New Cards to Share

Good Morning Friends! I have been trying to do some work with my Prismacolor Pencils at night while I relax in front of the TV with my husband. I do like to be with him at night even if he is watching something I don't really care for.

The little girl card is for our niece Jennifer who lives in Wisconsin. It will be her 7th birthday this week. She loves bling and those colors. I took a sheet of the DCWV DP and cut it apart to get the color combination I like. Then reassembled them. I popped up the flowers and added the acrylic sparkly dots. I still don't think I have the hair technique down yet......practice makes perfect though.

The classic car is for my brother in California he is turning 51 next week. He loves classic cars. In fact, that is what he does for a living.....work with cars. I don't ge to see him much anymore. Sending him some homemade hot sauce and more jars of jams and jellies.

The house mouse was a stamped image from Linda Bronson. I want to send one of our neighbors a thank you card for a wonderful evening we had at their house recently.

Hope all is well with you and your summer is not full of too much bad weather!
Cindy

Hot Fun in the Summertime

Good Morning Friends! I do not have anything new to show you today as I have been using my Prismacolor Pencils and coloring some images that a nice lady sent me earlier this year. I am trying out different papers to see what the coloring is like on them. This card is not new....only new to you. Sent it to our Nephew, Joshua, year before last. Don't know why I never posted it but, seems appropriate for this time of the year.




Anyway, I am heading out today to pick up some new pencils that match the new colors that Stampin' Up! has put into their new catalog. Quite a shake up with what they did. I am sure a lot of Demos are not too happy about having to buy all new stuff. That's business folks, keep it fresh or you loose sales.



On the home front......we had a very quiet Independence Day. Went to my Mom's and grilled burgers and brats and instead of going to see the fireworks, we played Mexican Train. I think I have told you about my sister, Lisa, who has MS. Well, she cannot tolerate the heat at all. We had fun teaching our Mom how to play. Oh, if you have never played it is a game you play with dominos.

Today I am also running a bunch of errands.....picking up my June order from my demo and heading to a friends for a muslin bodice fitting for my civil war dress I am sewing. I think I have told you about my love for the history from this era, didn't I? Well, progress is slow. I had to wait for my new corset and shoes. Now I have to wait for my hoop skirt......have to get it ordered first. Wayne thinks I should make it, then that way I could make others and sell them. Not sure about that one...the selling thing. I am also growing out my hair, which isn't taking as long as I thought. I will keep you posted on my progress.

Thanks for looking, have a great day and stay cool!
Cindy

• Stamps - Imaginese, SU It's Your Birthday
• Paper - Imaginese, SU Close to Cocoa, Ruby Red and Next to Navy CS
• Ink - Ranger Archival Black
• Accessories - Prismacolor Pencils, Baby Oil, Blending Stumps, Chipboard, SU Brad

Happy Groundhog's Day!

Good Morning Friends! I think this is one of the silliest yet, neatest traditions that we have in this country. Don't you? I watched the movie Groundhog's Day over the weekend...silly!

Well, over the month that I did not post anything, I helped family mostly. Wayne and I had Christmas Eve day at our house. Clark was brought over by staff, Mom and brother, Louis, sister, Lisa and her husband, John, were all over. We watched our traditional Christmas movies, ate a lot and opened gifts, of course. I think everyone had a great time!

We drove on Christmas Day to Wayne's folks in Wisconsin.....nice drive, very cold! It's always good to be with them and my In-Laws are always grateful when we come for a nice long visit. We stayed until January 2. During that time we attended a Packer's Football game. That was only the second time I attened a professional football game and second time to an outdoor stadium! It was very cold and windy! Had a super time!!

Also during that time my In-Laws asked us to help out with farm chores while they were gone to a convention for County Fairs in the Dells mid January. Of course, we said yes. Well, that meant we had to come back in less than a week. But, hey, that's what you do when it's family right?

The other thing that we were going to do was take my sister-in-laws kids to school and take Brenda, Wayne's sister, to therapy 3 times a week too. Remember she had brain surgery just before Thanksgiving for a bleed on her brain stem? Well, everything went very well it just left her with some left side paralysis. So, I did the driving of family and Wayne did the farm chores (including milking a goat). We did have a lot of fun. And we sure do miss them all when we have to leave!

