Thanks for warming my heart

 Today I received an early birthday gift from my sister, so naturally, I'm going to send a thank you to her for warming my heart!  I may actually save this for a Christmas thank you, but either way, I'm glad I took on this unique combination of colors from My Favorite Things' Color Challenge #153 to stretch my creativity and put together some hues I might not have chosen for this time of year (if ever). I may still go back and add some faint water color ocean  coloring around the ice berg before I send it,  but overall I'm happy with it (and a little fearful of messing it up)!

Supplies: There She Goes stamps, random card stock, Copic markers and Derwent colored pencils, jute, Stampin' Up! border punch, Wink of Stella and Icicles. 

The Sky's the Limit

 This week I took inspiration from My Favorite Things' Sketch Challenge #515 for the layout of another card to put in my Mom's Christmas collection of greetings to send her friends throughout the year to come. I really like the simplicity of this design and will likely use something like it again as I'm gradually getting more comfortable with clean and simple designs (although I can't help myself from layering card stock mats)!

Supplies: Papertrey Ink stamps, random card stock, Tim Holtz distress inks, Copic markers, clear embossing powder, Versafine onyx ink and dimensional adhesive.

Fresh Cut Flowers for my Mom

My mom and I used to be Hallmark Gold Crown members -before my sister and I got into creating cards. Now we send hand-made cards to friends & family which is not only great therapy but more meaningful for the recipients, too. And my Mom is not only a recipient of the occasional card I write inside to send her, but she often requests cards as gifts for Christmas and Mother's Day.  So I"m working on finishing up a set of unique cards to give her this coming holiday season and decided to combine those efforts with My Favorite Things' Sketch Challenge #514.

My mom loves flowers and her favorite color is orange, so I got out my MFT Fresh Cut Flowers and my Copic markers and created this fairly simple card (except for the color blending which is often a challenge).  I may go back and put a different stamp on the sentiment; I had the Pandas set out, so this birthday greeting was handy, but not as pretty a script as I'd prefer for the otherwise elegant flowers. Oh well, there's always room for improvement and I'm not trying to hide that my cards are hand-made, one of a kind creations!

Supplies: MFT Fresh Cut flowers stamp set, sentiment from MFT Pandas, assorted Copic markers and scrap colored cardstock. 

Nuts about you!

It's been a few weeks since I've successfully completed a card challenge within the time frame, but I had fun playing with the MFT squirrel stamp set I've come to love.  I created this card for My Favorite Things Sketch Challenge 513.  

I started to make this a CAS card, but soon realized that that wouldn't showcase the design, so I cut it off (leaving a subtle layer of white), and adhered it to some contrasting colored card stock which pops quite a bit more. I l fussy-cut two acorns and glued only the bottom one of that pair, so that the one on top of the stack is purposely loose, then I layered some leaves to add dimension. I adore the worried look of the squirrel on the ground while the other one seems so confident!

Supplies: MFT BB Squirrel!, Copic markers, Stampin' Up! card stock.

Oh, Nuts!

My Favorite Things Color Challenge #149  was timed nicely with the beginning hints of fall weather here in Georgia.  We actually got some lows in the mid 50's with highs in the 70's which feel incredibly refreshing after so many months of summer heat.

I used my new Squirrel stamp set (perfect for fall, or year-round, really in my wooded neighborhood) to make a belated birthday card for my friend, Sarah.  Technically I remembered her birthday, I sent her a text, but what kind of card-making friend would I be if I didn't give her an actual greeting card to celebrate her special day?  

Supplies: MFT BB Squirrel! stamp set, Copic markers, Versafine Onyx black ink, Stampin' Up Whisper White and Garden Green card stock, unknown kraft card stock and foam tape.

MFT Sketch Challenge 507

 I made a card I plan to send my daughter, so I thought I'd better make one for my son, too.  He's not having the best semester at UGA this fall -it's hard to be a college student in the midst of a pandemic, to be on campus and yet mostly attend classes on Zoom, etc. Plus, Athens (Georgia) has become a national hot spot for the virus, so he's cautious about even leaving the dorm to get food (which is no longer the wide array of dining hall food courts that it used to be)!  Anyway, I used the My Favorite Things sketch challenge #507 to make him a card just because. I took my time and used colored pencils for a change, then added just a little dimension to the lamp shade and the little table.  I think I'll use another sentiment from the same stamp set on the inside, the one that says "I've been thinking about you (in a normal, non-weird kinda way)"!

