Dear Dahlias!

Hey there - it's the final day for our Die Cut Divas April Challenge to use Flowers. I'm popping in with more floral inspiration & you can see the end-of-month team post HERE.

Supplies: Paper - Park Lane A2 cards;

Momenta watercolor print

Stamps & Dies - Altenew Dear Dahlias

Dies - Altenew Mix and Match Frame Dies &

Garden Picks 3D Die Set

Other - Various TH Distress Oxide Inks; foam tape

I used the Dear Dahlias set in a December 2023 post, also with Altenew as our Diva sponsor. Altenew generously had sent this set to me along with my order & I fell in love with it. I had yet to use the dies that create a dahlia so I wanted to try them - amazing result and so easy to work with, given the key hole to line up the pieces. I also die cut a rose, bitty flowers and foliage from Altenew's Garden Pick set.

After die cutting, I inked with some DOI for shading. Next I die cut two pieces of the Mix & Match Frame set from an A2 card and layered. Added using foam tape to an A2 card one shade lighter, then arranged my floral spray on top. Stamped and fussy cut a sentiment from the Dear Dahlias set - done!

Since the dahlia dies got first play here, I'll add my card to Darnell's April NBUS Challenge 73. I'll also play at Darnell's IDEAS project where Anything Goes this week. You can see Darnell's gorgeous inspiration HERE.

How about a bonus? This time I used the dahlias stamp, along with the coordinating stencils from the bundle. 

I simply stamped the dahlias spray onto a piece of Neenah and die cut with a favorite stitched rectangle. Used the set of  4 stencils to add inks using various Distress Oxide inks. Stamped another sentiment from the set and adhered the panel to a pink Park Lane A2 card. Used some Memory Box gems on the little flowers. Very quick and easy!!

That's it for today, friends! I hope to see you in the April Diva gallery by 9pm Pacific Time tonight. Thanks for stopping by!

Poinsettia Spray and more!

Hi everyone - I'm back with my third and final entry for the current Christmas Kickstart Challenge #97 - Positively Poinsettias. Jo & elf Bobby want to see poinsettias on a Christmas card & I have so many poinsettia items in the stash that it was hard to chose!!

Supplies: Paper - Printed A2 card; 

many scraps; Spellbinders Betterpress Porcelain

Dies - Spellbinders Poinsettia Spray &

Essential Four Petal Labels

Press Plate w/Die - Spellbinders Merry & Bright Sentiment Strips

I really enjoy die cutting and assembling the floral sprays from Spellbinders - so fun!! I'm using the Poinsettia Spray for the first time here. As I used each die, I put it on a magnet sheet for next time. Usually I do this when I buy a set but I'm quite behind on "processing" my dies!! I totally used scraps from one of my loaded plastic bins. Assembled each piece and added it to the holly spray. Then I looked through my labels and decided on the Four Petal ones. Cut a background and a mat layer, stacked them and added to a printed A2 card - can't remember if it was from Hobby Lobby or Michaels. Added the poinsettia spray and a pressed label from the bits box. Done!

I'll also add my card to Darnell's April NBUS Challenge #73 since my poinsettia set is new & to her IDEAS project where this week Anything Goes.

And here's my card from Friday's Craft Roulette Episode #264 which I just made yesterday.

Supplies: Paper - Park Lane A2 card;

Anchor Paper cardstock; Echo Park patterns

Stamps - Hero Arts Simply Handmade (retired);

Waffleflower Postage Collage Lucky

Dies - AJVD Stitched Dot Rectangle Backdrop Set

Other - Recollections Stickers & Vellum heart;

DMC embroidery floss & needle

I couldn't watch live since I was at my Regional singing convention. Quartets sang Friday night and choruses on Saturday. The chorus I'm in won the chorus contest and my former lead and bass singers won with their current quartet Spice. We had a great time!! But back to card-making...

Mary Gunn Funn had Ardyth (Clever Card Making Inspiration) as the guest artist. Ardyth was making her 12th appearance on CR - wow! She likes to find unexpected ways to use our craft supplies. The wheel spun:

• Project - Card for an Influencer: I made one for a fashion design.
• Colors - Dreamy: I found a color palette HERE; gold/lavender/blue/peach/white (#13 on the website's list of 15).
• Element - Craft(er)/Crafts(ers): Sewing is considered a craft.
• Random - Off Center: Everything is off center, except the floral background mat layer.

