Bird with Pansies

Hi, and welcome to a new month!  One more card for this week.  This is the Penny Black Perch set again and definitely the stamp that sold me the set.  I just love the sweet bird.  It looks like it's smiling.

It's colored with Tombow markers and blender on hot press watercolor paper.  Sometimes I just stamp a set's images, then color and cut out and think about the cards later.  That's the case here.  It seems there are more options (and more fun) with the card design when I'm working with a collection of homemade ephemera.  The same goes for dies.  Gee, I think I'll get started on a bagful today!

I used some of that JarThenaAMCS paper again, an Amazon find.  I especially love this piece.  You'd think they could make the name more appealing.  It's actually quite nice paper.

I'm moving over to the other side of the room now, where I have a few things on my table waiting for playtime.  I hope we can visit again real soon!

Stamps:  Penny Black Perch and Enchantingly (sentiment)  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 lb hot press watercolor, Neenah Classic Crest Super Smooth Solar White 80 lb, designer paper from Amazon  Ink:  Ranger Archival Shadow Grey, Stampin' Up Mellow Moss  Coloring:  Tombow markers and homemade blender  Other:  Spellbinders Scallop Labels and Tag, Memory Box Fairy Jewels

Winged Creatures and Gorgeous Paper

Hello and happy Friday!  Yesterday I said I would have one more card today.  As it turns out, I have two.  It's all about the designer paper today, specifically Ciao Bella Sicilia, chosen for these cards because it prominently features lemons and all that beautiful yellow.  You know I love yellow!

Do you see the lemon slices around the edges?  I cut this 6x6 piece down to 5 1/4" square to cover the card, then simply added the die cuts -- Memory Box Serene Bird and Branch, and Sue Wilson Creative Expressions Just a Note.

The second card is another piece that did most of the work, but I did add a border for contrast, and a pretty dragonfly and sentiment -- Memory Box Azure Dragonflies, and Sue Wilson Creative Expressions Stacked Thinking of You.

This wraps up a week of citrus and Christmas.  It's a lot more crafting than I normally accomplish in a week, but I had some extra down time due to back and foot pain.  I'm fine, just had to limit certain activities, and am now feeling quite a bit better.

I'm happy to be playing along in the following inspiring challenge today:

Love Those Pretty Papers -- Anything goes with designer papers, or optional 'birthday'.

I keep saying I'm going to make a point of playing with my paper more often.  The Vast Hoard is overflowing with gorgeousness!

I plan to be back tomorrow with some pics of Sophie and the critters that visit our home on the edge of the woods.  Maybe I'll see you then.  Take care, and have a great weekend!

Double D Challenge: Flower Pots

Hi, there!  We have another Double D challenge for you today -- Flower Pots.  Look at the pretty inspiration board below.  I love it!

A cool prize will be awarded to a random winner.  Creative favorites are voted on by the team.

I was tempted to stamp an oldie for this one, but the NBUS baskets are reaching critical mass and progress must be made so I can file away some of these stamps, dies, and embossing folders.  I'm embarrassed to say how many not-yet-used Penny Black stamps I have.  Many of them were oldies when I bought them, but today's Perch stamp is from this year.

It's rather large for an A2 card, I think, but I'll have another go at it soon and try something different.  I watercolored with Gansai Tambi paints, Stampin' Up inks, and Tombow markers.  It's a crazy mix, but I couldn't seem to get happy with any single medium.

I'm off to see what kind of trouble I can get into elsewhere now, but first I would like to encourage you to check out the team's cards at Double D.  They have some very pretty flower pot cards!

Thank you for visiting today!

Chickadees

Hello and happy Friday to you!

One recent day I was at Simon Says Stamp looking for something else entirely when I spotted the Chickadee Gathering embossing folder.  Well, it had to come home with me as birds are one of my many weaknesses when it comes to craft supplies.  I embossed on hot pressed watercolor paper and watercolored with Tombow markers and Stampin' Up reinkers.

There's a die for the birds which gives slightly more dimension.  When the coloring was finished I had another go at the white splatters.  I didn't want it to look as if it was snowing, but with the splatters and the large white sentiment I hoped to lighten up the overall appearance.  The Thinking of You sentiment is an older one, also Simon Says Stamp.

I'd like to play along in some favorite challenges today:

Triple B -- Birds, blooms, and butterflies.  Use one or all.  It seems I almost always use birds for this challenge.

