More Challenge Cards

This first card is my take on Weekend Sketch Challenge #108 as posted on the fresh & fun blog. I struggled a bit with this sketch and am not head over heals in love with the resulting card. 

Materials & Tools: White Daisy and Moonstruck cardstock; Retired CTMH Winter Classic B&T paper; Moonstruck ink pad; JustRite Merry Little Christmas Borders & Centers stamp set; Stampin’ Up Whisper White Taffeta ribbon; Sparkles;1 and 1-1/4 inch circle punches; 2-inch scallop punch; Sponge dauber; 3M foam mounting tape.

This next card is my rendition of Mercy’s Tuesday Sketch Challenge #49 on the Lord Have Mercy! blog.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy, Topiary, and Tulip cardstock; Animal Cookies paper packet; Black, Dutch Blue, Topiary, and Twilight ink pads; Sunflower marker; Whipper Snapper Designs Ducks in a Row stamp and Hero Arts Thinking of You stamp set; Ribbon from Wal-Mart; Topiary, Sunflower, and Tulip mini brads; Black My Legacy Writer; Dove blending pen; Fiskars Apron Lace border punch.

  This last sketch is Limelight Papercrafts Sketch 35, which included a challenge to use patterned paper. I missed the official “cut-off” for this card but had fun making it anyway.

Materials & Tools: Colonial White, Barn Red, Cocoa, Bamboo textured, and Desert Sand textured cardstock; Grace paper packet; Cocoa and Desert Sand ink pads; Say it in Style stamp set; Ribbon from Michael’s; Corner rounder; Fiskars Sunburst border punch; Sponge dauber.

So many sketches and challenges. So little time. LOL. With that, I’m off to my corner to see if I can crank out a little something to have to show you tomorrow.

Oh, and I made my goal of not putting on a winter coat or jacket until December 1. Barely. Beginning tonight, it’s supposed to start cooling off significantly and snow off and on for the rest of the week. That’s OK. Maybe with a little snow on the ground, I’ll be able to wrap my mind around Christmas.

Thanks for stopping by. Your kind comments and encouragement are so appreciated!!

A Monogram Card

It’s hard to believe that this card was two days in the making. It certainly wasn’t due to its complexity. Rather, it has been another busy holiday week with a few distractions.

Materials & Tools: Colonial White, Black, and Bamboo cardstock; Silhouette paper packet; Black ink pad; JustRite Decorative 2-inch Square Stamper and Decorative Frames and Trompe Script stamp sets; Ribbon from my stash; Black Photo Clips and mini brads; 3M foam mounting tape.

I’m running behind the 8-Ball with regard to preparations for our trip to my sister and brother-in-law’s house tomorrow for Thanksgiving dinner with my family, so I’ll keep this short.

I hope your Thanksgiving Day is wonderful. I want you to know, too, that when I count my blessings you – my cyber friends – are among them. Thank you for your friendship!

Simple Autumn Blessings

Here are a couple more cards made with JustRite's Autumn Blessings set. While the designs are my usual simple style, the coloring on these babies took me a little while. The Indian corn image (which I love) was colored with markers with the exception of the bow, which was outlined with my Indian Corn marker and then filled in with a blending pen and ink from the same color ink pad. I also used my blending pen and Twilight ink to shade around the outside of both images. Additionally, what you can't see on either card is the fact that the images were cut out with an oval Nestabilities die and mounted to the oval "frames" with foam mounting tape.

Materials & Tools: Colonial White and Indian Corn Blue cardstock; Black, Indian Corn Blue, and Twilight ink pads; Indian Corn Blue, Autumn Terracotta, Goldrush, Sunflower, and Buttercup markers; JustRite Autumn Blessings Borders & Centers set; 2-1/4 by 3-1/16 inch JustRite Wood Stamper; Cuttlebug w/Argyle embossing folder and Nestabilities Classic Ovals set; Dove blending pen; 3M foam mounting tape.

The image on my second card was colored using Prismacolor pencils and OMS. The apples in real life are less pink than they look in the photograph. The scored lines around the perimeter of the Cocoa cardstock were accomplished with my borrowed Scor-Pal, which my friend seriously needs to reclaim, enabling me to quickly purchase one of my own. LOL.

Materials & Tools: Colonial White and Cocoa cardstock; Black, Cocoa, and Twilight ink pads; JustRite Autumn Blessings Borders & Centers set; 2-1/4 by 3-1/16 inch JustRite Wood Stamper; Gold mini brads; Prismacolor colored pencils; Gamsol odorless mineral spirits; Blending stumps; Dove blending pen; Scor-Pal; CuttlebugNestabilities Classic Ovals set; 3M foam mounting tape. w/

Ah, 'tis Wednesday already! We're more than halfway to the weekend. And, tomorrow it's October already. I hope your week is going well! Later, friends ...

