Catching up...

Greetings bloggers. Since I have figured out why I couldn't access my blog, I can now update like it should be. Don't know about where you are, but our summer here arrived early and it meant real heat business. We had 2 1/2 wks. of 100+ weather. About a  week of cooler temps. arrived and now back up to hi 90's and into the 100's again. But the alternative (a foot of snow) is no good either. Never satisfied eh?

Psalm 62:8- Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge. "Selah"   No matter what is happening to us or around us, God is the only constant. Our lives go with the ebb and flow of life. People come and go in our life. Situations change. We are ever in flux. But God is faithful at every corner of our life. He alone is trustworthy. Praise Him!

Now to do some catching up on some cards that have gone out from my craft table.

The first one is a slider card as you can see. The light blue panel slides inside and then can be pulled out to reveal the message.

The second card is a mixture of elements. The flourish is using an unknown stamp. The turquoise panel is textured with a Tim Holtz embossing folder. The medallion was printed off using a digital image from 2013 Stampin Up collection. The punches are both Martha Stewart embroidery for at least one of them.

Stampin Up Butterfly Basics was used for the stamps on this card. The co-ordinating thinlits were used to make the die cuts. At the top edge i used an old SU edge punch. At the bottom I used fleur de lis edge punch from EK Success I think. A bit of burlap was cut for a banner. Under the bottom trim are 2 different washi tapes.

 

This tag was made with the Petal Parade stamp set. and a couple washi tapes for trims along w/ the stick on daisy.

These cards were made at our monthly stamp group meeting. The theme was 10 minute cards. Everyone was to bring the ingredients to make a card in 10 minutes or less. So we got a lot done that night.

Kids like colorful things and their birthday cards are should be colorful, too. This is an easy one. Just cut out different colored and sized circles and glue to background. Texture w/ embossing folder. I think this one is mandarin screen. Then add another colored banner for more interest.

For the males on your card list, this is a good one. The image is again from the 2013 SU digital collection. It is mounted in oval shape on another oval and then onto a strip. The white card stock had been texturized at the top and stamped at the bottom.

There are 2 pictures of this card in order to show you how it unfolds. It uses various sizes of labels from Spellbinders. These are all layered on the front along with some flower punches. The card base is shaped cut to make it fold into itself. For more detailed directions visit Dawn Griffith's blog: dawnsstampingthoughts.com. Look for the Mr. & Mrs. card. She used a different shape label die set, but the technique is the same.

Here is a simple and easy card w/ lots of color. Just texturize 4 colors of card stock in the happy birthday embossing folder or folder of your choice. Then add a birthday image in black and white. Classic.

Julie Davison's blog tells how to do the Flap Fold card. It uses a circle die and scallop die. Half a piece of regular card stock is used plus the pieces for the insert. It folds flat to fit in a regular A2 envelope.

I used this one for a sympathy card for my neighbor who lost her dad. The middle panel is textured w/ the dot embossing folder from SU. The flowers are the Pansy punch and Boho Blossom. Under the panel I inserted a strip cut using the scallop edge punch from SU.

This stamp set is from Close to my Heart Typed Note stamped on a tag and placed on a card.

Here stamping is combined again with embossing. The edge is the scalloped edge punch from SU. The stamps are unknown.

The card base is cream color that is used a wood grain embossing folder to texturize. Before running it through the machine I applied gray ink to the embossing folder. The stamps are from an unknown Canadian manufacturer.

To make a quilt is not always with cloth and thread. Just cut out the same size squares from various papers and "piece" together.

Martha Stewart edge and corner punches were used to make the bottom layer. A doily die was used for the top.

Martha Stewart around the page punch was used for the top panel cut outs . SU Modern Label punch was used for the label.

Butterfly Thinlit die was used to cut out the butterfly. It is layered on a panel of lilac that has been texturized with a journaling embossing folder. I like the pretty scroll on it too. Under the lilac panel are strips made with Martha's edge punch Deco Fan I think.

My grandson got promoted from preschool so needed a terrific card. This shows what a star he is! The red stars were punched using Martha's all over the page punch. I put red shiny paper under the area. The other stars are cut from a Spellbinders star set and shiny paper.

