ABAC Challenge 40-Springing into Fall

Hello there! Fall is in it's full glory in southern Indiana and I couldn't be happier!  This is my favorite season for so many reasons.  I love the beautiful colors that seem to appear overnight; the air is somehow 'cleaner' and cooler, and it is the perfect time for campfires. So needless to say, I chose to do a fall project for Anything But a Card's Autumn Magic Spring Wonder challenge.  Of course, if you are on the other side of the globe, Spring may be inspiring you to make something equally colorful but in a different way!  I hope you will join us in celebrating both Spring and Autumn with a project of your own!

I knew immediately what my project would be.  We have two wonderful friends who have done so much to help us over the past year, and while I know I can't repay their kindness, I can reciprocate with a special thank you gift!  I bought an unfinished wood birdhouse to alter for a fall decoration.

I started with a base of light blue acrylic paint to match the mixer in their kitchen.  DD#1 took one look and said "Isn't her mixer more of a greenish color?" AHHHH! So on went a coat of Bahama Blue acrylic paint which is a cross between mint and turquoise.  This was deemed closer to the shade of the mixer. The roof was painted with Antique Copper metallic acrylic paint and the base was painted espresso brown.

I glued a large piece of aluminum foil to some printer paper, then cut the pieces to fit the dimensions of the roofs.  These were painted with the antique copper paint, set off to dry, then ran through the Fancy Fan embossing folder. It made a pretty cool shingle-like pattern.  I added some bahama blue accents to the foil roof to give the oxidation effect.  The blue/green house was given a generous coat of clear rock candy crackle paint to age the paint job to match the roof.  When the crackling was finished, I brushed on some crumb cake ink to fill in the cracks and age it a bit more.

My final touches were adding a few punched leaves in pumpkin pie, real red, and chocolate chip dsp. and some buttons.  I rubbed a little of the copper paint onto two vintage buttons and threaded some coastal cabana bakers twine through the holes.

The ultimate compliment came when DH declared the house to be really cool! He couldn't believe that I made the roof. :)  

Whether you prefer Spring or Fall, I hope you will join us in this month's challenge.  We would love to see your creations!!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I hope you have a fantastic week!

Flashback Friday and a little Christmas too!

Wow! Posted twice in one week!! That hasn't happened in a little while!  I am also happy to say I used up a bit more of the stash of older Christmas papers to make a few more Christmas cards!

Once again, the card is quite basic and was quick to create.  Hopefully, there will be a bit more free time soon for me to make something a little more time consuming.

This was as simple as cutting a piece of dsp, adding ribbon and a punched sentiment.  Then a metal button from a collectables/antiques store was threaded with some bakers twine and glued to the ribbon.  Easy peasy!

As the title of the post hints, the dsp is very retired and now there is only a little bag of scrap pieces left!  I may have to come up with a little something to use them so I can say I completely used the whole pack!

We have a busy schedule for the next few weeks, but I do have a couple of posts scheduled so there will be a little activity on my blog anyway.  I am hoping there will be some free time for me to visit blogs!  Somehow, there never seems to be enough hours in the days this school year!  I hope you find plenty of time to be creative and have a wonderful weekend!

Card Recipe: Paper-chocolate chip, whisper white, Ski Slope dsp (ret), Ink-chocolate chip, Stamp Set-Good Greetings, Accessories-real red stitched ribbon, cherry cobbler bakers twine, decorative label punch, metal button from stash

Now, how did that happen?!

Hello! I am so glad you stopped in today, and even happier that you haven't given up on my poor neglected blog!  Since school began, I have not been able to squeeze much creative time into my life, but I think things are finally starting to gel into a routine.  

My girls and I were recently talking about upcoming events and they mentioned Halloween.  I laughed and said we had plenty of time until Halloween was here...Ummm...Hellooooo! It's the middle of October!! Now, how did THAT happen?!  I don't usually make Halloween cards, so no worries about being behind on cards, but that does mean that the C word is just around the corner...

As luck would have it, I had a bit of free time last week to make a few cards, and I will be sharing them over the next few days.  I decided that I really need to use up my older papers before buying anything new for Christmas!  I made good progress last year, but there is still quite a bit there. Maybe by the time I finish scrapbooking Christmas, it will be gone!

Today's card is pretty simple in design because the paper had such a bold stripe pattern.  It might be a little difficult to see, but the banner is actually three dimensional.  I scored the strip on either side of the sentiment so it would pop up a bit.

