Shaped & Sponged

Had a great start to my day off when I happened to be at the kitchen window as 2 Black-headed Grosbeaks came to my bird feeder. They're strikingly beautiful!

Last minute, but wanted to participate in the celebration of Flourishes 6th Birthday. Heather Jensen's inked background technique for the Color Your World challenge intrigued me as I didn't know you could sponge over an image stamped in Memento ink.  I used one of my favorite Flourishes stamp sets called Thinking of You.  My Distress Inks are shaded lilac, squeezed lemonade & peacock feathers. These tiny black gems were in a close-out sale making it inexpensive to create a frame with them.  The image was die cut with a Spellbinders oval & attached with foam tape to the card made with Spellbinders Labels Ten using a soft metallic gray for the front. Finished off with a little sheer black bow & now I have a card ready for a birthday or to send a note to a friend. Thanks for stopping by & letting me know your thoughts.

Get Well Card

Tracey's MUSE card

A family member is having some medical problems & the current challenges at MUSE & A Blog Named Hero provided inspiration for my card. Tracey's layout is great for any occasion & works well when time is limited. I used my Memento inks to create a colorful, cheery card which I admire in Jennifer
McGuire's work.  My flower stamps & dies are Hero Arts/Sizzix Bold Pop Designs which I chose as my publication incentive awhile back. The leaves (stamp & die) is PTI & the sentiment is an old one from A Stamp in the Hand.  Thanks for stopping by--love to have you visit.


P.S.  Don't forget, Penny Black has a contest going & there's still plenty of time to enter. 

The Lake and a Sneak Peak

This is the longest, hottest summer I can remember.  My last day off we took our boat up to the lake just over an hour from us.  The water was great & it was so relaxing. It's moored there now so we can enjoy the lake for the rest of the summer.  We truly live in a beautiful area as you can see by this picture.

Hopefully I'll soon have another card to share.  In the meantime, be sure you've signed up for the free Penny Black Membership so you won't miss the latest Stamp Squad cards delivered right to your e-mail.  I can't wait to see what my fellow Squad members came up with using the Summer Fun! transparent set. Here's a sneak peak.  Can you guess which one is mine? Enjoy your weekend.

Summer Birthday Card

I love playing along in the PTI Blog Hops.  I used all PTI stamps & the second color scheme.  I wanted to make a rose similar to Chicago Peace & it's not too far off. My stamp sets are The Sweet Life, Background Basics: Text Style & Quilled Elegance.  Unfortunately, I inked the edges of the Mat Stack 3 die cut with Vintage Cream & it would have been better just edged with the brown ink.  All in all, I like the card & it gave me a chance to use this wonderful brown grograin ribbon.  I'm also entering the Birthday challenge at A Passion for Papertrey & Birthday Card Challenge in the Moxie Fab World.  Thanks for stopping by.  I'm off to work, but will check out blogs when I get home.
Edited to add: I'm adding this card to the challenge at Seize the Birthday.

It's Wedding Time

I seldom have the need for a wedding card, but this summer one of my college roommates from 100 years ago is getting married.  She's been single a long time & I'm so happy they found each other.  I found 2 ribbons in my collection that are very close to the colors on the announcement.  One layer cards are not something I usually make & I didn't actually plan it for this card.  Sometimes things work out better without too much thinking about it. Penny Black makes the most gorgeous background stamps & I chose "peacock feathers" stamped in Encore! Ultimate Metallic Silver with clear embossing powder.  Love the soft silvery shine--not overpowering for this simple card. The sentiment is from Penny Black's "lace delight" set.  The beautiful font was just what I wanted & stamped perfectly in Memento Gray Flannel.  Three white sequins finish it off.  

I used Penny Black's "the bride" for the inside greeting & added just a small row of the "peacock feathers"--leaving room for me to write a personal message.  I put off making this card for weeks--not sure why.  This was a really fun card to make & I hope Cindy will like it.  Thanks for taking time out to visit my blog & hope you've found something to inspire you.

Be sure to check out the Penny Black blog for a new contest with 3 prizes! 

Thinking of You

Spent the morning working in the yard with hubby.  He had pruned the arborvitae & some tree branches.  He raked & I picked put the debris into the bin.  It's always nice to finish a project where you see the results of your hard work.  Figured I'd earned some crafting time, so put off the housework--nothing new for me--LOL!  


Decided to combine the Play Date Cafe Challenge colors of cream, melon & cantaloupe with the Impression Obsession Pack Your Bags challenge.  I had to get creative with this one, so let me explain.  My next trip is going to be a visit to my cousin & his family (& hopefully some cardmaking friends!) in Indianapolis.  One of the city's nicknames is Circle City.  My folks were married in the church on The Circle.  Now you know why my card is made with circles created with Lifestyle Crafts dies.  My cousin lives on a beautiful street with large lots & many trees.  I used my IO tree die, DIE006V & stamped it with the coordinating stamp from Solid Tree, 3115-XL.  After stamping with Versafine Vintage Sepia, I sponged on some green ink & then covered it with Versamark & clear embossed it.  I die cut a second tree from thin cardboard & attached it to the stamped tree to make my own chipboard.  The green circle is stamped with the IO Screen Cover-a-Card, CC049 & the cream card base is embossed with a Sizzix folder.  I have been thinking about my Indiana family, so this sentiment from the Solid Tree stamp set was perfect. I finished it off with a bit of cream twill & some green gems.  I hope your weekend was enjoyable & thanks so much for stopping by. 

