Guest Designer

So honored to have been the winner of RRCB 114 which gives me the chance to guest design today.  Tic Tac Toe isn't always easy for me, but this board has lots of great options.

I needed a sympathy card for a neighbor & the middle, vertical row provided my inspiration.  I waited several years to get a die cutting machine when they came on the market.  Once I learned they could be used for dry embossing, that was it!  I'm also a fan of monochromatic cards--especially for sympathy cards.

To begin I dry embossed the leaves on light green cardstock & die cut the curved edge before lightly inking the edges.  I added the twine across the top & attached the panel to a darker green card.  The heat embossed sentiment is from the 2016 W&W stamp set called A Tree for all Seasons.  I'd love for you to pull out some older stamps (must use at least one stamp older than a year) & join in this fun challenge.  You'll find lots of inspiration from the talented DT at RRCB.
Thanks so much for taking time to stop by.  If your blog address is in your profile or comment, I will visit you as soon as I can.

Thinking Fall

Hubby & Fritz will hold down the fort while I'm away visiting family & friends.  I won't have my laptop, so I'll be on a blog break.  You might see a picture or 2 on Instagram, though.  I do want to share a couple cards before I get to packing.
The current theme at ABNH is Inspired By Another Crafter.  Of course there are lots of big name designers who inspire me, but I get just as much inspiration from my talented blogging friends.  I've been lucky enough to meet a few of them in person, including Betty who is on the Facebook DT for ABNH.  We have a lot in common including our taste in cards. 

I got the HA Autumn Icons die set after Betty pointed it out & recently she painted a die cut with HA Glimmer Inks which I've used very little.  That inspired me to combine the 2 for this card.  Betty often has a focal point in one corner & a sentiment.  The pumpkin turned out too big for that, but I do have a single focal point & simple Impression Obsession sentiment.  The background paper is a texured sheet from a very inexpensive pad Rosemary & I found last time we got together.  Hope Betty likes the card she inspired.  I'm also entering DCD & WAW.

I really loved the card I made for the last SSS Flickr challenge HERE.  There was a little bit of the panel left on both sides of where the leaves were die cut & I thought it'd make a pretty pumpkin.

Now I'm hoping it looks like a pumpkin--or would you not have known without me telling you?  Anyway, the pumpkin die is MFT Primitive Pumpkins & the panel it was cut from is SSS Kaleidoscope Background embossed in SSS Rose Gold powder & colored with Tattered Angels Glimmer Mists.  I scored an area near the bottom of the card front & covered it with Versamark Dazzle ink pad direct to paper. 

The SSS sentiment is 2 high & heat embossed with the same Rose Gold powder.  The splatters on the Classic Kraft are TA Glimmer Mists.  Glad to have a Thanksgiving card ready to mail.  I'm  entering SSS Flickr 133 & The Snippets Playground.

Thanks so much for taking time to stop by.  If your blog address is in your profile or comment, I will visit you as soon as I can.

Guest Designing

I'm very honored to be Kim's Guest Designer this month for The 12 Kits of Occasions.  She sent a fun Friends & Food themed kit with beautiful papers, cute images & great sentiments. 
I have 3 cards for you & you won't want to miss all the wonderful creations of Kim & the entire team.
The first card popped into my head as soon as I opened the kit.

The beautiful Great Friends quote simply needed a frame.  I picked one of the pretty floral papers & a matching blue one with little splatters.  The frame was made with a PTI die & I outlined the inside edges with the blue & white twine, also in the kit.  Finished off with a glitter dot from my stash.  I'm entering SSS Wednesday & WAW.

Most of you know coloring is not one of my talents, but luckily the cute images are pretty small.  I gulped & pulled out some Copics.

Naturally I made the donut icing pink--my favorite color!  A white gel pen was used for sprinkles & Nuvo Glaze for the shine.  I impressed a white panel with a Poppystamps die & covered the center with strips of a cute printed paper from the kit.
My final card uses 3 more of the cute images arranged on the same blue paper as the first card cut with a Gina Marie die & matted with the yellow cardstock in the kit.

I used an oval die to cut out the sentiment, sponged on yellow ink, covered the letters with shimmer Pico Embellisher & popped it up with foam tape.
Thanks so much to Kim for letting me join The 12 Kits DT for September.  I really appreciate your taking time to stop by.  If your blog address is in your profile or comment, I will visit you.

Pinkfresh Hello

Lots of items in my sale pages & some prices have been lowered.

The September Pinkfresh Challenge is Watercolor/Mixed Media.  Once again I used my PF Hello with a Bouquet die.  I ended up with 2 cards.

To begin I pulled out my Hero Arts Liquid Glimmer Inks to use as watercolors.  I did a wash of blue in the center of a watercolor panel & blended into green on the outer edges.  When it dried I die cut the bouquet.  Then I watercolored another panel going for darker blue & green to be the background.  However, I just wasn't happy with the lack of contrast, so I die cut the bouquet again from black cardstock.  The first card is the result.  I covered the letters with Nuvo Glaze & mounted them with foam tape.

The second card is made with my first die cut which I attached to black cardstock after brushing it with a shimmer pen.  I covered the letters with Nuvo Glaze & attached them in place without foam.  I still have a huge stash of gems, so added a few clear ones to finish it off.