I thought I'd try using the shareable photo that the CR contribution page gives you when you upload. What do you think? It has the parameters as well as the banner with my contribution number - this makes 55 already! Saves me from having to take a photo of the parameters too!

I stamped the sewing backgrounds on blue and lavender card stock & die cut with stitched rectangles. Die cut a gold floral pattern with the A2 mat layer die & added all three to an A2 card. I wanted some ephemera so made a trip to Michael's and found the sewing stickers which included the scissors, thimble and Sew Happy sentiment. Also found some vellum hearts which I thought would make a cute focal point. They were quite sheer so I layered three of them. Also stamped a sub-sentiment and made a little banner. Added a threaded gold needle to the heart too - found the gold ones at Michael's in the embroidery section; my stash only had silver ones.

That's it for today, friends. Thanks for stopping by! I'll be back tomorrow with the last of the month Diva post - hope you'll stop back!

Inky Bouquet Two Ways!

Hi everyone! I'm here with a card that I shared on my regular Die Cut Diva post today, plus a bonus card only here, as usual.

Supplies: Paper - Hero Arts A2 card;

Neenah Classic Crest Solar White;

Violet Studio patterned

Stamps w/die & stencil - Altenew Inky Bouquet 

Stamps - Altenew Bellaroma Hybrid Tea Rose

Dies - AJVD Stitched Dot Rectangle Backdrop Set 

Other - Copic Markers; Memento Tuxedo Black ink;

DOI Tumbled Glass & Black Soot inks;

 white gel pen; Altenew Carnival Magic enamel dots 

We're doing Flowers at the Divas for our April Challenge with Altenew as our fabulous sponsor. You can't go wrong with all the gorgeous Altenew floral sets available. I chose to use a fave of mine which, sadly, is sold out right now. The sentiment is from a different set which, as of when I wrote this post, was still available.

I stamped the bouquet onto Neenah with Memento ink and die cut the panel with a stitched rectangle. The Inky Bouquet set comes with a coordinating die and stencil - you'll see those later in this post. Instead, I colored the image with Copics & then stamped some dots (also from the set) with Tumbled Glass DOI; I blended the same ink around the edges. Stamped a sentiment from the Bellaroma set & added some Carnival Magic enamel dots to the panel. Adhered it to an A2 card that I'd covered with a piece of patterned paper edged with Black Soot DOI. Done!

For my bonus, I used the same bouquet stamp. 

This time I colored it with various inks from the stash by blending through the coordinating stencil. I added a bit of shading with coordinating Copic colors, then die cut the image with the matching die. I added it to a rectangle of the same patterned paper as above and adhered to a Paper Studio pastel card. Added a different shade of enamel dots from the same set & then a Betterpressed sentiment from the stash (one from the Spellbinders You Are Everything Sentiments set).

I'm adding my first card to the April We Love Stamping Challenge where Anything Goes or you can use a fave stamp which I did. I'll add my bonus card to the April Flower Challenge #101 where they're doing Spring colors.

Thanks for stopping by & happy crafting! Hope to see you in the April Diva gallery!!

Sending Sunshine

Hi everyone - I'm popping in with my latest Craft Roulette creation! Episode #263 aired last night & I multi-tasked trying to make my card with the CR playing live on my laptop & the Twins baseball game (ugh - a loss) playing on my phone. Needless to say, I didn't get very far on my card and had to finish it today.

Supplies: Paper - Spectrum Noir white;

Hero Arts A2 card

Recollections Plaids (includes solids)

Stamps - Hero Arts Sending Happy Thoughts,

Cherish, Elephants, & Sky's the Limit (all retired)

Dies - AJVD Stitched Dot Rectangle Backdrop Set

Other - Copic Markers; foam tape; 

Hero Arts Sparkle Lacquer

Mary Gunn FUNN had Ann Butler (@BellaCraftsPublishing‬) as her guest. Ann is founder, editor & CEO of Bella Crafts Publishing which has a quarterly online magazine. Ann designs stamps (including for Unity Stamps) & has her own line of paper! The wheel wasn't too hard on us this week:

• Project - Sending Sunshine: A2 card with Sending Sunshine sentiment.
• Colors - Spring: Pastels you'd find in spring.
• Element - Rodent: Used a mouse stamp.
• Random - Shiny: Sun has sparkle lacquer.

