Another Thank You Card Idea

Hi everyone.  I certainly hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and are all ready for a visit from St. Nick.  I have been so busy myself with decorating and baking that I have not seen my craft room for weeks.  Of course, it is also covered in Christmas decor.  My tables are filled with snowy villages or presents that are wrapped and waiting to go under the tree.  Usually I place them under it as I go but since I keep little Jackson, now 15 months, I cannot do that unless I want to re-wrap the gifts over and over.  He is talented at tearing the paper off!  I have so much fun with him.  It is really nice to have a little one around to see all the decorations.  His eyes light up and a big smile comes upon his face.  Too cute!!!

I did realize that I never shared the thank you cards I made for my husband's charity sponsors.  I mailed these out after taking lots of photographs but forgot to do the blog about them.  For today, I wanted to post the photo of the card so you can see what it looks like.

Many of the techniques used on this card are ones I really enjoy using.  The fireman and girl were made with the owl punch.  I have to tell you I punched so many of them as well as all the owl figures that I made before that my punch wore out.  It sticks now when I use it.  While I am going to continue to use it some and work it on some wax paper to help, I went ahead and ordered another one so that I would be ready for the next owl card.  

I chose to make the people for this one but about half way through I decided I was absolutely out of my mind.  There were so many little pieces to be put together I thought I would never finish.  I also decided it just took way too long to complete the 85 I had to do.  Next year I will have to start the thank you's prior to the event, especially if I want to do such a detailed one.  

I want to wish you all a very happy holiday season.  I am going to try to get my craft room organized and back in order for the new year.  That's my hope.  I have a really cool card to share with you in January that I made for my youngest daughter's boyfriend for his birthday.  I think you will really like it.  Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.  See you on January 6, 2014!

2 Weeks To Thanksgiving - Oh My!!

How did it get to be so close to Thanksgiving so fast?  I love the holiday time and always want it to last forever.  For some reason this year seems to be passing by so quickly.  I hope things slow down a little.

Are you ready for Thanksgiving?  I know I am not.  I haven't even bought a turkey yet!!  I cook every year and really do enjoy it.  I just feel so unprepared this year.  I finally sat down yesterday and went through my recipes to put the menu together.  I guess that now I will just need to put the grocery list together and get to the store.  I also need to put the guest list together and invite everyone to come.  I don't know about you but sometimes the "to do" list seems endless to me.  There are not enough hours in the day.  That's when I have to remind myself that the holidays are to be enjoyed and not a chore.  I need to modify my list and just do the basics - the things I love and the traditions that are so important to me.  Well that's my holiday advice.  Sure hope I follow it.

Today I wanted to share a simple thank you card with you that I made for a bride recently.  She wanted a basic design to send to those who gave her and her new husband a wedding gift.  So I came up with the following card. 

 

I started with a 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" Old Olive card and scored it at 4 1/4".  I added only one layer to this.  It is a 4" x 5 1/4" Night of Navy piece of card stock.  I ran this through my big shot using the retired Lacy Brocade impression folder.  I attached it to the base card using runner adhesive.  

For the center focal point, I used a retired stamp set called Ain't Love Grand.  I stamped the little car using Basic Black ink onto Whisper White card stock.  I used my color pencils to color it in.  Now there is a greeting that stamped with the car image too but when I punched out the car I deliberately did not include the greeting.  I just did not want to use it.  I punched the car out using the wide oval punch and layered it onto an Old Olive oval which was cut using the oval framelits set and the big shot.  The ovals are attached together using runner adhesive and the final oval is attached to the card using dimensionals.  I them added a pearl to the top and bottom of the oval for added decor.

 

The greeting I chose to use is from the stamp set (retired also I think) called Curly Cute.  I stamped it using Old Olive ink and punched it out with the modern label punch.  I then punched out an Old Olive modern label and layered the greeting onto it using runner adhesive.  The completed greeting is attached to the card with dimensionals.  

Once the card had had plenty of time to sit so the ink was dried completely, I sprayed the entire front with champagne shimmer spray.  For the inside, I put a blank 4" x 5 1/4" piece of Whisper White card stock which allowed the bride plenty of room to write her notes.  

Remember that cards do not have to be complicated to be elegant.  At this busy time of year the last thing you need to do is stress yourself out trying to do really intricate holiday cards.  Just do a design that you are comfortable with and your family and friends will love it.

Thanks for dropping by today to visit.  I will return again with another card to share with you.  See you all later.

Finally Back To Normal - Well Almost

I cannot believe how long it has been since I have blogged.  I had these thank you cards to make to send to the sponsors of the charity my husband is president of and boy did they take a while to finish.  On top of that I also was making thank you cards for my daughter's friend who just got married.  I don't know if it was just me being slow at doing them or maybe they really were that intricate.  Oh well.  All I know is they are finished now and I can once again relax a bit and blog more often.

