Snowflake lantern

Well, I made cut files for several new Christmas lanterns but never finished making all the actual lanterns. Just was not able to make them all. 

Here is a snowflake lantern that I did get made.

Guess there is always next year for all the other ones I made files for. LOL

Hope you all have a great Christmas Eve and a wonderful Christmas.

Thank you for Quilt

Wow, it has been almost 3 weeks since I posted. I think this is the longest amount of time I have ever gone without posting to my blog. All is well. I just got busy with Christmas stuff. 

I made this card as a very special "thank you" for my friend, Judy.

She made me a beautiful quilt! 
Yes, a lovely quilt just for me!
I am not sure I deserve it, but I REALLY appreciate it. It makes me warm on the inside and outside. I think about all the work and effort that went into making it and I feel "hugged" :)

It has my very favorite colors and wonderful butterflies.

So I wanted to make her a special thank you card. I used more Bo Bunny The Avenues patterned paper and some beads from Art Glitter...

It is called Gala Glitz (brown) and contains seed beads, micro beads, glitter and mica flakes. It is so very pretty. I used it for the centers of the flowers and the swirls. For the swirls, I used a stencil to lightly trace the pattern then went over the line with white glue. Then I just sprinkled the Gala Glitz on like glitter.

Hope you all have a wonderful holiday season and a very merry Christmas.
I will post again soon.

Fleur de lis Panel Card

I wanted to make a special card for my mother's birthday. I brought out a beautiful patterned paper from Bo Bunny, The Avenues, which I have been hoarding for a while now. It is one of those papers that are so pretty that it is hard to cut into. (I know all you paper crafters know what I mean:) I decided to go with two main panels of cardstock and one of my Fleur de Lis cut files for the focal point. I added some Recollections bling, seam binding, and some of my handmade flowers.

I was really happy with how it turned out.

Thanks for dropping by.

Chalk Board Card

I love the chalkboard papers and embellishments that are so popular right now. I have purchased several of them, but they have sat on my shelf for a while. Well I was inspired to use some of the My Mind's Eye Chalk Studio paper to cut out one of the boards and placed it front and center of a center step card. I used white pens, ink, and a chalk pencil to decorate it. (the bird and flourish came on the patterned paper) The name is in chalk so I spritzed it with hairspray to fix it and keep it from smearing.

I took a cue from the Prima chalk line and added some pops of color. The banner was cut from some older Echo Park paper, Hello Summer. The flowers were cut from my cut files and inked with Worn Lipstick and Squeezed Lemonade.

I stamped more decorations on the inside.

A Cheerful Hello

As crafters we know how it is when we spend time, money, and our coveted craft supplies to make a handmade card or gift for someone and realize the recipient does not appreciate all the effort that you put into the project. We have all been there. I secretly start thinking about taking it back and keep it myself. LOL

Well, those times are completely eclipsed when we happen to give a handmade treasure to some one who really appreciates it. All the effort is instantly considered worth it to us. For example, my sister in law saves all my cards and displays them. My past Christmas cards are even a part of her decorations every year. My sister frames them. Totally worth all the time and work.

I gave a card to someone last year, and recently talked to several of her family members who told me how she just went on and on about that card. She even told my hubby that she does not remember anyone ever giving her such a special card. ...Well, of course, I melted. Not only did I feel appreciated, I was yearning to make her another card. LOL

So here is the card I made. :)  

I know she will appreciate it.

Black and White with Open Flowers

Another black and white step card with splashes of red. 
This time I used some paper from a black and white K & Co stack and made Open Flowers (instead of Open Roses) This is an easy flower that gives a lot of punch. You can see the video tutorial for this flower here. 

Open Flower Tutorial

I added some Recollections bling and a Diamond Edge border with colored seam binding.

Sympathy Card with Open Rose

As many of you know. my dad passed away last month. His sister is the only sibling from his family that is still living. She had another loss this past week. Her husband passed away. I wanted to make her a special card. 

I used some patterned paper that is flocked. Red mats were added and lots of red bling. I made an Open Rose and added one of my Diamond edged border with dyed seam binding woven through it. 

The step card files and instructions can be found on this page.
The Open Rose and Diamond Edged Decorations can be found on my Etsy shop.

