B-day...M.E. Style

 

So I heard my daughter say to one of her friends, "Your mom likes Mary Engelbreit stuff too??  It must by their age or something..."  Sigh........well, maybe it is???  All I know is that I've loved Mary "stuff" for ever-so-long......I think since high school and that's been 3 decades now... 

 

But Mary stuff had always been oh-so expensive, so I couldn't purchase nearly as much as I'd like.  And that was a bit of torture when I found myself in a Mary Engelbreit store a few years back.  Honestly I could hardly breathe!!  

Luckily, Michaels has been carrying Mary items for a few years now and they're usually in their $1.00 bins.  So of course whenever I see some new Mary stuff, I snatch it up - I'm happy and so is my checkbook.  Win-win??  I think so.

My last purchase were these delightful floral stamps.  Fun to color and cut and paired with this cute little b-day graphics stamp from Taylored Expressions and a bit of dotty ribbon from A Muse, wellllll....it's very, very Mary!

Memento Inks
Copics
Stickles
CS - Memory Box
CS - CTMH

And here's wishing Christine and VERY MERRY Birthday!!!

Toodles...

Mini Spahhhhhh

 

Ok, when I post the "full" version of this card you'll see how much FUN this was to color!  I've had this stamp set (Impression Obsession) for over a year now - and I LOVE it but it IS a lot to color so I sort of had to work up to it, you know, be in the mood for all this coloring!!  For these cards (to sell), I chose to use the spotlight technique so there's some coloring included but it's still profitable to make.  

A bit of close-up coloring......see, it's a LOT of fun to color!

Memento Inks
Copics
Spicas
Stickles
Liquid Glass (from CTMH)

Toodles...

More Candles

Again, very little stamping....just the sentiment and the candle flames.  The candles are made with mini-polka-dotted CS (A Muse).  The CB is also by A Muse oh, and the ribbon too...the goal here is obviously being DOTTY!!  The embossing folder is the trusty Swiss Dots/Cuttlebug.  Stickles and a corner rounder finish up the card...

Happy B-day Sean!!

Toodles...

Solo Candle

 

Not a lick of stamping on the card front......but it's still pretty colorful!!  All papers from CTMH, Embossing folders are from Darcie's & Cuddlebug and the cool die-cut "celebrate"  is from QuicKutz (well, I'm pretty sure.....hmmm, now I can't remember if it's QK or Paper Smooches??!!).  Stickle for part of the candle flame, and those cool Aqua enamel dots are from CTMH too. 

 

 

A little close-up for you.......CTMH's cardstock has a white core base so when you distress it (or run it through an embossing folder), some of the white core usually shows up.  Sometimes I like that feature A LOT - sometimes I don't.....for this card design, I like it.

 

I think I've finally recovered from my marathon St. Patty's Day stamping so come on back for some other card offerings!!

 

Toodles...

 



Luck of the Irish

Ok, we're nearly finished with St. Patty's Day cards!!  Here's my last card AND a bonus - used the same panel for the card and for some candy treats:

 

 

Used the shamrock embossing folder (Cuddlebug) for a nice subtle background.....swiped the edges of the stamped panel with some chalk ink before adhering it with some foam tape and then finally added some jaunty shamrock ribbon (Michael's).

 

I decided I liked the stamped image so much I did a bunch more and used them as toppers for some candy treats.  I made 23 treats and still have left over mini M&Ms and gold coins.  We liked how they turned out and everyone enjoyed eating the candy!

You may have noticed the 4-leaf shamrock/clover keeps moving.....that's because I stamped the image a few extra times and cut out an additional "leaf" to add to one of the shamrocks on each panel.  Added some Stickles and I think that's pretty Lucky!

Stamps - Stampendous and Impression Obsession
CS - CTMH
Inks - Memento & Colorbox chalk inks
Copics
Marvy Oval scallop punch
Corner Rounder
Treat Bags - Impact Images

Toodles...

