Bloom!

Hey there!  I wanted to share this cute little project I made a few weeks ago.   I bought this wood shadow box/barn at the dollar store several years ago and it's been sitting in my craft closet waiting patiently all this time.  :o)   Just goes to show that sometimes hoarding is a good thing.  Before decorating I gave it a light sanding and then lightly washed it with white acrylic paint.  I wanted it to look whitewashed so I left some areas of wood showing through the paint.

Then I went to town with lots and lots of paper flowers.   Some were cut on the Cricut, some were cut on the Cuttlebug, some were punched and some were quilled.   It's amzing how many flowers you can make with paper, huh?

After filling all the little boxes with flowers, I added embellishments like quilled circles, buttons, and rhinestone dragonflies --- oh and dew drops too. (Can't get enough of those dewdrops).

I had a lot of fun making this bloom box and honestly it wasn't hard at all.   The quilling took the longest to do but I love doing it so it wasn't like work.

I hope you're all having a great spring/summer so far!   I'm excited because my son only has a week and a half left of school and then SUMMER VACATION!   I can't wait to sleep in and enjoy a little more relaxed routine.  Thankfully he decided against taking summer school this year so we don't have to be out the door by 7:15.   Yeesh!

I'm hoping to post some more projects this week.   I've been having some technical difficulties with my computer - or as my husband puts it "operator error" but it seems to be working now.   :o)   Have a happy Monday!

Hugs!
Sue :o)

Just Us Girls Challenge #19

 

Hi all!

Boy, I sure am getting into these challenges lately!   This one is for the sketch challenge over on Just Us Girls.   This week's challenge was a sketch and you can find it here.

The stamp is from Clear Dollar Stamps.   I embossed it with black Colorbox ink and clear powder, and then colored it with my ZIG markers.   I cut all the scalloped circles with my Cuttlebug and Nestabilities dies, and the white circles were cut on my Cricut.   I sponged everything with Memento Lulu Lavender Ink, and then raised the circle with the pansies up on foam tape.   The paper is from DCWV Once Upon a Time.

  

I hope you're all having a happy Thursday!   I'm hoping to get some more stamping done today in between loads of laundry and picking up the house.   Hubby was home sick yesterday so I need to sanitize EVERYTHING.    

Oh and if you get a chance, send up a little prayer for my Grandma.   The poor thing has been in and out of hospitals and a nursing home all year, and just yesterday they had to take her back to the hospital because she has an infection in her leg that is going to require surgery.   Pray that God will heal her up and lift her spirits.

Thanks so much & God bless YOU too!

Hugs!

Sue :o)

Caardvarks Wedding Card Challenge

Hi everyone!
Here's my submission for the Caardvarks wedding card challenge.   I don't have very many wedding stamps, so I improvised with the help of my Cricut and Cuttlebug.   I just love my little bugs - love love love :o).   Anyhow, here are the deets:


The cake was cut on the Cricut using the Sweet Treats cartridge.   I cut everything out of white card stock, assembled all the layers, and then I added Crystal Stickles to the swirls and teen tiny sticky pearls to the base of each cake layer.   The little heart at the top of the cake and two butterflies were made with punches, and I added Stickles to them as well - because I like sparkles. 

 

The cake plate was cut from baby blue card stock, and then I used a sponge and some turquoise ink to add shadows to the edges.    

The rest of the card was pretty easy - just layers of DCWV metallic blue card stock, baby blue card stock, and white card stock.   The layer right behind the cake was made by running a piece of the DCWV metallic blue paper through the Cuttlebug with the Swiss Dots embossing folder.   I have absolutely no idea where I acquired the blue and white striped ribbon, but I do know that the metal slide was made by Making Memories.

 

Well I hope you enjoyed my card today & thanks for visiting!   Hopefully you don't have too much snow if your neck of the woods!   I'm breathing a sigh of relief today because the weather men were calling for a lot more than we got.   My poor son though --- he SOOOOOO wanted a snow day.    Oh well - maybe next snow storm.   :o)    Have a great day & God bless!

