Hero Arts Blog Hop!!

These are some cards that I did this week.  The top two cards  use the Hero Arts Antique Letter Writing stamp.  The first card, I inked the stamp in Versamark, then clear embossed it.  I then sponged Worn Lipstick, Dried Marigold and Broken China distress inks all over it. I mounted the piece onto pale pink cardstock.


The second card is using the same stamp (Antique Letter Writing) that I stamped on white cardstock in Lovely Lilac ink (SU).  I then took an X-acto knife and cut around the wings of the biggest butterfly.  To add a little more to the card, on the two butterflies, I did the purple parts of their wings in purple Stickles.

The third card is using a left over piece of cardstock that had some embossing powder on it... I had done the faux batik technique( I think that's the correct name for it), and I used the piece that covered the original embossed piece.  I went and added Tattered Rose, Worn Lipstick and Victorian Velvet distress inks to it., rounded the corners, and mounted it to a piece of pink cardstock.  I took the scrap of the pink cardstock, and stamped a Hero Arts butterfly (Antique Engravings) in Victorian Velvet and cut it out, and foam mounted it to the card.  I stamped 3 tulips (Antique Engravings flowers) over the piece.  I then stamped the sentiment (Essential Messages)  on another piece of scrap pink cardstock in Victorian Velvet and attached it to the side of the card.  The background is the Antique Brocade stamp.

From here, hop on over to Clare's blog  HERE to see some more Hero Arts goodness.

To go to the beginning of the Hero Arts Blog hop, go  HERE.

September Christmas Card Challenge

Well, I finally got a chance to photograph my September Christmas cards.  The theme this month is DEER.. it can be reindeer, or just regular  deer, or Rudolph.... just as long as there is one deer on the card.

For this card, I used some orange cardstock for the base, and patterned paper from Fancypants design (Frosted).  I cut the patterned paper to 1/2 inch smaller than the base in the width and height.  I then used my Hero Arts Cerulean chalk ink and stamped the reindeer and greeting ( The Stampin Place) on the patterned paper.  I then went and stamped the image again on white cardstock, and cut out the reindeer from the image.  I used dimensional foam tape to adhere the cut out reindeer over top of the reindeer that was on the patterned paper.  And Voila! I'm done.  I am very tempted to add some glitter to some snowflakes, but I wonder how much that will detract from the card.

On a side note, you have until 9pm Pacific time to join Deborah's CCC for September.. it's the Card Chain Challenge, and Deborah gives you a choice of a colour palette, sketch, or theme to follow.. you can do more than one element in the challenge, but you only need to do one.. it's quite the fun swap.  You can find Deborah's blog HERE .

Simon Says Stamp and Show card

This is a card for the Simon Says Stamp and Show vintage challenge this week.  I  started with a distressed background that had some writing on it.  I then took a Hero Arts Cling (I think it's Antique Brocade) stamp, and stamped in Versamark, then clear embossed.  I then used Tim Holtz Distress Inks to distress the piece. Once that was done, I took an iron and a another piece of blank cardstock, and ironed off the embossing powder. This left the original distressed background peeking through the over distressing.  I took a piece of dictionary, and distressed that ( Worn Lipstick, Dried Marigold and Broken China), and distressed it, and added it to the card front.  I then took SU Chocolate Chip ink and stamped the crown three times and the bird on a branch once ( Both Tim Holtz stamps).  I then mounted the card front onto some dark brown cardstock for the base.

Happy Birthday to a Special Boy

This is a card inspired by Kristina Werner.  A couple of weeks ago, she did a card that had very little stamping on it, it was all punched out circles on a base card stock, with some stripes to fill in the card a bit.  This is my take on it.  I used some Basic Grey Dissidant patterned paper, as well as some other random scraps I had into 3/4 inch circles.  For the card base, I used orange card stock, then added Dried Marigold, Worn Lipstick, Victorian Velvet and Fired Brick distress inks to age the card stock.. for even more interest, I took my Nick Bantock ink in Van Dyke brown, and lightly stamped over the cardstock.. I went randomly, and with the curve in my pad, only the outside lines showed.  I placed and taped my circles all over the card front, spacing them out as evenly as I could.   I then took some scrap orange cardstock, and cut it thinly into two long pieces. I added dash lines to them.  I stamped "Happy Birthday" (Hero Arts) in the Van Dyke brown on cream cardstock.  I also cut a piece of brown paper that I had punched some circles with to add to the bottom.  With the circles in place, I added the stripe on the left side of the card, then the cream cardstock, then the brown paper, then the second orange piece of cardstock.  I finished off by rounding three of the corners.

the insanity of going to university....

