Starry Birthday

Ever feel like a patterned paper needs something more? Sometimes I do, and there is no rule saying you can't change it up!

I stamped a bunch of stars on a piece of polka dot paper that just was not speaking to me, and went to town! On the DSP, the red is Raspberry Ripple. It fades quite a bit on the DSP, so when I matched it up to the cardstock, it matched better with Riding Hood Red. I had forgotten how much I like that color, so I am happy it worked out this way :)

This came out feeling more Western than I intended. I was going for more of a rugged masculine card without the cowboy feel. Oh, well. It is still a nice card. I also learned that you cannot run the new longer embossing folders through the Big Shot sideways.... so my Woodgrain embossing didn't quite go to the end. So I added the Baker's Twine. That is where the Western feeling comes in I think. I made a few of these for OWH, but embossed the other direction and skipped the twine. Looks good that way too, but I never did take a picture of that version..

• Stamps: Words of Courage (star), Memorable Moments
• Ink: Lucky Limeade, Soft Suede, Riding Hood Red, Raspberry Ripple
• Paper: Lucky Limeade, Soft Suede, Riding Hood Red, Very Vanilla, Print Poetry DSP pack
• Other: Big Shot with Woodgrain EF and Labels framelits, Early Espresso Baker's Twine, Festive Paper Piercing Pack, Paper Piercer and Mat, Signo white gel pen, dimensionals

 I used the Riding Hood Red ink on the inside of the card, since the DSP wouldn't be changing the color.

Sunny Smiles

I found some bright yellow embossing powder and have been having a lot of fun with it. I am really hoping for yellow embossing powder from Stampin' Up! as it is much better, but until then I will use this :) I made three versions of this card which were inspired by Jessica Witty here.

This one uses Hello, Doily and is fine and delicate.

• Stamps: Hello, Doily and Petite Pairs
• Ink: Illuminate, Pool Party marker, Early Espresso
• Paper: Whisper White, Crumb Cake
• Other: Embossing Buddy, Heat Gun, non-SU yellow embossing powder, Pool Party embossing powder, 1¾" and 1" Circle punches, Signo white gel pen, dimensionals

I made the Medallion on first, then the doily one. They both look like sunshine, but the Medallion one is much more bold.

• Stamps: Medallion, non-SU sentiment
• Ink: Illuminate, Early Espresso
• Paper: Whisper White, Crumb Cake
• Other: Embossing Buddy, Heat Gun, non-SU yellow embossing powder, Pool Party embossing powder, 2½" and 1¾" Circle punches, Signo white gel pen, dimensionals

 As I was typing this post up, I was struck with the idea to make this card with this set too. Then I had to dig around for a sentiment to use that fit the scale of the other images and the feeling of the card. Can you guess which set the sentiment is from?

• Stamps: Daydream Medallions, Best Dad Ever
• Ink: Illuminate, Early Espresso
• Paper: Whisper White, Crumb Cake
• Other: Embossing Buddy, Heat Gun, non-SU yellow embossing powder, Pool Party embossing powder, Big Shot with Floral Frames framelits, Signo white gel pen, dimensional, Essentials Paper Piercing Pack, Paper Piercer and Mat

So, which one do you like best? I can't decide myself!

Umbrellas and Dots

I just can't stop using these cheery umbrellas! Or are they parasols? I will let you decide! No regrets for getting this set here :) This was a "just for the fun of it" card. Yellow was apparently the color to play with for me that day because I made 2 more cards with lots of yellow that day too :)

The dots feel rain-like on this card, and are just plain fun. I did color the flower with the Daffodil Delight ink lightly too.

• Stamps: Rain or Shine, Distressed Dots
• Ink: Daffodil Delight, Marina Mist, Lucky Limeade, Basic Gray, Craft White
• Paper: Whisper White, Crumb Cake
• Other: Big Shot with Large Scallop edgelit, Essentials Paper Piercing Pack, Paper Piercer with Mat, Daffodil Delight ¼" Stitched Grosgrain, Vanilla 5/8" Flower Trim, Signo White gel pen 

I say, bring on the rain! Of course, it may still be a month or more before rain is a real possibility without it being freezing rain.... 

Flower Shower

Pinterest was at it again, back in January when I made this card. I was inspired by a card with watercolored flowers. This is my take. I am not sure why it has taken me so long to post this, but here it is at last! I guess it does suit March better than January though.

I used a blender pen to color all of these lovely flowers. Now I am thinking this would have worked better with Watercolor Wonder Crayons!

