Have yours'elf' a happy new year!

Hello and Happy New Year!  I am sharing one final Christmas project before leaving this wonderful holiday behind.  

One of my co-workers wanted to make something fun for her son's preschool class.  She showed me the picture of the candy cane elves and asked how hard they would be to make.  After a quick look, I realized everything was made with punches and that it would be pretty easy to knock these out.  The only punch I didn't have was the mitten...  She drew, traced, and cut out the mittens and I made the elf bodies and shoes.  She also did all of the final assembly.  The top photo shows a close up of the elves before they were attached to the candy canes and the bottom photo is the finished project.

I knew we did well when her son gave his approval and told us they look just like real elves!  We received our inspiration from Jackie Topa.  If you look up Candy Cane Elves, you can find the directions.  We simplified our version just a little, but I think they are still pretty cute!

I hope your new year is one filled with happiness and peace!  

Sympathy, Hope, and Kindness

Hello! Today's post features two card designs I made recently and also a bit of philosophy, musing, and personal reflection.  You'll be happy to know that I'm sharing the cards first, so if you want to skip the rest it will be quite painless for you to do so!

I've recently had an increased need for sympathy cards.  I always have a supply of these on hand because I hate making these at the last minute, however, my supply has been steadily getting smaller and I needed to add some new replacements.  While I was picking out the paper for my cards, I was admiring the back of the gray pattern and thinking these would make great 'all occasion/thinking of you' cards.  I can always use those too!  I managed to make a total of six cards from one 12x12 sheet of paper and didn't have any scraps to set aside!

My flowers were stamped on whisper white using basic gray, then colored with pretty in pink and perfect plum pastels.  I used white for the flowers so the colors would be true and not muted by the vanilla background.  The hardest part of making these cards was deciding exactly how to place the flowers... other than that, they went together pretty quickly.

Now for the mental exploration of these cards...  Lately there has been a lot of thought been given to the finality of life and how best to use the time we are given.  This started several years ago when my brother almost died in a motorcycle accident followed by my dad suffering a major stroke.  At that time, I was questioning the reasons behind what was happening and looking for some brilliant insight to make me understand the grand scheme of things.  No such luck!  Helping my mom care for my dad on a daily basis and accepting the personality changes in my brother (major brain injury) left me feeling tired, empty, and completely broken.  A little less than two years ago, my dad was diagnosed with colon cancer.  He had surgery to remove the growth and was on schedule to begin chemotherapy when he fell and broke his hip.  So instead of chemo, he had another surgery... After his hip healed, he began receiving chemo which left him incredibly weak, sick, and quite grumpy (not that I blame him for that!).  He had just finished his sixth treatment when he decided he was done feeling terrible all the time.  He stopped chemo and slowly began to feel more like himself.  In the past month, we have found that he still has some cancerous growths, but they are growing at a much slower pace than normal for his type of cancer.  There is a good chance that he will end up dying from something other than cancer, which is both great and sad at the same time.  

All of this had me thinking about the quality of our lives versus the quantity and a good friend told me to read the book Tuesdays with Morrie.  If you have never read this book, you should.  It is a short story and very basic to read, so it's manageable even if you don't care much for reading.  The story was exactly what I was trying to sort out in my thoughts about death.  It is a beautiful story about two friends sharing the beauty of life while learning about preparing for death.  I can honestly say that it has given me great insight, and also shown me how I want to live my life from now on.  

During Fall Break, my sisters, my youngest DD, my parents and I went to a local historical museum.  There are sections dedicated to the German immigrants, local military, and origins of agriculture in our area.  We had a wonderful time letting my dad share his insights on all of the above and he took great pleasure in telling my daughter about using most of the farm equipment they had on display.  We played several rounds of "Do you know what that is?" and "What is that for?", without being able to use the information boards they had available.  Dad knew almost all of the tools and equipment, although my sisters and I did pretty good on the things we had seen Grandpa and Dad use on the farm.  It was such an amazing day and I was so happy to have another wonderful memory to add to my treasure chest.  This was also the reason I really wanted to use the Life is Beautiful side of the patterned paper.  Because when you stop to enjoy it, it really is! 