Hugs!

Sue :o)

Cricut Fun

 

Hi everyone!
I've been having fun playing with my Cricut so I wanted to post some of the cards I created this week.   This one was made using both the Cricut and the Cuttlebug.   The vase and tulips were cut with the Cricut.   I used a sponge and some turquoise ink to add some shadow to the side of the vase, and I'm not sure if it showed up in the picture or not but I also added some details to the tulips with my ZIG markers.   The scalloped ovals and the corner accents were cut on my Cuttlebug, and I also added some sponging to the corner accents to give them some dimension.

 

Next, I did this cute little turtle card.   Isn't he stinkin' cute?   I sponge the sky and grass background and then added some blades of grass with my ZIG markers.   Then I added all my die cuts and embellishments like the googly eye on the turtle, the buttons on his shell, and finally two button butterflies.   I don't think I'm giving this one away.  Hee Hee.

This last one was made almost entirely from the Cricut.   I sponged  the background to look like sky and grass, and then  I sponged the edges of the flower pot and then popped the top part of the pot up on foam tape.   The flowers were all cut from scraps and then  glittered in the centers for some sparkle.   I did use a punch for the leaves, and then cut the word Thanks on the Cricut.

I hope you enjoy!

God bless!

Sue :o)

Happy Friday and a Few Challenges

Hi everyone!
I'm back today with another card and this time I managed to work in TWO challenges.   I've seen some people work a dozen challenges into one card, but I'm not quite up to that speed just yet.  :o)
This card is being submitted to the Penny Black Week 86 - Special Someone challenge.   I made it for one of my oldest and dearest friends for her birthday.   The other challenge is the Cute Card Thursday Challenge 98 - spots and dots.   My spots and dots are on the background.   I couldn't find any blue polka dotted paper in my stash (I know - I was shocked too) so I decided to make my own by punching circles (in this case spots and dots) out of scraps of blue background paper.   I glued them down on white card stock, sponged the edges with turquoise ink, and then ran that whole piece through the Cuttlebug with the circles embossing folder.   The stamp is Penny Black.   I embossed it twice, colored with my ZIG markers and then cut out the little mice and popped them up on foam tape.   I got the felt flowers from Kutz (you can find the link for her Etsy shop on my side bar) and I actually sewed on the buttons.   I hardly ever sew so it's kind of a big deal for me.  LOL.  

I hope you all have a great weekend & God bless!
Hugs!
Sue :o)

Holiday Hustle and Bustle

Hi everyone!

Just a quick post today as I'm heading to bed shortly. It's been a busy week, but busy in a good way. Yesterday, we finished up all the Christmas shoeboxes at church and delivered them, and now they're on their way to children all over the world. It's hard to believe there are children who have nothing - and I love working on this project because it reminds me early in the season that Christmas is about Jesus and his love for us, rather than presents and running ourselves ragged. I also love working on this project because one of my best friends - let's call her Mz. Nastypepper - works on it with me, and we always have a great time together. :o)

Anyhow -- I thought I'd share some Christmas projects I've been working on here and there this last week. The first card is another snowman trio from Great Impressions. I told you it's my favorite stamp :o). This was a custom order for one of my customers and I have to say I may need to make a few more for msyelf - if I have enough eyelets leftover from this one. The second card was made with a High Hopes stamp. Isn't that the cutest nativity scene? I stamped that one in Memento tuxedo black ink and then colored with my watercolor pencils, and I found that beautiful gold embossed background paper at Joanne's. And finally, the last picture is a set of really simple Christmas gift tags made with nothing more than a Martha Stewart snowflake punch, scalloped edge scissors and card stock. I have some in my Etsy shop, and I made some more for myself.

Well, that's it for tonight. Tomorrow I have some shopping to do in the morning and then I plan on working in the craft room non-stop. I hope you're all staying well in your neck of the woods!

Take care and God bless!

Sue :o)

The Play Date Cafe Challenge #2

Hi everyone!

