Loss of Pet Sympathy Card

For those of you who have lost a pet you understand the heartbreak it brings. My friend and her hubby lost their 14 year old Yorkie yesterday and I know they are devastated. He was sweet and cute and went everywhere with them. They, like us, have no children and their dog was the center of their lives. I made this card for them in the hopes that it will help in some small way. 💔

The layout and design for this Loss of Pet Sympathy Card was based on a card I made in 2013 (click here). I moved the twine and used a different paper and embossing folder, but the sentiment and paw print stamps are the same. Thanks for stopping by and give your fur baby and extra hug today.

Challenges entered: Just Add Ink (Just Add Embossing), Make My Monday (Make it Krafty) and The Creative Crafters (Anything Goes).

Otter Anniversary Card

It's been a few days since my last post but it's been pretty busy around my house. This week my hubby and I are celebrating our Twentieth Wedding Anniversary. It has really gone by fast!!! I wanted to make a special card to celebrate and I bought the Christmas Like No Otter stamp set for Simon Says Stamp by Lawn Fawn for the occasion. We love to visit the otters when go to the local Tulsa Zoo. They are fun and charismatic creatures!

To make this card I started with a piece of watercolor paper and oxide inks in Broken China and Salty Ocean for the water and Antique Linen and Vintage Photo for the sand. After inking the paper it was spritzed with water and a heat gun used to speed the drying process. Then the panel was die cut using a scalloped frame by Taylored Expressions. The outside frame was then darkened with more Salty Ocean distress ink. I went back and stamped the waves and little circles in the water. Then the otters and images were stamped with Memento black ink and colored with Copic markers. They were then die cut with the coordinating dies. The sand was die cut with a small wavy scallop stitches die by Simon Says Stamp. Everything was adhered flat to a piece of natural cardstock and that's it! Thanks for stopping by!

This Otter Anniversary Card is entered into the following challenges:

• Use Your Stuff: Old and New
• Sweet Stampin': Cute and Cuddly
• Retarte: Anything Goes

Plant Smiles Card

This summer I had the privilege and joy of watching a baby cottontail rabbit grow up right outside my back window. Although I worried about it everyday because we have several Red-tailed Hawks in our area, I'm happy to say it is still hanging out in our backyard. It brought many smiles to my face and it was the inspiration for this Plant Smiles Card.

The image is from the retiring Garden Whimsy stamp set by Newton's Nook. It's currently on sale and once it's gone... it's gone. Copic markers were used to color the image and then it was cut 3.25" square and matted to a piece of Audry Blue cardstock by Simon Says Stamp. The polka dot and red patterned paper is by American Crafts (2012) and the blue stripe is by Echo Park. Everything was adhered flat for easy mailing and the final touch was the die cut sun by Lil' Inkers. That's it! Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

Challenges entered:

• Newton's Inky Paws: Polka Dots
• Alphabet: M for Make Your Mark
• Jo's Scrap Shack: Anything Goes

My backyard cottontail rabbit I named Bun Bun sleeping in the sun. It lived in the Sage Bush behind where it's laying. July 2017

Bun Bun peeking in my window after it checked out the freshly planted petunias I planted knowing this cottontail would eat them. June 2017

Happy Pig Card

In case you didn't know... I grew up in the country. My grandfather lived next door and he raised cattle. Our neighbors down the road raised pigs and when the wind blew just right you could smell the pig farm from our house. In the spring when the babies were born we would would go visit the cute new piglets. When I first saw the new This Little Piggy stamp set by Stampin' Up! I knew it would be on my first order. I also love the new Petal Garden Designer Series Paper Stack. This Happy Pig Card was inspired by the Out in the Garden challenge at SU! Only. You probably won't find a pig in a city garden but in a country garden, you betcha.

