Double D Challenge: Butterflies

Is there a soul among us who doesn't love the sight of a beautiful butterfly?  That's our challenge at Double D this time around.  Have a look at our gorgeous inspiration board:

So many colors to delight the eye!

The DDs offer a prize for a random winner, and the team votes on creative favorites.

I played off the blue and pink in the upper left corner of the board.  My butterfly is an oldie by Impression Obsession.  The die cuts the open scroll, but I managed to keep the inner parts together long enough to secure a solid background.  It's cut from shimmery paper and brushed with inks.

What better place to alight than a rose garden?  It's Tim Holtz Sizzix Roses 3D embossing folder, a gift from a dear local friend who knew I would love it.  I'm using it for the first time here, brushed with inks and a butterfly-appropriate sentiment stamped in the corner.

Do stop by the Double D blog to enjoy all the team's butterflies, and then show us yours!

Take care, and have a wonderful day!

Stamps:  Power Poppy Lilac Time sentiment  Paper:  White shimmer CS for butterfly, Neenah 110 lb white for embossed panel and card base  Ink:  Stampin' Up Brilliant Blue, Bashful Blue, Old Olive, Certainly Celery, Mauve Mist, Memento Tuxedo Black  Other:  Impression Obsession Open Scroll Butterfly, Tim Holtz Sizzix Roses embossing folder, black gem

Double D Challenge: Hearts

Hello!  I have a Valentine today, this time for the Double D Challenge which is asking for hearts.  It doesn't have to be a Valentine, of course.  I mean, look at those pretty Bleeding Hearts flowers in the inspiration board:

This Valentine will be for a friend.  I love to send them, but don't always make enough.  Happily, I have three cards set aside that I made in early 2022, thinking we make Christmas cards all year, so why not for other holidays, too?  It was a start.  Today's card was inspired by the wire basket of hearts in the inspiration board.  I have a bucket rather than a wire basket, but I love it just as much!

I used an old Stampin' Up 3 in 1 heart punch and some pretty designer paper.  Layered each heart onto 110 lb white for dimension.  All die cuts are layered for dimension.  The frame is from my bag o' frames.  The Impression Obsession All-in-one-Frames-Square cuts six frame pieces in consecutive sizes all at once so I can keep plenty on hand.  Mix and match.  I generally cut them in white so I can add any color/pattern if desired.  Today I chose to leave them white.

I stitched a border, stamped an old timey JustRite sentiment from a favorite set, put it all together on a pretty pink Bazzill card base.  It's a petite 4 1/4" square.

As always, we'll have creative winners chosen from among the many fabulous entries.  You all make it very hard to choose!  Pictured below is the prize that will go to a random winner.  Pretty!

Come visit the team at Double D and say hello while you're there.  I hope to see you in the gallery!

Stamps:  JustRite A Warm Hello Set  Paper:  Neenah white 80 & 110 lb, pink Bazzill, kraft, Prima Julie Nutting designer paper (old)  Ink:  SU Crumbcake and Rose Red for sponging, Memento Rich Cocoa for sentiment  Dies:  Impression Obsession Pail, Impression Obsession All-in-One-Frames-Square  Other:  SU 3 in 1 heart punch, SU 1 1/4" circle punch, pink twine

The Night Before Cluckmas

Hello, friends!  Are you super busy or are you finally at the point where you can relax for a bit?  I'm going to keep this quick because I'm thinking none of us have a lot of spare time right now.

After I finished and mailed the last of this year's Christmas cards I felt like celebrating, so I did that in the form of making a card that's all fun and lots of play.  I couldn't help myself.

When I was shopping for something else altogether I came upon an Impression Obsession set called Chicken Christmas Sentiments.  It made me laugh and I thought that was a good thing.  So I set off on a mission to find an Impression Obsession stamp set or die to go with it, and this mother hen is what I came up with.  She is simply called Chicken and she comes with the little chick.

The babies are nestled all snug in their bed and Mom is telling them the classic Christmas bedtime story.  Mom and two of the chicks are wearing glittery antlers just for fun.  I drew and hand cut the speech bubble.

A whole host of dies and papers, mostly retired, went into this card.  Your eyes would glaze over reading all of it so I'll not write it all down.  I just wanted to share some fun and wish you a happy Cluckmas... er... Christmas.

I'm going to give myself a whole week with as little housework as possible and maybe have some time to play in my room after Christmas.  Ho ho ho!  Take care and enjoy yourselves!

Easter Cupcake

Hello!  It's good to see you after all this time.  My apologies for being away so long.  I've had some other things on my mind and sometimes wonder if I'll be able to continue blogging at all.  Today I'm giving it another try.  You are kind souls to bear with me.

