Birthday Flowers

Good morning. Back to share a card that has been received. Quiet day yesterday, but somehow I managed to stay busy (and I didn't sit down and read either!!!) That can usually be one of my excuses for not getting anything done. Didn't have to leave the house today either. Oh, one thing that took up my time: Cleaning an old turntable my Yankee friend found for me at an estate sale. I'd seen a youtube where this lady was doing dirty pours using a sink strainer, and she had it on what looked to be a surface that turned. Mr. said "I bet an old record player would do that", so I asked my friend to keep an eye out. Yesterday morning when I went out to water the porch plants, there's this big box sitting by the door. He sends us New England apples fresh from an orchard about this time, so I just thought "what a heavy box of apples". Mr. came in, said he'd had a phone call  -- that our friend had sent my record player. It was old, very grubby and had to be cleaned (and I'll need to clean it again) so that took some time. Then I had some phone calls to make, blah, blah.

EDIT: Forgot to give a welcome shout out to a lovely new follower: Doreen of Doreen's Dream. Thanks for becoming a follower Doreen, and I hope all my old friends will hop over to visit my new friend, and enjoy her beautiful work. She has some recent pan pastel cards that are stunning! 

Here's the card:

- Penny Black First Blush (colored with copics and some white gel pen)

- Altenew Pinstripe (clear)

Stamped the floral image on Xpress c/s, colored. Then used Avery Self-Adhesive Labels to restamp the image and use the just the flowers as a mask (saw this trick on a Jennifer McGuire video). Cut inside the inked lines of the flowers so that I didn't get a halo, but in some places I still did. After placing the mask, stamped in one direction with the pinstripe image...(since it's clear, it makes it easier to see placement). Re-inked the stamp and turned the opposite way to create a crosshatch pattern. Added some white highlights with a gel pin. Die cut with a stitched die. Used a linen look DP for another stitched mat, punched a label from that same paper to do the sentiment. Added some red pearls! That's it!

Today is exercise day for us, so we'll be out of the house today, and it's hot. Got some other errands to run as well. So ya'll stay cool, if it's still hot where you are, and have a super great day. Thanks for visiting, come back when you can! Hugs 

Rudolph Day August 2018

Good morning, and Welcome! It's Rudy Day for August 2018, and gosh, not that many more challenges left in this year...So best get a move on, and start making some Christmas Cards. For any who may not know about Rudolph Day, it's an Anything Goes Christmas Challenge, opens on the 25th of each month, closes on the end of that month. Only rule is the theme must have something to do with Christmas. Lots of inspiration and some good prizes too, with our hostess, Maureen (aka Scrappymoi)

Penny Johnson Stampavie Jolly Holly (thanks Bonnie)- colored with copics, Sakura clear star, Nuvo Rhubarb (holly berries)

- P. Black Snowflake Stitch Frames

- P.Black Curved Stitch border

-  Gina K 6x6 Cold Snap pack

- Sookwang tape with Ritz Glitter for the green border

- clear stamp inked with Gina K Red Velvet for the sentiment

Now ya'll c'mon and join me in playing in this month's Rudolph Day Challenge. And thanks for visiting. Have a super great day. Hugs

August Twofer Challenge - Geometrics

Good evening, and welcome. I'm skating into the August Twofer Challenge by the skin of my teeth!
This month I tried very hard to play as the theme is Geometrics. I have circles, ovals, squares, rectangles, you name it. So it ought to have been super easy, right? Here goes, and see what you think.

Here's the 2 cards done using a skinny Double Stitched Rectangle, Set B, Sue Wilson. (hope this link to Walmart works. Mine came from Oozak when there was a 50% off, and it's no longer showing at the site).

Also used the S/Binders Wonky Rectangle as a mat.

