Let's Play

 Hi there, hope you're doing well! Welcome back again to my blog. 

Playing is my theme for today. A few challenges inspired me to pull out some stamps to create just for the fun of it, breaking out the not-yet-used "Let's Play" stamps from Penny Black for today's card. 

This cutie and her pup were colored using Copic markers and combined with the sentiment from Altenew and the sketch from Freshly Made .

I'm also adding this to: 
NBUS Never Been Used Schtuff
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Four-legged Friends
Penny Black Saturday Challenge   On the Go
Just Us Girls  Word Week - PLAY

Thanks so much for spending time here today. I appreciate you! 

Be yourself

         Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Other supplies:
Penny Black - Let's Play Transparent stamps, Rounded EF
Altenew - Cascading Flowers stamps
Spellbinders Blush Card Stock

Happy Mail

 Hello friends, glad to be back! 

I had a bit of time in the craft room yesterday. I got into some of my stash piles and made a fun card. 

The great sketch at The Paper Players inspired me to sift through some of my patterned papers to see what would work with the layout. I love using something that's been hanging around awhile and giving it a new look.  This paper from Waffle Flower is making it's final appearance today. I've now used it up, yaaay!

I used the Postal dies from WPlus9 to cut the crimped edges and added a sentiment from The Greetery. Here's the terrific sketch from Anne Marie. 

Thanks for coming by to visit today. Life has been a bit busy lately, hope things are going well for you. I will be back tomorrow, for sure!

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!  

Feeling Tropical

 Well, hello again, I am thankful that you're hanging with me on my blog today. The weather has turned gorgeous! I've added some wonderful and welcome activities to my week, thanks to a burst of very good health!**  But I did manage to pull a card together, here it is! 

I loved seeing the wonderful colors in my new card stock from Concord and 9th and the bright greens and blue inspired stamps and die cuts with a tropical theme. 

Stamping the florals and leaves from WPlus9, I used the Tropic Fever dies to cut them out. Other leaves were cut from card stocks using dies from MFT (Greenery - retired.) 

Amy's lovely sketch at Freshly Made inspired my card layout. I am glad you've come by to visit today. I'm enjoying your comments and visits so much!

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

** My page on Sarcoidosis awareness describes my struggles with this rare disease and chronic symptoms.  I also have fibromyalgia. My energy and abilities fluctuate daily, weekly, monthly but I'm in a great place right now! Thankful to God who is my everything.

It's Time for a Sketch! The Paper Players #606

Hello stamping friends! I am always surprised when I gather a bit of this and that of what's left out in my craft room and make a card. I end up with combinations that are out of my wheelhouse and I like them! 

We have a lovely sketch this week from Anne Marie, and this is what I came up with.  

 These hollyhock blossoms (The Greetery) are sponged and inked, with additional shading using colored pencils. They were easy to assemble over the arched panel. 

 I loved the sketch! This will come in handy to use another time.

 I sure hope you'll check the samples from the team and play along! Til next time, sending hugs. 

 Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

The Greetery supplies:  A2 Arches Die; Botanicuts Hollyhocks Die

The Paper Players #592 A Sketch with Season of Chic

 Hello friends! Every once in a while a collection of products come by that seem to be just for you. I have long loved gathering sea shells at the beach and marveling at their natural beauty.  My home is filled with the collections! When I saw the Texture Chic Suite Collection  (Stampin' Up!) I knew it was for me!  With an assortment of seasonal images in a sketchy style with dies and shimmering papers, I envision beautiful creations throughout the year.  

Just in time for LeAnne's fabulous  sketch challenge at The Paper Players, here's my first card made with the brand new goodies. 

I layered two of the specialty papers onto a white card stock panel. I love the airy washes of color and gold foil accents in these. For the shells, I did layered stamping with Distress Oxide inks in Spun Sugar, Wild Honey and Broken China. The tiny shell is from the Seashells 3D embossing folder, snipped out and lightly sponged with ink.

They are assembled over a die cut piece of the Distressed Gold Specialty paper. I love this glimmer! A sweet sentiment stamped in Bermuda Bay and a scattering of elegant jewels (Buttercream by PPP) complete my project.

I hope you will head on over to see the gorgeous DT samples and join us for the sketch. I'd love to see what you make! You will also find this entry at the delightful NBUS Challenge (never-been-used-stuff.)

 Thanks so much for your visit today, hope you're able to find some time to get crafty! 

 Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

My Sweet Valentine

 Good morning and happy Saturday! 

