Pattern Play Makes A Great Masculine Card

 When I saw Concord & 9ths Pattern Play, I knew it had possibilities.  I purposely chose different colors than my usual go to and once finished I had a card that could go for several sentiments.  My Son-In-Law had a birthday coming up and I used Honey Bee's Big Bold Birthday Stamps and Honey cuts.

I tell you now, if you do a lot of die cutting the Anna Griffin Empress Elite is the way to go.   Splurge on it and you won't be disappointed!  It's the machine I reach for most.

I grabbed several scraps to fill this card front with two metallics and was pleased with my choices.  Got to love Bearly Arts Glue for adhering all these shapes down.  For my sentiment, I stamped with Versafine Onyx Ink in my MISTI and then added clear embossing powder.  After I melted the embossing powder, I ran it through the Empress Elite.  Foam Strips raise the sentiment. 

Affiliate links used at no cost to you.  Not all links are affiliate, I just want to share what I used.  All products were purchase by me unless noted.  I don’t sell anything nor am I employed.  This is my hobby and I hope to inspire you to play :)

"Bruce" Birthday card with his "Flat Stanley" adventure

Like many others, I struggle with masculine cards.  But when I saw Unity's Bruce stamp, inspiration struck.  Bruce was in my cart and I grievously paid for shipping.  I prefer to meet the minimum for free shipping but not today.  

Now for the "flat Stanley" adventure:  Following the tracking information - Bruce left New London MN and traveled to St Paul MN, on to St Louis MO within 2 days.  He then spent the night in St Louis MO and went to San Francisco CA where he spent the night, on to Oakland CA where he spent 2 nights, back to San Francisco CA and arrived in Memphis 2 days later, next night in St Louis MO where he rested for 4 days before making to my mailbox. Now, I would have loved to accompany him, particularly to the warmer weather, while we had frigid temps and snow.

Finally, time to create!  I decided to color with Copic Markers and used Onyx ink on Neenah card stock, then used YG03, YG09, YG17, BG96, RV11 and C1.  I used Hero Arts Circle Infinity Dies to cut Bazzill Quicksand and Patch card stock in my Empress Elite. To make Bruce's eyes shine I applied Glossy accents.  

For the background I used Large Sprinkled Dots Stencil with Frayed Burlap, Bundled Sage and Peeled Paint.  Once I was happy with that I sprayed Distress Mica Spray in Decayed for shimmer.  To bring the card together I used Bearly Arts Glue to attach "Bruce" and the sentiment.  Tiny Words Stamp from Simon Says Stamps added the perfect Happy Birthday!

Have a great day and keep on crafting!

Affiliate links used at no cost to you.  Not all links are affiliate, I just want to share what I used.  All products were purchase by me unless noted.  I don’t sell anything nor am I employed.  This is my hobby and I hope to inspire you to play :)

Love you to pieces card

 Valentines Day came and went but here's a card you could use for Heart Day or to let a special someone know how much you love them.  At our house, we celebrate February 14 and yes we got that from Tim the Tool man Taylor aka Tim Allen.  Yes, we are weird!

This card started out with a bright pink card base stamped with Versa Mark ink using Heart to Heart Stamp.  White Satin Pearl embossing powder was sprinkled and heated - Love how it looks on that bright back ground!  While I had my Wagner Heat Tool out I put Honey Bee Stamps SWAK stamp in my MISTI and again stamped with Versa Mark ink and this time I used Pink Sparkle embossing powder.  I stamped several and used the coordinating Honey Bee Stamps SWAK die in my Empress Elite.  Next I used Simon Says Stamp Love Stamp and Die for the word die and sentiment strip - Raspberry Bliss ink was used.  To bring the card together, I trimmed the back ground, placed my lips with one Foam Strips and used Bearly Arts Glue to adhere everything down.  Sparkle accents were made with my Stardust Pen.  I wish you could see this card in person, as the sparkle lips really catch the light.

Have a great day and keep on crafting!

Affiliate links used at no cost to you.  Not all links are affiliate, I just want to share what I used.  All products were purchase by me unless noted.  I don’t sell anything nor am I employed.  This is my hobby and I hope to inspire you to play :)

All Kinds of Wonderful Card

 My goodness!  If you are a lover of stacking dies - Elephantastic is the way to go.  Altenew has a tiny arrow imbedded in this die, so when you layer them up, it's easy to place them perfectly.  Only the top layer doesn't have the arrow.  Meaning those dies that have a "helper" and the placement is not obvious - that arrow rocks!  When I first saw this die I was drawn to it, such perfect details.  Social Media is full of reels with baby elephants lately and I just can't look away.

