You're Tops in My Book

Hello everyone! I have 2 cards to share with you today. Firstly, I thought it would be fun to create another card for the Cards from the Hearts Card Drive using my new stamps and dies from Lawn Fawn.

I decided to make this card with a chalkboard technique and although it's hard to see, I used the Tim Holtz embossing folder that has the texture of a brick wall on the red card base. I punched the notebook edge and drew lines with a white pencil, then embossed the sentiment in white. I also added glossy accents to the glasses and heart and used an old glitter pen on the book binding just to jazz it up a little.

JJ Bolton created a gorgeous card with Avery Elle’s ‘Embellish It Flower Die’ using vellum and Texture Tiles (Be Cute stamp set),  and inspired me so much, that I decided to CASE her card (I sure hope she doesn’t mind)! 

I die cut each petal 3 times, then arranged them. If you’re interested, Nina Yang has a video tutorial on You Tube creating a flower with this die Here and on This Blog Post she shows how to make 6 different flowers with this die.
I love pink and gray, so I cut 1/4“ strips in steel gray, used soft stone for the leaves and smokey gray for the sentiment. I wanted the flower to be super feminine, so I used a bright pink ink for the polka dots and finished it off with metallic gray sequins. 
I thought this card was perfect to send off in a 'care package' to my step-granddaughter, Erica, who is a freshman in college and the sweetest girl on earth...she made the Dean's List after her first semester, and we're all so proud of her!

Well, that’s it for me ~ I hope everyone is getting in some crafty time this weekend! Take care, and thanks so much for stopping by!
Barb

Supplies:
You're Tops in My Book
Stamps: Lawn Fawn - Science of Love
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink - Select White, True Black, Pure Poppy
Ink: Hero Arts Memories - Unicorn; Versamark
Dies: Lawn Fawn - Science of Love
Embossing Folder: Sizzix/Tim Holtz - Alterations
Embossing Powder: Hero Arts - White
Misc: Glossy Accents; Wink of Stella - Clear; Prismacolor White Pencil; EK Success - Binder Edge Punch
 
You Are The Best 
Stamps: Avery Elle - Texture Tiles Be Cute (polka dots), Laurels (sentiment)
Cardstock: MFT - Steel Gray; PTI - Select White, Soft Stone, Vellum
Ink: Memento Luxe - Rose Bud; Versafine - Smokey Gray
Dies: Embellish It - Flower
Gem: My Mind’s Eye - Pearl
Sequins: SSS/Kelly Purkey - Metallic Gray

Bee Mine...Valentine!

Hello everyone! Just a quick post today. I’m getting in just under the wire for this week’s CASology Challenge. Our Cue Card is ‘Bubbly’, so I decided to use speech bubbles for my card, and since I used this sweet little bumble bee, I think I’ll add this to my collection for the Caring Hearts Card Drive. 

I finally broke out my Tim Holtz Honeycomb stencil, which I won in Barb Engler’s challenge...thanks, Barb! I stamped the Lawn Fawn ‘Bee Mine’ sentiment and bee, and with selective inking, I added the word 'Valentine’ from Hero Arts ‘Celebrate Everyday’ set. 

Well, that’s it for me ~ I hope everyone is having a fun and crafty weekend! 
Barb

Supplies:

Stamps: Lawn Fawn - Bee Mine; Hero Arts - Everyday Sayings
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink - Select White; Hero Arts - Daffodil
Ink: Memento - Tuxedo Black; Hero Arts - Butter Bar
Markers: Copic Sketch - Y02
Dies: Mama Elephant - Femme Frames; Simon Says Stamp - Speech Bubbles

Cards From the Heart Card Drive

Hello everyone! I have another card to share for the Cards From the Heart Card Drive, and of course, I’ll be entering my card into a few challenges.

This week marks the first ever challenge at The Card Concept, and we were given an inspiration photo as well as a color palette to choose from. Also, since the current challenge at Addicted to Stamps and More is a ‘Make Your Mark’ challenge, I thought I would combine the two! I found this cute little Valentine image from Digistamps Boutique, and thought this sweet little puppy was perfect.

