Masculine whimsy

I finally got up the nerve to start using my much coveted Wonderfully Whimsical set designed by uber-talented Becky Oehlers. Because these types of images are not my regular style I was intimidated, but I had so much FUN with these last night! I don't know why I waited!

This card is for a guy, so I tried to leave ribbon and "extras" off, but I couldn't resist a few buttons. For masculine cards I generally try to stick to few colors or a monochromatic color scheme, so the red, white and black seemd a good fit. I really like how I can stamp the tiny sentiments right into the sign on the house...fun, fun, fun! I was worried embossing would be difficult because of the small size of the stamps, but as you can see, it was not a problem and actually looks great.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Butterfly mornings

It's Monday. I'm feeling a bit better although I can't seem to eat much besides dry Cherrios and bananas. Well actually they aren't Cheerio's brand, they are some generic organic version (I forget), but it's all the same. My kids call them "toasted oats" so they apparently aren't brand snobs either!

I realized last night while sorting through photos on my computer, that I hadn't ever posted this card. I don't know why not, I like it just fine! Years ago I saw something like this somwhere and it stuck in my head. Some of you know that I don't normally like butterfly stamps, so if you feel the need to smirk at me, go ahead *grin* but...and this is a big but here folks...I didn't actually USE any butterfly stamps! HA! I only used the die and then stamped ON the cut-out. So there. *thumphhhb*

Supplies: Background Basics: Diamonds, Background Basics: Retro, and Signature Greetings paired with Hawaiian Shores, Enchanted Evening, Ripe Avocadoa and Stampers Select White. The button had sparkly gold flecks in it, so I used a gold glitter Spica pen and added touches on the butterflies, but you can't really see them here.

Thanks for stopping by today, hope you have a great Monday!

Clean & Simple Easter cards

Sorry for the brevity, I've got the stomach bug. I still need to catch up on the blog hop from Thursday night too, so don't despair, I will see and comment on everyone's creations as soon as I'm feeling better.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Button Blog Hop with PTI

It's blog hop night with Papertrey Ink! And if you can't tell from the photo above, tonight's theme is BUTTONS!

Sherry, from Pages In Minutes, made these felt stitched buttons for me. She is so sweet, and obviously talented. Aren't they just the yummiest things? A few weeks ago she showed them on her blog and I fell in love. She was sweet enough to actually mail me some for free! I tell ya, isn't that so thoughtfull?

They make me happy all lined up in a row with their bright colors and that fun blanket stitch around the edges of the felt, so I stamped the word "happy" using the new Outlines Alpha and painstakingly cut each letter out. I stamped the HS card base with Polka Dot Basics II using fresh snow pigment ink, and added the "birthday" from Birthday Basics. Some simple machine stitching around the edges and it was done! No ribbon either, did you notice?

Thanks for stopping by this evening!

PTI Princess Challenge no.5--CASEing another member

Cheryl issed the challenge for the most recent PTI Princesses. We are to CASE the next member alphabetically in our group. So I found a card of Diane's to CASE on her blog. Diane is amazing at creating several cards at once. You should see how many she posts each time! When does she find the time? Each time I thought I had decided on one of her cards, I saw several more that looked inspiring! Finally, I picked THIS one.

Photo by Diane Stange

Isn't it pretty? I liked the white embossed flower, but since I don't have that set I tried to find another solid image that would work for the springy theme she had going on.

Rubber boots always signal spring to me (MUD!), so I thought the boot image from Green Thumb would be perfect. I also had to use the new Hawaiian Shores color and some of my favorite Orange Zest to complete my color combo. Don't you love the flower buttons? I added in some "old-school" piercing to finish it off! (remember when piercing was on every card in blogland? *grin* I like it no matter what anyone says.)

Thanks for stopping by today!

Thank you Teacher

Hello everyone! How's your tuesday shaping up? Let me give you a run down on my morning so far. Just for giggles.

1. Our power went out for a bit at some point in the night, so my alarm didn't go off. Great.

2. I jerked awake to discover that we were all behind by almost a half hour (thanks a lot internal clock).

3. The blind cat threw up on my bedroom floor so I stepped in it as soon as I leapt out of bed. Gross.

4. After hopping down the hall to the bathroom, cleaning my foot and then taking a shower, I began making lunches only to discover that we were out of whole wheat bread. Crud.

5. My husband discovered that the load of laundry he did the night before was soaking wet because he forgot to turn the dryer on. The kids had no clean uniform shirts for school. Seriously?

6. While making our morning smoothie I forgot to add in the frozen banana. I did not notice this until my 5 year old said the spinach/kale smoothie was sour tasting. Oopsie!

7. We managed to get the kids on the bus and get to work ourselves, only to realize that we had left the dog outside in our insanely hectic race to get out of the house! (The hubster went home and let him in)

8. I have a ton of work to do here at work, and instead I'm blogging. *grin*

This card is for Lisa's Poppy Seed Challenge No.2. Buttons (apple), polka dots (BG), and light moss (Spring Moss card base).

