On My Mind Card with Butterflies

Good day! It's been super windy today, so I didn't run errands like usual on my day off. Instead I made this On My Mind Card with Butterflies. The layout is from the sketch at Try Stampin' On Tuesday challenge. I really wanted to use green but didn't need another St. Patrick's Day Card. So, I found this pretty butterfly paper and thought it worked well with the Butterfly Gala stamp set by Stampin' Up!. To color the butterflies I used Stampin' Blends markers in Mint Macaroon and Shaded Spruce. A little black lace was added and that's it. Enjoy the rest of your day and thanks for stopping by.

Challenges entered:

• Addicted to Stamps: Make Your Mark
• Fab 'n' Funky: Butterfly    
• Try Stampin' On Tuesday: Sketch/Photo Inspiration
• Watercooler Wednesday: All About Occasions
• Word Art Wednesday: Anything Goes

Purple Lasting Lily Card

Well it's time to say goodbye to the month of February but not before I share this Purple Lasting Lily Card. Purple is my favorite color and the color of amethyst the birthstone for February. This week I received my latest Stampin' Up! order and had to play with the Lasting Lily stamp set which is a freebie for Sale-A-Bration. After stamping the lilies in Gorgeous Grape, Highland Heather and Wild Wasabi for the stems they were die cut with the coordinating Lily dies. The background paper is Highland Heather gingham from the Gingham Gala dsp and it was matted to a piece of Gorgeous Grape cardstock. The cardstock was also used to anchor the bottom of the focal oval. After arranging the group of lilies a strip of Highland Heather cardstock was placed over the stems to add the perfect spot for the sentiment label. The label shape is from the coordinating Lily Framelits Dies. That's it and thanks for stopping by!

Challenges entered:

• Aud Sentiments: Bingo + Sentiment (Patterned Paper/Stamp/Favorite Color)
• Creative Knockouts: Lots of Layers
• Little Red Wagon: LOVE it! (Color Purple)
• Watercooler Wednesday: All About Occasions
• Word Art Wednesday: Anything Goes

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:

In My Thoughts Card

Hello crafty friends! I don't know what is going on, but I'm still having a hard time getting motivated to make anything. My energy levels are just drained! This afternoon I sat down and forced myself to make this In My Thoughts Card. Once I got started coloring the image I did okay. The layout is simple and features the darling Flower Teddy image by Bugaboo Digi Stamps. Copic markers were used to color the image and the patterned papers are from the Dear Lizzy Star Gazer paper pad by American Crafts. If my memory is correct, the sentiment stamp is from Impression Obsession and it was stamped using Memento tuxedo black ink. That's it!

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

This In My Thoughts Card is entered into the following challenges:

• Addicted to Stamps: Make Your Mark
• Catch The Bug: Say it with Flowers
• Craftaholics R Us: Anything Goes
• Crafty Animals: Anything Goes w/ Animal

Watercolor Wings Floral Card

Are you ready for Spring? Here in Oklahoma the trees are starting to bud and the daffodils are blooming, so we know Spring is on it's way. It will be nice to see the green leaves on the trees again, although my hubby won't be thrilled about mowing the yard. There are definitely pros and cons to every season.

Earlier this week my mom requested a couple of Thinking of You Cards to send to her friends when needed. Of course I have several in my stash, but I decided to make this Watercolor Wings Floral Card for her. I really love the floral paper by The Paper Studio and it features my favorite stamp set by Stampin' Up! called Watercolor Wings. The butterfly was stamped with Daffodil Delight, Crushed Curry and Crumb Cake inks by Stampin' Up! and Memento black was used with the sentiment. A Flourish thinlit was used along with Garden Green cardstock and the cardstock mating the patterned paper is Rose Red both by Stampin' Up!. The layout is one I've used several times and I'm always happy with how it looks. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

This Watercolor Wings Floral Card is entered into the following challenges:

• Alphabet Challenge: Y - Your Choice (butterfly)
• Aud Sentiments: Anything Goes + Sentiment
• Brown Sugar: Spring or Easter
• Unicorn Challenge: Make It Girly
• Watercooler Wednesday: Feminine Anything Goes

Bear Thinking of You Card

Happy Wednesday and the last day of February! This week is my last week at my seasonal job, so hopefully in March I'll have more time for making cards. I hope to make several Easter cards for my family and friends.

