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!

Feeling Slightly Crabby

Hi, Bloggin' Buddies!

I haven't posted in quite awhile - lots going on (most of it good!).

I just finished a project that is simply too cute

not to share. A group of us (we call ourselves the Crusty Crab Club) gets together every year to attend a crab feed and this year I made some favors and the centerpieces.


These little treat bags, which contain 4 Hershey's Nuggets, were fun to make and pretty easy. I love the results. I used an adorable Elizabeth Craft die and some beautiful Stamping Up Designer Series Papers. The result is just too dang cute!

As it turns out, these were completed just in time for the current challenge at the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog which is all about treat bags and boxes. You've got plenty of time to play along.

Thanks for the visit! Have a super-great week,

Fusin' Fun

Hi, Bloggin' Buddies!

So, have you tried the Fuse Tool yet? I thought I had no more interest in shaker cards (after they became "old news" a few years ago) until I discovered the Fuse Tool. And, it is good for other applications as well I even use it to make custom packets for odd-sized stamp sets). It allows for much flatter shakers, which is a good thing.

I haven't done a challenge in some time, so I thought I'd play along with the current one at Paper Smooches which is "Anything Goes". You know I am a sucker for their adorable critters, so I decided to pair one (Chubby Chums) up with some sparkly sequins and use my Fuse Tool for a fun shaker.

I colored this guy with Copics and added some white dots on his tummy. The balloon is an older Hero Arts "Stamp and Cut" set. The stars are from an unmarked wood-mounted set that I got at a used stamp sale.

Using the Fuse Tool to create the shaker, I was able to make it a "see through" version. Kind of fun, eh?

Hope you are having a good weekend - for those in the USA, it is a holiday one! Thanks for the visit,



SaveSave

Neck 'N Neck

Hi, Bloggin' Buddies!

You may remember this card that I posted a while ago using our friend's cute photo of a giraffe. She loved the set I made her so much that she asked if she could pay me to do some more. Well, I explained that I really don't sell my cards - I prefer to share them with those who enjoy and appreciate them. Also, I really don't like to mass-produce.

But I told her that if I could do them at a leisurely pace (no deadlines - I'm retired!) and if I could mix them up a little, it would be a fun challenge.

Over several weeks I produced two each of four designs featuring her cute giraffe photo.

I used Graphic 45 paper, vellum, some camera paper, a stencil (My Favorite Things) and some additional stash finds.

It was a fun project and I was more than happy to do it for a very dear lady.

Thanks for the visit and have a great day!

Uninspired

Hi, Bloggin' Buddies!

Yep, that is how I've been feeling lately. When that happens I try to pull out some easy things, such as using  some backgrounds that I previously prepared or coloring up some some ready-made images.

Here are some cards that I recently made using Suzy's Sizzling Series Watercolor Paintable Prints from Simon Says Stamp. I used my trusty Zig Clean Color Markers (I so love them!).

I took some real liberties with the one on the right side. I removed the bottom sentiment (it just wasn't "me") and added a mermaid (from Clear Art Stamps, 2010) for a focal point of interest.

Lots of Wink of Stella, Wink of Luna and Stickles here, also!

The photos is a bit blurry because I used my phone (uninspired again).

Hope you've been having a great August. Thanks for the kind visit,