It's raining hydrangeas!

Hello!  After a period of quiet here on my blog, I'll be giving you lots to look at this week.  =D Hope that's okay with you!  I'm finally getting around to photo-editing the more than 30 cards made in the last month or so.  Sure does take time.  :-/

 Let's begin with a dainty, girly card:

This shower card went to the bridal shop, and uses one of my faves from Stampin' Up!:  Blooming With Happiness.

This chipboard frame from Maya Road - a free gift, for having a card published in CARDS magazine a while back - received a coat of white paint, then iridescent glitter.  LOVE how it turned out!  A bevy of pink hydrangea blossoms rain down upon the sweet umbrella.

The sentiment is from SU's Teeny Tiny Wishes.  Out of my entire collection of stamps, this is the only one with this exact wording.  I wish for another sentiment exactly like this, but in a larger font.  It's hard to find, though.  If you know of one, please let me know!

Thanks a bunch for your visit today!  I'll see you here again soon.  xoxo

Stamps: Teeny Tiny Wishes, Blooming with Happiness - SU Paper: white - PTI; Pretty In Pink, Pink Pirhouette - SU Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black - Tsukineko Accessories & Tools: White Opal Liquid Pearls - Ranger; Hydrangea punch - Martha Stewart; oval punch - SU; chipboard frame - Maya Road; corner rounder punch - Fiskars; white craft paint; iridescent glitter; Copic markers

Modern Sympathy

Hey there!  Hope you had a great Labor Day Weekend, my U.S. friends.  And for my friends around the world, hope your weekend was wonderful, too.  :D

I am sharing a modern kind of sympathy card today, using a seemingly-favorite color combo of mine for these occasions - purple and black.

You know how crafting accidents happen, and sometimes they provide us with a chance to reinvent and reimagine a project?  Seeing the splats of silver embossing, can you guess what happened?  Yep.  It got all messy, and I decided I liked it a bunch, so went with it.

A Verve sentiment and good ol' Happy Harmony flowers (Stampin' Up!) were stamped atop a sponged panel.

A crafting friend wrote to ask what was up with me, since I haven't been on the blog much lately.  It's nice to be missed!  My mom had visited in August, and then we went away for a week.  Being away from the computer felt kinda good, a mini-vacation all its own.  I've been plenty busy in the craft room, though...and I've got over 30 cards' worth of photos to edit before they hit my blog!  Holy cow!

Stamps: Deepest Sympathy single - Verve; flowers - Happy Harmony - SU Paper: True Black, white - PTI; Vintage Violet - SU Ink: Going Gray, Orchid Opulence, Vintage Violet - SU; Milled Lavender - Ranger; Memento Tuxedo Black - Tsukineko Fibers: sheer purple ribbon Accessories & Tools: silver embossing powder - SU; embossing ink - Rubber Stampede

Seize the Sketch #27 - Trick Or Treat

Hello friends!  =D  I had so much playing with the current sketch (#27) at our LAST (sniff) Seize The Sketch challenge, another card popped out of me.  Lo and behold, it's a Halloween card!

The retired Stampin' Up! set, Window Dressing, was staring at me from its place on the Ikea book shelf in my studio.  It never saw much ink, and I felt bad for it.

The kitty and window are from that set, the pumpkin is from Family Accessories, and the sentiment (colored with markers) is from Holiday Best.  Boom!  A Stampin' Up!-only card!

Here's the sketch again, and before you say, "What?  Her card looks nothing like the sketch!", take a peek below.

Sure, maybe I took a little creative license with the sentiment and bow, but the bare bones are still there!

My family and I just got back from a trip to the Outer Banks of North Carolina for a quick break before school resumes.  It felt good to play in the surf (before the waves became too rough due to the offshore Hurricane Cristobal) and just let go for a while.

The sunsets are so gorgeous there, my camera just clicked away.

Me and my youngest, doing a selfie.

Thanks so much for popping over, and if you'd like to join us at STS, click HERE for details!

Stamps: Window Dressing, Holiday Best, Family Accessories - SU Paper: kraft, white - PTI Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black - Tsukineko Fibers: Argentina seam binding - Hug Snug Accessories & Tools: markers - SU; circle punches; Copic markers

Seize The Sketch #27 - With Sympathy

Time for a new challenge at Seize The Sketch!  It's also time for me to refill the 'Sympathy' category at the Arts Plus Gallery, where I sell my cards.  I chose some pretty papers from K & Co.'s Julianne line.  They look old-fashioned and sweet, and are very easy on the eyes.  The die cut / sentiment is by Papertrey Ink / Boutique Borders: Sympathy.  And those baby flowers -- courtesy of my blogging friend, Sindhu.

Our sketch hostess is Cathy Santie.  There are so many awesome ways to interpret this!  Dress it up, or keep it clean and simple.