This Bear Thinking of You Card features a cute bear digital image by Bugaboo Stamps called Lil Bear Spring and the layout is from the Stella Says Sketch Challenge. The image has been printed, die cut and just sitting on my desk since last Spring. So, I colored it with Copic markers and picked some pretty floral papers by Simple Stories (Life in Color) to make this card. The little red flower (Fab Flowers by Lawn Fawn) was stamped with Real Red and Cherry Cobbler inks by Stampin' Up! and the leaves were stamped with Old Olive. The Thinking of You sentiment is from the retired Wetlands stamp set by Stampin' Up! and that about sums it up. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

Challenges entered:

• Catch the Bug: Stella Says Sketch #604
• Bugaboo Crafty: Anything Goes with Bugaboo Image
• Crafty Creations: Anything Goes
• Simon Says Stamp: Anything Goes

Skunk Thinking of You Card

Spring is a busy time at Wild Heart Ranch, they are a wildlife rescue and rehabilitation group in NE Oklahoma. I've probably "liked" all their posts on their Facebook page and I enjoy following the work they do. Every animal has a story and most end up in their care because of an injury or weather event that separates them from their mother's care. Most animals are treated and released when they can make it on their own. Recently, I read about their blind skunk who had lived with them for several years passing away. He was allowed to roam free in their clinic and his passing has left many of their staff heartbroken. Well, shortly after I read their post I came across this cute skunk stamp by Unity Stamps called That Stinks and I knew I needed to make them a card. So, here it is a Skunk Thinking of You Card.

All patterned papers are from American Crafts (Spring collection 2013), Copic markers were used to color the image and then it was die cut with a stitched circle die by My Favorite Things. The sentiment stamp and little butterfly are both from stampin' Up! and that pretty much sums it up. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

This Skunk Thinking of You Card is entered into the following challenges:

• Crafty Gals Corner: Polka Dots and/or Stripes
• Addicted to Stamps: Make Your Mark
• C.R.A.F.T.: Easter/Spring

RIP- Skunk from Wild Heart Ranch

Anything Goes at Catch The Bug

Hello crafty friends! I'm excited to be a Guest Designer at the Catch The Bug Challenge for the next two months. Bugaboo Digi Stamps was my very first purchase of digital images and they remain one of my favorites to use. If you haven't heard of Bugaboo... then you must check them out HERE.

Today is the start of an Anything Goes Challenge at Catch The Bug and that means all you have to do is link your new creation to the challenge. Using a Bugaboo image is not required, but if you have them you know you want to use them. Click here for all the wonderful design team inspiration and challenge details. Three winners will be randomly drawn for three digi prize packs.

To make this card I used the Raggedy Angel - Stars image and colored it with Copic markers. I made the image fairly large and framed it with Basic Gray cardstock die cut with a Scalloped Frame by Taylored Expressions. The starry paper is from Recollections and the plaid is by Lawn Fawn. To finish off the card a Thinking of You sentiment by Stampin' Up! was adhered with dimensionals and three sequins added for sparkle. That's it! Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

This Angel Thinking of You Card is entered into the following challenges:

• Little Red Wagon: March Birthstone
• Crafty Creations: Anything Goes
• Simply Papercraft: Anything Goes

Thoughtful Branches Card

This morning the UPS guy delivered my latest Stampin' Up! order. I've been eagerly anticipating the arrival of the new Thoughtful Branches stamp set and coordinating dies. It's a limited time set that will only be available for the month of August or while supplies last. Click here for all the details.

