Winobella Thank You

One of our neighbours had a party just before Christmas and I wanted to give her a thank you card. We had a fabulous time at the party, and given the festivities of the evening, Winobella from Stamping Bella seemed like an appropriate image choice! LOL! 

I paper pieced her dress with some Basic Grey Urban Prairie paper. This particular piece is from the smaller 6x6 pack so the pattern is reduced in size and perfect for her dress. I coloured the rest of the image with copics and cut it out with oval nesties. To get the red wine colour, first I coloured with E27 then I put a layer of R59 directly overtop to get the colour closer to burgundy. 

I added some crystal effects to the wine glasses and the bottle...you can see the shine in my detail picture. 

The card base is Gina K 120lb pure luxury white, then a layer of black. Next I ran a piece of baja blue through my Forest Branches CB folder and I layered the same patterned paper on the bottom of the card. The wide yellow ribbon is retired SU So Saffron and I tied it with some baja blue ribbon. I added a little wine opener charm, which I picked up from Stamping Bella when I got Winobella. 

The three silver bonbons are also from Stamping Bella. Don't they look like those silver balls you can use to decorate cakes? I like that they brought a bit of shine to that corner of the card. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

Wedding Wishes

Today is my brother's wedding. Weddings are so much fun to begin with, but when it's a family member they're extra special. Of course, I HAD to make them a card. My family has pitched in on a gift and I got off easy, just sending along some money to help pay, so I volunteered to be in charge of the card. 

You know how it is, when an event comes along that you need to make a card for, usually I struggle with what stamp to choose, layouts, etc. Not this time! I could totally SEE this card in my mind. I knew I wanted to use the Gina K. Heartfelt Hits set 'cause the couple dancing is simply stunning. I also knew I wanted a vanilla and black card with a scalloped central image with tiny pearls all around it, and the Textile cuttlebug template inked with black.  

So here's how it all came together:

The card base is Vanilla, then I chose some patterned paper from October Afternoon as the background to add a bit of darkness, but not stark black. The cuttlebugged and inked Textile panels are mounted on Sahara Sand and I distressed the edges. I punched the top and bottom corners of the panels with the ticket corner punch and added tiny pearls. The dancing couple was stamped with Brilliance Graphite Black then cut out with oval nesties, but I wanted more of the black scallop to show so I combined the small and large sizes of oval nesties to get the effect I wanted. Then I placed tiny Hero Arts pearls all around the image...used up almost the entire pack on this card.  :)

The sentiment is stamped with versamark and embossed with Vanilla powder. It was cut out with my Spellbinder's Ribbon Tags Trio and attached to the card with SU Vanilla Taffeta ribbon. I debated using a 'congratulations' stamp, but the font just wasn't classy enough for this card.

The only part I didn't envision was the flower. Eventhough there are pearls on the card, it seemed to need a bit of a softer touch and a flower would be perfect. Well, I have tons of flowers but none of them fit the bill. They were either to bright, to big, the wrong shape...basically I wanted a very soft coloured rose-looking flower and I didn't have one. So I made one. The flower started as a vanilla scalloped circle and I sponged some blush blossom to give it a hint of colour. I krinkled it up, cut it in a spiral and glued it back together with a half-pearl in the centre. Ta dah! It was really quite easy. 

I just love how this card turned out and I know it will be appreciated because my bro is marrying a stamper.  :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

Happy Friends

My friend Dana started a blog! Yay!!! You'll have to visit her over at Dana's House of Cards. Welcome to the fun world of blogging Dae!

I made this card for her, not because she started a blog, but because she's my BFF. We used to live 45 minutes apart but now we're two time zones apart. Thankfully though, we both have unlimited North American phone plans so we still talk just as often. LOL! It's wonderful having a friend like her and I wanted to let her know that. 

