Quick Card

Here's a quick card, again inspired by Papercrafts magazine. Nicole Heady designed the card for the magazine, which would explain why I was drawn to it. Were I to make it again, I'd use textured cardstock for the base. I might just slip a piece in yet just to give it a little more pizazz. The clear buttons I used are from Stampin' Up. I adhered the paper to the backs with Liquid Glass. The patterned papers are from a 6x6-inch pad from Basic Grey.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy and Watermelon cardstock; Basic Grey "Sultry" patterned paper; Watermelon ink pad; Impression Obsession Clingables Bloom stamp set; Stampin' Up clear buttons; Embroidery floss; Large rectangular metal-rimmed tag; Corner rounder; Liquid Glass; 3M foam mounting tape.

Gotta run, or I'll be late! It has stopped snowing and is getting brighter outside. Later!!

A New Passion for Scraps

Here are a couple more very simple quick cards that I made in a few minutes time with scraps that were cluttering my desktop. I reiterate that the use of textured cardstock gives these cards some class - enough to make me love 'em.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy, Twilight, and Sweet Leaf textured cardstock; K&Company Amy Butler Designer Mat Pack; Outdoor Denim (top card) and Twilight stamp pads; Say it with Style May Stamp of the Month.

Now, I'm going to pull up a Word document and make a game plan for my busy day before hopping in the shower. It's a beautiful day. Dreary moods in the Carlson household are not allowed today. Because stamping will be on my list of things to do, I'll most likely be back to show you what I come up with. In the meanwhile, have a super Saturday!

Quick Card, Quick Thoughts

OK. I've been working. In fact, I was on my hands and knees in my corner picking up scraps for the wastebasket when I came across these scraps. Can you handle just one more?

As I was picking up, I was thinking, too, about the fact that my last post might have the potential of offending someone. First, this blog isn't necessarily the right arena for opinions. With regard to the exchange of children in the presence of a intermediary, I realize that there are situations where it is impossible for people to remain on good terms following a divorce, and in such cases, it is good that such facilities and programs exist. When it comes to family values, I'm afraid I'm a bit of a old-fashioned traditionalist. I also am said to wear my heart on my sleeve. It's who I am, and those who know me or read my blog have to put up with it once in a while.

Now, about my card . . . It was partially inspired by a Countdown card I saw on Nicole Heady's Capture the Moment blog. Again, if the photo doesn't show it, the card front is textured cardstock, my favorite for these super simple cards. I don't do the random stamping thing very often. The math involved in making the 10 for 1 cards, etc. looks more complicated to me that making individual cards. Nevertheless, while most of the cards I made with these random stamped pieces weren't planned, I can say that I used every last scrap!

Materials & Tools: White Daisy, Holiday Red, Breeze, and Sweet Leaf cardstock; White Daisy Textured cardstock; White pigment, Holiday Red, Breeze, and Sweet Leaf ink pads; Treasures of the Heart and Impression Obsession Sentiments II stamp sets; Just Blooms White Daisy Variety Pack; Acrylic discs from Michael's; Liquid Glass.

Now, I'm off to see what else I can scrounge up on the floor . . .

A Couple of Quick Cards

Here are a couple of quick cards. Both cards were inspired by cards I saw out in the blogosphere, although I can't say where or when - only that it was recent enough that I remember the sketch that inspired the top card and the color combination that was the inspiration for the birthday card.

Prior to making my paper choice for the top card, I'd planned to add some stitching to the patterned paper. However, I wasn't certain that the White Daisy pigment ink wouldn't be a little too thick for stitches. I didn't want to use black on this particular card nor did I think Cranberry stitching would show up. With the white grid pattern of the patterned paper flowing into the white background, I think the card's OK without the stitching. The paper flower was colored with a Buttercup marker, and thankfully, it isn't as bright as the it appears in the photograph.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy and Breeze cardstock; Cranberry ink pad; Buttercup marker; Let's Get Together paper packet; Impression Obsession Anytime Sentiments stamp set; Just Blooms White Daisy Variety Pack; Red button of unknown origin; White embroidery floss; Glue Dots.

Like I said, my second card began with a color combination. It just kind of evolved from there. I stamped my design and then spied those little colored baubles that I attached with Liquid Glass. From there, the big question was, "Now what?" The decision to add the black ink and mat came last and most likely, made all the different. Simple as it is, it's got that "touch me" quality.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy, Citrus Leaf, and Black cardstock; Citrus Leaf and Breeze ink pads; CTMH It's a Party and Impression Obsession Sentiments II stamp sets; Stampin' Up Word Window punch; Acrylic Discs from Michael's; Liquid Glass.

