Christmas Wishes

Christmas wishes to all who celebrate the holiday. I want to wish everyone a wonderful day where ever you are and hope you are safe and healthy. This is my last card and post for this year. The stamp set was gifted to me by a terrific cardmaker and blogger friend. It was stamped and embossed in gold and colored with Copics. Red stickles were added to the berries.

See you next year.

Be kind to one another.

A CASE card

I want to thank all of you who commented on my last post. My post was so heartfelt and I see that you all agree that we love our blogging friends. What a wonderful world.

This card is a case of one that Yana Smakula made. It took me a while to go back and find it since it was a while back but I never forgot seeing it. She did a lot more steps on hers and I simplified mine. I just embossed the image in gold and added red stickles to the berries.. I finally finished my Christmas cards and got them mailed. I hate that they might be late.

Be kind to one another.

Sharing

I should be making a few more Christmas cards but today I want to stop and share some thoughts I have about stampers, cardmakers and bloggers. There's no card if you don't want to wade through this!

I started my blog in September, 2013 and Mary H. carolinacardsbymaryh and Darnell djkardkreations were the first ladies to comment along with debweb. To this day Mary and Darnell are still wonderful friends that I have met in person. Darnell has helped me learn how to do my blog and Loll  stampingwithloll reached out to make me a blog header and spruce my blog up a bit. I have found that stampers and bloggers are the most wonderful, caring, sharing people in the world. They share their cards, techniques and thoughts with everyone. They take the time to make videos generously sharing their work. They take time to comment and share tips. I have never come across anyone who said disparaging things or was mean. In a place that touches the whole world that is a wonderful testament to all of you. I know the internet can be a place of hateful comments that make people feel bad about themselves but I've never seen that here. I think it's fantastic that you take time to comment on cards to people you really don't know. I sometimes feel like I say the same thing in my comments over and over but I always try to comment if I love that card.

You have helped me through the death of my husband, cheered me up when I was down and encouraged me through stamping slumps. You have brought me joy through many a day and taught me so much. That means so much and the fact that we don't personally know each other makes that all the more special. I have met so many wonderful friends through this medium and I'm thrilled to be in a monthly zoom with such great gals that I may never get to meet in person but I consider to be my friends too. 

My sons are so protective of me and I'll tell you what they said when I said I was meeting someone in person that I met online for the first time. "Mom, how do you know this isn't some  guy that is out to lure you into trouble?" I had to reassure them we were meeting in a public restaurant and it would be fine. That was Sharyn of  mycraftyplace and we've had lunch several times and she came with me to meet Colleen of onesmileliftsaspirit when she came into town. They also wanted to come to the airport to check out Darnell when she came to visit. I think we get a feel for how warm this ladies are by reading their blogs and meeting them in person has verified that. I also admire the ladies who share their stories in order to help out someone who may think they are alone in dealing with health issues or other things that happen in their lives. It just shows us that we are all alike and I believe women need their girlfriends to share with. 

There have been three deaths of friends and family recently and it made me really think of what I value most after my family. I mentioned a few names but you are all so special for commenting and visiting. This is for you and all the terrific ladies I have met in person. This is what is in my heart today and I wanted to share it with you so you know how much you are all valued in my life. I'll be posting a card soon.

Be kind to one another.

A quick one

I'm still making Christmas cards so this is short today. This is mirror cardstock with a Simon Says sentiment. The mirror c/s was embossed with a Memory Box Snowy Forest embossing folder. It's hard to get a good picture and this was the best of five. 

That's all folks!

Be kind to one another.

Getting ready for Christmas

I am finally really in Christmas mood. Got a few cards done but I'm worried they are going to be late this year since I'm not sure about mail delivery. Part of it is me, I am so late getting started making cards, and part is the new rules of the post office. 

This is a Lawn Fawn Christmas mouse on a background stamped with Simon Says Hand-Lettered Holiday background stamp and embossed with white embossing powder. I don't know when mouse and rat cards became so cute but they are starting to grow on me! 