I am still keeping my nephew Jackson 3 days a week.  He is so much fun!  He is 14 months now and walking a bit.  He prefers to have you assist him with walking but he'll get more independent in time.  My hubby is still battling his sinus issues and we will find out if the medicine he is on is working at all on Thursday.  I sure hope it is.  He has been ill for almost 3 months.  He needs a break and so do I!

Today I thought I would share with you the birthday card I made for my hubby this year.  I used a sticker set as the main focus points on the card but did a fancy fold for it called a tri-shutter.  Let me show it and get us going.

 

My hubby is a huge Nightmare Before Christmas fan so I went with that theme for this ear.  This is a view from the front of the card.  I used Pumpkin Pie card stock for this one and added layers of Basic Black and Whisper White to the panels.  I ran the white through my big shot using the spider web impression folder and lightly brushed the web with black ink to make it pop.

 

This is a look from the top down.  You can see how the card bends.  I love the fact that you can see all of it when it is standing up.

 

This gives you a view of all the panels.  I used the small heart punch for two of the panels as well as for with Sally.  The cupcake punch allowed me to create cute cupcakes for two panels.  I stuck with the black and white theme for these but added Pool Party card stock dots to the cupcakes as well as for the candle.  Believe it or not, this color matched the tone used on the Sally sticker for her skin.  The letters were cut out using the retired decorative strip called Billboard and my big shot.  I used runner adhesive and a two way glue pen to all all the embellishments.  The bats were part of the sticker set.

 

This photo allows you to see how the card looks when folded flat.  It fits in a regular A2 envelope and is easy to mail.  The recipient will be in for a surprise when they unfold it and see all the work you have put into it.  

I know I have made this type of card before and believe I have put the how to instructions up also.  Check my June 14, 2013 birthday card post.  They should be in it.  However if you cannot locate them, please let me know and I will do a tutorial on how to make the base card.  

I cannot tell you how good it feels to be visiting with all of you again.  I have really missed this.  Thanks for your patience and understanding.  I look forward to sitting down and crafting again soon.  While I may not get back to posting every day (I run short of time on my Jackson days) I will try my best to post 2 to 3 times a week.  

Thanks for stopping by to visit me today.  See you again soon!!!

A Different Themed Card

Hi everyone!!  Did you miss me????  I know I have been absent from my blog for a bit.  This October seemed to get really busy really fast.  I have been busily preparing for our annual pumpkin carving day coming up this Sunday.  We invite our children and close friends with kids to come and spend an afternoon/evening having fun, eating good food and just relaxing.  This year we have invited more people than we have ever had before.  It's going to be busy!!!!!!!!

My poor hubby got sick with his annual sinus infection.  Now he has had 4 surgeries on his sinuses so we are use to dealing with this.  This year was worse than the last few.  He went to the doctor and was diagnosed and put on antibiotics.  After 7 days he was no better.  We then went to his specialist.  He agreed with the diagnosis but said the infection was so bad we had to increase the dose of the medication he was on and add another one.  Now any of you out there that have husbands or significant others who are male know how much work men can be when they are ill.  I was happy when he finally started feeling better so that he could be up and moving again and able to get out of the house. 

Today I am going to share a card a made for one of my sister's coworkers.  She needed it for her grandchild's baptism.  I had never made a card for this type of event but was up for the challenge.  Let me get started.

 

I made this card as a square in order to fit the words and center piece onto it easily.  My base card is Whisper White card stock measuring 5" x 10", scored at 5".  I added a layer of Soft Sky to this cut at 4 3/4" x 4 3/4".  The final full layer is a 4 1/4" x 4 1/4" piece of Whisper White.  I ran this through my big shot using the perfect polka dots impression folder.   The center piece is a 3" square ( I think - it has been several weeks since I made this one ) and it was run through the big shot using the brocade impression folder.  All of these pieces are attached together using runner adhesive.

 

For the wording, I used the retired billboard decorative strip for the big shot.  I cut the letters out of Soft Sky card stock.  They are attached to the card using a 2 way glue pen.  I added some dazzling diamond glitter glue dots to each of the letters.  I added little rhinestones to the white area of the card. 

 

For the center piece of the card front, I used a beautiful sticker of a cross.  I placed this in the center of the of the diamond and added more rhinestones to add a bit of glimmer to it.

The inside of the card was personalized for her grandchild so I chose not of photograph it.  I was pleased with the way it turned out.  I thought it looked very nice.  

I am truly going to try to get back to regular blogs.  My guess is it will be next week before you hear from me again.  I just have a lot to do to get ready for the great pumpkin carving event.  

Thanks for dropping by today and be sure to keep stopping in to see what I come up with in the future.  Bye for now!!

It's Time for Halloween Decorations

I don't know about all of you but at our house, the Halloween decorations are out of the attic and finding their places in the house.  I have a lot of items that I put out at this time of year so I like to start early. 

