Afternoon Dreams

Stamps: Dreams du Jour, Itty Bitty Backgrounds (speckles)

Ink: Groovy Guava, Chocolate Chip

Paper: Chocolate Chip, Groovy Guava, Whisper White, Afternoon Tea d/p

other: square punches, wide chocolate grosgrain ribbon, self-stick faux pearls, Cuttlebug and Script embossing folder

butterfly wishes

This card was made using the butterfly stamp from Dreams du Jour. I stamped full ink then stamped "backwards" without re-inking to give the illusion of flight. The full ink images were covered in Crystal Effects then sprinkled with Dazzling Diamonds glitter. Hard to see in the pic, but very pretty in person. :)

Stamps: Dreams du Jour, Itty Bitty Backgrounds

Ink: Tangerine Tango, Old Olive, So Saffron
Paper: Tangerine Tango, Old Olive, Very Vanilla, Haiku d/p

other: coordinating ribbon and faux self-stick pearls, Crystal Effects, Dazzling Diamonds glitter

fall daisies

Another hostess club project. The Upsy Daisy stamp was colored with markers then spritzed lightly with water before stamping.

Stamps: Upsy Daisy, Inspired by Nature, Itty Bitty Backgrounds

Inks: Summer Sun, Old Olive

Paper: Chocolate Chip, Summer Sun, Old Olive, Very Vanilla, Haiku d/p

other: photo corner punch, chocolate grosgrain ribbon, very narrow brown patterned ribbon (M's), mini-brad, s-spiral clip, markers: Summer Sun, More Mustard, Old Olive

Batty candy cups

Made these from "recycled" fruit cups. :) The topper was glued to the cup with craft glue after assembly was complete.


Stamps: Batty for You, Halloween background (retired)
Ink: StazOn Black
Paper: Basic Black, Kiwi Kiss, Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White
other: scalloped circle and regular circle Nestabilities, 1-3/8" punch, 1-1/4" punch, pumpkin pie striped grosgrain ribbon, googlie eyes

Batty for You!

Stamps: Batty for You

Ink: Kiwi Kiss, Pumpkin Pie, StazOn Black

Paper: Basic Black, Kiwi Kiss, Whisper White, Ghostly Greetings d/p

Other: Scallop Circle punch, Ticket Corner Punch, 1-3/8 circle punch, 1-1/4 circle punch, Pumpkin Pie grosgrain ribbon, Signo white gel pen, googlie eyes, orange self-stick "bling"

uuummmm....

...never mind. A good excuse doesn't come to mind so I won't embarass myself with a lame one! :)

Here's a card I did for a stamp club challenge a while back. Loved this layout - have already used it several times.

Stamps: Flower Filled

Inks: Only Orange, Brilliant Blue, Wild Wasabi(? - can't remember!)

Paper: Only Orange, Brilliant Blue, Whisper White, Jersey Shore d/p (retired)

other: 1/2" circle punch, word window punch, white self-stick faux brads, orange ribbon, green stickles, blue "bling"

last ones

Here is the last of the stamped cards I got for my birthday along with the stamped chipboard clipboard (say that 3 times real fast!!) I got from my buddy (and twin separted at birth - long story there...) Deb in CT! :) Too, too cute for words!!

oops!!

OK - so I was gonna get some more of my b-day cards up, but have been knee-deep in getting ready for my hostess club this weekend (yep - we have already discussed the procrastination issue! LOL!). So here are a few more...

from my stampin' buddy Carla

from my stampin' buddy Dora

from one of my hostess club gals - Loraine

sharing some b-day cards

Last month I had a birthday - one of those milestone types! So I thought I would share the cards I got from my stamping buddies over the next few posts. I'm pretty sure you can figure out which b-day it was... LOL!

from my sister, Jonna

from my stamping buddy, Pat

from my stamping buddy, Karen

Doodling again :)

This just has to be one of my favorite sets! It is so easy to make a a great card with this flower stamped on d/p then cut out. Ya gotta love that! Looks like my camera or photo software distorted the color a bit, but the blue really is Not Quite Navy. :)

Stamps: Doodle This

Ink: Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie, Not Quite Navy

Paper: Not Quite Navy, Old Olive, Whisper White, Old Olive and Pumpkin Pie d/p

other: orange eyelets, Build-a-Brad, Nestabilities scalloped rectangle, Crop-a-dile

Chocoate Dreams

This is one of the cards my hostess club ladies did last month. It was inspired by the sample on page 134 in the current catalog, although I did change it up a bit with colors, d/p, etc.

