Cards for Hospitalized Kids

Happy New Year! The last several years I have made Valentine's Day cards for the Cards from the Heart Card Drive. Sadly, this year the card drive will not take place. Life gets busy and the organizer, Winter Sims, had to make the tough decision to postpone the drive for one year. So, I found another card drive that accepts cards all year long and thought I would share it with you. It's called Cards for Hospitalized Kids and it's based out of Illinois. Although they don't have a huge push specifically for Valentine's Cards, holiday cards and general cards are accepted. If you feel like joining me and making cards for kids, please check out their website HERE for all the details.  Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day.  

Puppy Love Cards

If you're thinking you've seen this image on another one of my cards today then you're right. This post is mainly to remind me what my cards for the Cards from the Heart Card Drive looked like. I always look back on previous years to see what I made because my memory isn't that great.

I'm hoping these Puppy Love Cards will bring a smile to the recipients on Valentine's Day. For details about the card drive click here. The Puppy Love image can be found HERE. I'm entering this card in the Dragonfly Journeys challenge (The Power of Red) and Tuesday Throwdown (Anything Goes). Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

Valentine Cards for Kids

Hello! I have a quick post and reminder about the Cards from the Heart Card Drive. If you can make a few Valentine Cards and get them mailed in the next couple of days then you still have time to participate. Here is the link (click here) with all the rules/guidelines for the cards, please read carefully before making your cards.

My approach to making the cards are to keep it simple and cute. Since you can't use embellishments, glitter, etc. I have fun with patterned papers and make sure the image is something kids will enjoy. This last week a fellow crafter/blogger posted a darling Valentine Card (click here) using this Puppy Love image and I immediately decided it would be perfect for the card drive. It comes precolored and since I am running short on time I knew I needed to eliminate hand coloring images. The XOXO sentiment is by Stampabilities and it's punched with a 1" circle punch and then matted to a 1 1/4" scalloped circle. I used a simple layout that I've used before and I usually make multiples of a couple different designs. That's it! I hope you have time to make a few cards and thanks for stopping by!

Challenges entered:

Dream Valley: Love
Crafty Creations: Anything Goes
The Crafty Addicts: Anything Goes

Valentine Panda Card

Last year I was playing along with Gerda Steiner's progressive challenge, then I had surgery and stopped. This months new darling Panda image prompted me to start playing along again. I really love this cute image and it's perfect to use on the cards I make for the Cards from the Heart Card Drive. The cards for the card drive are supposed to be gender neutral which this one really isn't. So, I'll probably send this Valentine Panda Card to one of my nieces. If you have time this month I encourage you to make cards for the Cards from the Heart Card Drive, click here for all the details and guidelines.

The patterned papers on this card have been in my stash for awhile and both are by The Paper Studio. Copic markers were used to color the panda image. It was challenging to make the purples match! I used the following purple Copic markers: BV11, BV17 and V17. The pink hearts are a little light but I didn't have the exact shade needed, so I used: R83 and RV34. The green is a single color of YG25. N2 was used to help shade the black on the panda and that covers all the colors used. I use this XOXO sentiment a lot on Valentine's cards and it's also by The Paper Studio. That's about it! Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

Challenges entered:

• Gerda Steiner Progressive Challenge
• Crafty Animals: Anything Goes
• Craftyhazelnut's: Patterned Paper
• Crea Chicky's: Valentine
• 613 Avenue Create: Anything Goes w/ Something New Twist 

Valentine Card for Kids

This morning I woke up to a thin layer of ice on the trees in my yard. The roads are slick which makes for a good morning to stay indoors and cuddle up with a nice cup of coffee. Our weather forecast for the next week looks good, we just have to get past the cold today and rain tomorrow.

My goal this weekend is to finish my Valentine Cards for the Cards from the Heart Card Drive. I usually make 12-18 cards. This card has black scribble heart paper by The Paper Studio with some scrap red by Stampin' Up! The dog stamp is by Recollections (several years ago) and I colored it with Copic markers. To finish it off I added the XOXO sentiment by Stampabilities. If you have time I definitely encourage you to make a few cards for the card drive. It's for a great cause! Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

This Valentine Card for Kids is entered into the following challenges:

• Brown Sugar: Anything Goes
• Jo's Scrap Shack: Anything Goes
• Pattie's Creations: Animal Image

Valentine Card Drive

Hello and happy Thursday! For the last several years I have made Valentine's cards for a Card Drive called Cards from the Heart. If you have some time and enjoy making Valentine's cards for kids I encourage you to make cards for the drive. Please be aware there are very specific rules, CLICK HERE for all the details. The cards need to be made for any age or gender which can be a little tricky, so I went with a cute dog which I colored with Copic markers. The layout is simple and three punched hearts were the only embellishments. To speed things along I usually make three or four of the same design. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you will make some cards for the card drive!!!

