Sunday, May 27, 2018

Summer Poppy Block Card

     Here is a card using the Graphic 45 Seasons collection. This one is the first in my series of 5 summer projects. The fancy fold is a block card. The directions to assemble the base of this cards cans be found here


     The fence on this project is one of the first dies I ever purchased. I bought it in the summer of 2013 in Hot Springs, Arkansas. My Big Shot was still in the box back at home. The owner of the craft shop there showed me how to work a Big Shot and then proceeded to assist me in buying $250 in dies to play with when I got home.



     The edge punch here is one of my favorites. I got it on the sale aisle at Michael a couple of years ago. I use it so much that I actually try not to use it. Here is another example of my NOT using it. 



     The poppy on the front of this card is fussy cut and shaped with a flower shaping kit. 



     I will be making 16 cards and 4 calendars with this Graphic 45 Seasons Paper. All of these SEASON cards can be made using:

  • one sheet of each of the patterned paper 
  • one sheet of each of  Prints and Solids
In order to make All Seasons cards and calendars, you only need purchase the following items once:
  • Tags and Pockets
  • Chip Board
  • Ephemera
  • Stickers
  • Season's Patterns and Solids
Stay tuned for more cards this year.
Spring

Summer
Summer Poppy Block Card - You are here!
Winter
Winter Birdhouse
Winter Cozy Snow Day
Winter Pop Up Gift Card Holder
Winter Box on Card 
Winter Calendar 

Materials: 
     Patterned Paper: Graphic 45 - Seasons (Summer)
     Card Stock: My Colors - Desert Cactus
                                        Ecru
                                        Concord Jam
                                        Wildflower
                                        Tuscan Sun
     Die: Elizabeth Craft Designs - Garden Patch
            Poppy Stamps - Picket Fence
     Edge Punch: Recollections - Lace
     Ink:Distress - Frayed Burlap
     Embellies: Riboon - Ivory Seam binding 
                     Wire Cord - Gold
                     Clear Gems

Challenges

Sunday, May 20, 2018

Monster Snacks

     Cruise on over to Sketch N Scrap to help us celebrate our 6th birthday. It is a huge celebration with tons of sketches, challenges, and prizes galore. Here is an inspiration card for the blog challenge.
      I am totally double-dipping on this one. Scrappin' Savvy, where I shop, crop, and teach, is having a challenge this month. Everyone was given a bag of goodies. The challenge: use some of everything in the bag. The bag contained two pieces of two-sided paper, two sheets of card stock, a monster stamp, a sentiment stamp, the Burniston Gift Card Label Die, and ribbon. 
     This one is ultra challenging for me, because I elected to add the additional challenge of using a Sketch N Scrap challenge sketch as well. Here is Lisa Hidy's sketch. 
 
Sketch # 122 by Lisa Hidy
     I started with a creation from my Silhouette. I cut a light bulb, then cut another from acetate. I stamped it with Stazon ink. I then added a thin red border. 

     The monster was a treat to color. Coloring imaginary creatures is a treat because they can be ANY color!!! I added white spots with a white gel pen. 

Materials List:
     Patterned Paper: Carta Bella - Welcome Home
     Card Stock: My Colors - Limelight
                                      Dare Devil
                                      Black
                      Bazzill - Bitter Chocolate
     Ink: Distress - Momento - Tuxedo Black 
           Stazon - Jet Black
     Copics: R22, 24. 27 - Spectrum Noir CG2
                YG67
                Y000
     Dies: Burniston - Gift Card Label
     Silhouette File: a2 shaped card Light Bulb
     Stamps: Riley & Company - Funny Bones Quotes
                 Prickley Pear - Monster
     Embellies: Crystal Stickers - mini stars
                   1/8" striped ribbon
                   acetate
                   White Gel Pen

Challenges

Pixie's Crafty Workshop - Anything Goes - #40 - May 26

Saturday, May 19, 2018

Remembering Mother

     Graphic 45 has just released a new paper collection that has really caught my eye. There are 8 different floral papers with a coordinating pattern on the back of each. Each and everyone is beautiful, so I just pulled out the first floral and went to work. I added a pink stripe that I found in the collection. 
     When deciding what to do with such beautiful paper, my first thought was of my mother. She was 36 when I was born. As you can see in the picture of me with her at 1 year old, she was not a young mother. I was the 5th of 6 children; of which the oldest 4 were born in the first 8 years of their marriage.

2 Page Layout
     I used a Sketch from Sketch N Scrap. There is a big Birthday Bash Crop going on over on their Facebook page with lots of prizes. Also there are more sketches on their blog with even more prizes.
Sketch by Lisa Hidy
     I matted every single piece of patterned paper on this layout. When you pick it up, you really have something substantial in your hands. The picture here is of my mother at 20 on her wedding day. The lettering and 1/8 inch strips throughout the layout are from Antique Gold metallic paper, which gives a dull glimmer.

