Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Tatyana 5th Birthday

Click here to view this photo book larger

You'll love Shutterfly's award-winning photo books. Try it today.

Natasha 8th Birthday

Click here to view this photo book larger

Photo Book Tip: Create an adventurous travel photo album at Shutterfly.com.

Christmas cards...the beginning...

This post has been a long time in coming, as I've been making Christmas cards like crazy, but haven't yet had the time to put the pictures up on my blog! Making them like crazy because I've had a self-imposed deadline to get 50 cards done for my mom who has ordered them for Christmas, and knowing that once we move, my craft room will temporarily be in disarray! So I really wanted to get them all done as of this week...and I'm proud to say I'm almost there. Only 5 more to go! But I'm trying to finish the last five AND move at the same time...a challenging proposition. So the rest of this post will be limited on words but contain lots of pictures of all the cards I've made so far. For posterity, it's always nice to keep track of what I make each year! (and there will be more to come, as I haven't finished cards for my own use yet!)

When I made cards for my mom, I made them in sets of 6, so I gave her 5 and kept one for myself. That way, I'm slowly building up my own stash, and I still get a bunch done for my mom all at once. Making duplicates in sets is great because it maximizes my time, and because I vary each one just slightly, I still get the gratification of using a variety of stamps and having each one be a unique creation!

There will be a lot of pictures in this post, so just keep on scrolling! :)

This first set of cards were made with Papertrey's Candy Cane Christmas stamp set ~

Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket

And here is another "set" of cards that I have made...they are not all from the same stamp set, but all the paper is from the sei Christmas Mint collection (this is a retired collection, but still so pretty! I bought so many Christmas paper collections a couple of years ago, that I still have more beautiful Christmas paper than I'll ever use in a lifetime, so I can't bring myself to buy any more, even if what I have isn't the "latest, greatest" thing. S.E.I doesn't show this collection on their website anymore, but I've included links to two digital paper kits in this collection that you can still buy, just so you can see what the paper looks like) Stamp sets are all from Papertrey: Believe, Friendship Jar Holiday Fillers, Big & Bold Holiday Wishes and Bells & Boughs (sentiment only).

Photobucket

Papertrey Believe, with the sentiments from Big & Bold Holiday Wishes. I did a lot of coloring with Copic markers on these:

Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket

The only stamping on these 2 cards is the sentiment, from Bells & Boughs.

Photobucket

I LOVE the Friendship Jar Holiday Fillers stamp set. You have to be prepared to spend a lot of time on these kinds of cards, because they really require a lot of coloring (which I did with Copic markers), so don't expect to create these "en masse", but the results with this set are amazingly gorgeous!

Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket

I guess that should cover it for this post...my next post will be of another set I created while inspired by this month's Papertrey Blog Hop color combos. Til next time...


Thank You card gift set

As a birthday present, I made this little thank you card gift set using Papertrey's The Sweet Life stamp set. I absolutely LOVE how it turned out! That set is simply amazing for being able to create gorgeous shaded images in no time! I hope they put out more sets like this one.

Here is how the set looked all wrapped up. I included coordinating envelopes (coordinating meaning I lined the envelopes with a coordinating color). I love how that adds just that special touch. PS- as long as I've been buying Papertrey stamps, I've always saved the plastic box they come in...though I have a HUGE stash of them (and my husband would love it if I would clear them out!), they are SO handy to have on hand to package up gifts like this (and others). It's so easy to make them look nice and professional!

Photobucket

Photobucket

And here's the set of three so it can be seen how nice & cohesive they look together.

Photobucket

And individually:

Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket

I made these quite awhile ago so I can't remember specifically which ink colors I used, but if you happen to be reading this and have any questions about the supplies I used, feel free to email me!

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

CFC#69 & PDCC#148

Wow, it's been a seriously long time since I've posted...but today, my youngest started full-day kindergarten...now I can get back into my craft room more often, yay!