• Stamps: Fabulous Florets, Lovely Little Labels
• Ink: Pacific Point, Raspberry Ripple, Calypso Coral, Illuminate
• Paper: Naturals White, Raspberry Ripple, Crumb Cake, Whisper White
• Other: Jewelry Tag punch, White embossing powder, Embossing Buddy, Heat Gun, Rhinestones Basic Jewels, Whisper White Seam Binding ribbon (dyed with Raspberry Ripple inkpad), Blender Pen, Sticky Strip

 More flower showers inside! Now if I could just find this card again. I want to send it to my daughter :)

Embossed Polka Dots

Embossing powder is my new thing this month. I had gotten away from embossing as one of my past club ladies really hated embossing after she almost burned herself with the heat gun. Stampin' Up has a ton of great colors of embossing powders now, and I finally got all of them.

I pulled out the good old Distressed Dots background stamp and inked in  up with the Illuminate ink. I like it better that the Versamark because I can see it better and it seems to clean off the stamps easier. Then I put 3 different colors of embossing powder, one at a time on it. LOVE it!

• Stamps: Best of Birthdays, Distressed Dots
• Ink: Illuminate, Early Espresso, Tangerine Tango, Wild Wasabi, Pool Party
• Paper: Tangerine Tango, Wild Wasabi, Core'dinations and plain Pool Party, Crumb Cake, Whisper White
• Other: Big Shot with Ovals framelits , Adorning Accents Edgelit and Embossing Folder, Sanding Block, Essentials and Occasions Paper Piercing Packs, Paper Piercer and Mat, Blender Pen, Vanilla 5/8" Flower Trim, Tangerine Tango Sycamore Street 1/4" Satin ribbon, Pearls Basic Jewels, Signo white gel pen, dimensionals

This is the last day to get any of the Sale-A-Bration goodies, don't forget to get yours!

Sent with Love

Have you had a chance to get the limited time stamp set, Sent with Love? It is pretty cute! The bundle is pretty fun, with lots of great stuff in it. And it is only available thru April 30,2013!

I got mine a few weeks before this post goes live, and this is the first thing I made with it. I may or may not have stamped a couple of manilla envelopes with it too ;)

• Sent with Love
• Ink: Pool Party, Raspberry Ripple
• Paper: Whisper White, Pool Party, Island Indigo, Raspberry Ripple, Sent With Love DSP
• Other: Big Shot with Chevrons EF and Apothecary Accents framelits, Raspberry Ripple Stitched Satin ribbon, Essentials Paper Piercing Pack, Paper Piercer and Mat, Signo white gel pen, dimensionals, Postage Stamp punch

 The design from the card front is brought inside with the Pool Party and Raspberry Ripple stamping along the bottom. I think my lovely daughter is going to get a little care package with this card included :)

Only 2 days left for Sale-A-Bration! Do you have all the freebies you wanted? Better make sure! And if you are interested in becoming a demonstrator, now is the best time of year with extras and a reduced price on the Starter Kit! Contact me if you have any questions or visit my demo site to become a member of my team, or to place an order anytime :)

Orange Umbrella

Embossing, embossing, why can't I stop embossing?! I just love it lately! This little card took no time at all to develop. I knew I wanted to feature the umbrella and a general greeting. Then I dug through my scraps of DSP I had printed off MDS and found something that coordinated with the embossing powders I have.

I know that raindrops should not land under an umbrella, but they add some balance to the focal image. As for the ribbon, aren't you glad you got some of it before SAB ended?  Well, if you didn't there is still time. SAB runs until March 22, you have 4 days left. The DSP is from SAB too :)

• Stamps: Rain or Shine and Oh, Hello
• Ink: Illuminate, Basic Gray, Pool Party
• Paper: Sahara Sand, Tangerine Tango, Whisper White, Sycamore Street DSP
• Other: Essentials Paper Piercing Pack, Paper Piercer, Tangerine Tango Sycamore Street ¼" Satin ribbon, Neutrals Designer button, White Baker's Twine, Embossing Buddy, Heat Gun, Tangerine Tango embossing powder, Rhinestones Basic Jewels

Paisley Pants

I'm making good headway using up the paisley print from the Print Poetry DSP pack, but this card just had to be made. Denim and deep blue paisley? Made for each other! This stamp is from the Sale-A-Bration set Patterned Occasions and is only available thru March 22,2013. Don't miss your chance to get this set for free with a $50 order!

 

The Lacey Brocade goes very well with this paper also, the stars and hearts are punched from some embossed scraps even!

