Love You!

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This pleasantly chubby cat is going to be putting a smile on my daughter's face during her first lunch in a school cafeteria. Yep. It's her first day of school and if she can get to opening up her lunch bag, she'll be greeted by the Paper Smooches Chubby cat.

He's ready to play with his ball of matching yarn, but not before letting my daughter know how dearly we love her today!

Thanks for stopping by!

Details:
Stamps: Paper Smooches Chubby Chums and Pretty Phrases
Paper: Kraft (Hobby Lobby), smooth white (Neenah)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento), Copic Markers
Accessories: circle punch (SU!), orange Perle Coton #8 (Michael's Loops and Thread), orange satin ribbon (Offray)

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Miss You Like Crazy!

Today I'm posting a card that is inspired by my motherly instincts kicking in this week. My sweet 6 year old girl goes off to school next week... FOR THE WHOLE DAY! I am going to miss her like crazy, but I can't tell her that or we'll never part at the classroom door. I can let you all know how much I'll be missing her and that will make it all better, right?

This card is going in with the Viva La Verve August gallery on Splitcoast Stampers. It's a fun sketch every Friday and if you happen to get all the sketches in a month you might just win some Verve goodies! I used Amber's sketch from week 1...

 
I stacked some dimensional adhesive squares behind the sentiment so it looks like it’s draping over the tag. That butterfly is a CASE from somewhere in the Verve gallery or a blog hop. I’m sorry I can’t give due credit for that idea, but I can give a shout out to Amber for the idea with the embossing folder on the side of my base panel.



A fun technique to try out is cut the sticky end of a sticky note and use it as an edge for your sponge distressing. I tried it on my back panel and promptly covered it up with all my layers. Here’s a snapshot of the idea.



Thanks for stopping by this fine Friday!

Details: (5 1/2-inch square card size)
Stamps: Hope Blooms, Sweet Scallop Tag
Paper: Journey DP (Authentique), kraft (Hobby Lobby), Basic Black (SU), tracing paper
Ink: Basic Black (SU), Soot (Ranger), Faded Denim (Ranger)
Accessories: Flutterby Die (Verve), black medium eyelets (American Crafts), sewing machine, zig zag scissors (Fiskars), Just my Type embossing folder (Provocraft), aida cloth, DIY ruffled blue ribbon, sponge distress tool (CTMH)

The sweetest cupcake…

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Good morning! Over the weekend I made up this little card using an image from DigiStamp Boutique. I've been missing my digi-images and decided to print them out, give them a little love and get my feet wet with some new markers.

My card has a cupcake from an A4 collection called Mother’s Day Sheet. It’s no longer at the boutique, but there is another adorable cupcake in the Everyday Collection 1 set.

There are plenty of sketch challenges out there and I am always going to find one to finish my cards up, but this time I knew what I wanted to do with this sweet cupcake. If you want to have a fun and easy sketch to try out here you go. Leave me a comment if you decide to join me! I’d love to know how you used the sketch so leave a link for me to hop on over and see!

Hope you have a wonderful Monday and thanks for stopping by!

Details: (A2 size card)
Stamps: Mother’s Day Sheet A4 Collection
Paper: kraft (Hobby Lobby), chocolate (Wausau), smooth white (Neenah)
Ink: laserjet, copic markers
Accessories: Doodolonomy Fred (free font), pop dots

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Miss U.

Getting MME Stella and Rose "Remember" stamps inky.

And fussy cutting a garage sale Stampin Up set Defining Alphas.

And my hand crochet rose bud.



Have a beautiful day!

Details:
Card size: A2
Stamps: MME Stella and Rose Hattie “Remember” Stamps, Hero Arts Friends Definition
Paper: Kraft, Stella and Rose Hazel Papers
Ink: VersaMark, Memento Black, CTMH Brown Bag
Accessories: pinking shears rotary cutter, buttons, crochet rose bud, Zing Charcoal EP

Tag You’re It!

Tuesday I was inspired to create. I had just finished looking through the Verve Release Spotlight Blog Hop and I read that this week was a Get Your Diva On challenge, to create something on or with a tag.

I wasn’t sure if I could make time to play along, but then my mind started figuring out something new I wanted to try; gigantic cardboard!

I grabbed some kraft paper from Hobby Lobby (it is a very toothy/textured cardstock) and about ten Prismacolor markers. I cut the paper into about a 4 x 11 inch strip and misted it down with water. I set the paper down on my cutting mat and then weaved a marker below it and above it, pressing down on it all as I went so that it would stay flat, but also so it would curve the cardstock. Once done, I grabbed a mason jar as stops for the weaved paper, keeping the markers flat with a couple more jars on top and walked away for it to dry. The next day I went for the white glue bottle and some more kraft cardstock of the same size and created the top and bottom of the cardboard. Those instructions are found on Youtube here. I walked away and let it dry over night.

Oh this was so much fun to make! I played with all the techniques or embellishments styles I’ve been seeing this week during Verve’s release week blog hop.
The tag front was created using the Viva La Verve Week 2 sketch by Andrea Ewen this month.