The Elzybells 'Holding hands' image and SU sentiment were stamped with versamark and embossed with black detail powder. I like the shine the embossing gives. I coloured the girls with copics. I added shimmer with my Stardust pen to both the image and as a border around the white rectangle, directly on the Taken with Teal layer. That little bit of bling really adds a lot. 

The green background is Kiwi Kiss, with a piece of striped October Afternoon paper. I zig-zagged around the edge with my Janome Sew Mini. 

I picked up the pretty felt flowers and button on one of my many trips to my LSS, Right at Home Scrapbooking. The three dots down the left side are bonbons from Stamping Bella.

Don't forget to let your best friends know how much they mean to you!

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

Bella Spotted Biking

I made this card for the Bella-riffic Friday blog. The challenge this time is anything "Fun" and this is the first stamp that popped into my head. If that doesn't look fun, then I don't know what it. Actually, the image reminds me of when we went to Newport, CT (such a pretty town) and we saw ladies riding bikes with their little puppies in baskets, just like this! It was so neat to see IRL! I know...I'm a sheltered Canadian.  :)

The layout is from the sketch challenge on Splitcoast, SC208. 

The image, I-wish-I-looked-so-good-on-a-bike-aBella (really...that's the name Em gave it!) from Stamping Bella was stamped with Memento Black onto Gina K pure luxury and coloured with copics. I dotted some of the flower centers with my white gel pen. To make the road I drew a straight line with a fine black marker and a ruler, then I shaded it with W3. Ok, I really do wish I looked this good on a bike! 

The image was cut out with rectangle nesties and layered onto a chocolate scalloped piece. The floral embellishment are layered Primas and an SU rhinestone brad...simple!

The card base is Gina K 120lb pure luxury white...I can't seem to make a card base with anything else lately, it's sooooooooo sturdy. Seriously, if you don't have any you need to run over to Gina's site and order some...I LOVE it! The dotted paper is from We R Memory Keepers White Out line and it's layered onto chocolate. 

The center panel is Baja Blue layered on chocolate and I stitched around the edge with my Janome Sew Mini. 

So grab your stamps and make something FUN! There's still time to participate in the Fun challenge on the Bella-riffic Friday blog. Can't wait to see what theme Shannan comes up with for next week.  

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

Baby Boy Onesie

Not long after we moved here, one of my neighbours had a baby boy so I made her a set of these cards to use for 'thank you' or birth announcements. 

These onesie cards are nothing new...they've been floating around for a while. I learned how to make them from my friend Dana, who learned from this tutorial on Lauren's blog. They may look complicated but really they're super simple and super cute too!  

I stamped the front of the card with SU's Dotted background in Bashful Blue ink. The patterned paper around the legs and neck is Bashful Blue DSP (retired SU). The image is from the long retired SU set Toy Box. I won't part with it though, cause in my opinion, it's one of the best boy sets ever. 

I coloured the image with copics, cut it out and adhered it to a punched scallop circle of Bashful Blue. I applied a little white gel pen to the scallops for an accent. 

And here's the finished product, all boxed up and tied with a pretty bow and matching notecard. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

Baby Girl Teddy Bear

My hair stylist is going to be having a baby girl in March. She told me last time I was there and I wanted to make her a little something. What expectant mother doesn't need some cards for thank you's or announcements? So I went to work on the cards...not in advance...nooooooo. I'm such a procrastinator, I did them the night before I was going to see her and I'd had nearly two months notice. Why do I do this to myself?

The image is My Beary Best Friend from Stamping Bella. I thought it was cute, but not too cutesy. It's stamped with Memento black onto Pure Luxury cardstock and coloured with copics. I hand cut around the frame leaving just a small white border. It's layered onto Close to cocoa. 

The card base is Close to Cocoa also, with a layer of white which I ran through my Swiss Dots CB foler. The patterned paper is retired SU Berry Bliss. I added a scallop strip of Pretty in Pink and some coordinating Pretty in Pink grosgrain ribbon. 