Well, sorry that I haven't been posting much art lately, today is the first time in nearly two weeks that I have stamped.... with my "baby" (who's taller than I am) getting ready to go to university, I have been trying to be available more often for the family.  We're still waiting on the student loan though, the government messed up big time, so I'm hoping we'll at least get an approval and amount of the loan before next Friday.... otherwise, it's a decision to risk going across country for university and hope that the loan comes through, or stay at home and take an extra year of high school.  The waiting is driving us all crazy. :P

Anita is having a giveaway on her blog!!! Check out this link HERE  to see how to enter.  Seeing her little girl brought back many great memories of me and my kids when they were little... that seems like a lifetime ago...LOL

More Giveaways!!

I just got back yesterday from being out of town, and wouldn't you know, there's another giveaway on this blog HERE.  Check it out!!  And I hope to get back to creating sometime soon, but right now, I am going to work on  cleaning up my stamping mess!! LOL!!  Mostly things that I've taken to the stamping group that haven't been put back away properly.

Any tips on storage with space deprived people would be appreciated :D

A Real Buggy Birthday Card!!

A good friend of mine is celebrating her 65th birthday today.  She LOVES ladybugs, and the idea for this card popped into my head some time ago.  I took a 6 x 12 inch piece of red cardstock, and folded it in half.  I used a 5  1/2 inch circle to make the body of the ladybug.  I just made sure that I didn't cut it in a way that cut the entire fold away.  I also die cut a 3 1/2 inch black circle for the head.   I started by drawing a line down the middle of the card, then going over it in black Sharpie, to delineate the wings.  I then folded the 3 1/2 inch black circle in half, and attached it to the red body.  Once I figured out which way the 65 would work, I drew the 6 and the 5 lightly in pencil.  I then used a Hero Arts stamp (Antique Engravings insect set) and used the ladybug to "draw" the 65.  I then erased the pencil lines.  I punched out two 1 inch circles in white cardstock for the eyes of the ladybug.  I kept the card quite flat, simply because I couldn't figure out a way to mount a few little ladybugs on the numbers without ruining the shape.

Just a note, the photo  was taken by my friend.

1000 Sheets of Paper Giveaway!!

I can;'t imagine holding 1000 sheets of patterned paper, but that's what Amy has done!! She's used 1000 sheets of patterned paper since starting her  blog, so to celebrate, she's giving away 1000 sheets of 6x6 paper!!!  As you can see, it's quite the stack of paper.  Head over to Amy's blog HERE to see how you can enter to win. 

I can just imagine what would happen if I won... my hubby, I think would KILL me.. he's always complaining about the amount of paper that I have.. LOL.. although if it was free, maybe he would be happy that I wouldn't have to spend money on more paper :D

Really Reasonable Ribbon Giveaway!!

Check out the Really Reasonable Ribbon blog HERE and add your 2 cents worth!! You could win some sweet blog candy!

New Store Grand Opening this weekend!!

Stamp Fever Store is having it's grand opening in a new location this weekend!!! And on Nancy's blog HERE, you can win a $35 dollar gift certificate for Hero Arts goodies!!   Neat, eh?  If  you have the time, check it out!

.. And Yet More Distress......

Yet another Keeping in Touch card for the Hero Arts August challenge  For this card, I used Kraft cardstock as the base.  I stamped in white with the SU retired stamp, Victorian Lace, which covered the card front.  While that was drying, I stamped the butterfly (Quietfire Designs) in Broken China distress ink on some patterned paper, and cut out.  Once the white ink was dry, I over stamped the card front with Worn Lipstick Distress ink for the flowers ( Hero Arts Watercolor Petals).  I added the sentiment, also Hero Arts, in Victorian Velvet.  The card needed just a hint more colour, so I edged the whole card front in Victorian Velvet.  I foam mounted the butterfly to the card.  I thought of adding more, but felt it would just detract from the subtle background.

Distress, Distress and More Distress

Well, I actually got some creating done this week... with all the commotion going on, that's a good thing.  This particular card is for a friend of mine, who somehow had the weirdest basic Grey paper.. it's from the Dissidant line, and is called Obscure.  I say weird, only because my friend is in her 70s and that type of paper would never hit her shopping cart... where she got it from, I don't know.  Anyways, my friend had no clue of what to do with the paper.  I took one look at it and had something very similar to this card in my head right away.  I tried to explain it to her, but she just gave me the paper.  I promised her I'd have a card for her by next Tuesday (that's when our stamping group meets again). 

