Many Thanks

It has been a while since I've been able to participate in the Mojo Monday layout challenges over at Julee's blog, Poetic Artistry. Each Monday Julee provides a sketch to inspire. This is this week's Mojo67 layout sketch:

I love this stamp. It is an old PSX stamp by Suzi Toronto titled "Daughter" that I've had for years and every time I use it I find it fun to color in a different way. For this card I colored the entire image with gel pens. (except the skin which I used Prismacolor pencils).


The designer paper is from a pad of Martha Stewart papers that I discovered at Walmart on sale. Isn't it fun? It seemed to be meant to go with this stamp and prima flowers. "Many Thanks" is from All Night Media (Anna Griffin).



A simple thank you card with a lot of groovy-ness! Ha haaa!

I hope you have a creative and fun Saturday!

Create Imagine Believe

Did you make resolutions for 2009? I don't make "resolutions" as such because if I fail to follow through with that which I've resolved to do, I feel like a failure. I do, however, set goals for myself in the new year. It is probably just semantics but I don't feel as much like a failure if I haven't quite met a goal. Rather, it just gives me more time to keep trying to follow through. Anyway, I did set a goal for myself in this new year to clean off my desktop after each card I make. I knew that if I do, I'll get far more accomplished. I don't even want to show you photos what my room looks like after just one card! YIKES!

So what does this have to do with today's card? I'll tell you. I HAVE been doing the straightening, putting away after each card and I'm really far more productive. I've been participating in quite a number of online challenges and have several to post. This card is made with my brand new Magnolia Stamp. I bought this stamp at Roses on Paper and now Roses and Paper has a challenge blog too!

The layout sketch for CHALLENGE #2 on ROSES ON PAPER CHALLENGE BLOG looks like this:

I colored Tilda with Faber Castell markers which I received as a Christmas gift. These are new to use to me but so far I'm quite pleased with the ability to blend. Does anyone else use these markers? I would love to hear your experiences and tips.

The designer paper is Daisy D's and on the lower portion of the red cardstock I used my Cuttlebug argyle embossing template.

My husband chuckled when he saw this card and said, "This card sure did give you the opportunity to use just about every embellishment and doo-dad you have!" He was close to being correct. Tilda's glasses have a small dot of "antique glass" colored dimentional glaze on them, and of course no card is complete for me without a little stickles glitter so I added stickles to her little wings. Prima flowers, brads, ribbon and twill tape, along with Martha Stewart border punch for the scallop and nestibilities oval die cuts around the imagine are just some of the other tools I used.

I had so much fun creating this card. Yes, it has a lot of "stuff" on it but hey...that's just part of the fun when making a card.

I'll post some more challenge cards I've been working on soon.

Cheers!

Let's ring in 2009

Happy new year, my friends! Did you stay up and ring in the new year last night? I'm afraid my husband and I are not night owls and we were asleep by 10:30. However, we greeted 2009 fairly early this morning (5 a.m.) when little Paige, our puppy, decided that the whole household should get up and have breakfast and play. I'll be darned. Guess what? We gave in to her wishes and got up, I fixed a big breakfast and we played for a while.

I want to show you a card I received for Christmas. It just arrived in yesterday's mail. Isn't is GORGEOUS?!! My 82 year old mother made this card for me and I just love it! She is going to give me a run for my money in the card making world.

Perfectly stitched and beautifully colored threads create a wonderful Christmas card.

Mom inserted a bright Christmas red colored piece of paper on the inside that served not only as a writing space, but also covered the back side of the stitching.


I just had to share this beautiful card with all of my card making friends. Watch out for my momma! I wouldn't be surprised if she decided that card making is a lot of fun and starts her own blog!

I hope that 2009 is a year holding promise of good health and much happiness for everyone.

Cheers!

Celebrate!

Seasons Greetings! I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season, whatever holiday you celebrate. We have had a very nice week. It is great to have Paul home even if it is only for a few more days and we've enjoyed just being together.

This week's challenge at the House Mouse and Friends challenge site is to use embossing on your card. Since I need to replenish my birthday card supply to have on hand for mailing, this was a great time to use my Cuttlebug Happy Birthday embossing folder and this funny House Mouse stamp.
The "celebrate" sentiment is heat embossed using red pigment ink and clear embossing powder. The balloon is covered with red stickles and then when it was dry I covered it again but this time with clear dimensional glaze. These photos make it look dark and murky but it is not, in real life. It is a snowy and overcast day here and really hard to get decent photos.



Wishing you all a safe and happy New Year. I doubt I'll be staying up to ring in the new year since our puppy seems to think our day should begin around 5 a.m. each day. YAAAWWWWnnnnnn.

Thanks for stopping by!

Whiff of Joy and a Friday Sketchers challenge

Meet Lizzie! This is one of the new Lizzie & Herb stamps from Whiff of Joy. I fell for this sweetie as soon as I saw her hand and ear muffs. When I was a little girl one of my older sisters had a hand muff and, yes I admit it, I coveted that muff. I thought it was the epitome of elegance.

Over at Friday Sketchers the challenge 32 layout for the week is this layout and it is perfect for my new stamp.


I don't generally do square cards because I didn't have the proper envelopes but I found some and I have to say that I really enjoy doing the square cards which allow a better use of space and layout I think.

My little Lizzie is standing in snow made with Ivory colored flower soft. I punched a few snowflakes using my Martha Stewart snowflake punch layered them adding a few pearls.

