Crafters of Faith Challenge for April

Olga challenged the Crafters of Faith group to make a Mother's Day card with a matching envelope, using at least one die cut and making the size of the card 5x7. I made this card for a man from my church who wanted a Mother's Day card for his wife that said something like she was his soulmate. I came up with a little something different but I think that it coveys the same message. Here is the inside of the card....it says (for Faith) the love of my life, my best friend, my wife. Happy Mother's Day.

The roses are from Gina K. Designs, A Year of Flowers and Pressed Flowers, designed by Melanie Muenchinger. It's hard to see but the white oval underneath the flowers is embossed with Swiss Dots embossing folder by Cuttlebug. Two roses are on dimensionals, with each rose being a little higher than the other.

I CASE'd a card of Selma Stevenson's which you can see here. Thanks Selma, for the inspiration....do you remember this one that you made back in 2009?

Hoping you all have a terrific week,
Betty

Roses Mother's Day Card

It's the last Sunday of the month (is it just me, or has this month flown by?????) and time for the Roses Challenge. Olga is hostess this month and asked us to make a Mother's Day card. Before I share the requirements, let me say that I thought it was just to be a card for Mother's Day. That said, I think I can convince Olga to accept my card anyway!!!! lol  We were  to use a sentiment, a flower and a die cut -- oh, and lots of layers if we wanted to! My sentiment is on the envelope and on the inside of the card; my flower -- well, I have heard butterflies called "flying flowers" so I'm hoping that will let me pass on to the next requirement -- a die cut, which is also on the envelope. I cut out a Spellbinders Fancy Tag and sponged it so the name of the recipient could be written on it. I do have the image with the butterflies matted so there's the layers. Did I convince you, Olga?? Hope so!

The image of the butterflies is from The Graphics Fairy and is sponged to add a bit of distressing. Also sponged distress ink on the lace and added green pearls to match the matting. For the inside, I added some patterned paper and the sentiment is from Gina K. Designs.

Hope you all have a wonderful Sunday and are looking forward to the coming of May!

Betty

Monochromatic and Sketch Challenges

I've got two challenges working on my card today.
Paper Play Challenges wants us to make a monochromatic card with ribbon.
A La Card Monkey wants us to use something blue and their sketch below...

My patterned papers are from Stampin' Up, the solid is a textured card stock from the Paper Studio. A circle of Stampin' Up Bashful Blue that has been distressed is under the darker solid. The bird stamp is also from the Paper Studio, a set titled Botanicals and Birds.  A bit of thin grosgrain ribbon that I found in my "ribbon pieces" jar completes this card -- hope you enjoyed it!

Betty

More Springy Thingy Cards

I've made a couple of more cards with "springy thingys" to share with my card making group on May 5. The shiny ivory panel is embossed with a cuttlebug folder and matted with black. A dark blue ribbon holds the sentiment with a Gina K. Designs stamp and two blue rhinestones.

My next card was made with the For Fun Challenges in mind. The challenge is to use a bunny, not Easter. This little digital image is from Anne Bodil and looks so cute on this "welcome little one" card -- that sentiment is from Layers of Color and is cut out with a Spellbinders Banner die, with another die cut in patterned paper as a shadow.

So, now I have three examples to show to my group. Elegant, Fun and Christmas (which you can see here). I know the ladies are going to have fun making a card with this technique.

For me, I'm going to try to go back to bed now. It's around 3 am and I woke up just a little too warm to stay in bed but I'm cooled off now. Not hot flashes, just the weather, and we haven't turned the fan on in the bedroom yet!! May have to get the fan blades dusted off later today!!

See 'ya later,
Betty

Cards for Monday Market

I really had a productive card making day yesterday! I refurbished ten cards that I had made long ago and they are now ready to be taken to the next Monday Market; I also made the two new cards shown above. I really like the striped paper on the first card; the stamps on both cards are from Stampin' Up; the dragonfly was printed out and fussy cut and will be a perfect masculine birthday card. Now all I need is for customers to come along and purchase them!!

Here's a pic of some of the refurbished cards. All I really had to do was change a sentiment, add an embellishment or spruce up the insides a bit.