NBUS Challenge #74 -- Never before used schtuff... that's my Chickadee Gathering embossing folder.

 

 

I'm heading out to the garden now.  The weather has been beautiful and I'm planting pots and puttering in the backyard where the deer can't go.  There's much to be done in the rest of the garden, too.  I'm hoping this spring and summer will be better than last with no unfortunate surprises.

Take care and enjoy your day!

 

Tweet Embossed Birthday

Hello, and happy Monday!  I have a very pastel birthday card to share today.  I'm still enjoying the March kit from Simon Says Stamp.  The embossing folder here, the stamps, the silver cord are all from the kit.  Honestly, this embossing folder was a huge selling point for me.  It's so pretty!

For this card I embossed on hot pressed watercolor paper and colored with Tombow markers and blender.  I kept it very pastel because if I was going to use it as a background I didn't want it to compete with the focal image.  Silly me, this folder deserves to be the main image with only a sentiment, perhaps.  However, the little bird and birdbath looks cute, too.

 

This angle shows how the "birthday" sentiment and the little music notes are silver-embossed to match the silver cord.  The bird and birdbath were embossed in white so they wouldn't be too stark a contrast.  The sentiment and music notes are cut with the matching dies (not included in the kit), but I hand cut the bird and birdbath.

Surprise(!) -- I used a bit of lace from my shoebox-sized container of lace and trims.  That's not counting the drawerful of ribbon.  Most of the lace and trims are from my days of sewing dolls and doll clothes and stuffed critters.  It was fun while it lasted.

I'm going to send my card to the following challenges:

Can You Handle the Pressure -- The current optional theme is "weather".  I think this card suggest a pretty spring day with blossoms blowing in the breeze... that's the weather outside my window as I type this.  The wind through the cherry tree is sending pink snow across the garden.
NBUS #73 -- Never before used schtuff.  First time use of the embossing folder.

 

Supplies are listed below.

Wishing you a beautiful spring day!

Stamps:  Simon Says Stamp Tweet Friend with dies  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 lb hot press watercolor, Neenah white card base  Ink:  Versamark, SU Tempting Turquoise  Coloring:  Tombow markers with blender  Other:  SSS Drifting Flowers 3D embossing folder, lace, silver cord, silver embossing powder, white embossing powder, misc. rectangle die from stash, Scotch brand foam mounting tape to pop up bird and birdbath

Sing! It's Spring!

Hello friends!  Does it look like spring where you are?  There are daffodils blooming along our street, but at my house there's nothing but a sand pit in the front yard, currently full of rain puddles.  We had some work done on our sewer line -- not at all a pretty picture, but we're happy it's done.  Now waiting for the landscaper to make some time for us.  Everything will work out.

For the time being, I can have blue skies, blooming trees, and new life on my cards.  Simon Says Stamp drew me in with all the cute stuff in their March kit and, yes, I signed up.  I figured it's not the same as shopping if it comes as a monthly subscription, right?  I know, I know!  Fooling myself.  I've been on a shopping hiatus for months, but now I have this plus some gifts from a friend, and the next SSS kit will be coming soon... you know how it is.  I'll do my best to get to all of it and have plenty of fun in the process.

The stamp set here is Tweet Friend.  I purchased the matching dies separately.  I think you can see which of the stamps were die cut.  The mailbox stamp has a little flag with heart, but I masked it off with tape before inking, then removed the tape before stamping so I could stamp the mamma bird in its place.  I colored with Copics and brushed inks on the background.  A narrow edge of pink and some wood grain-embossed white space finish the front.

I didn't exactly match the mood board, but I don't think they'll mind:

Four Seasons Challenge -- Spring

Thank you for visiting!  Happy spring!

Stamps:  Simon Says Stamp Tweet Friend with coordinating dies  Paper:  Neenah Classic Crest Super Smooth Solar White 80 lb, SU Pink Pirouette  Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, SU Bashful Blue and Mellow Moss  Coloring:  Copics  Other:  Tim Holtz Sizzix Lumber 3D embossing folder, Scotch brand foam mounting tape

Double D Challenge -- Birds

Hi friends!  Double D Challenge time is here again, and Double D Darlene is asking for birds.  Well, I think I have a bird or two in my toy box.  Have a look at all the color in the inspiration board:

And a prize for a random winner.  Creative favorites, as always, are voted on by the team.

One of my favorite things about challenges is that they oftentimes remind me of something fabulous I have in my stash.  Today it's the Marianne Collectables Toucan.  He's a fun guy that I've only used once and I was pretty happy for the nudge to bring him out to play again.  There's just something about him...