Another card for themales in your card list. The chevron shape is made using 5 strips of double sided cardstock with another strip across the top. More detailed directions can be found on Deb Valder's blog: stampladee.com.

Two pictures of this card is needed to let you see the mechanism on the inside. The stamps on the front are from Butterfly Basics by SU. Unknown source for sentiment. Directions for this are also from Deb Valder. She calls it the Pop Up Book Card.

The card below is a basic card using some texturizing, stamping and punching. The stamp is from the SU Flower Shop set and used the Pansy punch. I think the embossing folder was Floral Fantasy.

 

  A trend going around now is the exchange of pocket letters. You make 9 ATC - sized cards and decorate them. Insert into the sleeve protector used for sport cards. Treats of the edible and/or crafting variety are inserted behind in the pockets as desired. A backing paper is placed clear at the back.In one of the pockets is to be placed a letter from the sender about themself.  Embellishments such as ribbons, fibers, charms,etc. can be attached to the page. Other goodies can be included in the package if desired, but the idea is to be able to mail in a #10 envelope. 

Both these cards went to my son's house as he had a birthday (the golf one) and he and his wife had their first wedding anniversary in June.The idea is off Pinterest from tammyb.blogspot.com. The anniversary card used a technique new to me. My friend got a Minc machine. It came with some pre printed images so I used the congratulations one and ran it thru the machine using the gold foil. I know it doesn't show up very well but it is shiny gold color. For the base of the card I die cut a heart using Spellbinders heart die and inlaid it into a similar aperture cut in  the card base. Then the card was embossed using the SU Elegant Lines embossing folder. I also applied some pretty holographic glitter for accent.

This was a fun card to make for anniversary. As you can see, it was embossed. Two hearts cut out, one from music paper and one embossed card stock. The rose trim is fabric trim and the white trim is poly lace trim. The blue strip was made using a Martha edge punch.

A get well card needs to be bright and cheery so thought this fit the bill. Four colors card stock were punched from a heart punch and layered on a colorful decorated paper strip. A medallion punch glue on top w/ a button.

These hearts are from SU Embosslits. Think this set is discontinued. Just use different colors. Emboss card base w/ 2 different folders.

Feathers are from Close to my Heart stamp set. Strip of burlap across card w/ punched paper trim using a Martha punch. Fibers were added by feathers and button.

Another "quilt" of sorts is on the list. Good way to use up some scraps. The doily is die cut as is the corrugated heart. Fibers were threaded through the button and glued on.

I hope you have enjoyed getting caught up with me and hope there might be a layout or idea you can use in your future (or current) projects.
Blessings to all.
God is good, all the time.
MEg :)

Oops I found the lost blog.

It was a case of mistaken identity. I could not gain access to my blog. It kept telling me there was no blog in that account. Who was I to know that it was the wrong account and who was I to know that there was more than one? Long story short, I figured out that I used the wrong information sign in and hence was not going to my ongoing blog. Got it all sorted and so finally got here.

Have had  quite a time trying to put up some pictures for you all to see. I had it almost all done and then like the proverbial "glitch" it just went poof. So this will have to be all for now. Will try again later with pictures.

Resurrection Sunday 2015

Greetings bloggers,
It is that time of year that we are reminded of the price that our Lord paid for each and every person to erase the penalty of their sins. This holiday's origins did not come from a bunny or chicks, although those things do remind us of the new life of spring. Easter is about the sacrifice that the Lord Jesus Christ took on Himself so that we may have a relationship with Him while here on earth and after death, to live with Him in heaven for all eternity.

Isaiah 53:5-- 
But he was wounded for our transgressions,
    crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the punishment that made us whole,
    and by his bruises we are healed.

This was written by the prophet Isaiah many, many years before the birth of Christ. God inspired Isaiah to write about the coming Savior.

Rejoice!!! We have been set free from the slavery of sin. As believers, we are not perfect, just forgiven as we live our lives walking with the Lord. I pray that all who read this have a relationship with God in this real way. If not, please read the rest of the chapter of Isaiah 53 and John 3:16. He is waiting to hear from you!

Best of wishes for a blessed weekend.

MEg :)

Spring around the corner?

Hello bloggers,
Here in the Pacific Northwest we have had a nice mild winter, unlike a lot of the rest of the country. But am thinking we will pay for it in the summer with water restrictions. The grass has been growing, flowers are budding, trees are forming buds. Our lilac tree is getting new shoots. Am in anticipation of all the new growth to appear and show it's glory.

