Vintage Birds - Altered Envie

My altered envelope for this month's exchange started with an "a ha" moment.  As I was going through my paper stash looking for a piece of 12x12 cardstock, I came upon a package of Graphic 45 patterned paper that I bought a while ago at Tuesday Morning (a small discount store).  I love Graphic 45 designs and I thought I was getting a great deal on a collection of patterned papers.  Imagine my disappointment when I opened the package and discovered not the collection, but 25 sheets of the same design!  I thought, what the heck am I going to do with 25 sheets of the same design?

Yep!  I bought 25 sheets of this two-sided paper.

Well, I shared a couple sheets with a fellow crafter, and then the packet went back into my stash until this month when I stumbled upon it again and had that "a ha" moment:  this paper would make a great envelope!  It's quality, heavy cardstock and the side with the text provides a neutral background.  So I used my We R Memory Keepers envelope punch board (another Tuesday Morning purchase) to create my envelope, then dug through my paper stash for items to build a collage.

The front of the envelope started with a vintage bird illustration from an old natural history book.  The yellow flower was fussy-cut from the same book.  I added an envelope wrap, a scrap torn from a reproduction Sears and Roebuck catalog, and a vintage postage stamp.  The final touches involved some rubber stamping.

The reverse side of the envelope features another bird from the natural history book, scraps of vintage sheet music and book text, rubber stamping, and the other end of the envelope wrap.  See what a great background that dark Graphic 45 paper makes?  I'll have no problem using 25 sheets of that!

Here's hoping you have many happy "a ha" moments yourself.  Thanks for reading my blog, and have a fabulous day!

America's Greatest Pastime

I was really rocking the card for my uncle the other night, so I decided to stick with the masculine theme and make a card for my buddy Ron.  He's been house-bound for quite a while due to a serious illness, and I send him a card or care package periodically to brighten his day.  Ron enjoys sports and since it's April, that means baseball.

I started with patterned papers from a Graphic 45 collection called Good Ol' Sport.  I chose the red papers initially as a nod to Nebraska (where Ron played football) and coincidentally that works for the Boston Red Sox, too.  I antiqued the papers with distress inks, stamping, stenciling and some acrylic paint applied with the end of an old plastic hair roller.  The Boston slugger from Artistic Outpost was stamped on a solid ivory paper from the same paper pack and masked before stamping on the stadium names (also from Artistic Outpost).  I used distress inks and a charcoal pencil to color around my slugger so he would stand out against the background.

Thanks so much for stopping by.  Have a sweet day!

Supplies:
Gray cardstock by Bazzill; naturals vanilla cardstock from Stampin' Up; patterned papers by Graphic 45; stamps by Artistic Outpost; festive berries, gathered twigs and vintage photo distress ink; Ranger Adirondack jet black and watering can ink; splatter pattern stamp by All Night Media; bubble stencil by Tim Holtz; Adirondack espresso and old paper acrylic paint dabber; circle and scalloped circle Nestabilities by Spellbinders; small oval and scalloped oval punch from Stampin' Up; pop-dots.

By The Sea Get Well Card

I decided to make a greeting card to coordinate with this artist trading card that I am sending to a fellow vintage collage artist who has been ill.  Since ATCs don't require much paper, I had more than enough left over to create a full-sized card.

The central image and patterned papers are by Graphic 45.  I think the polka dot banner conveys the right amount of whimsy while balancing the seashells at the bottom.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a fantastic weekend.

Supplies:
Blue cardstock by Bazzill; ivory naturals cardstock from Stampin' Up; patterned papers by Graphic 45;  EK Success border punch; vintage photo and antique linen distress ink; brown waxed linen thread; alphabet stickers from my stash; mini seashells from Michaels; gauze; pop-dots; Golden soft gel medium.

On the Boardwalk ATC

This hot weather has me thinking of ways to keep cool.  When I was a kid, I practically lived at the pool.  The only "beach" we could go to was at a lake, and trust me, it is not the same as going to the shore.

To celebrate summer, I created this ATC using some papers by Graphic 45 that I recently bought.  To create the beach-y vignette in the corner, I started with a small piece of gauze tinted with old paper distress ink.  The seashell was in a bag of shells I bought for 25 cents at a church rummage sale.  The shell was originally a light tan color, rather plain and unpolished.  I glammed it up by rubbing it with some fired brick distress ink and then dabbing on some gold acrylic paint.  My "sand" consists of teeny tiny gold seed beads.  The blue seed beads were added for color.  (I used to make a lot of jewelry and still have quite a stash of beads.)  I used gel medium to adhere all of the embellishments, then sprayed the entire card with sealant.

I hope you're having a great weekend!  Thanks for popping by my blog.

Supplies:
Cardstock ATC base; images and patterned paper by Graphic 45; text from an old book; charcoal pencil; gold acrylic paint dabber; gauze; old paper and fired brick distress ink; gold and blue seed beads; small seashell; soft gel medium; matte spray sealant.

