Cup of Thanks~

It's Monday and the Flourishes Timeless Tuesday challenge from last week is due in a couple of hours...so here are two of my entries using their Lots of Polk Dots Challenge! I made two cards from my new in the mail set, "Grab a Cup." Like many of you, I love my morning coffee, and thought this set was darling with the pretty added daisies. Thanks for stopping in, wish I could offer you a cup in person and we could sit and have a nice long chat!

I used a pretty spellbinders die to frame this out, cut out the main image and made my own little plaid napkin using ink and a blender pen. I used dots in the designer paper, both the top and the bottom with the big doilies.

I used the same polka dots with the designer paper, and tried using my copics to make dots in my tea, but then realized that tea doesn't usually look mottled like that, and if it were coffee, it would most likely be grounds, and then, why would there be a lemon on the side of my coffee cup? Oh well, the good thing about stamping is it is all "pretend" and you can make things any way you want them to be. I loved playing with this set and hope you enjoy the final outcome!

Puppy Love and Roses Rolled into One!

I have always loved Valentine's Day and enjoy giving my friends and family hand stamped cards. This little cutie puppy image is from a set "There She Goes." I spent the weekend getting out my Big Shot for the very first time and trying out some of my Mini Rolled Rose dies and felt. I mean I spent the weekend...literally. My fingers just couldn't seem to get the hang of the rolling and keeping the rose from unraveling or rolling the right way, and then gluing down the bunched felt before it had a chance to come apart. I ended up with a small baggie of roses in pink, chocolate brown, and aqua blue to show for my efforts. I just look at that bag and smile, knowing I will now have a few stashed reserve roses on hand when I need one. So this single rose is a star on my Valentine today!
I am entering this week's Crazy 4 Challenges 220 to make a Valentine using the colors pink, chocolate, cream and aqua!
Just curious, who do you send Valentine's cards to? Thanks for coming by...I am staying warm and dry inside stamping today...it looks like a blizzard outside!

Beulah at Six Months!

Hi there, puppy loving friends! Our daughter got this cute camera shot over the Christmas holidays at our condo in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. You can see our newly renovated kitchen in the background, and this is one of my favorite expressions of our Beulah-girl...curious and playful. I also love this photo of Tom holding her. She is almost getting too big to sit in our laps now...as my husband likes to tell me, "Our little girl is growing up..." And right now she is recovering from her surgery to spay her...oh, I feel so badly for her...she keeps looking at me with those wounded or is it sleepy? puppy eyes...and I just tell her she will feel better soon and give her lots of soothing puppy pats. Poor thing. I know she'll be back to her playful self in a few days...thanks so much for visiting and have a relaxing weekend~! *Oh, and when we picked her up last night at the vet's and we gave the receptionist her name, she says, "Oh, that was the really Pretty golden,"...as if giving her special recognition. That was sweet, but I told her, "They are all really pretty..." And she laughed and agreed with me. Don't want to hurt any one's feelings...but truthfully, I think most dogs are "pretty," or "handsome..." but of course, Beulah is beautiful in our eyes. Awww....

Sympathy and Remembrance

My dear friend, Charlene Merrick, was heaven bound on January 2nd. She was very active on Splitcoast Stampers, had the honor of serving on the elite "Dirty Dozen" team, and was also one of the regular "teapotters" on my friend, Cindy Motherway's Teapot Tuesday Challenges. We " met" on SCS long before any of us had blogs, and became good friends through our love of stamping and mutual friends. We had so much fun, always bantering and enjoying commenting on each other's card galleries. It was a big treat when she and a friend, Barb, made the plane trip to Colorado and spent a weekend as a foursome together in 2009. I was the tour guide As we toured the area, And drove to a nearby mountain retreat, Estes Park for an overnight stay. We shopped, Hiked around Beat Lake, ate out for lunch, played games and just generally had a blast. That trip cemented our friendship. Those memories of laughter still bring me a giggle. I had always hoped to travel to Michigan to see her, but that didn't happen.

A close group of us decided to remember her birthday (today) by sending her husband, Terry Merrick, a card to honor her memory. The suggestion was made to choose a card from Charlene's Pinterest board of her favorites. I loved this card, taken from the " Flourishes" gallery. And even though I did not have the exact stamps, I substituted what I had...the overall look is much like the original. I hope her husband, Terry finds comfort in this card. 

                                   

Button Up!!

We are experiencing a bit of balm here in Colorado today; so much so that I was able to open a couple of windows to "air" the place. Such a nice change from the arctic freeze we've been experiencing!
Flourishes Timeless Tuesday #254 this week is "Button Up," in other words, use a button and make it a winter creation!
This is not a Flourishes stamp...it is one I "hunted down" and my stamping friend helped me. It is a Darcie stamp...and I am happy to say, it's been inked up three times this winter.