Today I want to share with you a few medallions that I made for decoration purposes.  So let me share them now:

 

As you can see I made those beautiful medallions using left over Halloween paper from a few past years.  I added some elastic silver string to these by punching a small 1/8" hole in each medallion.  I mostly used the owl punch to decorate these.  I made lots of characters like the ones you see plus a few others.  I also used a Halloween tag stamp and punched it out with the retired small label punch.  If you remember, you always add a small circle to the center of the medallion on the front and on the back.  I attached the characters and tag to the front circle using glue dots.  Now you might wonder what I use these for in my decorations.  Well .........

 

I put them on my Halloween tree of course.  Yes we are one of "those" families.  Now I offered to leave my Christmas tree up all year and decorate it every month with items to represent the month.  My hubby said no to that idea.  However, when we found this tree a few years ago, he was all for getting it.  I know you cannot see the base but it is a 3 sided skull (face on each side).  The eyes are lit with green bulbs.  The branches of the tree are black and have orange lights.  As you can see, we have lots of decorations on it but you can see 2 of the medallions - one with an owl witch and the other with an owl devil.  

Well that's it for today.  I hope your home is filling with holiday things too.  I know it really makes me smile to be able to decorate my house.  I will be back in a day or two with a beautiful card to share with you.  Please come by to see it.  Thanks for dropping by today.  

Here Comes The Bride

Happy last Friday of September everyone.  I do hope your fall is cooling off and full of lots of fun plans.  I know as we move into October that our life gets very busy.  We have pumpkins to carve and turkeys to cook.  I have to say these last 3 months of the year are my favorite time. 

One of the projects that took up some of my craft time in September was making bridal shower cards for my daughter's friend who is getting married in October.  Since the shower is now over, I thought I would share these with you.  Let's get started.

 

I started with a base card of Old Olive card stock cut at 5 1/2" x 8 1/2", scored at 4 1/4".  I added a layer of Night of Navy to this with runner adhesive.  The navy was cut at 4 1/8" x 5 3/8".  The final layer is a piece of Whisper White measuring 4" x 5 1/4".  I ran this through the big shot with an impression folder that made the trio of dots.  I attached this to the card with the runner adhesive.

 

The hat for the bride was made using a 1 1/4" circle and a wide oval both punched out of Whisper White.  They were run through the big shot using the square lattice impression folder.  I attached the circle to the oval with a bit of runner adhesive.  I then punched a 1 1/4" circle from Night of Navy.  I set this aside to be used later.  I then punched the 1 1/4" circle again just offset from the hole.  This piece is the hat band.  It is attached using a 2 way glue pen.  I then took a piece of Old Olive card stock and punched out a large oval.  I offset the punch from the hole and punched again.  This makes the ribbon for the bow.  The actual bow itself was made using the retired heart to heart punch.  It is the smallest heart from this punch.  I added a 1/4" circle to the center of the bow and placed a pearl on it.  All bow pieces are attached using a 2 way glue pen.  The hair is a scallop oval punched from Chocolate Chip card stock.  It is attached to the hat using a bit of runner adhesive.   I always try to use a color to match the actual bride's hair if I can.

 

The bride's back is the wide heart from the retired heart to heart punch.  It is punched out of Blushing Bride.  To make the arms of the bride, just off set the wide heart punch from the wide heart hole and punch again.  Do this one more time so you have 2 arms.  The dress is make using the Whisper White card stock and the retired butterfly punch.  I ran all the pieces for the dress through my big shot using an impression folder I have.  The main part of the dress remains a whole butterfly.  Turn it sideways and adhere the heart back to the top portion using runner adhesive.  Take your other butterfly pieces and cut them in half.  You will layer these making each row a little bigger than the one before to get that full dress look.  The arms were attached using the 2 way glue pen.  The finished bride was attached to the card using dimensionals.  

 

Remember the 1 1/4" navy circles I set aside before?  Well now it is time to use them.  That is what I build my bouquet on.  The flowers for this are from a retired punch that punched a trio of flowers.  You can use the scallop flower from the itty bitty punch pack as well to make these.  I start by covering the 1 1/4" circle with runner adhesive and layering flowers on it.  I added more adhesive on the flowers as needed.  The leaves are from the bird builder punch.  I cut them off the stem and placed them in the bouquet with my 2 way glue pen.  The final touch for it is a pearl in the middle.  The finished bouquet is attached using dimensionals.

I learned to make this from Ellen Kemper.  She referred to this girl as little miss backside.  I have used it for other girls and not just a bride.  It is really easy to make and goes together quickly.

Well that's it for today.  I will see you all next week.  Have a wonderful weekend - the last weekend in September.  Thanks for dropping by today.   

Happy Birthday to my Sweet Heather!!!!