One of the papers has a raised, glossy texture that I wanted to capture for you.  You can see it best in the photo below.  OH!  And I wanted to show you something else!  See the little black dot on the center of each of the paper flowers?  Well, one of the flowers had a defect, where the paint had not completely covered the little 'ball'.  Rather than toss that one and not use it at all, I just used a fine-tipped black marker to add a similar dot to another perfect flower.  Now they match!

Sadly, this is our last challenge before the doors close at Seize The Sketch.  (sniff, sniff) A HUGE thanks to STS owner Lesley Croghan for giving me a chance to serve on the DT, even if for a short time.  It was fun!

Thanks a bunch for your visit today, and I hope you might come play with us!

Stamps: Boutique Borders: Sympathy - Papertrey Ink Paper: Mellow Moss - SU; white - PTI; patterns - Julianne - K & Co. Ink: pale moss - Anna Griffin; Versafine Onyx Black - Tsukineko Accessories & Tools: Boutique Borders: Sympathy die - PTI; white flowers

A Kaleidoscope of Butterflies

Happy Monday!  I'm pairing two butterfly-themed cards to share today, and needed a good name for my post.  "Bunch of butterflies" just didn't have enough flair.  ;-)  I did a quick internet search, and learned that you can call a group of butterflies a kaleidoscope, swarm, rabble or flight.  I rather like 'kaleidoscope' the best!

Without further ado, the cards:

Mini-supply list for the card above:  sentiment - Think Big Favorites #16 - Papertrey Ink; K & Co. chipboard butterflies; Garden Silhouettes - Stampin' Up!

Mini-supply list for the card above:  sentiment - Absolutely Fabulous - Stampin' Up!; Mariposa papers - K & Co.; purple butterfly sticker - K & Co. 

Our visit with Mom here last week was wonderful.  We spent lots of time shopping, eating good food, and catching up with family (some of whom we hadn't seen in 30 years!).  We took early morning walks, and talked and talked.  I enjoyed every moment, and the week went by so fast.  Too fast.

Thanks for your visit today!

The Card Concept #16 - Hydrangea Bouquet (again!)

Hello!  I'm back with a reminder card for The Card Concept #16.  Once again, I've got a punched bridal bouquet for the wedding card challenge.

Today's card is 5" x 7", compared with the A2 size of 4.25" x 5.5" from last week's card.  I did a tutorial on the creation of this bouquet HERE.

Since I had extra room on this card base, I decided to make a nosegay holder from a piece of vanilla cardstock.  I hand-trimmed the shape, and embossed it to give texture.  The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink's Happily Ever After set.

If you are inspired to make a wedding card, please join our challenge!  You still have one more week to link up HERE.

Stamps: Happily Ever After - Papertrey Ink Paper: Naturals White cardstock - SU Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black - Tsukineko Fibers: sheery celery ribbon - Offray Accessories & Tools: Regal Flourishes embossing folder - Sizzix/Tim Holtz; Hydrangea Punch - Martha Stewart; Lemon Yellow Liquid Pearls - Ranger; circle die - Spellbinders

Clean and Elegant Wedding Card

Many of the wedding cards I make are full of embellishments, and a bit frou-frou.  What, I wondered, would suit a couple with more modern tastes?  That was the inspiration behind today's card.

These rich, wine-colored patterned papers (Stampin' Up!) were in my stash, and they seemed wedding-worthy....as long as I added a few touches of gold.  The rings are from Verve's Love Story, and the sentiment from Hero Arts' Best Wishes.  The ribbon slide has been in my stash for TOO long, so I'm glad it found a home.

My mom arrives today to stay with us for a week, and I'm so excited!  We only see each other once a year, and our visit always goes by too fast.  We've got fun things planned, and my husband will make his AWESOME homemade ice cream for dessert one night.  Wish you all could taste it!

I've got one card pre-posted for The Card Concept next week, but otherwise my blog will be quiet.  See you all in a week or so!  Have a wonderful day week.  :-)

Stamps: sentiment - Best Wishes - Hero Arts; rings - Love Story - Verve Paper: Bravo Burgundy, patterns - SU Ink: Versamark - Tsukineko Fibers: Purely Pomegranate satin ribbon - SU Accessories & Tools: ribbon slide, gold embossing powder - SU

The Card Concept #16 - Hydrangea Wedding

Welcome!  It's time for a new Card Concept challenge, and oh, boy, was I excited when I saw the inspiration photo (below my card), as it involves weddings and hydrangeas.  Yippee!

Here's my Classy & Elegant card, as that is my category at the CC --

How 'bout this gorgeous photo below, huh?  Those blue hydrangeas set my heart a-pounding!

