Happy Easter!

Just hopping by to wish you a Blessed Easter and a Happy Spring full of sunshine, laughter, family, friends, and, of course, chocolate! Here is a chocolate bunny for you:

Stamps: Egg (Michael's $1 bin), happy (W&W)
Dies: Bunny (Impression Obsession), Easter (Cottage Cutz), Scalloped Edge (MFT)


The eggs are white embossed. As they don't have an outline around, the watercoloring looks a bit sloppy or let's call it loosely watercolored or artsy. The word "Easter" is die cut from white glossy paper which makes it a little more interesting.


Challenges (click on the links for more information and lots of inspiration from the DTs and the galleries) - graphics at the end:

Happy Little Stamper April Anything Goes with Dies Challenge







Happy Little Stamper April Watercolor Challenge







Inkspirational Challenge #132 Word Prompt "Spring"

Be well,

Rainbow Cityscape with Starry Sky

As is often the case I am squeezing in at the last minute before a challenge closes. This time it's the Time Out Challenge #80 Inspired by Words

'When it rains look for rainbows, when its dark look for stars'

Since rainbow colors and stars are among the things I love I really wanted to play even though I had trouble finding time. So yesterday while cooking dinner I started this card that had popped into my mind when I first saw this challenge.

Stamps: None
Dies: Cityscape (Memory Box), Circles for the Moon (Nestabilities)
Other: Stencil (Memory Box), Embossing Paste silver (Viva)


The moon is cut out from  matte silver card stock and the stars are made with a stencil and silver embossing paste.
I have lots of other ideas incorporating stars and rainbows but the challenge is ending in a few hours...


Challenges (click on the links for more information and lots of inspiration from the DTs and the galleries) - graphics at the end:

Time Out Challenge #80 Inspired by (above) words
ETA: This card was the winner!





Happy Little Stamper April Anything Goes with Dies
ETA: This card was the winner!




Happy Little Stamper April Watercolor Challenge "Anything Goes - Optional Twist: Rainbow"

Be well,

Pink Balloons with Gold Glitter

My blogging friend Gundi from papierelle has a challenge at the moment with a balloon theme. That motivated me to dig out my balloon dies that I don't use often enough (but then again what DO I use often enough...?).

Stamps: Sentiment (CAS-ual Fridays), Background (unmounted, unknown)
Dies: Balloons (SSS)


I sponged a glossy scrap of paper with different shades of pink and a light lavender, cut out the balloons, dipped the upper half in Versamark, and heat embossed that part with gold glitter embossing powder. Embossed the sentiment with the same EP on a strip of grey. You can see the glitter a little better in the second picture. The sparkle was hard to capture. The background was stamped with one of my old, unmounted background stamps (this one is marble), that I used to buy when I went to Rubber Stamp Conventions many years ago. It could be from Stamp Camp or Stamp Out Cute, but unfortunately these companies don't exist anymore.

Challenges (click on the links for more information and lots of inspiration from the DTs and the galleries):


Papierelle







Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge "For a Special Lady/Girl"
I gave this to one of my Thursday Night Stamping Friends who is a very special lady and loves grey and pink! We celebrated her birthday this past week.

Seize the Birthday "Anything Goes"







Happy Little Stampers March Anything Goes With Dies







Hope you are enjoying your weekend!

Be well,

Masculine Retirement Card

Another masculine card - this time for my newly retired brother-in-law!

Stamps: Winnie & Walter (sentiment), unknown (guy)
Dies: Hills (MFT Die-namics), clouds (Sweet 'n' Sassy, Penny Black


That guy is an unmounted stamp that, I believe, I bought at the first Rubber Stamp Convention I went which was almost 18 years ago. Unfortunately I don't remember who made it. Might have been "Stamp Out Cute" that has since closed. I don't think I have ever used him (he had a nice long nap you could say). 

Challenges (click on the links for more information and lots of inspiration from the DTs and the galleries):

The Male Room Challenge #51 "Anything Goes"







Happy Little Stampers January Anything Goes With Dies







Inkspirational #126 "Flutter"
Hey, a newspaper flutters in the breeze...







Be well,

100 Years

The first card I am showing you in 2017 I made for the the 100th birthday of the father of my sister-in-law! That is quite the milestone! I wonder if any of us will live that long...

Stamps: Stampin' Up (splatters)
Dies: Memory box (sentiment and numbers)
Other: Tim Holtz textured hammer, punch


Since he knows German I used this die from Memory Box that says something like "Best Wishes". The numbers are cut from a scrap of gold and then distressed with this textured hammer from Tim Holtz (not sure if it is still available). The green background I had in my stash. I layered everything on a gold panel and attached it to a 5x7 card that I stamped lightly with golden splatters.


Challenges (click on the links for more information and lots of inspiration from the DTs and the galleries):

The Male Room Challenge #51 "Anything Goes"






Seize the Birthday "Anything Goes"

Happy Little Stampers "Anything Goes With Dies" Challenge 







Your visits and comments always make my day! Thank you!

