Happy 50th

My husband's oldest brother and sister-in-law celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary over the weekend.  This gave me a reason to use the Number of Years stamp set and framelits.  This set was in the recently retired Occasions Mini catalog and I avoided the temptation.  But when it appeared in the Annual Catalog, I could resist no longer.  I used the color combination of retired Regal Rose, Wild Wasabi and Peekaboo Peach for the card.  Once the numbers were die cut using Peekaboo Peach cardstock I decided I would like to raise them off the flower/leaves images.  So I die cut the numbers using 1/8" craft foam and adhered the cardstock numbers to the foam. The card was a little too plain so out came the retired scallop border punch. The finishing touch was brushing the numbers with  the clear Wink of Stella Brush.  Happy Anniversary, Carl & Ann!  And a little side note~~John's brother is a Lutheran Pastor and he married us 42 years ago.  Have a great day!

Celebrate Your Day

Today's cards were stamped with images from the Designer Tin of Cards stamp set (p.161).  I did like the cards you can create if you buy the tin and stamp set, but not enough to purchase both.  So, I purchased the stamp set only and plan on making many cards with it.  It has a pretty font, sentiments with matching sentiments for inside the card, cute little images and words and phrases.  On both of today's cards I used the same sentiment and image (stamped multiple times).  The color combination of Daffodil Delight and Black is a crisp color combination.  The first card was created using DSP from the Brights Stack.  Melon Mambo and Black is another favorite color comb~~thus the second card.  I stamped the confetti off center on the Mambo one, so I added the Melon Mambo thick twine to take up a little space on the left side.  The Melon Mambo DSP is one of the patterns in the Pop of Pink specialty paper pack.  The Tags and Labels Framelits are great for layering and are one of my smart investments in framelits.  I added a few sequins to each card (not SU) to bring a little color to all the black confetti images. Now I have two birthday cards ready to be signed and mailed!  Have a  great day and find yourself a little stampin' time!

Strawberry Cards

I have a number of thank you cards I need to send out.  I used the Fresh and Fruity stamp set from Sunny Studio Stamps and matching dies together with Spectrum Noir Markers.  I had a mini assembly line going.  First, I stamped a number of strawberries with Black Versafine ink and heat embossed with clear embossing powder.   I then colored all the strawberries using the same markers, doing a little shading with a darker red marker before die cutting all the strawberries. After placing the sentiment words on the MISTI, I just kept stamping the sentiment on the white card fronts.  (When making multiples of a card, the MISTI makes quick work of it.)  When the stamping of the sentiment was completed, I arranged the strawberries on the card fronts.  Here are two of the cards I made using the strawberries.   Black gingham ribbon and black sequins embellished one card.  For the other card, I stamped and colored in a tropical drink (Sunny Studio's  Tropical Paradise), arranged it between strawberries and added clear Wink of Stella to the drink.    Have a "berry" nice day!

Happy Birthday...

...to me!  Today is my 65th birthday.  When did I get this old?  Last week we celebrated my birthday, Father's Day and Nipper's and Dexter's hatch days. Today I am showing a  pictures of things that Sydney did to make the day special.  First is the card, a pretty one using the Bella & Friends stamp set.  Very cute!  How about this fruit/veggie tray she made (with a tiny bit of help from Jen)?   She had streamers and balloons and tropical paper goods. Then she decorated cupcakes in the colors of Nipper and Dexter with little faces on them.   She is such a good girl, always thinking of how to make others happy.  I have the best family ever and the best friends, too.  Thank you to all for the birthday wishes, cards, flowers and more.  Have a great day!

Black, White & Melon Mambo

Today's post is a cute little gift bag created with the Mini Treat Bag Thinlets.  After cutting and
putting the bag together, I wrapped it with the new thick Melon Mambo twine. (This twine is so pretty!)  I used the You're So Sweet stamp set and Melon Mambo ink to make the tag.  The "just because" is also from the You're So Sweet stamp set.  Little treats would fit in the bag nicely as would a gift card or money.  You can place the twine and tag a little further down and fold the bag top over so nothing slipped out of the bag.  Have a great weekend and find yourself a little stampin' time!