To celebrate, I'm posting for two challenges today, CAS-ual Friday #69, and Play Date Cafe #148. I love combining challenges...it makes for even more of a creative exercise.

The CAS-ual Friday challenge was to use embossing. And here are the Play Date Cafe's colors for this week:



And here is my card with the lovely PDCC colors and embossing! :)

Photobucket

It's a little hard to see the embossing in a photo, so I took some close-ups:

Photobucket

Photobucket

That's it for me today! I had another card I started and was experimenting on, and it did NOT turn out. Oh well, live & learn! Thanks for stopping by...

Supply list:

Cardstock: Natural White (SU); Soft Stone (PTI); peach & blue (stash)
Stamp Set(s): Friendship Jar, Friendship Jar Fillers, Friendship Jar Summer Fillers (PTI)
Ink/Colorants: Versamark; Black (CTMH); Silver pearl & clear embossing powder (CTMH)
Tools: Jar Ribbon die (PTI)

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

PDCC142 & WMSC108

It's a rare treat when I get to play in my craft room over the summer...and here I am, back for a second time already! Hallelujah for the moments when the hubby takes the kids for a few hours! ;)

I decided to spend today's precious crafting time working on a couple of different challenges, the Play Date Cafe weekly color challenge and the Waltzingmouse Sketch Challenge. I combined the two for the first card posted here today. For my second card, I used the same PDCC colors, but this one is not my official card for this challenge because it's a CASE, big time! One of my big time heroes is Debbie Olson, and she created a gorgeous card quite a long time ago that I've been wanting to CASE for quite some time...usually when I take inspiration from another designer's card, I change it up enough so that it's mine, but in this case, her card was so beautiful that I just had to copy it almost entirely exactly as it was (different colors, of course, and different papers, stamps, etc, but the layout is exactly the same) You can see her fabulous card here...

So, back to today's challenges...here they are:




Photobucket

I took a close-up shot so the striped embossing could be seen a little bit more clearly...I liked the result as it reminded me of some kind of old damask wallpaper...(just what I was going for!)

Photobucket

And my other card, just for fun and for a friend who appreciates a handmade card just for display and no other reason! ;)

Photobucket

Thanks for taking a look...have a great day!

Supply list:

Let's Have Tea card~
Cardstock: Pacific Point, Melon Mambo, Sahara Sand (SU); Summer Sunrise (PTI)
Patterned Paper: all from Razzleberry Lemonade DSP (SU)
Stamp Set(s): Afternoon Tea & Afternoon Tea Sentiments (WMS)
Ink/Colorants: Pacific Point, Soft Suede (SU); Soft Stone (PTI)
Tools: Tag Sale #3 die, 2-1/2" circle die (PTI); Stripes embossing folder (SU); Fancy Tags die (Spellbinders)

Button card~
Cardstock: Pacific Point, Melon Mambo (SU); Summer Sunrise (PTI)
Patterned Paper: yellow from Good Morning Sunshine DSP, pink from Razzleberry Lemonade DSP (SU)
Stamp Set(s): Button Boutique (PTI)
Ink/Colorants: Melon Mambo, Pacific Point (SU)
Embellishments: 5/8" satin ribbon Daffodil Delight (SU); fancy stick pinks (CTMH); Buttons (from stash)
Tools: Parisian Doily die, Doily Details die, Button Card dies (PTI)



Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Papertrey Blog Hop July 2012

Not that I've been terribly missed in blog land, but I've definitely been MIA since summer started! I don't know how you other gals do it, but I have a terrible time getting into my craft room when my girls are out of school for the summer (tips would be welcome here! ;)

Since they're in Vacation Bible School this week, I've had a few hours to be crafty, and fortunately this coincided with Papertrey's monthly blog hop. The inspiration photo/color combination for this month is so pretty:


I have a good friend's birthday coming up and another friend who's having a baby soon, so I decided to make both cards with this color scheme since I like it so much...