Stamps: Dreams du Jour, Print Pattern b/g (retired)

Ink: Chocolate Chip, Riding Hood Red

Paper: Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla, Bella Rose d/p

other: Scallop Edge Punch, Chocolate Chip grosgrain ribbon, linen thread, mini brad

Paint Sketch

This card was done for my sketch challenge (SCS #183) card for my stamp club meeting last month. Yes, I'm slackin' again. Guess we're just all gonna have to learn to live with it for now. When I retire in another 67 months maybe I will get better! LOL! This is one of my all time favorite sets and I will never get tired of using it. Although it was not my intention, someone commented that it would make a good holiday card...

Stamps: Paint Prints (retired)

Ink: Rose Red, Always Artichoke, Certainly Celery

Paper: Rose Red, Always Artichoke, Whisper White, Apple Cider d/p (green piece) and Rose Red d/p

other: Nestibilites scalloped rectangle, silver self-adhesive faux brads, small self-adhesive crystal bling

Grandma's birthday

Here's the card I made a few weeks ago for my grandmother's 97th birthday. Yup - she old!! LOL!

Stamps: Birthday Whimsy

Ink: Taken With Teal, Chocolate Chip, Pixie Pink, Craft White

Paper: Taken With Teal, Chocolate Chip, Pixie Pink, Whisper White, Loves Me d/p (retired)

other: Spots and Dots C/B embossing folder, brayer, stickles, ticket corner punch, coordinating ribbon, white self-stick faux brads

dog days of summer

Yup - I do occcasionally make a non-SU card and should do it more often with all the assorted stamps I have. :) This card was made with a clear acrylic stamp set from Inkadinado my sister had given me. The inside says "having a rrruff day?" :)

Stamps: dog set by Inkadinkado

Ink: Really Rust, Wild Wasabi

Paper: Wild Wasabi, River Rock, Very Vanilla, Apple Cider d/p

other: photo corner punch, River Rock ribbon, natural hemp twine, Antique Brass HH photo anchor/brad/spiral clip

Bodacious (Joseph's) Coat

This card is one of my challenge cards from my June stamp club gathering. Yup - I'm sooo out of order on posting stuff, but oh well! :) This challenge was to use the Joseph's coat technique (you can find directions on http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/ in the Resources section [see link at top of home page]) along with lots of other great technique instructions. This was not my favorite tech that we've done, but I was reasonably satisfied with the card once it was done. LOL!

Stamps: Bodacious Boquet

Ink: Twist spectrum pad, Basic Black, VersaMark (Lovely Lilac and Green Galore on inside and envelope)

Paper: Lovely Lilac, Basic Black, Green Galore, glossy white

other: brayer, clear embossing powder, photo corner punch, coordinating bling and ribbon

Birthday Whimsy

Wow, another week gone by and no post. Since I've gone back to work I'm slackin' again on the posting. But its only been slightly over a month since my surgery and I'm pretty tired when I get home from work, so I'm gonna give myself a break and appeal for sympathy! LOL! I'll try to do better... :)


This was a card my hostess club made a while back during Sell-A-Bration. It was not a totally original idea, but a compilation of several cards that I had seen (although I can no longer remember who I was inspired by so am unable to give them credit here - sorry!).


Stamps: Birthday Whimsy
Ink: Close to Cocoa, Bayou Blue, Soft Sky
Paper: Bayou Blue, Soft Sky, Whisper White, Bayou Blue d/p, Spring Showers d/p
other: large photo anchor and brad, silver faux brads (self-stick)

Fresh Cuts

Last week was my first full week back at work so was pretty much pooped by the end of the day. :) Hoping that gets better soon so I can do more than sit in my chair and read when I get home! LOL! (not that I mind reading, but stamping from time to time might be good...)

