Anything Goes

This is the title of  Darnell's Ideas motivational for the fourth week. I made this card 

 for a sweet friend by using pattern paper and a Kat Scrappiness cover plate. The greeting is Simon Says embossed in SU copper embossing powder. The flowers on the paper are copper, I don't know why they look so gold in the picture.

My housekeeping style can best be described by "there appears to have been a struggle in here".

Be kind to one another.

Quick update

Hi friends,

I just wanted to tell you what's been going on lately. It was a wonderful Easter with a huge surprise. I went to my son's house and after I got inside they said there was something they wanted to show me. We went to the back door and out popped out my grandson. He got leave to fly home for four days and it was so great to see him.

Things went downhill from then. First, I found out several of the Easter cards I sent didn't get there and that makes me sad.. Postage is going up again but they can't deliver a few letters! Then I have been researching how to cut the cable since they raised my monthly bill $38. However, life intervened and I haven't had to chance to do it but I did call and they lowered the monthly fee. That sounds so simple but I had to call so many times to get a real person to talk to to get that done. 

I'll recap quickly - I have had ants in the kitchen and had to go get spray. Toilet handle broke and had to go back to home improvement store and get a new one. Garbage disposal backed up and that was nasty. These are things I never wanted to know how to do. Spent several days cleaning up that mess. Yesterday after I ate lunch I went to rinse off my plate and heard dripping. Opened cabinet under sink and had three inches of standing water and a covering of black "stuff". I called a plumber immediately and he was here within an hour. Disposal was leaking and I don't know how long. He replaced it and called a mold remediator and he was here within thirty minutes! He took scrapings and will let me know if it's sludge or mold. Cabinet will be rebuilt either way and that will take several days. It caused me to miss my monthly zoom with dear friends.  He came back this morning to take air samples and the machine wouldn't work so he will be back this afternoon to try again. We did not sleep well last night because of storms and one of us is afraid of storms and has to be held.

I have made no cards and may not make one today. I have decided NOT to get out of bed tomorrow.

Sweet old lady? More like a battle tested warrior queen!

Be kind to one another.

Happy Easter

A beautiful day here before storms this evening. I hope you all have a great day celebrating with your family and friends.

Today's card again uses an older Stampin' Up wood mount set called Hey, Chick. I used the small egg stamp and a larger Poppy Stamps egg die.  For the sentiment I used a mom unknown stamp and a Lawn Fawn question mark die and speech bubble die.

With all this rain we need an ark. I Noah a guy.

Be kind to one another.

Cover Die Eclipse

This month our Group of Seven Cardmakers are making cards using cover dies over a stamped image. The look is great and so easy. I went to some older Stampin' Up red rubber stamps for my images. The first card uses SU Wonderful Romance colored with Copics. The cover die is from Gina Marie that comes with two cover dies but I only used one. I stamped the image on two panels and colored both, then cut one with the cover die and matched the design and glued together. The second card is a SU  stamp called Blessed Easter. I stamped it in black ink and cut with a cover die from Frantic Stamper, matched it up and glued over the first panel.  The sentiment is from Poppy Stamps. I will add a sentiment to the first card when I use it. 

Don't let other people rain on your day. It's your day, rain on it yourself.

 

Be kind to one another.

Spring is here

Our Spring is weird so far. Cold in the mornings like in the 20's. May warm up a bit OR it's in the high 60's, low 70's and sometimes both in the same day!

My card today uses an older Stampin' Up wood mount set called Spring Gifts and a die from Lawn Fawn called Peekaboo Backdrop. The images were colored with Copics and the sentiment is Poppy Stamps.

No matter how much chocolate you eat, your earrings will still fit.

Be kind to one another.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

He's here. My second great grandchild was born yesterday at 3:55 p.m. His name is Jackson and he is a burrito wearing a blue hat! I forgot how small they come. I can't wait for his big sister to meet him.

 Life has gotten in the way these past few weeks and I'm missing crafting and hope to get back in the stamp room soon. I did make a quick new baby card. I dug out an old, old stamp of baby shoes by StampCraft and used blue ink to stamp it. Then added a circle from Impression Obession. The greeting is from La La Land crafts.

