Hurray for the Red, White and Blue.

It's been a busy few weeks making cards and here are a few Any Hero cards I finished up last night using up scraps from a previous project.  And there is a challenge this month to make cards using primary colors on Our Daily Bread Designs, so I figured one of these would fit that bill.  (They sponsor a challenge every month:  If OWH card makers post a picture using the theme of that month, they will sponsor up to 2 boxes of cards to be sent to our troops.  So it's a win win!)

It's fun to try something new every month and get ideas from other card makers too.  I love it.

I'll upload Christmas cards later.  I've been busy.  :)

Christmas ornament with a circle punch...

Joanne Masury  posted a picture of a card using Christmas ornaments she saw at the post office. It gave me a great idea for a card and I have tons of Christmas theme card stock/paper, so I whipped this out.  This is going to be one of many I'm making to mail out this season.

I punched out probably a thousand (I exaggerate) circles with my CTMH 1 1/4" circle punch,  For the finding at the top of the Christmas balls, I cut strips from some metallic textured CS I had in my stash, cut those into about 1/2" pieces and used mini glue dots to attach to the back of each circle.  Then I stuck the balls down on the green CS in a random fashion with 1/2" glue dots.

Finally I heat embossed the gold sentiment ball (from a CTMH Christmas set) and popped it up with the Precious.  I like it.  :)

Card stock and design paper are from my stash.  The Gold embossing powder is by Stampendous.

(Update 11/29/14:  I wasn't happy with the green and red CS I used on the first one, so I replaced it with some new CS I bought at Craft Warehouse.  The label only says it's a Super Value Pack of acid/lignin free paper , "Christmas", in assorted red, green and white paper, distributed by Petersen-Arne, Eugene, OR.  I think I like the brighter color on this.)

Seongsook's Screen Card Challenge

This week we were challenged with making a screen card like some of the beautiful card's Seongsook has made.  Her tutorial has pics of some of them, and the instructions! It looks hard, but is really easy following her tutorial.

http://seongsookduncan.blogspot.com/2014/10/my-collection-of-screen-cards.html


Here are two I made this week, and I think they just might be my Christmas card this year.  They really are fun to make.

Another one for the Music challenge.

I started this one last night and finished it today.  Originally I wasn't going to color the Brownies because they are just so eensy-weensy, but it looked too plain, so they all got different colored hats.  And who doesn't think a choir of Brownies isn't just the cutest thing in the world?

The blue embossed paper has music on it as well, but it appears all the treble clefs and notes were covered by the other pieces.  Oh well, we know they are singing because they all have sheet music.  I figured they were singing happy birthday on this one, so that's what I went with.  :)

Image - Stamp Francisco

Happy Birthday - SU

Number DP - SU

Turquoise embossed paper - KI Memories / Roxie Charming

Green mat - stash

Ribbon - Autumn Inspirations - JoAnn Stores

Inks - Tempting Turquoise / SU

October card making fun...Triple Time Stamping, a Music challenge and a final Halloween card.

10/20/14

I thought it was time to jump on  the "Triple Time Stamping" band wagon, so here are some cards I made using this lay out.  Cindy Rapson shared a YT video on it on FB made by Jennifer McGuire, a super crafter and a big name in the business.  Awesome videos!  I'll be going back to get more of her stuff, you can be sure of that.

Anyway, here are the cards I made and I'm sure I'll be making more of these.  I think they look great. (She said unabashedly.)  And there are so many other ideas to try with this, I will certainly be back on the band wagon later.

This one will also go to my friend Cora for the Thankful card swap on Seongsook's FB page.  Don't tell her, because I haven't mailed it yet.  (shhhh)

Sentiment - Hero Arts / Thanksgiving

Small Oak leaf - Hero Arts

Wheat Spray - Hero Arts

Small Maple Leaf & Small Birch Leaf - Stampendous / Fall Foliage

CS - SU Black

Baker's twine - stash

I should sent Cora this one too because she suggested a coffee/tea challenge earlier in the month and I never got around to making one in time or posting it.  We are both great believers in quantities of coffee.  Yum.