•  Stamps: Patterned Occasions
• Ink: Midnight Muse, Early Espresso
• Paper: Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Print Poetry DSP pack
• Other: Big Shot with Ovals framelits and Lacey Brocade EF, Merry Minis punch pack (star), Small Heart punch, Occasions Paper Piercing Pack, Paper Piercer and Mat, Rhinestones Basic Jewels, dimensionals, Signo white gel pen

Midnight Paisley

Dark, rich, and masculine. That is what I think of with this patterned paper. And versatile! It reminds me of cowboys too. The perfect companion for this lovely stamp from Horse Frontier.

Mix it up with a little sketch challenge and this card came together right quick! Love it when that happens :) As an aside, I printed out a bunch of thumbprints of sketches that I want to try and glued them to rolodex cards. I have this handy little rolodex box I made sitting on my desk that I added them to. Now I can just flip through and find one that fits what I am looking for :)

 It took me a little trial and error to get the measurements right for the blue panels, but it was worth it. I have also set a goal for myself to use up all of the Print Poetry DSP pack before the end of the Occasions mini :) I made a pile of this card for OWH and have just a few usable scraps left of this print. I don't think I will have a problem using them up, because I ♥ this print!

• Stamps: Horse Frontier
• Ink: Early Espresso, Crumb Cake
• Paper: Crumb Cake, Midnight Muse, Whisper White, Print Poetry DSP pack
• Other: Big Shot with Ovals framelits and Lacey Brocade EF, Occasions Paper Piercing Pack, Paper Piercer and Mat, Signo white gel pen, Natural Trim ribbon, White Baker's Twine, Naturals Designer button, dimensionals, Sticky Strip

 Not terribly exciting on the inside, but I left this without a sentiment so it can be used for whatever your little heart desires. It is definitely gender-neutral, the recipient just has to like horses :)

Happy Birthday Aunt Jan!

When I was a kid, everyone told me I looked like my aunt Jan. I was cool with that, she is a pretty fun gal! She took me to her softball games and out to her friends' houses to visit. She even took me to a street dance. I think I was pretty young, maybe 9? But she forever became my COOL aunt :) When I was 16, I spent 10 days in California visiting her and my other aunt and uncle who had all moved to San Fransisco, and that was an amazing visit. Coincidentally, 2 weeks after my return home I met my husband. I guess you could say that was a life-changing summer... in a good way!

This aunt of mine is adventurous. She served in the National Guard (correction: Army Reserve) before it was fairly common for women to serve in the military. She road a motorcycle LONG before it was an acceptable practice for a young lady. She is bold, and strong, and opinionated. Not a bad role model if I do say so myself :) Right now, she is probably knee deep in doing other people's tax returns. She also makes custom furniture. She lives in the mountains of California, and I really need to go out there and visit her again!

This is the card I made for her birthday. It may get to her a little late.... I am typing this on Saturday afternoon, in northern MN. I made the card Friday and did not get it in the mail on time, and I think I missed the mailman this morning. Sorry Jan!

• Stamps: Motorcycle
• Paper: Naturals Ivory, Early Espresso, Print Poetry DSP
• Ink: Early Espresso
• Other: Big Shot with Labels framelit and Woodgrain EF, Festive Paper Piercing Pack, Paper Piercer and Mat, Signo white gel pen, Natural Trim ribbon, Cherry Cobbler Baker's Twine, dimensionals, buttons

I used the wound mount single stamp that is no longer available, but the motorcycle image is still available for My Digital Studio (#124491) for $1.95 

SAB Elephant

Time to give a little more love to the Sale-A-Bration selections! The elephant from Patterned Occasions has a thank you sentiment attached, but I cut that off for this card. I started out thinking about a baby card, but by the time I finished I thought it could be for several different occasions! The inspiration for this card is the fact that the elephants from 2 sets complement each other and I just had to combine them in a card :)

I know, one is holding a heart and the other is holding a flower, but I still think they look good together. I think it is a matter of scale.

• Stamps: Patterned Occasions, A Fitting Occasion, Itty Bitty Bits
• Ink: Midnight Muse, Lucky Limeade, Early Espresso
• Paper: Whisper White, Lucky Limeade, Crumb Cake, Midnight Muse
• Other: Big Shot with Hexagon EF and Apothercary Accents framelits, Wide Oval punch, Signo white gel pen, dimensionals, buttons

 How many occasions can you think of to use this card for?

