Yes, More Sunflowers

After making the sunflower stamp class, I wanted to do more projects using the pretty papers.  So I made some decor blocks and put Bible verses on them.  First I painted the blocks and then decorated them with my stamping supplies.  Pretty, right?

These blocks make nice gifts or something cute to sit on a shelf in your home.  

Here are a couple of smaller ones.  I found the Scripture stamps at Hobby Lobby but I need to look for a few new ones.  Maybe I will look online for some.

This pic shows all three of them along with some yellow washcloths that I crocheted.  I usually pair them together in groups of 3 or 4 - they make nice gifts along with a pretty bar of soap.

You can even pair the wooden blocks with a matching card for a gift.  I just loved working with these pretty sunflower papers.  :)

Look how cute they look together!

In my sewing room, I whipped up some sunflower bookmarks to go along with the projects.  I just want to make more.  

I was having such fun!  

Sunflower Fun

My last stamping class featured some sunflower cards using Radiant Sunflowers stamp set and Sunflower Fields designer papers.  Here is my first card.  We used sponge daubers to color in the sunflowers.  I love how they turned out.  

For my second card, we cut the designer paper into thirds and mounted it onto a brown piece of cardstock.  The little sunflowers are from the Pop Up Petals stamp set and the images int he set coordinate so nicely with the Radiant Sunflowers set.  

This card has some pretty green background paper from an older paper pack.  I added two sunflowers along with leaves, also colored with sponge daubers.  The saying is heat embossed with white powders.

I had so much fun playing around with sunflowers that I made a fourth card.  I folded down the top part of the designer paper for a different look.  I cut out some vases from Earthen Textures and added some sunflowers to them.  The ladies who came to the class enjoyed making the cards.

Here's a pic of me enjoying a sunflower maze at a local farm.  I love this time of year!

 

Sewing Book Sleeves and Bookmarks

Recently I had the idea of making some book sleeves to carry around any current book that I've been reading.  So I came up with up a pattern and made a couple to try it out!  

I really loved making them and will definitely make some more.  My sleeve is about 8x10 inches and has a pocket on the outside to hold your cell phone and some pens or a bookmark.  The sleeve can hold a book or a Kindle or anything else that is about the same size.

It will also hold a small sewing cutting mat or ruler and your rotary cutters or scissors will fit right into one of the pockets.  

The first few sleeves that I made were quilted but then I tried working on a couple that didn't have quilting and I still like the look of them.  Because they don't have the quilting on the top and bottom, they were faster to make.

While you can use any fabrics, I looked through my stash to see if I had any fabric with books on it.  I found some cute little house fabric that says Books on one of the houses.  Now I'm on the lookout for fabric with books on it.  

The bookmarks are fun and easy to make.  I ironed a stiff interfacing to the inside so that they wouldn't be flimsy and added a ribbon at the top of them.  I think they turned out so cute.

I will definitely be making more of these.  It's time to take out some whimsical fabrics and give it a go.  (In my spare time, of course!)

Art Gallery Cards

Last month I was browsing through my 6x6 designer papers and came across a package of Beautiful Gallery images.  They remind me of going to an Art Gallery, only you make the artwork!  For my card, I chose Stippled Roses for the main flower because I thought that it was kind of vintage looking.  This is one of the prettiest cards that I've ever made.  (I know I say that all the time.)

I cut a framed arch with the pretty papers, stamped on the inside piece with some words and then added the beautiful flower image.  The leaf cutouts are also from the Stippled roses set.  I love the colors and everything about this card.  :)

For this card, I copied the idea from Sandy Bennett on Pinterest.  I love the deep, moody colors.  I used an older embossing folder that has a sort of damask look to it, stamped words onto the light blue strip and added the printed image with a border.  It's even more beautiful in person.

My third card is a lovely landscape scene with some added sprigs, cut out in both vellum and in cardstock.  The saying is framed with a fancy circle die.  

I had so much fun making these pieces of "artwork" for my gallery card class.  The more I made, the more ideas that I got.  Someday I hope to make more.  

 

More Blocks

This block is made using Magnolia Lane designer papers (retired).  I added the pretty oval from Framed Florets to frame another Scripture saying.  The flower is fussy cut from the papers.  I cut out a couple of green sprigs and a green leaf banner to complete the project.

I try to always add some embellishments, buttons and ribbon to my items.  

