Nothin' Fancy ...

I have no time cuz' I'm going to the circus. I don't have the link to the template for this little basket either but will find it and provide it in another post. When I printed the template I was so certain that I'd screw it up, I printed it on Colonial White cardstock as not to waste the colored stuff. This was supposed to be my "practice basket," but since it turned out (a small miracle), I'll show it to you. The stamp I used is a basketweave stamp from the Eastertime set. I was thinking I'd make them to set by each family member's place setting on Easter. That might not be such a great idea, though, as my future daughter-in-law might think they would make good wedding favors. Seven or so I can handle. Four hundred would be out of the question. LOL. No, I'd better go. I need to mentally prepare myself for the circus, put some baby wipes in my purse (men never think of such things), and perhaps a gallon-size, ziplock bag just in case someone has the urge to vomit. Older and wiser ... Later ...

One Card ... Two Challenges

"Let's Forget the Rules!" is the theme for Stamp Simply #80 on the No Time to Stamp? blog. The challenge is to mix it up with paper patterns. I used this week's A Sketch for You to Try on the i{heart}2stamp blog. I paper pieced Eli's shirt and colored the rest of the image with Prismacolor pencils.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy and Chocolate cardstock; Dream Street Designs Near and Dear patterned papers; Black and Chocolate stamp pads; Whipper Snapper Designs Eli and Frogger and JustRite Stamps Harmony Classic Circle Stamper, Designer Borders & Centers, and Brayton Font; Chocolate Bigger Brads; Prismacolor colored pencils; Gamsol odorless mineral spirits; Blending stumps; Stampin' Up Word Window punch; 1 and 1-1/4 inch circle punches; Cuttlebug w/Nestabilities Classic Circle set; 3M foam mounting tape.

My mojo up and left me yesterday, leaving me frustrated and cranky. Hopefully, it's back today.

My workday was busy. I volunteered to cut back to 32-hour workweeks for the next two weeks to see how that works out. My slowest day - the day that's hardest to get hold of anyone - is Friday, so I'll be working Monday through Thursday. I have a lot of things I'd like to get done, so having an extra day at home every week will be nice. As for the smaller paychecks, that will take some getting used to. Tonight, I'm going to try to do some stamping between loads of laundry.

Tomorrow evening, Grandpa has planned an outing to the circus for himself, me, Cameron, and the little boys. When our kids were young, I had to drag him to stuff like that. Now, it's his idea. I guess it's the classic tale of a good dad growing up to be a great grandpa. As for me, I don't know if I'm any more excited about a circus than I was 25 years ago. I remember any kind of activity that was supposed to be fun turning into some kind of mini disaster. For example, I recall just getting us situated at a concert in a full auditorium only to have Dustin lean over and throw up in my lap. I giggle about it now. Then, it was not funny.

Nope, my laundry isn't getting done with me sitting here. I hope your week got off to a wonderful start. As always, I appreciate your stopping by. Take care!

I Don't Know ...

... if I'm liking this card or not. It's my take on Weekend Sketch Challenge #74 on the Fresh & Fun blog. Wanting a large focal point image, I started out with the Inspired by Nature stamp set and a set of watercolor crayons I've had for eons and haven't used. Now I know why. It was a mess. Obviously, I don't know how to use them and need to find a tutorial. Next, I tried coloring the stamp with markers, which, had I used the right colors, would have worked out. I didn't like the neon pink flowers I'd somehow managed to create. My wastebasket nearly full by this time, I decided to use the stamp as a silhouette image, which was something I was almost certain I could pull off. The background is a cardstock from Basic Grey's Porcelain collection. To brighten it up, I combined it with Sorbet, using it to mat the image and cover the chipboard bookplate. Up close, the card looks a little glum. As I write this, however, it's sitting in the windowsill and looks kind of pretty. I guess it's another one of those cards that needs a "View at a Distance" disclaimer. LOL.

Materials & Tools: Colonial White, Sorbet, and Cocoa cardstock; Basic Grey Porcelain 6x6-inch paper pad; Cocoa ink pad; Stampin' Up Inspired by Nature and Verve Stamps Here for You stamp sets; Dimensional Elements Bookplates; Gold mini brads; Sponge dauber; Sanding block.

Now, I'm off to see if I can find a tutorial on how to use those watercolor crayons. Either I figure 'em out or they're going on the "For sale" pile. Later ...

A Papercrafting Project

I don't know if it was the whining, recognition of the fact that I really didn't have anything to whine about, or the aspirin, but my headache dissipated shortly after posting last night. And, with Marv at a birthday party for a friend, I was home alone and in the mood for another "project."

Five-plus years ago, my sister tucked a little box of inspirational cards, quotes from Maya Angelou, in the envelope that contained my birthday card. There were 24 cards, two of each quote. Sharing my birthday with my niece, I gave her half of them and kept the remaining 12 with plans to "do something" with them. The day finally came!

The rest of the "ingredients" include a very dusty 12x12-inch canvas I picked up for $3 on clearance at Wal-Mart once upon a time, a sheet retired CTMH background and textured paper (trimmed to 11x11 to get rid of the annoying logo), the Linen paint I bought for the Memory Keepers box, Twilight and Bamboo cardstock, and the element that makes it fun and interesting - Pop Dots! I also used a My Legacy Writer to freehand lines on the edge of the Twilight paper, giving it a more "finished" look. Sigh. Another project that the camera (or possibly the photographer) does not do justice. In addition to not capturing the dimension, the camera turned the Linen color kind of pinkish, when, in reality it coordinates with other colors perfectly. I like it.

Although I'm not moving around at break-neck speed today, I am moving - a good thing. My plan is to do a few necessary chores, take care of some bookwork, and then stamp the rest of the day away. I got a big card order on Friday and while I should have most of what she wants on hand, I think the cards for her 90-year-old grandmother and her husband's soon-to-be 101-year-old grandfather warrant a little extra attention. Whatever you're doing, I hope you're making the most of the weekend. Thanks for stopping by! Later ...

Between the Moans & Groans ...

... I've managed to finish the Memory Keeper box I mentioned I was going to work on this weekend. I stayed at the scrap event for about an hour and a half before coming home and going to bed. My head is pounding. Other symptoms include a "kind of" sore throat and what I'll describe as "half" a cold.

My box is prettier in person than it is in the photograph. When I picked out my paper, it was obvious that the print I wanted to use for the top would not look great with white around the edges. So, off to Wal-Mart I went to buy some paint. I bought four colors in hopes that one would work. The selection was not the best. I ended up using Folk Art's Linen. I painted around the edges of the top and sides. I also painted the bottom of the box, which gave it a nice, finished look. Additionally, I used the same paint on the chipboard letters before distressing them with a sponge dauber and Cocoa ink.

