Blue Dahlia Turnabout

A sympathy card is always a hard one to make.  A friend just needed some encouragement at this time.  I had been meaning to pull this set out and use it. I’d gotten it last year and had never gotten around to using it so I thought that a flower would do well for this kind of occasion.  Gosh, it’s not really an occasion like to celebrate but a time to remember and reflect.  I like simple for this type of card.  Not a lot of frou-frou, glam or glitz for this one. Just a simple statement of understanding and encouragement to let my friend and her family know that we are thinking about them.  I include scripture, too, which I did on the back of the card above my “Handmade by…” stamp. It’s sort of my trademark if you will. Papertrey Ink has some great stamp and die set combos (Inspired: Hope stamp set was used on the back of this card.) that I frequently use on the back – as well as the front of cards, too. Here are the details. 

·      Stamp set(s):  Concord & 9^th– Dahlia Turnabout stamp set;  PTI – Ways to Say: Sympathy   

·      Ink(s):  PTI – Spring Rain, Blueberry Sky, Enchanted Evening, Dark Indigo

·      Paper:  PTI – Stamper’s Select White, Spring Rain, Dark Indigo

·      Embellishments/Other things of note:  Paper Studio – Gold/Silver Enamel Dots

I did add just a little bit of glitz on the card front with the silver enamel dot.  I wanted something to go there, and the yellow enamel dots in my stash were not quite what I wanted.  I liked the way this dot picked up the blue from the card itself which toned it down a bit. Simple but effective.  I did experiment and make other dahlias with other colors.  They may be coming to a blog near you soon!  Have a great weekend!  And don’t forget to get crafty.  It’s good for your blood pressure!  HaHa!

Many Blessings,

Donna

Blooming Beautiful Blooms

Can you tell that I love red?  Especially Papertrey Ink’s Pure Poppy?  It’s been showing up in several of my latest posts but it just is such a happy color.  We need happy here in the south where we’ve had so much rain over the last year or so.  And this red is so cheerful particularly when you pair it with Concord & 9^th’s Bloom Fill In stamp set.  I love the red, white and blue I used here.  It’s so clean and crisp.  I got the idea of cutting a card front on the diagonal from Jennifer McGuire when she used this same stamp set in a post and video several weeks ago.  (By the way, she said that this is a very forgiving stamp set, and I agree.  If you look closely you’ll see where I had some difficulty lining up one of the images.) I’ve cut them both horizontally and vertically to give them different looks.  The horizontal cuts allow for a bigger and bolder sentiment to be placed across the card front.  These big and bold sentiments from MFT Stamps fit the bill to a “T”!  I did some clear embossing over the “get well soon” sentiment. I had intended to do the “happy birthday” sentiment as well but took the stamp off my MISTI before I got to it.  I didn’t want to mess up my card with getting it slightly off center on the Enchanted Evening stamping.  I waited until I had mounted the red stamped panels to stamp my sentiment to get it just right.  Sooo, note to self – don’t be in such a hurry to move stamps off your MISTI! Haha!!!

• ·   Stamp set(s):  Concord & 9^th– Blooms Fill In Stamp Set; MFT Stamps – All Occasion  Sentiments 
• ·      Ink(s):  PTI – Pure Poppy, Dark Indigo, Blueberry Sky, Spring Rain, Enchanted Evening, Prairie Grass, Olive Twist
• ·      Paper:  PTI – Stamper’s Select White  
• ·      Embellishments/Other things of note:  PTI – Clear Detail Embossing Powder; Verve – Signature Sequin Mix  

Thanks for stopping by my blog to take a look. I hope you’ve enjoyed your visit. I’ve enjoyed having you here, too! (I do track my stats!  Haha!)  Have a really blessed day where ever you are! 

Here's a look at the vertical cut card I did in black and pinks.  I liked this one too, but i have to admit that the red does it for me!  What about you?  Vertical, horizontal or both?  Thank you, Jennifer McGuire for this terrific idea! :-)

Many Blessings,

Donna

Triple Threat Treat!

I’ve had a busy couple of days in my craftroom. On Sunday, my husband and I put together a variable height table from IKEA that I can move up and down depending upon what I’m doing in my craftroom at any particular time.  Also, my daughter and I are thinking about opening an Etsy shop after she gets back from her mission trip on board the Mercy Hospital ship in June.  So, I’m making cards for that and an occasional one for other needs in the family. I’ve got an anniversary coming up soon along with some special birthdays in the next couple of months!

         I’ve got three cards for you today.  For the first two I stamped the card front a few weeks ago but I’m just now getting around to putting it onto card fronts; the other I stamped yesterday for my daughter to send to a friend of hers who has had a rough 6 months.  So, let’s start with the two that I stamped the card front.  I watched a Jennifer McGuire video a month or so ago about stamping a card front and then cutting it at an angle to give you two pieces to place on two card fronts.  One stamping session equals two cards.  She used a turnabout stamp set from Concord & 9^thand so did I.  Mine is one that I got a while ago and hadn’t used yet.  I really like how these turned out.  I switched it up a bit from Jennifer on these two but I really like the results. The details are below! 

·      Stamp set(s):  Concord & 9^th– Blooms Fill In SS; MFT – All Occasion Sentiments SS  

·      Ink(s):  Papertrey Ink – Lemon Tart, Royal Velvet, Plum Pudding, Winter Wisteria, Lilac Grace, Lavender Moon, Prairie Grass, Olive Twist

·      Paper:  PTI – Lavender Moon, Stampers’ Select White

·      Dies & Embossing folders:  PTI – Nesting Basics: Pierced Rectangle Die

·      Embellishments/Other things of note:  Pretty Pink Posh – Enchanted Garden 4mm & Lemon Meringue 6mm sequins; Pentel – Sunburst Metallic Gel Pen Gold

Now onto my third card for this post.  This was a fun card for me to do.  I wanted it to be an encouraging card for my daughter’s friend and playful as well.  I’ve been ordering some of Dawn McVey’s Raspberry Suite Design products from Papertrey Ink since she left the company after their January release.  One of the ones I ordered was this stamp set – Friendly Flowers!  Such a fun set to play with.  Here are the details for my card!

·      Stamp set(s):  PTI – Friendly Flowers SS 

·      Ink(s):  PTI – Harvest Gold, Summer Sunrise, Green Parakeet, New Leaf, Hibiscus Burst, Raspberry Fizz, Royal Velvet

·      Paper:  PTI – Stampers’ Select White, Summer Sunrise

·      Dies & Embossing folders:  PTI – Friendly Flowers Dies; MFT – Hello Die

That’s it for today.  I’m so happy to be back crafting.  My updated craft space really does make it so much easier to create. Everything is so easy to access and see so that it gets used!  And easily put away without much hassle so it gets done!  J Such a joy to be in here now! Here’s to a blessed week for all of us!

Many Blessings,

Donna