Find Joy

Therese's card

I really like the basis of the new MUSE blog & want to participate as often as I can. Anyone can vote for their 3 favorite cards.  I'm hoping it won't be a popularity contest & that lots of deserving people will get recognition.  Unfortunately, I failed to note the deadline time to enter, so I'm too late to post the card I finished late last night.  I was happy with the result, though, so that's always good!  I used Therese's card as a sketch, used 2 colors plus white & colored one word of the sentiment.  Just got Hero Arts Love Jar clear set & stamped the leafy branch in Brilliance Pearlescent Thyme & VersaMagic Aloe Vera.  The sentiment is from my well-used HA Find Joy set & is stamped in Versafine Smokey Gray & Brilliance Pearlescent Sky Blue.  The printed paper is from a DCWV stack that was a Christmas present & it's cut with a Spellbinders border die.  Stickles Star Dust is added to the leaves & Baby Blue to the word "Joy".  Finished off with a bit of lace & pearls.  I'm putting it into the monthly Hero Arts challenge, since the strip of lace makes it qualify.  Thanks for taking time to look & hope you're having a great weekend.

Life

Made by Debbie Olson

Had a chance to make another card for PTI's 6th anniversary contest to make a card inspired by a favorite of one of the DT members.  The black & cream one by Debbie immediately caught my eye.  She said it's out of her creative zone, but it's right down my alley!  Mine is a bit smaller card & I used different stamps, ribbon & no stitching, but it's pretty much a copy.  I love how it came out--So nice when that happens! I used Versafine Black Onyx (can you tell it's my favorite black ink?!) on images from Through the Trees, Background Basics Text Style & The Sweet Life.  I popped up the panel with the sentiment & added 3 small rectangle gems.  Wishing everyone a love-filled Valentine's Day--& every day!  Thanks for taking time to leave me a comment--so much fun hearing from you.

Card & Birthday Pictures

If you visited my Feb. 10th post you might remember I didn't have much crafting time for a good reason.  We celebrated my 62nd birthday a couple days early by meeting hubby's daughter & her husband at a favorite restaurant on the Columbia River for an incredible Sunday brunch that included prime rib, made to order crepes, crab legs, a chocolate fountain, Mimosa--& about 100 other choices!  Certainly was worth having a birthday!  I'm kidding--in my business you learn to really appreciate every precious day and as Abraham Lincoln (my birthday twin) said: "It's the life in your years, not the years in your life that counts."  Hubby surprised me yesterday with beautiful red roses for Valentine's Day saying he thought I might enjoy having them early while I'm off for a couple days.   I considered the brunch to count for both, by I'm not complaining!  

Now on to my card for today.  I had this design in my head for a few week's but didn't sit down to make it until last night with the deadline today for the Impression Obsession Shades of Green challenge.  Simple card that ended up taking 4 tries due to smudges, stamping the words upside down, etc.  Finally got it right--Note to self--try creating when it's not almost midnight! I've been wanting to do the technique of masking & adding color as a background to an embossed image--love that look.  This is my first card using IO stamps Three Little Twigs, E8829 & Marvelous, C5171.  The twigs are embossed with Zing! Chestnut ep, the sponged color is Distress Inks crushed olive & shabby shutters & the quote is stamped in Versafine Vintage Sepia.  Thanks for all the sweet comments & your friendship by computer over the past year.  You make me smile!  

CAS Birthday card

Yes, Sue, I'm in a CAS phase--LOL!  Maybe I'll discover that's my strong suite--at least I've been happier with those cards lately.  Not much time to craft today for a good reason that I will share later this week.  I really love the PTI sketches for today's contest & I needed to make a birthday card to mail tomorrow. I hadn't yet used this small image from Lovely Layers & thought it'd be fun for the last sketch.  I pulled out my little VersaMagic pads & picked 6 of them: Purple Hydrangea, Aquatic Splash, Pink Petunia, Aloe Vera, Ocean Depth & Malted Mauve.  The sentiment is stamped in VersaFine Onyx Black & is from Quilled Elegance.  I thought about adding embossed lines &/or ribbon & rounding corners but ended up with just some pearls.  I hope my Flickr friend will like it.  I'd love to hear if you would have done something different.