Thanks for stopping by today, hope your Tuesday is better than mine!

I am in love...

...with Hawaiian Shores! It's just such a lovely color. I never though blue could be warm, but this one is!

Back to work today, YAY! Although I did get some crafty time in my studio yesterday while the barn owl web cam was down (I'm seriously addicted here folks.), I'm going to pace myself and not show you everything at once! *smile*

Happy Monday to you all! Spring is officially here!

Mother's Day Daffodils and Dahlias

15 minutes after the postman handed me my box of goodies from the March release at Papertrey Ink, I had this card finished. lol I knew exactly what I wanted to do, and I think it came out pretty close to what I had in mind.

I tried to stamp the sentiment on some clear cardstock so you could see through to the BG, but the Spellbinders label would NOT cut that clear CS out! Very frustrating, I tell you. Anyone have tips for cutting clear CS with a nestie?

I like the new Hawaiian Shores color very much, and paired with dark chocolate I think it looks superb. Although you can't tell, I added some sparkle to the centers of the flowers with my clear glitter pen.

Hope everyone has a great Saturday, thanks for stopping by!

Celebration redo!

Happy Friday!

Last night I was digging through some old cards I had never posted, and found one very similar to this one but with ink smudges all over it. I decided to recreate it with a bit of a different LO and a different sentiment. I also added that fun artisan edge too!

I actually found several cards that weren't quite "up to par" and redid all of them, so maybe I'll post them later.

I think this particular card was inspired by Dawn McVey Color Challenge #14, but it wasn't the one I submitted. I submitted this card. It was a fun color challenge too.

Thanks for stopping by today! Hope you have a great weekend!

Lovely Damask

I'm loving the new Artisan card templates from Dawn's new Color Couture download! They add just a touch of "umph" that seems to be missing in a lot of my cards. lol!

I tried very hard to keep this one simple, and I didn't even add a button. *gasp* What, no buttons? Just True Black and Melon Berry, with a touch of Stamper's Select white.

Thanks for stopping by today!

The wearing o' the green!

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone! Remember to wear something green today so you don't get a pinch.

Can you believe that I've LOST my new Luck of The Irish stamp set that I bought last month from Papertrey Ink? *pout* I've looked everywhere in my studio...

So I dug out an old Studio G $.88 set and used that instead. *shrugs*

Thanks for all the birthday wishes here on the blog and on FB too! I felt so loved! And among other things, my hubster bought me tickets to see Tom Petty and Crosby, Stills, and Nash in concert! Whoo hoo! Does he know what I love or what? Actually, as wedding present my best friend bought us tickets to see CSN 7 years ago, so this will be the second time we've seen them! I LOVE multiple harmonies...makes me giddy.

I made this small 3 1/2 square card for my mom this morning using the same set of $.88 stamps, a small heart punch and some floss that I colored with a Copic to match Ripe Avocado. You can't tell in the photo, but the tiny shamrocks are all glitttery and sparkly.

Thanks for stopping by today! Gave a good one!

Happy Birthday!

So I turn 33 today! But, hey, 33 is lucky, right? 3+3=6 which is a lucky number of the universe, so I'm good. Plus, it's March 15, and 1=5+ 6 too! *smile*

I've had a ton of fun, being home alone, crafting in my studio, listening to a book on my ipod, drinking copious amounts of tea, and eating toast with marmalade. (I adore marmalade and bought myself a $4 jar of key lime marmalade just for a birthday treat! Maybe I was Paddington Bear in another life? lol)

I wanted to post this card that I whipped up this morning, before I head back into the cozy-ness that is my art room. I wasn't sure about the colors, but finally decided that the Enchanted Evening flower looked alright with the Pure Poppy and New Leaf. I know my coloring skills are a bit blah, to say the least, but I figure I can't get better if I don't practice, right? And you, my blog readers are extremely forgiving, so I don't feel shy about practicing around you!

This evening my husband was going to take me out for Indian (my fave cuisine), but it's such a long drive that I think I'll suggest someplace a bit closer. Driving an hour just for supper seems crazy on a school/work night!

Thanks for stopping by today and sharing my Birthday with me!

Birthday Boat

I haven't had much studio time this weekend, so I thought I'd dig through some old card photos and post one you haven't seen yet. This was made several months ago...before Thanksgiving actually!

I needed a masculine BD card and instead of using ribbon, I used that awesome kraft colored button twine to add the feeling of "ropelines" on a sailboat. Fun, huh?

I've taken the day off work tomorrow so I can spend tons of quality time in my studio, creating, drinking tea, and blaring my music as loud as I want! *grin* I'm looking forward to a good time while my hubster is at work and the kids are in school! Ahhh an empty house all to myself...pure bliss.

Thanks for stopping by this evening!