Here are the cards all boxed up and 

tied with ribbon. I had to put them in two of the clear boxes from Papertrey because they were too thick.

This was another super quick layout and I was able to make a set of 12 in no time flat. The colouring was the longest part. There isn't any glitter or bling on the card. I think the embossed dots are just the perfect amount of texture and it gives it that 'baby' feel. 

She loved the cards, by the way. I'm seeing her one more time before she goes on mat leave, so I'll probably bring her another handmade gift of some sort. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

Merry Christmas!

Wow, we woke up this morning and most of the snow had melted away from all the rain we got yesterday and last night here in New England. It's a white and green (grass) Christmas day. There was over a foot of snow on our upper deck yesterday morning, and with all the forecasted rain, we decided we'd better shovel it off cause it'll get pretty heavy. We had fun though cause the snow was super sticky. Hubby and I had a bit of a skills competition, throwing snowballs from the deck to the roof of the shed. We were trying to make a smiley face with strategic 'snowball holes' in the snow on the shed roof, but it ended up looking more like swiss cheese.   :)

Today I thought I'd share with you our Christmas tree(s) and the rest of the hand-made happy mail we received this week. 

Instead of putting up one big tree, we opt for several small trees, ranging in size from 1-5' in height. It's my tree collection and it grows every year. These are just some of them...there are more scattered around the house. I enjoy hunting in stores each year to find the quirkiest, cutest little trees to add to the collection.

And here is the rest of the hand-made happy mail we received for the holidays. Thank you to everyone who sent holiday cards. We appreciate them all, hand-made or not.  :)

This one's from my BFF Dana W. The snowman is all shimmery IRL!

My friend Leslie G. sent this little cutie. This little snowman is SO adorable!

My SIL Christine S. sent this one. The colours are perfect together.

This beauty is from Anne H. Love what she did with the mulberry batik technique.

Gillian P. sent this card. I love the scallops with the patterned paper. 

This is from Sylvie G. Unfortunately, one of the string of beads got held up crossing the border. 

This one is from Lorraine F-S. The pink and pomegranate are so pretty together.

A Little Elzy Note

Well, I haven't had a bird in my posts for quite a while, so I thought it was time. I decided on this sweet Elzybells stamp, A Winter Song. The first paper I reached for was pink, then I thought to myself...hold on a minute...not all Elzys need to be pink to be cute...how about wintery blue? So I pulled the striped pattern from my SU Urban Prairie pack and started my card. :)

The image was stamped with Memento black onto Gina K pure luxury and coloured with copics. Yes, I know, I used a lot of copics on this but it only looks like two shades of blue and green. Here's why: I coloured the bird, hat and boots with B93 & B95, then thought the shade needed to be a little more on the greenish side to coordinate with the striped paper, so I went over them with BG72. I used E00 for her skin and added rosy cheeks with R00. To add a little colour under the glittery snow I first coloured with BG000 then toned it down by going overtop with W0.

I know it doesn't really show all that much, but it's there, under the glitter, and I feel better knowing it's there. The image is outlined with W1. I really like how these markers mix and blend. Whenever I'm colouring I usually have a paper palette beside the image, where I try out different colour combos and layering. I was livin' on the edge for this one though...no practice palette. To finish off the image, I added some Liquid Appliquee to the hat and coat, but I sprinkled some dazzling diamonds over top before I heated it. I hope it doesn't fall off...it seems to have 'stuck' ok.

The card base is Gina K 120lb pure luxury, with a layer of kiwi kiss which I distressed. Next is a layer of baja breeze, which I ran through my snowflakes CB folder then added some white craft ink to the raised areas with a sponge dauber. A 2" piece of striped is attached at the bottom and I tied a fluffy "Joanne B." bow with Baja striped ribbon.