To "dress up" the top, I cut three of the big flowers out from a sheet of matching paper, glued them to chipboard, cut them out, and mounted them on top of their matching flowers with Pop Dots. For the centers of the large flowers I used some Window Charm-type things (smaller than CTMH's) backed with patterned paper and adhered with Liquid Glass. In the center of each of the middle-sized flower is a clear acrylic disk (like Dew Drops), again glued down with the same Liquid Glass that I used to adhere the chipboard letters. The final touch was a drop of Diamond Stickles in the center of each of the tiny flowers.

Materials & Tools: Close To My Heart Memory Keepers box; Unforgettable paper packet; Cocoa ink pad; Yes! paper paste; Chipboard; Heidi Swapp chipboard letters; Folk Art Linen acrylic paint; Tile's Play round mosaic stickers; Clear acrylic disks; Diamond Stickles: Pop Dots; Sponge daubers; Paint brushes.

Pardon me while I say, "Darn it!" It's just my reaction to this headache. As I was somewhat better for a couple of hours after sleeping for a couple of hours, I guess I'll go repeat the process. I have to admit I feel a bit guilty, because while I whine over some little virus, I realize that my "headache" could be so much worse. A few miles from here (about 120), the folks in sister cities Moorhead, Minn. and Fargo, N. Dak. are embattled in the flood fight of their lives. Keep them in your thoughts and prayers. Later ...

Super Simple Saturday

I think it's fun to try to incorporate a "10 Minutes or Less" card into my projects for stamp club. We made this one Sunday night. I wanted to feature using both sides of Close To My Heart's textured cardstock. I wish the photo revealed how truly pretty this simple, unadorned card really is. The textured cardstock gives it class, and the raised image, mounted to the card with foam tape, gives it interest. It reminds me of one of those rare, feature-perfect faces that require no makeup.

Materials & Tools: Colonial White and Cocoa Cardstock; Petal textured cardstock; Petal and Cocoa ink pads; Intrinsic Backgrounds and Happy Birthday stamp sets; 3M foam mounting tape.

I came home from my scrap event just before midnight last night. I'm not moving very fast this morning, however. For the past couple of days, I've been waking up with a sore neck, like my glands are swollen or something. This morning, I have a slight headache to go with it, leaving me wondering if I'm just going to feel kinda yucky or if I'm coming down with something. I guess I'll take a couple of aspirin and see what happens. Last night was fun. As this was the first time I've attended an event such as this, it was interesting, too. I marveled at just how much stuff people are willing to haul around and how fast and furiously they go at their craft. I felt like a turtle amongst a bunch of rabbits. Now, this old turtle better put together a few things to amuse her for the afternoon and head back downtown. I hope you're having a great day. Catch ya later ...

Not So Bright ... My Card, That Is ...

Hey! I didn't mean to discourage anyone from trying the new Flowersoft products last night. I wouldn't have tried it myself had I not already seen a kazillion gorgeous cards made using it. You know how it is with new products. One visualizes what they'll be like. For whatever reason, I pictured Flowersoft being more like Fun Flock. I was just surprised and haven't done enough with it yet to have a solid opinion. My first experience was positive, and I have a feeling that the next time I say something, it will most likely be something like, "Try it. You'll like it!"

That taken care of, here's another card made with the Delicate Branches stamp set. I tried several things with the sentiment, stamping it on separate pieces of cardstock, before realizing that it might work out best to simply stamp it directly on the background paper. I'm happy with the results and like this card much better than the glow-in-the-dark green one I showed you a couple days ago.

Materials & Tools: Colonial White, Sorbet, and Cocoa cardstock; Unforgettable paper packet; Cocoa ink pad; Inkadinkado Delicate Branches and Impression Obsession Birds of a Feather stamp sets; Ribbon from Wal-Mart; Hero Arts 5mm pearls; Hole punch.

I took a half day of vacation today to do a few things at home and get ready for the scrap event. I'm going to work on Easter cards, and I'm taking a Memory Keepers box that I want to cover with paper from the Unforgettable paper packet. I don't think I'll last until 1 a.m., and if I do, I sure as heck won't be going back at 8 a.m. tomorrow morning. I'm not that hard-core. LOL. With that, I'm off. Enjoy the evening! I'll check back with you tomorrow.

Enabler's Alert!

I don't know about you, but I think the Elzybells stamps are darned cute. I don't have a big collection ... yet! Check this out. Yea, free worldwide shipping from the UK with no minimum order. If you get nervous when you see the £ sign (as in British pound sterling), keep in mind £10.00 is the equivalent of $14.48, an exchange rate of approximately 45 percent. An easy-to-use currency converter can be found here. What I don't know is how long it will take to get your order.

Speaking of orders, the Fed Ex man brought a package today. Nothing all that fun - Cropper Hopper Vertical Paper Holders, one for 12x12-inch paper and a couple that hold 6x6-inch paper (they're cute!). Like always, my curious husband asked, "What was in the box?" Like always, I showed him. "You've got a lot of stuff (not exactly the word he used)," he said. "I can't keep up." My casual reply: "Why would you want to?" End of subject. If packages start arriving from overseas, I don't know what he'll think. It might be kind of fun to find out. LOL.

Something Old, Something New ...

... Nothing Borrowed, Something Blue. Do you ever stamp and color an image and then ask yourself, "What in the heck am I going to do with it now?" I stamped this image and colored it with stamp pad ink and my waterbrush, which I've been neglecting for quite some time. The one thing about the waterbrush that makes me a little crazy is the way my cardstock buckles from the moisture. With this image, I knew if I trimmed it too close, I'd never be able to flatten it out, so I ended up with an image with a lot of "white space" surrounding it. Okay, so there are a few things I could have done to highlight the image had I not already matted it on the Cocoa cardstock and added the Flower Soft (the "new"). With that, I decided I needed to accent the corners. When I came across this "old" punch, I did a double take. Obviously, the punched image wasn't what I wasn't what I was focusing on. It was the pieces that I would normally throw away that piqued my curiosity. Would they not enhance the Asian image? I think they did, and the rest of the card came together rather quickly. About Flower Soft, I'm going to have to play with it a bit more before expressing an opinion. It's kind of some weird stuff, like finely ground Styrofoam - one of those products that leaves you wondering if it was "discovered" by accident. Other bloggers have done some cool things with it, so I'm hopeful ...

Materials & Tools: Colonial White, Cocoa and Twilight (textured) cardstock; Emporium paper packet; Cocoa, Chocolate, Grey Flannel, Twilight, and Garden Green ink pads; Clear Dollar Stamps Asian Plants stamp set; Antiqued Copper mini brads; Baby Pink Flower Soft; Flower Soft PVA glue; McGill punch; Waterbrush; 3M foam mounting tape.

