Sloth Hang in There Card

This time of years isn't always cheerful. I know a lot of people who struggle with the holidays, myself included. Right now my brother is going through a difficult time and I didn't get to see him over Christmas. In efforts to lift his spirits I made this Sloth Hang in There Card for him.

The sloth image is by Lawn Fawn from the Hang In There stamp set and it was die cut with the coordinating dies. Copic markers were used to color the image and distress inks in Tumbled Glass and Chipped Sapphire for the oval area. The patterned paper is from the Land of the Sahara paper pad by The Paper Studio. An oval frame accents the focal area and that's it, simple and easy to ship. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

Challenges entered:

• Creative Knockouts: Anything Goes
• Cute Card Thursday: Anything Goes
• Simon Says: Wednesday Anything Goes
• The Creative Crafters: Anything Goes

Saying Good-bye to Jessi

This morning I was saddened to hear that Jessi Fogan from OneCraftyMama passed away. She was always supportive of my creativity and I enjoyed her sense of humor. Her diverse work was inspiring and I was always amazed at her beautiful quilling skills and use of buttons. We crossed paths at Tuesday Morning Sketches and Shopping Our Stash challenge blogs. I always looked forward to her next creation. Her struggle the past several months was heart wrenching. When she shared details of her health decline I found myself amazed by her strength and in disbelief that there was nothing to help her. My prayers are with her family and friends. I was blessed that our lives crossed paths and her story has left a lasting imprint on my heart.

Card is by Jessi from July 12, 2016.     

Snowflake Winter Birds Card

Oh my! I stayed up way too late last night trying to get some things accomplished. One item finished was making a card for the current Inky Paws challenge to use Silver and/or Gold. This Snowflake Winter Birds Card features the Winter Birds stamp set by Newton's Nook and the coordinating dies were used along with a Big Shot. Copic markers were used to color the little Chickadee and Red-Breasted Nuthatch. The gold foil patterned paper is from American Crafts (2016) and was matted to a piece of Basic Gray cardstock. The focal oval was created using distress inks and splattered with watered down acrylic paint, once dry it was die cut with a pierced oval by Avery Elle and the sentiment was heat embossed. That's it! So glad you stopped by!

Challenges entered:

• Crafty Gals: Anything Goes
• Double D: Let it Snow
• Inky Paws: Use Silver and/or Gold
• The Cutie Pie: Add a Little Sparkle
• Watercooler Wednesday: Anything Goes

Elephant Christmas Card - TMS Anything Goes

Well... it's one week before Christmas, are you ready? If you're doing some last minute crafting we would love for you to share your project with us at Tuesday Morning Sketches! This week the challenge is anything goes, so no new sketch but you're welcome to use a past sketch (click here) if you need some inspiration for a layout. The design team has some inspiration for you and you can link your crafty creation  HERE. There are a few rules so make sure you read them before you add your link.

This Elephant Christmas Card was made for my nephew who is three. During the summer he went to the zoo and his favorite animal was the elephants. When I saw this image by Bugaboo Stamps I knew it was perfect for him. The image was colored with Copic markers and some diamond Stickles added to the white part of the elephant's hat and Christmas stockings. A piece of plaid paper by Lawn Fawn (Winter paper pad 2016) was used along with Basic Gray and Balmy Blue cardstock by Stampin' Up!. The Merry Christmas sentiment is by Hero Arts and that's pretty much it. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoy the rest of your day.

Challenges entered:

• Allsorts: Christmas Trees
• Cards in Envy: Hang Your Stockings with Care
• Crafty Animals: Anything Goes
• Crafty Cats: Anything Goes/Do What You Like Best*
• Crafty Cardmakers: Christmas
• Use Your Stuff: Christmas/Holidays

*One of the things I like best is coloring and I love playing with patterned paper.

Bunny Christmas Card

Christmas will be here in less than two weeks! Have you mailed your cards yet? I always mail mine about ten days before Christmas, but I still have a couple of cards to make. Then I'll have to decorate and address the envelopes to get the cards in the mail on time. 🎄

This afternoon I made this Bunny Christmas Card using a digital image by Lee Holland. The image was colored with Copic markers and then the image was die cut with an Alterations square die by Tim Holtz. After cutting the snowflakes with a Cricut machine some acrylic glitter paint was painted on and some added to the snow on the image . To accent the bunny's hat some Stickles were added and a dot of stickles in the center of the snowflakes for extra sparkle. All papers are from the Holly Jolly 6 x 6 paper pad by American Crafts (2015). That's it! So glad you stopped by and enjoy the rest of your day.