Sentiment - Whipper Snapper Designs

Coffee bean and Coffee Pot - CTMH

Ink Pepperwood - CTMH

Memento - Tuxedo Black

Button / Baker's swine - stash

CS - SU Black

~

10/23-24

Dry Embossing and Music

We had a challenge in our group this week for anything with music in some way, so you know I HAD to do this one.  I even thought about making a card for every music stamp I own, but actually there aren't that many. I may keep adding some because it's near and dear to my heart.  (And some of these haven't even seen ink yet.)

The sentiment and image are one stamp from CTMH that I've had for ages and have hardly used.  It's really a cute stamp.  I popped it up with some of the Precious on top of the embossed pink card stock.  I used a Cuttlebug embossing folder that has sheet music on it.  The black CS is from SU, the ribbon and quarter note embellishment are from my stash.  That cute little lacy border on the bottom was from a punch I borrowed from my dear friend Ellen.  She's in the middle of moving into an apartment, so she said she wouldn't be needing it for awhile.  I should make a lot of borders while I have it.  :)  And ink by Memento - Tuxedo black.

~

10/27

And here is my final Halloween card that I sent out this year.  I had so much fun getting my stamps out again.  The last couple of years I don't think I made any Halloween cards at all, and it's a shame because I have a whole drawer full of Halloween stamps.  To tell the truth, if you asked me why, I would say just because they were so dang cute, because after all, Halloween isn't really a holiday folks celebrate, you know?  

And this one has a CAT.

October ODBD Challenge - Snowflakes.

Just wanted to get this in for the monthly challenge.  ODBD is so good to Operation Write Home...for every 25 cards folks post, they will sponsor the postage for 1 box of cards to the troops.  Yeah, it's a good thing.  :)

Halloween 2014

I have a ton of cute Halloween stamps and just got in the mood to get them out this year and make some cards.  OWH doesn't need them...it's not really a holiday the troops ask for cards for, and the deadlines for the fall cards is so early, I just couldn't get into the spirit (no pun intended) of making them in August.  But with our new group of card making friends on FB, I got into it this last week and made a bunch.  The card swap, I think, started it all and I've had more fun this week making cards for All Hallow's Eve.  I know folks don't expect to get cards at Halloween, but there will be happy little notes going out to many in my address book soon.  I hope, at least, it will bring a few smiles.

So here is what I've been working on this week.  Grant has already groaned on the candy corn shape of some of them, so my job is done here.  :)

Ghost stamp - Katie Hall for Hampton Arts

"One day a year...Priceless" - DRS Designs

"Candy", cat and candy corn stickers - stash

Tiny spider stamp - CTMH

ribbon - stash

DP - stash

Ribbons - Michaels

brads - stash

DP - DCWV Fall stack

Frankenstein glittered and popped sticker - stash

Happy Halloween - VAP! Craft

DP - stash

Poison bottle sticker - stash

Have a Boo-tiful Halloween - Stampabilities

Ghost - Katie Hall for Hampton Arts

DP - stash

Black ink  - Memento / Tuxedo Black

~

Have a spooky Halloween...and don't eat too much chocolate.

Just a note on a piano...

I've had the idea of making a card with a piano keyboard for a long time and finally got myself to do one 10/12/14.  I think I'm going to make some more  and cut out a rose with a stem to lay across the keys...or using rainbow colors for the different white keys...yeah, lots of ideas with this one.  I do have more music themed stamps after all.  :)

I really like how it turned out, so I made some for my drawer and some for my OWH box too.  It's prefect, don't you think, me being a music major and all?  And it was pretty easy, just cutting the strips, snipping the corners of the white keys with a corner rounder, taping them down, stamping a simple sentiment and adding a touch of red bling.  Sweet.