Watercolor Birthday Card

Thank you all for the caring & hugs.  It means a lot to me.

This week's PTI MIM video showed how to watercolor an image & then over stamp after inking just the outer edges of the image.  I don't have PTI flowers like Erin used so I chose Harvest Berries--one of my favorite sets.  Love that it has matching dies & I used one for the small image.  I actually found my one small watercolor set that hasn't been used in years. Instead of a coordinating ink color, I used gold & the effect is beautiful in person.  All the edges are also inked in gold.  The sentiment is from PTI Quilled Elegance & is stamped in Versafine Vintage Sepia.  I used a Sizzix embossing folder on the kraft panel & all the layers are mounted with foam tape.  I didn't plan it, but I think this could be for a guy.  I'm also entering the Birthday Card Challenge in the Moxie Fab World & the Birthday Celebrations challenge at A Passion for Papertrey.  I love hearing what you think, so thanks for leaving a comment.
Edited to add: I'm adding this card to the challenge at Seize the Birthday.

Cardmaking is Therapy

Said goodbye yesterday to our sweet puppy dog, Keesha.  She had a long & happy life, but it's never long enough.  I know some of you have furbaby family members & understand the sadness & empty feeling.  I was off today, thankfully, & spent some time concentrating on making a card.  

The beautiful sketch at CAS(E) this Sketch! gave me the perfect opportunity to use my new Penny Black stamp, with flourish, 40-241, which coordinates with Spellbinders Labels 16.  I inked the stamp with a Faber-Castell big brush & immediately poured on embossing powder.  The pretty hat & sentiment are from Penny Black's lace delight, 30-115.  I paper pieced the hat & colored it with the big brush & some COPIC markers.  The roses are brushed with Shimmer Spritz & Stickles was added to the lace.  Foam tape is used to attach the top of the hat & give it shape while the brim is glued flat with the lace edge slightly bent up.  I like the aqua, lavender & gray color combo.  Hope you do, too.  Thanks so much for visiting my blog.  I'm still catching up & will visit you soon--not used to Feedly yet.

Summer Splash Blog Hop

We had a short camping trip on my days off so no blog posts for a few days.  I'm so glad to be back today with a summery note card using all DeNami stamps for my participation in this month's Blog Hop.   Deb Fischer just provided some inspiration if you're going in order.  To see the entire line-up & details about prizes head over to the DeNami Blog. 

I don't use a lot of yellow in my crafting, but it is perfect to convey the feeling of summer.  I paired it with some brightly colored butterflies.  I seldom use my Liquid Pearls so it was fun to find that the gold was just right for the bodies & it gave some texture, along with Stickles on the wings. This is my first card using the Solid Leaf Sprig & I was delighted to find that it makes a great background.  To cut the opening in the panel for my sentiment, a Lifestyle Crafts oval die was used. Yellow pearls finish off my simple card.  Hope you like it.  Next stop is one of the incredibly talented DT members, Dana Seymour. Enjoy the hop!

  

It's A Good Day

  

I really wanted to enter the current MFT challenge as it's been awhile & I love the sketch.  I hadn't had a chance to use this beautiful pink felt, so decided on pink, white & gray for my colors.  I framed the MFT sentiment using the negatives of the MFT Framing Flourishes.  The flower is made with MFT dies: Layered Rose & Prima Donna Petals.  Hoping it is a good day for you!

Playing with Gesso

Alexandra's Diary

Alexandra's Mask

The current PTI MIM challenge is to make custom paint with Gesso & reinkers.  I knew immediately I wanted to use my paint with a stencil as I've been inspired by Alexandra's use of them.  You can find one example in this post & here are just a couple pictures of her project--click to enlarge the pictures. 

I've actually bought several stencils lately & found the one I used today in the bottom of a drawer.  I mixed some Gesso with a Marvy Pale Violet reinker & got this lovely soft shade.  I used a piece of watercolor paper & brushed it over the stencil that has very small squares.  In places where it was heavily applied it made little mounds which I then spread with a brush.  I actually liked the effect this created for a background.  I stamped PTI Background Basics: Text Style in black that had been stamped off & then softened it more by adding Gesso randomly with my finger.  Next I stamped an image from PTI Turning a New Leaf in Fresh Snow.  It's very subtle, but effective in person.  PTI Lovely Layers dies were cut in felt, attached together & to a small Martha Stewart doily.  The sentiment from PTI Lovely Leaves & the focal image were attached to the background piece which is attached to a vellum panel & then to the card front.  I added a single pearl as the only embellishment.  I'm also entering the current challenge at A Passion For Papertrey since Alexandra's use of stencils inspired me.  I'm really glad you stopped by & hope you have a great week.

