Saturday, April 30, 2011

Fabulous Floss,OCC & Mojo Monday #188


Jen, of Our Change of Art is the hostess these next 2 weeks over @ Our Creative Corner challenge blog.  She is really talented.  If you have a moment, you should really pop on over and take a look at her work.  She has given us a challenge this week, to use embroidery floss on our card or other papercraft item.  I don't really use much floss, and sewing on a card is pretty minimal for me.  So, to say the least, my card was a bit of a struggle.  I had a few ideas, and here is what I came up with.
I used the sketch from Mojo Monday #188 as my starting point.  And then grabbed a stamp set that I haven't inked in quite a while.  Then kinda worked it all out from there.  I stamped the thread holder and fussy cut it out.  Wrapped floss around it, to give it some presence.  (yes, the needle is stamped and fussy cut-out, too.)  For the trio of coffee filter flowers, I tied some knots in the centers with a different colored pink floss.  The pattern papers are so old, I doubt you could find them if you wanted.  I believe that they are from 7 years ago.  And they were scraps in my pink scrap file.
Thank you for looking!  Now, go create something uniquely YOU and enter our Fabulous Floss challenge!

Thursday, April 28, 2011

Welcome Friends, Welcome Sketches

Let me first give a warm welcome to my latest followers!  Thank you sooo much for taking the time out of your day, to check on me.  I LOVE it!
The creative ladies over @ Creative Sketches, have a holiday sketch for this week's challenge.  Now, for those who know me, my favorite holiday is Valentine's Day!  I'm a hopeless romantic.  Here is my card:
If you have a moment, please visit the Creative Sketches challenge blog, and enter!  We'd love to see what you make, and you could be chosen as our winner!
All supplies used are from Stampin' Up!

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Easter Wishes

We gathered at my MIL's house today for an early Easter Dinner.  It is always nice to visit with aunts and uncles.  We did our dinner this year, Pot Luck style.  That way no one person would be stuck in the kitchen cooking.  I like that.  I know that some people want to cook everything, but you just need to let others help.   It makes the day less stressful, and everyone feels included.  I love how everyone brings a few dishes, and we all sit together and share a meal.  And I'm probably sure that you can guess the after dinner routine; the ladies clean the kitchen and get the dishes started, while the men go to the living room and talk about cars.  
So, here is the Easter card I made today.  I needed something pretty, but not too labor intensive.  There were 6 families eating together today, so my card also needed to be mass produce-able.  And here is what I came up with.  Yes, there are 5 pattern papers on this card.  But the measurements were a snap.  The Easter wishes tag was quick and easy, too.  Ink, stamp and use a hand-held punch to create the extra wide oval.  The butterflies were made with the Beautiful Wings embosslit.  I used some scraps to make the butterflies.  I didn't matt any of the pattern papers, instead, I used white craft ink to edge most of them.  That helped cut-down on time.  For the ribbon, I made 'poor-man' bows, so I didn't use 9 feet of ribbon.  I also was able to locate 18 white half pearls.  
I hope that you had a wonderful Easter.  Most of us went to church this morning, and were able to visit both sides of the family.  Living here in the southwest, we were able to do our Easter egg hunt outdoors.  The sun was shining and we had a gentle breeze.
Thank you for stopping by. 

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Happy Spring-time To You!

