Bountiful Blessings

Yesterday was wildlife day at our house.  About noon I took Fritz out for a walk.  From our driveway I looked across the street & over one house.  There a big momma racoon was staring at us with babies around her.  I think Fritz saw them, but was quiet & just stood there beside me.  The momma turned around & the 4 babies followed her going down the neighbor's fence line.  No idea where they ended up & that was as close as I want to be to them!  Then at dusk we took our last walk just down to the end of our dead end street.  There were 3 big deer in the field pretty close to the street.  They all gracefully jumped the neighbor's fence & we could see them grazing in their big back yard.  Later they apparently came to our house to snack on my roses leaves big hoof prints in the bark chips & a bunch of tall stems with no flowers.  They're known for eating roses, but this is the first year they've gotten mine & we've been here 28 years!  Saves me picking up some fallen petals--haha!

I decided to make another card using IO Small Leaf Set (DIE 095).  This time I watercolored the leaves using Distress Markers Peeled Paint with a touch of Fired Brick.  

After they dried I added tiny bits of gold embossing using a Quikie Glue Pen.  I used the same Distress markers to splatter a vanilla panel along with some gold splatters.  I gold embossed Blessings (E20754) sentiment stamp on a vanilla scrap.  

This is the first time I've used it & certainly won't be the last.  I gold embossed the edges of the sentiment panel & of the card front.  It's a great way to make it look like there's dimension without adding bulk.  I'm entering IO Autumn Colors Challenge, DRU, NBUS & 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.

Variety of Cards

It's hard not to talk about the current turmoil.  The two of us have done a lot of listening, thinking & talking.  So easy to not even realize you've been closed to seeing another person's perspective which keeps you from seeing a need for change.  I'll just share a sign seen in Minneapolis during a peaceful protest.

Not all black people are criminals.

Not all white people are racist.

Not all cops are bad.

Ignorance comes in all colors.

Finally I didn't miss the deadline for Tic Tac Toe!  I chose Rainbow, Heart, Stripes.  My striped rainbow background was done with Copics. 

I stacked 3 Impression Obsession Lacy Hearts die cut panels & added Nuvo Crystal Glaze to some of the hearts--faux stained glass, I think it's called.

The SSS Painted Hugs die (one of my most used dies) was stacked 4 high, brushed with shimmer & covered with Nuvo Glaze.  I added the word friend using little alpha stickers attached to cardstock.  I'll mail it Monday.  I'm also entering SSS Monday.

Next is my entry for ITP Project Reach Out: Thinking of You.  I also wanted to enter Splitcoast Stampers MISTI Monday for the first time & the June challenge is to use the color pink.  That caught my eye since pink is my favorite color.

I used the same 3 inks as on another recent card: Berry Sorbet, Pale Peony & Sweet Blush.  For the leaves I used Mint Julep & Vintage Jadeite.  The stamp set is an old one from PTI called Friendly Flowers.  This may be the first time I've used PTI Shape Shifters: Oval 3.  The mat is Sweet Blush cardstock & I added some big glittered adhesive gems to the flower centers.  The PTI Butterfly Hope sentiment was black embossed on vellum & trimmed into a flag.  I'm also entering WAW.

My final card is for ModSquad & Time Out.  I used Distress Markers & a green American Crafts marker to color directly onto the rubber of PB First Waltz that was in my MISTI.

I colored a little at a time, misting the stamp with water before stamping onto the watercolor panel.  I repeated the process over & over until I was happy with the results.  The sentiment from PTI Wildflower Garden was stamped in Versafine Clair Nocturne.  I used a distress tool on the panel edges & then added antique linen & peeled paint DI using a brush.  The pink & green splatters were done with a small, wet brush that picked up the color from the markers scribbled on an acrylic block.

Last year around Easter I mailed 16 cards to family & friends.  This year I'm up to 39 in about a 6 wk time frame.  Postage is getting to be a big budget item--haha!
Thanks so much for taking time to stop by.  If your blog address is in your profile or comment, I will visit you.

