Billy and Sparky

Last night, I made a few Christmas cards – enough to have a post every night this week! This one was created with a sweet Eat Cake Graphics stamp I purchase last year (and used once). Ach! What is it about the photo that causes one to actually take a good look at the card? I just noticed the cardinal’s beak is white. It’s fixed now. All it required was a tiny speck of ink from a Sunflower marker. The rest of the image was colored with Prismacolor colored pencils and OMS. The snow is glittery, and the ornaments on the tree are sparkly, too. I stamped the image on white cardstock and cut it out. The Colonial White cardstock I used behind it is scored at 1/8th-inch intervals to resemble siding on a house.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy, Colonial White, and Cocoa cardstock; Basic Grey Jovial 6x6-inch paper pad; Black and Cranberry ink pads; Sunflower marker; Eat Cake Graphics Billy and Sparky at Window stamp and Papertrey Ink Mixed Messages stamp set; Brown satin ribbon from Wal-Mart; Prismacolor colored pencils; Gamsol odorless mineral spirits; Blending stumps; Martha Stewart Crystal Fine glitter; XMas Red Stickles; Martha Stewart Scoring Board; McGill Multi-Tag punch.

A Slice of Life: My heart is heavy tonight, as I learned after work tonight that a cousin died tragically. Fifty years old, he was the only son of my Mom’s only sister. Growing up, he was my brother’s best buddy, and then, when he was about 16, he went to live with his father in Nevada. About six years ago, he returned to Minnesota where he lived with my aunt. While I have only seen him once since he came back, I was taken with his sense of humor and what appeared to me to be a kind heart. The news was on the radio on my way to work this morning. I only caught the last name, age, and name of the town in the report, but it piqued my interest enough to pull up a regional newspaper at my desk and confirm that the man who had been missing since Friday was indeed my cousin. His body was found outdoors this afternoon, and while an autopsy is being done and the case is still under investigation, it is believed he froze to death. Sad. I stopped at Mom’s after work. She had talked to her sister, my aunt, earlier in the day. Even though I obviously did not know my cousin very well, I feel bad – particularly for my aunt and his sisters. Life is a mystery, isn’t it?

I was busy at work today, and tonight, I’m home alone. With the Metrodome having collapsed and the Vikings game being played in Detroit, Husband, his brother, and Dustin had to go to the hunting cabin to watch it via satellite, as our local cable network isn’t airing it. While I don’t usually pay much attention to football, I hope it’s a good game to make the trip is worthwhile. LOL.

All that said, I am off to find a card to send to my aunt and then, I’ll stamp, watch TV, read, or do “something.” Was your day a good one? I sincerely hope so. Make tomorrow a good day, too. OK?

If it weren’t for the brave …

Here’s a Simple Saturday card that meets the criteria for Stamp Simply # 141 – “Flying High and Proud Color Challenge” on the No Time to Stamp? blog.

In keeping with the simple theme, I stamped my image with Outdoor Denim ink and left it uncolored. Can I say again that I love this stamp? Its message is so true – the little characters so cute. That said, there aren’t a lot of layout options for this stamp. I sanded the cardstock, added some brads, and was done with my card in a jiff.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy, Outdoor Denim, and Cranberry cardstock; Outdoor Denim ink pad; Eat Cake Graphics Land of the Free stamp; Outdoor Denim mini brads; Red star brads from my stash; Sanding block.

Leave it to me not to get the story straight. The trailer bring my mom’s stuff to town is coming today and not Monday. That’s when she’s coming to town to stay. Not a problem. I called my sons, who will be ready to help when the trailer arrives. I’m sure there will be plenty of help coming from home, too. Food and muscle is never in short supply in a family as large as mine. When I talked to her this morning, I mentioned that she was most likely taking a lot more out of that house than she brought in 58 years ago. Yes, she agreed, at 19 years of age, about all she came with was her clothes. When my parents married, my dad’s parents moved from the farm and into a house they purchased in a neighboring town. They left most of their furniture for my parents, and it probably took a lot of years for my mom to make that house one she considered her very own.

Before I get all sentimental, I had better go get some stuff done. I think I’ll make a two-gallon jug of lemonade and have it ready. If it gets as hot as what is forecast, the movers will be thirsty. Have a wonderful day, my friends!

Some Do Christmas in July …

I do Independence Day in January. That might again have something to do with life in the frozen tundra where I am much more apt to think about warm July in January than I am to think about cold December in July. LOL.

Seriously, I have had this image since early December when I purchased it and a couple other images from Eat Cake Graphics. I love everything about this stamp from the so-true sentiment to the lineup of cute kids, and I just couldn’t wait any long to use it.

As for the card, it is my “signature simple,” of course. I used both markers and a blending pen with stamp pad ink to color my image. The shading was accomplished with my trusty Dove blending pen (I love that thing) and Juniper ink.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy, Holiday Red, and Outdoor Denim cardstock; Black, Grey Wool, Outdoor Denim, Chocolate, Bamboo, Citrus Leaf, Brown Bag, Bubblegum, and Juniper ink pads; Holiday Red, Sunny Yellow, Autumn Terracotta, Baby Pink, and Tombow #580 Flesh markers; Eat Cake Graphics Land of the Free stamp; Fiskars Apron Lace border punch; Dove blending pen; Sanding block.

Happy Hump Day! Even though it is cold and blustery this evening – a perfect night to stay home – husband has cabin fever and wants to go out for supper. With no desire to cook, I will accommodate his need to get out of the house.

Thanks for all your sweet comments. They mean the world to me! Later…

 

 

Taking a Break

No, not me. I took my break. Scared ya, didn’t I? LOL.