Stars and Stripes

Sunny Studio Stamps is a company I recently became aware of and she has some very cute sets. Since I do not have a good patriotic set, the Stars and Stripes stamps and coordinating dies became a nice addition to my collections.  I  stamped the inages using Black Versafine and then embossed using SU's clear embossing powder.  It is much easier to stay inside the lines when coloring in embossed areas.  I used Spectrum Noir markers for the coloring.  The glitter stars were all cut using star dies included in the set of Stars and Stripes dies.  I also used images in the stamp set and dies for the matchbook favor which has a mini Ghirardelli square inside.  I have been enjoying getting used to the Spectrum Noir markers.  They don't seem to blend as nicely as Copics, but I am watching videos and learning tricks to blending.  Have a great day!

Birthday Confetti

A punch that is new in the annual catalog is the Sprinkles punch.  I used it to create the Peekaboo Peach and Flirty Flamingo confetti for today's birthday card.  With an aqua painter and  Peekaboo Peach and Flirty Flamingo ink pads I created the background on watercolor paper.  The happy birthday is from the Watercolor Words stamp set.  Once the watercolor paper was dry, I stamped the sentiment in black and then added the "sprinkles" and a few sequins from my growing assortment of sequins!  The balloon was punched using the Balloon Bouquet punch and the string is from a Lawn Fawn die set.  As much as I use my Big Shot and dies, sometimes using a punch is just so much easier! In case I haven't said it before, these are my two favorite new In Colors for 2016-2018.  Have a great day!

Palm Tree Silhouette

The beautiful weather we had this weekend reminded me of the Florida sunshine.  A couple of weeks ago I saw a video on the Lawn Fawn blog and I just had to recreate the card they showcased.  I sponged a white piece of cardstock using Daffodil Delight and Tangerine Tango inks and adhered it to the top fold card base.  After die cutting the palm trees and seagulls in black cardstock, I added them to the white cardstock.  The circle is a punch and next time I will cut it in half rather than three-quarters.  A strip of DSP and the new solid black bakers twine complete the card.  This was another easy card to create and quite pretty.  Have a sunshiny day!

Wedding Botanical Blooms

Today's card is a repeat of yesterday's card~~only in different colors and with a little Certainly Celery sponging.  This card will be going to our German friends who live in Wilhelmshaven, Germany.  We have known Thorge since he was 6 and Annika since she was about 16.  It is hard to believe that enough years have passed that they are old enough to get married!   We are unable to attend the wedding but our thoughts will be with them on their special day.  Have a great weekend and find yourself a little stampin' time!

I am showing another card I created using the Botanical Builder Framelits.  I layered the die cut flowers on Pool Party cardstock which was embossed using the Couture Creations  embossing folder, Tied Together.  The colorful flowers against Pool Party pop in a pretty way.  The stitched rectangle was created using a Lawn Fawn die; the banner created using an Banners Framelit die; and the sentiment is from the Wetlands stamp set.  As you can see, I still did not use the coordinating stamp set, Botanical Blooms!  The orange color is new Peekaboo Peach and is much prettier in person than it shows on this card.  Have a great day and find yourself a little stampin' time!

Gift of Love Hostess Set

I enjoy two-step stamping, especially with photopolymer stamps.  Being able to see right thru the stamp to line up the second stamp is much quicker than when using the Stamp-a-ma-jig.  But then I do remember singing the praises of the Stamp-a-ma-jig not all that long ago~~lol!  And if you were to make multiples of one card using this image, the MISTI would be the perfect tool for the job!   The thank you card color combination is Watermelon Wonder and Wild Wasabi.  The sentiment is also part of the Gift of Love stamp set.  The sympathy card is a combination of Crumb Cake and Tip Top Taupe.  The sentiment is from a retired Close To My Heart set, Words of Comfort.   Today's cards are simple, but elegant.  Have a great day and stay cool!