For this project, I used an open frame that I found at the Goodwill shop.  I added some blue paper from Peaceful Garden and a cut out from Fragrant Layers.  I stamped some flowers and a butterfly from Extraordinary Life to add as embellishments.  Lastly I added the Scripture square as the saying.  

Here are couple of smaller blocks made with a pretty paper that has shiny copper leaves on it.  So I embossed some flowers in copper powders and added then to the blocks.  They're little (about 3.5 x 2 in) but make a sweet little encouragement.  

I had fun making these projects.  

 

More Valley in Bloom and Fern Decor

Last weekend I picked up this little easel with a thin wooden sign and remade it into this pretty decor piece.  I used Valley in Bloom paper, some cut out ferns from Fern and Flora, flowers, a couple of butterflies and a Scripture saying.  I just love how it came out - I think it's my favorite one so far.

These two little blocks, about 3 inches square, make a nice little gift to give to someone that needs encouragement.  They're made using the Moonlight Flora paper and some Scripture stamps.  They're made to be a set, but can be used separately.  

I'm off to find more blocks to make more.

Wooden Stamped Blocks for Home Decor

One of the things that I love to make with my SU papers and stamps are home decor blocks.  I find blocks of wood at thrift shops and local craft stores, paint them and cover them with pretty papers for a nice block that you can set on your desk or on a shelf.

This block (not sure what to call them) features papers from the Valley in Bloom papers.  I then added some ferns from Fern and Flora, some flowers, a butterfly or two and a stamped Scripture image.  I have a small bucket of Scripture stamps that I have collected over the years.  

Once made, I spray the blocks with Krylon to preserve the stamping so that it doesn't smear if it gets wet.

This block is a little bit smaller, about 4x4 inches.  It has the lily paper, also - the papers are so beautiful and make a great background.  I added the green fern, some flowers, moths and another Bible verse cut out with Everyday Arches.  

The long block at the bottom is a very weird size, but with a linear stamp and some side embellishments, I like the look of it.  It was fun playing around more with the lily papers and the fern cut outs.  

I could go on all day.

 

Fern and Flora Cards

 

I have loved the May-August catalog and all of the pretty papers and stamps in it.  One of my favorites is the Fern and Flora stamp set and the Moonlit Flora papers that coordinate with it.  

This card idea came from Pinterest from Heidi Stolk.  I love the use of the bright magenta flowers on it.  It's mysterious and moody and yet bright and cheery at the same time.  The designer papers are just stunning.

This next card idea is from Jan Clothier.  I embossed the white paper for the background - it's hard to see in the photo.  Then I added some of the pretty papers and a yellow cut out fern - it's just beautiful! The moth is stamped and colored as the perfect accent to the ferns.

This third card shows more of the pretty papers.  I stamped a lined background onto the white focal point using Basic Beige then added the fern and a fiddlehead, a flower and an old Stampin Up button.  It's like you took a trip to the forest on your break.

What do you think of this set?  Seriously, I just want to make more and more with it.  Something new and fun - great job, Stampin Up.  :)

Tilda Starburst Quilt is Done!

One day a while back- like 2 years ago, I took out some Tilda fabric charm square packs and made hundreds of half square triangles with them.  I saw this Sunburst layout online and decided to put mine together in this pattern.

I've been working on it for a couple of years now and decided to get a backing on it and quilt it.  Here is a pic of the quilt on my longarm as I get ready to quilt it.  I did an all-over stipple and swirls on it and I think it came out so beautiful.  :)  It's amazing how wonderful a quilt looks when it is finally finished.

Last week when I was camping, I sewed on the border, being very careful not to let it fall in the dirt!

I seriously just love how it turned out and now I have to trim up 168 more half square triangles to complete a second Tilda quilt.  

I still haven't decided on the layout of the second quilt, but I'm sure once I've trimmed my blocks, it will come to me.  

While on the Shop Hop this year in May, I found some pretty Tilda fabrics for the backs of my two quilts.  This quilt is like being in Tilda heaven.  :)
 

A Second Patriotic Quilt?

After finishing my Patriotic Quilt, I realized that I had enough fabrics left over to make another one!  I guess that I get carried away when buying fabrics to be sure that I have enough - ha ha.  Anyone else have this problem?  

I wanted to design something easy that showcases these beautiful fabrics.  So I cut some 5 1/2 in squares and added a 2 in sashing between them.  Here is the first layout on my design board, making sure that I don't repeat one of the colors next to each other.

Once I was happy with that, I decided to stagger the blocks in each row to give it some visual interest.  I had to add a half block on the end of every other row to complete the look.  

