Emboss resist

I used GinaK's Elegant Flowers set to revisit the old emboss resist technique. Gina has been reviewing lots of techniques that many stampers know, but have forgotten about, over on Stamp TV. It's fun! Emboss resist is simple. Emboss an image in clear, then sponge color over it. The color of your original cardstock, pink in this case, will show through. I used GinaK's Floral Frenzy kit for all the stamps, paper and ribbon on this card. The inks are Ancient Page Agean Blue, Pine and Pink.

I hope you are enjoying some beautiful spring weather! I have noticed a slowdown of Internet based activites in myself and others. Let's not lose touch, though!! I'll try not to go four days without posting again for awhile!

My favorite flower. And a card.

A little something using some GinaK. stuff. I finally broke down and ordered the Floral Frenzy kit, and I'm glad I did, it's full of fun stuff! I used Best Fishes and Bold Flowers for this one.
The humble dandelion. How many crushed and grubby dandelions have been passed from one small, dirty hand to my own? Who taught my three sons to do this? Were they born knowing how to melt the heart of their mother? Did their father teach them? I know not. I care not. I only hope that I never forget which flowers are really important.

Love can split the...

This is for the Crafty Secrets challenge over on SCS. I'm this week's hostess, we'd love to have you come play with us!! I used three Crafty Secrets products for this one. The Altered Art stamp set, Love and Romance Vintage Cuts, and Birds & Botanicals Images and Journal Notes. The paper is all VERY old PSX, which I got for free with an order from ATRS a year or two ago.

I've been cleaning out my stamp room. I gave a five inch high stack of DP to one of my students last week. (Don't worry, I don't play favorites, she's the only one I know of who scrapbooks!) I have a lot of stuff I bought before I realized that I didn't actually like ALL DP! I have definite opinions about it now, and I found myself using stuff I didn't really like just because it was bought and paid for. I've decided not to play with stuff I don't absolutely LOVE. Life is just too short. I mean what if the last card I ever make is with stuff I don't like? Of course I won't care because I'll be hanging out with my pal, Jesus, but still, why bother? I mean, say I give the card to you. You'll be standing there thinking, "Man, she's hanging out with Jesus, and all I have is this card made with inferior quality DP!" Not a great legacy.

Theology, organization and papercrafting, you can get it all here!

Happy Easter!!!

This card meets two challenges: The High Hopes and Stamp Something challenges! Jeanne was this week's High Hopes Challenge hostess.

I used Basic Gray's Color Me Silly line, which might seem a little too bright for an Easter card. But bear with me, I have three sons! I had my 5yo in mind when I made this. His Highness (5yods) usually does not deign to comment on my paper creations, but he zoned in on this one as soon as he saw it. I have The Little Dictator's approval, what more could I want?

Crafty Secrets Challenge

For this week's Crafty Secrets Challenge, Lori Lynn asked us to use metal on our cards somewhere. On this one, I used some craft wire, which was one of Lori's suggestions. I have lots of it, and I rarely use it. It was popular for a while there, so I bought it. I never really knew what to do with it, though! This is one of CS's small sets, called Believe. I think it's the prettiest angel stamp I've ever seen.

For the Prima flower, I sponged it with Brilliance Mediterranean Blue, which is intense, like Brilliant Blue. Then I sprayed Caspian Sea Shimmer Mist on it, and sprinkled it with Blue Boy Art Glitter. To set the glitter, I gave it a few shots of hairspray. This glitter isn't going anywhere! Ultra hold, baby!!

For the center, I used a pop up glue dot and pressed beads into it. I've been trying to use my beads lately, and these are really gorgeous.

Easter Egg

This project is pretty typical of the way I craft. And the way I craft is with no planning or foresight whatsoever. It is completely me normal for me to spend quite a bit of time on the various elements of an item, only to discover that my proportions are WAY off. Not just a little off, but two or three times as big or small as they need to be to fit together.

That happened twice here. First, my Crafty Secrets Sweet Chips chipboard frame is too big. It is painted, embossed, Glimmer Misted, Stickled, and pearled, not to mention the CS chick sticker and its mat. I happily did all this, and was supah pleased with the results. The fact that it is almost as big as my egg did not occur to me. At all.

Then, I rummaged up these little balls for the feet. I have some of the same balls that are slightly larger. They would have been perfect. This poor egg. It's front heavy because of the huge frame, and its feet are too small. It's fine on the shelf as long as everyone tip toes by. I have a husband and three sons, you can just imagine how much tiptoeing goes on around here. This poor egg keeps hurling itself off the shelf. It's a good thing it's paper mache. Otherwise someone could get really hurt around here, and all because I have no foresight in crafting.

I got the idea for this egg from Teresa McFayden's EZine, Cottage Bella. This is my first EZIne subscription, and I am really enjoying it!!

Supplies:
Miss Muffet Art Glitter
Crafty Secrets Spring Joys sticker sheet & Sweet Chips chipboard frame
Primas
Vintage seam binding
corsage pin
paper mache egg (from second hand store)

The Tale of the Ugly Card. Not this one. Another one.

I haven't posted in a couple of days. The other day, I was trying to make a card, and it was so hideous that it scared me. Seriously. It was ugly in epic proportions. The pinnacle of visual insult. I had to avert my eyes, lest they begin to bleed. Pure evil. With glitter. Eventually, due to my incredible intellect and nimble mind, I came up with the idea of throwing the whole shootin' match into the trash. Brilliant, I know. I'm a very bright woman. I frequently have revolutionary ideas, like throwing what is quite obviously trash, into the trash. Now I'm afraid to take my trash out.

So I avoided my stamp room for a day or two. I tried to give it a wide berth when I walked by, but my house is small, so I would have fallen down the basement stairs if I veered more than a couple of inches off the path, so I just made the sign of the cross when I went by. I'm a Baptist, but I thought it couldn't hurt.

I ventured in there today. I grabbed Anna Wight's Wildflower Silhouettes, figuring that even if the card was ugly, the stamps would still be pretty. And they are. Still pretty. Thank you, Anna.