Born Free

 I CASED a friend's card (who no longer blogs) to make this one, and used some remnants of striped papers from my stash along with a snippet of distressed dsp. for the image panel. I stamped the image of the horse (I think it's by Inkadinkado) on the distressed panel, and matted it with grey and placed it off the edge, adding an ancient large metal brad that SU! made years ago. I placed a decorative metal brad inside that for a rustic masculine look. The sentiment is by Mark's Finest Papers (no longer in business) and I added 2 tiny silver metallic stickers just for fun.

Here's how I decorated the inside with another MFP stamped image, sentiment, and a strip of matching dsp.

Sharing with the CardsforGuyz #352 challenge - Metals, Colors, Hardware 

as well as the Snippets Playground #485 - must use snippets

Thanks for the visit and I wish you a wonderful day.

Carol

Rock Star

 I found this pre-printed sentiment in my snippet box and built the card around it. I started with a kraft card base and stenciled some mosaic stars on it with a SSS stencil and some antique linen ink. I also found a strip of dark brown cardstock in my snippets box and embossed it with a tiny hearts embossing folder, then cut it in 2 unequal portions, adding 3 punched stars in between them done with gold mirror cardstock and a retired SU! mini star punch. I added a piece of the gold mirror card beneath the sentiment and fishtailed the ends and called this one done. I think it will make a good card for a teen boy so this will go into my stash of ready-made cards.

I'll share with these challenges:

Cardz 4 Guyz #331 - Stars

Can You Handle the Pressure? - A/G embossing with an optional twist of bees

September Stencil Fun - A/G with a stencil - optional "fall"

The Snippets Playground #463 - must use snippets

Thanks for stopping by. It's a rainy day in PA and we'll have more tomorrow, so it's time to get inky!

Carol

Sailing Away

 Thinking of cool water can add a little bit of relief in these hot summer temperatures, so I pulled out 2 different Sweet 'n Sassy stamp sets to make this card.  I colored the stamp with different Memento inks and stamped it onto white, adding Copic marker accents to the image with assorted shades of blue to give it a water colored look without doing actual water coloring. The sky was done with T.E. cloud stencils and some tumbled glass ink. The sentiment was stamped on a Lil Inker stitched die cut and the image was backed with navy cardstock.

I'll share this with the following challenges:

 The Allsorts Challenge Blog Week #738 - Summer Blues

Cardz 4 Guyz Challenge #327 - On The Water

The Male Room Challenge #176 - Travel

Happy Little Stampers Stencil Challenge for July - A/G

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope you're managing to keep cool where you live. Have a great day!

Carol

Father's Day Card

 I made this card for a friend's hubby who loves to play golf. I feel pretty certain that he'll be on the golf course this coming Sunday when we celebrate Father's day, so I just went with that thought in creating this card. The Father's day sentiment is inside the card.

I created the skies with T.E. stencils and some Tumbled Glass ink, and then added 3 tiny birds done with a SNSS stamp. The green hillsides were done with Lawn Fawn dies, and the golf bag was done with a Tutti designs die, colored with Copics.  His golf bag is red, white, and blue which is why I chose those colors. The sentiment is also from SNSS.

I'm entering this into the following challenges:

Cardz 4 Guyz #324 - Father's Day UK & USA

June Stencil Fun Challenge -A/G using a stencil *option, use layered stencils

Craft Rocket Challenge #104 - Use Dies

Happy Little Stampers June A/G with Dies challenge

Thanks for stopping by and make it a great day whatever you do! 

Keep smiling 😊

Carol

Time to Celebrate with a Cold One!

 I've been working out of my snippets box and trying to use up this insane stash I've accumulated over the years. Today's card makes use of some colorful strips of those snippets. I embossed each one with a WeRMemory Keepers gemstone 3D embossing folder and placed them on white cardstock. The beer mug is a stamp from Just For Fun rubber stamps and I colored it with Copics, adding clear wink of stella to the color on the mug. For the foam topping, I embossed it first with some gold sparkly embossing powder, then colored it in with a white glaze pen, and fussy cut the whole piece to pop up on foam tape to the card base. The sentiment is from Lil Inker, cut twice, layered, and covered with glossy accents for a little shine.