Enjoy your day,
Betty

More Snowflakes

I have another snowflake card today. I have used the sketch from Merry Monday #17 shown below... I'll also have to to check at 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown and see if I can enter a second card there.

Most of my supplies are from Stampin' Up -- all except the ivory card base and ribbon. I used a seafoam white embossing powder for the snowflakes and sentiment. The little snowflakes on the sentiment tag are rub-ons from SU; the partial snowflake was a "happy" accident -- it was supposed to go on the other side but I like the "home" that it found for itself! The ribbon wraps around the card and there's another snowflake on the inside where the ribbon edges meet. Tools used were SU circle punches, a Martha Stewart border punch and Spellbinder's Ribbon Tags Trio 2.

Hope you all have a wonderful day and no real snowflakes -- our weather is beautiful here today. I have all the doors open with a wonderful breeze coming into the house and I'm looking out at a day filled with sunshine and colorful hibiscus, oleander and other miscellaneous flowers in the garden. A friend gave me some cuttings from a pencil cactus in her yard and they all have new little shoots on them. I had pencil cactus (cacti?) in Texas and am glad that I was able to find some here. Now I just need some purple iris!!

By for now,
Betty

A Snowflake Challenge

I made this card today for the challenge at 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown; they are having a theme challenge and the theme is Snowflakes. I used a Cuttlebug embossing folder (from a set called Winter Wonderland) to dry emboss the dark blue panel with snowflakes and a Stampin' Up Christmas stamp to heat emboss another snowflake with white powder.

Now, just like Melina's challenges at Twisted Tuesday, my card has a twist to it -- it was made with a "springy thingy"!

Here is a link to a video to show you how to make your own springy thingy. My friend Ruthie brought me some 26 gauge beading wire from her recent trip to the U.S. and I am going to demonstrate how to make a "springy thingy" at our next stamping group meeting on May 5. I think this technique is going to be a hit; should be able to make some fun birthday cards -- I can just see cute little animals springing up to say "Happy Birthday"!!

Betty

CAS-ual Friday CFC49

I am playing in the CAS-ual Friday challenge this week; Theresa Momber is the sponsor and is offering three Gina K. Design stamp sets for the lucky winner! It seems as though I love everyone else's CAS cards but mine always look unfinished! Oh well, I decided to take a stab at it again! Here is the sketch:

My card has a butterfly that I printed from an internet clip art site and cut out -- very easy!! The sentiment is from a GKD stamp set, Eclectic Summer Sayings and the caramel panel is embossed with Cuttlebug's Swiss Dots folder. I think I actually like this card. The eye is drawn directly to the butterfly and the sentiment -- the person receiving this card will know immediately why it has been given to them!

Betty

Crafters of Faith with Freshly Made Sketches

My card today is made with a sketch from Freshly Made Sketches #31 and a theme from a "mini-challenge" with the Crafters of Faith which is to make a card that depicts the joy of the Lord that is experienced by His followers. I have to admit that I don't have the best voice in the world (and that's putting it mildly!!) but I do enjoy praising the Lord and singing the glories of His name! And I also enjoy seeing that joy shine through in the faces of  church choir members. (Choir members, please remember to let the joy that you feel come through on your face -- it makes a difference for your congregation!)

This is the sketch from Freshly Made Sketches....

I rotated the sketch 90 degrees; that allowable! You'll also see that any shape is allowed too. If you'd like to enter this sketch challenge and make a card with clean, fresh lines, you have until  Noon, PDT, Monday, April 23. Click on the link to find all the info!

Hope you enjoyed my card of blue and white. I don't know why the liquid pearls didn't show up whiter than they did, but they do look good in real life!

Christmas Plaid

I missed making my Christmas card for Merry Monday last week so wanted to get it done this week! This card combines two challenges. The sketch, of course, is from Merry Monday.....

The color combination is from Twisted Tuesday -- Green, Pink and Red. The twist to this challenge is that we also need to use 3 brads and 1 ribbon. This is a new challenge site belonging to Melina Pylant. Come on over and join us -- just click on the link!

