Make it Monday #182 - Mason Jar Stamping

Hello friends.  Playing along with Papertrey Ink's Make it Monday challenge, where Melissa Phillips shows us a video on how to paint and stamp on Mason jars.  I knew right away I wanted to make my jar like candy corn (one of my favorite fall treats!!), but I see Bonnie Sharp beat me to it!  Oh well, great minds think alike, right?!! :0)  And mine's different enough that there's room for 2 of the jars in the challenge! :0) 

The painting and sanding of my jar worked great, but I did struggle with the embossing.  I used a gold sparkle embossing powder, thinking it would show up brighter.  NOT!!  And for whatever reason, on the white part it hardly showed up at all!  (I used one of the smaller dots in "Polka Dot Basics".)  My tags are from the "Halloween Treats & Sweets" set, and the ribbons, tulle, and burlap are all from my stash drawer.  Now all I need to do is fill the jar...I love mixing candy corn and peanuts together!  (tastes just like a Payday Bar...yummmmm!)

Head on over to Nichole's blog to see Melissa's video and cute pumpkin jar.  You can find all the info to play along right here .

Thanks for stopping by...love it when you do! :0)

Do You LOVE to Read?

Good morning friends.  Hope you all had a wonderful weekend!  Spent ours finishing up window treatments, going up to the festival in Rockford where my husband grew up (and listening to him reminisce about the "good ole days"!!), and a little bit of stamping!  Do you like to read?  I  LOVE to read, and when Papertrey Ink put out their bookmark dies and stamp set this month, I had to have them!  Just joined a new group of ladies who get together once a month and stamp, and it's my turn to bring a card for all of us to make.  Yep, I had to use the bookmark die and stamp set!  And the "Life is Beautiful" stamp set and die too!  Take a look:

 

 

 

 

I kept my card base very simple so the focus would be on the bookmark.  I attached the bookmark with non permanent tape so that the recipient of the card can remove it and actually use the bookmark. 

 

Here's a closer up view of the butterfly so that you can see I used the baby wipe stamp pad technique with Real Red, Pumpkin Pie, & Daffodil Delight inks:

 

 

 

I love using this technique with the butterfly as it reminds me so much of the mixture of colors in an actual butterflies wings.  You can see a little better in this photo too that I used the inked up baby wipe on SU!'s "Canvas" stamp to lightly press onto the card base, and give it a more "stenciled" look.

 

I finished the bookmark by adding a few diamond jewels to the center of the butterfly, and then adding a piece of seam binding ribbon and black & white bakers twine to the top of the bookmark. And don't you just love the sentiment for a bookmark?!!  There's the one I used, plus 10 other ones in the "Book Club" stamp set, so it's a very versatile stamp set! :0) 

 

Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I hope you all have a wonderful Monday! :0)

Merry Monday #127

Good morning friends.  Playing along with Merry Monday today, and the challenge this week was to play Bingo.  Christmas Bingo that is!  I chose to play the middle row across which is to use a die cut, ribbon or twine, & kraft, and this is what I came up with:

I used a kraft card base and then covered it with a piece of kraft DSP (Paper Studio) that I die cut with Lil Inker's Stitched Rectangle die.  My white layer was also cut with the Lil Inker's Stitched Rectangle dies and stamped with a Impression Obsession stamp (E8477).  I used a Q-tip to add Canyon Clay ink to the 3 pots and a Copic marker to color the trees (YG03).  Oh, and a little C5 and C9 for the dirt in the pots.  I die cut a star from gold glitter paper to add to the one pot and then used another star die cut (PTI - "Tiny Tags") to stamp my sentiment and add to the twine I  tied around the white layer.  I also added some gold flat nailheads (GinaK) to the trees for a little bling.  Here's a closer up picture:

This is a new stamp for me this year, and I really like the way it looks...very simple but eye catching! 

  
You still have a few days to play along with this fun challenge, and you can find all the information and other great card entries right here .

Some of you have been asking about my new granddaughter Addy, and I just happen to have some pictures! :0)

Don't you just love that little hand holding up her head??! :0)  She's growing (weighs 7.8 pounds now) and filling right out!  In fact, her momma and I are taking her on her 1st shopping trip today, because she's grown out of her preemie outfits and everything else she was given are 3 month sizes, which are still waaaaay too big!  Can hardly wait to introduce her to the joys of shopping! :0)

Thanks so much for stopping by today and have a wonderful weekend! :0)

Papertrey Ink September 2014 Blog Hop

Hello friends.  Playing along with the September Blog Hop at Papertrey Ink today, where we were given a beautiful photo as inspiration to follow.  I chose to use the new bookmark die and stamp set, along with "Mum's the Word" and "Polka Dot Basics" to create my card.  Take a look:

I stamped the flowers and leaves (Autumn Rose & Simply Chartreuse) on my card base first, and then laid the velum bookmark over the flowers and stamped them again on the velum.  I stamped the sentiment at the bottom of the velum bookmark, and then flipped it over and embossed the polka dots in white on the bookmark.  I used the larger polka dots and versamark ink on the Marina Mist cs piece at the bottom of the card.  I finished by adding a seam binding bow (dyed to match using re-inkers), "Tiny Tags" die cut, and some of the rainstones that I just love adding to cards!  Here's a closer up view:

I'm bummed that you can't see it in the photo, but I also sprayed the whole card with silver Glimmer Mist, so IRL, the whole card sparkles!  Here's the inspiration photo:

Make sure you check out all the other beautiful cards over on Nichole Heady's blog right here .

Thanks so much for stopping by today and have fun blog hopping! :0)

Make it Monday #181 - Paper Casting

Good morning friends.  Attempted to play along with the Make it Monday challenge this week where Danielle shows the centuries old technique of paper casting.  I have one tag to show for my efforts, but I will definitely try this again, as I really do love the looks of this technique.  I think my lack of bolder lined stamp images, and impatience contributed to my lack of success.  I ended up using one of my "Fancy Flake" dies for the one that turned out ok...take a look:

Using a stamp versus a die definitely makes the image bolder and easier to see, but after adding ribbon and tags to dress it up, it will still look great on a gift!  Hard to see in this first photo, but I sprayed silver Glimmer Mist  all over the ornament and IRL it really sparkles.  Here's a better shot to see some of the sparkle:

Check out Danielle's great video and beautiful tags all right here .

Thanks so much for stopping by and have a wonderful Wednesday.  (I get to go see my new granddaughter again today...yeah for me!!!  Really, being a grandma is just the best!)

I can see clearly now...

Good morning friends.  We had new windows put in last week, and I decided to send a thank you card (along with our final payment) for all the great work the guys did.  I used my last window die cut my cousin had sent me a long time ago (I'm guessing it's Memory Box or IO, but I could be wrong) and a sheet of clear acetate to make the window realistic looking, and then stamped my scene behind it.  Take a look:

I stamped my sky first, using Cool Caribbean (SU! - retired) ink and a cloud template I had made.  Next I stamped the tree from SU!'s "Branch Out" in Soft Suede ink, and then added the leaves in Real Red, Pumpkin Pie, Hello Honey, & Gumball Green.  I used foam tape to mount the window die over the stamped image and then added my computer generated sentiment.  Here's a couple closer up views:

Thanks for stopping by today and have a wonderful Tuesday! :0)

Thinking of You Dot

Good morning friends.  Hope you all had a wonderful weekend!  Busy putting our house back together after the window installs, and a trip to Chicago for a family wedding reception, so not much stamping time!  I do have a card to share though, for a friend from the stamp club I belong to that had a fall and needed surgery on her wrist.  And yes she's right handed, and that's the wrist she broke, so not much stamping for her either for awhile! :0(   Anyways, for whatever reason, Dot doesn't seem to want the SU! set called "Lovely As A Tree", which everyone else in the club owns and loves, so we all decided to send get well wishes to her using the Lovely As A Tree set...she's getting a good chuckle out of this!  Now if we can just get her on board with this classic stamp set!! :0)  Here is the card I sent to add to her collection:

I mean what's not to love about this set, Dot?!!  This was a really easy card to do too.  After stamping the main image in black, I used a little dotted flower stamp from an older SU! set (2001...seems like the stamp set was called Watercolor Garden, or something like that!) that I keep specifically to make leaves and grass on cards.  I stamped each tree with Gumball Green, Pumpkin Pie, Real Red, and Hello Honey inks. (If you click to enlarge the photos, you'll see the tiny dots better!)  I added a sentiment and then a frame using Lil Inkers Stitched Rectangle die.  Finished the card by mounting it to a Hello Honey card base and then added a piece of hemp cord to the side.

All kidding aside, we hope you heal up quickly Dot, so you can get back to stamping soon!

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope you all have a wonderful Monday and first day of Fall! :0)

Merry Monday #126 - The Words Have It

Good morning friends.  Better late than never, but finally had time to put a card together for this weeks challenge over at Merry Mondays. 