When creating this card I was going for a gender neutral design, just in case I decide to send it to my uncle in Texas. The embossed cloud background was sitting on my desk from a previous project and I decided to rescue it for this card. I colored around the clouds with a B000 Copic marker and used the blender pen to eliminate the harsh lines. The streaky lines at the bottom were stamped using the Gorgeous Grunge stamp set and colored in with a G12 Copic marker. Some linen thread was added for detail along with three Soft Sky sequins (they will be available in the upcoming 2016 holiday catalog). The little red bird was stamped using Real Red and adhered flat to the tree. Using the Thinking of You sentiment from the Wetlands stamp set, it was punched with an oval punch and layered to a scalloped oval punch. The cardstock colors include: Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Wild Wasabi and retired Pistachio Pudding. That's it!

This Thoughtful Branches Card is entered into the following challenges:

• Happy Little Stampers: Anything Goes with Dies
• Craft Your Passion: Anything Goes
• Crafty Sentiments Designs: Use Dies

Daisy Cat Card

Happy Friday! It's laundry day at my house but I always have time to play in my craft room while the washing machine and dryer are busy. This Daisy Cat Card was made using the freebie image by IKEsART over at the Show Us Your Pussies Challenge. It's only available for a few more days to play along with the Floral Kitties theme. If you love kitties then you should definitely play along.

To create this card I selected patterned papers from the May Berry paper pad by American Crafts. A scalloped edge die cut was added for some detail along with twine and three candy dots. The Thinking of You sentiment is from the Wetlands stamp set by Stampin' Up! and the image was colored with Copic markers. That's it! Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a lovely weekend!

This Daisy Cat Card is entered into the following challenges:

• Show Us Your Pussies: Floral Kitties
• Crafty Gals Corner: Anything Goes
• Kitty Bee Designs/Aloha Friday: All About Animals
• Crafting With Friends: Anything Goes

Tuesday Throwdown Celebrates 300th Challenge

Hello! I hope you stopped by today ready to celebrate! This week at Tuesday Throwdown we are celebrating our 300th Challenge. Team A is providing your weekly inspiration with a Fairies and Fantasy theme and Team B (which includes me) is having a blog hop. We would love for you to play along and support this wonderful milestone. It seems more and more challenges close every week, but Tuesday Throwdown is still going strong. If you've never played along before then you might as well start now! Several of us are giving away some blog candy, so stop by and check out their giveaway details. You have until mid-day on Monday, July 4th to link your creations, click here to check out all the challenge details.

My blog candy giveaway includes a 6 x 6 paper pad called Little Azalea by Darice and Maraschino twine from The Twinery. To win you will need to follow my blog and leave me a comment. The winner will be drawn at random and announced next Tuesday, July 5th.

To create my card I started by selecting a coloured image called Snowdrop Daisy from Dis Digi Stamps. The image was die cut using a stitched square die by Lil' Inkers. Then I selected my papers to coordinate. The Thinking of You sentiment stamp is from the Wetlands stamp set by Stampin' Up! and was punched using an oval and matted to a Pool Party scalloped oval. Three sequins were the final touch and this card was done. I'm entering my card at Make My Monday Challenge to use Fairies. Now...

It's time to hop!

  Tuesday Throwdown 

                                 Andrea Whisman (YOU ARE HERE)

Asha Martin

Berni Cuttino

Bridget Collins

CraftyGirl (Judy Rogers)

Davi Reid

Debi Brile

Emily Lauritzen

Jacqueline Muller
 Kim Sherrod

Sarah Marney

Terri Winske

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

Falling Flowers Card

It's always fun playing with new supplies*! The hardest part is deciding what to play with first. After looking at all my options I selected the Serene Scenery paper pad, Falling Flowers stamp set and coordinating May Flower Framelits. Before I assembled my card I decided to stamp the focal area using the Timeless Textures stamp set and added the sentiment from the Watercolor Wishes stamp set. The colors include: Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Pool Party and Island Indigo.

*All supplies are by Stampin' Up!