This Handmade Valentine Card is entered into the following challenges:

• Crafty Gals: Patterned Paper

Lasting Hearts Card Drive

Today I want to share with you a card drive for mothers who have lost a child. With twenty percent of all known pregnancies ending in miscarriage there are numerous grieving hearts created everyday. Click here for the complete story behind the card drive. I hope you will decide to participate and make a couple of cards for this heartbreaking cause. 

Here are a couple of cards I made today:

To help spread the word I'm entering the Thinking of You Card in a few challenges:

• Moving Along With The Times: Things with Wings
• Crafting With An Attitude: Anything Goes
• Crafting By Designs: Anything Goes
• Crafty Sentiment Designs: Anything Goes

Panda Love Valentine's Card

Snowflakes are falling in Oklahoma today which makes for a great day to create Valentine's for the Cards from the Heart Card Drive. The card drive is organized by Winter Sims and she distributes the cards to hospitals for the kids who are hospitalized to receive a Valentine's Card on Valentine's Day. This is my fourth year to participate and I hope you will participate this year too!!! I usually create three or four designs and make multiples of each. There are strict guidelines for what can be used on the cards, so please CLICK HERE and read Winter's post before you start creating.

My Panda Love Valentine's Card uses a new to me digital image fron Deedee's Digis (no longer available, shop closed) and patterned papers from the retired Stacked with Love paper stack from Stampin' Up!. The Love sentiment is from TPC Studios and was stamped using Memento black ink. Everything was adhered flat onto the card to make it easier to ship and that's it.

This card is entered into the following challenges:

• Brown Sugar: Anything Goes
• Jo's Scrap Shack: Anything Goes
• Cute Card Thursday: Hey, What's New? (image) 

Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

Purple Monster Valentine Cards

January is going by really fast and my crafting time has been minimal. The last couple of years I've participated in the Cards from the Heart card drive but as of Friday last week I had zero cards completed. I knew I would feel really guilty if I didn't make as many as last year. So, this weekend I employed the help of my mother and ten year old niece. We set up an assembly line and knocked out a dozen pretty quickly. I cut the paper and punched the images. My mom punched the red scallops and adhered all the paper to the cards. My niece adhered the images to the scallops and stamped the XOXO sentiment then punched and adhered to the cards. We got all cards done in under an hour. The design was simple which made for easy duplication and the pre-colored Monster-Rose image by Bugaboo Stamps was a wonderful time saver. It was nice getting my family involved and I think they had fun too. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

Needed - Valentine's Cards for Kids

Happy New Year! I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and had time to spend with family and friends. As we enter into the first day of 2015, I thought I would share a card drive in the hopes that you would love to participate. It's called Cards from the Heart Card Drive and Winter Sims is the amazing organizer. Click here to read about the card drive and specific "rules/guidelines" for creating the Valentine's cards. Each card collected will be given to a child spending time in the hospital during Valentine's Day. You can make one or as many cards as you want. Just know each card will make a difference. I hope you will take the time and participate. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

Card Drive for Emma!!!

Making cards is my creative therapy! When I find a good reason to stay busy in my craft room, I usually seize the opportunity. Last week I found a Card Drive for Emma!!! and it was an easy decision to spread the news on my blog. I found the post on Kelly's Place, just click the link to read the story about Emma. For my card I used one of her favorite colors, purple along with Fluffles the cat by Stampendous! I hope you will join along and make a few cards for Emma. Here are a few details from Kelly's blog:

If you would like to help encourage Emma on her journey here are some guidelines:

• Cards can be anything cheery, encouraging, supportive, etc.You can include or incorporate kid-friendly jokes! Please avoid get well card and reminders of being sick.  Please avoid holiday specific cards so the cards can be used anytime over the next two years. 
• Emma loves the colors green, purple and blue.  She has no siblings. She has two dogs, a cat and a fish.  She LOVES horses and bunnies.  She enjoys horseback riding, swimming, dancing and singing. 
• All cards need to have a positive message in it for the child/family.  Please also sign your name and the city or state where you are from.  There could be a geography lesson in there!  Also, please don't seal the envelope, as the parents might want to preview cards before Emma sees them.
• Please stick to just cards or lightweight things like stickers, etc. if you'd like to put something in the card.  I will be delivering the cards to Addison's family and they will then get the cards to Emma's family so no additional shipping costs will be incurred.
• You are welcome to send store-bought cards, but they will not be eligible for prizes.
• There is no need to send money or postage with your cards. 
•  In each package, PLEASE include a piece of paper with your name and email address and how many cards you sent . This helps in keeping track for prizes!  For each handmade card you send, you will get a chance for a prize.  So the more cards you send, the better your chances; however, one prize per person. 
• PLEASE SHARE this post on your blog, etc. Maybe consider making a card for Emma using a sketch or color challenge.  The more people who see this, the better!
• Winners of prizes will be randomly drawn on or around July 20, 2014 and notified on this blog and via email (must be provided with cards and written clearly).

