Another Happy Birthday Card!

My daughter celebrated her birthday this week.  I'm not even going to mention how old she is! It's scary....but I do keep reminding myself I had her when I was 12 so I can't be as old as it must look to others! LOL!

Anyway, I made this card with the Simon Says Stamp Card Kit for June which I adore! It has the really coolest little metal die with it that says "Smile" and is inside a circle.  So very wonderful!  I used it to make a little shaker element.  The stitched circle is also from Simon Says Stamp.

Here is the card kit which, of course, is already sold out...but individual elements like the cute die and stamp set are still available:
I also love the pretty and cheerful Doodlebug papers.

Here is my card:

 Such a fun and happy card, I think.  I love those bright colors!

Here is a closer look to the shaker part:

And that's it for today!
Hope everyone enjoys beautiful sunshine today...can take time to SMILE and keep on crafting!

Happy Birthday x 2!

I always commiserate and complain about making boy cards. I just find them a challenge. I don't know why but I do. So I got hit with a double whammy recently when I had to make cards for a set of twin boys.  And they aren't little boys who'd like monsters and trucks...oh no...this variety was turning 30!  LOL!

So this is what I came up with to attach to a six pack of imported beers for each of them.  No Transformers, Thomas the Train or Legos for them!  It's beer.

I used some scraps of papers I had, a Simon Says Stamp metal die for the sentiment which I inlaid with a contrasting but complementary print, and some little EK Success punches for the banner.  

It was so fast and easy I duplicated it for Twin #2:

Happy and fun and appropriately boyish enough I think.

Here they are side by side.  Twins.

I would imagine neither paid a lot of attention to the card....they were probably more interested in the enclosed gift card and beer but I was happy with this boyish attempt!

Happy Crafting!

Hello...Thinking of You...Best Weekend Ever!

I just got back from central Florida where I had the BEST WEEKEND EVER!  I met up with some ladies I went through the fabulous Florida State University Speech Pathology program with a few (ok, more than a few) years ago.  We all started the undergraduate speech path program together and went straight through and got our master's degrees.  3 of the ladies still work in the schools doing speech pathology/therapy, one works in the business world...and one plays semi professional tennis (me)...well, at least semi professional in my wildest dreams!  One will be retiring after the upcoming school year and the others are also looking at retirement in the not too distant future.
Anyway, we had not seen each other in 7 years and we met up at a friend's condo on Lake Weir near Ocala.  We had the BEST time.  Lots of reminiscing, sharing...lots of laughing, teasing...eating, drinking, boating, and just hanging around with the best group of ladies.  We have known each other for 39 years and when we get together you wouldn't think we'd ever missed a day of seeing each other.
Great friends are like that.  I. AM. LUCKY.
Here we are all together (standing...Linda and Jan and sitting from left to right...me, Teri and Margaret).

Here we are being a bit silly because that is always important, too....

Here are 4 of the ladies when we went out to dinner one night:

We seriously love each other so much.  I know I {heart} them...

So fun...I had to come home and rest.  Fun wears me out!!!

Anyway, I thought I'd share where I'd been.  :)

Back to card making...another card idea I was inspired by stole from Laura Bassen...love her style of cards and if you are interested in checking out her blog it's Doublestick Heaven.  I learn so much from her and get so inspired by her beautiful creations.  And let's face it...why reinvent the wheel when you can borrow steal such wonderful ideas???

Here is the card I made....I used 6 different Distress Inks with my blending tool to make the rainbow colored effect that was adhered below the cut out "hello".

So simple...and I love the way it looked!

I did a card like this with watercolors a few years back which my daughter kept and has hanging in her guest room.  Love that idea....  OK, well, let me explain that...her card does not have a big whopping "hello" on it....it was a die cut flower and I did watercolor behind it.  OK?  And it looks pretty hanging in her guest room (well, in the bathroom).  :)

Here it is:

The puffy little sticker on the bottom is from Pink Paislee.

Here is a bit of a closeup:

The hello die which many of you probably are familiar with is a Simon Says Stamp exclusive die and is one "toy" I have played with again and again!

Well, I think my 'studio' may be calling me today....
My SSS August kit came in.  Yay!...time to get creative!

Happy Birthday to You!

I mentioned the other day I needed a few birthday cards (July seems to be a busy birthday month for me) so I sequestered myself in my room and made a few.  I still need more...

