New contest at Hero Arts!

August 1st brought a new contest at Hero Arts. I love the sketches this month so got to work on Wednesday with a new stamp I bought after seeing Shari's fun Pom Pom Flower with button embellishment - here. Here's my card (a 6" square):

I stamped the flower on watercolor paper and colored with Distress Markers.  The highlights were achieved with the Picket Fence marker which is more opaque.  Decided the watercolor paper was too plain so I added the envelope liner pattern to frame the flower, then inked the edges.  When I photographed, the neon cast a shadow so it looks a bit greyish (not in real life).  Die cut into a big zig-zag circle and added a yellow mat.

I got to playing this morning with a new Hero Arts cling background I bought last week - BG Square Pattern.  I was stamping it in various colors on some HA eggshell layering paper and my neon pink one had some blobby spots.  Decided I could use the good parts so started out punching a square out of it.  Then I started cutting out smaller pieces and arraying them on the table - next thing you know, I had a snowflake going!  CAS is not my usual style but I decided to keep the background plain and feature the snowflake.

Hope you had a crafty weekend!  Thanks for stopping...

Sending Sunshine and Laughter

Hey there - I was home from work (doctor's orders, can you believe it?) today.  Nothing serious - just went to urgent care last night feeling rough; doctor decided effects of dehydration.  Really people, remember to drink plenty of water on these hot, humid days - guess I was forgetting....

Thankfully I felt well enough by this evening to crank out a card for someone at work who needs a lift.  I was inspired by this fun card by Jennifer McGuire to incorporate some clouds and a sun into my card.  I'm still playing with new Hero Arts goodies, especially my envelope liner background - so fun!!  Here's the card:

I just love those Fiskars cloud punches; I used Bazzill dotted swiss card stock for them. The envelope liner was stamped with Salty Ocean Distress Ink - really added some life to the bluish Basic Grey paper. Thanks for stopping - stay cool and drink plenty o' water, my friends!

Thanks to Hero Arts - New Goodies!!

Hi everyone - Happy Monday!  I just got back from visiting my hometown of La Crosse WI.  My aunt had surgery last week so I spent the weekend helping her around the house, fixing meals, cleaning up, etc.  Aunt Carol is doing very well, I'm happy to say!

Luckily, today was my day off so I unpacked & was catching up on some emails when the doorbell rang.  Yippee, it was the FedEx guy with a box from Hero Arts!!  I quickly opened my package and reveled in all the goodies I had ordered from winning a June contest prize.  Here's my haul:

I have lots of new stamps so only picked up one new one - the much desired Envelope Liner Background cling stamp - looooove it!  Couldn't resist the new Neon dye inks so picked all three colors.  Then I filled in the rest of the order with a set of kraft note cards, a Basic Grey Paper Cottage 6x6 paper pad, some pool flowers and some jeweled pastel flowers (I think I order a package of these about every other order, I love them so).  Thanks again, Hero Arts, for your generosity!!

Then I couldn't resist making a card with some of my new goodies.  Here's my card:

I stamped the new envelope liner using Neon Orange onto a mandarin card base (also from Hero Arts).  I stamped the Hero Arts/Studio Calico Chevron Background on white card stock using each of the Neon colors, overlapping a bit, then I filled in with some of the yellow daubbed on with a Q-tip.  Cut a strip of it and adhered to the card.  Stamped a sentiment from a fun new Hero Arts clear set called Thinking of You.  Took a scrap of white cs and covered it, Neon Pink direct to paper, then stamped it with the Hero Arts newsprint background in both yellow and orange (hard to see in the photo) and then stamped the Hero Arts/Sizzix butterfly and die cut it.  Buttons and gems - done.  Oh, the bakers twine in the button is inked with Neon pink too :)

Perfect for this month's Hero Arts July contest using the Neon colors - deadline Thursday, so get busy!

Thanks for stopping and have a crafty day!!

Card Drive for Maddy

Hi all - Happy Sunday!  I learned from my friend, Lin, about a card drive at Simon Says Stamp's Blog for a sweet girl Maddy battling leukemia - details here.  I was moved to get busy and make Maddy a card, then I embellished a couple of recent cards to send to her sister and parents.  Here's Maddy's card:

As many of you know, I'm crazy for stamping the large butterfly, part of a Hero Arts/Sizzix collaboration with stamps and Framelits, on various patterned papers - no brand is safe!  This time Little Yellow Bicycle called me to their "Hello Spring" papers - so many bright, cheery patterns!!  Once I had the butterfly, I pulled colors from the pp for the rest of the card - hope Maddy will like it.  I wanted to use some of the same elements (embossed cs background on a plain mat) as this next card:

I made the basic card at my friend Sue's store, Scrapbooks Too!.  On Mondays they have a fund raiser for a charity called VEAP - you pay $1 and make a card.  We stamped and embossed the pale pink panel and matted it - used one of those Spellbinders reversible  folders - not sure of the name.  On the inside it says "Sisters are different flowers from the same garden".  When I brought the card home this past Monday, I had thoughts of using it for my own sister but decided to embellish it for Maddy's brave sister, Melanie.  I added the butterfly (more "Hello Spring" paper) and gems to the card.  For the girls' parents, I'm using a card I made at last week's Hero Arts Flickr group Scramble:

I just revised the sentiment to add an "s" since it's for both Tim and Marizel - used the fine tip of a Tim Holtz Black Soot Distress Marker - worked perfectly.  This card had a patterned butterfly already (I'm addicted!) - used Basic Grey Clippings paper for that one....

