Well...Thanksgiving is almost here!    Hope you are all prepared to enjoy the holiday with your families!    I have updated my blog to hopefully allow you to easily subscribe to my blog.   If this doesn't work, I hope that someone will let me know.   Sorry for the inconvenience but I'm still learning the tricks of managing a blog!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Where did the summer go?

I can't believe that it has been several months since my last post.   So sorry to those who felt that I had abandoned you.    I actually have been very busy.  Below is one of the recent projects which I made for my mother-in-law.    She is a wonderful woman with an abundance of flowers (her word for her children and family).   I thought that this would be quite beautiful in a paper art creation and a great birthday present for her.

I am still working on the 75 creative card challenge but will have to take a break to figure out my 2016 Christmas card design!   So...for now enjoy the beautiful fall colors!

Happy Wednesday to everyone!  This is the last day of August which means that fall is just around the corner.  

Things have been quite busy around here as we have been tearing out part of the old sidewalk in front of our house and putting in new.    I obviously don't help much but moved my share of broken cement as well as made frequent trips to the lumber yard for concrete mix.   Despite offering help to my husband while he labored in the heat, it was mostly all up to him so I did get to work on a few more of the Creative Card challenges.    Below are Challenges 7-11!

Challenge #7 - Use 10 embellishments

You would expect that such a challenge to be easy but I wanted the 10 to be different and to fit my card theme which created somewhat of a challenge in itself.

Challenge #8 - Use a yard of ribbon

I made a conscious decision not to do the obvious wrapping of the ribbon to achieve the challenge.   The photo doesn't do the card justice though as it looks very cute in person.

Challenge #9 - use bleach

I had actually done this technique and almost decided to just use that card to meet the challenge however I'm glad that I didn't.   If you can get over the chlorine smell, the results achieved are pretty awesome. I liked this challenge so much I ended up making 2 new samples.  The first card has both the flower and leaves bleached.   Also used a new masking technique for the center using Distress Ink and Perfect Pearls.  The second card has only the leaves but I love how the bleach intensity is different on each leaf.    Again, the cards look so much more impressive in person. 

Challenge #10 - Make your own buttons

LOVED this challenge!   Some might say that I "cheated" by using my button punch to create the buttons but I would disagree as I still had to layer 3 die cuts and then add Glossy Accents to get the desired button effect!    AND what's wrong with using the craft supplies that you have!  

Challenge #11 - Doll up the die cut

Not sure what the real expectations were for this card challenge but I decided to use a combination of my dies to create my card.  (I think I used 6 different dies here.)  I will definitely be expanding on this technique in the future.

That's all for now.    Stay tuned for the next Creative Card Challenge update!    

 

Good morning!    I hope you are all doing well.   All the kids are back in school and it feels more like summer is winding down.    I love fall but am not looking forward to winter weather.    The only positive is that I will have more time for card-making.    So...I mentioned the 75 Creative Card Challenge and have completed the first 6 challenges.   Here they are:

Challenge #1 - Use a page from the phone book

This was a challenge in that I didn't have any stamps that worked well (nothing related to phones or "call me").      The embossing folder I used was one that I actually purchased but had no clue as to what it was.   After a quick Google search, I found that it was a Polaroid photo attached with a clothespin to chickenwire (gee...don't know what it wasn't obvious to me at first).   I loved the end result (and challenge to push myself to find a combination that worked).

Challenge #2 - Make a creative handmade flower

The flower and leaves are actually made from a Christmas tree die-cut.   It was the most different shape that I could think of.   If I make this card again, I think it would be great in Christmas colors and the flower would be a poinsettia.

Challenge #3 - Stamp on Felt

This challenge was the one that almost had me stumped.    First I could not find any felt in my stash of supplies except for the stiff kind and in bright orange.    Next after several tries I found that most inks didn't even show up on the felt.   This felt is thick so I had to make more cuts in order to minimize the thickness of the card.   Nonetheless...I really like the end result! 

