnight Madness Blog Hop

Welcome to our Midnight madness Christmas Blog Hop. We know this is a busy time of year for everyone so we are including our blog hop with our regular weekly Challenge MMSC #31. We invite you to participate in our challenge by making a card from our fabulous sketch and to be inspired by the projects on our blogs and make a matching ornament or small project. You are not required to do the project, but it would be a treat for us to see what you come up with and we would love it !!! You also do not have to do the sketch to participate in the blog hop. As an added bonus, we are going to do something a little different this time around. Each of our Design Team is offering up their card and project as a prize. WOW, a chance to own a Midnight Madness Card and design!!!

1 Blog Hop GRAND Prize Drawing
12 Design Team Featured Card with Ornament Small Project Random Drawing
1 PRETTY PAPER Christmas Card drawing from the 12 Highlighted on Each DT Blog from the MMSC #28

you have until Tuesday, December 15, 2009 12 p.m. Midnight EST to enter your MMSC#31 in Mr. Linky at Priscilla's Midnight Madness Blog as always to be eligible for the Regular Weekly Bonus Prize.

If you would like your name entered in for the MIDNIGHT MADNESS BLOG HOP PRIZES, you will have to follow the directions below.....

1. To be eligible for the Blog Hop Grand Prize, 12 Design Team Card/Project Drawing, and Pretty Paper drawing; you must leave a comment on each of the Designer's Blogs during your journey through the Hop. once your name has been chosen, we will check to make sure you have commented on each blog before you are notified.

2. Enter your name and the words BLOG HOP in Mr. Linky, to be eligible for the Blog Hop prizes. As an added bonus, if you do the sketch you can enter your link to your card/project and have tow entry chances for the prizes.

3. In order to have a chance at winning any of the prizes, except for the Regular Weekly Bonus, you must gather a secret phrase along the Blog hop. Each Design Team Member will have a particular word or words listed on their blog and as long as you visit them in order, you will have the secret phrase at the end. If you are picked as a Prize winner you will be contacted by email and you must email back the secret phrase WITHIN 48 HOURS to claim your prize. If there is not response within the 48 hours time frame, another winner will be chosen until all prizes are awarded. To start off, you must being at Priscilla's Midnight Madness Blog! If you have not started there, I suggest you go back and begin again..l.you don't want to miss out on the Prizes! if you have arrived from Priscilla's Midnight Madness Blog then you are on the correct course.
If you want a chance to win you will have to follow the instructions listed above. Thank you and have fun on the Hop.

If you would like to be considered for the Christmas Blog Hop Prizes, and you DO NOT have a blog, you still can participate. You will have to follow the directions below.....

1. Leave a comment on the Midnight Madness Blog Hop comment section with your email address, first name and last name initial.
2. link up to Mr. Linky with first name, last name initial, the words BLOG HOP and in the URL space enter this address http://priscillastyles.blogspot.com/

Pretty Paper Christmas Card Picks

Pretty Paper, Pretty Ribbon of Blue,
Wrap your presents to your darling from you,
Pretty pencils to write I love you,
Pretty Paper, Pretty Ribbons of Blue.

Vicki Basement Stamper

My choice for the Pretty Paper Card selections was this adorable little snowman who just made me smile! He was created by Vicki: Basement Stamper!
Isn't he just adorable!

We as paper crafters and card makers go crazy over pretty paper, pretty pencils, and pretty ribbons, don't we? Probably most of you are wishing for a special paper crafting tool or treat to be under the Christmas Tree with your name on it this year!! This song fits the mood and tempo of all us out there crafting away for the Christmas Holiday. For something Festive for the Season we want to feature our favorite cards from MMSC#28 to honor our Midnight Madness Sketch Challenge Players who played along with us that week. Our Pretty Paper card choices will need to do the blog hop, leave a comment at each of the Design Team Blogs, and collect a word from each of the blogs visited for the winning phrase and place their name in Mr. Linky with "BLOG HOP" after their name at Priscilla's Midnight Madness Blog! We will enter your name in a drawing for one winner form our 12 entries. We will email you when we verify that you have entered your name in Mr. Linky and have left a comment on each of the Design Team Blogs, you will need to email back the phrase in order to qualify for your prize. Even if your card has been chosen for the "Pretty Paper" you are still eligible for the other prizes.

This is my design card and ornament for MMSC 31. Please leave a comment on each design team members blogs and you will be entered to win one of the design team projects!
On my ornament, I have trimmed the star out with glittery ric rack and rhinestones. So sparkly!

Our Monthly Sponsor for December is:

Fran from the Frantic Stamper Inc. is the sponsor of our Monthly Bonus Prize Winner. You can visit Fran at her store at the Frantic Stamper Inc, your #1 source for rubberstamping and scrapbooking supplies. Friendly one-on-one service since 1996!! You can read about their store upgrading to a 6000 square feet warehouse with many new products at Frantic Stamper Happenings. Fran is offering a MEGA package worth $250 to one of you lucky players this month! Frantic Stamper is also an official vendor for Martha Stewart products and has the Largest Selection of punches online. Please browse the tremendous selection of scrapbooking and card making supplies at her shop.

Revealing the Word for the Secret Phrase

My word for the secret phrase is "" and your next word can be found at Chris's Blog Twinkles glow-Glowbug. Thank you for playing in our weekly challenges and for all your support each week. Everyone at Midnight Madness would like to wish you and yours a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous New year. We thank you for joining us in our special Christmas Blog Hop and invite you to participate in the sketch challenge this week with a small project of your own. Here at Midnight madness we are looking forward to 2010 with more exciting fun and prizes and meeting and making friends with all of our participants past, present, and future. Thank you and good luck winning the prizes!!!

Pixie Cottage Sketch #5

I am having so much fun being a Pixie Girl for the month of December. There are some of the most adorable stamps at The Pixie Cottage!
There are so many gorgeous new releases too!
Here is my design card for sketch #5. I have used one of my favorite Pixie stamps here. What Christmas is complete without gingerbread men in the cookie jar!

Pixie Cottage Saturday Showcase: Anything but a Card!

For this Saturdays showcase over at Pixie Cottage, I chose to do a cute little gift card holder. The stamp that I used was illustrated by Eileen Gutierrez. She is just so talented. I needed a gift card holder for a friend of mine who recently had a birthday. These cute little penguins are just so adorable!

HOLIDAY BLOG CANDY ENDS DECEMBER 10TH!

HOLIDAY BLOG CANDY STARTS NOW!

Sorry about running a little late in posting this! I had to work really late unexpectedly! But here it is finally!
My holiday blog candy will run until the 10th of December. To enter just become a follower, link my candy to your blog and post a comment below. If you don't have a blog, just send an email link to me along with 3 friends who you have told about my candy! If you are already a follower just post a comment and link my candy to your blog!

I will have 4 winners so you will have more of a chance to win!
Each blog candy has a new border punch, holiday trim, package of mulberry paintable flowers, Christmas holiday stamp set, holiday embellishment buttons. I am also adding a package of assorted ribbons and trims (NOT PICTURED)

THIS POST WILL STAY CLOSE TO THE TOP OF MY BLOG UNTIL DECEMBER 10TH. PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR NEWER POSTS!