Here is another one my hostess club ladies did last month:

Stamps: Fresh Cuts

Inks: Rose Red, Wild Wasabi

Paper: Rose Red, Wild Wasabi, Certainly Celery, Fresh Cuts note card, Rose Red d/p

other: ticket corner punch, 5-petal flower punch, Swiss Dots CB embossing folder, large green brad, coordinating gingham ribbon

mini-clipboard

This is the 3D project my hostess club ladies made at our last meeting. Its a mini-clipboard made with a large laminate sample (thanks Home Depot!) and a magnetic binder clip. Sooooo easy to make. The actual size of the laminate piece is 3-1/2 x 5 inches.

Stamps: True Friend, Small Script

Ink: Groovy Guava, Chocolate Chip

Paper: Chocolate Chip, Soft Sky, Whisper White, Afternoon Tea d/p

other: ticket corner punch, photo corner punch, large and small oval punches, Garden Green marker, brown mini-brad, white self-stick faux brad, Soft Sky ribbon, magnetic binder clip

Soft Friend

Here is one my hostess club ladies did last month. I'd been wanting to use the carousel notes and finally got around to it!

Stamps: True Friend, Weathered b/g

Inks: Soft Sky, Chocolate Chip

Paper: Chocolate Chip, Soft Sky, Whisper White, Afternoon Tea d/p, Carousel Notes

other: ticket corner punch, large white eyelet, brown mini-brad, self-stick white faux brads, Soft Sky ribbon

Just Doodlin'

Been absent for a bit due to gallbladder surgery that I had on the 2nd. Had been struggling with that for several months and when they called and said can you do surgery tomorrow I said YES! Had a bit of trouble getting my intestines back "on line" afterwards, so my recovery was slowed a bit, but seems to be headed in the right direction now. Whew! Glad that is over with and I'm looking forward to getting back to my usual activities. :)

So, here is one I made a while back when I was playin' around. Don't remember what my original plan was, but this was not it! LOL! However, it turned out pretty cute in the end, if I do say so myself. :) Hard to tell from the pic, but the punched images have some glitter on them for a little added bling.

Stamps: Doodle That (retired)

Inks: Regal Rose, Old Olive, Tempting Turquoise, Basic Black

Paper: Tempting Turquoise, Regal Rose, Old Olive, Whisper White, Loves Me d/p (retired)

other: 1-1/4 and 1-3/8 circle punches, aquapainter, two-way glue pen, Dazzling Diamonds glitter, wide pink gingham ribbon, self-adhesive bling

Asian cork

Here is another card that was a stamp club challenge - to use cork. Had this in my head all along and it turned out pretty much as I planned. The panda is embossed. The buttons I found at the $1 store and thought they would work well on an Asian style card (and so they did!). Of couse I had to cut the backs off of them with my little snippers so they would lay flat. This card will probably still need to be sent in a padded envy (or hand delivered) as it will be a little more than the postal machine will handle without tearing it all up. And who wants that after all the work you put into creating it?! :)


Stamps: Asian Art (retired), Bamboo II b/g)
Ink: Always Artichoke, VersaMark
Paper: Always Artichoke, Basic Black, Very Vanilla (although it looks white in the pic)
other: cork, buttons, gold cord, gold mini-brads, ticket corner punch, black detail embossing powder

Summer Blossoms

This is one of the cards my Hostess Club stampers did last month. I had coveted this set for a long time and finally got it - just in time for it to retire! LOL! But I know I will use it again and again, so no worries there.

Stamps: Blossoms Abound, French Script b/g

Ink: Summer Sun, Wild Wasabi

Paper: Summer Sun, Wild Wasabi, Whisper White

other: coordinating ribbon, green "bling"

Love and Happiness for Seestor

This is the b-day card I made for my sister back in April. I had been wanting to use rub-ons again after my friend Wanda broke through my phobia of them at our stamp club meeting!

