Remembering Mom

I was going to post something today, but really wasn't much in the mood.  You see, today is the anniversary of my mother's passing.  She passed on June 30, 2004 at 10:55 pm in my arms.  I miss her very much and was glad I could be there with her as she left this earth.  It's hard for me to make Mother's Day cards, even just as a challenge since I don't have her with me anymore.  So I'm thinking of her today and of all the wonderful times we had, all the things she enjoyed, and my dad who still misses her very much to this day.  Also, I bet you didn't know that my mother and I shared the same birthday.  Birthday's just aren't the same anymore, but I do celebrate them because I know that is what she would want me to do.  Maybe I'll make her a card on our birthday and place it on her grave stone.  I'll make sure I secure it well so no moisture gets in there and I know she would love that.

So today is sad for me, but hopeful because someday, I'll see her again.  Until then, I miss you mom, and love you so much.  Rest peacefully and I will see you some day.

Love,
Helen

Another Birthday Card for LaChelle

As promised, I told you I would share with you the card I made for LaChelle for my co-worker to give her for her birthday.  As I mentioned in yesterday's post, LaChelle doesn't like anything fancy, so plain and simple it is.  Well, I added a little bit to it, but never-the-less, it's still on the plainer side, if you ask me.  Take a look and see what you think.

Card Recipe

Paper:  whisper white, brights patterned dsp

Ink:  pacific point, tangerine tango, daffodil delight

Stamp Set:  oh hello and happy birthday single stamp

Accessories:  needlepoint border EF, colored button, island indigo baker's twine, basic rhinestones

So I hope this isn't too fancy for LaChelle .... but if it is, oh well, she's a nice person and deserves a little bling.  Until tomorrow, happy stamping!

LaChelle's Birthday Card

One of the cards I was making when I almost forgot the blog hop this week was LaChelle's birthday card.  LaChelle doesn't like anything fancy, and another co-worker of mine asked me to make LaChelle a birthday card for her to give, so I was busy making two for her.  Here's my card ...

Card Recipe

Paper:  whisper white, this & that dsp

Ink:  calypso coral

Stamp Set:  cycle celebration

Accessories:  honeycomb EF, brads, ribbon border punch

I think the card turned out great, and I sure hope LaChelle likes it.  I'll share the other card tomorrow that I made for her from my co-worker.  That turned out pretty cool too.  Until then, have a cool day!

Happy Anniversary Linda & Chuck

WOW, it's been one whole year since my sister and Chuck got married on the Spirit of Philadelphia on a hot, June day.  Where did the time go?  It was a nice wedding, and the weather was picture perfect.

So this year, on June 24, their anniversary, the day was as nice as pie again.  Can you believe it?  We've been having so much rain lately, I was just wondering what the week would be like.  Well, who knew, but it turned out to be another heat wave, and we're just waiting for the air to cool down.  Linda and Chuck spent the weekend in the City, and I was glad the weather held out for them.

I knew I wanted to make a card with some love birds on it, so this is what I made for them.  I had just seen a blue bird sitting on my lamppost, so I went to town trying to recreate the look.  Here's the card I made:

Card Recipe

Paper:  pacific point, tangerine tango, very vanilla, gumball green, brights patterned dsp

Ink:  pacific point, tangerine tango

Stamp Set:  teeny tiny wishes

Accessories:  bird punch, clay rose mold, heart framelit, , needlepoint border EF, fancy fan EF, basic rhinestones

I'm glad they liked the card I made for them.  I wish them many more anniversaries to come.  Happy Anniversary, Sister and Brother-in-Law!

Coloring Down the Lines - Coastal Cabana

Welcome back to the Coloring Down the Lines Blog Hop this week.  You'll never guess what I did?  I was busy making some birthday cards the night before the blog hop and totally forgot about my entry for the week!  OMG!  I've never done that before.  I usually have my card ready well in advance of Wednesday - usually have it completed by Sunday evening.  Well it was time for bed and I was so tired, and all of a sudden, my eyes flew wide open as I remembered:  I never created my card ! I had no idea what I wanted to make, so I sat down and went into panic mode.  I looked over at one of the stamp sets I had just purchased called Lacy and Lovely and said to myself, just make something using that.  So off I went pulling out the colors I wanted to use and finally got it done.  Whew!  What would I have done if I had forgotten?

