Ruh-Roh!!!!

Hi, Bloggin' Buddies!

Today I have a bit of a crazy card to share. We have a friend from our hiking group who is a big
Scooby-Doo fan - so much so that he even has a Scooby-Doo lunchbox that he brings on hikes! Yikes!

Years ago I had a great stamp set from Hanna-Barbera that I had picked up at a used stamp sale but I knew I had sold it (I figured that I'd never know anyone again who loved the guy - what a fool I was!). I was so upset because I really wanted to make one more card with it for our hiker friend.

Well, a few weeks ago I was going through a box which contained some very old cards that I had made (I can't believe that I saved them) and I found one which had these images stamped, die cut and colored!

I carefully cut them off and did my best to "remake" the card to better reflect what I do now, but I was stuck with the (dated) elements. I added some Wink of Stella, a fun wobbler, some google eyes and a wonky stitched frame die cut from Lil' Inker. Not my best work, but I'm happy to have been able to do it.

Talk about a walk in the past.......

Thanks, as always, for the visit,

Feeling Foxy

Hello, Bloggin' Buddies!

Happy Memorial Day weekend. Let's not forget what it's all about and take a few moments to honor those who gave their lives and fought to keep this country free and great.

This critter card was a fun one - lots of layers and dimension! I don't use a great deal of Stampin Up products, but some of their designs are just so dang cute and it is great the way their papers and inks (and ribbon, pens, etc) are all color-coordinated.

This happy fellow is from the "Foxy Friends" set and matching punch which I bought from my friend Dottie. There are so many possibilities for different critters with this set - I will share more soon. I also used Stampin Up paper, designer paper, and Calypso Coral ink.

I get this amazing woodgrain paper from my LSS, the Paper Garden Boutique in Sacramento.

The speech bubble and matching die is from Lawn Fawn.

I made this card to thank the couple who put together our hiking group's getaway trip to Cannon Beach, OR. We just returned (we added some side trips) and it was simply amazing! We love Oregon.

Have a great day and thanks for the visit!

Graduation!

Hi, Bloggin' Buddies!

At church this week we heard from 5 of the most amazing young people. They are all graduating seniors, college-bound. They conducted the church service and shared with us their journeys, their relationships with God and each other, and their love and appreciation for all who have helped them along in life. It was most inspiring - what outstanding kids (so much better than I was at that age!).

I was moved to make them each a card - we enclosed a note expressing our pride and encouragement.

For the background I used a Teresa Collins stencil blended with Distress Inks (Peacock Feathers, Twisted Citron and Pickled Raspberry). Rather than a standard "congratulations" sentiment, I selected a lovely Maya Angelou saying from Reverse Confetti's "Shine from Within" set and heat embossed it. I love that set - it has such wonderful sayings and the artsy fonts are such fun!  I used a very old (but well-loved) Hero Arts set (CL336) for the diploma and the inside graphics and embellished it all with Nuvo Drops and a touch of Stickles.

Thank goodness for my MISTI!

It warms my heart that there are great kids like this - it is our hope for the future.

Thanks for the visit,

Let's Hear it for Courage!

Hi, Bloggin' Buddies:

Today I have a card made with the amazing new stamp and die set from Ellen Hutson called "Courage". Unfortunately, I am finding that I need a set like this more and more often. That darn cancer touches too many of our lives and takes away so much hope for so many.

I made this card for a friend from my Zumba class - she loves to dance! She has finished her long round of chemo and soon starts on another lengthy round of radiation. Her spirit and courage are such an inspiration!

I used an emboss resist with Distress Inks for the background, sprayed with some Perfect Pearls for luster. The wonderful sentiment is heat embossed with white and the crown and sword are embossed on yellow cardstock with platinum.

Thanks, Ellen, for making this set, increasing our awareness and for making such a generous donation to the Breast Cancer Research Fund from the sales. You are a blessing!

Thanks for the visit and have a lovely weekend,

Loving the Distress Oxide Inks!

Hi, Bloggin' Buddies:

Tim Holtz has done it again! I am SO loving the Distress Oxide Inks and can't wait for more colors to come out. I have been playing with them for a few weeks now. I made a sample "tag book" to be able to compare how they work on different papers and with different techniques - it was a real learning process.

Yesterday I got up extra early to have time to play with the inks on manila tags. They are incredibly bendable! Amazing.

I blended, stenciled, "smooched", splattered, and lifted color with water droplets and it was all super-great. I also used some Perfect Pearls for that extra touch. There are so many great color combos, even with only 12 from which to choose.

Some came out better than others, but it was a process and I am pleased. I urge you give them a try and get inky!

Thanks for the visit and have a great day,

I know, right???

It has been far too long since I've posted. It appears that my blog layout and settings have disappeared. Reestablishing them will be for another day (maybe!)

I was having so much trouble with finding the right photo set-up in our new house (where we have now lived for 3 years!) that I kind of gave up. I just used my phone in my craft room for this one. Sorry.

Also, while I am making lots of cards, my focus has been more on techniques rather than products and challenges. I love all the new things - the Fuse Tool, inter-active cards, Oxide Inks, the layering stamp sets, etc.

For the past couple of days I've been playing with the Distress oxide Inks. I am so crazy about them that I'm hardly sleeping! Here is a background that I made which I used for a card for a sweet Mermaid friend of mine.

She is colored with Copics, the wave is heat embossed on vellum with comic coloring behind and I've used Wink of Stella. Very straight-forward.

Stamps and dies: Neat and Tangled, Mermazing; PTI, What the Doodle - Waves.

Thanks for the visit - keep crafting!