Hunkering Down with Hurricane Ian

Today is the day that Hurricane Ian came knocking at our door.  He stayed away enough so that we didn't have any damage, but it sure is windy and rainy outside!

I spent a good part of the morning cleaning out my craft space and decided to make a card; after all, that neat tidy space needs some activity in it!  When I don't have a specific need for a specific card, I usually check with one or more challenge sites.  Today was no exception.

I really enjoy making my own dsp, so I used Night of Navy, Granny Apple Green, Highland Heather and Blackberry Bliss from Colour INKspiration Challenge #130 on Facebook.  I also used Sketch #489 from CAS Colours & Sketches.  Here is the sketch: 

Quick and Easy Card (three times!)

If you look closely, you will see that these three cards are all the same layout.  It's interesting how different they all can look just by changing the color scheme, the paper, or even by creating your own paper!

Colour INKspiration #118

I decided that I needed to participate in a challenge, so off I went to my bookmarked challenge sites.  I found this one, and it really was a great one! 
But first, here's the backstory for this card.  Last week, someone on a FB group posted a card that she had created using just stamps, ink and paper.  I loved the concept, so I had to jump in and try it for myself.  (Be sure to check back tomorrow to see the other cards I made in addition to this one.)
Colour INKspiration is a Facebook group that posts a photo as well as color combinations that need to be used for the challenge. Here's what this challenge looks like: 

Of course, I didn't have any DSP that contained all of these colors, so I improvised.  I've been on a kick of creating my own DSP, so I used stamps from the Hello Beautiful stamp set for the abstract paper as well as the inside greeting. I stamped off for some of the colors so that they weren't so intense.  I also splattered the ink onto the cardstock to give it more character and finished by running it through the Tasteful Textile embossing folder. The Happy Birthday is from the Special Moments set. I couldn't let the little strip of paper that was trimmed away, so I added it to the inside of the card!
You might want to give it a try to make your own DSP ... you know you are always confused about what to do with some of the additional stamps in your sets!

You make the world a better place

Craig was feeling a bit under the weather earlier this week.  When I pulled into the driveway, I spotted a bag on one of the chairs.  I thought to myself ... gee, I am pretty sure I just threw away everything that didn't belong out there. Upon investigation, I discovered that a friend of ours delivered a bag full of four different types of hot soup on our front porch. 

Since I had a few free minutes this afternoon, I figured it would be a good time to play with the Rainbow of Happiness stamp set and the coordinating Brilliant Rainbow dies.  Of course, I had to include the Sunshine & Rainbows dsp that I got for free during Sale-a-Bration.

I decided to CASE a card from the SAB catalog and copied it almost exact. I did run the greeting banner through the Subtle embossing folder, added some swirled gold thread under the banner and topped it off with some Genial Gems.

Aligning Templates

A few weeks ago, a Stampin' Up! demonstrator that I follow on YouTube posted a video about making more handmade cards.  You can see her video here.

I loved her suggestions, but being the perfectionist that I am, I had to go one step further.  (I also have a tremor that makes crafting difficult at times.)  So, I used my Cricut to create a template for the layout that Dena shared.  Then, I decided to make a few alterations to her design and cut even more templates.

Here are the templates; actually, there's a fourth one but I haven't cut it yet. If you have a Cricut, you can access the templates on Design Space here.  The numbers on each one are the dimensions of the pieces to be cut. I placed the template on top of my card front and adhered the dsp in the openings.

This card was made using her design. I made my own dsp by randomly stamping with my new Lucky You stamp set; the sentiment is from Hello Beautiful. (I see that the top strip is a little bit off from the others.  I always say that in card making there are no mistakes, only opportunities.)

This is one variation that I also created. I used an old pack of dsp and stamped the sentiment from Lucky You.

The great tag project ... round 2: markings

The theme for this tag is markings.  Boy was I perplexed trying to come up with an idea for a photo! Then one day I was looking at the sheet of notebook paper that I used to record (mark) our words that we chose.  Tada! And the photo was complete!

     
I tore pieces of the notebook paper to place behind the matted photo.

I was so careful to keep the paper so that I could remember what words we chose. Hmmm.  Looks like pictures of a vegetable and weeds still need to be completed.  Well, those will have to wait … maybe until she finishes her part of the project. Yeah, right!

Finally, check out the flowers I created using a Stampin’ Up! daisy punch. Does that paper look familiar?

And the project is a wrap! Thank you for visiting; I hope you enjoyed it!

The great tag project ... round 2: cemetery

The word for this tag is cemetery. This tag is special to me because it features my parents’ grave.  It has been 15 years since my mom died, and dad has been gone for 12 years.  Sometimes it seems like yesterday, and sometimes a long time ago.

See that twig on the left side and across the bottom of the tag? I picked it up on the same day that I took the photo, just so that I could have something to remind me of them. Now Sister is going to have it in her possession.

I created a pocket on the front of the tag using some special cardstock. Notice how the pull on the “drawer” says Happy Thoughts? Well, I always have happy thoughts of my parents. I used a die that I have to create the piece that is secreted in the pocket.

Here’s the tag pulled out.  I photographed their headstone when we were up north. Sorry, but privacy requires that the demographic information is blurred out.

I absolutely love this flower. Again, my Cricut came to the rescue! The gauze adds just the right shabby chic feel to the flower, and I cut a leaf out of a fabric sample to finish it off.

