JANUARY BIRTHDAYS

With January approaching ever so fast, I'm resolving in 2017 to be a little more attentive to making and mailing handmade cards to friends and family (I think I said this last year too, so we'll see).

The month of January has several birthdays that I would like to acknowledge so here are two of my cards.
I first dry embossed a piece of cherry cobbler cs and rounded the corners.  Next I die cut a scallop tag and embossed it with a musical note.   Then stamped the musical treble clef onto vellum paper, I heat embossed the clef with black embossing powder to give it some attention and then fussy cut it.  The little heart at the bottom was stamped in red and smeared with clear "Wink of Stella" for some glitter.  The sentiment was added to a strip of cs and gently placed over the center of the clef to hide the foam tape.  A silver thread was added with a glue dot to the hole at the top of the tag.
I really like the way this turned out, what do you think?

The second card today is fairly simple and cased from Betsy Feldman of PTI.    I'm always amazed at the creativity of the designers, how do they think up all the details for the dies and stamps, I'm definitely impressed.

The die comes in two pieces one is a shadow (completely filled in) and the second is a detailed die.  Per instructions I ran the shadow die first in black cs, then ran it through a second time using the detailed die on top of it.  This allows you to offset the detail piece over the shadow piece.  I'm sure this sounds very confusing, but it really is quite simple once you understand the dynamics of how the die works.  It does all the work for you.
In order to get the multi-colored word, I water-colored another shadow die and used that behind the first two dies.
The top of the card was stamped with banners, stars and curly q's.  This is probably going to be sent to a male friend since there's not much embellishment on it.

I love the way the word "celebrate" turned out, so much so, that I made a few more to have on hand.

Here's a close up of the word (I added three layers to raise it up).

And that's all for today, thanks for letting me know what you think of the cards, I appreciate hearing from you.
Nancy

HAPPY 13th BIRTHDAY!

Today is a very special day for my one and only Grand daughter, who turned 13, oh my gosh, how did all those years fly by so quickly.

I created a special "gift" card just for her...

 Isn't it cute, it actually opens like a gift (with a little Velcro dot)  The panel was created using  pattern celebration streamers designer paper, which was cut with one of the dies from a die named All Wrapped Up, then used the other part of the die for the ribbon, in pink of course!  Added a cute little tag.

Inside I created a pocket for a coveted "real" gift card.

The inside of the card is...

I used the matching streamer stamp set across the top of the card  in different colors with a happy birthday sentiment, die cut numbers and edged the paper with strips of the same color pink.

What do you think?

Thanks for leaving a comment, I appreciate hearing from you.
Nancy

IT'S THAT TIME OF THE YEAR!

Just thought I'd share a picture of the little treat bags I made as a "take-home" for some crafter gals coming over tonight.

The bags you'll recognize from Stampin' Up...I heat embossed the sentiments using the wonderful new copper embossing powder, it's so elegant looking, punched a double slot hole in the folded down top of the bag and tied it with some glitzy green yarn after placing  a few of a peanut, white chocolate and pretzel mixture that my daughter, Nance Leedy, and I seem to make each Christmas.

Here they sit waiting to be taken home...

That's it for stampin' today, but thought I'd also show you a picture of my mantle decorated for the holidays.  I made the ornament swag last year and I still love it also added a few other items.

Of course the kitchen couldn't be left out of decorations.  This adorable idea was spotted on Pinterest by my daughter, isn't it adorable?

That's it for today, thanks for looking.
Nancy

BIG BIRTHDAY "80"th

Thanks to my daughter, Nance Leedy of Canopy Crafts,  for her card she made a while ago, which  I thought was such a nice design I just copied the design changing the papers and ink colors.

The background was made using the same color ink as the CS with a stencil.  The center pink strip was dry embossed using a "Happy Birthday" folder, although it's not visible in this photo.  I also used a SU silver doily, cut in half to peek out from either side of the large circle which had been stamped using SU's Number of Years stamp set and number dies.  I die cut the numbers twice using the pink color slightly off center from the silver paper.

 

Continuing the color and flower stamp on the inside.

 

 

So nice to hear from you, thanks for leaving a comment.

HALLOWEEN TIME!

I was going through some of my paper that I haven't used in a while and wondered why I'm keeping so much, usually it's cause I just love the design of the paper and can't stand the thought of parting with it.

