The Upside to Social Distancing

I can't believe it took a virus of epic proportions and a social distancing mandate to get me back into my craft room!  I haven't made a card in YEARS!!  I had forgotten how fun and therapeutic card making really is.  So needed right now. 

I signed up for the online Spring Card Camp class and not only do I hope to learn new techniques but I am optimistic it will help me remember ones I haven't practiced in a long time!

I recognize so much has changed in the online card making community.  I may decide to post via Instagram or Flickr instead of trying to keep up a blog again.  Just want to keep it simple and not be so worried about how "perfect" the pics of my cards are and listing all the supplies used. 

Happy Easter!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day!  I hope all the moms who are celebrating today get to spend time with who or doing what they love!  

I had lots of Mother's Day cards to make this year and I thought I would share them all in one post.  Here's a few featuring some gorgeous Sizzix/SU die cut butterflies and SU and Papertrey ink stamps :

Here's a fun and cute design featuring loads of die cuts from various companies:

And here's a more clean and graphic design featuring WPlus 9 fresh cut florals and Mama Elephant products:

I haven't been able to visit your blogs lately as unfortunately one of the moms in my life (my MIL) sustained some bad injuries from a fall that required surgery and short-term (we all hope- especially her!) placement in a nursing home.  Talk about an "in your face" reminder of how quickly life can change!!!

Thank you for your thoughtful comments!  I hope to make time this week to see what you all have been up to:)  

Edited to Add:  Just realized any of my cards in this post would qualify for the current Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge:  Let's Get Sentimental .  Since they are featuring Tim Holtz products I will enter my first card as I used some Ranger peacock feathers and peeled paint distress inks:)  The sentiment I used is from Hero Arts.

Hello, Baby!

Quick post today my friends!  It's FINALLY Spring here in upstate NY and I've got to get outside so my skin can remember what sun feels like - LOL!

Needed a baby card for a co-worker's baby shower and after I finished it decided it would be perfect to add to the current challenge at Virginia's View!

My coworker is having a little girl and has decided to decorate the nursery with ellies and a pink & gray color combo.  I found the perfect ellie image on Cricut cart "Create a Critter 2" and was able to die cut a momma ellie and a baby:

One of the things I really like about Cricut cartridges is most of them have a shadow feature so you can easily add dimension to your images.  I added googly eyes (of course!) and some embroidery thread to their tails.  Also did a little sponging with some smoky slate ink on the edges of the die cuts for a little more dimension.  

Other Supplies Used:  Papertrey ink white cs, Martha Stewart pink carnation and endive cs, Amuse pink gingham pp, Stampin' Up smoky slate and basic gray cs, SU sentiment (Sweet Essentials), Mama Elephant dies, MFT stitched snow drift die and banner die, Stampin' Up heart embosslit, my all time favie Hero Arts cloud bg and soft pool shadow ink

Have a wonderful week and thanks for all the sweet comments!

It's Your Birthday!

At the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge blog the theme is Happy Birthday - to celebrate their 6th year!    

My boss asked me to make a birthday card for his wife with a gardening/farming theme as he is giving her a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) membership to a local farm called Sweet Penelope Farms.  I had a lot of fun creating and personalizing this little farm scene:

The barn from Lawn Fawn "Critters on the Farm" set was embossed then colored with copic markers.  The sentiment- stamped in Stampin' Up daffodil delight ink- is from Mama Elephant's "Happy Everything" set.  The little sheep, ears of corn and tomatoes were die cut using Cricut cart "From My Kitchen" while the wheelbarrow and gardening tools came from the "Walk in my Garden" cart.  