Cherished Friend

Today is my friend Joanne's birthday!  She is a sweetheart and I cherish her friendship very much, so of course I could not let the day pass without acknowledging it appropriately.

I used some lovely papers by K and Company to create this card.  You can't see it in this picture, but the red diamond and green striped papers are embossed, and the floral background paper has some glittery accents.

Happy Birthday Jo!

Have a great weekend, everyone.

Supplies:

Green cardstock by Bazzill; kraft cardstock from Stampin' Up; patterned papers by K and Company; bird stamp by Graphic 45; sentiment from Stampin' Up; Colorbox black pigment ink; clear embossing powder; Martha Stewart border punch; oval and scalloped oval punches from Stampin' Up; pewter brads; pop-dots.

For the Birds

I really like this bird image by Graphic 45, so you will probably see me use it quite a bit.  In this case it's on a card that I made for some friends of mine who have had a stressful winter dealing with a parent's health issues.  I think it was Bette Davis who said, "Growing old isn't for sissies," and she was definitely right.

This is an A2-sized card (4.25 x 5.5 inches), with 3/4 of an inch trimmed off the front panel.  This sketch is perfect for showcasing some beautiful coordinated papers.

Thanks for dropping by!

Supplies:
Brown cardstock by Bazzill; whisper white cardstock from Stampin' Up; patterned papers by Making Memories; bird stamp by Graphic 45; Archival jet black ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; rectangle and scalloped rectangle Nestabilities by Spellbinders; corner rounder punch; copper brads; pop-dots.

A Little Bird Told Me

I am so excited that spring is almost here!  I can hardly wait for warmer days, tulips and daffodils in bloom, and green grass.  And of course everyone is on the lookout for the first robin to appear.

I don't know if this bird is a robin (I didn't color him that way), but to me he signifies spring.  He is backed by some of my favorite papers from 7 Gypsies.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great weekend.

Supplies:
Goldenrod cardstock by Bazzill; whisper white cardstock from Stampin' Up; patterned papers by 7 Gypsies; bird stamp by Graphic 45; Stazon black ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; rectangle and scalloped rectangle Nestabilities by Spellbinders; corner rounder punch; scalloped border punch by Martha Stewart; mini black brads and black button brads; pop-dots; Glossy Accents (on the bird's eye).

Beware the Ides of March...

...for they sneak up on you and you realize that you forgot to make a birthday card for a friend, who was born on the Ides.  So this card will be a little late but the greetings are just as enthusiastic.

Graphic 45 has some new rubber stamps on cling mount that are just beautiful.  I combined this classic-looking bird with some decorative papers by Crafty Secrets and just had to add a little bit of sewing around the edges (the recipient will understand).

Have a great day!

Supplies:
Blue cardstock by Bazzill; kraft and whisper white cardstock from Stampin' Up; decorative papers by Crafty Secrets; bird stamp by Graphic 45; frayed burlap distress ink; square and scalloped square Nestabilities by Spellbinder; photo corner punch from Stampin' Up; blue dew drops by The Robin's Nest; Janome Sew Mini and ecru thread.

Get Well Wishes

My friend Loribelle had surgery on Monday and is the proud new mom of twin kidney stones.  It's amazing (and more than a little irritating), that something so tiny can cause so much pain and trouble! 

This cute little girl in her overalls is a rubber stamp from Oxford Impressions.  The lovely papers by Graphic 45 were in my scrap basket.  I'm so proud of myself for making five cards with just scraps in the last few days.

Have a great day!

Supplies:
Red and ivory cardstock by Bazzill; white cardstock from Oxford Impressions; girl stamp from Oxford Impressions; sentiment from Stampin' Up; decorative papers by Graphic 45; small oval and scalloped oval punches from Stampin' Up; Spellbinders oval and scalloped oval Nestabilities; small slot punch from Stampin' Up (where the ribbon is threaded through); sheer gold ribbon from Michaels; border punch by EK Success; antique gold stick-ons by K and Company; pop-dots.

Graphic 45 Communique Card

After spending a couple of hours cleaning up my craft area, including putting away all of my Christmas-themed stamps and papers, I was ready to create something new.  But I didn't have a lot of time so I decided to make an easy card that didn't use any stamping or embellishments.  This type of card is handy to have when you need to fire off a quick note to someone, and I never have enough of them.

All of the papers are by Graphic 45. I cut out the pen nibs and ink bottle and mounted them on black cardstock, leaving just a slim border of black around the images.  They were then adhered to the card with pop-dots for a little dimension.


Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:
Black cardstock by Bazzill; decorative papers by Graphic 45; pop-dots.

Easy Summer Afternoon

This is a quick card using some Graphic 45 papers from my scrap pile and a stamp from Artistic Outpost.

I used three Memento dye inks on the stamp (rhubarb stalk, bamboo leaves, and rich cocoa). The colors in this card are much warmer in real life. It was cloudy and raining when I took this picture.

