thankful for you...

Hello friends!!  Wanted to say thank you to everyone who left me such sweet comments on my last post.  They have really helped me get through this hard time.   I made this card earlier in the week for the Splitcoaststampers color challenge and after everything that happened since then I thought it was the perfect card to post as a thank you.

The stamps are from the Precious Remembrance Shop set Fall Colors.  I used the emboss/resist technique.  The leaves were stamped with watermark ink, clear embossing powder applied and then heat set.  After that was done I sponged on Stampin Up!'s Calypso Coral and Cameo Coral inks.  The sentiment was stamped using SU!'s Crumb Cake and the edges inked with some Calypso Coral.  Before adhering the sentiment strip I added some burlap twine.  Finished things off with a few clear sequins.

Thanks for stopping by...

Supplies:  Cardstock:  PTI white; SU! Crumb Cake; Stamps:  Precious Remembrance Shop; Inks:  VersaMagic watermark ink, SU! inks; burlap twine; Pretty Pink Posh clear sequins (small, medium & large)

miracles happen...

Hello friends!!  Popping in with a card I made for the new color challenge over at Splitcoaststampers.  It is a fun combo of aqua, red and kraft... love anything with kraft.  I picked up my new Stampin Up! goodies from my demo this morning and had a play with them this afternoon.  Here is what I made:

I did some collage stamping using my current favorite Stampin Up! set, Kinda Eclectic and then layered on the three die cut feathers.  I added the little button/twine embellishment and the sentiment and I was done.  The main panel was die cut using my Avery Elle Dotted die.  I think I will pop this into the current Simon Says Stamp Monday challenge as that is anything goes!

Thanks for stopping by... and thank you to everyone who wished me well!  I felt so encouraged after reading your sweet comments!!  Started physical therapy and I'm happy to say that I am feeling a lot better!!

Supplies:  Cardstock:  PTI Rustic White; Stampin Up: Crumb Cake; Inks:  Stampin Up! Coastal Cabana, Real Red and Crumb Cake; Memento Tuxedo Black; Stamps:  Stampin Up!; Dies:  Stampin Up! (feathers) and Avery Elle; Button:  PTI; Twine:  The Twinery

some online card class... cards

Hello, hello... have a few more cards that I made using a few of the techniques that I have been learning in the Online Card Class Watercolor for Card Makers.   The first card uses a technique that I learned from Shari Carroll on day five of class.

Her technique involves watercoloring on an embossed background.  This month I am guesting designing for the Splitcoaststampers Color Challenge and I decided to use this technique for my card for this week's challenge:  Red, Yellow and Olive Green.  I stamped the background (from Penny Black) in VersaMark, applied white embossing and heat set.  I then colored different portions of the background using Ranger Distress markers in Crushed Olive, Squeezed Lemonade & Barn Door and water. I created the little button embellishment by die cutting olive green and yellow cardstock using my PTI Button Stack dies.  I adhered them together and they applied Glossy Accents to make it look more like a button.  Once dry I added some red baker's twine to the "button" and adhered it to my sentiment banner.

 

The second card I made using a technique that Jennifer McGuire taught on day six of class.  She used a shimmer mist as her water to add subtle shimmer to her image.  I stamped the image from the Stampin Up! set So Very Grateful on watercolor paper using VersaMark, applied white embossing powder and heat set.  I then colored the image with Ranger Distress marker and some Perfect Pearls mist that I poured into a small cup.  The shimmer is hard to see, but it is very pretty in real life.  The image was die cut using some Stampin Up! labels dies.  The sentiment (stamped in Barn Door) is also from the So Very Grateful set.

Supplies:  Cardstock:  PTI white; SU! Old Olive; Ranger Distress Watercolor paper; Stamps:  Stampin Up! & Precious Remembrance Shop; Ink:  Ranger Distress Makers:  Barn Door, Squeezed Lemonade, Crushed Olive, Fired Brick, Peeled Paint, Dried Marigold, Scattered Straw & Wild Honey; Dies:  Stampin Up!/Sizzix; My Favorite Things, PTI; Baker's Twine:  The Twinery

a feathery hello...

Hello friends!!  A quick share today... this is a little card that I made for the current Splitcoaststampers CAS challenge... use neutrals.  Several months ago I was out walking the dog and found this pretty little feather.  Finally I found the right project to use it on.