I'm sharing this with...

Cardz 4 Guyz Challenge #300 - congratulations

 Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - make your own background

Thanks for stopping by and I hope everyone is staying cool in this summer heat. I think I could use a cold mug of suds right now but we have none in the house! LOL

Have a great week ahead!

Carol

Father's Day

I pulled out a piece of teal colored designer paper and embossed it with a Spellbinder's Kickin' Rubber embossing folder, then sanded it for a rustic look. I stamped the boots from SU!'s Country Living (r) stamp set, then colored them with Copics and fussy cut them to place on the stitched square die. I dug into my stash to find this SU! hodgepodge hardware ribbon piece, and attached it to the side; adding a snippet of tan checked ribbon. The sentiment is from SU!'s Teeny Tiny Wishes, heat-embossed with gold, and placed on a die-cut Lil Inker stitched banner.

This card is for my husband who had a pony as a kid, and horses as an adult (many years ago) but he still has a love for horses, so I stamped this horse image on the inside...

 That's a very old but favorite horse image stamp by Serendipity, stamped in Smoky Slate ink on a Soft Stone card base.

I'll enter this card into the following challenges:

Let's Squash It! #21 - Make it Manly

Cardz4Guyz Challenge #298 - Father's Day

The Alphabet Challenge Blog - E is for Embossing wet or dry

Allsorts Challenge week #680 - any stamped image

Thanks for the visit and I wish you all a great week ahead!

Carol

Using Snippets

 I had quite an array of leftover valentine-themed strips of designer paper snippets, so I decided to cut them into 1/4" strips and make a herringbone panel. I placed it on a grey card base, adding an Impression Obsession wooden heart die and a PTI love die. The sentiment is from Lawn Fawn and I added a little heart sticker for fun. I thought using the woodgrain embossed paper for the white heart adds an element of masculinity to this card,  but it can be used for anyone who enjoys valentine's day.

I'm entering this into these challenges:

The Snippets Playground challenge #421 - use snippets

Cardz 4 Guyz #289 - Love cards

Thanks for stopping by and I wish you all a happy day!

Carol

Turning Five

 Friends of ours have a grandson who turns 5 in a couple more weeks, so I made this card for him. I used an unknown digital image and colored it with Copics, adding a MB die-cut little dachshund puppy (because his grandparents have a little Dachshund that he plays with all the time.) I added a diagonal strip of polka dot paper die-cut with a Lil Inker stitched die, and placed it on a lavender card base. I die cut the card base and image panel with Lil Inker stitched rectangles and then added a birthday sentiment I fussy cut and placed on matching cardstock. The 5 was die cut with my QuicKutz and placed on his shirt just for fun.

I'm sharing this with the Cardz 4 Guyz Challenge #288 -

Something beginning with the letter "P"

Purple, Puppy, Polka Dots

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you're all staying warm where you live. It's brutally cold here in PA today but by mid week it's supposed to warm up considerably. Take good care and stay safe!

Carol

Birthday Card

 My brother-in-law has a birthday coming up and he has a cat that wandered onto his property several years ago and just stayed, apparently liking the accommodations. This cat has now become his pride and joy, so I thought I'd make him a card with a cat theme. He even added a little door so the cat can come and go as he pleases 😀

I started with a Penny Black image, coloring it with Copics and fussy-cutting it. The framework was done with HoneyBee square stitched frame dies (a gift I recently won in a generous blog prize) and I cut them from black and diagonal striped paper, staggering them slightly for a fun look. I made use of some shiny silver brads that have been lurking in my stash forever, and I used a silver sticker for the sentiment! The cardstock and matching envelope are Island Blue from Simon Says Stamp and I just LOVE this color!

I'll enter this into these challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Card + Matching Envelope

Cardz 4 Guyz #280 - Add Some Metal

Seize the Birthday #223 - Faux or Real Stitching

NBUS #30 - never before used schtuff (the HoneyBee dies)

Eastern PA is due for some heavy rain, flooding, and storms throughout the day so it will be a good day to stay home and make cards.

