Birthday Chick

Hello again, friends!  When I saw this week's Freshly Made Sketch by Michele I thought it presented the perfect opportunity to pull out the Cottage Cutz Folk Art Hen which I'd made a while back and tucked away.  She's constructed of cardstock and some old designer paper I'm trying to use up.  Nothing fancy, no coloring, no shading, just taking it easy.

I gave her a neutral setting specifically because my previous card was so over the top colorful and bright.  Here she's nesting on foliage set against an egg shaped backdrop on framed chicken wire.  The sentiment is from an oldie stamp set which is so cute I'm thinking I'll save it out and make a card.

The egg die set is new from Simon Says Stamp.  I bought it for Easter cards, but clearly it has other uses as well.  Everything other than the egg shape and the hen has been in my toybox for years.

Challenges:

Freshly Made Sketches #727 -- I followed the sketch pretty closely.
NBUS Challenge #84 -- The SSS Basic Shapes Nested Eggs set is new to me, and since this is the first time on a card for the Folk Art Hen I'm thinking she qualifies as NBUS, too.

 

I'm glad you could stop by today.  Stay well and be happy!

Stamps:  Whipper Snapper (by Anna Wight) Crazy for Chickens  Paper:  SU Naturals White & Ivory, SU Kraft, Memory Box Brioche designer paper  Ink:  Ranger Archival Jet Black  Dies:  Cottage Cutz Folk Art Hen, Dee's Distinctively Sm. Pair of Leaves, Simon Says Stamp Basic Shapes Nested Eggs, MFT Die-namics Stitched Rectangle Frames, Cheery Lynn Designs Chicken Wire Frame, Spellbinders Fancy Framed Dies One (for sentiment, did not use the fancy part)

Forest Bird in a Colorful World

Hello and welcome!

I made a card for two challenges today and, gosh, it sure is bright!  The Paper Players are asking for "Colors of the Rainbow", and the topping at Seize the Birthday is "Anything with Wings".  I'm barely getting to Seize the Birthday in time so I'll make this brief.

The rainbow striped card was pulled from my saved-for-later collection so that was a good start.  I was wondering when I was ever going to use it seeing as how it was made way back in 2021.  The wings belong to a Cottage Cutz Forest Bird which was new to me at Christmastime.  The rest is listed in the recipe further down.

The challenges:

The Paper Players Challenge #776 -- Colors of the Rainbow
Seize the Birthday -- Anything with Wings
I'll also share at Darnell's NBUS Challenge #84 -- My Cottage Cutz Forest Bird is never before used schtuff.

Thank you so much for stopping by, and I'll hope to see you again soon!

Stamps:  Spellbinders Very Best Wishes stamp & die set, Simon Says Stamp Tweet Friend stamp and die set for music notes  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 100 lb hot press watercolor, Neenah 110 lb white, SU Gable Green for frame  Ink:  Various Stampin' Up for stenciled rainbow colors, Memento Tuxedo Black  Coloring:  Tombow markers and blender  Dies:  Cottage Cutz Forest Bird, Poppystamps Woodland Oval  Other:  Scotch brand foam mounting tape to pop up bird

Doggie Beach Day

How about a little Sophie and Ridley today?

It was almost like summer last Monday when my son and I took the kids to the beach.  It was Ridley's first time at the actual ocean shore as opposed to the bay and he loved it.  Everything's okay as long as his big sister Sophie is with him.

Low tide and gentle waves on a warm and windless day -- perfection.

I accidently got in over my ankles with my shoes on, so might as well have fun with it.

Ridley is now 10 months old, Sophie 2 1/2 yrs.

The photo below is my favorite of the day with the way they're leaning into each other, sharing their joy.  I never fail to appreciate how lucky I am to have the two of them in my life.

Wishing you a perfect day!

Christmas in Vellum

Hello and welcome!

I'm finally getting around to some Christmas cards and plunged ahead with a batch of 10.  My friend shared these beautiful 6x6 printed vellum sheets which I trimmed to fit A2 cards.  There are two of each design and my cards have minimal variation, just keeping it simple.  I couldn't really pick a favorite, but I'm rather partial to this one with the Santa and snowman:

After much trial and error and two ruined vellum panels I settled on double-sided adhesive sheets as the ideal way to invisibly adhere the panels to the card bases.