If you've read all the way to this point, I hope this has inspired you to take the time to enjoy some simple, happy times and share something with those you love.  Even the most ordinary things can become great gifts over time.  Have a wonderful day!

Is it spring yet?

Hi!  I don't know about you, but every year about this time I start wishing for spring.  Not the occasional sunny cool day, but REAL spring where I can put my winter coat away for long term storage!  It doesn't help that our winter weather started later than normal and seems intent on hanging around a bit more... So I decided that if I couldn't see spring flowers outdoors, I would make them indoors.

I made both of these on a chilly, wintry, snow day and I have to admit that it did make me feel a bit warmer!  Circle of Spring was one of those stamp sets that I couldn't wait to order, so I hate to admit that this is the first time I've actually used the wreath and bow images.  I also pulled out some really retired dsp called Tea Party.  As a matter of fact, I had to dig in my retired supplies to find the markers and base paper to match it!

I used patterned paper to make the brick wall.  I wanted to use something other than plain cardstock, and I think the subtle floral pattern made an interesting background.  The jury is still out on the polka dots...  

I hope that no matter what the weather (or season) you are having, you will be inspired to create something that makes you feel better too!  Have a wonderful week!

Card Recipe: Paper-Tea Party dsp (ret), pretty in pink (ret), whisper white, Stamp Set- Circle of Spring, Ink-memento tuxedo black, smoky slate, pretty in pink, certainly celery, almost amethyst, Accessories-brick wall embossing folder, wonderful wreath framelits, small scallop circle punch, word window punch, modern label punch 

A super simple card

Hello! I am so glad you stopped by to visit!  Today, I am sharing a card I made on Valentines Day.  It was cold, windy, and a little snowy, which seems to be the weather that puts me in the mood for creating.  Not much else to do, right?

This just might be the most basic card I have ever made!  I was trying to come up with ideas for birthday cards and was going through the new to me things that were still sitting on my table waiting to be used.  I bought the Happy Heart embossing folder thinking it would be so cute for Valentines.  Needless to say, I did not make Valentines...  It is always so strange to me that I will set out to make one thing and my supplies tend to pull me in a completely different direction.  I also need some Anniversary cards and thought the hearts would be pretty for the background.  I embossed and sanded some primrose petals core'dinations paper (retired...) and went through some papers and embellishments trying to decide my next step.  In the end, I opted to leave the background as the main panel.  The layered sentiment became my focal point and I found that I really, really liked how simple and uncluttered it was.

Speaking of uncluttered, this is definitely not to be said about my home at the moment!  January started out being a pretty good month for cleaning and organizing, but February is not following the pattern!  I am beginning to think that for every bag full of items going out in January, two managed to take its place in February...  Add to this the kids having the day off of school for President's Day and two snow days...  I am thinking that my spring break next month will be spent cleaning instead of playing.  Yuck!

Thank you so much for visiting and I hope you will come back again soon.  I'm trying to post at least once a week, so hopefully, there will be something new to enjoy next time!  Have a marvelous day!

Card Recipe:  Paper-very vanilla, basic gray, primrose petals core'dinations, Stamp Set-Teeny Tiny Wishes, Ink-basic gray, Accessories-Happy Heart ef, word window punch, modern label punch

Flashback Friday- Unpacking the Packed

Hello! I am so glad you are here!  Yesterday was the first day of school for us and thankfully it was only a two day school week!  It seems like no matter how prepared you are, things are still a bit hectic.  Add to that mix a new principal and two new supervisors at my school and let's just say I'm so thankful it's Friday!

Before my summer break ended I tried to make several birthday cards so I would have plenty on hand.  I also tried to use some stamps I either hadn't used before or hadn't seen ink in a while.  Today's card features one I haven't used much.  This is all one image and could be bought individually or as part of a set of 'packed' items.  I decided to try coloring only a few of the images and it didn't turn out too bad.

You will also notice I went back to my 'go to' layout! Old habits die hard!! I did manage to sneak another strip of ribbon on there and I noticed this particular ribbon is almost gone-makin' progress!

Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope you have a wonderfully creative weekend!

