Dogwood Birthdays

           

           I’ve always loved dogwoods.  We had some in the yard where I grew up.  They are glorious in the spring against the new green leaves of other trees.  I always associate them with April and with Easter.  So for some adult family birthdays for this month, I chose to use Papertrey Ink’s Warm Regards that feature this lovely bloom. Since one is for my sister-in-law and one is for my husband, I went with green sentiments for one and brown for my husband.  I’m also putting this one in for Win It Wednesdays with Laurie over on the PTI blog for this month.  Wanda Cullen over at Cullen-ary Creations was able to verbalize my style – Clean Layers with florals as the usual focal point.  Hats off to you Wanda for putting our style into words.  It's nice to have my style verbalized so that I am not be envious of those beautiful creations of others that just don't seem to work for me.  I have a style, and it's gorgeous as well in its own way!

·      Stamp set(s):  PTI – Warm Regards & Inspired: Hope Stamp Sets  

·      Ink(s):  PTI – Ripe Avocado & Cocoa Bean Die Inks; Fresh Snow Hybrid Ink

·      Paper:  PTI – Classis Kraft & Cocoa Bean or Ripe Avocado, Classic Kraft Gingham

·      Dies & Embossing folders:  PTI – Warm Regards Die, Scallop Stackers: Medium Die, Say It Simply: Lovely Birthday Die; MFT – Happy Birthday Die

·      Embellishments/Other things of note:  Faber-Castell – Polychromos Dark Red Pencil; Pretty Pink Posh – 6mm Espresso Sequins; Wink of Stella – Clear Pen; Hampton Art – Glitter Glue

As I look back on the cards that I do, this style with clean layers and florals is one I often use for my cards.  My next blog post features two cards I’m sending to my daughters.  Very similar style this time using feathers instead of flowers, but still with those layers.  I think I like the layers because you can tuck the florals in and around the sentiment being used.  There are variations to how this looks depending on how you place the floral or other small layering elements.  So that’s my story for today.  What do you think?  Has Wanda named a new style moniker?

I've added the inside sentiment and what I've decided to do for all the cards I make and send or sell.  I am putting words of encouragement - often featuring scripture - on the back of my cards as an encouragement for those who receive these cards.  One of two top spiritual gifts is the gift of encouragement so this just makes complete sense to me; not to mention it points others towards Jesus!

         Thank you for stopping by my little place here on the web!  I enjoyed having you.  See you soon with more paper goodness!

Many Blessings,

Donna

Adorable Elephant Birthday

         We have a big occasion coming up in our family this month!  Our only grandchild turns 4!  She is such a delight and loves to color and spends time just about daily coloring and drawing.  I wonder where she gets her love of color.  LOL!!  I can’t wait to get moved next month so I can share some of my crafting time with her!  Especially as she gets older!  For now, we limit her coloring tools to things that are not permanent!  But as she gets older, who knows!?!?!?

         With the remake of Walt Disney Studios Dumbo coming out soon, this cute little guy from My Favorite Things Stamps seemed perfect.  This is such a cute set!  Perfect for the kiddos in your life!  Here is my list of items used in this card!

·      Stamp set(s):  MFT – Adorable Elephants SS   

·      Ink(s):  PTI – Spring Rain, Blueberry Sky, Enchanted Evening, New Leaf, Green Parakeet; Memento – Tuxedo Black

·      Paper:  PTI – Stamper’s Select White

·      Dies & Embossing folders:  Honey Bee Stamps – A2 Scallop Honey Cuts; MFT – Adorable Elephants & Stitched Fishtail Flags Die-namics

·      Embellishments/Other things of note:  Copic Markers (photo below); Spica Pens – Black and Clear; Wink of Stella – Clear; Picket Fence Studio – Life Changing Blender Brushes; Pretty Pink Posh – Summer Flowers Sequin Mix

Copic Markers used in this project!

