The dog ate my adhesive...

Well, ok, he didn't actually eat the adhesive, but earlier this week he got bored and decided to shred.  Along with a box full of magazines he pulled out two new adhesive refills and rendered them useless.  This did provide me with a craft shopping opportunity since I used the last of my adhesive on the gift cards in the previous post.

After buying myself some more adhesive refills I played with the Dude Time Doodles sketch challenge and I'm just squeaking it in under the deadline.

I inked up another of my new Lili of the Valley stamps, and paired it with design papers from the TPC Studio Paws and Claws Dog cardstock pad.  As usual, it's colored with my Tombow markers via a brush.  I pulled out some stickers for embellishments - the paw prints are from an ekSuccess sheet, and the sparkly bling in the top right corner are Stampendous class a'peel vinyl stickers.  I also added a scalloped border with a new ekSuccess border punch picked up on the unscheduled craft store shopping trip.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Kathy

Lili of the Valley gets some ink!

I've had my new Lili of the Valley stamps for a couple of weeks, and I finally found the courage to cut the sheet and ink up the Big Present stamp!

I also used the Lili of the Valley Challenge 77 sketch, which was trickier than I had anticipated.  I made three similar cards (one for each nephew), but in the rush to get out of the house and visit them yesterday I only got a good shot of this one.  The image was colored with my trusty Tombow markers, and I used scraps of DCWV winter mat stack design papers for the stripes.  The sentiment was stamped using individual letters.

I added a couple of pockets on the inside for their gift cards as well.

Thanks for visiting!
~Kathy

Supplies:
Paper:  Recollections card stock, DVWV winter mat stack design paper,
Stamps & Ink:  Lili of the Valley Boy oh Boy Big Present stamp;  Archival Jet Black Ink;  Individual letter stamps
Other:  ekSuccess wavy border punch;  snowflake punch;  circle punches;  pre-embossed card base;  Tombow markers and water brush

Clean and Simple Winter Notes

As part of my long Thanksgiving weekend I wanted to write a variety of "Any Hero" notes, but first I needed some.

It took me about 2 hours to come up with a design that I liked - my dining room table is still covered with papers, scraps and tools (thank goodness my sister-in-law LOVES to host Thanksgiving dinner)!

Finally I found a design that can also help use up a stack of blue cardstock that doesn't seem to match much of my design paper...  I may color in the images as I write the notes but they also look pretty good in black and white.  I also made use of my new Fiskars three design corner punch.  Here are some close-ups of the different images.  

Thanks for visiting!

~Kathy

Dude Time Safari Sketch - Triple Challenge cards

Working on challenges seems to be sparking my creativity.  With some crafting time this weekend I picked three challenges and attempted to pull them all together into one card.  Not only did I meet my goal, but I actually created two different cards for the same set of challenges.

I LOVE the colors in the Dude Time Doodles inspiration challenge, and I seem to be different than most of the card makers whose blogs I visit, since masculine cards don't overwhelm me.  (maybe it's because I'm not a frilly, flower person myself...)

The Truly Scrumptious Challenge 45 sketch looked interesting, and I tend to struggle with multiple layers so I figured this would stretch my thinking a bit.

And last, but not least, going on a safari is on my dream list; so how could I pass up the Pixie Dust Studio challenge of a safari theme?  I have a few stamps that fit the bill (of course) - is it possible that someone dreaming of an African safari would not have such stamps??

I wanted to try another in the vertical format, so I used the scraps from the first card on a second one:

My camera seems to be acting up - couldn't get it to stop cutting the edge off of the second card... 
Thanks for visiting~
~Kathy

Supplies:
Paper:  Recollections Cardstock;  DCWV neutrals mat stack;  Bazzill basics earthtone mat stack
Stamps & Ink:  Archival Jet Black Ink;  Magnolia Savanna;  Inque Boutique safari (elephant);  Stampendous everything happy sentiments
Other:  ek Success wavy border punch;  circle punch

Lili of the Valley - anxiously awaiting new stamps!