Card Recipe: Paper-Play Date dsp (ret), whisper white, chocolate chip, Stamp Set-Packed for Birthday(ret), Bloom with Hope (sentiment), Ink-old olive, so saffron, tempting turquoise, real red, chocolate chip, Accessories-modern label punch, real red grosgrain ribbon, brights candy dots

Flashback Friday- Snow Fun

Hello! I'm back with another Flashback Friday this week!  I want to apologize in advance for sharing snow photos; I know most of you in the States are sick of the white stuff!  It has been such a crazy winter with super cold temperatures and more snow than we've had in a long time.  Mother Nature must have been feeling generous because even the southern states were gifted with this mess!  I am ready for spring and will be glad when there's no longer a chance of getting snow or ice for the rest of the year!

My photos are actually from a heavy snow we received several years ago.  Even though it was cold, the girls still spent a lot of time outside and even shoveled the deck and the stepping stone path for us.  I'm glad they would still rather go out and play than sit in front of a screen.

I used their coats as my color inspiration and used some papers from Lap of Luxury DSP.  I've had the dotty letter stickers in my stash forever and thought they fit the theme since they look a little like snowballs.

I've been doing a lot of very basic pages lately in an effort to get my pictures into the albums, but I'm thinking I may have to step up my game and get a little more involved on the next ones. 

I hope I've encouraged you to join me in using up the older papers and supplies! They look so much better when they have a purpose don't you think?  Have a wonderful weekend and happy crafting! Thanks so much for visiting!

Page Recipe: Paper-Lap of Luxury DSP (ret), whisper white, Accessories-modern label punch, old letter stickers from stash

One Manly Birthday Card!

Hello! I am so glad you stopped by to visit today!  I think I am finally ready to move on from all of the Christmas and winter inspiration.  Nothing like a few days stuck inside as the wind howls, and negative double digits try to nip at your nose and toes to change your inspirations!  On the positive side, two extra days added to my weekend not only gave me time to pack up all of my Christmas decorations, it also provided time to create.  

I was in a minor state of panic a few days ago when I went to my card binder to prepare my nephew's birthday card for mailing and realized I had no card!  Fortunately, there was a gender neutral card in my birthday stash that worked out ok, but I quickly moved making masculine cards to the top of my list.

The inspiration for today's card came from France Martin.  I had saved a copy of one of her cards on my computer (pre-Pinterest) and when I went back to her blog to link to it, I couldn't find it...  Her card was quite similar but with a different embossing, sentiment, and she added some brads.

Now, doesn't the testosterone just ooze off of this one?  I don't think there is one girly thing on this card!!  I used the retired Packed for Dad stamp and colored a few items to add interest without being too colorful.  My favorite part is the silver foil paper embossing. Nothing says man card like a little diamond plating! 

I enjoyed this design so much I even made a few extra to stick back for Father's day!  Well, I hope you enjoyed your visit and things aren't too frosty where you live.  I know my friends in southern Florida and Australia are nice and warm...  Have a great weekend and happy crafting!

Card Recipe: Paper-crumb cake, always artichoke, whisper white, silver foil paper, Stamp Sets-Teeny Tiny Wishes, Packed for Dad (ret), Ink-black stazon, crumb cake, always artichoke, bashful blue (ret), silver pen, Accessories-word window and modern label punches, non SU diamond plate embossing folder

Flashback Friday-See what a little cleaning can do?

Hi! Welcome to another Flashback Friday! I hope all of my fellow Americans survived their Independence Day's activities without any injuries!  Our holiday was pretty low key.  My nephew came home for a visit and we all had a wonderful time together.

I have been using my time off this summer to try to do some much needed cleaning and organizing.    No big surprise that one of the first areas I tackled was my crafting space!  Since then, I have moved on to other areas of the house (not nearly as much fun, but easier to purge clothing that is the wrong size, than old beloved stamps!), but I keep coming across things that pull me back to my crafting space!  For example, my dryer was becoming the catch all area for outgrown clothes, so I finally bagged them up so they would be ready for donating to our local charity thrift store.  During this cleaning, I found a few homeless buttons and figured that I would never find the matching clothes, or they were probably long gone.  So I gave them a new home in my buttons container where I found the bag of buttons I bought a long time ago at an antiques and collectables store.  This led to a complete side track from cleaning!

My first card actually features one of these buttons.  They are metal and a little shabby looking and I absolutely loved them.  I used a faux mosaic tile technique for the focal point and added the button as an accent.  Along with my old button, I also pulled out some retired Tea Party DSP for this card.