I slept for a couple of hours this afternoon and am afraid I may have been wrong about the source of my headache. My legs hurt; my arms ache; my neck is stiff. Everything hurts. Dustin had the flu last weekend, and I fear it might be my turn. A couple of aspirin helped, and they'd best keep helping. I cannot miss any work right now. The last call I received before leaving work on Friday was from the company president. It came on an outside line, so I don't know where in the world he was calling from. It could have been anywhere. He wanted to discuss a project he'd sent me the day before, one that requires a considerable amount of time and one that he wants done pronto. I'll just say that while he is a very nice man, he isn't one I like to keep waiting . Pressure . . . I don't love it anymore like I once did. I'd best get going and do what I need to do for the week ahead. Have a good one!!

Clean, Classic, Uncomplicated

For my title, I had to come up with some synonyms for a word I've been using all too often lately - simple. I thought this was going to be a one-card night until a card caught my eye again in the current issue of Papercrafts magazine. I looked at the card in the magazine, glanced at the clock, and told myself, "Yup, I've got time to make this one." I thought buttons might be a problem, not knowing if I had something big enough and if I did, if they'd be the right colors. It turned out I found some, and up close and personal, they're not as bright as they appear to be in the photo. Had I not had buttons, I had an alternate plan using Circle Window Charms.

The clock is now saying it's bedtime. Tomorrow is Friday, and I wouldn't want to start the weekend tired come quitting time tomorrow. Thanks for stopping, and if you're so inclined leave me a comment and let me know you were here. Oh, and one more synonym for simple - uncluttered.

Materials & Tools: White Daisy cardstock, Heavenly Blue textured cardstock, Crystal Blue ink pad, Impression Obsession Everyday Greetings stamp set, Cricut w/Mini Monograms cartridge, Piercing Tool, Stampin' Up Piercing Guide and Mat, White Uniball Signo Gel Pen, Buttons of unknown origin, White Embroidery Floss.

It's All About LOVE Countdown - Day 7

Am I tired, lazy, or what? Actually, I'm kind of tired and feeling kind of lazy, but that isn't the reason I made this card. I made it because I was inspired by this card on the Lucky Clucker blog. Had I not struggled with the ribbon a bit, this would have been a two-minute card. Wait, I take that back. I also spent several minutes looking through my non-CTMH stamps searching for a stamp set that I finally came to realize I don't even own . . . Now, that's scary! Back to the ribbon, I really like the look of grosgrain ribbon but find it much hard to manipulate than other softer ribbons, particularly if it's wide like this ribbon is. If anyone has any tricks with regard to working with this stuff, I'd love to hear them. One more thing I determined while making this card is that I need some heavier cardstock that doesn't buckle when embossed. Other than that, you guessed it. I love this card's clean, uncluttered, and simple design.

As love is the subject of this post, I have to tell a little grandchildren story. The closer to three he gets, the more little Mathias tries to insist on having things his way. Last night, he did not want to go to bed, and he was mad to the point that he would not say his prayers or administer the usual hugs and kisses. Finally, I asked him, "Don't you like Grandma?" to which he responded with an adamant "No!" and a much gentler, "But I just wuv you." I told him I loved him, too, and few minutes after I left him to sulk by himself, I overheard him saying his prayers. There wasn't another peep out of him after that, and this morning, he was so full of hugs and kisses that I had a tough time getting away from him to go to work.

Today's quote is from writer Fyodor Dostoyevsky: "Only the heart knows how to find what is precious."

Materials & Tools: White Cardstock, Cranberry ink pad, Stampendous Holiday Words stamp set, Cuttlebug and Decorative Hearts embossing folders, Empressor guide and embossing tool, ribbon from Michael's.

Simple

Favoring a simple style, I was drawn to this card on Lisa Stahl's blog, Mona Lisa Moments. The colors I used are Twilight, Heavenly Blue, White Daisy, and Chocolate. The circles were punched with 1-1/4 and 1-11/16th inch McGill punches. I thought I had a heart stamp similar to Lisa's. It turned out I don't and finding one the right size was more challenging that I thought it would be. I finally found one that would work in the Love Is set. I layered the textured Twilight cardstock on white and then Chocolate only because the first piece of Twilight paper I laid my hands on was 4 by 5-1/4 inches. Three of the smallest clear Sparkles add a little bling and complete my card.

The way I'm going through the textured cardstock these days, I'm going to be ready for CTMH's February promotion, "Totally Textured." Most definitely I'm ready to get my hands on new colors - Bamboo, Black, Chocolate, Cocoa, Colonial White, and Desert Sand. More information about "Totally Textured" will be available soon.