Did you hear about the population of Ireland's capital?       It's Dublin.

                     (Best I could do on St. Patrick's Day).

Be kind to one another.

Using some pattern paper

I don't have a lot of Easter paper but I did think this one went with the die I used. This paper came from an Echo Park 6x6 pad and the die is Poppy Stamps. The sentiment is also Poppy Stamps.

So much to do, so little desire to do it.

Be kind to one another.

Easter basket

Still working on Easter cards. This one uses the basket of eggs from Sunny Studio and the pussy willow dies are Alexandra Renke dies. Both are colored with Copics. The sentiment is also Sunny Studio. You get to pick which egg is the good one!

Did you know that water is the most essential element of life? Without it you cannot make coffee.

Be kind to one another.

Looking forward to Spring

There are signs that Spring may be coming. Warmer temperatures and the coming rains. My card today features Lilly of the Valley that I always think of in Spring. The die is Impression Obsession and the Easter die is from Simon Says. I'm not sure about the pattern paper, it was with other sheets of 6x6 paper that weren't from the same pad and just loose. It looks like Lawn Fawn.

Did you know by replacing potato chips with grapefruit as a snack you can lose up to 90% of what little joy you have left in your life?

Be kind to one another.

Joining Darnell

Today I am using Darnell's new inspiration chart, Idea's, by using an embossing folder for this week's post. This is a great motivational tool if you need a jump start. I used a WeRMemory Keepers embossing folder and colored it with Catherine Pooler inks and blending brushes. The sentiment is Poppy Stamps as well as the shape die I used to cut it out.

Triscuits are the perfect snack for anyone that has ever had the urge to eat wicker furniture.

Be kind to one another.

Let love shine

As you can see, I used pretty much the same design for my Valentines this year. I used the embossing folder from Simon Says called Magnetic on the white cardstock panel and on red mirror cardstock from Tonic, then cut with a heart die and added to the panel. The Love die is from Frantic Stamper. 

Tony, the tiger, for president. Make America Grrreat again!

Be kind to one another.

Happy Valentine's Day

I hope you all have a wonderful day. This is a day of celebrating love and I send it out to all of you faithful followers and wonderful bloggers who stop by to encourage me when I post.

This card is made with a Spellbinders die and a Lawn Fawn die for grass. It is red and green but not a Christmas card! The bottom needed something so I added grass for the sign to stand in. I used a white plastic heart for the sign to send love.

Two blood cells fell in love but it was all in vein.

Be kind to one another.

Sun and snow

It has been wonderful to have temps in the 60's last week with sunshine. Tomorrow we have snow predicted! What weird weather we've had the last few months.

I used a Simon Says Stacked Hearts die cut from pink cardstock and added to a cherry cobbler card panel, then to a pink card base. The sentiment was added at the bottom.

When older people say enjoy them while they're young, they mean your knees and hips.

Be kind to one another.

Pretty day

We have sunshine back again. Not for long but it's so much better to have a bright, sunny day. Made this Valentine using my new Creative Expressions embossing folder called Floral Vines for the background in black cardstock. The heart is cut from Paper Rose paper called Crimson Rose. It has a hint of red at the top of the gold. The love die is cut in red and black cardstock and the panel is on Gina K. red cardstock.

I love my dentist so much I gave him a little plaque.

Be kind to one another.

A frustrating week

You know, I am a simple person who stays home most days, reads, watches TV and makes cards. How I get into weird things is beyond me, but I do. I ordered a product from Amazon that came in a Turkish language. I don't read or write Turkish so I couldn't read the instructions. I called the company it came from and they said it was not a North American product. I called Amazon and said this was not the right product so they sent a replacement. It was exactly the same as the first one! Sending both back. Then my cell phone died and I spent hours getting a new one and everything transferred. Came home and pictures wouldn't load into my computer. See what I mean. Everyday normal things that go awry through no fault of my own but cause such frustration to get resolved. Now I can load pictures from my phone but not from my camera. Duh.

So, I have made one Valentine and it is Feb. 4th. This card was embossed with a Spellbinders folder on the panel and white heart. I added the heart to a red doily and of course it is crooked. Crooked is my signature look I've decided. With any luck at all I should be able to mail Valentines at least right before Easter.