Good Morning All! And let me extend a warm welcome to my latest follower, Isbel. It is a pleasure to have someone new, and a delight to know that someone out there likes my work enough to 'follow' me. You have surely made my day! Thank you.
So, here is my latest card. Yes, its an Easel Card. The traditional take on this. No fancy-shamancy folds, twists, or turns. Just regular. I am entering this card in two different challenges. Our Creative Corner, is hosting a card type challenge. Make an Easel Card. No limits. How wonderful, and easy to work with. Color Q (cQc #81) color challenge is to use these wonderfully soft colors: Pink Pirouette, So Saffron, Old Olive, Soft Sky, and white. Now don't those colors say 'Easter or springtime' to you? They do to me. In theory, this card should have been a walk in the park. However, my park is still covered with some snow, if you know what I mean. I made about three different cards with different colors of card bases. I used different stamps for my image. I even tried using a wedding cake image. I struggled. Then, I found this left over image from Crafty Secrets I had laying on my crafting table. And Viola! It all started to flow.
The card base is Soft Sky. My stash of this retired cardstock is getting pretty low. So, there is no room for error. The first matted piece is actually Presto DSP. I just sponged Soft Sky classic ink onto it. I love that paper. I used the regular scallop trim border punch and punched some old DSP and stacked them together. I used some other really old retired DSP to make the heart. I used the Beautiful Wings embosslit to create my butterfly. I made my leaves with the leaves embosslit and cut them apart to have leaves poking out behind the heart in all directions. I used my Lots of Tags die to create my label for the inside and stamped one of the saying from the Blessed Mother stamp set in Old Olive classic ink. The final touches were simple: distress the edges with White craft ink and add a few rhinestone jewels to give the card some bling.
The thing that strikes me about my card, is that there is no ribbon or buttons. Believe me, I tried. But, I couldn't get those elements on, and still love the card.
Have a wonderful Easter weekend. Share this time with your family and friends. If you have a moment, share with me your favorite Easter activity. Mine, doing an Easter egg hunt with my grandchildren. I can still see my kids in their faces. God bless.

Friday, April 22, 2011

Technique Week

Good Morning! I hope everyone has some wonderful plans this holiday weekend. Filled with peace, and surrounded with family and friends! Oh, and don't forget the chocolate bunnies.
Over at Creative Sketches, we have a great challenge! It's technique week, so that means there is a layout and a technique for you. The layout is super easy to work with, and very versatile. The technique is to use chalks. How wonderful is that! Something soft and pretty to get you in the Easter mood. So, please join us! I can't wait to see what you create.
So, here is my card. As you can tell, I have an infinity for that Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder by Stampin' Up! It gives your card just enough interest without distracting from the focal point. LOVE IT! Ok, I have a secret love for the smooch spray, too! I have a love hate relationship with the Log Cabin smooch. I really love to use it, and then, I wish it was lighter. What can I say. If they made a color that is more like Crumb Cake, I'd be in heaven and you all would be tired of me using it. Hey, I have an idea, maybe I'll make my own. I can post a mini tutorial right here, so you too make create a color you would love to use!
Anyway, back to the card. I love the flower image from the Happiness Shared stamp set. Its one of those perfect coloring flowers. And the stamps from Define Your Life. They are perfect. I added a little seam binding to the top of my stamped piece, to fill in some of the white empty space. And to keep your eye moving, I added a bit of interest in the upper right corner of the card.
Thank you so much for stopping by. As always, your comments really do make my day. Let me know if you have a favorite item you use on many of your paper crafts.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Happy Birthday Daughter & CR84FN24

Cupcake's Creations, has posted a wonderfully elegant color challenge: Light Blue, Aqua, and Cream. And, my daughter is celebrating a birthday this week, so...I combined the two. I stamped the bird in Basic Brown classic ink and colored her with chalks. I masked the birds head to stamp the crown. I really wanted it to look as if the bird is wearing the crown and not just randomly over the birds head. Know what I mean? The scallop piece is actually box pleated. I'm not sure if you can tell, but I wanted to let you know. I scrunched up some blue seam binding and tied it around the box pleat. I put the pearl brad all the way through the seam binding and pleated scallop trim. The roses I hand rolled, and added a half pearl to each of the centers. The butterfly is die cut from felted wool. I finished the card off with a few spritzes of Vanilla smooch. And I have yet to figure out how to photograph a card with smooch on it, so you can tell. :(
Thank you for looking. I'm now off to decorate her cake!