Anyway, I hope you popped by to see Carol's card for this week's challenge first.  I bet she didn't forget like I did.  LOL!   I decided to use the Coastal Cabana, Pumpkin Pie, and Crushed Curry combo vs. the Coastal Cabana, Smoky Slate, and Calypso Coral.  I started out with the second combination, but quickly switched it up.  I'm glad I did ... I like the card as it turned out.  Here, see what you think for a card on the fly ....

Card Recipe:

Paper:   coastal cabana, crushed curry, whisper white, 2013-15 in color patterned dsp

Ink:  pumpkin pie, coastal cabana

Stamp Set:  lacy & lovely

Accessories:  2013-15 in color boutique details, squares collection framelits, chevron EF, coastal cabana 3/8" ruffle trim stretch ribbon, basic rhinestones

Not too bad for a quickie, huh?  Well, let's check out Joni's card this week.  I wonder what color combination she chose.  Let's go see ....

Team Swap - Baby - Cute Baby Dresser

Each month, we do a team swap at our team meeting, and usually, there is a theme for the cards.  This month's theme was "baby".  I made my card the month prior, so I was already ahead of the game.  This first card came from one of our team members, and unfortunately, she didn't put her name on it so I can't give her the credit she deserves.  I'll have to find out at our next team meeting.

Never-the-less, here's the cute card she made for us, and guess what?  She said this was one of her first cards she'd ever made.  WHAT?  How beautiful it turned out.

You've probably seen a few of these type of cards out there either on stampin' connection or pinterest, but seeing it in person, there's no comparison.  How cute it is!  Hope you enjoy it.

Playing with Clay in the Secret Garden

I told you I'd have another one for you.  Yep, more clay, more fun!  This time, I wanted to try something a bit different than what I made previously, so I tried stamping on the clay.  And guess what?  It came out really nice.  It worked!  Here's the card:

Recipe:

Paper:  garden green, whisper white, garden green patterned DSP

Ink:  garden green, crisp cantaloupe & daffodil delight for clay flower

Stamp Sets:  secret garden, itty bitty banners, apothecary accent

Accessories:  fancy fan EF, apothecary accents framelits, secret garden framelits, ticket corner punch, calypso coral bakers twine, basic rhinestones

I have a few more cards to share with you using the new clay, so I'll be posting them throughout the week, so stay tuned.  Thanks for stopping by.  I hope the cards inspire you ... 

Playing with Clay - Summer Smoochies

Welcome back ... today I'm sharing with you another card I made using the new clay and the flower mold.  I wanted to make something simple, and since I love flowers and have a flower mold, what more do I need?  So I got to work designing the card.  I was amazed that I designed 5-6 cards with no effort using clay on my cards.  For this card, I used the summer smoochies stamp set and here's how it came out:

Recipe:

Paper:  crisp cantaloupe, very vanilla, tangerine tango patterned dsp

Ink:  tangerine tango, pacific point, gumball green, crisp cantaloupe for clay flower

Stamp Sets:  summer smoochies, vintage verses

Accessories:  designer frames EF, apothecary accents framelits, clay

I like the simplicity of this card and of course, there's more to come.  Why stop here!  See you tomorrow ... maybe I'll have another one for you.  Do stop back ...

Playing with Clay - Sunshine & Sprinkles

Have you tried the new clay yet?  I have been playing with it for the past few days, and my upline took a video of me demoing it for our team meeting last night.  I made a few samples, and thought I would share them with you.

For this card, I used the clouds embossing folder to add a little dimension to the card, using the clay for the clouds.  I really liked the way it turned out.

Recipe:

Paper:  raspberry ripple, whisper white, sunshine & sprinklesdsp

Ink:  raspberry ripple, pacific point, smoky gray, soft sky for clay

Stamp Set:  sunshine & sprinkles

Accessories:  clay, clouds EF, daffodil delight seam binding, apothecary accents framelits, basic rhinestones

I really like the way the card turned out.  I added the raindrops too and whola, there it is.  What do you think?  I hope you like.  Stay tuned ... I'll be posting more cards using the clay.  I'm on a roll....LOL

Label Me Gingham Garden

I just love the new designer series paper, Gingham Garden.  It's so happy and cheery ... you can make a lot of things with it.  We used the "Label Love" stamp set and punch with these cards and they are oh, so cute.  Check them out ...