I recently stumbled across Lili of the Valley stamps- such adorable images!  I immediately put in an order.  As I anxiously await their arrival from "across the pond" I have been skimming their blogs adoring their creations with a touch of jealousy.  {smile}

Lo and behold...  at their inspiration blog a bit of candy awaits...  I couldn't turn down a chance to win more of their darling stamps, so you'll find a link in my sidebar!

~Kathy

Monochromatic Wonder

It's amazing what a few tools can do to bring a simple card to life!

With a little more crafting time this week, I ventured over to the Feline Playful blog to look through the challenges for some inspiration.  Gradually I fell upon one that spoke to me (and didn't require elements that don't exist in my stash).  The Everybody Art Challenge #117 - Monochromatic Brown.

I didn't think this looked too hard - that is until I started sifting through my supplies and noticed that I don't have a lot of browns in my paper supplies.  I was able to find a couple of pieces of brown cardstock, and a piece of Kraft paper that I saved from a recent package I received. 

Next up - find an image to use.  Another Mo's digital image to the rescue - Jack and the beanstalk looked like it would work pretty well in shades of brown.  I used my trusty Tombows and water brush to add the shading.  And used a portion of a hand-me-down rubber stamp from my mom for the sentiment.  I did mask off several other words on the stamp to keep just the one word for my design.

Growing tired of plain rectangles, I love my new ek Success border and corner punches and used them both (along with what I think is called the out of the box technique) to spruce up my card design.  It's still pretty simple, but that wavy border adds just a bit of character.  Oh - and that thin brown stripe along the right edge - it's the left-over scrap piece from the wave punch. 

Since the card base is dark, I also added the wavy border to the inside white...

Thanks for visiting!
~Kathy

Supplies:
Paper:  Recollections cardstock, kraft paper up-cycled from package filler received in the mail
Stamps & Ink:  Mo's Digital Pencil - They Grow So Fast digital image;  Archival Jet Black Ink;  hand-me-down sentiment stamp
Other:  Tombow markers;  water brush;  ek Success wavy border punch;  ek Success corner rounder

Love Notes and Bling

Operation Write Home had a Valentine Blog Hop over the weekend.  They were celebrating Veterans Day and getting a jump start on the Valentines Day cards needed in before their January 7th deadline. 

I was inspired to create this card - trying to keep the reds, pinks and hearts to a minimum since Dixie (our east coast shipper) gets overwhelmed by such things.  {grin}

What do you think of my purple and green Valentines day card?  I just love this Mo Manning digital image of Bella playing the saxophone!  And she's always adding more great images to her collection.  To see her latest additions check out her blog!  The image was colored using my Tombow markers and water brush.

I have a couple of firsts in this card to boot:  1) first time using my new EK success corner rounder punch and 2) first time using BLING!  I added a tiny red heart to Bronte's collar and a trio of circles under the sentiment - I may need to pick up a pair of tweezers for my tool kit as these were hard to work with using only my fingers!

I created the little heart notes coming out of the saxophone using two small punches - music notes and hearts.  I glued the hearts onto the round part of the notes and voila - Love Notes!  I looked through all of my sentiments, and apparently when I send cards I'm not too sentimental - very few love messages.  So I pulled out some individual letter stamps (which conveniently came with a heart) and put together the sentiment.  I'm not great at lining everything up, so I used my wavy edge punch and now my crooked words a little less obvious.  {smile}

I've also entered the card into the Cute Card Thursday Challenge #138 where Anything Goes.

Thanks for visiting!
~Kathy

Supplies:
Paper:  Recollections cardstock;  DCWV Latte Matstack
Stamps & Ink:  Mo's Digital Pencil So Jazzed digital image;  Archival Jet Blank Ink;  alpha-numeric individual rubber stamps for the sentiment
Other:  Tombow markers;  ek Success corner rounder punch;  ek Success border punch;  heart and music note punches;  Hero Arts pale green gems;  Me & My Big Ideas heart Rhinestone

Fun with a cardboard box.

Had more time today to play, so I skimmed through the Feline Playful list of challenges for the week and found an interesting sketch at the Dude Time Doodles challenge blog.  My take on the sketch, which required the card be masculine:

I had this image of Eli from Mo's Digital Pencil already colored leaving me lots of time to pull out parts and play with the elements.  Here's the actual sketch:



I flipped it and found a piece of the Safari Chic Die Cuts with a View that reminded me of tire tracks.  A few scraps of punched cardstock and some alpha-numeric stamps for the top prize ribbon and voila - a great card to send in to Operation Write Home!  (Do kids play with cardboard boxes any more?)

