CAS Sympathy Card

Hello, again!  I had the sad need for a sympathy card a while back for an unexpected loss of a young extended family member. I think this was the biggest struggle to make--sympathy cards are always the hardest for me, but when it is combined with a sudden loss of one so young, it's almost impossible. I think you can understand why I haven't posted it yet.

CAS design does not come easy for me; neither does ink blending or restraint with paint splatters. So here's a four in one 'struggle' card, so fitting for Suzz's  Rather Blustery Day challenge at The Funkie Junkie Boutique blog. Thanks so much for taking the time to look! Hugs!

Also sharing with these challenges:

The Funkie Junkie Boutique Rather Blustery Day 

Simon Says Stamp Monday Add Some Green

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Bit O’ Green

She Was a Lucky Woman

 

Hello! It's been a while since I've been able to play with my craft supplies, but I really wanted to play along in the Mixed Media challenge at The Funkie Junkie Boutique blog, since my crafty love is mixed media. Laura says to create "a mixed media piece about or for someone or something you love". I made this tag to celebrate "us" on St. Patrick's day, including some green for the challenge at Simon Says Stamp. The colors remind me of the season's changing colors from dull browns with pops of rich greens as the trees unfurl their new leaves.

Tim Holtz' clock stencil and crackle paste (love!) add texture to the background. I removed the stencil and when the paste is dry, added color with watery paint: Fossilized Amber, Vintage Photo and Walnut Stain.  I replaced the stencil and applied Resist spray. When that was dry, I added the green: Mowed Lawn Oxide spray and Rustic Wilderness spray stain. The paper doll (I love Tim's paper dolls) is colored with these same green colors in inks. The ribbon was tied onto the little gift pack Linda includes in her orders, and I just added some gold paint to it.

Splotches of metallic gold/silver are added with Aged Taupe embossing enamel. I just swipe a bit of liquid from the embossing dabber with my finger on the tag/clover and sprinkle with the powder and heat.

The shamrocks are cut and embossed with Lucky Love Impresslit from paper colored with a combination of Mowed Lawn and Rustic Wilderness inks, sprays and Oxide spray, then edged with Vintage Photo ink. I altered part of a Halloween Quote Chip with Rustic Wilderness embossing glaze and a bit of the embossing enamel and paired it with a Clippings Sticker to tell the story.

That's all for me today! It was fun to finally create again, and I'm happy to share the outcome with you and these challenges:    

The Funkie Junkie Boutique Blog For the Love of Mixed Media   

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Add Some Green                                                                            Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge Add A Die Cut                                                                                             

With Love

Welcome friends! I can't believe Valentine's Day is just over a week away! I took the opportunity to make a special card for my Mom yesterday featuring Tim Holtz' Lucky Love Impresslit. I bought it last year after seeing it on Debi Adam's Valentine's Day card and never got a chance to use it. If you hop over to Debi's blog, you can see I was strongly influenced by her lovely gold penned details on her hearts and flowers, but you'll see I went about it a different way.

I actually started with my background, and drew colors and details from that. I started by inking the Floral Outlines stamps with Kitsch Flamingo and Mowed Lawn inks and stamping randomly on a scrap. I've never used these stamps before, either, and often times I'll try them out on junk piece of paper before using the 'good stuff'. But after awhile I was committed and never did use the Mixed Media Heavy stock that was sitting there waiting for me. After drying the outlines, I colored them with corresponding Distress paints and a water brush. I also added some Mustard Seed inspired by the roses on the birthday card my Mom sent me (shown below). 

After the paint was dry, I blended with more Mowed Lawn and Antique Linen inks. Finally, I used a splatter brush and splattered with Picket Fence and Mowed Lawn paints. I'm pretty certain this would have turned out far better had I used the Heavystock as planned--next time...

 I wanted to bring in some texture, and chose the Intertwine 3D Texture Fade. I smeared areas of the black side of the folder with Antique Linen paint and embossed the panel. I was not impressed with my results, so decided to highlight the weave texture with gold embossing. I pressed my finger on the Distress Embossing Dabber applicator and swiped the liquid on random raised areas around the corners of the panel, sprinkled with Princess Gold powder and heated to melt.