Sentiment - Ink Antics

Black CS - SU

Ink - SU / Real Red

Sequins - Craft Medley

Southwest Pottery

October 6, 2014

Hello, thank you, love you, happy birthday...are themes that are always useful, for my own card drawer and for OWH.  So I dug out my Southwest pottery stamps and decided to use them.  And because someone on our new FB stamping group page (Seongsook's Stampers) suggested a masculine card, I thought these would make some nice masculine cards, or cards I could send to my relatives that are in Nevada...so off I went!

Sketch - CTMH Card Confidence Program

SW Pots - Viva Las Vegas Stamps

Hello - Kathy Davis / Inkadinkado

Diamond background - Whipper Snapper Designs

Ink - 

Pots - Kaleidacolor / Creole Spice

CTMH / Peach Whip

SU / Old Olive

Card stock - stash

~

The pot on these cards were stamped with one stamp from a set of four by CTMH / Southwest Pots.

I stamped it on chalkboard paper, then heat embossed it with white embossing powder and fussy cut it out.  The pink paper is Mulberry paper was gifted to me by my BFF, Lanora Spady.  I have a little bit of Mulberry paper in my hoard of craft supplies, but she gave me a lovely pack of all different shades and I thought it would be perfect paired with the pots.  Thanks Punky, still loving you like I did when we were teenagers and I cherish the times we get together with our other two cohorts, Kathy Teyler Jarrett and Dorothy Stude Cottingham.  (They'll always be Teyler and Stude to me.)

hee hee

I made several of these cards in pink and also light orange Mulberry paper for my next box to OWH.  I'm sure there is a sketch in the OWH sketch book that has this design, but I don't have the number of it handy.  It's one of the early sketch ideas, I think.  I know I made a similar design when I first started making cards last century, when I was getting into this fun craft and going to CTMH parties with Amy Baker and friends from work.  

I love how old friends still touch our lives even years later.  I hope they get a smile knowing I'm thinking about them when I create.

Happy Birthday sentiment - Hero Arts / Thanks

Fibers are from my yarn/fiber stash

CS and Mulberry Paper are from my stash

Ink - Memento / Tuxedo Black

I made a couple each with Thank You and Love You on them.

Now I want to go back to the SW and feel the warm dry wind blowing on my face, or maybe I'll just check out a Tony Hillerman novel and lose myself in the Four Corners.  :)

September ODBD challenge and Fall foliage color challenge.

Every month Our Daily Bread Designs issues a challenge to make a card and post it.  For every 50 cards submitted they sponsor the postage on a large flat rate box of cards to be sent from OWH for our troops.  A couple of days ago, there were only 47, so I wanted to add one more.  Today, I see there are 51, so whoopee, they made the goal.  Mine will be #52.  I just have to get on the challenge sooner in October!

The September challenge card was to make a card with a background we made ourselves, so here is my entry.  I love fall colors.

Sentiment - Hero Arts / Autumn 

Leaves - Stampendous / Fall Foliage

CS - stash

Brads - stash

Ink:

SU - Real Red, Pumpkin Pie, Gumball Green

CTMH - Oak Brown, Terracotta

Memento - Tuxedo Black

~

This card also qualifies as one for the fall foliage challenge Cora posted yesterday inspired by this picture she shared from a news source in Minnesota.  These challenges sure do serve to stretch our creative boundaries...and add a lot of color to our FB wall on Seongsook's Stampers.  I love this group of crafty ladies.  <3

A baby card for Shannon Daughtry. It's a girl! (soon)

My dear BFFTINMIP  (best friend forever that I never met in person), Shannon, is having a baby soon. We met on Navy4Moms when Trevor went into the Navy.  Shannon's husband is in the Navy Reserves and we bonded on line over recipes, crafting, having kids, missing our loved ones and being progressive supporters of the military.  She has 2 teenagers now, and a happy little miracle on the way.  I can't wait to see pictures.  She lives in Pennsylvania and I hope to get back there one day to meet her face to face.