 

I cut out the snow bank with white and popped it up on dimensionals. Then a light layer of glitter was glued on the rim of the snow. The background paper reminded me of snow flurries, so I just went with it...added a snowflake punch rimmed with glitter and a button with some red twine. This will go to a friend in the mail, hopefully this week!

Thanks for stopping in as always!!

Winter is Calling

Hi friends! If you are stopping by...I wish you a warm welcome! Life has been pretty full and busy and a little too hectic for me with renovation deadlines of our mountain condo looming 10 days before Christmas! We had extended family coming this year and lots to do. Stamping time has been limited, but I did manage to pull out one of my very first stamp purchases. This was bought on E-bay for $33.00. It was one of my first ever purchases...you know when you type in a minimum bid? My finger accidentally hit a few more digits than I realized...I think I was only bidding 3.30 at the time, and then my bid showed up as $330.00. I kind of panicked until the auction was finished, and I only paid a mere $33.00...which was about twice what I had intended. But, I still don't regret it as this is probably my favorite little girl to color up, and there is also one of a puppy in the set holding a mitten that pretty much steals my heart as well! Speaking of...our little puppy, Beulah, is now 6 months old...I will be sure to include a picture of her later this week as she is the sweetest!

 And now for a little close up...

That fun white stuff you heat set and it gets all fluffy and texture-y...I can't think of the name of it...and added pink pearls and used the background basics, also from SU! for snow in Memento Fog ink. I had so much fun visiting this set again...thank you for your visit as well! If you're still around, send me a little comment, would you?
Stay warm and cozy~

Welcome Miss Beulah!!

Miss me? The last two months have been a whirlwind of activity and unexpected happenings in my family! We had to move both daughters on opposite sides of the U.S. over the summer. Our oldest went to be with her fiance in Satatoga Springs, New York in June. Our youngest had just moved to a new townhome right in the heart of the city of Denver...when she decided very suddenly to take on a job challenge in California. The job is not new, but is an 18 month temporary extended training to increase her knowledge of the different aspects of the company she is in. She really loves challenges.
But this Mom had had enough of the "empty nest." Seriously, a long time has gone into bringing this little girl home...and a lot of planning and pursuing. The timing though, I had no control over...and wouldn't you know we picked her up the day after dropping our youngest daughter off at the airport?!
I named her "Beulah," which is a very special place to me where I used to visit my Nana and Papa in the mountains of Colorado. After looking up the name and discovering it's meaning, I thought it quite fitting for her. The word, Beulah, means "Promised Land."

Puppy sleeping

Mommy needs a nap too!!

Thanks so much for welcoming our new little fur ball. She won't stay small for long, so I'm spending all my free time playing, cuddling, and lots and lots of potty breaks. I will share a new picture soon!!

Christmas in July Glittered Snowflakes

Hi...another card for this week's Flourishes challenge going on till tomorrow!! This was a Christmas in July challenge. You know how long I have wanted to do a hanging "ornament" look on a card? Due to the strange angle of my camera and it being night time here, this is not the best photo. I will try to take another one outside tomorrow if the weather permits. I love Flourishes sentiments, and this one is from the "Christmas Postcard" stamp set. I set it off with a strip of rose quartz glitter and edgers die. This was time intensive, but if the glitter stays put, it will make a really pretty surprise in someones mail! Thanks so much for taking a peek!

Black and White-Tres Chic! FLLCBC1

There are quite a few challenges going on the Flourishes Blog this month!! This card's submission is using only black and white as your card design. This unique die is a Flourishes exclusive Key Hole die, combined with a new to me Doily Embossing folder by Sizzix. A few tiny rhinestones and simple black matting and you have a pretty quick card. I kept wanting to add ribbon, but it just did not look right! Now I need to be invited to an elegant affair so I can mail this first class!!

Thanks so much for stopping by and your comments are always looked forward to and make my day!!

Blessings~

Flourishes Birthday Celebration!!

One of my very favorite stamp companies is turning 6 this month...and they added a fun birthday card challenge to their blog this week!! The card was a pretty simple card, to be done in 10 minutes. I had everything picked out in advance...but it took a bit longer for the glue to dry with those beautiful Prima roses! The card went together very quickly, though!! Love these stamps and their design team is amazing

...a big Congrats to Flourishes!!

Just Keep on Pedaling

Hi there, stamping friends! I just wanted to share a card I made over the weekend using the Papertrey Ink stamp set, "Pedal Pusher." Isn't it cute? I love that all the pieces are separate, so you can have any color of bicycle, basket, and wheels...and then add your own basket topper. This was Pinterest inspired, but not a CASE. I tried out my new PTI edgers dies, and decided to use them as a topper as I wasn't sure how else to add it. Nothing like a red polka dot sky, is there? This is for my stamping friend, Charlene, I had the fun of meeting once quite a few years ago who is going through some difficult trials in her life. The beauty of stamping is while you are creating, you can also be saying specific prayers for the recipient you have in mind. Thanks for popping in, and wishing you blessings on your day!

