Happy Heart Day

Soon it will be Valentine's Day!  Last week, I sent this greeting along to my stepdaughter and her family.  We have to do holidays long distance.

To create the large heart, I cut a large heart from scrap paper on the Cricut.  I then traced around it on the card to create a guide for placing the small punched hearts.

It seems I've been doing more cards than anything lately.  Tomorrow I have another for you and some videos in the Scrapbooker to Card maker series.  Also, card class is coming up here in a few days so I've been prepping for that too.  I love making cards though I get restless and want to return to scrapbook pages.  I've got some photos right here just waiting to go on a page.

Also this weekend I began a cardstock reorganization project.  This led to cleaning out a lot of old DSP as well. I'll post some photos when it is done.  Unfortunately, I couldn't get all the supplies I needed locally and had to order. Everything should be here by the end of the week.

Hope you have a great start to the week!  Thanks for dropping by.

Ingredients:  Stamps:  Happy Heart Day by Stampin' Up!
Cardstock:  Aqua Mist by Papertrey Ink

Scraplifting to a Card

Banners have been a big thing for a couple of years at least.  Lately, I've seen people making banners on their scrapbook pages from a random assortment of tags, punched items, die cuts, flowers, pretty much anything you can hang on a string. I love this affect.  I lifted the idea for my card.  Here is a great page in the Two Peas gallery from brianaj that illustrates the effect:  2P's Gallery Page

To make my garland, I used Doodlebug twine and strung on two Cricut cut tags, a scallop punch circle and a heart punch.  On the tags I added another heart and a little trim.  Inking the edges with the same fushia colored ink brought everything together.

Speaking of great ideas in our crafting world, the Cricut magazine for January has many and I have it thanks to the giveaway on Dell's blog.  Thanks, Dell!  There is an adorable little robot card in the magazine that I'd love to do Dillon's birthday in a couple of months.  Boy cards are challenging for me and I think this one is ideal.

In other news, my husband and I went van shopping yesterday.  We narrowed the choice to two.  He likes one and I like another.  Oh well, it wasn't like I was going to pick one on the first outing.  I don't buy a pair so shoes without looking at them at least three times.  So, more research...

Thanks for visiting today!  Hope you have a wonderful weekend.

Ingredients:  DSP: Geo Floral K and Company; Butterscotch by October Afternoon
Cardstock:  Naturals Ivory and Blushing Bride from Stampin' Up!
Ink:  Melon Mambo from Stampin' Up!

70 Years

Can you imagine being married for 70 years?  It is an incredible accomplishment.  Yesterday was my aunt and uncle's anniversary.

They married in 1942 less than 2 months after Pearl Harbor when Fred was about to go off to war.  When he returned they started a dairy farm.  He helped Thelma with the morning milking and then went to his regular job as a brick mason to return to help with the evening milking.  She ran the farm and household all day and raised two sons.  Today, they still live in the same house together.

We went to see them and take them their card.  They were in good spirits and I took their photo along with a promise not to share it.  Thelma didn't have her hair done and she was in work clothes.  Yes, she still works around the house and yard though now from a wheelchair.  She showed us some hydrangea's she was rooting to plant in the spring.

We adore them and hope they will be able to continue to live together at home for a long time.

The card is made from October Afternoon papers cut into hexagons by the Cricut.  I thought their vintage look was appropriate.  There was even a little cow paper.   Sewing around these reminded me why my one hexagon quilt never got very far.  There are a lot of stops and starts.

One of the Two Peas challenges this week is to use hexagons on a project. They are apparently a popular design element in the new collections.

Thanks for visiting today!

Ingredients:  DSP:  October Afternoon Farm Fresh, Thrift Shop, Fly a Kite 6x6 paper pads
Twine: My Mind's Eye
Stickers:  Thickers by American Crafts

the Great Escape

Squirrels are so cute.  I know they are rats with fuzzy tails but I still think they are cute...until they get into the drain pipe or run down the chimney or eat all my bird seed!

Last summer my husband heard a noise in the gutter.  He had me listen and at first nothing but soon, I heard it too so we set about to rescue whatever was down there.  We put a tie down strap down the gutter and left it overnight.  The sound was gone the next morning and then we began to see this little squirrel in our yard.  I wonder if he is the same one now eatting up all my birdseed?

The layout is based on a sketch of Shimelle's from a past class at Two Peas in a Bucket.  This week 2P's is doing all kinds of challenges to celebrate the new CHA releases.  This one is called: #6 Pick a Sketch.  See the entire list of challenges here.  Challenges are open through Sunday Feb 5.

I'd had that die cut from Crate Paper's Lemongrass collection forever knowing someday I'd have some squirrel story to tell.

Thanks for visiting today!

Ingredients:  DSP: background is Winter Park from Echo Park; other papers are Memoir collection from Studio Calico  Several of these are from ArtfulDelight.com's January kit.
Chipboard:  Sunrise Thickers by American Crafts and the orange is from Basic Grey
Word stickers:  Authentique

From Scrapbooker to Cardmaker: Using Embellishments

I was about to start talking about stamping on cards for those who are scrapbookers and may or not be stampers, but then realized I'd only really emphasized using pattern paper for making cards in this video series.  There are a lot of other scrapbooking supplies and tools you can use on your cards.