Anyway, I've been meaning to make her a special card and found this darling idea on Pinterest.  So I got some baby yarn and whipped out a couple of skewers and knit up a little shirt, dug into my stash for papers, stamps, and voila.  A baby card to send to my dear friend.  I cut off the skewers after I knit the shirt to a more realistic length and glued some beads on the end...miniature knitting needles.  (See, I can knit!)

I can't wait to hear how she likes it.

Sentiment - Kathy Davis / Inkadinkado 

Baby Baby / Rubber Stampede

Lion Brand Baby Soft Yarn / Twinkle Print

CS - stash

Ink - SU / Regal Rose

Memento / Tuxedo Black

Glossy Accents on the heart

Patriotic Thank You

Cora had a card recently that had ribbons tied on the edge that I just loved.  I had to make a card using that idea.  The ribbon is threaded through holes in the card stock to simulate a bow, but done this way really cuts down on the thickness because it is not a knot.  I like how it turned out, although threading the ribbon through the holes and back up and out wore out one needle threader.  Those are meant for thread, not ribbon, after all.  :)  These will probably be Any Hero cards and I can also toss a couple in my next OWH box for the troops.  They ask for thank you cards they can send too.  Win, win.

9/29/14

Sentiment - Inkadinkado

DP - Kraft w/stars / Reminisce We R Memory Keepers / Let Freedom Ring

Red/ w/stars - We R Memory Keepers

CS - Gina K / In the Navy

Gina K / cherry Red

Ribbon - stash (some more of that super ribbons my friend Rose gave me)

Ink - SU / Midnight Muse

Catching up on posting pictures of cards for OWH.

I find that I've been busy making cards and not blogging about it.  :)  So here are the ones I've been working on in the last month or so.  I managed to fill a shoe box with about 100 cards that will probably be going out to Sandy at OWH on Monday.

August 19 / Using up Stickers:

Sentiment - computer generated

DP - Durham Ent. / rulers

CS - stash

"Missing U" - Hero Arts / Year Round Sentiments

DP / CS / Stickers - stash

Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black

Baker's Twine - stash

~

August 22

Sentiment - Hero Arts OWH / Dude Set

DP - Teresa Collins / You Are My Happy

CS - yellow - stash

SU Pumpkin Pie

Brads - stash

Ink - SU / Soft Suede

Dies - SU / Perfect Pennants

GOOGLY EYES!

Sentiment - Hero Arts / You're A Winner

DP - Reminisce / Monsters

CS - SU / Real Red

Gina K.  - Navy

Ink - SU / Midnight Muse

~

August 24

Sentiment - Mama Elephant / In My Heart

Motorcycle - SU / Rev Up the Fun

Stamp images behind sentiment - CTMH / Pen Pals

Queen & Co. Washi Tape / Travel

CS and DP - stash

Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black

Stamps behind sentiment stamped in CTMH - Creme Brûlée & SU - Soft Suede

~

August 26

Sentiment - Hero Arts / My Type

DP - Authentique / Studious

Border DP - stash

CS - stash

Ink - SU Pacific Point

~

Sentiment - SU / Rev Up The Fun

Bicycle - Gourmet Rubber Stamps

DP - DCWV 6x6 Big Stack

CS - Gina K. / Pure Luxury Navy

Sequins - stash

Ink - SU / Midnight Muse

Memento Tuxedo Black

~

September 6

OWH Sketch B13

Sentiment - Viva Las Vegas Stamps

Bike - Gourmet Rubber Stamps

DP - SU / Birthday

CS - stash

Ink - SU / Pacific Point

~

September 25

Sentiment & Image - My Favorite Things / Scientist

DP - More of that Periodic Table of Elements Chart paper

CS - Stash

Scientist colored with Copics

Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black

~

September 23, 24, 25...oh OK, 26 and 27 too.

