Ugly Sweater

Hello. Bloggin' Buddies!

I'm wrapping up the holiday cards - sometime I save the most fun for last.

First this was a simple A2 card featuring a favorite (but apparently retired - I can't find it on their website) Art Impressions holiday stamp that I colored with Copics. But the more I looked at it, it just had to be MORE. So I took it apart and made it into a 5" x 7" inch card, adding layers of "ugly sweater" printed paper (cut with SSS stitched rectangle dies), a playful bow (Die-namics) and lots of sparkle with Wink of Stella, Stickles and embelishments.

The sentiment I added inside is "Don't get your tinsel in a tangle". Fun?

The colors are actually much more vibrant - it has been so dark in the house that I had to use a flash.

I made this card for someone very special to us. She motivates us to move, inspires us to be healthy and is a total kick in the pants. She is also very kind, loving and thoughtful. Jeri is our aerobics instructor and we appreciate her so very much! I never dreamed that I would set my alarm for 6 am on Saturdays to exercise, but she makes it SO worth it. Thanks, Jeri!

Merry Christmas, dear readers - I also appreciate YOU!

"Tis the Season!

Hello, Blogging Buddies!

Yes, it has been awhile since I've posted - Life Happens! We have been busy taking part in the joy of the season. I didn't post any of my Christmas cards this year. I made and prepared them for mailing so early that it just didn't happen.

Today I want to share with you a couple of special cards that I have received from some talented pals.

The one on the left is from my local card-making friend, Mary. I believe the stamp is from Pink Ink and that she used colored pencils. The coloring on that bow is beyond amazing - what glorious dimension.

The card on the right is from a wonderful and creative friend in Canada. Cindy does it all - works, takes care of her family, maintains a fun blog, is on a design team and turns out so many beautiful cards. Look at the wonderful ombre effect on these trees! The entire card has remarkable sparkle and textures.

I am blessed to have these inspirational friends who share my love of card-making.

Thanks for the visit and happy holidays!

Little Thank Yous

Hello, blogging Buddies!

Every year I make several small sets of thank you cards for my friends and family. I am not sure of the correct name of the size of these cards, but they are called RSVP cards and are smaller than A2.

This year I have used a Stampin' Up set called "Pretty Thankful" that I purchased from my friend and demonstrator Dottie Macken.

For the first card I used patterned paper and some twine with several ink colors. The second also features patterned paper and a tiny bow from a die by Paper Smooches. The third uses a background stamp by Hero Arts, watercolor, doily piece and gold thread. I like that they are all different, yet they clearly are a set. I used my envelope punch to make a container for each set.

I am so glad to have these done early, as Christmas is just around the corner.

Thanks for the visit - hope all is well.

No Lines to Stay Within!

Hello, Bloggin' Buddies!

My quest to loosen up a little and not be so controlled in my designs continues. I recently took a class at my LSS (The Stamp Art Shoppe in Roseville, CA) where we learned to watercolor with Distress markers and Wink of Stella pens with "lifeless" stamping. Very fun, but also tricky.

I have been practicing. This card uses a beautiful stamp (perhaps a Magnolia?) by Impression Obsession. The flower was done with a Scattered Straw Distress marker and the Wink of Stella (clear) provided the liquid for the watercoloring. The background is a Bundled Sage marker used with a water brush for a soft watercolor finish.

The mat color is a dark green - it is increasingly difficult to find some natural light for photos this time of year. The sentiment is an older one from Hero Arts and I double-punched it out with a punch from Stamping Up.

This is going into the current Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge which is "Thinking of You".  And, in keeping with Jennifer McGuire's current campaign to "Share Handmade Kindness", this is going into the mail to someone special tomorrow.

Thanks so much for the visit outside of my comfort zone and have a great day!

ZUMBA!

Happy Monday, Blogging Buddies!

I am a fan of Zumba. As one who loves to dance and hates to exercise, it is just perfect for me. I can become exhausted and work up a huge sweat without realizing it because I am having so much fun. If you have never tried it, I recommend it.

Why am I telling you this? This week's Share Handmade Kindness Challenge at Jennifer McGuire's blog is "Community" and we are to share with someone who works/serves in our community.

I decided to give a special thank you to our sweet Zumba instructor, Summer. I made a card inspired by one I did months ago in a class at the Paper Garden Boutique in Sacramento taught by the amazing Julie Ebersole. I especially like it because we are celebrating some terrific and much-needed rain here in northern California.

I used a Memory Box die to cut some watercolor paper that I had painted with my Gansai Tambi paints and textured with a Tim Holtz stencil. I die cut (Essentials by Ellen) some stars and attached them with some twine. All good.

