Sleigh bells ring....

...are ya listenin? 

This is a fun card using the October stamp of the month set - Holiday Magic. 

Colors are Cranberry, New England Ivy, and Cocoa.

Many Thanks

Find Your Style - Butterfly

So, I went to work on my photos and realized that I hadn't installed my camera's software for editing, etc. Took me a while to figure that out, though....sad! Anyway, I have several cards to share over the next few days, and this is the first installment.

I used the CTMH Stamp of the Month set - Find Your Style. It is such a fun set to use! This butterfly was inked with 3 different colors. First I used Creme Brulee on the whole image, then rolled the edges of the butterfly in Juniper. Finally I rolled just the very edge in Cocoa and stamped it on my cardstock. The word "Soar" was added to the lower corner, also in Cocoa.

You can't see it very well in this photo, but the outer edges of the butterfly have also been clear embossed. After cleaning off the stamp, I rolled the edges of the stamp on my Versamark pad and stamped over the colored image. After sprinkling on clear embossing powder and heating it, the image has pretty sparkly edges. This technique is a really neat way to add a little sparkle and glitz!

The butterfly is layered on Cocoa cardstock, which is then layered on B&T from the Veranda paper packet. The last touch is a bow of Creme Brulee grosgrain ribbon.

Come back on Thursday for another card with Find Your Style...

Happy Holidays!

Here's another early Christmas greeting. I am having a lot of fun making round cards - they are kind of a refreshing thing to do! Really changes the way you think about putting a card together!

I used Bird Basics for this one - it's so fun to create those little birds. I'm blanking on where the little branch came from....

The card was cut with my Coluzzle system and I used a corner rounder on the layered panels.

The sentiment is from "Say It In Style."

The ribbon at the top is a folded loop - meant to give the card a little bit of an ornament feel. And then for the finishing touch I used a Black fine tip pen to create a wiggly border around the card...it just needed something!!

Hope your Friday is fabulous! And if you make any round cards...leave me a note so I can go check them out! I'd love to see your ideas!

(All supplies are CTMH)

Just hangin' around...

....til Christmas!

Here's a cute little elf to get you in the Christmas spirit! Yes, a little early, but I try to start doing at least one Christmas card a month for my workshops starting in late summer. That way, we have a few ready ahead of time!

The papers on this card are from the Aspen paper packet. This is a great set of papers!! Love the colors.

This great little elf, from the Merry Pursuits set, is colored in with CTMH markers (my daughter did the coloring!)

The colors are Twilight, Outdoor Denim, Bamboo, and Creme Brulee.

The front panel of the card has about 1-1/4" cut off the long side. Then the plaid B&T paper is centered on the back panel in that space that is left open. The image is stamped colored and layered on Bamboo cardstock, and then layered so that it overhangs the front panel of the card.


(All product is CTMH)

woohoo!

I thought this card turned out pretty fun! These owls from the You're a Hoot set are so much fun. I used itty bitty black brads in the center of the eyes, that are also popped up on thin foam tape. And a white brad in the layered paper flowers.


Hope you enjoy this one...have a great weekend.

I'm worn out tonight from dropping my oldest son off at college for his freshman year. It's so much harder than I even imagined...but I am so proud of him and I know he will do well at college!

(All supplies are Close To My Heart)

you're a hoot!

This little owl is such a fun image! He is stamped in Chocolate ink and his beak is colored in with a Sorbet marker. I also added Sorbet brads to his eyes, and then filled in the whites with liquid glass around the brads.

The branch was inked in Sweet Leaf and then rolled in Topiary. The edges are distressed by rubbing the edge of the cardstock over the stamp pad. I also used a corner punch on all the corners to stay with the round feeling.

The sentiment is stamped in topiary and layered on a piece of Topiary cardstock. The B&T is from the Emporium paper packet, and I added a couple of Chocolate brads around the sentiment.

The round card was cut using my Coluzzle system - which is sadly being discontinued. I love my Coluzzle and I'm sad to see it unavailable.

Hope your day is wonderful! Thanks for stopping by!

(All supplies are CTMH)

Not ready for summer to end....

One of my favorite things about summer is all the fresh watermelon! The Summer Sweetness set is one of my favorites because of the watermelon images.

For this 4x4 square card I used Hollyhock, Juniper and Black.
I stamped the inside of the watermelon first with Hollyhock, added the solid part of the rind in Juniper, and then the detailed rind image and the seeds in black. I cut out the watermelon and layered it on my card.

The ribbon is just a small piece tied in a knot and adhered with a glue dot. I also added three Black Bitty Brads in the corner. The final touch was the sentiment below the brads in Black. (If I remember right the sentiment is from the Say It In Style set.)


(All supplies are CTMH - except for the ribbon, I think!!)

Celebration Ticket

Well, I'm not sure how it happened but August has ended...did you notice?? Anyway, this card is another sample from the August Stamp of the Month set It's Your Day. I had a lot of fun playing with this set - think it will be one that gets a lot of use in the future!

I used papers from Tinkerin for this card, and ink colors are Holiday Red, Clover Meadow, Sunflower, Sunny Yellow and Twilight.

For the ticket, I stamped the Celebrate image in Twilight on a 1" x 1.75" piece of Sunflower cardstock. Then I used my regular hole punch and snipped off the corners.

