Woodblock Wednesday for February!

 This month I chose a stamp that has some special meaning to me, as I think it was one of the first stamps I bought after I got interested in making cards.  It's dated 2004, from Hero Arts, and called Sketch Tulips.

supplies: white and hot pink cardstock, Hero Arts Sketch Tulips, Spellbinders Lily Arch sentiment and matching die, Pink Fresh Studio Ornate Oval Frame, Sunny Studio Quilted Hearts embossing folder

I hope that you'll visit Amy's blog to see some more cards made with woodblocks!

A Little Sunshine

 Our granddaughter recently sent us a thank you card that had a floral spray in bright colors against a black background.  I have seen so many of your cards using dark backgrounds, and I've been wanting to give this idea a try, and Alma's card got me moving.  Here's the result.

supplies: black and bright colors of cardstock, Spellbinders Be Bold Blooms and Club Blooms dies, preprinted sentiment strip

I don't often work with colors this bright, but I'm so glad I gave them a try this time!  These pinks and oranges remind me of sherbert!  (leave it to me to associate anything with food!)

I'll enter this into the current Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge: Beautiful Blooms.

Hope I've inspired you to try something a bit out of your comfort zone; thanks for stopping by!

New Paper Rose products at Spellbinders!!

 I was thrilled to see that Spellbinders is adding products from other companies to its store!  Today I'm playing with a new 6" pad of paper and a package of die cuts that coordinate, called Rainbow Twirl, from Paper Rose.  

Being an old quilter, I love playing with beautiful papers, mixing and matching patterns!  I made 4 cards with these lovely products.

For my first card I had to use this gorgeous wreath that is printed on one of the papers in the paper pack.

supplies: Paper Rose Rainbow Twirl 6" paper pad, sentiment from Sending Sentiments clear stamps and  matching die 

I trimmed down the paper to a 5 1/2" square, then simply added a stamped and die-cut sentiment.

Next I used 2 more of the papers and one of the lovely smaller wreath die cuts for a 4 1/4" square card.

supplies: circle design and background papers from Rainbow Twirl pad, Rainbow Twirl 2.0 die cut, stamped sentiment from (retired) Sentimental Greetings

Next is ,another 4 1/4" card, this time using a striped paper and a heart-shaped die cut.

supplies: background and striped papers from Rainbow Twirl 6" pad, heart from Rainbow Twirl 2.0 Die Cuts, sentiment from Happy Hello Floral 

And finally, I chose one of the gorgeous floral papers once again, and made a card featuring it with a die cut sentiment.

supplies: Paper Rose Rainbow Twirl floral paper, orange and black cardstock, sentiment from Mix & Match Holiday Greetings

I just cut out an A2 panel of the floral design, then made 2 diagonal cuts, lined them with an orange cardstock and framed my die-cut sentiment.

Be sure to check out the other Paper Rose collections now available at Spellbinders!  They are fast becoming one of my favorite sources for beautiful patterned papers!

I'll be sharing these cards with the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge, which is Beautiful Blooms.  They're featuring Paper Rose products, also!

A Belated Galentine Card

Just a quick post today.  I needed a last-minute card on Valentine's Day, and here's what I made.

supplies: white and Doll Pink cardstock, Two Hearts as One 3D embossing folder, alcohol markers, sentiment from My Heart Smiles glimmer plates, Magenta glimmer foil

Thanks for your visit today!

Full Bloom

Daffodils are for sure a sign of spring, and who can resist those nodding happy blooms?  I wanted to make 1 more card today using some of the February Spellbinders Club Kits, and here's what I came up with. 

supplies: tiny floral print on black from Doodlebug Hello Again, pinks, white, yellows, green cardstock, Rainboot Bouquet small dies of the month, Swirling Blooms embossing folder of the month, white pigment ink, sentiment and matching die from Lily Arch stamp and die kit of the month, adhesive foam squares

I mentioned earlier this month that I wanted to make the boots out of a ditzy floral, and I think they are really cute this way.  This time I filled them only with daffodils, and a few of the teensy white flowers to fill out the bouquet.

These sets will last until the 27th of this month before they disappear to make room for the March sets, so if these are something you think you'd like, don't wait too long!  

Thanks for your visit today - have a great day!

Altenew February Inspiration Challenge

 I was taken with the colors for this month's challenge at Altenew.  I would have preferred to use my Altenew floral dies, but they are at home, and I'm here in Florida!  Fortunately I brought along this Fragrant Florals Craft Your Life kit.  Here's what I came up with.

supplies: white and charcoal cardstock, Fragrant Florals stamp, matching stencils, embossing folder and die, Altenew mini ink cubes in Lime, Baby Pink, Fuschia, and Orange Cream, blending brushes, a Spellbinders sentiment

I like this tiny sentiment - it doesn't cover up too much of this lovely image!