As I was working on the first card, I moved a ziplock bag of thin strips of paper that were scraps from Easter cards.  I decided I really needed to either use them or pitch them and then I remembered the cute Easter bear digi I colored a looooong time ago.  This image is so old that when I went back to the person's site to link up to it, her site was gone...  So Caroline, I tried to give you credit but I'm not sure where you are now!

I glued all of the skinny strips of paper onto a rectangle of copy paper and then trimmed the edges to make them even.  Then I glued that to the base and glued the teddy to the front.  I realize that little bag of scraps didn't make a big dent in my stash, but I am glad that I finally found a use for all of the colorful scraps!

Well, DD#1 and I have a date to watch the Warehouse 13 marathon, so until next time, happy crafting!!

Wanna play Doctor??

OK... Get your mind out of the gutter!  This is a PG blog! :)

I was going through my supply of cards and while I had plenty of 'get well' cards, I also like to have some that are a little humorous to send some laughter with the wishes.  Night Nurse Nina definitely fits in the fun category.  I found her at Dr. Digi's, yet another purchase I made thanks to the enabling of my dear friend, Lisa M...  If you enjoy funny and slightly warped images, you will love this place!

I used copics to color the lovely Nina, and created the background with pastels.  Notable Alphabet worked perfectly for adding the sentiment on the first one.

and I changed things up just a little on the second one with Teeny Tiny Wishes.

I'm hoping that when these are delivered, they will bring a smile to someone's face.  I also hope that they won't be facing a needle like the one Nurse Nina is clutching... Makes me shiver just thinking about it!

I hope you have a wonderful day and remember, paper crafting each day keeps Night Nurse Nina away! And for all of my American friends and visitors, Happy (early) Independence Day!!!

Card Recipes: Paper-basic gray, basic black, tempting turquoise, real red, whisper white, Ink-copics, black stazon, Stamp Sets- digi images from Dr Digi, Notable Alphabet, Teeny Tiny Wishes, Punches-modern label, word window, 3/4" circle, Accessories- whisper white grosgrain ribbon(ret),  pastels

Anything But a Card Challenge #12- Share the Love

Hello! Well, I guess all of my fellow Americans know what today is right? It's Scrapbook Sunday!! You know, the night when everyone else in the family gathers in front of the tv, and you enjoy the peace and quiet as you craft your little heart away.  Oh, and I hear there's some sort of big sporting event being played tonight too...

Today is also the first week of Challenge #12 at Anything But a Card.  And what a 'love'ly challenge it is too!!

"Hello everyone!  Today we begin a new challenge perfect for the season: Share the Love- anything related to hearts, Valentines, love sick, love struck, love stinks, red, cupid, honeymoon, wedding, get the idea?  So this is a nice broad category that should generate lots of fantastic entries!  Be sure to link yours up below!  Just remember that we allow any craft project except cards!"

Now, before I show you my project for today, I want to clarify that this is NOT my design team project!  It is a card that I made that just so happens to tie in well with 'share the love' so I thought I would give you a little something to look at while I'm telling you about our challenge.

If you saw my post on Friday, you already know about the card I made for sweet little Grayson!  Today, I am sharing the card I made for Grayson's big brother, Aydan.  If you are looking for a very good reason to make a few little guy cards, be sure to check out my link.

I went with the Dinoroar stamp set again, but changed up the layout of the card.  I really hope both boys enjoy their cards and that maybe it will bring a little love and happiness to their lives.

Well, as I mentioned at the top of my post, I have been scrapbooking my little heart out and will have several pages to show you very soon! Have a marvelous week and happy crafting!

Card Recipe:  Cardstock-watercolor paper, river rock, always artichoke, basic black, whisper white, Ink-stazon black, always artichoke, crumb cake, river rock, chocolate chip, Stamp Sets-Dinoroar, Just Believe, Accessories-always artichoke denim ribbon (ret), word window punch, modern label punch, 1" circle punch, Houndstooth embossing folder, blender pen

Anything But a Card Challenge #8- Frosty the Glowman

Hello and welcome to week two of the current challenge at Anything But a Card.  We are celebrating the light or Seasonal Holiday.  You are free to interpret light however you like, as long as it's not a card.  We would love it if you would join in our challenge!

