Quick and Easy Cards Using Thinlits and Punches

I was in the mood the other day to make some simple of cards using only framelits or punches. I love the Floral Phrases designer paper, especially the blue package from last year.  I think this was the first time that I have used this pretty cut out from the Florish thinlets.  I found this idea on Pinterest by Kirsten Aitchison.  I added rhinestones in the flower buds to make it sparkle.

The pretty blue punch-based card was made using assorted blue scraps and several flower punches that I have acquired over the years.  I found this idea on Pinterest also, but I didn't see a name associated with the card.  The top half is embossed and the bottom half is left plain for a saying.  I love how the butterfly is just a bit on the teal side to set it apart from the flowers.

This card can be made using any colors.  It was fun and easy to do.  I added rhinestones to the center of some of the flowers to give it some bling. 

Do you sometimes like to make easy cards that don't require a lot of stamping?  Which do you prefer, thinlits or punches?

Pretty Kitty

I love the Pretty Kitty set and Bella & Friends dog stamp set in the current catalog.  Although I don't have a dog, I do share my daughter's kitty Ginger.  I need to take these sets out and use them more.  \

The colors?  Why Rose Red, of course paired with Basic and Smoky Grays.  The little kitty is painted on watercolor paper. 

Painting with Rose Red

I've had the stamp set Rose Wonder for a couple of years and haven't really used it much.  I found some really nice samples from Jackie Bolhuis and decided to give Rose Wonder a try!

For this card, I stamped the images using black ink onto watercolor paper and colored them in using paint brushes.  I was going for a watercolor look, but in reality mine are colored in the lines too well.  I need to learn how to just swish on the color!  LOL

Here is another technique using the same colors, Rose Red and Wild Wasabi green.  I embossed the image onto glossy paper with white embossing powders and then painted them with the paint brush.  The leaf cut out is from Flourish thinlits. 

Here are a couple more samples.  I was trying to paint a bit darker so that the white embossing lines would show up more.  It's hard to see in the photos, but the glossy paper and the white embossing lines are so shiny and really add to the card.

I realize that Rose Red is about to become a discontinued color.  I guess I will just have to replace my favorite color with another.  

Rose Red, My Favorite Color

Rose Red is my favorite Stampin Up color.  I have used in a LOT of my cards in the past years.  It always seems to brighten up the room and put me in a good mood, well, as much a color can.

I made this card as a Make & Take for my once-a-year demonstrator Shoebox Swap Day that we set up at the local firehouse.  We get together and each demonstrator brings one Make & Take for everyone to make.  At the end of the day, I returned home with almost 20 stamping projects!  It was so much fun making each girl's project without having to come up with all of the ideas myself.  :)

The heart is from Sunshine Wishes thinlits and the flowers are from Jars of Love stamp set.  I used assorted sayings to finish off the cards.  I have to say that this card represents my colors and my style.  It's like a little piece of artwork that is perfectly me.  :)

Sale-a-Bration Cards

I wish that Sale-a-Bration would last longer.  Don't you?  I love being able to earn free stamps and crafting supplies from Stampin Up.  Here are a couple of cards that I made using the Lots of Lavender stamp set. 

I colored in the lavender with some paint from the stamp pads and then cut it out.  For the background piece, I used the Stitched Shapes framelit and the scallop that matches it.  I thought the card needed a little something, so I put the tiny "for you" on it in the corner.  I'm happy with how it came out. 

I'm very fond of lavender and hope to grow some in my garden this summer.   Have you tried to grow lavender?  Have you had success with it?

Here is card made with the peacock stamp from the Sale-a-Bration catalog.  I don't usually use these colors but I love how the Lemon Lime Twist brightens up the card. 

I added some rhinestones and a bit of Wink of Stella to make the bird come alive.  He's so regal looking, don't you think?

Decorating with Teal

Recently I had all of the rooms of my house painted.  It was quite the undertaking and I'm not sure if I'd ever do the whole house at the same time again!  I had to move all of my crafting supplies out of the sewing and stamping rooms (and you know that I have a LOT!)  and it's still not all put back yet.  It's like moving all over again, only this time nothing is even in boxes.  :(

Slowly, I am sorting and putting things back together.  I look forward to when I get both of my crafting rooms all set and I can just go in and sew or stamp without having to look for all of the supplies. 

Anyway, I have added the color teal in all of its shades to my decorating palate for this house.  I had the kitchen painted a soft teal, sort of like Soft Sky.  Today I set out a table runner that I made using some teal-colored Waverly home decor fabrics that I had purchased from Walmart.  They're just the right thickness for only $3.97 per yard.  Who would have thought that you could buy such nice fabrics at Walmart? 

