A Fabulous Day

“Saving stuff” – such as beautiful cardstocks and special embellishments – is a mindset that has held me back in my 14 years of stamping.  No more.  It’s akin to hoarding and it weighs me down.  I’m now having the time of my life going through my entire stash and pulling out everything I’ve been reluctant to use . . . such as the card base here:

While the photo may not show it well, the texture is gorgeous!  It was a joy to work with and I’m glad I took the opportunity to do so.  Back in the day, “acid free” was not the norm that it is now, and some of my cardstocks from those early days have begun to change color and fade, especially along the edges.  So I’ve pretty much done myself out of the pleasure of using them, to say nothing of the lost money I spent.

I’m in my seventh decade . . . what on earth am I saving this stuff for?

Cardstock:              Hero Punch textured, Marcos Premium Matte

Stamps:                   Judikins Origami Background, Alias Smith Striped

                                    Background, Papertrey Ink Dress Form and

                                    “Wishing You a Fabulous Day” text

Inks:                          Ancient Page Henna, Gelly Roll White, Clear

                                    Star pens

Emb Powder:          Vippies Transcendence

Dies:                          Spellbinders Labels 23, Papertrey Ink Dress Form,

                                    Family Treasures Scalloped Oval punch (2 sizes),

                                     Marvy High Heeled Shoe punch

Doo Dads:                Crystals, satin ribbons

Asian Knot

Working with Asian themes is always a pleasure and this one was no exception . . .

As usual, less-than-stellar photography skills have made this card a lot darker than it is in real life.  My dear and lifelong friend Sandy takes her annual vacation in Hawaii each year where the Asian influence in island life is so wonderfully felt.  I thought that using this theme on her card would bring back some beautiful memories of her many visits to that lovely state.

Cardstock:              Beckett Iceberg, White-embossed Purple scraps

Stamps:                   Stamp Camp Asian Flip Flops

Inks:                          ColorBox Frost White, Black, Copic V17 Amethyst

Emb Powder:          Judikins White Diamond, Detail Black

Dies:                          Dee’s Distinctively Lattice 2

Doo Dads:                Deckled scissors, Mizuhiki cord, 1/8^th“ corner rounder

It's Your Day

As has happened all too frequently, I wasn’t really sure of where I was going with this card.  Now that I’m there, I’m not convinced that I wound up where I wanted to be . . .

 

 

I loved the colors of the cardstock strips that I rescued from my stash, but perhaps the lattice was not the best way to showcase them.  I did a double layer of the lattice diecut which helped some, but this one really belongs on my less-than-successful pile.  As I think an honest blog is the way to roll, I am showing you my bruises as well as my crowns.  Feedback is always welcome!

 Cardstock:              Generic textured Teal, dull Gold metallic, various scrap

                                      strips

Stamps:                   Too Much Fun “It’s your day”
Inks:                          Vivid Yellow, Purple, Blue, Teal, ColorBox Gold
Emb Powder:          Judikins Detail Gold
Dies:                          Cheery Lynn Chicken Wire Frame
Doo Dads:                Gold glitter

A Pocketful

For our grandson’s 7^th birthday, I searched my kid-ly style stamp stash and didn’t find a heck of a lot of images a 7 year old would enjoy.  But balloons work for just about anyone, right?

Working on the cloud background reinforced my happy dependence upon Papertrey Ink’s Fresh Snow white ink . . . of all the ones I’ve tested (scores), PTI’s is the hands down winner for the most opaque white dye ink out there.  It takes awhile to dry, so use your heat gun to speed up the process:  this will keep the ink on the surface and contribute to its opacity.  You won’t be disappointed!

Cardstock:   Marcos Jute, Generic Denim Blue

Stamps:        Wplus9 A Pocketful set (pockets, sentiment “a pocketful”,

                         Stars), Stamp a Mania Line Background, Hero

                         Clouds, Lil Inker Balloon Builders set (3 balloons,

                         Penny Black “Best Wishes” from her Every Day

                         stamp, Unknown “Happy Birthday” script

Inks:               Papertrey Ink Fresh Snow, Distress Brushed Corduroy,

                          Chipped Sapphire, Mowed Lawn, ColorBox Silver,

                           Vivid Red, VersaFine Majestic Blue

Emb Powder:  B’Muse Detail Silver, Vippies Transcendence

Dies:              Wplus9 pocket dies from A Pocketful set,

                          Verve Banner Bundle

Doo Dads:    Metalix Moondust Glitter

Kiss Me

Happy St Patrick’s Day!

 

Irish art forms include many more accomplishments than green beer!   So I decided to see if I could incorporate some of these in my card for today.  So far I came up with four:  woven fabric (tweed border), stitchery (the embroidered star trim), metal working (the gold accents), and language (various word stamps).  I hope you enjoy the results, even though I couldn’t fit in any green beer.  Probably just as well . . .

