Christmas in May

I've been wanting to do a Stampendous challenge & finally got something made.  The challenge is to create a gift HERE.  I don't need anything for Mother's Day or graduation, but I always need a little something for people at work.  I bought this little candle last year & didn't get it decorated, so decided that would be a good project.  I stamped the designs from Stampendous Bold Blossoms set on tissue paper using Delicata Golden Glitz.  The images are adhered using wax paper & my heat gun.  I added some red dot stickers, gold silk ribbon & a red rose to finish it off.  

This spring I've had lots of birds at my feeders & finally got a shot of a pair of goldfinches that come frequently & stay a long time, unless the dogs or I spook them!  Aren't they beautiful?

Red Roses

I'm enjoying a 3 day w/e thanks to still being on orientation.  Holiday pay is time & 1/2, so they didn't want a slow-poke like me to work--hurrah!  I did manage to force myself to get some chores done like doggie baths & clearing the stack of mail on the counter (drives hubby crazy--LOL!)  Now I've earned some play time, so finished up the card I started last night.  Memorial Day is to remember those who gave their lives for our freedom in America, but I also remember my wonderful parents.  When I was a kid my dad joked that the only flower was a red rose.  He really loved all roses (& a lot of other flowers), but I still associate him with the red ones.  Mine have just begun blooming, so I cut a few to put on the mantle.  They inspired my card made for Flourishes Timeless Tuesday HERE & Our Creative Corner HERE.  The TT challenge is to use a flower image & I chose the rose wreath from the Wreaths of all Seasons set.  OCC must be a Shabby Chic card, so I'm hoping this will qualify-- not my area of expertise, for sure!  The card base is Spellbinders Labels 10 sprayed with Tattered Angels Wheatfields & Penny Black Music BG stamped in Memento Peanut Brittle.  The red die (part cut off) is Spellbinders Parisian Motifs.  The wreath is colored with COPICS R59, R29, G07, G09, Y21.  The sentiment is from Flourishes Life Lines.  The image is cut with the Flourishes Classic Keyhole die and then sprayed with Tattered Angels Wheatfields & Candy Apple Red.  The edges of all the pieces are sponged with Delicata Golden Glitz & they're mounted with foam tape.  Sorry for the flat picture--couldn't figure out how to make it stand up straight.  I'm not sure if the red velvet ribbon was the right embellishment, but I didn't like anything else I tried.  Raindots & pearls finish it off.  Thanks so much for your continued support & encouraging comments.  Wishing you all a terrific week.

Monochromatic Card

Started out thinking I might make a man's birthday card using black, gray & white, inspired by the ribbon I just got.  I hadn't had a chance to use this Helen Keller quote stamp from ODBD Quote Collection 1 & the sketch challenge looked like fun HERE.  The black background panel is made by clear embossing ODBD Vintage Border Background.  The 2 gray panels have the flower from ODBD Don't Worry set stamped with Memento Gray Flannel.  The die cuts are Spellbinders Labels 2 with the quote stamped on vellum with VersaFine Black Onyx mounted to the white cardstock die cut turned the other way.  Gray & Black gems finish it off.  Now I'm thinking this might not be masculine enough, so may give it to a gal instead.  I'm also going to enter this into Die Cut Divas HERE.  Hope you're having a great week.

Almost forgot--such a thrill yesterday to glance out my window & see a female Black-headed Grosbeak at the feeder--haven't seen one in years.  Sure hope she comes back. 

Distressed Flowers

Decided to try something a little different for this card that I'm entering into the DeNami Addict theme Challenge-Gardens HERE.  I'm combining distressed/muted spring colors with white embossing, glitter, pearls & gems.  Usually I would have done the whole thing bright.  However, I like trying new twists & the pumice stone Distress Ink is a new favorite, so that's what I sponged on all the edges.  The main colors are Distress Ink tumbled glass, shabby shutters & tattered rose.  I really like this DeNami flower stamp (from my friend, Rosemary--thanks again!) that can work for many types of cards.  The Stickles on the blossoms & the new DeNami butterfly is Star Dust.  All the layers are mounted with foam tape.  I'd love to hear what you think.  Thanks for coming by.