Three Minutes, 17 Seconds

If I don't stop doing this, you people are not going to take me seriously. It's not my fault. It's Pammie's fault. She posted a card today on her great blog, They Call Me Pammie, which was inspired by a card by fellow CTMH consultant Lisa Stenz. Lisa's card, made with the small flowers, stem, and 'happy' from the Eastertime (January SOTM), is a knockout, the most wonderful thing about it being its simplicity. Pammie's card is awesome, too, made with a new stamp set (Thoughts of You) that I don't have . . . yet. Anyway, I got this wild hair, not only to create my rendition of this simple card but to time myself as well. From start to finish, this card took three minutes and 17 seconds to create. The bow took the biggest chunk of time. The fact that my Delight in Everything stamp set was already laying on my desk was offset by the fact that I had to look for one of my 2-1/2 by 6-inch acrylic blocks. That's why I'm off to clean up my stamp area before taking a bath and cuddling up with the new catalog. Oh yea, the laundry, too. With that, I'm out of here . . . Have a nice evening and a happy Friday!

Sidetracked . . . yet again

Anyone who comes around my blog knows I don't always do what I say I'm gonna. It has nothing to do with reliability (I don't think). I rather think its more about creativity. Rarely do I use stamps to make one card without thinking of something else I could do with them. The stamps are laying there, and one thing just usually kind of leads to another. I also didn't want to start anything new tonight, because I didn't want to take the chance that I'd get carried away and stay up too late. I've certain done that before.

Now, as for my cards, the long and lean, 8 by 3-1/2 inch, card was inspired by a challenge on Pammie's blog. I embossed the heart (from All My Love) with red embossing powder. The background stamp is from the Adorable Backgrounds set again. The sentiment is from the December Stamp of the Month set, In My Heart. Instead of the brads, I could have used three red Sparkles. They're still "new" enough, however, that I forget I have them.

The card that I call my "White on White" card is a favorite to make for weddings. It's also a quickie. All you do is emboss the Adorable Background stamp on a square of white cardstock with white embossing powder, mount it on a piece of black cardstock, and then mount it on your white card base. The sentiment is stamped in black, and an organdy bow completes the card. Colonial White (ivory) cardstock and ribbon works, too. It's simple, very pretty, and quite elegant for a 10-minute card. Everything is put away in Kathi's Corner with the exception of the Eastertime set, which is waiting for tomorrow's stamping endeavors. I'll talk to you again then!

Deck the Halls

No, I didn't sell all my stamps last weekend nor have I lost my desire to stamp. This is just turning out to be "one of those weeks." It doesn't seem to matter where I'm at . At work and at home, there just aren't enough hours in the day right now. My sweet husband (and I'm not being sarcastic this time) trudged through the snow to bring our Christmas decorations inside yesterday. We finished decorating tonight. Now, I can't wait for Bjorn and Mathias to come over. Last year, life's circumstances were such that we didn't get our tree up until just a few days before Christmas. My attitude was pretty much "Why bother?" but only until Bjorn came through the door. The look on that little boy's face made it all worthwhile. Those two little boys make everything worthwhile.

This quick card was made with two pieces of Cuttlebug embossed white cardstock. I rubbed a Heavenly blue ink pad over the piece with the blue snowflakes, and rubbed same-color ink on the negative side of the embossing folder to create the blue background on the other piece. Then, I cut them and fit them together, covered my seam with white grosgrain ribbon, and finished it off with a bow and another embossed snowflake (with a "Sparkle" in the center) on a round metal-rimmed tag. Quick and easy! Although I normally use embossed pieces for backgrounds on my cards, it's fun to come up with ways to dress them up enough for them to take center stage and stand on their own. The person who thought of rubbing ink on an embossing folder is, in my opinion, a genius! It's so simple, and yet I know I never would have thought of doing it on my own.

I'm off to bed. A good night's sleep last night did wonders. I'm going to two in a row! Until tomorrow, enjoy!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow . . .

The mailman brought me a few new embossing folders for my Cuttlebug yesterday. I don't know why I held out buying the snowflake folder for so long. It's not that I haven't seen a kazillion cool cards made with it. Maybe I was just trying to hold back the snow! There seems to be no stopping it now, however. We definitely have a winter wonderland going on in northern Minnesota.

I've had my Cuttlebug for months. It arrived one day last summer when my husband was on the golf course. If he's not around when the UPS man shows up, I usually don't make a point to tell him he was here, and thus, the Cuttlebug was a tool he hadn't "noticed" yet. For whatever reason, I asked him last night, "Have you seen my Cuttlebug?" "It it related to the Cricut?" he asked. "Yup," I replied. To make a long story short, I demonstrated it for him, using a couple of my new folders. Darned if he wasn't impressed. He's taken with my Cricut, too. It looks like Provocraft has come up with tools that can impress a man!!