I had some coloring fun the other evening, and saw a cute sketch yesterday. Combine the two and you get a sweet Valentine and a surprise post on a Saturday. 

Hope you like it! 

Don't these goodies look tempting? We woke up to a light snow this morning - unlike some of you who experienced the BIG storm. Still, it has me just wanting hot chocolate, you know? 

I colored the treats with Copics, adding some white gel pen highlights.  They are from Penny Black (My Sweet). The papers are from Honeybee stamps, can you tell I'm on a roll with using my DSP? 

Here's the lovely sketch by Jen M at Freshly Made Sketches. 

Sharing this also with dear Darnell over at NBUS since the stamps and paper are both brand new. Joining a new challenge too, Global Design Project has a Valentine theme. 

  I will be back tomorrow! I appreciate your visit so very much. Stay warm, and treat yourself with some kindness today. 

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

We are Family

 Hello there! It's been a snowy weekend and I've been happy staying inside and catching up on a few things. January is a big month for family birthdays and today that was my focus. A card needs to be in the mail tomorrow, so I got busy! 

My husband and I grew up in Maryland and his family spent lots of time on the water. When I saw the Gina K stamps depicting Magnificent Mallards I knew it would really help with those guy cards. The sentiments are specifically geared towards family adding to it's usefulness. 

My card is a CAS(E) of Mindy's fabulous card HERE. I was inspired by Jen's sketch at Freshly Made as well. Also entering at NBUS #34 as it's my first time using this set. 

That's it for me today! I hope your week is off to a wonderful start. 

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Harvest Meadow Meets Succulents

 How are you doing today, friends? Well, I hope! We've been enjoying gorgeous sunshine the last few days and it's still warm and pleasant outside. I love this Indian summer weather!

I know you came for a card, and I have been playing in the craft room too. The lovely sketch at The Paper Players has been on my mind, so here's the card I made using it. 

I fell in love with the Harvest Meadow DSP from Stampin' Up! and was trying to come up with a way to use the gorgeous pattern in pale neutrals. Inspiration comes from the strangest places. I have a friend who decorates beautifully. Her whole guest bath is done with pale kraft, gray, and white and sketchy botanical artwork. The only color in there was a bold pop of deep green from a tall succulent. I was brave enough to try to pair these images and patterns versus keeping it safe with matchy colors. What do you think? 

Using sponges to ink the pot image, I combined colors to give an ombre look. The only embellishment is the clear gloss addition to the plant pot, and added dimension to the die cut sentiment, which brings a pop of white. I think I like it!

Our friend loves succulents too, so this will be a thank you for having us to dinner. Hope she likes it! 

Thank you Paper Players for a great sketch!

I appreciate you so much for joining me here for a little bit. Be back tomorrow!

Be yourself.

     Find delight in your craft.

          Make something beautiful! 

Supplies used: 

Stamps: The Greetery - Pot-Pourri, stamps and dies

Accessories - WPlus9 - Welcome Dies

All the Little Things

 Good afternoon, it's Friday and I am here to share a quick post and a clean and simple card made for The Paper Players and Freshly Made Sketches challenges. 

Card making is my therapy and I've needed a bit more of that than usual lately. I'm trying to remind myself that I don't have to pull out ALL the stops for every card that I make, so jumping into challenges really helps me. Plus I get to use my stuff, old and new, and that is always a good thing! 

I combined the color and sketch challenges using a new set to me, The Little Things from WPlus9.  Now there's one more thank you card ready for me to mail. Also entering this at NBUS. 

Have a great weekend, and thank you for coming by today! 

Be yourself
          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Card details:

Rich Razzleberry card stock, Dsp - Waffle Flower 

Dies - Hexagons - WPlus9

Inks: Altenew - Green Fields, Shades of Purple

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

Keeping it CAS Tossed FLorals

 It is Friday, hope things are looking up for you! After a couple very warm sunny days, I had spring on my mind.  These lovelies are from the Tossed Florals stamps and include the Floral Border die from WPlus 9. 

Since I've been keeping up with Dawn's lives, I have a little pile of paper bits already cut or colored and just waiting to be used on a card. Some are panels or backgrounds.

That makes completing a sketch so easy! It spares me having  to THINK so long in order to decide what set or images to use. I'm using this one from Freshly Made sketches, turning it horizontally.

The florals were colored with Copics, and I cut a small panel to keep the card simple, adding a few cut out images for a focal point, and rounding the edges. 