About the card.....I just found this retired set and bought it. I had always wanted it just never got around to getting it when it was in the catalogs. So I played with the "new set". Not sure that this card really needs the paper clip and twine...what do you think?

Later today, after I run errands, I will post my Blog Candy. Have a great day!
Happy Crafting!!
Cindy

• Stamps - Noble Deer
• Ink - Black Staz On
• Paper - SU Mellow Moss, Always Artichoke, Whisper White CS and retired SU DSP
• Accessories - Prismacolor Pencils, Baby Oil, Blending Stumps, SU Key Tag Punch and Lg. Oval Punch, Paperclip, Hemp Twine, Creative Cafe' Rub-ons

My Crazy Life and Birthday Cards

Good Evening Friends! I feel very bad for having been away for so long but, as many of you know, life doesn't always cooperate with your crafting! Having said that I want to show you 3 cards today that I have made in the last 2 weeks. Oh, I have been busy doing other projects as well, but let's show the cards first.


The Sparkle with love was so much fun coloring....I think I am getting better at it. Using layers and 2 or 3 colors to give depth . This card is for my sister-in-law, Brenda. Her birthday is next month. She is the gal I talked about in a previous post with the AVM.

Well, she had gone to Mayo Clinic the first of the month for a second opinion. She feels better about what she heard. And she has decided to have the surgery to remove the mass that is on her brainstem. She can have complications from the surgery but, not having the surgery could leave her having another bleed...which could lead, possibly, to death. Not a chance she is willing to take given that she has a dear husband and 4 children. Her sugery will be the day after her birthday in November.....1 week before Thanksgiving. She is hoping to be nearly back to functioning right before Christmas.

The cupcake card is for one of our nieces, Jasmine, who had her 12th birthday last week. I applied stickles to the cupcake frosting and glossy accents to the cherries.

The Cheers to You Strawberry Daquiri card was made for Jasmine's Mom, Rene'. Her birthday was the day after Jasmine's. I have no idea if she like this type of drink, I just thought it was festive looking! I put glossy accents on the glass and stickles on the strawberry. I really liked how that one turned out!

Rene' and Jasmine are a part of Wayne's brother's, Steven, family. And they are coming down from Wisconsin Halloween weekend for a visit. The schools up there have that Friday off. It will be so nice to have some alone time with all of them! Seems like we don't get to do much visiting when the entire family gets together.


Other than getting ready for family to come, I have been busy advocating for our son, Clark. And visiting him in the hospital, he had to have another G/J-tube put in. Due to a "comedy of errors" on the part of his home and the hospital, he ended up staying 3 nights in there...and he wasn't even sick! Oh yes, Icomplained to everyone who would listen! Hopefully, I didgood. You guys, I won't bore you with my long stories about who I talked to and what happened. If you are really interested, send me an e-mail and I will.

Of course, my college class is keeping me busy as is our garden and getting it ready for winter. But, I do not know what I would do without all of that to do.....oh....wait.....maybe make more cards or something crafty! LOL!

Thanks for looking and Happy Crafting!!
Cindy

Sparkle with Love

• Stamps - Unknown sentiment, Magnolia (stamped by Linda from Linda's Crafty Creations)
• Paper - SU Real Red Patterns Pack DSP, SU Whisper White and Old Olive CS, SU Urban Oasis DSP (retired)
• Ink - SU Basic Gray
• Accessories - Unknown Chipboard, SU Large Oval Punch, Fire Rhinestone Brads, SU Red Riding Hood Taffeta Ribbon, Prismacolor Pencils, Baby Oil, Blending Stumps, White Gel Pen

Cupcake Wishes

• Stamps - SU Heard From The Heart and Darling Dots
• Paper - SU Whisper White and Pink Passion CS
• Ink - SU Pink Passion
• Accessories - Cuttlebug Folder, SU Punches, SU Tempting Turquoise Grosgrain Ribbon, Dimensionals, SU Markers

Strawberry Cheers to You

• Stamps - SU Cheers To You and Tart and Tangy
• Paper - SU Real Red, Whisper White and Green Galore CS
• Ink - Ranger's Archival Ink
• Accessories - Ranger's Glossy Accents, Stickles, Prismacolor Pencils, Baby Oil, Blending Stumps, Cuttlebug Folder, Unknown Brads, SU Apple Grosgrain Ribbon

Pink Lemonade Bird-Day!