Felt Flowers--I can make them!

Click HERE if you're looking for my DeNami Design Pretty Pastels post.

I was intrigued with Ashley's video for PTI MIM this week HERE.  She used border dies to cut strips of felt that she just rolled into little flowers.  I love flowers, but have been less than successful in making my own.  However, these looked really easy--& they were!  I only have some cheap, craft felt & even it worked.  Mine was white, so I sprayed it with Tattered Angels.  The ones on my card are Turquoise Blue & I have others ready to use on another project.  The only border die I have is Tim Holtz Brackets & both designs worked.  The background dies are PTI Layerz Mat Stack 3 & Mega Mat Stack 3.  The circle & scallop circle are Spellbinders.  When I visited Dana's blog today for the hop, I learned of a challenge called 365 Cards HERE & I think this will qualify for Day 81 Sunday Sketch. Thanks for stopping by--I alway appreciate it.

DeNami Design Pretty Pastels Blog Hop

Hello Hoppers!  If you arrived from the wonderful world of Dana Seymour you're right on track & full of inspiration!  If you get lost, just head to DeNami Design where you can find the entire list of blogs. I accidentally got my card ready a week early (right date on the calendar, wrong date in my head!) so that gave me time to do a second one.  All the stamps are by DeNami.  


Love the new retro borders cling stamp set, so had to use one for my background.  The daisy stamps I've had for years & they're some of my favorites.  You can get a very different look by just bending the petals up a little like I did here.  The inks are Brilliance Pearlescent Sky Blue, Jade & Purple.



I wanted to use my twine in a new way after seeing the DeNami Twinery hop.  It's just right as the grass with these cute flowers, I think.  To get matching gems I put a drop of Glossy Accents on clear gems & covered them with the same pink, yellow & blue glitters used on the flowers.  The punch is by Martha Stewart.

You have until May 21st, 2012, 11:59 pm PST, to leave comments on all the blogs (to be eligible for a prize). DeNami is awarding TWO $20 gift certificates to the website for TWO people who comment along the hop!  Off you go to see the eye candy Andrea Fisher has for you.  So glad you stopped by today!

A Wedding Card

One of my good friends is getting married very soon.  Her colors are Purple, Teal, Cream & Bronze.  I knew I wanted to use my Flourishes Fanciful Flourishes set with the beautiful flourished heart.  Turns out it also works for the Timeless Tuesday Challenge HERE to pick a letter & use it for 3 supplies/embellishments.  My letter is S: Spellbinders (Labels 8, Parisian Motifs, Scalloped Circle, Oval), Silk ribbon, Shimmer cardstock & shimmer spray.  I think Betty will love that I used her color theme for the card.  Now I just have to figure out what to give them for a gift!  They're combining 2 households & are in the process of getting rid of all the extra stuff they won't need.
Hope you've had a good week.  My new job training went really well the past week, so my self-esteem has had a boost!  Thanks for taking time to visit-I always appreciate it.  I'd love for you to check out the DeNami Blog Hop on Sunday.  This will be my second time to participate & I know there will be lots of inspiration on all the blogs.

Pink-A-Licious

Just realized I can't wait to post this card tomorrow for Flourished TT HERE since I won't be home from work in time.  I'll keep it short and sweet.  My mom died 20 years ago & I still miss her.  This would have been a perfect card for her since she loved pink.  In fact, the grandkids called her "Pink Grammy" since 90% of what she wore was some shade of pink.  The butterfly & greeting are from Flourishes Butterflies & Blossoms set.  I embossed the butterfly in white & then sprayed it with Tattered Angels mists: Snow Angel, Creme de Rouge & Wheatfields.  All the edges are sponged with Golden Glitz.  The patterned paper covering the card & used for the die with the greeting is from K&Co Watercolor Bouquet--another pad I got in close-out.  Eyes want to close, so off to bed.  Wishing all of you a great week.