 

The Christmas sentiment is from SU!'s "Seasonal Sayings" stamp set, and I embossed it in gold on Gina K's Ivory cs.  I layered it on a piece of gold glitter cs, and then a piece of solid gold cs, before layering it on a card base of the Ivory cs.  I added a gold die cut holly (PTI's "Holly Jolly") with a few champagne colored pearls for the berries, and then twisted some gold cord behind it.  Pretty CAS with a touch of elegance to it! :0)  Here's a closer up view:

This would be a great card if you have to make a lot of them, but fortunately since I've been playing along with the challenges all year long, I don't have many more to make!  Basically just the insides to finish!  And remember how I said that my New Years resolution to myself was that I was going to finish the insides as I made each card?  That lasted for about a month I think!!  Dang it!  Oh well...I tried.  Kind of! :0)

There's not a lot of time left, but if you hurry you can still play along with this challenge over at Merry Monday.  You can find all the details and beautiful cards right here.

Thanks so much for stopping by and have a wonderful weekend! :0)

Make it Monday #180 - Paper Weaving

Good morning friends.  New windows are in and I'm finally back in my crafting room!  It was only 2 days, but it seemed like forever!  And it is SO nice to actually be able to see out of my windows again!  All the seals had broken on our windows (29 years old), so for the last 10 -15 years all our windows had that cloudy look...but I can see clearly now, so between that and being in my craft room, I am a happy girl today! :0)

This weeks Make it Monday video with Ashley Cannon Newell is all about paper weaving, and it brought back memories of one of my early elementary school years of weaving pink, red, and white placemats for our Valentine's Day party...isn't it crazy how something you haven't thought of in decades can come back to you when something like this weeks challenge is shown?!! :0)  Anyways, my new "Haunted Borders" stamp set and "Text Block: Halloween" die (both PTI) have been calling my name, so this is what I came up with:

 
I paper weaved strips of DSP from the Bitty Dot Basics and the "Haunted Borders" that I stamped in Orange Zest, Winter Wisteria, & Simply Chartreuse inks.  I layered this to a black panel, and then onto a Wisteria Wonder cs base.  I die cut the text block from a shimmery black cs and then used some foam tape to give it a little more dimension.  Next I wove some orange and white bakers twine around and through the text block and then die cut a spider (PTI) and attached it to the bakers twine.

After I finished, I went to open the card and found I had gotten so into weaving the bakers twine around the card that I had woven the twine right around to the backside, and now it won't open!  Kind of funny, but now I have to figure how to fix it!  Oh well, some days are like that!  Remember to click on the photos to enlarge them and you'll get a much better view of the details.

There's still time to play along with this challenge, so make sure you check out Ashley's video (and cute, cute photo of her little girl Lauren!!) and all the other cards right here .

Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a wonderful Thursday!! :0)

Phrase Play #8

Hello friends.  Just a quick post this afternoon so you know I'm still around!  We're getting new windows this week and the whole house is a mess, including my stamp room, so can't do a whole lot this week.  I did finally make a card using the Phrase Play #8 die from PTI's release last month, and pretty happy with the way it turned out. (Not so happy with my photographic skills though...grrrr!!)

If you click on the photos, they look much clearer.  For my background I used Gina K's "Fall Foliage" stamp set with Tim Holtz Distress Inks - Fired Brick, Spiced Marmalade, & Peeled Paint.  The hardest part of this whole card was putting the tiny little cutout pieces of the diecuts back in! 

Thanks so much for stopping by and hope you're enjoying the beautiful sunshine and cooler temps...it has been such a pretty day here! :0)

And another picture of my beautiful granddaughter Addy Grace for those of you who don't follow me on FB:

NBUS #2

Good morning friends.  I'm playing along with the fabulously fun and funny Darnell Knauss and her 2nd NBUS (Never Before Used Schtuff) challenge.  I may have mentioned this before, but Darnell could hold these challenges for the next 50 or so years and I would have enough unused rubber to play in every challenge.  Yes, it is a disease, and NO, I'm not interested in being cured!  With that being said, the background stamp that I am using for my card today is one that I can't even remember how long ago or where, I even bought it from!  I do know that I have looked at it many times and then always put it back for "another time" because I just didn't know what to do with it!  You'll understand when you see how busy it is!!  Take a look:

Click on the picture so you can see even closer what all those Santa faces look like.  I should have taken a picture of the actual stamp for you, as it's one of those that has the colored picture on the back of the stamp so you can see how to color it...it's all red, white, and flesh (for the faces) colored.  The size too has always thrown me...it's only 4 1/2 x 3 3/8, so not big enough to cover an entire background (A2 size).  But anyway, I was agonizing over this stamp waaaaaaaaaay tooooooo much, and decided to just keep it simple and stamp it in black, and then yes, just leave it be and make something else the focal point.  And what better than the Flourishes Santa stamp?!!  I stamped him in Smokey Slate ink and then matted everything in Real Red cs.  I added a little red/white bakers twine and some rainstones to finish the card, and actually really like how it turned out! :0)  And if you're wondering, the manufacturer of the background stamp is Brother Sister Design Studio and the name of the stamp is called "Santas Everywhere!".