Even better is that I used the other portion of the paper to create another card which I can give to a special lady who works the desk at our gym!

Think about someone who is in your life who could use a little handmade kindness and get busy!

Have a great week, thanks for the visit and Zumba on!

Giving Thanks

Hello, Bloggin' Buddies!

It is that time of year when we celebrate giving thanks. My Mom taught me early to be grateful and to express it. Hubby and I thank each other several times a day. It is important to let others know how much you appreciate them.

This week's Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge Blog is all about thanks. I have already made all of my Thanksgiving cards, so I made this watercolored all-purpose thanks card using a Hero Arts background stamp (Harlequin Pattern) and a Lawn Fawn sentiment (Scripty Thanks) in some wonderful gold paper I got at my LSS (Paper Garden boutique, Sacramento CA).

I am thankful for your visit and I hope you are having a great week.

Share Handmade Kindness

Hello, Blogging Buddies!

It is really feeling like fall here today and - yes! - we finally have some much-needed rain.

Have you heard about the great things going on at Jennifer McGuire's new blog? It is called "Share Handmade Kindness". She is encouraging us all to share what we love and what we make. That is what I love about paper crafting - it is so easy to mail or give something that shows you care. Folks always ask me if I sell my work, but my response is always that I'd rather share it with those who appreciate it. This week Jennifer wants us to share with friends and family - so easy!

I mass-produced (something I don't usually do) some special little favors for Thanksgiving. I made enough for our family gathering. I also made enough to share the ladies in my neighborhood. It was a joy. They are filled with some dark chocolate (for health!) and mints.

The dies are Sizzix and Spellbinders and I used a Paper Smooches stamp set. The ribbon is from Stamping Up.

I am also going to post this in the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge, "Anything Goes". Check it out and play along!

Thanks for the visit and thanks to Jennifer for this sweet inspiration.

More Watercolor

Happy weekend, Bloggin' Buddies!

A quick post before we get ready to head to our niece's soccer game. Those are always fun and today is probably our last day of excellent weather for awhile.

In my ongoing quest to master enjoy watercoloring and be a little less controlled, here is a card made using Penny Black die cuts and my rich and creamy Gansai Tambi watercolors. The background stamps are from Hero Arts and I added some Distress Ink and dots of Viva Pearl Pen for the flower centers.

To be honest with you, when I saw this photo the balance of this card bothered me, so I ended up trimming off some of the right side.

It is kind of nice to break away from all the holiday cards that are everywhere on the web right now.

This is headed for the current Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge, "Anything Goes".

Have a wonderful weekend, a happy Halloween and enjoy that extra hour! Thanks for the visit.

Ahoy!

Hello, Bloggin' Buddies!

We just returned from a great visit to upstate New York. We visited our dear family, had outstanding weather (and meals!), and enjoyed the fall colors.

Back to the craziness of folks preparing for Halloween! I think it gets out of hand, but I do love those cute images. I am not sharing any Halloween cards here this year, but I thought I'd share this funny old owl pirate.

This uses a unique stamp set with matching "flat back tin pin" embellishments and coordinated paper by Darcie Heater Designs (Darcie's Heart & Home). Crazy fun!

I colored this guy with Copics to match the colors on the embellishment to give him a real 3-D look.

Take care, stay safe and happy and thanks for the visit!

Twins!

Happy Monday, Bloggin' Buddies!

I have learned that out neighbors are going to become grandparents of twins. When I think of twins I think of "two peas in a pod", so I got out one of my favorite Paper Smooches sets, "Vegtastic". There will be one little girl and one boy, so I added a little hair ribbon to one just for fun. The sentiment is from "Simp;y Said" and I added a computer-generated reference to the grandparents.


This is headed to the current Paper Smooches SPARKS "Anything Goes"Challenge.

Thanks for the visit and have a wonderful week!

Wonderful Watercolor

Hello, Bloggin' Buddies!

I recently took a class where we learned to use watercoloring with die cuts. We did several watercolored backgrounds and then we watercolored die cuts which were made from watercolor paper. It was intimidating, but so much fun. I just love my Gansai Tambi watercolors - they are so highly pigmented and so rich.

For this card I blended three different colors of watercolors, being careful not to create mud (as my friend says "ask me how I know").  I then stamped the dry background with some brown ink and added the watercolored Penny Black die cut image. The sentiment is from Tim Holtz and the bling is from my stash.

This is headed to the current Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog, which is Wonderful Watercolors. You have time to play along!