The layout for this card was inspired by the CAS(E) this Sketch #176. I did move the sentiment but the other elements stayed the same. It's been a while since I've made a floral card and I really like several of the new flower themed stamp sets in the new catalog. The sentiment on this Falling Flowers Card is one of my favorites and can be used for many situations. Well, that's pretty much it. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

This card is entered into the following challenges:

• CAS(E) this Sketch: Sketch #176
• Crafty Creations: Tic-Tac-Toe (Left row down)
• Crafting with an Attitude: Anything Goes
• Crafty Girls Creations: Anything Goes

You are in My Thoughts Card

Hello! I hope you're having a wonderful weekend. The sun is nice and bright this morning and the birds are chirping. It looks like it's going to be a lovely day. Before my day gets busy I wanted to share this You are in My Thoughts Card. It was made for the following challenges:

• Sketch Saturday: Sketch #415
• Color Throwdown: Color, ctd395
• Just Us Girls: Birds, #346 
• Lil Patch of Crafty Friends: Anything Goes

The Color Throwdown challenge is to use Kraft, Green and Cream. It's a really calming color scheme and I thought it was perfect for a Thinking of You type card. It seems I can never have enough of these, they work well for many life situations. For this card I used the layout at Sketch Saturday and the keyword "Birds" from Just Us Girls. The green patterned paper is one of my favorites by October Afternoon and it was paired with a woodgrain pattern by Crate Paper. For the image I searched through all my options and found a bird from the Moon Lake stamp set by Stampin' Up! that I had never used. It was stamped using Timber Brown Staz On ink and colored with a blender pen and ink pads. The You are in My Thought sentiment is from Impression Obsession. To add a little more detail I used a scalloped stitched die by My Favorite Things and some linen thread by Stampin' Up! That's it! Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

Dragonfly Waterlily Card

Happy Tuesday! It's true what they say, "time flies when you're having fun!" The last two weeks went by super fast and it's already the second week of May, geez. Do you ever wish you could hit a "pause" button?

Today is the start of a new challenge at Tuesday Throwdown and the theme this week is Thinking of You. I like making Thinking of You cards! The sentiment is very versatile when used on the outside of a card. The inside can still say "on your birthday" or "on your graduation," so use your imagination when creating your Thinking of You creation. We are sponsored this week by CraftyGirl Creations found at Stitchy Bear's Digi Outlet. My card features the Dragonfly Waterlily image and it was colored with Copic markers. To play along in the challenge create a new card or paper creation using the Thinking of You theme and link your project by mid-day Monday, May 16th. Click here for all the wonderful design team inspiration and challenge details.

This Dragonfly Waterlily Card is entered into the following challenges:

• Sketch Saturday: Sketch
• Crafting From The Heart: Anything Goes
• Come and Get It: Card for a Woman
• Craft Your Passion: Anything Goes

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

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

Thinking of You Card

When it comes to sentiments, Thinking of You is a great all occasion greeting. It can be followed by... and wishing you a happy birthday,  on your anniversary, during this difficult time, etc. You can send a Thinking of You Card for no occasion at all. For this reason I believe using Thinking of You on handmade cards is very versatile.

This card was made using my favorite colors and stamp sets. All supplies are by Stampin' Up! and are currently available. Stamp sets include: Butterfly Basics, Sassy Salutations and Watercolor Wings. The colors used include: Blissful Blackberry, Crumb Cake, Rich Razzleberry, Mossy Meadow and Very Vanilla. To add some sparkle detail to the butterfly I used glitter embossing powder that was heat embossed. That's it!

I'm entering this card into the following challenges:

• Sweet Stamps: Anything Goes
• Craft Your Passion: Anything Goes
• Sparkle N Sprinkle: Anything Goes with loose glitter, embossing/flocking

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

Sweetbriar Rose Card

It's sad when you buy a stamp because you really love it and then it sits unused for over six months. That's the case with the Sweetbriar Rose stamp featured on this card. I really love it but always thought it was too large of an A2 sized card. This week The Paper Players is having a square card challenge and I thought it would be the perfect time to use this neglected Sweetbriar Rose stamp.