Today I am celebrating my daughter Heather's birthday.  She is turning 25.  I can hardly believe it.  Where does the time go?  I hope she has a wonderful day and spends it laughing and doing things she loves.

Well by now you probably have been wondering if I fell off the Earth completely.  I entered the month of September with high hopes of crafting and blogging.  I had no idea what was waiting around the corner.  I ended up coming down with a throat virus.  Now I have had sore throats over the years but nothing like this one.  It felt like someone had taken sand paper and scratched my throat all up.  Since it was a virus, there was nothing the doctors could do to help.  It kept me in bed for a while and the overall tiredness was horrible.  Then my hubby got a sinus infection.  He has suffered with sinus problems all his life and has had 4 surgeries on his sinuses over the years.  When he gets sick with an infection he really gets sick.  The first round of antibiotics did nothing to help.  He is currently taking a second round and we are hoping for the best. 

While all the illness was going on, I did manage to do a couple of special order cards and of course the birthday card I made for my daughter.  Therefore, I am happy to say I am going to be sharing these with you finally.

 

Since her favorite Disney princess is Cinderella, I decided to make a card with her dress on it.  I started with a base card of Daffodil Delight cut at 5 1/2" x 8 1/2", scored at 4 1/4".  I added a layer of Night of Navy measuring 4 1/8" x 5 3/8" using runner adhesive.  For the final layer I used a piece of Whisper White cut to be 4" x 5 1/4".  I ran this through my big shot using the Beautifully Brocade impression folder.  Once it was impressed, I attached it using the same runner adhesive.

 

To begin the dress, I first cut out a dress mannequin using Basic Gray and the dress up framelits set.  Now I wanted to get as close as I could to the color of Cinderella's dress.  I chose to use the retired Bashful Blue card stock to make it.  I cut a dress using the same framelits set.  I cut out the one with the little sleeves.  I attached it to the dress form using runner adhesive.  Next I used the retired build a blossom punch and punched out 2 of the smallest petals.  I added those at the top of the dress with the tips meeting in the middle.  I then punched out two 3/4" circles and two 1/2" circles.  I flattened one side of the 1/2" circles and attached them to the back of the 3/4" circles using a 2 way glue pen.  I then attached the 3/4" circle to the dress with the same 2 way glue pen to make the sleeves.  Pearls for the necklace and blue rhinestones at the center of the dress top complete the look.

 

The bottom half of the dress is made using the retired build a blossom punch and the wide oval punch.  You will also need to use the oval framelits set for the inside piece of the skirt.  I first cut the oval using the framelits out of Bashful Blue and vellum.  I glued the vellum to the blue using a glue stick.  I attached this to the bottom portion of the dress and built the rest of the skirt onto it.  I punched out 10 wide ovals.  4 of them are layered across the bottom of the dress.  The other 6 makes up the sides of the skirt.  I started at the bottom and went up being sure to have the top 2 meet in the middle.  I added the small wide petals to this to form the waist. Again I added blue rhinestones to the waist of the dress to enhance it.  

I will tell you that I started this dress by punching all my pieces and sponging the edges using Bashful Blue ink.  It gives the dress a depth but is not necessary.  I attached all the skirt pieces using runner adhesive.  The completed dress is attached to the card using dimensionals. 

 

The greeting for this comes from the Create A Cupcake stamp set.  I stamped it using Night of Navy ink onto Whisper White card stock.  I punched it out using the word window punch.  I layered this onto a Night of Navy modern label punch using runner adhesive.  I added a blue rhinestone to the ends of the greeting as well as one to the letter "i".  The completed greeting is attached using dimensionals.  

Once I had the greeting and the dress attached, I sprayed the card lightly with my champagne shimmer spray.  You can kind of see the sparkle to the dress in the photos.  I also added blue rhinestones to the white background of the card.  

I truly appreciate your patience and the fact that you have continued to come by to see if I am breathing or not.  I have started a new schedule with my favorite little man, Jackson, and will be seeing him several times a week while mommy and daddy are at work.  I cannot promise to post every day but I am hoping to post more than once a week.  

Thanks again for stopping by to visit.  I will have another post up on Friday so drop in to see it.  See you all later!

Why Are Weekends So Busy????

Hi everyone and happy Monday.  I hope you had a relaxing weekend.  If it was like mine, you were busy but still did some fun things.  I spent the first part of mine working on tickets for the charity banquet my hubby is hosting at the end of this month.  These tickets are for the VIP's who will be attending.  I also spent some time with my sister who has been super busy lately.  It was so nice to see her and have lunch with her.  Sunday was my mother in law's birthday.  We went to lunch with her and had a chance to just visit and catch up.  Sometimes you really just need that time to talk and catch up.  Life goes by so fast.


Since the tickets took up most of my time, I thought I would show you what they look like.