Thanks for the visit and I hope all is good.

Monday with Frida

Good Monday morning, Bloggin' Buddies:

A quick post this morning as I am hitting the road for a day of fun and adventure. Today's card is another watercolor playful one featuring Frida. I used my Wink of Luna brush/pens to create a cool background.

I added some gold paper, thread and tape from my stash. The sentiment is from one of my favorite sets, "Label Love" by Altenew.


This is headed for the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog which is all about Wonderful Watercolor.

Hoping you have a awesome week and thanks for the visit!

I Can No Longer Fight It

Fall is really almost here!

Good Morning, Bloggin' Buddies:

I guess I just have to accept it - the days are noticeably shorter and the leaves are turning, but we still have wonderful warm temperatures (and unfortunately, no rain) - it is on it's way. In making this card I guess I have relented to the season.

I have used an old LaBlanche silicone stamp for this card. These were quite the rage a few years ago, but I haven't seen them around for awhile (probably because they are not actively marketed here in the USA). This seriously speaks fall to me. I used lots of Distress Inks and some stash finds to finish this off.

Have a great Sunday and thanks for the visit. I'm off to find some pumpkin pie (all things pumpkin is the only part of fall I really celebrate!).

World Cardmaking Day!

Happy Day, Bloggin' Buddies!

Like we need an excuse to make cards, right?! What fun to have a day all our own. Enjoy it!

This is another in the series of me trying to get less protracted and more artsy. Not an easy task. I took a class on using watercolor pencils with stencils and I've been giving it a chance.

This is one of my first ones and they do get better (promise!). I added some gesso and a vellum strip to help hide the less-than-perfect areas - ha! I do love this technique and will continue to wok with it.

The stencil is from Penny Black, the sentiment is from Simon Says Stamp "Hello You" set.

I hope you have some crafting time today. If you make a card, link it up with Simon Says Stamp's World Cardmaking Day link for a chance for a generous prize.

Have a great day and a wonderful weekend,

Anything Goes!

Happy Hello, Bloggin' Buddies!

Today's collage card was made to thank some kind folks who took some great photos of a trip we took with my sister-in-law's church, which is called "Hope Lutheran" (hence the "hope" ticket). I went distress and vintage with Tim Holtz images and supplies.

I had fun assembling all these great elements.

This is headed to the current Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Blog Challenge, which is "Anything Goes", and this isn't just anything, it's a little bit of everything!


Thanks for the visit and I sure hope you are having a great week!

In the Background

Happy Monday, Bloggin' Buddies!

Today I am sharing a card I made for my cousin's son. He is an amazing tuba player - he is a college professor and also works with the Phantom Regiment.

I got this perfect stamp from Tim Holtz and I used it not only for the centerpiece, but I used it to create a background paper. Masculine cards are a real challenge, but I used textures and colors that helped create the "manly feeling". The die is from Spellbinders and the sentiment is Hero Arts.


This week's Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge is to use "no designer paper", so I plan to submit this there.

Have a great week, get ready to say so long to September. Did you see that amazing moon list night?

Thanks for the visit!

It is all about

the BLING!

Hello, Bloggin' Buddies!

I normally try to stick to card-making here, but I do have another passion - jewelry-making. I have been doing it since I was a (wanna be) hippie gal in high school in the 1960's. I used to pound out copper wire on an old brick to make earrings.

Anyway, I now am involved with a great group of bead-living gals and I have been getting back to some jewelry-making. My tastes and style have sure changed over the years.

I went "Big and Bold" (as some would say I am!) for this latest wearable art I created. I can't wait to wear it! The great part is that it isn't as heavy as it looks.

Hope you are having a great week!

Paper Smooches

Good Monday morning, Bloggin' Buddies!

Hope ya'll had a great weekend! I was lucky enough to take an all-day card-making class at the Paper Garden Boutique in Sacramento taught by the AMAZING Julie Ebersole! Wowzer! What a true joy and inspiration she is.

I am starting the week off thinking about the upcoming holidays (not my favorite time of year). However, it is kind of fun to unearth my holiday stamps (I keep them packed away all year) and see all the goodness that has been hidden away.

I made this card (actually, several of them) using Paper Smooches "Falling For You" stamp set and the"Notebook Basic" die on a watercolor panel.

I found these vintage fall doilies at an estate sale and wanted to incorporate them.

Now that I look at the photograph I wish I would have balanced the elements a bit differently. Guess that happens with rushing to produce several cards....

Ah well. This is headed for the current paper Smooches SPARKS challenge, "Anything Goes". Have a great week and thanks for the sweet visit!