Wishing You A Cozy Day

Are you a pet lover?  Do you love dogs, or cats, or maybe another type of exotic pet?  Well, I was asked to make a birthday card for a young woman who loves cats.  I was asked to incorporate a cat and the color purple as it is Chelsea's favorite color.  Let me show you what I came up with!

Supplies:
Stamps: Simon Says Stamp
Paper: Gina K Designs, Bo Bunny
Ink: Hero Arts, Memento Black
Misc: Scallop Punch

I really love the stamp set Pillow Talk by Simon Says Stamp, as it incorporates images perfect for the dog or cat lover.  This stamp set was a birthday gift to me from my friend Mariola and I get a ton of use from it as there are so many wonderful pet lovers out there.

I used to have a cat named Emily who loved to crawl onto my pillow just like this cat.  It makes me smile to remember her when I stamp these images. Emily, sadly, is no longer with me, but maybe someday I will have another furry friend in my family.

What about you?  Do you have a pet?

Until next time!

Fountain Pen Lover Birthday Card

Many of you know that I have a love of fountain pens, and use them to write to many pen pals.  I found out this week that one of my newest pen pals is celebrating a birthday this week, one day after mine.  I decided I wanted to make her a fountain pen themed card and had a fun time sorting through my stamps to come up with this card!

Supplies:
Stamps: Scrappy Happiness, Hero Arts, Picture Show
Ink: Archival Inks, Distress Markers
Paper: Gina K Designs
Misc.: Simon Says Stamp Curve Die, White Gel Pen, Spritzer Tool

I love when I can sift through my large collection of stamps and put various companies together on one card.

As a lover of fountain pens, I am accustom to random splatters of ink drops, and think it was a fun addition to the card.  I love the handwritten look of the sentiment by Scrappy Happiness.

I have a new fountain pen on my table today.  An early birthday gift to myself!  It is a Namiki Falcon that I have been wanting for a while, and hope to use it for some flex writing.  It is my first gold-nibbed pen, so it is rather exciting for me.

Wishing Emma a very Happy Birthday!

Until next time!

Keep Calm And Turn 29 Again (and again)

As many of you know, I am a big fan of the Blueprint Stamps by Tim Holtz for Stampers Anonymous.  For today's card, I used the balloon image and stamped a fun sentiment inside the balloon for someone who is having a birthday, but has stopped counting the years!  The sentiment is by Technique Tuesday.

I thought the use of the twine for the string was a nice little touch, and I distressed the edge of the paper and added some Distress Ink.

This is a simple card, and it got a lot of chuckles from the recipient!

Until next time!

Elvis - The Lamp

Many people are fans of the late Elvis Presley.  I have friends in that camp and so I have a large collection of Elvis stamps.  I was asked to make a birthday card for a friend's daughter for her birthday. I knew she is an Elvis fan (she even named her son Elvis), so I decided to make her a personalized Elvis card.  Lots of people love campy, or quirky, collectibles, and I remembered I had a Elvis lamp stamp that I thought would be fun for her as she has a great sense of humor.

Supplies:
Stamps: Viva Las Vegas, A Muse Artstamps
Paper: White Deckled Card, Gina K Designs
Ink: Memento Black, Archival Black
Misc.: Copics, Wink of Stella, Tim Holtz Index Labels, Memory Box Die

Elvis was known for this costumes and so I decided to add Wink of Stella shine to his jumpsuit stars for a bling effect.

This was a lot of fun for me to make.  I love it when I can make an unusual card that will bring a smile to someone.

Until next time!

Happy 40th Birthday (Masculine Handyman Theme)

One of my favorite parts about card making is the ability to customize a card for someone by using their hobbies, profession or even their favorite colors.  My friend Christine asked me to make a card for a special uncle's 40th birthday.  The info I was given was that he is a very handy person, and is always the first to lend a hand on house projects and is great with tools.  This is the card I came up with:

Supplies:
Paper: Core-dinations, Ten Seconds Studio Metal Sheet
Ink: Distress Ink (Barn Door)
Misc.: Tim Holtz Alterations Rulers Embossing Folder, Bringing Crafts to You Embossing Folder
Tim Holtz Sanding Tool, Silver Cord

I used the Rulers embossing folder for the background as every handyman I know has a tape measure and/or a ruler close at hand and used my sanding tool over it to show the core in the paper.  I thought it would be fun to highlight the "40" in the folder with Distress Ink as a way to include his age in a different way.  I used the sanding block over the metal sheet to give the tools a metallic look.

Christine was very happy with it, and I am looking forward to hearing back from her after she gives it to her uncle.

Wishing you a great weekend ahead!  I am hoping that spring will show itself a bit and it will be warm enough to get outside a bit in my yard to assess what will need to be done after this hard winter!

Until next time!