Thanks for hanging in there to the end! I hope you are having a great weekend, everybody!

Details:
Tag Size: 4 x 8 inches
Stamps: New Mercies, Sweet Scallop Tag Stamp
Paper: Journey (Authentique Papers), kraft (Hobby Lobby), Dark Blue
Ink: VersaMark, Ranger Tea Dye Stain Ink
Accessories: Sweet Scallop Die, Liquid Pearls, MFT scallop die, Martha Stewart border die, sewing machine, Sissix embossing folder, poster chalks, Glimmer mist, Stampin Up silver cord, Brocade Blue ribbon, shell button, Hemp twine, Jute twine, Zing Silver Embossing Powder

What is she doing?

I’ve been working hard this summer to get through some non paper crafting projects, so when winter hits I can just be in my craft studio and play. The problem lies in the fact that I can’t stop creating projects. So when I see something that needs to be adorned or emphasized I’m on it. I was happily working on a small thank you gift this spring, that quite honestly I was afraid to send. In the end I made up something totally different and it’s finally out the door and in the recipients hands. That and sewing a 1940’s dress pattern for a friend’s daughter (I promise I’ll post that one when I haven’t a card to show you).

Yes, sewing. One more thing I like to do. I love fabric just a teensy weensy less than I love paper. I have more paper at present.

Sewing is a good creative outlet while I’m not doing card making (and not tackling the other projects I should be doing). So when I saw Larissa’s tooth fairy pillow last week on her mmmcrafts blog, my heart jumped a beat and then almost stopped completely when I saw she offered the best photo tutorial AND pattern to make it myself. I was searching for a simple option to hold my daughter’s tooth when the tooth fairy came around, loose tooth pending, but hey I’ll create more work for me when it’s this amazingly cute. LOL. This tooth fairy pillow won over the child in me. I now secretly wish one of my teeth would start to move loosely. Talk about an easy project! I’m now in the process of making one for my daughter’s friend who has two loose teeth and then one for my son. He’s not going to start losing teeth yet (I hope), but if I’ve got the supplies out I might as well get it done. Maybe a basketball tooth “angel” as he calls them. This one is only lacking some glittery wings and it’s done.

Have a blessed day and I hope I haven’t enabled too many of you with yet another ADORABLE projects because of my blog search find. :)

Mojo Monday 202 - Blessings

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My card today is for the Mojo Monday contest last week. Sketch 202 is amazing and I was so excited to create with it. My week got away from and then most of my weekend. I squeaked in some time to make this card.

I did a few fun techniques with this card. The first one was to use one of my neglected embossing folders and sewing machine, but what made it even more fun was to spread some white gesso across the pattern in a few spots and let it dry. I pulled out a Mister bottle with diluted Rose Red inker and sprayed a couple of places then grabbed my heat gun to set it and create a watercolor look. I wanted the edges to pop out alittle bit more and that meant sponging around the edges with Ranger's Antique Linen. (I did this again on the sentiment panel.) The overall affect was quite lovely.

The other technique was to go window shopping for tuts on how to make or crochet some ribbon tails. Of course I didn't find any that matched what I had dreamed up in my mind, but I did run across a photo of some Maya Road Canvas pennants that I CASE'd but used aida cloth and brass eyelets. Those little gems were die cut with the larger size pennant die from PTI's Banner Builder Collection set.

Lots of fun with this little card and I wish I could have beat the clock and had it posted in time for the contest portion of the sketch. It is a fantastic and unique sketch I'll be using again and again.

Details:
Stamps: Words Cannot Express
Paper: Neenah White, Dusty Durango, Kraft
Ink: Rose Red, Old Olive
Accessories: Paper crimper, aida cloth, PTI banner die, sewing machine, crop-a-dile, brass eyelets, MS border punch, Silver glitter spray, Nestabilities scallop and circle dies

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A CASE Study Challenge Anniversary Card

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I've thoroughly enjoyed visiting the design teams CASE on themselves over at the CASE Study's Anniversary Blog Hop. They are an amazingly talented and sweet group who inspire and encourage the best I've seen in awhile. To see the details about the hop go to the post on Thursday at the CASE Study Challenge blog.... here.

At the end of the hop list there is a time for us who have finished drooling to join in on the anniversary fun. Pick any past or present design team member to CASE!!! I glanced over to the sidebar and immediately saw Mercy Kerin. I enjoyed looking at all of her creations every week and for some reason missed that she was a muse at one time for CASE. I'm sure that's not part of the rules, but I was drawn to this long card design here.

And here is my CASE...

The flowers are from the Stampendous Ranunculus set and I used my Prismacolor markers on them after masking and stamping them out with Memento Ink.

Details:
Stamps: Stampendous Ranunculus Perfectly Clear Set
Paper: Pumpkin Pie, Basic Black, Neenah White
Ink: Memento Ink, Prismacolor Markers
Accessories: Michael's Black Gingham ribbon, Queen and Co. Rhinestones

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