There's no stamping on the outside of my card. I let the designer paper from Papermania Classic Christmas do all the talking. I did follow the sketch -- it's hard to see the three panels of plaid but there is a little strip of white between each of them!! And for the twist, my three red brads are on the one red ribbon.

Hope you all have a wonderful day, filled with joy and blessings!

Betty

Recent Pictures

No card to post today so I thought I'd share some recent pictures. We spent the afternoon and evening of Friday 13th with friends and had the most wonderful time. Lots of good food, good fun, laughter, and games!

My first picture shows just how "cool" we are -- even thought everyone was inside at this point, we all had on our sunshades!!

lst row - my husband, Larry, Sharon & Ed (they're leaving soon, going back to Florida but we know they'll be back!!)
2nd row - Sue and her sister Jo (Jo came for a visit recently and decided after 2 days that she wanted to stay!)
3rd row - Bob (married to Sue; this is their home)

We shared a rousing game of Washers (if you really want to pronounce it correctly, it should be Warshers -- some of you will understand that joke!) and I was the Washer Queen (someone has to be the best!! -- I laughed and said that maybe I was the Washer Woman!!) I haven't played washers in many a year and I have to admit that most of our group had never heard of the game, so I may have had a bit of an advantage!!

Next came the eats! Bob grilled chicken and then covered it with the most delicious adobo sauce. He explained that it was a special sauce from Cancun (NOT!) -- it came right off the shelf at Wal-Mart!!

It was difficult not to dive right in and start eating, but everyone patiently waited for the pictures. I took one and then Ed took one with me at the table!

After we all had plenty to eat we continued to enjoy the company and played three rounds of our favorite game, Catch Phrase (unfortunately, have to admit that the guys won two out of three rounds there) but the ladies came back and beat the socks off of the guys in Hand and Foot (a card game similar to Canasta). It was a wonderful, fun-filled day!

On Saturday morning we met our friends Pastor Jose and his wife Martha for breakfast.

The food was delicious, the company enjoyable and the view just couldn't be beat.....

After breakfast, we went to a nearby church that Jose's friend pastors. They were having a Bible class for neighborhood children and we sang with them (well, actually, we just clapped since we didn't know the Spanish words to the songs!) and watched a video about Samuel and Eli.

Hope you enjoyed the little glimpse into our life.
Betty

Another Flourishes Challenge

A quick post today with my card for Flourishes Motherly Love Challenge. This challenge is associated with their April new releases. It can be a card for your mom, for a new mom, or for someone who has filled the role of a mom in your life. Have you seen the Flourishes' sneak peeks for April??? I'd surely love to be a winner of their beautiful new stamp sets!! If you'd like to enter this challenge, the deadline is this evening, at 5pm EST.

Betty

Sunshine Yellow

I just have to say that this card makes me happy! I love the crisp yellow colors (better in real life than in the photo) and the stamped rose popped up above the pretty green leaves. And the lace, it was a gift from my friend Melisa, and has the most wonderful texture. I don't really know how to describe it -- sort of like a soft fluffy felt. I used the Colored Embossing Folder technique for the Swiss Dots background. This reminds me of a dress my mother made me when I was young that was yellow with white dots!! The panel was not quite large enough so I added some yellow and white striped paper behind that just peeks out at the top and the bottom -- love the stripes with the dots!

I will be entering my card in the Flourishes Noon Time Challenge from yesterday, to use lace on a card. Also for Sugar Creek Hollow's challenge for a floral project in a primitive, vintage or shabby chic style.

Have a wonderful day everyone!

Betty

Shades and Patterns of Blue

I'm cutting it pretty close with the A La Card Monkey challenge #103, but if you want to play, you do have until Midnight PST tomorrow, Thursday.  It is a sketch challenge, with an animal theme. My friend, Theresa Pollack, is guest designer there this week and her card with the doe and newborn fawn makes me so homesick for the old "homeplace" back in Conroe, Texas. The new fawns started showing up in our backyard in May -- I'm gonna miss that this year -- so much!! Enough of that, here's the Monkey Sketch ....