What I did with this card is to cut a 1 3/4  x 12 inch strip from the Obscure paper.  I also cut a 1 3/4 x 21 inch strip from a Magenta paper.  I cut  four pieces of the Obscure into 1 3/4 inch squares, and 5 of the Magenta paper into 1 3/4 inch squares.  With the Magenta squares, I crumpled them, then used Fired Brick Distress Ink on the mountains of the paper.  I then ironed them flat.  For the base cardstock, I took a 6 x 12 inch piece of bright orange cardstock...... for those of you who know me, orange is NOT my favourite colour.  I much prefer a pale peachy colour for my oranges. So what does a girl do when the orange is too bright to match the patterned paper? Distress it!!  I went over the whole 6 x 6 front of the card with Old Paper, Dried Marigold, Worn Lipstick, and Fired Brick Distress inks.  The Fried Brick was just around the edges.  I spaced out the squares so that they would be evenly spaced, and placed them somewhat randomly.  After taping the squares down,  I then took a script stamp, inked it in Broken China Distress Ink, and stamped  over the squares.  I then took the last of the 1 3/4 inch strip of Obscure paper, and stamped two Hero Arts butterflies on it ( from Antique Engravings) in black Versafine ink.  I also stamped and cut out the littlest butterfly from the Antiques Engravings set on the scrap of Magenta paper. I then Stickled  the circles and bodies of the butterfly with Star Dust Stickles.  While that was drying, I took the last of the Magenta paper, and stamped the sentiment (Hero Arts) on the Magenta paper.  I tried to just leave it as it was on the card, but it got lost, so I made a slightly larger frame to put the sentiment on. I just used some text weight paper, as I didn't want cardstock to weigh the paper down.  Once the butterflies were dry, I mounted them on the card, using foam tape.  The smallest butterfly is on a brad, which is attaching the gold flower from Imaginiscence to the cardstock. 


I am really pleased with this card.  I am so far ahead on  birthday cards and such that it was nice to take my time and get the card just right.  I don't think my friend is going to recognize her patterned paper on this card!! Although you can see a skull, face and lips from the paper on the card.

Lucy is having a GIVEAWAY!!!

Check out Lucy's blog HERE to see the giveaway.  It's very generous of her!!

  Off to finish baking the chocolate chip oatmeal cookies with my kid... We're having some time together, without my hubby.

Cupcakes and Card Patterns

OK, here's another card I got done yesterday, while the hubby and the kid were away.  This card follows Card Pattern 76 and it also features cupcakes, which is the challenge for Crazy 4 Challenges this week.  I used a 4 1/4 inch square card of cream cardstock.  To that, I added some striped patterned paper, and also added a solid pink edge, done in a Martha Stewart punch.  The "brads" are three tiny cupcakes from a punch I've had for quite awhile.  The two bigger cupcakes are my first attempt at paper piecing.  I stamped the cupcake image 4 times, twice on light pink scrap card stock, once in the stripe patterned paper, once in the dark purple that I used for the cupcake "brads".  I started by colouring the pink cupcake bottoms brown, then carefully cut out the tops in the purple and the stripes.  I taped them to the pink cupcakes. the silver scalloped circle is from the inside of a cookie bag.  the sentiment is stamped in black on cream cardstock, and the stamp is from Hero Arts.  The cupcake stamp is from Inkadinkado.


Oops!!! I just realized I photographed this BEFORE I added the red Stickles to the cherries.... I will do so and update the photo when I can.

Edit August 12th : I managed to get another photo of the card, this time with  the glitter  on it, but my camera isn't behaving, and all the photos were a touch blurry.... I am not sure why, so I left the original up... below is the finished card:

Mojo 150 and 4 Patterned Papers

Good morning!! I am sneaking in a post here just before church.  I wanted to do the Mojo 150 challenge, so I did.  I also wanted to use Kristina Werner's challenge of using 4 different patterned papers on a project, which I also managed to do.   I used Pink Pirouette cardstock (SU) for the base.  I then used some discontinued SU patterned paper that I've been hoarding for a few years.  The colour combo is Pink Pirouette ( before it was a colour), Close to Cocoa and Purely Pomegranate.   I used the brown with circles in rows as the layer over the base, and a pink flowered layer over that.  I used a Martha Stewart punch for decorating the bottom.    The third layer (under the image) is pink stripes and white circles on brown.  The top layer of paper is a solid pink, which I stamped a Hero Arts flower (Antique Engravings) on it in Purely Pomegranate.  I added some white sheer ribbon, and two brown pearls, and I distressed a white oval with Pink Pirouette ink, then edged it in Purely Pomegranate. I stamped the Hello  (Hero Arts) in Purely Pomegranate.  To keep the card fairly flat, everything was just taped down except for the  oval, which is on foam tape.  To finish off the card, I used faux stitching around the brown layers with a white gel pen.

