Water spritzed floral

This is another card from yesterday's class, one that came from the SU Convention that Denise attended. Using watercolor paper the image was stamped by inking the stamp with SU Markers, then spritzing the stamp with a mist of water to give a muted look to the image. Bashful Blue cs was added then torn with the watercolor paper to give a ragged look. Pear Pizzazz ribbon and a Not Quite Navy button were added to the cardstock then mounted on Not Quite Navy. The Spritzer tool was use with NQN marker to add dimension. I have not added a sentiment leaving it to be added when I decide on how I will use this card. The stamp set is Just Believe a brand new set from the current 2010-2011 Stampin'Up! Ideabook and Catalog.

Soft smudged background

This card was made at a class yesterday. We took Soft Suede reinker smudging it onto Whisper White cardstock with a wet sponge giving the paper a variety of shades. The Medallion was stamped with Versa Mark. Craft White was used to accent the center of the medallion and for the words which come from a Level 1 Hostess Set called Afterthoughts. Whisper White cs and Soft Suede cs provide the framing.
The techinque of sponging the ink on the cs gives an unusual background for the stamp making your card a one of a kind look.

Fanciful Silver Mambo birthday

A friend for whom I made this birthday card, gave me Blossoms & Butterflies printed paper stack by DCWV which has some scrumptious designs so right for summer. I decided that the printed silver and deep pink went perfectly with Stampin'Up Melon Mambo cardstock. With the silver swirls, flowers & butterflies, I didn't need to add much embellishments. I mounted the patterned paper on a piece of textured silver I had as a scrap, stamped Happy Birthday on it and punched out the ovals which were mounted with demensionals. A very quick and easy card. My friend had forgotten she had given me the paper so she is happy to have a reminder of her gift to me. She was also happy to receive the retiring cardstock I had ordered for her and some surprise stamp sets that she didn't have. I really like to give my friends gifts that I know will make them happy, don't you?

Have a wonderful weekend and always remember to thank God for the friendships He has provided!

Birthday card

Today is my son-in-law Sam's birthday so I thought this would be the perfect image for him...he is an excellent cook using a grill and smoker for many of his meat dishes. An avid deer hunter, he can use venison in many adventurous recipes that even I will eat....

The stamp set "King of the Grill" is from the Stampin'Up Summer Mini Catalog which is available through August 31st. There are some really cool items and the new Clear Mount stamps are so easy to store; I am loving them! This stamp set has a Happy Father's Day stamp in it as well so it's also a great stamp for any occasion that a masculine card is needed.

Recipe: CS- Naturals Ivory and retired patterned paper from 2006
Ink- Basic Brown & Close to Cocoa
Accessories- Watercolor Pencils, sponge for distressing and brads

Clipboard project

This past Sunday afternoon my upline Denise, her upline Ruth, a friend Dodie and I got together to make clipboard projects. Each design was the sole idea of the designer and did we have fun with this project! We all used Stampin'Up products, but I found a sheet of unknown maker printed paper that spoke to me and this is what I came up with. The soft green plaid paper covers the back of the clipboard and edges of the front. The flower was on the other side of the patterned piece so I cut out the flower mounted it on SU Night of Navy to make it stand out and added it to the front panel. I used the swirl stamp from Baroque Motifs to accent the design in Night of Navy Craft ink on the front panel. The panel was created from the fabulous new Presto Patterns Specialty paper which is in the new Summer Mini Catalog. This paper is white with a lusterous sheen giving the imagination full range on how to use it! I chose the criss-cross design brayering it in Rose Red to bring out the pattern and a soft subtle look. To complete the clipboard I punched small flowers from the Boho flowers punch added pearls from the Pretties Kit which were also put on the large flower and swirls for accent. Paper was placed inside the pen casing and tied to the clipboard with stretchy silver cord.

We had a great time with this project!

Going, going, gone!

As many of you know Stampin'Up is updating their color lineup. For those who use Stampin'Up products, you may want to take a look at the new and retiring colors and order those you love before they are gone. The ink pads, re-inkers, markers, pencils, chalks and cardstock will be sold on a While Supplies Last basis beginning June 1 and ending June 30. As of then they will be gone, gone, gone!! I will miss many of the retiring colors that I use regularly, but have enough to last me awhile for personal use. If you don't have an SU demo and would like to get your favorite colors, please click on the links at the side of my blog one will take you to my SU web site for ordering.