I put the runner on the center island to add a bit of color.  It goes nicely with the shabby chic tray and assorted decorating balls.

I also cut up some large squares from the fabrics and hemmed them to use as centerpieces for the tables.  Pretty much the entire downstairs is a mix-and-match for changing out the decor in each of the rooms.  I forgot to take a photo of this to show.

One of my friends painted this hutch and I put it in the dining room where people come over to make crafts.  It is the perfect accent color for the teal decorating palate. 

I will be using it to display some of the my current craft items.  And I found the card rack along the side of the road one day while driving to visit a friend.  Some man who was in the area helped me get it into my car.  It needed a bit of spray paint to freshen it up but now I think it looks great next to the hutch. 

One thing I'd like to do is put a banner along the top of the hutch.  What do you think?

It's a Panda Birthday Party!

I's always sad when Sale-a-Bration is over for another year.  This year's stamp sets and accessories were a lot of fun to work with.  I especially liked the Panda Parade stamp set.  What cute images they are - perfect for making some whimsical birthday cards. 

I'm finally back to having regular stamping classes in my home.  I had to take a few months off because I had hand surgery over the winter.  I made a set of 4 birthday cards all using the Panda Parade set.  In this first one, the panda is juggling balls that are actually tutti-frutti sequins.  So colorful and cute, right? 

I love the colors in this bright and cheery card.  The paper is from the Bubbles and Fizz designer paper.  This card could be given just anyone- boy, girl, man or woman.  Don't you just love the tiny little heart on his notecard?

Next up is a fun shaker card filled with a mixture of shiny sequins.  The circle is supposed to be a balloon that the Panda is holding.  I added the stitch marks by hand using a coordinating marker.

And last up is a bright red card with star cut-outs and rhinestones for some bling.  The balloon is 3D, made using 3 balloon punch cut-outs glued together. 

Which one is your favorite? 

200 Posts! And there's a prize drawing!

I can't believe that it's been 5 years that I have been posting on this blog. I've been sharing my crafty life with you since February 2013!  I hope that at some point you have enjoyed and been inspired by at least one of my posts!

I just noticed today that I am at my 200th post.  Well, actually it's the 203rd post.  I guess I forgot to watch for the actual 200th number.  And for those of you who might actually be reading this post, I am giving away a $15 gift card to your favorite craft store!  You can choose from Michaels, Joanns, AC Moore or Hobby Lobby.

All you have to do is leave a comment and let me know which post or craft that you have liked or been inspired by over the past 5 years before Friday, April 20 at 9:00 pm EST.  I will randomly draw a number and let you know if you have won.  I will notify you and send you your gift card.

And to all of my readers and friends, I would just like to say:

I hope to be around for another 200 posts.  :)

Sewing Sampler Using Quilt Builder

When I first saw the Quilt Builder stamp set and framelits in the Stampin Up holiday catalog, I knew that I would want it.  It has great versatility and I'm surprised that it did not carry over to the new catalog.  You can use it to make quilty things all year round.

One day, long after the holiday catalog had expired, I took out the set.  I picked out a few colors and began to cut out the quilt shapes using my Big Shot.  I used the designer paper left over from the succulent suite from last summer. 

I added some images from an older sewing set and some cut-out buttons along with some real buttons and embroidery floss. 

For the focal point in the center I used one of my favorite stamps, "Do something creative every day."  Doesn't that sound like me?  I wish that I had this saying on everything! 

I matched up the colors with the colors in the designer paper, using Mint Macaron, Sweet Sugarplum, Tip Top Taupe and Lost Lagoon.  For the contrast color, I used Pacific Point, a dark indigo blue that coordinated well with the colors.

I didn't want to have glass over the top because of the layers, so I stopped over to the craft store and purchased a wooden framed saying without glass.  I glued the paper onto it.  It's hard to see in the photo because the images are so small, but I love how it turned out!  I'm not sure if I want to hang it in my sewing room or my stamping room (yes, I have both!); it would work well in either one.  I love blending my two hobbies!

Have you ever made a quilty craft using rubber stamps?  Or have you ever stamped on a quilt before?  I'd love to hear your ideas.

Winter Scene in Frame

After the holidays, I was crafting with my friend, Cindy and we decided to make a winter scene using the little house framelits that were in the holiday catalog.  We started with some teal designer paper and then added a row of the houses, some trees and some snow banks. 