You have until Thursday, September 25 to play along with Darnell's NBUS Challenge #2, and you can find all the info and laughs on Darnell's blog right here .

And no, I'm not going to include any pictures today of my beautiful new granddaughter, because as you so graciously pointed out before Darnell, she does steal the show when compared to my cards/tags! :0)  (It's ok, cause I'm too head over heals in love with her to care anyway!!!)  Have a wonderful weekend everyone, and thanks so much for stopping by...I love it when you do! :0)

 

Make it Monday #179 - Emboss Resist Using Diecuts

Good morning friends.  Rainy day here in my neck of the woods, so perfect for playing along with this weeks Make it Monday where Laura shows us how to use our coverplates (and dies) and the emboss resist technique.  I only have one coverplate die (good thing I really love it!!), so my starting point was the chevron design, with clear embossing powder and Hawaiian Shores, Aqua Mist, & Berry Sorbet inks.

Even though it was a beautifully sunny day yesterday when I took my photos, I'm bummed that I couldn't capture all the glossy goodness on the white chevrons, the flower and leaves ("Friendly Flowers") and my sentiment ("Wonderful Words: Hello").  I used clear embossing powder on all of it, and IRL the card is really shiny!  I know my youngest who is away at college will really enjoy receiving this card and adding it to her collection (she's doing the same thing this year as last year, where she tacks up all my cards by her desk so she can always see them!  That makes me feel so good that she does that!! :0) 

There's still time to check out Laura's video and 2 great cards, so why not play along?!  You can find all the info right here .

Thanks so much for stopping by and have a wonderful Wednesday! :0)

Merry Monday #125 - Use Transportation

Hello friends.  The challenge at Merry Monday this week is to use some form of transportation on your Christmas card, so I really did "challenge" myself and finally used PTI's "City Scene" stamp set.  I've had this set for awhile, and have even played around with it on scrap paper, but always end up putting it away because I couldn't get things lined up the way I liked!  I played quite awhile last night, but finally came up with a card that didn't look too bad and that I liked!  Take a look:

I've always loved the colors pink, black, and white together, so that's where this card started, and I have to admit I love the whimsical look of the pink trees on the cars! :0)  The silver embossed trees don't show up as well as I couldn't find my silver embossing powder (until after I finished the card of course...grrrrrr!!) and ended up using a silver & white mixture embossing powder.  If you click to enlarge the picture, it will show up a little bit better.  And of course I had to add Santa and his sleigh and reindeer as another form of transportation besides the cars...and you've got to love the pink moon silhouetting Santa, right?! :0)

  

There's still a lot of time to play with this challenge, and you can find all the info and great cards right here . 

Thanks so much for stopping by today and have a terrific Tuesday! :0)

Welcome to the World Little Angel - Addy Grace

Good morning friends.  I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!  Mine was fantastic, as I got to visit with my little Addy Grace (and the rest of my family too!).  My daughter and son in law live a little over 60 miles away, so it's not like I can just pop in every day to see my new granddaughter, but I am very grateful they don't live in another state or continent!  Anyway, we had a great time visiting on Saturday, and bringing gifts (who doesn't love to shop for PINK?!!), and of course I had to make a card to go with the gifts.  I hadn't had a chance yet to use PTI's block die of "Welcome to the World Little Angel", so this seemed like the perfect opportunity!

My card base and the die cut are both SU!'s Pretty in Pink cs, and the DSP is from Cratepapers "Dainty Darling".  The teddy bear is a die and stamp from PTI's Polka Dot Parade #4.  I added a seam binding ribbon and a few pink sequins to finish the card off.  Oh, and I used a MS punch to make the little heart border on the bottom of the card.  And of course Addy Grace needed a nice warm pink blanket and matching booties and hats (I knitted the blanket and booties and my good friend Nora crocheted the two hats)!

Here's a few new pictures from Saturday of my beautiful little Angel:

My mom is a great grandmother (again...my brother has 3 grandkids)!

My daughter and Addy having a little chat.

And the happy new family of 3! :0)

Being a grandma is just the best, and I am SO excited to be a part of this little girls life!  I am feeling incredibly blessed...God is good! :0)

Thanks so much for stopping by today and have a wonderful Monday!