This card came together with Ocean Waves Bold Back ground stamp in my MISTI using Grassy Knoll ink.  The trimmed piece is backed with black card stock.  Empress Elite makes die cutting Elephantastic on Fog Card stock easy peasy. Bearly Arts Glue is my glue of choice lately and like I said above those elephants were quick to assemble.  Finally Skinny Sentiment Strips 1 placed in my MISTI made stamping with Versafine Onyx ink fast and aligned.

Have a great day and keep on stamping!

Affiliate links used at no cost to you.  Not all links are affiliate, I just want to share what I used.  All products were purchase by me unless noted.  I don’t sell anything nor am I employed.  This is my hobby and I hope to inspire you to play :)

Birthday Card Using My Stash

When I started card making there were a several favorite companies and one was The Stamps of Life.  Pulling out an oldie Die Set called Framelits Drop-Ins.  I searched for a link but alas, no luck.  I highly recommend The Stamps of Life Dies, especially the Flip-its, Step-Ups and other card bases, they are very versatile for many occasions, a true bang for your buck!

  

Hero Arts Star Confetti Fancy Die was a quick answer for the many stars I wanted.  I used a silver, teal and holographic paper for stars.  The blue paper is from My Favorite Things Sweet Celebrations and the Coral is from DCWV Cardstock Stack.

My go to supplies for assembly include the Best die cutting machine I've ever used Anna Griffin Empress Elite, Bearly Arts Glue and Foam Tape.  American Crafts Premium Ribbon that I bought forever ago at Michaels with a 40% off coupon.  Gosh, I miss those 40% coupons!  Nearly everything I bought in those early days came from Michaels, Hobby Lobby and JoAnns with a coupon.

Affiliate links used at no cost to you.  Not all links are affiliate, I just want to share what I used.  All products were purchase by me unless noted.  I don’t sell anything nor am I employed.  This is my hobby and I hope to inspire you to play :)

Hoosier Cabinets - Extreme Fun

 When I saw Honey Bee Stamps Hoosier Honey Cuts I was enchanted and terrified at the same time!  Why "terrified" you ask?  So many tiny dies and tiny pieces!  Guess what?  The first one was a bit trying but the second one - went super quick and the third was even faster.  Why oh why was I scared of tiny dies - pretty silly now.  My Anna Griffin Empress Elite makes it sooo much easier because the large die plates can hold A LOT of dies!  I did go ahead and purchase the smaller cutting sandwich and I love that one too, you can put that sandwich in the machine "sideways" meaning the long side can fit in the opening.  Yay!

So here are a few cards using Hoosier Cabinet.  Some of the cabinet doors open so you can add lots of hidden dishes and kitchen tools - Go ahead and buy the Baking Add On to include more kitchen tools/dishes.  

If you look closely at the second image you can see my boo boo - the rolling pin is hanging out. oops. This was my first try, once I got all the pieces where I wanted I used a plain cream card base.  This was the one change I wish I had made.  Besides the dies, cutting machine and scraps your best friends are a good glue and reverse tweezers.

For my second try, I had a basket with all the scraps I had used before and a better understanding of what I liked and where to try other die cuts. There are oodles of options and it really makes you question what you like/dislike.  We moved 2 years ago and at my old house my kitchen aid mixer sat on the counter - now it hides in a cabinet.  Isn't it wild how your mind thinks?  The options include decorative cabinet: plain, swirled vines and lattice. This card base went through an embossing folder (older one) and got some complimentary ink Mint.  These newer brushes ROCK!  Our Crafting Goddess, Jennifer McGuires recommendation, was spot on!  If you're not watching her videos, you are missing out.

Last card is very similar but does have a different embossing folder, cabinets covers and I think I like this one the best.

Have a great day and keep on crafting!

Affiliate links used at no cost to you.  Not all links are affiliate, I just want to share what I used.  All products were purchase by me unless noted.  I don’t sell anything nor am I employed.  This is my hobby and I hope to inspire you to play :)

Happy Flappy Cards with Creek Bank Creations Card Base

 Hello, it's been a while.  You know when a life event changes the whole family dynamic - we had a few of those happen.  And as much as I love crafting, the blogging had to take a backseat.  The boat has stopped rocking, occasionally a ruffle in the ocean starts motion, but for the most part we have a new normal and smooth sailing.  

My family and I just celebrated 32 years living life with two heart transplants.  Wow, 32 years to watch my kids grow up and a host of experiences that wouldn't have happed - without the generous gifts of life.  Please have a conversation with your family about your wishes.  It's a gift, so let the Doctors decide what they can use!

