Sympathies and Topiaries

Hello!  I've got a grouping of sympathy cards, and one thank you card, to share today.  There's a topiary theme to a couple of them so they're appearing together here in this post.

The supply lists are in the captions beneath each photo.

Stampotique 'Big Bee with Medium Bee' rubber stamp - Colleen bow using seam binding from Hug Snug 'Metal Green' -  sentiment - My Favorite Things 'Essential Sentiments' - fern paper - Stampin' Up! scrap bag

Spellbinders 'Decorative Labels Eight' flourished rectangle die - Memory Box 'Large Sitting Cat' - pawprints - Papertrey Ink 'With Sympathy: Loss of a Pet' - Verve 'Deepest Sympathy'

Papertrey Ink 'Daily Designs Sentiments' - Unity 'Countryside Blooms' jar with flowers

Papertrey Ink background patterned paper - Verve 'Deepest Sympathy' - Martha Stewart Hydrangea Punch

Anita's 'Topiary' - Paper Smooches 'Salutations' (in silver embossing)

Papertrey Ink 'Topiary Trio' topiary and thank you sentiment

Thanks so much for the comments you've left on my blog in the last few days.  After not posting much at all for months on end, I am really blasting out posts this week! 

God bless you!

For the bride, a topiary, seashells and farm animals - an eclectic mix of cards

Yes, today's grouping of cards don't have a whole lot in common with each other, hence the strange blog post name. 😜

The first card is for a bride-to-be.  The intricate swirly rose die-cut panel was in a Stampin' Up! scrap bag I got; I am unsure of the name of it.  It's great, though!  I topped it with some white Martha Stewart Hydrangea punch blossoms, and a couple of leaves from My Favorite Things 'Layered Leaves'.  The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink's 'Happily Ever After'.

The next is super simple, a note to say hello, along with a potted plant.  For the pot I used 'Flower Pot' from Close To My Heart, and the greenery is a die cut from Papertrey Ink's 'Topiary Trio'.  The sentiment is from the stamp set of the same name.

A woman at church asked me if I could make a birthday card that had a beachy feel, after she saw this card of mine.  I also had this card in mind as inspiration.  And, this is what I came up with:   

sand dollar, starfish - Blockhead Paper Arts 'Seashells with Round Frame' stamp set - tiny shell from All Night Media - scallop shell - Golden Acorn 'Scallop Shell' - My Favorite Things 'Happy Birthday' die - background stamp - Altenew 'Snowing'

The last card has a story.  When I visited my mom in Texas last summer, I met her lovely neighbors and we were invited over for dinner.  This neighbor really, really loves to cook, and she makes homemade meals for her husband and herself, but also gives my mom a couple of servings to take home, every week.  My mother does not cook often and eats a lot of frozen meals.  When she and her neighbor became close and the home-cooking started to flow towards my mom's table, I stopped worrying whether Mom was eating well.  I know she is!

As a thank you for having me over, I made this farm and food inspired card.  I used Papertrey Ink's 'On The Farm' animal silhouettes, and stamped behind them the sentiment 'homemade with love' from Inspired By Stamping's 'Mason Jar Add-On I' set.  The fork/spoon are from Hero Arts and the rolling pin from Stampabilities.  The striped ribbon is a snippet from Stampin' Up! found in a scrap bag, and it reminds me of a tea towel from grandma's kitchen.

Hey, thanks so much for coming by and reading these little card stories.  I hope they give you a smile!  God bless you!

Hot Pink cards

Hello there!  How about a dose of hot pink cards to brighten up your day?

The first card features a bouquet of sweet pea flowers from Hero Arts 'Creative Vases & Summer Flowers' set (sentiment comes from that set too).

I have to say I'm proud of myself for centering the stamps well on the matching die cuts!  That sure takes practice.

Incidentally, the top photo doesn't best represent the actual colors...but these detail shots look more true-to-life.

The bottom of the card has a thick strip of hot pink glittered cardstock.  Whoo!  There's also a strip of white pom pom trim to soften things up.

The next card is a literal (visual) translation of my eldest daughter's room, complete with our cat, Cristabel, sitting on the bed.  My daughter's bedroom walls are hot pink (yes, that is right!) and her bed comforter is a deep plum with a tone on tone floral pattern.  I found just the right supplies to recreate this scene.  The cat die is from Papertrey Ink 'Cat's Meow', cut with black cardstock AND a backing of black craft foam.  I cut a tiny pale pink nose, and added googly eyes and a tiny white mouth.