I will also be entering my card in the Designer's Choice challege at Repeat Impressions where the challenge is "Birds of a Feather". Cheri Weston is challenging us to use birds or a bird as our focal image. My bird stamp came from the $1 bin at Michael's and I just love it; don't know why I haven't inked it up in such a long time! Papers are from Stampin' Up, sentiment from Gina K. Designs; button from my stash and ribbon from my "bits of ribbon" jar. (by the way, the doe and fawn stamp that Theresa used for her A La Card Monkey card is a Repeat Impressions stamp!)

Thanks for your visit; come back again!
Betty

Three More and I'm Done!

These are the last three cards I'll be posting with the Spirelli medallion technique for a while. I've finished using up the materials I prepared for last Saturday's card class. Just whisper a prayer for me that they will sell as quickly as I made them into cards!! Stamp on the above medallion is Stampin' Up.

This flower stamp is a two stamp process and is a clear stamp set from Martha Stewart. The sentiment is from Layers of Color and was cut with a Spellbinders Banner die. The medallions are popped up on all the cards and so is the banner sentiment on this one.

Both of these stamps are Stampin' Up; the butterfly is a Martha Stewart Punch and the ribbon was in my "pieces of ribbon" jar! The little butterfly is 3D with his wings turned up.

We had friends over last evening for a game of Catch Phrase. We always laugh so much when we play that game together. It is an electronic game; you pick a category and a word comes up on the device. The object is to give clues and make your team guess what the word is. We play guys against the gals and end up rolling on the floor laughing at some of the clues!! If you ever get a chance to play this game, grab it!! I guarantee you'll have a great time!

Betty

Cards with Spirelli Medallions

  

I had prepared for ten but only two showed for my card class on Saturday so I've been busy making up the leftover materials into cards. Sorry about the picture -- I had already put the cards and envelopes into the plastic covers and since I'm not entering them into any challenge, I decided to be lazy and just leave them in the covers to take the picture. All of these stamps are Stampin' Up.

Here are a couple more with sentiments in Spanish.

Flower and vase stamp is from Papertrey Ink and sentiments from Stampin' Up.

Hope everyone has a wonderful day -- I'm sitting here at the computer listening to the birds singing outside and feeling very blessed!

Betty

April Card Class

 

These two lovely young women were my card class today. Sacha is on the left and Marlene is on the right. I met Sacha through the Monday Market and invited her to the card class and she not only came, she brought her friend too. I so enjoyed their enthusiasm, their excitement as they made their cards, and their love of color! I'm going to have to get them to come to my house one of these days so we'll have longer to play with all the toys -- I know Sacha wants to get her hands on the Big Shot and the embossing folders and die cuts!!

Here's the card that I made to take as an example for the class....

The stamp is from a set called Encouragement by Layers of Color and the corner punch is by Martha Stewart.

Hope you all experience a joyful Resurrection Sunday tomorrow! 

Betty

A Get Well Card with A Freshly Made Sketch

Today I am posting another card made with a beautiful bird image from Ephemera's Vintage Garden and sentiment stamp from Gina K. Designs. The paper is a pack from Paper Pizazz -- 12x12 Sarapapers. Instead of vintage/shabby like my card posted on Wednesday, this card is freshly made (get it?) with clean lines and simplicity! Here is the super wonderful Freshly Made Sketch #29 .......

I am getting more comfortable with the vintage style since I've been entering the challanges at Sugar Creek Hollow, but finding the Freshly Made Sketch challenges has been a truly joyful experience for me. I feel that this is my style (fresh clean lines and simplicity) and I love having their wonderful sketches to follow. Seems like my cards just fall together with ease when I'm working with these sketches!

It's a beautiful, sunny day here in Chapala, Mexico but a little cooler. When I was a kid the "old folks" said that there's always a "cool snap" at Easter and I have found that to be true. Hope you all enjoy your day, wherever you may be!

Betty

A CASEd Card and a Link

I was visiting blogs yesterday morning when a card by LeAnne Pugliese at Wee Inklings stopped me in my tracks! She actually posted two gorgeous cards (go on, click on the link; you've got to see them!) but the one that caught my eye was the embossed white one. I had to stop right away and make my own version of her stunning card. My image was already stamped (flower from Stampin' Up; sentiment from Gina K. Designs) so all I had to do was add the sentiment, the shiny flower center, and mats. Embossed my white panel, cut into thirds, adhered it all together and I was done!