Good Luck

This is a waaaaay quick and simple card.   AND there's some embossing involved!!  The shamrock is embossed with................"Irish Spring" embossing powder (love it!!) and the rest of the card is simple, simple, simple. Stamped the sentiment (Michael's $1-bin), added a "shamrock" border (M.S. border punch - yes, the same one used on the Fluffles Card) and did a bit o' swiping around the edges with some chalk ink.  Added some green baker's twine as a topper and your card is complete!

Shamrock stamp - Inkadinkadoo
Inks - Colorbox pigment & Chalk Ink, Memento
CS - CTMH

Toodles...

Lucky To Have You!

Yep, still posting St. Patrick's Day cards.....hmmmm, after today, I've got two more designs to share so pop back in the rest of the week!!

 

 

Not sure how much you can really see.....but I've used some of that luscious Star Dream CS & paper on these cards.  I also broke out some GOLDEN crochet thread as an accent and for some texture.  Yes, that IS a crochet shamrock.  If you saw Sunday's post, you know I found a cool shamrock pattern so of course I made shamrocks out of EVERY type of yarn I had (a bit fanatical but that's how I roll).  These were the perfect size for cards so ta-dah......here we are!

 

 

Used a scalloped circle punch for the circle AND for the ends of the dark green Star Dream panel.  I like how it turned out.  Wrapped the gold crochet thread around the panel about 4 times and then tied a knot - no fuss, no muss.

 

These are 4-bar sized cards ('cause I've got a ton of 4-bar envelopes!!) and I made some with a cream cardbase and some with a Kraft cardbase.....like them both but I think I should have used a "greener" ink (I was trying to match the dark green Star Dream CS), oh well - maybe next time!!

 

Stamp - Stampendous

Memento Ink

Mini gold brad

Marvy scallop circle punch

Corner Rounder

 

Toodles...

Lucky Fluffles

 

I'm still so hit & miss on my blogging......I do pretty well for about a week and then poof - I'm back to being lame.  So it was with my St. Patty's Day cards.  I ended up doing 5 designs and didn't get around to posting them in a timely manner........soooo I guess I'll make this a St. Patty's Day WEEK!

 

Here's Fluffles with a shamrock and hat - he looks pretty happy.....thought it would be appropriate to color him as a Ginger Tabby!!  I used an old shamrock wheel stamp for the background and a floral M.S. punch to create a field of "shamrocks".  I'm happy to say that I had all the supplies on hand so this card didn't cost me any additional $$$s.  

 

Fluffles is such a happy fellow........I think he'd make an excellent leprechaun!!

 

 

Memento Ink

Copics

Spicas

CTMH cardstock

Ribbon - Michaels

 

Toodles for now...

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2 versions of the same card.  One is on the speckled cardstock that you've been seeing a lot lately and the other card is made with green cardstock.  I'm not sure which one I like better........

 

 

Both cards were made pretty much the same - stamp by CTMH, Nestabilities scalloped square die, shamrock embossing folder (pretty sure it's Cuttlebug's), Memento ink, Copics and Stickles.  The dotted ribbon is from A Muse and the green ribbon might be Martha Stewart's (from Michaels).

 

Happy St. Patrick's Day to you all!!

Toodles...

Shamrock Garland

Green Greetings to everyone!!!

 

Here's a bit of St. Patty's Day crafting that I've been working on........a Shamrock Garland.  I've used my favorite cotton yarn, Sugar & Cream in 3 different colors.  I'm pretty pleased with how it's turned out.  The shamrocks were soooooo easy to make I ended up making quite a few so that turned into several garlands!!

 

Here are some close-ups of each colored shamrock.  I think this first one is my favorite.  It's a subtle ombre color called "Aloe Vera".

 

 

The next shamrock is a bold green called "Mod Green".........pretty traditional and the only solid yarn I used for this project.

 

The last shamrock is made from "Key Lime Pie" - Creepella's favorite!  Yarns have such fun names!!

Sorry, this photo isn't so great.....the sun was actually too bright for some of them!!  But you get the idea how the garlands look.  I'm pretty certain I found the shamrock pattern from a link on Tangled Happy. 

