Abstract Watercolor

Hello!
I'm just popping in for a quick post.  I was on Etsy last night to finish up some business.  Just before logging off, I decided to take a quick look around.  The watercolor painting, below, caught my eye right away.  HERE is the link.  I'm usually not so interested in abstract designs.  But this immediately made me think "I could do that on a card."
I love the soft, blurred look of the colors running together.

I pulled out a small piece of watercolor paper and went to work with a few SU watercolor crayons and an aqua brush (also Stampin' Up!).  I just swiped the aquabrush across the tip of the crayon, then randomly painted across the paper.  Afterward, I sprayed the painted paper with some Tattered Angels Pearl Glimmer Mist.  At first I thought that the colors blurred too much.  But decided to wait until it dried, then take another look.  I really liked the effect!  So I die cut it and mounted it with white and yellow card stock.
This is the final result...

If you look very, very closely you might be able to see a little of the shimmer.

This turned out to be one of those spontaneous cards that I hadn't planned on making...but did.  And it turned out so much better than I expected. It makes me smile :)
What do you think?  I'd love to know.

Supplies:

card stock: daffodil delight (SU), watercolor paper

ink: basic gray (SU), two gray and one yellow watercolor crayons (SU)

stamps: happy trails (PTI)

other: aquapainter (SU), large deckled rectangle die (Spellbinders), pearl glimmer mist (Tattered Angels)

Your are such a joy - 2 challenges

Hi again.  This is my 3rd (and final) post for today :o)

This card has a very summer-y feel.  Lots of flower blooms and summer colors.  It's too hot and humid to work in my flower gardens today.  So I might as well spend time at my craft table right?

My card is going into 2 challenges.  This first one is a sketch challenge from RetroSketches #17.  They have such fun sketches.  Take a look...

The second challenge is one that I've not played along with before.  Young Crafters Unite Challenge #11 - Many Layers

Yes.  I know it says *young* crafters.  But the rules say your actual age doesn't matter...we're celebrating how young at heart we feel when we're creating.  :o)

My card ~

I had fun with this card!  I used a linen impression plate for that popped up main panel.  Then ran the coral card stock through my Big Kick with a text impression plate.  The focal panel is a piece of patterned paper, that already has a sentiment in it, so no need for stamping on this card.  That's a rarity for me...no stamping?
Anyway, I added a bit of white lace trim just under the edge of the panel.  Then finished my card with a shiny, floral brad.  Oh, and a strip of patterned paper on the inside of the card.
I actually planned to add more layers to this card.  But I think it would have taken away from the floral print.
I like it just the way it is.
What do you think?

Thanks for taking a look.  I hope you'll leave a comment!

This card is for sale in my Etsy shop.

What's in it?

card stock: cameo coral (SU), white (PTI)

patterned paper: 6 x 6 be happy paper pad (My Minds Eye)

other: brad (follow your heart, be happy - My Minds Eye), lace trim (from my stash), linen impression plate, book print impression plate (PTI), scor-tape, foam tape, tombow mono tape

Shoes with Bows, Buttons & Lace

Hey, I'm back for a second post today. Unusual, right?

Edited to add:  I forgot to mention that I'm entering this in the Simon Says Stamp Challenge: Anything But A Card.

Well, if you've followed by blog for the past 6 weeks or so, you've noticed that I've developed a "shoe habit".  No, no.  Not the kind I wear.  But, paper crafted shoes.  I'm tellin' ya'.  I'm really hooked.

In the years that I've been playing with paper, I've always thought of myself as a card maker.  I enjoy creating framed gifts, too.  Photos with sentiments and embellishments...once in a while a poem added in (no...not written by me.)

Anyway, I was asked to create several pairs of paper crafted high-heel shoes for a customer about 6 weeks ago.  She had seen a pair that I posted on my blog last year.  Well.  After I'd completed her order I thought to myself "I need a break from this!"  But, that didn't last long.  I find myself drawn back to "shoe crafting".
It's time consuming, but somehow calming.  I've learned a few tricks for assembling them. Now that I know what I'm doing, I enjoy it so much!

Hey.  Enough talking already, huh???

This time I wanted to create a pair of shoes that have a bit of a vintage feel.  At least as far as the embellishments.  This very deep pink card stock is Stampin' Up!'s new Primrose Petal.  So pretty.
I chose this color for these shoes because I just couldn't wait to use a pair of patterned paper bows that I got from Vicki Chrisman.  Here is a link to her blog This Art That Makes Me Happy.