 

For the Card Concept Challenge, I was inspired by the challenge colors: Kraft, Pink, Vanilla and Espresso. I colored my puppy with 2 shades of brown and used marshmallow cardstock for the front panel, and of course pink for the heart and butterflies. This challenge is also unique, in that we have several styles to choose from among the DT, and I’m guessing my card is considered ‘Clean & Layered’.

For the Addicted to Stamps & More Challenge, we are being asked to color an image using our favorite medium (markers, inks, pencils), so I chose to use my trusty Copic markers!

Well, that’s it for me ~ I hope everyone has a fun and crafty weekend! 
Barb

Supplies:
Digital Stamp: Digistamp Boutique
Cardstock: Cardstock: Papertrey Ink - Select White; Copic X-Press It - Blending Cardstock; Bazzill - Marshmallow
Markers: Copic Sketch Markers - E50, E53, E55, E57, R81, R83, R85
Impression Plate: Papertrey Ink - Rustic Burlap
Dies: Papertrey Ink - Mega Mat Stack 3
Misc: Glossy Accents (small heart); Wink of Stella Pen (large heart and butterflies)

Welcome 2014

Hello everyone!

I can’t believe it’s been over a week since I last posted on my blog! In fact, it’s my first post of the new year! 

I spent the past several days making cards for the Cards From the Heart Card Drive, which is an annual event run by Winter Sims. The Card Drive benefits children who are confined to the hospital during Valentine's Day, and runs until the end of January. Please feel free to click on the link if you are interested in participating. I will also be posting more of my cards throughout the month.
 
Our Code Word for this week’s challenge at Addicted to Clean & Simple is ‘Die Cuts’. Since I recently bought these tags from PTI, (sold as a set) I couldn’t resist creating a Valentine card with them!

I die cut the angled heart from my Clearly Besotted Love Hearts Dies so the bold red would show through from larger tag, stamped the sentiment from Lawn Fawn, and added some twine and a small strip of red cardstock along the bottom to keep it simple. It was fun to mix up various stamps and dies from several companies to create this card! The tricky part was to refrain from using any gems or small elements, as they could create a choking hazard for a child...I even glued down the twine with Glossy Accents so it was secure...OCD, I know!

So, that’s it for me ~ Just a quick post to say hello! I hope everyone is having a great week! 
Barb

 

Supplies:
Stamps: Lawn Fawn - Bee Mine
Ink: Versafine - Onyx Black
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink - Select White, Pure Poppy
Dies: Papertrey Ink - Tag Sale #9; Clearly Besotted Stamps - Love Hearts
Twine: Lawn Fawn - Lawn Trimmings Red & White

Season's Greetings

Hello everyone!

This is my last card for the 2013 Caring Hearts Card Drive. I have several cards to send off, and I have to stop now, so I can get them in the mail on time. I would also like to enter this card into 2 challenges this week:
Addicted to Stamps and More ~ ‘Make Your Mark’ (use Markers, Pencils, Crayons etc)

Designed to Color Challenge  ~ ‘Christmas/Winter’

 

I love to ink up this fun little snowman every year, and this time I used my Copic Markers on his hat and scarf. I also added a lot of sparkle and texture to this card with my new Tim Holtz Distress Glitter (thanks, Barb), Flower Soft, Glitter Pen and Liquid Applique! I even added glitter to the flower soft on his hat! Here is a close-up:

Well, that’s it for me. I hope everyone is having a great weekend...Thanks so much for stopping by!
Barb

Stamps: Penny Black - Snowy; Hero Arts - Holiday Sayings
Ink: Memento - Tuxedo Black; Versafine - Onyx Black
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink - Stamper’s Select White; Stash - Blue
Markers: Copics - R20, C0, C1, B21, B23; Spica Glitter Pen (nose) - Clear
Dies: Lil' Inkers - Stitched Rectangle Mats
Gems: Kaiser Craft - Black
Misc: Tim Holtz Glitter - Clear Rock Candy (pom-pom); Flower Soft (hat) - White; Liquid Applique (snow)

Holiday Card Workshop Day 4

Hi there blog friends ~ I have 2 more cards to share today!