Monday, April 18, 2011

Friends

Here is a card that I made Sunday morning. I used two past challenges to create it. I know, you're suppose to create something to enter a current challenge. But, I really loved the layout of one challenge, and the color combo of another. So, I combined them, and this is what I made.
I used all Stampin' Up! products on this card. A little stamping, some laying, and viola!
I sponged some of the champagne shimmer mist on the tags, and flowers. You know, just to give them a translucent gold-ish metallic shimmer. The flourish is from Friends 24-7 stamp set. The friends is from With All My Heart stamp set. I used two different textured flowers, a paper flower and a crochet flower. Both were sponged with the shimmer paint. A neutral glimmer brad gave the crochet flower a nice balance, and helps hold the color combo in the card. I added some of the rhinestone jewels, to help give the card some polished bling.
Thank you for looking! Leave me a comment, and let me know what you think. Have a great week!

Saturday, April 16, 2011

Paper Cone


Well, it's time for another challenge over @ Our Creative Corner. Vicki, is our hostess this month. If you have a moment, you really ought to check out her blog: It's a Stamp Thing. She is pretty talented!
Our challenge is to make an Easter project, but NO cards. I made a paper cone filled with May flowers. It has a spring theme, but no Easter type images: chicks, bunnies, eggs. Just in case someone doesn't celebrate Easter, but would like to play along, I guess.



So, here are some photos of my paper cone. The image on the far right, is the one that is posted on the Our Creative Corner blog site. The other three I wanted to add. The image on the far left, shows the paper cone suspended, so you can see how it hangs. The next image (moving left to right) shows a closer view of my hand-made medallion. And the last image, is a closer look at my hand-made paper flowers. I used as much of Stampin' Up! products as I could. There are three pieces that aren't: the floral trim at the top on the pink ribbon, the layered pattern paper, and the fabric rosette at the bottom. All other materials used, are Stampin' Up! If you have any questions about specific product used, or how I did something, please contact me.
Thank you for stopping by. Post a comment, they really do make my day! And play along with our fun 3-D Easter/Spring themed challenge over @ Our Creative Corner! We'd love to see what you create!

Thursday, April 14, 2011

CS Color Challenge

We are having a color challenge over @ Creative Sketches. The colors: Bashful Blue, Daffodil Delight, and Elegant Eggplant. And here is my card! I used all Stampin' Up! products.
Here is how I made my card: The card itself is Very Vanilla cardstock. I added a top panel of Bashful Blue. I first stamped it with the Sanded background stamp, in Bashful Blue classic ink. I then ran it through the Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder. (I wanted the panel to have some depth.) I used Whisper White cardstock to create my flower. It is actually cut with the Birds & Bloom die. I sprayed the flower with my Frost White Shimmer Mist and crinkled the flower. I added a Daffodil Delight brad to hold the flower together. I added a scrap piece of cream colored tulle behind the flower to soften it a bit. I used First Edition DSP and my leaves die to create the sprigs of leaves poking out behind the flower. I stamped the butterfly, from Clearly for You stamp set, in Elegant Eggplant classic ink and fussy cut it out. I had a scrap piece of Very Vanilla cardstock, so I cut this cute little tag, and stamped 'A NOTE OF THANKS', from the Thank You Kindly stamp set, in Bashful Blue classic ink.
If you have a chance, come play with us over @ Creative Sketches, and give this color challenge a try. You just might surprise yourself, on how easy these colors come together. Upload your creation and insert a hyper link back to your blog! Its just that easy!

Monday, April 11, 2011

Wear-able Art Class

Look at these fabulous Shabby-Chic vintage wear-able art pieces! Aren't they just wonderful? Well, you can make them yourself! I will be hosting a class for these projects on April 23rd (10a-1p)! In the class you will make this wonderfully vintage brooch. Notice the window panel center and the key? Also, you will make two vintage shabby-chic inserts for your necklace charm. All supplies are included (including the charm) for $45. If you are unable to attend (due to any reason) purchase the kit and receive a supply list, along with written directions that include color photos in a PDF format, and shipping for $50. This class will provide you with $40 in Stampin' Up! product! You can give this wonderfully vintage gift to that special lady in your life for Mother's Day. Also, if you would like to alter a window lid tin to hold your treasures, there is an additional $5 fee. So, make something from the heart, that she can wear day after day for years to come, for under $50! Payments can be made through PayPal. (my email is listed on this page with my Facebook badge.)