Enjoy your dreams of spring, whatever that means for you! I got my second vaccine dose, so my dreams of spring involve visits to those people I love and have not seen in so long. VERY soon! Be still my heart. 

Sending hugs your way today too. 

Be yourself

     Delight in your craft 

        Make something beautiful!

Supplies used:

Stamps: WPlus9 - Tossed Florals, Hello & Thanks and dies; Waffle Flower - Potted Lily (sentiment)

Paper: Neenah Solar White

INK: Gina K Amalgam Ink 

Accessories: Floral Border Die, Nuvo Drops, Corner Rounder 

Wood Slices and Ribbon for Christmas

 I've missed a few days of posting but I need to get back to building my stash for Christmas. At the same time, I find I'm really enjoying fall, so how about a rustic theme for today's card? Stamping bits and pieces here and there has helped this card come together, using for the first time some fun new-to-me products from the Greetery: Wood Slices Dies, Written in Ribbons sentiments and the Fresh Sprigs stamps and dies. 

I didn't buy these when they first came out - but fell in love with the things I saw all over blogland and realized that I have nothing quite this style in my Christmas collection. For the wood slices, I used Bristol Smooth white card stock, and blended the pieces with Distress Oxide inks. After gluing them together, I spattered bits of brown inks. 

For the sprigs and greeting, I stamped in Altenew inks and die cut the pieces. After assembling the focal point, a bit more spattering with white acrylic paint completed the project. 

I'm playing with Freshly Made Sketches, The Paper Players and NBUS today.

Oops, I sort of missed seeing the silver or gold directive. Maybe the wood slice is golden? Thank you so much for coming by and I hope you are hanging in there with the continuing isolation situation. Stay well. 

Christmas Cheer with Winter Fox

Are you ready for another Christmas card? 

I don't usually grab up a limited supply set, but Winter Fox is a collaboration from SSS and Mama Elephant that is the exception. I loved these adorable foxes and share today's card where I've created a forest scene of their frolics and fun. 

I colored the images with Copics, adding details with a white gel pen, glossy accents to the fire and a wash of shimmer to the marshmallow. 

Papers from Stampin' Up! were used to cover the card front and the focal area. The Stitched Evergreen Trees (Poppystamps) were die cut to create the snowy hills. Spattered snowflakes were formed by flicking on white paint and I even added glitter to the snow. 

For the sentiment, I sponged Distress Oxide Inks in Candied Apple and Fired Brick onto white card stock and embossed the sentiment in white.

My inspiration began with The Paper Players sketch but took on a loose interpretation as the creative process evolved. 

Reading this post, I'm not sure if you get any idea of just how much fun I had making this! You will have to imagine what a grand time it was.
I hope some of the smiles are coming your way today! I know you will be seeing these furry foxes again! Have a great day ~

Be yourself

     Delight in your craft 

        Make something beautiful!

Cute Critters Continued

 Hey there! 

I have quite a few card ideas for critters coming up in future posts but today's card features the cuties from the Birthday Buds stamp set (MFT).

Creating an inked background was a perfect fit with the sketch offered this week at MFT so I was encouraged to play along. I loved coloring this pig and his buds with Copics. Oxide inks in Tumbled Glass and Cracked Pistachio were used and spatters added of water and white ink.

Don't know what I think of the glittered star in the sky since it's not a night scene. Blame it on the sketch as I needed a third circle, lol. A little fun and artistic freedom.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend ahead. Stay well, enjoy the things you can, and find ways to be creatively social Thanks so much for your kind visits and comments. You make my day!

Be yourself

     Delight in your craft 

        Make something beautiful!

FALL is my Favorite!

 Hello, it's Friday and I had time during the rainy day yesterday to create a card for my favorite season of the year! 

I just could not resist the adorable bears and the squirrel in the Hey Fall! stamp set from Sugar Pea Designs. I love the sentiments too. And pumpkins and a sunflower and the blue bird. Images were colored with Copics and cut with the coordinating dies.

I paired it up with the SugarCut-Birch Forest die also from Sugarpea. Sponging the background with Oxide inks also made me happy as I crafted! I stamped the sentiment on a piece of the ink blended card stock. Inspiration for the layout came from Judy at Freshly Made Sketches!  

I've acquired some new stamps and I'm glad to share them with you! Not sure when the spending freeze need will kick in, but I'm enjoying the new stamps and dies while they last! That also means I can enter the NBUS challenge which I love! 

I'm happy to be playing along. At the end of another week, I hope you are finding the silver lining to your days! 

Be yourself

     Delight in your craft 

        Make something beautiful!