Happy Day Chicken

A friend of ours has had some health issues for a year now.  I wanted to send him  a card that would make him smile and so I made today's card for him.  The chicken is from the Sale-a-bration stamp set, Hey Chick. I used a Crumb Cake card base and a Cajun Rust layer.  The white piece was embossed using a retired SU embossing folder.  I am sure that when he opens the mail, he is going to look at the chicken and say to himself, "What is with the chicken?"  He will get a smile on his face and laugh to himself as he opens the card to read it.  So if nothing else, this chicken will brighten his day! Hope you have a bright day, too!

A Sunny Card

The other day I was watching a Tim Holtz video and he was using his ink pads to watercolor.  He would swipe a few different color ink pads against his silicone craft sheet, spray it with water and then pat the watercolor paper on that.  So I used two Stampin' Up ink pads, Daffodil Delight and Green Galore, on my craft sheet and did the same thing.  The edges of the watercolor paper got a little two dark, so I diecut the piece using a My FavoriteThings die.  Now what will go with those colors?  Tropical drinks!  I used the Sunny Studio's Tropical Paradise stamp set and dies and added a few sequins.  It is a bright, sunny card to go with the sunshine I woke up to this morning.   Have a great day!  

Loads of Love

Another image from Penny Black's Loads of Love stamp set, I was just playing at coloring this dump truck the other day.  Well, it turned out good enough that I decided to use it to make a card for a special boy I know.  I used Spectrum Noir markers and Stampin' Up Designer Series Paper to create this cute valentine.  Have a great weekend!

A New Home

It is a great week for me!  My son bought a house about two blocks away and I am thrilled.  My husband is really thrilled because his house is on a five acre lot and has an out building for all of their toys.  When we went to Matt's house yesterday, John wanted to know if we should take the four-wheeler?  "No, thank you!" was my reply.  I made today's card, coloring the house in shades of brown as Matt's house really is painted.  Those Clarity brushes came in handy once again as I used one to create the light blue shading around the edges.  The house and sentiment are from Sunny Studio Stamp's Happy Home stamp set and dies. Since there was quite a bit of white space, I added a little bluebird of happiness.  I wish Matt much happiness in his new home and the promise that Dad and I will not just drop in.  Have a great day!

Tangerine Flowers

Right out of the Sale-a-bration mini, today's card is very pretty.  For the flowers I used Tangerine Tango for two flowers and stamped off once to stamp the lighter versions of the flower.  I used Chocolate Chip for the pistil and the sentiment.  I put everything together and when I was going to adhere the card front to the yellow card base, I decided I didn't like it.  What I did prefer was a Crisp Cantaloupe (retired In Color) card base.  The strip of Crumb Cake is such a perfect contrast.  I am thinking that maybe I just should have made a Crumb Cake card base, too.  Whichever colors are used, the Avant Garden stamp set is my favorite of those in the SAB mini.  Have a great day!

Valentine Favors

Can't let a holiday go by without making a favor using Stampin' Up's  2" x 8" cellophane bags.  The pink foil is covering Reese's peanut butter hearts covered in white chocolate~~and they are very good!  I made little trays to hold the hearts, using a pop dot to keep the hearts in place.  The tags were made using the old heart punch after stamping the sentiment.  The sentiment is from Lawn Fawn and I think it is adorable.  Again there isn't an easier favor for any holiday than these.  Well, I am sure there are easier ones, but these took the least amount of time and product to create.   I even just tied a ribbon on the Melon Mambo and black and it was still festive.   Have a great day!

Bear Hugs For Syd

Today's card is a cute one that I made for Sydney "just because".  She had to get her braces on her teeth last week, so it was a perfect time to send the card.  I used the Pop of Pink DSP and the Square Layering Thinlets, both from the Annual Catalog. 

On a sad note, my dear friend, Regina, lost her 5 year battle with lung cancer yesterday.  I know she is in a better place, but I will truly miss her.  She was a kind person who would have given you the shirt off her back if you needed it.  Hugs to her family.   Rest in peace, Regina. 