Here's the inspiration we were given for this month - pretty snazzy, don't you agree?

Woven

 Simon Hurley's new collection, Spring Sampler, debuted at Spellbinders about a week ago, and I asked to play with his new Woven 3D embossing folder.  I'm so glad I did!  Look at the detail!

I mixed it with several older Spellbinders dies.

supplies: kraft, black, greens, yellow, and orchid pink cardstock, Woven 3D embossing folder, Sealed Blooming Stems and Leaf Sprigs dies, bow from Garden Wreath Add-ons, sentiment from Heartfelt Thanks and Scallops dies

Be sure to give Simon's collection a look!  

Thanks for dropping by today!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Today is one of my favorite holidays, so I had to have a card to post.  

supplies: white cardstock, Simon Says Stamp (retired) You Have My Heart heart wreath stamp, Hero Arts (retired) Celebrate Everyday sentiment, Memory Box Pinpoint Leaf cover plate, adhesive foam squares

Once again, sorry to say, most of these supplies are retired.  I stamped and cut out another little bunch of roses to add to the bottom left of the wreath, just to spread some more color around.

This year I didn't make as many Valentines as I usually do - I only brought a few stamp sets here to Florida, and forgot all the beautiful heart dies at home.  This stamp set is one of my all-time favorites, and I'm glad I have it.  

Hope you have a lovely day!

Windows with a View!

Spellbinders released a collection from Tina Smith just a few days ago, named Windows with a View, all themed around windows.  I have 2 cards for you today that use some of these new die sets.

supplies: white, beige, and various colors of cardstock, Spellbinders Vista View Window and Backyard Haven dies, sentiment from Happy Hello Floral stamp and matching die, Classic Backdrop 3D embossing folder

How fun is this Backyard Haven set!  You can see on my card the tree, bird bath, birds, birdhouse, and a squirrel, but what I didn't use was a tire swing, individual leaves and flowers, and an owl!  So much to play with to make your own perfect little scene!

There is a set of sentiments which I didn't receive, called Sending Sunshine Sentiments, with lots that will work with all of the sets.

Here's my 2nd card, using the Window again, plus the new Botanical Solarium dies.

supplies: white, charcoal, various greens, oranges, and rusts cardstock, Vista View Window dies, Botanical Solarium dies, sentiment from (retired) Through the Garden Gate Sentiments

I added a shelf to the bottom of the window, part of the Vista Window set, and then filled it with potted plants.  I used mostly green leafy plants, but there are also a nice selection of all kinds of florals, plus a pretty pitcher that you can use to display them, in the Solarium set.  I was especially tickled to see the gardening tools included, too!  Gardeners will love this set!

I hope you'll take a look at the other sets in Tina's collection; there's 1 called Up in the Air, Coastal Escape View, and the sentiment stamp set I mentioned above.  

Thanks for stopping by - have a good one! 

Spellbinders February Club Kits: Stitching and Glimmer kits

 Hello!  Today I have the last of my samples using this month's Spellbinders Club Kits.  First up is the Stitching kit: Stitched Floral Focal Card Front.  I chose pastel colors for this one.

supplies: white, Mint, Cotton Candy, and Pollen cardstock, Stitched Floral dies, dark pink, dark mint, and bright yellow embroidery floss, 3 strands, All You Need Sentiment glimmer plate and die, Magenta glimmer foil

The Glimmer Kit is called Daffodil Spray.  I received a new glimmer foil (to me) called Champagne.

supplies: white and pale aqua cardstock, Daffodil Spray hot foil plate, Champagne glimmer foil, markers to color, All You Need Sentiment glimmer plate, Black glimmer foil, adhesive foam strips

Isn't this image lovely?  It captures this flower beautifully, and it's a sure sign of spring and a great plate to include in this month's release!

You can look HERE for information on Spellbinders Clubs.  Each is available only from the 6th until the 27th of each month.  If you click on my links under each card, you can see the specifics of each product.  You can subscribe to each of our 10 kits separately, (and you can "unjoin" a subscription at any time without any penalty), or you can get them all and save 60% by choosing the Deluxe Caboodle!  

Spellbinders February Club Kits: Clear Stamp and Die and Stencils

 The Spellbinders Club Kits are now available, all with a spring/Easter theme!  Today I'm starting with a card I made using the Stamp and Die Kit: Lily Arch.

supplies: white and Surf Blue cardstock, Lily Arch clear stamp and sentiment, and matching die, 2 sizes of Essential Arches

When I looked at this floral image, I though "Easter Lilies", and so the coloring on this card was simple; just a bit of green for the leaves and stems and yellow for the flower centers.  The matching die makes a nice cut, preserving the arch shape, but cutting out enough of the background so that a piece of colored cardstock works for showing off this lovely spray of flowers.

