Lots of Butterflies

Our Featured Stamper this morning (Jennifer - Mother'sDaughter) made a beautiful card with some butterflies on it.  I used that card as a basis for my own, adding more to it (stencil via lightbox), and a big die cut elegant flutterer.  Here it is:

I thought I would share it because I just love how lacy and elegant it is!!  Have a great day, and GO Patriots!!

CCEE1437 Odd Day

Our hostess this month, Lois, challenged us to use an odd number of the same embellishment.  I added five brads to this birthday card.

  

Please join us for this easy peasy challenge, and be sure to post your card to our blog HERE.

See you next week!

Happy Anniversary to US!

Today is our 51st Anniversary....the beginning of the 52nd year!  Wow.  Went by fast, and I'm still in love with the big guy.  Last night we went out to eat, just the two of us, while middle son and family stayed and cooked for Mom.  Nice treat.  On we go to the next milestone, I guess.  I don't often share, but wanted to let you know we have decided to reinvest in each other. LOL.

Hot off the press - Oliver

Our Great grandson Oliver will be a year old on the 19th of this month.  I made a card for him this morning:

It was a challenge at SCS, and was inspired by the title, "Puppy Dog Tails".  Here are some pictures of Oliver that came this morning, all the way from Las Vegas!

Look at the dimples!

keys!

Messy Face

This boy is the image of his Daddy, our grandson Justin!!

CCEE1436 Newspaper

Lois Bak is our hostess for the month of September.  Since she told us today is Newspaper Carrier Day, she challenged us to use newsprint on our cards.

We stopped subscribing to a delivered paper in favor of receiving the news on line.  Our landfill doesn't need any more!!  So.....I printed up something and used it as my newsprint.  I hope I don't hear the stamping police!  Here's what I made:

Please join us HERE, and join us again next week for another challenge.

CCEE1435 Herringbone

For her last Challenge, Amber has chosen the Herringbone Technique.  She calls it a fun technique using up scraps of paper.  Well, it does use up scraps of paper, but it was more involved than just fun!!! (But that's me!!)  Here's mine:

It took a while to find papers that went together, but I finally found some.  Then I had to find a bigger piece!  I added some die cuts, and a ribbon, and now that it's done I really like it!!

I made my own enamel dots, using Perler beads, and baking in the oven on parchment paper for 35 min at 325 degrees. 

Join us.  Please remember if you post your card to add the keyword CCEE 1435.  See you next month with a new hostess.

Classes with Dina Wakley!!

I spent the weekend (all day Saturday and Sunday) at Absolutely Everything in Topsfield MA.  I took three classes taught by Dina Wakley, Strong and Powerful Women, Beyond the Inkpad, and Making Faces.

Here is Kate (store owner) and Dina (on the right) before class.

 

I was talked into the class (didn't take much!) by my friend, Julia Aston (here with Dina) and Dina with me.

Dina is a talented (and crazy) person, full of fun, and covered with all kinds of paint.
Julia and I started out clean and pretty neat, but soon looked like her.
Dina brought all kinds of supplies with her, and we added our own, and by the time we were not far into it, we had our spots at our tables completely full.

Here's my Art Journal with some of the things we learned:

Beyond the ink pad......stamps and stencils and ink and paint and gesso.......

For the class on strong and beautiful women, these are pages created from the bottom layer up.....gesso, paint, stencils, stamps, dressing, like paper dolls (using painted deli paper and chinese rice paper). We inked up Dina's new stamps!

The class on Sunday was arduous, to say the least.  We spent six hours learning to draw faces (some with success, some not), and color them.  We used paint, sumi Calligraphy paint, india ink, Ranger stains,  Stabili art pencils, and color blocking.  Here are some of my results.

First we were told to draw a face.  Mine is awful.....but wait until you see the pages from the end of the class.

Mine don't look like Dina's faces, but neither did anyone else's.  Here are some of the pages of those sitting around me:

And here's one of Dina's!!

At the end we played "Show and Tell", and what a perfect ending.........Kate with her book, and Dina!

CCEE1434 For the Teacher

Amber says, "School starts back up today for my kids! (I'm doing the happy dance!!)  So let's make a card or item that can be given to the teacher at open house or first day of school.

I think this card qualifies for open house (or for the end of the year), but not first day.  Since my children have been out of school forevah (last one graduated high school in 1989!), I needed to really think about this!

How cool that I had the owl and apple punches, and had two different papers with pencils on them!

Please join us, this week and every week, for a fun challenge.

Happy Saturday!

Saturday used to be my favorite day of the week.  Now that I am retired, EVERY day is Saturday! How cool is that???  This morning I made a card in wonderful colors ...... shades of peach.  I have no one in mind to send it to, so it will go in my stash of cards.  I hope you like it.