Not much more to say about this one-pretty basic!  

We recently had a family reunion at a local park with a beautiful walking trail.  The leaves are just beginning to change and I managed to get a few nice pictures when DD#1 and I went for a walk.

Well, that's all I have to share for today.  Hopefully, I will get another post up soon so my poor blog won't feel so lonely!  Have a wonderful and creative day!

Card Recipe: Paper-old olive, whisper white, Holiday Treasures dsp (ret), Ink-chocolate chip, Stamp Set-Good Greetings, Accessories-circle framelits, scallop circle punch

Steampunk Therapy

Hello! I am so glad to be back to my blog and creating once again!  I've been in a bit of a funk lately. Too many things keeping me busy and no time to create can make a girl grumpy!  I am so glad that it is my turn to share at Anything But a Card.  Gave me a good excuse to bypass laundry and cleaning since I 'had' to make something!

Our challenge this month is Steampunk and those of you who know me well, know that this is quite out of my comfort zone.  I had never made anything Steampunky before joining this team, but the ladies at ABAC are so supportive and encourage everyone to grow, so I can happily say this is my second Steampunk creation.  I still struggle with getting what I want in my head transferred to paper, but it is a lot of fun and a good excuse to buy new things or dig through your treasures for something that will work.

I honestly had NO clue what this was going to be when I started.  I'm still not sure I know exactly what it is, but it was a lot of fun to play!  All I can tell you it is an ATC that features some industrial flower- like things growing in an imperfect garden!

I started with a piece of watercolor paper since I wasn't sure how inky it would get and I wanted it to be sturdy with the metal that was sure to appear on a steampunk piece.  I used the dots mask and a stipple brush to apply so saffron,  crumb cake, and soft suede inks.  Then I added the background stamp Backgrounds Rule in soft suede.  I was sure I had some images or embellishments that would work, but couldn't come up with anything that I liked together. I had this cog image in my head at this point and had zero 'gears' stuff to use.  I improvised with the spoked wheel of a bicycle stamp.  When I finished stamping a row of them, they looked more like flowers than cogs... That got my muse going! Flowers aren't very industrial-unless they have metal centers and copper stems! I also came across a left-over die cut flower and colored it with a copper sharpie and stippled soft suede ink over it to dull it down a bit.  An old button and some metal brads gave the flowers just the right touch of punk, and the copper sharpie made some nice little stems too.  I thought the Tim Holtz tag was the perfect mantra for this piece.  Not everyone can make flowers from bicycle wheels...

I hope you have been inspired to step out of your comfort zone or at the very least, find a new way to use your stamps!  I also hope you will join us at Anything But a Card this month!  Thanks so much for stopping by!

Project Recipe: watercolor paper, Inks-so saffron, crumb cake, soft suede, early espresso, Stamps-backgrounds rule, bicycle from Paper Pumpkin kit, metal brads, crochet trim, TH metal tag, button from antique/collectable shop, copper Sharpie

Last Call for Design Team!!

Our ABAC design team call closes on September 13th.  If you (or anyone you know) are interested please check out the details here.  This really is an awesome group of ladies to work with and everyone is always so encouraging and supportive!

Here is what our leader, Susan, had to say about our team!

" ABAC has no sponsors + no expectations + no having to use particular stuff! No Rules and a variety of themes and possible makes = doing projects you REALLY want to do! We are all about CREATING and SHARING... ABAC is all inclusive – and all levels of expertise are welcome too. If you love to create everything under the sun that is NOT CARDS... throw your hat in and apply!"

Design Team Call!!

Hello! I don't have a new creation to share with you but I do have an invitation to share YOUR creations with us!  Anything But a Card is having a design team call and we would love to hear from YOU!!!

You can find the details here if you are interested.  Having been a team member from the beginning, I can say that this is a fabulous group of people to work with.  No drama, and lots of support and love!  It would be awesome to add some of my wonderful friends to this team too!  We are open to a huge assortment of creations and creativity.  The only thing we don't create on this team is cards, but you can share tags, scrapbook pages, jewelry, sewing, canvas, mixed media, anything else!  We also have a wonderful mix of skill levels.

I hope you will take the time to check out the details and I would love to hear that you are interested in joining us!

Have a wonderful week!

Challenge 38 Patterns-Bending the Rules!

