Monday, August 31, 2015

Anything Goes!

This is a week of CRAZINESS!  It is Anything Goes.  So anyone can do anything that moves them.

Sherry is first up!



This adorable set is from Inky Antics.  I just love a punny sentiment.  This set is from the Honey Pop Collection.

Thank you for stopping by the blog today.  Tune in tomorrow for more anything goes.

Have a great day and be inspired.

April

Proverbs 18:12  Before a downfall the heart is haughty, but humility comes before honor.

Friday, August 28, 2015

Die Cutting and a Kitty

The die cutting them continues this week.  Dee created this cute card.


"forever friends"
Kitty and mouse Images die cut from Paper Smooches, colored with Copics. Google eyes on kitty. Forever friends word die cuts from Tim Holtz/Sizzix, cut then messy colored with Zig clean brush yellow. Yellow moon looking die is Spellbinders "cascading dots", colored with a Recollections spray yellow shimmer ink then covered with Wink of Stella, cut to fit circle die also Spellbinders. Picket fence is Martha Stewart punch. Card front embossed with Tim Holtz/Sizzix brick embossing folder.

That wraps up our die cutting week.  I hope you got some ideas for some projects.

Thanks for stopping by the blog.  Tune in next week for a theme of 'Anything Goes'.

Have a great day and be inspired.

April

Proverbs 18:12  Before a downfall the heart is haughty, but humility comes before honor.

Thursday, August 27, 2015

Die Cutting and Rainbows

This week the theme is die cutting.  Die cutting can include using your Silhouette, Explore, Big Shot, Vagabond, Cut n Boss, scissors...........  You get the picture.

I used my Silhouette, some Kuretake Watercolor, and a sentiment stamp from Fiskars quoting children.


I stamped the sentiment on vellum paper with Versamark ink and I used embossing powder from Stampendous.  I haven't used the embossing powder from Stampendous before and I was very impressed with how well it worked.

With all that said - I want a 'do over'.  This card did not turn out how I had it pictured in my mind.  It's okay, but I am not happy with it.  But I wouldn't want everyone to think that every card I make turns out the way I want.  I am sure this never happens to anyone else.  ;-)

Thank you for stopping by the blog today.  Tune in tomorrow for some more die cutting fun.

Have a great day and be inspired.

April

Proverbs 18:12  Before a downfall the heart is haughty, but humility comes before honor.

Wednesday, August 26, 2015

WOYWW 325 - Not Too Shabby - Okay - I Take it Back!

It is Wednesday which means it's time to take a snap shot of my desk and share it with Julia at the Stamping Ground.

Well it was clean on Saturday.  But that was Saturday and this is Wednesday.  Here is my desk this week:




Thank you for stopping by the blog today.  Tune in tomorrow for some more die cutting projects.

Have a great day and be inspired.

April

Proverbs 18:12  Before a downfall the heart is haughty, but humility comes before honor.

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Die Cutting and Marriage

This week is all about die-cutting.  Or fussy cutting.  With a machine or without a machine cutting out an image always adds something to a project.

Diane worked on some wedding cards using her Silhouette machine this weekend.  Check out her cards:




Thanks for stopping by the blog today.  Tune in tomorrow for WOYWW.

Have a great day and be inspired.

April

Proverbs 11:2  When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.

Monday, August 24, 2015

CASEing Nichol Magouirk - Watercolor Stained Glass Butterfly

I absolutely love Nicole's stained glass butterfly with watercolor card.  She makes it look very easy to create this look.  And for a normal crafter it probably is easy.  But alas, I am not a normal crafter.

Here is Nichole's Card on Nicole's Blog.

Here are the different results from my attempts.

The butterfly stamp is from Dare2BArtzy.  The Happy Birthday sentiment is from Paper Smooches.  Cardstock is from Fun Stampers Journey.


This butterfly is from Hero Arts and includes dies.  I used silver embossing powder from Stampendous.  And of course I used my Zig Clean Brush Markers.

I am very happy with the way my attempts turned out.  I have discovered that not only do I walk hard I paint hard.  My Dad always used to tell me you walk like you're pushing a plow.  Well, I don't look like I'm pushing a plow anymore, but I do still have a heavy walk.  But I digress.  I was too heavy handed with the paint around the image so I decided to paint the background on a different piece of paper.

This week's theme is die cutting.  As you can see I used stitched dies as well as the butterfly die from Hero Arts.

Thank you for stopping by the blog today.  Tune in tomorrow for some more die cutting projects.

Have a great day and be inspired.

April

Proverbs 3:34  He mocks proud mockers but shows favor to the humble and oppressed.


Saturday, August 22, 2015

Merci - Yep - French, too

It is thank you week on the blog.  We're spending the whole week sharing our thank you cards.

Today it's Dee's turn:




Card Recipe:  Bird Crazy by Tim Holtz stamped then Colored with Zig clean color real brushes. "Thanks" was die cut from Little Yellow Bicycle placed on another Die from Spellbinders that was inked and anchored with three square stick ons from stash. 