Left Page
     I used the Silhouette to make the title. I pulled colors from the patterned paper for the flowers and added enamel dots to the centers. If I were to add something my mother particularly loved, I would have added birds - cardinals to be exact. Red cardinals would not have been a good choice today - maybe another time. I ended up using dragonflies. The sparkle you see in each is from holographic paper. 


     Photo corners were made with the striped paper and antique gold strips.



     The second page is a continuation of the first. I added pictures of my mother at 20 years, at 16 holding her birthday cake, and I think I am 7 and she is about 42 in the last picture. Those matching yellow dresses were bought to wear to my oldest brother's wedding. I can tell we are dressed for church as my mother is wearing a hat and gloves. Notice that industrial-sized purse. We used to say that if she threw some underwear in there she would be packed for a weekend.
Right Page
      I added another cluster of flowers to the right side of the layout.


     Here is a sticker that I matted. I made a Mint Julep insert, then offset and pop dotted a sticker on top.

Materials List:
     Patterned Paper: Graphic 45 - Floral Shoppe - Midnight Medley
                                                                 - Pink Lilies
     Stickers: Floral Shoppe
     Card Stock: My Colors -Loveable
                                     Velvet Night
                                     Mint Julep
                                     Ecru
                      the Papercut - Antique Gold
     Ink: Distress - Antique Photo
     Dies: ECD - Dragonfly            
     Silhouete Files - Kates Cuttables - Remember You
                                                    Mother Words Set
     Edge Punch - Martha Stewart - Lace
     Embellies: Ecru Enamel Dots

Saturday, May 5, 2018

Hello Feathered Friend

     Sketch N Scrap is celebrating 6 years of challenges this month. There is a plethora of card and layout sketches on the blog as well as on the Facebook Birthday Bash Crop. Extra prizes are just waiting for some lucky winners!!! 
     Here is a card using one of Heather Hall's sketches:
Sketch #121 by Heather Hall
 This sketch is not like other sketches, which makes is even it more fun to take on. 
      I used the faux tile technique to get the plaid feel on the card base. I have used this tile technique before on this blog. There is also a tutorial on this page. I just revisited this page myself. I am now regretting not using a lighter ink color for this technique. Hmmmmmm . . . this is a great example of "do as I say; not as I do". 
     At least I am happy with the owl and the feathers. I just happened to have two bags of feathers on hand for a collection of Autumn cards I will be designing and teaching in my August/September classes. 
     BTW: I used Gina K's new Amalgam ink. I worked fantastic with the Copics!

Materials List: 
    
     Card Stock: Gina K - Warm Cocoa
                                  Blue Lagoon
     Ink: Distress -Gina K - Amalgam Ink (Jet Black) 
                                   Warm Cocoa
     Copics: YR12, 14, 16
                BG0000, 05, 07, 09
                E57
                C2
     Stamps: Gina K - Wise Old Owl
                            Stately  Flowers I
     Dies: Burniston - Spinner Squares Pop Up
             Gina K - Wise Old Owl
     Embellies - Feathers

Challenges

Easter 2018

     Hey, I already have the grandkids' Easter page done for THIS year. Considering that I didn't get last year's done until about a month ago, I think this is a real feat.
     For this layout, I started with a sketch from Sketch N Scrap for the left page. Here is the sketch:
NSD 2018 - by Lisa Hidy
     This is an amazing sketch if you are looking for something - unique, detailed, and versatile. I plan to use it over and over as there are a couple of elements I wasn't able to use this time. First the the dark blue pieces at the top and the bottom - I was limited on my papers. I only had two patterned papers and 3 solid card stocks. I just couldn't find a paper that I was happy with for those spots. Secondly, the exact angles of the mats. I REALLY wanted to show an entire row of the Daisy Chain, so I changed the angles of the mats to make this happen. I certainly hope Lisa will consider putting this sketch in another challenge, because I see even more possibilities. 

Left Page - Title at the bottom

Left Page - Title at the top
      If you are here checking out my blog, I would like to hear your opinion. As you can see, I have posted two pics of the left page. One has the title at the bottom and the other at the top. The problem: I like it both ways. PLEASE sound off in the comments. Which one do you like better? I was SOOOO on the fence on this. I can't even remember which one I chose. I would have to go to the photo album to see. 
      The fun part of this layout was the Bazzill Daisy Chain paper. This is regular Bazzill card stock with a glossy image. This is what it looks like when you buy it: 
I used a Tim Holtz Blending Tool and some Shabby Shutters Distress Ink to give it some color and bring up the pattern. The ink does not adhere to the glossy daisies and the residue on the daisies was removed by rubbing over the paper with a paper towel. Sad news though - all of these papers and there were quite a few different patterns - is that this paper has been discontinued. Anyway, I used my stash of this paper up by placing a little here and a little there on this layout.
      For the right page, I extended one of the mats and added some Daisy Chain strips. I used several pieces of BoBunny ephemera here: the birdie strip, "A SUNDAY WELL SPENT" and the scalloped mat. 
     If you have been following my blog closely, you may have noticed the reappearance of the pails the kids are using for their egg collections. You can see the details of these pails here.