Here's my submission for challenge #2 at The Play Date Cafe. What a BEAUTIFUL color combo this week. I haven't had my fill of pumpkins yet, obviously! The pumpkins are made of scalloped ovals I cut on with the Cuttlebug and Nestabilities dies. I stamped each oval with an autmn spray stamp and then sponged the edges with Chocolate Chip ink before assembling them into pumpkins. The "grass" was a scrap I found in my stash, and the leaves were punched from card stock and then I used my paper piercing tool to add some texture. Oh the little crystal moon was something I found in my stash too. The background is just black card stock run through the Cuttlebug with the swirls embossing folder.

Stamp Credit: Stampin' Up!

Click here to check out this week's challenge at The Play Date Cafe!

Hugs!

Sue :o)

Another Quick and Simple Christmas Card

Hi everyone!

Here's another quick and simple - and shiny Christmas card! This one is pretty straightforward too. I embossed the image (Great Impressions) on watercolor paper and then colored it with my ZIG markers. The snowflake punch is from Martha Stewart and I attached the button with Diamond Glaze. The shiny snowflake background was made by taping the turquoise foil paper to a piece of light blue card stock and then running it through my Cuttlebug with the snowflakes embossing folder.

I'm happy to report that I did find a place to purchase more foil paper and card stock! I found the link on True's blog for The Paper Temptress. Oh my goodness. This place is to-die-for as far as paper goes. I'm sure I will be spending a lot of $$$$ there in the future.

Today is the first day this week I am able to stay at home and play in my craft room, so I'll be working on cards all day today and hopefully listing a bunch of new ones in my shop on Saturday or Sunday. Be sure to pop in for a visit!

I hope you're all having a lovely day!

Hugs!

Sue :o)

Great Pumpkins!

I've been making the little mini pumpkins out of punched ovals for weeks now - you think it would have dawned on me sooner to make them out of BIG ovals from my Nestabilities dies. Oh well - I'm a little slow. It's the sinus infection! I put this card in my shop earlier and it sold right away so I'm definitely going to make more. Again I'm a little slow, but I was thinking of running the next batch through the Cuttlebug in the Swiss Dots or Swirls embossing folders. We'll have to see how that looks.

Anyhoo - I have been listing cards all morning and since today is also my birthday I am going to take the rest of the day off and relax - or shop (I'm undecided as yet). I also wanted to comment on the picture of my big cat Mouse (named after the little critters she used to line up on my back porch every day). I was looking for her yesterday and found her all snuggled up in a stack of blankets - it reminded me of the Princess and Pea. :o) The girl has the right idea too - it's been in the 40's here for the last few days. I may join her there in that pile of blankets.

I hope everyone is having a great day! Hugs!

Sue :o)

Happy First Day of Fall!

Well it's finally here - the first day of Fall! It's time to get in the crawl space and dig out of my bins of autumn/Halloween decoration - yay!

I made this card yesterday with Fall in mind. I just love these little pumpkins. I sponged the edges of the ovals with Chocolate Chip ink before gluing them together and I don't know if it shows up in the picture or not but the paper I used is textured. The scalloped circles were cut out of black glossy card stock, burgundy card stock and some irridescent copper paper I found in my stash. I taped them all together and then ran them through the Cuttlebug with the Paisley embossing folder. Then to finish it off I added some brown felt oak leaves I got from Kutz (see my side bar for the link). I still haven't decided if I'm going to put this one in my shop or keep it for myself. I will have some new Fall cards in the shop in the next couple of days so be on the lookout!

Oh and while I have you here - let me ask if this is something you've ever heard. The other day my friend and I were taking a walk in a local park and there were lots and lots of acorns on the ground. She said that meant there was going to be a TON of snow this winter. I'm hoping she doesn't know what she's talking about (LOL) but if you've ever heard something like that leave a message in the comments. I used to love snow when I was kid - until I got a driver's license and discovered the horrors of losing traction. That's why I like Fall now - no one skids off the road and gets stranded in a pile of leaves! :o)

Talk to you soon!

