Fa La La

I created todays cards with some products that have been sitting in my unused box way too long. 

I first stamped the backgrounds using the Ellen Hutson Fa La La  stamp onto linen cardstock. The pine needles were cut using  The Greetery Pine Wisp Die. I inked one set of three with peeled paint and forest moss distress ink for a traditional look and a set of two with distress oxide iced spruce and bundled sage for a softer look. 

To anchor the pine wisps I added a strip of silver metallic cardstock and a bow cut with a die from the The Greetery Fit to Be Tied set on the first card. For the second one I wrapped silver cording around the image panel, tied in a bow, then glued down portions of the strands. A few pieces of crushed glass were glued onto the pine wishp\s. Both image panels were attached to their respective card bases with a layer of Foam Tape. 

Products: Ellen Hutson stamp, The Greetery Dies, PTI cs, Michael's metallic cs, Paper Source cording, Ranger Distress inks

Let's all have a great week! Blessings to you all.

Hi, Friend

Today's tag/card was an exercise in not only using a new stamp and die set but to also get away from the Christmas and Fall colors I have been using a lot lately. Don't get me wrong. I do love the colors associated with both but it was refreshing to use other colors for this project.

I actually created this for the Tag You're It #75 challenge although I certainly strayed far from the inspiration tag theme. But I was inspired by the stitched edge tag as well as the direct to paper stamping. I used the new Essentials by Ellen Snailed It set because a) it's new and b) it's cute. After cutting the tag from white card stock using a Pretty Pink Posh Stiched Duo 3 die, I stamped the leaf stem in green parakeet then inked the edges of the stamp with new leaf ink and stamped again to give it a some depth and shading. Using a bit of masking I also stamped the mushrooms with pale tomato and catkin inks as well as the snail trail with smoke ink. I stamped the snail parts separately using bright buttercup and soft granite ink, then cut out with the matching dies. Lastly I stamped the sentiment directly on the tag using soft granite ink again. I fully intended on using some yellow ribbon in the tag hole but when searching for said ribbon I ran across the black and white snippet and decided to use it instead for some contrast.

I decided to go ahead and add to a card while I was working on it. I cut the card front from Essentials by Ellen card stock and added a patterned paper and strip of card stock border at the bottom of a top folding card. I attached the completed tag using a layer of craft foam.

Products: Essentials by Ellen stamps and dies, Studio Calico dp, Essentials by Ellen and PTI cs, Pretty Pink Posh die, PTI, Simon Says and Hero Arts ink

I hope your week is off to a good start. Later.

Ellen Hutson July Pin-Sights Challenge - Guest Designer

I was super excited to receive an invitation to guest design for the Ellen Hutson July Pinsights Challenge! The Pin-Sights challenge is a monthly inspirational challenge based on a Pinterest Inspired photo that is located on the CLASSroom blog.

And this is the fun and festive inspiration! So many ideas went through my head on this but in the end I went with my normal clean and graphic style.

As you can see I was inspired by the festive colors and the dots. I started out by cutting a rectangular panel using a die from the My Favorite Things Wonky Stitched Rectangle Die-namics. Then using the Misti Stamping Tool, I stamped one row of dots at a time using a stamp from the Essentials by Ellen Wonky Backdrops, masking rows with washi tape as I went along. I stamped the rows using Hero Arts Pale Tomato ink, Hero Arts Soft Pool ink, Hero Arts Fresh Peach ink and Memento Dandelon ink. I shifted the stamp down ever so slightly and then stamped again with VersaMark ink and heat embossed with Ranger Clear Embossing Powder. I cut the greeting out three times using the Essentials by Ellen Brushstroke Hello Die then layered them together for added dimension. I almost stopped there but then I added a flower cut with a die from the Essentials by Ellen Wild Garden Dies and anchored with a Doodlebug Lily White Glitter Dot.

Products: Essentials by Ellen stamps and dies, Bazzill and PTI cs, Doodlebug enamel dot, My Favorite Things die, Hero Arts and Memento ink

Now it's your turn! To participate you must use Essentials by Ellen products and be inspired by the challenge graphic above.  A random challenge participant will receive a $50 gift certificate to the Ellen Hutson store. Link your projects here. Have fun and good luck!

Peace Joy Love (#christmasinjuly2017)

Summer is a wonderful time of the year but then again so is Christmas so I am doing a Christmas in July series. My goal is to make at least 20 cards this month but I am not going to stress over the goal. The point is to get a jump start on my Christmas cards while enjoying the process. See below on how to participate too.

I stamped a simple background using an image from the Essentials by Ellen Wonky Backdrops using blueberry ink and the star images in Delicata Shimmery Silver ink. After stamping two of the small images from the Hero Arts Winter Time Fun set and I cut out with the matching dies. I attached them to the background with foam tape and stamped the sentiment came from the Essentials by Ellen Cozy Christmas set also in blueberry ink.