My first card was inspired by Shari Carroll’s videos in Monday’s class, and it’s a fairly literal interpretation of one her cards. I wanted to add some texture to the card, so I embossed the front panel with my Impression Plate, then  stamped my Lawn Fawn tree stamps from the ‘Let it Snow’ set with Hero Arts Shadow Inks. I added a strip of cardstock and patterned paper, then embossed the sentiment with silver embossing powder. Fianlly, I added my Lawn Fawn snowflake sequins and tied off the small stamped panel with twine. 

 

 
For my 2nd card, I inked up my brand new Hero Arts Patterned Snow stamp with Versamark, then inked it with Pool shadow ink and heat set with clear embossing powder it to give a little shine. I embossed the background with the large snowflake stamp from Lawn Fawn and embossed it in white, then added some sequins...and it was done!

I would like to enter this card in the Hero Arts Holiday Challenge

 

I hope everyone is doing well ~ We have another class at Holiday Card Workshop today, and I can’t wait to see what they have in store for us...every class has been excellent so far! Thanks so much for stopping by!
Barb

Let it Snow- Lawn Fawn
Stamps: Lawn Fawn - Let it Snow
Ink: Versamark; Hero Arts Shadow Inks - Soft Pool, Tide Pool, Pool, Mint Julep
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink - Stamper’s Select White; Bazzill Card Shoppe - Icy Mint
Patterned Paper: American Crafts - Amy Tangerine Sketchbook
Impression Plate: Papertrey Ink - Linen & Canvas
Sequins: Lawn Fawn - Snowflakes
Twine: Hemptique


Let it Snow - Hero Arts
Stamps: Hero Arts - Patterned Snow; Lawn Fawn - Let it Snow
Ink: Versamark; Hero Arts Shadow Inks - Pool
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink - Stamper’s Select White, Aqua Mist, Vellum
Embossing Powder: Hero Arts - Clear, White
Gems: Neat & Tangled - Pearl Satin

A few more cards

Hi there blog friends!
I’m sharing a few more cards today...The first one was inspired by Jennifer McGuire using Memory Box Pine Border dies in This Video . I die cut the outline in black and the background in white cardstock, then colored the trees in with Copics. I just got my Wink of Stella pen, so I couldn’t resist adding that to give the trees some shimmer. I can definitely see myself getting addicted to using that!

For my 2nd card, I finally bought a basic tag die, so I wanted to CASE a tag that Laura Bassen had created for Holiday Card Workshop. I used Ranger Antiquities Christmas Tree embossing powder for the tree, and Holographic embossing powder for the red heart. Then, I mounted the tag to a card and used embossing paste to mimic the effects of snow.
Since embossing is one of my favorite techniques, I would like to enter this card in the Hero Arts Holiday Card Challenge

Here is a close up of the 'snowy' card panel:

Well, that’s it for me. I hope everyone has a wonderful week ahead ~ Thanks so much for stopping by!
Barb

Season’s Greetings
Stamps: Lawn Fawn - Let it Snow
Ink: Versafine - Onyx Black
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink - Stamper’s Select White, Pure Poppy
Dies: Memory Box - Pine Border Background, Pine Border Outline
Markers: Copics - R24, R27, BG13, BG15
Pen: Wink of Stella
Sequins: Kelly Purkey - for SSS (mixed colors)

Christmas Tree Tag Card - Peace
Stamps: Hero Arts - Pen & Ink Christmas Tree, Merry Christmas Trees (sentiment)
Ink: Versamark
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink - Stamper’s Select White, Pure Poppy, Soft Stone
Embossing Powder: Ranger - Antiquities Christmas Tree, Holographic
Dies: Simon Says Stamp - Large Holiday Shapes; Papertrey Ink - Tag Sale #2; Lifestyle Crafts - Banners & Arrows
Stencil: Simon Says Stamp - Falling Snow
Embossing Paste: Wendy Vecchi - White