I love the look of our "little town."  I added some snowflake cut-outs from the Seasonal Layers framelits, a small red heart on the church, a deer and some glitter snow and it just came to life!  It looks like some place that I'd like to visit.  If it was winter. 

Great Gifts: Acetate Candy Boxes

You may know that I had to have hand surgery this past winter.  I had to wear a cast and wasn't able to use my hand for a couple of months.  One of my friends came over to help me make some sort of a crafty gift to give to people that helped me by bringing over a meal.  We came up with this Acetate Candy Box to give to them. 

They are made using the acetate boxes from Stampin Up's holiday catalog.  It perfectly fits 6 Ghirardelli candies in it.  We wrapped them in designer paper cut 1 3/4" x 5" long and attached the paper with 2 glue dots to secure it. 

The belly band is 1 1/4" x 12" long and we wrapped that around the outside of the box.

After that, we just decorated them using different sayings, circle images, doilies, snowflakes, etc and attached that to the belly band to create a focal point. 

Then we cut strips of designer paper 1" x 4" and trimmed the ends to look like banners.  I added some sequined ribbon to dress them up even more.

Although the majority of mine are made with Christmas paper, you can make them for any occasion, just change out the designer paper.  They make a great little gift to show your appreciation to someone special. 

Which one do you like the best?  Have you tried making these yet? 

Working with Petal Palatte

One of the first stamp sets in the Stampin Up Occasions catalog to catch my eye this year was Petal Palette.  I like the soft, watercolor look that the images have.  I ordered the designer papers and framelits to go with it (of course, I just had to!). 

Here are 3 cards that I made using the stamp set with the papers.  Isn't the little bird really cute?  And I like the font on the sayings.

Although it is a little hard to see what this is, it's an acetate box filled with 6 Ghiradelli candies, each wrapped in designer paper.  Then the outside of the box has a band and a focal point.  I attached some designer paper banners hanging from the circle and some sequined ribbon to make it pop.

These are really easy to make and are great for giving as a small gift of appreciation to someone.  For more details on them, see the next blogpost. 

Washi Tape Cards

Occasionally, one of my creative friends, Cindy, comes over to create with me.  One day she had stopped over at Michaels and picked up some pretty washi tape.  We decided to make cards using it.  We picked out some blue cardstock to match the washi tape colors and then cut out a heart shape with heart framelits using the Big Shot.

We added washi tape to the card in strips and then tucked that under the heart shape.  The decorative borders on the cards are just washi tape strips.

We even cut out butterflies from the washi tape to use as embellishments.

This card has some acetate under the heart cut-out and some beads and other confetti enclosed in the window to make it a shaker card.

And lastly, we just put washi tape in strips to make this card.  What fun cards we made.  And the best part - making crafts with my friend.  :)

Patchwork Kitty in Finally Finished!

A few years ago I started a Round Robin sew-along with some ladies that attend a Quilting Group at my church.  Each person had to make a center square and then every month your project got passed on to the next person and they added something to it. 

I started with a kitty applique square.  Here is the photo from my original blogpost  on Sept 13, 2013.

Well, I finally pulled it out and did some machine quilting on it during my sewing retreat in January.

I wasn't able to cut out any new quilting projects due to my hand surgery but I was able to finish up this smaller project.  Now I'm proud to say that my Patchwork Kitty is finally finished and hanging on the wall in my sewing room!  I just love how it came out.  :)

One project done.  And there's more where this came from.  LOL

Do you ever work on and finish up projects that you have started years ago?  Doesn't it feel great?

Decorative Journals

 If you follow by blog, you might be wondering where have I been.  I had to have hand surgery back in November to replace one of my thumb joints with tendons from my arm (I know, yuk!).  It wasn't an easy surgery and I was out of commission for months.  It is slowly healing and I'm starting to get back into making my crafts.  I hope that it continues to heal and that I'll be able to use my hands again soon. :) 

A few weeks ago, I was invited to teach a craft day for ladies at a church that one of my friend's attends.  We decided to make these cute decorative Journals. We cut up some designer papers and each of the ladies got to design their own journal.  The papers are just glued on using a glue stick.  I had some Scripture stamps to use for the sayings and some punches and cut-outs from the Big Shot to add a personal touch.

We decorated the inside covers, too and added a pocket in the front.  It was a lot of fun choosing the papers and making the Journals.

Here is a pic of the ladies with their finished projects.  They get together once a month to make different crafts. What a fun way to spend a Saturday morning!

Here is me in the cast that I did not like at all!  Although I have to say that going for months without making crafts was even worse.  I'm totally ready to move on.  :)