Cardstock:   Bazzill Pear, Neenah Solar White, generic Black

Stamps:        Creative Catalyst Tweed Border, Starving Artistamps
                          Altered Stitches (Star), Northwoods Rubber Shamrock
                          Background, assorted word stamps from Studio G St
                          Patrick Words plus Series 29 sets
Inks:              Distress Shabby Shutters, Hero Black, ColorBox Gold
Emb Powder:  Ranger Gold
Punches:         EK Success ⁷/₈ & ¾, Punch Bunch Tiny Flower
Doo Dads:       Gold pearls

Love

Yes, Valentine’s Day has come and gone, but this could be used as a fun anniversary card as well . . .

For those like me who have a ton of Washi tapes but have no real idea what to do with them, here’s a good start:  just lay them down side by side.  If you like, cover the seams with various paper and/or fabric trims.  Use a punch or die to cut out shapes from another panel to be layered over the top, and you’re good to go!

Tip:  Washi is known for coming loose at the ends sometimes – this is its wonderful feature (re-positionable) as well as its drawback, as no one wants their art to self-destruct.  Options to prevent this include putting your layout on a panel and wrapping the tape around to the back before affixing it to your card front.  Or layering as I did above which will keep any errant strips from coming loose.  Prevention beats problems any day, in my book . . .

 Cardstock:             Marcos Jute, Bazzill Black

Stamps:                   Serendipity Leafy Heart Background, Craft Smart “Love”
Inks:                         CB Frost White
Colored Pencils:     Prisma White
Emb Powder:          Judikins Opaque White
Dies:                         Die-Namics Hearts A Plenty, Spellbinders Ribbon
                                    Tags Trio
Doo Dads:                Various Washi tapes, paper and fabric borders/trims

A Really Small Gang

Our favorite annual stamp trade show is coming up this weekend and my stamping buddy Carol and I are hot to trot!  The sentiment on this card expresses our Mission Statement perfectly . . .

We attack that showroom floor with engines running, barely stop for lunch, and have the time of our lives during the whole exhaustingly exhilarating day!  And then we go back home, chortle over our new loot, and start saving up for next year’s event.

Cardstock:                          Marcos Jute, Burgundy/Rust scraps from

                                              my Scrap Stash
Stamps:                                Prima Stitches, Riley & Co “Really Small
                                              Gang”, The Artful Stamper Tiny Leaf
                                               Flourish
Inks:                                      ColorBox Cream White
Emb Powder:                      Stampendous Ivory Pearl
Emb Folder:                         Darice Crackle
Dies:                                      DieNamics Traditional Tags Stax
Doo Dads:                            Jute cord, deckle edge scissors

Butterfly Thank You

My fantastic niece Rebecca always gifts me with stamps I absolutely love, and last year’s Christmas gift was no exception.  In addition to a wonderful floral bird, she gave me this woodgrain border and the lovely butterfly . . .

 

Nothing would do but to put them to work immediately on her Thank You note.  The sketchy style of the butterfly seemed to call for the always interesting Rock and Roll technique:  I inked the stamp first with the Aged Mahogany and then rolled and tapped the Pine Needles pad just around the edges.  No need to try for precise placement:  the charm lies in the artless and casual results.  You never know exactly how it’s going to turn out and this is part of the fun!  It’s also good therapy for anal types like myself . . .

Cardstock:            Generic textured Cream, Marcos Jute

Stamps:                Impress Woodgrain Border, Savvy Butterfly Print,
                                   Love You to Bits Texture Background, Ladder Stitch
                                   from Starving Artistamps Altered Stitches,
                                   Hero “Thank you very much”
Inks:                     Papertrey Ink Fresh Snow, Hero Soft Brown,
                                   Ancient Page Chocolate, Distress Aged
                                  Mahogany, Pine Needles
Emb Powder:         VIP Transcendence
Dies:                      Verve Banner Bundle
Doo Dads:              Burgundy ribbon in 2 widths

Etched Flower

It’s been a long time since I’ve made a card without text on the card front, and I’m not so sure that this card front couldn’t use some . . .

. . . but it’s good to shake things up once in awhile, right?  So after much pondering and frequent back-and-forthing, I’ve decided that it’s quite complete and needs to be sent on its way.  With "Deepest sympathy" stamped on the inside, I think this card is complete.

Cardstock:   Unknown Textured Teal, Watercolor paper 
Stamps:       Hero’s Etched Flower with Stems, Starving

                           Artistamps Altered Stitches, Verve
                           Deepest Sympathy
Inks:            ColorBox Frost White, Distress Stains Pine
                           Needles, Weathered Wood
Emb Powder:  Stampendous Ivory Pearl
Dies:               Die-Namics Chalkboard Frame Builder
Doo Dads:       Perfect Pearl mist, Teal & White pearls