Saying Happy Birthday With a Handmade iPhone Card

How many of us LOVE our iPhone (or other smart phones)?  I know I do!  I was a holdout and decided to get one recently and find I use it a lot!  Surfing, emailing, podcasts and tweeting are at my fingertips. So, when I won the Hashtag stamp set last week, I thought it would be fun to make an iPhone card and stamp the greetings on it.

Here is my handmade iPhone card.  I used glossy black card stock as the base and cut it down and rounded the corners to help it resemble my phone.  I used white and blue card stock to decorate it.  A white gel pen was used to do the doodling along the top.

How fun is this?  I plan to give it to a special person whose birthday is coming up soon. She never seems to put her phone down!  The possibilities are endless with the sentiments in that stamp set!  The black glossy card stock has a white back so it is perfect to be able to write a personal message to the recipient.

Off to get my fingers inky! Hope you find time to do something you love!

Happy Birthday, Mario Rossi!

Hi, guys! Hope all is well!  I thought I would share a birthday card I made for Mario Rossi for his birthday.  I enjoy his BTS (Behind the Scenes) on Facebook where he shares what Tim Holtz is working on. It could be projects, or new products, or even Mario's homemade pizza (that always makes me hungry when I see it!).   He works so hard year-round, and shares so much of his time and humor with all of us.  If you follow Tim and Mario, you would know they love Starbucks.  So I decided to make my card using a coffee theme.

Supplies:
Stamps: Stampin' Up, Crafty Secrets
Paper: Desert Storm, Tim Holtz French Industrial
Ink: Distress Inks, Distress Markers, Archival Black
Misc.: Spellbinder Deckle Rectangle Die, Tim Holtz Label Letters

This is the envelope I decorated.  I love the Simon Says Stamp Envelope set.

Wishing Mario a very Happy Birthday!  Thanks so much for all you do!

Until next time!

Birthday Butterfly Wishes

Hi, guys! Hope all is well!  Today I am sharing a birthday card with a butterfly theme for a friend to give. She is giving a gift of a set of my cards in a butterfly box, so I thought this card would go lovely with the packaging.   This card front is watercolor paper stamped with Distress Inks and Archival Ink.  The key to this card is to stamp with archival ink directly on the embossing folder and then run it through your machine. Then you can go as wild as you want with the Distress Inks as that really makes the embossing pop!

Supplies:

Stamps: Stampers Anonymous

Paper: Watercolor, Ginka K Designs

Ink: Distress Inks, Archival Ink

Misc.: Cuttlebug Folder, Ribbon

I had very inky fingers when I was finished with this card! But I feel it was worth it!

Have a great day!  Hope you find a few moments in your day to do something you love!

WOYWW 195 (Messy Distress Fun)

Hi, guys! Today is Wednesday, so I am sharing with you what is on my work desk. Thank you to Julia for this fun!  I am working on a birthday card for my husband's boss.  I decided to use Distress Stains and white embossing powder. I had some white fabric flowers in my stash and I decided to stain one to match.  It is a lot of fun, and my hands got plenty inky!

I look forward to visiting with you each Wednesday and sharing in the fun.   If you want to share what you are working on, please join in the fun at:http://stamping-ground.blogspot.com/

Hope you have a fun, creative day ahead!

Happy Birthday, Tim Holtz!

Hi, guys!  Hope all is well!  I wanted to share a birthday card I made and sent to Tim Holtz.  As many of you know, I am a big fan of his.  I made this card using a few of Tim's techniques from both of his books (Compendium of Curiosities Vol. I and II).  I can't recommend these books highly enough as they are really great reference and inspirational books.

It is really fun to be able to just create something for the joy and love of creating and no pressing deadlines etc.

Supplies:
Stamps: Stampers Anonymous, Verve
Ink: Alcohol Inks, Archival Black, Distress Inks,Alcohol Blending Solution
Paper: Gina K Designs, Glossy White
Misc.: Tim Holtz Fragment, Brads, Tim Holtz Tinsel, Tim Holtz Embossing Folder

I just adore alcohol inks and how fun they are to blend. I don't find myself using them often lately and must remember to use them more.

Wishing Tim Holtz a very Happy Birthday and may the joy he brings to others through his sharing of his talents be his in the coming year!

Until next time!

Happy 87th Birthday, Cal!

Hi, guys! Hope all is well!  Today I will be sharing a card I made for my father-in-law Cal for his 87th birthday.  I decided to emboss the front using the Tim Holtz Alterations embossing folder. I used Core-dinations Kraft cardstock (new to me) and sanded it to reveal the kraft center.  Remember those Scrabble Tiles I have been saving? Well, they found a home on this card.  I used Distress Stains to color the ribbon and age the appearance of it.

