Baking Buddies

Hi, Friends......

I am here with a perky little kitchen-themed card I made especially for Darlene and Diane's "Kitchen is the Heart of the Home" Challenge, which is part of their big 2 Year BD Celebration. Look at the totally cute inspiration board they provided:

I received this fun Flapper Doodle - Flappers in the Kitchen stamp set a number of months ago in a prize.  It might have been originally sold by MFT, but is now discontinued.  This is the first time it's had ink between its toes. 

 I was inspired by the fun aprons with the bits of red gingham and the kitchen herbs in the mood board.  I kept the stamped image completely uncolored to let the other elements shine.

Supplies used include:
Flapper Doodle - Flappers in the Kitchen stamp set
Versafine Ink in Onyx Black
Clear embossing powder
Lawn Fawn - Large Stitched Rectangles die set
Sizzix - Circles, Scallop die set
M&C Boutique - Large Circle Frame die set
Winnie & Walter - Essentials: Audrey Cutaways die set
Verve - Sprightly Sprigs die set
DCWV Stack - Foiled (silver cardstock)
Silver cording from my stash

Thank you for stopping by today and leaving your sweet comments!!! I have another card I made with these two flappers....a Christmas card. I'll be back later to share that one, too.

<3
Janis

Thank you for the honor of entering this card in the following challenges:
1. Double D Challenges - Kitchen is the Heart of the Home
2. Word Art Wednesday #318-319 - AG
3. CARDZ-TV Anything Goes Challenge #31
4. As You Like It - Favorite Die and Why  (I used my Verve - Sprightly Sprigs which is one of my very favorite dies for adding a touch of something special to my cards...whether it be to adorn a cluster of flowers or to add a little bit of foliage alone here and there.) 
5. Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Add a Sentiment
6. Craftyhazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge - January
7. Love to Scrap LTSCB #105 - Anything Goes
8. Tuesday Throwdown #376 - Anything Goes 
9. Viva la Verve Sketch Challenge - January Sketch

Quick and Easy Cards from Patterned Paper

Hi, Friends......

I am here to share a quick and easy idea for cards I made for one part of Mrs. A's Butterfly Challenge. The theme this fortnight is Butterfly/ies + X for Xtra Fold &/or the color Peacock Green/Blue. I am participating only in the color portion of the challenge this time.

I happened upon two identical 12"X12" pieces of patterned paper in my stash that I had previously cut to size for A2 backgrounds. They were sheets actually made for scrapping rather than cardmaking because they each had this pretty butterfly/floral pattern in the corners and a big blank area in the middle for your photos and embellishments.


Being a cardmaker, I find that these "scrapping" pages can make lovely cards if you cut the decorated parts just right. In this case, I was able to use the main decorated part for the front of the cards and the less decorated (but still pretty) corners for the inside of the cards. I had enough for two identical cards!! Yay!! I am trying to do multiples of most of my cards this year!!

I gave the panels a slight vintage look with some distressing by inking around the edges. I even got a chance to use my new Sea Breeze Tonic Studios - Nuvo Crystal Drops for making a few "dew drops" on the fronts. So pretty!! (Thank you, Karen Ladd!!)

OUTSIDE of the card........and..........INSIDE of the card

To make it a little fancier, I used a lacy border punch on the lower edge and put a scalloped border on the upper edge of the front panel. I don't have a flat scalloped edge border die, so I used the long edge of my favorite and most-used die for backgrounds, the large pierced, scalloped rectangle from Winnie & Walter - Essentials: Audrey Cutaways die set, to cut just the top edge of my panel. If you have pretty-edged rectangle dies, this is an easy way to make a fancy border on one side of your panel.

 
<---Only cut the leading edge of the rectangle.







<-----Stop before you get all the way down to here.

Supplies used include:
DCWV paper
Martha Stewart Edger Punch - Doily Lace
Winnie & Walter - Essentials: Audrey Cutaways die set
Distress Ink in Peacock Feather
Clear Dollar Stamps - Praying for You (discontinued)
Versafine ink in Vintage Sepia
Tonic Studios - Nuvo Crystal Drops in Sea Breeze

Hope you liked this idea for making quick cards from some of those large scrapbooking papers in your stash. Thank you for stopping by!!!