Stamps: Friendship Blooms

Ink: Chocolate Chip

Paper: Chocolate Chip, Certainly Celery, Basic Grey patterned paper

other: Love and Happiness rub-ons, mega and giga scalloped square punches, brown&white polka dotted flower, green gingham padded brad, chocolate grosgrain ribbon, green gingham ribbon

Bleached Garden

Here is one I did a while back for my stamp club challenge card which was to use bleach. I did use bleach but only a little bit as I stamped the flower image with bleach, then overstamped it again with ink. A really easy card to do and I rather liked the way it turned out. :)

Stamps: Garden Silhouettes, Tres Chic b/g

Inks: Blue Bayou, Night of Navy

Paper: Blue Bayou, Very Vanilla

other: bleach, off-white mini-flowers, pearl embellishment, off-white organdy ribbon, ticket corner punch, ICE stickles

BE HAPPY every day... :)

Here is one my hostess club did a while back. The cello bag is filled with some yummy nut/raisin mix from Target. I'm sad to see this set retiring since it is so much fun to use, but I'm also looking foward to seeing new stuff. Yup - I'm a stamp junkie!! LOL!


Stamps: Be Happy, Paisley b/g (the retired one)
Ink: Certainly Celery, Groovy Guava, Close to Cocoa
Paper: Certainly Celery, Groovy Guava, Close to Cocoa, Whisper White, Groovy Guava d/p
other: certainly celery grosgrain ribbon, antique brass jumbo eyelets, crop-a-dile, staples, dimensionals, mini-brad, 1/2" circle punch

almost no stamping!

Wow! Time really flies these days. Didn't realize it had been quite so long since I posted. I'll try to do a little better... :)

Here is a quick card I made for a co-worker's birthday last month. The only stamping was done on the envelope (which you can see a little bit of in the pic) and on the inside (which you can't see but looked just like the envelope!). Don'cha just LOVE the CB embossing folders!

I'm sorry I don't recall the colors I used for this, but I tried to coordinate with the Basic Gray paper. The ribbon is SU!'s chocolate satin and the brad is a large puffy ribbon brad from J's. Aren't I just a fountain of information! LOL!

I'm baaaaack! :)

Well, a couple of things have happened. One, I find that I just can't stay completely away from the computer, the internet and most especially, stamping sites and blogs! LOL! Two, it looks like the shoulder problem that I've been having is due to my gallbladder not being happy. I am still having tests run, but hope to know something later this week. Keep your fingers crossed for me that it is a simple fix and I'll be done with this soon.

Anyway, I have managed to spend less time on blogs and stamp sites and have actually stamped aplenty the last month. May is packed full of birthdays for me, so lots of cards were done. Also had to do projects for my hostess club and the stamp group I belong to. Therefore, my current plan is to post here when time and energy permit, but not to pressure myself to do so any particular number of times per week or month. Trying to still share my love of stamping without stressing out over it. Hopefully that will work out for all of us. :)

Stamps: Blossoms Abound, Cheesecloth b/g

Inks: Elegant Eggplant, Mellow Moss

Paper: Elegant Eggplant, Mellow Moss, Whisper White

other: coordinating ribbon, gold microbeads, red tape, circle punches, lable punch, oval punch, dragonfly charm

so long and thanks for all the fish**

Hello friends!

I've thought long and hard about this post, but it seems the right thing to do for now. Due to an ongoing problem with my shoulder, I have been unable to stamp or spend much time on the computer (other than the time I have to be on the computer at work!). Hence, I haven't posted anything in over a month, as I'm sure you are probably well aware! My shoulder is finally getting well enough that I can do some stamping again (woohoo!), but since I've been in book mode for lo' these many months, I'm not sure how much of that will be happening any time soon. LOL!

Anyway, since the passing of my two furbabies this past year, I'm now in a position to do some work on my house which is long past due. Needless to say, there just isn't enough time for all that I would like to do and enjoy doing. Therefore, I've decided to stop blogging and spending so much time on other blogs and on stamping sites all around. Seems like I just get sucked in and before you know it hours have gone by! Since I don't want to go back to the more painful times of my shoulder problem, I am going to significantly limit computer time at home. Wish I could stop working - that would give me plenty more time to play, but alas, the mortgage company thinks I should pay them every month and they just aren't very flexible about that! :) So I say so long for now and maybe when life changes once again, and it will eventually, I will have the opportunity to share what I love in a blog once more. Thanks so much for all your kind comments and visits to my humble blog. Happy stamping!!