Come to think of it, this one might be my favorite:

I had to go Amazon shopping first.  After careful consideration I chose a pack of Birllaid brand -- 22 sheets, each 8 1/2 x 11 1/2.  Excellent quality, very affordable.

Each vellum panel was applied to a sticky sheet, then the back peeled off and the now sticky vellum panel was applied to white cardstock.  I trimmed the edges flush with my adhesive-designated scissors (clean the scissors when needed with 91% alcohol).  There is no wiggle room with strong adhesive tape so it's much better to create a separate panel on cardstock which can then be glued to the card front.

Two more:

Total Christmas cards in the box:  11

It feels like a good start!

Have a beautiful day!

Stamps:  Poppystamps Christmas Banners with dies  Paper:  Crafters Companion Christmas Rose 6x6 Vellum Pad, Cougar Natural, Hammermill Premium 100 lb white for sentiment banners, shimmery creamy white for snowflakes, SU Blush Blossom for snowflake centers  Ink:  Stampin' Up Close to Cocoa  Other:  Memory Box Bauble Snowflakes, 1/8" hole punch, Stickles Stardust glitter glue for snowflake centers, double sided adhesive sheets, Hero Arts Wood Frame die (used once)

Double D Challenge: Books/Bookmark and/or Postal/Postage

A new Double D challenge begins today, friends.  We have a mixed theme that I think you'll enjoy -- books/bookmark and/or postal/postage.  Lots of choices there with a pretty mood board for inspiration.  The team will choose creative favorites, and there's a prize, as shown, for a random winner.

  

I chose to go with books and bookmarks so I made a matching set.

The card features one of my favorite bird dies with branch -- Cottage Cutz Bird w/Vine -- and a long neglected Marianne Design Open Book.  The lacy border is a friend share from many years ago, and the gorgeous designer paper is new-to-me and not-yet-used Brutus Monroe Spring Splatter.  I swooned over the paper.  I believe it's from last spring, but it caught my eye when I was browsing for something else, sigh.  You know how that goes.

I love creating birds with make-believe colors.  For this one I brushed on inks to coordinate with the paper.  I used the book die, itself, as a guide for the lines on the book pages, drawing several rows of faint pencil lines, then squiggling over them with a gray Copic marker.  The page edges are traced with a gold Gelly Roll pen.  The card is blank inside, other than a strip of designer paper, but the stamped sentiment, "Happy Day", lets you interpret the card in many different ways.

The two bookmarks feature a not-yet-used Cottage Cutz Bird with Flowers die, some favorite old Power Poppy sentiments, and that beautiful paper again.  I cut the bookmarks from the designer paper, then cut a bird from each.  Glued the pretty paper to white cardstock, then inset a die cut bird to the negative space, doing a switcheroo so the birds stand out and blend at the same time.

I love mixing old and new, and the following challenges are great encouragement:

NBUS Challenge #84 -- My never before used schtuff is the Brutus Monroe Spring Splatter designer paper and the Cottage Cutz Bird with Flowers die (on the bookmarks).  Thank you, Darnell!
Neglected Stuff Challenge -- My neglected stuff is the Marianne Design Open Book.  I can't remember the last time I used it, but now I love it all over again.  Thank you Diane and Darlene!

 

I think that covers it.  I hope you'll visit Double D and see the variety of clever, fun, pretty cards the team is sharing.  I would love to see yours as well.  Have a beautiful day!