Gift Bag to Enjoy

Credit: Pinterest

With so many challenges  out there I've been feeling overwhelmed trying to decide what ones I want to do. But it's never a question when there's a PTI challenge since I have such a huge wishlist!  Today's 6th anniversary contest is to create a wrap, tag or gift packaging inspired by a photo on Pinterest or another site.  With time short I just checked out Nichole's "Special Delivery" board & found this wonderful kraft, brown & white package.  Immediately I thought of my Background Basics: Medallions stamp set I just used for the last card.  Since I have lots of kraft bags saved from when a stamp store used to put purchases in them, I decided to make use of one.  My tag qualifies for this week's MIM Diecut Double-Up--yah, 2 for 1!  PTI announced today that they're going to carry Zing ep, which I love & have quite a few colors already, including the Chestnut I used today.  The medallions were pretty easy to line up so I could get the length strips I needed.  I've really gotten into felt flowers so I grabbed my brown & white felt & die cut a Spellbinders Blossom Three & the PTI Snowflake Flurries.  The layers are glued together with fabric glue & a button tied with dark & light twine embellishes the center.  For the tag I did the Double-Up with Spellbinders Reverse Wonky Rectangles & the tree from Trendy Tree Tops.  I didn't layer it because I wanted the kraft bag to show through.  The sentiment is from Lovely Layers.  I had such fun putting this together & I'm really happy with the finished product--can't wait for an occasion to use it!  Hope your weekend is going well. My thoughts are with those of you digging out from the East Coast blizzard--we're not complaining about our rain!  Thanks for taking time to check out my blog.

CAS Valentine

Limited crafting time this week as I added some hours at work.  I've gotten used to my part time schedule & I don't like working 4 days in a row--spoiled, I know!  I just remind myself it means a few more dollars to spend on stamping goodies!  PTI is celebrating their 6th anniversary & the first contest doesn't end until the 15th. I still needed to get a Valentine made for my brother & SIL & I found just the inspiration I needed from Maile's wonderful CAS card.  I finally opened my Background Basics: Medallions which I inked with Memento markers Lady Bug & Tangelo. I stamped on a Memory Box die cut heart.  The sentiment is by A Muse Artstamps which I inked with the Tangelo marker, colored the little heart with the Lady Bug marker & added Glossy Accents.  It was hard to decide what else to do, but I settled on some cascading pearls & gems in the same colors.  The heart is popped up with foam tape.  I'm thinking red & orange together make a non-traditional color scheme so I'm also entering this into the current Die Cut Divas challenge. Just realized this qualifies for the challenge at A Passion for Papertrey--new blog I recently discovered.  Thanks for coming by--I love reading what you think.  

Double Hearts for a friend

I was playing some more with my Lumiere acrylic paints a few days ago.  I swiped on too much Pearl Magenta for what I wanted to do but thought maybe I could punch out shapes later, so left it on my table.  I really wanted to make a card for this week's ODBDSLC to use Valentine colors or hearts.  I bought their "Hearts" stamp awhile back & hadn't yet inked it.  The light went on--emboss the hearts on the painted paper!  I used Zing Chocolate ep & then cut it out with a Spellbinders oval.  There was enough painted area on the discarded piece that I re-stamped the roses, cut them out & mounted them with foam tape.  I used COPICs to add a little color to the roses & the wreath.  The brown printed paper is embossed with a Cuttlebug folder.  I also hadn't yet used the Spellbinders Fleur de Lis Squares, but I needed a rectangle.  I remembered seeing someone show that you can cut a die in half, spread it apart to the size you need & cover the center area.  My brown ribbon was too narrow, so I used 2 strips & then added the piece of brown lace--worked great!  The hearts & the brown mat are mounted with foam tape.  One more Valentine ready to send to a card-making friend--yah!

It's Super Bowl Sunday in the US & I have a deal for you, Maria (matcat2002 in Maryland).  If the Niners win I owe you a card (& a little stamping goodie) & if the Ravens win you owe me--what do you say?!  GO NINERS!!