I started with a soft stone card base and stamped the circles image from the PRS set Positive Thoughts set using SU!'s Smoky Slate ink.  I added the splatter image using Hero Art's silver ink, but it is hard to tell that it is actually silver.  The hello was stamped in black and then I added the feather, a twine bow and the stars.   I guess this would fall into the "freestyle/collage" category of cardmaking... I just think it is pretty darn sweet!

ETA - At the suggestion of my sweet bloggy friend, Anita, I'm going to link this up to CAS-ual Fridays shades of grey challenge.

Thanks for stopping by...

you inspire me...

Hello friends... popping in with a card that I made for the current color challenge over at Splitcoaststampers.   I have been in the habit of only posting cards I make for the Splitcoaststampers challenges in their gallery, but I recently decided that I will try to post them on my blog, as well.   The colors this week are Coastal Cabana, So Saffron and Tangerine Tango (all Stampin Up! colors).

For my card I used the really fun Precious Remembrance Shop set Positive Thoughts and did some collage stamping (my favorite!!).  I used SU!'s So Saffron and Hero Arts Tide Pool and Orange Soda inks.  The SCS color challenges usually have a "dessert" option and this week it was to use wood embellishments.  I have alot that I have never used and so I was determined to work some into my design.  I colored the pieces by simply placing them on the ink pad and pressing down... seemed the most obvious way to do it to me!  Finished off the card with a strip of Coastal Cabana cardstock that I embossed with a woodgrain embossing folder and some orange baker's twine.

Thanks for stopping by...

Supplies:  Cardstock: PTI Rustic White, SU! So Saffron & Coastal Cabana; Stamps:  Precious Remembrance Shop; Inks:  SU!, Hero Arts, Memento; Wood embellishments:  Studio Calico; Baker's Twine:  Impress; EF:  Stampin Up!

overwhelmed...

Hello friends!!  Did you see all the new dies that Penny Black debuted last week???  If you didn't you need to check out the PB blog because they are absolutely yummy!!!   And while you are checking out the new dies you can check out all the fun projects the PB design team has made using products from the Twinery!   The design team will be posting projects all week and if you leave a comment you have a chance to win a yummy prize provided by the Twinery!!  Today I have a little card that I made using one of the new dies... a super fun one called "dots".  I paired this die up with the current sketch from CAS(E) this Sketch and the Dynamic Duo's color combo of grey and your choice.  I went with yellow. 

I started out my card by trying a new technique that I saw on Splitcoaststampers.  The technique involved using masking or painters tape to create a inked background.   We don't have any painters or masking tape, but I do have lots of washi tape and it worked perfectly!  Simply tear off a piece of washi tape, ink up the sticky side, apply to the card stock, burnish a bit and then pull off the tape.  What is left behind is a cool sort of grungy looking border.  I die cut basic grey card stock using the "dots" die and adhered it to the card front using tiny pieces of foam dimensionals.   The Penny Black background stamp "Paisly Outline" was inked up with yellow ink, stamped on a scrap piece of white paper and a butterfly punched out.  A grey button was added to the center of the butterfly and then the butterfly was attached to the die cut piece.  Finished things off with the sentiment from the Penny Black set "foliage fancy" in black ink.

Thanks for stopping by...

Supplies:  Cardstock:  PTI white; SU! Basic Grey; Stamps:  Penny Black foliage fancy (30-138) and paisly outline (40-048); Ink:  Memento Dandelion and Tuxedo Black; Button:  My Favorite Things; Punch EK Success

just sharin....

Hello friends!!  The cold weather continues and I'm getting kinda tired of it, but at least there isn't any snow!   Have a couple of cards I made earlier this week that I thought I would share.  Both were made for challenges over at Splitcoaststampers, the CAS challenge and the color challenge. 

The CAS challenge this week at Splitcoast was a color one to use brown, red, lime green and turqoise blue.  I used a couple of my favorite Stampin Up! sets (Vintage Fresh & Summer Silhouettes), a favorite Hero Arts sentiment set (Year Round Sentiments) and did some simple stamping.  I'm basically a simple stamper at heart and while I do like to do tihings like layer and use patterned paper stamping is what makes me really happy.... and this card makes me really happy.  I absolutely love how it turned out.  

The colors in the Splitcoast color challenge are wisteria (a bluish-purple color), light pink and red.  I used the Year Round Sentiments set on this card as well and yep... simple stamping.  To add a bit more interest I trimmed out the pink heart and popped it up, added the gems and punched the corners of the main piece with a ticket corner punch.  I really like how this one turned out, as well.

Thanks for stopping by....