Other Supplies Used:  Our Daily Bread Fence die, My Favorite Things Stitched Snowdrifts dies and banner die, Cuttlebug swiss dot embossing folder, silver brad, toothpick, Lawn Fawn Let's Polka Mon Amie pp, Stampin' Up real red, crumb cake, black, garden green and daffodil delight cs, Papertrey ink white cs, Amuse gingham pp

I don't think I'll ever tire of creating scene cards - although it is a little exhausting to list all of the supplies used!  LOL!  Hope you're having a great week so far!  Thanks for all the thoughtful comments:)

Virginia's View Challenge #14

Hope you had a Happy Easter!  Last week the hubster and I took a mini vaca to Washington, DC to see the cherry blossoms - unfortunately we didn't see too many of those but we didn't see snow either!  Can you believe we actually had wet snow here in upstate NY yesterday???  Enough already!!!

While I was away I received some sad news - the mom of one of my high school friends passed away.  I only see Anne at class reunions but she's someone I can pick right up with where we left off.  Her mom was sort of a role model for me as I was raised by a SAHM and her mom was a working woman.  It sounds silly but I remember being so impressed by the fact that her mom planned their menus for the week and had them posted on their fridge - a practice I began when I started working and continue to do even now:)

I used one of my fave Papertrey Ink ginkgo stamps from the Harvest Berries set to make Anne a sympathy card:

  
After inking up the stamp with squeezed lemonade and peeled paint distress inks I lightly spritzed it with water before stamping repeatedly on watercolor paper.  Both the butterfly (Stampin' Up Butterfly Thinlit Die) and the Thinking of You sentiment (Impression Obsession die) were cut from the same Stampin' Up daffodil delight cs as the card base.
Other Materials Used:  Eyelet Outlet white enamel dots

I haven't played along with one of Virginia's View challenges in a loooooong time but when I read her current challenge it actually helped me to put this card together! :

After I had stamped my ginkgo images I decided my card would be more interesting if I cut the stamped piece into panels and popped them up on my card base with foam tape for some dimension.  I love this style of butterfly die as it's a great way to add a layer without covering up too much of what is underneath.

Before I wrap up this post I just have to share one of my favorite parts of our Washington DC trip:

Yep - I got to be a "Bond Girl" at the International Spy Museum:)

Time To Celebrate!

Took a break from Spring/Easter projects to make a male birthday card I need for next week:

I acquired this Memory Box Happy Birthday Background die specifically for male birthday cards.  I recently learned a great trick (that many of you probably already know!) at a Stampin' Up workshop for getting die cuts out of intricate dies.  Run the die through your die cutting machine a second time after placing an unscented dryer sheet underneath it and the die cut pieces will stick to the dryer sheet eliminating the need to poke and prod them from the die!!!  So simple but a serious game changer for me:)
Other Materials Used:  Stampin' Up night of navy, crumb cake, calypso coral and bermuda bay cs and birthday bash dsp, Cricut Artiste cartridge(die cut clock), My Favorite Things banner dies, Paper Smooches sentiment, Papertrey Ink partial sentiment, pom pom, gold brad and star from stash

I'm going to pop this into the current Simon Says Stamp Anything Goes challenge.  Hope you've had some crafty time this weekend:)

Freshly Made Sketches and SSS Anything Goes

Happy Saturday!  I'm trying to stay positive as yet again we woke to a dusting of snow on the ground and temps in the teens:(

Worked on some Easter projects this week and the first one I'm sharing is a card based on the current sketch at Freshly Made Sketches :

I used a new stamp set by Avery Elle called Easter Blessings and some new pp from Lawn Fawn called Let's Polka Mon Amie:

When I saw this Avery Elle image I immediately thought how cute it would look on an egg.  I die cut the egg image from Cricut cart Doodlecharms and the embossed image was colored with a variety of Stampin' Up markers.

Other Materials Used:  Stampin' Up baked brown sugarcs and crisp cantaloupe cs and sequins, My Favorite Things banner die, Papertrey ink white cs

I'm also popping this into the current Simon Says Stamp Anything Goes challenge.

I wanted to share the Easter shadow box insert I made at a Stampin'

Up workshop:

The finished piece was mounted on an 8 x 8" piece of Stampin' Up chocolate chip cs and put in an 8 x 8" black shadow box frame.

Hope everyone has a fab weekend!  I'm working today but hope to visit blogs tomorrow:)