Making a set of cards

Hi all!

I wanted to pop in and share some cards I've been working on. One of the things I've been trying to do is not just make one card at a time. I'm trying to find ways to make several cards at once so that I can stock up on cards. And, unfortunately, one type of card that's always needed is a sympathy or "praying for you" type of card. So, I have been making tons of them. Here's a couple of them:

 First, a MISTI tool is a wonderful thing! I truly don't think I'd be able to get so many cards done if it weren't for the MISTI. I used the Altenew stamp set "Thankful Peonies" and I can't say enough good things about this set! I LOVE it! It makes stamping look elegant yet it's very easy to do!

Second, the sentiment is from Hero Arts. Again, using the MISTI makes it so easy to stamp the sentiment quickly.

Lastly, the little sequins are also stamped. They're from a Hero Arts "Congrats" set. I wasn't sure if I was going to like the sequins but they are super cute!  Adding these little sequins finishes the cards. I think I've made close to 30 of these now in different color combos. They're on black cardstock and ready to send out.

I'll be entering the cards into 2 challenges--both of them "anything goes" challenges.
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge and Word Art Wednesday. Still time to play along!

Thanks for stopping by and have a great week!
Pat

A dog-filled birthday

Hi everyone!

Yes, it's been MONTHS since I've posted anything. It's also been MONTHS since I've truly spent time in my craft room. Summer was busy and I've been working on organizing the room a bit more. So, I'm sharing a card I made a few weeks ago for my brother and I'm hoping to start sharing more and more cards soon.

Here's my card:

I was blessed to receive MANY stamps this summer from a dear friend and this stamp was in the pile. Isn't it adorable?! My brother has a dog and I thought it'd be cute to send him a card with his family pet pictured. I colored in the images with Copics and then colored in some grass by hand. I also outlined the dogs with blue markers just to help them stand out a bit more and to give the illusion of a sky behind them. I had some tiny flower stickers, too, so I added those to the grass. The sentiment is from Simon Says Stamp! and I finished off the card with some twine.

I'll be entering the card to the following challenges:
Word Art Wednesday--Anything Goes
Cute Card Thursday--Anything Goes

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful weekend!
Pat

Distress marker watercolor

Hi all!

Popping in really quick to share a card I made for a friend. I received the stamp from a friend who is no longer stamping and I knew I wanted to try a different technique with it. Here's my card:

I love the look of watercolored images...but I am not artistic enough to draw them myself. This stamp, however, allowed me to fake the look. I used my distress markers to color right on the stamp. I then misted the stamp with water, which activates the distress markers, and stamped onto watercolor paper. There was still so much ink on the stamp that I was able to get two panels from one coloring. I love that the stamped image looks like I used shading on the leaves and trees...in reality, it was just the way the water pooled that adds the different shades. Super fun technique! I added a strip of orange along the side and mounted it on gray cardstock. The sentiment (Simon Says Stamp!) was also stamped in gray. Although you can't see it on the card, the flowers also have some shimmer on them (Wink of Stella) and that helped blend them out a bit, too. Easy card--and you can easily get 2 done in one sitting!

I'll be sharing this card in a couple of different challenges:
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge--Anything Goes
Word Art Wednesday--Anything Goes

Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!
Pat

Coloring Book Poppies

Hi everyone!

I hope everyone is enjoying their first weekend of summer! Things in our household are much calmer now with homeschooling done. So, I can finally blog some of the cards that I worked on months ago! First up, a card I sent to my sister-in-law for her birthday...it was late...but better late than never, right?!

Here's the card:

One of the things that I've really come to enjoy is coloring with Copics. Also huge this past year? Coloring books! So, I decided to combine the two. I found a small coloring book at Barnes & Noble that had tons of flower images and I took my Copics out. I LOVE making cards with these pages. Yes, they need to be trimmed down. But they are so different than just you stamping an image. It's a great way to take a mini-break from stamping but still enjoy coloring and using the pages to send a card to someone.