First up, the baby card:

Photobucket

I don't make too many baby cards (most of my friends are long past that stage!) so I haven't bought any new baby stamp sets recently...but these oldies (Bitty Baby Blessings & Baby Button Bits) are still wonderful goodies!

Here is the birthday card:
Photobucket

Also another oldie but goodie set, Beautiful Blooms II and also Butterfly Dreams. I have tons of new sets that I haven't even touched, so why am I using older sets, you ask? Good question...I guess I'm trying to go back to the beginning and pull out sets I got long ago and I'll work my way back to the newer ones. I can't wait to pull out the likes of Flippin' Out, Strawberry Patch and The Sweet Life (among MANY others!). Hopefully I'll be able to make more time to get out to my craft room to ink all those goodies up.

And here are just some detail shots of the birthday card, to show the shimmer I sprayed on, and the rhinestone frame that I colored with a Copic marker (love that you can do that! I'll never have to buy colored rhinestones again)

Photobucket

Photobucket

That's it for me for today...hope to be back here again soon...thanks for looking...

Supply list:

Baby card -
Cardstock: Summer Starfruit, So Saffron (SU); Berry Sorbet, Vellum, Melon Berry (PTI)
Patterned Paper: Summer Sunrise pattern pack (PTI)
Stamp Set(s): Bitty Baby Blessings, Baby Button Bits, Background Basics: Medallions (on onesie), Mat Stack 2 Collection (PTI)
Ink/Colorants: Black (CTMH); Berry Sorbet (PTI); Versamark & Filigree White embossing powder
Embellishments:Pink Button (SU); Pleated ribbon (SU); Silk Ribbon (bow)(My Mind's Eye); Green embroidery floss (DMC)
Tools: Ad Sense die (PTI); Argyle texture plate (Sizzix)

Birthday card -
Cardstock: Melon Berry, Berry Sorbet, Simply Chartreuse, Summer Sunrise (PTI); So Saffron (SU)
Patterned Paper: Summer Sunrise pattern pack (PTI)
Stamp Set(s):Beautiful Blooms II, Butterfly Dreams (PTI)
Ink/Colorants: Berry Sorbet, Melon Berry, Simply Chartreuse (PTI); Black (CTMH); Copic marker YG99; Smooch Shimmer Spritz
Embellishments: Rhinestone frame (CTMH)
Tools: Sunrise impression plate, Butterfly die, Beautiful Blooms 1, 2, 3 dies (PTI)

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

PDCC132


This week's Play Date Cafe is a fun one, Color Splash. And the splash of color is perfect for end of year teacher thank you cards: pencil yellow! :) I had so much fun putting these cards together with a combination of really cute stamp sets that are a combination of new and new-like (as in, purchased with great relish but not used of yet...but now they are!!)

My daughter in pre-k has two teachers, so I made two cards that are similar with the same color scheme. I also got to break out my new We R Memory Keepers Sew Ribbon tool and try it for the first time..I love it! Now I want more...

I also got "old school", breaking out the old-fashioned label maker! Kinda fun to do retro...

I added a coffee gift card to the inside of the card, using my new A Pocketful stamp set from WPlus9. I just love that set!

So here are the cards + some detail shots...

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Supply list:

Cardstock: Black, White (SU)
Stamp Set(s): You are the Best (JustRite Stampers); Tag-its #6, Vintage Picnic, Heartfelt Basics, Just Hatched(PTI); A Pocketful (WPlus9); Sweet Chocolate (My Cute Stamps)
Ink/Colorants: Honey, Black (CTMH); Close to Cocoa (SU)
Embellishments: Yellow satin ribbon (American Crafts); Yellow label tape (Dymo)
Tools: Book Print & By the Numbers impression plates (PTI); Blossom Three and Banners dies (Spellbinders); Label Maker (Dymo); Sew Ribbon Scallop tool (We R Memory Makers)