2013 Holiday Card Workshop - Day 3

Hi there blog friends! I have 2 cards to share today ~
I’m really enjoying the Holiday Card Workshop and I was so inspired this week with all of the classes! In fact, my first card is a CASE of one of Laura Bassen’s cards...well, except that she created her amazing plaid pattern, and since I haven’t quite mastered that skill yet (not even close, kids) I used some of my Lawn Fawn Christmas papers from last year. Also, I don’t have any holiday word dies, so I used the partial die cutting technique (check out This Video, also by Laura) and added a stamped word.

I am submitting this card to the Less is More Challenge  ~ Use Designer Paper in a CAS way.

For my 2nd card, I CASE’d Cristina Kowalczyk’s card using the same stencil, but I used  embossing paste for the tree, and I didn’t ‘swipe’ it all the way, so I could add texture to the image. It looks pretty cool IRL!

 

I thought this card would be perfect for a few challenges: 
CASology ~ Cue Card is ‘Triangle’ 
Addicted to Stamps and More Challenge ~ Anything Goes.

Festive Friday ~ Use the Colors: Red, White & Aqua

Well, that’s it for me. I hope everyone is doing well and having a great weekend ~ Thanks so much for stopping by!
 
Barb

Hello Santa
Stamps: Lawn Fawn - Claire’s ABC’s
Ink: Versamark
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink - Stamper’s Select White; Hero Arts - Pine Layering Papers
Patterned Paper: Lawn Fawn - Fa-la-la Petite Pack
Dies: Papertrey Ink - Hello
Embossing Powder: Hero Arts - White 

Merry Christmas
Stamps: MFT - Cheerful Christmas Greetings
Ink: Versafine - Onyx Black
Cardstock: MFT - Blu Raspberry; Recollections - Silver Glitter Paper
Stencil: Simon Says Stamp - Diagonal Stripe
Embossing Paste: Wendy Vecchi - White
Gems: Kaisercraft - Red
Dies: Simon Says Stamp - Large Holiday Shapes

Noel

Hi there blog friends!
I have another Christmas card to share for the 2013 Caring Hearts Card Drive  and I am also entering this card into the following challenges:
Addicted to Stamps and More Challenge - 'Photo Inspiration’
Clearly Besotted Challenge - ‘Christmas'
CAS-ual Friday’s Challenge  - CFC 119 ‘Embossing’
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge  - ‘Keep it Clean and Simple’

 

I wanted some sparkle on the poinsettia leaves, so I used my Spica glitter pen. I think it’s still hard to see, but it looks pretty IRL.  Here is a close up:

Well, that’s it for me. The 2013 Holiday Card Workshop starts tomorrow, so I'm off to finish one more card and clean up my craft room so I'll be ready. I hope to see you all there, it's always such a fun class! Have a great day ~ Thanks so much for stopping by!
Barb

Supplies:
Stamps: Clearly Besotted - Pretty Poinsettia
Ink: Versamark; Tim Holtz Distress Ink - Tumbled Glass
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink - Stamper’s Select White, Vellum
Dies: Clearly Besotted - Pretty Poinsettia; Spellbinders - Standard Squares; PTI - Turning a New Leaf
Embossing Powder: Hero Arts - White, Silver
Gems: The Robin’s Nest - Clear; Silver Sequins - Stash
Pen: Spica - Glitter Pen

Be Merry

Hi everyone,
This card is for this week’s challenge at Muse. I’ve taken a literal view on Laurie Willison’s beautiful inspiration card, which has lots of white space.

Here is the photo of Laurie’s card:

Here is my card:

I used my Simon Says Stamp 'Be’ die, then, I stamped, embossed and fussy cut the tree from my Hero Arts ‘Get Merry’ stamp set and created a stencil with clear acetate and a small snowflake die to create texture with embossing paste. 