Once the coloring was done, I added the sentiment in white and then added some sequins. I did add some white pen accents to the centers of the poppies just to make the centers pop out a bit more and to tie in the sentiment more, too.

I'll be entering the card at the following sites:
Simon Says Monday Challenge: Use Pattern Paper (coloring books count, right?)
Word Art Wednesday: Anything Goes

Thanks so much for stopping by. I hope to be back a bit more regularly during the summer.
Pat

You COLOR my world card

Hi everyone!

I'm here sharing a card I made for a cute little girl...I've never met her but she's on social media because of her mom and this little girl makes me smile every time I see her! She's just so stinking cute! Her smile lights up my Instagram feed and it's been my joy to send her a card on her birthday for a couple of years now. Here's my card:

My original thought for this card didn't work out the way I wanted so this card is plan B. I had already die cut a bunch of crayons (Lawn Fawn) and used my Copic markers to color them in. I decided to write out Lila's name on the crayons and then simply add them to the base of the card. I stamped the sentiment and then added a "Happy Birthday" sentiment inside. Once the card was done, though, I felt like it needed more color. So, I used my distress inks to add some flecks of color all over the front. I know Lila loves to color and I thought it would be perfect for her to receive a card with tons of colored flecks on it.

Now that my kids are almost done with school, I'm hoping to start creating and posting a lot more. Thanks for stopping by and have a great week!
Pat

I'll be entering my card in the following sites:
Send a Smile 4 Kids Challenge--a great site where you can create cards for kids and even donate them and they'll be shared with kids at hospitals.
Word Art Wednesday--Anything goes

"Many Thanks" peonies

Hi everyone,

Happy Memorial Day! I'm popping in quickly to share a card I made a couple of weeks ago. It's always nice to be thanked for a job well done and this particular person worked very hard this past school year to provide great opportunities for my boys. I'm very grateful.

Here's my card:

Ever since #Altenew released their Peony Bouquet stamp set, I have been dying to get my hands on it. I stamped the flowers and leaves using Hero Arts Ombre ink in purples and greens. This saved a bit of time from going to another ink pad since the ombre ink pads have several shades together. I then added some light blue "sky" with distress ink. I kept the sentiment simple and white heat embossed it on a banner. Simple yet elegant card...

Thank you for stopping by,
Pat

I'll be submitting this card to the following sites:
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge--Anything Goes
Word Art Wednesday--Anything Goes

Thinking of You

Hello!

It's been a really long time since I've been able to post a card on my blog. Life has just been super busy these last few months. I'm hoping things are settling down soon since homeschooling is almost done for the school year. Today, I'm sharing a card I made for a friend...a "Thinking of You" card for no reason...I love giving cards for no reason. It lets the person know they were on my mind and that I wanted to share a smile with them.

Here's my card:

I LOVE this image from the Gorjuss stamp company. The image is so fun to color in with Copics--although I'm sure it's fun to color with other mediums, too. Her dress and hair bow has polka dots so I did add some white color with a uniball signo pen.  I wanted the image to be the main focus so I simply added a sentiment, a strip of pattern paper, and a small strip of black card stock.

Hoping to send more cards out this summer and share some smiles with friends across the miles. I'd encourage all of us to do that...seems the world could use more kindness right now.

Thanks for stopping by and hope to be back soon,
Pat

This card is being entered into the following challenges:
Simon Says Wed Challenge--Anything Goes
Word Art Wednesday--Anything Goes

#RememberNoah

Hi everyone,

I'm sharing a special card today. An adorable little six-year old boy passed away almost 2 weeks ago from a pediatric stroke. I didn't know a child could even have a stroke...much less did I ever think Noah would pass away from it. Although I don't know the family, I have family members that do know this family and we were all praying for little Noah. Noah's family is now trying to raise awareness of the signs of pediatric strokes and I thought I'd take some time to, not only share the card I made for them, but also help raise awareness. Here's my card and then you'll also find some facts about pediatric strokes.