Thanks for popping in!

Supplies:
Stamp: Artistic Outpost; Bazzill brown cardstock; Graphic 45 decorative papers; Martha Stewart border punch; Stampin' Up ticket corner punch; antique copper brads.

You Have Many Friends

This is the birthday card I made to coordinate with a 12x12 scrapbook page for my friend Joe, which you can see here.

I finally used one of the Tim Holtz journaling tickets I bought in February while on vacation! The spectacle image by Artistic Outpost fits perfectly on the ticket. I also love the aged color of the ticket and how well it coordinates with the Pink Paislee decorative papers.

I hope you have a great weekend planned. We're planning to get out and enjoy some local festivals.

Supplies:
Stamps: Artistic Outpost; black cardstock by Bazzill; decorative papers by Graphic 45 and Pink Paislee; journaling ticket by Tim Holtz; Archival jet black ink; walnut stain distress ink; clock face and spinner arrows by Tim Holtz; pop-dots.

For a Unique Individual

One of my closest friends will celebrate her birthday on Easter this year (and luckily for her, she gets to go to someone else's house for dinner!). She's had some stressful days recently, so I hope this card will bring some cheer to her day.

I think that Graphic 45 makes gorgeous papers and the designs in the Botanicabella collection are no exception. This card also features images from Artistic Outpost. Stay tuned for more projects featuring their stamps, because just today I received three new sets!

Have a great weekend!

Supplies:
Stamps: Artistic Outpost; brown and sienna cardstocks by Bazzill; decorative papers by Graphic 45; Versamark ink; Archival jet black ink; wild honey, rusty hinge, and walnut stain distress inks; clear embossing powder; Martha Stewart border punch; Tim Holtz Idea-ology muse token and trinket pin; Karen Foster scrapper's floss; pop-dots.

You better not pout...

Here is another version of my Santa Christmas card.

It features a patchwork background with zigzag stitching, vintage buttons tied with embroidery floss, and the cracked glass technique.

Only 11 days until Christmas! Are you ready?


Supplies:
Stamps: Rubber Stampede, Stamping' Up!; green and tan cardstocks by Bazzill; whisper white cardstock by Stampin' Up!; patterned papers by Graphic 45; Prismacolor Premier pencils; black Stazon, antique linen distress ink, Versamark; UTEE; rectangle and scalloped rectangle Nestabilities; Cuttlebug; oval and scalloped oval punches by Stampin' Up!; Janome Sew Mini; vintage buttons; embroidery floss.

Heritage Scrapbooking - Otto 1918

I haven't done much scrapbooking, but heritage scrapbooking appeals to me on several different levels so I have hopes of pursuing that interest more in the future.

This is a 6x6 inch piece. Otto, the man in the photo, is my paternal grandfather. I never knew him as he died of a brain tumor before I was born. My dad described him as a hard-worker, a good gardener, and particular about his tools. He also liked a good ball game (softball/baseball) and his beer! Another interesting fact is that he was the father of 14 children.

This picture was supposedly taken when Otto was a student at or had graduated from business school. However, no one seems to know anything more specific such as when he attended this school, the name and location of the school, or what he studied. I estimated that this picture was taken around 1918 or 1919, based on his age and the fact that it would have been taken before my grandparents were married in 1920.

Even though I never met my grandfather, I can certainly see how my dad takes after him. My grandfather was a handsome young man and although he never became a businessman, he looks like a man with a lot of promise in this photo.

Supplies:
Decorative papers: Graphic 45, Karen Foster; black Bazzill cardstock; recycled corrugated cardboard; distress inks: walnut stain, antique linen; oval and scalloped oval punches (Stampin' Up!); square and scalloped square Nestibilities (Spellbinders); Tim Holtz Idea-ology knowledge token and spinner arrow; string wrap closure (Michaels); frond punch (Martha Stewart); ivory skeleton leaves; pewter brads; computer-generated journaling.

Sassy Pocket Card

I enjoy using a pocket card format because it allows me to combine a variety of stamped images or patterned papers to great effect. In this case, I used Graphic 45 papers to decorate not only the card base but also the tag that I tucked inside.

I sent this card to a person I've never met. She knows nothing about me (other than we both attended the same high school) so I think she will be surprised when she sees this card. She's in charge of collecting the money for an upcoming reunion I'm attending, and I sent my check in this card. I know that organizing an event like that is often a thankless job, so I wanted to make the task a little more pleasant for her by sending a special card. I can't wait to hear what she says about it!

Supplies:
Graphic 45 decorative papers; Bazzill black cardstock; Stampington image "The Glance;" Tim Holtz Eiffel Tower image; black Stazon ink; fired brick distress ink; walnut stain distress ink; Prima paper flower; black brad; Nestabilities oval die cuts; jute twine.

Thank you for taking time to visit my site! Have a great Labor Day weekend!