I started to sew the rows together.  I have 7 full squares across and 9 rows down.  I'm going to add a column of sashing (2 1/4 in) on the two sides of the quilt to make it a little wider. 

While I haven't finished it yet, it's all ready to be layered with the background and quilted.  Hopefully sometime soon!  :)

 

My Patriotic Quilt (Quilt #6 for 2026)

You may remember that I wanted to make a Patriotic Quilt this year to celebrate our country's 250th birthday.  I started this quilt on June 3 and finished it up this week, just in time for the 4th of July!

The pattern that I picked out was Stardust, a free pattern from the Fat Quarter Shop.  It was easy to follow and fun to make.

Some of the fabrics are from the Old Glory fabric line by Lella Boutique.  I especially love the red one with the flowers.  :)

Thankfully I have some fabrics left over to make another project.  Isn't that the story of my life?  I might made another quilt with some of the same colors to coordinate with this one.

I had seen this line of fabrics on Facebook and wanted to get some of these for my quilt. While I was on my Shop Hop, I happily found some of them at a local store.  I added in a couple of other colors to complete the look that I was going for.

Starting out, I found the pattern easy to make, as long as you label the squares!  Most of the quilt is made with half-square triangles and whole squares, in all different sizes.  Thankfully I had a new set of Alpha Clippies to help me out.  

Here is a pic of the starburst before I put on the border.  You can see the size of it with my chair in the photo.  I think it's about 60" square, which makes a nice throw.

In this photo I am free motion quilting it on my sit-down longarm.  Because it wasn't too big, I finished it in a couple of days.  

The color of the medium blue is more to it's true color in this photo.  I made a quick journey to Hobby Lobby and found a very nice dark blue fabric with ships on it for the back.  

All in all, it turned out so nicely.  And it's actually done - yay!

 

Valley in Bloom

I thought that our current Stampin Up catalog is one of the best that I have seen.  On page 22, there is a beautiful stamp set with papers that highlight the lily of the valley.  I had a great time playing around with this suite and made 6 pretty cards.

For my first card, I cut into a sheet of the designer paper, which is so amazing.  The rest of the card is just cut outs from the set.  I brushed a little bit of teal onto the white flowers to give them some dimension.  I got the idea for this card from Mary Deatherage.

My next card idea is from Angela Meiritz Reid.  I love the teal colored designer paper in this pack.  This is a simple and beautiful card.  For the background I used an older die called Stitched Greenery.  I like the look of it on this card.

 

The next two cards I call the "twins."  They are mirror image cards made with a sheet of designer paper that you punch a circle hole in the center and then slice it down the middle.  Keep one half for one card, and the other half for the second card.  Cute, right?  I got the idea from someone but can't find her post.

This yellow paper also comes in the designer pack.  I love this card.  It might be the black frame around the scalloped square that ties it all together.  And the little lily of the valley image is just the right size to be placed in a shaped focal point.  I could make this card all day.

Last is this sweet pink and green card.  I die cut a circle in the white cardstock and adhered it using dimensionals to give the front of the card a lift.  I love the cut out leaves and the simplicity of this card.  I saw the idea on Facebook from Laura Seki.

I'm so glad that I got this set.  It makes simple, easy and beautiful cards.  What do you think?

 

More Waterside Cards, Please

After making the three cards from the last post using Waterside Retreat designer papers, I just couldn't stop using the beautiful papers to make more cards.  The beautiful images were calling to me from my stamping room (Craft room #1).  

For this card, I started with Pebbled Path cardstock and added the dock scene to my card along with some cut out oars and life jacket.  For embellishment, I put a small banner and button on the top and added a srtip of Just Jade fancy cut out that was sitting on my desk.  

The little seagulls are stamped in the sky to make the scene come alive.  This card can be used for birthday, Father's Day or any special day that you feel like sending someone a card.

The next card is a trip to the ice cream shop along the boardwalk.  Sit for a bit sipping some coffee and enjoying your ice cream.  The Relaxing Waterside coordinating stamp set has the chair and cup image in it that I fussy cut and added to the card.   I put another small banner and the loose anchor trinket to the top of the card.  Copper Clay is the background cardstock and it just ties right in with the ice cream sign.

The next card takes you back to the cabin along with an Adirondack chair and some oar and life jacket cut outs.  I embossed Happy Birthday in white powders and added some late afternoon seagulls to the sky.  

What an amazing set of products to work with!  I just want to make more.  :)