The "colors" representing pediatric strokes are blue and purple. That's why I chose these colors for my card. When you're sending a sympathy card to parents, you tend to keep the card simple. So, I used the Orchid in a Pot stamp set from Hero Arts and added some sequins to finish the card.

I can't imagine the grief the family is going through. However, Noah continues impacting people's lives. And I sincerely hope that by raising awareness the number of families dealing with this kind of loss will decrease drastically.

I'm entering the card in various challenges--in the hopes of getting the word out to as many as possible.

Simon Says Wed. Challenge--Anything Goes
Word Art Wed.--Anything Goes
Fusion--Orchid Occasions

Please join me in praying for Katie and Trent Russell as they go through the painful process of grieving. If you're interested in learning more about their story and seeing how maybe you, too, can raise awareness, you can use the hashtag on Facebook and it'll take you to their page. If you'd like to send a sympathy card, an address can be found on the Facebook page also or email me and I'll provide it via email.

Hugs your loved ones a little tighter tonight, too.
Pat

Hello Sunshine!

Hi everyone!

After quite a long crafting/blogging break, I'm sharing a card I made today. I used a new set from Hero Arts and decided to use my distress inks. Here's my card:

I used some watercolor paper and used 4 different colors of distress inks to create the background. I swiped the colors on my craft mat and then spritzed the inks with water. I then "smushed" the paper on the inks and heat set it. I dipped the paper into the ink splatters two more times and then heat set it again. I wanted the background to look like a sunrise so I stamped the daisies in black. The sentiment also comes from the same set (Hello Sunshine Daisies). I mounted the background on black cardstock and then adhered it to the base of the card. Super easy card but so much fun to make!

I'll be entering the card in the following challenges:
Word Art Wednesday--Anything Goes
Simon Says Monday Challenge--"We can see clearly" which I interpreted to mean using clear stamps
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge--Anything Goes

Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend, everyone!
Pat

Butterfly sympathy card/Lasting Hearts Card Drive

Hi all!

Just popping in quickly to share another card I made for the Lasting Hearts drive. If you haven't heard about it, please click here and it'll take you to Jennifer McGuire's site and you'll read more about this amazing opportunity to #sharehandmadekindness with women who have suffered a miscarriage.

Here's my card:

Although these women are going through a hard time, I didn't want the card to be too somber. So, I decided to use butterflies. I used the Bo Bunny stamp "Flutter" that lets me layer colors and I LOVE how these turned out. I will admit, though, that the MISTI tool was a huge help in lining up the butterflies. The smallest butterfly, since it wasn't layered with another color, looked a bit too plain. So, I added some Wink of Stella to it. Once the butterflies were stamped, I thought the white background was too stark also. I knew I wanted some clouds but wanted them to be really soft in certain places. I decided to stencil them in by making my own stencil! I had seen Jennifer McGuire do this years ago where she took a circle punch and made a scalloped border and used that for the bottom of clouds and it worked! Oh--and the sentiment is from Hero Arts.

I hope you all consider donating cards to this card drive. I'm sure it would mean the world to many women who are hurting.

I'll be submitting my card to the Word Art Wednesday site that has an "anything goes" challenge,

Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!
Pat

Lasting Hearts Card Drive

Hi everyone!

I hope everyone is having a good week so far. I also hope that, by now, most of you have heard about the Lasting Hearts Card Drive that several people in the cardmaking world have been promoting. If you haven't heard of it, it's a nonprofit organization that is helping women cope with the pain of a miscarriage. There are books being given to the mom and a handmade card (that's where we can easily help out).

I knew that I needed to send some cards in for this drive because I have walked that road. I was blessed with two sons but I did miscarry in between the two pregnancies. I remember that very strange feeling of knowing that I was pregnant one day and then not pregnant the next. It was a very hard thing to assimilate. So, for that reason, I decided to make some cards. You can get a LOT more information about the card drive by going here to Jennifer McGuire's post about it.