First, I stamped the pig image onto watercolor paper using Staz On Jet Black ink. Then using Aqua Painters and Classic Stampin' Pads the image was watercolored. Colors include: Pool Party, Old Olive, Powder Pink (new in color), Sahara Sand and Calypso Coral. After the image panel dried it was matted to a slightly larger piece of Calypso Coral cardstock. The patterned paper is from the Petal Garden dsp and the pool party twine is new. The final touch was adding the bitty butterfly. That's it! Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

This Happy Pig Card is entered into the following challenges:

• SU! Only: Out in the Garden
• Addicted to Stamps: Animals
• Word Art Wednesday: Anything Goes
• Watercooler Wednesday: Feminine Anything Goes

Raccoon Rascals Kindness Card

Sometimes a project keeps getting pushed because of other priorities and this Raccoon Rascals Kindness Card is one of them. There is wildlife rescue and rehabilitation here in Oklahoma called Wild Heart Ranch and I follow them on Facebook. They do a wonderful job sharing their animal experiences and videos with their followers. Their work is inspiring and at times heart breaking! They recently rescued a raccoon from the side of the road and it had a broken jaw. The pictures were painful to look at and my heart hurt for the little raccoon. That's when I knew I needed to send them a card using the Raccoon Rascals stamp set from Newton's Nook.

To create this card I started with a piece of watercolor paper and sprayed some Mister Huey's color mists along with Tattered Angels glimmer mist. The sky was darkened with Broken China distress ink. Once dry the tree from the Stampin' Up! Lovely as a Tree stamp set was stamped using Memento black ink. Then the sentiment from the Thoughtful Branches stamp set by Stampin' Up! was heat embossed with white embossing powder. The image was colored with copic markers, fussy cut and adhered with dimensionals. A scalloped frame by Taylored Expressions was added along with a few punched stars. That's it!

This Raccoon Rascals Kindness Card is entered into the following challenges:

• Color Inspiration: Hand Colored Image
• Cards in Envy: Thank You
• Sunny Day Crafting: Anything Goes
• Lil Patch of Crafty Friends: Anything Goes

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

Animals Give Thanks Card

Although all my Thanksgiving cards are in the mail, I thought I would make a few more to get a jump on next year. I like using animals or cute images on cards I make the youngsters in the family. This image is by Bugaboo Digi Stamps and it's called Autumn Critter Stack 02. It comes with a pre-colored version, which I have used. The image was die cut using a frame by Taylored Expressions. The layout is simple and everything was adhered flat for easy shipping. To play along with the Catch The Bug November Bingo Challenge I selected the diagonal: Embossing (heat embossed sentiment), Thanksgiving Theme and Bugaboo Image.  The brown plaid paper is by Lawn Fawn and the acorns are from the Woodland Forest paper pad by Pebbles. Three espresso colored sequins finished off this card and that's it! Another simple and easy handmade Thanksgiving card. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

This Animals Give Thanks Card is entered into the following challenges:

• Catch The Bug: November Bingo
• Craft Your Passion: Anything Goes
• Dragonfly Dreams: Autumnal Colours

Down Under Stamp Release

Good day crafty friends!!! Today is the launch of a new stamp set by Jessica Lynn Original called Down Under. I had a lot of fun making my cards using the new stamp set. The images came out really crisp and were easy to color with Copic markers. You will definitely want to check out the design team inspiration! Jessica has some amazingly talented ladies who have created some awesome cards using the Down Under stamp set. Click here for the design team blog list.

My first card features the kangaroo image, I really wanted to use my sentiment that says "You are my sunshine," but it was too large for the sentiment area. So, I went with the sentiment "Hey there, Sunshine!" by Verve Stamps. The die cut stitched 1.5" sunshine is by Lil' Inkers and all the patterned paper is from the retired Cherry on Top paper stack by Stampin' Up!

For my second card I used the darling koala image. When selecting my papers I went with more earthy tones from the Autumn Crisp paper pad by American Crafts. The layout is simple and the Miss You sentiment by TPC Studios was stamped directly onto the patterned paper using Memento black ink. Three green sequins were added for some sparkle and that's it!