Summer at the Yampa River Botanic Gardens

Just sharing a few photographs I took on our recent weekend at Steamboat Springs, Colorado. I had just returned from a 3 day weekend in New York City with both daughters, future Mother-in-law of our daughter, and future sister-in-law for a wedding dress shopping weekend. I was tired.
I will be honest, I am not a big city gal by any stretch...and I had very little sleep. So to turn around and leave again after just unpacking my bags...I needed some peace and quiet and nature to soothe my traveling nerves.

The neat thing about these gardens is the earth is divided into subplots; and a community organization or group of people adopt a plot and plant it and care for it. So there is a lot of variety and I am sure pride in these gardens.

I wish I could remember what these spherical shaped flowers were...they were light and airy and the prettiest color!

Did I mention she found the dress?! It was actually the first dress she tried on...then just to be sure she tried on about 3 more...but went back to the first. I can not show pictures just yet of our dress shopping; as the wedding is still a year away! One thing I learned about New York City...it is missing trees! So I found some as soon as I got home, and almost hugged one. We did see a lot in Central Park...but the city is severely lacking. Why did that not surprise me? 

Thanks so much for your visit...hope you have time to bask in the beauty of nature soon!

Call Me, Don't Mean Maybe!!

Hi there! This is one of the other sets in last month's Flourishes release that I happily won, "Call Me,"...and wanted to use this cute little phone with this week's The Deconstructed Sketch to submit another card for this week's Flourishes Timeless Tuesday #225 to use "Scallops." My circle mat is scalloped, along with the bottom edge of my middle panel, which unfortunately is covered up by part of the center pennant panel. But it is there!

This was a fun little image to color up to suit your tastes. When I was a young , probably 8 or 9, I received the cutest "play phone set" that had an actual ring tone and red light that lit up when someone called from the other line. They were connected with wires and ran on batteries, I imagine...and since I had no sisters to play with, I spent hours playing "secretary" on my play phone. I became pretty proficient at taking messages, but not sure who was on the other end to receive them!

Now that our oldest daughter moved to New York, which I found out using one of those hand phone apps is over 1,500 miles away...I will probably spend a little more time on the phone! This card will go to her. Thanks for stopping by. What's going on with you?

Timeless Tuesday Tea Rose

Hi there, friends! Last month I had the oh so fun privilege of winning the entire Flourishes stamp release!! I rarely win anything, so I was pretty excited; but to win from my favorite stamp company, that was even better!

For this week's Timeless Tuesday Challenge 225; I actually water colored my favorite in the set,"Old Tea Rose." The challenge was to use "Scallops" for your card. This type of ribbon treatment works so well when you don't have the room for a bow, but you want to dress up your card with some pretty ribbon! For this card, I stamped with Versamark ink, on watercolor paper, then white embossed, giving me raised lines to keep my inks inside the rose. I used a variety of SU! and TH distressed inks. The ribbon is scalloped across the bottom with a string of pearls, which I felt a befitting finish to such an elegant rose!
This card uses the Color Made Easy card stock in Crocus and Candy Pink packs. The ribbon was also part of the CME selections.
Thanks so much for your visit today!!

CTD246

I decided to try a color challenge new to me: The Color Throw down.
After organizing my SU! inks this weekend; I wanted to find a challenge to try out different color combinations.

I used The Cutting Garden stamp set from PTI  and the colors above in the challenge, except Certain Celery ink substituted for Pear Pizzazz ink. Frosted stickles were added for sparkle. The card was inspired by another one viewed on a sketch challenge.
Thank you for looking!

Flourishes Textures of Nature Challenge FLLCJUNE13

This week summer hit my home state of Colorado with nary a Popsicle in sight...hot and windy with two days of record setting temperatures. Being outdoors right now is not something I want to do until around 9 o'clock in the evenings. Sun and dry temperatures have started another string of wild fires, none of which are near us, thankfully!
So it is good weather to stay indoors and play along with this month's new release Challenge at Flourishes: Textures of Nature.

My card used designer paper for the flowers in the corner and the library card...it is all one piece. The stamp of the little girl watering the flowers was added to the paper.  The sentiment and stamp are Flourishes, the touch of nature is the wood grain designer paper and the wood butterfly which I accented with three tiny rhinestones. The gorgeous ribbon is hand dyed and a gift from my dear friend, Diane Noble.
I have been doing a lot of watering our flowering pots this week...and I have one pot of basil that I hope to see flourish a lot soon!
Speaking of nature,right out the back door of my parent's home in Grand Junction (the western slope of Colorado) is the Colorado National Monument. You can see some of these rock formations as you look from their yard. My girls went hiking there the weekend of my Mom's memorial service at the house.

