Friday, August 31, 2018

Dandelion Wishes

It's no secret that I love pink! And I love the look of white on kraft (in this case, Crumb Cake). So when it was time to ink up Dandelion Wishes from Picket Fence Studios, that's how this card came about! 
My images were stamped with VersaMark ink and then embossed with White EP. I used PFS Life Changing Brushes to blend in my pink inks. I love the way these brushes blend, and with so many different sizes, there is one for every image size or need!

I sponged a little on the edge corner at the bottom right as well. My designer paper is from Bo Bunny - a 6x6 pad I have had a long time!

A pretty simple card that turned out just the way I wanted!

Thursday, August 30, 2018

And They Called It "Puppy Love..."

Remember that song? Donny Osmond {flutter}. Yes, I’m that old! Ha! But Puppy Love is still a thing with this adorable little guy. The stamp set comes with two sweet-as-can-be puppies, and they work with all sorts of sentiments! 
I used a sentiment (I wish we could hug) from You Are My Sunshine on a plain white card. I stamped it (and the puppy) in VersaFine Onyx Black ink using my MISTI, and then colored in the puppy with Copic markers I colored him blue because he's missing someone! My background is made using the Wrinkle Free Distress technique. A quick and easy card to bring a hug to someone far away!

Challenges: 

Wednesday, August 29, 2018

A New Challenge and a New Team!

I am excited to be joining the Addicted to Stamps and More Challenge Team! Today begins a new challenge, and it's all about coloring!
This week we are playing Make Your Mark. For this challenge, you can create anything you like as long as you use something to make a mark: watercolor markers, alcohol markers, paints, chalks, stencils, etc.!

My card today uses these Copic markers:
I stamped my Newton's Nook images from Cuppa Cactus with VersaFine Onyx Black ink, and then colored in to match the patterned paper I wanted to use (American Crafts). My fold is a Double Triangle Fold card, and opens at the diagonal split. It's a super fun and easy fold for something different. I embossed the top half with a Cuttlebug embossing folder. The inside has a little pocket for a coffee gift card. I tied some linen thread around the finished card to tie and hold it shut.
Come play along with us! The challenge is open until Tuesday!

Monday, August 27, 2018

Hopping With Whimsy Stamps and Glue Dots!

Today I am pleased to be part of a joint hop between Whimsy Stamps and Glue Dots® - my favorite easy adhesive! I have been using Glue Dots® for as long as I can remember, so I am super happy to be able to promote their products in a joint hop today through August 31st!
Our teams will be sharing lots of beautiful projects featuring products from both of these companies. And we will have lots of prizes hidden along the hop as well as a Grand Prize valued at $100! To enter the giveaways, you just need to comment on EACH blog throughout the hop - you never know where a prize is hidden. Then for the Grand Prize, after you have commented on all stops along the hop, enter your name and email in the linky tool at the last stop. Winners will be randomly selected and announced on Monday, September 3rd. Good luck and have fun! 

If you arrived here from Danielle's blog, you are right on track. If not you will want to start at the beginning of the hop so you don't miss one wonderful thing! The complete list is below.

My card today uses the awesome BOLD STATEMENTS set. I love this set because the sentiments are unique and fun, and cover so many occasions!
I stamped my sentiment using VersaFine Onyx Black ink (my favorite), and then hand cut the tag to the size I wanted. I cut a banner from Whimsy Stamps' Shaker Maker Banner dies, and then dry embossed with the Wire Fence embossing folder. The tiny banner is hand cut. My main panel was cut with the Hand Stitched Rectangles - one of my favorite die sets.

With seven layers, I used various Glue Dots® to keep everything together, including the Pop Up to give the card some dimension! My go to Glue Dots® are the Minis, because they are usable for just about everything I make, and are what I used to adhere all of my layers. But -- I love the Micro for sequins, and tiny little embellishments - like my rhinestone flower. They are a must-have when you need just a drop of adhesive -- and no mess!

Now on to Celine's blog, where she has some more inspiration for you! Don't forget to comment along the way, because the Grand Prize is awesome!

Wednesday, August 22, 2018

My Favorite Cardmaking Time of Year!

Hello friends!

While my favorite holiday to celebrate is Valentine's Day, and to decorate for is Christmas, my favorite card making time is Halloween! We don't even really do Halloween anymore now that our kids are grown (I loved making their costumes when they were young), but I love the many colors you can use in Halloween designs for cards. I make more of those than any other card for holidays.

Picket Fence Studios has the most adorable Halloween sets. The sentiments are varied, unique, and FUN! Here is my first one of many Halloween cards to come over the next two months!

This card was inspired by jjbolton.org. I cased one of her gorgeous cards using the same idea with silhouettes and cloudy Halloween colors. I hand cut my  stencil using one of the graph papers from my MISTI -- nice and thin and leaves no "white edge" when you blend.


Using my Life Changing brushes, I began to blend the colors from the bottom up, light to dark. I used Distress Oxide inks for all but my pink - I grabbed the regular Distress Ink instead, and didn't even notice :) Isn't the blending nice with those brushes (gold, yellow, orange, pink)? As I moved higher up to the darker colors, I added texture on top of the blended ink with sponge daubers for an ethereal look.