Sunshine Wishes Flower

Another quick and easy card, today's card is about the flower.  The flower was die cut using one of the framelits from Sunshine Wishes.  I cut it using Flirty Flamingo paper and then used a marker to color the stem green--quick and easy!  I cut a strip of Fruit Stand designer Series Paper adhered it to a Flirty Flamingo strip.  When everything was adhered to the card front, I stamped the sentiment (not SU).  And, since I have some pretty sequins that match perfectly with Flirty Flamingo, a few were added.  Have a great day!

Baby Bear Again

Today's card was created using Stampin' Up's  Baby Bear stamp set.  I was using a Clarity brush to create a very subtle background color.  I first stamped the bear and then stamped a second.  I fussy cut the second bear to use as a mask over the first.  Once the mask was adhered, I started brushing the Soft Sky ink from the lower left corner and up and down and across the bottom using the largest Clarity brush.  I will say that the background is just what I was hoping for~~a light color difference that faded into the white.  I certainly couldn't have accomplished this using sponges or daubers without having definite sponge marks.  The heart balloon and the sentiment are both from Lawn Fawn.  I see that I did not put a little bow on this guy--have to take care of that!  Have a great day!

Clarity Stencil Brushes

I really like sponged backgrounds but I have a little trouble with getting splotches on the cardstock. No matter how often I remind myself to start off the paper, I still have at least one area where the splotch is very obvious.  I was watching a Jennifer McGuire video where she used Clarity Stencil Brushes.  She showed the soft look you can get when using ink and these brushes.  So I looked on Amazon.com to check out the prices (after watching a couple other videos in which Clarity brushes were used).  They cost $36!  So I then checked Ellen Huston and Simon Says Stamp.  The brushes were about $29 plus shipping and were on back order at both.  I came across Artist Supply where they cost $20 plus $6 for shipping.  I ordered them and they arrived quite quickly.  Over the weekend I played with the brushes and today's card is the first background I created using the Clarity Brushes with Distress Inks.  The largest brush is big (all of them are larger than I envisioned) and for having never used stencil brushes before, the background turned out pretty good.  The stamp set I used is Sunny Studio Stamps' Sweet Shoppe.  I will use the brushes a few times before I say it was easier for me using the brushes than the sponges.  I will also try the brushes on other white cardstock to see if there is a difference.   Have a great day!

Pink or Yellow?

The other day I was looking for ideas for cards created using the Avant Garden stamp set which is in the Sale-a-bration mini.  The Melon Mambo card was created by Brandy Cox of  Stampin' Up and it caught my attention.  The flower, sentiment and black and white background paper were created using images and a sentiment from Avant Garden.  I created the same card using Daffodil Delight.  Rather than stamping my background, I used a piece of DSP from the Pop of Pink paper pack in the annual catalog. The flower had to be fussy cut and after using framelits  for most things, it was kind of fun to concentrate on cutting out the flower!  Just don't look at the flower too closely!!  Have a great day and weekend and find yourself a little stampin' time.

Bear Hugs

My Layering Circle Framelits did arrive yesterday and this is the first card I created using them.  Once again, I only used two steps for the bear rather than three.  Each time I add the third layer, I mess up the image.  It is either too dark or I off set it a small amount.  But the little bear is so cute I keep trying that third step.  I thought this would be a cute "get well" card or a Valentine so I will not add a sentiment until such time as I know for what occasion it is being used.  Have a great day!

Floral Butterflies

I continued playing with the pattern paper I used for yesterday's card.  For today's card, I used grays instead of browns and butterflies instead of hearts.   I did sponge all the pattern paper edges using Smokey Slate whereas yesterday I used Tip Top Taupe on the edges.  The sentiment is from the Wetlands set.  I put the remainder of the stack of paper away for now as I wait for my Stampin' Up Layering Circles, due to arrive today.  I saw a really cute card using the Baby Bear stamp set and the Layering Circles.  Hoping to make that card later and post it tomorrow.  Have a great day!

Anniversary Hearts

I made a really pretty card using a 6 x 6 stack of paper I had purchased at least two years ago (probably at Michael's) and it sat in one of my trays until the other day.  I decided to create a vintage-looking Valentine but once it was completed it became an anniversary card.  My husband and I will be celebrating 43 years in February and I thought this is a pretty card to give him.  Now what should I write inside?  Have a great day!