Stamps:  Power Poppy Lilac Time and Party Time sentiments  Paper:  Hammermill Premium 100 lb white, Brutus Monroe Spring Splatter designer paper  Ink:  Stampin' Up So Saffron, More Mustard, Old Olive, Cameo Coral, Not Quite Navy, Versamark  Coloring:  Ink blending with brushes  Dies:  Cottage Cutz Bird w/Vine and Bird with Flowers, Marianne Design Open Book, Sue Wilson Vela lacy border die, Spellbinders Scallop Labels and Tag for top of book  Other:  Memory Box Fairy Jewels, SU Vanilla embossing powder, Gold Gelly Roll glitter pen, Scotch brand foam mounting tape

Another Floral Hug

Hello!  Sharing another floral hug today.  The kit I created and shared here yielded three cards including two with the wreath.  I loved Jill Foster's example with the wreath and when you look up the set the inspiration will be clear, but with small differences.

I gold-embossed the wreath and watercolored with Stampin' Up inks and cut with the matching die.  The flower accent in the center of the bow is something that popped out of a die cut.  I save little things like that in a bitty bits jar.  I colored it pink with a Copic marker and applied glossy glaze.

Penny Black's Floral Vines stamp set goes back to spring last year.  However, my purchase of it was more recent than that.  I'm making a big effort to work my way through the baskets of not-yet-used stamps, dies, embossing folders, paper pads...  Yes, it seems endless.  I'm hoping the kits will help.

I'm sending my floral hug to the following challenges:

Beautiful Blossoms Challenge #38 -- Anything goes with an optional mood board.  I didn't use all the colors, but maybe you can see a hint of similarity.
Penny Black Saturday Challenge -- Anything goes or optional "romance".  There is no romance in this floral hug.

 

Thank you ever so much for stopping by today.  Take care and stay crafty!

Stamps:  Penny Black Floral Vines with matching dies  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 hot press watercolor, Neenah Classic Crest Super Smooth Solar White  Ink:  Versamrk, Memento Tuxedo Black  Coloring:  Watercolor with Stampin' Up inks  Dies:  Simon Says Stamp Pretty Bows, Impression Obsession Medium Butterflies and Heart Valance  Other:  Ranger Princess Gold embossing powder, gold gel pen for butterfly body, JudiKins Diamond Glaze, Scotch brand foam mounting tape

Fuchsia

Hi there!  Today I'm sharing a card I made specifically for the Can You Handle the Pressure challenge which is always about using embossing folders.  This time their optional twist is to use your embossing folder(s) with a die cut.  Since I love both I was inspired to play along.

My prominently featured die is the Memory Box Lavish Fuchsia Stem I couldn't wait to get my hands on in 2024.  Today I pulled it out of the basket for its first time use.  I know!  I should pull out all my NBUS dies and make them up even if I don't have a card idea.  I'll make that a mission... reaching for the basket right now.

I colored the die cuts with SU inks and brushes, and added just a smidgen of Stickles Stardust glitter.  The TH 3D Fallen Leaves embossing folder matches the fuchsia leaves somewhat, and Spellbinders 3D Patchwork made a nice border across the top.  I love how the different patterns of the Patchwork folder can be cut into stand alone parts, each so pretty.

Inside is a Rubbernecker sentiment:

I colored the fuchsias the same as shown on the die packaging, but to tell you the truth I'm not a fan of the purple and pink combo.  More fuchsias of a different color are in the works.  Maybe if I'd left the card base white... I honestly think that would have made a world of difference.  I'm trying to use up those 10 trays of 12x12 textured cardstock in my paper cupboard, sigh.  Another mission.

Can You Handle The Pressure -- Anything goes with a twist of die cuts.
NBUS Challenge #83 -- My never before used schtuff is the Memory Box Lavish Fuchsia Stem.

 

Thank you for visiting today!  Hope you have a beautiful weekend!

Stamps:  Rubbernecker Special Joy (inside)  Paper:  Hammermill 100 lb premium white, lavender Bazzill textured, black scrap covered with clear packing tape before die cutting (for gloss)  Ink:  SU Elegant Eggplant, Pixie Pink, Pink Passion, Old Olive, Certainly Celery, Memento Tuxedo Black for inside sentiment  Coloring:  Ink blending with brushes  Dies:  Memory Box Lavish Fuchsia Stem Poppystamps Double Scallop Oval and Border, Impression Obsession Hi  Other:  TH Sizzix Fallen Leaves 3D embossing folder, Spellbinders Patchwork 3D folder, Memory Box Fairy Jewels, silver self-adhesive trim, clear packing tape for glossy sentiment

Double D Challenge: Signs of Love

Hello crafty friends!  A new Double D Challenge starts today with the theme of "Signs of Love".  The possibilities are infinite when it comes to love and I know you can imagine all sorts, subjects, and occasions, not limited to the awesome mood board prepared for you:

The DDs have a pretty great prize for a random winner.  As always, creative winners are by team vote.