 

The bottom layer is a 2 1/2" x 6" piece of Night of Navy card stock.  I added a 2 1/4" x 5 3/4" layer of Real Red to this.  The top layer is a 2" x 5 1/2" piece of Whisper White.  I punched the 4 corners of each piece with my ticket corner punch and attached them together using runner adhesive.  I added the logo for the charity which was punched out using the decorative label punch and framed with the same punch to the ticket.  I cut the letters for ADMIT 2 out using my Cricut machine and a Storybook cartridge.  The rest of the information I wrote by hand using the Night of Navy and Real Red markers.  Usually I would print this info out on my printer but my printer decided not to work so I improvised.   All in all I think they turned out fairly nice.

 

This is the card I gave my mother in law for her birthday.  I have posted it before so I will not bore you with the details again.

Well that's it for today.  Thanks for stopping by to visit.  Be sure to come back and see what I have next.  See you all later!

The Owl League Strikes Again!!

It's Friday!!!!!!  For me, Friday's are also my afternoons with Jackson.  I just love spending time with him. 

The card I am sharing today is one I made for my daughter's boyfriend's birthday.  I don't like to post these until after they are delivered to the person so that's why it is being posted now.  Anyway, let's get started. 

 

I started with a base card of Read Red card stock cut at 5 1/2" x 8 1/2", scored by 4 1/4".   I added a layer of Basic Black card stock to this with runner adhesive.  The  black was cut at 4 1/8" x 5 1/4".  I then added a layer of Night of Navy card stock cut at 4" x 5".  I ran this through the big shot using the star impression folder.  Once it was embossed, I attached it to the base card with runner adhesive.

 

The sunburst look of the background was made using a scrap piece of Sahara Sand (not visible) cut at 2 3/4" x 5".  This served as the base the sunburst would be built on top of for the card.  I took strips of Real Red and Whisper White card stock which measured 1 1/2" x 4" and embossed them using impression folders and the big shot.  The red were embossed with the houndstooth impression folder and the white were embossed with the argyle impression folder.  Once embossed, I cut each of these strips diagonally using my paper cutter.  I took the piece of Sahara Sand and marked the center of it with a pencil on each side.  I then layered the strips of embossed red and white onto this using a glue stick.  Be sure to cover your corners of the sahara and once all pieces are attached, trim off the excess that overhangs the sides.  This finished sunburst was then attached to the piece of navy on the card using runner adhesive.

 

The black strip that goes across the card where the sunburst and card meet is a 3/4" x 5" piece.  I attached it using runner adhesive.  The greeting is from the stamp set Teeny Tiny Wishes.  I stamped it using Night of Navy ink onto Whisper White and punched it out using the retired small oval punch.  It is layered onto a large oval punch from Real Red card stock with runner adhesive.  The finished greeting is attached to the card using dimensionals.

 

All the characters on here were made using the owl builder punch.  I will introduce each one and list colors used for them.  This first one is Spider Owl.  I used Real Red, Pacific Point, Whisper White and Basic Black card stock for this guy.  The spider web and spider were drawn on by hand using a fine tip black marker.  

 

Next we have Super Owl.  I used Pacific Point, Real Red, Basic Black, Whisper White and Daffodil Delights card stock to make him.  His hair is an owl vest cut down.  The emblem on his chest was hand cut by me and the letter "s" was drawn on using a red fine tip marker.  I also added white get pen to his eyes.  The black lines on the belt were made using the fine tip black marker.

 

Last but not least we have Bat Owl.  To make him, I used Basic Black, Whisper White, Daffodil Delight and Basic Gray card stock.  I did use one extra punch on this one.   I used my handheld 1/8" circle puch to make the openings for the eyes in the mask.  For his emblem, I drew the bat by hand with a fine tip black marker and cut out the oval with by hand also.  I added lines to the belt with the black fine tip marker too.  

All pieces of each character were adhered together using a 2 way glue pen.  Once complete, the characters were attached to the card using dimensionals.

I hope you enjoyed my card today.  I wish you all a wonderful weekend.  Stop by next week to see what I have to share with you.  Thanks for dropping by today!!

Quick Tip Thursday

Hi everyone.  Since yesterday was my Jackson day and my birthday, I did not get into the craft room to make anything new.  I was just having way too much fun.

I did want to share a tip with you about punch art.  Sometimes when I sit down and make a new punch art piece, I will make more than one.  I am usually tweeking it and changing minor things but I may end up with 2 or 3 or more of a single piece.  Instead of using all of them for cards, I use them for other things too.  I might add one to my punch art sample board or put one in my punch art sample book.  I can also use these on a scrapbook page as an embellishment.  If you like to make tags or gift bags/boxes, you might even use one on these to liven them up a bit.  Whatever you do, don't throw them away.  There is always a use for them and maybe it is just as a card item but that's a good enough reason to keep them.

Hope this tip helps you.  Come back tomorrow to see my newest card.  It is great.  See you all then!!!