 

 

-SnS sunflower image was inked with DI markers onto 140# c/s. Then used a water brush to pull the color out.  The skinny stitched rectangle cut the focal image. Then used larger sized rectangles from that set to cut the frame. Adhered a previously made Brusho background onto cream cardstock. Adhered the frame rectangle piece, then inlaid the watercolored piece.  Added a stamped sentiment, 3 wooden look sequins, and decided to do a few score lines.

- Northwoods Halloween image was colored with copics. Used the same skinny stitched rectangle to die cut the scene into thirds. Wasn't sure how this would look with the separation in the scene, but I think it turned out ok. A background of DOX was created using Dusty Concord, Mermaid blue and Carved Pumpkin. Sprayed this lightly with some Tattered Angels silver-y spray (which of course doesn't show. It made spatters I was proud of though!) Tried to use an unmounted plain rubber spiderweb stamp to black emboss - I've learned that unmounted stamps do NOT stamp well for me, so will be hunting up that mounting stuff I have somewhere. Decided to dry emboss a SU spiderweb, which worked ok, although not much of that shows either. Purple glitter paper was die cut with the Wonky rectangle (which needed a little artistic license. The large die in the set didn't quit fit for the trio of rectangles, so drew around the outer edge to lengthen it enough that the images would fit better. Then fussy cut ). Last bit was to use another snippet of the green brusho piece to heat emboss the Halloween sentiment, add some purple rhinestones. One Halloween card down!

I'm having blogger issues with comments again. I have deleted the email address, saved, waited a bit, then re-added the address, saved. But still not getting the comments. This started yesterday. So bear with me.

Off to link up with the August Twofer Challenge. Thanks for joining me this evening. Hugs.

Watercolored Sunflower (CAS August 2018 Challenge)

Good evening. Tomorrow is Friday..YAY. Even though I've been retired quite a few years, I still get happy when Friday is the next day. I guess it was ingrained in my consciousness for too many years :-)

I've been trying hard to get into this month's CAS Watercolor challenge, since it's sunflowers. Have a lot of those images (but when I went hunting in the flower stamp drawers, I wasn't finding as many as I thought I remembered having!!!)  I was looking for something that would be easy to watercolor, since that's a bit of a challenge to me. Finally settled on a clear stamp that probably was from the Michael's Dollar bin. I knew I was going to stamp on w/color paper, and  with that texture - it needs to be restamped multiple times, so I wanted a clear image I could keep reinking. Now please don't ya'll laugh at this card-----

used Distress markers in shades of yellow to ink up this stamp, and can't even remember how many times I kept reinking, restamping. The outline part shows up as though I'd outlined it, but that was the Rusty Hinge marker that showed up nicely here. I also had some of the Mustard Seed and Lemonade inked on the edges of this outline stamp. Then used a waterbrush to try to pull out the colors...that worked fairly well. Wanted a bit more shading, so scribbled the Mustard Seed on the kraft mat, and used the brush to add some more layers around on the petals. Center was done with adding a little Spiced Marmalade first, then using Tea Dye, Brushed Corduroy, and just going to darker browns until I got something that looked like the brown center of a sunflower to me.

Now here's where I said Don't Laugh! This was just a single flower...so I free handed the stem and leaves with the water brush. That little blossom just looked too lonely all by itself.

Mat was colored with brusho greens and yellows, also on watercolor weight paper. For some reason, it didn't want to spread well so that's why so many of the specks still show in the colors. The c/s was quite wet, but the crystals just didn't want to spread around even though I kept spritzing with water, finally with a gold spray. Decided I liked it anyway behind the sunflower and cut it with a S/B Wonky die.  The sunflower looks like it's on white paper, but it was cream colored..the card base is also cream color, and IRL these 'creams' look the same color.

OK, off to link up with the CAS August Watercolor (AW, heck, go ahead and laugh if you want! I'm still trying to get the hang of watercolor). Skating in by the skin of my teeth----

Ya'll have a nice evening. Thanks for joining me & maybe see ya again tomorrow if I can finish a card tonight. Trying to sneak in the 2fer also! Big hugs.