Once again I was visiting my dad so I use stamp sets from the satellite studio stash - all Hero Arts goodies from 2009! Colored the images with Copics & fussy cut since no matching dies back then! Stamped and fussy cut a sentiment. Die cut a blue panel and a green one, cutting the green one down for "grass". Covered an A2 card with the coordinating plaid paper & added everything else.

I'll add my card to the April We Love Stamping Challenge using the Anything Goes option.

That's it for today. I'll be back Monday with my regular Die Cut Diva post. Have a wonderful weekend, including Easter if you're celebrating!

Thanks for stopping by!

Poinsettia Spray with Candles

Happy Wednesday! Here's another card for the current Christmas Kickstart Challenge #97 - Positively Poinsettias. Jo & elf Bobby want to see poinsettias on a Christmas card & I have many poinsettia items in the stash!!

Supplies: Paper - Park Lane A2 card;

 BoBunny Joyful Christmas; many scraps

Dies - Spellbinders Holiday Label Motifs

(retired but found HERE at Frantic Stamper);

Sizzix Tim Holtz Vault Festive Wreath;

AJVD Stitched Dot Rectangle Backdrop Set

Other - Copic Markers; foam tape

Just because I have many poinsettia items, there's always room for more! Not too far from my dad's house there's a JoAnn store & I popped in to shop their Going-Out-Of-Business sale. I picked up the Tim Holtz wreath set plus a few more items I couldn't resist. First I die cut the candles, flowers, and foliage from the TH set and assembled. Shaded with Copics where desired.

I didn't want to made the wreath from the set - so, what to do with my candle arrangement? I spotted another never-before-used set in the stash - this one from Spellbinders. I picked it up during a 2023 Arizona trip & hadn't given it a go until now. It features the ray label with a lantern; I skipped the lantern and substituted my candles. Die cut the rays plus a background and mat layer, then assembled. 

Die cut a rectangle from musical patterned paper & adhered to an A2 card. Added the ray panel with foam tape, then the candle arrangement. I finished it off with a banner sentiment from the bits box. It's been there forever &, as I, it's a long retired Spellbinders banner shaded with Copics (one left HERE at Frantic Stamper as of this post date). It was stamped, I believe, with an old Hero Arts sentiment - no idea which set. Quick and easy!!

I'm playing along with Darnell's IDEAS program (see her fabulous inspiration cards HERE) where the week's theme is Dies. Since both the candles and rays die sets are getting first play here, I'll also add my card to Darnell's April NBUS Challenge #73. Finally, I'll link to the current Creative Crafters Challenge #87 where anything goes.

That's it for today, friends. I appreciate you stopping by & hope you have a wonderful day!

Happy 90th Queen Mum!

Hi everyone - hope you're having (or had) a wonderful weekend! I'm back as promised with the card I made for our Queen Mum Mary's 90th birthday. 

Supplies: Paper - Park Lane A2 card;

Neenah Solar White; scraps

Dies - Memory Box Royal Robin,

Happy Birthday Sheet Music,

Small Nest, & unk Birthday script;

My Favorite Things In Stitches Numbers; 

Sunny Studio Out on a Limb;

AJVD Stitched Dot Rectangle Backdrop Set 

Stencils - Taylored Expressions Set the Scene Clouds 

Other - Hero Arts ink; Copic Markers for shading

I die cut a stitched rectangle and stenciled the clouds, then added to an A2 card. Die cut the bird, crown, branch, leaves, music staff, numbers, nest and sentiment. Assembled and added to card.

Mary's daughter Heidi, the lead singer in my retired quartet, held a brunch yesterday for close chorus friends. Here's a photo of Mary with my former quartet; I'm on the right.

Here's a photo of us from 20 years ago when we were still competing as an ensemble & Mary was our coach. Our favorite photographer Jon Petersen took this specially for us after we won a contest. We look very comfortable with our shoes off!