Easy Thanksgiving Card

Well here we are into the 3rd day of September.  Fall is coming and I for one and ready for the temperatures to go down a bit here in Phoenix.  The summer was actually pretty mild compared to some we have had but it still had its moments.

I started this past weekend with high hopes of getting a lot done.  Well in a way I did as I was cleaning some and doing laundry.  However, the weekend went downhill on Sunday.  I was so looking forward to attending the birthday party for Jackson but it was not to be.  I woke up that morning with a sore throat, congestion and a low grade fever.  Well there was no way I was going to expose everyone to my cold so I cancelled.  I do hope he had a wonderful time.  I will get to give him his present tomorrow so I still get to celebrate with him. 

I did manage to get into my craft room to make a relatively simple Thanksgiving card.  I kept it simple this time.  I have lots of ideas running around in my head but need to decided which to do first!!  So here we go with a turkey-day card.

 

The base card is a 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" Old Olive card stock scored at 4 1/4".  I added a layer of Cajun Craze to this.  It was cut at 4 1/8" x 5 3/8".  The final layer on top started as a 4" x 5 1/4" piece of Whisper White.

 

Prior to attaching the piece of Cajun Craze, I stamped some leaves along the top and bottom of the card stock.  The stamp comes from the retired set A Season of Friendship.  They are stamped on using VersaMark ink and heat embossed using clear embossing powder.  Before I go any farther I wanted to tell you that after the tree and leaves were stamped on the card I used the retired eyelet border punch to punch along the top and bottom edges of the white.  You can see it here in the photo.  I added a pearl to the top dot in each scallop.

 

The greeting on the front comes from another retired stamp set called Full of Blessings.  I stamped it using Cajun Craze ink onto Whisper White card stock.  I then punched it out using the small oval punch and inked the edges using a sponge and Cajun Craze ink.  It is attached to a piece of Old Olive 1/4" grosgrain ribbon (retired) using a dimensional.  I attached the ribbon to the card with runner adhesive.  Again you can see the eyelet border and the pearls along the bottom edge.   

 

The main image on the front is the tree.  The trunk and leaves stamps are from the retired Season of Friendship stamp set.  I started by stamping the tree trunk using Early Espresso ink onto the Whisper White cards stock.  I wanted to give my leaves fall colors so instead of using ink pads to stamp them, I used my Stampin' Up! markers.  I used the brush tip end and colored each petal on the stamp on of three colors:  Old Olive, Cajun Craze and Pumpkin Pie.  I used my stamp-a-ma-jig to help me place the leaves exactly where I wanted them.  I like the look of the tree.  I feel it represents fall and harvest time.

Well that's it for today.  I will be back again with another card to share with you soon.  Tomorrow is my day to keep Jackson and it is also my birthday so no promises to post tomorrow or Thursday.  I will see what plans my family have for me.  I do hope to have some crafting time again soon so check back each day to see if I have been creative!!  See you all later. 

Making A Comeback!

Hi everyone!  I have really been missing in action lately.  I do apologize for that.  This August was a very emotional one for me.  For some reason it hit harder this year than it has in recent years.  Just the other day I received an email update on one of my aunts is declining pretty steadily.  She was always such a strong person and when she walked into a room, you knew she had arrived.  It was just the final straw.  I decided I could not allow the sad things in life to rule over me anymore.  I am determined to find my inspiration groove and get back to crafting.  I think it will be therapeutic.  So this weekend, I plan to get a start on it.  September will be my month to get myself back into the swing of things.  Now Monday is a holiday so look for my new creations to start on Tuesday.

For today, I wanted to share a few cards with you made by others.  I took time to be inspired by some cards I found on the internet.  Please enjoy these and have a wonderful weekend.  I will see you all on Tuesday!!

1st Birthday Already!!!!!!

Hi everyone.  We are ending the month of August with great speed and September will be here in just a few days.  In our family, we have several birthdays in the month of September.  There's mine, my oldest daughter's, my nephew named Daniel, my mother in law, my brother Chris, my aunt and our newest family member Jackson.  Yes little Jackson will be turning 1 on September 2nd.  It is hard to remember our family without him as a part of it but it is just as hard to believe that he is turning 1 already.  We will be celebrating his birthday with him on the first.  I can hardly wait. 

My daughter and I went shopping for his presents this past weekend.  His mom asked that instead of cards which tend to get tossed aside that we all bring him a book instead.  I was so excited to shop for books for him.  I love to read and think it is great that his mom is already teaching him about the joy of reading.  Now being a card enthusiast, this was also kind of hard for me.  So instead of a card I decided I would make a tag for his present.  Ready to see what I made?  Here we go!!!!