**the title of this post refers to the fourth book in a trilogy (yes, I know a trilogy is three - the author is a bit of an odd duck) written by Douglas Adams which starts with the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy - a fabulously funny read if you like things that are a little wonky!! LOL!

Jo's birthday

Here's another one I made in January, for my friend Jo's birthday. Now Jo is an avid gardener which, I might add, is quite a feat since she lives in the middle of the Arizona desert in Sun City (metro Phoenix area) and it is hot, hot, hot there! Still she manages to grow the most glorious iris, gladiolas, roses and other beautiful flowers in the midst of all that. She used to travel down to Tucson to work every week and bring these gorgeous flowers to sit on her desk and if I was very lucky, she shared a few with me (I LOVE flowers!). She no longer works with me and I'm not sure if I miss her or the flowers more! LOL! Just kidding, Jo!

Anyway, she was still here for her birthday in January, and I got her the bouquet of flowers that you see in the pic so, of course, had to make the card to be all matchy-matchy! :) One thing you may not be able to see in the pic is that the guava layer was stamped with canvas b/g. The rest is pretty self explanatory...

Stamps: Art of Life (retired), Canvas b/g, Friendship Blooms

Inks: Groovy Guava, Garden Green, So Saffron

Paper: Garden Green, Groovy Guava, Whisper White, So Saffron d/p

other: white faux brads (self stick), Groovy Guava stitched grosgrain ribbon, Garden Green and So Saffron markers, dimensionals

one mo' Valentiney

OK - so this is the last one I'll post (even though I have one more V-day card!) cause you all are probably sick of Valentiney stuff and thinkin' "time to move on, Dana"!! :)

This is actually a card I did for our stamp club meeting in January! That's how long it has taken me to get some of this stuff posted. In my own defense, however, it has been a really rough month for me. Anyway, my inspiration for this card came from this one by sf9erfan on SCS. As usual, I changed up a few things (color, some embellishments, etc.) but the concept was hers and I loved it. A little hard to see, but the "marshmallows" on the hot chocolate were done with white Liquid Applique that was puffed up with a heat gun. And Canvas b/g was used on the turquoise layer although that doesn't show too well in the pic. I really do need to do a better job of taking pics of these!! LOL!

Stamps: Like it a Latte, Canvas b/g, EFP

Ink: Tempting Turquoise, Pretty in Pink, Close to Cocoa

Paper: Close to Cocoa, Tempting Turquoise, Pretty in Pink, Whisper White, Loves Me d/p (retired)

other: Designer Label Punch, circle punches, Ticket Corner punch, coordinating ribbon and mini-brads, white Liquid Applique, heat gun

mo' Valentiney LOVE

Just gonna do a quickie upload tonight cause I got Chocolate Satin pie from Marie's waiting for me and I want to savor that while reading my book. Ahhhh, life doesn't get much better than that! LOL! If I could just find a way to do all that and stamp, too...

Anyway, here is another one of the Valentine cards I did for my mom's gals. An oldie but goodie set here - been retired for some time, but still has its uses. :) The pic shows it a little, but IRL it was much more sparkly - I filled the heart with Crystal Effects and sprinkled with Dazzling Diamonds glitter. The panel that the four letter squares are mounted on is popped up.

Stamps: Letters of Love

Ink: Real Red, Lovely Lilac

Paper: Real Red, Lovely Lilac, Whisper White, Lovely Lilac d/p

other: square punch, Crystal Effects, Dazzling Diamonds glitter, wide red gingham ribbon

Valentiney stuff

A little late for these, but thought I would share anyway on the Valentine cards I made for my mom's ladies (the ones who buy my cards). The next few posts will be that assortment...

Not much to 'splain here. The hearts were stamped with craft ink and embossed with clear e/p. The panel that the hearts are on is popped up. The jumbo eyelets are ones I got at last year's stamp expo and finally got around to using (I will be going to this years expo tomorrow, so I do take my time, don't I?! LOL!).