How was your day? Mine was OK. While I'm not swamped at work right now, I have enough to do to keep me busy. Tomorrow is Friday! Yea! I'm signed up for "Scrap for Relay for Life," a local fundraiser to support the American Cancer Society. The hours are from 3 p.m. tomorrow until 1 a.m. Saturday and then 8 a.m. on Saturday again until 1 a.m. on Sunday. I'm looking forward to participating even though I won't be doing any scrapping. Instead, I'm going work on projects that don't require the transport of so much stuff! I know. I'm kind of lazy ... For the rest of this evening, I'm going to stamp a little and make some preparations for the next couple of days. My posts might be kind of hit and miss for a couple of days, although I'll try to check in to show you what I've done and fill you in on what I'm up to. With that, thanks for stopping, and between now and whenever I get back here, take care!

Inkspired ...

My card (and stamp purchase) was inspired by this card that I saw a while back on the No Time to Stamp? blog. The stamp set, from Inkadinkado, is called Delicate Branches. Sharon made a couple other great cards, too - including this one and this one - enough to send me on a stamp hunt! Although I love the stamps and her cards, I'm not so sure about this one. My green paper is brighter than the paper she used. I think I'd like to try the same card with something more subdued and save the bright (almost neon) green/black/white combo for stamps that are more whimsical. Am I making sense? About the card construction, it's relatively self explanatory. I used a small stamp from the Damask Tiles set for background on the top part of the card and a lined stamped from the Journaling Jots set for the stripes on the bottom piece.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy, Citrus Leaf, and Black cardstock; Black and Citrus Leaf ink pads; Inkadinkado Delicate Branches, Papertrey Ink Mixed Messages, and CTMH Damask Tiles and Journaling Jots stamp sets; Ribbon from Walmart; Black mini brads.

After a little spring tease, Mother Nature is up to no good in my neck of the woods these days. There are threats of serious floods in communities not too far from here, and if ice jams on the rivers and a significant amount of rain weren't enough, she's now taken it upon herself to add a foot or so of snow to the mix. It's cold again and blowing, and with ice under the snow, driving conditions are treacherous. Icky, albeit typical, Minnesota. Also typical is the fact that Marv saw a robin today - a poor little bird who came north too early! Besides the not-so-nice weather, it was an OK day. That said, I'm off to see what I can come up with in my corner. Enjoy the evening! Later ...

Asian Influence

I'm late tonight, which means this is going to be short.

My card was inspired by this card on the Paper in the Works blog. The red square was created with a stencil, sponge, and Cranberry ink. The rest, I think, explains itself.

Materials & Tools: Colonial White, Cranberry, Black, and Bamboo cardstock; 7gypsies Sushi Journey 6x6-inch paper variety pack; Black ink pad; Clear Dollar Stamps Asian Plants stamp set; Black mini brads; 1 and 1-1/4 inch circle punches; Piercing tool; Stampin' Up Piercing Guide and Mat; 3M foam mounting tape.

There isn't much to say about my day other than Grandpa and I had a little dose of unexpected joy earlier this evening. With a doctor's appointment taking longer than she'd anticipated, Bjorn and Mathias' mommy called and asked us to pick them up at daycare this afternoon. We had an hour with them, just long enough to hear about their day and gather up a few precious hugs and kisses.

On that happy thought, I'm going to put myself to bed with the new Papercrafts Stamp It! Cards magazine that I picked up at the store tonight. I hope your day was a good one, and as always, thanks for stopping!

It's That Easy ...

Yes, it's true. Kids say the darnest things. I've also learned that their simple words often show wisdom well beyond their years. Hannah's quote about what to do if you're feeling blue is a perfect example. Happiness isn't about having the perfect house, family, or job. It isn't about having anything. Rather, to be happy is a decision we make. It's an attitude. For me, feelings of gratitude have much to do with the fact that I consider myself a happy person. I genuinely appreciate my family and friends. I am thankful that I have a job to go to everyday and a place to call home. Don't get me wrong. I'm not Suzy Sunshine every day. Some days I have to work at it. I think we all do and what's important is that we keep trying.

Now, about my card. Yup, it's another simple card with one quality worth noting. Do you notice how the embossed pattern matches on the different pieces of cardstock? I accomplished that by cutting my four rectangles and then taping them together on the backside before running them through the Cuttlebug as one sheet of paper.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy and Black cardstock; Summer Carnival Textured Cardstock; Black ink pad; Inkadinkado Friendly Advice stamp set; Cuttlebug w/Spots & Dots embossing folder.

While I wasn't blue, I did spend the best part of the day in bed with some kind of yucky bug. I'm feeling much better this evening and am anxious to get to work tomorrow. Other than that, there isn't much to report. I hope your week got off to a great start. Thanks for stopping by!

When Life Gives You Scraps ...

... make quilts! I ended up with a bunch of 1-inch strips of the blue/green patterned paper after cutting paper for my club projects tonight, so I decided to try my hand at another paper quilt.

My card measures 5-1/2 inches square. Instead of using pearls on this one, I "tied" it with embroidery floss. Personally, because I tend to like things symmetrical and "neat," I would have preferred the pearl accents. The haphazard ties, however, look pretty much like they do on a "real" quilt. Using the ties instead of the pearls, I was hoping that the card would be masculine enough to send to my brother-in-law whose birthday is Friday. I think it's still too girly though. Like his brother, he's kind of a man's man.

Materials & Tools: Colonial White, Cocoa, and Bamboo cardstock; Emporium paper packet; Cocoa ink pad; Happy Birthday stamp set; Brown embroidery floss; Needle; Sponge dauber.

I cleaned house this morning, prepared for stamp club and made a couple of cards when I was done, and then napped away the rest of the afternoon. It was the perfect thing to do on such a gloomy afternoon. Even though it's 43°, it's cloudy and very windy and looks/sounds much colder. Clouds, wind, and rain and/or snow (oh no!) are forecast through Thursday. Icky. On that note, I'd best go finish putting my stuff together for stamp club. I might post later. If not, have a great week, and thanks for stopping by my little corner of the blogosphere! Later ...

Silly Sunday

I made this card yesterday before going into my cleaning frenzy. I thought a little whimsy might cheer me up. Turns out an orderly work surface was what I needed! Now, I'm scared to mess it up. LOL.

Anyway, my card was made with this funky set from Wordsworth. While that is neither the cutest nor most realistic bird I've ever seen, it fits. To make the card I sponged some ink on white cardstock using the cloud stencil I came across last weekend. All of the other elements were stamped on separate paper, cut out and glued to the background. To make the grass, I randomly snipped along the paper's edge. The "leaves" were cut using 13/16 and 1-inch circle punches. All but two of the smaller ones were attached to the card with foam mounting tape.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy, Clover Meadow, and Star Spangled Blue cardstock; Heavenly Blue, Clover Meadow, Cocoa, Star Spangled Blue, and Holiday Red ink pads; Wordsworth It's Your Day stamp set; Cloud stencil; 13/16 and 1-inch circle punches; 3M foam mounting tape.

