Anniversary Tulips and a Stitched Snowflake

Happy Sunday - hope you're having a wonderful weekend! I've been busy doing crafty clean-up but then getting distracted by card ideas. First up, anniversary tulips for my friends, Connie & Doug:

Supplies: Paper - MFT Petite Gingham (retired);

Neenah Classic Crest Solar White;

Poptone black; Tim Holtz silver metallic;

scrap of pink ombre

Stamps with Dies - Hero Arts Tulip Bouquet Bundle

Stencil - Hero Arts Color Layering Tulip Bouquet

Dies - Creative Expressions Hobnail Vase (retired) &

Mini Shadowed Sentiments - Happy Anniversary

I used a Hero Arts 4-layer stencil set to ink-blend the tulips using various Hero Arts inks. I did two panels of tulips, then decided to stamp the outlines over top and die cut them both. I added a bit of shading with Copics but the stencils really make it easy to get a lovely flower. I used one tulip bouquet as it, then cut up the second one, tucking the flowers wherever I want to fill out the arrangement. Next I die cut and dry embossed the vase, inking it with some black to antique it a bit. The bouquet was too tall for an A2 card so I used an A7 card base with a mat of gingham, black & white. I popped up the vase and some of the flower buds with foam tape. I die cut the sentiment with outline & added to the vase, using foam tape on the sections that went off the vase. Done!

Next, I made a Christmas card using the Spellbinders Stitched Snowflake Card Front die set:

Supplies: Paper - Hero Arts Arctic;

Neenah Classic Crest Solar White 110 lb

Dies - Spellbinders Stitched Snowflake Card Front

Other - Taylored Expression sentiment strip;

DMC embroidery floss - DMC598; Docrafts gems

I received this stitching die with my July club box which arrived on July 22nd. I've been busy so hadn't had a chance to get into this box much yet. Well, I did die cut the snowflake set pieces right away - was really eager to use it! It just took me awhile to find the right embroidery floss and stitch it up! Did it while watching the Twins game on television Friday night - we won - yay!

I die cut the snowflake 3 times from heavy Neenah white card stock, stitching through one diecut using two strands of floss, then stacking with the other two diecuts for dimension. I die cut the card front panel and the snowflake center from Arctic cardstock. No, the card isn't dirty - I just inked the corners of the card with HA Fog ink to vintage it up a bit. I finished the card with a TE sentiment strip & some gems (thanks to my friend Heather who gifted them to me years ago). If you'd like to see another example of this fun set in use, go HERE to see my friend Lin's version - so fabulous!

I'll send the tulip bouquet card over to the current Sweet Stampin' Challenge where they're doing a Wedding/Anniversary theme. The snowflake card will go over to Darnell's August NBUS Challenge since that die set is newly used on a card. The tulip sets are new too but I'll just send the one NBUS link.

Thanks for stopping and have a crafty week! I hope you'll be back tomorrow for my regular Diva post - we're doing Pop-Up Creations for August using fabulous Poppystamps products.

Gingerbread Cookie Jar

Hey crafty friends - hope you're enjoying the weekend! I was doing some crafty clean up yesterday and found the stamp set I sought when I made a previous card for the July Christmas Kickstart Challenge - yay! Jo (Jos Blogs) and elf Carol (just me: c) are doing Gingerbread Treats and I just had to play along a second time!

Supplies: Paper - Neenah White; Anchor Paper Desert Storm;

My Favorite Things Petite Gingham 6x6 (retired);

Tim Holtz kraft metallic

Stamps with dies - Hero Arts Gingerbread House Stamp & Cut 

(retired at HA but a couple in stock HERE at Frantic Stamper)

Dies - Hero Arts Kitchen Crocks

Other - Copic Markers

First I created the background with the bitty stamps in the set. Die cut it with a stitched rectangle and blended some brown ink around the edges. Adhered to a kraft A2 card. Next I stamped and die cut the gingerbread house and some gingerbread boys on Neenah White cardstock and colored with Copics. Stamped and die cut the sentiment.