Hello! I am so glad you stopped in today!  I am sharing my project for Anything But a Card's Challenge #38 which is to use patterns.  Originally, the plan was to make it Zentangling, but we decided to make it a little more open.  

I love to doodle and have made zentanglesque pieces (new word!) without really knowing what I was doing.  However, I haven't made an actual project where this was the intent and I thought it would be fun to try.  My original plan was to go with the traditional black and white, but after I stamped my flowers, I changed my mind and used three different colors for my patterns.  I also bent the rules of patterns by using my new star mask.  The stars are very random-no pattern there!

 

I've had a pretty stress filled month so far and making all of those dots was very therapeutic!  When I finished, I was looking at all of the white space around the flowers and while I know it doesn't fit the Zentagle design to leave it, I really didn't want to 'over-doodle' this.  The quote was one that I saved from a card I received many years ago and I love the message of hope it delivers.  Is there anything more inspiring than knowing that even in the barest soils, we can grow a garden?  Quite fitting for our return to school too!

If you are a regular visitor to my blog, I am so sorry I haven't been around!  We've had some family medical issues added to my already busy  back-to-school schedule.  Everything is going fine now,but it's going to take me a bit to catch up.  Hope to see your blogs soon!

Project Recipe: Quotes Journal, Stamp Set-Time Well Spent (ret), Ink-Memento Tuxedo Black, Crisp Cantelope, Bermuda Bay, So Saffron, Baked Brown Sugar, Stampin' Write marker, Accessories- Star Mask

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-Visiting some old friends

Welcome! I am so glad you are here! Today's card is a true flashback; the only current items are the whisper white cardstock and the crumb cake ink. That's it!!  I pulled out two much loved and long neglected stamp sets and one recently retired set.  

After my recent table cleaning/organizing, I decided that I really need to use more ribbon! I have so much in so many different colors, yet I don't usually pull it out.  You may have noticed I started adding ribbon to my cards and projects in July, but I don't think you can tell by looking at my collection of ribbon!

The sand dollar is one of my all time favorite images.  This was one of my earliest Stampin' Up purchases and it has seen so much ink over the years.  The 'celebrate' comes from another favorite set that I used quite a bit when I first started making cards.  Even the card design is a copy of one of my first cards although I think I like the original card better than this one.  I think I should have gone with island indigo ink for the sentiment and star banner to zazz it up a bit.  I do like the little folded up flap tied with ribbon on one side and stapled on the other. Don't look too closely though; my first stapler did not do a good job and I had to remove the staple and try with a different one-didn't quite line up...grr...

I hope I have inspired you to dust off some of your old favorites and use up some of those neglected supplies!  Have a great weekend!  

Card Recipe: Paper-Sycamore Street dsp, whisper white, sahara sand, Stamp Sets-Nature's Wonders, Wonderful Words, Banner Blast, Ink-crumb cake, Accessories-whisper white stitched ribbon, island indigo satin ribbon, hole punch

Book Rental Blues...

Hi! Things are a bit melancholy here today.  We are heading to the schools to pay book rental and verify schedules for the new school year.  It seems like just yesterday we were cleaning out lockers and bringing everything home...  DD#1 and I are hoping for a freak summer snowstorm delaying the start of school, but DD#2 can't wait to be back with her friends.  I'm not sure where I went wrong with that one... (just kidding, but only a little!).

I have another card to share with you today.  It is pretty much a flashback card since so much of it is retired, but I did use my blendabilities again, and a new stamp set for the sentiment so that balances things out a little.

The pear is from the retired Faith in Nature and is one of my favorite images.  I always liked using pastels to shade and color this, but thought I would try my hand at the alcohol markers again.  I still have a long way to go, but at least I didn't want to throw this one out when I was finished!  I seem to be in a rut on the layout of my cards too! This seems to be my default design with the blocks of layers and perfectly straight lines.   Hopefully I will find some time to pull out some sketches and try something new this week.

Well, I better get going so we can take another step closer to starting back to school.  We still have some clothes shopping to do and I have some unfinished jobs at home that I really need to finish.  I hope you find some time to be creative today and have a terrific rest of the week!

Card Recipe: Paper-daffodil delight, whisper white, subtles dsp (ret), Stamps-Faith in Nature (ret), Bloom with Hope, Ink-memento tuxedo black, daffodil delight and old olive blendabilities, Accessories, daffodil delight stitched ribbon (ret)