Jessica is having a giveaway, so make sure you check out the blog for all the giveaway details. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day! 

Wild Wishes Card

Happy Tuesday! It's time for a new challenge at Tuesday Throwdown and this week our theme is Exotic Animals. It was a lot of fun getting a little wild with these Jungle Animal Faces images provided by our sponsor MyGrafico. There were several animals to choose from and I used the panda, giraffe and zebra. We would love for you to join us this week in our Exotic Animal Challenge. You have until mid-day next Monday, July 11th to play along. Click here for all the challenge details and wild design team inspiration.

When I first started making cards I loved using zebra patterned paper. It's been awhile since I've made anything with it, so I was happy to see this challenge. To create my card I adhered the giraffe paper by Bella BLVD and the zebra paper by The Paper Studio to a piece of black cardstock and then adhered directly onto the white card base. For the offset white focal panel I decided to add some gold texture paste by Heidi Swapp using the Dot Fade stencil by Tim Holtz. The images were printed, colored with Copic markers and punched using a 1 1/2" circle punch. The images were then layered with a 1 3/4" scallop circle with black cardstock. I used the computer to print the sentiment and that's it.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope to see your Exotic Animal creation in the gallery at Tuesday Throwdown. 

Sweet Hedgehog Birthday Card

Today we welcome the month of June and the launch of the new Stampin' Up! catatlog!!! Have you found your new favorite product yet? There are lots of wonderful new items to choose from! Click here to check out the new catalog.

To make this Sweet Hedgehog Birthday Card I've used the new Affectionately Yours dsp and the sweet hedgehogs from the hostess stamp set called Love You Lots and they were colored using Copic markers. The layout is from Paper Play Sketches and I combined it with the Tic-Tac-Toe challenge at The Paper Players. I used the top row across for Yellow, Twine and Birthday. The yellow panel was embossed using the decorative dots embossing folder. For a little more detail I added a butterfly charm and three yellow sequins. The green really overpowers the yellow but hopefully there is enough yellow on this card for the challenge. I'm also entering this card in the Ooh La La Creations challenge for Critters with 4 Legs.

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

Hippo Cycle Feel Better Card

Hello! Today I have a quick post to share this Hippo Cycle Feel Better Card. The Hippo Cycle stamp is by Stampendous! and I colored the image with Copic markers. In case you're wondering, I didn't search for an image of a hippo on a bicycle, it's one of those finds where you see it and it makes you laugh so you buy it.

For this card all patterned paper is from the Garden Party paper pad by Pebbles. The image was die cut using a cross-stitch oval by My Favorite Things and matted to a piece of Blushing Bride cardstock that was cut using a pair of Fiskars deckle scissors. Using Memento black ink the Feel Better sentiment from the Sassy Salutations set by Stampin' Up! was stamped directly onto the patterned paper. Everything was adhered flat to the card for easy shipping and the final touches were three sequins and some Seaweed twine from The Twinery. That's it!

This Hippo Cycle Feel Better Card is entered into the following challenges:

• The Paper Players: Bicycle
• Addicted to Stamps and More: Make Your Mark
• Creative Moments: Anything Goes w/ Twist Showers/Rainbows

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

Watercolor All Occasion Card

Good day! I hope you are doing well! This week has been a long one for me starting with an emergency room visit early Sunday morning with severe abdominal pain. I'm just now starting to feel somewhat "normal". If normal is possible?

This afternoon my goal was to make a cute all occasion card. I knew I wanted to do a little watercoloring and use a new to me stamp by Penny Black called So Kind. The image is large, so I finished the scene by adding a die cut tree branch which helped fill in the top portion of the card. After the main panel was complete it was adhered to a piece of Pool Party cardstock. That's it!

