For the Holidays...

It's Friday, and time to close out the week with a couple more Christmas cards for the upcoming holidays. I did make a couple of each of these designs, so my collection is slowly building for this year...and it's a good feeling to be getting these done early!

We finally had a bit of very much needed and welcome rain this week in Northern California, so it only seems fitting to show you the "Joyful" card first! :)

The embossed background is accented with Pumice Stone Distress Ink, and as I've done before with this LaLa Land Crafts diecut, the street lamp is accented with Inka-Gold "Old Gold" metallic paint, and simply accented with branch punches, narrow ribbon, and a tiny bell...

The diecut sentiment words are accented with a gold gel pen...

Supplies:

Dies:  LaLa Land Crafts "Street Lamp";   Memory Box "Star of Wonder";   Paper Smooches "Christmas Words"

Punch:  Martha Stewart "Medium Branch"            Embossing folder:  Tim Holtz "Bricked and Woodgrain"

Pearls:  Recollections         

Miscellaneous:   ribbon, mini bell,  Pumice Stone Distress Ink,  Viva Inka-Gold "Old Gold", gold gel pen

The second of today's cards is a bit more shabby, with a bit more detail and lots of diecuts...

The little diecut poinsettia is surrounded with a holly diecut, and a twig wreath adorned with punched branches, clear red gems, and sparkly snow...

and a little pearl flourish pointing the way to another flourish die cut in the corner...

Supplies:

Patterned papers:  Graphic 45 "Christmas Past" and "Twelve Days of Christmas"

Dies:  LaLa Land Crafts "Pretty Poinsettia" and "Filigree Corner";  Memory Box "Holly Flourish";  Impression Obsession "Twig Wreath"

Punch:  Martha Stewart "Medium Branch"            Glitter dot:  Pebbles            Red gems:   Kaisercraft

Pearls:   Recollections          Miscellaneous:  white wire,  "Golden Rod" Stickles;  DecoArt Glistening Snow-tex

Thanks for stopping by for a visit...have a wonderful weekend!

 

LLLC - Photo Inspiration Challenge...

Hi, everyone! This week, the team at La-La Land Crafts is using a photo as our inspiration challenge, with colors that you've seen me use often!

This card...

was inspired by the colors in this challenge photo:

Across the card front, the Large Lacy Border Die and Small Lacy Border add a wonderful textural lacy look...and the Feathers Die is becoming one of my new favorites to use as an accent...

I used quite a bit of foam tape to accommodate the layering of the small tags beneath the center strip...

The Cherry Blossom flowers are accented with leaves from the Berry Flourish, loopy twine bows, and pearls (with a bit of cheesecloth beneath them for more texture). I colored the flowers just a bit brighter using Dried Marigold Distress Ink, so they'd stand out a bit more from the subtle background colors...

Supplies:

LLLC Dies:  Large Lacy Border,  Small Lacy Border,  Feathers,  Cherry Blossom Flowers,  Berry Flourish

Patterned papers:  Graphic 45 Couture collection (aquas) and Ladies Diary (coral dot);   

K& Co Ancestry collection (brown)

Pearls:   Recollections            Miscellaneous:   cheesecloth,  twine

Thanks for visiting today. I hope you'll visit the  La-La Land Crafts inspiration blog to see the projects my teammates have made for this week's challenge.

LLLC - Merry...

Good morning all, on this La-La Land Crafts Wednesday! This week our theme is "Holidays Are Coming" and I have a flowery center-step Christmas card to share with you...

Anchoring the flowery cluster are a couple circles cut from the Stitched Nested Circles die set. Several candy canes were cut using the Candy Cane die set, and bunched together as a little "bouquet", tied with bows of pearls and gold ribbon...

The "merry" banner is cut from 110# white cardstock using the Flag Banner Die, and like the poinsettias, is colored with Fired Brick Distress Ink...

All the poinsettias were cut from white watercolor paper using the Pretty Poinsettia Die, and colored with Fired Brick Distress Ink around the edges and accented with dark yellow stamens - the bottom green leaf layer was cut from dark green cardstock.  (I enhanced the colors of the stamens with Ranger Ochre Vintaj Patina paint).

You can see from the photo of the die in the link that it has three flower portions - a large, a medium, and a small - so you can alternate and stack the layers to construct your flower.

The two larger flowers on the bottom of my card have 7 layers:  1 large green for the leaves, 1 large white, 2 medium white, and 2 small white for the flower portion. 

The smaller top flower has 1 large green for the leaves, 1 medium white and 2 small white for the flower portion...

Supplies:

LLLC Dies:   Candy Cane,   Flag Banner,   Pretty Poinsettia,   Stitched Nested Circles

Patterned papers:   Graphic 45 Christmas Past collection (8x8)

Pearl clusters:   Recollections           Stamens:   Wild Orchid Crafts            Alpha stamps:   Studio G

Miscellaneous:   craft store ribbons,   cheesecloth,   Ranger Vintaj Patina paint - Ochre

Thanks so much for visiting today! It's hard to believe tomorrow is Thanksgiving already...I have a strong suspicion more than the usual amount of sugary, yummy foods are going to be eaten around here tomorrow.  :)

I'll be back here on the blog next Monday...until then, I wish all my American friends a very happy Thanksgiving. And to all my friends who take the time to visit and leave sweet comments and encouragement, I'm thankful for you!