I cut all his parts from colored cardstock and did a little sponging around the edges of each piece, except I didn't sponge the feet and you can see the difference.  Next time I'll remember to sponge.

His tropical habitat is made up of non-tropical dies on a background of designer paper.  I added the sun circle to highlight him.  Or maybe it's a moon?  A make-believe world can be anything you imagine.

Try as I might, I couldn't get happy with any kind of sentiment placement on the front, but inside it says "Just another day in Paradise".

Hop over to the Double D blog and see some beautiful bird cards, then show us yours.  I hope you enjoy our challenge.  Have a happy day!

Dies:  Marianne Collectables Toucan, Poppystamps Sylvan Frame and Sylvan Sprig, Spellbinders Standard Circles Large

Blooms and Birds and Fixing Mistakes -- Four Cards

Hello there, and happy Monday!

My friend, Diane, inadvertently sent me on quite a creative journey when she posted this card for the Love Those Pretty Papers challenge.  Diane gives a link to a video and tells her story, saying it was a learning experience.  I'd say she's right about that.  I cut some pieces wrong, and then couldn't properly line up the ones I cut right.  However, I figured a way to fix my messes and piece together some different designs.  In the process I used four sheets from a 2009 BasicGrey 6x6 pad, as well as two not-yet-used Tim Holtz Sizzix die sets -- Bloom, Colorize and Feathered Friends.  I would not have thought of this paper/die combination, but one thing led to another.  You know how that happens, don't you?  I'll share in the order the cards were created.

In the first card I added a frame because my pieced papers came out with uneven edges.  The two ivory center panels helped separate the focal flowers from the busy background.

After I made the flower for the first card I was not eager to make that flower with its tiny parts again, so I pulled out one of the TH birds and combined it with foliage from the flower set.  I tried spacing the pieces as shown in the video, but ended up with too wide a space across the center of the card.  That's when I added one of the scalloped edges I'd cut from the paper.

For the third card I used another of the Feathered Friends combined with foliage from the flower set.  These patterned paper pieces were cut in the wrong direction (it's hard to explain) so I had to do a different design altogether.  I taped them together on the backside to create diagonal rows.  The prints don't line up, tsk tsk, but I'll live with that.  I added the crimped border to the card front and trimmed the patterned piece to fit.  This design is a little different, but it was Day 3 and maybe it's not so bad.

I was about to call it done, but I still had some pieces and I thought I really should have another go at the flowers.  That's my self discipline and waste not/want not philosophy nagging at me in unison.  It might be my favorite of the four.  Maybe I was just glad to be done.

The insides are all finished with bits of the paper to decorate.  Each card has Viva Cream Pearl Pen dots added.  Some I tapped the backside of the card to flatten the dots, some are left half-round pearl shape.

After all that... I'll be sharing in three challenges:

Love Those Pretty Papers -- Optional use red.
A Cut Above -- Anything goes with die cuts.
NBUS Challenge #71 -- Never before used schtuff.  That's my Tim Holtz Bloom, Colorize and Feathered Friends.

 

Thanks so much for bearing with me through all these cards and words.  I will see you again soon (I hope).  Take care and have a happy day!

Other dies:  Memory Box Wrapped Stitched Frames, Spellbinders Small Classic Ovals and Fluted Classics Rectangles, Creative Expressions Just for You set, Sue Wilson Creative Expressions Stacked Just Because

Magical Deer and Tweet Cardinal

Hello and welcome!

Oh, happy day, I have two more cards for the Christmas box!  We'll start off with Spellbinders Magical Deer.  I used it once last year and didn't even realize until this year that I put its antlers on upside down.  How could I do that?  What a goofball!  Hopefully I've redeemed myself this year.

All supplies are listed below, but I will mention the baubles hanging from his antlers.  They are punched silver gloss cardstock coated with Diamond Glaze and hung on a string borrowed from the much older Memory Box Precious Hearts.  I was prompted first by the Christmas Kickstart Challenge in which Jo is asking for baubles this month.  I had my heart set on the deer so I was dragging my feet until I thought if Spellbinders could picture (on the package) the deer with a long tag hanging from his antlers, then surely I could hang some baubles.  I chose silver baubles as a nod to the mood board created by my friends at the Peace On Earth Challenge.  Sending my thanks to both challenges with links and graphics at the end.