Be kind to one another.

I hope this is the last sympathy card I need to make. This is for my daughter in law. I used gold embossing powder over vellum. Then attached it to a light blue card base. My heat gun was really hot but the vellum still warped and it just wouldn't glue down in some places. What do you use to attach vellum to cardstock? I used my connect glue since it dries clear and held it down forever but it still buckled. Thanks for any help on this.

Be kind to one another.

With Sympathy

I have needed  three sympathy cards this past two weeks. It has been a rocky time around here and I haven't made a dent in Christmas cards. This is the card I made using a CAS from Kristina Werner.  I went ahead and made two. I need to just make a stash of birthday, get well, sympathy and thinking of you cards to have on hand. I always make a card for each person when it's needed and that's not a good idea in the middle of holidays. I will make a different one for my daughter in law. Her mother just passed last week.

This was using Simon Says stamp Garden Greetings embossed in gold. Then I just sponged a bit of color around the gold. 

Be kind to one another.

Have a happy day

I want to wish a happy and safe Thanksgiving today to all who celebrate. I hope your turkey is moist, your mashed potatoes are fluffy and your dressing is yummy. I also wish you cold whip cream for your pumpkin pie. To those who don't celebrate or who already have, I wish you a safe and wonderful day. I want to tell you how very special you all are to me and I'm so happy you pop in and comment and visit my blog. A lot is going on in my life right now and I am behind in everything but I will be visiting soon. 

I made this card with a beautiful sunflower that my friend sent to me. I just found some pattern paper in my stash and assembled the sunflower. I sponged a bit of brown ink on the edges of the petals for some dimension. The sentiment is Lawn Fawn and it says how I feel about you. The picture is crooked as always. That must be my signature look!

Be kind to one another.

Monoprint

I really wanted to join this month's casmixup challenge because I never had good luck with making a monoprint. It was always a blob that had no relationship to a monoprint and no way to pass it off as such. With great perseverance I made this and it came out okay. I actually used yellow, orange and brown DI sponged over the stencil (that is a beautiful Artplorations stencil from a sweet friend) but when I spritzed it most of the color went away. I got such a good image that looks like a sunflower I decided to post it and hope it shows up enough to see.

Be kind to one another.

Woodware

This is my first Woodware stamp and it was given to me by a very sweet stamping friend. I thought it was perfect for the caschristmascardchallenge asking for Christmas Critters. Deer don't know it's Christmas but they fit right into this challenge. I water colored the background ( I do keep trying water coloring), then stamped this in Versamark Oynx Black and embossed in clear embossing powder.  I think I will make several of this card.

Be kind to one another.

Same folder

I used the same Fallen Leaves embossing folder on this card that I used on Sunday's card. I used it on brown cardstock this time and added Concord & 9th layering leaves die cuts in cream cardstock. The sentiment is Poppy Stamps. Very simple and easy.

Be kind to one another.

First snow

It's snowing and it's really coming down right now. I don't expect it to last long but it is so pretty. Daisy was covered with it when she came back in this morning and she wasn't outside very long!

Today's card uses gold mirror cardstock and a Sizzix 3-D embossing folder called Fallen Leaves. The wheat and sentiment are Impression Obsession. The sentiment is layered in white, then brown cardstock.

I plan to start my Christmas cards this week. I'm so far behind between making get well cards for my granddaughter and sympathy cards for friends, then finally getting to a few Thanksgiving cards. Foxy, my oxygen concentrator, goes in for her checkup (or as I call it, her Spa day). She gets mailed to MN and it takes about five days. I can't go anywhere while she's away so I hope to get a lot of things done. She is fondly known as Foxy Oxy and I will miss her while she takes her vacation.

Be kind to one another.

