I can't believe it's been two weeks!!!!!!!

I am SO SORRY!!!! We've been working on re-doing our bedroom and time just totally got away from me. I am kind of an "in the moment person" and I get totally involved in what I am working on. And right now, decorating the walls in our newly painted bedroom is just fun! fun! fun! I LOVE IT!!! I went shopping today with a friend for all the little decorating stuff that is so fun to buy and I was amazed at how much scrapbooking has become part of the whole decorating scene. There are flourishes, cute phrases, art for walls, words for walls, etc. etc. etc. Everything I looked at, all I could say was "I can DO that!!!!" Of course, the thing is, it would take forever to do it all yourself.

I have a card  that I want to share with you. The background stamp is "Amazing Grace". I just love it!!! I found it at a scrapbooking show in Novi, Michigan (near Detroit). I went there with a friend. Didn't have a whole lot of money to spend so I was being very careful with my purchases. But, when I saw this stamp, I just had to have it. I'm sure I will use it a lot!!!

I made this for Gina K Tuesday Sketch Challenge. I had already started this card because I love inchies and the next day her challenge came up and it was EXACTLY what I was making!!!  How often does that happen????

Card details: First I stamped the Amazing Grace stamp on white, lightly glittered, shiny, heavy cardstock I had bought for Christmas. I stamped in Versamark and embossed in white.
Then I used Distressed inkpads of spiced marmalade, worn lipstick and fired brick. Just kept working it until I liked it. I also used black to get dark spots so it looked splotchy and made all four sides darker.

The inchies were colored with the same colors, and then I wrote "Amazing Grace...how sweet the sound" in my handwriting. I don't have great handwriting, but I like the look of it being handwritten.
Then I sprayed a pearl mist on them. I make my own mist by following Tim Holtz directions for Perfect Pearls Mist.
So the three inchies have a sparkly finish and stand out from the background.
I blackened the edges of the inchies and matted them in white.
The flourish is a Tim Holtz Sizzix die-cut and the flower is made from coffee filters.
If you would like directions for the coffee filter flowers...please leave me a comment and I can email you back. I love to share techniques.

Thank you so much for looking.
Hope you enjoy....I really like the way this card turned out.
I don't know if pictures ever do a card justice, but I guess we're pretty used to seeing pics and imagining the real thing.

Be blessed,
e

Gina K Color Challenge

Hello everyone....
Another hot day here...and I am NOT complaining because I love summer...but sometimes a little breather is nice!

I loved this color challenge from Gina K, using red, orange and yellow.  Can you say SUMMER????
But I also had this black and white background that I REALLY wanted to do because I LOVE the paper. Soooooo, I decided to combine. I LOVE the brightness of the flowers and the bird, AND still had that beautiful black and white elegant background.
Hope you like it.

The card: Flowers are from a stamp I have had for a long time. I watercolored them with the beautiful H2O's I bought a couple of years ago. They shimmer and shine so beautifully. Then the bird is a Stampin' Up! punch...with a little glitter of course. I just don't think I can call a card done unless it has some glitter, ribbon, or other glitz on it....

So, there's my entry.
Hope you enjoyed looking.
Have a WONDERFUL & BLESSED week.

ttfn
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A few more challenges

Here's a card I made for a friend in the hospital. It was one of those that kind of evolved. Things just didn't work the way I thought they would, but then in the end it kind of came together. I find it difficult when my plans for a card just don't mesh and I'm left trying to find what would work.

The paper is a favorite piece that I bought several of....but now I have lost my vision for it.
The white punch is Martha  Stewart and the brown frame is Spellbinders. I then wanted an olive green large flourish and covered a Tim Holtz grungeboard flourish with a green polka dot paper. That didn't look good at all so I embossed with clear and then with Kaleidescope. Never did become what I wanted. I added the pearls, that helped.

It's very hard to tell, but the bottom of the card is actually showing the underneath layer. The front of the card is trimmed and the bottom layer is showing in the front. That's where the buttons are. I LOVE the buttons. They really added a special touch. That orange stuff on the brown button is really interesting, I separated some multi colored yarn I have and used just the orange fluffy part...FUN!!!  I don't seem to use buttons too often, but I really like to see them on cards and enjoy them when I remember that I have a nice stash.

Challenges:  Just for Fun: orange (polka dot ribbon and butterflies) olive (flourish) & brown
                     (stamp on card front and frame
                   EBTKS: Buttons

Thank you for looking,
Be blessed,
e

Black and white elegant....

Hi everybody, it's Tuesday,  and the challenge at Play Date Cafe is due tonight. It's black and white with green. The dragonfly and the glitz really is green...I just couldn't get it any better than this.

The card is three layers of black and white print. All layers are matted with black. It looks very three dimensional and doesn't seem to need any other embellishments. I tend to like a lot of embellies, but sometimes the print is just too busy and too much...so I chose to leave it alone and leave it very simple.

I made the dragonfly by painting a transparency with alcohol inks then laying a Dazzle on the spot I wanted. Then, just cut out. I purchase my Dazzles from Paper Wishes and I love them. They are inexpensive and one sheet lasts a long time.