Going Dotty.....

This is another card I did today.  I got to use a Tim Holtz embossing folder (DOTS) and sanded the patterned paper so that some of the pattern came off the raised dots.  I then ran Chocolate Chip ink lightly over the whole thing, not worrying whether or not I got all the dots.  I love this distressed look. I took a flower stamp from Hero Arts Antique Engravings (the floral set) and stamped it three times, once in Victorian Velvet Distress Ink, and twice in Worn Lipstick Distress Ink.  I took an extra piece of the dotted paper, and put it on the bottom of the cream piece with the stamping on it, and added a Hero Arts sentiment in Chocolate Chip ink (SU).  All of this was on a  cream base cardstock

Dots Challenge

This is the card I did today for the DOTS challenge on Simon Says Stamp.  I used some dotted patterned paper that I've had for ages, and layered them a bit to cover the dark brown cardstock.  I then used a Studio G dotted butterfly stamp and stamped it three times on the back side of the patterned paper.  I taped the bodies down only, and lifted the wings.. the middle  butterfly is mounted on foam tape.  I used a Hero Arts sentiment from Anytime Messages  in the top right corner.  I did round the far right corners for interest.

Visitor pictures!!

OK, I told you about the deer that showed up yesterday.. well the same pair showed up again last night, and my kid took some pictures of it and put it on her blog.  Rather than me trying to get the photos from her, I'm just going to link to her blog HERE.  It's amazing that they keep coming back.  I suppose it's because it's not as smoky here as it is higher up.  At different points of the day, you can't see the mountains around us, the smoke is so thick.

Have a great Monday!

August Christmas Card Challenge!!

Well,  today has been great... not only did I get to spend time with the family, a buck and his doe were in the back "yard" of our apartment building..... eating whatever they could.  There was some thunder, which unfortunately spooked them and they ran off.  It's such a blessing to me to see wildlife like that.... you certainly don't see as much of it in the big cities, and in the big cities, they don't tolerate any wildlife there, unless it's in a zoo.  Here, the deer were left alone, and hopefully they got back into the forest.

Now, on to the challenge for Christmas cards in August.. this month, your challenge is to use TAGS on your cards.  I don't care what size or colour the tags are, just as long as there's at least one tag on your Christmas cards.. here is my sample...

I used cream based cardstock, and distressed it with Old Paper and Tattered Rose inks.  I then put some embossed cardstock on the cream, leaving a 1/4 border. I also rounded two corners of the embossed cardstock and the base cardstock.  I took some Shipping tags, and distressed them in Tattered Rose, Old Paper, Worn Lipstick and Fired Brick inks.  With Versafine Onyx Black ink, I stamped a Tim Holtz Santa Claus on the tag.  I added some black and red fibre to the top of the tag, and mounted the tags on an angle to the embossed cardstock.

Helping Hudson!!!

HERE is a link to see a fundraising effort for a little boy who needs a child's walker.  I read the story HERE, and I thought I'd pass it on to all of you.  There are also Australian SU prizes to be won, so feel free to check the blogs out.

Thank you!!

A Giveaway!!!

Good afternoon!  I am trying to survive the smoke that's filled the valley here...  I don't know how my hubby and kid manage, they're asthmatic.  Oh well, it's supposed to rain the next few days, so if that happens, maybe the air will clear a bit.

On to the giveaway!! Jenny at her blog...wee Memories... is having a giveaway for hitting 300 followers!!!  It's a Hero Arts stamp set, but I don't recall seeing which set it is.   Go check it out!

I hope everyone who has a long weekend this weekend enjoys themselves.  As for me, I am working on a design for an advent ATC swap I'm in.  I am pretty sure I have what I want, I just need to test it to see if I like the finished product, not just like what's in my head.

  Have a great weekend!

Mini Books!!!

Well, I finally decided to try my hand at mini books again.  I had done a couple of them a few years ago, and really wasn't happy with the results. With my kid and all the friends going away come September, I thought it would be a great idea to make them each a mini book, so that they can take pictures and journal in the book, to take with them to school. The covers are all chipboard coasters that I have covered in paper, and either stamped or just embellished, depending on how much the kids are travelling.  All the stamps are Hero Arts, and the chipboard letters are from the dollar store.  For the middle, I took a 12 x 12 inch sheet of thin cardstock, and scored it at 3,6 and 9 inches, both ways on the paper, so I ended up with  3 inch squares all over the cardstock.  I then cut it like an M, then folded it, so that I had about 16 pages to work with.  I stamped the inside a bit, made pockets for the tags, and left some pages blank for photos.  I added fibres and ribbon at the top of the tags.  I did try and keep each kid in mind for the book.  I did Japanese book binding (modified), that I learned from a Hero Arts video.. I believe it was a Lisa Spangler video.