I'll be entering this card into the challenge at Fab N Funky -- Emboss It!

Next, I'd like to share a link to an article that I wrote for an on-line magazine called ChapalaClub.com. Sid Grovsener is a retired Dallas, Texas police officer who has lived in Chapala for many years and enjoys sharing his love of this fantastic place with others. My article is about one of our favorite restaurants and I hope you'll enjoy it; if any of my sweet friends ever decide to visit my area, we'll air out the spare bedroom and take you to Rey Taco first thing!!
http://www.chapalaclub.com/2012/04/move-over-taco-bell-heres-the-king-at-lake-chapala/

Adios for now,
Betty

Vintage Birthday

Good Morning, All! I made this card last night for the challenge to make a birthday card with a vintage, shabby chic, or primitive style at Sugar Creek Hollow. I'm very pleased with the final look! Hope someone else will like it too and snap it up at the Monday Market next week!

The lovely image is from Ephemera's Vintage Garden. If you haven't visited there, please do so. You'll see some lovely images and if you sign up to receive her newsletter, you'll receive a free image or page of images each week. I really enjoy seeing lovely things show up in my inbox!

I had to make use of my sponge and the Tea Dye Distress Ink this week -- sponged over everything except for the ribbon and light green pearls. Hope you enjoyed my vintage card (I think I'm getting a little more comfortable with this style) and if you have the time, I'd like to share one more card with you.

This is an older card that has been sitting in a box for a long time. I took out a bunch of cards and have been "refurbishing" them -- changing a little, adding a little...... I raised the panel of flowers on this one and added this pretty sentiment stamp from Papertrey Ink. This card will be donated to the church card ministry and others I will take to the Monday Market. Much better than to just have them sitting in a box!

Best Wishes for a Wonderful Day!

Betty

Merry Monday Challenge

I'd like to invite you to play along with the challenge at Merry Monday this week. I have the honor of being a guest designer for sketch challenge #14 and here is the really neat sketch that Lesley has for us to play with.....

My patterned papers are from Papermania, Classic Christmas. The deer with the foil sentiment is a punch out from the same paper pack, that I cut out with a Spellbinders circle die. I also cut a scalloped circle to mat the image and added the red rhinestones. The solid green panel is Stampin' Up Old Olive and was embossed with Cuttlebug's Swiss Dots embossing folder. Some ribbon and a bow finished off another Christmas card!

I definitely enjoyed working with this sketch and decided to try a second card, only this time making it a Spring time card.

I used SU Certainly Celery for the background panel, again embossing with the same Swiss Dots folder. The patterned paper is from a SU Prints Pack and a Martha Stewart paper pack,  Classic Woodland. I used the spirelli technique on my scalloped circle and added a little dot with a Certainly Celery marker to the scallops and guess what??? There are more dots on the green ribbon! Stamps are from AnnaBelle Stamps.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you find time to play with this wonderful sketch!
Betty

Easter Card

Challenge #102 at A La Card Monkey is a sketch + Easter. This is my card and the image is from Clearly Vintage. The banner strips are from a Stampin' Up print pack. I embossed the ivory panel with Cuttlebug's embossing folder, Textile. This is a very simple card but I think it is a very elegant simple card -- it just didn't need anything else! Here is the sketch (could anything be more adorable than this little floppy eared bunny?):

Timeless Tuesday at Flourishes is also having an Easter challenge so I will be entering this card in that challenge as well. I'd also like to link this up to Word Art Wednesday. They provide free word art each week that you can use on your project but you can also link up any project that is uplifting or inspirational.

Now, to go along with the purple color in my card, here is a picture of a beautiful tree that is growing in our area -- a jacaranda tree.

This tree does cause allergy problems in some people and I may be experiencing a slight increase in sinus problems since they bloomed but I'm still feeling much better than I did in Texas. Aren't they stunning trees?

Till tomorrow when I'll be posting my guest designer card for Merry Monday,

Betty