I made a card similar to this a few months back which was a CASE from a card by the fantastic Shari Carroll but loved it so much I couldn't part with it.  I have kept it in my stash and like great artwork (HAHA!) I enjoyed pulling it out and looking at it from time to time.  Well, I decided to make a couple more.  :) I'm so smart.

Here are two versions of the same card.  The circle was cut out and acetate put behind it...gives different look and I love it!

Here is a different view of the window.  Not sure why I didn't get reflection to show the acetate but of course, if I didn't WANT reflection and glare it would be there! LOL!  I used papers from My Mind's Eye Lime Twist and a piece of flair I had sitting around.  The 'happy birthday' die cut was made with  dies from Simon Says stamp.  The "Celebrate" sentiment is from a set by Paper Smooches.

And here is a second version of the same card with the sentiment done with heat embossing:

I also used an embossing folder to emboss the wood grain look on the white cardstock.  I think the white sentiment on the embossed cardstock looks nice.

That's it for today...the cards have been mailed and hopefully received today!

Happy Crafting, Keep Creating and Happy Birthday to you July babies!

Let's Shell-ebrate!

I was in need of a few Birthday cards so came up with this nifty little one which worked up pretty quickly and easily.
I love turtles.  Always have.  Sadly I don't see them around as much anymore! :(  We live on a small river and used to see more turtles but come to think of it...I don't think I've seen even one this year!  Come back, little turtles!
Anywho....here is my card:

I used the Paper Smooches über-cute set Party Posse for the cutest little turtle.  I colored him in with some Copics for some simple blending and paper pieced his shell from the My Minds Eye Lime Twist pad which also provided the dotted background paper.  I used a postage stamp die from Simon Says Stamp to cut out the middle and used foam tape to adhere the paper to my white card base.  The banner was cut with a Simon Says Stamp die and also adhered with a bit of foam tape.  I used some Wink of Stella clear on the little party hat to give it some extra shine.  I started to color in some of the dots on the background but then I said..."Susan, leave it alone! Enough is enough!"  But after I said "ENOUGH!"...I decided to put some Glossy Accents on his shell.  LOL!

Here is a closeup:

There are coordinating dies that go with the stamp set which makes for care free cutting! I like that! :)

I think little Toby the Turtle is cute...don't you?

Happy Crafting and Happy Sunday!

New Favorites!

I had ordered the Scribbled Flowers stamp set and dies from Simon Says Stamp and they came yesterday.  I had it in my cart and took it out...had it in and took it out.  And, uh, finally left it in.  I'm so glad I did.  I love it!  I love the look of hand drawn things and this one is perfect for that!
Here are the stamps and coordinating dies (if you click on the image it will take you to Simon Says Stamp and the featured set):
 
And here is a card I made with it which was CASED from a card I saw by the fabulous Shari Carroll.

 

  The "hello" sentiment was from a Lawn Fawn set and the "you're one of my nicest thoughts" came from a Hero Arts set which I heat embossed with white embossing powder.  
I love this bright and happy card stamped with Memento Luxe inks and will make more!

Gotta run!

Happy Crafting and Keep Creating!

And a Thank You to You!

I made a couple of thank you cards to send to some dear friends who had showered me with some wonderful gifts and well wishes on my birthday last month.
One is a blue lover and one likes pink so that's why I chose the colors I did! :)
For the first one I laid down a sort of wash of water color with Distress Inks and then spritzed it with a bit of water. The water reacts with the distress inks and moves the color away.  So fun!  I used a Simon Says Stamp die cut that I inlaid with some black cardstock.

Here is the blue version...without the splotches of water resist:

Simple cards...flat to mail...lots of fun to make!  And thanks to my friends for being so sweet to me!

Happy Crafting!!!

Happy Mother's Day!

And a Happy Mother's Day to all you ladies out there in blog-land.  I hope that you have a wonderful day. 
I made this card for my daughter who is a wonderful mother.  I'm sure that those of you who have grandchildren would agree what a joy it is seeing and watching your child be a parent. 
I used the Simon Says Stamp set Best Mom Ever which you can see here:

I love that set and have used it a pretty good bit....I love the handwritten look to the sentiment.  And those roses can be used for so many none Mother's Day things!
Anyway....here is my card made with some My Yellow Bicycle paper from the Poppy collection which I picked up at Tuesday Morning for one dollar and ninety nine cents!