<3
Janis

Thank you for the honor of entering this card in the following challenges:
1. Mrs. A's Butterfly Challenge #93 - Butterfly/ies + X for Xtra Fold &/or the color Peacock Green/Blue
2. Allsorts Week #451 - Butterflies
3. Word Art Wednesday #318-319 - AG
4. HeARTful Stamping Jan 21-28 - AG + a stamp
5. CARDZ-TV Anything Goes Challenge #30 
6. CARDZ-TV Anything Goes Challenge #31
7. The House that Stamps Built - DCC13 - Things with Wings
8. As You Like It - Favorite Die and Why  (My fave is the large scalloped rectangle from my Winnie & Walter - Essentials: Audrey Cutaways die set because of the pretty edge for making lovely layers.)
 9. Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Add a Sentiment
10. Tuesday Throwdown Challenge #375 - Distressing
11. Craftyhazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge - January

Warm Winter Wishes

Hi, Friends.......

I am here with the companion card to my shaker that I posted last week. I used the negative space for the shaker and here is the "positive". :) This is the tree that received the rejected snow texture paste I scraped off that same shaker. lol... Looks fine on this tree since it isn't against a white background! I added more sparkle with lots of white glitter. This Poppystamps - Grand Pine Tree die is quickly becoming my favorite focal point die because it is such a nice size to cover a card and it is so gorgeous.

Again, I perched little birdies on the branches. (Awwww....I love wintertime birds!!) They were cut from the leftover scraps from my balloons in THIS card.

Supplies used include:
Poppystamps - Grand Pine Tree die
Memory Box - Resting Birds die set
Core'dinations - heavy duty white cardstock
DecoArt - Snow-Tex Textural Medium
American Crafts - WOW! Super-fine Glitter - White
Zig - Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Brush Pen (to add shimmer to birdies)
Pretty Pink Posh - Sparkling Clear Mix sequins
DCWV patterned paper for background
Winnie & Walter - Essentials: Audrey Cutaways die set (for background)
Winnie & Walter - Comfort + Joy stamp set (for sentiment)
Versamark Ink in Imperial Purple

I love how this card turned out and I hope you like it, too! Thank you so much for stopping by today!!

<3
Janis

Thank you for the honor of entering this card in the following challenges:
1. Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge #368 - AG Christmas + Opt. Feature a Creature
2. Word Art Wednesday #318-319 - AG
3. ABC Christmas Challenge - A-Antlers or B-Birds
4. Dare2BArtzy January Challenge - Winter Wonderland
5. HIMCR #335 - Super Scraps Saturday
6. HeARTful Stamping Challenge #26 (1-14 to 1-21) - Anything Goes, Must Stamp
7. CARDZ-TV Anything Goes Challenge #30
8. The House that Stamps Built - DCC13 - Things with Wings
9. DL.ART Thankful Thursday #220 - Winter or TY
10. As You Like It - Favorite Die and Why (The Poppystamps - Grand Pine Tree die because it makes such a fabulous focal point to my card!)
11. Crop Stop January Linky Party #36 - Anything Goes use a product from company CS sells (I used Tombow adhesive, Core'dinations cardstock, Memory Box dies, Poppystamp dies, and Tsukineko - Versafine ink)
12. Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Add a Sentiment
13. The House that Stamps Built - J1018 Tic Tac Toe (I used the middle column - Snowflakes, Blue, Glitter)
14. Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - Birds of a Feather
15. Fairy Tale Challenge - Photo Inspiration

 







16. Cupcake Inspirations CIC 437

   

One Layer Butterfly Card with Ultra Pink

Hi, Friends......

Here with a quick post for Mrs. A's Butterfly Challenge. The theme this fortnight is Butterfly/ies + O is for One Layer &/or "the colour Ultra Pink".....which being interpreted into American means "the color Hot Pink". ;) (Just gotta tease my UK friends every so often! <3 )

I had been ruminating on what to do for this challenge for the entire two weeks and suddenly realized tonight that the gates close in just a few hours! Eeek! I pulled out a couple new stamps to use and went to work on a kinda vintage, kinda grungy card. I had to stage it with some embellishments since none were allowed with the One Layer part of the challenge. :)

Supplies used include:
Kaisercraft - Windsor stamp
Prima - Brick stamp
Versafine ink - Onyx Black
Sharpie marker in Hot Pink Ultra Pink
Distress Ink in Spun Sugar
White Cardstock

What do you think of it?  Should I have stamped the bricks on the right side all the way over to the vintage image?  I think I might have liked that a little better.  Oh, well...  One Layer Cards are not my forte but getting out of our comfort zone is what challenges are all about, right? This one was a little scary, but a lot of fun!

Thank you for stopping by and thank you for your encouraging comments!! They make my day. :)

<3
Janis

Thank you for the honor of entering this card in the following challenges:
1. Mrs. A's Butterfly Challenge #92 - Butterfly/ies + O is for One Layer &/or the Color Ultra Pink
2. Word Art Wednesday Anything Goes Challenge #316-317   
3. Love to Scrap LTSCB #105 - Anything Goes
4. Craft Stamper January TIMI Challenge - Anything Goes with Stamping
5. Penny Black at All Sorts - Something New (must stamp focal)
6. HeARTful Stamping Challenge #26 (1-14 to 1-21) - Anything Goes, Must Stamp
7. CARDZ-TV Anything Goes Challenge #30
8. The House that Stamps Built - DCC13 - Things with Wings
9. Tuesday Throwdown Challenge #375 - Distressing 
10. Allsorts Week #450 - No Patterned Papers

Joyeux Noel Shaker

 

Hi, Friends.......