Papertrey Ink 'Cat's Meow' cat die - sentiment My Favorite Things 'BB Cool Cat' - DCWV plum patterned paper - Memory Box 'Madison Window' die

The last card is not quite as intense of a pink as the cards above.  I used a Valentine's Day paper from Authentique as the backdrop for my donut scene.  I imagined a square white lacy-edged placemat with a donut on it and a sprinkling of 'sugar' (clear sparkling sequins).

Sizzix 'Donut Phrases' dies (heart, donut, sentiment) - Spellbinders 'Lacy Squares' die 

I'm so glad you came by today to share the pink-ness!  Have a great day, and God bless you!

Sympathies & Blessings

Hello!  The first of the three cards I'm sharing today is my favorite because of that amazing sentiment.  It was a digital freebie from Julee Tilman's blog after she closed the doors on Verve Stamps. 😭 Thanks, Julee, for all of your beautiful inspiration and for this gorgeous sentiment.

Stampin' Up! 'Avant Garden' flowers - sentiment is from Julee Tilman (free digital)

The next two cards are in the sympathy category, including one for the loss of a pet.

sentiment - Papertrey Ink 'Words of Comfort' - My Favorite Things Die-namics 'Bold Greenery' die

On the last card, can you see the tiny paw prints?  They're stamped in a really light peachy pink, and I found a coordinating colored rhinestone to add near the sentiment.

Papertrey Ink 'With Sympathy: Loss of a Pet' paw, 'Words of Comfort' sentiment

Thanks so much for your visit today!  God bless you!

Love, Relax, Friend, Thanks, Chandelier - a little bit of everything

There was no good title for a blog post containing a wide range of cards as this.  😉

Up first - a chandelier card.
This one was funnnn to make!  I started with a plain kraft cardstock base, then stamped Stampin' Up!'s 'French Script' background on it.  I softly inked the edges of the card with Walnut Stain Distress Ink by Ranger.  Then I took a fleur de lis stamp from Inspired by Stamping's 'Paris' set and stamped-off onto a piece of scrap paper before stamping on to the card in a few spots.  The chandelier from the same 'Paris' set was done the same way.  I wanted a softer, more subtle feel to this card.  It's a bit hard to see but I also stamped the word Paris from the same set in a few places.  It's reallly light.  The framed picture/map were cut from a catalog I received in the mail.  They were just the right size to fit on a card.  Because they're made of flimsy paper, I first glued them carefully onto some cardstock to give them stability.  The final touch was a small wooden heart from Stampin' Up!.

I have far less to say about these other cards because they are simpler in design. LOL

Check the captions for supplies used.

My Favorite Things Die-namics 'Bold Greenery' dies - thanks sentiment from Stampin' Up! Paper Pumpkin 'You Are My Anchor' stamp set - Itty Bitty Accents flower punch (SU) - Martha Stewart Hydrangea Punch (tiny flowers)

daisy - Stampin' Up! 'Helping Me Grow' stamp set - hello friend dies Sizzix 'Donut Phrases'

love you sentiment - Papertrey Ink 'Daily Designs Sentiments' stamp set - Simon Says Stamp 'String of Hearts' die - pink button - Papertrey Ink - die cuts with 'thoughts' and roses from Colorbok

Okay, so there's a little bit more to say about this last card.  Those Martha Stewart Hydrangea Punch flowers have a story attached.  They had been stamped with some navy ink and a floral pattern on the reverse side.  One day, they got wet, and the navy ink bled and voila!  Gorgeous watercolored-looking bright blue blossoms!  I used them as my inspiration and went from there.  They looked tropical to me, so I got out the Redlead 'Palm Tree' stamp and used a bright green ink (Stampin' Up! Green Galore) to stamp on a white panel.  I tilted it against a Brilliant Blue panel and added the punched flowers around it.  The sentiment is from Inspired By Stamping's 'Inspiring Sentiments' set, and the tiny starfish are from Stampin' Up!'s 'You Are My Anchor' Paper Pumpkin kit.

Thanks so much for your visit today!  God bless you!

Nautical Themed Cards

Stars are considered celestial, but I like to also gather them under a nautical theme.  Sailors used the night sky to plot their courses, so there you go. 😊

The first two cards here use the star dies from Wplus9's 'Clear Cut Stackers Stars' set.  On both cards, I used a royal blue glittered cardstock from DCWV. 

The first card features a star embossed background (Stampin' Up! 'Lucky Stars') and a sentiment from Hero Arts 'Year Round Sentiments'.

The next one has the same stars, this time mounted on glittered gold cardstock from DCWV.  The sentiment is from Altenew 'Label Love'.