Well, now it's just a matter of getting the books to the kids, so there will be time to take all those photos!!

Playing with Markers

I was playing with my markers last night, and went to play with  my new Hero Arts set (Watercolor Petals).  I used the big flower and used my Marvy Le Plume II markers.  I used Manganese Blue for the flower, and the leaves and stem were in Leaf Green.  I lightly spritzed water on the stamp, then stamped it, and repeat stamped it on a piece of die cut glossy cardstock. I then put the die cut piece on Cool Caribbean cardstock (retired SU), and added some brown ribbon down the middle card.  The sentiment is Hero Arts from the Anytime Messages set, which I stamped in Chocolate Chip ink (SU).

One Layer Card

I am not sure which blog I saw this on, but the challenge was to do watercolor on a one layer card.  I used my Marvy Le Plume II markers in Pink and Leaf Green to do the flower, which I spritzed with water before stamping, the repeat stamped it.  I did it twice to get enough flowers on the card.    I then used a Bottle Green marker to colour the sentiment stamp.  The flower and sentiment are both Hero Arts.  There was a bit more white space on the top than I liked, so I added three buttons.

A Sketchy Happy Birthday Card

This card was done for three challenges: The DRS sketch challenge, the Crazy 4 Challenges button challenge, and Caardvarks Birthday challenge.  I used the DRS interlocking flower stamp, and stamped in Brilliance ink on stickers, as well as the white cardstock.  I layered the stickers on dark blue cardstock.  I used the same dark blue cardstock for the bottom layer of two of the three pieces that are on top of the sticker layer.  I used a pale blue butterfly patterned paper for the two smaller, layered pieces, and used a Hero Arts Happy Birthday sentiment.  The buttons are from my stash of buttons that I got from my Mom when she passed away.

Congratulations Paula!!

I wish you well on the birth of Lilly.  One thing to remember: make sure you spend some time with your hubby.. with two young kids, oftentimes the spouse gets neglected.. as best you can, have date nights (even if this means having a late dinner at home AFTER the kids are in bed), love notes in a lunch or briefcase, and reminders of the wonderful guy you're with.  It really does help, especially when the inevitable happens: Both kids clamoring for attention from one parent.

CARDS for GRACE

OK, this may be a little late for my Canadian readers, but Jen McGuire is doing a card drive for a little girl named Grace, who recently lost her twin sister Ellie to a horrible illness.  If you wish to participate in this card drive, here's the link for all the details HERE.  I just sent off my card and some blank  inside cards for Grace to use today.
Thanks for looking at this post!!!

C4C 45 and DRS

At Crazy 4 Challenges HERE, this week's challenge was to do a Red, Black and White card.  This is what I did with it.  I used an Inkadinkado ladybug for the red ladybug, and Hero Arts for the small ladybug.  The DP was from a pack from Michaels years ago.  I used textured red cardstock for the base and for the "tab".  I almost forgot to add, I used a sketch from DRS Designs for this card.  You can see their blog HERE.  I didn't use any DRS stamps for this card, but  it was fun to follow the sketch anyways.

Mojo 147

This is my take on the Mojo Monday challenge this week.  I used a LOT of patterned paper, and the only stamping is the sentiment, which unfortunately, didn't show up well in any of the photos I took.  All of the DP that I used was given to me, I have no idea who makes it.  The silver scallop is actually the inside of a Chewy Chips Ahoy bag!! Thanks to hubby for thinking of that.  The ribbon is American Crafts, the brads are Making Memories, and the stamp used is from SU.

CCC July Card that I made

This was my first month doing the CCC challenge on Deborah's blog HERE.  I still haven't received my card yet, but hey, it's Canada Post, it's supposed to be slow, right!?  I will say that the ladies who work in our local Post Office are WONDERFUL, and I am very thankful for them... some of the management decisions, however, make me shake my head in wonder..... oh well, back to the card I did.

There was a choice of a theme, sketch, or colour palette to work with for July, and I chose to do the sketch and theme of friendship. I flipped the sketch on its side, and used a Martha Stewart punch for the paper ribbon, and some sheer blue ribbon from Michaels for the top ribbon.  I used a Nestability to cut out the oval ( I don't own a die cut machine, but I have friends who do, and we even have die cut days at stamping).  I inked the oval in SU Bashful Blue ink.  The stamp, from Quietfire Designs, is stamped in SU Night of Navy ink.  I added some platinum Liquid Pearls for an accent at the bottom of the verse.