Don't you agree that the paper just screams "HAPPY"?  Notice the bling in the picture to the left?  There's nothing like washi tape and a little bling to spice things up.  The card actually looks much prettier in person, but hope you can get the jist of it.

Thanks for stopping by again ... I would love to hear your comments.  They mean a lot to me!  Thank you!

A Big Thank You

You can never have enough thank you cards, so here is one we made from our new catalog kickoff event last weekend.  I like brown and pink together, so this one fits well together.  See what you think ...

I like the linen ribbon on the card too.  It gives it a little bit of rugged-ness, yet, still a bit feminine.

Stay tuned for more cards we made ... I'm sure you'll find lots that you like, or better yet, just love!  Until then ... happy stamping!

Coloring Down the Lines - Crisp Cantaloupe

How exciting we get to use the new 2013-15 "in colors" for this week's blog hop.  Oh yes!  I just love the new colors.  They are so soft and subtle, and just blend together like sherbet.  In fact, all the colors remind me of sherbet ... yum!

Did you arrive here from Our Crafty Playdate's blog?  Amanda sure was having fun this week with the colors.  Our color combos are:  crisp cantaloupe, coastal cabana, and pistachio pudding, or crisp cantaloupe, pink pirouette, and soft suede.  I selected the first color combo because they are all the new colors.  So here's my presentation ...

Recipe:

Paper:  coastal cabana, crisp cantaloupe, very vanilla

Ink:  pistachio pudding, crisp cantaloupe

Stamp Sets:  flowering flourishes, mosaic madness, itty bitty banners

Accessories:  fancy brocade EF, perfect polka dots EF, mosaic punch, ovals framelits, 7/8" scallop punch, small round punch, bitty banners framelits, gbasic pearls

Love the colors ... I hope you do too.  So let's go check out what Joni made for us this week .. ready, set, go .... 

How About a Little Kind & Cozy?

This past weekend, my upline had a new catalog event and we made 20 cards.  I thought I'd share a few of them with you over the next few days .  This bunch used the Kind and Cozy stamp set.  Oh so cute.....it's one of my favorites.

I'm also loving that gingham designer series paper too.  Oh I'm going to have a lot of fun with the new products.  Stay tuned.  Thanks for stopping by!

Goodbye Rain!

I've been on a break this past week.  I was traveling for work, and with all the recent rain we had, my basement flooded and ruined some of my things.  My son and I had to clean out all the stuff that got wet, and of course, Tom was away for the week at the Hobie Cat Nationals in South Dakota.  Thank goodness my pictures didn't get destroyed, but you can just imagine how gross wet boxes are to pick up.  YUK!  I couldn't believe all the rain.  It formed a pond in my yard, and then a river across my front yard, over the small bank and into my driveway.  There, it looked like a waterfall heading down the road.  Check out some of the photos:

All I can say is thank goodness, the rain has gone.  Hope everyone else faired out well ... until tomorrow, wish for sunshine!

Black & White Mosaic Madness

I wanted to try a black and white card, and I knew the concept I wanted to make, but boy did I have a hard time trying to figure out what to do with the mosaic madness stamp set.  Thing is ... I thought it would be a no-brainer, but either I just had a blank brain, or it just wasn't easy as I thought.

I'm not super in love with the card, but it's ok.  I've been trying some other designs, so you'll have to stay tuned to see what I've come up with.  I know I will have some after convention - but I won't be able to share  them prior to that because I want the card swaps to be a surprise.  You'll have to tune in to catch all my swaps when I get back from convention.  Oh la la.

Recipe:

Paper:  whisper white, basic black

Ink:  stazon black

Stamp Sets:  mosaic madness, itty bitty banners

Accessories:  modern mosaic EF, mosaic punch, window frames framelits, bitty banners framelits, whisper white 1/8" stitched grosgrain ribbon, basic rhinestones

So what do you think?  Hope you like it.  See you soon.

Coloring Down the Lines - Strawberry Slush

It's blog hop time again.  So this week, I'm following Robbie, aka Inkedx2.  Wow, what an honor!  Ms. Robbie is our fearless creator of our blog hop.