Challenge #4 - Stamp with paint

Hmmm...didn't know that paint was so hard to use with stamps.    I had to make several test runs before I opted for a large stamp that actually is used for home stencil/wall painting.   

Challenge #5 - Make a quilt-inspired card

Probably the easiest challenge thus far.   

 Challenge #6 - Use only stickers

This was a good challenge which helped me use the stickers that I have on hand.   I almost never use stickers on my cards so this was different for me.    Unfortunately some of the stickers have lost their adhesiveness so they didn't stick well.   I may have to go back and glue them on in places.

That's it for now.   69 more challenges to go!

Hello...

It has been some time since I last posted here but thought I should let you know that all is well and that I have been enjoying the outdoors (despite the hot summer weather), spending time with the grandchildren and relaxing.    We fixed the remaining part of the deck earlier this summer and have done a bathroom remodel project as well.    Lots more to do but it is nice to have time to work on these kind of projects.    Hope you are all doing well!  

Stay tuned for more card pics as I am planning to try to do a 75 Creative Card Challenge that I found in one of my papercrafting magazines.    Wish me luck!

Some recent card creations

Here are a few of my recent card creations that I wanted to share.   I have been neglecting this blog for a while while my husband and I replaced some old boards on our deck.   As beautiful as the deck looks now, I thought you might prefer to see some cards!

Hope everyone is enjoying the summer (including the heat)!  

Happy Mother's Day (albeit a little late)!   I had this ready to post earlier but wanted to include the pictures which took time since I forgot to make a copy.  :-(

Anyway...I wanted to share the recent invitation and birthday card that I created for my grandson Liam's, 4th birthday.    He wanted a superhero theme and his favorite was Spiderman so with a little inspiration from my fellow papercrafters on the internet and some of my own design, I came up with the following:

The actual birthday card also had a Spiderman theme but with a twist!   Who knew there is an ACTUAL Minion language????   You gotta love the internet!   I did take poetic license with the translation though.    I think Liam liked the card but it was hard to tell with a four year old who was mesmerized by all his new toys!   (sigh)

Well...on to the next grandson's birthday preparations.   Stay tuned!

Bennett's Birthday Card

Attached is the birthday card that I created for my youngest grandson, Bennett, for his first birthday.   I found the basic design on the internet but then made my own modifications.   I know he probably doesn't appreciate the creativeness at his age now but maybe he will be impressed some day.

I decided to try out my alcohol inks today.    Unfortunately I don't have the Yupo paper which would really show off what you can do with the inks but think my first attempts were not so bad (humor me).    First I tried it on mixed media paper.   Wasn't sure if it would work and unfortunately it was a hot mess.  However I'm not one to throw things away so decided to play around.    This is with added doodling and Copic markers.    Actually looks better in person and it was not what I was expecting but it is interesting and as long as you call it art no one can argue, right?    Will have to experiment more with that paper until I can find the Yupo.

My next attempt was using a porcelain tile.    I REALLY liked the effect that you can get.   I think I'll call it "Floral Fantasy".

Would love to hear from my friends and family if you are following my blog!   Please leave a comment.  Hope you are all having a great day!  

Little Blue Truck birthday invitation

Here is the birthday invitation that I created for my grandson, Bennett!    I didn't even know what the Little Blue Truck was until my daughter told me that was the theme of the party.   Needless to say, I'm thankful for the internet to help me get educated!    

I was able to use a lot of punches and dies to get the different pieces.   The most challenging was the front fenders of the truck.   It was a lot of fun to use my imagination and the numerous dies and punches to get the right look!   If anyone is interested in how I did it, let me know.

Day 1 of my first Blog!

This blog has been a longtime dream of mine so that I can share my papercrafting inspirations!   I will start posting as soon as I get more of a feel for how blogging works.   Hope you enjoy it!  

In the meantime, I want to wish my husband a happy 37th anniversary!    You are the love of my life!   (...and thanks for helping me set up my blog!)

    Happy Anniversary!