Happy 80th Birthday, Bev!

The mother of one of my childhood friends recently turned 80, and the lounge where she tends bar once a week had a kick-ass party for her.  Her birthday was the day before Thanksgiving which meant a lot of people had the next day off and thus could go to a party on a Wednesday night.  Even her son from Texas was able to come, and the bar hired a popular local band to play.  A pleasant surprise for me personally was seeing another childhood friend and her sister there.  It was by far one of the best birthday parties I've been to in a long time.  I certainly hope I'm still rocking it out when I'm 80!

I created this card for Bev and thought it turned out really cute.  I used one of my favorite images by Tim Holtz and colored it with Prismacolor Premier pencils.  The flower is by Petaloo and it coordinated beautifully with these patterned papers by Teresa Collins.

Have a great day!  Thanks for stopping by.

Supplies:
Black and amber cardstock by Bazzill; patterned papers by Teresa Collins; very vanilla cardstock from Stampin' Up; focal image by Tim Holtz; sentiment from Stampin' Up; Ranger Archival black ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; oval and lacy oval Nestabilities by Spellbinders; banner die by Spellbinders; antique linen distress ink; Martha Stewart border punch; pop-dots.

New Job - Thank You

I interviewed for a job last week and planned to send a thank you card to the manager.  Before I could even mail the card, she called to offer me the job!  I start next week and I'm excited to try something new after being in the same field for many years.

I started with the patterned papers by Teresa Collins.  The flapper image by Hampton Art Stamps was stamped on vanilla cardstock and colored with Prismacolor Premier pencils to coordinate with the violet and yellow color scheme.  The card needed a little bling and after digging around in my stash, I found this black rhinestone flourish by Recollections.  I cut it into three pieces before adhering it.

I can't believe October is here already!  It still feels like summer because it's been unusually dry and warm here in the Midwest.  For once, I'm kind of ready for autumn.

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:
Black cardstock by Bazzill; naturals ivory and very vanilla cardstock from Stampin' Up; patterned papers by Teresa Collins; woman by Hampton Art Stamps; Ranger Archival black ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; antique linen distress ink; scallop border punch by EK Success; adhesive rhinestone flourish by Recollections (Michaels); foam tape.

She Sends You Hope

A friend of mine had major surgery this week for a problem that has bothered her for quite a while.  I know she was hoping to avoid surgery, but sometimes that's the best option and in the long term, I hope she enjoys better health as a result.

I mailed this card the day after her surgery so she may get it before she has even left the hospital.  I paired one of my favorite gals from Artistic Outpost with a sentiment from Red Lead.  Both were heat embossed in black for a little dimension and shine.  The patterned papers are by Teresa Collins and were sponged with vintage photo distress ink.  I used a get well sentiment on the inside of the card.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great weekend.

Supplies:
Gold cardstock by Bazzill; patterned papers by Teresa Collins; very vanilla cardstock from Stampin' Up; Generation Redux image from Artistic Outpost; sentiment from Red Lead Paperworks; Versamark ink; black detail embossing powder; oval, scalloped oval, rectangle, scalloped rectangle, hearts, and banner Nestabilities dies by Spellbinders; border punch by EK Success; vintage photo distress ink; pop dots.

Yuletide Greetings

Usually by this time in December, my parents have been in Arizona for more than two months, enjoying the sunshine and warmer temperatures.  However, due to my dad's cancer diagnosis and subsequent treatment, they have had to postpone their departure date.  You wanna talk about two people being bummed out!  But on the bright side, my mom and I have been able to do some things together that we haven't done in at least 15 years.  That has included putting up Christmas decorations and doing some baking.

I also suggested that we make Christmas cards to send to their friends in Arizona.  Well, we ended up making quite a few cards because once we got going, she decided she wanted to send cards to a bunch of other friends and relatives, too.

I kept the design fairly simple and used a variety of patterned papers from my stash.  The cute focal image is by Inkadinkado.  At the last minute I added some gold Stickles to the lantern for a little sparkle.

We had a lot of fun sitting around the kitchen table working on these cards.  We made two of each design above and in the end, my mom took all but three cards!  So now I'm working on a second batch of cards for myself.

I hope you're enjoying all the holiday festivities.  Thanks for stopping by!

Cute as a Button - Mother's Day

Hello and Happy Mother's Day!  This is the card I made for my mom.  The little girl reminds me of her because my mom does not like to smile in pictures.  She says it makes her eyes crinkle up too much.

I created the 12x12 scrapbook page below several years ago.  It features my mom's high school graduation picture.  See?  No smile; even though her description in the yearbook included "has a smile for everyone." Smile or no, I think she is absolutely, classically beautiful, and I am lucky to have her as my mom. 

I hope you're having a wonderful day!  Thanks for popping by.

Card Supplies:
Plum cardstock by Bazzill; very vanilla cardstock from Stampin' Up; patterned paper by Teresa Collins: focal image by Stampers Anonymous (Tim Holtz Collection); sentiment by Red Lead; Ranger Archival black ink; antique linen, wild honey and peeled paint distress ink; oval and scalloped oval Nestabilities by Spellbinders; oval and scalloped oval punches from Stampin' Up; border punch by EK Success; flower by Prima; leaves from Michaels (Recollections brand); corner rounder punch; pop-dots.

Crocus: First Sign of Spring

We have four distinct seasons where I live and spring is definitely my favorite; especially after a harsh winter like the one that just ended.  We had snow on the ground for over 90 consecutive days.  Once the snow finally melted, the yard and gardens were brown and really beat down.  But then...CROCUS!  A true harbinger of spring, these tiny lilac-colored gems were a welcome sight.

This picture was taken April 10.  You can see the brown grass in the foreground (and last year's leaves that I hadn't cleared off the flower bed yet--haha!).

Using my real crocus as inspiration, I created this card for my mom using stamps from Artistic Outpost.  To give the paper crocuses added dimension, I stamped the focal image a second time and colored just the petals.  After trimming them, I used a Q-tip and the palm of my hand to bend the paper into petal shapes, then glued them on top of the card.  Since I didn't have to mail this card, I wasn't concerned about the petals getting smashed.

Thanks for stopping by!  Enjoy your day.

Supplies:
Lavender and black cardstock by Bazzill; whisper white cardstock from Stampin' Up; patterned papers by Teresa Collins; rubber stamps from Artistic Outpost; Ranger Archival black ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; vintage photo distress ink; small oval and scalloped oval punches from Stampin' Up; border punch by EK Success; pop-dots; Glossy Accents.

She Sends You Hope and Heart

A friend of mine had surgery and I wanted to send her a bright, cheerful get well card.  But I think my own mood got in the way and I ended up with this somewhat somber card.  I tried to compensate for the color palette by dabbing metallic paint around the edges and adding some Stickles to the flower.

The sentiment is from Red Lead Paperworks and the main image is from Artistic Outpost.  I used three different dies from Spellbinders' Grand Labels 1 set for my card base and mats.  The card is just a little over five inches square.

Is it spring yet?  You can lie to me.

Supplies:
Black cardstock by Bazzill; very vanilla cardstock from Stampin' Up; patterned paper by Teresa Collins; female image from Artistic Outpost; sentiment from Red Lead Paperworks; Ranger Archival black ink; vintage photo distress ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; charcoal pencil; Adirondack copper and gold acrylic paint dabbers; Prima paper flower; Recollections paper leaves; Spellbinders Grand Labels 1 die-cuts; oval and scalloped oval Nestabilities; EK Success and Martha Stewart border punches; pop-dots; Glue Dots.

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.