This week's challenge was using either of the two color combinations:  strawberry slush, coastal cabana, crisp cantaloupe, or strawberry slush, sahara sand, rich razzleberry.  I chose the second color combo, but only after I couldn't quite figure out what I wanted to do with the first one.  LOL.
So without further ado, here is the card:

Recipe:

Paper:  whisper white, rich razzleberry, sahara sand, strawberry slush

Ink: rich razzleberry, strawberry slush

Stamp Sets:  en francais, a round array

Accessories:  scallop trim border punch, rich razzleberry 1/4" stitched grosgrain ribbon, floral frames framelits, perfect polka dots EF, square lattice EF, large rhinestone

So now that you've seen mine, let's check Joni's blog out.  I can't wait to see hers!  Let's go ....

Summer Smoochies Candle

I brought another door prize to the craft and vendor fair I attended over a week ago, but ended up not using it.  So, I'll just keep it for another event sometime ... it certainly won't go to waste.

I packaged the candle up in a pretty blue and green bag, and there it will remain until a lucky winner will claim it.

The candle was something I picked up at the dollar store.  It is nice and tall and fits the paper nicely.  I made two of them just in case I need another door prize in a pinch.

Well, I'm going to be working hard in the next few weeks making all my swaps for convention.  I've got quite a few to make ... upwards of 130 plus, and they aren't all the same design.  So, I may not be posting as frequently, but from time to time, I'll catch up.

Have a super week ... and keep on stamping!

St. James' Strawberry Festival - Door Prize

I participated as a vendor at the St. James' Luthern Church Strawberry Festival this past weekend, and one of the door prizes I offered was a cute, green bucket full of 3x3 cards.  It looked so cute, I wanted to win it for my self.

At the end of the day, I pulled the lucky winner, Ginny Lion of Pottstown.  She was so excited to win, and I was very happy to drop off her prize to her this evening.  To my surprise, Ginny had a Stampin' Up catalog with lots of pages marked, and just wait until she receives the brand new catalog!  It makes me so happy to make others happy, and I couldn't think of a better person to win the door prize than Ginny.

Aren't the cards so cute?  I love making them, and they go like hotcakes when I do.

Congratulations Ginny, and until tomorrow, keep on stamping!

Love and Sympathy Times Two

Unfortunately, we never seem to have a lot of sympathy cards when we need them, so I decided that I would make two of every sympathy card I make so that I will have them when needed.  I just recently purchased the "love and sympathy" stamp set, so I thought I would just break it open and make some cards. Unfortunately, two sisters, young women in our women's group, lost their father.  How sad that is, and I offered to make the card from our group.  So I did make an extra one, and I'm sending the "wisteria wonder" card to them, and keeping the other as a spare.  Here's the card I made:

Recipe:

Paper:  very vanilla

Ink:  wisteria wonder, gumball green and tangerine tango

Stamp Set:  love & sympathy

Accessories:  very vanilla 1/8" taffeta ribbon

So there they are, and I hope the card blesses the sisters, just knowing how much they are thought of and cared for.

Until tomorrow ... 

How About Some Wedding Cake

I made another wedding card, this time, focusing on the cake.  I chose a retired designer series paper (DSP) for the background, since it's one of my all time favorites.  The card I made is ok, but not one of my favorites.  I think it's the layers of the cake that I struggled with ... I should have not rounded the edges, but rather kept them more square.  Oh well, maybe I'll try again another time.

Recipe

Paper:  mocha morning dsp (retired), very vanilla, soft suede

Ink:  soft suede

Stamp Sets:  on a pedestal (retired), teeny tiny wishes

Accessories:  basic pearls, rosettes (retired), elegant lines EF, itty bitty banners framelit, very vanilla 1/8" taffeta ribbon

Now that I see the card here, it truly is not a favorite of mine.  I think maybe next time, I'll use paper flowers and not the larger rosettes.  

No. 1 Father

June is the month to celebrate dads.  I'm getting better at designing Father's Day cards, or masculine cards, in general.  I don't always have a need to make masculine cards, but lately, I have.  So here's another Father's Day card I created when I was on a roll the other night.

Recipe

Paper:  print poetry dsp (retired), midnight muse, summer starfruit

Ink:  soft suede

Stamp Sets:  amazing family, affection collection

Accessories:  basic rhinestones, window frames collection framelits, argyle EF

Thanks for stopping by my blog.  I hope you will continue to visit.

Coloring Down the Lines - Basic Gray

Hello again!  Did you just get here from Amanda's blog?  If not, check back because she's got a treat for you.