Here's my card:

As I was trying to figure out what design to use for my cards, I found a stack of these notecards and envelopes. I decided to use the Hero Arts purple ombre ink pad and stamped this border (Teresa Collins) twice. Using the MISTI tool for this was SO helpful! Then, I cut a strip of metallic silver paper (DCWV) and a butterfly (Lunette from Memory Box), too. The antennae was from black cardstock. The sentiment is also from Hero Arts.

The reality is that I will never know who receives these cards. I'm perfectly fine with that. I mention this only because, since these will be strangers receiving the cards, the inside of the card should be kept simple. I'll probably just write "You're in my thoughts and prayers. Pat (Washington State). It doesn't have to be an elaborate message...and the card doesn't have to be elaborate, either. It means a lot to people to know that someone is acknowledging their pain and sympathizing with them.

Please, if you have some extra time, consider contributing to the card drive. It'll mean so much to so many. I'm hoping to share another card design for the card drive later this week. I hope you'll join me.

I'll be entering this card in the following challenges:
Simon Says Monday Challenge--Best Friends (I couldn't imagine going thru this kind of an ordeal without my husband, my best friend)
Word Art Wednesday--Anything goes challenge

Have a great week!
Pat

Praying for you Poppy card

Hi everyone!

Today I'm sharing a coloring book page. I colored in the page a couple of weeks ago and just LOVE how it turned out. I wasn't sure if Copics would work on the page but it did pretty well. So, you don't need to always stamp an image--there's tons of adult coloring books available now which could easily be turned into cards when you're done coloring. Here's my card:

The coloring, although it did take some time to complete, was very relaxing! I loved seeing the different contrasts coming up as I layered more and more color. The sentiment is a little hard to see on the picture. It says "Praying for You" and it's from Simon Says Stamp!. I actually die cut it three times and glued them all together so that it's really thick on the card. The other detail that is hard to see in the picture is the glossy accents that I added to the petals and to the center of the flowers. This will be a sympathy card and I thought the rain drops would add a touch of sadness to the beauty of the flowers. I mounted the panel on black cardstock and then to a white card base and the card was done.

I'll be entering the card on several sites. Apparently, several sites have the same challenge--to use something "new" or celebrate something "new". Well, it's the first time I'm using my coloring book on a card and the die (which I LOVE) is also new.

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge--Something New
Simon Says Monday Challenge--Something New
Cute Card Thursday--Hey, What's New? challenge
Word Art Wednesday--Anything goes challenge

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by!
Pat

Distress ink technique--again

Hi all!

Just popping in quickly, again, to share another card. This one uses a technique I learned from Jennifer McGuire and I LOVE it! Here's my card:

Yes, I know it's winter. We actually had an ice storm last night so I'm not seeing any butterflies around. But, that doesn't mean I can make a butterfly for my card.

I started out by masking the sides of a white panel and then heavily applying distress inks to create an ombre effect. Then, I added some pearl perfect pearl powder on top and the shine is amazing! I then used an embossing folder to add some dimension to the panel and that really does add a nice touch. I used the Lunette butterfly die from Memory Box and chose to keep it white against that lovely blue background. But for the antennae I chose to use a brown cardstock. The sentiment is a die cut from Impression Obsession and that makes things so much easier! I don't have to worry about where I'm going to put the sentiment--especially when the panel has a lot of texture on it. Super easy to do but looks amazing when done.

I made a similar card with different colors a few months ago. If you'd like to that card, click here.

I'll be submitting the card in the following challenges:
Word Art Wednesday--anything goes!
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge--a celebration theme

Thanks for stopping by!
Pat

Poppy celebration

Hi everyone!

Happy New Year! I'm popping in really quick to share a card I made a few weeks ago but never got around to posting. I'd never heard of the stamp company but I REALLY like the image.

Here's my card:

The stamp (by Sheena Douglass) is just gorgeous! Nothing makes me happier than coloring in beautiful flowers and this card was just amazing to color. I used Copic markers for the coloring and had so much fun. The sentiment is from Simon Says Stamp and one of my favorites.

I'll be entering this card in the following challenges:
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge: Party theme
Word Art Wednesday: Anything goes

Thanks for stopping by and have a great week!
Pat