It's difficult to see in the photo but there is actually acetate covering the circle.  I love that look, don't you?
Mostly it was just a lot of cutting and paper piecing.  And a touch of Wink of Stella on the flowers.
Love how it turned out!

Again, Happy Mother's Day!

And Happy Crafting!

Two Weeks From Today!

We are moving right along towards our impending huge event!  2 weeks and counting until our wedding.  I don't mean "my wedding" of course....but I do own the boy getting married so I think it is appropriate to say "our wedding". :) Ok, I'm stretching it, I know.

2 weeks from now at this exact moment (7:20pm) the vows will have been said and we will be dining and imbibing at the reception.  My dress is at the tailor's and I will pick it up in a few days...thankfully, it only needed to have about an inch taken off the hem.  Lucky for me.  I have my table decorations mostly done except for adding fresh flowers which, of course, can't happen today.  I put labels that I created from a template found on the internet (thank you, Al Gore, for creating the internet!....I know, I know...he never said he invented it but he did and I quote say "During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the internet".  I know he didn't mean he invented it but it has been great fun using that over the years!)   Anyway, I digress....I did find a template online...why reinvent the wheel and made these labels:

The nutrition label is just so fun!

We are giving those to out of town guests along with a little welcoming bag and will be using them as we prepare and beautify before the ceremony.  They were fun and fast to make.

I am only sharing these as I had already shown them to my future daughter in law.  Some of the other things are still a surprise for her and my son.

Here is a card I made to thank one of my friends who hosted the couples shower for them a few weeks back.

I used Amy Tangerine papers and a die from Simon Says Stamp called Circle on a Line.  It is a really great die!

The thank you sentiment is a Hero Arts stamp and was stamped on a scalloped punch piece.

Well, that's it for today.

Hope to see you again soon!

Happy Crafting!

During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet.
Read more at http://www.snopes.com/quotes/internet.asp#AxuiPGQmMKVRmSVf.99

During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet.
Read more at http://www.snopes.com/quotes/internet.asp#AxuiPGQmMKVRmSVf.99

During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet.
Read more at http://www.snopes.com/quotes/internet.asp#AxuiPGQmMKVRmSVf.99

During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet.
Read more at http://www.snopes.com/quotes/internet.asp#AxuiPGQmMKVRmSVf.99

During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet.
Read more at http://www.snopes.com/quotes/internet.asp#AxuiPGQmMKVRmSVf.99

2 Weeks and 1 Day and Counting!

Oh my goodness....it's been a while since I posted but I've been one busy lady! We are 15 days from my son's wedding and I don't think I could busier than I am right now. So much to do and crunch time is here. I have decided I am really grateful that I only have 1 daughter. I can see the stress the mother of the bride is under trying to get everything done. But I am sure that it will all be simply wonderful. I only have to do the rehearsal dinner, basically, and although there are still many details it is all coming together. I have made the table decorations as well as a few other details...but still lots on my list needing checking off. I can't show photos yet because I want it all to be a surprise. 

I miss my regular paper crafting but these little crafts have been fun, too. I can't wait to share with you what I did and will...but not until after the wedding.

 I did go to Washington, DC last week for a retirement ceremony for a friend and enjoyed my time there. I love it there.  I took this photo of the Capitol with the sun reflecting off the windows.

 

I loved seeing the Lincoln Memorial lighted at night.

 

 

And the Washington Monument's reflection in the Reflecting Pool was just lovely.

 

 I went to Arlington National Cemetery a couple of times because both of my parents are buried there.  It's an awe inspiring place, in my opinion.  I'm so grateful to all of those who have served our country.

It was rainy the second time I visited but still just as beautiful under gray skies.

I also went to the Pentagon at night to see the 9/11 Memorial.  It was so beautiful and the picture does not do it justice:

I bought a new camera recently as my Canon SX 230 broke.  I got the Canon SX 280 and was really please with the night time low light photos!

Anyway, I made a bunch of thank you notes for my daughter in law to use.  I think she appreciated them. 

Here are some samples:

The one above was made with the Stampin Up Bitty Banners die and stamp set.  I used some printed papers I had on hand.  So simple and a card I will duplicate again and again!

Green is D'Ann's favorite color so I made her some "thanks" cards with some Paper Trey Ink cardstock and ribbon and a Simon Says Stamp die.

 

Here is a closeup of the inlay...love how that looks:

And that's it for today.  I might be AWOL again for a few days/weeks...but certainly not a month!

Happy Crafting!

