Saturated Canary "Pink"

Today I put this card together and just had fun with it. I chose an image from Saturated Canary called "Pink".  I used mostly Spectrum Noir to color her skin and clothing, and Copics for her hair.  I distressed the edges of the papers from My Minds Eye 6x6 pads and then I added ink to the edges of everything with Recollections Ink in "Pool."

I added a row of stitching around the border using Lizbeth thread (in Blue River Glades) from Handy Hands and you can find it here:

                    Lizbeth Thread

The color of these Lizbeth threads are wonderful, they have so many unique color combinations.

I created the little flag border by cutting some small triangles and then using an alphabet rubber stamp set (from Michaels that cost only $1!!!)   I used a Cricut to cut the scalloped frames (Elegant Edges Cartridge.) I also added a little Glossy Accents on her eyes and a couple of pearls in the corner.

I hope you are creating something wonderful as well!

:)

OWH Midweek Throw-down, Thank You Cards

Happy Midweek Throw-down Challenge! This week's challenge is for Thank You cards.  First, a huge "Thank you" to Jan for being the hostess of this challenge for the last couple of years. 

Jan, I wish you nothing but happiness as you begin a new life adventure. 

:)

I can not remember where the idea came from for this card (would love to give someone credit here,) but the idea was to take all of your "thank you" stamps and arrange them to be the focal point of the card. Whomever it was said a company that she purchases from always includes a free "thank you" stamp so she had built up a little collection and this seemed like a great way to use them. 

Does anyone know?

This process is definitely easier with clear stamps than wood-mounted.  You just try to arrange them in a way that is pleasing, easy! 

Other items used:

Background paper- just a scrap from my stash (sorry, I do not know who makes it.)

"Basket Weave" stamp from "Fun Stamper's Journey"

Tim Holtz ink "Fired Brick" 

 Recollections Clear embossing powder     

Viva Pearl Pen in Gold (the little dots everywhere.)

Thank you for visiting!

Sketch #187 Operation Write Home (Graphic 45 Papers)

Happy Sketch Sunday everyone!

Today's Operation Write Home sketch is #187 and you can find details about it here:

Sketch #187

Here is the sketch:

 I have been hoarding these papers, not wanting to use them for just anything because I really like them. The papers are from Graphic 45 (French Country Collection) and the small rectangle is from Reminisce (Festive Cake- the back side). Everything is mounted on a slate blue card stock. 

The rooster is from a Dazzles set (Home Grown Stickers) from Hot off the Press. 

The sentiment is from Stampers Best "Stud Puffin" stamp (one of the Operation Write Home Fund Raiser Stamps) and you can find it here:

Stampers Best Stud Puffin

The stitching was done with a brown DMC embroidery thread. 

The ribbon is a plain white polyester from Michael's "Celebrate It" line (but it looks like a satin finish). I colored it the shade I needed with Spectrum Noir TB8.  When my ribbon stash was getting out-of-control and a storage nightmare (by trying to have every shade), I decided to purchase more white ribbons and use my alcohol markers to color them whatever color I needed. Now things are so much more manageable. I will still purchase the special ribbons (multi-colored, crochet trims and such), but now things are fitting into my small space. 

:)

Just for fun (and to show that I do more than make cards all day.....), I snapped this little photo yesterday just to prove that I do go outside now and then:

This picture makes me want to purchase a butterfly stamp just so that I can color him up with Spectrum Noir color OR3.  

Thank you for stopping by my little blog!

OWH Sketch Challenge # 186

Happy "Sketch Sunday" everyone! Today's Operation Write Home Sketch is # 186 and looks like this:

You can find details about the sketch challenge here:

OWH Sketch Challenge #186

The papers are from My Mind's Eye ("On the Bright Side" for the wood-look  and light blue dotted ones and "Lost & Found" for the brown patterned one.) Everything is layered on Bazzill's Brown textured card stock. 

I created the sentiment using alphabet stickers from my stash (that are a couple of years old at least...) but they are labeled as "Backstitch Blue Alphabet" from shopsei.com.

I felt this card needed some details so I distressed the edges using Colorsmart Pigment Ink in Chocolate Brown, added some real cross stitches in a slate blue DMC thread, and then a little twine.  I also used a little May Arts ribbon (might be called "Net", but looks like burlap, sort of....) and I used dimensional adhesive under the 3"x4.25" section. 

Thank you so stopping by! 

:)

Our Daily Bread Designs/OWH August Challenge

Every month Our Daily Bread Designs offers to pay the shipping for two boxes of cards being sent to deployed heroes if at least 50 card makers participate in their monthly challenge with Operation Write Home.  This month's challenge is to create a card using brown, green and pink.  

You can find more details about the challenge here:Our Daily Bread Designs Challenge

I selected this image from Saturated Canary called "Dreads." You can purchase this lovely image here:

Saturated Canary Dreads

I colored her up with Spectrum Noir LG3 & LG5 for her sweater, and Copics E44, E43, & E42 for her skirt. Her sash is PP1, PP3, PP5 & LG5. Her hair was colored with so many markers, both Spectrum Noir and Copics, in an attempt to get a softer look and I forgot to keep track, so sorry. Her skin was GB8 with TN3 over it.  I added a little Glossy Accents to her eyes to make them shine. 

I layered her on a little aqua green Bazzill dotted paper and some Brown card stock.  I also added May Arts "Mesh" ribbon and then did a little hand stitching around the edge using a Lizbeth variegated thread called "Root Beer Float".  

