The moment my granddaughter sent me this photo of the littlest playing with her toy salon my heart turned to mush!
She knows she must blow the polish on her nails dry and so sweetly proceeds to do just that. Luckily Mommy was able to get this charming shot with her phone.
For the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge, with the theme “Feminine”, I submit this layout. It went together quickly because I used a stencil to cut up scraps of the pinks and lavenders for the pieces. The photo mat is vellum to add softness. Some ink was sponged for added interest. I stamped the crowns and used a punch to make a tiny banner, accented with sequins. The title was cut on Cricut Explore Air.
Don’t you love it when you get a great night’s sleep? And how about when you wake wake up with an idea for something crafty to create?
I had a vision of a card that had a row of squares with a small image, maybe a leaf, on each of them. Once I started with this basic idea it morphed a bit, as I began to play.
In my dream there were more blocks, but I selected this 1 inch punch. After deciding on my layers and adjusting the measurements I would be able to use 3 of those squares. The leaf is a Crafter’s Companion die which I double layered. For a bit of texture I die cut two of background leaves die. The “hugs” die from Waffle Flower is also doubled.
I have a batch of cards ready for Easter to share with you.
The first 4, cut with the Taylored Expressions die so the arch opens, holds a bookmark for the recipient to keep if they like. “Rejoice” is heat embossed with gold powder. Using my Sakura Gold Shadow gel pen I colored in the window frame. The bookmark cross is colored with pencils and I attached an eyelet and tied on linen thread.
Then, the two individual ones: Dry embossed with a Darice folder, stamped the cross, and colored with pencils. I added sequins to the flowers. I used dies and punches on the second one. The window image was colored with pencils.
My largest batch of 14 features a cross stamped with violet ink, fussy cut and popped up on the TE die cuts. I used glitter for the frame that was cut with two of the dies from the set. The patterned strip came from a sheet of Photoplay paper that is old now. The purple paper is Bazzill Royal.
Thanks for stopping by and taking a look. I wish you inspiration for your own cards and would enjoy hearing what you are doing, whether you are making cards or what else. I pray this time of Lent is enriching your closeness and preparation for our Lord’s resurrection coming soon!
This is the result of a new idea for me. After running the embossing folder through my old and trusty Sizzix Texture Boutique I rubbed ink pads over the raised parts, as best I could.
This is actually the second time I tried this and I did learn from my first mistake. You see, if your ink pad is too juicy it is too hard to get a gentle swipe. Trust me. So, here I used some little cubes of Distress Inks – Scattered Straw and Mowed Lawn.
After fussy cutting the dry embossed image at whatever places I thought would look good, I then cut some scrap card stock, slightly smaller, and pasted it behind. This tip I learned from Jennifer McGuire on YouTube.
I hope you forgive my not so neat inking as I added “A Bit O’ Green” for the Wednesday Simon Says Challenge blog! Hope you will be inspired to play along with Simon Says, too. And maybe you will be inspired to pull out an embossing folder and experiment.
The under panel is cut from a Spellbinders die, Valiant Honors set. I liked the rope look of the edge and it isn’t over frilly for this busy floral layer. The sentiment “Birthday” and die cut are by Catherine Pooler.
Hope your “40 Days” are bringing you nearer to the blessings that await us as we follow our Lord more closely in anticipation of the Easter celebration!
During Lent I’m working to getting my Easter cards ready. For this Slimline design I used gold embossing powder for the two stamps on a sheet of patterned green paper from a 6×6 sheet. Under the gold string I pasted on some die cuts. This card is quite simple, thanks to the pretty background paper. It measures 3″ by 6 1/2″. I will use my Envelope Maker for creating the envelope, since this is flat it should mail nicely.
Wednesday’s Simon Says Stamp Blog asks us to “A Bit O’ Green”. Well, I did add some green but I’m really liking that paper I came across, too. Hope you are inspired to play along!
I trust your “40 days” of prep for Easter is enriching you and bringing you more understanding of what Jesus is asking of us.
