Papertrey Ink Songbirds

Howdy there! I am spending a few days with our daughters and a friend relaxing at our mountain condo. Just before Christmas I took a Craftsy class with Laura Bassen on adding texture to your cards. I used Papertrey Ink's Songbirds stamp to create these. The first one I was just experimenting with the stamp and used the sentiment banner to create a thank you note.
The second one was created after taking the class which gave me some new to me ideas. I love doing online classes because it is go at your own pace, and you are given a glimpse into the instructor's creative process. It also helps me to use supplies like vellum paper, designer paper and diecuts. I was so tickled with second card as it wasn't an outcome I would have had on my own.
Thanks so much for your visit. Blessings on your day!

Power Poppy Wreaths

Hi there friends! I have a couple more Christmas cards to share before the year is over. This one features Power Poppy's stamp, "Wreaths Plain and Fancy." I wanted to venture out to blues and golds for this long and skinny card. The gold is a glittery  cardstock and the blue is a natural fiber paper. I decided this year to use my pretties that I  store up year round, and to give away as many of my cards as I possibly could.
Speaking of, my kind husband did the annual post office trip for me. I had ordered some white padded envelopes in bulk online. They were just slightly larger than an A 2 card. He brought one envelope back with a variety of stamps totaling around 2.75 because it did not have the correct zip code. He told me they were all charged that much postage.
Which means I was very irritated...and I'll have to work harder at flat cards for mailing unless it's a birthday, I couldn't believe that was how much itcost...especially after spending so much time on a card and purchasing the envelopes and then the trip to the mailbox.
However, I Do like this card and hope the recipient did as well. Thanks for popping in.
I am see now why stampers resort to one layer cards.

Power and Spark~Sweet Treats Challenge!

Oh, I was really hoping I could find time to participate in this month's Power and Spark Challenge hosted by the talented Christine, "Sweet Treats!"
It's the morning after Christmas and I wanted to share a card "from the heart," when I was feeling quite nostalgic about Santa and the letters our girls would write, even though for the most part, they knew it was "pretend." I wanted to write my own letter...and I did...it was short, obviously...written on some designer paper. I thought this would be a cute card to leave for Santa with his own treats on Christmas Eve. Thanks for popping in and hope you and your family had a very blessed Christmas!

Ho~Ho~Go!! Power Poppy Action Santa!

Hi friends...hope you're not feeling too frenzied or rushed right now. Every year I try to make a card for both of our daughters. Sometimes it is cute, or a fun shaker card, defininitely something a bit more special than the generic card.
When I saw the "Action Santa" Marcella Hawley designed for this year's Power Poppy Christmas release...I immediately thought of our youngest daughter who is always on the go and has wanted a Vespa scooter for awhile now. Not that we're getting her one...Ha! But she likes to get around...and boy does she! She has traveled  more countries than I ever will...and has spent 6 months in Singapore/China/Thailand and other areas with her career. And she has no fear. Anyway...as a Mom I say a lot of prayers on her behalf. I know God honors our prayers and I am so thankful I can lift up others to Christ when I am anxious or concerned and those I love are too far away to be of any help.
So isn't this the cutest?

This is Erin and her puppy, Walter taken last winter. He is too big to carry now...but the sweetest large animal I have ever known. Besides my dog.
So my card is for her:

She likes plaid (as seen in her vest above.) So I thought this festive Christmas red plaid was a good backdrop...then a blue with embossed snowflakes, topped with the Santa image. A Spellbinders dainty snowflake in Shimmer white and a red sparklette are the embellishments.

Here's a little close-up of Santa:

I will admit, this took me a long time to color. I am not fast by any means...but I am getting better over the years and Power Poppy images are my favorite to color because of the exquisite detail and vintage feel to so many of the images.

Thank you so much for indulging me another card and hope you have a wonderful day!

Not your Spring Chick-a-Dee~

We have regular visitors at our bird feeder and bath all season long...the sweet and chirpy Chickadees! This year I've noticed the bird bath freezing over and less and less visitors at the feeder which prompted me to ask for a heated bird bath for Christmas! Wouldn't that be fun to see the birds up close on our deck?
I was able to snap a photo of a chickadee  at our mountain condo last winter. A bit shadowed, it is hard to get a picture up close. They are a little bit shy.

I almost forgot about my card. I used a design very similar to my friend,  Grace Nyweing's , (at Th-inking-of-You, that she shared quite awhile ago...I had the same stamp (I think) and was inspired to use it in a Christmas card.