Sue :o)

Mojo Monday 103

I've never done a Mojo Monday yet, but when I saw the sketch today (a day late) I thought it would be a fun time to try. If you'd like to play along click here.

I'm afraid I have no idea who made the background paper. I just found it in my scrap heap and of course it wasn't a piece with the company marked on the back. Sigh. The image is from Clear Dollar Stamps and I colored it with watercolor pencils and a blender pen. The strips of paper behind the image were run through the Cuttlebug with the swirls embossing folder, and the buttons and ribbon I bought at Joanne's. This is actually going to be a card with pockets in the inside (when I get it finished) so check back later this week to see the inside.

I'm really hoping to get some more challenges done this week, but we'll see. We just returned from a camping trip and right now I'm knee deep in after-camping laundry. I love the smell of a campfire until I get home and smell it on everything we took with us. We had a great time so maybe the happy memories will take the sting out of going up and downstairs fifty times. LOL.

I hope everyone had a great Labor Day weekend! Talk 2 you soon!

Sue :o)

A Pocket of Thanks

I made a large pocket card awhile back and I've been meaning to try it on a standard 4.25 x 5.5 card. I like the way it turned out! All the stamps I used (okay, there's only 2 stamps on the whole card) are from Stampendous!, the papers are all K&Co., and I used watercolor pencils and a blender pen to color. Here are the rest of the details:

- I made the pocket by sealing up a regular envelope (3-5/8 x 6.5 inches) and cutting it in half. I then trimmed the open edge with decorative scissors and then layered it with background papers and the little bee

- The bee image was embossed and then colored with watercolor pencils and a blender pen. I cut it out with my Cuttlebug and Nestabilities scalloped circle dies, attached a yellow brad to the center of one of the flowers in the bee's boquet, cut a larger scalloped circle out of blue paper, and then taped everything together. I then used my paper piercing tool on the scallops.

- The bookmark was made by stamping the image with Memento Tuxedo black ink and then coloring with watercolor pencils and the blender pen. I layered the image on several pieces of card stock and then stapled the pink polka dotted ribbon to the top.

-The scrolls in the upper corners of the card were cut out with my Cuttlebug and then I attached little pink rhinestones.

-The inside of the card is just a repeat of the image on the bookmark and done the same way only I cut it out with the Cuttlebug and scalloped circles dies.

Thanks for looking!

Hugs!

Sue:o)

Polka Dotted With Hugs

I might have gone on a bit of a polka-dot spree on this card, but I like the way it turned out. I've had these bubble brads in my stash for ---- well ---- a long time and I finally decided to set them free. The little mouse is from Great Impressions, the "hugs" sentiment is from Penny Black, and the sentiment inside the card is from Stampin' Up! I don't normally decorate both panels of the inside of the card, but I have a ton of this polka dotted paper so I thought I might as well go for it. :o) I may start doing this on a regular basis because I think it really does add something to the inside of the card.

I'm trying to keep this post short today because I seem to be having internet problems. It's on for awhile and then POOF - my connection is gone and the internet thingy on the desk is blinking red. Now in addition to needing a personal assistant I need tech support. LOL. Lucky for me, I'm married to pretty cute computer dude who should be able to fix it a lot faster than I can.

Hugs!

Sue :o)

Two Little Fishes

Here's another card that recently went into my shop. If the truth be told, I won't be upset if this one doesn't sell. :o) I just love this little fish stamp by High Hopes Rubber Stamps. They have some of the most adorable stamps out there. These little guys were colored with my ZIG markers, cut out and then adhered to the card on foam tape. The polka dotted paper is DCWV and I added some swirly dry embossed paper and clear dew drops as accents. The sentiment is Stampin' Up!