Take care, and thanks for stopping by! Have the best possible day!

Carol

Birthday Gnome

 I made this card for a young fellow celebrating his 4th birthday. A friend had given me this gnome die as a gift and I thought he'd be just as cute on a birthday card as a Christmas card, so I chose some bright primary colors. The orange background was embossed with a CB birthday ef, and the navy oval was cut with a MFT stitched die. I used a snippet of striped paper for his hat and used a Martha Stewart punch for the balloons, stenciling in the #4 with glaze pens. The sentiment was from a SSS stamp set, heat-embossed with white on navy bits.

I'm sharing this with the following challenges:

Seize the Birthday #220 - stripes

Cardz 4 Guyz #277 - age is just a number

Happy Little Stampers August Anything Goes with Dies challenge

Cute Card Thursday #691 - anything goes

(bright colors theme optional)

I hope this little gnome brought you a smile today as well as the recipient of this card. Take good care and have a fantastic weekend and thanks for stopping by!

Carol

Summertime Blues

I had a small piece of pre-embossed double sided dual-colored cardstock on my table, so I tore it into strips and flipped the pieces to create some ocean water. I added a couple of die-cut sailboats from I.O. and colored them with blue markers, placing them between the torn strips. The clouds were done with a set of T.E. stencils and some tumbled glass distress ink. I added some Diamond glitter glue to the edges for a little sparkle, then added a stamped SNSS sentiment (Ocean Paradise 2009) on a Lil Inker stitched die cut. The stamped birds are from another SNSS set called "Serene Silhouettes" also from 2009.

I thought a close-up might show the sparkle but you get the idea 😉

I'll enter this into the following challenges:

the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge - Summertime Blues

Cardz4Guyz #276 - Shades of Blue

the Happy Little Stampers August Stencil challenge - a/g

the Retro Rubber Challenge #164 - a/g must use stamps older than a year

Being near the ocean might be a good place to cool off as it's supposed to get steamy hot again today.

Thanks so much for stopping by and I wish you all a relaxing weekend!

Carol

 

Christmas Gnome

 I just love the little gnomes and can't seem to stop using them on my cards. My card today includes a gnome that was cut with a Simon Says Stamp die and placed on a Lawn Fawn die-cut tag, and decorated with traditional colors of red, green, and white. The sentiment is from a retired SU! set and the mini ric-rac is from my stash. The plaid designer papers are from Lawn Fawn.

I'd like to enter this into the following challenges:

Dies R Us #158 - Christmas

Cardz 4 Guyz #259 - traditional Christmas

the Male Room #145 - use Tartan & Plaid

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Fun with Dies

Like a lot of you, I am hustling to finish making and sending my Christmas cards on time, but I seem to go through this each and every year.  😧

Thanks for stopping by and make it a good day whatever you're doing.

Carol

Masculine Birthday

 I made this card for a friend of ours who loves the outdoors and loves to go hunting. The paper was a snippet of camo design and I thought it would make a good background, so I die-cut it with a Lil Inker stitched rectangle. The sentiment panel was done with snippets of white and kraft, and both pieces were die cut with a Venetian Label die set from Gina Marie Designs. The little deer was punched from a scrap of kraft using a very old Martha Stewart punch and I called this one done. Guys don't seem to care much for fussy cards, so I kept this one simple and CAS.

I will enter this into the following challenges:

Dies R Us #153 - one for the boys

Cardz 4 Guyz #253 - monochrome

the Snippets Playground #387 - use snippets

Thanks for stopping by and I apologize if I haven't been around to comment on your blogs. My husband recently had a surgical procedure and tending to his needs has taken a lot of my time, so crafting has taken a back seat for a while. Thanks for your understanding and have yourself a good day!