Last weekend was very frustrating. I didn't get a whole lot done on my scrapping and I was just kind of spinning my wheels. I had so much to do around the house and everything took twice as long as I hoped it would.
I still have a couple more cards I need to get ready for some challenges I want to enter. So hopefully, the week will go better than the weekend did.
I LOVE CHALLENGES!!! They really get my ideas rolling.

Enjoy your week.....be sure to love on the people God has given you.
ttfn
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A Summery Birthday Card

Good Sunday morning...looks like it's going to be a beautiful day after all the rain we have had. I woke up early and have a little time to blog this morning before we leave for church. Found a couple of challenges that fit this card I made. I like the way it turned out...it looks pretty to me, like the niece I made it for.

OOOOOPS I am so SORRY!!! I cannot get this to come in straight....no matter what I do, it still loads sideways!!!  UGH!!!

Anyway, the background paper is a beautiful light purple polka dot that I had hoarded until the perfect card came along. The lacy white under the purple strip is a Fiskars edge punch that I have had for a long time.
Then an assortment of flowers and a huge brad heart from Paper Wishes. They sell these in red, white and pink and I just love them.

Again, sorry about the sideways picture....this is the first time I could not fix it....hope you understand.

Oops, almost forgot, the challenges I am  entering are CARDVAARKS (a Birthday card to commemorate "My Favorite Things Stamps'" Birthday celebration) and CRAFTY CALENDAR (a summer card). I thought this card fit both of these nicely.

Have a WONDERFUL week,
ttfn
e

A couple of vintage cards

I have a couple of cards for you. I have been madly dashing around trying to get caught up with Birthday cards and other obligations that I almost missed during the time my family was visiting.  It is sooooo much fun playing with grandkids and taking time out from the usual stuff....but then you  have to race like crazy getting back on track....I'm not complaining....just saying :o)

Here's my first one. I love the image cut from Graphics 45 paper. There are several different images on each 12x12 paper and can be cut up and used in many different ways.  Great bargain!
The background paper is a vellum print by Anna Griffin.
To embellish, I used lace and a deep burgundy ribbon.  The lace flower is leftover lace I have had since my daughter's wedding, 18 years ago. The flourishes are Tim Holtz grungeboard.

Ok, here's the second one. The image of the girl on the clock is another Graphics 45 paper. These are all the same image on the page, except for being different sizes. I chose the largest one for this card. In going through my stash of papers I found this map paper and KNEW that the orange flowers would be perfect....that background just fit together so well....I LOVED the color combination. This year my favorite seems to be ORANGE!!!! I wouldn't paint my rooms orange but patches of orange for effect just constantly catch my eye.
Next, finding this strip of chipboard stamps that had been in my stash for ages was the perfect touch for this traveling theme.
The flourishes are Quik-Kutz embossed first with clear and then with Kaleidescope embossing powders. I love this technique because it gives great depth to the embellishment AND the kaleidescope leaves a multi colored glittery top that changes colors and shimmers as the card is moved.
The flower is made from coffee filters. If you would like directions, please email me and I'll be glad to write you back.

Soooo, thanks for visiting.
Hope you enjoy,
ttfn
e

A fun, crafty day with the grandkids...

Hi everybody,

WOW it's been about two weeks since I've gotten on my blog....

Our daughter and her family are visiting us from Chicago and I get so involved in doing things with them and keeping the kids entertained that making cards has taken a back seat (not in my mind, just in my time on the computer). Anyway, we are having a great time and even spent one whole day crafting.

We found a project...making tiles...then went to the store, bought some Sculpey clay, a HUGE pack of shells made for craft projects, beads, etc. AND frames to cover with the tiles. The next day was actual craft day...rolled out and cut the clay into tile shapes...kids are very inventive and we had shapes of all sizes and shapes (very few square ones for this crew!!!)  We used stamps to get images on the tiles (worked really great!) Dried them in the oven, then colored images and tiles to our hearts' content. We attached beads, glitter, wire...all sorts of stuff that is in abundance in any scrapping area. The problem is, EVERYTHING gets pulled out and the putting back isn't nearly as fun as the pulling out (sigh).

This is the youngest...Eli, he is 5...he was very particular about his tiles. Only used a few colors and he wouldn't allow us to cover the words (which is actually where he was supposed to put the tiles so that he would have a frame around his "Picture"....BUT this is how he saw his project and was very pleased with it!!!

This is Kassidy...She is 10 yrs old. Again, knew exactly what she wanted. Didn't want the tiles together. Made her own "Jesus" picture for the center...looked great! She also made a necklace for herself and a bracelet for her new teacher when school starts....get on the good side of the teacher right from the get-go. No, really, I think it's wonderful that she even thought of her teacher in the middle of summer vacation.

And here's their oldest....Kirstin, she's 14....lovely job. We found this friend frame that she really liked and then decorated it to make it her own...I love the detail and the "organized" look.

Most of all....it was a GREAT TIME together...Fun for a granny to watch the new generation show off their personalities and do "their" thing!!!!

So, that's it for now. We'll be alone again next week so I will be posting cards and things will be back to normal....BUT I WILL MISS HAVING A HOUSE FULL OF FUN, LAUGHTER, FIGHTING, and being a FAMILY!!!! Family is God's gift to us....and I am very thankful for mine.

ttfn

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