Stamps: Happy Hearts, Canvas b/g, swirl stamp from Baroque Motifs, Itty Bitty b/g's spots

Ink: Real Red (craft), Real Red (classic)

Paper: Real Red, Whisper White

other: jumbo red eyelets, crop-o-dile, Ticket Corner punch, red gingham ribbon, clear crystal bling, clear embossing powder, dimensionals

Ima flower girl!

Yup! (or Zur to my seestor - inside joke!) I love flower stamps. In my book you can never have too many flower stamps and I'm a living example. Anytime a new catty or mini comes out, I'm all about the flowers. In fact, the order that is wheeling its way to me right now has in it what? You got it - a new flower stamp! LOL! Anyway, after seeing all the FABULOUS (no pun intended) cards being made with this set, it quickly made its way to the top of my list. I've only managed to make a couple of cards with it so far (the other to be posted one day soon...) but I LOVE it! This was my mom's birthday card back in January. What you can't see very well in the pic is the clear/silver shimmery gel pen outline around each petal. Sooo pretty IRL, if I do say so myself! :) The d/p is some Basic Gray that I picked up at J's a while back. The flower was stamped with rust on some of the d/p then cut out. French Script was stamped with Chocolate chip on the larger piece of d/p in the background. I did some disressing on some of the c/s with my scissors - still don't have that handy dandy tool (gonna have to break down and order that!!).

Stamps: Fabulous Flowers, French Script b/g, Cheesecloth b/g

Ink: Chocolate Chip, Really Rust

Paper: Chocolate Chip, Always Artichoke, Certainly Celery, Really Rust, Basic Gray d/p

other: wide chocolate grosgrain ribbon, build-a-brad, chocolate brads, dimensionals, Sakura gel pen

last "MOM" card

Here is the last of the cards I made for my mom's card tin. Boy - bet you thought there would never be an end to these! LOL! Anyway, we did try to give her a variety of styles (you were right, Leslie!) so she could use them for lots of different things. This one was a bit more on the masculine side for a "boy" birthday. It is very subtle, but if you look for it you will see the Weathered b/g stamp on the d/p for a little added texture. The main image is popped up. A pretty basic card. :)

Stamps: Lexicon of Love, Big Pieces, Weathered b/g, Itty Bitty b/g spots

Ink: Really Rust, Chocolate Chip, River Rock

Paper: Really Rust, River Rock, Garden Green, Whisper White, Apple Cider d/p

other: Round Tab punch, natural hemp twine, rust faux brads, dimensionals

another "Mom" card by my sister

Here is the last one I have a pic of that my sister did for Mom's card box. There was one more card, but no pic. Oh well! Anyway, isn't this just the cutest card EVAH!? I LOVE that moose stamp and she did such a great job on this card. I will soooooo be CASEing my own sister on this one! I'm not sure which designer paper she used with the CB embossing folder (guessing Soft Sky), but I'll give the rest of it a shot. A little hard to tell from the pic, but she stamped the image twice and cut out the head from the second one then popped it up on dimensionals. I'm probably missing some of what she did, but you get the idea... :)

Stamps: Moose You

Ink: Chocolate Chip (or Close to Cocoa?)

Paper: Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, Soft Sky d/p???

other: Cuttlebug w/ Tiny Bubbles embossing folder, coordinating ribbon and ric rac, Aged Copper brad and ribbon slide, prima flower, distressing tool

working my way back

Been doing some stamping to get ready for my hostess club this weekend, so trying to find my way back from the sadness of loss. Getting a little better day by day - I have been able to feel very grateful that my sweet Maggie girl was able to share so many wonderful years with me. She was really a blessing in my life and will always be in my heart.

Anyway, this is not one of my hostess club cards (LOL!) but another one of the cards that I made for my mom's card box/tin. Once again, I was inspired by atomicbutterfly on SCS - you can see her card here.

I really do like a lot of her creations. Could ya tell?! Getting harder to remember what all I used making those cards several months ago, but I'll give it my best shot. One thing - the flowers have Crystal Effects and glitter on them although its a bit hard to tell from the pic.