             

Inside card
Sentiment stamped with Jillibean "Handwritten" stamps.

Thank you for stopping by the blog today.  This wraps up the week of gratitude on the blog.  I hope everyone took away an idea or two.  Tune in next week for a new theme.

Have a great day and be inspired.

April

Proverbs 1  The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Friday, August 21, 2015

Danke - Oh Yeah - Thank You in German

This week is a celebration of gratitude with Thank You cards.  Today it's my turn!

I have three cards to share with you today.  The first two feature digital images from Power Poppy.


This sunflower was great fun to color with my Zig Clean Brush Markers.  The die I used to cut the circle in the middle is from My Favorite Things.


I did a similiar type of card using the digital coneflowers from Power Poppy, too.  I wanted a more pink color, but ended up with a purple using my Zig Clean Brush Markers.  Are there any other markers?  Yes and I used those on the third card.

My next card was a CASE of Kathy's card at the Daily Marker Blog.


I used a butterfly set from Martha Stewart and my Tombow markers to create this card.  I think next time I will be using two coordinating colors instead of two shades of the same color.  I do like how it turned out though.  I am a sucker for butterflies and I had to try to create a card like Kathys.

Thank you for stopping by the blog today.  Tune in tomorrow for another 'thank you' card.

Have a great day and be inspired.

April

1 Peter 5:6  Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.

Thursday, August 20, 2015

Gracias - Oh Yeah - I Know Some Spanish


Well, I know what gracias means anyway.  The thank you theme continues today with a card from Jenny.

She used one of my favorite stamp sets to create this card:


Jenny used the Lotus Blossom stamp set from Stampin Up which allows you to stamp in layers.  She used Stampin Up Ink Mossy Meadow, Tangerine Tango and Daffodil Delight to create this great card.


Thank you for stopping by the blog today.  Tune in tomorrow for some more thank you projects.

Have a great day and be inspired.

April

1 Peter 5:6  Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.

Wednesday, August 19, 2015

WOYWW 324 - In Memory of Janet


It is Wednesday which means I need to take a picture of my desk and post it on Julia's Stamping Ground.  This week we mourn the loss of one of our fellow WOYWW bloggers.  Janet 'Fairythoughts' passed away, but left behind great memories of what a great person she was.

My desk this week is a result of making thank you cards for this week's blog theme.  I have once again worked myself into a 12 x 12 inch space to actually work.




I also have a card to share that I've entered into the Send a Smile 4 Kids Challenge.
And I entered into the challenge at Case this Sketch. Check it out!


I used a stamp set from a stamp company I discovered at Stampaway in Cincinnati called Pink and Main.  I just love this set with the sign language.  So cute!

Thank you for stopping by the blog today.  Tune in tomorrow for some more thank you fun.

Have a great day and be inspired.

April

Psalm 1:1 - 2  Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in he way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night.




Tuesday, August 18, 2015

Thank You Week........

It is all about thank yous on the blog this week.

We were all inspired by this lovely card that 9 year old Piper made:

Anastasia has a cute card and tag for this week's theme.

Thank you for stopping by the blog today.  Tune in tomorrow for WOYWW.

Have a great day and be inspired.

April

Colossians 3:23 - 24  Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.  It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

Monday, August 17, 2015

It's a Week of Gratitude

This week's theme is 'thank you'.  This week's theme is inspired by a thank you card designed by Piper who is 9.  She created it to enter into the state fair.  I want to share the card with everyone because I think she did such a wonderful job.

 
Now I know that it will be hard to live up to the standard that Piper has set, but the design team and I are going to try.

Now Diane just turned ??.  It was a milestone - let me tell you.  So she had to create some thank you cards to send to those peeps who gave her gifts.

Here are the cards that she made.



She made all of her Thank You cards using the same design, but varied the colors to make them unique.


The stamp set is from Hero Arts.




The sentiment is from Stampin Up.


Diane used her MISTI to make multiples of her Thank You cards.


What a great tool to make lots of cards.

Thank you for stopping by the blog today.  Tune in tomorrow for some more gratitude.  :-)

Have a great day and be inspired.

April

Deuteronomy 6:6 - 7  These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.  Impress them on your children.  Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.

Sunday, August 16, 2015

Birthday Wrap Up!

Get it?  Birthday theme wrap up - like you wrap up a birthday present?  Well I thought it was clever.

Today I am going to share with you the last of the birthday themed cards for this week.  I've used several different products from several different companies.  I was very pleased with how each of the turned out.


The first card was made using Ken Oliver's Color Bursta Tim Holtz Stencil, and a stamp set from Stamps of Life.  I used the Color burst and some water to create a fun t-shirt with a Happy Birthday sentimnt.  Then I used stencil with the leftover Color Burst to create the background for the card.  Check out my video:





I used the Dahlia set from Fun Stampers Journey along with the matching dies to create this birthday card.  I used my Zig Clean Brush Markers to color the flowers.  I gave this card to my daughter for her 21st birthday.