This video shows three cards I made using various scrapbooking supplies and tools:  Chipboard, Rub-ons, the Cricut, buttons and twine.  I also shared this box which is like the card above and features a lot of printed chipboard elements - sliders or buckles or whatever they are called that just hadn't found a home.  Now they have!

Watch at YouTube

Thanks for visiting today!

Ingredients:  Chipboard:  K& Company

DSP on blue card:  Marrakesh collection by Basic Grey

Butterflies:  My Mind's Eye

Green polka dot ribbon:  American Crafts

Rhinestones:  Hobby Lobby jewelry section

Pearls:  Pretties Kit by Stampin' Up!

Single Heart Card

Hope you are having a wonderful weekend.  It was very warm here today for January and I got in a nice walk after a quick trip up to the apple house to get some Golden Delicious apples.  It was probably my last trip for the season as the bins were getting low.  They keep apples in cold storage for several months after picking.  The last ones we had were wonderful.  I got a few extra to keep in the refrigerator in hopes of keeping the season going.

My card today is my parent's Valentine.  From Rainy's blog I found out about the Sisters in Christ challenge to use one significant heart on a card. Check out her blog for her fabulous submissions.

For my card, I repeated a word stamp on the background and embossed in gold on dark chocolate cardstock.  The flap is stamped with a woodblock stamp.  My heart is painted with homemade shimmer paint using some close to cocoa ink and gold Perfect Pearls powder.  After painting, I pressed a clean, clear flourish stamp onto the heart to leave an tone-on-tone look.

I have trouble photographing these multi-fold cards but I think you get the effect.  Thanks for visiting!

Ingredients:  Stamps: love background from Stampin' Up! (this is a wheel and I don't know the name of it); Woodgrain from Hero Arts
Cardstock:  Dark Chocolate from Papertrey Ink
Red glittery ribbon:  My Mind's Eye
Stick Pin: Pretties Kit from Stampin' Up!
Twine:  DMC

Beat the Winter blues

with pretty new spring papers and embellishments!

CHA (Craft and Hobby Association) is having their semi-annual show starting this weekend so the paper crafting community is unveiling there new lines.  Here are a few of the blogs I've visited that have giveaways going...

Head over to Bella Blvd's blog for chances to win product from their new line.  There are several posts with giveaways that end  Sat, Jan 28.

American Crafts still has one giveaway open for a few days.  Looks like they are going to challenge Copics in the marker world.

Pink Paislee is revealing their collection a day at a time with giveaways.  I don't know how long the giveaways go on but probably not long.

Also, it is Sale-a-bration time at Stampin' Up!  For every $50 you spend you get to pick something from the special SAB catalog.  I've been super frugal all month so I could do a SU! order stocking up on paper and ink and getting some free stuff.   This year they have a few items from the regular catalog as SAB choices but they are not doing the 'any stamp set under $14' thing so you must pick from the SAB catalog.  There are lots of choices.

It sure isn't that I need any pretty paper but I do love to look :-)

Whee! Whee!

Whee!  Whee, Whee, Whee, Whee!!!  That was the call around our house last January whenever the Geico commercial with the little piggy came on the TV or Hulu.  My husband loved to make the sound and wave his arms prompting Jasper, our cat, to run from the room.  Jasper hated the little piggy and his imitator.

Now there is a new commercial with the little piggy going Whee, Whee, Whee down a zip-line.  Lenny has only seen it once and it hasn't made it to Hulu yet.  If it does, I'm sure there will be more fun or frustration depending on whether your perspective is human or feline.

This month's Scrapbooker's Anonymous challenge is to use masking and either paint, mist or ink.  The Cricut cut out 5 Whee words for me and I adhered them to some plain white cardstock using removable adhesive.  Then I sponged Brocade Blue ink from Stampin' Up! over them and misted them with a homemade mist from some Ranger Tumbled Glass ink.  

I have a new blinkie on my sidebar as I was one of Scrapbooker's Anonymous picks from last month which tickled me.  You still have a few more days to submit a layout with masking and misting/ink/painting.  You could win their prize or get a fav pick.  It's a good chance to work with those mists we've all been collecting.

The little flags were inspired by a Jen Gallager layout at Two Peas.  I made my own flags with toothpicks and designer paper.  

What I loved most about doing this layout was getting to do fun things like the flags and the pinwheel. Without children to scrap most of the time, I don't get to do as much fun stuff.  I should remember that I have a 'senior child' and a somewhat silly cat.  Who needs kids?

Thanks for visiting!  (I hope you can comment.  I've heard there are problems on my and some other blogs but I can't find anything about it or a fix.)

Ingredients:  Stamps: Favorite Memories by Ali Edwards for Technique Tuesday

Font: Bauhaus

Designer Paper:  Stampin' Up; Winter wonder  by Bella Blvd

Trim:  Daffodil Delight pom pom and silver brads by Stampin' Up!

Bookplate:  Fancy Pants