Instead, with a baby due soon, Jen del Muro of i{heart}2stamp fame is taking a month off from her weekly A Sketch for You to Try challenge. I suppose that’s understandable. LOL. Seriously, I wish Jen the best and can’t think of a better reason to take a little hiatus.

About my card, when I noted in this post I would be using parts of my Winter Neighborhood image for smaller cards, I wasn’t necessarily thinking about anything quite this small. I’m pleased it worked out so well. What you can’t see is that the whole image sparkles. After coloring it with Prismacolor pencils, I cut a same-size circle from an Adhesive Sheet, placed it over the image, and then covered it with glitter. Instead of Prisma Glitter, I used Martha Stewart’s Crystal Fine glitter. It seems finer but isn’t as messy. It’s also very clear. Anyway, as is often the case, my card is cuter and has more sparkle in person.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy, Juniper, and Hollyhock cardstock; Jingle paper packet; Black and Hollyhock ink pads; Eat Cake Graphics Winter Neighborhood stamp and CTMH Thank You stamp set; Martha Stewart Crystal Fine glitter; Adhesive Sheets; 1-3/4 inch circle punch; 2-inch scallop punch; Cuttlebug w/Nestabilities Classic Circles set; Prismacolor colored pencils; 3M foam mounting tape.

Did you have a good day? I hope so. We cleaned up our Merry Christmas mess this morning. The little boys were here this afternoon. I did some laundry. All in all, a good day.

Oh, and before I go, a little stamp world gossip. With it’s 2010 Occasions Mini Catalog and 2010 Sale-A-Bration brochure, Stampin’ Up is going to offer a new clear-mount option along with its traditional wood-mount stamps. Maybe you already knew this. Maybe you don’t care. Me? I read about it here, and I’m saying it’s about time.

When SU clamped down on its demonstrators with regard to using and acknowledging other products on their blogs, etc., the company kind of fell out of favor with me. With the belief that social media has increased our exposure to products from other companies and changed the way we shop, I didn’t think it was a very friendly move on SU’s part. While every company has exclusive products, no company is exclusive. While quality sometimes varies, there are, nevertheless, a lot of good products from a lot of good companies.

I love the idea of the clear-mount option. Those wood blocks are a bit of a pain in the derrière to store. I love some of Stampin’ Up’s designs, too, and just might find it in my heart to forgive them long enough to get my hands on a few sets. LOL.

OK. After disappearing for a whole week, I probably shouldn’t talk your ears off. Have a great week, my friends! Later…

Winter Neighborhood

Here’s another cute image  from Eat Cake Graphics. Of course, I didn’t realize how wide it would be. It’s OK, though. I can always use a partial image for smaller cards, and won’t the big image make for a cute gift bag, box, or scrapbook element?

For this card, I stamped the image on White Daisy Textured cardstock and colored it with Prismacolor pencils and OMS. While I considered glittering the snow-covered rooftops, etc., I kept it simple by doing a little shading on the eaves and using Diamond Stickles on the falling snowflakes.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy Textured, White Daisy, and Sorbet cardstock; Jingle paper packet; Black and Juniper ink pads; Eat Cake Graphics Winter Neighborhood stamp and Close To My Heart Card Chatter – Christmas stamp set; Prismacolor colored pencils; Gamsol odorless mineral spirits; Blending stumps; Diamond Stickles.

We had a fun morning with the boys, and this afternoon, I’m working on a little project. So far, I’ve covered the pages of a Close To My Heart My Creations™ All-Sorts Mini Album with cardstock. It killed me that the thing is 6-1/4 by 7-inches, because I could only cover one page per sheet of cardstock. No, it’s not like I was left with scraps I won’t use. It just seemed to me that had it been six inches in height, nothing would have been lost, and it would have been a hair more practical. It bugs me that I’m complaining about it, too. “Practical” is such a “grandma” word. LOL.

As for what I’m going to do with my album, I’m not sure. Have I mentioned my printer died? While I could buy a new one, it doesn’t seem like a practical (there’s that damn word again) purchase right before Christmas. Besides, I’m researching printers, and although I’m 99 percent sure which one I want, I want to do a little more checking. For certain, it’s going to be one that uses pigment ink and prints a 12x12-inch borderless print … just in case I get around to taking up digital scrapbooking.

Well, that’s enough jabber out of me. Hope you are having a great weekend, too. Thanks for stopping by! Later, friends …

Billy & Sparky

I couldn’t resist this sweet image from Eat Cake Graphics. Although they have a girl image that is equally cute, I deemed the little guy more fitting for my (so far) male dominated household.

My card is simple (of course) – the image colored with Prismacolor pencils and OMS, faux Flower Soft snow, red Stickles on the tree, and the blue cardstock scored and sanded to emulate siding. The card base is textured White Daisy cardstock.

The little boy’s thoughtful expression is perfect for a “Thinking of You,” “Wish You Were Here,” or “I Miss You” type sentiment. On the cuteness meter, I rate this image a strong 9.5. LOL.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy Textured, Indian Corn Blue, and Cranberry cardstock; Black and Cranberry ink pads; Eat Cake Graphics Billy and Sparky in Window stamp and CTMH Say it in Style stamp set; Xmas Red Stickles; Styrofoam; White glue; Prismacolor colored pencils; Gamsol odorless mineral spirits; Blending stumps; Empressor tool and mat; Sanding block.

Happy Friday! I’m sure many of you have the same plans for the weekend that I have – holiday preparations. Tonight, however, I’m going to kick back and take it easy.

I hope yours is a wonderful weekend! Later…