Supplies: MFT Our Story and Anything but Basic Encouragement stamp sets, Prismacolor pencils, Versafine Onyx black ink, Stampin' Up! Whisper White and Basic black card stock plus a few paper scraps and foam tape.

I'm no genius!

I debated whether or not to participate in My Favorite Things' 2020 Card Design contest.  I never win the random contests, so how do I stand a chance in one based on skill and talent?  I'm a weeknight, weekend crafter with average aptitude at best! Then I thought, it doesn't matter so much who wins, when in fact everyone who creates a card to share with a family member, friend or colleague is a winner!

So, against my better judgment, I bravely took on the My Favorite Things card design superstar clean and simple category  and this is what I made. 

I used my MFT brick stencil as an embossing folder, but ran it through my machine on top of some fun foam circles, so that it highlights just part of the card. It makes the background look like the interior of my daughter's university housing, and since she's the intended recipient, it seemed perfect! I also did lots of fussy cutting and added some layers to the image as well as a very narrow mat.  Although it's not a single layer card, I hope it still qualifies as clean and simple!  I had exchanged the girl's face in the Our Story stamp before, and I just love putting the panda in the arm chair with a book! The girl's hands work well as paws, and this time I used Liquid Pearls to give them and the feet a little dimension, too.  

Supplies: MFT Happy Pandas, Our Story, Small Brick Wall Stencil, Sweet Celebrations Paper Pad, Stampin' Up! Whisper White and Almost Navy card stock, foam tape, Ranger Liquid Pearls Onyx  and Super Fine Detail clear embossing powder with Versafine Onyx Black ink.

Hello, Birdie!

 I've been late getting my challenge cards done and/or posted the past couple weeks, so I rushed this one a bit to make the MFT Sketch Challenge 504.  If I were to do it over again, I'd go with a narrower image to show off more of the parallel strips beneath and I'd definitely re-position my Hello die. but c'est la vie! That die is also driving me nuts since I cannot verify its origin. I've had it for years, outside of its original packaging, of course!

Supplies: Tim Holtz Crazy Birds and Spiced Marmalade distress ink,  Paper Smooches Bird Cage die, unknown sentiment die, Recollections feathers, Copic markers, Stampin' Up basic gray & whisper white card stock, Daffodil Delight ink, Ranger glossy accents, Paper Studio Entirely Textures and Craft Smith Yellows & Oranges paper, Wink of Stella and clear packing tape for a faux embossed sentiment.

Hummingbird Hello

 I made this for My Favorite Things' Sketch Challenge #502

Balloon Triangle

As our local school district prepares to go back to school, at least virtually for the first few weeks, I was surprised to find an invitation to a crafter's version of a summer escape and an opportunity to do some arts and crafts!  My Favorite Things' Summer Camp Day 1  reviewed the concept of visual triangles, so I placed my balloons as well as the clouds that way.  I'm still working on my background-blending skills, but since skies are forgiving, with pop-up showers hidden among seemingly calm, cumulus clouds I tell myself the unevenness is acceptable.

Supplies: Papertrey Ink Up, Up and Away, My Favorite Things Anything but Basic Encouragement, Tim Holtz Salty Ocean distress ink, Inkadinkadoo  stamping mask paper, Copic markers and Memento Tuxedo Black ink.

A Palette of Colors

My Favorite Things' Summer School Day 2  is all about using a rainbow of colors, a great idea for any cheerful card.  I liked their example so well, I copied it with my palette and brush Die Namics, although the paint brush my dies came with looks shorter and fatter than the current MFT art dies.  To avoid copying the example online, I changed the shape, sentiment and layout.  It makes me think of my Dad, an artist whose palette never looked so neat -except maybe on the first day he got it, long before I ever saw it!

Supplies:  My Favorite Things Stay Tuned sentiment, Die Namics, card stock scraps, Wink of Stella, Ranger Glossy Accents, Versafine Onyx black ink and clear embossing powder.