Here's another example of a card going off in a new direction. I was going to put the house and one cookie on a tag with the sentiment. While passing a stack of items recently purchased at my LSS Anchor Paper, I spotted the Kitchen Crocks die set which I hadn't used yet. I decided the crock, minus the handles, would make a fine cookie jar! And wouldn't the house be a cute decoration for the jar? But how to add the jar to my card?? I was surfing some of my blogging friends' posts and spotted this cutie by Lisa (My Paper Tales) where she'd used a narrow strip of gingham - bingo! Thanks for the inspiration, Lisa!! And I like the sentiment on part of the gingham strip. I cut extra bits of the crock from gold to add details, then decided that a couple more gingerbread boys could be popping out the top. Done!

Since my crock is new, I'll also add this card to Darnell's July NBUS Challenge. It's been a while since I've been able to play at the Sweet Stampin' Challenge so it's past time! They're doing Christmas in July so I'll link up there too. I was inspired yesterday by my Diva teamie Dawn (Dawn's World) with her darling card HERE.

Thanks for stopping & happy crafting!!

Boo Hoo - the final Twofer Challenge!

Hey friends - Darnell will close her Twofer Card Challenge after this month - sad, but understandable! So much work goes into a challenge blog and I've appreciated Darnell and her team these past four years!! Yes, I was there for Challenge 1 with my Feather cards and for many (sadly not all) subsequent challenges. I close my Twofer Chapter with this pair for Challenge 41 the Final Challenge to use a dog or a cat image:

And yes, I'm a cat lady!! I used the chunky kitty from an old Hero Arts stamp set as my common item. Here's a closer look at each card with supply list:

Supplies: Paper - Neenah White;

Paper Studio navy A2 card

Stamps - Hero Arts I Love My Cat, Frosty Wishes & 

Create your own Snowman (all retired)

Dies - My Favorite Things Blueprints 13 (retired);

Kat Scrappiness Crafters Essentials Winter;

Dies to match snowman set

Other - Copic Markers; Hero Arts inks;

Tim Holtz Prize Ribbon Distress Ink;

Taylored Expressions Salt Water Taffy

Supplies: Paper - Neenah White; Paper Studio black;

Poppystamps freebie dotted

Stamps - Hero Arts I Love My Cat (retired) &

Everyday Sayings

Dies - Taylored Expressions Mini Slim Square Window Cutting Plate

Other - Copic Markers; Memento Tuxedo Black Ink

Had to laugh - those kitty paw prints look more like a wolf's but they were the only ones in kitty set! I saved the pieces cut out of the windows to make another poinsettia card like the second one on this post if you missed it. The fish bowl just had the fish in it but I added some "seaweed".

If you're still with me, I had to include another photo of my kitty niece Misty. She visited me for a couple weeks this summer and was very "helpful" with card making!

Misty has her eye on those little strips of white paper which she later pawed off the craft mat. Then she discovered the plastic cover to the scissors and she batted it off the table. She played with scissors cover for several minutes (I took video) before she went off for a nap - so entertaining!! Times like that I miss my two kitties who've been gone for over 10 years - time flies! One liked paper and the other liked ribbon when it came to crafty "help".

I'm adding my snowman card to the current Watercooler Wednesday All Occasions Challenge. I'm adding the kitty duo with fishbowl card to the current Sweet Stampin' Challenge to feature an animal.

Thanks for stopping and thanks again to all for fun challenges!!

 

Fall trees

Hey crafty friends - there's a new challenge up at the Twofer Challenge to use trees. I really wanted to do something other than a Christmas tree since I'd recently made a Christmas tree card (see it here, if you missed it). I was inspired by Darnell's (djkardkreations) card and by Marcia's (Marcia's Stampin' Pad) card using branchy trees with dots. I pulled out an older Hero Arts fall set called Color Layering Fall Trees that has both of those. Here's my Twofer:

I thought the bare tree would be fun as a spooky tree for Halloween and then as a fall tree with all the dotted layers for Thanksgiving. Here's a closer look at each with supplies:

Supplies: Paper - Poptone Black; 

Neenah Classic Crest Solar White

Stamps - Hero Arts CL886 Color Layering Fall Trees,

DC197 Halloween Trimmings Stamp and Cut &

CL628 Ghostly Greetings (retired);

Simon Says Stamp Creepy Cute (retired)

Dies - My Favorite Things Blueprints (retired)

Other - Copic Markers; Distress Inks;

Hero Arts Intense Black Ink & Crystal Clear Lacquer Pen

I used a fun Haunted House from a 2017 SSS set, stamping it onto a white stitched diecut rectangle just for placement, then stamping the middle tree on the left and the far right tree to go off paper. Next I stamped the ghost & boo. Then I colored in the sky and ground with various Distress and pigment inks. My scene looked pretty bare so I added three more trees & some shadows. I had intended to stamp and color the house separately & pop onto the card but I really liked how the trees overlapped onto the house. So, I colored the house I'd already stamped. I thought the multiple Halloween colors would add a nice pop. Stamped the sentiment & put lacquer on the windows - done! Next, the Thanksgiving tree:

Supplies: Paper - Paper Studio ivory & glitter;

Authentique Thankful; BoBunny Enchanted Harvest

Stamps - Hero Arts CL886 Color Layering Fall Trees &

Taylored Expressions All Tucked in Harvest

Dies - My Favorite Things Blueprints (retired);

Hero Arts Nesting Oval Infinity Dies;

Avery Elle Simple Sentiment Dies

Other - Copic & Distress Markers;

Memento Rich Cocoa & various Hero Arts inks

I stamped the bare tree onto ivory cardstock and then all the leafy layers in autumn colored inks from various My Monthly Hero kits. Note to self - label the colors when the kit arrives!! Next I die cut the panel into an oval and colored in a little ground with Copics, then popped it onto a glittery oval in the next size up. Die cut a stitched rectangle, added a strip of a different pattern and adhered all to an ivory card. Next I die cut a set of ivory sentiment strips and used the one best fitting my sentiment. Stamped the sentiment and adhered with foam tape - done!!

I'm also adding my Halloween card to the current Watercolor Wednesday Challenge All Occasions and my Thanksgiving card to the current Sweet Stampin Challenge Anything but a Birthday Card. Thanks to all for the fun challenges! Thanks to you for visiting and for any kind comments!! Hope you have a crafty day!

  

Crazy for Swiss Dots

 Back again with some more paper piecing on cute critters - I went crazy for dots!! Here's my card:

Supplies: Paper - Paper Studio kraft A2 card; Bazzill brown;

Neenah Classic Crest Solar White; Doodlebug Rainbow Swiss Dots;

BoBunny Enchanted Harvest; Lawn Fawn Let's Polka

Stamps - Hero Arts CM355 From the Vault Cute Animals (hippo), 

CL155 Playful Animals (monkey & sentiment) - retired, 

CL438 Let's Chill (palm tree) - retired, 

and CL377 Be Happy (sun) - retired

Other - foam tape; Darice googly eyes; Copic Markers;

Hero Arts reactive inks; Distress Inks - Twisted Citron and Mowed Lawn

After finishing yesterday's cute critter scene, I watched a Barbershop Harmony online contest - top 10 high achieving quartets over 6 decades who'd never won their International Championship. Very fun and they'll announce the winners on Monday. Check it out on YouTube here if you want to watch a bit. When it ended, I was sucked into making another cute critter card - couldn't resist a darling Hero Arts From the Vault set, appropriately named Cute Animals. I've had it about a year and am just now getting to use it!! I chose the hippo image and built my scene from there, paper-piecing with various dotted papers. The sun isn't paper pieced - I just stamped and cut it out. Parts of the monkey and palm tree, the hippo and the coconuts were all paper-pieced. Thought the monkey would be cute with googly eyes.