It's one of those backgrounds I really didn't mind covering up, so I used lots of flowers and foliage die cuts using the Colorize Bloom set, lace from the Crochet set and of course, those beautiful embossed hearts. I used my Distress embossing pen and more Princess Gold to detail the tiny flowers and the edges of the hearts. I blended the heart with Kitsch Flamingo Oxide ink and dropped watery ink into the embossed flower centers. The die cut flowers that remind me of pussy willows were blended with Mowed Lawn ink, Lucky Clover and Kitsch Flamingo oxides, and I embossed the very tips with more of the gold. The foliage is blended with Mowed Lawn ink and Lucky Clover oxide. The hearts and parts of the flowers and foliage are popped up with foam adhesive to add dimension.

To finish the card, I chose an old sentiment from my stash and heat embossed it on a scrap, tore the ends and blended with the green ink that was left on my blending tool.

Ordinarily, I would have started over on the background, but I'm not completely dissatisfied with the end product, and I know my Mom will be focused on the pretty hearts and flowers! Big hugs! Sara Emily

I had these challenges in mind as I was making my card and appreciate the opportunity to play along: 

Country View Challenges February 2022 - Hearts AND Flowers

Simon Says Stamp Monday Use An Embossing Folder

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday With Love

It's All Fun and Games 'Til...

Hello, again! I'm so excited to have a play with my Snarky Christmas cats, since they didn't get any use at Christmas this year. I hope you'll read on to see how this came together or at least scroll through for the closeups.

 I lightly blended card for the back panel with Chipped Sapphire and inked the snowflake from Holiday Things with the same, spritzed the inked stamp with water and made random first, second and third generation impressions. I over-stamped the darker, first generation impressions with Versamark embossing ink and embossed with Emerald Creek Fractured Ice powder. This panel is matted with black card.

I die cut a Stitched Oval and embossed with the Flurry stamp from Flurry & Pine using Emerald Creek Soft Fallen Snow and  Eileen Hull's White Wonder Molten Dimensions powders. I blended with blue and brown inks and splashed with water; dried. I edged in Black Soot Archival. This kinda looks like the wintry mix we got last weekend that left everything coated with about 1/2 inch of ice.

 I inked the sledding cat from Snarky Christmas and fussy cut. He is popped up on dimensional foam adhesive. I colored him with distress inks: Spiced Marmalade, Rusty Hinge and Brushed Corduroy. His eyes each got a squirt of Glossy Accents. I embossed the runners with Fractured Ice powder. I added "snow" under and around the sled runners using Translucent Grit Paste sprinkled with dimensional embossing powder. When the paste dried, I blasted it with my heat tool to get that white fluffy "snow".

I cut two snowflakes using the Snowflakes 3D Impresslit from a heavy wavy textured translucent paper thicker than vellum (I think this was from a candy box) and dipped them in watery blue ink.

The sentiment is a shortened version of one in the Snarky Christmas set stamped in Chipped Sapphire. I just taped off the part of the quote I didn't want, inked it and removed the tape. This card is for my daughter, inspired by a mishap she had while sledding last weekend in some rare southern icy snow. She had a little crash and burn while avoiding another sledder. She didn't get hurt, but the sled did, and her party ended for the day. Oh, well, it's all fun and games 'til...

Thanks for stopping by! I need to go dust off my sled, because we will be getting snow flurries in the morning. Woohoo! Hugs! Sara Emily

I'd be honored to share this in some of my favorite challenges: The Funkie Junkie Boutique blog Icy and Cold; a good excuse to break out my Snarky Cats for Simon Says Stamp Monday Furry Friends; added some sparkle and shine for Country View Challenges January 2022 - Your Year To Sparkle & Shine; and who doesn't love a good Anything Goes?: Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Anything Goes.

Feathered Friend Birthday Card

 

Hello and welcome! I made this birthday card for a good friend who is turning 60 and might need a little giggle. I thought this fit right into The Funkie Junkie Boutique blog's challenge 'Out With the Old, In with the New!', because I took one of my old card designs and made it into something new. Below is my 'old' design. I also used lots of my old products and tools, but in conjunction with my NEW FULL SIZED glass media mat.  I was excited to get the larger media mat as a Christmas gift from my son, having spent the last year or so working on the smaller travel version. 

You can see I went a little lighter this time, but followed my original card design. Since my friend loves birds, I just switched out the butterfly with a Feathered Friend. Sometimes new ideas just aren't as forthcoming as they need to be when you're under pressure. My friend's birthday always seems to sneak up on me, because it's right after Christmas. It's not like I forget her birthday; I forget that it takes a week to mail something across town.

First, I die cut the Feathered Friends bird from black and white card stock. I colored with Oxide inks--Fossilized Amber, Crushed Olive and Forest Moss, dried and assembled.