Products: Hero Arts stamps, Ellen Hutson stamps, MFT and Delicata Tsukineko ink, Copic Markers
Copics: Deer-E40, E31, E33, W00, E81, E41, E44; Bird-R20, R22, R24, YR31; Bunny-W00, E81, R01

If you feel like joining me to get a head start on your Christmas cards, please link up below. I would love the inspiration and promise I will stop by to take a look and comment. If you post to instagram, use #christmasinjuly2017.

An InLinkz Link-up

Hello

I couldn't resist making a project for the Ellen Hutson June Pin-Sights challenge as the colors and the florals are right up my alley.

I started out with some messy water coloring with hibiscus burst and summer sunrise ink onto a Ranger water color rectangle cut with a My Favorite Things Wonky Stitched die. Summer sunrise did not turn out as orang-y as  wanted to be but I still like it. After the panel dried, I then stamped the dots image from the Essentials by Ellen Wonky Backdrops using Versamark ink and white heat embossed for a bit of subtle interest. Next I stamped and cut leaves, stems and a flower from the Bohemian Garden stamp set and then cut out with the matching Bohemian Garden dies. After water coloring the main flower and leaves, I added White Opal Liquid Pearls to the flower center. I popped up the main floral bunch and then slipped in a couple of sketched and water colored flowers using dies from the Wild Garden die set. I used the Brushstroke Hello die to cut out the sentiment from a couple of layers of plain white card stock and then lastly from card stock water colored with hibiscus burst ink. I layered them all together and then attached to the card front.

Products: Essentals by Ellen stamps and dies, Ranger water color cs, Ranger Liquid Pearls, MFT die, PTI inks

Have a blessed Tuesday. See you back here soon.

You Are in My Thoughts

It's been a difficult week to say the least. My husband lost most of the sight in his left eye Monday afternoon. We weren't really sure where to start so we called the doctor who did his lens implants after cataract surgery a long time ago and we managed to get in the following morning. They determined fairly quickly that the lens had slipped out of place but were having trouble locating it so we were there a good part of the day. Not only was he unable to see out of the eye, the wandering lens was compromising his retina. Surgery was scheduled bright and early Thursday with a retina specialist going first for the removal and then the original surgeon to replace the lens. It was a long 2 1/2 hour surgery but thank God all went well. Friday, we went for post op checks with both doctors so it was another busy day. He is recovering but experiencing some discomfort as well as blurriness and we have several different eye drops for use in 1-5 weeks. He is movement restricted and is struggling with the inactivity. By Saturday I was feeling rather frazzled so I retreated to the craft room for a little stamping.

I actually completed a couple of cards and stamped up two more. I doubled dipped on challenges for today's card combining the sketch from the Cas(e) this Sketch #222 and the colors from the Color Throwdown #443 challenge. These are my favorite card colors and I can't resist a CAS sketch.

After attaching a border from patterned paper on the edge, I stamped two of the leaves from the Essentials by Ellen Bohemian Garden set directly onto the card front using green parakeet ink. I then stamped one of the flowers from the same set onto Neenah cardstock and cut out with the matching die from the Bohemian Garden die set. After coloring with Copic markers, it was attached with a foam dimensional dot. The sentiment from The Cat's Pajamas Simply Said was stamped onto a strip of hawaiian shores cardstock. A few enamel dots finished it up.

Products: Essentials by Ellen stamps and dies, MME dp, Neenah and PTI cs, Doodlebug enamel dots, PTI and MFT ink, Copic Markers
Copics: Y11, Y13, Y15, B000, B01, B04

Have a blessed Sunday!

Waving Hello

Hello there! I am still slowly working my way back into stamping after the big move. I have actually been creating, just nothing I can show you yet.

It's been a long time since I have regularly participated in challenges but yesterday (Mother's Day) was a difficult day for me so I decided to get crafty to take my mind off it. This card is for the current Mix It Up Challenge which is to create a project using both Essentials by Ellen and Reverse Confetti products.

I cut the tag from navy blue cardstock using the Reverse Confetti Thanks Tag die set. After stamping one of the background images from the Essentials by Ellen Wonky Backdrops set onto white cardstock I cut out using the rounded rectangle layer die from the same tag set. After stamping the octopus from the Reverse Confetti Seaside set using smoke ink, I cut it using the matching die. I stamped the sentiment onto a white card stock piece, then layered everything onto the tag using foam dots. I added the banner cut from yellow cardstock using a die from the Gift Card Holder Tag set and a wee bit of twine to the tag hole to finish it up. After attaching the tag to the card base, I added two strips of card stock at the bottom of the tag for a simple and masculine look.

Products: Reverse Confetti stamps and dies, Essentials by Ellen stamp, Recollections, Simon Says and PTI cs, The Twinery twine, Simon Says and MFT inks

I hope your week is off to a great start.

Christmas Blessings

I created a trio of tags back in August that I decided I needed for cards since I was a bit short of the number of Christmas cards for mailing.