The whole chorus celebrated Mary (who directed for 38 years) last Monday night with a big cake and several presentations.

That's it for today, friends! I'll send my birthday card to Seize the Birthday #303 where they're doing layers as the topping. My birdie, nest and sentiment are all layered. I'll also share at Darnell's April NBUS Challenge #73 since those dies are all newly used.

Thanks for visiting!!

A Thank You Toast

Happy weekend everyone! I'm popping in with my card for Craft Roulette #262 which aired last night. Once again, I couldn't finish my card until after the show, oh well. But at the end, the prize wheel spun my name - I won a spot at an upcoming online event with Bella Crafts Publishing! Will have to wait until I get it to see what it all involves.

Anyway, here's my card:

Supplies: Paper - Various cardstocks by unk;

Neenah Solar White; BoBunny Penelope Collection

Stamps - Hero Arts Big Ticket (retired)

Stamps w/dies - Hero Arts Cocktail Party 

Stamp & Cut (retired)

Dies - AJVD Stitched Dot Rectangle Backdrop Set

Other - Foam Tape; Memento & Hero Arts inks;

Doodlebugs Designs Fall Sprinkles (enamel dots)

Host Mary Gunn FUNN had Sejr Andersen (@SejrAndersen‬) as her guest. Sejr is a CR member and was making his third appearance as a guest. He's been on several design teams, including Trinity Stamps. See a cute card of his with Trinity HERE. Here's what the wheel spun for us:

• Project - Thank You Card: Pretty self explanatory; I made an A2 card with a thanks sentiment.
• Colors - 1950's: I drew from a color palette I found HERE on Etsy.
• Element - Toast(s) or Bread: I stamped a subsentiment "Let's toast!" and included clinking glasses.
• Random - Brown Paper: I used both a darker brown and a tan brown cardstock.

Pretty simple card! First I die cut three stitched rectangles - large from patterned paper & two medium from card stock. Formed an A2 card from a taupe-ish brown cardstock and layered with the large rectangle. On the tan rectangle I stamped the thank you sentiment & two subsentiments. Stamped and die cut two beverage glasses and added to the tan rectangle. Offset the tan atop the eggshell rectangle using foam tape & adhered to the card. Added a trio of enamel dots & done!

Yesterday, I attended a brunch for our Queen Mum who turned 90. We had a wonderful time & this was my thank you card to the host. I'll share the card I made the birthday girl along with a few pictures tomorrow.

Thanks for stopping by & have a crafty day!!

Poinsettia in Skates Bouquet

Happy Monday! Yesterday while watching my favorite Food Network competition show, I put together my first card for the current Christmas Kickstart Challenge #97 - Positively Poinsettias. Jo & elf Bobby want to see poinsettias on a Christmas card - perfect!

Supplies: Paper - Park Lane A2 card;

Neenah Solar White; many scraps;

Paper Studio A Country Christmas;

 BoBunny Joyful Christmas

Dies - Spellbinders Skating into the Holidays (DOM-Jul24)

AJVD Stitched Dot Rectangle Backdrop Set

Other - Copic Markers; foam tape

When the CKC challenge was announced last week, I pulled out several poinsettia themed sets. The first one I chose to use was a never-before-used Spellbinders set from last year. First I die cut all the pieces of skates, flowers, berries and foliage I wanted to use, then assembled. Added some shading with Copics where desired.

Die cut a BoBunny birch bark patterned paper using a stitched rectangle and added the panel to an A2 card. Arranged the skates and added to the card. Added the floral arrangement to the skates. Next I went through my Christmas sentiments bit box & found a cute tag that was cut from patterned paper. If interested, go HERE to see a card with some other fun things from the same paper pad. I also found a couple random snowflakes (brand unk) in the bits box so I tucked them into the arrangement too.

Since my skate bouquet die set is getting first play here, I'll add my card to Darnell's April NBUS Challenge #73. I'll also link to Merry Little Christmas #61 where Anything Christmas Goes. This is entry #5 of a possible 8 at MLC.

That's it for today, friends. I appreciate you stopping by & hope you have a wonderful day!