I got quite a bit accomplished after my post last night. Although I have a long way to go, my corner is looking much better. I slept better last night, too, which means I'm a little perkier today. I hope you have a wonderful day. I'm off to prepare my stamp club that was postponed last week. Take care, and thanks for stopping by!

Looks Like Spring!

This is the last of new stamps I recently acquired from Whipper Snapper Designs. When I saw this one, I had a vision, and I'm not disappointed. I love the fresh shades of green and the little vines shooting off every which way. Again, it's a large image that lends itself to the simple style I favor. I colored the entire image with Prismacolor pencils and odorless mineral spirits and then went over the flowers with a Holiday Red marker after I decided they needed a little brightening up. Other than that, there isn't much to say.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy and Clover Meadow cardstock; Doodlebug Design Black Eyelet patterned paper; Black ink pad; Holiday Red and Sunflower markers; Prismacolor colored pencils; Gamsol odorless mineral spirits; Blending stumps; Whipper Snapper Designs Pansy Floral Arrangement stamp and Impression Obsession Sentiments I stamp sets; Ribbon from Wal-Mart; Fiskars Sunburst border punch; Cuttlebug w/Nestabilities Classic Circles set; Sponge dauber.

How's your day going? Mine has been OK but not the greatest due to its precarious start. I've been working in my corner. I got a couple more shelves organized, and tonight, I'm going to tackle some drawers. I'm in one of those moods when I swear I'm not going to make another card until everything is organized. Not to worry though. That's one resolve that's usually only good for about 20 minutes. With that I'm going go grab a garbage bag and do a little purging. Enjoy your evening, and thanks for stopping by!

Simple Saturday

Wow! I feel like I've been on a treasure hunt this morning. Finding the card that inspired me took some doing. I'd saved the photo in my Blog Inspirations file and labeled it with the name of the blog but had failed to add the date, which is something I usually do. However, scrolling all the way back to July on the Clearly Delightful blog to find this card was not all that big a chore. Instead, it was like taking the scenic route to get somewhere. I saw so many great cards and projects along the way!

My card is relatively straight forward. I random stamped the image on Bamboo cardstock and filled in the leaves and stems with Garden Green and Olive markers. I also stamped four or so images on a separate piece of paper, colored them, cut them out, and adhered them to my card using a gluestick. The 'thank you' stamp was a gift I received along with an order from Verve Stamps a while back.

Materials & Tools: Colonial White, Bamboo, and Olive cardstock; Black and Olive ink pads; Olive and Garden Green markers; Clear Dollar Stamps Little Blooms stamp set; Antiqued Copper mini brads; Stampin' Up Ticket punch; Cuttlebug w/Nestabilities Classic Ovals set; Gluestick.

I had quite a night, going to bed around 10:30 and then waking up at 12:30, feeling like it should be morning. It took me until 4 or so to get back to sleep. When I woke up around 10 again, I felt as if I'd run a marathon. It's not a great way to start a day when I was hoping to get something done. Maybe another cup of coffee and some breakfast will get me going. I hope so, because weekends are to short to waste! With that, I'm off to see if I can't straighten myself out enough to function. I hope yours is a great day. I've got a few more cards to show you later, so if you're around, stop back. 'Til then, take care!

And Here's Eli & Frogger!

Partial to little boys (only because the good Lord, to date, hasn't provided me with any options!), this was the first stamp to find its way into my cart at Whipper Snapper Designs last weekend. It's another cutie.

As for my card, it's my contribution to this week's Stamp Simply challenge on the No Time to Stamp? blog. The theme is "You've been Tabbed!" Tabs are a great way to use up little bits of ribbon, and they're a great accent for this card. The rest of the card is self-explanatory, I think. I used my Prismacolor pencils and odorless mineral spirits again. I kind of chuckle when I recall that a year ago, I hadn't yet gotten around to sharpening the big box of colored pencils that I'd purchased several months prior. Now, I can't leave 'em alone.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy, Moonstruck, and Bamboo cardstock; Route 66 paper packet; Black and Moonstruck ink pads; Prismacolor colored pencils; Gamsol odorless mineral spirits; Blending stump; Whipper Snapper Designs Eli and Frogger stamp and CTMH Happy Birthday stamp set; Ribbon from Michael's; Red mini brads; 1 and 1-1/4 inch circle punches; 3M foam mounting tape; Sanding block; Black My Legacy Writer.

Happy Friday! Man, I didn't think the 5 o'clock hour would ever roll around today. It was quiet at work, and all I could think of was all of the things I could be doing at home. Tonight, the plan is to play around in my corner for a while and then, go to bed early. The nice weather (in the 40s) has me in the mood to do some spring cleaning tomorrow, and as I don't get into such moods often, I'd best take advantage of it! Thanks for stopping by! I hope you enjoy the evening. If you're in the neighborhood check back tomorrow to see what Simple Saturday brings! Later ...

More Cuteness

Meet Megan. Another new stamp with cuteness appeal from Whipper Snapper Designs. Again, I colored my image with Prismacolor pencils and odorless mineral spirits. The sketch idea came from a color brochure that came with my stamps.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy, Orange, and Olive cardstock; My Minds Eye patterned paper; Black ink pad; Prismacolor colored pencils; Gamsol odorless mineral spirits; Blending stumps; Whipper Snapper Designs Megan stamp and Papertrey Ink Birthday Basics stamp set; Black My Legacy Writer; Stampin' Up buttons.

After an uneventful day at work and with no little ones around and a husband glued to the television set (hockey game) this evening, there isn't much to report. My plan is to take it easy for the rest of the evening and go to bed early, so I'm well rested for the weekend. I hope yours was a good day and that tomorrow is, too. As always, thanks for stopping by. Most likely, you'll be hearing from me again tomorrow night.

A Quick Quack

Cute image, huh? This is one of the new Spring/Summer Whipper Snapper Designs stamps that the mailman brought today. It's a rubber stamp mounted on cling mount, an option WSD now offers for all of its stamps.

This card is pretty straight forward. An image this large makes simple simpler. I colored it with Prismacolor colored pencils and odorless mineral spirits. Then, I added a couple extra mats, some brads, and that was that. The sentiment was computer generated.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy and Black cardstock; Memory Box Sugar Collection; Black ink pad; Whipper Snapper Designs Ducks in a Row stamp; Black mini brads; Prismacolor colored pencils; Gamsol mineral spirits; Paper blending stump.

Bowling was fun tonight. My first game was great after which I went straight into the tank. Like I said, fun nevertheless. I'm off to bed for tonight. Talk to you again tomorrow night.

One More ...

... card using Butterfly Wings. This one was a process that left me asking, "Is it really supposed to be this complicated?" I don't even know how many different patterned paper circles I cut before opting for a solid color. The butterfly was supposed to have been down on the rectangle, which started out larger than it ended up. The story goes on and on with a reasonably satisfying ending. The moral of the story is for me to lighten up.