A Symmetrical Card

I'm enjoying my Summer Camp experience with My Favorite Things' Summer Camp Day 3 , this challenge was for symmetry.  I like balance, so this was not hard to do, my challenge came in other ways.  My first set of cacti was ruined when one of my markers bled all over the third square!  Since I had a least three green Copics on my desk, once I placed the leaky one down, I forgot which one it was and had to use a different combo of greens!  Then I had a hard time deciding what to do at the base of each square (where I opted for just a hint of terra cotta) as well as the space below my trio of cacti in that great expanse of white (where I found some paper yarn looked good tied across the card). 

Supplies:  MFT Sweet Succulents, Stampin' Up! Cajun Craze, Whisper White, Tim Holtz Mustard Seed Distress Ink, Memento Tuxedo Black ink, Copic markers, Making Memories Twistel and dimensional tape.

A Blue Birthday

My Favorite Things' Summer Camp Day 4 is all about ombré, a fun and easy way to use colors on any card.  I liked the example so well, I mimicked it with the supplies I had on hand.  I like the contrast of the cursive script Happy and the manuscript letters in Birthday.  I could have die cut the same "Happy", but I like the three blended backgrounds better than a trio of die cut sentiments. I have a "birthday" die cut as well, but its style didn't go well with any of the "happy" stamps I own, so this is what I got! I had some odd smudge on one part of the card, so I added sequins to cover it!

Supplies: Hero Arts Happy Stamp & Cut,  Stampin' Up Whisper White, Tim Holtz distress inks: Peacock Feathers, Mermaid Lagoon, Salty Ocean, and Blueprint Sketch, Ice Crystal sequins, Frosted Lace stickles, Ranger Navy embossing powder and Versamark watermark.

Practicing White Space

 

The use of white space is not my forte, so I'm glad that Day 5 of My Favorite Things' Summer Camp encouraged me to try another clean and simple card (although my symmetrical cactus also has more white space than usual, too)!  I spent a long time making the TV since it would be the sole focus of the card and it has lots of layers including four faux TV cabinets for depth, but I may still go back and add "Stay Tuned" or something to the top left hand corner . . . it's just a lot of emptiness for my taste.

Supplies: MFT Stay Tuned and Celebrate stamp sets, paper scraps, Ice Crystal sequins, mounting foam, Stampin' Up! Whisper White cardstock and Colorbox pigment inks.

Summertime Fun with Lawn Fawn!

Summer 2020 is undoubtedly the strangest one ever, but barbecuing remains a source of enjoyment, so for Lawn Fawn's challenge #81 Summertime Fun I decided to make a congratulations card with a faux Kamado Joe masked into the lawn.  While this card is very similar to the one I made for their food contest, I'm proud of my efforts in making this truly clean and simple, a single layer -with the tiny exception of the burger on the grill and the gingham ribbon I needed to cover the card base that got slightly marred when I ripped off my washi tape mask.

Supplies:  Lawn Fawn Let's BBQ stamps & dies, Versafine black ink, clear embossing powder, Copic markers, Tim Holtz distress inks: twisted citron, mowed lawn & pine needles and Paper Studio red gingham ribbon.

Happiest Wishes

I thought this week's My Favorite Things color challenge #146  lent itself well to a bowl of strawberry ice cream with chocolate syrup, but since I don't yet own any MFT card stock,  the color I liked best for Summer Splash may be a bit more teal.than intended.

Supplies:  There She Goes Ice Cream, All Night Media Splatter Pattern, Stampin' Up! Happiest Birthday Wishes, Whisper White and Chocolate chip card stock,  Recollections polka dot card stock, Papertrey Ink Mat Stack 7 Basics die, Memento Ink,  Copic markers, Ranger Glossy Accents, Wink of Stella, random banner die and colored card stock scraps.

A Novel Birthday Card

I love to read, as do many of my friends and family, so naturally I like My Favorite Things' Our Story stamp set. It includes cute children with books, but today I decided to crop out the humans for something more unusual and this animal seemed quite comfortable in the girl's arm chair. What could be more novel than a panda reading a book?  I used My Favorite Things Sketch Challenge #499 as my inspiration for the layout.

