difficult time...

Hello!  Popping in with one of those cards that no one really wants to make... a sympathy card.  One of my very dear friends lost her brother-in-law to COVID-19.  He was a 30 year veteran of the Las Vegas police department and was well respected.  I'm just so sad for my friend and her husband who just lost his big brother.  I used the color combo from Color Throwdown as it was more masculine and lent itself to a sympathy type card.  I used the Altenew Mini Delight: Strength stamp set for the feathers and a sentiment from the Altenew Starry Flowers stamp set.  I found an ink that was close to terracotta to stamp the tip of the feathers after stamping them with VersaFine CLAIR Nocturne ink.  The terracotta ink is from Hero Arts, but I don't know what it is called as it is in cube form and there is no name on it.  The layout is from CAS(E) this Sketch.  I die cut white cardstock using a stitched dot rectangle from A Jillian Vance Design and then stamped the sentiment.   To create the split look from the sketch I embossed lines on either side of the sentiment.  I adhered the panel to a light gray cardstock base with foam tape and then adhered the feathers.  Adding this to the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge of anything goes.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day!

Happy Wednesday!

Hello and happy Wednesday everyone!  Since it is Wednesday that means I have a card up on the AJVD blog.   Here is a little peek of my card:

I hope you will head over to the blog to see my card.  Thanks for stopping by and have a great day!

simple cards...

Hello!  Popping in with a couple of simple cards that I made for two different challenges.  The first card is for the current CAS(E) this Sketch challenge.  This card was really easy to put together because I used die cut pieces from the Spellbinders March 2020 card kit called Feeling Hoppy.  And right now Spellbinders is having a promotion where you can get past kits at a great price!  Simply click here to be taken to the sale or click on the banner below.   Scroll to the bottom of my post for another deal from Spellbinders!   The Feeling Hoppy kit is an Easter one, but I was able to find pieces that worked to create my little collage.  I die cut white cardstock using the largest stitched dot rectangle die from A Jillian Vance Design, adhered it to a white cardstock base and then added all my little pieces.   Love it when a card comes together so quickly!

The second card also uses something from Spellbinders.  This time I used two of the dies from the Amazing Paper Grace Fluted Tracery etched die set.  I had not used those two dies together before and when I saw the Paper Players sketch I had my opportunity.  I used some patterned paper from Moda Scrap that I have had for quite sometime to die cut the intricate rectangle.   This was accomplished by taping the two dies together and then die cutting the paper.  I then die cut two more pieces using a light weight white cardstock.  All three were adhered together.  I die cut the rectangle only to create a solid background for the intricate piece and adhered them together.  I die cut additional coordinating papers using dies from A Jillian Vance Design and adhered everything to a white cardstock base.   The sentiment is from Altenew and was stamped using VersaFine CLAIR Morning Mist ink.  I then die cut it with a banner die from MFT and adhered it to the card front.  Again, another simple card that came together quickly!

Finally Spellbinders is also offering a bundle of products valued at $175.00 for $40.00!  You will get stamps, dies, embossing folders and embellishments in each bundle.  Simply click on the banner below to grab your deal!

sunflower...

Hello!  The weekend is almost upon us!  I'm popping in with a card that I made for Color Throwdown and Freshly Made Sketches (I think you knew that one was coming, lol!).   I pulled out a very old stamp set from Flourishes Stamps that was illustrated by Marcella Hawley.   I have always loved the large sunflower from this image and have had it out on my desk for quite sometime.   When I saw Color Throwdown design team member Amy Rohl's card featuring a gorgeous sunflower I was inspired to finally use my sunflower stamp set.  I stamped the image in Memento Tuxedo Black ink and then colored very simply with Copic markers.  I used two shades of yellow for the petals, two shades of orange for the little ladybug and two shades of green for the leaf and stem.   Once I was done I die cut my cardstock with an A Jillian Vance Design stitched dot rectangle die and then adhered the panel to a white cardstock base.   I then used my Glimmer hot foil system to hot foil the sentiment using orange foil.  I die cut it with a slanted banner die from MFT.   I die cut some black cardstock using the same die, layered the two and adhered it to my card with foam tape.

Thanks for stopping by and have a lovely day!

Wednesday with AJVD...

Hello!  I hope your week is going well.  It is Wednesday and that means that I have a post up on the AJVD blog today.  Here is a little peek of my card:

I hope you will head over to the AJVD blog to see the full card.  Thanks for stopping by and have a great day!

flowers...

Hello and happy Monday!  I'm popping in with a couple of cards that I have shared on Instagram.  One card is for the MFT sketch challenge and I was just going to use Instagram to enter the challenge, but decided to post it on my blog since I still have a little bit of time before the challenge closes.  The second card was just something I colored up last week and turned into a card.   With the card for the MFT sketch challenge I used one of the images from the MFT Magnolia Blossom stamp set.  I stamped the image with Memento Tuxedo Black ink and then colored the flowers with two Copic markers (R81 and R83).  The stems were colored with one (YG67) and the center of the main flower with just one color, as well (Y02).  I had originally started coloring the image with different colors, but it was too bright.  I really took my time with the coloring and I'm very pleased with how it turned out.   I fussy cut the image once it was done and then finished up the rest of the card per the sketch.  I have a medallion die from MFT that I used for the background.  I don't know what it is called and I don't think it is available any more, but it is sure is pretty.  This is my first time using it.  I stamped the sentiment (from a retired MFT stamp set called Spring Blossoms) on vellum with watermark ink and heat embossed with Ebony embossing powder from WOW!

With the second image I used my ZIG markers.  I love the Mondo line of stamps from Ellen Hutson and one of my favorites in the Mondo Gerbera Daisy.  I used that one and stamped it on smooth bristol cardstock with VersaFine CLAIR Acorn ink.   This is another one that I spent along time on the coloring.  Once I was done with the ZIG coloring I added a little bit of depth with a brown Polychromos color pencil.  The image was die cut with the matching die.   To make the card I kept it simple and just added a little strip of yellow cardstock that I embossed and a simple sentiment that I stamped with the same Acorn ink.  I think coloring with my ZIGs is my favorite way to color. 

Thanks for stopping by and have a great week!