The final details are the sentiment (from Amuse) which is attached with a frame from SU's Styled Silver Hodgepodge. The blue snowflake was punched with my Martha punch and layered onto a 5/8" circle of kiwi. I added a styled silver brad to the center and I had THE perfect little denim blue Bella Bonbon for the centre.

So there you go...it's Christmas Eve and I've completely moved off Christmas cards. And hey, I just realized that these are all the colours for last week's Colour Challenge on Splitcoast, CC197, that I never had time to complete. Yay!

Merry Christmas!!! Have a wonderful holiday season. And if you have some time to stop by, I'll be posting. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

Snowman Circle

So I finally had some time on Sunday night to sit down and browse through the Fan Club Gallery on Splitcoast. Wowzers...those are talented stampers! If you want to see what it's all about, Splitcoast has generously opened up the December Fan Club Gallery to all registered users and if you like it you can subscribe for future galleries. 

Anyway, this card uses some of the fabulous techniques I saw the Dirty Girls using on their cards. Things I just wouldn't think of on my own, but I'm quite happy to CASE.  :)

The sketch is from Amy Rysavy's Friday Sketch. I made one small change though, I didn't add a sentiment in the upper right corner...two reasons...I thought my card had enough on it and I'm really into cards with no sentiment right now. 

The image is Snowman Circle from Stamping Bella (he arrived with my Polar Bear Circle last week). He's stamped with Memento black onto Gina K pure luxury and coloured with copics. I used a combination of Marvy punches (the 2" circle and the 2.5" scallop circle) and a circle nestie to get the layers just right. The snowman is layered on a circle of baja blue, then a scallop of chocolate chip. I added dazzling diamonds to the falling snow and also the ground.

The card base is Gina K 120lb white, followed by a piece of old olive. The patterned paper is from SU's Ski Slope pack. One of the techniques I've borrowed for this card is the sewing on the base layer. Sure, I've sewed with zig-zags and straight stitches, but I've never thought to combine them. Jennifer Buck did it on her card in the Dirty Gallery and I totally LOVE the look!

The other element I borrowed from my friend Joanne B. She does these cute little touches on her bows, like on this card in the Dirty Gallery. So I made a tailored bow with my May Arts chocolate polka dot ribbon, then I added a button from SU, tied with linen thread. Too cute!!!

The last little detail is the snowflake (Martha punch) layered onto a chocolate circle so it'll stand out more and secured with an SU rhinestone brad. 

This could certainly be a winter birthday card too...hmmm...it may not make it til next December. See, I'm kinda moving away from Christmas cards.  {grin}

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

A Little Tree just for Leslie

So, I know I said I'd be moving on from Christmas cards, but I can't seem to tear myself away from them. This Elzy image has been stamped for a few weeks now (since Dec 6th actually), just waiting patiently for colour. And, Leslie asked for more Christmas cards, so I'm happy to oblige.  :)

The layout for this card is from Lauren Meader's Saturday Sketch. I flipped the sketch to make it work. This would also make a fabulous scrapbook page layout.

The Elzybells image, Girls with Tree, was stamped with Memento black onto Gina K pure luxury. I bet you can guess what comes next...LOL! Right...I coloured it with copics...surprise!  :)   You can't see it in the photo but I added a little sparkle with my Stardust pen to both the image and also to the patterned paper. 

The card base is Gina K 12olb white with a layer of Imaginisce Snowy Jo - Snow Soiree. The floral patterned paper is also from Imaginisce Snowy Jo, Santa's Secret Garden. I used my corner rounder on all the panels. 

For accents, I used my very first ghost flower!!! Oh my...they're super fun and I have no idea why I waited so long to use one (probably has to do with the 'hoarding' problem I have!). The ghost flower is Heidi Swapp's Gel Blossoms. I layered it with a Prima and tied on a button with SU silver cord. 

I seem to be in a groove with cards that don't have a sentiment on the front, but I don't find the cards are missing anything. How about you...do you like making cards without sentiments? I'm curious if I'm the only one out there so let me know how you like to build your cards. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

Snowman for a Snowy Weekend!

