Summer Sketches

Hello, and happy Friday! I spent some time in the craft room this afternoon. Do you know I sing and do a happy dance when I come to this favorite spot and put the music on? 

Some creative ideas have been lingering on the back burner for days.  I really loved the Color Hues challenge to use Turquoise and Coral. I made a card but being in the midst of difficult circumstances I just didn't end up liking it too well. It is posted HERE if you missed it. 

Today's card uses those colors but with a bright, airy feel, and lots of white, reflecting my mood on this hot summer day. Hope you like it! 

Trying to use the Freshly Made Sketch yesterday was like work - and that sample is in the trash. The sketch, was not the problem, it's fabulous! Can you believe they've offered weekly sketches for a DECADE?

Adding a pale stenciled panel in the background allows the florals and colors to blend well on my card. Much better, I think.

That's all for today! Thanks for your visit, stay well. Happy crafting!

Be yourself.

     Find delight in your craft.

             Make something beautiful! 

Supplies used: 

Stamps: The Greetery  - Summer Sketches stamps and dies, Cotton Comforts
Ink: Altenew; WPlus 9

Accessories - MFTstamps - Brick stencil

Inspired By...Penguin Love!

 I am back from my travels and happy to have a card to share for this week's Inspired By Challenge #184! What a fun theme involving cute love-able black and white adorable penguins! 

Only I didn't have a penguin stamp, so I'm going with a Bunny Love theme instead.

While I was planning this card I stumbled across the sketch at The Paper Players, that gave me a great start. I loved these pretty wintry papers and they worked great with the sketch. 

I was inspired by the snowflakes, the heart, and the wooly hats. Which photo inspires you? I hope you will play along! 

Here is the sketch. 

Have a great day, keep smiling and remembering those you love. Thanks for your visit! 

Be yourself.

     Find delight in your craft.

             Make something beautiful! 

Supplies used: MFT - Christmas Cheer

Stamps:  MFT - Christmas Cheer 
Paper: LawnFawn - Snowy Day Remix

Inspired By: Flower Me In Christmas

Hello crafty friends, happy Thursday! 

I have one more card for you this week. It's time for the new theme at  Inspired By.... Flower Me In Christmas. 

I was excited to be able to use the Christmas option for this challenge! In between travels and other events happening lately, I was able to just die cut and stamp some bits and bobs of images. I absolutely LOVE having some of these ready to go so that I can take my time arranging the elements and adding other details to a card. 

Today's card uses many of the gorgeous images in WPlus9 Designs Poinsettia Builder and Bells and Bows collection. 

There is a disadvantage to having elements made up ahead of time - I can't remember whether I used Distress or Altenew inks. 

 I used the Lavinia dies to emboss the card front. I love how this really adds a rich and elegant look without distracting from the focal point. Wrapping a nest of gold thread, I layered the die cuts with foam squares stacked singly or doubly to add dimension. The die cut sentiment is gold embossed, with a second phrase stamped in black ink. Both are from the Poinsettia Bouquets set. 

Inspired By...Flower Me In Summer, 

or Flower Me In Christmas, which will you chose? 

I know you'll be inspired by the team's samples, so be sure to check them out! I am so happy you popped in to see me today. I thank you all so much for the warm and heartfelt comments on my recent posts, they encouraged me greatly. 

 Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Just A Note for The Paper Players

 Hi, how is it going for you? I am slowly trying to get back in the swing in my craft room with some easy stamping. Playing around with a simple design and a fun challenge at The Paper Players. 

I needed something just for fun today, and so these new mouse images came out to play featuring the Wish Happiness stamps and dies from Colorado Craft Company. Here's my take on the masculine theme challenge.

Nothing too fancy, just some papers from my stash, dies and a bit of coloring with Zig markers. 

I am also adding this to NBUS Challenge #29. Have a great day!

 Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Color Hues - Turquoise and Coral

 Such a wonderful combo for one last summer card!

The Starfish Wishes stamps were still out on my desk so I went with an under-the-sea scene. I stamped the images in soft brown and intended to use my Zig markers to color. While that worked well with the plants, I couldn't seem to get a good coral shade.  Using colored pencils on the starfish enabled me to layer colors until I achieved just the hues I wanted and a bit of soft texture.

I added some gold stars and a few Nuvo Drops dots and white gel pen accents. I hope you will check out the amazing work of the DT and join us at Color Hues!

Now that I think about it - I can't promise that is my last card for summer, lol! There are some weeks left officially, right? And it is still plenty HOT here!

Stay well, friends.

Be yourself.

     Find delight in your craft.

             Make something beautiful! 