The person I sent this to has already received it, so I'm posting it now.  I am glad that she enjoyed the card. :)

Fall To Layout 98

Well, I did sneak in some time to make one more card today (Sunday).  I did the FTL 98 sketch from the Clean and Simple Blog HERE.  I used some Michaels light blue cardstock for a base, Michaels darker blue cardstock for the frame of the flowers, and a third Michaels blue card stock to do the sentiment frame.  The patterned paper was a gift from a friend.  The stamps I used are from Hero Arts ( I will say it again.... right now I am having a love in with Hero Arts.... I just love almost everything they're making at the moment).  The flower is from the flower Antique Engravings set, and the sentiment is from Anytime Messages.


Now that I'm looking at the card again, I think that the card might need some bling, but I need to make some brownies now. 

Enjoy your Monday!!
 

Christmas is coming EARLY!! (Blog giveaway)

OK, so the people at Simon Says Stamp are having the most HUMONGOUS giveaway!!!  One gift (Santa's choice) for every ten comments!!! That's a GREAT chance to win!! All you have to do is become a follower of the blog HERE  and leave a comment for your chance to win!! Hurry, it all ends July 18th!

Card Patern 72

Good afternoon!!  I actually got a couple of cards made yesterday, and this is the second one.. The first was the Mojo146 card.   For this card, I used some yellow cardstock as a base, and made it about 4 inches square.  I then used some white striped cardstock and some paisley patterned paper to make the 7/8inch squares, which I carefully laid out in the pattern.  I used American Craft Ribbon, Hero Arts stamps, and a Prima flower for the rest of the layout. I used a white gel pen to faux stitch around the outside of all the squares.  Unfortunately, it doesn't show up very much. now it's off to make lunch, then stamp some more.

Mojo 146 card

This is the card that I did for Mojo 146.  I used all Hero Arts stamps (antique engravings flowers, and essential messages).  The "ribbon" is Apricot Appeal cardstock punched with a Martha Stewart punch.  I used Purely Pomegranate SU ink, and Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Dried Marigold.  The base cardstock is SU Pretty in Pink. I  also used cream cardstock.  The papers, I don't know who made them.

A Birthday Present for a Friend

A friend of mine is having a birthday this month, and since she loves to spoil me, I thought I'd  make her a set of cards for her... I made the clean and simple  card a  few times for part of the set (using different colours), and here are the other cards I did.  All stamps are Hero Arts, and I kept it simple, but elegant.. or at least attempted to.  I had a lot of fun making these cards.  I know the style of the cards are similar, but since she'll probably be giving these to different people, it wouldn't matter too much.

Fall To Layout 97

This sketch is the Fall to Layout #97 from the Clean and Simple blog.  I used all Hero Arts stamps, and Tim Holtz Distress inks. The big butterfly is from Watercolor Petals, the two smaller butterflies are from Antique Engravings (the shell and insect set). The patterned paper is Basic Grey

Card Chain Challenge (CCC)

I am on the Hero Arts Flickr group, and a lady there, Deborah Nolan, runs a really neat swap called Card Chain Challenge, or CCC for short.  Each month (as far as I can tell), you have three choices to do a card with: a colour palette, a sketch, or a theme.. now if you want to, you can do more than one choice, such as a themed card in the colour palette. You only send out one card a month, but, be warned, this is an international swap.  This is the first month that I've joined, so it'll be interesting to see what I get.  I am putting my card in the mail Monday, so until the lady who is the recipient tells me she has the card, you'll be left in suspense to what I've done.


Deborah's blog is HERE, so if you're interested in checking out this swap

Bee Swap

I had totally forgotten to do this swap, so on the 1st, I was busy getting this ATC ready to be swapped... I think this might be the second time in all my times of swapping that I've been late.   I feel so bad. 

Anyways, on to the ATC.  I am not sure where the pink cardstock came from, but the patterned paper is dollar store stuff.  The flower stamp is one I won from DRS Designs, very cool.  The bees are from SU (an old Sell-a-bration set), and the verse is Hero Arts.  I stamped the flowers on the patterned paper, and the  bees on yellow cardstock.  I stamped the bees enough that I could layer them on top of each other, for some dimension.  I also Stickled parts of the bee's body. Everything was stamped in Versafine Onyx Black.

July Christmas Card Challenge

Well, this month's challenge is to use PURPLE on your cards... it doesn't have to be as purple as my cards are, but there needs to be some purple on the cards.  Here's my sample:

The ornament punch is from SU (I'm not sure if it retired or not), and I used some shaving cream paper I had in purple and moss green. The ornament is edged in Perfect Plum ink (SU) and mounted on white  and pale plum card stock.  The white cardstock is edged with Perfect Plum as well.  The verse is stamped in Versafine Black Onyx, and the cardstock that the ribbon is on is a dark purple.  The verse is from Inkadinkado.