Stamps: Oh So Lovely, Fine Lace b/g

Ink: Lavender Lace, Always Artichoke, StazOn Black

Paper: Perfect Plum, Pale Plum, Always Artichoke, Whisper White

other: Cuttlebug w/ D'vine Swirls embossing folder and Vintage die, brayer (to put color on artichoke piece), jeweled ribbon slide, coordinating ribbon, aquapainter, Crystal Effects, dazzling diamonds glitter

thank you

I wanted to say thank you to all of you who have left messages here. The loss of my sweet Maggie has really rocked me and I so appreciate the heartfelt messages from all of you. I am slowly recovering, but the last week has been just brutal and my emotions are pretty fragile. Since I live alone and Maggie was the last of my furry babies, it has been quite an adjustment for me. I'll get better, a little bit at a time, so please bear with me. I hope to start posting stamping stuff soon. I have a hostess club that will meet next weekend, so will have to get something ready for them to do! :) In the meantime, I would like to share with you this quote that my sister found and sent me that expresses so beautifully what is in my heart -


"It is not just that animals make the world more scenic or picturesque. The lives of animals are woven into our very being - closer than our own breathing - and our soul will suffer when they are gone."
- Gary Kowalski, Author of The Souls of Animals

In Loving Memory

Maggie

1995 - 2008

My dear, sweet Maggie girl is gone. She is no longer in pain and can rest peacefully; play and run with Hannah, Jessie, Rexy Man and Shiloh. I will miss her even more desperately than I have words to express. I truly am lost without her, but I couldn't let her suffer any more. She was a beautiful, loving, wondrous joy in my life and she will live in my memories always.

yup - another Seestor card

This is one my sister made for Mom's card tin and she made it to be all matchy-matchy with the tin. How cool is that?! She is so very clever, that seestor of mine! Cute, easy - I don't even have to tell ya what stuff she used since I know you are all waaaayyy smart enough to figure it out. :) OK - I'll give you a clue: the paper is SU's LeJardin d/p. For the other colors, you can look back to the post (January 9th) with the lunchbox tin we made.

Mom card #3 from me

Been a busy week, so slackin' a little on the blog. Gotta do better... LOL! Here is one I made for Mom's card tin that was inspired by this card created by JeanneS on SplitcoastStampers. As usual, I modify and change things as fits my mood at the time (or the supplies I have at hand). The main image was colored by inking the flower part of the stamp with Blue Bayou, then rolling the outer edges in Chocolate Chip, then coloring the stem/leaves with the Always Artichoke marker. The same 'rock-and-roll' technique was used on the stamp on the panel to the left side of the card. (note to Leslie Miller: the wheel is still available in the current catalog, pg 106, if you still want it! LOL!)



Stamps: True Friend, Boho Friend wheel (envelope)
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Blue Bayou
Paper: Blue Bayou, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, Soft Sky d/p
other: Always Artichoke marker, Ticket Corner punch, antique brass snap, Blue Bayou stitched grosgrain ribbon, small piece of narrow chocolate ribbon

another from my seestor

Here is another one my sis made for Mom's card tin. Your guess is as good as mine on all the parts, papers, colors, etc! LOL! I guess I could call and ask her, but then she probably wouldn't remember which one this is and I would have to try to 'splain it to her and then she would get frustrated cause she still didn't know what I was talkin' 'bout and then I would get agitated cause she couldn't figure out what I was tellin' her and it would just not be good! Nope - you'll have to guess along with me! :) Enjoy...

another Mom card

Here is another one I made for Mom's card tin. And, yep, another semi-case. LOL! I changed the colors, papers, (flower)stamp set - but the basic idea is the same as this card by atomicbutterfly on SCS. She does amazing work, btw, and I have saved lots o' her stuff to be inspired by! :) It's hard to tell from the pic, but at the base of each flower is a little crystal bling.