2 Chronicles 7:14

14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. 

This is such an encouraging verse in that it assures us that the Lord God is listening to our prayers and will forgive.  We need a repentant heart (one who is willing to turn from doing wrong) and open heart to follow what God has told us. Jesus came for that reason-to tell and show us of God's love and His intent to have a relationship with us. What a blessing that is!!!

 In January it was my turn to bring the demo for my stamping club. I chose to have for my theme  Valentines since I like to share love and especially on that day. So here are the three cards that we made at that meeting:

 This blue and brown plaid one has a masculine feel to it for those who needed such a card. The background is done with a wood grain embossing folder w/ light gray ink on it. The other papers are of unknown source. The scallop heart is a Stampin Up die cut and the little heart is a hand punch.

 This mousey one is made using circles cut (I used a die) and hearts cut with a punch. The little eyes were made with a hand punch. The label is a stamp and matching die from Papertrey Ink. The sparkly heart is from the dollar store.

 This butterfly card starts with an embossed background using a cuttlebug embossing folder I believe. The scalloped hearts are from Stampin Up as are the smaller hearts. They are from a stamp set called Hearts A Flutter with a matching die set. I stamped the greeting on card stock and then folded so it will meet in the middle. A little banner was made for the body of the butterfly. Red hearts are from dollar store.

This is a birthday card I mailed to a friend. It is a bit washed out as the card stock was more coral color. The embossing folder is called swirl frame I think. The flowers were stamped on light coral vellum using Stampin Up's Flower Shop and punched with the Pansy punch. They were stamped in Versamark ink and heat embossed in white. In the middle are little pearls. The leaves are made with Martha Stewart punch.

 My son was married last year and they just moved into a house so of course had to send a new house card. As you can see, it is very simple. I used the scallop heart again to make a port for the picture to show through. Inside was an appropriate verse.

 A couple of friends came over for some craft time and we made more valentine cards. This one starts with collage style stamping on the cover. On a square piece of card stock we glued strips of decorated paper on the diagonal. A heart is punched out of the middle. Save the cut out piece. Behind the cut out is place a piece of card stock that has been embossed and sanded. Then the cut out heart is attached to the card and a little flower added.

This card starts with embossing using the damask embossing folder. A piece of white card stock is also embossed with the same folder and punched out using the Blossom punch from Stampin Up along with a punch from red paper. A rectangle piece of white is embossed with the Swiss Dots embossing f older and layered on red paper. The large heart is cut from decorated paper with a heart die. The tag is stamped and then cut free hand. They are all layered together.

This card uses the same heart embossing folder as in a card above and also uses the border folder for the blue strip. The hearts are from the Hearts A Flutter stamp and die set. A banner was made by stamping on card stock and cutting the end. It was then threaded through a heart embellishment.

A sewing project came up so will include it here. This is a little "ditty" bag for little things that run around the bottom of a purse. It is made from a pistachio bag. It is shown inside a purse organizer that I made for a lady in our church. So she is more organized now!

 This card was made for my daughter who happens to like Dr. Who. It has an explosion mechanism for the inside made with a picture of the inside of the TARDIS. Those of you who watch the show know what I mean. The embellishments were found on the internet.

 On one of the Ustream shows that I watch, a lady showed a technique which looked like fun to me. You take a label and collage stamp on it. I happened to have some 3" square sticky labels so stamped away. Then found some scrap card stock to mount them on. In under an hour and a half I had made eight cards. They will need some embellishment and verses added for the appropriate occasion.

This is one that I decorated for a birthday. I tried to make them very generic so they could go to just about anyone. If you haven't tried this technique, give it a try. Always nice to have a few extra cards to give out. If you don't have an occasion to give a card for, there might be other places that cards would be welcome: hospital, senior center, veteran's center, church, etc.

This card was for my other daughter. It starts with a light gray card stock. The stamping is done using Stampin Up's Butterfly Basics stamp set. The butterflies are die cut from the matching die set. I added some lace trim and matching ribbon and some sparklies.

