Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween!

Brilliant Color

On Saturday morning, I walked out my garage to this brilliant and beautiful tree.  The day before it was very pretty but with the sun hitting it on Sunday, I had to go back in for my camera.  And actually I took photos of a few trees and they were all gorgeous.  But this tree seemed perfect.

Today's card is not perfect, but it too, is very pretty~~if I say so myself!  I used a variety of leaf and pumpkin framelits  and the die cuts were then sponged on the edges.  They were then arranged on a stitched die cut from Stampin' Up together with gold thread, Mossy Meadow ribbon, a few adhesive dots and completed with a sentiment from Teeny, Tiny Wishes.  Have a great day!

Witch Hat & Spider

Another Halloween card today.  The hat was cut on my Cricut Explore.  It is one of many very cute images for Halloween in Cricut Access.  The foil polka dot cardstock, spider web embossed layer and sparkly ribbon used on this card are retired Stampin' Up products.  Have a great day!

Halloween Shaker Cards

Aren't these shaker card adorable?  My friend, Nancy, created these cards for her grandchildren.  They were made using items from Queen & Co.  This company has a variety of shaker card kits.  The kits include paper, plastic shakers, shaker fillers and a stamp set and dies.  In addition to shaker card kits, Queen & Co. also sells individual items in a variety of colors and themes.  Nancy's grandchildren are going to enjoy their cards.  Have a great day!

Witch Hat & Spider

There are a variety of cute Halloween images on Cricut Access and this hat is just one.  There are more than a few layers to this hat, maybe five or six.  Once the layers were cut, it was easy to put together and use on this card.  The scalloped white layer was created with Lawn Fawn's Fancy Scallop Rectangle Stackables.  The sentiment is from Stampin' Up's Teeny, Tiny Wishes. Have a great weekend and find yourself a little Stampin' Time!

Autumn Birthday

My Seasonal Layers framelits from Stampin' Up are well used.  I pretty much copied today's card from a Pinterest card posted by an Australian demonstrator last year.  The pattern paper is one of the papers included in the retired Wood Textures 6x6 paper collection.   Images of wood in the lower left corner were cut from  another pattern in the same paper pack.  The chair and a leaf or two were cut from the Seasonal Layers framelits while the other leaves were cut from either Lawn Fawn dies or an SU punch.  There are so many pretty Fall cards using leaves that I could make a card a day for the next month and still not make them all!  Have a great day!

Boo To You

Today's card was made by my friend, Kathy Z.  Her extra adorable card was created with all Stampin' Up products. She used Granny Apple Green cardstock, ribbon and Stampin' Blends.  The spider web paper is from the Monster Bash Designer Series pack.  The silly creature is from the Boo To You stamp set.  And as much as I love ribbon, I have to say that the best part of Kathy's card are the green googly eyes from SU's assorted pack in the Holiday catalog.  Have a great day!

Creepy

Today's card was made by my friend, Cherie.  When Stampin' Up's Holiday catalog came out, I liked the Ornate Frames dies, but didn't really need them.  When I received this card from Cherie, I took a second look at the Ornate frames--I just might need them!  Everything about this card is so perfect.  Cherie used SU's Spooktacular Bash stamp set with the coordinating Ornate Frames die.  The ribbon on this card really makes this card .  And once I took the photo, the foil paper background adds pretty/spooky reflections.  Have a great day!

Cricut Halloween

Today's post includes two more items I made on the Cricut.  I did not have a stamp for a 1st Halloween card.  So I opened Word on my computer; created a 4 x 5-1/4" text box for the sentiment; and typed and printed it.  The cat on the card is from Cricut Access.   I didn't want too spooky of a card for a little one. The little favor boxes were also created using images from Cricut Access.  They were easy to cut and assemble.  Once they were put together, I added a little Halloween raffia and Hershey miniature candy bars.  They are very cute and can be made larger. 

I am happy that I have a Scan N Cut, but when it comes to creating things, there are so many images to choose from when using Cricut Access and my Cricut Explore.  I did pay the $99 annual fee to have access to 100,000 images, a variety of ready to make projects and many fonts.  With the SNC  I can download images found on the Internet to my computer than upload them to a USB flash or purchase activation cards which cost about $40. I have had a Cricut for so long, that I find it much easier to work with.  On the other hand, a Cricut can not scan a stamped image and cut it in a couple of steps.  So I will continue to use the SNC for the stamped images and my Circut Explore for the other things.  They are both good machines, each serving a different purpose.  I wouldn't give up either!  Have a great day!