From the Pumpkin Patch

As soon I saw the Autumn Blessings set from JustRite, I decided that would be my one new set for fall this year. I love all of the harvest images and borders. Today's card is my take on Taylored Expressions Cupcake Challenge #84. It was a fun, easy sketch. For my pumpkin image, I colored the pumpkins with Prismacolor pencils and OMS and the stems and leaves with markers. Then, I used a blending pen and Twilight ink to go around the entire image to give it a bit more depth.

Materials & Tools: Colonial White and Autumn Terracotta cardstock; Retired CTMH Nature's Treasures paper packet; Black, Chocolate, and Twilight ink pads; Brown Bag and Garden Green markers; JustRite Autumn Blessings Borders & Centers and Impression Obsession Sentiments II stamp sets; Gold mini brads; Prismacolor colored pencils; Gamsol odorless mineral spirits; Blending stumps; Dove blending pen; Stampin' Up Word Window punch; Cuttlebug w/Nestabilties Classic Circles set.

Wow! It's the last week of September already. I hope yours is a good one! Thanks for stopping by... Oh, and if you're interested in what I do besides stamp, stop by "This is the Day..."

Second Post ... Don't Faint or Anything

I'll have to say Sharon on the No Time to Stamp? blog did a little more than inspire my card. She provided a step-by-step pictorial! A good thing, too. Now, if only I'd had some of that pretty black silk ribbon and bow-maker thing, my card might be as pretty as hers.

As it was I had to make a dash to Wal-Mart to find some ribbon that "might" do. I bought a couple of different ribbons, including this wired ribbon, which was relatively easy to work with and worked out OK. The card is for the couple whose wedding reception we are attending this evening. The only thought about the personalization is that I'm only assuming she is taking his last name. One never knows these days. I asked Miranda a few weeks ago, and she is - not that the switch from Nelson to Carlson is a biggie. LOL.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy and Black cardstock; Black ink pad; JustRite Damask Borders and Trompe Script Font stamps; Ribbon from Wal-Mart; Kaiser Kraft pearl accents; Cuttlebug w/Textile 2A embossing folder; 3M foam mounting tape.

I suppose I'd better go get ready for tonight's festivities. Bjorn and Mathias' daycare provider was married earlier today in a private ceremony with the reception this evening. She's a nice gal who married a nice guy. She truly loves the little boys, too, which means a lot to their parents and Grandpa and me. As I'm still feeling a little punk, it's going to be a short evening for us. Granny needs her rest. With that, enjoy the evening! I'll catch you again tomorrow...

Time Out to Breathe

While I'm not certain if I have the time or simply took the time, I stole away to my corner for a few minutes. After all, all work and no play makes for a cantankerous mother of the groom. LOL.

About my card ... Although my mind is too cluttered for me to have any mojo of my own, I still have the ability to draw inspiration from others. My card was inspired by this card and this card on the No Time to Stamp? blog. Sharon's cards are beautiful, aren't they? As for explaining, I'm not sure there is much to say. I embossed the bottom background piece with my borrowed Scor-Pal and the smaller piece with a Cuttlebug folder. The sentiment is a JustRite stamp. I love those oval JustRite stamps but have yet to experience a weak moment and order 'em. I would do the LOL thing but am not certain my weak moments are all that funny. Know what I mean?

Materials & Tools: White Daisy and Black cardstock; Black ink pad; JustRite 10 Designer Borders & Centers set; Black organdy ribbon; Kaiser Kraft pearl accents; Scor-Pal; Cuttlebug w/Leafy Branch embossing folder and Nestabilities Classic Circles set; 3M foam mounting tape.

To tell you a little about my week, the wedding invitation adventure has been just that. First, the next time I design invitations (if ever), I will make 10 of them instead of one. Then, I might have an idea of how labor intensive they are. Secondly, the next time I need help, I will recruit some of my crafty friends. Dealing with a half dozen women who had never tied a square knot (and still can't) was more unnerving than trying to cope with a room full of eight-year-old Cub Scouts.