Hi Friends! Just taking a little break from studying....another big test tomorrow in my Horticulture class...Ugh!

Not sure who I made this for??? But, a while back I was cleaning things in my craft area....kind of sounds like Area 51 and sometimes looks like it!......when I found a bunch of stamped images. I had borrowed the set from one of my Demos a year or so back. It's time I started using up these images! I bet you have of these too just laying around.

I like paring light DP with Black it really makes the colors pop, IMO! Not to mention I had 2 packs of Black CS...no idea how that happened! See what happens when you clean....no hints here, you know who you are!!! Only kidding friends!!

Anyway, thanks for looking at my stuff! Have a super day and Happy Crafting always!!
Cindy

• Stamps - Tickled Pink
• Ink - Ranger Archival Black Ink
• Paper - K & Co DP, Doodlebug Borders, SU Whisper White, Basic Black and Regal Rose CS
• Accessories - SU Rose Grograin Ribbon - Wide and Narrow, Basic Grey Button, Prismacolor Pencils, Baby Oil, Blending Stumps

Hollyhocks for Mom

Using one of my older jumbo SU wheels for this one. Took me a couple of tries to get a good clean and straight image that was not over stamped. I think that is why I am going to take all the rubber off the wheels and put on EZ Mount. Then use on an acrylic block. Just as soon as I have a bit of spare time....maybe when my son is in the hospital in November and I am just sitting there for hours on end.

Anyway.....stamped and cut out the butterflies from Tagger's Dozen and popped them up on teeny tiny bits of dimensionals. Now that was a challenge. I wanted to use some of the Pomegranate CS and ribbon so, that was my color scheme. Used Prismas for the flowers and sponged the blue bg and used chalks for highlighting. My MIL loved the card!

Thanks for looking and happy Crafting!!
Cindy

• Stamps - SU Edgy Eloquence, Taggers Dozen, Hollyhock Jumbo Wheel
• Paper - SU Whisper White, Brocade Blue and Purely Pomegrante CS
• Ink - SU Chocolate Chip, Brocade Blue
• Accessories - Dimensionals, SU Pomegranate Ribbon (retired), Prismacolor Pencils, Baby Oil, Blending Stumps, SU Chalks, Sponges

Happy September Everyone!!

Yes, again it has been way too many days since I last posted. No excuses here other than my busy life! Gardening, volunteering, getting Clark ready for school, making a decision to go back to school myself......yada, yada!

Just wanted to post something I made with my new purchase.....my birthday was August 1....thank you (bowing)....and I bought a Big Shot and some dies. I love how easy it is to use....having had a Cuttlebug for a couple of years. Now I have to have all these neat dies from Stampin' Up!

I made this card because I will have need for some guy cards soon. The button and arrow are some chipboard pieces I have been hoarding for some time. And I can't tell you when I bought the ribbon??? It was fun and very easy to make....something different for me!!

Thanks for looking and Happy Crafting!!
Cindy

• Stamps - SU Fundamental Phrases
• Ink - Ranger Archival Black Ink
• Paper - SU Basic Grey, Kraft and Kiwi Kiss CS, SU Urban Oasis DSP
• Accessories - Bo Bunny Chipboard, Twine, Dimensionals, Bigz Top Note Die, Big Shot, Unknown Twill Ribbon
  

Make a Wish

Good Morning Friends! Yes, it has been awhile since I posted something but, it had been awhile since I made something. I think it's that thing that cardmakers talk about.....loosing your MoJo?

Don't how I lost it...maybe it's this sadness I have been feeling for so many things I cannot change in my life right now, maybe it is the lack of funds to buy something new to stamp with or maybe it is something entirely different, like gardening that takes so much time. At any rate, I needed to make some birthday cards last week and took a day to myself to make some.