Scan N Cut Halloween Cards

I have been playing with both the Cricut and the Scan N Cut.  A Cricut was my first electronic die-cutting machine.  And then I got a second new and improved model~~along with very many cartridges.  After a while, I moved up to the Explore Air with which I didn't need cartridges, but could use the Internet.   

When the Scan N Cut came out, I had to have that to cut my stamped images.  That is about all I have used it for so I decided to spend a little time learning more about it.  The two cards here were made using images/words that were not stamped but pulled from the Internet and then cut on my Scan N Cut.  They are very cute, but I spent quite a bit of time figuring out how to get images from the Internet into my Canvas Workspace on the computer and then get them onto a flash drive so the images could be cut with my Scan N Cut.  I do have a wireless SNC, but in order to use it wirelessly, I need to buy an activation card.  Will I use my SNC enough to spend $40 for the wireless card?  Not sure.  Have a great weekend and find yourself a little stampin' time!

Happy 20th!

Yesterday, Mark and Jenny celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary.  I used Stampin' Up's Blackberry Bliss cardstock as it is close to the color of the bridesmaids' dresses. The little squirrels are from My Favorite Things' Fall Friends stamp set.  The sentiment was cut on my Cricut Explore.  I added foam between the two Blackberry Bliss layers which were then layered on a white card base.  Have a great day!

Pet Sympathy

I have had my Cricut out since the weekend.  A friend of Matthew needed some help in creating a file for a specific image.  It has been awhile since I tried something new.  But it worked and we had a mini Cricut Sunday!  Since the Cricut is still on my island, I decided to make a few cards using images on Cricut Access.  The card posted today was quick and easy~~once I decided on what image to use.  One of my brother's dog has been sick for a while.  Recently, he is getting worse.  So I made this card with him in mind.  I adhered the image to a white cardstock square and layered that on a black scalloped square.  Both of those squares were cut using Stampin' Up's Layering Squares framelits.  The sentiment is from Clearly Besotted Stamps.  The ribbon was just the embellishment required!  Have a great day!

More Leaves

The  water colored background on today's card was created with a combination of Blackberry Bliss and Daffodil Delight reinkers.  I put a couple drops of each on an acrylic block.  I then added water (not much) and moved it around a bit and then put Shimmery White cardstock on it.  By trying to minimize the amount of water, the colors didn't blend easily.  So I add a little more water and again placed the cardstock on it.  Once dry, the watercolored Shimmery White was layered on gold cardstock.  After embossing the Rich Razzleberry layer with SU's Pine Planks embossing folder, everything was layered on a Cream colored card base. Leaves were cut from the Seasonal Layers die set in both gold and Rich Razzleberry.  Gold embossing powder was used for the sentiment and on the Rich Razzleberry leaf.  The background kind of looks like a sunset!  Have a great day!

Sending Sympathy

In the last couple of weeks, I have needed a few sympathy cards.  Here are two of them. The card layouts are the same as Friday's card but with different colors and a different sentiment.  For the card on the left I used Pistachio Pudding, Crumb Cake and Pink Pirouette cardstock.  For the card on the right I combined Early Espresso, Crumb Cake and So Saffron cardstock.  The sentiment is from a retired Close To My Heart stamp set.  Pretty ribbon and pearls complete the cards.  Have a great day!

Just Breathe

I was drawing a blank when deciding what card to make for today,  so I looked on Pinterest for a card that was made with the Colorful Seasons stamp set by Stampin' Up.  There are so many beautiful cards made with this set.   I came across a card by Cynthia Maynard and I totally copied it!  I also used the coordinating dies, Seasonal Layers.  The only difference is that she used Smoky Slate ink and  cardstock and I used Basic Gray ink and cardstock.  Next week I will post the sympathy cards I created using this layout.  Have a great weekend!