Miranda's recruits, however, were pretty good at placing the stamps on the envelopes until, that is, we ran out of envelopes. The printer either lost or ruined 75 envelopes. I have no way of knowing, because they won't own up to it and pretty much told me, "Tough luck." Customer service is obviously not this business' forte, and it will be a cold day in hell-o before they do any printing for me again. Finding 75 5x7-inch ivory envelopes with flaps quickly was part of the reason we went to Grand Forks on Friday. The search was looking pretty futile until I insisted we backtrack to JoAnne's "just to make sure." There, on clearance no less, were two sets of 50 ivory 5x7-inch cards and perfect, flapped envelopes. Had it not been for that stroke of luck I would have ended up paying overnight shipping for $10 worth of envelopes.

We also ran out of ribbon. My fault. Dumb me had figured out that I needed five 25-yard rolls, which mathematically, was correct and just enough. Why, oh why, though, at $1.97 a roll would I have not ordered an extra just to make sure? I reiterate, dumb on my part. Michael's saved the day on this one with me gathering up enough ribbon to redo a few of the ones that don't measure up to my standards - my project for this afternoon after I'm done talking about it.

We're going to finish these things today/this evening - as soon as the groom gets here. That will be one monkey - the most stressful one, I hope - off my back. Crazy, isn't it? So much commotion over something that, in a very short amount of time, won't make a bit of difference.

With that, I better grab my ATG gun and get back at it. I hope you're having a wonderful weekend. Thanks for stopping by!

I Think I Could Get Used to This ...

But before I tell you what it is, I need to tell you to skedaddle over to my friend Alanna's blog and congratulate her on her 300th post and nearly 15,000 hits. She's got a great giveaway going on and wonderful cards to inspire you to boot.

And now, about my card. Take a look at that floral motif in the corner. I didn't stamp it. Rather, it's part of the paper design, and what you can't see is that it's flocked. Not only does it look great, it feels fuzzy and wonderful. All I had to do was layer my papers, stamp my monogram, and embellish with a length of ribbon and a few adhesive-backed pearl accents. So pretty, and so quick and easy.

Materials & Tools: Colonial White and Black cardstock; DCWV La Creme Matstack; Black ink pad; JustRite Damask Borders and Trompe Script stamp sets; Ribbon from Wal-Mart; Kaiser Krafts pearl accents; Cuttlebug w/Nestabilities Classic Circles set.

It's Thursday again already. Friday tomorrow. Yea! The next few days are going to be busy. Bjorn and Mathias are staying with us until Sunday. For the third consecutive year, their daddy and Uncle Dusty are organizing our company's annual golf social. Thus, the boys stay with us while Cameron takes care of all the last minute preparations. On Saturday, Marv is going to play with them, and so, it will be just me and the boys. If all works out, I'm hoping to take them down to see my mom. A day at the farm would be good for them ... and me. I love to see them running around the same yard their great-grandfather, grandmother (me), and dad played in when we were their ages. I love that their roots run so deep.

After supper tonight, Marv took the boys and went to the golf course, which afforded me time to do a little stamping. If they don't come home soon, however, they will be lucky to catch Grandma before she falls asleep. I stayed up a little later than I should have last night and thus, am wiped out tonight. With that, I'm going to go take a quick shower and jump into my jammies. I hope your day was great. Until tomorrow, take care!

Zapped...

This is my take on this week's Mojo Monday sketch. There's a contest going on this week on the Mojo Monday blog, which, I believe, affected my psyche and zapped me of my mojo. LOL.

OK. What is there to say about my card? Not a lot. The stamped strip on the side is faux chipboard, adding a little dimension. Everything else, I believe, explains itself.

Materials & Tools: Colonial White, Black, and Cranberry cardstock; DCWV La Creme Matstack; Black ink pad; JustRite 10 Designer Borders & Centers and CTMH Boutique Borders stamp sets; Red satin ribbon from Wal-Mart; Black mini brads; Stampin' Up Ticket punch.

With nothing significant (or clever) to say, I'm going to cut this off with a wish that yours was a wonderful day. Thanks for stopping by! Later ...

One Thing Leads to Another ...

I was flipping through my stamps yesterday, taking stock of what I have and looking to see if anything jumped out at me in the way of sparking a little creativity. "Be True" was the set that caught my eye, and this top card is what I initially came up with for "Simple Saturday" ... er, Sunday!

Materials & Tools: White Daisy, Cranberry, and Black cardstock; Cranberry and Black ink pads; Be True stamp set; Ribbon from Reasonableribbon.com; Sparkles; Cuttlebug w/Nestabilities Classic Circles set; 3M foam mounting tape.

In love with the red, white, and black and that round floral stamp and with thoughts that it might make for a nice monogram card, I came up with this little gift set.