The image is colored in copic markers and I use a multiliner to add a bit of black to the eyes. The evergreen and pine cone are Spellbinder die cuts and a branch punch with diamond stickles added. I used a retired Stampin Up paper pack. A pretty double loop bow and my, this Chickadee is looking pretty festive. The sentiment is Papertrey Ink.

Thanks so much for your visit. I love hearing from you and knowing you were here. Wishing you blessings as you prepare your heart for Advent and this wonderful Christmas season anticipating the birth of our Lord and  Savior, Jesus! 

Christmas Card for Dad~Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge

I love making Christmas cards. I do...and I probably spend too much time on it...but I like making miniature works of art, or if art doesn't qualify...at least it's from the heart. But every year, I still make my annual trip to Hallmark and get a big beautiful card for my Dad as I know how much it means to him...and making a card never seems like it's enough.
But this year I was inspired by Simon Says Wednesday Challenge.

I haven't participated in this particular challenge before, but I do love the Simon Says Stamp store and am always inspired by their designers. The first image reminded me of a deer stamp I've had for a few years (now retired)...and the card grew from there. Even though it is very feminine...it is from me to my Dad and I hope he will enjoy it.

The image was stamped on shimmery cream paper in Gold Encore ink which gives it such an ethereal dreamy effect. I had some Stampin Up paper pack with the music and lyrics from "Silent Night" which was used on the background. I added a scalloped note card background, offsetting the scallops (die from PTI), then added the Prima Poinsettia and some cream crochet lace. 

Thank you for looking and hope you were a bit inspired today! 

I am sharing this card on a wonderful blog, WordArtWednesday too! Blessings.

Snowman Sparkling Season

The month of December is here...and as usual, I've been stamping my Christmas cards one by one...never in a hurry and always delighting in the details! Every year I get caught up in the magic and feel like a little stamping elf in my own little cubby creating with pretty papers, glitter, and the occasional jingle bell or two. I love to make ornaments with scripture verses and have been working on a few special ones which I will share soon.
But for today, I have a sweet snowman with cardinal from Darcie's. I created a snow bank, added some German glitter to the base before realizing it was real glass...so handle with care!! I had a lot of fun making this card...the inside sentiment reads, "You add a little sparkle to the holiday season."
I joined our daughters in Denver Saturday for a relaxing afternoon of wandering through a little neighborhood market fair, dinner out at a quaint Italian restaurant, and then a walk through the Denver Botanical Gardens which was all lit up at night. Just beautiful!

Thanks so much for popping in. Have a wonderful, blessed week!

Give Thanks With a Grateful Heart

Hi stamping friends! It is just 2 days short of a week before Thanksgiving! We were 80 degrees last Monday, then Tuesday our first snow of the year came and the trees were covered in the frosty white stuff! I did not get a picture...instead I was out doing a little early Christmas shopping for my Operation Shoebox!  I had some time this week to make a batch of four of these cards using the stamp from Papertrey Ink, "Give Thanks."  It was one of those times when the background paper just made the card...golds and russets and a little purple shade in the die cut wheat stalks! And the font on this is so beautiful, you don't need much embellishment! I did use a bit of Wink of Stella on the wheat stalks, die cut and popped up, and shaded the acorns with a copic marker. 

I am so thankful to the Lord for my family, friends, my country, my dear husband, my sweet dog , Beulah,who is beginning to heal up from her knee surgery 2 months ago...and of course, you! God has blessed me indeed...and even in those times when we are undergoing trials and difficult losses, especially then, He is near me and his words of comfort and blessing are whispered back to me in my prayers. He is working out His sovereign plan in a world that desperately needs Him...aren't you glad that we have a God that is in control, does not sleep or slumber, and knows the hairs on our head? Thank you so much for your visit, kind comments, and wishing you a very special Thanksgiving!

You are a Blessing!

Hi friends! I recently had the opportunity to make a card to thank someone for being a blessing in my life. Actually, I made three of these using the "Turning a New Leaf" stamp set from Papertrey Ink. I had fun playing with color combinations and finally settled on these two inks, shadow stamping to get two variances with both the green and the purple. I scored the main panel and will send them off...easy to mail and simple yet pretty design.

I find in life it is in the giving of thanks and recognizing the blessing others are to us that we are able to perceive the abundance of God's goodness to us.