Be sure to come back tomorrow to see the next tag!

The great tag project ... round 2: #17

The “word” for this tag was 17.  Technically, I didn’t take the picture … it was my senior high school graduation photo.  But in order to comply with the rules, I took a picture of the picture.

As a proud Wickliffe High School Blue Devil, I regularly dressed in Blue and Gold.  What memories!

These Tim Holtz tags were in my stash.  What a coincidence that one sported the number 17!

Be sure to come back tomorrow to see the next tag!

The great tag project ... round 2: calm

This tag features the word calm.

As I mentioned earlier, I live in SW Florida! Sunday, September 10, 2017, was quite an eventful day because the eye of Hurricane Irma passed DIRECTLY. ABOVE. OUR. HOUSE.

Anyone who lives in hurricane-prone areas knows how busy people are in the days and hours leading up to the arrival. Once all of the preparations are complete, there's almost a feeling of peace surrounding everyone. This is a photo of our house taken the day before. It’s a good thing that I had this photo, because we used it to document the condition of our roof prior to Irma’s visit.

Peace … as shown by the Tim Holtz word tag. Once all of the preparations are complete, you just sit and wait. Peacefully. Calmly.

Once the storm starts (and yes, we did stay in our house), you can hear the wind whistling and feel the intensity of the rain. We are fortunate to have hurricane-rated windows, so we were able to go from room to room to see what was happening!

None of my other tags have something on the back, but this one deserved something since there are two sides to a storm. There is almost always a calm before the storm. You can see the ripped screens on our lanai as well as the large oak tree that fell in our front yard. We are quite fortunate that it didn’t drop in the other direction.

The question asks if anyone could imagine what the storm would do, and it’s always a guessing game.  Where it is going to go. What it’s going to do. What will be the damage?

Be sure to come back tomorrow to see the next tag!

The great tag project ... round 2: decorations

The theme word for this tag is decorations.  And boy, did I decorate this tag.  Can you tell that I am a big fan of the color blue?

The dishes in the photo are on the hutch in the dining room. However, that hutch no longer exists due to a renovation project, so it’s good to have it as a reminder.

Look at that sweet leaf cut from a fabric sample! What about that gorgeous glittery ribbon stretched across the tag?

Another Cricut flower on the left and a Sister-created flower on the right.  She is a pro at making them … I am most definitely not. I think I used some old sewing pattern paper to create the leaves.

Be sure to come back tomorrow to see the next tag!

The great tag project ... round 2: beads

This tag features the word beads. I went to a store (maybe WalMart, I’m not sure) and found these colorful beads in a tangle on a shelf.

Don’t you like how I cut the circles and wrote the letters on each circle and then strung them together just like a strand of beads?

That cut little purple flower is from an old die set that I have.  I think it’s Sweet Williams by Cheery Lynn Designs

Sister crocheted this white flower and gifted it to me.  I gussied it up with a tiny flower cut with my Cricut as well as a fringe of yarn.

Be sure to come back tomorrow to see the next tag!

The great tag project ... round 2: bottle

This tag features the word bottle. I went to Publix and scoured the shelves for a pretty pink bottle that I wanted to use to match cardstock in my stash.

Look how purty this flower turned out! Of course, my trusty Cricut made the job easy peasy!

Here’s another pretty flower. This is actually some plastic that I thought would look gorgeous.  By golly, it does!

Oh, those Cricut flowers are amazing!

Finally, here’s a perfectly tied bow courtesy of my Bow-it-All! You can’t go wrong if you have one of these handy tools.

Be sure to come back tomorrow to see the next tag!

The great tag project ... round 2: bridge

This tag features the word bridge. We were on the Railroad at Disney World, and this bridge popped up in front of me.  Score!

Since Mickey is the star, it only made sense for him to have one in his hand.

Any scrapbooking fanatic who also loves Disney certainly has a stash of stickers and other goodies to adorn their work. This puffy sticker and the polka-dotted ribbons were in my stash.

Be sure to come back tomorrow to see the next tag!

The great tag project ... round 2: chocolate

This tag’s theme is chocolate. I scattered a handful of M&Ms on the table and took a close-up shot. Then, I used polka-dotted paper to continue the circle design.

Yes, these are more Cricut flowers! Can you see the little dewdrops on the petals of the daisy? And what about the gorgeous plaid paper for its neighbor?

When Sister and I had our last tag project, I used something from my stash that she had given me.  Well, these two flowers are her creation! I added the black screening behind the purple flower as well as the leaf cut from a fabric sample on the plaid one.

Be sure to come back tomorrow to see the next tag!

The great tag project ... round 2: autumn

The word for this tag was autumn.  Living in SW Florida doesn’t give us a chance to enjoy the changing of the colors.  We joke that we know it’s autumn because the license plates change colors due to the many snowbirds that visit our area.

I took the photo at a local fabric shop; it’s a bolt of fabric.  Quite creative on my part, right?  LOL!

I cut two leaves from some autumn-themed cardstock using my Cricut. The key is altered using alcohol ink and topped with strands of fibers.

The flower was also cut on my Cricut. I added some sparkle using sparkly paint.

I kept an old dictionary and pulled out the page containing the word autumn. I made sure that it stood out by circling it.

One more shot of the fabric.

Be sure to come back tomorrow to see the next tag!