Friendship

I've always appreciated my blogging friends, but now even more!  Here are 2 cards with that theme.
There have been a lot of multi-colored wreaths in blogland recently & I love the look.  Of course, I pretty much love every wreath I see--haha!  Thought it might work for the PFS March Challenge using the Delicate Wreath stamp set & the inspiration colors.  Finally sat down to give it a try & hope you like it as much as I do!

I used DI markers scattered straw, spun sugar, bundled sage & tumbled glass to ink the stamp.  Then I spritzed lightly with water before stamping.  I repeated the process until I was happy, thanks to using my MISTI.  Then I stamped in Versamark & embossed with HA Sparkle ep.

The sentiment from the set was stamped in Versafine Clair Morning Mist a couple times.  For the dark rose color, I splattered DI picked raspberry.  I usually avoid the bumps from pearls these days, but they've always been my favorite embellishment.  Couldn't resist using one for the center of my crochet thread bow.

My dear friend, Rosemary, is GD for CTS.  They're revisiting the very first sketch & it's a fun one.  I was also excited to see the Hero Arts Stay Crafty Challenge.  When I started stamping 20 some years ago, the only challenge I knew about was HA.  At that time, you actually made & mailed a card to HA each month.  Yep--the good 'ole days--haha!  The challenge theme is Encouragement & I pulled out a set from 2009 with a sentiment I don't think I've ever used.  The set also has this sweet little butterfly.

I grabbed some of my kraft cardstock scraps & made a card plus a smaller panel.  Again I used the MISTI to stamp a row of white butterflies, leaving space for the one angled to the right, stamped in VersaMagic Perfect Plumeria & embossed in HA Sparkle ep.  I colored the dots of that butterfly with a Gelly Roll Clear Star pen.

The sentiment was stamped in Versafine Clair Acorn.  I went over the word "special" with the pen & didn't like it at all!  Luckily, I was able to fix it by stamping & embossing the word just as I had done the butterfly.  Then I trimmed it & popped it up.  All the edges were inked with Versafine Clair Acorn & the big panel was mounted with a couple extra cardstock layers.  Both cards are going in the mail & will hopefully bring some joy.  I'm also entering 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. 

Birthday Flowers

I have a couple birthday cards to post today.  My pictures don't capture them very well, despite several efforts.
First is an entry for the Altenew May Inspiration Challenge.  I used a gray stamped watercolor panel & Altenew Painted Stripes die cut--both sent to me by friends.

The die cut had gotten damaged on one end, so I just trimmed off the border on all 4 sides.  The bloom & leaves are Altenew Layered Floral Elements.  I used the scribble, spritz, dry, repeat technique for the coloring.  The leaves were done with 2 green Distress Markers.  It's difficult to spritz enough to move the color without washing it away, so I did many layers.  The bloom was done with Zigs--much easier for this technique.  The layers are meant to line up, but I liked the look of them slightly offset.  I mounted the bloom with foam tape & added several sizes of pearls for embellishment.  The white double embossed sentiment is made by cutting apart happy birthday & cheer up in the Altenew Pained Greetings set.  This card is really pretty in person--not at all washed out.  I'm also entering SSS Wednesday.
  
I don't usually play along at CTD, but I couldn't resist the gorgeous color combo!

I used a white rectangle scrap laying on my table & stamped a wildflower image from SSS Warm Wishes using Versafine Clair inks Nocturne at the bottom & Acorn at the top which allowed me to add clear embossing powder.  I used my $9 make up brushes (that look exactly like the $50 ones) to add Memento Angel Pink ink to the edges blending it to very light in the center.

The sentiment from SSS Sketch Ranunculus was stamped in the Nocturne ink & I added black splatters at the bottom & brown at the top.  I'm really happy with how this turned out.  Clearly, I like simple.  The pink is not at all hard to see in person.  I did originally try using a different image in the set along with black & brown embossing powders, but after several attempts gave it up.  So, the end result is simple, but not necessarily the process--haha!  I'm also entering SSS Flickr Challenge 122 & 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.