Well I found this retired Halloween DSP from a year or two back and thought I' use it for a card for my granddaughter.  This paper is so darn cute of course didn't want to cut it up, so instead I used it for the entire inside of the card kinda like a nice surprise when you open it.

Here's the front of the card...

And here's the inside, don't ya just love these images.  I added a few eek's, and boo's, here and there to add even more interest.

That's it, thanks for looking.

Nancy



OH MY, CHRISTMAS CARDS

Here are a couple of CASEd Christmas cards, hope you like 'em. I used a printed pattern paper for the background, then stamped a few branches from a new stamp set as well as die cut a few of the pine cones and berries.

Here's the second card...

This gift box stamp set is a two-step stamp, very easy to line up and gives you the option of using two colors.  Again, I used a pattern background paper, I also stamped a line burst in gold behind the packages and again gold for the heat embossed sentiment to die it together.

 Thanks for stopping by today
Nancy




All supplies from Papertrey Ink

Hi there, a couple of pictures today, the first is of some beautiful last blooms of summer from our backyard.
I have a never-ending supply of Starbucks glass bottles and always looking for a way to recycle them so I came up with this idea.
I adhered chalkboard labels on three of them, hot glued them together, wrapped some heavy cording around the necks and tied it in a little bow.  I thought they turned out quite nice, plus I have seen a similar version at a couple of vendor marts which  were pretty much the same thing for any where from $5-$8 each (plus I got to enjoy the Starbucks too).

Okay,  enough of that, here is a card I made for a fellow golfer who hasn't been able to golf with our group this season, due to a serious illness of her daughter.  Our thoughts and prayers are with her for a good diagnosis in the next couple of months.  In the meantime we wanted her to know we think and miss her every week.

Here's a peek at our sentiment inside, of course we will each write a little note of encouragement for her.

Thanks for stopping by, I'd love to hear from you.
Nancy

MISSIN' YOU!

A little card for my granddaughter, who I miss so much.  I'll be heading south again in about one month's time so I'll get to see her then, of course along with my daughter and son-in-law, and fur grand-baby!

I received this cute little bear holding a heart from Ellen Hutson stamp company, there was also a little packet of ribbon in a clear pack, what a nice thank you for placing my order, love little gifts don't you?
Anyhow I couldn't toss it, so I just fussy cut it and added it to my "tree" embossed card front.

Here's a peek at the inside.

That's it for now, hope you have a fantastic day!
Nancy

SEASHELLS SYMPATHY CARD

This card was made from "Simple Seashells", a stamp set I've had a while, but hadn't tried out.
I also used a PTI stamp called Sand Swatch which I think is just right to look like the beach.  This is the result, I think I'm really likin' it.
I used a couple of strips of a SU designer paper and tip top taupe ink along with PTI's Melon Mambo ink.  I die cut the shell shapes first and temporarily stuck them to my Misti so that I could get the two-step stamping in the same spot.  The Misti is the perfect tool for this.
The sentiment is from a older embossing folder from my stash.  The "sand" die pieces were stamped onto kraft color cardstock and embossed with clear powder,  I like how it makes the pieces really look like sand at the beach.

Anyhow here's the card...

 Here's a close up of the embossing...

I made a couple more of the same card changing up the ink color on the shells to gold and adding a scallop frame, this is the result.

Thanks for stopping by.
Nancy

FALL BIRTHDAY CARD-MASCULINE

Hi there, another quick post showing a completely CASED card, but I liked the layout and couldn't come up with anything of my own, so.....

It happened that I was away for a few days and lost track of birthday card mailings, so although I didn't really forget it, I just missed it (does that make any difference), this was the perfect choice.
The card is for a male friend who delights in watching the deer come to their property in the early hours of dusk, mainly because they put out bags of corn for the deer as well as a salt block.  We're often lucky enough to be there when the deer decide to come and visit, so nice to see.
So I thought this card would be very appropriate for him.

Here's a peek at the inside.

And that's it for today, thanks for visiting.
Nancy

NEW (to me) EMBOSSING TECHNIQUE!

Yay, couldn't wait to try this technique I found at Jennifer McGuire's blog, it opens up a ton of new embossing for ya!