The new catalog which will be available July 1st will have some scrumptious new shades for you to choose as well as the most popular returning colors. There will also be 5 new In-Colors added to the lineup. Why change? Stampin'Up has to change to keep up with current trends just as other companies have done in order to keep competitive with today's market. For those of you who use many companies' products, you know what I mean.

I know that I am late posting the links to the changes the reason being that I just figured out how to link the pdf. with the pictures...I can be a little computer challenged at times.... If I can be of any assistance, please contact me.

for my Special Friend

A few months ago I used this card front for an SU demo swap, leaving it plain so that I could choose the wording when I finished the card. My oldest and dearest friend has a birthday on May 18th and thought this would make a nice birthday card for her. I added the stamp Birthday Hugs & Wishes from the "Hugs & Wishes" stamp set, added a white cs base and added some SU dsp for a background. All Stampin'Up products were used as follows Colors: Melon Mambo, Pretty in Pink, Certainly Celery; Punches: Scallop Corner, 2 step Bird; Embosslets: Flower Burst, Beautiful Wings; Clear Rhinestone brad; glue dots; Dazzling Diamonds Glitter; 2-way glue.

The message inside is not stamped but written personally for the recipient as I usually do. Barb and I go back to being in elementary school together, but we didn't become close friends until high school. Though we rarely see each other we have continued to keep in touch and continue a true friendship throughout the years. She is the sister I never had, my prayer partner, advice giver and support through illness and loss of parents. I hope I have been the same kind of friend to her as well.

Blog Award from Becky

I am truly honored to recieve this award from my dear blogging friend Becky. I haven't done much blogging lately but try to visit her blog when I can to see her lovely work and read her inspirational messages. I was so surprised to see my name on the list for this award....thank you so much Becky!!

In following the guidelines of the award, I'll list 10 things that make me happy & 5 pieces of trivia....trying not to bore anyone...lol!!

What makes me Happy
1. The love of Jesus as my Lord & Savior
2. My family
3. Hugs & kisses from my grandchildren
4. Being told I love you by my family
5. Creating cards
6. The fragrance of sheets dried in the fresh air
7. Enjoying the beauty of Springtime
8. Being inspired to create card and scrapbook pages
9. Spending time with friends
10.My DH having a good health day

5 Pieces of Trivia
1. I was raised in a Christian home, loving the Lord from an early age.
2. I have 2 children and 5 grandchildren
3. Have lived in PA and NYC but most of my life in Maryland.
4. Enjoy creating cards & scrapbooks
5. As a teen & young woman, I made most of my own clothes, now I never sew!


And now to give this to 5 of my Blogger Friends: alphabetically
1 Chris
2 Grace
3 Janet
4 Linda
5 Teresa

Easter Blessings

He Lives! Christ Jesus lives in our hearts and directs us to live as He wants us to! As we celebrate Easter may your heart be filled with the love of Jesus knowing that Salvation is ours through His sacrifice for us. My prayer is that each of you will open your heart to Jesus, our Lord and Savior.

My card is certainly not an original design, but one I'm sure many of you have used with other stamp sets. I chose Wild Wasabi and Barely Banana card stock because they remind me of Spring. The stamp set is a new Stampin'Up set called Abundant Hope which I colored in Wild Wasabi and various markers on the the daffodils. The background is textured with the Polka Dot embossing folder and sheer organdy ribbon finishes the card. All material is Stampin'Up.

May you all have a wonderful and meaningful Easter!

Swap for SU team meeting

This is the swap card front I made for this month's meeting. I wanted to focus on the new punches and Embosslits dies featured in the current Stampin'up Occasions Mini Catalog. My base cs is Melon Mambo, next is Pretty in Pink which I edged with the new Scallop Trim Corner. I used Certainly Celery for the stems/leaves and butterflies. The flower is made with the Flower Burst Embosslit, butterflies from Beautiful Wings Embosslit and the stems are made with part of the 2 Step Bird punch. I accented the flower center with a Clear Rhinestone brad and used Dazzling Diamonds Glitter for sparkle. Any sentiment can be added when I decide how I will use this and the whole front can be mounted on a regular 5 1/2" x 4 1/4" card base.