I am neck high in planning and making gifts for Christmas and knew that I would combine my design team project with something that would make a nice little present as well. It's multitasking by only doing one thing!! Gotta love that!!

I have been on an ornament kick lately and enjoy giving them as gifts because most people have a Christmas tree and who doesn't love a gift made with love?!  I first saw a snowman using a tea light, at Stamp & Scrap with Frenchie and thought it would make a cute idea for a little gift.  Then I saw another version that had a body as well.  Debbie's snowman is part of her 12 Days of Christmas Ornaments and she has a great tutorial, and some absolutely wonderful creations displayed on her blog!  I loved the hat on France's snowman and decided it had to go on my snowman too.  Of course, I took a little artists inspiration to change things around a little and make this guy my very own...

This was so easy to put together that I made 6 of them using up the tea lights I had left over from DD#1's birthday party a few years ago.  My girls liked them so well, they immediately laid claim to them as gifts for their teachers.  Good thing I made six of them!!

If you would like to recreate my little snowman, he really is super simple to put together.  Just layer the two larger circles and then use the 3/4" circle punch to make a hole for the switch to fit through. A little sticky strip around the base hold the ribbon in place and also attaches the tea light to the circles.  The eyes, buttons, and mouth are pearls that I colored with a black sharpie.  If you need a more visual description, I suggest a visit to Debbie's blog.

Well, that's it for me today! Only three more school days until our Christmas vacation begins.  Woo! Hoo! I am planning on doing a lot of crafting during my break and am looking forward to some 'not busy' time with my family.  Have a wonderful week and happy crafting!

Project Recipe:  Cardstock-basic black, whisper white, red glimmer paper, Ink-Baja breeze, whisper white, black sharpie, Punches-2 1/2" circle, 3/4" circle, Boho blossom, modern label, word window, Accessories-3" circle die, basic pearls, neutrals brads, old olive grosgrain ribbon (ret), sticky strip

Color Me Beautiful #7 and a scrappy page

It's Friday!!! Yippee!!! We have survived another week and it's time for a new challenge at Color Me Beautiful. I absolutely loved these colors as soon as I saw them and the wheels started turning when I saw this wonderful blue boat!! 

  

Doesn't that picture just make you want to pack a picnic and set off to your own little private island?!

I have always been something of a 'water baby' and love spending time anywhere near the water.  The colors for this week's challenge felt so aquatic and I really wanted to stay with the watery inspiration.  I also have a ton of pictures begging to be scrapped and after a quick look through the box, I found pictures from a pool party we attended this summer. BINGO!!  My next problem was trying to fit 5 fun filled photos onto one page...  I hunted through some old Page Maps sketches and found one with hinges on the bottom picture.  So rather than making the hinges simply decorative, I made a little mini album to house the extra pictures.  This also gave me a perfect place for journaling too!

I managed to use all of the colors in the challenge and found that I really love these colors together!  I even managed to find some old alphabet stickers in my stash that fit the theme and used them for my title.  

I hope you have a fantastic weekend, find some time to be crafty, and maybe even accept our color challenge and link up your fabulous creation!  Thanks so much for stopping by!!

Page Recipe: Cardstock-sahara sand, old olive, river rock, bashful blue, pacific point, Ink-old olive and pacific point markers, Accessories-2 1/2" circle punch, modern label punch, perfect polka dot embossing folder, metallic brads,stickers from long ago, 2 bowls for making larger circles

Sorry card...you didn't make the cut...

As many of you already know, I am on the design team at Color Me Beautiful and AnnMarie and Carole really come up with some fabulous color combinations!  I saw the colors for this week's challenge and immediately thought HALLOWEEN!! and I proceeded to make a card, which I quickly decided was not going to be my DT card.  Silly, I know, but I feel like if it's going to inspire someone else, I really need to LOVE it! So I made a new card which was posted on the challenge blog.  But, I didn't hate my Halloween card, so I figured I might as well share it on my blog.  So even though it didn't make the cut for the challenge blog post, it's getting a little love from my personal blog! Apologies in advance for the shadows...