Think Pink!!~November Power and Spark Challenge

Hello, fellow stamping friends! This month's challenge on my favorite stamping blog, Power Poppy, is hosted by Tosha Leyendekker to "Think Pink!" It is slightly humorous that I've been on a pink stamping spree lately...especially with Christmas cards...well, who am I kidding?? Pink is my go to stamping color!! But for the life of me, when I saw this challenge...I couldn't figure out what to do! I credit it to being emotionally tired and perusing through stacks of  Christmas themed designer paper in search of pink.  I found this old single sheet (old but oh so pretty) by Basic Grey I think...and used it as my starting point. There isn't a lot of detail in my card but if you could fast forward a video of it in the making process...well, it would be a "comedy of errors," I am sure. It just did not come together easily. In the final product, I used one sheet of pink and burgundy poinsettia paper with burgundy embossing powder for the main image, a pretty floral embossing folder that mimic the poinsettia paper on a pink stripe, and some pretty silver vintage tinsel from Tim Holtz. The scalloped base is a die from Papertrey Ink that I love and use often! And that's it. Whew!!

 This darling image is from a retired set, "Sweets of the Season." The sentiment was too long to fit horizontally on my card, so I finally took my scissors and cut the sentiment in half, then layered it on the top and the bottom of the focal point, using my fingers to form an arched curve to hug the sentiment.  I have never done that before...but I am happy to say I did and it worked!!
Now that I've accomplished this one card...my mind is back in gear and I am going to attempt more pink in the form of gift cards for Christmas.
Thanks so much for your visit!!

Cozy Cardinals

Hi there, crafty friends! I am popping in for a brief interlude between family obligations. My dear Father-in-law took flight to be with the Lord. His services are tonight in Denver and all day tomorrow. I wanted to take a breather from the heaviness to lift my spirits with these sweet cardinals.
Stacy Morgan hosts a Dirty Dozen Christmas challenge monthly, so wanted to play along for the month of October!
I love this sweet image from "Cozy Cupfuls" by Power Poppy! I used a herringbone patterned paper in reds and greens, framed out with scalloped white.

The coloring was done with copic markers and highlighted with a white prisma pencil. They eyes were done with a very fine micron black pen and highlighted with a white gel pen. The bowls have a bit of glaze to give them a more authentic look.Red satin ribbon was added and two Webster Sparklets on the sentiment tag.

Wishing you blessings on your day!

Power and Spark Challenge~Make it Move!

Leaves are swirling, unfurling...glorious shades of golds and purples, just outside my window...and I am sharing my first Christmas card of the season!! I will get back to Fall creations...maybe...but I wanted to participate in the oh-so-fun Power Poppy October challenge to Make it Move!!
Allison Cope is this month's hostess; and she challenged us to create a card that moves in some way! So I chose to make a Shaker card with little snowflakes, German glass glitters, and bright pink sparkly sequins to go along with this sweet vintage Christmas Tree in a Teacup from last year's release by the ever so talented, Marcella!!

My photo had a tiny bit of sunshine on the card which has a bit of glare, but also shows the little filler at the bottom of the Shaker card window...I took a tip from Jennifer McGuire and glued some of the tiny snowflake shaped sequins to the scene so that there are a few sparkles before shaking and it looks so pretty! I rarely make these type of cards, so had to look up several tutorials...they do make for a really special keepsake and I will probably give this one to one of our daughters. The card is 5 1/2 inch squared. The designer paper is one of my very favorite oldies from a Stampin' Up Designer pack with some Bazill background pink. I had so much fun making this card!! Can't wait for this year's Christmas release which actually starts today!! 

And here is a little close-up! This scene is so easy to color up with just an assortment of green flicks of copic markers and a few others. Not intimidating at all! 

Thanks for dropping in...have a Blessed Day!!

Prairie Cheer

We've had beautiful Fall weather the past two to three weeks here in Colorado! My husband and I have had to take a break from travel for awhile as our three year old Golden Retriever had to have knee surgery on very short (one day) notice. I will write about that in a future blog post.
Meanwhile...since I'm sticking pretty close to home for the next few weeks...I'll be sharing more of my cards.