Recently Vicki developed her own die to create these sweet bows, in several different sizes.  She gave away several sets of bows to several of her blog readers/commenter.  And I was lucky enough to win a package of her bow die-cuts.  I just love them!  They're very easy to assemble.  In fact, I had to get more of them :)
You can order some through her Etsy shop HERE.  Her prices are reasonable and she'll do custom orders.

Also HERE is a link to the post she wrote about the bows (and how to form them, with ideas for using them too.)

Here's a pic of one of the bows, right out of the package.

Before forming the bows, I curled them around a pencil to prevent the paper from creasing.  It makes for a nice soft curve.  This advice came from Vicki...I can't take credit for it :)

Thanks so much for stopping in to take a look!  This pair of shoes will be placed in my Etsy shop soon.

Supplies:

card stock: primrose petal (SU)

other: die-cut bows (from Vicki Chrisman), scor-tape (Sookwang), linen thread (SU), lace trim (The Paper Studio), vintage buttons from my stash, glue dots

Sending A Big Thank You - CAS-ual Fridays Challenge

Hello!  I've created a thank you card that I'll be placing in the current challenge at CAS-ual Fridays CFC58 - Pretty in Pink

My card ~

I decided to go with a very simple card today.  I stamped the stitched lines in 3 shades of pink.  The sentiment is stamped with one of the new Stampin' Up! colors...Primrose Petal.  The card base is the same color. I used a Stardust clear glitter pen to add a few highlights to the words Thank You.   I've never been much of a fan of pink.  But...I'm finding that I am really liking this Primrose Petal.  In fact, I've almost used up this color out of the multi-pack of In Color card stock that I bought recently. And, you'll see more of this color in my next post (a pair of shoes!)

Thanks so much for taking a look today!

What's in it?

card stock: primrose petal, whisper white (SU)

stamps: stitched together (CTMH), a big thank you (PTI)

ink: blushing bride, pretty in pink, pink pirouette, primrose petal (SU)

other: corner cutter (Photo-Max), stardust clear glitter pen (Sakura), foam tape (3M)

Prize Haul :)

Hey!  I'm just popping in for a quick post.  A couple of weeks ago I left a comment on Melissa Phillips blog, Lilybean's Paperie, for a chance to win some products from 2 of Melissa's favorite online shops.
Frost It Pink and My Craft Spot.

What a surprise it was to find out that, out of 199 comments, mine was randomly chosen to win!
I won gift certificates to both shops, so I got the chance to pick and choose what I wanted.  So fun :)

Here are a few pics...

This is a photo of the entire haul, from both shops.

These are the 3 packages of crinkle ribbon that I chose from My Craft Spot.

These are the products I chose from Frost It Pink.

A close up of the My Mind's Eye brads.  Perfect for vintage style cards :)

And, last but not least, a close up of the spool buttons.  These had been on my wish list for quite some time.

I want to say a big Thank You to Melissa, Amy Stahl (at Frost It Pink) and Kimberly Tracy (at My Craft Spot) for their generosity!

I'll list all of the products, in case anyone is interested in ordering.  Links to the 2 sites are at the top of this post.

From My Craft Spot:
Crinkle Ribbon Bundle in Springtime
Crinkle Ribbon Bundle in Sweet Baby
Crinkle Ribbon Bundle in Neutral Browns

From Frost It Pink:
Be Happy Paper Pad 6 x 6 - My Mind's Eye
Follow Your Heart - Be Amazing Paper Pad 6 x 6 - My Mind's Eye
Follow Your Heart - Be Happy Decorative Brads - My Mind's Eye
London Market Spool Buttons - Pink Paislee
White Ribbon Collection - Melissa Frances

Thanks for stopping by today!

Forever - A wedding card for retro sketches

I've created a wedding card today.  I was so intrigued with this week's sketch by N@Ali over at retro sketches.  Oh so interesting.  And oh, so challenging.  Here's the sketch:

Yikes.  I absolutely *love* all of those little elements.  The variety of shapes and sizes.  The seemingly random placement of the elements, until you study the sketch for a while.  All of the pieces are connected...they flow.  This sketch made me smile.  So I just had to find time to create a card for this challenge (between gardening and cooking.)  I'm glad I did, because this card was fun to create.  It took a long time...but still it was fun :o)

This is my interpretation of the sketch.

I used a vintage piece of wide white lace as my starting point.  I pulled out several die sets and stamp sets for this wedding card.  By the way I used one of the new SU ink pads; a color called Primrose Petal.  Wow, this new type of pad is juicier than the "old" ones.  It was so easy to get an even and crisp impression...even with those tiny sentiment stamps I used.  SO nice!  Oh, I also used one of SU's new designer vintage faceted buttons.  It's that shiny clear button near the right edge of the card.