I bought this set used from my Demo. I thought it would be pretty handy for some masculine cards or maybe even a christmas card. I perused the Big Birthday Candle set gallery and found 2 cards that I liked for the design just the way they were. The one to the left and the green and black near the bottom, both by HamiltonGal on SCS.

Designer Paper by 7Gypsies has always been one of my favorite lines. I bought this in a paper pack before last Christmas to work on a project, but realized that it would take too long for the time I had and be way over the amount I wanted to spend. So, I shelved the whole thing. But, when I was looking for some guy type paper I spotted it and thought...hmmm, this will be fine!

The 50th card I sent to my brother out in California. He and I were so close to each other for so many of our childhood years. Then when I went to high school, things between us changed. He got into some not so good relationships with "bad boys" and nothing I said made any difference. We spent many years not talking to each other...the last time I saw him was at our sisters wedding in 1993. He was starting a new relationship with a really good woman, Rose....I think she saw the good man that he really is. They are married now and happy.

Then when our Father passed away 2 months ago, we were thrown back together. We started talking again.....I told him life is too short to be mad any longer. So, we are trying to reconnect our relationship again. I am grateful that he has found peace in his heart and has forgiven himself for the wrongs he has done and is moving forward. As it should be.

The other cards are for future birthdays in the family....older niece, nephew and sister-in-law. They are not masterpieces but, I had fun making them and I hope the recipents will like them too. I really liked that I sponged the flame of the candle, that was fun!

Hope you have a great week! I appreciate you looking too!

7Gypsies card

Stamps - Big Birthday Candle, So Many Scallops

Paper - 7Gypsies Zanzibar DP, Sahara Sand and Basic Black CS

Ink - Ranger Archival Ink

Accessories - 1 3/4" circle punch

Make a Wish card

Stamps - Big Birthday Candle

Paper - Confetti White, Riding Hood Red, Baja Breeze and So Saffron CS, SU Sweet Slumber Speciality DSP

Ink - SU Riding Hood Red, Baja Breeze and More Mustard

Accessories - Paper Clip, Zig Marker and SU Riding Hood Red Taffeta Ribbon

Birthdays are the Best

Stamps - Big Birthday Candle and It's Your Birthday

Paper - SU Pumpkin Pie, Real Red, Whisper White and So Saffron CS, Washington Apple DSP

Ink- SU More Mustard, Ranger Archival Ink

Accessories - Paper Clip, Pumpkin Pie Grosgrain Ribbon, SU Small and Large Tag Punches

Amethyst Happy Birthday

Stamps - Big Birthday Candle and It's Your Birthday

Paper - SU Almost Amethyst, Whisper White and So Saffron CS, SU Tea Party DSP

Ink - Ranger Archival Ink, SU Almost Amethyst and More Mustard

Accessories - Wide Ric Rack, Cotton Thread50th Birthday card

Stamps - Big Birthday Candle, So Very, Wonderful Favorites, Short Order Numbers

Paper - SU Basic Black and Kiwi Kiss, SU Rockabilly Speciality DSP

Ink - Ranger Archival Ink

Accessories - SU On Board Lots of Letters Chipboard, Zig Marker, Crystal effects

Happy Sweet Friday

Good Morning Everyone! Here is another attempt at the Gamsol technique I am trying to perfect. This one I used Baby Oil with my Prismacolor Pencils. I think I am getting the knack of it....using a very fine shading of the area I want to color and then a very dark line to shade. The whole process is taking a bit longer than I like for a single card. But, I guess if you are entering challenges or sending one to a special niece, it is worth it.

I am still working on trying to find a better way to take the photos of my cards and edit them. We are having scanning issues....the scanner I was using for such a long time is no longer compatible with my computer. Our other scanner, Wayne's, is foreign to me....he's not so great with knowing how to use it either (not that he can't figue it out....he's a computer genius!!!!). I am just not satisfied with the washed out look of my cards! He promised we would work on it this weekend.