Lawn Fawn Valentine

Happy Monday!  I received my new Lawn Fawn Love Letters stamp set and coordinating dies.  I used that stamp set for today's card along with the new Fancy Scallop Rectangle dies.   I stamped the images on pattern paper.  I then fussy cut each of the envelopes (easy to do since it you only have to cut straight lines).  I also stamped the middle envelope a second time on plain white cardstock, added the sentiment and fussy cut the little note so that it would fit right into the checked envelope.  This particular stamp set has pretty font and nice sayings, too, such as "Happy b-day", "thank you", "happy mail" and many more.  You will be seeing more from this stamp set in the future.  Have a great day!

Sydney's Creations

Today I want to share photos of Sydney's gifts to us this Christmas.  Sydney is very creative and she made us all Christmas gifts.  She used air drying clay colored with acrylic paints for my gift and Jenny's.  Sydney filled our little bird candy containers with our favorite candies and even added a little soccer ball to Jen's, too!  For John, she made him a rein"beer"!  She saw it on Pinterest and she even used one of John's favorite beers.  She also made gifts for Matthew and her Dad, but I did not get pictures of those gifts.  Sydney is a very creative 12 year old.  She always surprises me with the little things she creates.   Can you tell that I am just a little proud of my granddaughter?  Have a great weekend and find yourself a little stampin' time!

Winter Birthday

When I was playing over the weekend, this is one of the cards I made.  And since it is sooo cold this morning, I thought posting a Happy Winter Birthday card was called for!  I used Lawn Fawn's Critters in the Snow, coloring the penguins and adding Wink of Stella clear glitter on the igloo.  The balloons were cut using Lawn Fawn Party Balloons and then a white gel pen added a little line of light reflecting off them.  I used a retired Stampin' Up color that was one of my very favorites in its day, Taken With Teal.  Another cute and fun card!   Keep warm and have a great day!

Occasions Mini & Sale-a-bration

Today is the start day for both the Occasions Mini and Sale-a-bration.  For today's card I used an image from the Sale-a-bration set, Avant Garden.  The sentiment is from Sheltering Tree which is in the Annual
Catalog.  After stamping the image, I colored it using Spectrum Noir markers.  For both white layers I made an embossed frame 1/4" in on the larger layer and 1/8" in on the smaller white layer, again using the scoring board.  Just remember that if you are going to make an embossed frame, use the back side of the cardstock so you will see the indention of the frame on the backside and the raised frame on the front. To me, this card is a more formal/serious thinking of you.  I was going to add sequins but they actually looked out of place.  Soemtimes, less is more!  Have a great day, keep warm and find yourself a little stampin' time!

Hearts & Love You

Today I am posting another Valentine that truly was quick.  I used the heart from the Mini Treat Bag Thinlets to die cut four hearts going down the one side of the top layer. I lined those negative space hearts with a leftover strip of the Sending Love DSP I used on Monday's card. The word "love" was die cut using a Lawn Fawn die and the stamped "you" is from Fabulous Phrases.  After adhering the white layer to the black layer, I adhered that to a white card base.  I added a few little hearts since there was quite a bit of white space. As I said, this card was very easy to create.  Don't have the Mini Treat Bag Thinlets?  You can use a punch or any other small heart die you might have in your collection.  Have a great day!

Mouse & Cupcake

Once again I wish you all a very Happy 2017!  We had a quiet weekend and hope that 2017 is a quiet year!  While playing in my scrap room, I made a few "Love You" cards that I can use as Valentines, anniversary, birthday or just because cards.  Today's card was created using an image from Penny Black's Loads of Love stamp set.  I colored in the little mouse and cupcake using Copic markers and topped off the pink frosting using a clear Wink of Stella pen.  The pattern paper is one of the designs in the Sending Love Designer Series paper stack that is in the new Occasions Mini.  It contains 6 each of 8 double-sided designs measuring 6" x 6" for a total of 48 sheets of paper. The colors of this stack are Real Red and White and while the majority of designs are about hearts, there are also non-heart sheets.  For the sentiment I used Fabulous Phrases, a retired SU stamp set that I will probably never get rid of as it contains 30 individual words that can be put together or used alone. Have a great day!