Supplies used: 

Stamps: Penny Black - Starfish Wishes; The Greetery - Sentiment Suite Thinking of you
DSP - Bazill Basics

Accessories - WPlus9Designs - Lavinia Layers Background Die

Inspired By MIC.KEY m.o.u.s.e.

 It's Thursday and time for Inspired By Challenge 182. Are you ready for a fun one featuring a favorite cartoon character of all time?  Yay, Mickey!

Mouse that is. Or in this case how about another critter, say a bear? 

I pulled out a stamp set I've had a long time that seemed perfect for this challenge. Polka dots, stripes and a bear, oh my. I was also inspired by the circles, the colors, and the buttons! Spot on! 

It feels really satisfying pulling out this older set and giving it some love. Truth is, I am saving some mouse cards for another day. And hope to have a chance to decorate some paper cookies sometime soon! There so much inspiration hidden in the photos. What will you choose? Hope to see you in the gallery! 

Be yourself.

     Find delight in your craft.

             Make something beautiful! 

Supplies used: 

Stamps: Simon Says Stamps - Circle Friends
Inks: Altenew - Sweet Leaf, Coral Berry, Morning Frost

Accessories - Copics for Coloring

No Words

There are no words to share our sense of loss. Our dear son in law Richard passed away from Covid yesterday. We are spending this week with our daughter. There are a few posts still coming up that I wrote awhile ago, but I wanted to let you know why I am MIA. Thanks for your wonderful kind words, thoughts and prayers. 

What does your heart need?

 Dear friends, 

A blog post without craftiness is rare for me but I am opening a window for you today. There have been some tough times for many and our family finds itself reeling at the moment so I'm going to share and ask for prayer. If you want to wait for my next card post, feel free to skip this as I may go long! 

In the past 18 months, so many of us have had times tougher than we have ever imagined. Everyone finds their own ways to cope but for me it has been BEAUTY that keeps me going. Beauty in God and His promises, beauty in relationships, beauty in nature, and beauty made with paper and stamps. 

I've mentioned how I love the solitude of watching nature from my back porch. I find myself there every morning. This morning I was seeking comfort for the happenings of the last three weeks. My daughter and dear son in love got very bad cases of Covid while on their vacation. Julie is recovering but Richard was hospitalized two weeks ago. He has now been moved to a bigger hospital and is on a respirator, with no change. A week ago my dear mother in law passed away with little warning. She was fully lucid and one of her last words spoken to us was to ask about our loved ones.

So you get the idea, and I hope you will pray for a miracle for Richard's healing in this life. 

What prompted me to write today? Although this is a card making blog I wanted to be authentic and real with you. The crafting community is the best and I have received such support from you! Prayers are our hope.

Reason number 2.  This. 

I read a devotional this morning that discussed beauty and asked the question, "What does your heart need today?"  I looked up from prayer and saw a red fox in my yard, not even 10 yards away. I could see his eyes. It was amazing as I watched him look directly at me and approach me, then trot around our fenced yard for several minutes. We've seen him before but never up this close.  It was such a comforting reminder to me that the God who created the universe is my Friend.

This is what my heart needed this morning. Thanks for letting me share. My story, and my creations with you that are the main feature here. Several cards are in the hopper to post because you know - stamping is my therapy! I will be back. In the meantime...

 Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Inspired By...Starfish Wishes

Hello friends! Welcome back for a new challenge at Inspired By! We've had a break in July but we are beginning again with our weekly challenge.  I am still enjoying summer. Still dreaming of cook-outs, travel and the pool. Don't want it to end.  

This is just the card I pictured making when I saw this darling set from Penny Black. Yes, it is brand-new! I lightly sponged the background. Next, I stamped the sea plants and added color by painting with Distress Inks. A bit of masking helped with the arrangement, and I saved the best for last! I love the star fish. Doesn't he look like he's dancing along? There's sparkle too! Added along the sand with a mousse, and with clear Nuvo Drops for the bubbles. 

We have two options to inspire you.

Hope you will join in! I'm joining the challenges today at NBUS and The Paper Players.

 Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Sweet Baby Hello for Color Hues

  It's time for a new month and a new challenge at Color Hues! After having a break from some of my challenges, I feel so ready to jump into crafty action. 

Hannelie has picked wonderful colors for us to use, yellow and pink. Sounds sweet and summery, and I thought perfect for a baby theme. I went looking for baby stamps and discovered I don't have any! 

The onesie dies from Stampin Up! looked cute and I combined them with the BIG "Hello" stamps and dies from Waffle Flower. Papers are from my stash, I just love polka dots and stripes together.

I can't wait to see what inspires you! Be sure to check out the ideas from the rest of the team and join us!

Can you believe that we are in August already? It seems like we were just happy about July coming. I hope you are staying well. Glad to have you visit!

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!