I decided to wrestle scraps to the ground and work on sun burst cards.  I went to YouTube for a tutorial.  But for the life of me, my brain just wouldn't wrap itself around cutting the pieces for some reason.  What I should have done is go to the OWH blog about them, http://operationwritehome.org/tutorial-starburst/.  I had major brain freeze.  So I spent nearly three whole days just trying to play with the paper scraps and my paper cutter and finally just started slapping some long skinny triangles down on paper, then covered the center where the points met with sentiment elements.  I think I will not be making these again for awhile, but I think they came out nicely.  Off they go in the box.  I also used up an entire 6x6 pad - Echo Park by Lori Whitlock Paper Co. / Here and Now. Phew.  I think the scraps won.

Sentiment/heart/star - Simon Says Stamp - Avery Elle for OWH / Brave

CS - stash

ink - SU Primrose Petals

SU Pacific Point

SU Gumball Green

Sentiment - Saavy Stamps

Sentiment - Penny Black

Sentiment - Eat Cake Graphics

~

These two used scraps from 2 different 6x6 pads.

Sentiment - SU / Perfect Pennants embossed in white

Black board paper / DCWV Chalkboard Stack

~

And last, but not least is my Halloween Challenge card that will be going out in October.  Cora has been issuing a monthly challenge, and other ladies are suggesting weekly challenges.  My Red/Black/White card with the kitty posted earlier is one of those weekly challenges.  (I'm behind..I completely missed Cora's food challenge.  I was wrestling with the sun burst cards, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.)  

It's fun to make a card to send to one specific person.  I have Ronni Unger this month, so I hope she doesn't come over here to my blog before she gets it in the mail.  Shhhh.

(I didn't write the date down on this one, but it was probably during the week of the 16th if anyone is keeping track.  hee hee)

I made several of these with different sentiments and I'll send her one with a Halloween sentiment. 

Scarecrow and fall field silhouette - Karen Meder Collection by Peddler's Pack (Beaverton OR LSS)

Sentiment and branch - CTMH / Treasure Life

Row of cross stitches - Paper Smooches / Needle Little Love

Leaves - EK Autumn Leaves Border Punch

Crow - Die-Versions

Leaf brad - stash

CS - stash

Green Twine - Karen Foster Scrapper's Spools

Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black

SU - Old Olive

Weekly challenge on Seongsook's Stampers...Red/Black/White

I spent most of the week wrangling with scraps and mostly they won. But I finally did get a few sunburst cards done that will go in my OWH box. So today, when the red/black/white challenge came up, I thought, yeah, I need to make a different card! So here is my contribution. The red zig zag is hand made paper that I bought at a local paper store and the film strip was the back side of some 12x12 card stock with cameras on the front that I've had for ages. I stamped the sweet kittens face in the frames and it just came together. This was fun.

Cat image - All Night Media

Sentiment - Impression Obsession

Chevron paper - Hand made paper from The Paper Place

CS - Film Strip - Echo Park Paper Co. / Oh Snap

Black CS - SU

Ink - Real Red (distressing on sentiment)

Memento Tuxedo Black

Black Pearl Pen dots

Thanks for the challenge this week Raeanna.

The hardest cards to make...

For a dear friend.

Sentiment - SU / So Sorry

DP/CS - stash

Ribbon - Offray

Ink - SU / Rich Razzleberry

OWH Sketch #23

Happy Birthday card fun...

So I was thinking it was time to make some more birthday cards.  Now that I'm not concentrating so much on OWH, I have time to restock my drawer with cards I send out to my personal friends and family.  Yeah, they have been sadly neglected the last couple of years with most of my energy going to card making for the troops...and card kits for the OWH card making parties with my besties.

So here are a group of cards I made recently using a darling stamp set I got from Inkadinkado.

Images - Inkadinkado / Humorous Birthday

DP - SU / Birthday

CS / Stash

Images colored with Copics