I made this quick card with one of the white cardstock pieces I demonstrated last night. Because white is boring and I'm tired and lazy tonight, I embossed a few Outdoor Denim, Cranberry, and New England Ivy scraps and glued the random pieces I cut out onto their corresponding words after sanding them a little. I colored the snowman's nose, eyes, mouth, and arms with markers and pinked his cheeks with chalk. It's not exactly the card of the week, but most likely all this yawning granny is going to crank out tonight.

The spring Close To My Heart catalogs arrived today as did my January, February, March, and April Stamp of the Month sets. The SOTM sets are all pretty impressive. I'd seen photos of them and was iffy about a couple of them until I saw them in person. Nice. I've casually leafed through the catalog. Nice, too. My plan for this evening is to take a hot bath, slip into my pajamas and curl up with the catalog to take a closer look. If I'm as tired after my bath as I am now I don't anticipate getting too far.

One more thing - Close To My Heart's cardstock "cracks" when embossed with the Cuttlebug. Once it's cracked, I sand it a little so that it looks like it was supposed to be that way. If you don't want your cardstock to crack and expose the paper's white core, sandwich your cardstock piece between a couple of sheets of copy paper. It works just about every time.

Look What Esther Started . . .

This is the same design as the last card with different stamps (Impression Obsession's Winter Trees) and a different sentiment from Festive Thoughts. The colors are Kraft (Stampin' Up) and New England Ivy. It's so pretty in person, and it was created in less than 10 minutes - my kind of card! Change the sentiments, and I would use this for a sympathy card or a guy's birthday. More than likely, the Christmas cards I send this year will be the samples I've made throughout the season. However, if there was one card, this one might just be it.
Nothing like quick cards to work on between loads of laundry. Whether he'll listen or not, that boy of mine is going to get another speech. You wear your socks and underwear once. Unless you've spilled something, you hang the rest up. At least it's only one outfit a day with him these days. When he was a teenager, he changed clothes every couple of hours.

A Simple Thanks

Early to bed, early to rise, they say. I turned in early last night and got up early this morning. To be precise, the clock in the kitchen said 5:52 as I was making a pot of coffee. Here's a quick card made with the Winter Trees set. I cut a rectangular stencil and filled it in with sponged New England Ivy ink and stamped second generation pine trees. The card base is Colonial White. Finishing the card are a couple trees stamped outside the box and a simple sentiment. I considered a trio of brads on the bottom left-hand side but then thought, "Why?" The card is just as pretty without them.

Returning to Simple

While I moved on to a different stamp set - Winter Trees by Impression Obsession- I've stuck with the Moonstruck and white color combo. The trees on both cards are embossed with white embossing powder. What you can't see in the photos is my secret. These cards aren't plain. They are elegant, because the stamped images are mounted on White Daisy textured cardstock. It truly makes all the difference, and I love it!

Merry & Bright

Here's another Christmas quick card. To make the ornaments, I punched a 1-1/4 inch circle from the middle of a Post-It note to create a stencil and then used a sponge dauber to stencil my ornaments with Heavenly Blue ink on a 3 by 4-1/4 inch piece of White Daisy cardstock. I used a circular motion to apply the ink, leaving a little white in the centers to look like spots where the light is reflecting on the ornaments. With the stencil still in place, I stamped the snowflakes from the Let It Snow set using Moonstruck ink. The strings were hand drawn using a Legacy Writer. The peace stamp is from the Faith set, also stamped in Moonstruck. To give the card a little pizazz, I placed a 1-1/4 Circle Window Charm on each ornament. The stamped design is mounted on a 3-1/2 by 4-3/4 inch piece of Moonstruck cardstock. The edges of the Moonstruck piece were distressed with the Edge Distresser. The card base is a 4-1/4 by 5-1/2 inch piece of Heavenly Blue cardstock. Using Moonstruck ink, I second-generation stamped the background using the same stamp from the Let It Snow set.

On My Way to Dreamland

While some cards photograph well, others look so much better in person. This card is not nearly as pretty on the computer screen as it is on the desk in front of me. I saw a card similar to this one on another blog, and it was its simplicity that appealed to me. I was drawn to the colors as well. While brown may be the "new black," there are times when I prefer gold old basic black. The green is Sweet Leaf, which is not as bright as it appears in the photo. Garden Green might have been a good choice, too. I stamped five butterflies, three directly on the card front and two more, that I cut out, on scraps. I bent the wings of the cutout butterflies a bit and mounted them to the card with foam mounting tape. The butterfly and sentiment stamps are from the Celebrate Life set.