I've got a lot of new stuff in the works for the upcoming weeks, so I hope you'll check back often. I'm starting to experiment with digi-images and just purchased a handful of them to play with, and I've just ordered some new Halloween and Christmas stamps too. I've also decided to start posting some of my own personal art here on this blog - things I make for me as opposed to things I'm going to sell in my Etsy store. When I'm making things for my shop I tend to go with "cute" because that's what most people like, but for myself --- well --- I like to play with all sort of style and techniques. I make altered books and tags, I keep an art journal, I love to do quilling and punch art, and I even make my own paper sometimes. I've also been experimenting for the last few days with making my own paper flower embellishments instead of buying ones from the store!

Well, as much as I'd love to go downstairs and play in the craft room I'm afraid I'm off for a morning of errands. I think I need a personal assistant! LOL.

Talk to you soon!

Sue :o)

Tulips For You Thank You Card

Happy Monday everyone! I just finished adding some new cards to my shop so I thought I'd post a picture of one of them. This is an OLD stamp from Great Impressions and it's one of my favorites. I used watercolor pencils and an aqua painter on this card. I tend to reach for my markers all the time so I forced to use something else - just to keep myself from getting in a rut. The papers are all K&Co. I taped the first 2 layers together and then ran them both through the Cuttlebug with the circles embossing folder and then I added some punched flowers to the corners. Simple!

I just wanted to say that I am having SO much fun blog hopping lately! I've had my Etsy shop for a year now, and before that I was only browsing on Etsy, Flickr and Ebay for inspiration. Then I joined Split Coast Stampers and that' when I discovered blogging. Now I just love getting up in the morning and looking around at what everyone else has created. I'm surprised every day by the talent out there! I've got all my favorite blogs listed on my side bar, so check them out!

Well, I just heard my evil, wretched dryer buzzing from downstairs so I best get down there and fold before things get wrinkled. :O) I wonder if there's a way to break that buzzer. It's really annoying!

Hugs!
Sue :o)

Pumpkin Card

Well, I was busy the other day making paper pumpkins so I had to find a way to use them. This is one of the cards I came up with. The pumpkin was run through the Cuttlebug with the swirls embossing folder and then I lightly sponged the edges and the embossed areas with Chocolate Chip ink. The background paper isn't even background paper - it's wallpaper I rescued (?) out of a book of wallpaper samples that was about to be thrown out at the paint store. A lot of stores will give you their discontinued books of wallpaper samples, so don't be afraid to ask! Free is good! Finally, the flowers were made with paper flowers, some brass findings I bought on Etsy, and mustard colored brads I had in my stash. To finish it off I did some layering inside the card and added a little mini pumpkin. This card was my favorite out of the bunch I made. I just love the warm colors and the textures of the dry embossing and wallpaper and brass findings. This one might end up in my own stash instead of the my shop. :o)

I hope you're all having a lovely day today. It's gray and rainy here - the perfect day to do laundry and work in my craft room. I was hoping to get out in the garden to start dividing up some plants for my church's annual plant exchange, but alas - it's too soggy for that kind of work. Oh well - I guess I'll just have to stamp all day!

STAMP CREDIT: Stampin' Up!

Hugs!

Sue :o)

Button Flowers

Yeah, I'm still stuck on those buttons! Well, I made the buttons flowers so I had to find a way to use them, right? I decided to go with a bigger card than I usually do because I wanted to try to use all the button flowers. I'm not sure what you call this kind of card, but I made it by taping 2 cards together. I cut the flower stems and leaves by hand and then ran the leaves through different Cuttlebug embossing folders. The papers I used are K&Co. and the 3 dimensional stickers are also K&Co. This is exactly what I had in mind when I was making those little button flowers a few days ago! It's so fun when what I make jives with the way I saw it in my head when I started!

Stamp Credit: Clear Dollar Stamps

Well, it's the first day of school where I live, and I've got the house all to myself today. I really like it when my son is home during the summer, so it always takes me a few days to get used to a quiet house. It's going to take me a few more days to get used to getting up that early again too! Yikes! We were both dragging this morning!

I hope you're all having a great day! Now that I've got all this time on my hands I might be back later with another project!

Hugs!

