CZ Inspiration

Look at that!  A card!  Actually, I have made some, but I have not necessarily posted them.  Today, I will play catch up.

This card was inspired by the recent card explosion happening with Cathy Zielske.  Here is her original.

I learned with this card that I don't emboss enough.  White embossing makes everything pop.  I used a new stamp set that I got from Simon Says Stamp called Look for the Miracles. I also used my Zig Clean Color Real Brush pens, as Cathy did with hers.  Lots of color!  I did not shade, as I had a limited area to work with.  The sentiment, in the Handwritten Greetings set, was from SSS as well. I used Stampin' Up's white embossing powder and gray cardstock for the image layer and some Neenah 110 for the base.

Happy Father's Day

This installment of Father's Day cards was inspired by the pin found here: http://pin.it/tP9YiK8

Lawn Fawn patterned paper was used as well as the Happy Everything set.  The fence was embossed with the Stampin Up Wood embossing folder.  All else was pieced together using the original as a guide.  

The card suits my husband to a T.

Thanks, Dude Teacher

My pre-student teacher was wrapping up his semester with me this week.  The students wrote thank-you notes to him.  I decided on a card.  

Stamp: Simon Says Stamp Solid Sentiments 

Paper: Echo Park Backpack

Cardstock: Bazzill Kraft

Ink: Stampin' Up!

December Daily: Days 11, 12, 13

Welcome to more December Daily 2015!  Some of the following pages were a touch more time-consuming that was typical, but I say that in a good way.

I knew for Day 12 I wanted to use the 2 x 2s, so I thought that would make a nice double-page-spread for Day 11, as Day 11 was low in the photo area.  I decided to take a picture and journal on it for Day 11.  The journaling is in white, and is somewhat difficult to see.  I kind of liked it that way, considering the text's message.  It is definitely a metaphor for life being clear and unclear over the past two decades.  (Below is a closer shot.)  I decided to go with some see-through 2 x 2s with Heidi Swapp sequins.  Then I used Ali Edwards' December Daily (Technique Tuesday) stamp set to create a 2 x 2 back to back with a 2 x 2 on Day 12.  I used my Fuse tool to close up the sequin pockets.  For the patterned paper, I mainly used some craft patterned card stock from Stampin' Up! (I believe it is no longer available).  I liked balancing a couple of Bingo cards, and I thought the "Time" one was perfect for the page.

I had to do some blurring here because my niece wants her kids off social media.  Behind the blur, trust me, is one of the cutest faces ever.  On this day, I went to my great nephew's Baptism.  It was a whirlwind trip, and it was so nice to see everyone and their kids, even for just a day.

The middle vertical photos are adhered to each other and hole punched.  They are page-protector-free.  I was thanking the great gods of filters that I had Rad Lab, as the lighting in church was not the best for iPhone shots.

Here is a close look at these ca-yute tiny sequins by Heidi Swapp.

Despite the simplicity of this last page, I printed and reprinted these photos several times.  The page captures my [VERY] early morning flight and the weird, unseasonably-warm weather we are having this December.  Seeing the sun come up on a plane above the clouds is pretty cool.

I have lots planned for Days 14 and 15, but I am running out on time in the day.  Tomorrow!

Holiday Cards

Many a reveler knows the song "The Twelve Days of Christmas."  Few realize that, in the church, the Christmas season lasts about that long.  So, Happy Christmas Season to all.  I have been making cards one by one this year, thinking I would start in October, yet here I am after Christmas Day making and sending holiday spirit.  Before Christmas, for a teacher, is not the time to squeeze in crafting.

I have cranked out 4 cards tonight, this one being unlike some others I have posted.  It's a combination of Lawn Fawn and Stampin' Up.  I colored the quatre foil with Copics and stamped them with some American Crafts pigment ink.  I used my Stampin' Up punch to punch them out and my Stampin' Up embossing folder for the background.

A Crafty Labor Day

My first holiday of the school year.  Yes, I have school-related things to do.  But first, I must craft!

Project Life, Week 2.  Keeping things simple is my theme.  I am very happy for products from We R Memory Keepers, Heidi Swapp, Project Life, Versa Mark, and Lawn Fawn that helped with the creation of this spread.  I can't recall the maker of the apple and "School Rocks" images, as I just recently went on an organization spree and cut off the identifying info.  I do know it was a 12 x 12 piece of paper with lots of options.  The grid paper was the back of the clocks paper that I used in last week's spread.  Great, heavy patterned paper.  Not sure about the cloud patterned paper, either.  Part of my scraps.

And now, a card!

I have Lawn Fawn, Stampin' Up, VersaMark, and Copic to thank for this little cutie.  Sadly, it's for a friend who is battling breast cancer (have I mentioned lately how much I hate cancer?).  I tried to get a bit of the inside, where the sentiment reads "wishing you a speedy recovery."  The vase was cut out, paper pieced, and colored with Copics and Blendabilites.  I then popped it up on Dimensionals.

Free Lemons

This card is my very simple contribution to this year's Shoebox Swap, honoring our friend, Kate, who turns 80 in 2 weeks (she is my birthday twin!).  Kate is notorious for finding witty stamps, so we decided that we would prep a funny card in her honor.  I just bought this Simon Says Stamp set, and I was pretty excited to use the sentiment.  The yellow-hued ink is SU! So Saffron.  I also used my Wink of Stella Glitter Brush Pen on the words "Free Lemons" and the popped up tiny banner.  The larger banner is an SU! die cut, and the smaller ones are punched with an SU! punch.  The patterned paper is from Basic Grey.

Shut the Front Door

Yes, I bought the entire Studio Calico Home Sweet Home stamp set JUST for this stamp.

This card has some stories.  First, the story of the Movers and Shapers.

A few years ago (yes, years), I bought some Stampin' Up! Movers and Shapers dies.  One of them was the shape of an ornament stamp that I had and was cutting by hand every time I used it.  I thought I could just stick them through my Cuttlebug.  Looked simple enough.

I did not realize that there was a Sizzix XL die into which the little dies were designed to go.  Clearly the dies were not a priority.  Then I got a Big Kick, and I thought I should probably figure these out.  And figure I did.  Here's a brief video to show how they "roll" (pun intended).

So, I ordered the larger die off of eBay, as it has been retired from SU!.  It came today, and I was so excited to use it!  And then...I realized I needed XL plates to run it through.  Totally being Punk'd!  Off to Michaels I went, spending the rest of my Christmas gift card and using my 40% off coupon.  I now had everything I needed.  Woot!

I saw a fellow teacher at Michaels who notes that my purse matched the outfit I was wearing.  TOTALLY coincidental, but inspiration for my color choice.  Rick Razzleberry it is!  I cut the card, stamped the sentiment, and thought putting the house inside was pretty funny, in a clean and simple sorta way.

I used my new Stampin' Up! washi tape to give the front a little pop.  I really like this card a lot!

Ah June

The first few weeks of June are super stuffed with birthdays and anniversaries in my family. Sometimes I am good about cards, other times not so much. Today is Scott's birthday, and whipping him up a card is something I truly enjoy. Alas, in the photo, you cannot tell that I colored in the 4 and the 6.  Here goes:

Recipe:
Size: 4.25 x 5.5"
Stamps: Stampin' Up! Bring on the Cake and Whimsical Words
Cardstock: Stampin' Up: Crmb Cake, Papertrey Ink Plum Pudding, Stampin' Up! So Saffron (or its equivalent); Papertrey Ink White
Ink: Adirondack Earthtone Pitch Black, Stampin' Up! Crushed Curry marker
Embossing: Sizzix Texturz Plate - Weave