The most notable thing about the card is the fact that I used the tissue technique on the butterfly. What's that? Use a wadded up piece of facial tissue to ink up your stamp with two or three colors of ink. Lightest color first. Darkest color last. The colors I used were Blush, Hollyhock, and Vineyard Berry. Unless one makes a poor color choice, the results are almost always quite pretty.

Materials & Tools: Colonial White, Blush, and Vineyard Berry cardstock; Magic Moments paper packet; Blush, Hollyhock, Vineyard Berry, and Cocoa ink pads; Butterfly Wings March Stamp of the Month and Wordsworth Men Collection stamp sets; Ribbon from Wal-Mart; Acrylic disk from Michael's; Cuttlebug w/Nestabilities Classic Circles set; Sanding block.

I'm off from work this afternoon, because I had to have a tooth fixed. An eye tooth fell out while I was eating a slice of pizza at lunch time. Before you gasp in horror, I might as well tell you that my top teeth are fake. They're stuck to the "plate," with epoxy, which I suspect is the same thing as super glue only much more expensive.

Tooth fixed, I'm going to bowling in about 45 minutes. The little boys are going to be here again tonight. They ended up staying last night after we chased their daddy out the door to go drink some green beer with his friends. At the ripe old age of 30, Cameron has gotten to be a homebody, which in many ways is a good thing. All work and no play, however, makes Cam a dull boy. He needs to have a little fun once in a while, too. He plays in a pool league on Wednesday nights, so that's good. Oh, and I lost at Cootie last night! I was up by three legs and don't 'cha suppose that little stinker rolled nothing but sixes? It was OK, as "Gamma" is a much better "woozer" than Mathias.

No, I'd better run. I hope you had a wonderful day and that if your teeth fell out they're fake like mine! LOL. The mailman brought be four new stamps today - new designs from Whipper Snapper designs - all purchased for their "cuteness" factor. If bowling doesn't wear me out, I might be back with something cute later ... Take care!

Busy

No, not me. My card. My pal on the P[inks] blog made some amazing cards (like this one!) with this stamp set and this paper. Her cards are gorgeous and mine is ... ah... busy. Maybe this great sketch (Jen del Muro's most recent A Sketch for You to Try on the i {heart} 2 stamp blog) was wrong for this paper and stamp set. Perhaps it's the rickrack or a combination too many bold paper patterns . Heck, maybe it's just my opinion, and it's a great card after all! When I look at it tomorrow, I might think it's the best card I ever made ... And so the stamping goes!

Not a lot to say about the card's construction. I used the stamp rolling technique for the butterfly - inking my stamp up with Hollyhock ink and then rolling its edges on a Vineyard Berry pad. I used a sponge dauber with Blush ink to fill in the "white" areas.

Materials & Tools: Colonial White and Indian Corn Blue cardstock; Magic Moments paper packet; Cocoa, Hollyhock, Vineyard Berry, and Blush ink pads; Butterfly Wings March Stamp of the Month and Say it in Style stamp sets; Rickrack collection; Hollyhock mini brads; Cuttlebug w/Shapeabilities Double-ended Tags and Nestabilities Classic Ovals set; Sponge daubers.

18 or so hours later: Hey, you know what? I made this card and started this post last night. It was dark outside and under artificial light, it didn't appeal to me much. In natural light, however, it looks much better. Not my all-time favorite or anything but definitely a card I can live with. That said, how was your day? Mine was OK. Good, actually. Cameron and the boys were here tonight for dinner. Marv made spaghetti. For a man who couldn't boil water prior to my entering the work force, he's turned into quite a chef. True, I guess, to the old adage, "Necessity is the mother of invention." LOL. Right now, I have a little guy (Mathias) who has challenged me to a game of Cootie, so I'm off to play. Hope yours was a great day, too. I'll catch you tomorrow!

Answers (kind of) to Questions

A couple of posts ago, a reader asked about the baby wipe technique. Basically, it's using reinkers and a baby wipe to create an ink pad. A tutorial with photos can be found HERE (click on link) on the Splitcoast Stampers website. I've used the technique with varying success. In my experience, it has worked best when the baby wipe isn't too wet to begin with. I tried a couple of images with the large butterfly in the Butterfly Wings set and didn't really like my stamped images, so that might mean it works better with smaller stamps. For me, the word "technique" is often synonymous with "experiment." Sometimes things work out and other times they don't. Usually, it's fun trying!

As for the digital images or images printed on cardstock from a CD using an inkjet printer, I have questions myself. I know that it works to color the images with colored pencils, using odorless mineral spirits to blend the color. I've only tried markers once, attempting to use my flesh-color marker to color the face of a little girl image a couple nights ago. It didn't work. The printer ink smeared. Did I read something somewhere about heat setting inkjet ink, or was that my imagination? Is there any other way to "set" the ink? With a spray fixative maybe? If water-based markers don't work, would alcohol-based markers, such as Copics, work? Maybe I can start a little discussion here, because I am certain there are others out there who are more experienced with digital images than I am. Information to share, anyone?

So, why ...

My sweet husband, who probably has more appreciation than most for what I do, caught sight of tonight's cards. "Oh, these are cute," he said enthusiastically. "The images are from the CD Jeanne sent," I told him. The man is no dummy. "So why, if you can print images, would you ever buy stamps?" he inquired. Thus, I had to explain that not every image I like is available digitally or on a CD and besides, a lot of stamps are solid images. Heaven help me if he ever sees a digital scrapbook page. He'll cut off my cardstock supply! LOL.

He has his hobbies, too. He bear hunted once, and, of course, shot his bear. He had the whole thing processed into foot-long "bear" sticks (a lot of them). The processing cost around $400. When he brought them home, he was trying to tell me what a "good deal" they were. Quick thinker that I am, I replied, "You're absolutely right, Marv. Had I seen them in an end display at the grocery store for the bargain price of $400, I would not have been able to pass them up!" I believe he muttered something like, "Smart ass," and that was the end of that conversation. Ah, wedded bliss. While we each give the other a hard time, I think we both secretly take pride in the hobbies, activities, and accomplishments of the other.

As for the cards, I think they're kind of cute, too. I colored the images with Prismacolor colored pencils and odorless mineral spirits. The layout for the top card is from last week's Splitcoaster Stampers' sketch challenge. I resized both of the images before printing them, which is a big advantage of digital images. Everything else about the cards, I think, is self-explanatory. Besides, if you have a question, ask, and I'll try to answer it.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy and Cocoa cardstock; Basic Grey Bittersweet 6x6-inch paper pad; Cocoa ink pad; Prismacolor colored pencils; Gamsol odorless mineral spirits; Paper blending stumps; Sunshine Graphics Britches & Blooms CD; Friendship's Garden stamp set; Buttons from Wal-Mart; Pink embroidery floss; Flower brads from White Daisy Mini Medley Collection; Martha Stewart Doily Lace Edger punch; 1/2-inch circle punch.

