Anniversary

Anniversary and Sympathy cards are 2 of the hardest for me to make, just because choosing an image is difficult. Sympathy is a little easier, you can do a male image or flowers for female. For anniversary you need something male and female generic and fit the couple. I was in a quandary when it came to my in-laws this year. I finally decided on the pomegranates from Flourish and knew I wanted to cut the card using a large rectangle nestie.

For the base, I stamped the small pomegranates all over in Old Olive ink and then sponged the edges with Frayed Burlap distress ink.

The pomegranates were colored with my copics (they are a lot of fun to play with) and cut out. HINT: To cut narrow images, stick packing tape on the back to 'stiffen up' the stems and other thin pieces. I can't take credit for this, I think it came from a Midwest Stampers Tuesday tip, sorry, I don't know who gave it. The label is a Spellbinders die and I don't know who the greeting is by. Anyway, the rest is pretty easy to copy. Anyone else have good ideas on images for Anniversaries? Leave a post and let me know.

Get Well

A friend on one of my stamping groups had knee replacement surgery and this is the card I made for her. She's a horse lover too so it's a wonderful opportunity to dig out my horse stamps, I have a lot. This was from a sheet I got at Addicted to Rubber Stamps years ago. I think it was my first unmounted rubber stamps. I stamped him in sepia Versafine on white and colored the syringle on the blanket with a prismacolored pencil. There really isn't a technique, just layering, Nesties and DB I think it's SU. I used a Spellbinder die to cut the buckle from foil (aka shiny) cardstock I got at Michaels in the art section where the large sheets are sold. I ran the blue through my paper crimper and that's about it. Now if things just went together as fast as I could type them up.

Racoon

And I bet you thought I did nothing but moose!

I got this image from Eureka and I have had this stamped for a long time with it just floating around my stamp desk for a long time. I finally decided I better clean it up a little and well, instead of cleaning, stamping is more fun and I did need to make a card to my son.... LOL

I stamped the little bugger in Pallet Nior black ink on white cardstock and colored with one color of brown copic. Pretty easy just using one color. Then I used my Nesties labels and cut him out and layered on a black Nestie label a size bigger. I ran some brown cardstock through a cuttlebug folder I think it's Herringbone and layered the coon on it. The washers are really grommet things (you know the ones with the little pokie things on the back) I found at Hobby Lobby by the Cropadile stuff. I was excited and in a hurry so didn't read it close enough that they only work with the big one which I don't have so when I got it home, I was bummed. Anyway I figured out a cool way to put them on without killing your fingers.

HINT: Take some of the foam wrap stuff that comes around furniture and fold it up so you have 3 layers or something similar. Put your cardstock on top and push your grommets right through. Turn over and use a hammer to pound them down. I have one of those little ball peen hammers (not the girly pink ones) in my stamping room. Do you know the difference between a ball peen and claw hammer? A claw hammer is the type that you can pull a nail out with...with the claw on one end. A ball peen has a round end in that space....but I digress, we're here to talk stamping.

I had a piece of black cardstock, not big enough to make a full layer but liked the look of only using part for the back layer on the card base. I just added some word windows with a brad on the top and there it is....oh I put some money in it before I send it to my son in grad school too. He always complains he doesn't have any cash on him so being the wonderful mom I am, once in a while my cards have some money in.

Basically it's a very simple manly card but I like it. It's something different from the normal Asian type ones I usually send him since he's studying that part of the world and I usually catch heck if I do something wrong like stamp my name chop he got me in China upsidedown.

If you are following my posts, please leave a comment, I'd like to know who's reading if anyone!

Snowgirl

I meant to post this a long time ago but it got lost on my camera with the Christmas pictures. It's a card I stamped for a dear friend to send with her Christmas present, which I bought late...sorry Lois. The snowgirl is a cute stamp from Firecracker Designs by Pamela that I colored with my NEW copics, this was my first image I colored so there is a learning curve on it but I think I did ok. I used some glitter on the left sides and cut her out. Layered her on a square card, on top of a couple square nestied, the white was ran through the cuttlebug snowflake folder. THe snowflake is an embellishment I got at Hobby Lobby it's really from a set of mini ornaments so was quite reasonable. It's a pretty simple card but wanted to share. We are still trudging through 60+ inches of snow this year but it's been much to cold to make a snowman or girl. I'm SO ready for spring.