I random stamped the floral stamp on an 8-1/2 by 11-inch sheet of white cardstock, which provided me with enough pieces to make six cards and trim the box. I kept the rest of the card simple (like I really know how to do anything else -LOL), using embossed cardstock for the top piece. The monogram is attached to the card with foam mounting tape. A little ribbon tab serves as the sole embellishment.

I have good news, too! The template for the box has been reposted on the {Stampin' Gal Val} blog. You can find it here. Like last time, I used black textured cardstock to make my box. Once the box was complete, I stamped the envelope flaps to match, tied a piece of ribbon around the box and was done. I hope my sister likes them.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy, Cranberry, and Black cardstock; Black Textured cardstock (for box); White envelopes; Cranberry and Black ink pads; Be True stamp set; JustRite From the Desk/Kitchen/Library of ... and Trompe Script Font stamps; Ribbon from reasonableribbon.com and Wal-Mart; Cuttlebug w/Swiss Dots embossing folder and Nestabilities Classic Circles set; 3M foam mounting tape.

How's your weekend going? I was lazy as all getout yesterday, falling back asleep after my morning blog post and sleeping until almost noon. I don't remember the last time I did that.

Before I forget, I finished a good book on Friday, The Wednesday Letters. Have any of you read it? While a light read, I didn't want to put it down, which is why I read it in a couple of days. If you're interested, you can read the reviews here.

Today, Cameron and the boys are coming over. I've got some laundry to do, too. It's supposed to be sunny outside but cool (low 70s) and windy. We'll see what the day brings! I hope your day is a good one, and in case I don't make it back here, I'll remind you now to stop back tomorrow for another Sneak Peek at one of the new stamp sets from the brand new Sherrod Studio. If you missed my first Sneak Peek, scroll down and take a look. Later ...

A Project

You've seen this card before. The initials were different. These are the initials of my soon-to-be daughter-in-law Miranda, and I didn't make one card but six with matching envelopes and a cute little desktop box in which to store them.

I was all ready to link you up to the template for the box only to find the post it on which it appeared has disappeared. My thoughts are the ownership of the template is in dispute. As of me, I'm innocent in that I have no idea of the template is "hot" or not. In the case that it is, I'll be more than happy to pay for it. I respect copyrights although I tend to think the template thing is a bit subjective. As with cards, I don't know that I've ever seen a box that no one has ever made before. Boxes such as this one have existed in the retail world for eons.

Back to my card, as this is a repeat, I'll link you to the Materials & Tools list.

I used textured Black cardstock to make the box and decorated it with a scrap of patterned paper and paper flower. In areas where the white core showed, I carefully went over the edges with my black marker. As I was making six cards, I kept telling myself that I should be making a set of eight. I'm glad I made six though, as eight embellished cards with envelopes would not have fit in the box. I pulled a couple of the cards out for the photograph.

So, that is my project for today. I've done a few other projects, too, in the way of laundry and some domestic chores - the not-so-fun stuff that's gotta be done. The boys and Cameron were here for most of the day, too. That was fun.

This evening, I need to get my clothes ready for work this week and get some stuff ready to put in the mail. Was your weekend a good one? I hope so. As always, thank you for stopping by. Your kind words are always appreciated. Take care.

Catch Up Time ...

Once again, I missed the weekend challenges. This is my take on Weekend Sketch Challenge #80, hosted this week by Cambria Turnbow on the Stamp a Little Love, Baby blog.

About my card, what's there to say? It's made with the new Animal Cookies Creative Basics Collection, which I love for its fun, bright colors. The sentiment and border are JustRite stamps.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy, Tulip, Dutch Blue, and Sunflower cardstock; Animal Cookies Creative Basics Collection; Dutch Blue ink pad; JustRite 10 Harmony Classic Circle I and Designer Centers & Borders set; Retired Cranberry gingham ribbon; Cuttlebug w/Nestabilities Classic Circles set.

Bjorn and Mathias are staying with us tonight, because their daddy plays on a Monday evening golf league. The weather was quite nice early this evening with just the right amount of breeze, so we took them outside to fly their kites after supper.

I think my photo is appropriately named! Yes, those little specks in the sky are their kites. The boys were very excited and couldn't believe how high they flew. Grandma, who is not an experienced kite-flyer, was quite taken with the experience, too. Had we had more string, they would have flown even higher. I was able to get one decent shot of Mathias' blue fish kite using the optical zoom on my camera. Bjorn was not very happy that the closeups of his green turtle kite were not good. I guess I should have had a tripod. We'll try again another day. There should be many fine kite-flying days in the weeks to come. Notice I said "should," and note that our grass is only just starting to turn green and the trees are still bare. On his way to the lake on Saturday, Cameron took a photo of the ground covered with snow in an area north of here. Is it any wonder many of the folks around here don't buy into the global warming theory? We just figure Mother Nature has a mind of her own. LOL.