PTI Princess Challenge no.4--Scoring

This round it was Pam's turn to host our bi-monthly Princess challenge. She chose scoring! I love using my Score-Pal and don't do it often enough, so this was fun. I'm still in my simple card making mode though, so nothing too fancy.

The simple parallel lines on the top portion of this card are intended to draw your eye down to the stamped vase and border. Stamps used: Asian Fusion

Thanks for stopping by today! Have a good one.

Ted's C.R.A.F.T. challenge

I've been in a simple card making mood.

 Ted is hosting a challenge on his blog Happily Ever Crafter. You have to make an Easter themed project and some part of it needs to stand for each of the letters of the word "Craft."

Here are my stipulations.

C: Clear cardstock (The sentiment is stamped on it)

R: Ric rac (lovely pale green furry kind)

A: Antiquing on the edges of the card

F: Flowers (tiny ones stamped on the tag)

T: Tag (from Tags for Spring)

Check out this challenge here! Deadline is March 26.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Happy Birthday Michele

This card is for Michele, another Papertrey Princess whose birthday is today! Stop by and wish her a good one!

I like this color combo. Spring Rain, Dark Chocolate, Terracotta Tile, and Rustic White with a touch of Ripe Avocado.

Stamps used: Polka Dot Basics II, BB:Text Style II, Birthday Basics (sentiment), Beautiful Blooms (leaf image).

Happy Birthday

Today's card is going out to Cheryl, one of our Papertrey Princesses. Happy Birthday girly! I hope you get lots of free time to spend how you like today. I might even eat a piece of cake in your honor! *grin*

This card is actually a CASE of myself. I posted this card back in October of 2007 and it came to mind when I choosing colors for Cheryl's card last night. Isn't it fun to look back sometimes? Just to see how far we've come, I mean. *smile*

This evening my mom and I are going to see Billy Joel and Elton John in concert together. FINALLY! I bought us $200 seats in the beginning of December 2009 as an early Christmas present, but then Elton got the flu, so the concert was rescheduled for February. In February Billy got the flu, so it was rescheduled for today. This morning my mom woke up with the worst cold ever! I feel jinxed. But we're still going. Wouldn't miss it for the world!

Stamps used: Beautiful Blooms (flowers), Blooming Button Bits (stems), Polka Dot Basics II (background), Everyday Button Bits (sentiment)

Thanks for stopping by today!

Simple Sunday

This is for all of you! I'm so appreciative of each one of you who reads my blog and takes the time to leave me comments. Encouragement comes in many forms and YOU provide me so much with your sweetness.

Thanks for stopping by today, I hope your day is FABULOUS!

Butterflies? Here on MY blog?

While the kids were outside making snow forts ( i.e while their dad made snow forts FOR them), I escaped to my studio this afternoon.

Some of you know that I don't generally like or ever even use butterfly stamps or images. They just aren't my "thing" so to speak. So why did I purchase the new butterfly die from PTI? Because I could NOT resist. Could not. That die drew me in like a moth to the flame (to borrow from a horrible expression).

I used it for the first time this afternoon, and I am here to tell you that I am hooked. Hooked I tell you! Not only did it cut like buttah, but when I tried to pick it up off my magnetic sheet (I use the Wizard Die-Cutting Machine), the orange Zest CS just popped right out! From reading a few posts on the PTI forum I was worried I would have to really dig it out, but not so!

You can see better in this photo that I quickly stitched two butterflies together for the corner accent. I used a scrap of CS that I had already stamped Dot Spot onto, and I love the tiny polka dots on the wings!

Stamps used: Dot Spot, Fancy Flourishes, Take Three:Spring.

Thanks for stopping by!

Feeling happy?

Know what my favorite part of this card is? The shadows that the fuzzies from the button twine cast on the main panel. Love 'em!

I finally used my Labels 9 Nestabilities that I've had laying around for months now! Orange Zest, New Leaf, Vintage Cream and Dark Chocolate CS, ink and twill. Dot Spot stamps with Mega Mixed Message sentiment.

The sun is not co-operating with me today for photos, but I'm so delighted it's here that I just can't complain. Life is good when the sun shines! I hope it starts melting some of the 3+ feet of snow we have outside.

Today is a good day. Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Anniversary

My attempt at Becky's most difficult challenge (in my opinion) yet!

I honestly think that staying within her cutting guidlines is the hardest part for me. Once I cut the Soft Stone CS to her measurments, there were only a few places it could go! AHHH...I like options, not restrictions! *grin*

Turning it on it's side made it better for me, but then it also made the card "hand-deliver only," unless it goes into a larger envelope. But I liked the hang over on the sides...it made my eyes travel all around!

I embossed a few branches from Turning a New Leaf with white ep on top of the soft stone piece, and then ran the Enchanted Evening base through a CB embossing folder and rubbed it with white pigment ink as well. Added the ribbon, bow, button and stamped a sentiment from Damask Designs and it was good to go!

Thanks for stopping by today!

Hope your Wednesday is wonderful!