Happy Birthday with a Touch of Acetate

I love Shari Carroll.  She used to work for Hero Arts and you know how I love Hero Arts.  Her design style has always been so appealing to me and I have never ONE time seen a card she made and said "Ewwwwww!".  She recently went to work for Simon Says Stamp which is way cool...because not only can she work with Hero Arts things, I assume,  but also with all the great products Simon Says Stamp has to offer.  A win-win situation for me!

She recently posted a card on the Simon Says Stamp Blog which you can see HERE.  I love this card with the die cut sentiment and the touch of acetate.  I thought...well, I can do this. Sort of....when I made mine I was out of town and only had some supplies with me.  But the good news is that I used up some more paper scraps I had from some old Simon Says Stamp card kits.

Yay me.   I used what I had on hand.

Yay me.

Here is my card:

 I was most happy to use up that flair I had....it had been sitting around and I was wondering what I'd ever do with it!  Yay me.
The top layer with the acetate is adhere with some foam tape to give a bit more dimension and lift it off the patterned paper behind it.
I love the look of white on white...and I love that wood grained paper from Simon Says Stamp.  The "happy birthday" sentiment is also cut with exclusive Simon Says Stamp dies.  I do love the die cuts that Shari used but again I used what I had on hand.  And my hand does not own those.  Poor me.

The word "celebrate" was stamped with a Paper Smooches stamp.

It was fun to do...and a big thanks to Shari Carroll for always wonderful inspiration!

Happy Crafting!

Project Life: Christmas Pages

It was rainy here yesterday...I mean, rain pretty much ALL DAY!  So what does one do on rainy, icky days?  Why eat junk food, watch reruns of Gilligan's Island (seriously...but mostly because it came on after Roseanne.  I love Roseanne.  She was my role model as a mother.  ;)  Anyway, I was too lazy to change the channel once the Roseanne marathon was over and it went to Gilligan's Island!), take a nap and CRAFT!  I finished up my Project Life Christmas pages and also made several cards!  I was so productive! 

So here are the pages...not much too them.  I sent some notes to my daughter about what we need to make sure we do this next Christmas in terms of photos.  1.  We need to make sure that we get a group shot of all 3 kids.  2.  I need more photos of the fronts of people and not their back. 3. My daughter and I need to fix ourselves up a bit more for photos.  LOL!  4.  I need to make sure I hand the camera over to someone and get in one or two pictures.  Yep!  NOT 1 PHOTO OF ME OF Christmas, 2013!  Lol.  It's like I was non existent!  Oh well... 

For these pages I used the same Simple Stories paper pad that I had purchased at Michaels in that fabulous sale: 

*ooops....I see I did not journal on the photo of Taylor coming down the stairs .... I will take care of that, I promise!

I made this little 3D paper bow with a die from Simon Says Stamp.  It's so cute!

Now I can sort of officially say DONE.  I do need to add some paper to the backs of the last page in my album so it's not naked....but 2013 is DONE!!! 

Now onto PL 2014!  I still am on the hunt for ways to simplify the process!

Happy Crafting!

Thanks

Wooooooo, BOY!  I've been having the best time getting to know my new grandson, Wade Garrison, and spending time with his big brother and sister (and his mom and dad!)! I stayed at my daughter's for a few days after they came home from the hospital and was able to snap this first photo of their so-precious-to-me family:

Here are the two boys together...David is so protective of his little brother:

 

 And here's one of Wade at 2 days old just after getting home from the hospital:

He looks a lot like his older brother and sister....but does have lighter hair than they did.  And he's a good bit bigger than they were!
Anyway, not much time for crafting but I did make Amanda some thank you cards for her to send.

I used a Lawn Fawn stamp which I inked with Versamark and used some blue embossing powder which was heat set.  I also stamped a small heart with Versafine black ink and then heat embossed it with some clear and colored it in with a Wink of Stella glitter brush pen.  I used a circle punch and a scallop punch and then used foam dimensionals for a bit of lift.

The "thanks" is a Simon Says Stamp die.  This was probably the most time consuming part of the card as the little inside pieces of the "h", "a", "k" and "s" had to be adhered as well.  For some things "nekkid" holes work but with this pretty script...well, it needs its innards!  LOL!!!  By the way..."nekkid" is a real word.  It means "naked" but is naughtier.  Google it if you don't believe me.  I tell the truth.

Off to make another batch!

Happy Crafting!