Next is another Spellbinders die -- Tweet Cardinal.  I kept this card simple with a ready made frame from my card parts drawer.  Die cut holly accents a corner, and the sentiment banner gives him something to perch on.

I added Diamond Glaze to the holly berries, and you can see the holly leaves are also glossy.  The gloss was achieved by applying clear packing tape to green cardstock before cutting.  I learned the simple and genius packing tape trick from Natalie Bowers at NB Cards who I found during my late night YouTube excursions.

I have to give Natalie a shout out.  She's not selling anything, usually she can't even name the dies she uses as she oftentimes picks them up at a "charity shop".  I love that.  She'll take you step-by-simple step through creating the most beautiful backgrounds, and almost all her cards are ultra-CAS.  She created a Smoosher for smooshing watercolor backgrounds.  Don't knock it till you try it.  It makes smooshing so easy and neat.  She also makes her own glossy dots, which I've been doing for years, but her influence has prompted me to nearly give up purchased dots altogether.  Nearly.  I still have some in my stash, but I no longer buy them.  Most of her videos are only a few minutes long and it's amazing the ideas and inspiration she shares in that amount of time.

So here are the aforementioned challenges, plus NBUS for the Cardinal:

Christmas Kickstart #94 -- Bring the Baubles
Peace On Earth #80  -- See optional mood board
NBUS #70 -- Never before used schtuff.  My NBUS is the Spellbinders Tweet Cardinal.

  

If you're still with me after all that, then I appreciate your patience.  Have a happy day!

Deer:

Stamps:  None except inside sentiment  Paper:  Neenah Classic Crest Super Smooth Solar White 80lb (base) & 110 lb(dies, red, dark gray, and silver gloss cardstock  Coloring:  Minimal with gray Copics  Dies:  Spellbinders Magical Deer, Impression Obsession Holiday Bottom Word Edgers, Memory Box Precious Hearts  Other:  Memory Box Frosted Pines 3D embossing folder, 1/8", 1/4", 1/2" hole/circle punches, JudiKins Diamond Glaze

Cardinal:

Stamps:  None except inside sentiment  Paper:  Neenah Classic Crest Super Smooth Solar White 110#, SU Garden Green for holly and Poppy Parade for layer under sentiment banner, scrap designer paper  Coloring:  Minimal with Copics  Dies:  Spellbinders Tweet Cardinal and Make It Merry Sentiments, Tim Holtz Sizzix Holiday Greens Mini  Other:  JudiKins Diamond Glaze for berries, clear packing tape for gloss on holly leaves, Scotch brand foam mounting tape for Cardinal

Watercolored Pleasant Perch

Hello, friends!  I've been playing around with dies and embossing folders for the last few cards, but now it's time to get back to coloring as I have so many wonderful stamps yet to see ink.  Today it's Penny Black's Pleasant Perch.  This was a birthday gift (October) from a friend who knew exactly how much I would love it.  I think you know I have a great fondness for the outdoors, particularly if there's a forest or fur or feathers involved.

I stamped in Ranger Archival Watering Can and watercolored the bird and branch with only three Tombow markers:  Green 177, blueish-green 249, and brown 969.  I used a black permanent marker on the eye, and white acrylic paint for the eye glint

The background was watercolored with smooshes and splatters of Stampin' Up inks from reinkers -- Creamy Caramel and Brocade Blue.

The sentiment is from another Penny Black set, Thinking of You.

It's not flowery or flamboyant, but this little bird on her piney perch imparts a sense of peace and comfort.  In my real life world I appreciate that.

Pictured below is one of my most appreciated local spots where I can walk for miles and Sophie can run off leash.  This is a winter pond -- dry in the summer, but good for Sophie's splashing and swimming in the winter.

I'll send my card along to the following challenges:

Penny Black Saturday Challenge -- Anything goes or optional "something new".  I'm calling my Pleasant Perch stamp new because this is its first use.
Triple B Challenge -- Anything goes with birds, blooms, or butterflies.  Mood board optional.
NBUS Challenge #70 -- Never before used schtuff.

 

Thank you for visiting!  Wishing you a happy day.

Stamps:  Penny Black Pleasant Perch and Thinking of You  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 lb hot press watercolor, grocer's kraft  Ink:  Ranger Archival Watering Can  Coloring:  Watercolor with Tombow markers plus Stampin' Up reinkers for background and splatters, black permanent marker for eye, white acrylic paint for eye dot  Die:  Hero Arts Wood Frame