I'm entering this Watercolor All Occasion Card into the following challenges:

• Tuesday Throwdown: Furry Friends
• 4 Crafty Chicks: Scenic
• Make My Monday: Watercolor
• Crafting With An Attitude: Anything Goes

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

Zoo Animal Winner

Another bi-weekly challenge has come to a close and I want to thank each of you for sharing your Zoo Animal card creations. It's a good thing the winner was randomly selected because picking would have been an absolute challenge! The winner is:

Debra Miller from Cream City Angels

Debra's panda anniversary card is super adorable and the colors really grabbed my attention. Thanks for playing along Debra! In the next few days I'll send you an email requesting your mailing address to send you the challenge prize.

Come back tomorrow for the start of another photo inspiration challenge.

Zoo Animal Challenge

Welcome to another challenge here at Savvy Handmade Cards. Going to the Zoo is one of my favorite things to do! For this challenge we want to see your handmade cards using a Zoo Animal. Lions, Tigers and Bears, oh my! Erin and I can't wait to see what you come up with. Thanks for stopping by and happy crafting!

Inspirational Designs:

Erin's Card using Huggy Koala from Meljen's Designs

Andrea's Card using Zebra and Foal from Delicious Doodles

If you have a favorite Zoo to visit let us know in the comments so we can check it out!

Challenge Guidelines:

1. Create a New card using the challenge theme, no linking to old posts. 
2. Only one entry per blog address.
3. This is a card only challenge.
4. You must use a stamp, either rubber or digital.
5. You can combine this challenge with other challenges.
6. Upload your creation to your blog with a link back to this challenge. Please provide a direct link to the post featuring your challenge submission.
7. All brands of stamping products are welcome.
8. HAVE FUN!!!

This challenge will run for 12 days, 5/9/2014 - 5/20/2014.

See Ya Later Alligator Card

Hello! This afternoon I made this See Ya Later Alligator Card using some of my favorite freebies from the current Stampin' Up! Sale-A-Bration. The freebies used were:

• Sweet Sorbet DSP
• Deorative Dots Embossing Folder
• See Ya Later Stamp Set

The colors in the card are Pistachio Pudding, Sahara Sand and Whisper White. It's definitely not the most colorful card I've ever made but I had a lot of fun using my freebies. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

My See Ya Later Alligator Card is entered into the following challenges:

• Just Add Ink: Sale-A-Brations!
• The Sisterhood of Crafters: Sentimental Journey
• Simply Create Too: Animals
• Suzy Bee's: Emboss It!

Furry Friends Winner

A big heartfelt thanks to everyone who entered their creations in the Furry Friends Challenge. There was a lot of furry cuteness going on and it was a pleasure to visit your blogs. The winner of the challenge is:

Susan Kennedy from Scraps A Thousand Words

Susan's card is full of detail and dimension and her coloring is marvelous. Thanks for playing along Susan! I'll send you an email to request your address for the challenge prize.

Come back tomorrow for a new photo inspiration challenge.

Furry Friends Challenge

Welcome to Savvy Handmade Cards. We have a theme challenge for you this time. The theme is to use Furry Friends on your handmade card creation. This challenge is in honor of my late Crafting Buddy who passed away on Dec. 30th, 2013. I know many of you have a beloved pet who hangs out with you as you're crafting. They become part of our creative process and their absence can make that process difficult. I hope you will play along with this challenge and take this chance to honor your crafting buddy.

My late Crafting Buddy loved boxes!!!

Inspirational Designs:

Erin's Card using Bugaboo - Dog Heart Topper

Andrea's Card using From the Heart - Kitten with Heart

Entered into the From the Heart: January Challenge

Challenge Guidelines:

1. Create a New card using the challenge theme, no linking to old posts. 
2. Only one entry per blog address.
3. This is a card only challenge.
4. You must use a stamp, either rubber or digital.
5. You can combine this challenge with other challenges.
6. Upload your creation to your blog with a link back to this challenge. Please provide a direct link to the post featuring your challenge submission.
7. All brands of stamping products are welcome.
8. HAVE FUN!!!

The challenge will run for 12 days, 1/17/2013 - 1/28/2013.