Easter Joy

I had planned to be back long before now with some blog posts, but the computer had other ideas. When I sat down a few weeks ago, prepared to write a post, the monitor was a simple "blue" in color. I tried turning the computer off and back on again, but it wouldn't even shut off. Techno-challenged I am, but even I knew this was not a good sign. Dh happened to be traveling on business at the time so we discussed it over the phone. I performed some tests under his direction and he determined it was indeed the monitor vs. a video card or a loose connection. He quickly did some research and decided on the monitor he liked and called so I could measure the computer stand opening to make sure it would fit. In the time it took for me to measure, the monitor was sold out. So, another bit of time waiting for more to become available, then placing the order and waiting for it to arrive. And then of course, waiting for dh to come home to install it; he was quite certain it wasn't something I could, should, or would want to do, although I did insist that surely I could plug in a monitor. Well, then again, if history is right, maybe not...

So, although everything has been running for the last week or so, Spring has arrived and I've been working outside, playing catch up on yard work after two years of abandonment for other priorities, and too tired to write blog posts late at night. I am hoping to visit your blog posts in the very near future. My last post indicated I would be back with the rest of the 2014 Christmas projects, but now I'm going to move on to Easter and hopefully share those in a more timely manner. Then I'll see about the rest of the Christmas posts - seems kind of silly now, but I'd still like to share them. My friend tells me it's my blog and I can do whatever makes me happy - no obligations, no rules. Well, she's also been known to run with scissors, so I may just need to follow her advice!

Before we talk about today's cards, I have these to share with you.

I ran to the market last Friday after a trip to Costco and a short visit with my friend to solve her computer problem - there are some computer things I can handle! I only needed celery for the weekend Pasta Fagioli Soup and garlic bread. Ok, the garlic bread was a want. I wandered through the floral department as I always do, taking in the seasonal displays, the colors, the scents. The happy part of the market trip that makes it all worthwhile. And then these caught my eye and found their way into my basket. Oh my goodness, how this color combo sings to my spirit! Perhaps it is because I am longing for spring more than I realize, or maybe I'm hoping to find plants these exact colors to fill the front porch planter when the temperatures warm just a little more. The first spring trip to the nursery is coming soon, I can just feel it! I will admit, I never, or hardly ever, buy cut flowers for myself. But this particular day I rationalized I was only purchasing two things, hadn't bought much at the store lately, and all kinds of other affirming statements on my behalf. I wandered around the store still questioning if I really needed them. Why do we do that? I wouldn't have thought twice about giving them to a friend. I am oh so happy they came home with me. They greet me each morning as I begin opening the house for a new day, and they are the last thing I see at night as I turn on the living room table lamp before bed.

I've been creating Easter cards the last week or so. This one features the Impression Obsession stamp, "Running," which was embossed in Princess Gold. I purchased it with this design in mind, dancing in the glory of the risen Christ, but I can also envision many other designs for this stamp. The background was inked with Simon Says "Mint", "Audrey Blue", and "Sea Glass" inks. The embossed sentiment is from Paper Smooches, "Easter Blessings." The butterfly is a portion of the "Kensington Border" Memory Box die. A second butterfly was cut from vellum to add a sense of movement and accented with a bit of DMC Soft Gold thread. The Simon Says Stamp "Frame" was cut from Sea Glass metallic cardstock and adhered over the panel along with the cut away portion to add more weight to the frame.

Since I haven't inked many of these backgrounds, I prepared three panels with the embossed girl, just in case I needed extras. I decided to make another card using the same design, but with a little different twist of the gold thread and the Stitched Rectangles frame from Lil Inker Designs.

I am entering the first design in the Simon Says Stamp Flickr Group Challenge for "Springtime/Easter," the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge for "Anything Goes," and the Simon Says Stamp Work It Wednesday Challenge for stamping.

Simon Says Stamp Flickr Group Challenge

Thanks for visiting the attic today. Your visits are always so appreciated.

 

Materials Used:

Paper: Neenah Solar White; SSS Vellum; The Paper Co. Metallic Cover "Sea Glass"

Ink: SSS Mint, Audrey Blue, Sea Glass; Versamark

Stamps: Impression Obsession "Running"; Paper Smooches "Easter Blessings"

Dies: Memory Box "Kensington Border"; Lil Inker Designs Stitched Rectangles

Other: Princess Gold Embossing Powder; DMC Soft Gold Thread

Puppy Love!

 

"An animal's eyes have the power to speak a great language." - Martin Buber

This new stamp set from My Favorite Things, "You Have My Heart" features an image depicting one of my favorite animal quotes. The way the puppy is looking at "his" girl just melts my heart. Looking into a dog's eyes, there is no question of their love and devotion. Their eyes tell an entire story, don't they?