Carol

Masculine Card

Today's card was made for my husband for father's day. He once owned a red and white truck like this so I thought he'd get a kick out of it. The background panel was a piece of light blue cardstock that I stamped with a SNSS woodgrain clear stamp in a dark blue colored ink, then die cut it, (along with the sentiment panel) with a set of GMD dies. I layered it on black, white, and finally a black card base. The truck die was a gift from a friend and has no name on it. I colored it with Copics. The sentiment is by Taylored Expressions and I added a little red flag banner to balance things out.

I will enter this into the following challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge - masculine

Dies R Us challenge #146 - It's Dad's Day 

Cardz 4 Guyz #246 - Father's Day

As for this new blogger format, I keep trying to use it, but each time I post, the old format appears when I post a card, while the comment and reading list sections remain the new format. Twice now I've tried reverting back to the old format, then clicked the new blogger again; used the new format again to post a card, but when I went back to post the next time, the old format for posting appeared again; while the reading list and comment sections remained the new format. My inlinx photos only show occasionally - most times it's just a little grey box and now when I visit blogs, there are no cards visible until I hit the refresh button for each and every one. For a relatively new computer, these issues are frustrating and make me wonder how much longer I want to continue doing this. I've been reading and trying to find a fix, but so far nothing.

Anyway, thanks for stopping by and have a great day! May your troubles be fewer than mine :)

Carol

A Warm Hello

I'm still rummaging through my snippets box to make cards and using elements I've overlooked for a long time. This little I.O. die-cut coffee mug was made a long time ago and then never used. I found the background punched note tag from SU! and stenciled it with a data dots stencil and some distress ink. I matted it with a snippet of checked dsp and vanilla for a 2nd mat. I stamped the word "coffee" with a Lil inker stamp, and added some steam coming from the cup with the same stamp set. The coffee stir stick was among the pieces in the set of dies I'd cut previously and never used. The background was done with a shimmer piece of rust-colored card and a SU! decorative dots ef and placed on a vanilla card base. The sentiment was stamped in Really Rust and I added a tiny gold-embossed star to the coffee mug just for fun.

I'm sharing this with the Little Red Wagon challenge #542 which is "leftovers." I've been working on my leftovers for a few weeks now and hope to use a lot more of them soon.

I'll also share this with the Cardz 4 Guyz Challenge #241 - use a stencil

I'm not overly thrilled with the cards I've been making lately, but then again I think a lot of us are overwhelmed and not really feeling the creative juices flowing in such a stressful world. I will keep trying and hopefully get a few of these cards in the mail to cheer some folks up who could use some friendly greetings.

Thanks for stopping by and make it a great Friday!

Carol

Fords Rule

This is what my husband would say as he bought Ford vehicles mostly all his life. I made an early father's day card that will either go to my husband or my neighbor - they are both Ford fanatics when it comes to vehicles. The inside has a large "Happy Father's Day" sentiment stamped in matching colors.

I found these great snippets of retired SU! card stock/designer paper in my stash that I've hoarded way too long, so I found an old sketch that seemed perfect to use them up. It's very sturdy and heavy, unlike regular dsp, but I do love the colors, so I colored the image to coordinate with them. I used a Clear Art Stamps "Car Classics" stamp set to create the early 50's Ford image (I'd guess either a 1950 or 1951 model) and colored it with Copics, glaze pens, and silver colored pencils, adding a little glossy accents here and there. The enamel dots are by SU! and have long been retired, and this is all on a PTI Soft Stone card base.

I'm sharing this with the Cardz4Guyz challenge #240 - which is to use something beginning with "F" {Ford of course}

That's one father's day card finished and way ahead of schedule for a change. Thanks for stopping by and I hope life isn't too crazy for anyone reading this right now. I must admit I'm shocked with the frenzied shopping going on - especially with toilet paper? I just don't get it? I try to keep the tv turned off to ignore all the panic going on in the world. Hopefully this will soon be behind us and life can get back to a more civilized, normal state again! I hope you are all able to stay well!