Father's Day

Over the weekend we celebrated Father's Day early as Sydney, Jen and Mark will be away on the actual day.  We had a great time and lots of fun.  Well, most of us had a lot of fun.  Poor Mark was backing up my computer and helping John with his new computer.  Today's card is one I made for Mark, my very favorite son-in-law!  The plane (which I fussy cut after stamping) is from a retired set, Sky Is The Limit.  The pattern papers are from both the current and retired Neutrals DSP stack.  After sponging Pool Party ink on white cardstock, I used a circle die and added a couple of clouds. The Pool Party Candy Dots in the upper left corner are also retired!  I will share more photos from this past weekend during the week.  Have a great day!

Pretty Kitten

Yesterday was a cute puppy and today's card features a cute kitten.  I don't have a kitten and I am allergic to cats, but the stamp set was just too cute to pass by.  Pretty Kitty not only has cute images, but it has cute sayings, too.  I am sure I will find myself using this stamp set more than I think.  Once again I colored the image using the Spectrum Noir markers.  After I colored the flowers, I decided to use Daffodil Delight DSP and Real Red cardstock for the layers.  The sentiment was stamped and then diecut using the Tags and Labels framelits to add a little interest.  

Since I am posting again, I know I have mentioned Spectrum Noir markers at least a few times.   I have had my Copic markers for years and they are starting to dry out.  I looked at the cost of replacing them and each marker is about $6.  The cost of Spectrum Noir markers is less than $2 per marker.  Luckily I have great friends (aka enablers) and we let each other know about good sales, good products and not so good products.   I can get three Spectrum Noir markers for one Copic.  Although I am having a harder time blending the SN markers than I do with Copics, I am sticking with the Spectrum Noir~~at least for a while!  Have a great weekend!

Adorable Stamp Set

When I first viewed the new annual catalog on line, the one stamp set I had to have was Bella & Friends.  This particular set was designed by a  Stampin' Up demonstrator.  She has a dog named Bella and her son has a parrot named Skittles.  (Not sure where the turtle came from, but Jen & Syd have a dog, a parrot and a turtle, so the set had their name on it, too!) I received my order and I made this playful card using Bella & Friends.  I colored it in using Spectrum Noir markers and layered the stamped image and sentiment on Melon Mambo cardstock that was embossed using the new Seaside embossing folder. The polka dot background was created using a WPlus9 stamp set, Little Bits, and Melon Mambo ink.  Adding the new Melon Mambo thick twine was the finishing touch.  As I was putting everything away, I thought the card needed a little something more.   I added the enamel dots that were in the retired Occasions Mini catalog in the white space surrounding the image.sentiment.  Just so cute!  Have a great day and find yourself a little stampin' time!

Thank You

When I was in the hospital after the stroke, the doctor came to see me before discharging me.  She had an accent, but I understood her clearly~~or so I thought! She did little tests and then told me to repeat words: "mama" and I repeated with "mama"; "velvet" and I repeated with "velvet: and lastly she said, "tank you" and I said, "tank you".  The doctor smiled and said, "No, tank you" emphasizing "tank you".  So I repeated "tank you" with much emphasis on it.  The doctor smiled, looked at Jen and John and said, "That's good enough."  So she tells me I can go home and leaves the room.  Jenny bursts out laughing and tells me that the doctor wanted me to repeat the phrase "thank you"!!!! I didn't figure that out so clearly I did not understand her!  A few days later I saw a Lawn Fawn stamp set, Fintastic Friends, that I had to have.  When I was up to it, I made Jen this "tank you" card, which was the perfect thank you card!  Have a great day and find yourself a little stampin' time.