First off, let me tell you that making this card nearly put me in the grave. Shakers and I do not get along. And, add to that.....my snow textural medium was NOT WHITE!!! When I put it on the white card base, it looked a three-year-old had spread outdated vanilla frosting from a tub all over it. ARRRGH!!  (The medium was quite ancient...do you think that had anything to do with it?  Naaaw...surely not!  Ha.)

Well, I am pleased to tell you that after much (and I do mean MUCH!!) scraping, repositioning, trimming off of uneven edges (not to mention weeping and gnashing of teeth!), I managed to make a decent-looking card. I am as astonished as you are!!

I actually intended to make a card with the tree diecut first, instead of the negative.  But I got so excited with the prospect of making a shaker..that I did this one first.  (I'll never make that mistake again!!  LOL)  Can you see the little birdies in the tree?  These are from my new Memory Box - Resting Birds die set.  LOVE!!!  Can you also see the rainbow refraction from the light on the acetate surface?  Oh, bummer.  I hoped it wasn't too noticeable.  Ugh.  :(

I tried to disguise the remnants of the snow medium (after scraping off as much as I could) with white glitter. Although you can still see that it is not white (that's my new color name for this...."not white"!), it isn't too bad. Not like it was. Trust me on this!

I should have put more shaker mix inside. When the card is standing upright, it all falls down into the trunk of the tree. But I never know the right amount to add!!  And after it is all attached, what do you do????  Below is a shot of it lying flat. For some unknown reason, the silver embossing and shaker mix has morphed into gold.  (I always say I am an alchemist at heart, but even I didn't realize I had thiiiiiis much talent!!  Weird.)

Supplies used include:
Poppystamps - Grand Pine Tree die
Memory Box - Resting Birds die set
Core'dinations - heavy duty white cardstock
DecoArt - Snow-Tex Textural Medium
American Crafts - WOW! Super-fine Glitter - White
Acetate sheet from stash
Loctite - Spray Adhesive (to attach acetate sheet to die-cut card front)
Memory Box - Resting Birds die set
Zig - Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Brush Pen (to add shimmer to birdies)
Tombow Multi Mono Glue (to attach birdies to acetate)
Scotch - Mounting Tape
Pretty Pink Posh - Silver Confetti 6mm
My Mind's Eye - All is Bright stamp set (sadly discontinued)
Versamark Ink
Ranger - Embossing Powder - silver
My Favorite Things Die-namics - Stitched Oval STAX die set
Ten years off my life (looking at the length of this list, I can see why!!  EEK.)

Thank you for visiting my blog today to take a look at my shaker card. I actually have an idea forming in my brain (such as it is!) that might make shakers easier for me to construct....one can only hope!!! Thank you for your kind comments!!

<3
Janis

Thank you for the honor of entering this card in the following challenges:
1. Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge #367 - AG Christmas w/ opt something old or upcycled
2. Word Art Wednesday Anything Goes Challenge #316-317
3. Love to Scrap LTSCB #105 - Anything Goes
4. Artistic Stamper Challenge #1 - Anything Goes (must stamp)
5. Tuesday Throwdown #374 - Layer It Up!
6. ABC Christmas Challenge - A-Antlers or B-Birds
7. Craft Stamper January TIMI Challenge - Anything Goes with Stamping
8. Dare2BArtzy January Challenge - Winter Wonderland
9. Poppy Stamps PSC40 - Snow Day
10. Memory Box Challenge #32 - Snow and Winter
11. Crop Stop January Linky Party #36 - Anything Goes use a product from company CS sells (I used Tombow adhesive, Core'dinations cardstock, Scotch Mounting Tape, Memory Box dies, Poppystamp dies, MFT Dies, and Tsukineko - Versafine ink)
12. Cupcake Inspirations CIC 437

 

Birthday Balloons - Winnie & Walter

Hi, Friends......

I am here with a fun card I made for this month's Winnie & Walter Rerun Challenge. The showcased set this month is The Party. I don't own this set so I am taking inspiration from a couple of the cards that were featured: Shay's super-fun card with the stamped background HERE and the balloons from Heather's card HERE.