With a story at the top, I'll keep it short at the end. Today was a fine day. I felt better and was busy enough at work to make the day go by relatively quickly. Tonight, I'm going to stamp a little and then take a relaxing bath before an early bedtime. I hope your week got off to a good start, too. As always, I appreciate your stopping by and look forward to posting again tomorrow night. Take care!

So Darned Sweet ...

Yesterday's "later" ended up being a lot later. I woke up this morning with a bug that included an upset stomach and and general all-over yucky feeling. Better tonight, I thought I'd post and show you the lovely surprise the mailman brought yesterday. Starting at the top, my friend Jeanne sent the loveliest card, the details of which can be seen here. Although it doesn't seem possible, the vellum flower is prettier in person. Under the card is a hat she knit me to go with the neckwarmer she sent me at Christmastime. Isn't that a gorgeous color? She sent it with the wish that I not have to wear it until next year. Twenty below only a few days ago, it was a balmy 51° today. When it comes to weather, anything can happen in Minnesota, so it remains to be seen whether or not I wear the hat this year. If not, I certainly will next year. It's beautiful! Now, about the CD, Jeanne has been making some really sweet cards (like this one) using images from CDs. When she ended up with a duplicate CD, she kindly thought of me and sent me her spare. I played around with a few images last night, the fruits of my labors below. She also sent some tulle ribbon in white, pink, and yellow. She used it on this gorgeous card. I'm anxious to see if I can make something purty, too! Thank you, Jeanne!

Here's what I did last night with a few simple images I printed from 350 (that's like 350 stamps!) I had to choose from on the CD. My cards, a full-size one and two 3x3-inch gift enclosure cards, are pretty much self explanatory. The images were colored with Prismacolor colored pencils and odorless mineral spirits, using a paper stump to blend the colors.

This evening, I saw this timely post with a tutorial for making 3x3-inch envelopes and got up enough gumption to make a couple to go with my cards. While I have a lot of envelope templates, I don't have one this size, and the last time I actually found 3x3-inch envelopes for sale on some website, the minimum order was 1,000, which was about 900 too many! Anyway, wanting an envelope with a little more flap, I ended up altering Deena's dimensions to 4-1/4 by 7-1/4 and then scoring at 1-1/2 and 4-1/2 inches. My white envelope was made with plain ol' copy paper and the blue one is cardstock.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy, Clover Meadow, Crystal Blue, and Hydrangea cardstock; Copy paper; Retired CTMH Hydrangea and Heavenly Blue gingham B&T paper; Clover Meadow, Crystal Blue, and Hydrangea ink pads; Images from Sunshine Graphics Britches & Bloomers CD; Papertrey Ink Mixed Messages stamp set; Prismacolor colored pencils; Gamsol odorless mineral spirits; Paper blending stumps; Ribbon from Wal-Mart; Martha Stewart Arch Lattice Edger punch; Cuttlebug w/Swiss Dots and Argyle embossing folders.

While I slept and laid around most of the day, I'd better get my backside to bed so I can try to go to work tomorrow. My stomach has settled down, but I'm still really achy. I hope yours is a wonderful week. Thanks for stopping by. Still wanting to try all of the sketches I've seen this weekend, I'll be back when I can ... 'Til then, take care!!

And It's Not Even Halloween ...

And I stamped with orange ... for the second time this week no less. I made this card using the March Stamp of the Month, Butterfly Wings, and the baby wipe technique. The ink colors I used were Holiday Red, Orange, and Sunny Yellow. Once my background paper was stamped, I went around the edge with a round sponge and ink from the baby wipe. I speckled it, too, with ink from my homemade 'pad.' As you can see I kept the rest of it simple. Piercing across the bottom of the sentiment and around the scalloped circle were my only embellishments. Cheap. LOL. Seriously, I tried to think of something to add that one would actually be able to see and didn't come up with anything. The butterfly above the sentiment was attached to the card with foam mounting tape.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy and Orange cardstock; Orange, Holiday Red, and Yellow ink pads; Butterfly Wings March Stamp of the Month stamp set; Speckled Backgrounds stamp (retired); Piercing tool; Stampin' Up Piercing Guide & Mat; Cuttlebug w/Nestabilities Classic Circles set; Round sponge; 3M foam mounting tape.

I've been cleaning all day, as in clearing clutter in my corner. What I got done was sort through the two 7-foot bookcases that hold my paper and a host of other things. I took inventory, filled a garbage bag, and put stuff back on the shelves in a semblance of order. When you've had the same hobby for a lot of years, one accumulates a lot of stuff, some of which one doesn't use anymore. A good example is the box of stencils I came across - scrapbook page stencils, letter stencils, stencils that create die cuts, etc. Their usefulness, for the most part, has been replaced by the Cricut. Nevertheless, I couldn't convince myself to throw them away. Sigh.

It's a beautiful day. Sunny. No wind. Currently 33°. My mother-in-law is taking Marv and me out for dinner this evening, so I suppose I'd better go put my face on as not to frighten anyone.

Our crazy youngest son just called a few minutes ago. He'd played in a softball tournament in Grand Forks today. It's warm but not that warm, and the ground is covered with snow. I think Cameron flew to Fargo with a friend. When it comes to small planes, I'd prefer I not know where they're going until they've been there and are home again. "Mother, you know they're safer than cars ..." Yes, I know, but that doesn't keep me from worrying. Seems like I've been singing the same song to my kids for a lot of years!!

No, gotta go! I hope you are having a wonderful day. Catch ya later ...

Stamp Simply/Simple Saturday

Simple. Simply. Is there any other way? I actually made the bottom card first, thinking that it fit the bill for this week's Stamp Simply challenge, "White Mats," on the No Time to Stamp? blog. Maybe it did, but what the heck? I had time on my hands last night, and made two cards - fraternal twins. My first set from Papertrey Ink, Out on a Limb remains one of my favorites. For this top card, I used White Daisy Textured cardstock. I used White Opal Liquid Pearls for the centers of the flowers on both cards. Both images are mounted to the card base using foam mounting tape.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy Textured and Blush cardstock; Chocolate and Blush ink pads; Papertrey Ink Out on a Limb stamp set; Acrylic disks from Michael's; White Opal Liquid Pearls; Cuttlebug w/Swiss Dots embossing folder; 3M foam mounting tape.