Supplies:  MFT Happy Pandas, Our Story, Papertrey Ink Argyle Socks pattern paper, Copic markers, Memento and Versafine black ink, Copic markers and dimensional tape. 

Fun with Food challenge

Lawn Fawn has some of the cutest food stamps I've seen, so I was eager to participate in their Fun with Food challenge and practice making a clean and simple card like the adorable one Jessica posted.  I tried to recreate her band of color in my efforts, and with the sentiment placed at the bottom of the card I felt comfortable with all the white space, layering it on a white card base (since I still can't bring myself to complete a single layer card yet)!

Supplies:  Lawn Fawn Let's BBQ stamps & dies, Versafine black ink, clear embossing powder, Copic markers, Tim Holtz distress inks: twisted citron, mowed lawn & pine needles and Paper Studio red gingham ribbon.

MFT B-day Challenge: Gift Card edition

I dug through my stash, looking for inspiration to create a card for this month's My Favorite Things birthday challenge, to make a card that is also a gift card holder.  I found some cute mailbox die cuts I've had since I don't remember when and was delighted that the gift card fit inside!  I made a (multi-step) birthday-themed postage stamp, postmarked the card, splattered the mailbox with iridescence for a celebratory effect, and finished with some subtly stitched "hugs" (or are they kisses?) along the bottom border, leaving the red flag moveable for the fun of it!

Supplies:  MFT Celebrate You (sentiment), Happy Pandas (balloon), All Night Media Wish Postmark and Splatter Pattern, Hero Arts Edged Background, Lawn Fawn Stitched Borders, Tim Holtz candy apple red distress ink, Versamark pen, Copic markers, clear & white embossing powder, brad, dimensional adhesive, Stampin' Up! stitched border die (?), Whisper White and Basic Black card stock.

Up, Up and Away

I am not one of those people who feel the need to fill every quiet moment with idle chatter, TV or radio.  I enjoy quiet time, a lull in conversation doesn't bother me, it's a rare opportunity for introspection or a moment to think before I speak! Today's card helped me understand that craving others seem to have to fill that auditory void.  In taking on My Favorite Things sketch challenge #498 this week, I found that leaving significant white space on a card is extremely difficult for me to do! All the more reason I needed to accept the clean and simple dare! 

I admire those who routinely create beautiful single layer cards, but I could not resist adding black and blue mats to mine.  I am not a minimalist!  Are my cards generally overdone?  Maybe; I will try to be more selective about how I use space, but don't expect to see this much unadorned card base very often.  I was so tempted to add texture, watermarks or sequins to accent the "plain"  parts. It also turned out to be incredibly tricky to complete as I repeatedly got a smudge or crease on the white part!  I swear I spent just as much time on this C&S card as any other more complicated layout!

Supplies:  Stampin' Up! Whisper White, Basic Black, Bashful Blue card stock and ink, sentiment, Papertrey Ink Up, Up and Away, stamp set and Copic markers.

Zoom, Baby, Zoom!

This weekend I attended a virtual baby shower for my husband's niece, Julia, so I decided to use My Favorite Things' color challenge #145 to make a baby card.   She's not having a gender reveal, but this color challenge works great in case it turns out to be a baby boy!

Supplies:  Stampin' Up! Teeny Tiny Wishes sentiment, Whisper White card stock, Papertrey Ink Tremendous Treats Birthday images, scrap cardstock, Momento black ink, colored pencils and random die.

Bamboo Birthday

This week I decided to make a birthday card using  MFT Sketch Challenge #497.  I pulled out my favorite panda stamps and scissors and set about stamping and fussy-cutting bamboo.  I don't own the polaroid-style die from My Favorite Things or any of their adorable party animal stamps (yet), so I created my own mini frame.  It was a challenge to get the inside corners cut clean with my paper trimmer, so I simply used some bamboo pieces to hide the imperfections.  Looking at it now that it's done, I wish I had added more embossed bamboo to the right upper side of the green background, but I don't know if it's worth taking the whole card apart to redo, is it?  I might . . .  