Here are the details:

• Stamps - SU So Very, Magnolia image (don't know name as this was from Linda)
• Paper - SU Whisper White Textured CS, Provo Craft, Creative Imaginations and SU Bella DP
• Ink - SU Chocolate Chip
• Accessories - SU Chocolate Chip Marker, Prismacolor Pencils, Baby Oil, Stumps, Cotton Lace, SU Pretty in Pink Taffeta Ribbon, Bazzill Brads, Handmade Crocheted Flowers, SU Corner Rounders

Thanks for looking and leaving comments. I appreciate you very much!

Happy Crafting!!

Cindy

Cards To De-stress By

Howdy! A couple of days ago I was feeling stressed over the things in my life that are taking precedence... my Son's situation, hubby's stress, In-Laws coming to visit this weekend and getting ready for our vacation next Friday. So, I decided that everything could wait while I made a few cards and zoned out!!

This one is my attempt at Mojo74. For my Dad's 76th birthday today....but, we will celebrate on Sunday after the In-Laws leave. I turned it on the side...could have used a smaller card base as this one is 5x7. Details at the end of this post.

I needed some masculine cards for upcoming birthdays and a thank you. I have to say that I CASED both of these from texasjodylynn on SCS. She did such a nice job. On the Wanted card, I wanted to make the embossed paper look like suede and I stitched with embroidery floss around Wanted. I am planning on sending this to Wayne's brother for his birthday and I will put something cute inside like... wanted for another birthday, loosing more hair but gaining more friends, etc. I have a couple of days before I have to send it. Any ideas??

This stamp set is one of my all time favorites for so many reasons...mainly guy cards. And as you can see I am using up old DP and CS. For some reason I have 2 rolls of hemp twine and I don't know how that happened...regardless I have to use them. Rather than put Happy Birthday on everything, I like 'celebrate life' because we should!


This is a photo of a case for my Iris cases that my super sweet husband made me. He found a photo in a woodworking magazine and then adapted it. The only problem now is I have so many cases that are not filled I have to figure out what to put in them! Ha!


But, seriously I finally feel that I have worked sufficently on my stamping space that I can work now and find (and use) everything!!

Happy Heart Mojo74

• Stamps - SU Happy Heart Day, Everyday Flexible Phrases, Itty Bitty Backgrounds, Sanded BG, Weathered BG, Short & Sweet, A Little Birdie Told Me
• Paper - SU Old Olive, Ruby Red and Very Vanilla, Daisy D's DP
• Ink - SU Old Olive, Ruby Red, Creamy Caramel, Basic Gray, Basic Black
• Accessories - Prismacolor Pencils, Blending Pens, Unknown Fiber, Dimensionals

Wanted

• Stamps - SU Wanted, Itty Bitty Backgrounds
• Paper - SU Always Artichoke, Close to Cocoa, Chocolate Chip
• Inks - SU Creamy Caramel, Chocolate Chip, Always Artichoke, Ranger Vintage Photo Distress Ink
• Accessories - Cuttlebug, Dimensionals, Making Memories Brads and metal thingy, SU Chocolate Chip Grograin Ribbon, Unknown Ribbon, DMC floss, SU Chipboard

Memories Wanted

• Stamps - SU Wanted, Itty Bitty Backgrounds, Sanded and Tres Chic BG
• Paper - Baroque DP, Always Artichoke, River Rock, Chocolate Chip and Naturals Ivory
• Inks - Whisper White Craft, Chocolate Chip, Creamy Caramel, Ranger Vintage Photo Distress Ink
• Accessories - Making Memories Brad, SU Chipboard, Distressing tool, Dimensionals

Celebrate Tree

• Stamps - Lovely as a Tree, So Many Sayings
• Paper - SU Buckaroo Blue, Kahki, Confetti White, SU Retired DP
• Inks - Close to Cocoa, Chocolate Chip
• Accessories - Hemp Twine, Old Olive, Always Artichoke and Chocolate Chip Markers

Thanks for looking, hope you have a great weekend....I know we will with our family. Maybe I will post some photos of our family for you Monday!

Happy Crafting!!

Cindy