Just Playing

Had a couple challenging days at work, so decided to try some techniques without worrying about a deadline or challenge requirements.  I've been wanting to color paper by patting & dragging it through ink that's been spritzed on my craft sheet.  I used watercolor paper with Distress Inks tea dye, bundled sage & peeled paint.  I dried between colors & it was OK, but not quite what I wanted so I sponged on more ink.  Then I stamped Penny Black's verdant, 4310K, with peeled paint & spritzed with Ink Potion #9.    My friend, Sue, makes the most beautiful backgrounds--often dry embossing after stamping. Decided to give it a try with my Cuttlebug folder, Kassie's Brocade.  The effect was magical!  Next I spritzed with Tattered Angels Copper mist & distressed the edges.  It's so beautiful in person I didn't want to cover it up.  Decided to just add a sentiment from Penny Black's edge to edge, 30-164, copper embossed on vellum.  I inked the back using tea dye & trimmed the ends.  Finished off with some green twine (toned down with the tea dye) & a brown button.  I feel renewed & ready to work on some challenge cards now.
If you're looking for inspiration, don't miss the 3 Saturday Extravaganza posts today on the Penny Black blog. 
I so appreciate your taking time to leave me a comment--always makes me happy.  Enjoy your weekend.

Happy Birthday America!

Wishing all my fellow Americans a Happy 4th of July!  Hope you have a great time with family & friends as we celebrate our country & pray for better days ahead.  The Ten Minute Craft Dash challenge is to make a card with stars.  Yesterday's card would have been great except it took me 11 minutes.  I'll tell you, 10 minutes is not very long--LOL!  Decided to really simplify things & sure enough, hubby timed this card to take 6 minutes & 59 seconds--yah!  Now I have a card ready for next year!  All these stamps are old unmounted rubber that I attach to my acrylic block with Poster Tape.  I don't know the company for the fireworks but the others are by Art Impressions, an Oregon company where I taught some classes until they closed their retail store about 10 years ago.  I added Stickles to the fireworks & the stars--very pretty in person but I couldn't get it to show very well in a picture.  This is my second card for the Simon Says Stamp patriotic challenge.  Have to work this morning, but I'll be visiting your blogs soon.  Thanks for stopping by again.

Celebrate America

  

Obviously too late to mail any more July 4th cards this year, but I'm taking one to a co-worker tomorrow.  When I saw the CASology cue word: fireworks, I knew I wanted to make her card using one of my fireworks stamps.  All the stamps on this card are old unmounted rubber ones I've hardly used, but really like.  If you have any here's a tip: mount them to your acrylic block with Poster Tape--works great!  I know the stars background is by Art Impressions (another Oregon company!) but I don't know about the others--too long ago & no markings on them.  I intended to have this card also be my entry for the 10 Minute Craft Dash, but it took me 11 minutes.  I had everything planned out & written down, so I must just be slow--LOL!  I made it under 10 minutes with another card I'll post later this week.  My inks are Brilliance Rocket Red & Mediterranean Blue--2 old favorites.  I see Simon Says Stamp has a Patriotic challenge now, so I'll enter this card over there, too.  So glad you took time to visit my blog.  

Christmas in July

I really can't imagine winter right now with our heat wave in full swing!  However, I can make a Christmas card anytime as that's my favorite reason to make cards.  Merry Monday is a month long "anything goes" challenge--right up my alley!  
Today's card uses all Impression Obsession stamps.  The poinsettia was black embossed on 2 shades of blue cardstock.  Then I clear embossed them with the Cover-A-Card screen stamp & brushed on Shimmer Spritz.  The light blue flower was cut apart & glued to the dark blue flower which is mounted with foam tape to the silver Spellbinder die cut.  Love the font of this sentiment stamp which is silver embossed.  I also sponged some silver ink on the card edges & tied on a silver bow. Now I just need to start stamping the insides of the holiday cards I've made & decide who I want to be the recipient so that part isn't left until the last minute.  This will also be my July card for SCS Christmas Card Challenge & thanks to Dawn's reminder I'm entering the Die Cut Diva's flower challenge. Hazel invited me to also enter my card into her Christmas challenge. 

Happy news today when I saw my card was awarded Top 3 at A Passion for Papertrey--a first for me! 

Thank you for visiting my blog.  Enjoy the rest of your week. 

July 4th Card

I really like the current sketch at CAS(E) this Sketch!  & used it for my last July 4th card.  The embossed stars (Cuttlebug) have a bit of Stickles in the centers--hard to see in the photo.  The heart with the star is mounted with foam tape.  It's from a local stamp company where I taught some classes & made sample cards for their store until they went out of business. The sentiment is an old one still available from another Oregon company--Peddler's Pack.  I spent the longest time trying a variety of ribbons & finally hit upon this combination which gave me the look I wanted.  Hopefully it will make it to my cousin & his family in time for the holiday.















Check out the happenings on the Penny Black Blog.  There's lots of inspiration & prizes up for grabs!

  

Thank you for coming by & leaving me a comment.  Hope you're having a great week.