I used an Essential Arch die to cut out the background, and the largest arch of the same set to cut my card base to make a shaped card.  The stamp set has lots of different sentiments, 2 of which are arched, so I chose the Easter one and added it to the top.  

The stencils of the month  this time are 4 different background stencils: Spring Stencil Backgrounds.  Here are 3 of them.  On each card, after doing my stencilling, I used the stencil with an embossing plate and mat to emboss some dimension.

supplies: white, lavender and purple cardstock, Spring Background stencil, 3 shades of purple inks, (retired) Butterfly Dies from a February 2019 large die of the month set: Bonjour

supplies: white and black cardstock, Spring Background stencil, yellows and orange inks, sentiment from Punch & Pierce April 23 Large Die of the Month

supplies: white and Doll Pink cardstock, Spring Background stencil, Pink Fresh Studio Fairy Dust quad of pink inks, blending brush, Smooth Lines Mix & Match Sentiment

You can look HERE for information on Spellbinders Clubs.  Each is available only from the 6th until the 27th of each month.  If you click on my links under each card, you can see the specifics of each product.  You can subscribe to each of our 10 kits separately, (and you can "unjoin" a subscription at any time without any penalty), or you can get them all and save 60% by choosing the Deluxe Caboodle!  

Spellbinders Club Kits for February: Dies of the Month and Embossing Folders

 The Spellbinders Club Kits for February are now available!!  The overall theme this month is spring and Easter, and the products are amazing!  

My first card features the Dies of the Month: Rainboot Bouquet.  The card base is embossed in the new Swirling Blooms folder.

supplies: white, greens, yellows, cream, pinks, blue and kraft cardstock, (new) Rainboot Bouquet dies, (new) Swirling Blooms embossing folder, sentiment and matching die from  (new) Lily Arch stamp/die of the month, adhesive foam squares

I adore spring flowers, and this set has them........daffodils, tulips, and what I thought looked like forget-me-nots.  And how fun to be able to put them into these cute rain boots!  I chose pink for mine,  but wouldn't they be cute in a ditzy floral print?  

Next up is the Large Dies of the Month kit.  They're called Floral Bunny Basket.  I couldn't wait to play with these once I spied that bunny butt!!!

supplies: various colors of cardstock, plus white and kraft, Floral Bunny Basket dies, new Easter Egg Hunt 3D embossing folder, sentiment and matching die from new Lily Arch clear stamp and die set

My basket covers up most of the embossed background, so here's a card that uses that Easter Egg Hunt 3D folder as the focal point.

supplies: white and purple cardstock, Easter Egg Hunt 3D embossing folder, white pigment ink, foiled sentiment and matching die from this month's hot foil glimmer kit: Daffodil Spray, Champagne glimmer foil

Now you can see more of the amazing details in this 3D folder.  I simply embossed it on colored cardstock, then gently swiped white pigment ink across it to help the elements stand out better, then added a foiled sentiment from the new Hot Foil Glimmer kit (you'll see that here in the days to come)

And finally, I love the sweet little lilies of the valley from the Floral Bunny Basket set and used only them to make a little bouquet.  The Swirling Blooms embossing folder even mimics them!

supplies: white, Green Apple, Audrey Blue, and Cotton Candy cardstock,  Floral Bunny Basket dies, Swirling Blooms embossing folder, sentiment from Lily Arch Stamp/Die, embossed in white, bow from Garden Wreath Add-Ons die set

You can look HERE for information on Spellbinders Clubs.  Each is available only from the 6th until the 27th of each month.  If you click on my links under each card, you can see the specifics of each product.  You can subscribe to each of our 10 kits separately, (and you can "unjoin" a subscription at any time without any penalty), or you can get them all and save 60% by choosing the Deluxe Caboodle!  (and this will also get you a free bonus that will coordinate with the theme each month!)

Just a Love Note

 It's February, which for me means the month of hearts!  Here's a card for Valentine's Day.

supplies: white and dark coral cardstock, Taylored Expressions Hearts in Bloom layering stencils, medium and dark coral and green inks, blending brushes, sentiment and teensy stamped hearts from (retired) Simon Says Stamp Just a Love Note stamps (2012), Lawn Fawn Fancy Scalloped Rectangle die

This was simple and fast to make, and this time I paired it with an old favorite Simon sentiment and a trio of tiny hearts from the same set.

Do you do many Valentine cards?  I'm cutting way down this year.