Obviously, I chose to center my card around those beautiful blossoms, and the colors in the picture.  I used my Martha Stewart Hydrangea Punch a BUNCH of times in soft blue, pale green, and ivory.

Here's a little tutorial on how I did it (and you can tell by these colors that there's another card to post soon!).  I used Aleene's Quick Dry Tacky Glue for this.

1) The hydrangea punch cuts were layered in a random fashion on a circle die cut, using only the larger hydrangeas first:

2) Start adding the tinier ones to help fill in gaps, and also to layer on top of some of the larger blossoms.

3) After you feel you've sufficiently covered gaps with the tiny flowers, add centers on some of the hydrangeas with yellow Liquid Pearls.

You can see what fabulous dimension this technique gives to a "bridal bouquet".  I added some ribbon streamers and a bow to finish it off, with a sentiment from Wplus9's Fresh Cut Wreaths.

There are LOTS of new faces and new changes over at The Card Concept.  We've got something now called a Wild Card Team!  This team will be designing in each of the 6 styles over the course of their term with us.  I'm so excited to see what everyone does!

Thank you SO much for your visit today, and I hope you can join us at The Card Concept with YOUR wedding card!

Stamps: Fresh Cut Wreaths - Wplus9 Paper: Vintage Cream - PTI; Baja Breeze, Certainly Celery, Very Vanilla - SU Ink: Versafine Onyx Black - Tsukineko Fibers: moss green, white sheer ribbons - Offray; moss satin ribbon - Anna Griffin Accessories & Tools: Lemon Yellow Liquid Pearls - Ranger; circle die - Spellbinders; Hydrangea Punch - Martha Stewart

Seize The Sketch #26 - Puffy Heart Anniversary

Welcome to sketch #26 at Seize The Sketch! I love, love, love this week's sketch (but then, I think that about every one I've done so far with STS!).

Our sketch hostess this week is Katie Melhus.  Don't you just "dig" this?  (my kids would roll their eyes at me using that sentence - "Oh, Mom, you think you're so cool! ha ha!") It's super simple, but it doesn't have to be if you dress it up, like I did.

My patterned papers are from Authentique's Lovely, and though geared toward Valentine's Day, I thought they would work for an anniversary card.  The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink's Think Big Favorites #16. Have I mentioned lately how much I love PTI stamps?

The puffy heart is from....can you guess?...Build-A-Bear!  Yes, it was found on the floor there by one of my kids many years ago.  I saved it, knowing I could use it somehow.  And the little double-heart gold charm is from a thrift store in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.  It looked bare by itself, so I added the tiny pink paper flower to the bottom of it, but now you can hardly tell it's a pair of golden hearts!  Ha!

Well, thanks so much for coming today.  I hope you get a chance to play with us.  Challenges last two weeks, and all details can be found on the STS blog HERE.

Stamps: Think Big Favorites #16 - PTI Paper: Pretty in Pink, Very Vanilla - SU; heart, dot patterns -  Lovely pack - Authentique Ink: Versafine Onyx Black - Tsukineko Fibers: Pretty In Pink twill ribbon - SU; vintage thread Accessories & Tools: puffy heart - Build-A-Bear; small paper pink flower - Inspired By Stamping; pearls; gold tone pair of hearts charm (thrift store)

Paper Sweeties 2nd Birthday Designers' Blog Hop

It's Paper Sweeties' 2nd Birthday, and the party horns are sounding!  I was tickled pink when my friend, Debbie Marcinkiewicz, asked if I'd help her celebrate this special occasion.   Happy birthday, Debbie!

We're doing a fun blog hop today, and if you're following along the trail, you should have come from Lori Hairston's blog.  (If you'd like to start at the beginning, just go HERE.)

I used the Paper Sweeties August inspiration photo and colors for my card.

I used the adorable little set, Pennant Party.  Love the flexibility of the sentiments and banner.  I stamped the banner on pale blue striped paper, and added some embellishments to it:  Liquid Pearls, vintage thread bows, tiny punched flowers with more Liquid Pearls.

I assembled the sentiment alongside the neat-o cake stand, which is part of the design on the patterned paper.

Thanks so much for taking a peek today!  Your next stop on the blog hop is Lysa Rohrer's blog.  Have fun hoppin'!

Stamps: Pennant Party - Paper Sweeties Paper: River Rock, Going Gray - SU; cake stand, blue stripe patterned papers - Webster's Pages; vintage newsprint patterned paper - Fifth Avenue - Melissa Frances Ink: Frayed Burlap - Ranger; Memento Tuxedo Black - Tsukineko Fibers: gold-flecked crochet lace; vintage thread Accessories & Tools: small flower punch; white gardenia flower - IBS; White Opal, Bisque Liquid Pearls - Ranger; doily die cut - Martha Stewart