 

It's Elmo!!!!!  One of our favorite shows to watch when Jackson comes over is Sesame Street.  He loves Elmo.  So I thought this cute little guy would be perfect for a tag.  Of course I also got wrapping paper that will go with it.  It started as a piece of Pacific Point cut at 5 1/2" x 5 1/2".  Yes that is a bit large for a tag but Elmo's head had to fit!

 

For the "Happy Birthday" down the side of the tag, I used an alphabet stamp set that I have.  I stamped the letters using VersaMark ink and then heat embossed it using Gumball Green embossing powder.  While you can see it on the tag, it did not show up in the photo as well as it could have.  

 

To make his name, I used my big shot and an alphabet set of sizzlit dies.  I cut all the letters out of Basic Black and Gumball Green card stock.  This alphabet set has a shadow piece to go with each letter which helps those letters to stand out.  I attached the green letters to the black using a 2 way glue pen.  The finished letters were attached to the card using the same 2 way glue pen.  I added dots of a blue glitter glue to the attached letters.

  

Now for the star of the tag.  To make his face, I started by sketching on a piece of white paper.  I did this for a while until I was finally happy.  I then cut out the shape to use as a template.   I traced this onto my Real Red card stock and cut it out.  Next, I used a Sharpie marker and drew the mouth onto the face.  The eyes were made using Whisper White and Basic Black card stock.  I punched out 2 white circles using the 1 3/4" circle punch.  Next I punched 2 black circles using the 3/4" punch.  Using the 2 way glue pen, I added black glitter to the black of the eyes.  I then attached the white to the face with a liquid glue and then attached the black with the same liquid glue.  For the nose, I chose Tangerine Tango card stock.  I punched out a 1 3/4" circle and trimmed the sides down to make it more of an oval.  Now I could have used the large oval for this but when I tried it, the nose was too long.  I could have just cut off and rounded an end of it but the circle seemed easier to me.  I added orange glitter to it with the 2 way glue pen and attached it to the card with liquid glue.  

I added dots of glitter glue all around the letters and the face using a blue and a green glitter glue.  It just completed the look.  

I hope my niece and her husband get a kick out of the tag.  I do believe she is scrapbooking Jackson's life and the tag could be used an the scrapbook page if she would like to use it.  I can't wait until the party!!!!

That is all I have for you today.  I will return with another share so please stop by to visit again!!  See you later!!

Happy Birthday Mom!!

On this date in 1929, my mother was born in the small town of Tabor City, North Carolina.  She came from a loving family and was the most wonderful person I have ever known.  I lost her 7 years ago and miss her every day.  I still find myself wanting to call her just to talk and laugh.  She is singing with God's choir and watching over all of her family.  It is still painful and I think I will always miss her. 

My mom loved pink and pink roses are my go to for her on her special day.  Pink roses are a symbol of grace and elegance  The pink rose is often given as an expression of admiration. Pink roses can also convey appreciation as well as joyfulness.  All of these are things that symbolize my mom.  She was graceful and elegant,  joyful and a person I truly admire.

So Happy Birthday Mom!!  May you sing with the angels a joyful song.  I love you.

Thanks for listening and for stopping by today.  I will see you all later.

Almost Finished!!!!

Hi everybody.  I am so happy to announce that as I am typing this, the invitations to my husband's charity banquet are almost finished!!!!  I only have 2 steps left to complete and am positive I will have them finished this evening!!!!  I am so happy!!!!

 

Here you can see the pieces just waiting to be put together.  I just need to attach the vellum to the red piece with brads.  Once that is done, I will attach the red to the navy.   Some of the invitations are just one panel while others are a little fancier.

 

This is a closer look at one panel of the fancier ones.  I used the retired Wedding Sweet stamp set.  I stamped the image on the side panels using VersaMark ink and heat embossed it with clear embossing powder.

 

This is a close up of the logo of the charity which I faded onto white card stock.  The corner images were stamped onto the white and the entire piece is attached to the red.

 

Now I know your must be thinking that this looks a bit blurry.  Well, you are right.  I promise they are not blurred.  Since this is printed on vellum, you can see the piece underneath and since it is not lined up perfectly it looks blurred.  

Once I have the finished ones, I will take a photo of them to share with you.  I want you to be able to see them completed.  I have made wedding invitations using these ideas also.

If you have been looking for the Pay Now buttons on my cards, I have to confess that I ran into a snag and have not been adding them yet.  I am trying to work out the problem and as soon as I do, I will put them on.  Until then, if you are interested in purchasing a card just email me.  

I also sell invitations for weddings, birthdays, etc.  Those you would need to email me about as you would need to give me more information about them.  

Well I am off to finish these cards and will then start work on some new material.  I also get to play with little Jackson today!!!!!!  Fun, fun, fun!!!  I will see you all later.  Thanks for visiting.

News!!!!