Our Buttons

Buttons is our very old, 14 years in a week, dog. Every cat LOVES her! I really don't think she's that trilled with being a cat magnet but we find it amusing. I snapped this picture one night. The 2 cats with her are outside barn cats in to warm up in our very sub zero temps.

Buttons mother was a registered collie, dad was a registered golden retriever, yes she is black and that is strange but for some reason that is the color they are! Anyway, that makes her a mutt I guess...or a designer dog, a COLTRIEVER! LOL She has been a very good dog and we know our time with her is limited. Right now she can't get up by herself but has earned our help. She is still happy, not in pain, gets around once she's up and can control her bodily functions so we can't put her down yet. She was SO happy when the kids were home for Christmas, I think it added a few months to her life she perked up so much.

Here's whole pack! Grizzly is on the left, he's 11 so considered geriatric too. We got him from the humane society as a puppy, he was found in a badger hole with his brother. He's the most laid back, lazy dog ever, even as a puppy he never played much, didn't chew on anything and still just lays around!

The evil eyed looking guy on the right is Doogan, the comedian of our hounds. He's a Border Collie, Shepard/Collie cross we got a giveaway. He's only 3 but is having back problems so is seeing my chiropractor. It's helping but we are still worried. He's brillant, busy and a very needy fella. Not evil at all but super friendly and loves showing off his tricks, play dead, roll over, turn around, get a certain toy, wave, etc. HIs slogan....will play for tricks!

I hope you enjoyed meeting our dogs, a celebration of Buttons life.

Girltime Moose

My daughter's good friend, Shannon, went back to Montana with her after Christmas. Shannon came out early as she wanted to 'hang with me'. I was honored and humbled but I think DD was jealous! The girls had all sorts of things planned for a week, knitting, shopping, Shannon was going to ski with Bailey's husband since she still can't because of her knee problems, they stopped at Yellowstone for New Year's Eve and had a blast in Gardiner MT at the Two Bit Saloon. Anyway, this is the card I sent them.

The card is a Z fold, this is the outside, just patterned paper with a moose track stamp on it (DD got it for me at Yellowstone last year) and I computer generated the greeting on cardstock and then cut it out with nesties and layered it on a scallop nestie in blue with some ribbon. I cut the edge with a Martha Stewart border punch.

Then it opens into 3 parts! I love this.

I continued the patterned paper and moose tracks as a background. Since those 2 girls are knitting fanatics, I had to use the knitting moose and made sure one was a redhead moose like Shannon and colored the knitting the colors of what they were working on when they left, Shannon a scarf and Bailey a Dale of Norway sweater. I used the label maker I got for Christmas to make the greetings. For this one is says, "Have fun knitting."

THe next picture was them relaxing that says, "Take time to RELAX." I made sure to color the furniture the color of her furniture. My daughter caught on to the colors so that made me happy. I also put a label on that said, "Bailey ice your knee" since I had to keep reminding her at home!

Here's the last part that says "And safe trip home" since they were driving back and the roads had been bad.

All the images were colored with my new copic markers. The moose are from http://www.hannastamps.com/ and I don't remember where I got the mountain and tree stamps from, sorry.

I like to try to think outside the box and use up somethings I have laying around, like the base cardstock for this was some a print shop gave me. I measures about 4 1/2 inches wide and 25 inches long. I didn't use the whole length for this card. I really need to challenge myself and try to do different folds. The label maker is fun to do your own greetings too. I really need to buy some clear label refill.

Pregnant moose

Right after Christmas I received an email from some dear friend's in England that they are expecting! I was so excited and in the middle of placing another order from Hanna Stamps for more Moose stamps....she had a sale, I couldn't resist.


Anyway, I had to add this pregnant moose stamp to my cart and here is the card I sent them.

I realized after starting to dig in my designer paper stash that I really don't have anything babyish, I tend to lean more for naturals or outdoorsy stuff. So this was as close as I have and I was bummed there wasn't any pink. I think her 'mum' will like the idea of a boy but his mum would like a girl, she has 3 boys, her side has 2 girls. Whatever they have they will be fantastic parents.

Anyway, I used the paper as a background on my 5X7 card. Used it another direction for the image layer and the backside for the nestie bottom layer. (does that make sense?) I stamped the image on my patterned paper and cut the dress out. Colored the moose with my new copics (I'm really loving them) and tied ribbon on the bottom. The oval congratulations is by JustRite, ribbon from Hobby Lobby and flowers are from a bunch of silk flowers I bought.