Carol

Masculine Birthday Card

While I had the Lawn Fawn stitched Windy background die out, and had a leftover piece of that pastel blue card left over from the previous posted card, I decided to make a masculine birthday card. I used a MFP (Now closed) stamp and clear-embossed it after stamping. I colored his jacket with some blue Copic markers, then stenciled some crackle with a Kaisercraft stencil and some Pumice Stone distress ink. The sentiment is heat-embossed with white on black and from SSS. The sketch was from a challenge that just closed before I could get this entered LOL

I'm sharing this with the Cardz4Guyz Challenge #235 - Blue is the Color

Also sharing with the Repeat Impressions DCCJ120 - stamp a childhood memory. (Hopalong Cassidy anyone? Maybe I'm just too old for any of you youngsters to remember that fun cowboy tv show I watched as a child with my grandfather?) 

Sharing too with Seize the Birthday #180 - layer it!

Also sharing with the Male Room Challenge #127 - anything goes

Thanks for stopping by and I wish you a wonderful day whatever you do!

Carol

It's Getting Cold Out!

I'm the first to admit it - I have a snarky sense of humor. When I recently spotted this new digi from Whimsy Stamps (by Dustin Pike) I had to have it! After printing it, I colored it with Copics, stamping some snowflakes with an older SU! stamp and added some Frosty Stickles to the bottom for some sparkly snow. I enhanced the er....um.....fart.......with some liquid pearls and stickles and die-cut the panel with a MFT stitched square die. I stamped some white snowflakes on the kraft card base, adding a dot of Stickles to the visible one for some sparkle. I die-cut the sentiment panel with a Chalk Talk framelit die from SU! and called this one done.

I had a request for some snarky cards from a customer, so I made another card with this image.

For this one, I used some Island Indigo card stock, and some retired SU! dsp. I used a snowflake punch from Martha Stewart to make the snowflake which I covered with Wink of Stella and adhered with a foam dot. I fussy cut one of the images from the dsp and adhered it to the top along with a frosty clear gem. The banners were done with a retired SU! mini punch using the flip side of the dsp and adorned with more frosty gemstones. The sentiment is slightly different from the first card, as the letters are outlined, so I colored them in with a blue glitter pen.

I'm entering the first card into the following challenges:

Cardz4Guyz#233 - Icy Cold

Cuttlebug Mania - Animals

I'll enter the second card into 

the  2 CraftyCritterCrazies November challenge - use a critter on your card

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful day!

Carol

Twofer #22

Hello and happy Wednesday! I managed to find time to play along with the Twofer Challenge #22 which is "Holiday Greenery." There is a twist this time around that you can make both cards the same theme if you wish, since we're all scurrying to get those Christmas cards made and mailed on time.

For my twofer I chose to use a Memory Box Pine Needle border die for the greenery, making one in green for a Christmas card, and one in white for a winter wishes card.

First up is the Christmas card. I used a retired SU! snowflake embossing folder and added some green pines to the top, along with a sparkly strip of washi tape and some silver and white twisted twine tied into a bow. The Kaisercraft die-cut sentiment and punched ornaments (done with a retired SU! mini punch) were done with glittered red card stock.

I'm also going to share this card with the MLCCB #16 - November Anything Christmas Goes Challenge

This long retired image from SU! called "Extreme Snowboard" has been a favorite of mine for years. I stamped and clear embossed the image on white, then sponged in some clouds with Tumbled Glass ink. I added 2 die-cut stitched hillside borders (by Lawn Fawn) along the bottom, and then covered them completely with assorted stickles. I added 3 different colors of blue stickles to get some moving snow action beneath the snowboard. I added another die cut MB pine needle border from white, and completely covered it with white WOS before adding another strip of the sparkly washi tape on the edge. The "snowflakes" were made with small dies from a SB Lotus die set, and a SSS Bella Bloom die set and assorted glittered snippets of card stock. I added clear rhinestones to the snowflakes and pine needle border to finish this one.

I'm also sharing this card with the Cardz4Guyz Challenge #232 which is "All Wrapped up" - people or animals in scarves, coats, hats etc, or featuring parcels

Sharing also with the SOS challenge #408 - snowflakes

Thanks for the visit, it's always great to have you stop by. Happy crafting and have a great day!

Carol