While I really need to use up my DSP, I didn't have a pattern in these colors that I thought matched cute little Frankie's personality! So out came the embossing folder and the sponge daubers to add a little something to the otherwise basic cardstock. The rhinestones were colored with a sharpie to match the rich razz paper. I was thrilled with how well they matched!

So there you have it... I know I'm not the only one who critiques her work, and generally even if I don't love it, someone else does.  I really hope that in some way this is inspiring and I would love it if you found the time to join us in the color challenge!

Card Recipe: Cardstock-tempting turquoise, basic gray, rich razzleberry, lucky limeade, whisper white, Stamp Set-Googly Ghouls, Ink-Black Stazon, basic gray for sponging, Accessories-chevron folder, big shot, lucky limeade ruffled ribbon, basic rhinestones, glimmer brads, word window punch, modern label punch, decorative label punch, googlies, dimensionals

Color Me Beautiful Challenge #3

Hello! It's Friday! My favorite day of the week! Not only does it mean the weekend is here, but it's also time for a new color challenge at Color Me Beautiful! I am having so much fun playing with the wonderful color combinations and this week is no exception!

Check out these yummy colors...

and our color palette...

Anyone else hungry for eggplant Parmesan, or is it just me?!  

When I originally saw these pictures they really called Halloween to me.  So I made a Halloween card, but me and my nitpicky, wishy washy ways, I wasn't loving that card.  It wasn't horrible, but I really wanted something better to share, so I went back to the drawing board and made a new card...

Nope, not Halloween... but I like this one a lot more! Plus, it gave me the excuse to pull out some new toys and play with them!!  AND I have another Christmas card completed!! Bonus!

Have I mentioned that I love the bundles in the Holiday catalog?! As if coordinating stamp sets and framelits weren't wonderful enough, you also save money when you purchase them together!! How could I NOT buy them????

I hope the inspiration picture, color palette, and my little ol' card have encouraged you to pull out these SU colors and some SU stamps and play along!! I'll be patiently waiting to see your wonderful creations!

Be sure to check back later this week and I'll share my first attempt card with you.  Like I said, it's not horrid and I like it, but it just wasn't WOW like I wanted it to be.

Card Recipe:  Cardstock-basic gray, lucky limeade, whisper white, rich razzleberry, tempting turquoise, Ink-rich razzleberry, tempting turquoise, basic gray, Stamp Sets-Teeny Tiny Wishes, Ornament Keepsakes, Accessories- Holiday Ornaments framelits, white bakers twine, basic rhinestones, snow burst embossing folder (ret), Punches-modern label, word window, 1" circle, scallop oval

Challenge #2 at Color Me Beautiful!

Hello all! I am so far behind today, I think I passed myself twice trying to catch up!! I had every intention of having this post scheduled for first thing this morning, but ended up going out to eat with family last night and then completely forgot.

But anyway, my creation today is for the DT at Color Me Beautiful.  I actually did not have to make a card for this week since I'm on the second team, but the colors were just too pretty not to use, so here I am!  Take a look at the lovely inspiration photo...

and the list of colors...

and finally... My card!

 

I loved the gorgeous flowers in the photo and thought the wildflowers image from Just Believe would work to recreate them. Using markers to color the image made it easy to pull 3 of the 5 colors into my card. While I still think it might need a little something, I have yet to decide what it is and will just have to see what I come up with later.  There's a good chance it will grow on me too!

So if you think you might like to join me in the challenge, head over to the blog and check out the other design team members' lovely creations and get the details.  Remember, you do NOT have to use all 5 colors to qualify!  I was so happy to see a blogging buddy link up during last week's challenge and hope many more will join this week!!

Have a wonderful weekend and happy crafting!

Card Recipe: Cardstock-Always Artichoke, More Mustard, Very Vanilla, Raspberry Ripple, Ink- Always Artichoke, Raspberry Ripple, Calypso Coral, Stamp Set- Just Believe, Accessories-square lattice folder, word window punch, modern label punch, Victoria crochet trim

Wrapped up in fall!

Hello! I hope your weekend is off to a wonderful start!  I have my upline Stampin' Up meeting today, so my morning will be full of crafty fun!

I really got into the fall theme for our latest stamp club meeting!  All three cards featured goodies from the Holiday Catalog and were perfect for fall!  