I stamped and die cut my balloons from one of my leftover Easter egg dye backgrounds. Love the pretty pink, purple, and blue colors. I put the balloon die cuts through my Xyron Sticker Maker so they would be easy to stick down to my background.

Supplies used include:
Winnie & Walter - LS Exclusives: So Tweet with Evelin T Designs stamp set
Versafine Ink - Onyx Black
Winnie & Walter - LS Exclusives: So Tweet with Evelin T Designs die set
Winnie & Walter - In a Word: Happy Cutaway die
Winnie & Walter - In a Word: Happy stamp set
DCWV background cardstock
Winnie & Walter - Essentials: Audrey Cutaways die set
Canson - Mixed Media paper
Xyron Sticker Maker

Hope you liked my card. It was really fun to make those colorful balloons.....and hooray that I actually remembered to use my sticker maker for attaching them!! How many of you have one or two of those stuck away in your stash that never see the light of day? I have it on good word that they dry up and become unusable if they are not put into crafty employ regularly. So get yours out right away!! :) Thank you for stopping by today.

<3
Janis

Thank you for the honor of entering this card in the following challenges:
1. Winnie & Walter Rerun #27 Challenge - The Party
2. Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - Winter Blues
3. Love to Scrap LTSCB #105 - Anything Goes
4. Artistic Stamper Challenge #1 - Anything Goes (must stamp)
5. HeARTful Stamping Challenge - Anything Goes + a stamp
6. Word Art Wednesday Anything Goes Challenge #316-317
7. Craftyhazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge - January
8. Tuesday Throwdown #374 - Layer It Up!
9. DL.ART January Linky Challenge - Anything Goes    
10. Double D - 2 Birthday/Anniversary Inspiration Board (I was inspired by the balloons in the pretty purples, pinks and blues)

11. Cupcake Inspirations CIC 437

Nobody Owns a Cat

This HAD been a clean tub!!!  I believe Caspian was the culprit....

Thank you, everyone, for your kind comments of sympathy at the loss of our sweet Shy-Cat. You might wonder how to say her name, Chaienne. It's pronounced "Shy-enn" and that's why we shortened it to "Shy". She wasn't shy by nature......more like sly.  So sometimes we called her "Sly Shy". 

This last year, we discovered that she preferred to drink from the leftover drips of shower water pooled by the drain in the tub, rather than from her full dish of fresh water. Since we were having trouble keeping her hydrated, we began keeping a cat water bowl in the tub. 

Well, she's gone now and we would take it out, but now the other cats are habituated to drinking from there.  A couple of them even get on the verge of urinary tract infections if they can't get to that bathtub water bowl when they come inside the house!!  All the while, it is totally wet and sloppy outside with scores of clean puddles of half-melted snow and ice everywhere.  But, noooooooo.....they have to come inside and make muddy pawprints in the clean tub while they get a drink of water.  Honestly....CATS!!  <3  <3  <3

Hi, Friends......

I was missing my Shy-Baby and decided to make a kitty card with a fabulous new-to-me cat stamp. I had found it at a thrift store a few months back. I loved it, but decided I couldn't justify spending the few dollars that they were asking for it (for yet another cat stamp).....but perhaps my son would like to give it to me for Christmas!!! :)


So....I went ahead and purchased it and handed it to him.  I told him he should hang onto it and put it in my Christmas stocking because I would never remember it by then. I was right. I had forgotten it completely and was delighted all over again. Hahaha!! (Ain't getting old great?!!!)

There are a number of challenges out there right now with a "Something New" theme so I am using this unlabeled stamp and also a sentiment strip from my new Kaisercraft - Pawfect paper set. Fun!!!

Isn't that a fabulous cat image????  I adore all the detail on it.

Supplies used include:
Thrift store cat stamp
Versafine Ink in Vintage Sepia
Clear embossing powder
Scrap of Core'dinations Kraft cardstock
Kaisercraft - Pawfect paper set
Scraps of DCWV paper from my stash

Thank you for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed seeing my card. I appreciate your kind comments so much!!!

<3
Janis

Thank you for the honor of entering this card in the following challenges:
1. SUYP Cats Only Challenge #25 - Furrything Goes or Meowy Christmas
2. Penny Black at All Sorts - Something New (must stamp focal)
3. All Sorts Week #449 - Something New
4. Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - Something New
5. Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Something New
6. Craftyhazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge - January
7. Pixie's Snippets Playground Weeks #315-316 - Use Snippets
8. Love to Scrap  LTSCB #105 - Anything Goes
9. Artistic Stamper Challenge #1 - Anything Goes (must stamp)
10. HeARTful Stamping Challenge - Anything Goes + a stamp
11. Craft Stamper January TIMI Challenge - Anything Goes with Stamping
12. DL.ART January Linky Challenge - Anything Goes