If you're thinking of doing some cards, you have until August 3rd.  Thanks for stopping!

July Card Chain Challenge

It's been awhile since I've done a Card Chain Challenge, or CCC as it's shortened.  Deborah is back to hosting it on her blog Society of Stampaholics and I planned to play along this month.  When I realized tomorrow's the deadline, I got busy this morning and made this card:

I tried to use all three criteria (color - Aqua/Mint/Aloe, sketch, and theme - friendship).  Turned the sketch to horizontal and had some fun with it.  If my "aqua" looks suspiciously like pool, it is!!  I used the darkest pool shade for my card base but it's reading more minty in the photo - sorry about that!  Used some fun pool designer papers from Hero Arts, an older HA clear set for the sentiment, the more recent woodblock Newspaper Background is stamped on the bird.  Bird and branch die is from Tim Holtz.  The little strip of pp on the right end is from one of Basic Grey's new lines - Clippings (6x6 pad).  Did some faux stitching with a black gel pen and added some gems for interest.

If you're considering the July CCC, better get hopping!  Thanks for stopping and hope you have a crafty weekend!!

Do you craft at odd hours?

So, here's the deal - I wake up at 3 a.m. thinking about a card I started last night.  Pretty soon I'm up, pulling out supplies and working away at my card.  My brother's cat, Misty (you may have heard me talk about her), is visiting me this week.  She just looks at me like "what are you doing?"  She was even more confused because I wouldn't give her any kibbles!!  I want to hear about your experience with odd hour craft time!

Anyway, niece Annika is heading off to camp so I made her a card.  Did any of you ever go to camp?  When I was a kid we went every summer - one week by ourselves with our age group and one week with the entire family - to a church camp in Northern Wisconsin.  If you received mail, you had to tell a joke, sing a song, etc. to receive it.  So all your friends and family back home made sure you were bombarded with mail....  Well, they do the same thing at Annika's camp so I'm armed with my pre-printed address labels and will fire off a card per day - mostly postcards, although I did this handmade card for the kick-off.

The kids stay in little cabins so I printed this cute cabin (Three Bugs in a Rug for Silhouette - Design id#9993) and the sentiment (can't remember the font - sorry) on a piece of blue Basic Grey paper using my Silhouette and a Lexmark printer.  Then I die cut the pine trees (Hero Arts for Silhouette -Design id #22748) with another slab of Basic Grey paper and stamped them with Hero Arts Newspaper Background (still a fave!) inked in Iced Spruce (fitting) Distress Ink.  Next I used my Distress Markers to create a little grassy knoll and path for the cabin.  Finally I stamped and paper-pieced a little sun (from an old baby boy set by Hero Arts) and added some stickles.  A pearl turned into a doorknob and I was done!  I know Annika will love it, as well as the $$ I threw in for her to buy snacks... At my camp they sold the candy bars frozen - still love them that way!

Hope you're having a great weekend and thanks for stopping!!

A storm and a thank you

Wow - what a storm we had early this morning!  I awoke at 4:30 to horrible winds, thunder and lightening, driving rain and loss of power in the neighborhood.  Got ready for work by the light from a flashlight - still no power when it was time to leave.  Hmmm - electric garage door - I could open it manually but it was hard to lift and wouldn't click in the open position, just slid shut again!  Luckily the rain and lightening had ended so I set off walking to the bus stop 2 1/2 miles away.  About 5 blocks from home, a couple who also takes the bus stopped and offered me a ride - how sweet!  I didn't even know their names, they just recognized me.  So Kelly and Mike got me to the bus on time when I figured I'd have to take a later bus due to the long walk.  Then they offered to be sure I got home at the end of the day too!!  To thank them, I made this card tonight:

I used a fun Hero Arts/Basic Grey (Indie Bloom) set called Enjoy that I bought at the Mall of America Archiver's last week.  I met Hero Arts Flickr group friends Barb and Daria for dinner (Tucci Benucch - yummy!!) and a bit of shopping.  Here's my photo of our shopping spree.  In the background you can see a bit of a display for a Cards by Hero Arts class - I took it and enjoyed it very much! 

Barb and Daria are showing some new Tim Holtz seasonal Distress Inks; my stamp set is behind my back - I forgot to show it off, oh well... Had to use my 43% off coupon, don't ya know.  We had a great time and it was wonderful to see them both again!  Two years since I last saw Daria - hope it's not that long til the next time.  Luckily, I get to see Barb more often.

I made the card below on Sunday after all the Father's Day festivities.  I used the same stamp set as above but in a totally different way.  I used one of the sketches from this month's Hero Arts contest.  Really had fun coloring the flowers with Copics - I'm not very good at it but still enjoy it!

Hope you're having a crafty week!  Thanks for stopping!!