Here is one I made recently using one of this Fall's newest Power Poppy's Prairie Cheer floral! I love the ease of coloring these blooms...especially when stamped and white embossed on Kraft card stock. I used Prisma pencils and tried to match my background paper which is a very old Basic Grey and the stamp and paper seemed to suit each other. I used a pretty berry paper for the solid color, some twine and this country bouquet seemed to call for a button!
Thanks so much for popping in and viewing my card creations. I certainly appreciate your visit and love to read your comments and questions! Have a blessed day!
I'm entering this in a new challenge blog:
The Flower Challenge
and Word Art Wednesday

Painting Outside the Lines~Power and Sparklette Week 3 Challenge

Hey there, and thanks for stopping by! I had the need for some creative inking; if you know what I mean. I spent a few days just mulling over Marcella's Power Poppy Challenge and after a few swirling ideas; set on this one...water coloring outside the lines! 

I just received this set in the mail not long ago..."Sunny Harvest," and used my Kuretake Gansai Tambi water colors for this. I spent more time on the outside shading and filling in color than the actual image...the colors gave the card a very warm glow which is what I was hoping for. I embossed the image with gold detailed embossing powder and layered shading on the Chinese Lantern blossoms. The little buds didn't receive as much detail...I just added varying shades and later realized those were maybe leaves on the side...not sure...so this is an "artistic rendition" which means me just playing around with color. I added a little white signo gel pen for highlights on the smaller buds. Certainly not perfect...but I still like the result. I stamped the setiment in Versafine Sepia which actually appears a little darker on the card than this photo indicates...but still keeping with the glowing look of perhaps candlelight and parchment?   A few gold sequins were added for some sparkle. I enjoyed this challenge and thank you for your kind comments! Blessings on your day!

Walk among the Aspens in Colorado

                                             Beginning of Autumn Walk near Fish Creek

Grateful for You!

Hi and Happy almost Fall...stamping and blogging friends!
I just wanted to share one more Fall inspired gratitude card before I forget. I took an online class last Fall from a few Stampin' Up demonstrators. One of them was Connie Collins and I don't recall the other's name. They had to discontinue the class as it was too time consuming for them...but I received some beautiful kits and online instruction. I came across this one and had to share before I mail it out.
It used reinkers, gold encore ink, and gold embossing powder on the leaves. The set I used

 was Stampin' Up's "For All Things."  The card has a lot of depth and pretty shimmer. Gold mirror card stock framing against the black provided a dramatic feel. Gold encore ink was touched to the tops of the embossed background panel to highlight.  A pretty glass button with the twine added some feminine with rustic feel. I apologize for the photo being a bit dark...it didn't look that way initially when I checked my computer.
 Constantly Stamping is Connie Collin's blog...and you can find her on my sidebar.
Thanks for peeking in...hope you leave with a bit of stamping inspiration.

"And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."~Colossians 3:15

Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater~

I'm back with another Copy, Steal Inspire challenge with Power Poppy's Power and Spark!
I received my newest PP stamp set, "Feeling Fall," this week and was so taken with these stamps and the Bloom Brigade's monthly inspiration that I had to pay one more tribute. The challenge was to go back into the archives for inspiration from anywhere in blog land, SCS, etc...but I didn't have to go far. If I had more time...I'd probably do more...as I love the thought of copying pretty cards!!
I hope it is okay that I pretty much copied Katie Sim's from Inky Peach Designs  here. I fell in love with the warmth of the color on the images and the sentiment with the striated color. Katie excels at warmth, both in her card making and just reading her blog, it's easy to feel a connection with her friendly conversation.
I added a different topper, striped big bow and a huge button that makes this card a bit top-heavy so I had to take it's picture lying flat for the best photo.

I did go back and add some pretty glitter to the pumpkins and berries, but forgot to take another photo. I hope I did Katie's card justice and am so thankful for the opportunity to Case one of my favorite artists! Honestly, if I had time, I would attempt to Case all of them...so much beauty and talent out there in Power Poppy land!
Thanks for stopping in...now let the cooler weather begin!!

Welly Welly Love my Wellies!!

It's almost Fall and I am pretty excited about that! And to initiate the season...I purchased two of Power Poppy's new release stamps!! This month the challenge is to Copy, Steal, and Inspire! Find a card using Power Poppy images and Copy...adding a change or two to make it your own.
Okay, so I have a confession. I fell in love with Christine's card here. And since I have no imagination but a keen eye for beauty...I pretty much copied it. That plaid confused me just a little...I couldn't figure out how to color it...so I pretty much followed Christine's colors. And first I played around with making my own plaid paper using copic markers. That was weely fun...but time consuming. Here is my version:

And here is a close up of the fun plaid I made using Christine's color suggestions. I did not have the same copic marker colors...but that just goes to show you can achieve the same look with different color markers.