How was your day? A good one, I hope! For me, it was one day down, four (sniff, sniff) to go! It'll be OK. That said, I'm off to do a couple of things before an early (before 11 p.m.) bedtime. Have a terrific Tuesday, and as always, thanks for stopping by!

An Oldie but a Goodie ...

This week's Stamp Simply #84 challenge on the No Time to Stamp? blog is "Let's Pipe Up!" Using a sewing term, what Sharon is talking about is a narrow strip of paper that separates two other pieces of paper. While I've never called it piping, I frequently separate papers (especially patterned papers) with a thin strip of coordinating paper, usually in a solid color.

In addition to being inspired by the challenge, I drew inspiration from Sharon's card. In need of a quick gift, I deemed her sketch perfect for a set of six simple monogram cards.

To make the cards a bit more fun, I covered the flaps of the envelopes with matching paper and then made a matching folder to hold them. The folder is the "oldie" I noted in my title. This simple stationary holder has been around for years. It's constructed from an 8-1/2 by 11-inch sheet of cardstock (I used textured paper). If you right click on the photo of the directions (from CTMH's 2000 Extravaganza book), and they are large enough to see.

Materials & Tools (card): Colonial White and Desert Sand cardstock; Silhouette Creative Basics (retired); Black ink pad; JustRite Harmony Classic 1-5/8 inch Circle Stamper w/Damask Borders and Trompe Script Font; Cuttlebug w/Nestabilities Classic Circles set.

Materials & Tools (stationary holder): Desert Sand Textured cardstock; Colonial White cardstock; Silhouette Creative Basics; Hole punch.

Friends, I think I'm doomed when it comes to Fridays and that the day should be renamed "Feel Bad Friday." Yes, once again, this old bird spent (wasted) the majority of the day in bed with what I believed to be a sinus headache. Still in my pajamas, I feel somewhat better this evening after taking the Sudafed PE Marv went out and got for me. While I didn't have any definite plans for the day, spending the day in bed was not on my list of options, so I'll have to say I'm a little disappointed. I'm grateful, however, that I've never been a person frequently plagued by headaches. They're quite debilitating. Those who suffer from migraines have my sympathy. Tonight, I'm going to do what I can. I've seen some fun sketch challenges I'd like to try, so maybe ... How was your day? A good one, I hope. Signing off, I'd just like to tell you how much I appreciate your visits. You're awesome!

Simple Saturday

Good morning! I have a couple of cards to show you. The first one is made with JustRite's new Celebrations Demi Phrases. The Celebrations Demi Phrases fit in the new 2-inch Wood Stamper that comes with a bonus center and 15-point New Times Roman alphabet. The small JustRite alphabets continue to challenge this old granny whose eyes are not as good as they once were and whose fingers seem incredibly large when handling those teeny, tiny letters. Centering and spacing is a challenge, too. I can see that the "D" in "Friend" should have been pushed out 1/32nd of an inch or so. Sigh ... Perhaps a disclaimer on the package such as "Designed to drive perfectionists crazy" would be appropriate. LOL.

I colored the vase and flowers with markers, used mini brads for flower centers, and what you can't see, added Liquid Glass to emulate water in the vase.

Materials & Tools: White and Black cardstock; Daydream paper packet; Black ink pad; Blush, Hollyhock, and Heavenly Blue markers; JustRite 2-inch Wood Stamper and Celebrations Demi Phrases; CTMH Boutique Borders stamp set; Black mini brads; Liquid Glass; Cuttlebug w/Nestabilities Classic Circle set.

For this second card, I used Close To My Heart's very fun "Be Yourself" May Stamp of the Month set. It's a silhouette set, and I love it.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy and Black cardstock; Daydream paper packet; Be Yourself May Stamp of the Month and Happy Birthday stamp sets; Black mini brads; Sparkles; 1/2-inch square punch; Stampin' Up Word Window punch.

I'm posting between shopping trips. We have guests coming at 4. Thank heavens my husband knows how to cook. I'm feeling better today after a good night's sleep. My cold seems to be moving rapidly from one stage to the next. I'm not coughing today ... just lots of nose-blowing.

No, I'd better run. I sincerely hope your weekend is wonderful. In the event that I don't post again before tomorrow evening, Happy Easter!