Sister solidarity!! I love this picture. Our daughter, Caitlyn, on the right...just moved to Saratoga Springs, New York two days ago. I miss her already. Our youngest, Erin and I plan to visit her in two short weeks.
Thanks for popping in...always appreciate hearing from you and what is new in your corner of the world.

Do Not Fear!

I have made a small stamping goal for myself: and that is to break out some sets that have not been used much or at all...I sometimes purchase these in a fit of giddy excitement when I see a new release and all the DT's designs...then by the time they arrive at my door; I've usually moved on to something different and don't remember what I originally saw that had me so excited. Kind of like a little kid at Christmas I guess.
So, I have made it a point this past week to go back and look at some of the original DT's samples, and began with making a similar card and then branching out once I became more familiar with the set. Baby steps for now.
So here is one that was on the PTI board using "Everyday Blessings" and "Life." I am slightly enamored with these floral images and enjoying experimenting still with some different colors. I used the spritzing technique for the floral and stamped on watercolor paper.

The floral were done in regal rose and orange and the stems in mellow moss. Double stamped on to another   green card stock and trimmed with banner edging and overlaid the words as you can see to bring more attention to that phrase.
This verse has really spoken to me, as I was stamping, I also meditated on these words and prayed for those in my life right now that need a big dose of courage and trust in the Lord. I hope this card encourages you.
I read this today and wanted to remember it...as I am still in mourning over my Mom's death. So many times, when someone dies, everyone is afraid to mention their name as they don't want to make you cry or uncomfortable. I have made it a point to remember my Mom out loud in front of family and if I cry, I cry...but each time I do it lessens my grief somewhat and brings honor to her memory.
" The mention of my mother's name may bring tears to my eyes, but it never fails to bring music to my ears. If you are really my friend, please don't keep me from hearing the beautiful music. It soothes my broken and heart and fills my soul with love."

CASEing, Take One and Two!

So what do you do when life has put you on a bit of stamping "hold" and you miss it but have no idea how to get back into it? Like most of you, I head over to my Pinterest stamping boards and find a card that speaks to me and looks somewhat attainable to my skill level and then CASE! I do try to remember to go back on their blog and leave a comment, too!
So this first card is my attempt inspired by one I fell in love with from Silke Ledlow's blog, "My Life." This is another stamp set that hadn't seen much ink yet, Papertrey Ink "Life," and the sentiment is PTI Mega Giga Guidelines.

I always love Silke's use of white space, design, and scored backgrounds. The only change I made to her original card is the addition of the crochet lace and ink colors. Inks used: Poppy Parade, Regal Rose and Pool Party.
So with that card done, I became more adventurous and tried out another combination of inks and changed up the top corner a bit...

Inks used: SU! Cameo Coral, Island Indigo, and Baja Breeze.
And then I wanted to add a faith sentiment  to my card but use the same PTI Life background floral. This card's scripture is from the PTI "Everyday Blessings" set.

The above card was made by using my favorite technique, spritzing an inked stamp and stamping on watercolor paper...the paper has a lot of texture and softens the images. I added a jeweled rhinestone for a little sparkle and interest. Colors: Island Indigo and Sahara Sand, and the sentiment stamped in Memento Cocoa ink.
Before I was done, I had six cards created...all from one design with slight variations. When my husband came up it was a bit past dinner time, the ink pads were all stacked in a colorful array on my desk, and like a little kid, I proudly showed him my "Just Because" cards and said, "I can send this to anybody, just because." To which he replied. "That's good. Now I am going to go heat up some dinner...Just Because...I am hungry." And then we both chuckled...
Guess my experimentation went a little long...but it was refreshing to my spirit to see all the rainbows of colors and inks. Therapeutic and not a time waster at all!
Hope to see you soon...thanks so much for dropping in!

CAS(E) this Sketch!

I have been on a CAS spree this past weekend...making several cards and having fun trying out ink color combinations. I saw this sketch challenge on a friend's blog and decided to try out this sketch to move the process along:

I needed a little boy's birthday card...and realized I have no little kiddo stamps. I guess that is because I don't have any little kiddos in my life...my daughter needs to get married and fix that! :) But anyways, I had ordered this Stylish Sentiments Birthday set from Papertrey Ink and found one of the stamps in the set  works well for a child's card. So thanks to the sketch inspiration and a few banners from the MME Six by Six paper collection, and one single Bobunny brad with a star (thanks to a gift from a friend,) I was able to make this card:

And like the card says, "Yay!" I made a card! Thanks for looking...this is not  my usual style, but I really like the design...the repeated star from the brad and border on the right to carry out the celebratory theme!
And it was pretty easy...the hardest part was picking out the color scheme and papers!