 

We've had corned beef & cabbage, with red potatoes and carrots - it was YUMMMM-Ooooo!!!

 

Hope you all have a Happy St. Patrick's Day - remember your GREEN!!

 

Toodles...





Buzz, Buzz, Buzzzzzzzzz

 

I look at this and think, how the heck can those teeny-tiny wings carry that big bumbling bee UP and AWAY?  Oh sure, I know it's just a stamped image but then I start thinking about airplanes and aerodynamics stuff......sigh.......it makes my head hurt so it's best that I stick to color selection and stamping!!!

Stamped this bee (Paper Smooches) onto some B&T (Surfs Up) from CTMH and added some Stickles.  Then I stamped the bee directly onto the CB because while I love fussy-cutting I am NOT going to dink around with trying to cut the antenna!!  But then I did fussy-cut the eyeballs (stamped them onto some cream cardstock) and then added a couple of smooth gemstones (Hero Arts) to the tops of the antenna for something interesting.  Some foam tape (of course, of course) oh, and stamped the "trail" and I was nearly finished. 

As for the rest of the card, a strip of B&T paper (CTMH's Buzz & Bumble) and the sentiment quote bubble (CTMH) and a little ribbon (A Muse)......and the card is done!
Other Supplies Not Mentioned:
Inks - Memento & CTMH

Abel's Gift

 

Abel always stops by for a visit during the craft fairs.  The last one was no exception.  While visiting he started fiddling with Heidi's scarf (the apple green one here).  Apparently Heidi REALLY likes her scarf - she wears it all of the time (which is good for my crochet-ego).  When she mentioned that I made it for her he was a bit shocked (which was NOT good for my crochet-ego) but then he started thinking and then asked if I could make one in "49er colors".  Welllllllll I can make one in ANY color depending upon the yarn I use.  He just GRINNED at me and wiggled his eyebrows - let me tell you, that's a look you don't soon forget!

 

Apparently Heidi caught his drift also because after he was on his merry way she asked if I would make him a scarf for his b-day if she purchased the yarn. I told her NOOOO, I could not - as I had already decided to make him a scarf as a gift and I didn't need her stinkin' money.  She took no offense, she knows me and it's our special way of communicating!!

This biggest complication?  What stitch to use?  I tried about 5 different stitches and combination of stitches and ended up with one of my favorites - the "V-Stitch".  I did switch things up a bit though - instead of crocheting from one end all the way up to the finished end, I stitched the length first and then stitched "in the round" (technically in the rectangle but you get the idea...").  I like how it turned out - of course I used my go-to scarf yarn of Home Spun and these two colors are well, red and gold.  Creepella thinks Gryffindor instead of 49ners but then again so do I (go Muggles!!). 

As long as Abel likes it, that's all that matters.  Happy, happy birthday Abel!!

Toodles...

Big Thanks

 

Looks so simple, doesn't it?  But man, oh man, what a pain in the arse to make!!  

 

 

See those pretty little sequin flowers and seed beads?  Took me FOREVER to sew them onto the card and I had 4 cards to make.....ick! 

 

And a close-up of the little "big" tag!

 

Stamps - CTMH & PTI

B&T - PTI

Ink - Memento

Tag punch - Martha Stewart

Ribbon and Sequin - Michaels

 

Tomorrow Creepella and I are off to take a fun-filled class.  If all goes well, I'll have something delightful to share sometime soon - have a great weekend!

 

Toodles...

Cake O' Flames

 

Soooo many candles.....

 

Snarky sentiment by Gina K. Designs....

 

More snarky sentiments (and boy have I used THIS set quite a bit!!)...... cake body by Hero Arts.

 

The flames are from the "Monster" set by My Cute Stamps......

B&T - CTMH
Inks - Memento
Copics
Stickles
Marvy scallop rectangle punch

Yes folks, this is what MY b-day cake looks like........it's a good thing I like sparkly things!!

Toodles...

RV There Yet?

 



Puns, Puns, Puns!!  MORE Puns!!  There can never be too many puns!!