It’s not just big business or crooked politicians. People are power hungry, overwhelmed by greed. How can anything good come from people like this?
It seems America is headed for self destruction at every turn. How can anything good come from hate, finger-pointing, or violence?
Does anyone even know where to turn? How can we find any peaceful answers to save our country?
The answer is that we re-discover love. We must look for love in each other. First we must see the love that is within ourselves. People who love the God of creation will restore this country and this world. We are called to be the voice of the Savior for all.
My reading today came in part from 1 John 5:1-9. We must love God and keep his commandments. “His commandments are not burdensome, for whoever is begotten by God conquers the world.”
The people with power in our country are destroying this country. Hate runs through them, not love for one another. How can good rise up from all this hate? It can’t.
We all need to replace the animosity that poisons our heart against our fellow human beings. Do this by realizing the love that is from the Creator. True love can only come from God. God is the origin of real love, because God is the maker of all things, that includes us humans. He and his love is present in every one of us. We each have God’s presence within us, even if we haven’t realized it yet.
Love is already in us. Love can, and must, win over all hate.
Are you ready to find love? Pray to God and believe in his love!
This is one of the moments in life that we wish to never forget. The moments of joy brought to us by our loved ones should never be taken for granted, but cherished in our memory. My scrapbook layout here is my way of documenting the special joys.
I chose to make the background with acrylic paint so I could try to make my page to closely resemble the plan Elizabeth Frantz, the designer of this sketch, indicated. To me this was a pretty design and I welcomed the push for me to play with this style of a background. Using a Huggies wipe and paint by Dyan Reavley I was able to easily smooth out this soft color. It’s almost dreamy-like, perfect for this tender photo of mother and child.
From a couple of scrapbook paper pads I selected my 3 patterned papers and the journaling cut-a-part. Even the strip of hearts came from a pad. The small doilies were made from a stamp and cut out. My flowers were chosen for the light peach color because the shade sweetly brings out the colors in the photo. The title was printed, and then I drew around it with a pen and fussy cut. The small white pearls were from a bottle Nuvo Drops.
Thanks for stopping by today. I hope you find a wee bit of inspiration for your own memory keeping endeavors. Do come check out the Sketches in Thyme Blog for lots of inspiring sketches. There is a wide range and you are sure to be inspired.
Here in the US we celebrate Thanksgiving. That usually involves lots of food, family and friends. Most often a turkey cooks in a most delicious way is present. Our turkey was smoked and it was delicious. Since I can’t eat any grain, I ate a lot of the turkey! The other thing about today is that it is my birthday. For my “cake” I had a candle stuck into a grain-free cheese cake – yum!
I hope your day was filled with love, as mine was. If you are looking for some scrapbook sketch inspiration, hop on over to the blog and play along.
Instead of the single photo as per the sketch, I used 3 pics of daughter and I at supper on our little trip. The getaway was great.Years ago I purchased circle templates from Fiskars and with them the circle cutter. They often make it so much easier to get a medium circle without having to work it out on the Cricut. Once pasted down I outlined them with a Sakura Shadow Gold pen. The insides were made with a Carabelle Studios mask. The flowers were heat embossed and lightly sponged with color. The work strips are from an old Stampin’ Up! sentiment set. The title was cut with Cricut.
Hope you like it and feel inspired to go check out the Sketches in Thyme blog for more inspiration. Play along so I can see what you make!
My little guy willingly posed for me. We had made the half hour drive from the housing base to the main base in Yokosuka for shopping at the commissary. When Sketches in Thyme posted this sketch I know exactly which pictures would be a joy to use.
Being a believer in sticking close to the sketch I didn’t deviate. My dot pattern base paper is by Graphic 45, the solid strips are Bazzill. I stamped images, some are heat embossed, then fussy cut.
Thanks for stopping in, hope you scrappers out there take a look at the Sketches in Thyme blog and find a sketch that inspires you.