Happy B-Day

Inspiration from My Favorite Things Sketch challenge 496 encouraged me to create this cute
B-day card that could be perfect for my brother "B", my husband the gardener, or most anyone! 
Who wouldn't love these adorable, non-stinging creatures delivering wishes for a happy birthday celebration?

Supplies:  My Favorite Things Meant to Bee stamp set, Stampin' Up! Honeycomb embossing folder,  dimensionals, Midnight Muse and random yellow and patterned card stock, Copic markers and Ranger super fine detail white embossing powder. 

Cactus Trio

I made this card in response to MFT"s Wednesday Sketch Challenge #493 and added a few additional embellishments such as the string and the mini flowers.  The dry desert scene with cacti in bloom makes a nice contrast, I think!

Supplies:  My Favorite Things Cacti, miscellaneous baker's twine, flower punch  and card stock.

Poppin' By with Balloons

This week's My Favorite Things Sketch Challenge #492 uses balloons, the quintessential birthday decor, perfect for any age or gender!  I used some miscellaneous old stencils I had on hand from scrapbooking plus made a few of my own using my Cricut machine.

Supplies:  MFT Soda Pop sentiments, white embossing powder and pigment ink, Tim Holtz Ranger Distress Inks, a silver pen and random stencils.

Cactus combo cards

To make productive use of my time during this novel Corona virus period, I've been working to complete more and more card challenges,  This time I inadvertently did two in one!  I used the My Favorite Things Color Challenge #142 as well as the MFT Sketch Challenge #491.  Although I found some designer paper that coordinated well with the color challenge, they weren't colors I would have likely put together on my own and yet I really like the way they look on the card.  The layout may be a bit more awkward, for the images I chose although I do like the three circles of different sizes along with the fourth, largest semi circle as the base.

Supplies:  My Favorite Things Sweet Succulents and Soda Pop (sentiment), SU! Whisper White, Coffee Break designer paper, Edgelits Adorning Accents and Soft Subtle candy dots, Early Espresso and random color card stock, Spellbinders Nestabilities circles and assorted Copic markers.

Bubbling Over

One of the nicest things about making your own cards is that you can personalize it for the intended recipient.  I typically try to use images and colors I know they'll like, but there's nothing more personal than including someone's name to show that the card was designed especially for them!  I took on the My Favorite Things Birthday Challenge with one of my favorite stamp sets, Soda Pop!  I have primarily used the Coke-shaped bottle in the past, but since I wanted to spell out a name and use multiple colors of soda, I opted for the generic bottle and designed my own labels for each of them using MFT alphabet stamps.  It's a busier look than I usually like, but hopefully it captures the excitement of a fun-filled birthday!

Supplies:  MFT Soda Pop Stamp set and dies, MFT Cooper Alphabet stamps, various Copic markers, SU! Whisper White card stock, Soft Suede, Only Orange, Certainly Celery, Perfect Plum and Illuminate inks/card stock, All Night Media Splatter Pattern.

May Thank You challenge

It's almost the end of May, but I was determined to complete this Paper Smooches challenge since it's always good to have thank you cards on hand!  I love this cute little bunny as well as the pineapples, so surely whatever recipient eventually gets this card will like it too. 

Supplies:  Paper Smooches Pineapple Crush stamp set, Pineapple 2 die cuts, SU! Whisper White card stock, Versafine Onyx Black ink, clear embossing powder, Copic markers, gingham ribbon, unknown embossing folder (must be one I used at Nance's house once upon a time), random card stock.

Compost Happens!

The subtle exclamation above probably resonates with most of us at one time or another.  For me, it's a reaction to getting laid off due to COVID-19,  I suddenly have more time on my hands, so l've decided to get back into my favorite form of art therapy: stamping! This fun gardening set comes from Paper Smooches, but I used it for the MFT's weekly Wednesday sketch challenge #490 (the website claims their winners are chosen at random)!

Supplies: Paper Smooches stamp set Compost Happens,  Quickutz Geometric Circles embossing folder, SU! Whsiper White, Early Espresso card stock and chalk on the sentiment, Papertrey Ink Stamper's Select white card stock, colored pencils for the vegetables, Copie markers on the tools, and Versafine Onyx Black ink.