The background is created by smooshing Oxide inks (Iced Spruce, Fossilized Amber and Broken China) onto the mat portion of my NEW glass media mat and misting with water until little beads of color form. Just dip the card in, and dry, repeat until you are pleased with the result. I did the same with the circle die cut from my stash. 

I glued the Flowery die cut to the background and wrapped with a dyed ribbon from the gift bag that Linda includes with her orders from The Funkie Junkie Boutique.

I chose an Occasions Small Talk sticker and embossed with Broken China Distress Glazing powder. A bow already tied from another gift from The Funkie Junkie Boutique finishes the card. Such an easy project, and just what I needed to slowly stretch my creative wings after a nice long break over Christmas and the New Year. Here's hoping your New Year is starting off happy and healthy! Hugs! Sara Emily

Of course, I am happy to be sharing this with The Funkie Junkie Boutique challenge, Out With the Old, In with the New! and Simon Says Stamp Monday, Insects/Birds.

Wishing You Joy Card Set

 

I'm back again today with another set of Christmas cards rolled off the Closet's assembly line! I just had to purchase Tim Holtz' Winter Watercolor 2 set after seeing Stacy Hutchinson's gorgeous cards, and I was inspired to make very similar cards.  I urge you to visit her blog, if you haven't already, and be prepared to be INSPIRED!! While I loved her gold embossed Christmas phrase on vellum, I wanted to give my cards a little different look--less traditional; more playful. I had one of these joy tags in blue in my box of leftover bits, and decided the bauble would be just perfect. Don't you love it when you can mix the old and new together?  

The baubles are die cut using Christmas Circle Words (Tim Holtz) and scraps of sanded Metallic Kraft Stock.

Some of these cards are oriented in landscape and others in portrait. I've added 'wishing you' embossed in Princess Gold to some of them when there wasn't too much texture in the background.

But others had a snowstorm in the background rather than flurries, so I opted to just hang the Christmas ball. Stacy used Opaque Grit paste dusted with Distress Glitter for her flurries, but I only had the translucent grit paste. So I whipped up a batch of my own snow,  making use of what I had on hand. Another simple pleasure of making--trying to come up with new 'products' when you don't have the real deal. Happy crafting! I'm off to finish up with my cards, and perhaps then we will decorate the tree. 

I will be sharing these in the following challenges:

The Funkie Junkie Challenge Blog 'Yuletide Delights'

Country View Challenge December 'Christmas Anything Goes'

Simon Says Stamp Monday Cold As Ice

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Cold As Ice

 

Winter Watercolor at Christmastime Vintage Card Trio

 

Hello! I love anything vintage and especially at Christmas, older things just make me smile. Like my 80's flocked bird ornaments and Tim Holtz Christmastime greeting stamps embossed in gold. 

Making flat cards is such a challenge to me, but more important than ever as our postage costs have soared. I had to resist adding the charming embellishments and will save those for the hand delivered cards.

When I saw the images in Tim's Winter Watercolor set, I knew I had to pair them with the vintage greetings on some rare-to-me CAS cards. This one's super simple, without a contrasting border. Hopefully the stitching helps to frame the gorgeous watery greenery and berries. I had to consider the size of my envelopes, and didn't want to trim off any of the watercolor goodness.

I loved this one even before I added the tiny die cut berries. Splatters of gold Distress paint on these two cards give a bit more of a vintage vibe. After trimming it down to size, I embossed the edges very subtly in gold before layering on white card, then on plaid paper from an old Tim Holtz Christmas stash.

This was actually the first card I embossed with the greeting, and being the obedient maker that I am, I dutifully swiped over the already stamped card with my Embossing Buddy. Although, I had stamped the foliage a couple of days prior, so it should have been well dried, the little powder bag is now Candy Apple red! I salvaged the panel by spritzing some of the little specks of red ink left behind with water and dipping the card in watery puddles of corresponding inks, and lastly, embossing a few of the berry clusters. I also added some die cuts for visual depth. A little messy and busy perhaps, but I swear it looks better in real life and someone out there will appreciate my efforts! No time for do-overs.

I'll be sharing these cards in a couple of my favorite challenges: The Funkie Junkie Challenge Blog, where the challenge is 'Yuletide Delights' and Country View Challenge, where December's challenge is 'Christmas Anything Goes'. Thank goodness I have them to keep me motivated to keep making and sharing some of my makes on my blog.

Off to make some more cards; hopefully they will arrive at their destinations before the New Year. I'm a little off schedule this year, but enjoying all the festivities and time spent with family that go along with Christmas. That's what really matters. Hugs! Sara Emily