GOOD MORNING!

The past two weeks have been very busy for me; no time to make cards and no time to post.  Things are slowly getting back to a normal pace and I was finally able to get into my studio. I don't know about you, but it is a very therapeutic thing for me to take the time to make a few cards.  So relaxing.  Here is a card I made for the ANYTHING GOES challenge at Simon Says Stamp:

I found this pretty 8x8 paper pad at JoAnne's last week and wanted to play with it.  The papers are quite vintage-like with great colors, too.

It is a rainy day (much needed, too!) here in Ohio, so maybe I will have time to play a bit more.  Need to catch up with my blog list first!!!

Have a great weekend!

Hero Arts CL 490, Spellbinders Nestabilities large and small ovals, My Favorite Things butterfly die, Cuttlebug embossing folder, Colorbok Victorian Parlour paper pad.

PDCC132 BLACK WHITE AND MUSTARD YELLOW

Another challenge that I have never entered is The Play Date Cafe. 

Here is my card: 

I purchased this beautiful Eiffel Tower, made by BLine Designs, at a local used stamp sale.  It had never been used and the price was right (as in cheap)! The card is pretty much self explanatory - really love this stamp.  

Hope your day is a good one! 

CR84FN and more

This is the first time I have played in the CR84FN challenge.  Love the soft mint and blue together. 

I am also entering this card in three other challenges:  the Cas-ual Fridays challenge to use punches or dies.  I used a Martha Stewart butterfly punch and Spellbinders dies. 

the A Blog Named Hero challenge to use a stamp(s) that have been sitting around for awhile.  The flower vine swirl is one I love and haven't used in a long time. 

and, lastly, the Simon Says Stamp clean and simple challenge. 

I've never combined that many challenges.  Will try to limit myself to one or two at a time in the future - seems more fun that way to me. 

Have a wonderful week!

IMAGINATION

Just got some PTI polka dot stamps that I have been wanting for a LONG time.  Decided to use them to make a card for the Simon Says Stamp and Show challenge which ends tonight at midnight.  Seems I'm always bringing up the rear for most challenges!!  Just been extra busy this past week and the upcoming one promises to be even more so. Here is the card I made:

Sorry for the poor quality of this photo - the light was quickly fading.

With walnut stain distress ink, I stamped large polka dots on a torn book page and layered it to kraft cardstock along with a strip of old sheet music.  Then I stamped a Tim Holtz image in pumice stone along the right side of the card and overstamped the sentiment with walnut stain.  A Tim Holtz butterfly and some medium and small polka dots were heat embossed in gold.  The tiny rickrack was stained with the walnut stain ink. I then layered the panel to dark brown cardstock and a kraft card. 

Truth be told, this is my very favorite kind of card to create.  Just don't have the time to play as much as I would like, I guess.

Thanks for visiting!  

KATHY'S LILY PAD PALETTE

The card I made for this challenge also fits the "sweet tooth" challenge at Simon Says Stamp. 

The cupcake image and the sentiment are from Impression Obsession.  The Spellbinders Nestabilities die is called lacey circles.  And the lattice background is from Hero Arts.  The image was colored with Prismacolor pencils and highlighted with Stickles diamond glitter. I stamped the lattice background with Memento rich cocoa ink on Neenah desert storm cardstock. 

Happy Monday to all!

CFC52 FEATHERED FRIENDS

Here is my card for this week's CAS-UAL FRIDAYS challenge:

The patterned paper is from the Simon Says April card kit.  The ink I used for the image and sentiment is in the new Distress Ink pack and called peacock feathers.  Love this pretty color.  A bit of Stickles to ground the bird and for the eye finished this card off.

Thanks for visiting!

BIRTHDAYS

Here is a card for two challenges:

Simon Says Stamp is three years old!!

And, Hero Arts has birthdays as one of its themes for the month.

The Hero Arts classic tea flower is so pretty no matter how it is used.  Here I decided to just stamp it with Versafine onyx black ink on patterned paper.  The sentiment is from the Hero Arts Find Joy clear set.  I used Ranger black enamel accents for the center of the flower and the dots on the Martha Stewart butterfly punch.  The paper strip at the bottom is accented with tiny black gems from Bo Bunny.

Enjoy your day!

CELEBRATE!

It's time to celebrate at Simon Says Stamp!  My card is fairly simple:

A portion of patterned paper from My Mind's Eye Lost and Found 6 x 6 pad inspired this card.  I stamped the Hero Arts sentiment inside the pretty label, added some washi tape and black pearls and was done!  The MME paper and washi tape were part of a giveaway I won from Joy Taylor, and I love them both!

As part of the celebration at SSS, they are giving away 4 prizes!  Such a generous company and their customer service is outstanding. I am also entering this in the Hero Arts birthday challenge.  

Hope your day is a good one!

Hero Arts CL497, My Mind's Eye Sunshine designer paper, Kamoi Kakoshi Co. Ltd. washi tape.

CFC50

Trees or flowers??  I love trees and have quite a few tree images, but decided to go with flowers for the CAS-ual Fridays challenge since I have many, many more flower images!!

This flower trio is so much fun to color and cut out.  I used Memento markers to color the image and added some Stickles diamond glitter for some sparkle. The pink marker is the exact color of the Hero Arts blossom notecards that I used. 

Since tonight is the deadline, I am also entering this in the Simon Says challenge which is Anything Goes.  

Thanks for visiting!

Hero Arts Blossom notecards, Hero Arts CL596 and CL493, Ranger Stickles, Memento markers.  

CFC49

There is a sketch challenge at Cas-ual Fridays this week:

This is definitely clean and simple!!