Here's the card I made, check out the circle embossing behind the glitzy butterfly, how cool is that?

Jennifer's blog is very informative every day she has something new to share, here is a link to her blog: http://www.jennifermcguireink.com/2016/08/impress.html, check out her video for the complete process.

I used my set of "nesting" circle dies, cut side down onto the cs however, you must use a beige/tan embossing mat under the cs (otherwise you'll cut your card and you don't want to do that, just get the impression of the nested dies).
This really opens up so many more embossing ideas using any set of "nesting" dies such as ovals, hearts, circles, rectangle whatever you have.

The butterfly (and also the branch) die were first cut from white cs then again from gold glitzy paper and adhered on top of the circle embossing, pretty quick, easy, and impressive (no pun intended), don't you think.
I added a sentiment in gold ink to match the glitzy paper.

Here's a side view showing the embossing.

That's it for now.

Nancy

SYMPATHY CARD

Hello there, thought I'd share a card I recently made.  Unfortunately I needed a sympathy card and thought these beautiful forget-me-knots were just the floral image I wanted.

A peek at the inside sentiment too...

Thanks to my fellow stamper, Diane Oliver, for sharing some of her supplies!



All supplies used are from Papertrey Ink

HOUSEWARMING CARDS

Hi there,
Thought I'd share a few color variations of the same card.  I needed at least two "house warming" cards and thought I'd make an extra one to have on hand.

Fairly simple cards, I used a cover plate horizontal stripe die to cut the white frame, then cut away one of the stripes to leave a large enough space for my sentiment, which was heat embossed in white embossing powder.

Had fun die cutting some adorable macrame plant hangers, planted a few succulents, added a little metal circle as if it was holding up the planter and I was done.

Years ago I did macrame hangings and still have one of them, unfortunately it was made in bright red cord, so it really doesn't go with too much although it might look okay on my porch, I'll have to try it.


That's it for now, thanks for stopping by.




Horizontal die, sentiment and macrame dies all from
Papertrey Ink.
Papers from Stampin' Up

Masculine birthday card

Howdy Friends, thought I'd post this quick and easy birthday card I made for one of my brothers. No fussy girl stuff on this card!

I stamped a background stamp onto a piece of white card stock 5 1/4" x 4". Then die cut a circle from the same piece with an opening large enough to accommodate the cowboy boots, which I stamped onto a smaller piece of white cs and adhered behind the opening.  It was easy placing both words of the sentiment on the die cut banner using my trusty Misti.

Here's a look-see at the inside...


Thanks for lookin' and maybe leavin' some kind words.
Nancy

Stamps-Hardwood, Country Livin, Thoughtful Banners from Stampin' Up
Sentiment from Ombre Birthday Wishes from Papertrey Ink

PP#304

Hi there, today I'm participating in a challenge at the Paper Players

 

I love the look of water coloring, however I have not been able to achieve the right look.

A few weeks ago I tried different colors on a piece of watercolor paper, let it dry and then just set it aside.  

After seeing this challenge I thought I'd try my luck once again.  

I took the scrap of paper I had previously dried and used it to die cut this birthday sentiment.  I think it came out okay, what do you think?

 I suppose most people know how to water color, but I don't, I wish someone would make a tutorial showing exactly how to achieve this look...any takers?

Anyhow here is my card, but before you see it I have to tell you over this past weekend we attended two separate Garden walking tours and they were gorgeous, each one nicer than the previous.  So it inspired me to take a picture of my watercolor card outside using some of the beautiful flower colors in the garden as a background.  I think it looks lovely, what do you think?

That's it for today, hope you have a chance to leave a comment.

Thanks,

Nancy

GRADUATION & GOOD LUCK

This is a combination card, a nephew's step-son has graduated from High School and will be entering the Marines!  He will be traveling to CA for his basic training, so I thought the world embossing folder was a good back drop for the card.

Pretty simple...stamped and fussy-cut the diploma (can't believe I don't have a die for that, maybe I do somewhere?) stamped the sentiment, which was a combination of 3 different stamps, popped up the diploma and I was done.  Why did it take me so long though to accomplish this simple card!

Here's a close up of the embossing.

And here's a peek at the inside, the sentiment is from Stampin' Up and the Marine emblem I cut from the party invitation.  It wasn't a complete circle so I had to cut it close and die cut a black cs circle and mount it onto that.  Also added a little pocket for the gift money.