Which looks pretty much like Christine's color wise, sketch wise...only of course, not as good. The main difference was I added a red glossy button and some red and white twine...my blue panel is smaller...little things. But it gave me a visual start. So then I decided to branch out a little more and try the stamp with more Fallish colors and this is the end result:

I found a really cool mottled brown button and some pretty orange polka dot paper for the leaf. And here is the inside:

Using that sentiment just makes me giggle. I was making the second card late into the night...and did mess up a bit on my plaid ...but I made my own and am pretty happy with the outcome. This was done in teal blues, browns, and a bright yellow/orange.
Thanks to Christine for showing us how it's done!!
And thanks to Power Poppy for the fun challenge and of course, Marcella for the wonderfully detailed stamps that makes anyone look like an artist!!
Thanks for stopping by. Hope you're doing "welly welly well!! "

Go Forward in Life~

Just popping in with a fun bit of inspiration for your heart today. This phrase is one of my favorites from Papertrey Ink. I combined it with a cute floral bloom from a Faith Illustrated Bible Journal Kit from Dayspring. I love the flower outline. I actually added some background ink flecks and I don't know if you can see it...but there is also a tiny row of hearts under the sentiment. Sorry...so subtle...and some flourishes and pink rhinestones. This has already been mailed out to one of our daughters. I'm working on mailing cards this week...and adding them here. A sweet pick me up card, I hope.

 

Be Blessed!

End of Summer Card Trio

Welcome back to my little piece of bliss in Blog Land!! I am sorry I've been remiss in posting lately...a lot going on here! But I need to catch up with my card creations and share a few here with you.
I actually love how this trio turned out. The stamp is one I recently purchased from Hero Arts named "Flowers on a Stem." The subtle text background was created with Papertrey Ink's TextStyles, and the pattern from SU! Gorgeous Grunge.
Nothing makes me happier than simple stamping...this technique is an oldie but goodie...inking your stamp then misting it lightly before applying to the paper. Kind of mimics water coloring with less effort. The text and pattern were applied afterward. I used 3 ink combos which I didn't write down...do you have a favorite?
And finally...a butterfly in striped vellum to add to the airiness of each card.

Lavender and purple 

Coral and Blush with rhinestone centers

Aqua and Lavender with vellum butterfly

 These are all easy to mail and fairly flat except for the tiny rhinestones. The text and pattern give it the appearance of more layers...and create visual interest. I just stamped a simple "Happy Birthday" inside so now I have a few pretty cards ready for mail.
Thanks so much for popping in...wishing you many blessings on your day!!

PTI Stampafaire2016~Watercolor like a Master~

My last card for this year's Stampafaire with Papertrey Ink!!
Whew...I had a lot of fun and intense stamping...thank you to the team inspiration!
Kay Miller showed a wonderful watercolor technique using stamped images brushed with water.
I pretty much copied her card creation...because...hey it was beautiful and 10:00 pm and my brain was a little tired. I added a strip of the water colored paper to "underline" the sentiment and was pretty glad to change one thing~ha!

Such a lovely technique and one of the easiest water coloring I have ever attempted. I will definitely be trying this again!!
Thank you for looking and your kind comments always appreciated!

PTI Stampafaire2016~Masterpiece Inspiration ~

Hi there friends!
The PTI team each submitted a different artistic challenge using a popular artist's style or technique. I was drawn to Betsy Veldman's artist, Ralph Huett. You can read more about it on the PTI website.
Here is his Christmas card. I think I've been out of the loop because I'm not sure I've ever seen one of his cards...but I was really drawn to his pink sky and shadowing.

His card is on the left and Betsy Veldman's masterful inspired card on the right.  

Mine turned out looking a bit more Haloween-ish than Christmas-y...maybe too many shadows or just plain spooky...but I had fun with this technique! And I reached for some long ignored stamps...the PTI sleigh silhouette was used along with some cute houses from Stampin' Up. 

I actually hand lettered this...which didn't show up as well as I would have liked...but it's definitely "artsy" for me.

Thanks for taking a peek! 

PTI Stampafaire2016~Floral Impressionism

Just a quick post for my card submission to Melissa's Phillip's beautiful tutorial on creating a card using Floral Impressionism.
Thank you for your visit!