Hope your Friday is lovely! Thanks for stopping by!

(All supplies are CTMH)

Simply elegant...

I love how this card turned out...simple to make, yet lovely.

I used Blush, Hollyhock, Chocolate, and New England Ivy for inks. The paper is from the That's Amore paper packet, and the stamp set is Aspiration.

I stamped the branch and flowers on a single piece of cardstock and then cut it into three one inch strips. Then, I attached a loop of green ribbon at the top of each strip with a Chocolate brad before attaching all three to a panel of Chocolate cardstock.

Hope you like it!

(All supplies are CTMH)

Party time variation...

Here's a variation on the Party time! card. It involved cutting out all the packages and layering them a bit. I also tilted the sentiment square a little bit and moved the package to the other side.

I gave this card to my good friend and supervisor for his birthday.

Same colors, same papers as the other card.

(All supplies are CTMH)

Party time!

Love this card! I used the Stamp of the Month set "It's Your Day" for this card, along with paper from the Tinkerin' paper packet.

Colors are Twilight, Holiday Red, Sunflower, Clover Meadow, and Sunny Yellow.

The package on the side of the sentiment square is popped up with some foam tape.

Had lots of fun with this!


(All supplies are CTMH)

Watercolor Alligator

So this is the last card sample from my class for VC. This one was stamped in black and colored in with watercolor pencils. Starting with the lighter color first, then highlighted with a darker shade, you blend them together with the wet waterbrush. Easy, quick, and great results!

(All supplies CTMH)

Birthday wishes

I just love these pigs! They are layered on Petal cardstock on a Blush card. I watercolored them with my waterbrush. the Happy Birthday sentiments is from the Happy Birthday stamp set, and I added 3 Sunny Yellow brads under it.

Have a great day!

(All supplies are CTMH)

Life is good!

Here's another brayered card I created for my VC class. I still need some practice myself, but this was a lot of fun to do! The images were stamped and clear embossed. Then I made a mask for the hill and brayered on the green. After that, I used the reverse side of the mask to brayer the sky. I sponged darker coordinating colors around the edges and under the tree for a shadow (just doesn't show in the picture all that well.) Finally, I added my sentiment and layered the piece on my card. The card is 41/4" square.


(All supplies are Close To My Heart)

Brayered bandana card

I've ended up taking most of the summer off from stamping and holding classes - didn't really mean to...just happened that way. But, I was involved in VC and this is one of the cards I made as a sample for that class.

I clear embossed the images from the You've Got Flair stamp set on White Daisy cardstock. Then, brayered over it with Holiday Red ink. The brayered panel was then layered on a card made from White Daisy Cardstock. The sentiment was stamped on a small piece and attached with H.Red brads. A red button was glue dotted to the center of the paper flower, and that was glue dotted to the card.

Fairly simple and quick! Enjoy!

(All supplies are from Close To My Heart - except the button)

Fishin'

The stamp set for this was a Stamp of the Month a couple months ago - World's Greatest Dad. Colors are Sweet Leaf, Cocoa, and Colonial White. I used my waterbrush for coloring the fish and the fishing creel. The grass is hand-drawn and sponged.

Gotta finish cleaning before the big graduation party today so this is a short and sweet post. Any questions? Let me know!
(All supplies are CTMH)

Happy flower

This is a really bright card!! More so in real life than this picture shows!

Colors on this card are Sunflower, Clover Meadow, Black, and White Daisy. The papers are from the Animal Crackers paper packet. I used the With Love stamp set for this card. The words Happy everything are stamped randomly on the square White Daisy piece. The flower was stamped in Black on Sunflower cardstock and cut out. There is also a Clear button attached in the center with a glue dot. The flower is popped up on a piece of foam tape.

The final touch was the little piece of ribbon folded in half and added as a tag.

Hope everything in your day is happy today!
Thanks for stopping by!

(Everything except the ribbon is CTMH, ribbon unknown)

How I started stamping....

I remember many years ago - about 19, I believe - I received a hand stamped card in a secret pal-type swap at work. I looked and looked at that card because I knew it was "different" but it took me a little while to figure out why. It was pretty and wonderful....and hand made! I'd never seen stamping like that and had no idea how it was done. So, when I found out who the maker was, I asked her about it. And now....she's my dear, dear friend so many years later!

She put together a beginner stamping class for a group of us from work and we met at her house one afternoon. I remember being so excited - I ran to the craft store to buy my very first stamp and a stamp pad to take with me to her house. It was just the beginning!!!! From that one stamp and that class.....I now have a room full of stamps and supplies, have been a CTMH consultant for 10 years this month, and still love it as much as that first afternoon!

It's so fun to share the cards I make and to teach others how to do it....I can't imagine ever stopping!

Hope you all have a wonderful day!

Soccer, anyone?

Here's another fun card for the kids. I used the Stardust paper packet, textured Honey Cardstock, and White Daisy Cardstock. The boy and soccer ball are from Family Ties - Children. I used a sponge to create the "sky" and the grass is hand drawn with a CTMH marker and then sponged in. Used my CTMH markers for all the other coloring, too.

Have a happy and energetic day!
(All supplies are CTMH)