And the last card is most definitely nautical - I used Verve's 'Strong Anchor' set, which I purchased as the shop was closing its doors forever. 😥

The minute anchor die cut was a toothpick topper (I did not use this toothpick!) from my sister in law's wedding reception.  I tucked that little guy right into my purse when I saw it!  It made a good centerpiece on this card.

I've got more cards to share, so on to the next post!  Have a wonderful day, and thanks so much for your visit.  God bless you!

Time To Eat - foodie cards

Hello there!  I'm on a roll, photo-editing these card pics recently.  Today's cards have one thing in common:  food.

The first card uses a couple of things from a Stampin' Up! scrap bag that I bought from my friend.  The yellow water-colored panel is one and the 'sweet' die cut is another...and it already was sponged with two shades of green ink for me!  All that was left to do was mount them with some beautiful blueberries (Flourishes Stamps 'Berry Sweet' set) that I colored with Copic markers and fussy-cut, and a couple of sparkling clear sequins.

The next two cards use a Hero Arts set called 'Produce and Seeds'.  I love it.  You can mix and match fruits or vegetables on a seed packet frame.  For the first card, I used raspberries, for the second one, I used a beet.

I added a fun little festive banner using Stampin' Up!'s 'Small Banner' punch and some white craft string.  The marble patterned papers are also from Stampin' Up!, but I don't know the name.  They were in that scrap bag from my friend.  I thought the colors went well with a beet. 😁

Thanks so much for coming by for a visit today!  If you are expecting big weather tomorrow (we're expecting 5 or so inches of snow), be careful and be well.  Hope you stay safe and warm!  God bless you!

All about Baby

Hello!

Today's post is all about baby cards, one of my favorite card-crafting categories.  You get to use the sweetest little stamps and adornments!

A woman at my church is becoming a grandmother for the first time and commissioned a card for the momma-to-be.  I made four!  I was on a roll and had fun with all the cuteness; just couldn't make one. 😊

Avery Elle 'More Stories' bunny, stars and moon - Papertrey Ink 'Inside and Out: Baby'

Unity 'Delight in the Little Things' carriage - Papertrey Ink 'Tiny Tags' tags and sentiments

Avery Elle 'Storybook' stamps and dies - Spellbinders 'Ribbon Banners' die

PinkFresh Studio 'Playful Animals 2' cat - Papertrey Ink 'With Sympathy: Loss of a Pet' pawprint - Stampin' Up! 'Occasional Quotes' sentiment

Thanks so much for your visit today!
God bless you!
And thank you for the comments on my posts from this past weekend.  So good to catch up with crafty friends!

A collection of cards - part 2

It's another long collection of cards here today!  Each caption gives a brief description of supplies used.  Thanks for dropping by to take a look!

Papertrey Ink 'Cat's Meow' cat and mouse, 'Everyday Cat Sentiments'

Handmade paper sample (not by me!) - Martha Stewart Hydrangea Punch - SU Itty Bitty Punch flower - K & Co. butterfly sticker - sentiment from Verve 'Psalm 46:1'

Anniversary card using SU flocked patterned paper - Papertrey Ink 'Filigree Border' die - silver pearls - sentiment from Papertrey Ink 'The Best Is Yet To Be'

Altenew 'Label Love' sentiment - Avery Elle 'Storybook' mouse, grass, stars, moon

Papertrey Ink sentiments from 'Delightful Dahlia Additions' and 'Birthday Basics' - flowers from Inspired By Stamping 'Little Flowers' - leaves from Altenew 'Vintage Roses'

Lawn Fawn 'Little Bundle' stamps and dies - My Favorite Things 'Grassy Fields' die

Sentiment from Flourishes 'Hello Hyacinth' - K & Co. hydrangea sticker - handstamped background 

Fish stamp from Inspired By Stamping's 'Masculine Tags II' - sentiment from Papertrey Ink 'Daily Design Sentiments'

Echo Park 'Trust In The Lord' stamps - K & Co. sunflower packet, butterfly sticker

Echo Park 'Trust In The Lord' stamps - K & Co. sunflower packet, butterfly sticker

Sentiment - Stampin' Up! (Paper Pumpkin kit?), bird 'Punch Potpourri'- Unity Stamps 'Rooster Weathervane'

Last but not least, this card uses upcycled calendar with a huge peony flower - sentiment from Echo Park 'Trust In The Lord'

If you hung in there for this long list, thank you so much!  I hope you have a wonderful day and I'm glad you stopped by! xo