And last, but not least I used the Crazy Birds Stamp set from Tim Holtz to create a fun card for Diane who is turning ?? tomorrow.  I also had to add googly eyes because these birds just scream for googly eyes.  I colored the birds with my Zig Clean Brush Markers - you knew I did!  This card was entered into the challenge at Seize the Birthday.

So that wraps up birthday week.  I hope you got some fun ideas.  Tune in next week for a special thank you card from a special girl.  And next week's theme - thank you.

Have a great day and be inspired.

April

Psalm 103  But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord's love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children's children with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.

Saturday, August 15, 2015

Happy Birthday - Yes - it's still Birthday theme.......

Yep - we're still celebrating birthdays on the blog.  My youngest daughter turned 21 this week so I decided it was a good week to celebrate birthdays with birthday cards.  One of my design team members has a milestone birthday on Sunday.  I won't tell you which milestone, but I will tell you it's Diane.  :-)

Here is Dee's contribution to this week's theme.  She used Tim Holtz's Crazy Birds stamp set.


Love these birds!  And the colors are perfect.

Thank you for stopping by the blog today.  Tune in tomorrow when we wrap up the Birthday week celebration.

Have a great day and be inspired.

April

1 Peter 3:12 - 13  For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.  Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good?

Friday, August 14, 2015

Happy Birthday with Stamps by Judith and Heather

I took some time to play with my Stamps by Judith and Heather.  I just love their stamps.  They are all about flowers and fun stuff - what's not to love?

The local charity that I donate to needed birthday cards so here was my portion of the donation:





If you're not familiar with Stamps by Judith and Heather, check them out.  They make the cutest stamps and have wonderful ideas on their blog.

Thank you for stopping by the blog today.  Tune in tomorrow for Dee's contribution to this week's theme.

Have a great day and be inspired.

April

Ephesians 4  Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.  Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

Thursday, August 13, 2015

More Birthday Fun and a New Design Team Member!

Today Denise joins us for the first time as a new design team member.  To be a design team member for me - you have to be my friend.  And sometimes that is a tall order - just ask Diane!  LOL

Denise makes beautiful cards and today's examples are no exception.  She teaches classes at http://www.craftinnky.com/.  If you're in the Louisville KY area - go check out the schedule - she is a great teacher.

Here are her lovely cards:


The stamp set for this card is from My Favorite Things - Things with Wings.  It was colored with Zig Clean Brush Markers.  Finishing touches are Wink of Stella.


This image is from Our Daily Bread.  It is colored with Wink of Stella pens.  The die for the center step card is from Cheer Lynn Designs.


This card was created using Dies and Images from Art Impressions. 


The image was colored with Zig Clean Brush Markers, Marvy Markers and finished off with Wink of Stella.

What a great group of birthday cards.  Thank you Denise for being a part of my design team.  :-)

Thank you for stopping by the blog today.  Tune in tomorrow for some more blowing out the candles celebration.

Have a great day and be inspired.

April



Wednesday, August 12, 2015

Watercoloring Technique Using Zig Clean Brush Markers

I just love these Zig Clean Brush Markers for watercoloring or just to use as markers.  I am going to share a technique that will be a great way to start watercoloring if you're new to it.  Or a great refresher if you're already a pro.

I was just recently introduced to Dare 2B Artzy stamps and dies.  The set I am going to use in the video is perfect for this watercolor technique - lots of open space.

Check out my video:


The cards:




Thank you for stopping by the blog today.  I hope you have the chance to try out this technique with your watercolor markers.

Have a great day and be inspired.

April

1 Peter 2:9  But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

WOYWW 323 - Messy Fun

Today is Wednesday which means I need to take a picture of my messy desk and share it with other deskers at The Stamping Ground.

Here is what my desk looks like this week:



And that stack on my desk is not a stack of completed cards.  I wish it was!  LOL

Thank you for stopping by the blog today.  Tune in tomorrow for some more fun birthday cards.

Have a great day and be inspired.

April

Ephesians 5:1 - 2  Follow God's example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

Tuesday, August 11, 2015

Birthdays and Zig Clean Brush Markers

You knew I would incorporate my new favorite new favorite markers into the birthday theme this week.  Didn't you?

Here are some simple birthday cards using a cool technique with Zig Clean Brush Markers and water:



First I used a set from My Favorite Things - Birthday Wishes and Balloons to stamp the image and emboss it with white embossing powder from Stampin Up.  Then I used a blue Zig Clean Brush Pen and colored at the top of a piece of watercolor paper.  I wet my brush and painted from side to side and downward to create the ombre effect.  To get what looks like water splashes I flicked water on the background.  I added irridescent enamel dots from Sticko.

Thank you for stopping by the blog today.  Tune in tomorrow for WOYWW.

Have a great day and be inspired

April

1 Corinthians 10 - 13:  No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind.  And God is faithful;  he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.  But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

Time to Be Merry Challenge at Creative Knockouts

It is Thursday and that means it is time for a new challenge at the  Creative Knockouts Challenge Blog .  This week's theme challenge i...