It's just past Valentine's Day, but as I prepared ahead for this challenge I took the opportunity to make my Rich's Valentine.  I purchased the Penny Black I'm So Cute stamp in December and it didn't wait long to find its way onto a card.

Lots of sunshine on picture day made the dimension show up like crazy!

It's colored with Tombows and blender, cut out and popped up with all the good Valentine elements added around it.  The papers are older Echo Park Love Notes, including the sentiment panel.  It's packed full of joyful love!

I know it will remind him of our Wally dog.  I hope that doesn't make him feel sad.  Sophie and Ridley have worked so hard to win his heart, and I'm pretty sure it's working.  Here's a pic of our Wally in which you can see the resemblance to the stamp:

He was such a special guy.

There are two additional challenges I simply have to link to:

Penny Black Saturday Challenge -- Anything goes or optional "romance"
NBUS Challenge #83 -- My never before used schtuff is the Penny Black I'm So Cute woodblock stamp.

 

Now it's time to visit Double D if you haven't already done so.  The team has a lot of love to share with you today, and I hope you'll share some love with us in the player's gallery.

Take care, and have a wonderful day!

Stamps:  Penny Black I'm So Cute  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 lb hot press watercolor, Hammermill Premium 100 lb white, black cardstock, Echo Park Love Notes designer paper  Ink:  Palette Noir  Coloring:  Tombow markers and blender  Other:  Precious Marieke Flower Border, Taylored Expressions Stitched Rectangle Stacklets, Poppystamps Prim and Proper Bow, Stampin' Up 3 in 1 heart punch, twill ribbon

Jellyfish Blooms

Hello crafty friends!  I was excited to be stamping and coloring again in the new year... anything other than a Christmas card... so when my friend's birthday came along last month I felt I had just the right never been used stamp for her card.  This is a Creative Expressions stamp, Jellyfish Blooms, from their Designer Boutique collection.  The sentiment is a CZ Designs for Simon Says Stamp -- You 2.  It was a freebie with one of my orders.  Nice!  Lots of variations in the set.

I colored with Copics on Hammermill Premium 100 lb white, and added several spots of Silver Stickles for sparkle.  It's quite the little fantasy piece, but I do love this type of image that mixes flora and fauna.

As for the sentiment, I felt it fit both the image and my friend who has a beautiful spirit and amazing strength considering all she's been through in the last year and a half.  I stamped on SU Bermuda Bay and embossed in white, then hand cut around the "you" and cut the "amaze me" with a random rectangle die from my stash.

It's a 4 1/2" x 6" card with the image panel simply glued to a Bermuda Bay base which I embossed with SU's retired Subtle 3D embossing folder.  The last step was to embellish with some Hero Arts Seashells brushed with Wink of Stella which I tried to capture in the photo below, but it's so much glossier, cleaner, and more shimmery in real life.

My not yet used supplies are bountiful, including a wealth of gifts I was showered with for my birthday and Christmas -- all from the same friend for whom I made this card.  She knows what I like.

Sharing here:

NBUS Challenge #83 -- Never before used schtuff -- Jellyfish Blooms, You 2 sentiment, and Seashells

I'll leave you with a wish for a happy day.  Take good care of yourselves, please.

Stamps:  Creative Expressions Jellyfish Blooms, CZ Designs/Simon Says Stamp You 2  Paper:  Hammermill Premium 100 lb white, Stampin' Up Bermuda Bay  Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Versamark  Coloring:  Copics  Other:  Hero Arts Seashells, WOW Bright White super fine embossing powder, Silver Stickles, SU Subtle 3D embossing folder, misc. rectangle die