I got drunk last night and did my own taxes. I'm so pleased, I'm getting four million dollars back this year!

Be kind to one another.

Alcohol Inks with Gilding Flakes

I'm delighted to welcome everyone to the Group of Seven Cardmakers 2024.  January is always a cold, dreary month here and a great month to stay in and craft. A good way to start this year is with bright gilding flakes added to cards. I hope you'll visit all the ladies to see their shiny creations.

I love the design alcohol inks make and the blend of colors. My first card used blue and purple inks with gold gilding flakes added with glue. I had a hard time making them stick to the ink. I think I let it dry too much before applying the flakes. The glue worked just fine so I did that with both cards I made. I used the flower cluster from Simon Says Stamp and Sizzix Thanks dies cut with gold card stock.

The second card used yellow, orange and red inks with a Spellbinders Sealed Wildflowers die and the Hello is W plus 9 in silver card stock..

A fight at the local fish market. Battered fish everywhere.

Be kind to one another.

Feels like the frozen tundra

Okay, I'm tired of winter and these below freezing temps. And we aren't getting the worst that some states are getting with lots of snow and ice along with freezing temps. I hope everyone is staying inside and cozy warm. 

My friend lost her great granddaughter a minute after she was born. It is so heartbreaking when everything went so well all along. I made this card for her by stamping on the back of a panel of vellum and adding it to a card base. Then stamped the sentiment on the front of the vellum. Very simple, but so heartfelt.

A book fell and hit my head. I only have my shelf to blame.

Be kind to one another.

One more

While it was out, I decided to make one more quick card with the Altenew Decorative Floral embossing folder. This time I used black cardstock and embossed it. Then I lightly tapped over it with a versamark pad and added gold embossing powder and heat set it. Lots of shine on this one too. I think it will be a birthday card, but not sure yet, so I didn't add a sentiment.

Broken barometer for sale. No pressure.

Be kind to one another.

Same embossing folder, different day

Hope everyone is staying cozy warm and dry. This is my second card made with the Altenew Decorative Florals. Embossed cream cardstock and brushed over the top with brown ink. Then a tapped a Versamark ink pad over the top of the brown after it dried and embossed again with Speckled Egg Distress Glaze. It gave the card the most beautiful shine around the flowers although you can't see it in the picture. I used a small sentiment at the top and added pearls to the flower centers.  It was so easy to dress the embossing folder up a bit.

I didn't mean to push all your buttons. I was just trying to hit mute.

Be kind to one another.

Weather gone wild

My hope today is that everyone experiencing all this wind, rain, snow and ice are staying in and staying safe. I tuned in to the weather channel to check our weather and saw all the terrible weather all across the country. We only have rain and a teeny bit of snow, along with wind yesterday. It's great crafting weather as long as you have heat and lights. 

I am using a new Altenew embossing folder I purchased last year called Decorative Florals. Oh my gosh, I am in love with it. It is so versatile. I made a sympathy card with it for a friend who just lost her son. Such a simple card but I love how it turned out. I used gray cardstock and embossed it with the new e/f. Then I just swiped over the raised part with white pigment ink to bring out the design. I added the sentiment on the gray cardstock and went around the edges with the white ink, then punched it out with an oval punch from SU . I left a small border on the sides to tie in with the white ink.

I want to link this to NBUS as this is the first outing for this embossing folder.

Eat more donuts. It's the original "hole" food.

Be kind to one another.

Happy New Year

I'm late with new year wishes for all of you but no less sincere. I wish everyone good health, time with family and lots of crafty time, especially with family. My granddaughter came down before Christmas and made cards for her co-workers and we had such a good time. My job was to cut and fold card bases for her and I loved it.

My card today uses a Simon Says Vine Canopy embossing folder. I inked over it with CP inks in brown and turquoise and added the panel to turquoise card base. The sentiment from Altenew was die cut from the same turquoise cardstock.

I am not self medicating with chocolate. The lady at the shop wrote me a prescription for it. Well, she called it a receipt, but whatever.

Be kind to one another.