Tropical Garden

Summer is nearly over, but I think these tropical flowers are always in season, don't you? I used a very old Stampin' Up stamp set and Sizzix embossing folder. The right edge is cut with Deco-scissors (remember those?) and I layered the panel over patterned paper to add some color. Some inking and layering, and this card is ready to send.

SSS Wednesday challenge, AG
Word Art Wednesday 454
Time Out challenge 169, seasons. I chose summer

Chirpy Holidays

I colored up this adorable parakeet, all dressed up for Christmas, and layered him onto a Spellbinders label for a cheery holiday greeting. I colored this guy with alcohol markers by Spectrum Noir. A few glittery enamel dots by YNS, and old papers from my stash completed this colorful card. This card just makes me smile and I hope the recipient likes it too.

SSS Wednesday challenge AG
Christmas Craft Creations Aug. challenge, Christmas and animals

Hero Arts Stay Crafty challenge 14, critters

Cardz TV challenge 122
Word Art Wednesday 454-455
Time Out challenge 169, seasons. I chose winter!

Hats Off

My niece and nephew, and cousin's daughter, all graduated high school this year. Even though they had virtual graduations, the cards I sent were real!  This one uses stamps by The Crafts Meow, which is no longer in business. The embossing folder is by Darice.

SSS Wednesday challenge AG
Word Art Wednesday challenge 454-455
Cardz TV 122
Lost Coast Designs challenge AG with stamping

Creative Crafters challenge 31

Vintage Snowman

I've been digging through really old stash and came upon this star die cut, and a vintage snowman, that layered up beautifully with each other.  A stamped sentiment and patterned paper base completes the design. Don't you love it when old stash from different manufacturers accidentally coordinate?

  CHNC challenge 504
SSS Wedmesay challenge AG
Word Art Wednesday 454-455
Cardz TV 122

Christmas Cheer

I made this card with an snowflake embossing folder by Parklane, and really old papers from my stash. These papers must be at least 20 years old! I punched a little pine tree out of scraps and used gold embroidery thread to embellish it. A stamped sentiment by Momenta, and a bit of black grosgrain ribbon...and I'm done!

ABC Christmas challenge, P is for Pine Tree
CHNC challenge 504
Word Art Wednesday challenge 454-455
SSS Wednesday, AG

Time of Cheer

I like to work on my Christmas cards all through the year and I've had this card base sitting in my project box for a long time. Finally decided to turn it into a card and inked up a sentiment by Papertrey Ink. The tiny poinsettia die is by  Crafter's Companion and I added a little bit of Stickles gold glitter glue to the center. I'm not sure who makes the pine sprig images because it's an unmounted, unlabeled stamp. This would be a great card design to mass produce.

 ABC Christmas challenge, P is for pine trees. I used pine sprigs instead of the whole tree.
August Rudolph Days challenge
CHNC challenge 504
Word Art Wednesday 454-455
SSS Monday challenge, botanicals
SSS Wednesday challeng,e AG
Lost Coast Designs #105, AG

Age is just a number

I always need extra birthday cards, and so I made a few of these to have on hand. It was a great way to use up scraps of paper and card stock.  This number die is by Penny Black and works as a general background die for daily journals and Project Life , as well as for birthdays. I cut it in red and black, and offset the black slightly to make the red stand out against that patterned background. The background paper is very, very old and was from a DCWV card kit. The sentiment is by CAS-ual Friday. This is a good card to make in multiples, in every color. 

 Cupcake Creations challenge 500, birthday

 Word Art Wednesday
Cardz TV challenge 121

Sunflower Notebook

A friend of mine loves sunflowers, so I made this notebook for her. I used papers from my stash along with a stitched rectangle die by Gina Marie, and stamps by Papertrey Ink. I used watercolors to add a splash of blue inside the stamped label, and and fussy cut. The notebook measures about 5x7 inches.

Double D challenges, sunflowers
Cardz TV challenge 121
Word Art Wednesday
Lost Coast Designs challenge 105, AG

The Artistic Stamper August challenge, AG
The Creative Crafters challenge 31, AG

Oh Happy Day!

My sister retired after 20 years in her job last month, and I finally got around to making her retirement card. I used a stamp set by The Artistic Stamper, along with a sentiment by Heidi Grace. The background was made with Distress Oxide inks. I made a stack of about 10 different backgrounds last night, in various colors, to have ready when I need them. The shells are also from the same stamp set and I fussy cut and popped up on foam tape.