This week's challenge is using Basic Gray.  Now the question is, which combo do I want to use:  melon mambo and old olive, or real red and pumpkin pie.  Hummmmm, I think I'll choose melon mambo and old olive!  Yea, I like those colors together.  So do you want to see what I've come up with?  Ok, I won't make you wait ...  here it is:

Recipe

Paper:  basic gray, melon mambo, whisper white, neutral patterned DSP, old olive

Ink:  old olive, melon mambo

Stamp Sets:  morning meadow (hostess), itty bitty banners

Accessories:  perfect polka dots EF, itty bitty banners framelits, 1/4" stitched grosgrain ribbon in basic gray, oval framelits

I originally had a wider, satin ribbon on the bottom in basic gray, but the more I looked at it, the more I thought it was just too much.  Now it looks better, and I'm happy with the result.

So, let's hop on over to see Joni's creation.  She's always bubbling with excitement ... and I'm excited to see what she has for us ... let's go!

Thanks for stopping by .. I hope you'll stop back.

Lacy Brocade Wedding Dress Card

Here's another card I made with the wedding theme in mind.  I wasn't sure if I would like the turquoise on the card, but I think it made it pop and I'm pleased with how it turned out.

Recipe

Paper:  tempting turquoise, whisper white, brights patterned DSP; silver glimmer paper

Ink:  tempting turquoise

Stamp Set:  wedding sweet

Accessories:  window frame framelit, dress up framelit, perfect polkadots EF, boho blossoms punch, fancy brocade EF, white 3/8" taffeta ribbon, bitty banners framelits

It turned out better than expected, so I'll go with it.  Hope you like it, and thank you for stopping by.

Mr. and Mrs. Wedding Card

It seems as I am on a wedding card roll today.  I hardly make wedding day cards, but for some reason, that's all I've been concentrating on.  I think I'm finished, for now, so I'll share with you the ones I've recently made.

Today's is the Mr. and Mrs. towel card.  It's so cute, so I hope you'll enjoy the card I made.

Recipe

Paper:  whisper white, soft sky

Ink:  soft sky

Stamp Sets:  mr. and mrs., teeny, tiny wishes

Accessories:  basic rhinestones, word window and modern label punches,. retired EF, large scallop edgelit

I wasn't sure if I would like the colors, but they turned out nice.  The soft sky is really pretty, but it's a light color, to say the least.

Well, hope you like it.  Stay tuned for more to come.

You're an Amazing Father ...

With Father's Day right around the corner, I thought I'd better get in gear and make some Father's Day cards.  Earlier in the week, I could not get my creativity flowing, but of course, at 9:00 pm, ideas starting coming left and right and of course, I was up will the wee hours of the morning creating my cards.   I'm now paying for it, as it was a work night ... oh what am I to do?  You just can't stop the creativity when it's pouring out all over your work area.  Ha ha.  So, here's one of the cards I made for Father's Day.  I rather like it, and it's quite simple.

Recipe

Paper:  pinwheels on parade simply scrappin, baja breeze, whisper white

Ink:  midnight muse

Stamp Set:  amazing family

Accessories:  window frames collection framelit, 3/8" stitched satin ribbon in midnight muse, large rhinestones

So what do you think?  I'm pleased with it, and because it was so simple to make, it was a bonus.  I love the larger rhinestones on the card too.  I wasn't a fan of them, but here, they were just the ticket.

Thanks for stopping by ... 

Happy Anniversary Aileen and Josh

Today is my daughter and her husband's 5 year wedding anniversary.  WOW!  Time sure does fly.  I can still remember their wedding day and how much fun that was.

The happy couple lives in Brooklyn, and Aileen is going for her nursing degree at Long Island University, and Josh is a fabulous chef who now works at a Jewish Delicatessen.

Here's to another 5 fabulous years, and more!

Recipe

Paper:  very vanilla, wild wasabi

Ink:  wild wasabi, lavender lace (retired)

Stamp Sets:  best of flowers, teeny tiny wishes

Accessories:  apothecary accents framelits, fancy fan EF, perfect polka dots EF, basic pearls, crystal effects, 1/8" taffeta in very vanilla

And here's a copy of the happy couple!

Love you both ... and wishing you the best of all the years to come.  Love Mom and Dad