Since I mostly send friendship cards, these are perfect to have in my stash.  I'm also entering Double D, SSS Wednesday & WAW.

Thanks so much for taking time to stop by.  If your blog address is in your profile or comment, I will visit you.

Thanksgiving & Christmas

Oh boy did I have fun making the 2 cards I'm showing you today.  First up is a Thanksgiving card using SSS dies called Clustered Leaves & Autumn Blessings along with the SSS stamp called Kaleidoscope Background.

I had in mind using the background stamp with Fall colors, so stamped  on watercolor paper & embossed in SSS Rose Gold powder.  Then I added 3 of my many Tattered Angels Glimmer Mists:  Moonlight, Fully Purple & Forest Green.  I both sprayed the mists & brushed them onto the panel.  It was beautiful & shimmery, but fairly dark.  I just couldn't see it as a layer for a card.  Then I remembered the leaves die--just what I needed!

They really are beautiful in person.  The inks were also splattered on the Classic Kraft panel & I added the stacked sentiment with the top layered embossed in Rose Gold.  The edges were lightly sponged with DI frayed burlap & I decided against embellishments.  I'm entering SSS Flickr, Allsorts & SSS Wednesday.


My Christmas card combines products from MFT, Impression Obsession, Elizabeth Crafts, Winnie & Walter & Darice.  I began by making the red glitter panel using EC red glitter burnished into a panel of cardstock covered with a double sided adhesive sheet.

EC makes the most incredible glitter which becomes super sparkly, smooth & non-shedding when it's burnished.  The MFT Joy die cut was made the same way with EC silver glitter.  Another item in my last package from Impression Obsession is a die set called Pine Pair--love them!  Decided they looked great just cut from white cardstock.

The little sentiment strip is a W&W stamp white embossed on a black strip & mounted with foam.  Took awhile to decide what I wanted on the card front & finally decided on the Darice dry embossed stripes--subtle enough not to detract from the glittery panel.  The pictures truly do not do the glitter justice.  I'm entering ABC Christmas challenge, Rudolph Days & SSS Wednesday.


Thanks so much for taking time to stop by.  If your blog address is in your profile or comment, I will visit you.

MFT & FMS

I am certainly not a super star designer, but I did have a CAS design in mind for my MFT Layered Leaves die set.  Figured I may as well enter this year's MFT Card Design Super Star Clean & Simple Genius category.

I began by scribbling Deep, May & Light Green Zig Clean Color Real Brush markers on a small rectangle acrylic block.  I spritzed lightly & "stamped" onto a panel of Bristol cardstock.  I repeated the process a couple times to get the look I wanted.  I die cut the smallest detail leaf in the set from cork paper & laid them in place to see where I wanted the sentiment.  Then I removed the leaves & stamped the sentiment from MFT Thankful Leaves in Versafine Clair Acorn.  The leaves were glued in place & it was done.  It's going to my cousin & his wife, so I decided against any embellishments.  The leaf dies are still available, but the stamp set is retired.  I'm also entering Allsorts & SSS Monday.


I really like the current challenge at FMS.  It made me want to open the IO Berry Branches die set I got in my last order.

I had fun picking out the PTI paper & some green ribbon to go with the branches die cut from a red scrap.  I splattered the card front with watered down Graphite Tattered Angels mist & added Christmas Red Stickles to the berries.  The sentiment from W&W Snowy Holiday was stamped in Versafine Clair Morning Mist.  I'm also entering ABC Christmas & WAW.

Thanks so much for taking time to stop by.  If your blog address is in your profile or comment, I will visit you.

Thank You & Christmas

Lots of items in my sale pages & some prices have been lowered!

My first card today is for the Memory Box September Challenge: Framed.  I've made a simple thank you card using the MB die called Jasmine Frame which I've had for several years & still love.

This time I stacked it 3 high using gold metallic cardstock for the top layer.  I stamped the sentiment from Poppystamps Grateful Heart in Versafine Clair Acorn on a cream panel.  I added splatters of Distress Stain tarnished brass, attached the frame & added a strip of brown textured cardstock.  I love gold, brown & cream for Fall cards.  I'm also entering WAW.

Next is the card I made with the left overs from a Christmas Kickstart entry.  I used the same soft gray cardstock, MB branch & EH sentiment.

As you can see, this time I had the branch come from the right side & I used Stickles alone rather than adding them to white sequins.  I also stamped the teal ornament in Versamark with a splatter stamp to add some interest.  Actually, I like both versions.  I'm entering this one at The Snippets Playground.

Last is my entry for ITP LFF September Case.  I love the new Peaceful Forest stamps which reminded me of PTI Enchanted Forest.

I used Laurie's color combo & basic design & totally love how it came out!  The inks for the trees are Tropical Teal, Simply Chartreuse, Classic Kraft & Aqua Mist.  I wish you could see it in person, as even the light colors show up great.  The snowflakes & dots are stamped in Delicata Silvery Shimmer & the sentiment from PTI Botanical Blocks IV is silver embossed on a vellum strip. 

Thanks so much for taking time to stop by.  If your blog address is in your profile or comment, I will visit you.