I Love Christmas!

 The Christmas in July theme has been everywhere in blog land, and I caught the bug. I don't need new stamps, but I love pulling out the older ones in my stash and creating with them anew. 

The challenge at 52 Christmas Card Throw-down asks us to use the technique of fussy cutting in July. I found these lovely gals from the I Love Christmas stamps (by Photoplay) that I had already colored and fussy cut. The decisions of where to start were easy! 

I also pulled out some favorite papers from the Candy Cane Lane pack (Prima). 

I had only a few scraps left, so I trimmed out some tags for the second card to add a bit more fussy cutting to the project. Although it's a bit busy, I feel sure my grand-daughter won't mind! 

 Isn't the candy cane a cute embellishment! I loved the products from this SSS kit last year, if you'd like there are a couple more projects HERE and HERE. 

Thanks for coming by to visit today. I'm happy to have my first two Christmas cards done! Motivation is one of the great things about challenges. 

 Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

A Card Makeover

 Hello friends, I hope things are going well for you. I'm continuing to stamp during this heat wave and I'm enjoying a bit of a lull of summer activities. 

Do you ever lay awake at night thinking of all the things you didn't like about a card you made that day? Well it doesn't happen often, thankfully I am a very good sleeper! But yesterday's card (see it HERE) had some definite issues. Not a detailed focal point, and too busy with the papers I used.  I felt it was out of balance.

Here's the re-make! 

I took the same sketch and arranged the papers differently. Even though I like the largest panel of paper best, it really works much better in the background. I pulled out a bear who is happily relaxing and colored him with Copics to be used for my focal point. This time the sentiment was cut right out of the patterned paper. I backed it with card stock and foam tape for a bit of dimension.

What do you think of my card makeover? I'll be entering this again as take 2 at The Paper Players.  My stamps are from Penny Black, Special Day.

Thanks for stopping by! 

 Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Masculine Birthday

 As a scrapbooker turned card maker, I have always been drawn to designer papers. Last month I made the discovery of a tiny scrapbooking store in our very small town just a couple miles from my house! I met a new friend, thoroughly enjoyed having a look around and came home with a few papers. 

We live in a lake community so the papers from Simple Vintage Lakeside (Simple Stories) were a great find. They are featured on today's card. 

I layered two of my favorites pages with a white panel. Then die cut a

focal point with the boat extended past the die and trimmed with scissors. 

The only stamping? The sentiment! 

I'm playing with the challenge at The Paper Players. 

I am glad to have a masculine birthday card added to the stash. I really do appreciate your visit, and hope your day is enjoyable! 

 Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

YOU Bring me Joy

 I hope you're doing well and surviving the heat wave. I'm cooling off again in the craft room before heading off to a barbecue this afternoon with friends. It will be 95!  

I haven't really been into rainbows, but I saw the idea of a rainbow made like gingham, so I gave it a try! I used a stencil from CCC and various inks to create a panel on white card stock.  The inks are  a bit more saturated than I would like, the small cubes were juicy! The small cubes were easiest to work with. 

I loved this bear and used an oval die to cut him out after coloring with Zigs. Penny Black stamps has inspired me to buy quite a few of their dies and sentiments that go together, and you will be seeing more of them! 

I realized as I was posting that this is close to the sketch at Freshly Made, so I am joining the challenge! I'm also playing at Happy Little Stampers Stencil Challenge. 

Hope you have a wonderful day and some joy coming your way. Thanks so very much for your visit! 

Enjoy the Little Things

 Hello! Well, you know what they say. If life gives you lemons, make lemonade. My version is fitting for those enduring this heat wave. If it stays HOT grab a lemonade and head to the stamp room to stay cool!

That's what I did this afternoon, and it was the perfect time to use some new supplies. 

I've had these pretty Lovely Layers: Dogwood dies from Honey Bee in the new-things-container since spring so I gave them a try for today's card. The layers and etching on the dies add lovely texture and details. I had trouble getting a good photo though. The papers from Concord & 9th are very pretty IRL but it was hard to capture these hues.

 I paired the flowers with the Immense Joy die and sentiment from Penny Black. I'll be entering the challenge at NBUS with dear Darnelle - who encourages us to share our never-been-used-stuff. And at the Flower Challenge, where they request CAS cards. Their DT samples are fabulous! 

I appreciate your visit to my blog today! Hope you've found a way to keep cool!

 

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

A Happy Hello for Color Hues #68

 Hello, it's mid-month and time for a new duo at Color Hues! Our wonderful leader, Nancy, has chosen Olive and Berry for Challenge #68 and I love how these look with a floral vibe. 

Betsy's stamps from The Greetery are some of my favorites, and I pulled out the Print Shop Fresh Floral stencils and stamps to create a background for my card front. The white heat embossed sentiment was trimmed by hand - I didn't want it taking up too much space. It's an old one from PTI. For a bit more dimension, I added two die cut butterflies topped with enamel dots and spritzed with a shimmer pen.

I hope you will love this combo, be sure to join us to play along if you can!

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Just a Hello ...

 Hello crafty friends, it's good to be here today! You know how I love card challenges and it's even more fun when I get chosen as Guest Designer. That's the happy circumstance for today's card, which I've created for the Tic-Tac-Toe challenge! 

You may know that they post a board and you may chose which elements you'd like to include on your card. 

I'm delighted that this prompted me to finally pull out my new-to-me Strawberry Patch large dies from Spellbinders. 

I was first led in the direction of FRUIT in the top row, but instead I decided to go with: embossing, fun fold, and gingham in the left row vertically. 

I love interactive cards, but don't make them often enough. This one is an interlocking  gatefold and it was so fun to make, I can't wait to try another one! The card measures 5.5 x 5.5 and I want to remind you that it will require extra postage. I needed the extra space to feature those beautiful berries! 

The sentiment is heat embossed, and there is embossed texture on the die cuts. I added a bit of shading with Copics and inks. 

Please be sure to check out the fantastic cards from the team, and join us to play along! You will find them HERE. 

I'm so happy for your visit today! 

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Color Hues #67 Merlot and Navy

 Hello and happy Saturday, friends! My calendar page is turned to July 1 and that means a new duo for Color Hues!  Our dear Marcia has chosen Merlot and Navy for us to use, so pull out those supples and join us! My card features stencils with added stamping to give a vintage look. 

The white card base was first inked in the dark blue and wine using DOX inks and the Bold Bouquet Stencil from Gina K.  I lightly stamped with script randomly over the floral element. 

I got a little crazy with the mixed media aspect of this card, adding splatters with the darker blue ink. Lastly, I used a Ranger Ink stencil called Dot Fade, dabbing on Glitz Glitter Gel (also Gina K)  in random areas. It sure does shine and the texture is amazing.

Can you tell I had a blast making this card? I had no idea how it would turn out but I was really pleased with the result!

You will surely be pleased with the DT's takes on this challenge, so check it out! I'm so glad we can welcome Rosemary as our guest, too! As for me, I appreciate your visit so much! 

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!