I don't normally do a whole lot of creating with Halloween but the Googly Ghouls stamp set (also part of the Ghoulish Googlies Bundle) was just too cute! The bundle is perfect for making little treat bags so I made sure I put it on my preorder.  When I saw the adorable mummy card at  Robyn's Stamping Hood , I knew I had to CASE it!

 

The 'wrapped' background is an easy technique but looks so awesome.  I started with a piece of whisper white cardstock in the size that I wanted the layer (sorry, didn't write down the measurements...).   I cut 3 strips about 1" wide  and the same length of the layer with the paper trimmer. Then I did some very unscientific or mathematical cutting.  Just make sure that the one side is wider than the other. Hope that makes sense.  This does not have to be even and actually looks better when it's a little wavy.  Before adhering the 'wraps', I inked all of the edges with basic black ink, then alternated the strips onto the layer.  The rest was pretty basic.  Don't you just love the little googly eyes (or is that just the preschool teacher coming out?)!

Thanks once again for stopping by and I hope you find some time to be crafty this weekend!

Card Recipe: Cardstock-whisper white, basic black, pumpkin pie, Ink-basic black, stazon black, Stamp Set-Googly Ghouls, Accessories-lots of punches: word window, modern label, scallop circle, and 1 3/4" circle, googlies, basic black scallop dots ribbon

Tiffany's Challenge

Every month our SU group, The Crafty SisTAHS, get together.  Tiffany, my upline's upline, hosts the meeting and everyone takes turns with sharing, making a project, choosing a swap theme, and bringing snacks.  This month, Tiffany had a challenge for all of us to make a card using a sketch and some cardstock she gave us.  We were allowed to add a neutral color and any embellishments, but couldn't change the color combo.  The colors were wisteria wonder, cherry cobbler, and pretty in pink.  Very girly colors! So I pulled out the stamp, Packed For Mom for the first time; added some whisper white, and began to put my card together. I had a great time playing with this image! I knew I wanted to color some of the images and pop up the flower and the next think I knew...the dazzling details  and crystal elements came out and there was even some fussy cutting too!

A closer shot of the image...

I have to confess that I did use a different base than the one Tiffany gave me.  I knew I wanted to use bakers twine as the 3 ribbon/bows part of the sketch and couldn't wrap them with the base she gave us.  So I cut a new piece the long way for my card.  Hopefully, she'll forgive me for taking liberties with her challenge : )  I really enjoyed doing this and hope she will continue to offer these challenges.  I really didn't use wisteria wonder too much before, but now I think it's starting to grow on me!  Thanks, Tiffany!

Card Recipe:  Cardstock-wisteria wonder, cherry cobbler, pretty in pink, whisper white, Ink-black Stazon and several markers, Stamp Sets-Packed For Mom and Party This Way (sent), Punches-modern label, large oval, word window, 3/4 " circle, Extras- white bakers twine, cherry cobbler & original dazzling details, crystal effects, basic rhinestones, perfect polka dots embossing folder

Grease is the word

Well, as promised here is the second manly card I created this week.  I starting out with the plan of CASEing Amanda, and somehow ended up here instead! This card really looks nothing like Amanda's, and I do have intentions of still CASEing her!! 

I recently received the stamp set, Party This Way, FREE! Yep, you read that correctly! This is also one of the Sale-a-bration stamp sets!  (There is still time to take advantage of the fabulous FREEBIES from this catalog!) Anyway...I was thinking one of the balloons would be a good backing for the sentiment.  As I stamped, fussy cut, and tried different positioning, the card took on a life of it's own.  The strips of paper moved to the side, the base was embossed, and one balloon turned into 3!  The only thing that remained from my original idea was the sentiment label!

I did make one mistake on this card. I asked DH his opinion... (What was I thinking?!) His response was that it 'looked good' but how did I make it look like it was greasy. Greasy... So from here on out, I do not 'distress' or 'grunge' a guy card; I 'grease' it!!

I'm getting ready for yet another busy weekend with little time for crafting, but there's only one more week until spring break begins! Woo! Hoo!  I am hoping to get a lot of scrapbooking done during that time! Of course, spring cleaning will have to be squeezed in there somewhere too...boo!  Have a wonderful weekend!