Thanks for looking, and have a wonderful weekend!

CCEE1433 In Sympathy

This week Amber gave us a "saying goodbye" challenge.

 

I made a sympathy card that I could send to a man.  I used masculine colors, and nothing fancy...... just a die cut of cattails and a lacy oval.

                                                                            

Please join us this week and every week with your card for the challenge.

CCEE1432 Piggy at the Fair (Mixed Media down one post)

Our hostess for the month of August is Amber Hillman.  For her first challenge, she has asked us to make a card having an object or animal that you would find at a County Fair (she and her kids are part of 4-H), and extra points for having green.

Here is Piggy at the beach, enjoying a cold treat.  And wouldn't you know it, she's carrying her green purse (to pay for her treat!).

The water looks really nice, but not to Piggy, who is merely a sun-worshipper in her blue bikini.

This Piggy has never been to the County Fair, and would be appalled to see her distant relatives in their pens!


Feel free to join us, and be sure to add CCEE1432 to your card!  See you next week!

Mixed Media Challenge #2

Today I made a card for the Mixed Media Challenge (which you can find HERE).  The theme is Summer, and the optional part is burlap, which I decided to forgo.

My idea of summer is sitting on my porch watching my garden fill up with bees, gathering nectar from bee balm, daisies, and a variety of other perennials.

I used modeling paste on a honeycomb stencil, distress ink and spritzers with ink and water, acrylic paint, mesh with sponges and paint brushes, and RED sharpies for the bee balm.  The bees are stamped with Archival Ink, and I used an orange marker for their bodies and glitter glue for their wings. The sentiment is cut out and popped.  This really looks like my garden, complete with weeds!!!

Dare To Get Dirty Challenge

This challenge was to use a triangle shape.  I combined it with another challenge, to make a seasonal scene.  this was great fun.  I hope you like it!  I'm also entering it in Virginia's View Challenge HERE.

CCEE1431 I Love Paris

Our Hostess Shirley challenged us to make a card related to a song title.  Here's mine:

"I Love Paris" has always been a favorite song of mine.  I've never been to Paris (Sabrina's favorite place), but I don't necessarily think that's a requirement.  I hope you like my card, and that you will join us this week!

CCEE1430 Recipe!

Here's the recipe Shirley gave us to follow:  2 circles, 1 oval, and two or more octagons.  This one was tough for me.  I ended up making an octagonal card, using a second octagon inside the first.  The two flowers are circles, and the tag is an oval.  Here it is:

I also sponged the oval, adding a bee, and put gems in the center of the flowers.  The branch of leaves is from Sizzix, and the flowers are from Lil Inker.

Join us again next week.

CCEE1429 Chickens!

Shirley's challenge this week is to make a card with a chicken (Watch out for those chickens!)

 

I never seem to have enough get well cards, so that's the theme of my card this week.  Nothing wrong with a little chicken soup!!  Please join us again this week!

Birdhouse

Today I made a card in honor of the featured stamper at SCS.  I cased a card she made of a birdhouse, that was blue and white, with lots of butterflies.  Mine is ALL white, and has birds in a nest in the hole....and a sign on the fence ....makes a nice Anniversary card, huh?

Thanks for looking.

CCEE1428 Repurpose!

As her second challenge, Shirley said, "We all have bits and pieces of things we have saved in our stash for those "just in case we need it moments'."

I have saved a mesh bag that came with some stuff in it from the Dollar Store........who knows what that might have been!  Anyway, I cut the bag to make a bg for the flowers.  Here's my card for the challenge:

I bought this wonderful LARGE stamp, and finally made it in its real size (made it smaller before).  The colors are kinda bland, but I think I like it this way.  Maybe again I will make it in shades of RED.  What do you think???

Mixed Media Challenge #1 (CCEE below)

There is a challenge at the Mixed Media Blog.  The theme is "Nature", and for this challenge we can use a tag.  Here is mine:

I started with a manilla tag, stenciling with Peeled Paint Distress ink.  With a honeycomb stencil, I added gesso, then more ink in honey.

Using my cuttlebug, I die cut the Sizzix bee and leaves.  The leaves are shaped with McGill rollers, and the bee was colored with Tim Holtz markers in honey and pumice.  The flower was curled with a bone folder, layered and pierced to admit a sparkle brad.

The small tag was stamped with part of a saying and sponged on the edges, and along with the bee, popped up.  I punched a green circle to cover the tag hole, and tied light green satin through it. Last, I added crystal glitter glue to the wings of the bee.

HERE is a link to the challenge

CCEE1427 RED, White, and Blue

Our hostess for the month of July is Shirley.  Her first challenge to us is to make a RED, white and Blue card (and it doesn't have to be patriotic).  Here's mine:

Please join us, and be sure to come back next week!