Poetry in Blue

We have less than 3 weeks left of Sale-A-Bration for this year, can you believe it? Time goes so quickly... I thought I better start posting some stuff made with the SAB swag for this year :)

Lots of marker usage on this one, direct-to-stamp style. I had a lot of fun with this, and for once, I picked my DSP first and let that decide my color combo. I usually do it the other way around and don't have any luck finding something that fits! Silly aren't I! I did emboss the Basic Label. I don't think I like it as much as just stamping it, but it was worth a try.

• Stamps: Bloomin' Marvelous, Basic Label
• Ink: Marina Mist, Gumball Green, Summer Starfruit, Midnight Muse, Early Espresso
• Paper: Summer Starfruit, Naturals White, Midnight Muse, Whisper White, Poetry Prints DSP stack
• Other: Big Shot with Cloudy Day EF, Apothecary Accents and Floral Frames framelits, Midnight Muse Stitched Satin ribbon, Paper Piercer and Mat, Early Espresso embossing powder, Embossing Buddy, Heat Gun, Bitty Butterfly punch, Sticky Strip, dimensionals, sewing machine and thread, Signo white gel pen

Yes, I did freehand paper pierce around the flower diecut.  It turned out ok. I didn't feel compelled to throw it out and start over, lol!

ETA: For the butterfly, I inked the stamp up with Summer Starfuit, then with markers added the Marina Mist to interior of wings, outlined the image and the body with Midnight Muse, and thumped the whole image with the Midnight Muse marker also. Then I huffed on the image and stamped it. Voila!

Poetry in Green

This card feels a bit unbalanced to me, like it needs buttons on it maybe. But all that bulk can make it hard to mail, so I will settle for the rhinestones....

The flowers were inked with markers by adding the yellow first, then the red. For the butterfly, I inked up the stamp with Summer Starfruit, then added Gumball Green and Primrose Petals accents with markers. Pretty slick huh!

• Stamps: Bloomin' Marvelous, Basic Label
• Ink: Gumball Green, Summer Starfruit, Primrose Petals, Early Espresso
• Paper: Crumb Cake, Whisper White Primrose Petals Core'dinations, Poetry Prints DSP pack
• Other: Big Shot with Needlepoint Border EF and Finishing Touches edgelit and Apothecary Accents framelits, Bitty Butterfly punch, Sanding Block, Signo white gel pen, Rhinestones Basic Jewels, dimensionals

Haven't done your Sale-A-Bration shopping yet? You have 2 weeks left, and 3 weeks left to get the Basic Label stamp. Don't miss out!

Hello, Hello!

Did you know that Stampin' Up! has a bunch of single stamps that are available only until March 31, 2013? This is one of them. All I could see when I got it was that it had to fit into one of the Hearts framelits! And by golly, it did!

And those lovely little flowers? Those are the Flower Trim in the Occasions Mini. They come in a lovely Vanilla ribbon form, easily cut apart and colored with reinker. I made these So Saffron with a sponge rubbed on an inkpad and then dabbed on the flowers.

• Stamps: Hello, Hello
• Ink: Illuminate, So Saffron
• Paper: SO Saffron, Primrose Petals Core'dinations, Baja Breeze
• Other: Big Shot with Hexagons EF and Hearts framelits, White embossing powder, Embossing Buddy, Heat Gun, Occasions Paper Piercing Pack, Paper Piercer and Mat, Sanding Block, 5/8" Flower Trim, Natural Trim ribbon, Pearls Basic Jewels, dimensionals, Sticky Strip, Signo white gel pen

Lately, I have been making a pile of just about every card I create for Operation Write Home... not a bad thing, but I do have to remind myself that if I want to, I can make just one :) I made 8 of these, lol. I guess I wasn't listening! Those little flowers were just begging to be played with. 

Starry Birthday

Sometimes you just need a simple card. I'm not good at simple cards, but this is one of my attempts. Stars are awesome, and unisex! So starts where just what was called for :) I made a stack of these with card bases and stars in the same colors as the ink I used for the stamps.

And my secret weapon for holding the pieces of string in place? Scotch tape on the back! I never actually wrap ribbon or string all the way around as it makes unsightly lumps in the layers.

• Stamps: Curly Cute
• Ink: Raspberry Ripple, Gumball Green, Midnight Muse
• Paper: Gumball Green, Raspberry Ripple, Midnight Muse, Whisper White
• Other: Large and Small Star punches (retired) and Merry Minis punch pack star punch, crochet thread, dimensionals, chocolate brown buttons, White Baker's Twine

And can you believe it?!  I resisted the urge to outline this card front! I don't know how...my fingers are kind of itching to fix that, lol!