'Tis the season for Easter cards.  I do not have any new Easter stamps or dies, but I've always been partial to this oldie Impression Obsession Happy Wishes cupcake which I've probably only used once before, tsk tsk.  I colored with Tombow markers and blender, then nestled into a pretty Tutti Butterfly Oval which I'd cut from a previously made background piece.

The Greetings sentiment is twinkling with Wink of Stella.  I added clear gems, a silver self-adhesive border strip, and extra flowers cut with the Tutti die.

I'm going to join the April Spring challenge over at Four Seasons.  Anything goes spring, and that includes Easter!

Thank you for sharing your time with me.  I'll be back soon, I hope.  Take good care till we meet again!

Two Old Bats Halloween Challenge -- December

Welcome back to the Two Old Bat's year 'round Halloween challenge!  Right in the middle of the busy holiday season... truth is, it was fun to take a break from Christmas cards after being up to my eyeballs in them for quite a while now.

We have an inspiration board, but not required to use it.

I love playing off the boards and my Halloween card o' the month was inspired by the bats and the 31 in the upper right of the board.  I paired a Deep Red Halloween Dress Form stamp with Impression Obsession's Halloween Stamp.  This eerily pretty party dress just needs the cobwebs brushed off and it's ready to wear!

I stamped in Versafine Onyx Black and clear embossed for the fine detail.  Brushed some color on the background, colored the bow and 31 with a Tombow marker.  Hand cut the postage stamp and popped it up on foam tape.  The papers are not Halloween, but I wanted some different colors for this card.  The fancy non-Halloween die frame worked out great when cut in black.  All in all I like it!

Come see us at Two Old Bats.  I know this is not an easy time to be making Halloween cards, but it's fun if you've got the time.  Challenge ends on the 28th.  Have a great day!

Stamps:  Deep Red Halloween Dress Form, Impression Obsession Halloween Stamp  Paper:  SU Whisper White, black card base (not visible in photo), years old Memory Box and 7 Gypsies designer paper  Ink:  Versafine Onyx Black, SU Crushed Curry and Going Gray  Coloring:  Tombow marker and SU inks brushed on backgrounds  Other:  Clear embossing powder, foam mounting tape, Spellbinders Divine Eloquence and Labels Twenty Eight

Mermaid Tail

Hello and happy Monday to you!  Now that we're six days into September are you feeling a change in the weather yet?  It might be all in my head, but to me it seems different already.  The air feels more crisp, the wind has died down.  That's what I love about fall here on the Oregon coast -- no wind!

However, today's card is not meant to convey any of those fall feels.  It's all about summer and sunshine and beachy days when you just might spot one of the magical creatures pictured below:

I've combined Mintay papers and Impression Obsession stamps.  Both have been with me for a while, but it's a first time use for the Mermaid Tail and Make Some Waves sentiment.  I can't stress enough how I love to play with paper, and it worked out pretty well on this mini-slimline (3 1/2 x 6 3/4).  I've been loving this size card for a lot of years.  Very handy sometimes!

I colored with Copics and sparkled with Wink of Stella and Stickles Diamond glitter glue.  The sequins are called Soft Mint -- just a touch of  color.  I hand cut the sentiment flag and added mint-colored ric rac trim which reminds me of an ocean ripple.

I was truly shopping my stash when I made this summery card so I've linked to the challenge here:
Shopping Our Stash #453 - Summer Lovin'

Right from the get go it was my plan to play here:

Double D Challenge -- Anything with a Tail

And, since the stamps are being used for the first time (finally) I'm linking to Darnell's challenge here:

NBUS Challenge #30 (never before used schtuff)

Just having fun.  Wishing you a good week and a chance to have a little fun yourself.  Thank you for your time today!

Stamps:  Impression Obsession Mermaid Tail and Make Some Waves senti  Paper:  Neenah Classic Crest Super Smooth Solar White 80 & 110 lb, Mintay Paradise designer paper  Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black  Coloring:  Copics  Other:  Wink of Stella, soft mint sequins, ric rac, Memory Box Stitched Circle Layers

Spring Floral Heart

Recently I decided I didn't have enough pretty flower stamps... wait, what?  Okay, truth be told, I felt like shopping for some new pretty flower stamps.  Naturally, I went straight over to 1-2-3 Stitch and searched "flower stamps".  It wasn't easy to keep my order down to a reasonable size, but this Spring Floral Heart by Impression Obsession was definitely staying on the list.

I don't know if it's a recent release.  When I shop I'm generally searching a genre, or designer, or a specific stamp, so all manner of things may jump into my cart along the way.  I embossed with Ranger Princess Gold and watercolored with Tombow markers.  Finished with gold sequins.  The popped up sentiment is from a new to me Stampendous set.  All supplies are listed in the recipe below my signature.