Anyway, I still have a little work to do in the kitchen so I'd better go.  Thanks so much for taking a look today.  I hope you'll leave a comment!

Edited to add:  This card will be placed in my Etsy shop.

What's in it?

card stock: primrose petal, whisper white, baja breeze (SU)

stamps: eclectic edges (CTMH), tiny tags, tiny tags II, love lives here, love & marriage (PTI)

ink: primrose petal, baja breeze (SU), frost white (Color Box)

dies: tiny tags, heart border die (PTI), scallop lace envelope die (Sizzix)

other: baja breeze seam binding, white baker's twine (SU), pearl pin (Dritz), designer vintage faceted button (SU), glossy accents (Ranger)

Shoes to share...

Hi all!  A very quick post to share with you a pair of paper crafted shoes that I made recently.

I used Stampin' Up's Always Artichoke card stock for these shoes.  Then I pulled some wide vintage lace from my stash and adhered a strip across the toe box.  I then created a bow using the same lace and topped that with a vintage style brad from SU.  At that point I felt that the shoes still needed a little "somthin".  I found some tiny clear rhinestones in my stash.  Aha!
I placed a few at the top of the heel...inside and outside the heel.   Just a few, mind you :)

I've placed these in my Etsy shop.  Feel free to browse :)

Here are the finished shoes.

Ahhhh...have I mentioned lately, how much I love papercrating?  Oh.  Ok.
Thanks so much for taking a look!

Feel Better - 2 challenges

Hello!  A very quick post this afternoon before we head out to a family gathering.

This card is going into 2 challenges.  And, I have to say...these 2 couldn't have been a better fit for the stamp set I wanted to use.  You'll see.

CAS-ual Fridays CFC56 - Create a clean and simple project using polka dots

Crazy 4 Challenges C4C140 - Use lots of circles on your creation


So, this is what I created.

I used a stamp set from Stampin' Up! that I haven't used in some time.  But I think it's just as current now, as it was when it was introduced.  Such a fun set to use!   And...see what I mean.  Lots of circles and lots of dots.

Thanks so much for taking a look!  I hope you'll leave a comment :)

Two projects to share

Hey, just a quick post to share a couple of projects I created some time ago.  I made both of these in April, but couldn't share them until I'd given them to my sister.  Her birthday has passed now...so now I can share!

This first one was inspired by several framed button projects I've seen on the net.  Seeing those put some ideas in my brain.  Then, as I worked it evolved into this.

Ahhh.  This makes me smile.  I used all vintage buttons from my estate auction stash.  If you've followed my blog for a while you know how much I love them.  I just had to add that sentiment from PTI's Love Lives Here stamp set.  It says it all.

The other gift I created for my sister is an altered teacup.  I took the idea directly from Vicki Chrisman's blog post here.  And I let her know that I just had to copy her idea!

My sister collects pretty teacups and saucers.  So when I saw Vicki's pretty teacups, I knew I had to make one!
I brought my old hot glue gun up from the basement for this project.  I hadn't used it in years.  It still works :)
I had fun with this project.  I even tucked a few pieces of vintage lace into this teacup.

Well, I'd better get moving.  Thanks so much for taking a look!

Happy Birthday - The Play Date Cafe Challenge 134

Hey, I'm back with my 3rd post this morning...before heading out to church :)
I was so busy with stamping and doing laundry yesterday (and a bit of time at an auction) that I didn't have time to write any posts last night.

This birthday card is going into the The Play Date Cafe challenge #134.  These challenge colors are so pretty.  Take a look.

See what I mean?  Very summery :)

My card ~

I have to admit.  I really struggled with this color combination.  I started out with a rose red card foundation, but it was just too much.  I wasn't getting the soft look that I wanted.  Once I changed to this Sahara Sand card stock, everything started to come together.  I'm very pleased with the results.
My flower is cut from some rose colored wool felt and topped with a button and some baker's twine.  I swiped a white ink pad along most of the edges, for a soft feeling.
I used a Sizzix die for the little frame.  You know what?  I've had that die for months, and this was the first time I've used it.  I'm liking this look, so I'll be using this die again and again.  Finally.

Well, I need to get going!
Thanks for stopping by to take a look.  I hope you'll leave a comment!

Supplies:

card stock: sahara sand, blushing bride (SU)

stamps: love lives here, sentiment sampler (PTI)

ink: blushing bride (SU), onyx black (Versafine), white (Colorbox)

dsp: bella birds, and the yellow pattern from another SU pack - I don't know the name

other: wool felt, notched flower die (PTI), button (Basic Grey), white baker's twine (SU), frames & stamp combo die (Sizzix)