I love this paper

My autumn card today uses a 6 x 6 paper pack from Altenew called Poured Acrylic. The colors are so beautiful and that's what this background is. I used Clarity paper and an EK leaf punch for the leaf and a strip of mirror paper. The sentiment is gold mirror paper Simon Says over a vellum backing. The papers are the stars on this card.

Be kind to one another.

Starting Thanksgiving cards

My card features a Newton's Nook stamp. I paper pieced the top of the acorn and colored the rest with Copics. I love how he is hugging the acorn. The little acorn is a embellishment from my stash. I'm really trying to use up things I've had for years.

Be kind to one another.

Sending encouragemint

My granddaughter is doing okay since her surgery. Still on pain meds. but seems to be getting along okay. This card was made after seeing several cards on the Lawn Fawn blog. It is a combination of two cards I saw all made with Lawn Fawn products except for the white stripes. I used a Lil' Inker die for those. I loved the  "encouragemint " pun.

Be kind to one another.

Happy Halloween

I hope the weather is good for the little trick or treaters today. They get so excited about their costumes and getting candy. It's so cute to see them and I wish we still got some where we live. To stay in the spirit I just buy my candy corn and eat it myself.

I'd like to warmly welcome two new followers -  Carol Celeste and Sharon Guarino are new here and I thank you for coming to visit and follow. 

Here is my last card this year. It is another brayered card and a little darker in theme than my other ones. Don't eat all your candy at one time. Stretch it out and enjoy the holiday.

Be kind to one another.

Boo

Frost on the ground this morning! Seeing the snow in some parts of the country makes me think it is really going to be cold here soon. I hate cold!

This card was brayered in yellow and orange ink on glossy photo paper. Very simple and I added some felt ghosts from my stash and added the sentiment from Simon Says Stamp. This card was sent to my granddaughter who had knee surgery yesterday. All is good and she comes home today but won't be trick or treating any time soon. 

Be kind to one another.

At the last minute

I'm joining the caschristmascardchallenge on the very last day. It's been a fast month with so many things going on and I haven't been making many cards. I love the combination of red and gray that is the theme this month and I really wanted to play. The double tree die is Spellbinders and the stick frame and sentiment are Poppy Stamps.

Be kind to one another.

Boo

This card doesn't look like much but it has a special twist. The moon, the windows and the ghosts all glow in the dark. I added Versamark to those things with a Versamark pen, then used Wow glow in the dark embossing powder.  The ghosts are the insides of the B in Boo. I took it in the bathroom and shut the door in the dark to make sure it worked. How fun it turned out.

Be kind to one another.

Candy corn

I always buy candy corn for Halloween. I don't get any kids trick or treating in my neighborhood so I just eat it! It is really my downfall but thanks to Newton's Nook I discovered it counts as a vegetable. Whoopee!

Be kind to one another.

No posts on Wednesday

This week has been so crazy I forgot to post on Wednesday. It has been a whirlwind and I am glad to have time today to regroup. I made my Halloween family cards a while back and don't remember everything I used while making them. If you have any questions just let me know and I will find what I used and let you know.

The felt crow that is sitting on the pumpkin is from Little B. I know that because it is on top of my Halloween "stuff".  

I want to thank everyone for the birthday cards, crafting goodies and best wishes. It made my day so special. 

Be kind to one another.

Another Fall card

I made another fall card using the Impression Obsession Fall Leaf  Background die with green mirror cardstock over a white panel. Easy and quick. I don't make a lot of fall cards but since I have a few dies I wanted to use them. I'll feel more like fall when the leaves start changing color. It's really late here this year. 

Be kind to one another.

The shine is hard to capture

The bad thing about mirror card stock is trying to get a good picture of it. I embossed this copper mirror c/s with a Provo Craft Cuttlebug embossing folder for autumn. The shine is awesome but the reflection keeps it from being a good picture. I used an Altenew small leaf die to cut the leaves from paper a dear friend sent me.  It's hard to see but turned out to be a lovely card.

Be kind to one another.