Love Bench

My parents will celebrate their 55th wedding anniversary on Friday.  That kinda blows my mind!  They don't seem old enough to have been married that long.

I recently purchased this stamp by Deep Red that shows a vintage couple snuggled together under an umbrella on a park bench.  I thought it would make a sweet image for an anniversary card. 

Have a safe and fun New Year's Eve!

Supplies:
Black and kraft cardstock by Bazzill; very vanilla cardstock from Stampin' Up; patterned paper by Teresa Collins; stamped image by Deep Red; Ranger Archival black ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; rectangle and scalloped rectangle Nestabilities by Spellbinders; ivory seam binding from Stampin' Up; Prima paper flower; antique bronze Distress Stickles; antique linen and vintage photo distress ink; corner rounder punch.

Farm Fresh Eggs

Hi everyone!  I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas.  I'm keeping my tree and decorations up until New Year's Day in order to enjoy them a little bit longer.

Speaking of New Year's Day, that is my mom's birthday.  She grew up on a farm and one of her chores was to gather the eggs.  It wasn't a job she always enjoyed, because sometimes the old "setting hens" would peck at her hand when she reached in.  In spite of this, she has many fond memories of helping her dad on the farm, so when I found some country-themed stamps by Oxford Impressions, I just had to have them.  I used stamps from the Farm Girl and Farm Boy sets.

The layout is courtesy of Sketch Challenge 466 on Splitcoaststampers.  I combined patterned papers by My Mind's Eye and my stamped images, which were colored with pencils and distress inks.  And yes, I hand-cut the little girl, her pail, the rooster AND the baby chicks.  Talk about a challenge!  But I think the final result was well worth the effort.  (Helpful hint: Use a Xyron to apply adhesive to small, fussy-cut images with detailed edges.)

Thanks for popping in!  Have a fabulous day.

Supplies:
Gray and kraft cardstock by Bazzill; very vanilla cardstock from Stampin' Up; patterned papers by My Mind's Eye; stamps from Oxford Impressions; Ranger Archival black ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; antique lace and vintage photo distress ink; peat charcoal pencil; oval and lacy oval Nestabilities by Spellbinders; scalloped round punch by Martha Stewart; Xyron.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Telegram

This is the prototype for my Christmas card this year (yes, I'm getting a late start on them).  I'll be honest and tell you that I've had more than one thought about buying cards this year.  (I know!  Sacrilege!)  But I just can't bring myself to do that when I know I can make my own.  I just have to resign myself to the fact that my cards will probably be a little late.

I created a collage using stamps from Oxford Impressions, a page from an old Czech book, and patterned paper.  A dry brush technique was used to age the black and green cardstock.  Now that I have my prototype done, I can "assembly line" the rest and get them on their way.

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:
Green cardstock by Bazzill; black and very vanilla cardstock from Stampin' Up; Ranger Archival black ink; patterned papers by KaiserCraft; rubber stamps by Oxford Impressions; frayed burlap, black soot, and forest moss distress ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; peat charcoal pencil; Nestabilities Labels 8 by Spellbinders; warm white acrylic paint;  corner rounder punch. 

Are You Feeling Lucky? Well, Are Ya?

My brother's birthday is tomorrow and I figured it might be bad luck if I didn't at least send him a card.  (I'm just kidding.  I'm not superstitious about Friday the 13th.  Are you?)  I was just happy for the excuse to do something creative, since I haven't had much time for art this month.

I used several stamps from Artistic Outpost to create this card.  The focal images were colored with Prismacolor pencils and distress inks.  The strip of burlap hides the fact that the little boy image ends at the waist.  The vintage buttons are from my stash.  One still had old thread in the holes, so I just left it there.

ETA:  This card was selected by the Artistic Outpost Referral Program as a "Top 3" for the month of December!   This is the second time in six months that I've received this recognition.  Fun!

Have a great day.  Thanks for popping in!

Supplies:
Brown cardstock by Bazzill; crumb cake cardstock from Stampin' Up; rubber stamps from Artistic Outpost; patterned papers by Prima Marketing; Ranger archival black ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; vintage photo and forest moss distress inks; peat charcoal pencil; round and scalloped round Nestabilities by Spellbinders; corner rounder punch; burlap scrap; vintage buttons; heavy gel medium.