Here is a close-up of the snowflakes: 

*** Heads up for anyone looking to buy a new PC/Laptop:
I really ‘Love’ the ampersand that Laurie used on her card, and set out to buy it in the Silhouette store. Unfortunately, my old Silhouette is not compatible with Windows 8 which is the operating system on my new computer :-(
I also wanted to mention that I can’t use my old scanner with Windows 8 as well, even though everything was manufactured by HP...Let the buyer beware! 

I am also submitting this card for the 2013 Caring Hearts Card Drive  ~ It's a really wonderful cause, and I hope you'll consider joining us!

Well, that’s it for me. I hope everyone is having a great day, and thanks so much for stopping by!
Barb

Supplies:
Stamps: Hero Arts - Get Merry
Ink: Versamark; Hero Arts - Mint Julep; Stampin’ Up - Real Red
Paper: Papertrey Ink - Stamper’s Select White, Pure Poppy; Michael’s - Silver Glitter Paper
Dies: Simon Says Stamp - 'Be'; My Favorite Things - Snowflakes
Embossing Powder: Ranger - Super Fine Clear
Embossing Paste: Wendy Vecchi Studio 490 - White
Washi Tape: My Mind’s Eye - Winter Wonderland

Winter Wonderland

Hello Blog Friends ~
Last week, I won a gift voucher from the Mama Elephant Blog Hop and redeemed it for the Winter Wonderland Stamp Set. I love the deer and the beautiful sentiments in this set, and since I’m diligently working on my cards for the 2013 Caring Hearts Card Drive, I thought I would create another Christmas card. I was also inspired by Tami Hartley’s card here, and used the same shadow inks on my card to create the background:

I hope everyone is well, and that you have all been able to get in  some crafty time over the weekend...Thanks so much for stopping by!
Take care,
Barb

Supplies:
Stamps: Mama Elephant - Winter Wonderland
Ink: Versafine - Onyx Black, Smokey Gray; Versamark; Hero Arts - Soft Pool, Mint Julep
Cardstock: PTI - Select White
Embossing Powder: Hero Arts - White, Clear
Glitter: Tim Holtz - Clear Rock Candy
Gem: Hero Arts - Clear Gems

More Cards for 'Caring Hearts Card Drive'

Hello Blog Friends ~
Gosh, I’m seeing so many gorgeous holiday cards lately, and since I keep using the same new Christmas stamps that I have, I think it’s time for me to get shopping :-)

Meanwhile, I created 2 more cards for the 2013 Caring Hearts Card Drive, which I am also submitting to this week’s Less is More Challenge. Our theme is ‘Trees’, so on the first card I used my Memory Box Die as a silhouette, and on the 2nd card I used my Hero Arts ‘Shari’s Tree #2’ stamp. I am also entering the '2nd’ card into the current Hero Arts Holiday Challenge.

Here is my 1st card:

and, here is my 2nd card:

The deadline for the card drive is November 28th, so if you would like more information, please go to Jennifer McGuire's Blog

Well, that’s it for me today ~ Until next time...take care, and thanks so much for stopping by!
Barb

Supplies:
1st Card:
Stamps: Hero Arts - Merry Christmas Writing
Ink: Versafine - Onyx Black; Tim Holtz - Tumbled Glass, Broken China, Peacock Feathers
Cardstock: PTI - Stamper’s Select White, Smokey Shadow
Dies: Memory Box - Cottage in the Woods

2nd Card:
Stamps: Hero Arts - Shari’s Tree #2, Merry Christmas Writing
Ink: Versamark; Versafine - Onyx Black;
Cardstock: PTI - Stamper’s Select White
Pencils: Inktense
Die: Lil’ Inkers – Stitched Rectangle
Glitter: Tim Holtz - Distress Stickles ‘Clear Rock Candy’ (Thanks, Barb!)
Embossing Powder: Hero Arts - Clear