My card is going to the following challenges: Stay Crafty with Hero (#14 Critters), A Blog Named Hero (Cute), Sweet Stampin' (Paper-piecing), and NBUS Challenge since my Cute Animals set is getting its first use. Thanks to all challenge holders for the fun!! Thanks to you for stopping by and have a crafty day!!

  

Cute Critters!

Happy weekend, friends - hope you're getting time outdoors as well as in the craft room!! Beautiful day in Minnesota (yes, we have them!) and I managed to pull weeds from the landscaping (not my favorite thing in the world). But I still had time this afternoon (& basically took it all) to make a cute critter card to enter at both the Stay Crafty with Hero Challenge - # 14 Critters and the new A Blog Named Hero Challenge - Cute. Here are my cute critters:

Supplies: Paper - Paper Studio brights & kraft;

Neenah Classic Crest Solar White 110 lb;

Lawn Fawn Let's Polka 6x6 (retired)

Stamps - Hero Arts CL438 Let's Chill (retired)

Dies - My Favorite Things Blueprints (retired)

Other - Copic Markers, pencils for shading;

Hero Arts clear lacquer

There were a bunch of beach challenges out there this summer and I pulled out a darling Hero Arts set (used it for my August guest designer Twofer here). Never made it to any beach challenge, oh well.... The set was still in the "pending return to proper place" pile (not yet a mountain) so I decided it would be perfect for both challenges! 

I planned the card using an A2 sized white panel and my Hero Arts MISTI, plunking stamps down to arrange my scene. I stamped the tree, ball and crab right on the panel, then drew lightly where I wanted my beach and ocean. I colored the crab directly on the card with Copics, then paper-pieced the ball and tree, adding accents with Copics. I paper-pieced because the Sweet Stampin' Challenge has that as the theme and my friend Dawn (Dawn's World), who's on the Design Team, shared a brilliant card with that technique here. Figured I might as well hit another challenge while at it!!

Next, I water colored the beach, ocean and sky (reactive inks & Antique Linen Distress). Note to self - next time do this BEFORE paper-piecing, although I think I did ok along the image borders . Ocean got a bit dark - no worries, spritzed more water and dabbed off (as Jennifer McGuire said - use heavy weight cardstock). Die cut the panel with a stitched rectangle and stamped the sentiment (it comes as one phrase, I snipped apart to get one word below the other). Finally stamped the birdie, colored with Copics, fussy cut, added lacquer to the sunglasses & popped onto the panel. Glued panel to kraft card and done - finally!!

Thanks to all challenge holders for the fun and thanks to you for the visit!!

PS - If you care to see "my masterpiece" of paper-piecing, visit my Flickr post here.

 

Father's Day early!

Hey there - I spotted my friend Dawn's fab masculine card on Saturday. She's on the Sweet Stampin' Challenge Blog Design Team - they're doing a Masculine/Father's Day theme this week. Since I need a Father's Day card for dear ol' dad, I decided to play along. Here's my card:

Supplies: Paper - DCWV A2 card; Authentique 6x6 (from a mix);

Neenah Classic Crest Solar White 110 lb

Stamps - Simon Says Stamp What's Brewing (retired);

Taylored Expressions Many Minis - Holiday (retired);

Hero Arts AR143 Cool Dad (Archiver's exclusive - retired)

Dies - Hero Arts DI345 Nesting Postage Stamp Infinity Dies

Other - Copics; foam tape; Paper Studio star gems;

Hero Arts Intense Black ink

I've probably told this story before but, when I was growing up, I toured with a Drum & Bugle Corps. Invariably, I'd come home from all over the US dragging little presents for my family. Poor Dad still has some of the cups I brought him. My fave is the one from Disneyland with Mickey Mouse on it. But I digress.... Dad still loves his coffee (not strong enough unless a spoon stands up in it!) so I decided to go with a coffee theme. The SSS cup stamp is outline only but I added the "Cool Dad" from an oldie but goodie by Hero Arts. I've not used the SSS set before - poor thing, it's already retired!! So I'll also enter this to Darnell's NBUS Challenge.

Masculine/Father's Day

 

Thanks for the fun challenges and thanks to you for stopping by!!