Between shoveling, shoveling and more shoveling yesterday, I didn't get a chance to stamp. And it's snowing again today, but I was feeling the NEED to stamp...the snow will still be there later. :)

In honour of our inches and inches of snow, I dug out my American Art Stamp Snowman, which I've had since October. Told you I had a lot of uninked rubber! LOL! 

The layout for this card is from Jen's Sketch For You To Try. 

The image is stamped with Memento black onto Gina K pure luxury. I cut it out with nesties before I coloured it this time...see...I'm learning from my own mistakes. It's coloured with copics, cause I just can't seem to put them down. But, I'll tell you, this image has plenty of little nooks and crannies so it was a little tricky to colour. 

For the top hats, the darkest grey I have is W3, which just wasn't cutting it, but I didn't want them to be completely black. So I used my W3 marker to pick up a smidge of black from my 100 copic, removed most of the black onto a piece of scrap paper, then used what was left on the marker to add a darker shadow to the hats. I really like how it turned out. 

The patterned papers are from the Basic Grey Wassail line. The solid green layers is Always Artichoke and the card base is Gina's 120lb pure luxury white. 

The embellishments in the bottom corner were fun to play around with. It's just punched circles of patterned paper layered on Artichoke. 

The other is a dark green button with a Martha Snowflake punch, topped off with a small brown button threaded with linen thread.

To me, this card has a real masculine feel, and that's what I was going for, so I didn't want to add any glitter or shimmer. Hubby really liked it when I showed it to him...maybe it'll be his card for next year.  :)

I think I'm going to move off Christmas cards now and on to other subjects, but I've got a good head start for next year.

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

Beary Merry Holidays

I just could not resist making another card for Taylor's Cupcake Challenge sketch. My order from Stamping Bella arrived on Thursday (Yippeeee!!!...waves - Hi Em!) and in it was this sweet little Polar Bear Circle stamp. Can you say PERFECT for this layout!!!

I made this card longer and narrower. The finished size is 3.25 x 6 inches. The card base is retired SU Blue Bayou, then a layer of white, then Baja Breeze. Don't the two blues coordinate nicely? The patterned paper is from Imaginisce, Snowy Jo - Snow Soiree. 

The polar bear is stamped with Memento ink onto Gina K Pure Luxury white then coloured with copics. I used my quickie glue pen to add Diamond Dust to the snow flakes and to make it look like he's sitting on ice. Oh, and I should tell you, the great thing about these circle stamps from Stamping Bella...they fit perfectly in the Marvy jumbo circle punch (the blue 2" one). So after he was all coloured, I punched him out (not literally of course, he's just too sweet) and layered him on a scallop of blue bayou, which I punched with the mega circle scallop. 

The sentiment is also Stamping Bella and I added three small Bella Bonbons in blue jean. I kept this card much simpler than yesterday's and I'm pleased with how quickly it came together. 

With the dumping of snow we got here in New England yesterday, this card is actually quite fitting! It would be so cute for a winter birthday card too...hmmm...lots of birthdays at the start of the year in my family...maybe you'll see him again on another design.

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

Happy Mail

I love the holidays because of all the happy mail. It's not just the regular bills, but wonderful cards from friends and family. We've already received so many fabulous cards, both handmade and store-bought, with and without photos and updates. January's mail isn't going to be as much fun to open as December's! Hey, maybe we should start a new trend...January cards to cheer us up when all the holiday bills arrive. LOL!

Here are a few of the handmade beauties. I'll have more to share in a few days. 

Joanne B. sent (or rather delivered) this little cutie with his furry hat and coat. Love it!

This lovely card with the vellum overlay is from Tami W. It's so soft and muted. 

Mary Louise sent me this pretty card. The gold embossing is gorgeous!

My friend Janet R. sent this sweet card. The colouring is just wonderful!