All cards can be mailed to the following address: 

Kelly Bertram

P.O Box 58388

Cincinnati, Ohio 45258

To help spread the word, I'm entering my card in the following challenges:

• Make It Monday: Anything Goes (Final Challenge, sad face)
• Use Your Stuff: Animals
• Clear it Out: Kids, Bright Colored Paper
• The Crafter's Cafe: Flowers
• Fab'n'Funky: Animals

Heart Monkey Valentine's Card

It's time again to start making cards for the children at the hospital on Valentine's Day. The last two years I have participated in the Cards from the Heart Card Drive organized by Winter Sims. I urge you to participate! It's a lot of fun to make cards for a good cause. This Heart Monkey Valentine's Card is my first card for this year. I usually make several of each design and I stay with simple details to make sure I follow the rules. She is accepting cards until January 31st. Here are the rules and details that I copied and pasted from her blog:

As always, here are some of the guidelines from the hospital's and a few of mine. (Please read carefully.)
* Cards need to be a Valentine theme.
* Cards can't have anything about 'Get Well Soon', 'Feel Better', or anything reminding them of being sick. (Only Valentine Cards)
* Please make cards that can be used for any gender or age. (This could be a little tricky, but I think you can handle it!) :)
* No buttons or anything that can be pulled off and become a chocking hazard.
* Cards MUST be able to fit into a 4 1/2 X 5 3/4 envelope (A2 size, but can be smaller, just not bigger). I CANNOT use them if they are bigger! (I will provide clear envelopes for each card, so there is no need to send one with your card.) The clear envelopes make it easier when they hand them out to the kids.
* You can include a message in the inside, but please remember, nothing reminding them of being sick. (Maybe just a Valentine sentiment.) You can also sign your first name and what state you are from.
*I will be excepting cards for the whole month of January. ( Jan. 1 - Jan. 31, Please don't send any after that, because I have to send them off so they will get to the hospitals in time for Valentine's Day.) At the end of the month, I will draw names for prizes.The more cards you send, the more times your name goes into the drawing to win prizes. Let your kids get involved too! I will be adding more prizes and sponsors, often.  :)
* Please send a piece of paper with your name, address, email address, and the amount of cards you sent. (It will help when I have the drawings.) A lot of the prizes will be sent from the sponsor, so I NEED to have your email address for sure!
*Please send cards to me at:

Winter Sims
"Cards from the Heart Card Drive"
P.O. Box 754
Warren, TX 77664

* If anyone wants to donate a prize for the drawings, please email me with the details at wintersims1@aol.com .
*You are welcome to use the Card Drive badge on your blog to spread the word, just remember to save it to your computer first.

I know it seems like there are A LOT of rules, but they are the hospital's rules and we want to obey them, to keep the kids safe. So I hope you will join us again for another great year and help us put some smiles on those sweet kids faces on Valentines Day! :)
Go here to check out the Sponsors and Prizes.

If you have any questions, please just send me and email at: wintersims1@aol.com

My Heart Monkey Valentine's Card is entered into the following challenges:

• Simply Create Too: Anything Goes
• Sister Act: Anything Goes
• Polkadoodles: Anything Goes

Cards from the Heart Card Drive

Hello Friends! I wanted to share with you a Valentine's Card Drive for children who are in the hospital. Cards go to St. Jude and other hospitals who need them. Winter Sims is the organizer and here is a link to her blog Winter Wonderland. You will find a detailed list of guidelines and her address. She needs to receive the cards no later than January 31. I participated last year at the last minute and this year I plan to make as many cards as possible. They don't have to be fancy or elaborate (in fact there are rules for that) but something made from the heart to put a smile on a child's face. I can't think of a better way to make a difference with a hobby I LOVE. I hope you will join me and make Valentine's cards for the Cards from the Heart Card Drive. Thanks for stopping by my blog!

 

This card is entered into the following challenges:

• Craft-room Challenge: Valentines
• Lady Anne's Challenge: Anything Goes
• Lexi's Creations: Anything Goes