Supplies:  Cardstock:  PTI white; Stamps:  Stampin Up! and Hero Arts; Inks:   Stampin Up! and Memento; Rhinestones:  Stampin Up!; punch:  Stampin Up!

Just Sharin....

hello friends!  haven't posted in a few days so i thought i would share a couple of cards that i made earlier this week.  for both cards is did some collage stamping.   the first card was made for two splitcoaststampers challenges:  the CAS challenge and the color challenge. 

the CAS challenge at splitcoaststampers was to use collage on your card, stamping or otherwise.  obviously i did collage stamping.  i used three of my favorite stampin up! sets:  bliss; vintage fresh and because i care.   the ink colors are stampin up!'s cherry cobbler (my all time favorite red) and old olive.  i started by stamping the border image using cherry cobbler.  the hydrangea image was then stamped using old olive.  i inked up the large damask image with some cherry cobbler and then stamped it off on scrap paper before stamping it on the cardstock.  i followed the same process for the butterfly except that i used old olive ink.  the sentiment was stamped using black ink to make it standout a bit more.   i absolutely LOVE how this card turned out!

the second card i made just for fun using some of my favorite hero arts stamps (hydrangea and carte postal) and the same color combo.   for this card instead of using cream cardstock (as i did with the first card) i used white cardstock for the stamping and mounted it on a cherry cobbler card base.  all the stamping was done following the method i set up for the first card.  and once, again, i LOVE how this card turned out.  in fact, both cards turned out exactly how i envisioned they would.  don't you jsut love it when that happens???  i know i do!!

thanks for stopping by.....

supplies:  cardstock:  pti white & cream; su! cherry cobbler; stamps:  stampin up! and hero arts; inks:  stampin up! and memento

Gettin' Thankful....

Hey there!!! Wow... October is gone and November is here!! Time is flying by... in just over a month I'm going to be one year older, too!!! (Yikes... not tellin' how many years it is, though. teee heee!)

Anyway... I have two cards that I'm sharing today.  Both cards use the same layout from CAS-ual Fridays, but each uses a slightly different color combo.   The first card will also be entered into the following challenges:  The Paper Players - Anything Goes Fall and Stampin Sisters in Christ - use fall colors (crimson, orange & gold).   The stamps are from Heartfelt Creations (Open Falling Leaves) and PTI (Autumn Elegance).  I stamped the leaf using the new Distress Ink Bundled Twigs and then applied Wild Honey and Fired Brick distress inks.  The leaf was trimmed out and some Art Glitter in Inca Gold was added.  The ribbon is Stampin Up! Cherry Cobbler seam binding.  The sentiment was stamped using Golden Gitz and Cherry Cobbler inks.   Some small brads from BasicGrey were added at the bottom.

The second card is for this week's color challenge at Splitcoaststampers (Alway Artichoke, More Mustard & Bravo Burgundy) was made in the same matter I just used Scattered Straw and Aged Mahogany distress inks on the leaf.  The sentiment was stamped in a different spot using Stampin Up! Bravo Burgundy and then a row of gems that I colored using a Copic marker (Y17) was added.  The ribbon is Stampin Up! Always Artichoke seam binding.

Supplies:  Cardstock:  Stampin Up! Cherry Cobbler; PTI:  Kraft; Vintage Cream & White; Stamps:  Heartfelt Creations & PaperTrey Ink; Inks:  Distress Inks; SU! Bravo Burgundy & Cherry Cobbler; Ribbon:  SU! Seam Binding; Gems; Brads

Just Sharin...

Hey there!! A very dreary day today in the Pacific Northwest!  The rains have come and fall is here!   Thought I would share some cards that I have made over the last month for the Splitcoaststampers color challenge.  At the end of August I got an email from the super talented Betty Wright asking me if I wanted to be a guest designer for the weekly color challenge and I immediately said "yes"!   It has been a lot of fun and I'm a bit sad that my time as a guest designer has come to an end. 

The first color combo I had to work with was rust, dark sage green and yellow.  For my card I decided to use a new Sizzix/BasicGrey die and embossing folder set that I picked up at Joann's one day.  The cardstock is from Close to My Heart.  I'm not a fan of CTMH's smooth cardstock, but I do like their textured cardstock as it is perfect to distress because it has a white core and the opposite side of the cardstock is a paler shade of the main color. 

The second combo was a peach, aqua and red one and a bit tricky for me.  I decided to keep the red to a minimum and focus more on the peach and aqua colros.  I used my Spellbinders Rose Creation dies to make a flower.    The leafy branches were made using a die from Taylored Expressions. 