Thanks for looking,
Nancy

MASCULINE CARD (I think)

Hi there just a quick post of this very simple card.  I find it very difficult to make cards for men, so this was what I came up with.  As you may have noticed I've been rooting around in my paper stash and decided whether the paper is retired from Stampin' Up or not, I'm trying to use some of it, because I originally bought it cause I liked it, so why not use it!

Anyhow here it is, I added the sentiment in red so that it would stand out from all the other black images.

Heres a peek at the inside.  I used a combination of two different sentiment stamps both from Papertrey Ink.  The sentiment fits the person I have in mind for this card.

Thanks for looking, I'd love to hear from you.
Take care,
Nancy

CARDS, CARDS, CARDS, Love 'em!

Unfortunately I am in need of a few sympathy cards, which I like to keep the design CAS with a nice sentiment.

Going through my hoards of papers I found this oldie, but goodie, Urban Oasis from Stampin' Up's retired DSP collection.  The colors are Baja Breeze, Kiwi Kiss, basic black and kraft.  When the paper is this lovely it's nice to let it stand alone, don't you think?
The inside sentiment is also from Stampin' Up, Heartfelt Sympathy which has some very nice sentiments, fonts and a few embellies.

Here is a peek at that lovely sentiment I mentioned.

Decided I better make another sympathy card while I had all my supplies on hand.  As you can see, I added a strip of the coordinating paper along the side for a little interest.

Thanks for stoppin' by, hope you'll take time to leave a comment.
Nancy

MORE SPRING BIRTHDAYS

I was thinking about all the upcoming birthdays for our family and friends and decided to get a start on some of the cards I'll need.  Of course Spring always makes me think flowers, so...

I wanted to use my new favorite color gray.  This is Basic Gray from Stampin' Up's (SU) collections.  Also the flowers (Bold Blossoms from Papertrey Ink) and stitched rectangle are from the SU Summer Starfruit.  At first I wasn't sure about this color, but it has become one of my many favorites.  The sentiment is from SU Happy Birthday Everyone.


Here's a little peek at the inside too.

Hope you take the time to leave a comment, love reading them.
Nancy

STAR SPRINKLED BIRTHDAY

Here's a CAS little card...I used a Papertrey In cover die which has the perforated balloon strings and a smattering of stars and little circles.

After die cutting onto white CS I added a piece of silver glitter CS behind to bring out the stars.  I used my Stampin' Up balloon punch on the three balloons also used SU's Balloon Celebration stamp set to add some interest to them.

Here's a better view of the sparkly little stars.

The balloons were punched from some paint sample chips from Lowes that I picked up on one of my frequent trips there.  I thought they would look nice on Papertrey Ink's Royal Velvet CS (love that color and it really looks Royal) and used SU's Perfect Plum Ink for the sentiment inside and out.

That's it for now, hope you leave a comment as I love reading them.
Hugs,
Nancy

SPRING TIME!

Yes, it is Spring time here in Florida and all the trees and flowers are starting to bud, can't wait for the beautiful display they share.

However in the meantime I have again, used one of my favorite stamps (seems like I say that often).  It is called Tulip Time from Papertrey Ink.  In addition to the stamps there are corresponding dies that just make the flowers pop right off the card front.  I chose this set for two of my good friends in MI who have April birthdays and I'm hoping these lovely flowers will help them usher Spring into the MI area!

Stamping the tulips is a 3-step process so I decided to make a few while I was stamping and using my MISTI, a Christmas gift from my daughter, made quick work of the process.  I added a 1 1 to 1 1/2" strip of Stampin' Up's "Winter Wonderland" specialty paper to the edges of the card front to add a little more pizzaz. Tied a gold bow onto the stems and popped up the bouquet of flowers.

What do you think...

This card is laying flat on the table so it appears as if the black/gold paper is shorter than the white.
What it is, is I cut the card front 1" narrower than the back and the black/gold paper is attached to the back of the inside of the card, so you see it from the front of the card.
Trust me both front and back are the same height, it's just the angle.

This one is the same obviously, just placed the strip of DSP on the opposite side, love the look.









I hope you'll leave me a comment, have a fabulous day!
Nancy