And while I'm on OWH - they made it to the finals for the JoAnn's Craft for a Cause challenge.  Stop on over and vote!

Thanks for visiting!

~Kathy

Supplies:

Paper:  DCWV Safari Chic Premium Mat Stack;   Recollections cardstock

Ink & Stamps:  Mo's Digital Pencil Eli digital image;  Archival Jet Black Ink;  Alpha-Numeric individual rubber stamps

Other:  ek Success punch;  foam tape, Tombow markers;  Zig Memory System pens

Blowing Snowflakes

After a busy day of running errands, I sat down to play with paper and markers this evening.

This card actually came together in about 10 minutes with the help of a pre-made card base and the perfect piece of patterned paper.  One of the first set of stamps that I picked up included this snowman, I did trim away a small snow-butterfly which was replaced by the swirling snowflakes in the designer paper. 

The biggest decision I had was the colors to make the coat, hat and scarf.  In the end I went monochromatic (well except for that carrot nose) coloring him with my Tombows and making it feel like winter.  I popped up the snowman on foam tape for a little depth.  The card was missing a little something, new Gelly Roll white gel pen to the rescue for some hand stitching around the border.

Since the card base is larger than the A2 standard for Operation Write Home I'll be using this one for a note to a service member stationed overseas during the November and December holiday seasons.

Thanks for visiting...
~Kathy

Supplies:
Paper:  DCWV The Winter Combo matstack, watercolor paper, Strathmore photo mount card base
Stamps & Ink:  Archival Jet Black Ink, Darcies Unmounted Rubber Stamps JCS0064 set
Other:  Gelly Roll medium white gel pen;  foam tape

Following a recipe...

I had a little crafting time over the weekend and pulled together the pieces for the PaperCraft Star's Challenge #20.  I've tried to keep my stash of supplies small.  This forced me to get a creative.

The recipe:

     Simon Says Make a Card

     Base 4.5 x 5.5

     Double Mat #1: cut at 3 3/8 x 4 5/8 with another color cut at 3 1/4 x 4 1/4

     Double Mat #2: cut at 2 3/4 x 4 with another color cut at 2 3/4 x 2 1/2

     Add Ribbon

     Add Button(s)

     Add Punch or Die Cut

     (Add anything else you would like to add)

I dug out some dark blue cardstock scraps and a DCWV winter design paper from a mat stack pack to match the reverse side of a piece of ribbon.  I'm hoping that the chipboard button that I covered with red paper counts as a button (I haven't added buttons to my collection yet), and the little snowflakes are punches.  The Studio 112 cardinal stamp was a Joann's dollar special, and I colored it with my Tombows.

I had fun working with the different elements, but I think I may have mis-measured one of the mats.  Either way I had fun putting this together.

Supplies:
Paper:  DCWV The Winter Combo matstack, Paperbilities card stock scraps
Ink & Stamps:  Archival Jet Black Ink, Studio 112 cardinal stamp
Other:  ribbon scrap, chipboard button, snowflake punch, Tombow markers

Old World Notes

When my parents headed home from their visit a couple of weeks ago the Paper Crafts July / August 2010 magazine remained on my dining room table.  I skimmed through the pages, and decided to tackle the sketch on page 22.

Over the course of several rainy days I pulled together the parts to come up with this design:

I've always loved old maps, and I've had this Inkadinkado letter stamp waiting for some ink.  They just seemed to fit the magazine's sketch (shown below).

Thanks for stopping by  ~ Kathy

Supplies:

Paper:  Paperbilities card stock;  Die Cuts with a View Safari Chic Matstack

Ink & Stamps:  Archival Jet Black Ink; Hero Arts sentiment; Inkadinkado letter stamp

Butterflies and Smiles

I recently discovered the Papercraft Star Challenge site, and decided to try out this week's sketch.  I've had plenty of time to think about it and pull out all kinds of supplies since they have their challenges posted in advance.  This is a great benefit for me since I'm still new to card making and it takes a while for me to come up with ideas.