Hi everyone.  I am happy to be blogging this and visiting with all of you today.  It has been a crazy week.  I was bitten by some parasite last weekend and spent the entire weekend deep cleaning my house and washing all my clothes.  It was such fun (NOT!).  I was lucky enough to have the blog for Monday prepared but I lost track of time and did not get my others completed.  I am sorry.

I wanted to update my blog a bit.  I changed the look and added a snippet of information at the top.  This info is to remind you that most of my cards on this blog are for sale.  I accept payment through PayPal and am working on adding a "Pay Now" button to some of the past blogs.  My goal is to add it to future ones as I prepare them.  However I may not get it on all the past ones so if you see a previously posted card and the button is not there, please email me.  I will be working on this button over the weekend so hopefully I will get some of the past ones updated.

Please email me if you are thinking of ordering a card and need a change made to it.  I am more than happy to help if I can.  I will let you know if the change is possible and then you can order it. 

I am looking forward to a more relaxing weekend this weekend.  I hope you are never bitten by a parasite.  It is not fun. 

Since I deep cleaned the house and had to sit some things out in the sun where the warmth (okay here it is just heat) could freshen it, I thought I would share a card I found on Pinterest with you. 







 
This little guy reminded me of cooler weather.  Believe me I am truly looking forward to the weather cooling down and allowing us to have a time we can be outside without overheating.

Well that's it for now.  I will be back next week and I will hopefully have a new share to show you.  Come visit me to find out.  See you all then and have a great weekend!!

Mouse Madness

Hi everyone.  Happy Monday!!!!  I hope you all had a wonderful weekend.

Today, I wanted to share the card I made using the punch art I shared on Friday.  Let's get started.

 

So here is the finished card.  I started with a base card of Baked Brown Sugar card stock cut at 5 1/2" x 8 1/2", scored at 4 1/4".  I added a layer of Whisper White card stock cut to be 4 1/8" x 5 3/8".  I also added a layer of Basic Black measuring 4" x 5 1/4".  All layers were attached to the base with runner adhesive.

 

Across the top of the black layer, I added a layer of Whisper White.  This piece was cut at 1" x 5 1/4".  I punched the one side using the retired eyelet border punch and then ran it through the big shot using the perfect polka dots folder.  I attached it using runner adhesive and added the red rhinestones to dress it up just a bit.

 

Across the bottom of the black layer I wanted to add a layer of glimmer red.  I cut a piece to be 2" x 5 1/4".  Using a 1 1/4" punch for the head and the 3/4" punch for the ears, I punched out the 2 Mickey Mouse heads.  I attached the piece to the card using my 2 way glue pen.  I then added black glitter to the heads using the same 2 way glue pen.  

For the greeting, I turned to my Create a Cupcake stamp set.  I stamped the greeting onto a piece of Whisper White card stock using VersaMark ink.  I then heat embossed it using an embossing powder called Red Dragon.  Once cooled, I punched it out using the word window punch.  I also punched a modern label out of black and layered them together using runner adhesive.  I then added it to the card using dimensionals.

As we move towards the characters, I want to start by saying I used the cupcake builder punch for all the base and frosting pieces.  I will not list this punch below unless it was also used for another piece of the character.  All lines were added to bases, frosting, hats, bows and other parts using a fine tip black marker.

 

Let's start with Minnie and Mickey Mouse.  I used the same colors of card stock for each:  Real Red, Basic Black, Daffodil Delight and Whisper White.  

Punches used for Minnie:

Dots - cupcake builder

Ears - 1/2" circle

Bow - retired heart to heart and 1/4" circle

Punches used for Mickey:

Ears - 1/2" circle

Dots on Base - 1/2" circle trimmed into oval shape

 

Moving on to the next 2 characters we find Goofy and Pluto.  

Card stock used for Goofy:  Pumpkin Pie, Pear Pizzazz and Night of Navy.  

Punches used for Goofy:

Hat top - retired heart to heart punch; I used the wide heart from this and trimmed it

Hat bottom - retired mitten builder punch

Card stock used for Pluto:  Gumball Green, Crushed Curry, Garden Green, Basic Black and Daffodil Delight.

Punches used for Pluto:

Ears - word window, trimmed

Collar/Tag - cupcake builder (flame for tag) and a scrap piece for collar

 

Time for the last character Donald Duck.   I used Pacific Point, Whisper White, Real Red and Basic Black card stock for him.

Punhes used for Donald Duck:

Hat - small oval trimmed

Hat Band - 3/4" circle

Hat Band Tail - scrap of black cut into points on the ends

Bow - small heart and the circle from the itty bitty punch pack

All pieces of the characters are attached together using the 2 way glue pen.  Once they were assembled, I attached them to the card with dimensionals.  Since I wanted Donald to stand out in the center, I double stacked the dimensionals.  That set him up higher than the other characters.

If you have any questions about this card please feel free to ask.  I will be happy to help you.  

That's all I have for today.  I hope you will return to visit with me tomorrow.  I will see you all then!!!!