SSS Monday challenge, summer memories
The Artistic Stamper August challenge, AG with stamping
Time Out challenge 168. I am inspired by the beach theme and shells

Lost Coast Designs challenge 105, AG

Creative Crafters challenge 31
Creative Fingers 191, AG
As you Like It, favorite color to combine with pink and why. I love pink with turquoise because they contrast so well

Catch the Bug challenge, end of summer
SSS Wednesday challenge, midsummer blues
Cardz TV challenge 121
Word Art Wednesday
Stay Crafty with hero Arts. I was inspired by Creativebug's basic stamping with clear stamps and the reactive ink lesson

Old As You Feel

My brother-in-law has a birthday this month, and I usually like to make him a humorous card, so it was the perfect occasion to pull out a stamp set that I won in a blog giveaway last year. It's by Tim Holtz for Sizzix, (Hipster Ostrich). When I first saw it, I wasn't sure how I would use it, but my brother-in-law is going to laugh when he sees this. I also used a stencil by Stamplorations for the card base, and a sentiment by Cardz TV (Good Times). I stamped a sentiment inside the card that says, "Let the good times roll" (also by Cardz TV). One thing I like about this crazy stamp set is that the dies cut out all the various elements, including the glasses. It's the perfect paper-piecing opportunity. I stamped and paper pieced the hat, glasses and scarf and used itty bitty scraps.

 Allsorts challenge, make it masculine
Word Art Wednesday
Stay Crafty with Hero Arts challenge 13. I used the CreativeBug lesson on using stencils with ink.

Creative Fingers challenge 191, AG
The Artistic Stamper August challenge, AG with stamping
Color Dare challenge 496, I used peach, toffee and glacier

Cozy Christmas

I had this really old stamped image of an adorable snowman in my stash (we're talking at least 10 years old) and decided to turn him into a card. I also pulled out a scrap of vellum and embossed it with a snowflake design by Parklane. Used my Cropadile to attach a red eyelet (told you I'm using lots of really old stash), and threaded bakers twine through the eyelet instead of using ribbon. The stamped sentiment is from Flora and Fauna. The tag shape was cut with the old Coluzzle cutting system that a friend passed on down to me...I use everything!

Pixie's Snippets challenge 384. Everything on this card was made from snippets. The sentiment was stamped on an off-cut that was only 1 inch wide!
Let's Craft and Create, lots of layers
Double Trouble challenge 63, I only did Thing 1: use embossing
CHNC challenge 502
Creative Fingers challenge 191 
Cardz TV challenge 120
SSS Wednesday challenge, favorite tool. My favorite tools are stamps!

Cozy Snowman

As part of my resolution to use old stamps and stash, I pulled out this cute snowman made by My Sentiments Exactly, that has been sitting unused for years. The paper is also really old (as is much of my stash) and is by DCWV. Combined the image with a sentiment by Flora and Fauna, oval dies by Sizzix, and  layered button dies by MFT.
Now that I've inked up this whimsical snowman, I'll have to remember to use him again!

Christmas Craft Creations, Christmas Characters

SSS Wednesday challenge, favorite tools are stamps!
CHNC challenge 502
Cardz TV 120
Creative Fingers challenge 191

Hibiscus

I recently pulled out a Hero Arts wood mounted stamp (Hibiscus Background) and colored it up to make a Thinking of You card. I used a combination of Antique Linen distress inks and alcohol markers, then mounted the image on burlap paper by DCWV. The sentiment is by Hero Arts, from the Operation Write Home stamp set that I've had for years.

Creative Fingers challenge 191
Let's Craft and Create challenge 162, lots of layers
TTCRD challenge 202, AG
Cardz TV challenge 120
SSS Wednesday challenge, favorite tool. My favorite tools are stamps!
Lost Coast Designs challenge 104, let's go vegetarian (plants)

Adorable

My niece just had her second baby, a little girl, and so I got busy making her a card. I pulled out a very, very old paper pad by Debbie Mumm that a friend of mine gave to me when my 9 year old granddaughter was born. The pad had some funny, whimsical animal images, but I only had a partial image left over, so  I framed it, with a  square die set that hid the skewed edges. Digging through my scrap heap uncovered some patterns that coordinated with the image fairly well.  I heat embossed the sentiment and added seam binding ribbon, some twine and a tiny safety pin that I colored with alcohol marker.  That safety pin is at least 10 years old so it was nice to use it. Now I only have 14 more pins left!

Snippets Challenge 383. I dug deep into my snippets stash to put this card together
Let's Craft and Create challenge 162, lots of layers 
Creative Fingers challenge 191, AG
TTCRD challenge 202, AG