 

And sooooo you know when I saw this new stamp set I HAD to have it and nope, I don't have an RV!!    This card is a take-off from an earlier creation with a bicycle.  After I didn't the bicycle card I knew the RV would be perfect too and probably more appealing to our customers so here it is.  

 

A little close-up of the cute little trailer thingy.  It's so cute I would consider travelling in it - as long as it has a bathroom....
 

 

 

Hmmmm, not sure if you can see the clouds?  Stamped them in "Heavenly Blue" (CTMH) and so you can barely see them but it's just what I wanted. 

 

Card is pretty straight-forward.  Some stamping, a bit of coloring and touch of foam tape and oh yessssss, I dug through my containers of wheel stamps (Stampin' Up) and found the tire tracks image (man, I've forgotten how many of them that I have....sigh.....another "new" toy - be warned, you might be seeing a lot of them in the new future).

 

Stamps - all images and sentiments by CTMH; wheel stamp from Stampin' Up

Inks - CTMH, Memento & Colorbox Chalks

Marvy scallop circle punch

CB - some speckled/confetti cardstock that I've had forever (and just found another ream of!!)

 

Toodles...

 





No TIME Like The Present

Disclaimer:  I've already made mention that I'm a fan of puns and the more horrible the better - I can't help myself and even if I could I'm not all that interested.....it's good to have a hobby.

So whilst Gail and Creepella and I were watching "Sherlock" this weekend I actually got a bit of stamping done too.  I was hoping to get more done but there was more watching than normal and well, it WAS supposed to be a marathon (and it was......it wrapped up at 2:45AM.....don't tell me we're not wild & crazy women!!)

Anyhow here's one of the cards.....been wanting to do this for ages and apparently I've just been waiting for CTMH to come out with the perfect B&T paper (and here it is - Timberline).  Love it!!  Stamped the clock on it, cut it out and then used a couple of Copics to shade some of the woodiness I was happy, happy, happy!  I stamped the image again onto cream CS and colored the clock face, 2 birdies and little decorative flower and then yessssss, cut them all out and adhered them to the "wooden" clock.  I also stamped the entire image onto the Kraft CB BEFORE running it through the Cuddlebug with Darcie's "wood" embossing folder.  Used copious amounts of foam tape to adhere the clock onto the CB so there's a bit of dimension....and of course I applied a bit of Stickles, some Spica pen, metallic ink (oil inks......gaaaah.....I absolutely LOVE the smell of oil inks!!) and a micro gem as finishing touches.  Made a handy-dandy banner (thanks once again Julie!!) and ta-dah.....the card was complete.

Not too fancy because I always envisioned this could be a manly male card so no ribbons or bows here.....the Stickles might be pushing it as it is..... 

Supplies not already mentioned:
Stamps - Hero Arts
Inks - Memento
B&T paper for banner - CTMH

Whew......well that's it for now....I'll have another card later this week - until then,

Toodles...

Sparkle Flowers

Later today (actually in just a few short hours...) Gail is coming over for a Sherlock marathon.  Yep, we plan on watching all three seasons...  I'm going to stamp for the first two seasons (I HOPE!!) and then stitch or crochet for the third season.  I'm looking forward to it...a lot.  AND hopefully I'll have a few cards to post next week!

 

But for now, here's some sparkly-ness for you...



 

 

Flower stamps and dies are from PTI, the leaf die is from Paper Smooches, the sentiment is from Hero Arts (an oldie too!), trusty Swiss Dots embossing folder and great-looking (IRL) Kraft CS.  Of course there's a ton of Stickles on the flowers but I like it!

 

Once you have all the pieces ready the cards come together pretty quickly.  I love to have piles of card pieces on my desk...all of those wonderful colors just waiting to be selected.  Not sure if you can see it but I also used some foam tape on a couple of the flowers: on the center of the yellow flower and for the entire orange flower.  I think it gives the card some dimension and you can still mail it without a "bulk" problem.

 

Kraft & Colored CS - CTMH

Inks - Memento

Corner Rounder - Marvy

 

Toodles for now...