The images were stamped with festive berries distress ink.  Starburst is from Hero Arts and the sentiment is from PTI.

Thanks for stopping by!

ANTHING GOES

Simon Says Stamp has two challenge blogs - one challenge is more mainstream and one is vintage.  This week on SIMON SAYS STAMP AND SHOW the challenge is "anything goes".  As you probably know, when either challenge blog has this theme, there are SCADS of entries. 

But, it is always worth a try and I wanted to use some new BoBunny decaf vintage double dot paper that my friend, Lin, picked up for me while she was in Florida.  Here is my card:

The sentiment was stamped with walnut stain distress ink on a reverse section of this paper and then diecut.  The doily die cut that is peeking out from behind the labels shape was given to me by another friend, Carol.  The hydrangea was stamped on the dotted side of the paper and a white Prismacolor pencil was used to add some white touches here and there.  A Martha Stewart punched border and some Hero Arts lace were adhered and then I sparkled it all up with some Platinum Stickles (my favorite).   The champagne colored gems are from BoBunny, too.  

Thanks, Lin and Carol, for enabling and inspiring me to make this card!

Hero Arts K5376  Hydrangea  Hero Arts CL380 Truly Appreciated

ANOTHER SKETCH

So happy that I was able to get another card made using a second sketch from the Hero Arts April contest.

Here is my card:

This time I chose the Eiffel Tower background to make the panels, using four different shades of Distress Inks, shading from top to bottom as shown in the sketch.  I also used a scalloped circle and a sentiment from two different Hero Arts cling sets.

I've fallen in love with this gold embossing powder, so you will no doubt be seeing more cards using it here!

Today is going to be a beautiful spring day in Ohio and I hope to do a little work in my flower beds later.  Hope your day is fabulous!

HERO ARTS SKETCH CHALLENGE

There are three sketches provided for this month's Hero Arts contest.  Here is a card I made for one of the sketches:

Black and white always makes for a classy card and I like the way the one red epoxy heart pops here.  The raindrop background is just enough pattern for the rest of the elements. 

I am attempting to get cards made for the other two sketches before the deadline!  We'll see if they come to fruition.  There is only so much time to devote to cards these days. . . .

Have a great "hump" day!

FOR YOU

This is a card I made for this month's challenge at Hero Arts.  I used a new (to me) Spellbinders die called Reverse Wonky Rectangles for the shape and a new (to me) stamp from Hero Arts titled For You Gifts, which is just so cute!

The image was colored with Prismacolor pencils.  The patterned paper background is from the Simon Says April kit of the month.  I added some yellow pearls from Teresa Collins and a tiny yellow bow with ribbon from my stash.  

Hope your day is fabulous!

EASTER JOY

What's in my Easter basket??  Sparkling eggs!

This sweet little basket is a stamp from Rosebud Rubber Stamps, a company which to my knowledge is no longer in business.  The sentiment is from Penny Black.  Background paper is from Basic Grey's Lauderdale 6 x 6 pad.

This also qualifies for Simon Says, so I will send it over there, too.

Hope you have a wonderful Easter weekend!

HEARTFELT WISHES

Good morning!  The past week or so has been a busy one for me and I haven't been able to get any cards made until yesterday.  

The Tuesday Trigger  photo for this week is so pretty:

Here is my card:

Blue and white is my favorite color combo.  I stamped the butterfly on a blue speckled paper and again on vellum.  Cut out just a portion of the wings from the vellum and adhered over the blue one.  Added blue and white liquid pearls for accent.  The embossing folder is from Sizzix. 

I will also use this card for two other challenges this week.  The challenge for A Blog Named Hero is to use our favorite stamps from Hero Arts and this Artists Butterfly is just one of mine.  I also used one of my favorite tools, the Cuttlebug, to emboss the background so this suits the challenge this week at Simon Says Stamp also. 

Have a wonderful day!

THANK YOU

A card for three challenges:  Hero Arts (flowers), Lily Pad Cards (flowers) and CFC45 (pastels and black).

I realize I may be pushing the envelope, so to speak, for CAS-ual Friday.  This may not be as pastel or clean and simple as they want.  But, I decided to give it a go, anyway!

The papers are from the April stamp kit of the month from Simon Says.  The flower and sentiment are from Hero Arts.  I used some of their tiny flowers and pearls as accents, too. 

Thanks for visiting!

BLACKBIRD

The challenge for Simon Says Stamp and Show for this week is handmade backgrounds.

Just getting this in under the wire since the challenge ends at midnight tonight.  My background was made with distress inks, flicked with water and stamped with swirls.  After stamping the images with archival ink, the white dots were added for more accent.

Love making backgrounds!

VIRGINIA'S VIEW #3

Isn't this just the most colorful and quirky inspiration photo that Virginia has picked for her third monthly challenge at Lily Pad Cards??  I was so drawn to the rows of colors.  Here is my card:

I used just one row of several colors.  The single starburst from Hero Arts looks great stamped in Brilliance inks.  Three little oval buttons I found in my stash were tied with twine from the Simon Says Stamp March card kit.  The sentiment is also Hero Arts.                                                              

Thanks, Virginia, for another fun challenge!

BIT 'O GREEN and CFC44

Happy St. Patrick's Day to you!!

Please scroll down if you are looking for my blog giveaway post.

Again, I am using one card for two challenges:

The challenge at CAS-ual Fridays is a 1-2-3 step one:
Use a background, use an image and use a sentiment.
And, the theme at Simon Says Stamp is to use green in honor of St. Patrick's Day. 

I'm typically not a green girl, but I do like monochromatic color schemes, so this works okay for me. 

Hope your day is a happy one!!!  Thanks for visiting.