Friends are like this, too; our hearts speak and often times words are not needed. This image was ideal for a friend's Valentine. The girl, her puppy, and the grass were colored with distress markers and then some paper piecing was added for her dress. I rounded the top edge of the dress and inserted it under her hair so bits of the dress would show underneath. I added a sash and bow cut from Poppy Stamps, "Abundant Gifts" just because every gingham check dress needs a big white bow! The grass is a separate water colored piece, layered over the original stamped image.

Once again, the Simon Says Stamp "Frame" and "Falling Hearts" dies were used on this card. I created the hill with the Lawn Fawn Stitched Hillside Borders and paper from Crate Paper collection, "Kiss Kiss." The cloud was cut from washi tape covered chipboard. Like the previous Valentines, there is lots of sparkly goodness going on here; each of the hearts in the background was coated with Wink of Stella along with the suspended heart from the cloud.

I separated the sentiment and included the last section on the inside as a surprise. The dangling heart was added along with a water colored heart as an accent.

This wraps up the Valentines for this year. Next I'll be traveling back to December to finish posting the rest of the 2014 Christmas projects. Running late with posting them, I know, but at least we're not having Christmas in July! Hope to see you then!

Blessings,

Materials:

Cardstock: Neenah Solar White; PaperTrey Ink Aqua Mist; Archivers Watercolor Paper

Patterned Paper: Crate Paper "Kiss Kiss"; Memory Box Check paper

Stamps: My Favorite Things "You Have My Heart"

Dies: Memory Box "Heart Delights"; Poppystamps: Abundant Gifts; 

     Simon Says Stamp "Frames", "Falling Hearts"; PaperTrey Ink "Clouds 1&2";

     Lawn Fawn "Stitched Hillside Borders"

Other: Versafine Onyx Black Ink; Marvy LePlume Black Pen; Gelly Roll White Pen; 

    Wink of Stella; Zing Clear Embossing Powder; Distress Markers; Dritz Metallic Thread

All Dressed in Pink

The weeks leading up to Valentine's Day were blustery as they usually are, interspersed with a few bright, warm days of sunshine. Miss Mimi, a gift from a special friend, brightened up my stamping corner in her festive pink dress, decked out for the holiday with lots of sparkle and delivering love-filled balloons to another dear friend. There are three Mimi's in the set, "Mimi's Love" along with an adorable deer. I stamped and embossed all of them, and then had a difficult time deciding which one to create with first. Mimi was watercolored using Distress Markers; I am really enjoying this medium for coloring and watching the images come to life.

There is quite a bit of sparkle on this card, just what is needed for a Valentine wish! Unfortunately, it doesn't show up well in the photos. The hearts in the die cut background are each coated with Wink of Stella, as are the hearts in Mimi's headband, the white bow, and the ruffles on her dress; her sweet pink shoes received two coats of the glitter pen and are especially sparkly. I inserted a transparency behind the open heart balloon to resemble a mylar balloon.

The sentiment was included in the stamp set from My Favorite Things, "You Have My Heart." I divided it by stamping part of it on the front and the rest as a surprise on the inside. Friends really are the best things for our hearts! The dangling heart was also included in this set and I added a die cut heart from a piece of watercolor paper I painted for a previous card. I don't usually add embellishments to the inside of my cards, rather letting the sentiment stand alone. I tried adding the outer border from the frame on the card front and found I liked it as a decorative element on the inside.

Another photo session and my helper cat assistance continues... I keep wondering why I don't have enough light on my photos...

It's a brilliant sunshiny day here, although quite cold. We're sending a little sunshine warmth and hugs your way. You really are so good... for my heart!

Blessings,

Materials:

Cardstock: Neenah Solar White; Archivers Watercolor Paper; My Favorite Things: Pink Lemonade

    Pink Shimmer Paper

Stamps: Penny Black: "Mimi's Love"; My Favorite Things: "You Have My Heart"

Dies: Poppystamps: Heart Balloons; Simon Says Stamp: Falling Hearts; Frames; Memory Box: Heart Delights

Ink: Versafine Onyx Black

Other: Distress Markers; Copics; Wink of Stella; White Gelly Roll Pen; Zing Clear Embossing Powder;

     Dritz Silver Thread; Ribbon

Believe

When I saw the challenge at Merry Monday this week to use a Santa , I instantly thought of the vintage Santa stamp I have had for many years that has never been inked. Loved it when I purchased it, love it still, his sweet face makes me happy! I believe I found it at Hobby Lobby or Michaels when I first started collecting acquiring a variety of stamps for different occasions. 