Card Recipe: Card stock-crumb cake, real red, bashful blue, Ink-real red, bashful blue, Stamp Set-Party This Way, Accessories- square lattice folder, modern label punch

Well...Owl be...

Happy Valentines Day!  We don't really do a lot for Valentines day at our home.  The girls share cards with their classmates and friends, but other than that, it's a lot like any other day.

My oldest DD just celebrated her 13th birthday and since she loves owls and purple, I combined those to make her card.  Let me tell you, it's not so easy to be inspired by purple owls, but she loved her card, so I guess that's all that matters!!  Sorry about the not so great photo quality.  It was overcast when I took this picture, and too cold to be outside!

I used a lot of goodies from my scrap box and some purple glitter glue from my girls craft supply.  The sentiment was created on my computer and the inside says "Well, OWL be darned!"

I was so looking forward to an evening of eating out, when she informs me the morning of her birthday that she wanted my pork roast with carrots and potatoes.  Fortunately, I only had a morning class on her birthday and was able to get everything into the crock pot and had it ready for dinner!  Maybe my DH will fix dinner tonight... After all, it is Valentines Day!

Just a reminder that there is still time to be entered in my blog candy giveaway!

Card Recipe: Cardstock-whisper white, perfect plum, wild wasabi, tan paper from stash, Ink-perfect plum, rich razzleberry, peach parfait marker, Stamp Set-Punch Bunch, Accessories-owl punch, modern label punch, scallop oval punch

A Three Hour Card, A Three Hour Card...

I think I know how the people from Gilligan's Island feel now! They only intended to take a 3 hour tour and spent what felt like an eternity on the island instead.  I set out to make a bridal shower card, not a big feat, and ended up spending 3 HOURS from start to finish on this!!  Those of you who follow my blog will understand immediately why this took me so long! I'm a CAS card maker by nature.  I do enjoy vintage and shabby, but they still end up being pretty simple.  Not this card, my friends...

In an effort to spare those from the challenge blogs who don't really want to hear my tale of endless crafting, here are the challenges I chose to  submit my card.  Shopping Our Stash is asking for all that glitters, sparkles, or shines (not a problem on this one!), SUO Challenges is asking for an infrequently used or new technique (lots of embellishing and Smooch spritz), and Top Tip Tuesday has an anything goes challenge. And my 3 hour card...

and the inside...

I saw the inspiration card on Robyn's Stamping Hood a few months ago and thought this would be fun to recreate. I must have been channeling Anne Marie  (aka the Bling Queen!) because the next thing I knew I was pulling out pearls, embossing folders, ribbon, smooch spritz, glimmer paper, and lots of other shimmery bling!  In all fairness, there are a lot of crafters out there who could have made this in 15 minutes, but this was so far out of my comfort zone that I would pull paper out, then put it back. Try this punch? No... What about this one?  Big pearls or tiny pearls?  It needs texture... No, that's too much...Hmm...which sentiment should I use... Even cutting the paper for the cake layers was an ordeal (cut 3 different times til I was happy)! When I finally was committed (or needed to be!), and adhered everything to the card, it still needed something.  Out came the Smooches!  When I finished, my table looked like the entire SU catalog had exploded and I had shimmery fingers from the smooch spray! But I have to say, when I picked up the finished project, this truly is one amazing card, by my standards.  Of course, with snow and freezing temperatures, I was not about to go outside just to get better lighting, so even though you may not be able to see all of the shimmery, glittery goodness, believe me! It's there!!

I used a LOT of goodies on this card and amazingly 90% was stuff I've had for quite a while! I am hoping that the bride-to-be will enjoy this card! I honestly don't know her, but she is marrying our neighbors son, and I have known him since he was a baby! Hope you have managed to make it through my extremely long post and that you enjoyed visiting!!

Card Recipe: Cardstock-pretty in pink, real red, very vanilla, Sending Love DSP (ret), red glimmer paper, Ink-real red, blush blossom marker (for shading edges and hearts inside), Stamp Sets- Loving Thoughts, Sprinkles (ret), Punches-modern label, heart to heart, scallop oval, corner rounder, large oval, Accessories-elegant lines embossing folder, basic pearls, vanilla shimmer and blushing bride smooch spritz, Chantilly crochet trim