You may notice that one of my tools I used is Picket Fence Studio’s Life Changing Blender Brushes.  The verdict is in!  I love them. I’ve used sponge daubers for backgrounds and they’ve been ok, but these really are a game changer.  They are easier to use and really make blending inks on cardstock quick and easy.  As I play with them more, I’m sure that I will be using them a lot more often. They blended well on Papertrey Ink’s Stamper’s Select white cardstock.  It has a nice smooth finish and is a good heave weight cardstock.  To add dimention without taking away from my beautiful background, I used my new Honey Bee Stamps A2 Scallop Honey Cuts to pop up the center and use the rest of the A2 size panel to frame it.  Perfect outcome if I do say so myself!

Thank you for stopping by my blog!  I appreciate your visit!  Take some time and browse around if you're so inclined!  I appreciate your visit!

Many Blessings,

Donna

Exploring Altenew's Build-A-Flower Chrysanthemum Stamp Set

     

     It’s getting closer to fall, and soon (if not already!) we will be seeing these lovely fall flowers beginning to show up at grocery stores, home improvement stores and nurseries.  The nicest thing about stamping is that we can make them ANY color we like – even those that we don’t see in nature or bred by nurseries! While I’ve done these in shades of yellow on a green background (I wished I’d remembered to emboss my card front – maybe the next one!), you can do blue, rust, red or any shade really!  I made this for an upcoming card class for the launch of a  brand-new on-line store a friend of mine is starting.  Keep tuned for more details as we grow this new enterprise!  Let your mind soar and imagine all you can do with this lovely set!  All the details of what I used are below.  I’m sure that you have some similar embellishments in your stash already that will work until we can launch this store in the very new future. 

     Stamp set(s):  Altenew - Build-A-Flower Chrysanthemum Stamp Set  
     Ink(s):  Altenew Summer Afternoon and Green Fields Ink Sets; My Favorite Things (MFT) Hybrid Inks-

          Lemon Chiffon, Peach Bellini & Coral Crush       

       Paper:  MFT – Lemon Chiffon, Gumdrop Green, Tiny Check 6x6 Paper Pack; Neenah Solar White 110#   

       Dies & Embossing folders:  Build-A-Flower Chrysanthemum Die; MFT-Bold Stripes Cover-Up Die        

           Embellishments/Others:  Wink of Stella-clear;  Pretty Pink Posh Sequins-Mossy Green 4mm       

           The name of this new on-line adventure is In2Stampincards.  And, many of the the items I've used to make this card will be carried in our on-linestore.  The names include: Altenew, My Favorite Things Stamps, Hero Arts, Honey Bee Stamps, Impression Obsession, Gina K and more!  I will be posting more about our website,  Facebook and Instagram sites as we get this up and going.  

      Many Blessings,

      Donna

                                             

Masculine Spring Birthday

My husband has a late April Birthday so when it came around this year, I wanted to incorporate some of the lovely spring green with a mountain theme.  We prefer the mountains over the beach.  I remembered this Heartfelt Creations image I bought a while ago and it seemed the perfect fit.  I stamped it and went to coloring with my Copics!  I also used a new embossing folder from WeRMemoryKeepers.  I had seen this particular basket weave one on a blog, and since I used to sell Longaberger Baskets in another life, I just couldn’t resist. These Next Level EF are the best - they are so rich in texture!  I used the MFT Plaid Patterns paper to break up all of the detail from the embossing folders!  I liked how it turned out! 

• ·         Stamp set(s):  HFC-Mystic Hideaway
• ·         Ink(s):  Memento Tuxedo Black
• ·         Paper:  MFT- Plain Patterns 6x6 Paper Pack; X-Press It Blending Card;      SU-Hello Honey & Gumball Green(ret.)                           
• ·         Dies & Embossing Folders:  PTI-Limitless Layers 3.5” Ovals Dies; Cottage Cutz-Happy & Birthday
• ·         Embellishments/Other things of note:  Copic Markers(picture),  Zva Creative Crystals & WRMK Woven EF

 

Thanks for stopping by to take a look!  Oh, the embossing folders from WRMK are newer; and I couldn’t find them locally, so I contacted Tupelo Designs, LLC.  They found it for me, and I now have 2 Woven folders.  They were only $9.99 for 2 6x6” folders!  They have them in stock on their website now!  Just a plug for a newer company!

Many Blessings,

Donna