Challenges entered:

• Addicted to Stamps: Make Your Mark
• City Crafter: Snowflakes
• Color Throwdown: Colors- Red, Green, Kraft & White 
• Cute N' Crafty Christmas: Anything Christmas
• Simon Says: Christmas

For those of you who have followed my blog for awhile you know I love bunnies and have several who live in my backyard. Here is a photo I took last month of one under my sage bush eating some alfalfa hay.

In My Thoughts Card - TMS #483

Happy happy Tuesday! It's the start of another challenge at Tuesday Morning Sketches. This weeks sketch has a lot of fun elements to play around with. My card was started by choosing the sentiment and unfortunately I needed a sympathy card. A friend from high school passed away and I wanted to make her mother a card. Once the sentiment was selected I decided to use the Flourish Thinlits along with a brick stencil by Stampin' Up! A couple small butterflies from my stash were added and the edges were punched with a decorative punch from Creative Memories. The final detail was adding the bow and that's it. For all the challenge details and design team inspiration click HERE. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day.

Sketch #483:

Cardinal Joy Card

When Newton's Nook unveiled their November release I knew I had to have the Winter Birds and Poinsettia Blooms stamp sets! So when Black Friday arrived I didn't hesitate to place my order. Then last Friday Ellen Haxelmans posted four stunning cards using the Winter Birds stamp set and I was inspired again by her designs. Tonight I made an inky background and used my new stamp sets to make this Cardinal Joy Card. The layout is from the Inky Paws Sketch #86 Challenge and patterned papers are from the Merry Merry 6 x 6 paper pad by Pebbles (2016). The sentiment was heat embossed and everything was adhered flat for easy shipping. That's it! Enjoy the rest of your day and thanks for stopping by.

Challenges entered:

• Aud Sentiments: Anything Goes + Sentiment
• Inky Paws: Sketch #86
• Simon Says: 'B' us For? (Bird)
• The Crafty Addicts: Anything Christmas
• Word Art Wednesday: Anything Goes

Sketch #86:

Warm Fuzzies Christmas Card

Good day! The Winter Coffee Lovers Blog Hop started last Friday and I finally had time to make a card. This Warm Fuzzies Christmas Card features the Warm Fuzzies stamp by Gerda Steiner. The image was colored with Copic markers and then fussy-cut. A die cut circle was used for the focal area and then some Tumbled Glass distress ink applied for some color. The cup and stocking patterned paper is from the Recollections Fireside 6 x 6 paper pad , Merry Christmas text paper is by The Paper Studio, the Shaded Spruce polka dots are by Stampin' Up! and the papers were matted to a piece of Shaded Spruce cardstock. To add a little sparkle three white snowflake sequins were added and that's it. So glad you stopped by.

Challenges entered:

• Coffee Lovers Winter Blog Hop
• Crafty Gals Corner: Anything Christmas
• Crimbo Crackers: Anything Christmas
• Cute Card Thursday: Anything Goes
• Moving Along With The Times: Anything Christmas

Penguin Joy Card - TMS #482

Hello and happy Tuesday! Today is the start of a new sketch challenge at Tuesday Morning Sketches and the design team has some wonderful inspiration for you. You can see all their creations and find the challenge details HERE. The sketch was designed by Melissa Craig and I thought it was perfect for some die cut snowflakes to go along with the Poppi Xmas Snowballs image by Bugaboo Stamps. We would love for you to join us this week! I hope you have time to play along.

Challenges entered:

• 2 Crafty Critter Crazies: Anything with Critters
• Cards in Envy: Spirit of Christmas
• Cupcake Inspirations: Photo Inspiration
• Dream Valley: Christmas

Sketch #482:

Photo Inspiration:

Joyful Snowman Card

This time of year can be very hectic! I started making this Joyful Snowman Card on Saturday and I just finished it this evening. It took me awhile to decide on the colors and I finally decided on non-traditional blue and purples. The patterned papers are from the Altitude Collection by Bo Bunny and the image is called Snowman and Birds by Bugaboo Stamps. A mix of Copic and Stampin' Blends markers were used to color the image. Then a stitched rectangle die was used to cut the image which was then matted to a piece of Rich Razzleberry cardstock. The snowflakes were die cut with a Cricut machine and to give them a little sparkle I painted them with sugar cube glitter paint by Martha Stewart (it dries quickly which helps speed things along). The final addition was the Joy to the World sentiment by Stampabilities which was matted to a piece of Night of Navy cardstock. That's it! So glad you stopped by and enjoy the rest of your day.

Challenges entered:

• Catch The Bug: Holiday Flurry of Chaos
• 4 Crafty Chicks: Anything Goes
• Make My Monday: Non-Traditional Christmas Colours
• Sweet Stampin': Snowmen and Snowladies
• The Paper Girls: Die Cuts