Supplies:
Paper: Recollections Kraft Note Card, Core-dinations (Kraft Core)
Ink: Distress Ink (Vintage Photo), Distress Stain (Vintage Photo)
Misc.: Mini Scrabble Tiles, Tim Holtz Gears, Tim Holtz Ribbon, Tim Holtz Alterations Pocket Watch Embossing Folder

For the sentiment inside the card, I used a stamp by Sweet 'n Sassy that reads: Your Influence In My Life is Timeless.  Perfect to use with pocket watches, I think.

Wishing Cal a very happy birthday!

Hope you have a great day and find a few moments in the day to do something you love!

Creating with Duck Brand Tape

Hi guys! I received a sheet of Duck brand tape while at the BlogHer'12 conference over the weekend. It had a tie-dyed look to it.  I wasn't sure what to do with it, so I decided to use it to make a birthday card for a special friend.  I took a piece of the tape and applied it to a piece of white card stock and ran it through my Vagabond machine to cut out flower shapes, using a steel rule die to cut through it, then stamped a stem sentiment and made leaves out of circle punches. The center of the flower was attached with pop dots to add a bit of dimension to it.

Supplies:
Stamps: Stampin' Up
Paper: Stampin' Up
Ink: Stampin' Up
Misc.: Duck Brand Tape, Circle Punch, Alterations Tattered Floral Die, Ribbon

I can't wait for our friend to receive it.  I know it will be the first birthday card made with Duck Tape that she will have received!  I know it was the first one I have ever made. 

Hope you have a great day, and spend some time doing something you love!

My Art Statement and Birthday Celebrations

Hi, guys!  Hope everyone is doing well.  I have been very busy these past few days "making merry" to celebrate my birthday.  I have been away a few days visiting my parents in the Catskills for the weekend.  We had a great time, and I got to spend quality time with my parents.  I even was able to have my mom teach me to make her fabulous spaghetti gravy and meatballs.  This is something I have been waiting to learn from her for many years.  Mom has cooked for our large family for many years but is a "by feel" kind of cook so she could never give me "the recipe," so with pad and pen in hand, I watched her and took detailed notes.  Can't wait to give it a try.   I will share the recipe sometime.  I first have to measure out the ingredients as she doesn't measure.  

Before my trip upstate, I went to dinner with my two sisters and had a great time with them and a girlfriend.  After dinner my nephew Christopher (age 12) presented me the greatest gift.  He wrote a poem for school that I LOVED about his art.  It really spoke to me when I read it, and so he framed it and decorated it for my new stamp room.  I think everyone should feel free with their art and create for the joy of it. This is something I will treasure always!

Last, but not least, I thought I would share a card my hubby made for me!  He is not a crafter, or a stamper, so it is extra special to me.  He worked on it on the sly when I was not around.  You see that the age is crossed out and then written in?  Well, it is because I was thinking I was turning 45 for most of the year; I just realized I was turning 46 a couple of months ago.  I can't believe I forgot a year!  My husband thought that was hysterical and so he had to incorporate that in the card.

Stamps: Crafty Secrets
Paper: Stampin' Up

I look forward to finding some crafty time this week and I will be sharing some cards with you soon!

Have a great night!

I Think The World of You!

Hi, guys!  Hope you are all doing well.  I am looking forward to the weekend and am hoping that Friday zips along pretty quickly!  I thought I would share a card I made for my friend Erich's birthday.  He is such a great guy and so supportive of my crafting and card making.  He is one of my biggest fans and I am glad to call him friend.

Supplies:
Stamps: Stampendous Clear Stamps
Paper: Gina K Designs
Ink: Memento Black, Colorbox White,  Copics
Misc.: Adirondack Paint Dabber Silver, Glitter Pen, Tag Punches, Twine

This card was fun to make.  I really enjoyed making the moon with the paint dabber.  When it is heated it gets all crater-like on its own, and I think it was a cool effect.  The stars are made with a glitter pen.  The rockets were stamped and colored, and then cut out.  I am not one for fussy cutting, but it was worth it.

I am wishing Erich a very happy birthday, and all of you a great weekend!! Go do something fun!

Masculine Birthday Card Using Metal

Hi, guys!  Hope all is well.  I thought I would share a card I made for a friend whose son is turning 19. Austin is a great guy and I have had the privilege of watching him grow from a sweet boy to a fine young man.   I decided to use metal in this card and to emboss it with letter print, as I understand he is enjoying writing now.  I then sanded the metal to age it and really show the embossing.  The edges were distressed with a distress tool, and Picket Fence Distress stain was used around the edges.  If you haven't worked with this Ten Seconds Studio metal before, I would recommend it.  It comes in great colors and is so fun to use.

Supplies:
Paper: Gina K Designs, Ten Seconds Studio Metal Sheet
Ink: Black Shoot Distress Ink, Picket Fence Distress Stain
Misc: Spellbinders Label, Twine, Tim Holtz Safety Pins, Black Gems, Distress Tool, Cuttlebug Embossing Plate

I hope Austin had a fun-filled birthday!

Have a great day!  I hope you find a few moments in your day to do something you love!