I used the snowflake Cuttlebug embossing folder for the snowflake panels behind the image. The sentiment stamp is from an All Night Media, Anna Griffin sentiment set.


I think this image will be fun to use for general notecards throughout the winter months as well as during holiday times. Living in such a cold and snowly place as I do I like to have general winter themed stamps for holidays, birthdays and general greeting cards.

Well, as expected, we have more snow to shovel so I had better get outside and do it. I'm sure I won't look as elegant as little Miss Lizzie here, but I'll definitely be snow covered.

Stay warm!

House Mouse - A kind thought

It is with sadness that papercrafters learned that Joanne, one our fellow bloggers and papercrafters, suddenly passed away over the weekend. You may have known Joanne from Splitcoast as her screenname "Stamps4Sanity" and JOANNE'S BLOG

Joanne's family left word on her blog and wrote the following: "Joanne spread much joy through her card making. If you would like to do something in memory of her, we are sure she would like you to send a card to someone in need."

So, in honor and in memory of Joanne, the challenge for this week's House Mouse and Friends group, of which Joanne was an active participant, is to use this week's challenge card sketch and for us to make the card to send to someone in need.

This card is following the sketch (below) and one that I want to send to another blogger friend who is in the hospital. I hope the bunny and mousie will cheer her a bit.



I flipped the layout like this for my card:


When blogging started several years ago I'm not sure any of us who began realized what sweet friendships we'd find over the internet. We may never get the opportunity to meet face to face, yet we share triumphs and joys as well as sadness and problems. I never met Joanne face to face but she was someone I recognized immediately online. One who always created joy and beauty in her cards and left positive and cheerful comments. You'll be sorely missed, Joanne.

Baby gift card

This was such a fun gift card to make for a new baby.

I began by adhering the pink rose paper to my A2 size card base. Then I used SU circle and scalloped circle punches for the ruffles and openings for the legs and neck. I measured down about 1 1/2" from the shoulder for the sleeves and angled the cut down to the leg opening. The SWEET ONE circle sentiment is from the Stampin' Up! set called "So many Scallops" that I stamped in Pink and embossed with clear embossing powder. Then I added a little row of white rick-rack to the sleeve and dotted on raspberry colored liquid pearls. Finishing it off, I added three white eyelets to the bottom to give the illusion of snaps. The whole card from start to finish took just a few minutes to create.

The idea for this has been around for a long time and you can find many examples on Splitcoast if you search "Baby Onesie." Depending upon how you want to embellish the "onesie" you can make it for a boy or girl. I think making a little sailer suit for a boy would be very cute. I needed a baby girl gift card but I think this would be darling to use for shower invitations, thank you cards and even baby announcements.

Cheers!

Cute as a bug!

This set of baby cards is a gift I've been working on and I'm tickled pink (and yellow and green and blue) how they turned out. The baby's room is decorated in a bug theme so I thought the parents might enjoy having notecards matching the "cute as a bug" theme to use as thank you notes cards.
The stamps I used are a set of cute bugs from Sunshine Designs, made by The Stamp Barn here in Ottawa. Aren't they perfectly adorable? I'm generally not a huge fan of creepy crawlers but these little bugs are sweet!

Each image is colored using Tombow markers. Generally I watercolor with my Tombows but this time I used them direct to paper.

You know me! I can't make a card without adding a little Stickles glitter or bling-bling of some sort. Some of the cards have pearls and some have crystals as accents.

And of course no card is complete without a little ribbon and some punches. I just love this Martha Stewart scalloped eyelet punch. The swiss dot background on each card is created with my cuttlebug embossing folder.
I hope the parents will be pleased with these cards. I made 6 cards of each design for a set of 24 notecards total. This turned out to be a labor of love but a lot of fun too.

I'm off to the baby shower now.

Let it Snow!

This week's challenge for the House Mouse and Friends Monday challenge is SNOW! I can't think of a more appropriate theme for me right now because we are in the middle of a major snow storm as I type.

This is another of the new House Mouse stamps I recently purchased. I think I may use this card for a thank you card after the holidays.

The mice are colored with Prismacolor pencils. I added snow beneath their feet and falling around them with Flower Soft. I've been using my various colors of Flower Soft for so many different cards lately. This is ivory colored Flower Soft and really has a snowfall texture. I used a Martha Stewart snowflake punch on white and teal cardstock and centered the snowflakes with a teal colored pearl. The decorative paper is also Martha Stewart.

Well, it is time for me to go out and shovel more snow. We are predicted to get 30 centimeters (over a foot) of snow by morning and I believe it.

Stay warm. Until next time,

Peppermint Treats

This House Mouse stamp is called Peppermint Treats. I get a chuckle out of the little mouse inside the ornament nibbling away on the peppermint treats while the other little fellow looks in.

The challenge on HOUSE MOUSE AND FRIENDS challenge site this week is to use glitter and glitz. What fun for me because it gave me another reason to get out my new Glitter Glitz glitter product, crystals that sparkle as well as some stickles glitter glue and dimentional glaze.

After coloring the image with prismacolor pencils and added crystal glitter over the entire ornament and copper colored glitter and the top ring collar of the ornament. On the peppermint candy in the corner I stamped the peppermint, cut it out and filled in the red swirls with Christmas red stickles and then covered the entire piece of candy with dimentional glaze to give it a look of wrapped candy.

This was actually a fairly fast card to make, other than the drying time which wasn't too long. I like how it shimmers and sparkles in real life.


Thanks for stopping by.