The sentiment was made using Hero Arts "Fanciful Swirls Alphabet Stamps" and I added a little dimensional adhesive behind it. I used Craftsmart pigment ink in Chocolate Brown to distress the edges around all the papers. 

Thank you for stopping by!

:)

OWH Sketch Challenge # 185

Happy Sunday everyone!

Here is a quick card for Operation Write Home's Sketch Challenge #185.
Details about this sketch can be found here:
OWH Sketch #185

Here is the sketch:








These two cards were made using Graphic 45's French Country Collection paper for the top portion, and Reminisce's "Festive Cake" for the bottom portion. Both of these papers are reversible so one card was made with one side of each paper, and then the other card was made using the other side.


The brown accent stickers are from Hot Off The Press's Dazzles "Home Grown Sticker" collection.

The sentiment is from a Hero Arts' Operation Write Home Fundraiser set.

The top card has a little May Arts Mesh ribbon and a little brown grosgrain.

OWH Sketch #184 Challenge

Happy Sunday everyone! Here is a card for Operation Write Home's Sunday Sketch Challenge #184.  Here is the sketch:

For more details about the challenge, just click here:

OWH Sketch #184

The rubber stamp and sentiment are from a Stampers Best Operation Write Home Fundraiser set called "Turtley Awesome" and can be purchased here:Turtley Awesome

I colored this turtle with Spectrum Noir LG2, LG3, CG4 & DG3.  The balloon was colored with CR2, OR1, OR2, & OR3.

The scalloped circles were cut with a Cricut "Elegant Edges" cartridge and I added a little green satin and organza ribbon.  The papers are all from Recollections at Michael's.

Have a great day!
:)

Having a little craft-distraction!

Does this ever happen to you? You know, when you have so many craft projects going on at the same time that you get a little.....distracted from things like housework? That is where I am right now. Besides my usual obsession with creating cards for Operation Write Home and trying to keep those scrap books up to date, now some other crafty things are on my work desk.

I saw a You Tube video from "The Frugal Crafter" on how to make these "Monkey Fist Knots" and I had to try it. We all ready had the para-cord needed from an unused kit given to my daughter. And I raided a decorative vase for the marbles. 10 minutes later I had these!

And then there is my "Beanie making" project. A group I belong to collects things for homeless veteran's and this is one of the only things I know how to crochet.  

Ok, then there is this "SWAP" craft I am doing for a Girl Scout event using recycled materials.  I saved all those ATG tape plastic centers (the thing left when the tape runs out) and also some plastic rings off of Vita-Water Plastic bottles to create these.  You save up thread scraps and tie them all together, trim the ends if you like and then wrap the plastic rings with it.  Add a little cording to make a necklace. 

And I have had these little Trefoil shaped wood pieces for years. I don't think they make them any more. I want to use them up so decided to try my hand at wood burning so I can add them to the SWAPs above.  Every marker I had tried to use to write on them would bleed into the wood grain, so a wood burning tool was the answer. 

Yes, there is more....the loom thing my daughter and I created in an effort to interest her in "creating" something.  And there is at least one project on knitting needles here somewhere, and another project on an embroidery hoop, and a couple of containers saved from the recycle bin with awesome lids that would be great little storage containers with decoupaged images on them......and on it goes. 

Maybe it is just me........

:)

A Travel Mug for Becca

Happy August everyone!

This month, Saturated Canary and Spectrum Noir announced similar themes for their challenges.  

Saturated Canary's Challenge # 49 is "Set Your Creativity Free" and Spectrum Noir's August Challenge is  to create "Anything But A Card" as long as you use Spectrum Noir to color it. 

You can find details about these challenges here:

Saturated Canary Challenge # 49

Spectrum Noir "Anything But A Card"

I wanted to create something for my niece Becca who is about to leave to study abroad on "Semester at Sea" (for four months--one lucky gal!)  She has been doing a lot of traveling lately and this image from Saturated Canary called "Pack Light" totally reminds me of Becca. 

You can purchase this image here:

Pack Light

I found this "decorate your own travel mug" at Michael's for $2 and decided to create this project. I took the inserts that came with the mug out and used them as a template to figure out the size and placement of the image before printing (this is a digital image) on white card stock.  But then I ended up detail cutting around her and layering her on top of the travel collage. 

I colored up "Pack Light" using Spectrum Noir. Here are most of the colors I used (there were so many I started to forget to write them down on the little items!)

Hair- TN1, TN2, TN5, TN7

Bow- CR4, CR7

Skin- FS9, FS4, HB1, and CR4 for blush

Skirt- PP4, PP5

Sweater- GT1, GT2, GT3

Luggage- TB2, TB3, TB4, CR10, GG3, GG4

Purse- GB8, GB6, GB5

Then I pulled out all my rubber stamps that were travel-themed and filled the background. I originally decided not to color the background images because I wanted the Saturated Canary image to pop.  Then I changed my mind and added color.  The overall background color is Spectrum Noir EB1. 

I wrote a little message for my niece on the lines of the tag. It is a fun way to personalize this gift even more. 

Other stamps I used:

Hero ARts CL146 Travel Set

Hero Arts "Operation Write Home" Stamp Set LP279

Stampers Best- Compass & Statue of Liberty

Sunday International "Aloha" Set 

"Far East Beauty" Stamp Set from Hot of the Press Inc. 

Egypt Stamp from "Stamp Crafter" 

Thank you for stopping by (and reading all the way to the bottom of this long blog post!)

:)