More Birthday Candles

The other day, My Favorite Things posted a video on their Facebook page showing how to create cards using their Birthday Candle Dies.  Of course, I had to try my hand at it.  Today are two of the cards and I think they turned out great.  I used retired SU pattern paper for the candles.  The candles on the red card were die cut from white glitter paper that I colored with a yellow alcohol marker before cutting them out.  The candles on the Tempting Turquoise card are yellow cardstock.  Have a great day!

Birthday Candles

Today's card is quite easy to create if you have the Birthday Candle Dies from My Favorite Things.  The candle die cuts the five candles at once.  So I ran the white cardstock with the die thru my Big Shot.  I then cut the pattern candle dies a couple of times.  After adhering the white cardstock layer to the Berrylicious cardstock base, I adhered each candle into the candle space left by the die.  The five little hearts are also one die.  I had to run that die thru the Big Shot once.  The only thing I would change is the light ink I used for the sentiment.  It is from Stampin' Up's Cottage Greetings stamp set.  If it was photopolymer, I would have used my Misti and stamped it several times.  Since my set is wood mount, I wasn't able to do that.  I might be covering up the stamped sentiment with white cardstock and re-stamping.  Have a great day!

Sympathy Cards

This past weekend my family and I went up to Kalamazoo, Michigan for the graveside service for John's Mom.  John's brother, Carl, led the service.  He is a Lutheran pastor who has officiated at many of our family's important occasions, including our wedding 45 years ago.  Sunday's weather was sunny and bright~~perfect for celebrating John's Mom.

We received many beautiful sympathy cards.  Today I am posting a few of the handmade cards that we received. The cards posted today are from my friends: Kathy Z, Nancy, Cherie and Sheryl.  All were created using Stampin' Up products. 

Handmade or store-bought, we appreciate all of the thoughts, prayers and kind words that were written especially for us.   We are so very fortunate to have so many dear friends.  Thank you to all.

Happy Fall

For today's card, I used a framelit to cut the leaf in the Chocolate Chip layer.  I then adhered a piece of Shimmery White cardstock (which had been watercolored) under the space left by the framelit.  After stamping the sentiment, I stamped little pumpkins, leaves and acorns on the Chocolate Chip layer using Espresso Ink.  The card was too plain so I wrapped the layer with gold thread before adhering that to a Flirty Flamingo cardstock layer.  I thought about a very vanilla  card base, but the Chocolate Chip base looked better.  The leaf left from the framelit will be used on another card.  Have a great weekend!

Chicken Coop

Yesterday we celebrated Matthew's birthday.  He actually cooked for us
and a few of his friends.  While at the Scrap Expo in August, I bought this Chicken Coop stamp from Rubbernecker Stamps.  It was perfect for Matt.  It was colored with alcohol markers.  The chickens are from a different stamp set.  He and his friends got a kick out of it especially since his friend Sarah made him this cake with little eggs and feathers on it!  Have a great day!

A Christmas Card

Believe it or not, I already made a Christmas card!  My friend, Paula, shared some of her new toys.  After playing for a couple of hours, we decided to make a card we saw on the Internet which led me to the Facebook page of Stampin Fee.  The fox and  the trees/bushes in the background are from Stampin' Up's Nature's Beauty stamp set.    We started by holding a piece of scrap paper one-third of the way up from the bottom of the white cardstock.  We then brushed light blue ink upwards to mimic the the horizon of the sky meeting the snowy ground.  We stamped the branches (or bushes or whatever they might be) and then added a few stars and snowflakes.  The sentiment is from the Merry Moose stamp set.  And lastly, we added the fox using dimensionals.  Nature's Beauty stamp set is a must have for me.  I  see many ways to use the images, especially for masculine cards~~not only Christmas cards.  Have a great day!

Color Burst Background

A couple of weeks ago I was playing with Color Burst Watercolor Powders making some watercolor backgrounds.  Some were good and some not so good.  One of those backgrounds (a not quite good but not that bad background) was perfect for today's card.  The witch and sentiment are from My Favorite Things Witch Way Is The Candy stamp set.  Before adhering her to the background, I adhered some black thread and splattered the background with black ink.  The sentiment was stamped in Versamark and then heat embossed using white embossing powder.  To complete the card a few little metallic stars were added.   The little witch is so darn cute!  MFT needs to make a Halloween set with a cute boy (the same size) on it~~maybe a knight or a pirate.  Have a great day.