About this second card, I like to keep my sympathy cards soft and soothing to the eyes. This one is certainly that. The flowers are some Prima flowers that a friend shared at Stamp Club. I love the texture they add to the card.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy and Amethyst cardstock; Chocolate and Sweet Leaf ink pads; Papertrey Ink Out on a Limb stamp set; May Arts ribbon; Kaiser Kraft self-adhesive pearls; Prima flowers; Martha Stewart Doily Lace Edger punch; Cuttlebug w/Swiss Dots embossing folder; Opal Liquid Pearls; 3M foam mounting tape.

Did I mention that our weather has turned around? While I won't be wearing shorts, it's supposed to get up to 32° today and 42° tomorrow. That's warm enough to open some windows and air out this place. It's also very welcome after a very cold, blustery week. Maybe - just maybe - that was the end of winter. For now, I'm off to sort through a pile or two of "stuff." Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you enjoy the weekend. I'll most likely be back later to show you what I've come up with for my Stamp Club.

Crazy for Polka Dots

Especially black and white ones. I don't know why. A phase, I guess. This card was also inspired by this post on Lisa Johnson's Poppy Paperie blog. When I saw the stitching on her card, I thought of a stamp I had that might work. Mission accomplished. My card dimensions are 3-1/2 by 8. Disappointing is the fact that the photo doesn't show the button very well. It looks pretty cool after I used a 1-inch circle punch to cut a notch in the background paper. Everything else, I think, explains itself.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy, Black, and Cranberry cardstock; Doodlebug Design Black Eyelet DP; Black, Cranberry, Sunflower, Orange, New England, and White Daisy Pigment Ivy ink pads; Treasure Life, Papertrey Ink Mixed Messages, and Wordsworth Everyday Whimsy stamp sets; Button and ribbon from my stash; 1-inch circle punch; Cuttlebug w/Nestabilities Classic Circles set.

Happy Friday! I had a new project waiting for me when I arrived at work this morning, so the day went by fast. While I'm still on a mission to do some more clutter clearing this weekend, I don't think I'll do much this evening. I finished The Shack the other evening and highly recommend it. The tale of how this book came to be is a story in itself and can be found here. It's probably one of the most thought-provoking pieces of fiction I've ever read. It would be a wonderful book to read with a group and discuss, too. For now, I'm off to see if I can't find a sketch or an idea for Simple Saturday. Enjoy your evening! Later ...

Inspired

Good evening! I'm late again tonight. Places to go. People to see. Things to do (first) when I got home.

Tonight's card was inspired by this fun card (scroll down to the third one) on the Poppy Paperie blog. While I'm most anxious to see Lisa Johnson's new "Life" stamp set for Papertrey Ink, I thought I might be able to pull off a similar look using my beloved Treasure Life set from Close To My Heart.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy cardstock; Doodlebug Design Black Eyelet patterned paper; Black, Cranberry, and New England Ivy stamp pads; CTMH Treasure Life, Papertrey Ink Polka Dot Basics, and Verve Stamps So Happy stamp sets; Ribbon from Michael's; Black button from my stash; Sunshiny Yellow Fun Flock; Cuttlebug w/Nestabilities Classic Circles set.

A few of us went out after work tonight, something I rarely do. It was fun to get together in a casual setting. When I got home, Bjorn and Mathias were here, both of whom wanted to play computer games until bedtime, so I alternated little boys in my lap as we played "Diego" games at Noggin.com. We played well past the 8 o'clock hour, and evidently, I wore them out, because there was no bedtime battle tonight. They were asleep within minutes of their little heads touching their pillows. Sleep is going to come easily for Grandma tonight, too.

Are you looking forward to the weekend? I certainly am. I started clearing a little clutter in those two hours I took off on Tuesday afternoon and look forward to doing more of the same over the course of the next few days. There will be some stamping, too, so I hope you'll stop back. Between now and then, enjoy!

Grateful ...

Darn. After all of the accolades my last card received, I almost didn't want to post tonight but rather bask in the glory for a day to two. LOL. Seriously, thank you.

As for my middle name, the first thought that popped into Jeanne's head was correct. It's Lynn. Kathleen Lynn. Try to say it fast 10 times. The name Mom liked, I've been told, was Kathy Lynn. The Kathleen thing was to give me a 'proper' name. She gave all seven of her children nice names despite my dad's not-so-hot suggestions. I changed Kathy to Kathi between 9th and 10th grade along with several friends whose names ended with Y. It worked for me because Kathy was my nickname. A couple of the others ran into some problems with Social Security/tax stuff because they'd tried to change their given names. A few years later, I realized that it had been kind of snotty to change the spelling of my name, and while I wanted to change it back, I was at the point in life when there would have been too many people to retrain, so I left it alone.

Now, about my card (finally, you say?). While it was inspired by this card on the Flourishes blog, it ended up quite different. I didn't have a big flower; The sentiment I chose didn't fit on a Nestabilities die, etc., and thus I kind of ended up winging it. The end result turned out OK.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy and Cocoa cardstock; Basic Grey Urban Prairie 6x6-inch paper pad; Cocoa ink pad; Wordsworth Men Collection and Papertrey Ink Polka Dot Basic stamp sets; CTMH and Hero Arts paper flowers; Stampin' Up Build-a-Brad set; White Daisy and Sunflower Bigger Brads.

It was a busy day at work, and I bowled tonight - a couple of mediocre games and one good one - a 181! That's what four strikes in a row (an uncommon feat for me) will do. The storm passed, but it was still bitterly cold today. I believe it's supposed to start warming up tomorrow. Hope so! For now, I'd best get my butt to bed. I hope yours was a good day and that tomorrow is, too! I catch you again then ... Take care!

The Perfect Sketch ...

... for a monogram card! This is my card for Mojo Monday Week 77. A simple stamper, one wouldn't think I would have struggled so with the monogram stamps, which lend themselves so perfectly to simple cards. Nevertheless, I have had a heck of a time with these things. Nothing I've tried has looked right to me - either too much or too little, never just right with my JustRite stamps - until today. Having followed the sketch to the letter, there isn't much to explain except that I'm thrilled. My own biggest critic and a pathetic perfectionist, that doesn't happen all that often. LOL.

Materials & Tools: Colonial White, Black, and Bamboo Cardstock; Silhouette paper packet; Black ink pad; JustRite From the Desk/Kitchen/Library of ... and Trompe Script Font stamps; Ribbon from Wal-Mart; Hero Arts adhesive-back pearls; Cuttlebug w/Nestabilities Classic Circles set.

Any guesses as to what the 'L' in my monogram stands for? My 'real' name, by the way, is Kathleen. With the exception of my mother, who will initially identify me by my given name on the telephone, it's been saved for 'serious stuff' such as wedding vows and signed paperwork such as birth certificates,bank loans, driver's licenses, etc. I like the sound of "Kathleen" when Mom says it but not when I hear it coming out of the mouth of a telemarketer or heaven forbid, the police officer, who, when I roll down my car window, asks why I'm in such a hurry. (I usually have a good reason. LOL.)