Sigh... such a beautiful stamp and I'm a hopeless addict.

Thank you so much for visiting today.  What would I do without you?  Have a fantastic day!

Stamps:  Impression Obsession Spring Floral Heart, Stampendous Birthday Smiles  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 lb hot press watercolor, SU Blush Blossom  Ink:  Versamark, SU Not Quite Navy  Coloring:  Watercolor with Tombow markers  Other:  Ranger Princess Gold embossing powder, gold sequins, Spellbinders Scored and Pierced Rectangles, Spellbinders Fancy Tags One (used only an inner rectangle), Scotch brand foam mounting tape

Birdhouse Row

Hello, friends!  I hope you're well.  We're still waiting for the vaccine and carrying on safely in the meantime with multiple home improvement projects, as well as visits to the vet for some worrying issues with Wally and LuLu.  I'd like to report good news on that, but it remains to be seen.  That's all I can say at the moment.

Taking some quiet time in my stamp room is therapeutic.  My right hand with trigger finger is not all the way better, so I have to be careful with it.  However, I just had to color something.  It's been a while since I reached into my basket of not-yet-used stamps, so I pulled out this Birdhouse Row by Impression Obsession.  It was a gift from a friend who knew I would love it.

I colored with Copics on X-Press It Blending Card and put together a simple design with patterned paper, gingham ribbon, and a resin sentiment circle, all of which have been with me for many years.  Added some sequins, including the stars just for fun.  I made two cards with this stamp.  The other card is similar enough that I didn't photograph it, but I'm feeling good that I gave this cute stamp some love.

Back to business now, but I'll try for crafty time, too.  I'm feeling a little out of the flow.  You know how it is -- if you don't use it you lose it.  Take care!

Stamps:  Impression Obsession Birdhouse Row  Paper:  X-Press It Blending Card for colored panel, Neenah classic white for card base, SU Bashful Blue, Chatterbox designer paper  Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black  Coloring:  Copics  Other:  Resin sentiment circle (source forgotten), gingham ribbon, Fiskars scallop scissors, sequins, Spellbinders Scored and Pierced Rectangles die

CAS Mix Up Reminder: Stencil Heat Embossing

Hello, there!  Just a reminder today that there's still time to play in this month's CAS Mix Up Challenge -- Stencil Heat Embossing -- hosted by Nancy.  

I had fun with this challenge and did more heat embossing than I've done in a long time.  The stencil here is smooshed with Versamark and then heat embossed with a custom mix of everything but the kitchen sink.  It's a little gold, a little sandy/grainy looking.  I made the embossed panel weeks ago and then tucked it in a drawer with my other background pieces.

Chevrons make me think of coffee and caffeine for some reason, so when it was card-making time I pulled out an old stamp and embossed with copper EP, then colored with Tombows and blender pen.  Very simple.  I added the copper cord after I looked at it for a day or two.  The simplest thing made me feel much better about the card as I believe it anchored the image.

By the way, the textured white card base is from a hoarded stash.  Would love to find more, or maybe an embossing folder that gives the leathery look.  Any suggestions?

Do come play with us at CAS Mix Up with Stencil Heat Embossing.  My teamies have got some pretty amazing cards to show you for ideas!  Thanks for coming today.  See you again soon!

Stamps:  Impression Obsession Smell the Coffee, SU Itty Bitty Backgrounds  Paper:  SU Whisper White for stenciled background, Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 lb hot press watercolor for coffee image, textured white card base  Ink:  Versamark  Coloring:  Tombow waterbased markers and blender pen  Other:  Copper cord, homemade mix embossing powder, copper embossing powder, Memory Box Simple Chevron Stencil, Scotch brand foam mounting tape

Three Little Birds in Navy and Turquoise

Hello, and happy Monday Fun Day!  This is when the cute and/or quirky stamps come out (as if I need a reason).  That seems to be the "buy me" trigger these days.  I saw these birds on Bonnie's blog right here, loved them, looked them up and bought them before I even left a comment on her post.

I white embossed (same as Bonnie did), but then watercolored with SU inks.  It's been forever since I used those inks for watercoloring.  In the past they were my go-to medium, but then so many other things came along.  I really enjoyed this and will use them again soon.

The "thanks" is a resin disk that's been in my stash for a long time.  Rummaging around in my self-adhesives, I unearthed this and two others that I hope to use soon.  I'll list all supplies at the end.

• I probably would have given these birds a lot more color, but today they're representing me at Color Hues Challenge #2 -- Navy and Turquoise.  Neutrals are welcome.  I think they look great in these colors!
• It's my Three Little Birds first time out of the package, so I'll be heading over to Darnell's NBUS Challenge #18, too.