Sue :o)

Buttons

I have a confession to make. In addition to hoarding paper - I also have a serious addiction to buttons. Okay, maybe it's not terribly serious. I don't steal other people's buttons and I don't lose sleep over it if I lose one of mine. But I love them! I love the colors, the shapes, and the textures and I love sinking my hands into the big old bowl of them I have in my craft room. I used to try to keep them organized by color in one of those plastic boxes with the little dividers, but the messy girl in me just couldn't comit to that kind of organization so now they all commingle in one place waiting for me to use them. The only problem is - I like them and I don't always want to part with them. LOL.

So today I got it in my head that I was going to use the buttons - take them out of the big pretty bowl and actually use them on a project. I've had this stamp set for awhile, and when I bought it from Clear Dollar Stamps I envisioned using buttons in the centers of the spirograph-ish swirls, so I decided to start with that. I stamped the image in different colored inks, cut them out with my Cuttlebug and scalloped circle Nestabilities dies, and then sewed two buttons (one stacked on top of the other) into the center of the image. I don't sew so it's a miracle I managed this task - and an even bigger miracle I was able to find a needle. After the buttons were sewn on, I layered the images onto coordinating scalloped circles of card stock. Now I just have to find a way to use these babies! I have an idea in my head, but I wasn't able to get to it tonight but I'm planning on it tomorrow. I hope you'll check back to see what it is!

Sue :o)

White Butterflies

I'm sure I'm no different than most of you out there. Sometimes I get in a rut in the craft room and feel like I'm doing the same thing over and over again. I get bored and feel uninspired. That's where I was this weekend, so I did what I usually do when I'm in a rut and I clean and reoganize my craft room. Usually a neat workspace is enough to get me going again, but that still didn't do it so I had to search for an alternate route. I decided to pull out a few of my old issues of Somerset Studio and browse the pages for inspiration and that finally did it! Now, I have to say I'm no good at the kind of artwork I see in Somerset Studio, but often I get inspired by the themes and color combinations I find there. In the particular issue I was reading, the theme was WHITE and that's what gave me the idea for this card. I've had this "crackle" paper in my stash forever and this Stampin' Up! set has been on my desk for awhile and instantly I thought about putting the two together. I embossed the butterflies in white on cream card stock, cut them out and then adhered them to the card on foam tape. Then I added some pearls since I was rolling with the white theme :o) and then embossed the sentiment in gold to give the card some more sparkle. Here's the recipe:

Stamps: Stampin' Up!

Paper: DCWV, cream and white card stock

Ink: Clear embossing ink and white embossing powder, gold detail embossing powder

Accessories: Cuttlebug, embossing folder (I don't remember the name of it but it's like little squares), deckle scissors, and mini pearls (Michael's).

I'm hoping to get some more time down in my craft room today, but I'm not sure if it'll happen. The kids go back to school later this week and as soon as mine gets out of bed we're going to get the rest of his school supplies and then I need to do some house cleaning. (UGH). We were literally running all weekend and I got nothing done. I seriously fear someone is going to come to my door today and then we'll all have to hide and pretend like we're not home! LOL.

I hope you have a great Monday! God bless!

Sue :o)

Christmas in August?

I got some new Christmas stamps from Clear Dollar Stamps the other day and I just couldn't wait to get them dirty!

I was going for a softer look on the first card, so I used watercolor pencils and an aqua painter to color the image. I also used some Stickles on the star and the halo. I got some new Spellbinders dies too so I used them on this card. I made the die cut, embossed it and then kept it inside the die and sponged it with navy blue ink. That way the white shows around the edges. I popped that piece up on foam tape, then cut out the image and popped that up on foam tape too. The little sentiment in the corner reads "His perfect gift."

Since I did a "soft" card I figured I might as well do a "bright" one as well. I colored this image with my ZIG markers and then cut it out with my Cuttlebug and more Spellbinders dies. I also embossed the green paper with my Cuttlebug and the argyle embossing folder. Boy, I had some major ribbon issues with this card. For some reason I could not get it lined up. Grrrr.

Thanks for looking!
Sue :o)