Materials List:
     Patterned Paper: BoBunny - Weekend Adventures (Picnic, Let's Play)
     Card Stock: Bazzill - White Daisy Chain
                      My Colors - Herb Garden
                                      Goldenrod
                                      Snowbound
                      Distress - Mustard Seed
     Ink: Distress - Shabby Shutters
     Dies: Karen Burniston - Numbers
            SOL - Easter Statement
     Edge Punch - Martha Stewart - Lace
     Embellies: BoBunny Ephemera 
                   KaiserKraft - Green Pearls

Challenges

Tuesday, May 1, 2018

Hoosville, Not Whosville

     My husband and I spent two weeks of April in our timeshare in Destin, Florida. We decided to take a day trip to Pensacola to see a Blue Wahoo's AA baseball game. It ended up being an especially great time. 
     The ushers at this park are exceptionally friendly! They are instructed to make sure the fans have a good time, and they obviously take this job seriously. 
     Huey and I were sitting in our seats (7 rows behind home plate) as they announced the starting line-ups. We were surprised to hear that Jody Davis, former catcher (1981-1988) for the Chicago Cubs was the Wahoo manager. Now we always go to every game dressed as Cubs fans, because that is what we ALWAYS are. After the game, Huey went down to see if Jody would sign his Cubs hat. When Jody saw the Cubs hat, he smiled and reached for it over a sea of Blue Wahoo fans. 
     Huey and Jody had a short visit about the good old days in Chicago. Huey got a selfie and his Cubs hat signed. Needless to say, Huey will NOT be wearing that hat again. We went Cubs hat shopping the very next day at the Destin Outlet Mall!!!
     This particular event was fun to scrapbook, because of all of the bits we collected during the day at the ballpark. 
Left Page

     I'm going to start with the left page of the layout. I used a Sketch N Scrap sketch to help me get started. 
Sketch #152 by Lisa Hidy
       I made a tag that displays the score of the game. I enlarged the pic of Huey's signed hat; fussy cut and matted it. The modern way of getting tickets sent in emails is so convenient, but nothing beats the old-fashioned tickets on a scrapbook page. I placed the ticket print-out on the copier - set to 65% - loaded with heavy card stock to make "vintage" tickets. I cut off the bar codes and ticket punched the corners. 
     The hat pin came from the gift shop. I used a wire cutter to take off the backing and added it to the page. 
Signature and Tickets
     The title was constructed on the Silhouette. I used two different fonts, took out the "o's" , and replaced them with baseballs from Burniston's "Sports Charms" baseballs. 
Right Page
      Here you can see Huey's selfie with Jody. When we got home, Huey mentioned that he thought he had a Jody Davis baseball card. I asked him if I could have it -- promising that adhesive would never touch it. It is placed in a card sleeve that I just happened to have, (from back when I was making luggage tags). I made a little flap for it. I told Huey he should journal inside the flap about meeting Jody. Notice that I made sure that the baseball card could be read on both sides. It may also be removed, which is important. We are hoping to retrace our steps next year to get the card signed.
t
Baseball Card Flip Book
          The Wahoo program had two pages with information about the stadium itself, so I made a mini pamphlet out of these pages. I decorated the front with ephemera. The two pages I used from the program had advertisements on them, so I used this opportunity to add pics of Kazoo, the mascot, the stadium layout, and the Wahoo logo.



     Finally, I love scoring games. My brother, Lyle, taught me to score games when we were kids. While I'm mentioning that, I will also mention that he also taught me to love baseball. I remember in the early 60's we watched the Yankees on an old black and white TV. Before the game Lyle would grab a stack of cookies and 2 glasses of milk. Mom would complain about the 2 glasses, but Lyle would always say that he didn't want to go back to the kitchen during the game. He also taught me to throw a curve ball and a knuckle ball. He was actually training me to pitch so he could practice hitting.
     I have a score sheet format that I am particularly fond of. I had taken some along in case we watched some Cubbie games in the room. Unfortunately I tend to print them on some card stock that I don't like. For this occasion I had a neon orange score sheet. 
Neon Orange Scorecard
It wasn't going to be especially attractive on my red, white and blue layout. So . . . . . .  I trimmed a piece of 12 x 12 Bazzill Rope Swing card stock to letter size and sent it through the copier. I only copied the top potion of the scorecard to the paper so as not to waste it. I made a huge tag out of it, cut a slit in the background paper and slid it in. On the back of the red background paper, I also formed a pocket with score tape so the scorecard won't slide in completely. 
Top of Scorecard Tag
Both Pages Together

Materials: 
     Patterned Paper: Paper House - All-Star Collection
     Card Stock: Distress - Chipped Sapphire
                                    Fired Brick
                      Bazzill - Rope Swing
     Die: Burniston - Sports Charms
           Anboo - Alphabet
     Punches - ek - 1 inch Corner Punch
                   ek - Ticket Punch
     Silhouette: Fonts - Bubble and Brew
                                 Lady Bug Bold
    Embellies: Ribbon - Seam Binding 5/8 inch Ivory
                  Blue Wahoo Hat Pin
    Marker: Marvy - English Red #28                 
 

Challenges