If you want to enter this month's challenge please post a link in the comments section if you have a blog or email me HERE with a photo of the cards you've done.


Have fun with this month's challenge!

Another card!!

Yes, I was busy yesterday... a couple of the cards, such as the one above, I had partially done for a while, I just hadn't finished it... and seeing as I have a few birthdays in July to make cards for, I thought that it would be good to make it a birthday card... the butterfly and sentiment are Hero Arts ( yes, I really REALLY like HA right now, they are making a LOT of stuff that I like), and the punches are Martha Stewart.  I can't remember who makes the scrapbook paper, all that I remember is that it came in a mini set of 6x6 papers in a magazine that someone gave to me. It's quite pretty, and if I ever remember the name, I'll try and pick some up.  To get dimension on the butterfly, I stamped it three times.  Once for the base, and on the second piece, I stamped it on each side, so even when the wings are up, it looks like a butterfly, and not just plain paper.   The cardstock the butterfly is stamped on is a white stripe that my step mom (RIP) gave to me for Christmas a few years ago.  Yes, I admit to hoarding it, because it's so lovely... that, and she got it in the USA, and I can't get there to shop. :) 
Now that I think all my July cards are done,  I can play, take some time off, or work on my August Christmas Card Challenge cards, once I figure out what the challenge is.
Thanks for looking!

Cupcakes!!

Some time ago, I bought some embossed cupcake paper, thinking that it would make some cute cards.. well, fast forward two years, I still hadn't touched it.. until yesterday.  I cut some up, and did a fun birthday card for my friend, who's turning  39 next month.  I used Stickles Christmas Red to highlight the cherries and sprinkles on the cupcakes.  I used Hero Art stamps for the cupcake ( I think) and the verse ( for sure).  The DP is from SU that I bought, and have used only twice before.  I am TRYING to use what I have, instead of buying everything that is trendy... I end up with paper sitting around for YEARS.    I really like this fun, whimsical card, so I may end up making more of them.. oh, and the tiny cupcake punch... my dear MIL bought a set of tiny punches for me from Avon some years ago, and the cupcake was a part of the set.

Faux Silk Cards

Thanks to a blog I read earlier in the week (sorry, I can't remember whose blog it was) and she had mentioned that Papertrey Ink did a faux silk technique.  Well, I am always up for learning new techniques.... so I clicked on the link HERE, and scrolled down until I saw the faux silk technique.  Watched the video, and realized I had done something very similar for years.... instead of stamping, then using white tissue paper over top, I would use any colour cardstock, then use a PRINTED tissue paper to go over top.. instant card front.  I was ready to try this, so I did two cards.   The first card I did, I used the shells from the Hero Arts set, Antique Engravings.  I stamped it in Dried Marigold (Tim Holtz distress ink), and followed the advice given in the video.  I liked the result, but the pattern is almost spaced out too much.  I used a medallion stamp for my second attempt, using SU's Purely Pomegranate (still sad to not see that and Cool Caribbean in the new colour families), then I distressed using Tattered Rose and Worn Lipstick distress inks.  I don't know if it's the distressing (which I missed on my first card) or the colours, or the stamps, but I am quite happy with the card.  I am sure to be using that technique often in the coming months.

Mojo Monday 144 Card

I finally got some time to create this weekend.. for me, a whole day at home to create is  a treat!! usually there are  a million things to do, and work comes before play.  This card is Mojo Monday's 144 sketch.  I did change it up a bit, with the squares NOT going over the ribbon ( in my case, lace) and the bling, instead of being on the patterned paper, I put on the background square.  I used a Hero Art greeting, and some acetate smashing cardstock I had sitting around forever for the background of the card and the front of the squares.   The patterned paper was a 6 x 6 inch piece, I don't know where from, and the lace I got at my local fabric store.  The punch of the side of the square is from Martha Stewart.

Birthday Card for my SIL

Well, I totally forgot that my sister in law's birthday is coming up early next month.  So I went to work and tried colour layering, as seen on the Hero Arts blog this month.  I used the Hero Arts dandelion frame stamp, and just stamped part of it in Victorian Velvet and Worn Lipstick... unfortunately,  the colours didn't really blend as well as I had hoped.  I stamped the image 4 times, never cleaning the stamp between inkings.  Taking a cue from Jen McGuire on the Paperclipping podcast #25, I found some old chipboard letters I bought because they were cute, but had never used.  They didn't show up on the cardstock without something dark behind it, so I brought in the brown to pull the mauvey brown colour of the Victorian Velvet.   I just kept a simple knot and put Jen's name in the chipboard letters... the card went off into the mail today, so hopefully it will arrive by her birthday!!