Our Ballerina

Today's post is about our granddaughter's talent.  On Saturday we attended her 2016 recital and as you can imagine, I couldn't have been more proud of her.   When the ballet was performed, I couldn't keep my eyes off of her.  Her poise, her ability to dance and then the beautiful costume just brought tears to my eyes.  She was stunning!  Next was the jazz number and it was very cute.  And the red costume was perfect for the number.  Last was tap.  Talk about cute!  I loved it and the costume, too!  I smiled all the while.  It is hard to imagine that as a little girl she was sooo painfully shy and now I look at this almost 12 year old and she is able to dance in front of a full audience in spite of being nervous and having butterflies.  Her mommy's perseverance and patience to help her overcome the shyness has really paid off.   I truly am a blessed Mom and Grandma.  I never thought I could ever be more proud than I was of both Jenny and Matt.  And now I watch this little girl as she grows with the same pride and even a little more!  Have a great day.

Botanical Blooms With A Flamingo

I finally used the stamp set that coordinates with the Botanical Builder Framelits!  After stamping the leaves on the left side, I then used a darker ink to add the veins of the leaves. Once again, I just die cut the flowers and added little rhinestones to the center of each. The flamingo is from Sunny Studio Stamps.  I used Spectrum Noir markers to color him in and then die cut him using a Sunny Studio matching die.  Before adhering the little guy to the card, I added a little puddle of water using  a stamp from  Over the Rainbow (pg. 54) with Soft Sky ink.  There is a new stamp set in the annual catalog, Pop of Paradise (pg. 85), that has a flamingo, but I did not purchase that set as I have a few flamingo stamps as it is already.   The sentiment is from Endless Thanks  (pg. 42).  The color combination for this card is Watermelon Wonder, Flirty Flamingo and Pear Pizazz.   As you know,  I really enjoy creating tropical cards and with Botanical Blooms, Pop of Paradise  and others you can really brighten up someone's day.  Have a great day!

Botanical Blooms

One of the stamp sets in the Mini Occasions that I thought I did not need was Botanical Blooms.  Well was I ever wrong!  Due to a mix-up in ordering, I had a credit that I needed to use.  So, I chose the Botanical Blooms Bundle because I do like tropical things and I knew I would use it.    The Botanical Builder Framelits Dies arrived and I sure have used them (again and again), mostly without the stamp set!  I die cut the flowers and leaves/fronds and then sponge shading on the pieces I have cut.  Once I decided on the placement, I then choose the sentiment to use.    I also add little things like the cute parrot (Clearly Besotted Stamps) on the Mother's Day card I made for my daughter.  Sequins, rhinestones and little pearls finish off the cards.  The Botanical Blooms stamp set and dies have carried over to the new annual catalog.  Unfortunately, the bundle price did not!  Have a great weekend!

Timeless Textures

Today I am posting another card created with the butterfly thinlets and the Timeless Textures stamp set.  This time I used Pool Party, Crumb Cake and a long-retired color, Lavender Lace.  I used four of the images from the stamp set, stamping in a variety of colors and stamping off on a few of the images.  Before adhering the butterfly to the card front, I added some twine.  I then stamped the sentiment (a new set, Love and Affection) in the upper right side of the card.  Well,  I stamped it crooked, so I restamped it on a separate piece of paper, punched out the sentiment and covered the mistake.  Have a nice day and find yourself a little stampin' time!. 

Back To Posting

Hello again!  It has been a while since my last post and I decided I should start blogging again.  I am feeling much better these days and I have been enjoying my scrap room again.  I received much love and support while I recovered from a stroke.  I truly am blessed with the most wonderful family and friends.  A thank you card is in order for all the well wishes and prayers sent my way.  First off,  I used two new In Colors~~Flirty Flamingo and Peekaboo Peach.  The sentiment is from the Wetlands stamp set and of course, I used my favorite Butterflies Thinlets.  In addition to the new colors, the stamps I used for the background are two from the Timeless Textures set that was introduced in the Occasions Mini from which I never really had a chance to share projects.  (Luckily, the stamp sets I liked from the mini carried over to the new annual catalog.) A little gold thread and a few pretty sequins from Doodlebug finish off this pretty card.  Not sure how often I will be posting, but I am back!  Have a great day!