 

Hope you have enjoyed what I have shared. Give a new technique a try. Most of the ideas are from Pinterest or taken from inspiration seen on that site. Everyone keep warm and look for the blooming flowers.

Blessings,

MEg :)

 

Happy New Year

Hi Bloggers,
Greetings for a new year and may you have many blessings in this year. We have been busy since I last posted which is waaaaay too long ago. Sorry about that. The holidays included Thanksgiving with 2 of our daughters and Christmas and new year's with daughter #1 & #2 in Colorado. We were gifted with a white Christmas followed by several days of minus temperatures. But we all had an enjoyable time.

Psalm 24:1-5
The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; 2 for he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters. 3 Who may ascend the hill of the LORD? Who may stand in his holy place? 4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false. 5 He will receive blessing from the LORD and vindication from God his Savior.
It is so reassuring to know that the Lord has His hand on the world that we live in, the world He created and sustains. Whatever comes our way in this new year, know that the Lord, He is God and worthy of all our worship and praise. Do so with a clean heart and thanksgiving to God.

Now on to the crafting section. In November I taught a card class at our local scrapbook store for Christmas cards. Below you will see the samples.

The blue one is a large star cut with a die and textured. The small star is also die cut with a few stamped stars on the background. A greeting is layered with blue and silver ribbon under.
The "music" one has a die cut poinsetta using Poppy dies and punched out leaves. It doesn't show up very well in the picture, but the flower has a delicate punched out top which makes it look lacy. The music is scrapbooking paper under the front of the cut out card front.
On the bottom is a twist card using double sided card stock. A medallion was made from 2 punched out circles stamped with a greeting layered on a ribbon. This card can be used for a gift card or money holder for giving.

These 2 cards were made at a friend's house. The left lavendar one has a lattice style edge on the left made by using a template and making cuts and then folding the points. The middle is die cut with the greeting put on a smaller die cut inside.  The other card is showing the use of washi tape and sequins to embellish.

These 2 were used for birthday cards. The top one with the heart started out by gluing strips of paper to a square of card stock then a heart was punched out. The heart was saved to adhere later. Under the cut out is another piece of card stock that had been textured with a script embossing folder and put through a cuttlebug. The cut out heart is then glued partly onto the square which is glued onto the stamped background of the front of the card. A bit of foam tape is put under the overhanging part of the card. A greeting is stamped.
The pink doll tag is using a stamp from Julie Nutting who has a whole series of doll stamps. (I won the doll stamp in a drawing on one of the online scrapbook shows that I watch.) The doll was stamped then the parts were stamped on different papers for the 2 sections of her dress. I glued lace at the hem. The tag was textured with a swirl embossing folder with different papers glued on. I cut out the rose from a decorative paper and at the bottom right is a smaller tag with the birthday greeting stamped on. The edging on the left is from an edge punch from Martha Stewart. A shiny heart and sheer ribbon was added to finish.

Here is a card I used for a sympathy card. The white strip was textured using a damask embossing folder. The large black and white flowers are the pansy punches from Stampin Up. The small aqua flowers are from the Boho punch also from Stampin Up as is the black edge punch.

We have a few kids in our church so have to keep up on kids cards as well. This is a simple use of colored card stock that has been circle die cut and then textured in a lot of different folders. The eyes are die cut and punched.

One of the men in our church had a birthday so got out the deer paper. The head was fussy cut and applied to a die cut scallop circle with some washi tape under.

A different format was used for this square card. I wanted to try this technique of using a punch but only on part of the card so that it would remain instead of being completely punched away. Pansy punches from SU are the main flowers and Martha Stewart leaf punch. Small yellow flowers are from the Boho SU Punch. The envelope was made using the We R Memory Keepers Envelope Punch Board and some co-ordinating scrapbook paper.

At this time of year there are usually some sewing projects. I think I already posted the jammy pants  and pillow cases I made for the grandkids. They like to use flannel hankies, especially when they have a cold. So I made up a batch of them in fun prints. (The photo was oriented correctly but didn't transfer right.)

This card front was made with mirror paper and an embossing folder. The labels were die cuts in 2 different sizes with flowers added.

This was a "cheater" card as I used some decorative paper. The little "birds" on the side were done using origami folding.

I hope this finds you all well and doing good. All the best for the new year.
Keep on crafting.
Blessings,
Meg :)