Tag You're It! Challenge #5

Hello friends.  A quick post here, but wanted to share a couple tags I made for the new challenge over at Tag You're It! Challenge.  They are both basically the same tag, except for the sentiment and color of ribbon at the top.  Take a look:

 

 

I became a grandma for the first time this week, so the top tag is going on one of the (many!) gifts I'm bringing for little Adelaide Grace (Addy) tomorrow when we visit again.  And she is absolutely beautiful, so I figured this was a fitting tag to put on her gift!  I used PTI's "Tag Sale #3" with kraft cs, and then stamped dots with white ink and PTI's "Polka Dot Basics" stamp set, and the flowers from SU!'s "Flower Patch" stamp set.  The bottom tag is basically the same except for the sentiment and used a Pool Party seam binding ribbon instead of the Melon Mambo ribbon I used on the top tag.

 

Here is the beautiful inspiration photo we had to work with for this challenge:

 

  

 

 

Aren't they SO pretty?!  There's still time to play along, and having tags on hand is a great way to add a personal touch to a small gift or goodie to show someone you think they're special!  You can find all the info and play along right here .

 

And one last photo of my hubby holding sweet little Addy (he was the only one she would open her eyes for the night she was born!!):

 

 

Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a fantastic weekend! :0)

Merry Monday #124 - Presents/Gifts

Hello friends.  Feels like forever since I've been on my blog, even though it's only been a few days!  A busy couple of days though, as I'm happy to tell the world that I am finally a GRANDMA!  Our granddaughter Adelaide Grace (Addy) made her appearance a week early on Tuesday, and is absolutely beautiful!  Her mom and dad are just thrilled and everyone is doing fine. I will do better with pictures tomorrow when we go to visit, but here is one to tide you over! :0)

And what a perfect challenge this week at Merry Monday, as we are to use a gift for our card, and I feel like I've been given the best gift of all!  Most of my stamps with gifts/presents on them are of animals holding a gift, and those just didn't fit my mood today, so I made my card into a gift instead.  Take a look:

This card came together very quickly (don't ya love it when that happens?!!!) and I really like how elegant it looks!  I used a SU! (Sizzix) embossing folder on a piece of gold cs, and then wrapped "Milk Chocolate" seam binding ribbon (The Craft Spot) around it like I was wrapping a gift.  I added a tag made from "Peaceful Pinecones" and "Fillable Frames - #9" (PTI), and also added a few rainstones.  Again, very quick and simple, but I really love how it turned out! :0)

There's still some time to play along, so check out all the other cards and info over at the Merry Monday site right here .

Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a wonder weekend...I know I will! :0)

Make it Monday #178 - Back to School Easel Card

Good morning friends.  Quick post today as my oldest daughter is in labor, so hopefully by the end of the day (or sooner!!) I'll be a grandma! :0)

Erin Lincoln has a great video on Make it Monday this week on how to use a larger die to make an easel card.  Since my "baby" is in college now, I made my easel a "hello" card to send off to her.  Take a look:

I used the Tag Sale #8 die to cut out the bottom of the easel.  Stamped my kraft cs with a woodgrain stamp in Soft Suede, and then decorated the blackboard with "Wet Paint", "Background Basics: Super Chevron", and the apple die (PTI).  Added some bakers twine and a few candy dots to finish.

Loved all the cards yesterday that the senior design team at PTI did revisiting the "Harvest Berries" stamp set, so had to get mine out and play.

Wish I would have had a little more sunshine when I took this picture so you can see the sparkle and shine on this card, but it is what it is!  Used Orange Zest and Pure Poppy inks on the leaves, and the sentiment and dots are Soft Suede.

Make sure you check out Erin's video (and cute, cute card!!), and all the other entries on Nichole's blog right here .

Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I hope to be back soon with LOTS of pictures!!!! (hey, first time Grandma's get to do that!)

A MishMash Monday

Good morning friends.  I hope you've all been having a great Labor Day weekend!  I've been having a wonderful weekend spending time with our 2 oldest daughters, stamping, and even a little baking! :0)  I have 4 cards to share with you, and for times sake, I'm just going to show them, and if you have questions about any of them, just leave a comment and I'll get back to you.

Stamp Sets/Accessories:
Card 1: Flower Patch and En Francais (SU!)
Card 2: Birds and Blooms, Autumn Adornments, and Tiny Tags (PTI)
Card 3: Birds and Blooms and Tiny Tags (PTI), Pinecones (stick stamp by Judith)
Card 4: Tim Holtz dies, Polka Dot Basics (PTI), and Be Very Merry (SU!)

And to leave you with a little sweet thought, a picture of the Peach Dumplings I made:

If anyone's interested in the recipe, just let me know! :0)

Have a great rest of your weekend, and thanks so much for stopping by today!