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Tea Party!

Good Morning All! Well, I'm the hostess for another challenge over @ Our Creative Corner! And I thought how wonderful would it be to have some tea with some friends! So, that's the challenge this week. Get out your tea 'themed' stamp sets, doilies, and create a card to invite a friend over for tea, or to just celebrate the art of drinking tea!
Here is my card:
For this creation, yes, I used a bunch of different supplies. I wanted to create a card that wasn't too girly. But, still has a bit of sophistication. The pattern paper is Basic Grey. The solid cardstock is Stampin' Up! The crochet trim is Stampin' Up! and the doily is a Martha Stewart item. I used the 1 3/8" circle punch (Stampin' Up!) and the scallop circle punch (Stampin' Up!) to create the rolled flower. I added a half pearl (Stampin' Up!) to the center to give it some interest. After I adhered the panels to the front of the card, I stamped them with a flourish from Carte Postale (Stampin' Up!) in Basic Brown classic ink (Stampin' Up!).
Thank you for stopping by. I hope that you get an opportunity to play along! I can't wait to see what you create!

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

April Virtual Class

This is the project for my Virtual Class this month. The cost is $8. You will make a butterfly mini tote and three butterfly gift cards (one butterfly gift tag flew away before the photo shoot). The kit includes all papercraft materials* to create this set, a step-by-step directions with color photos, a supply list and shipping! The easiest way to pay is thru PayPal. My email address is located on my facebook badge. Please use that email, if you have any questions. There is a limited number of kits made, so they will only be available while supplies last.
*Virtual kits do NOT include any adhesive, sticky strip, or glue gun materials. You must supply your own adhesives.
I would like to thank Virginia Kilmore of Syracuse, New York. She is the person from whom I received the directions from to create this wonderfully vintage set from. Thank you Virginia!

Saturday, April 2, 2011

Girl Power!

Good Morning! First, I have to tell you that I am the hostess this week over @ Our Creative Corner blog! Yahoo! It's super exciting! So, since I'm the hostess, I get to design the challenge. Doesn't that sound like sooo much fun? Well, I'm pretty happy! So, before we get to my card, let me first say that I work with some of the most fabulously talented ladies the paper crafting world has seen! They took the challenge and created some of the most beautiful things! Everything from an A2 card, to a wreath. How wonderful is that? So, pop on over and take a look. Then, grab your most girly, feminine paper crafting supplies and play along! The requirements: a hand-made paper flower, ribbon, and some bling! Super sweet, and pretty! I can't wait to see what you create!
Ok, now on to my card. My oldest granddaughter was my inspiration. Yes, she is a girly girl. She loves anything pink, princess, and glamorous! So, I used my girly supplies to create this card. The stamp is a wonderfully playful likeness of her. And the pink says it all!
Ok, this is another million product paper craft. I used paper from three different companies: Stampin' Up!, Basic Grey, and Wild Asparagus. The ribbon came from two different companies: Stampin' Up! and Paper Trey Ink. The bling came from one company: Stampin' Up! (glitter and rhinestones). I used the Birds & Blooms die to create the flowers. The pearl swirl was already formed. I just cut-off the larger half pearl, and substituted a medium Stampin' Up! rhinestone in its place. I used Stampin' Up! markers to color my stamped image: Pretty in Pink and Rose Red for her dress and shoes, and So Saffron for her hair. The buttons came from my Paper Trey Ink stash.
Thank you for visiting. Let me know what inspires you.