I created very simple backgrounds using patterned paper since the tags were really oversized and detailed enough. Plus frankly, I didn't have much time to get that creative anyway. Here are the individual photos:

Products: Essential by Ellen dies, Paper Smooches stamps and dies, Carta Bella, My Mind's Eye and Illustrated Faith dp, Bazzill and PTI cs, Michael's mirrored cs, Hemptique cord, MFT ink, Copic Markers
Copics: W00, E81, YG0000, YG01, YG03

Thanks for stopping by.

Christmas Blessings

Today's project is a trio of Christmas tags I created for the  Ellen Hutson Calling All Artists Pin-Sights Challenge. Unfortunately, my photos are a bit dark. It's gloomy here!

I used the largest die from the Paper Smooches Gift Tags 2 set to cut two tags from white linen and a third one from kraft cardstock. I stamped the same sentiment from the Paper Smooches A Blessed Christmas at the bottom of each tag. I then used the Essentials by Ellen Laurel Wreath die to cut wreaths from Green Parakeet, Pinefeather and gold mirrored cardstock. I cut additional ones from plain white cardstock in order to layer the wreaths for dimension and stability.

For the "glamour" tag, I added a metallic red bow using a die from the My Favorite Things Blueprints 3 set and gold and red metallic stars cut with dies from the Essentials by Ellen Home & Hearth set. Some gold metallic thread in the tag hole finished it up.

The "rustic" tag includes a small house cut with a die from the Essentials by Ellen Home & Hearth set and a small plaid bow cut with the Mama Elephant Dainty Bow die. Natural cord was threaded through the tag hole.

For the "clean and simple" tag I stamped the dove from the Paper Smooches A Blessed Christmas set onto Copics X-Press It cardstock and then cut out with the matching die from the Blessed Icons set. After coloring with Copic makers, I threaded lime green cord through the tag hole.

Products: Essential by Ellen dies, Paper Smooches stamps and dies, Bazzill and PTI cs, Michael's mirrored cs, Hemptique cord, MFT ink, Copic Markers
Copics: W00, E81, YG0000, YG01, YG03

Just like the tags I made earlier this week, these will most likely be placed on cards. It's been fun getting back to crafting this week. We are have a busy weekend ahead with my granddaughter's birthday party and an open house. I need to do some shopping and get this house cleaned for it. Have a great weekend.

From Our Home to Yours

Today's project is Christmas card #5 for the year. I only have 55 more to go!

I combined stamps and dies from the Essentials by Ellen Cozy Christmas and My Favorite Things Winter Wonderland sets for the Ellen Hutson Calling All Artists Pin-Sights Challenge. I started out my cutting a circle from Sno Cone cardstock using an MFT Pierced Circle die and then added the "snow banks" cut from white linen cardstock using My Favorite Things Stitched Valley dies. I stamped two of the smaller images from the My Favorite Things Winter Wonderland, cut out with the matching Winter Wonderland dies, coloring up both with Copic Markers. I cut the pine trees and houses from gray, white and red card stock scraps using the dies from the Essentials by Ellen Home and Hearth die set. I assembled all the elements onto the circle panel using a combo of glue and foam tape for dimension. I stamped the sentiment from the Essentials by Ellen Cozy Christmas stamp set directly onto a white linen card stock background which was cut with a MFT Wonky Stitched Rectangle die and attached to the card base with a layer of craft foam.

Products: Essentials by Ellen and My Favorite Things stamps and dies, MFT and PTI cs, Memento and PTI ink, Copic Markers
Copics: Snowman-C00, C1; Tree-G21, G24, G28

Phew! Do you think I mentioned enough products?!

In the Lane

I am trying to catch up on the number of Christmas cards I normally have completed by this time of year. I have a long way to go considering it is August already and this is only card #4.

After seeing several cards using the Pretty Pink Posh Storybook dies, I decided I needed at least one to try. I think I'm hooked. I combined it with another stitched die to make the cover, stamping the sentiment from the Mama Elephant Winter Wonderland set using Pure Poppy ink. I completed the base with a combo of Sno Cone cardstock to represent the sky, stamping the trees from the same set using Smokey Gray ink and then the bird and nest. I added the snowy hills cut from white textured cardstock using My Favorite Things Stitched Valley dies. After securing the storybook and background pieces together I stamped the deer from the same stamp set and cut out with the matching Winter Wonderland dies, attaching with foam tape. Lastly, I added the Essentials by Ellen Prize Stag cut from kraft cardstock and a couple of enamel dots.

Products: Mama Elephant stamps and dies, PTI, Bazzill and MFT cs, Doodlebug Enamel Dots, MFT, Pretty Pink Posh and Ellen Hutson dies, PTI, Simon Says and Versafine ink

I am submitting this for the Ellen Hutson Calling All Artists Pin-Sights Challenge.

I hope your week is off to a great start. Thank you for stopping by my humble little abode here on the 'net!