Card pattern 68 and Crazy 4 Challenges card

I did this card as a thank you card for one of my child's teachers.. This teacher has been instrumental in helping my child.  I used Card Patterns sketch 68 for this card.  The stamps are Hero Arts, and the base card stock SU.  I don't know what company (s) made the patterned paper.  The ribbon is American Crafts.

Mojo Monday card

This is the card I did for Mojo Monday 143.  It's hard to see, but the patterned paper is a lighter version of the green in the paint chip flower.  I used the paint chip for a swap I'm doing.  Enjoy!

Blog Candy Giveaway

Ling on her blog is giving away 2 packages to 2 lucky people!!! Hop on over to her blog HERE to see how to enter.

Have a great day, and I do promise to get the Christmas Card Challenge photos up soon!! Hubby took the camera on an all day journey today with his Dad.

 2010.06.25  I finally had some time to create this week, and used the digi stamps from LDS to create a card.  I printed out the digi stamps on white paper, coloured them in with markers, and carefully cut them out.  I layered them on some pastel patterned paper, then mounted  the rectangles on a pale blue-grey card stock base.  I added some pale pink bling on the right, and some American Craft ribbon on the left.  I had some leftover scalloped ovals with the "to you from me" on it from when I did a grad class fundraiser making cards for the grads to sell.  I used foam tape for that, and the card is done.

Tracy's Christmas Card Challenge

Well, I told Tracy that I'd be happy to take over the Christmas Card Challenge for the rest of the year, so she has a break.  Being that I am new to blogging, I have no clue as to how to have you link you your  blog to me.. so, I thought of a workaround.. if you email me HERE, I can then edit my blog and add your link to this posting. Oh, and one more thing.  I'm sorry to admit that I don't have the funds or the ability to do prize draws every three months.  You are welcome to do a 3-D project each month, and I will be glad to have a link on my blog here, but I can't do any prizes.  If someone is willing to do it, please email me.

As for this month's challenge, it's POINSETTIA(S).  You need to make poinsettia (s) the main focus of your 5 cards this month.  I bought a a retired set of SU stamps last year that had poinsettias on it, and have yet to use, so this is my excuse for breaking them out. :)

If you aren't a blogger, and want to email me a photo ( please keep it under 1MB please) contact me HERE, and I'll add your photos to the blog as well.

June 17th: two things.. one, I got my cards done.  I have the group photo and a single card photo up.  Secondly, I have been asked if I would start the Christmas challenges at the beginning of the month, so that people have a month to do the cards.  That's fine with me, so July 1st, I'll have the new challenge up.. hopefully with the cards done. :)

I won some blog candy!!

Well, I am the proverbial person who might win, but by the time I find out I win, it's past the due date to let the sponsor know....... but this time, I did win, and got a great response.  It's from DRS rubber stamps.. there blog is here:http://drsdesignsblog.blogspot.com/.  I haven't had time to check out all of their stuff, but what I've seen is very nice.  DRS is giving away a stamp a day, so be sure to check their blog for more info!

Another Wedding Card

One of my good friends renewed her vows with her hubby last week in a beautiful, sweet ceremony.. This is the card that I did. It's a Mojo Monday 137 sketch. I used pink bazzil for the base c/s, then some gorgeous DP that I got a LSS in March.  I used a Hero Arts butterfly from Antique Engravings, and the sentiment is from Everyday messages.  I picked up on the pale orange in the card with the pieces of prange c/s with the bling pink.  My friend liked the card, and now that she has it, I can post it. :D

Card made for a Wedding

This card was done for one of my closest friend's mother's wedding. All the stamps are Hero Arts. I used Friend Definition for the background, leaving a blank circle in the top left area. ( I used the back of a scrap of white circle c/s from a nestie cut out).  I sponged the blank area with Pretty In Pink ink, then stamped the butterfly on DP, cut it out, and foam mounted the body only on the card. I added the pink pearls, and black ribbon.  Once I knew where I wanted the sentiment, I stamped it in Versafine Black, and made sure the ribbon was BELOW the sentiment.  I then mounted the white card onto a Pretty in Pink c/s base.

Christmas Card Challenge for May

Here is my entry for Tracy's Christmas Card Challenge.http://tracyshappyplace.blogspot.com/   I used Kraft c/s as my base, red DP for the red, and chocolate ink and c/s.  The cream is the oval for the sentiment, done in red.  The stamp is from the 2009 Christmas mini hostess set. Thanks for looking!

Thank You Card Design #4