Colorful Step Card

I made another step card as a thank you. I wanted it to be extra special. Taking a cue from my glittery Mariposa patterned paper, I used some cheerful colors for the rose and "pretty" flowers. 

I added lots of pearls and made some butterflies. The butterflies were stamped and colored. They needed something a little extra. They got covered in glue and dry Stickles stardust glitter.

So pretty!

Burlap and Paper Leaves

I made a ton of Fall leaves last year that I never even used. I cut white cardstock with one of my cut files then used several shades of yellow, orange, red, and brown distress inks to color them. It took forever but was worth it.

I had more burlap and leaves already made so I covered this votive candle holder by simply wrapping the glass with burlap, adding leaves, and tieing up with some cording. Really cool result with very little effort.

FALLing Leaves

I have been in the mood to work on some Fall cards. I just love this time of year.

I used an older stamp to put gold glitter embossing powder on watercolor paper. Then I used Twinkling H2O's to add some color to the background. You can not see the shimmer in the picture but trust me it looks so cool. :)

Here is the same stamp and some different colors of ink to make another Fall card.

It is on a craft cardbase with mats in orange and white card stock.

Hope you have fun playing with Fall colors too.

Pretty Pumpkin

I decorated a foam pumpkin to use as Fall decor.

I used a couple of coats of white craft paint and sprinkled Rock Candy dry glitter over the entire thing. Then I used a Crafter's Workshop stencil to trace flourishes. Then I just followed the pencil lines with Stickles glitter in orange.

It turned out really pretty but I managed to get glitter EVERYWHERE! LOL

Step Card in Purple and Silver

Yet another step card. (perhaps my favorite from this last group)

I bought these purple and silver pages at a local art supply store. They are 8 1/2 by 11 sheets intended for invitation. I have hoarded them for a while now. They are just so luxurious. It is hard to see in the picture but the silver swirls are very metallic. Of course I covered most of the patterned paper up on the sides but I did leave some exposed on the left side.

The silver paper is actually heavy duty wrapping paper that I bought to use on cards. Works great and embosses beautifully.

The bling is from Michael's and the Regal roses were inked with Dusty Concord and Seedless Preserves on the edges. The cut files for the step card and "thank you" are here. You can get the files for the cross here.

Hope you have a great day!

Step Card in Red

More Thank You cards.This is Mariposa patterned paper that has beautiful gold embossed flowers and flourishes. It even has a cute little bird...

If you look closely at the rose petals you can see that I inked the white cardstock with Aged Mahogany Distress Ink and then darkened the edges by running the matching marker along the edge. It takes a little while but it adds such a realistic touch.

You can download the step card files and Thank You caption from the previous post. 

Step Card Thank Yous

Hello my crafty friends. I have been keeping myself busy by making cards. We needed some special thank you cards to send to some wonderful people who helped out during my dad's time in hospice and the funeral. Since I happen to make cards (LOL) I was happy to create them.

I used some more of my Mariposa paper from the K&Co stack. This one has several colorful butterflies on a glittered cardstock. Look closely and you can see the glittery dots.

I was in a colorful mood so I chose to used Ripe Persimmon and Peacock Feathers Distress inks to color my white cardstock for the card base, mats, and decorations. 

I pulled these colors to go with the Mariposa patterned paper then I ended up covering most of the patterned paper up. LOL

I added WOW Embossing glitter to the butterfly and text. It really popped against all the orange.

To accent the edges of my handmade Regal Roses in Ripe Persimmon, I added some Rusty Hinge ink.

You can download instructions for the side step card here.   Side Step Card

The "thank you" text and shadow layers can be downloaded here. Thank You Caption

The Regal Rose cut files and instructions and the Detailed Butterfly cut files are available in my Etsy shop.

  

Dragonfly

I needed a quick, easy card. I put this cute dragonfly card together. The cut file is simple but using this embossing technique adds a lot of interest. 

I started with plain white cardstock and used Distress inks in Shabby Shutters, Peeled Paint, and Chipped Sapphire to color it. Then it was embossed and did a direct to paper on the raised areas. Next I added some Perfect Pearls.

The shadow layer is inked with Salty Ocean then Chipped Sapphire around the edges.

You can download my simple dragon fly cut file here:

dragonfly cut files 

More Mariposa

I know the Mariposa paper from K and Co. has been around a while by now, but I still love it. To be honest, I have been hoarding it. LOL Well, I decided to finally use it, take pictures, and move on.