Today's cards uses a nifty card base from Creek Bank Creations called Happy Flappy Card Base.  I was at a CKC convention where I happened on this Company's Booth.  They had a make and take and I was hooked!  Very clear instruction video on their site shows all the steps.

Fitting name for this Die set, don't you think? The second assembly goes quickly!  The Happy Mothers Day Sentiment Stamp provides a sentiment for all 3 places.  Didn't purchase the stamp set for "pull" so I improvised with what I had - definitely would look better with a size appropriate stamp set.

Warning, I dug into my stash of scrapbook paper, much of it was purchased many moons ago.  I tried finding links but alas - they gone!  For the card base I used Craftsmith Wedding Neutrals and the sparkly paper is from My Minds Eye - Laundry Line.  The flowers are from Be Bold Blooms and sentiments are stamped with Ballet Slipper.  The card front is raised with Foam Tape and my glue of choice lately is Bearly Arts Glue.  My latest purchase (drum roll please) Anna Griffin Empress Elite has taken die cutting to a whole new level.  More on that later....  Here's another card 

Products used on this version are DCWV Bahama Moma Pad,  Turquoise Ink, Honey Bee Stamps Tropical Bouquets Dies and a Micron 005 pen.  The sentiments are from the same Happy Mothers Sentiment Stamp.

Transplant Recipients have to be very careful of germs!  This time of year (cold and flu season) is hermit time for Bev, in the basement (my happy place) and I've been creating lots of cards lately, so there will be more blog posts.  

Have a great day and keep on crafting!

Affiliate links used at no cost to you.  Not all links are affiliate, I just want to share what I used.  All products were purchase by me unless noted.  I don’t sell anything nor am I employed.  This is my hobby and I hope to inspire you to play :)

Card with Stitched Flowers

 So I jumped on the stitched card band wagon.  Let me back track, I've sewn most of my life but this is the first time I've stitched on paper before.  I bought just one of Spellbinders stitching die and really enjoyed the mindless stitching.  The Stitched Flowers was small and was fast to stitch, plus you have so many options.    When you keep your hands busy it's easier to avoid snacking - BONUS!  lol

I had a pile of flowers and leaves and here is two cards I made.

The first card started with a card base and Ocean Waves Stamp and Misty Coast ink.  Next I die cut three Wood Frame Infinity dies and glued them together.  After I found a pleasing arrangement I attached them with glue.  A Momenta celebrate die was cut with metallic silver paper and again with white and attached them together.  Some flat sequins from my stash added a sparkle.

The second card used the center cut outs from the wood frame on the first.  I glued them together.  Next a scalloped border from Blueprint 27 in Simon Says Stamps Fog card stock was die cut.  All the elements were attached along with the same flat sequins.  Both of these cards went together pretty fast since the focal elements were ready to go.

Have a great day and keep on crafting!

Affiliate links used at no cost to you.  Not all links are affiliate, I just want to share what I used.  All products were purchase by me unless noted.  I don’t sell anything nor am I employed.  This is my hobby and I hope to inspire you to play :)

Celebrate Shaker Card

 I've owned this celebrate die for quite a while and I'm just getting around to make some cards.   To start I stamped an ocean wave with a similar color to my card stock.  Then die cut with stitched rectangles in my gemini jr machine.  It adds a lovely white border when attached to the card base.

Now for the shaker element, the celebrate die was cut many times and adhered with bearly arts glue.  A layer of acetate and a final die cut on top makes the shaker element ready to fill.  Using up some sequin/bead mixture from my stash, I filled it up.  A second piece of acetate keeps the stamped image visable.  Time to adhere the filled shaker to the card.  I think I spent more time separating the die cut from it's negative pieces rather than putting the card together.

Have a great day and keep on crafting!

Affiliate links used at no cost to you.  Not all links are affiliate, I just want to share what I used.  All products were purchase by me unless noted.  I don’t sell anything nor am I employed.  This is my hobby and I hope to inspire you to play :)

Birdie Friendship Card

 Today's card used white die cuts that I colored individually.  Heck, it's easier to die cut a bunch of white than finding the right color card stock and putting the right die on that paper.  So today, I pulled out my water media mat and some of those precut dies.  