Pretty In Purple

Another chance to win Flourishes May Release HERE & I love purple, so wanted to enter a card.  Had to keep it simple, so I white embossed this sweet image from Botanical Bookplates & used Distress Ink dusty concord & milled lavender for the resist technique.  This time I focused the darker color in the middle over the image & I think it brought it to life.  The Spellbinder is Labels 22 & I used vellum for the mat.  The sentiment is from the same set. The panels are mounted with foam tape & I finished it off with Stickles, gems & the white textured ribbon tied in a bow.

I've reached a milestone--25 followers!  Thanks to all of you for the help & encouragement.  If you get a chance, check out the DeNami Blog Hop on Sunday, May 20th.  This will be my second time as a participant & I'd love to have you stop by.  (Fortunately, Emily pointed out the correct date of the Hop.  At least I'll be ready & not stressed at the last minute--LOL!)

Home Sweet Home

Springtime in Oregon means rhododendrons.  Thought you might enjoy seeing this one with pinky-peachy blooms, which I love.

Now for my card.  Can't miss a chance to win the new Flourishes release!  The challenge is to be inspired by something around your home HERE.  I chose this lamp that belonged to my grandmother.  I believe it's an antique, but I love it because of the sentimental value & I think it's so beautiful.  I used Flourishes Thinking of You set.  The images are white embossed on light blue cardstock that is die cut with Spellbinders Labels Ten.  The mat is a soft beige shimmer cardstock inspired by the brass on the lamp.  I added a panel of vellum under the die cuts.  I'll probably use this for my thank you card to the gal who has been training me for 3 weeks.  That's a long time to not be able to just do your job like usual & she's been very patient with me. Hope you're having a lovely week with some crafting time.

Butterflies: self propelled Flowers

Do you ever start a card not having any idea what you're going to do?  Well, it's not all that unusual for me, I have to say--This is just one example.  I've been working on Christmas cards to submit for publication, but took a break to do a butterfly card for Flourishes TT HERE (a challenge I try to participate in each week).  I knew I wanted to use the images from Fanciful Flourishes (one of my top 2 favorite sets).  I paged through a stamping magazine to get some inspiration & decided to do some sort of strip near the bottom.  Today when I picked up my Delicata GoldenGlitz ink pad (oh my goodness--it's so gorgeous!) at my LSS I also found these wonderful flat back "tin pin" embellishments & was happily surprised to see that darcie heater designs is from a tiny town here in Oregon!  I did second generation stamping with Memento Rich Cocoa to approximate the color of the design on the pin.  VersaMagic Aloe Vera matched the scrap of green cardstock in my stash, so I used that to stamp the solid butterfly image.  The flourished image is the same second generation stamping.  The edges are sponged with Distress Ink old paper which is also lightly pounced around the butterflies.  The punch is MS, the panels are mounted with foam tape & pearls finished off the card.  Sorry for the funny angle of the picture--hard to keep shine off the pin.  This turned out to be a card I really like--hope you do, too.  Thanks for visiting my little spot in blogland.

Teal & Gray

In the nick of time, finished my card for ODBD Shining The Light Challenge HERE. I had a different design in mind, but sometimes you have to go to plan B--LOL!  I love Quote Collection 1, so decided to make my second card using another of the stamps.  I stamped one of the Fancy Labels in Memento Gray Flannel & cut it out with Spellbinder Label 17.  Then I used Memento Teal Zeal to stamp Helen Keller's quote.  It's matted with teal cardstock cut using the next size up die.  The background embossing folder is by Sizzix for SU & I swiped the gray ink across it.  The layers are mounted with foam tape.  The card is finished off with gray silk ribbon, gems & teal flowers.  Hope you like it.  Thanks for stopping by & leaving me a comment--always makes me smile.  It's almost Friday, so enjoy your weekend.

May Flowers

I didn't want to miss the Penny Black Saturday Challenge HERE, but I seem to be missing my mojo right now.  Decided to just do a simple card using my favorite emboss resist technique with Distress Inks.  The flowers are PB day-dreams, the inks are spun sugar, tumbled glass, milled lavender & scattered straw.  The card front has PB simple scroll white embossed.  The Nestie is Labels 17 & I used my new Darice embossing folder for the mat & the MS butterfly.  The bit of sparkle on the flowers is from Gelly Roll clear star.  So glad you took time to stop by.