I had a hard time figuring out the different panels in the sketch, and finally just played around with some of my cardstock scraps to come up with this design. 

Here's the actual sketch - I flipped it, and moved the "ribbon" - in my case the butterfly.

My Inkadinkado butterfly came from my stash of previously colored images, and I inked up the Hero Arts sentiment for the first time!  I got a little creative for the corners of the sentiment - since I have limited supplies I used a circle punch to change the panel from rectangular to the ticket look.  The sentiment and butterfly are up on foam tape.

I'm looking forward to using more challenges and sketches to jump start my muse!

~Kathy

Supplies:
Paper:  cardstock scraps
Ink & Stamps:  Archival Jet Black Ink, Hero Arts sentiment, Inkadinkado butterfly
Other:  one inch circle punch

Friends and Flowers

Getting out of the office a little early today provided me the opportunity to visit the nearby JoAnn's for the first time.  Operation Write Home posted information on JoAnn's Craft for a Cause challenge and I figured that was a good excuse to go shopping.  I was thrilled to find they were having a sale on punches and embellishments! 

Wandering through the isles, I found a Die Cuts with a View piece of patterned paper that I liked so I went from there picking out a matching single solid green sheet, and a package of Studio 112 flowers.  After that I rounded out my stock of basic supplies with two packages of cardstock, two ek success punches that coordinate, white gel pens and adhesives. 

Once home the card came together quickly, not sure why my muse was so active today.  The design paper does nearly all the work, with the green punched piece and flower each popped up to add some dimension.  Simple, but I like how it turned out.

~Kathy

Supplies:
Paper:  Die Cuts with a View single sheet design and solid green papers, The Paper Company white cardstock, Die Cuts with a View Mat Stack purple paper
Embellishments:  Studio112 layered flower.
Other:  ek success punch,  foam tape

Late to the Party...

It's been a while since I've surfed around the card-making world and it seems I'm late to Karen's Feline Playful Challenge Blog Party.  Hopefully she'll still let me play!

Karen has made searching for card-making inspiration easy with her Feline Playful Blog, where links to challenges are updated daily.

And until tomorrow - see I told you I was late to the party - she has blog candy offered up for her followers.  Check out all the great stuff for two lucky winners -

So why not hop on over and join with me... I soooo don't want to be the last one in the door!  LOL

Oh and on a craftiness note - I've got a couple of cards that I worked on while chatting with my mom (she visited this past weekend) just waiting for their picture to be taken and posted here... 

~Kathy

Patriot's Day Thanks...

I wanted to post a card in honor of Patriot's Day, and this little bull dog from Inkadinkado's Patterned Pets stamp set makes me think of the Marines. 

I have no idea if the marines have a bull dog as a mascot, but everytime I look at it that's what pops into my head.

This card came together quick and easy!  I used the negative from a bunch of blue stars that I cuttlebug die-cut for the top border and sprinkled red die-cut stars around the bull dog.  I pulled the sentiment from my new Hero Arts Everyday Sayings set.  This could work as either a hero card, or a blank card for troops to write home on in the next box out to Operation Write Home.

Have a Great Day!
~Kathy

Supplies:
Paper:  Recollections Card Stock
Stamps & Ink:  Archival Jet Black Ink, Hero Arts Everyday Sayings sentiment, Inkadinkado Patterned Pets
Other:  Cuttlebug and star die cuts

Autumn Leaves

Inside a pack of Making Memories Autumn Splendor the following sheet has been taunting me:

While skimming through a variety of blogs, I saw Carol's card and was inspired to CASE it:

I switched it up a bit for the next one. 

These are so quick and fun that I plan to use up the entire 12x12 sheet for a series of notecards.  The only question that remains... is there a good way to use the scraps that I punched the little leaves from?

I used a couple of little leaf punches from a big kit I picked up at BJ's and sentiments from the Hero Arts Everyday Sayings set.

~Kathy

Supplies:
Paper:  Recollections white and brown cardstock, Making Memories Autumn Splendor DP
Stamps & Ink:  Hero Arts Everyday Sayings, Archival Ink Jet Black
Other:  Zig Memory System .45mm black pen

One Card's Scraps......