Feathered Friends 4 is the bird and I chose Blending Brushes to color Summer Sky, Deep Ocean, Navy, Lemon Drop and Tuxedo black.  Once it was dry I glued all the parts together with Bearly Arts Glue.  So my bird needs a nest and the Grapevine Wreath is perfect - and I also had that precut in white card stock, so I grabbed two.  Cup O Joe was applied with a mini blending tool and really got into all those nooks and crannies.  Now I need a background...I pulled out the Tumbling Leaves stencil with blending brushes and Fresh Pear and Grassy Knoll.  Stitched rectangles trimmed that perfectly in my Gemini Jr.  Lastly, I need a sentiment so I chose one from Friendship Blooms and I stamped in my MISTI with Amalgam ink, then Versamark and clear embossing powder was melted.  I haven't had much luck with black embossing powder and sentiments so I like to add clear over a black stamped sentiment.

Have a great day and keep on crafting!

Affiliate links used at no cost to you.  Not all links are affiliate, I just want to share what I used.  All products were purchase by me unless noted.  I don’t sell anything nor am I employed.  This is my hobby and I hope to inspire you to play :)

More Pinkfresh Studio Floral - Sympathy Cards - Choose Hope

 Just like my previous post - I'm loving the whole Pinkfresh Studio stamp, stencil and die sets!  This time it's all about Choose Hope.

Unfortunately I needed to make some sympathy cards so when I created a whole bunch of the floral sprays ready to go, I had what I needed to make some quick cards.  Again, I pulled out some cover dies, embellishments and sentiment stamps and put these together pretty easily.

  

These florals were colored with Pinkfresh inks: Sky Blue, Summer Shower, Seaside, Fresh Pear and Grassy Knoll.  Blender Brushes made the coloring super quick with layering stencils.  Pixie spray helped with those stencils! MISTI helped repeated stamp Choose Hope with Amalgam Ink and of course the Gemini Jr made fast work die cutting.  For the cover dies, I chose Horizontal Stripes, Wood Frame Infinity Die and Leaves and Vines with a white 110 lb card stock.  Scotch foam tape was used with the frame die.  All the card bases were made with Recollections 110 lb card stock.

Sentiment Strips were stamped and attached with Bearly Art Glue.  Embellishments are from Trinity Stamps.  The Tiny Words stamp is from Simon Says Stamp.  Some sparkle pen was used for shimmer.

Have a great day and keep on crafting!

Affiliate links used at no cost to you.  Not all links are affiliate, I just want to share what I used.  All products were purchase by me unless noted.  I don’t sell anything nor am I employed.  This is my hobby and I hope to inspire you to play :)

Pinkfresh Floral Cards - So Versatile

 I've been a big fan of Pinkfresh Studios stamp/stencil/die sets!  Recently Pinkfresh had a sale and I purchased a few sets.  Got to tell you, when you color your images with stencils and coordinating inks miracles happen FAST!  I was able to stamp, color and die cut lots of flowers and leaves very quickly.  

Quick tip: using Pixie Spray on back of the stencils moves things along!  First I stamped Friendship Blooms on 110 lb paper with amalgam ink.  Do yourself a favor and stamp lots!  Next is to apply the pixie spray to the back of the stencils - there are five.  Using PinkfreshStudios Ink makes color selection a breeze - as there are four shades in each color family.  For these flowers I used Coral Reef, Passionfruit and Berrylicious, for the leaves, I used Fresh Pear and Grassy Knoll.  Blending brushes make coloring fast, fun and easy.

Once I had several sheets colored, it was time to break out my Gemini Jr and die cut those babies.  And now it's time to make cards!  I searched my cover dies and selected two:  Hexagon Cover Stipple plate and Blueprint 27 - for these I chose white 110 lb card stock and some pale 110 lb Recollections card stock from Michaels.  Used my score tool to fold them.  I attached the card fronts with Bearly Arts Glue-my new favorite wet glue.  Now time to arrange the flowers and leaves and attach.  Using my MISTI, Choose Hope Stamp Set, and Amalgam Ink I stamped the sentiments.  Once that was finished, I added some embellies from my stash.  The cards are finished but I still have more flowers and leaves in different colors to make more cards.

Have a great day and keep on crafting!

Affiliate links used at no cost to you.  Not all links are affiliate, I just want to share what I used.  All products were purchase by me unless noted.  I don’t sell anything nor am I employed.  This is my hobby and I hope to inspire you to play :)

Mini Slimline "Money Cards"

 Sorry, I've been away so long!  But I'm back now with some cards I gave at Christmas for those that chose $$$.  Even decided to leave them blank inside so they could reuse them.  The gift bag had the to/from information on it.

When I saw the Paper Bag Die, I knew who would get a card with that!  I chose three colors of pink card stock from Michaels and some gold foil to use for the die cuts.  Once the "handles" were attached with glue, it was time to arrange them on a mini slimline die cut on vellum.  Glue dots were placed behind the bags to attach to hide the adhesive.  This was attached to two stacking die cuts and adhered to a mini slimline card base.