I stamped my witch, bats, sentiment and cat from WICKED TOGETHER using my MISTI and VersaFine Onyx Black ink (still my favorite and I've tried them all!).

I added some sparkly diamond cardstock behind the main panel (Have had it forever - don't know the company!), and as a little circle base for my sparkly bat sticker (from my stash of Halloween card things!).

The original sponged card base was too wide (so I would have room to work) and I cut strips off of each side before I stamped my images (You can see the strips in the background). Those pieces decorated the inside along with a sparkly witch's shoe sticker (Forgot to take a photo!).

I love how it turned out! You can see the complete stamp set below.


Challenges: Addicted to Stamps and More: Anything Goes #306

Thursday, August 16, 2018

All Nine Lives - and CATS The Musical

This summer was a busy one for me, as I directed CATS at our community theatre. It was an incredibly tough, but rewarding experience! I have always been a dog person, but I definitely love and respect cats more now! Plus, I had such a wonderful group of people to work with (Did you know a group of cats is a clowder?), and we had a great time learning what it means to act like a cat! You can see some photos below! My husband on the left and daughter on the right!

This sentiment from Whimsy Stamps' PURRE LOVE (from the July release) is such a sweet and funny cat set. There are tender sentiments, such as this one, and really funny ones (click HERE), and some great art work by Deb Davis!

For my card today, I stamped my images on watercolor paper, and then used a small brush and watercolor paint to color them in. I made my grass with a wash, and then used the end of my brush for the blades to fill in.
I decided on a Calico cat coloring because so many of the cats in the show are multi-colored. I used the Shaker Maker Banner Dies with contrasting papers for added interest.

I love this sweet image, and all the different ways it can be used! Check out the entire set below!



Sunday, August 12, 2018

It's PANDAmonium!

I had the pleasure of hosting a Dare To Get Dirty Challenge at Splitcoaststampers last week, and this was my sample! This little bear has such a fun expression! The set is PANDA HAIR DON'T CARE from Whimsy Stamps. It has several fun sentiments - some great puns - and some fun images to go with the panda. (See link below!)

I made my background using the Wrinkle Free Distress technique (Twisted Citron and Peeled Paint), and then stamped my bamboo in Peeled Paint Distress Oxide Ink. My sentiment was stamped on the watercolor background with VersaFine Onyx Black. I added some green, black, silver, and white sequins for my shaker elements, and attached the bear with Wonder Tape. Isn't he cute?

Friday, August 10, 2018

A Little Sunshine and Love from Picket Fence! And a Recipe for Something Yummy!

I adore this little stamp. The longer you look at her the cuter she is!
And what a perfect stamp set name: Sunshine Friends: Great Day. Right? She is from Picket Fence Studios, and I am thrilled to be joining their Design Team! Along with some amazing artists (see below)! Check out the announcement HERE!
I made a watercolor wash and then stamped her in VersaFine Onyx Black. I added some fun sequins and sprinkles from my stash and then cut a circle frame for the front. The sentiment is also stamped with Onyx Black. A fun little bit of patterned paper, some Baker's Twine, and she is all ready to send some sunshine!

Here are the other gals joining me in today's exciting announcement - and our fabulous DT Coordinator is Lydia Fiedler! You can read all of our bios on the Design Team page.


And now for my sunny recipe!
It's yellow squash time here in the midwest, and this (Garlic Parmesan Chips) is a favorite of mine to replace regular chips!

  • 4 yellow squash (small to medium), sliced into 1/4-inch to 1/2-inch rounds
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • salt and fresh ground pepper , to taste
  • 1 cup panko crumbs
  • 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • cooking spray (I use Organic Olive Oil by Pam)
  • Serve with Non-Fat Plain Yogurt

  1. Preheat oven to 450.
  2. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
  3. In a large mixing bowl, combine squash, olive oil, salt and pepper; mix until well combined.
  4. In a separate bowl, combine panko crumbs, Parmesan cheese, oregano, and garlic powder.
  5. Dip slices of squash in cheese mixture and coat on both sides, pressing on the coating to stick.
  6. Place the squash in a single layer on the previously prepared baking sheet.
  7. Lightly spray each slice with cooking spray. This will help with achieving a crunchier texture.
8.    Bake for 10 minutes.
9.    Remove from oven; gently flip over all the slices, lightly spray with cooking oil and bake for 8 more minutes, or until chips are golden brown.
10. Remove from oven; transfer to a serving plate and serve with a dollop of Non-Fat Plain Yogurt.
-->Source: diethood.com
 

Saturday, August 4, 2018

It's Release Week at Whimsy Stamps!

It's Release Week at Whimsy Stamps! I absolutely love this new set! Whimsy artist Deb Davis has another great set for you animal lovers out there, specifically cat lovers called Purre Love. This set is super sweet and will make a great addition to your collection.
I used Circles, Circles, Circles for my background, using many different colors of distress inks. I stamped by sentiment and cat with VersaFine Onyx Black, and then colored in some of the cat spots using alcohol markers. I love the sentiment!
Check out the Whimsy Blog for all the details of release week!