I'm on my way to bed. Bjorn and Mathias are here tonight, and morning will probably come early, as little Bjorn fell asleep before 6 p.m. With his brother sleeping, Mathias took full advantage of having Grandma and Grandpa all to himself. He kept us running and thoroughly entertained right up until 7:58 when, like a little prince, he went to bed without incident. We read his favorite book, How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight?, and said prayers, and after a hug and a kiss or two, he went right to sleep. Some nights are like that. Others require negotiation. Kids are anything but predictable, which is part of what makes them so delightful. Enjoy your Friday. I know I will simply because it is Friday!

Another Simple Christmas Card

Here's another quick Christmas card. For this card, I let the patterned paper do all of the work, which isn't a bad thing, particularly if one's pinched for time. It's also easy with all of the beautiful paper designs available on the market. This paper is from the retiring CTMH Deck the Halls paper packet. I love the crispness of blue and white, especially when the theme is snowflakes. The only stamped image is the sentiment from the Festive Thoughts set. And the things I want that money can't buy? Love. Hope. Peace.

Tomorrow is Thursday already, which means the next day is Friday. This week really flew by. Like every year, time will appear to accelerate through the holiday season. I plan to keep Christmas simple in that I'm not going to fret if I don't get it all done. I learned a long time ago that if one dwells too much on creating the "perfect Christmas," the "merry" flies out the window, and the true meaning is lost. I'm not going to let that happen.

Make It Simple

Two of my stamp club members are daycare providers who are always looking for ideas simple enough for little fingers. This is a card that (minus the brads) I might even try with three-year-old Bjorn and two-year-old Mathias. All of the paper strips are 3/4-inch wide scraps - a 4-inch strip for the truck of the tree and 3-1/4, 2-3/4, 2-1/4, and 1-1/2 inch strips for the tree branches. The star was cut with a punch. I've let Bjorn and Mathias stamp once in a while with Grandma's stamps. The trick, I found, was one ink pad and two or three stamps at a time.

Last night, Bjorn came across a roll of tape and was quite intrigued by it. While I probably would have snatched it away from his daddy at three, I didn't have the heart to do so with Bjorn. Instead, I came up with a piece of copy paper and a handful of colorful cardstock scraps, which Bjorn and his little brother used to create a most interesting collage. If I need my tape (if there's any left), I will most likely find it in the pocket of the jeans Bjorn had on yesterday. What is it about a little boy and pockets?

On My Way to Bed . . .

When I went over to my desk to tidy up a bit before going to bed, a package of Heidi Swapp florals caught my eye. I've got two packages of these huge flowers in my stash - white and bright yellow. I don't recall why I bought them although I suspect that it was for a scrapbooking project - something I saw somewhere that I've long forgotten. Anyway, this is a five minute card - a piece of Pink Carnation now-retired background and texture paper mounted on Pink Carnation cardstock. I layered two flowers and attached them to my card front with Terrifically Tacky Tape. I stamped Happy Birthday from the Happy Birthday set in Pink Carnation on a 1-1/2 inch same-color circle. After adhering the flower center to the card, I added a Circle Window Charm, and I was done. I believe this meets the criteria of Beate's Challenge - a round element on a square card base. Although this card doesn't make me feel like I've got an overabundance of talent, it nonetheless tickles me to create something presentable in just a few minutes. Now, it's back to my original plan . . .

Something Different

Different, easy, and fast. Here's a simple notecard created with the Cuttlebug and a technique I saw on Stampin' Kub's blog. He used chalk ink on his card, so I didn't know if my dye ink pad would work. Much to my delight, it worked like a charm. All you do is rub your ink pad on the negative side of your embossing folder, insert your paper, and run it through your Cuttlebug. For this one, I rubbed the stamp pad in a circular motion. I embossed another piece and rubbed the ink pad back and forth/up and down, which created a different texture that is equally attractive.

I love embossed paper, and I love this card so much that I couldn't bring myself to add a sentiment or anything that would cover up any part of the design. It looks nice. It even feels nice. It's elegant! I chose Sweet Leaf, because I was relatively certain it wouldn't stain my embossing folder. I also had a baby wipe on hand to wipe it off right away. There was no staining, and come to think of it, like my acrylic stamps, would it really matter if it was stained? I can see myself making sets of these to give as gifts. With the beginning of "something different" under my belt, I'm going to bed a happy woman. More tomorrow . . .