  

Thanks for your time!  I just received a new package of stamps in the mail (ahem), so I'll be admiring them and shuffling them around on my table for a while and, hopefully, using them soon.  They're fall stamps and will definitely be getting colored this year.

Enjoy your day!

Stamps:  Impression Obsession Three Little Birds, Hero Arts You're a Great Friend, SU Itty Bitty Backgrounds (splatters)  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 lb watercolor, Neenah Classic Crest Super Smooth Solar White, SU Cool Caribbean  Ink:  Versamark, SU Chocolate Chip, Tempting Turquoise, Night of Navy, Creamy Caramel  Other:  White embossing powder, resin sentiment disk, Paper Smooches Foliage 1

Pretty Bird

Hi there!  I'm back with a bird today.  In fact, I made two cards with this not-yet-used stamp, purchased in December 2016.  That's a crazy lot of time for such a pretty thing to be left sitting, isn't it?  I was surprised at how much time had passed, but I looked it up to be certain.  Sure enough, just over two years.

It's an Impression Obsession stamp simply called "Bird".  I've often said I'm intimidated by the thought of coloring realistic birds, but once I decided to do this very simply with just a blush of color and nothing complex in the background it came together very quickly and easily.  I used Prismacolor pencils and odorless mineral spirits for the coloring, and stamped retired SU Itty Bitty Backgrounds splatter around it.

I nested some Spellbinders dies for a designer paper frame and then set the bird panel right into it with nothing popped up.  The sentiment is from my bag o' sentiments which were stamped, but not used for whatever project at the time.  I have no idea what the sentiment belongs to, but it's a pretty font.  Stamped more Itty Bitty on the sentiment circle.

Since the coloring was quick and the card very simple, I took the time to make some special flowers for it.  Die cut, colored with pencils.  Got them good and wet, wadded up tightly, then carefully smoothed out, but not too smooth.  Dried them with the heat tool, then added a glue dot and Prills to the centers.  They're very stiff so they hold their shape, but not too lumpy for easy mailing.  Makes me think I need more flower dies...  NOT.  I have plenty of everything to last me a while.

Ingredients are listed below.  Have a happy day!

Stamps:  Impression Obsession Bird, SU Itty Bitty Backgrounds, unknown sentiment  Paper:  Neenah Classic White, My Mind's Eye A Beautiful Life designer paper  Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Old Olive  Coloring:  Prismacolor Pencils and Gamsol odorless mineral spirits  Accessories:  Prills, Linen thread, circle punch  Dies:  Spellbinders Scored and Pierced Rectangles, Elizabeth Craft Bunch of Flowers 4

Colorful Birdhouses

I was beginning to wonder if it was ever going to happen, but I finally finished a card.  Things got a little nutty around here for a while.  My face swelled up in a big ball of pain and after a dental appointment and some antibiotics I'm having a root canal today.  My first.  A crown will follow.  Sheesh.

On Sunday Rich collapsed in the yard and after checking his blood pressure and finding it frighteningly low we took him to the ER.  All the tests imaginable showed he was in good health, but dehydrated and maybe his blood pressure medicine was working a little too well.  All this going on while our son was down for a visit and we're in the process of buying an RV for travel.  Rich said his first thought as he was drifting to the world of the unconscious was "well, there goes the RV".  All is well, though.  He's in surprisingly good health.  He's not good about hydrating, but he knows I'll be keeping on him about that from now on.

So, how about that card?

I used an Impression Obsession stamp called "Birdhouses".  I bought it locally at a shop that's been closed for almost a year, but it can still be found at IO online which is what I linked to.   I do love the stamp.  The bird looks like she's house hunting, just like we're RV hunting.  So many choices!

I watercolored on 140 lb hot press Fluid 100 watercolor paper with only five markers -- three Stampin' Up and one Tombow.  Stitched a border and added three Nuvo Crystal drops which I managed to get fairly flat for easy mailing.  This card is for a birthday later this month.

We've had a few days socked in with smoke from the forest fires all around us.  It turns the sunshine pink and odd looking.  The sky appears to be overcast, but it's all smoke.    Even the moon glows orange.

That's it for today.  I'll be back tomorrow with a new Double D challenge.  Maybe I'll even do some more stamping this week.  I hope you all had a good weekend.  I appreciated every moment of mine, even with the upsets.  I can't help but think of the folks who have such a long way to go to recover from Hurricane Harvey, and everyone in the west who have lost their homes to the forest fires.

Stamps:  Impression Obsession Birdhouses, Stampin Up Bloomin' Marvelous sentiment  Paper:  140 lb hot press Fluid 100 watercolor, Core'dinations white card base  Ink:  Palette Noir  Coloring:  SU markers More Mustard, Ruby Red, Old Olive, Not Quite Navy, Tombow marker N65  Accessories:  Nuvo Crystal Drops - Sugared Almond