I began by stamping the Santa with Gathered Twigs Distress Ink on Neenah Solar White cardstock and die cutting it into an oval. The oval was then distressed with Antique Linen with more of the Gathered Twigs around the edges. I colored the glasses frames with Atyou Spica "Sand" and added a bit of Spun Sugar Distress Ink for Santa's rosy cheeks, followed by Stardust Stickles for his beard and eyebrows. 

And then came the difficult task of selecting papers from the stash of 6 x 6 paper pads. After many combinations, I decided on a vintage combo to complement the Santa. I assembled the layout, and then added the Taylored Expressions Dotted Lattice Embossing Folder to resemble quilting on the patchwork of papers. I have attempted to add ribbon and/or lace to the last few cards I've made, but without success. Finally, this card allowed the use of both and I was quite a happy cardmaker! I do seem to think every card needs a bit of ribbon to make it complete, but then I find that isn't always true.

The Penny Black "Believe" sentiment was die cut twice from Kraft cardstock and once from gold, then glued together to add more dimension to the design. A few gemstones were added along with a couple of Impression Obsession snowflakes coated with two layers of Clear Rock Candy Distress Stickles and a second completed card was added to the Attic's 2015 Christmas basket. 

Blessings,

 

Materials:

Cardstock: Neenah Solar White; Kraft; Recollections Gold

Patterned Paper: My Mind's Eye Lost & Found Christmas; Kaisercraft - Turtle Dove

Stamps: Rubber Stampede "Santa Collage"

Dies: Penny Black: "Exultations"; Impression Obsession: "Small Snowflake Set"

    Spellbinders: "Classic Ovals Large"; "Classic Ovals Small"

Ink: Distress Inks: Antique Linen; Gathered Twigs; Spun Sugar

Other: Taylored Expressions Embossing Folder: "Dotted Lattice"; Atyou Spica "Sand"; 

    Stickles: "Stardust"; "Clear Rock Candy"; Hero Arts Lace; Papertrey Ink Scarlet Jewel

    Ribbon; Recollections Clear Gemstones

Kitty Love

I hope each of you had a wonderful Valentine's Day filled with love and all that makes your heart complete. Dh and I stayed in most of the day tending to some tasks each of us wanted to complete and then ventured out into the cold for a nice dinner in the late afternoon. Once we arrived back at our car, it didn't take long for me to decide I just wanted to head home where it was warm since the north winds were bringing a promised snowstorm Sunday evening. We received about three inches of snow last night and the cold continued today. It was a good day to bake stuffed peppers, read some blog posts, and write one of my own.

This card was made using Penny Black's, "Furry Affection" stamp set and "Heartfelt" dies. I finally decided to try the Distress Markers I've had for quite a while for a beginning attempt at water coloring since that is such a trend right now. I also colored a scrap of water color paper for the die cuts. It was quite relaxing coloring with them and I can imagine stamping several images, spending an afternoon simply coloring. Wouldn't it be great to have images ready for a card and then simply select papers, layout, and embellishments? Might be fun to find out! 

Once I colored the kitty and waited for it to dry, I cut it out and adhered it with dimensional adhesive so it would stand out from the background which was die cut with Simon Says, "Falling Hearts" die. The "Frames" die was used for the outer edge. Each of the background hearts was painted with Wink of Stella as was the "love" sentiment, the heart the kitty is coloring, and the scattered hearts as well. I'm so glad the "WOS" came into my life; no more glitter issues here!

The inside was framed with another "Frames" die cut and the sentiment was added from the "Furry Affection" stamp set. I love this simple sentiment. Sometimes the simplest words are the most profound amongst friends, one of the blessings of knowing each other so well! 

And here's Miss Sleepy Helper Cat, scrunched into her tiny space outside the photo tent. She was reminding me her kitty bed was there first and I was invading her space! Sweet girl...

I am entering this card in the Simon Says Stamp "All Creatures Great and Small" challenge along with the SSS Flickr Challenge #12, "So Sparkly. "

SO SPARKLY!

Blessings,

 

Materials:

Cardstock: Neenah Solar White; Archivers Watercolor Paper; PTI Aqua Mist

Stamps: Penny Black "Furry Affection"

Dies: Memory Box: Heart Delights; Simon Says Stamp: Frames; Falling Hearts

    Penny Black: Heartfelt

Other: Wink of Stella Clear; Distress Markers; White Gelly Roll Pen; Marvy LePlume Black Pen;

    Versafine Onyx Black Ink; Zing Clear Embossing Powder