My second recipient is big into off road biking and thought the direct approach was best.  Choosing Red, White and Black the card was similarly made like the first.  Only using the Striped Alphas and the Oliver Dies.  A stardust pen adds interest to the alphas.

Have a great day and keep on crafting!

Affiliate links used at no cost to you.  Not all links are affiliate, I just want to share what I used.  All products were purchase by me unless noted.  I don’t sell anything nor am I employed.  This is my hobby and I hope to inspire you to play :)

I Bee-lieve in You Card

 Often, I will stamp some images to color - with no intention of how I'm going to use it.  Today's card is using some colored bees from the My Monthly Hero January 21 kit.  The bees were colored with Tombow Markers.  A sparkle pen was added to the wings for shimmer.  

Starting with The Bees Knees paper pad, I selected a few sheets and used Stitched Rectangles for the background.  Flippin Awesome die gave me a place for all three bees.  The honeycomb paper was die cut and inked with Butter Bar ink.  My sentiment was stamped with Amalgam ink using the MISTI and then restamped with Versamark ink and heat embossed with clear embossing powder twice for extra dimension.  The card was assembled and adhered on black card stock.

Have a great day and keep on crafting!

Affiliate links used at no cost to you.  Not all links are affiliate, I just want to share what I used.  All products were purchase by me unless noted.  I don’t sell anything nor am I employed.  This is my hobby and I hope to inspire you to play :)

Birthday Card with a Sundae

Have you heard about The Stamps of Life?  They have several really reasonably priced monthly subscription clubs. Actually, it was my first stamping subscription club I ever joined.  Todays card is made with the sundae2stamp set.

 Who doesn't like ice cream?  Not anyone I know!  My Gemini Jr made quick work of the sundae2stamp dies and to make them stand out, I inked all the edges with coordinating colors.  Instead of centering the image on my A2 card, shifting it to the left made room for my daughters name along side with Olivers ABC Letters.  The perfect background paper is an older set from My Favorite Things that they no longer sell. Glossy accents add shine to the cherry on top and a sparkle pen adds interest to the letters.  Silver baubles from my stash are adhered for more shine.

Have a great day and keep on crafting!

Affiliate links used at no cost to you.  Not all links are affiliate, I just want to share what I used.  All products were purchase by me unless noted.  I don’t sell anything nor am I employed.  This is my hobby and I hope to inspire you to play :)

 

Bridal Shower Invite and Road Trip Crafting

 My beautiful niece, Maura, is getting married!  My sister and I are throwing a Bridal Shower for her and below is what I came up with for an invite.  

My parents are in their 80's, adventurous and love to travel, even though my Dad worked for the Airlines, my Mom no longer wants to fly - so road trip it is!  My sister and I went with them so we had 3 drivers.  Our original plan was to drive to New Hampshire to see a close family friends Grandson play baseball.  That fell through when he sustained an injury.  When that happened we opted for Colorado.  It was gonna be a 2 day drive so I brought crafty supplies to assemble the invites. 

Yep, I assembled those diamond rings on the road! Even with my shaky hands.  

I started at home, by stamping the background with Center Cut Heart Background using Soft Granite ink using my MISTI.  My Pinkfresh stitched scalloped squares had just arrived, so I tried several different combos and ended up with the smaller die set in 2 different shades of pink.  Those were super quick to cut in my Gemini Jr.  Edges were inked with pink ink and that was adhered to the front of the card. 

Using a silver card stock, I die cut the ring and setting in my Side kick.  Holographic card stock was used for the "diamond".  And just to make this a little more solid, I die cut all this again with 110 lb card stock.  Using precision glue and tweezers, the diamond ring was assembled and then adhered to the center of the card.

The inside invitation was printed with my computer, trimmed and adhered inside with score tape.  And once the invitations were addressed and stamped, we mailed them from Colorado.

Our road trip was awesome!  We stayed in Keystone and we road the gondola to the top of Vail and had lunch.  It's a perfect place to bring kids of all ages, lots of activities to do.  Glenwood Springs is my favorite place on earth!  We spent several hours there soaking up the mineral waters with over 1,000,000 gallons of water!  Another highlight was renting a pontoon boat on Lake Dillon and cruising the lake!  Shopping of course, was included and fun!  Best of all was spending this time with my Parents and Sister!

Have a great day and keep on crafting.

Affiliate links used at no cost to you.  Not all links are affiliate, I just want to share what I used.  All products were purchase by me unless noted.  I don’t sell anything nor am I employed.  This is my hobby and I hope to inspire you to play :)