Stamps: Polka Dots & Paisley, Define Your Life
Ink: Pixie Pink, Tempting Turquoise, Old Olive
Paper: Old Olive, Pretty in Pink, Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White, Petals & Paisleys d/p
other: Ticket Corner punch, Spiral punch, coordinating crystal bling, pale pink dotted organdy ribbon

one by my sister

Just a quickie tonight since I have stuff I need to do and I'd really rather go take a nap! LOL! Since this card is one my sister made for Mom's card box, I don't have to list all the ingredients cause you all can try to figure it out just like I would have to! Am I being totally lazy or what?! yup! teehee!!! This card is similar to one we made for my dad's birthday(?) that I posted not too long ago, but I really like it so thought I'd share here with you. Catch ya later... :)

cards for Mom

So now I will start posting the cards my sister and I made for Mom for Christmas to go in the card tin I showed you in the last post. Now I know I have mentioned that I go into hibernation mode right around Thanksgiving and don't emerge until around mid-to-late February (depending on weather, temperature, etc.). That means that what little creativity I have also goes on low voltage. The trouble with that is that I needed to make cards for Mom's gift. What to do?! Well, when all else fails - CASE! or at least be heavily inspired by others and make 'creating' that much easier. So that's what I did. I would love to say that the cards I did for my Mom's gift were all original designs, but alas, not true. :) Some I CASEd almost completely, some I changed a few things and some were an inspirational starting point. Without further ado, the first of Mom's cards...

The original of this card was so perfect to start with I really didn't change anything but one of the colors and used a Create-a-Brad in the center rather than the jumbo eyelet (cause I didn't have the jumbos yet!). The original card can be seen here. Ya gotta love cards that are quick, easy and gorgeous!!

Stamps: Doodle This

Ink: Chocolate Chip

Paper: Chocolate Chip, Groovy Guava (textured), Certainly Celery d/p, Groovy Guava d/p

other: Create-a-Brad, coordinating mini-brads, Groovy Guava stitched grosgrain ribbon, dimensionals

Mom's card tin

Just a few minutes tonight to post - gotta get a card made for tomorrow. No, I haven't lost my habit of procrastinating. Plus, it was actually gonna be 2 cards that I needed to do, but Jo won't be back to the office until next week so I can put that one off even longer! LOL! Yep, I'm a sicko! :)

Anywhooo... my mom is my best customer when it comes to the cards I sell (and she's my best sales rep as she shows them to her hairdresser and bridge ladies and sells even more!). One of the things she had mentioned wanting for Christmas was cards, so my sister and I made her this card tin and filled it with cards (10 of them). This was the first one of these I'd ever done although I had gotten these tins waaaayyy back when! There is a bit of a learning curve with them, but this one turned out pretty well (and no blood was shed by either my sister or me!!) and we were happy with it. I think Mom was, too. :)

Stamps: Alphabet Fun (retired)

Ink: Bliss Blue (retired), So Saffron (for edging), Always Artichoke

Paper: LeJardin d/p, Bliss Blue, So Saffron, Always Artichoke, Whisper White

other: Scallop Circle punch, circle punches, Spring Flower Bouquet punch, silver self-stick "brads" and lots of coordinating ribbon!

not my favorite...

In fact, I really don't like this card very much at all! But, due to my chronic procrastination (LOL!), I was out of time and had to go with it. This was the second challenge card for my last stamp club meeting - Pastel Embossing. I either did something wrong (can't figure out what) or this technique was just not my cup of tea. I couldn't get the pastels to adhere to the embossed image (again, gratefully referring you to SCS's excellent step-by-step tutorial here) and believe me, I tried more than once! Oh well. Plus, if I'd had an idea of what I'd be doing with the flower piece, I would have used different colors on the flower. Live and learn! :)

I colored in some of the d/p with the celery marker and although you can't see them well from the pic, there are three greenish-crystals along the wheeled piece on the side and the flower piece is popped-up.

Stamps: True Friend, Boho Friend wheel

Ink: Chocolate Chip, Versamark (for embossing)

Paper: Chocolate Chip, Certainly Celery, Au Chocolate d/p

other: white embossing powder, pastels (chalks), blender pen, brown dotted organdy ribbon, crystal 'bling', coordinating jumbo brad, ticket corner punch, Certainly Celery marker, dimensionals

On the other hand, my fellow stamp clubber, Pat, loved this technique (sometimes we don't like her very much... just kidding!!) and she made an absolutely GORGEOUS card with it which I'm gonna show you here even though it makes my card look even more pitiful (sniff, sniff...). :)