To create this Sweetbriar Rose Card I created a 5.25" square card from Whisper White cardstock. A slightly smaller piece of Soft Sky cardstock was cut and then the patterned papers from the Painted Blooms dsp. Then I stamped the image using Memento Black ink onto watercolor paper and then die cut it using a stitched rectangle die by Lil'Inkers. Then I watercolored the image using Aqua Painters and Classic Stampin' Pads in Daffodil Delight, Crushed Curry, Wild Wasabi, Garden Green and Soft Sky. The sentiment stamp is from the Wetlands stamp set and I added a Daffodil Delight bitty butterfly from the Kinda Eclectic stamp set accented with faux pearls by Recollections. It's rare that I use ribbon because I love twine, but I added some Wild Wasabi stitched ribbon for detail. That's pretty much it!

This card is entered into the following challenges:

• The Paper Players: It's Hip to be Square
• The Friday Mashup!: Square Shaped Card
• Penny Black and More: Summer Flowers

All supplies by Stampin' Up! unless noted. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you come back soon.

Casual Thinking of You Card

Happy Friday! It continues to be really hot and humid here in Oklahoma and that gives me a good reason to stay inside. There were three days this week that I didn't even leave my house. I did run a few errands this morning before it got too hot but it got hot really quickly. I'm definitely looking forward to Fall!!!

Okay, enough of my complaining about our weather. Here is a Casual Thinking of You Card I made for my brother-in-law who had an outpatient procedure this week. The colours are from the Just Add Ink Challenge to use: Blackberry Bliss, Smokey Slate, Bermuda Bay and Crumb Cake. I used the Bohemian Borders stamp set, Sassy Salutations stamp set, Bohemian dsp, white embossing powder and Bermuda Bay twine. That's it!

All supplies for this card are by Stampin' Up!. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day! 

Manly Contemporary Diamonds Card

Thanks for stopping by to check out my latest card. Today is the start of a new challenge at Cardz 4 Guyz and this week we would like you to use your Dies and/or Punches. I used this challenge as an excuse to buy the Contemporary Diamonds Shapeabilities by Spellbinders. When I first saw it I knew it would make a cool card for a guy but I didn't have a good reason to buy it, so I didn't. A couple weeks later and the right challenge and I found the "justification" I needed to make my purchase. The hardest part when making this Manly Contemporary Diamonds Card was deciding what colors to use. I ended up using: Crumb Cake, Old Olive, Very Vanilla, Midnight Muse, Hello Honey and Cherry Cobbler. To add some interest to the background paper I used the Dot Fade stencil by Tim Holtz with Antique Linen distress ink and Crumb Cake ink. The Thinking of You sentiment is from the Wetlands stamp set by Stampin' Up! and was stamped using Soft Suede ink. That's it!

Click here to see the wonderful inspiration from the design team. We hope you will join us and we can't wait to see what you create for one of the men in your life.

My Manly Contemporary Diamonds Card is entered into the following challenges:

• AAA Cards: Paste and/or Stencils
• Less is More: Stencilling
• Craft Your Passion: Anything Goes

Masculine Thinking of You Card

Hello! I hope you're having a lovely day. It's been nice and calm around my house today and that gave me some time to make this Masculine Thinking of You Card. The card started by finding the current color challenge CCMC352 at Create with Connie & Mary. At first glance I wasn't sure about the colors, but the design team came up with some wonderful inspiration and I had to play along. The colors are: Wild Wasabi, Soft Sky and Basic Gray. I decided masculine was the way to go and the Wetlands stamp set seemed to be the natural choice. I'm currently out of Soft Sky cardstock so I used a piece of paper from the Painted Blooms dsp. To add more color to the edges of the paper I sponged some Soft Sky ink. I stamped the goose onto watercolor paper with Memento black ink and used my aqua painters to add color. The sentiment was stamped directly onto the Soft Sky Paper using Memento black ink. I embossed a narrow strip of Wild Wasabi cardstock using the Arrows embossing folder and added some Basic Gray twine. That's it! There is still a couple of days to play along, click here to go directly to the challenge. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!