Here is a lovely card using Aged Mahogany Distress Ink on the Open Rose and Scattered straw on the Pretty Flowers. I used Aged Mahogany Distress Stain on the seam binding.

Church Logo Cards

I know we all struggle making masculine cards. We love to add glitter and bling to projects but they are not always the right look for cards for men. I was making cards for my church when I realised I needed some more manly looking cards. I came up with some simple cards that look really nice.

I made a cut file that looked like out church logo. Then a clean italicised font to cut out the sentiment. I used the negative of the image rather than piecing all those little bits of paper to the card. The inside pieces of the letters where inserted into the p, g, and o's to make it easier to read.

The middle panel of the card was embossed to add some interesting texture.

Orange Butterfly

I made this card a while back for a lovely young lady who had a birthday. She loves orange and this Mariposa paper from K and Co. seemed perfect. Of course I added some flowers and a Stickled butterfly.

I used Ripe Persimmon and Stormy Sky Distress Inks. I am really liking the combination.

Sympathy

 “When you pass through the waters, I’ll be with you; and through the rivers, they will not overflow you.  When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned, nor will the flame scorch you.” (Isaiah 43:2).

This verse describes what I have been going through the last couple of weeks. I am heartbroken and yet I feel God's peace sustaining me in a way that is almost tangible  It is still difficult but yet I am not in despair. 

Huge THANKS to everyone who has commented. I truly appreciate it!

I made this card a several weeks ago for a friend who lost a loved one. It seemed fitting somehow to show it now.

MIssing My Dad

My dad past away last week. He had been sick for a while now and we found out about a month ago that he had advanced pancreatic caner. He would not have survived surgery or chemo. My hubby and I have spent the past few weeks traveling back and forth to visit with my dad. I was glad to be able to say goodbye and say how much we love each other. 

The good news in all this is that since I finally recovered from the pain pump procedure, I as physically able to make the hour-and-a-half trip to my home town and visit with Dad. I was even able to sit through the funeral service. I would never have been able to do all of that a few months ago. I am thankful that God orchestrated events so I could have a few more moments with Dad and have some closure. 

I am sad but I have a peace that can only be from God because it surely is not from me. My father was a Christian and I know that he is in the presence of God. He is no longer sick or sad. He is free.

I will miss his warm smile, his strong hands, and the mischievous little sparkle in his eyes that always made me smile.

I have many photos of my dad but this one from my wedding day (23 years ago) is my favorite.

Embellished Shimmer Sheetz

So the embossed Shimmer Sheetz were nice, but I wanted to take it bit further.
I placed an adhesive sheet over the embossed Shimmer Sheetz and then pulled it off. The adhesive took the iridescent layer off of the raised areas and left a black film. You can still see the iridescence in the debossed areas of the panel.

I also stampe the black cardstock with VersaMark and applied different colors of Perfect Pearls. Such a lovely rich shimmer of colors!

I repeated the ink and Perfect Pearls on the cardbase.

So what did I do with the adhesive sheet that had all the pretty iridescent shine on it? I adhered it to cardstock then added glitter to the areas without the colored film. So cool!

I will have to show you how I did it another time. I have to take care of some family business. More details later.

Embossed Shimmer Sheetz Cards

Here are some cards I made a few weeks ago.

I had fun playing with Shimmer Sheetz. They are metallic sheets that come in a pack of 3. This set has an iridescent finish that is very pretty. They emboss wonderfully and add a regal effect to my projects.

I had planned to make some videos showing these cool Shimmer Sheetz but that will have to wait for now. (details later)

Reverence Embossing Folder

Spellbinders has an embossing folder that I am just loving. It is called Reverence. There are crosses on one side and lilies on the other. For the orange and blue card. I embossed white cardstock and applied Distress ink direct to paper. On the purple card, I embossed foil paper and sanded over the raised areas. The embossing is so pretty that I did not think the card needed much embellishment. The embossing folder is 5 by 7. Since I wanted to make cards that were 5 1/2 by 8 1/2, I just cut the panel and hid the open area under ribbon or paper. 

Here is another color combo where I used Stickels on the cross.



You can see more examples of cards I made using this embossing folder HERE and get the cut file for the cross pictured on the orange card HERE.