Are another card's treasure! 

A few weekends ago I got to meet several local card-makers.  Boy did I learn A LOT!!!  But I think they had almost as much fun showing me all the cool tools and techniques as I did seeing them live and in person.  In a four hour window I managed to eek out one complete card. 

When I wasn't watching in awe, I was fingering through the DP "scraps" on hand and found a perfect combination to match my previously colored Sarah Kay Stamp (it may have been impossible not to find a perfect match in all the beautiful papers!).  I also fell in love with the SU embossed butterfly die cuts (I think that's the right credit), and sprinkled them on the card to finish it off.

Along with the completed card, I got a jump start on a second card, which I finished up later during the week at home...  Again I found the perfect DP scraps and tried the ticket punch as well. 

Looking forward to the next get-together!
~Kathy

Supplies:
Paper:  Watercolor paper, DP scraps
Stamps & Ink:  Sarah Kay...,  Archival Ink Jet Black
Other:  SU embossed butterfly die cuts, Tombow markers, water brush

Soaking up the Sun

Hello again!  Wow!  Blogging is hard work - especially in the summertime, who knew?  ha ha

I thought I'd put another post out here so that my online friends wouldn't think I'd completely dropped off the face of the earth, and to kick-start a card making groove before a weekend crafting party.  I'm so excited to meet some artists (and absorb as much from them as possible)!

Here's a couple of cards I did ages ago for a challenge from Mo's Challenge Blog.  The challenge required the card to have only one of Mo Manning's digital images directly on the base layer and some ribbon.

For the first card, I combined the challenge with one of my own - focus on one location of the image for coloring.  I had a hard time choosing an image (I just love how they all tell a story!), but finally opted for Soaking up the Joy.

The focal point was colored using Tombow markers to match some stash ribbon, and interest was added by highlighting the butterfly, and a couple of the flowers.  Figuring out what to do with the ribbon was the real challenge!  I finally went with a little twist and think it turned out pretty nice.

For the second card I played it straight and basic.  I still like the results, but I think the twisted ribbon in the first card is more interesting.  This end of the summer image totally reminds me of what I was like as an early teen, sitting out in fields watching the insects - the only thing missing in the image is a book or sketch pad!

Supplies:
Paper:  Recollections Card Stock
Stamps & Ink:  Mo Manning digital image
Other:  Tombow Markers, water brush, ribbon scrap

On the Diagonal

Starting to grow a little tired of matching up all my edges I decided to experiment with diagonals.  The result is a card that seems to throw you off balance. 

I'm not sure if this could qualify as masculine due to the rose image, but the rest of the colors lean that way.

The Inkadinkado rose image was stamped on white cardstock, colored using Tombows and a water brush, and mounted on a piece of pale yellow from a Wal-Mart scrap pack .  The dark green panel is from a pack of handmade paper (origin unknown), and the diagonal panels are from K&Company scraps.

Supplies:

Paper:  Recollections Card Stock;  1 lb Scrap Pack from Wal-Mart; K&Company Classic Mat Pad; Handmade Fiber Paper

Stamps & Ink:  Inkadinkado Best Friends; Archival Ink Jet Black

Other:  Tombow markers, water brush

Fireworks!

What a party Bella and Bronte are having! The combination of this image from Mo Manning's Digital Pencil Shop and the patterned paper screams fireworks to me. I'm sure the fact that, as a kid, Memorial Day Weekend meant the regatta was in town and fireworks were on the agenda has nothing to do with my impression. I printed this image on medium weight cardstock, and colored it with my Tombows and my trusty water brush.

Since the base color of the card is a deep red, and the card will likely end up in a box to be shipped to Operation Write Home, I lined the card with light weight printer paper. I experimented with some mini brads I found at Michael's to attach the liner paper:

Supplies:

Paper: Recollections Card Stock; plain printer paper

Stamps: Mo Manning's Digital Pencil Too - Celebrate digital image

Other: Tombow markers; water brush; acrylic block; mini brads

Experimental Flowers

I have inheirited some of my mom's crafty personality, and we love to banter back and forth with ideas and critiques. I'm pretty sure my father and husband don't understand all our artistic chatter, but they do their best to keep up. Mom and I also manage to balance each other out a bit. When it comes to letting the paint fly she's great at letting go and experimenting. Somehow I ended up wound a little tighter. Together we manage a happy medium where I provide some focus and she provides the freedom.