Be well,

Bright and Flowery Birthday Card

Hello everyone,

Popping in to let you know that I am still around. Just in the middle of the end-of-year/holiday madness. Although I don't have a holiday card for you but a birthday card with bright flowers to cheer you up if the weather is grey wherever you are. We had our first snow yesterday after a super mild and sunny Saturday.

Stamps: Simon Says Stamp (flowers), Happy Little Stamper (sentiment)
Die: Memory Box (birdie)
Other: Faber Castell Polychromos pencils


Challenges (click on the links for more information and lots of inspiration from the DTs and the galleries):

CAS Mix Up November "Masking"
The flowers are masked, stamped, plus there is fussy cutting, and die cutting

Seize the Birthday - no topping







Happy Thanksgiving to all who are celebrating!

Be well,

Sending You Hugs, Flowers, and some Foliage...

Another card with the ghosting technique?? Hope your are not getting tired of it... This is the last one for now but some day I do want to try this technique using a stamp. I made this background at Stamp Camp (see last post) but finished the card at home.  

Stamps: Hero Arts (sentiment)
Die: Winnie & Walter
Other: Stencil (Memory Box), Distress Inks, Glitterpaper (Recollection)


Challenges (click on the links for more information and lots of inspiration):

CAS Mix Up October Challenge "Ghosting"
This card might not be CAS enough since it has very little white space and even some sequins. Dear DT feel free to delete it...






Also at Stamp Camp we made this kind of fancy fold card (don't know the exact name) that was pretty easy to do. If you want instructions or a link, let me know, I'll try to find out.
We all used the same flower die cuts in white but look how different our cards came out. And not just because we all used different colored cardstock.

This is my card:

Stamps: Stampin' Up (foliage)
Dies: Stampin' Up (flowers and leaves)


Sending this to a new challenge in town - check it out:

The Flower Challenge #1 "Anything Goes"






and to

Happy Little Stampers "Anything Goes with Dies"






As a thank you for scrolling down this far I'll show you some of the foliage in our neighborhood:

It's rare to see bright green with blood red together!


You made it to the end of this post! Congratulations and thank you! Have a wonderful day!

Be well,

More ghosting and some Watercoloring

Check out my new signature at the end of the post that the amazing Loll created for me! The one that I made a few months ago caused a warning to pop up every time I wrote a new post, so sweet Loll offered to design a new one for me! I love it and hope you do, too!

Today I have two cards for you!

This past weekend I spent with my 7Cardologists friends (although one was missing) in the mountains at our annual Stamp Camp. I taught them the Ghosting technique which is the current theme at the CAS Mix Up Challenge. We all used different stencils and colors and had so much fun. I made this card from my background.

Stamps: Happy Little Stampers (sentiment)
Dies: Impression Obsession (tree)
Other: Tree stencil (TCW), Distress Inks


Challenges (click on the links for more information and lots of inspiration):

CAS Mix Up October Challenge "Ghosting"
plus Stamping and Die cutting
*This card was a runner up!*







On my second card I did some watercoloring with Distress Inks. I don't own Copics and use a lot of colored pencils when I am stamping with my friends but what I really love is the look of watercoloring.

Stamps: Winnie & Walter (sentiment)

Dies: Impression Obsession

Other: Distress Inks, copper embossing powder from PSX (that I've had for more than 20 years!!!)

The word "autumn" is embossed in copper. Hard to see in the picture but very pretty in real life. Will take a picture tomorrow and post it on instagram (button on the right sidebar).

Sending this card to the following challenges:


CAS Watercolor October Challenge "Fall"

Simon Says Stamp Work It Wednesdays September "Yellow, Orange, Red, and Brown"





The Gossip Column with Taheera Atchia on the W&W blog #5 "Precious Metals"








Both CAS Mix Up and CAS Watercolor Challenges are having an Design Team call and since I really like that style and enjoy playing in these challenges I am being brave and throwing my hat into the ring. Wish me luck...

Phew, that was a longish post! Thanks for sticking with me 'til the end!

Be well,

Purple and Green Flowery Birthday

Sorry that I am still not back to more regular posting (if there ever was such a thing on this blog) but it's still summer and there is still lots going on. I'll do the best I can and appreciate your visits and kind comments more than ever.

The 7 Cardologists celebrated another birthday! This time it was for the girl who moved away last year but is back right now for a visit! How wonderful it was to be all together again!

She loves purple so that made the color choice easy. The oval with the sentiment matches the flowers in real live much better. And the layer is not black as it looks on screen but dark purple. There is Wink of Stella on the flowers but that's, of course, not visible on the photo.

Stamps: Uniko (Beautiful blooms III), Happy Little Stampers (sentiment)


Challenges (click on the links for more information and lots of inspiration):


Uniko July Challenge "Flowers"







Happy Little Stamper CASE the Designer - Gloria Lee







Be well,