Forest Scene Snow Globe

Hi everyone - I'm back with a card for the current Just Us Girls Challenge #769 to use dies with no flowers allowed. Hmmm - once something says no, I always seem to find things to use with that item. Crazy eh? Here's my take:

Supplies: Park Lane A2 card & papers;

Neenah Solar White; scraps

Dies - Spellbinders Simon's Snow Globe &

Woodland Scene;

AJVD Stitched Dot Rectangle Backdrop Set 

Other - Copic Markers

I pulled out the Simon Hurley snow globe set, plus add-on from Spellbinders that hadn't seen any use yet. Die cut the elements I wanted to use and assembled the snow globe. Added some shading with grey Copics. Popped it with foam tape onto a wood plank patterned paper, then onto an A2 card. Quick and easy.

Since my snow globe got first play here, I'll add my card to Darnell's April NBUS Challenge #73. I'll also link to Merry Little Christmas #61 where Anything Christmas Goes.

Thanks for visiting and happy crafting!

 

Happy 1st Birthday

Happy weekend everyone! I managed to finish a card for Craft Roulette #261 last night but not during the show. Just ran out of steam while trying to unplug my glue bottle - I hate that!! I was visiting my dad who watched hockey while I crafted. Luckily, my "satellite studio" had some supplies that worked, plus I brought a recently received Hero Arts kit.

Supplies: Paper - Park Lane A2 card;

Neenah Solar White; Echo Park Birthday wishes

Stamps - Hero Arts Big Ticket (retired but still

available HERE at Frantic Stamper),

Fantastic Birthday (retired) & 

Kelly's Outline Letters (retired)

Dies - Hero Arts Studio Mar25 Card Kit

Other - Copic Markers; foam tape

Mary Gunn FUNN had Mary Polanco (@marypolancodesigns‬), an Air Force retiree & card maker since 2007, as her guest. Mary P. loves to find multiple ways to make the most of her crafty supplies & passes the tips along on her channel. 

The wheel was fairly kind to us:

• Project - A2 Card: There were many cheers for this standard card popping up! I used a pre-formed card.
• Colors - Amusement Park: More cheers - just about any color of the rainbow here! I used bright colors found online for a Ferris Wheel, plus brown for a log ride.
• Element - JD: I used those letters on a bitty label. JD is Mary's grandson who just turned one. More on him in a bit....
• Random - Ticket: I used a ticket stamp.

I found a pretty, deep orange A2 card in a box of brights. Added a piece of birthday dotted paper. Stamped the ticket, then a birthday sentiment in the open area. Fussy cut it and added some shading with a Copic B0000. Next I stamped, colored and fussy cut the cupcake - perfect with one candle! Next I stamped the initials JD using an old alphabet set; they're outline so I colored them with Copics, then die cut with a bitty label from the March Hero Arts kit. Assembled & done.

I may have mentioned this before but, since JD was born, anytime his name comes  up during the show people eat chocolate. Not exactly sure how this came about, but it's a thing & if Mary doesn't mention JD early and often, the chatters prompt her - so funny!! Anyway, last night the only chocolate I had on hand was Easter candy which I'm saving. Pastel peanut M&Ms were on sale at Target about a month ago & I optimistically bought a couple of bags. Polished those off over time and when I bought more (not on sale - darn it), I swore to save them for Easter! Besides those, I have some dark chocolate non-peanut ones & the usual jelly beans etc. No Peeps - can not stand them! How about you?

Oh - and this is my 52nd card which gets me into Club 52 at Craft Roulette. No prize or anything - just a feature during next week's show when Mary covers achievements, first timers, etc.

I'll add my card to the current Seize the Birthday Challenge #302 where the theme (if you choose to use it) is Milestone.

Anyway, that's it for today. Thanks for stopping by & have a crafty weekend!! I'm working on a card for the new JUGS challenge which I hope to post tomorrow....

March 2025 Card Chain Reveal

Hey there - I'm sharing the card I sent for the March 2025 Card Chain; twenty-four people played & you can see the full reveal HERE!