The third combo was a orange, turquoise and olive green combo.   The card I made using this combo is my favorite of the bunch.  I decided to do some coloring with my Copic markers.   I used one of my most favorite Flourishes set:  Gerbera Daisies.... oh wait... all my Flourishes sets are favorites!! 

Last but not least is this week's color combo of aqua, cherry red and dark brown.  For this card I decided to use on of my favorite embossing techniques:  stamping on cardstock using VersaMark ink, applying clear embossing powder and heat setting.  This brings out the color of the cardstock beautifully.  I used a new background stamp from Stampin Up! called Hello, Doily.  The sentiment is from Penny Black.   I finished the card off with some little flowers I made using a Stampin Up! punch called Boho Blossoms. 

Just Sharin'....

Ever make a card that when you finish it you just sigh with happiness because the card turns out exactly how you had hoped it would??  Well... that is this card:

My card is a CASE of a card in the Splitcoaststampers gallery of Tami Mayberry.  Tami is this week's featured stamper over at SCS.   Several weeks ago I had the honor of being the featured stamper and having some amazing stampers CASE cards from my SCS gallery.  I had so much fun viewing all the card that were made I decided I was going to start participating in this weekly challenge.  Thus... my card.  

Everything about this card just makes me happy... the white space, the simplicity of the design, the colors and the placement of the rhinestones.   To me this card is completely what I am all about when it comes to cardmaking... keeping it clean and simple.

Thanks for taking a peek....

you're so sweet....

Hello everyone!   Happy Memorial Day to everyone here in the USA.  Hope you are enjoying a wonderful day with those you love and taking time to remember what Memorial Day is all about!

I  have a card today for three different challenges:  CR84FN, the Paper Players & Waltzingmouse.   And can I just say that these three challenges are probably my most favorite challenges?  I love the color combos that Mona comes up with week after week, the sketches at Waltzingmouse never fail to inspire and well... the Paper Players challenges are just darn fun!  So combining the three was a no-brain especially since this week at the Paper Players the challenge is anything goes!!   So.... here comes my card!

When I saw Edna's super sketch at WMS my thoughts immediately drifted to the WMS set Victorian Frippery and that lovely border stamp.   And so once again I decided to stamp it and then trim out the scalloped portion to make my scalloped border.  As I was doing this I had the brilliant thought that Claire needs to talk to Spellbinders or someone about creating a border die to match... wouldn't that be lovely??  Anyway... after much stamping, trimming and diecutting my card was finished.  But to be honest while I think it is a nice card, it is rather plain... sigh!   I almost took it apart this morning and remade it, but decided to just go with it anyway. 

One final thing... I got some exciting news yesterday.   I'm the featured stamper this week over at Splitcoaststampers!!  I can't tell you how fun it has been to go through the featured stamper gallery and take a look how others have intrepreted my cards!! 

Thanks for taking a peek...

Supplies:  Cardstock:  PTI kraft & Vintage Cream; Ink:  PTI Vintage Cream, SU! Marina Mist & So Saffron; Stamps:  WMS:  Victorian Frippery, Very Vintage Labels 4 & Large Doily; Ribbon:  SU! So Saffron; pin:  Making Memories.

Paper Play Challenge....

The current Paper Play (week 29) challenge is to use blue and cream plus one other color.  The current CAS challenge at Splitcoaststampers is to make a card based off the Dr. Seuss book, One Fish, Two Fish... I don't have any fish stamps, so I went with the 2nd half of that line which is red fish, blue fish and used those colors plus cream for my card.... thus fitting perfectly into both CAS77 and Paper Play's challenge. 

I used the Stampin Up! sets Echos of Kindness and Small Sayings for the card, as well as some yummy extra wide red and cream striped ribbon... i love that stuff!  And since Stampin Up! has decided to keep offering it in more colors, I'm going to be happily buying it for a long time!  Echos of Kindness is a beautiful set that I don't use enough (like most of my stamps.... could it be I have too many??? naugh!!)

Thanks for taking a peek!  Have a lovely day.....

Supplies:  Cardstock:  SU! Night of Navy; PTI Vintage Cream; Ink:  Close to My Heart Outdoor Denim; Stampin Up! Real Red; Ribbon:  Stampin Up! Riding Hood Red striped ribbon; Stamps:   Stampin Up! Echos of Kindness and Small Sayings; Punch:  EKSuccess Embossed Scalloped Border