Heartfelt Wishes...

Happy Monday, everyone! I'm starting off the week with a shabby layered and feminine birthday card to share with you. I'm in the midst of another "reorg" of my workroom...loosely translated, that means this room is a total mess! LOL I have a few more cards already made to share with you here in the next week or two, and that's my inspiration to get this reorg project finished before I run out of new projects...wish me luck!

Months ago my talented husband made and installed some 18" deep cabinets and shelves along two walls of my room, that make a big difference getting the clutter off the tops of my work surfaces and large storage cabinet (that he also built!). Supplies that I use often are just a reach away, organized in pretty baskets and boxes within the two sections that are open shelves...and those that can't be made to look pretty, or are dust and/or light sensitive, are behind doors in the two closed cabinets.

All that was left was to pull everything else below them out and redo the "lower" portion of the room, by changing the layout of the work surfaces and building more lower storage. Life and holidays got in the way, and that hasn't happened yet, and instead of becoming more organized, slowly but surely I have another group of clutter to purge and rework storage for. Funny how that happens. :)

I purchased some spray paint to recolor some of my desktop storage, and you can guess what that means. Yep, for a couple days all those bottles of acrylic paint from the paint carousels, and tiny plastic drawers with doo-dads in them, and contents of the metal buckets, will be scattered all over the room while the storage containers dry. That's when I decided it's time to get serious and reorganize things again. Since there's no more room in the closet, and no more room in the new upper cabinets, a big purge-and-donate project is about to begin!

In the meantime, here's a cute little birthday card to liven up this little Korner of the Web...

I used a piece of lace to resemble a "trellis" up the side of the card, and then added bunches of coral roses. The large label across the front was die cut from medium chipboard, then painted with both Viva Precious Metal Effects paint and a lighter Lumiere Pearl paint, then white craft paint was dry-brushed around the edges...

A Tim Holtz memo pin was shabbied with acrylic paint, and pearls and sparkly spacers were added before the sentiment tag was slipped in...

Supplies:

Patterned papers:   Graphic 45 Couture collection

Dies:   Tim Holtz Styled Labels;   My Favorite Things Royal Leaves

Punch:   Martha Stewart Medium Branch           Sentiment stamp:   Hero Arts

Flowers:   Wild Orchid Crafts           Pearls:   Recollections          Lace:   local craft store

Miscellaneous:   Tim Holtz memo pin, white hemp cording, Viva Precious Metal Effects paint (turquoise);

Lumiere Pearl paint (turquoise), cream acrylic craft paint

And lastly, a very fun little P.S. for you from Lili of the Valley! 

Lili of the Valley is running a great promo deal until noon on Friday, January 31 (that's British time), or while supplies last. When you purchase any two (2) A5 stamp sets, you'll get this great Love Sentiments stamp set *free!* There's still time to use this adorable set for Valentine's Day this year (and I have plans to use it soon for an anniversary card).

Thanks for visiting today...I hope your week is starting with a smile!

Deconstructed Sketch 115 - Happy Birthday...

Happy Monday, everyone!  I sat down to craft a bit this weekend...and I sat....and I sat...with a totally blank mind and no creative ideas coming....arghhh! :)  So I turned to a few of my favorite sketch sites, and started first with the current sketch from The Deconstructed Sketch.

And just to make it more fun, I pulled out papers in my favorite colors - pale pink, cream, and light brown - and made up a purely feminine, and slightly shabby, birthday card with an image from Graphic 45's A Ladies Diary collection as the focal point...

And here's the sketch it's based on...

I wanted to make the floral clusters to the sides of the image seem to flow right off the tag, so I included roses in the same coral color, and leaves in as close a green as I could get to the leaves in the image...

And when the tag needed something more than the seam binding ribbon at the top, the large pearl cluster seemed to fit just perfectly...

Supplies:

Patterned papers:   My Minds Eye Lost & Found/Madison collection (stripe, text, cream);   

Authentique Grace/Poised (dot)

Rose image:   Graphic 45 A Ladies Diary collection (8x8)          Scalloped laces:   TheFunkieJunkie.com (tea dyed)

Dies:   Sizzix Flowers Branches & Leaves         Punch:   Martha Stewart Medium Branch

Flowers:   Wild Orchid Crafts          Pearls:   Recollections          Hug Snug seam binding 

Thanks for visiting today...I hope your week is starting with a smile!

All Around the Edges...

Happy Monday! With the 4th of July holiday approaching, I know a lot of people have this whole week off. If you're one of them, I hope you have a lot of fun things in your schedule.

Today's card has nothing to do with the red, white, and blue of this week.  It's all about the fancy die-cut edges on this birthday card!