I'm posting early today, because I came home from work early. Even though I live on the edge of town, I wanted to make certain I got home. We're in the midst of a blizzard with frigid temperatures and winds gusting up to 45 mph. Snowplows in town and on highways throughout the region have been called off the roads until it settles down. Roads are closed; Schools are closed; Some businesses have closed, and every scheduled activity has been canceled. As Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz said, "There's no place like home ... " My plan for what's left of the day is to do some chores and then, enjoy a quiet evening. I hope you enjoy yours as well. Later ...

Henry Said It Right ...

"It's not what you look at that matters. It's what you see." Kind of tired tonight, I didn't push myself on this one. It was easy - yet another simple card from a relatively simple old lady. There's nothing to explain either with the exception that the Breeze paper is textured cardstock. I really like textured cardstock, thinking it makes simple cards not so plain.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy and Black cardstock; Breeze Textured cardstock; Basic Grey Urban Prairie 6x6-inch paper pad; Black ink pad; Wordsworth Men Collection and Verve Stamps Fluttering By stamp sets; Gingham ribbon from Wal-Mart; Martha Stewart Arch Lattice Edger punch; Black wire.

How was your day? A good one, I hope. Mine was OK. I didn't make it back here last night. In addition to Cameron and the boys, Dustin (my rambunctious, albeit sweet, child) spent the yesterday afternoon with us, too. And yes, with all the roughhousing and ball throwing and crazy antics that went on, I was wiped out by the time they left. It's crazy how a pair of adult brothers transform into little boys again when they're around each other. It's fun and kind of annoying at the same time. Other than that, there isn't much that's new. Mother Nature is treating us to one more blast of winter, but that's neither new nor unusual in March in Minnesota. Thanks for all the comments on the cards I posted over the weekend. I truly appreciate the feedback and your visits. Most likely, I'll be back tomorrow night. Until then, take care!

That Creative Circle Again ...

My card was inspired by this beautiful card on my friend Jeanne's Creative Bliss blog. She'd been inspired, too, by this card on The Paper Landscaper blog. And that's the way this wonderful creative circle works - an exchange of ideas. With "Heat it Up" as the theme of this week's Stamp Simply challenge on the No Time to Stamp? blog, my card works for the challenge, too. Yea!

For my card, I followed Jeanne's lead, stamping my butterfly (from Butterfly Wings, the March Stamp of the Month) with VersaMark on Vellum and then cutting it out. On the back, I colored the open areas with a Crystal Blue marker and then used a Quickie glue pen in those same areas on the front to add glitter. As usual, the sparkle doesn't show up that well in the photo. Before starting the card, my plan use different colors than Jeanne used. However, the blue is so darned pretty that all I did to change it out was to use some patterned paper to back the butterfly and mat it with the solid blue. Thank you, Jeanne, for the great idea! The sketch is a great way to showcase the lovely March SOTM.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy and Heavenly Blue cardstock; Vellum; Spring Harmony B&T paper (retired); VersaMark and Crystal Blue ink pads; Crystal Blue marker; White embossing powder; Close To My Heart Butterfly Wings March Stamp of the Month and Wordsworth Everyday Whimsy stamp sets; May Arts ribbon; Martha Stewart ultra fine glitter; Quickie glue pen; Martha Stewart Doily Lace Edger punch; Piercing tool; Pop Dots; Cuttlebug w/Swiss Dots embossing folder.

It's another sunny, albeit frigid, day in Northern Minnesota. When it comes to weather, we take what we get, and so long as the wind isn't blowing, it's not so bad. With that I need to get off my butt and get something done. My guests will be here soon, so it would be wise to do something I don't want 'help' with later. LOL. I hope yours is a fantastic day, and as always, thanks for stopping by. Provided I still have some mojo and the little boys haven't worn me out, I might be back with something this evening. In the meanwhile, take care!

Last, but not Least ...

There's a sketch challenge on the Verve Stamps blog commemorating its new release tomorrow night. And, this is what I came up with. The flower(s) is from Verve Stamps' Abundant Blessings set. While I'm happy with the results, my coloring technique was most unconventional. I first colored the flowers with Prismacolor colored pencils and used odorless mineral spirits and a paper blending stump to blend the colors. I was disappointed when the color was all wrong for the paper I had picked out. Instead of discarding it, however, I grabbed a Carnation Pink marker and went over it, changing the color to one that worked with this paper. The crazy thing is I don't think the carnation marker would have cut it on its own.

When I say 'flowers,' this one flower is made up of three flowers layered on top of one another using foam mounting tape. I love the dimension. The camera didn't show it, but the flower sparkles, too, after I 'painted' it with Star Dust Stickles. I hemmed and hawed a bit about what to do with the two little square accents before remembering my Stampin' Up Build-a-Brad set. Just right!

Materials & Tools: Colonial White and Cocoa cardstock; Basic Grey Porcelain 6x6-inch paper pad; Cocoa ink pad; Verve Stamps Abundant Blessings stamp set; Kaiser Kraft self-adhesive pearls; Stampin' Up Build-a-Brad set; Corner rounder; Martha Stewart Doily Lace and Branch punches; Star Dust Stickles; 3M foam mounting tape.

I suppose it goes without saying what I did today ... I did a little organizing, too, although this seems to be one of those situations where one has to make a mess to clean up a mess. My corner isn't looking so great right now either after my little stamping marathon. I'm debating whether I should clean it up tonight or go read the last pages of The Shack. I described the book as 'compelling' the other night. 'Powerful' is another good word. I'll have more to say, I think, once I finish it.

I hope you're having a wonderful weekend. While I'm not particularly excited about losing an hour of sleep tonight, I'm excited by the prospect of one more hour of daylight at the end of the day. I'm hoping it causes me to be perkier in the evenings! Tomorrow, Cameron and the boys are going to spend the afternoon with us, as this seems to have become our every-other-Sunday tradition - one that I cherish. You never know, too. Mathias and I might make a card or two. Thanks for stopping, and enjoy Sunday. Most likely, I'll catch you again then!

I Toad You So ...

I guess you would have read the last line of my last post for the title to make sense. Oh well. This is my take on the latest sketch challenge on Paper Craft Planet (scroll down to see the sketch).

I can't seem to get through a week without pulling out this stamp set and thought of this little guitar-picking toad/frog as soon as I saw the sketch required a relatively small focal point image. The image was colored using Prismacolor pencils and odorless mineral spirits. I thought the rickrack would be a fun touch and added the bow when I realized it need a little something 'more.'

Materials & Tools: White Daisy and Black cardstock; Basic Grey Urban Prairie 6x6-inch paper pad; Black ink pad; Penny Black Toadily and Wordsworth Everyday Whimsy stamp sets; Black rickrack and ribbon from Wal-Mart; Cuttlebug w/Nestabilities Classic Circles set; 3M foam mounting tape.

Can you handle one more?