Guest Designing at Retro Rubber Challenge Blog

I'm so happy to have joined the DT at RRCB as the GD for Challenge #106.  Having been a stamper for nearly 25 years, my stash includes tons of old stamps I still love.  It's great having a challenge that celebrates using stamps at least 1 yr old.  This time the theme is to use stripes on your card, which give you lots of options.  For my card, the stripes are done with an old Darice embossing folder.

I've had problems with this folder tearing my cardstock in the past.  Recently I saw a tip to emboss a panel of vellum, leave it in the folder & then use it with cardstock.  Hurrah--it worked!  The leaves & flowers are SSS Spring Flowers stamps & dies from 2016.  After gold embossing the images on watercolor paper, I scribbled with Distress Markers & spritzed with water to blend.  Just have to go easy on the water so it doesn't wash away the colors.

When they were dry I cut them out with the coordinating dies & arranged them on the card which I had already splattered with a black Zig.  The flower centers have a drop of gold Pico Embellisher.  For the sentiment I used the 2017 SSS set called Thoughtful Messages--one of my favorites.  The words were white embossed on black scraps & mounted with foam tape.  Hope I've inspired you to pull out those old stamps & join the challenge.  I'm entering CAS on Friday & SSS Flickr No 118.  


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

Friendship Cards

The latest PTI LFF challenge is to use your favorite PTI accessory.  I love the grograin ribbon, but my favorite has to be rainstones.  I was lucky enough to have some given to me by a friend several years ago & I'm hoarding them--haha!  I have other clear dots, but must admit they aren't the same.  My simple rainbow card began by white embossing the image from Lovely Layers across a scrap of white cardstock.

Then I brushed on Distress Inks festive berries, ripe persimmon, squeezed lemonade, shabby shatters & tumbled glass.  The sentiment from Corner Adorner: Februray was stamped in Brilliance Graphite Black & I added black splatters.  The panel was backed with a couple layers of cardstock for a bit of dimension & rainstones are the finishing touch.  I'm also entering Stamping Sensations & WAW.


Next is my entry for SSS Flickr Challenge: Friendship.  I gold embossed the flower, stem & leaves from SSS Spring Flowers on watercolor paper.  Then I scribbled with Distress Markers spiced marmalade & wild honey for the flower with lucky clover & peeled paint for the stem & leaves.  I found it a little tricky to spritz enough water to blend without washing away too much color.  Love the results, though.

 
After the papers were dry, I used the coordinating dies.  The frame from SSS Frames was die cut several times from ivory cardstock.  I double gold embossed the sentiment from SSS Thoughtful Messages on one of the interior panels you get when you cut the frame.  I lightly brushed the center with Distress Inks mowed lawn & salty ocean.  You can't really see it in the photo, but makes a big difference in person.  The frame was stacked several high & attached around the single interior panel already glued to the card front.  The pretty yellow irridescent gems given to me by a friend were the perfect embellishment.  I'm also entering SSS Wednesday & W2CB.

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

Friendship Flowers

I have trouble building bouquets from individual stamps, so decided to get some already done by the designer.  I used gift certificates to get a couple different ones.  This is my first card using Impression Obsession's Spring Flowers (G16343) which I double embossed with Rose Gold powder on watercolor paper.

 
As most of you know, I don't try to color very often, other than messy watercoloring.  I've seen a lot of gorgeous coloring lately in blogland, so maybe that inspired me to see what I could do with my Distress markers.  I used spun sugar, tattered rose, antique linen & pumice stone.  The blending was done with a barely wet brush.  The flower center & stamens are embellished with Champagne Stickles & I added splatters.

 
The IO sentiment, Precious Treasure (B13027), is one of my favorites.  I think having something fairly small to color is helpful for me & I'm going to keep practicing.  I do treasure the friendship & support of my blogging friends, so this card could be for any of you!
I'm entering IO Flowers for Friends, SSS Wednesday, WAW & The Flower Challenge.


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