Lots of coral and cream roses, along with a couple small groups of cream flower stamens, pearls, dyed Hug Snug seam binding bow...all my favorite things in the floral cluster...

I die cut the oval frames in graduated sizes down to the dotted patterned paper layer to create a little "well" for most of the flower cluster to rest inside...

And lastly, a peek at the inside...

Supplies:

Patterned papers:   Graphic 45 A Ladies Diary/Primrose Cottage and Afternoon Tea

Dies:   Spellbinders Decorative Labels Eight, Labels Eight, Classic Ovals Large and Small;  

 My Favorite Things Royal Leaves

Flowers:   Wild Orchid Crafts          Stamens:  Local craft store          Pearls:   Recollections and K&Company

Tim Holtz Memo Pin (embellished)          Hug Snug seam binding

Thanks for stopping by for a visit today...I hope your week is starting with a smile!

Just Because (it's Friday)...

As the old saying goes, "better late than never."  The sketch today's card is based on was a weekly challenge at Mojo Monday the first week of May.  I got as far as getting the patterned papers cut and stitched before I had to start packing up my work room for the cabinet install, so I couldn't participate in a timely manner. But I love the sketch, and the card was almost finished, so finish it I did...better late than never. :)

I went back into my 12 x 12 patterned paper drawer and pulled out some older favorite patterns. The result is a bit of a study in contrasts...burlap and distressed edges embellished with pearls, flowers, and lace...

Here's the sketch the design is based on...

I made the bow by pulling out about 6-7 long strands from a piece of burlap, and tying them into one large, loopy bow. It's a little tricky holding them all together while you're looping, but once it's done, a little dab of hot glue on the back makes sure the bow stays put...

The floral cluster takes the place of the scalloped circle in the sketch, and the small snippet cut from some tea-dyed scalloped lace takes the place of the lower banner strip in the sketch...

Supplies:

Patterned papers:   Graphic 45 Fashionista/Vintage Cherries (dot);  Botanicabella/Eden's Symphony,

 Love Letters, and Secret Garden

Dies:   My Favorite Things Doily Duo, Royal Leaves;   Sizzix Flowers Branches and Leaves

Laces:   TheFunkieJunkie.com        Pearls:   Recollections        Sentiment stamp:   Fiskars

Flowers:   Wild Orchid Crafts       Miscellaneous:   burlap, pearl wire spirals

Thanks for stopping by for a visit...have a wonderful weekend!

Just Saying Hello...

Happy Friday, everyone! I must admit, I'm loving crafting in my new workroom setup.  I'm not sure why, but I'm able to work in a much more organized manner now...my workspace isn't a total mess after a project is finished. I can't help but wonder if it's because the organization is all "new"...and if, when the novelty wears off,  I'll be back to having a "white tornado mess" again...I hope not.  I hope it's because I finally figured out how to organize according to my work habits...LOL

I'm ending the week with a little card in soft, springtime colors. It was fun combining papers from two manufacturers and finding that they complemented each other so well...

I had fun with this floral cluster...lots of white and coral flowers, accented with soft green branch punches, scattered pearls, pieces of cardstock flourish diecuts...all sitting on some scrunched cheesecloth and a large Prima mulberry paper flower coated with Polar White Flower Soft that lightened the colors while adding dimension...

The scalloped layers of patterned papers were accented with edges dry-brushed with white acrylic paint...scalloped lace with pearls accents them all...

Supplies:

Patterned papers:   Prima Divine collection (coral honeycomb & lined ruler print);  

Graphic 45 A Ladies Diary collection (coral dot & black floral)

Lace:   TheFunkieJunkie.com       Die:   Memory Box Elegant Scrollwork      

Flowers:   Wild Orchid Crafts and Prima       Pearls:   Recollections

Punches:   Martha Stewart Medium Branch;  Fiskars Scalloped Sentiment       Sentiment stamps:   Hero Arts

Thanks so much for visiting today...I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

A Lovely (Mon)Day...

Happy Monday!  I'm starting the week off by sharing a softly colored, slightly shabby, totally "girly" card with a sentiment that works for so many occasions, from friendship to birthday to anniversary, and maybe a few more.  I guess that's why it shows up so often on my cards. :)

I cut the Quinn Flourish die in half, and glued one half to each end of the larger sentiment block, then added two mirror-image floral clusters on either side of the block . Each of the three layers of the sentiment blocks are popped up just a bit with foam tape...

  

And, well, there must be pearls... :)

Supplies:

Patterned papers:   Graphic 45 A Ladies Diary collection/Afternoon Tea, Focal Point, La Gazette

Dies:   Memory Box Quinn Flourish;   Spellbinders Timeless Rectangle

Punch:   Martha Stewart Doily Lace       Flowers:   Wild Orchid Crafts       Pearls:  K&Company

Lace:   TheFunkieJunkie.com        Sentiment stamp:   Papertrey Ink

Thanks for visiting today...I hope your week is starting with a smile!