Supplies: Paper - Recollections grey A2 card;

Neenah white; BoBunny patterns;

Recollections black glitter

Die - Divinity Designs Stitched Sunburst;

Trinity Stamps - Simply Sentimental Friend;

Hero Arts Window on Love Confetti

Other - Tim Holtz Ideology Sentiment Label Stickers

We had the following possibilities when creating our cards:

Color Palette Option

Sketch Option

Theme Options: Stripes / Africa / Friendship

Product / Technique Options:  Felt / Layers

I used the color palette - black, white & grey. Grey is a neutral but it was a prominent part of the papers I was combining so went with it. I used a quilt die that reproduced the sketch pretty nicely. And, of course, I used the theme of friendship.

First I die cut the sunray quilt four times, glued the glittery black frame to a white cardstock panel just a bit bigger & inlaid the patterned pieces. Adhered to an A2 grey card. Note: If you wanted a less fussy sunray quilt pattern, check out the one Frantic Stamper carries HERE. It has only 8 ray sections & doesn't include the tiny bits on the edges (lower left and right of the sun section). I often lose those bits if I don't inlay them right away!

The delicate "friend" die cut I used for the sentiment actually says "friendship" but I trimmed away the "ship" from the word & outline. I die cut the outline from a deconstructed envelope from the grey card/envelope set. I prefer to use white envelopes for mailing so I often repurpose any colored envelopes in this way. The "hello" is a TH label sticker. To finish the card, I added a little heart die cut from the stash. The Hero Arts coverplate cuts a bunch of them which comes in handy for a quick embellishment. 

I received this fabulous card from the very talented Julia (Create with Me) in MA. Such a beauty with the string wreath, pretty flowers & striped paper behind!! And coincidentally, she also used a TH sentiment sticker - love that! She also sent me some overlays from Kawaii Pen Store - fabulous; thanks, Julia!!

Want to play along? You only need to make and mail one card! Go HERE for details and to sign up by April 6th for the April exchange.

Thanks for stopping and have a crafty day!!

Stenciled Snowflakes!

Hi all - Happy April Fool's Day! Did anyone have tricks played on them? For me, right away, the game Wordle had an ancient country for the solution. I didn't get it! Oh well, on to cards!

This week, Darnell's IDEAS program (see her inspiration HERE) is doing S for Stenciling. Thought I'd have a go:

Supplies: Paper - Paper Studio A2 card; Neenah Solar White

Stencil - Simon Says Stamp Snow Flurries 

Dies - My Favorite Things Blueprint 20 (retired)

Other - gifted die cut; printed sentiment strip;

Park Lane gems

I was doing some crafty clean-up and came upon the Simon Says Stamp 2023 Wintermas Wonder Box. Poor thing - still unopened! Pulled out the contents to find a little stencil, blending tool & silver ink among them. Perfect for this week's IDEAS, plus Just Us Girls has a stencil week too with Anything Goes Stencil Week #768. I'll also share at Darnell's April NBUS Challenge #73 since the stencil was newly used.

Simply stenciled the upper left and lower right corners of a Neenah panel, then die cut with a stitched rectangle. Added to an A2 card. I looked through my bits box and found a jumbo SEASON die cut gifted from a friend (sorry, can't remember which one but thanks again!) along with the "Tis The" flag. Also added a subsentiment strip so I could play along at Inkspirational #338 where you need two or more sentiments on your card. Some pink gems finished the card.

Here's a twofer with the same stencil, this time inspired by Darnell to stencil down the left edge:

Additional supplies:

Paper - Spellbinders A2 card; scrap of black;

Recollections grey A2 card cut in half

Stamps - SSS Winter Wonderland

Other - printed ephemera (sweater) free from SCT magazine;

various snowflakes from the bits box; Hero Arts gems

The sentiment came from another Wintermas stamp set. A lot of the box items are available for individual purchase now so I've linked to them where possible. After stenciling down the side, I die cut the panel with the same stitched MFT rectangle. Die cut the scalloped mat using another die from the same Blueprints set. This time I gave the white panel a narrow black mat before adhering to the scalloped one. Added the fussy cut ephemera with foam tape, plus a couple die cut snowflakes. Stamped the sentiment and gave the white snowflakes some gems - done.

That's it for today, friends! I'll be back tomorrow early with our March Card Chain reveal. Thanks for visiting!!