So what does this have to do with today's card? Today's happy flower card is the result of some time spent together where I was experimenting with that new cuttlebug of hers, and mom just sat back and watched. I like the simplicity of the card - and so far all of my cards have been pretty simple (do they qualify as clean and simple, or just beginner simple?). But the elements all seem to be a bit linear in their placement.

Ah well - it was a successful experiment anyway. I learned how to use the small edge embossing folder, and the flower die-cuts. Next time I'll try and let myself go a little bit. I did manage to cut out the green leaves by hand, and add some dimension to the flower with foam tape... does that count? {grin}.

Supplies:

Paper: Recollections Cardstock

Stamps & Ink: Archival Ink Jet Black; Hero Arts Anyone Can Stamp sentiment.

Other: Cuttlebug die 2x2 Flower #1 and A2 border embossing folder; scissors

Chasing Flies...

Yesterday Joel (my dear hubby) spent half the afternoon chasing down a herd of big green horse flies. With the window work (and previously mentioned open door policy for the dogs) it seems the huge flies descended on our dining and family rooms during the mini heat wave that hit us. (I spent about 20 minutes following him around and vaccuming up the remains - having them fly around bothers me less than all those bodies.)

So it seems rather fitting that Friday he arrived at the office to find this card waiting for him:



It was hard keeping it a secret from him - he likes to come in to see what I'm working on! When I first saw this Bugaboo digital image I knew he had to get the first card I made from it! You see, I never have to worry about getting bit by insects when Joel's around (apparently he's sweeter than I am)! Plus we had been out camping in California with my brother in May so it all just seemed to fit!

The image was colored using my Tombow watercolor markers and a water brush - I haven't figured out how to use the markers directly on the paper yet... but since I love to paint with watercolors it's all good. I just mix my colors on an acrylic block, dip the brush and go.

Supplies:

Paper: Recollections Cardstock; Black Ink Banana Leaf Decorative Papers

Stamps: Bugaboo Digital Image - Stella Summer Blocks mosquitos

Other: Tombow markers, water brush

Happy Dragonflies

We had a dragonfly zip into our house last week. I've never seen that before; moths, flies and annoying no-name bugs visit all the time (leaving the door open for easy dog access is a great way to invite insects too!) but we've never had a dragonfly visit. Fortunately, after a quick inspection of the family room, the dragonfly found it's own way back outside.

So, when mom walked out of Michael's last weekend with a new dragonfly punch I knew I had to try it! Another simple card, but the patterned paper says it all. I used the punch for both a border design, and then re-attached them to the top of the card. Who knew that putting them on randomly would be so difficult?!

Since this card is going to Operation Write Home I lined the card with white paper. The inside has a little more of the design paper to show through the dragonfly punch outs. Operation Write Home is an organization that ships blank handmade cards to members of the military serving far from family. Messages are then written and sent back home for their loved ones to treasure.

Supplies:

Paper - Recollections Cardstock; Scraps of patterned paper from Michael's; plain white printer paper

Other - Borrowed dragonfly punch from mom; Ribbon from mom's stash; blue thread; Aleene's Clear Gel Tacky Glue

The Journey Begins

Look mom - I've finally started my own blog! I know, I know you've been on here for a while... you like to dive in and go for it; I tend to be a little more deliberate. {smile} But here I am, creating my online adventure book for my artistic creations.

And now for my first card post... I have to give credit to Sandy for introducing me to the card making world, and I have been absorbing information ever since!

Over Memorial Day weekend mom brought her cuttlebug, and we experimented with her new toy. Together we created this simple little card with the dandelion die cut...

The dandelion image was cut from green and yellow scrap cardstock, and the sentiment was embossed on the bottom edge of the card. The outside frame from the green cut was placed on the cover. The green dandelion is up on foam tape, and the yellow dandelion is rotated so that the petals differ from the green flower, and mounted on foam tape.