Birthday Sweet peas

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 I'm guest designing for the Allsorts challenge 796 this week with a floral birthday card. The challenge is to "add a sentiment."

 I dug deep into my stash and found this pretty Flourishes Sweet Pea stamp. Sadly Flourishes closed quite some time ago but this stamp still looks as pretty as ever.  I stamped the card base with the Sweet Pea image as well as another panel which I cut with a Cheery Lynn Designs French Lattice cover plate and then carefully placed it over the card base, matching up all the images as closely as possible. I colored everything with Copics and added lots of tiny black Nuvo Dots before adding a pre-printed Simon Says Stamp birthday sentiment. This was the first time I tried this technique and I love how it turned out. 

Also sharing with these challenges:

Triple B August 2024 Challenge - birds butterflies, blooms - use 1, 2 or all 3

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - A/G

Beautiful Blossoms Challenge #20 - A/G Floral with optional mood board

Thanks for stopping by and I look forward to seeing the gallery filled with your designs with sentiments for this week's challenge.

Carol

Birthday Bird

 I made one of these book binding cards last year and decided I'd make another one because they're fun to make. I used pieces of SU! Coastal Cabana cardstock and matching dsp for this one, stenciling the blue skies with some Tumbled Glass ink. The bird and branch were done with a SU! punch and I added a tiny black gemstone for the eye. The ribbon was a generous gift from a thoughtful friend and I just love how it blends with this color scheme. The sentiment is a pre-printed one from Simon Says Stamp matted with some black cardstock to match all the black-matted panels.

I'll share this with the Allsorts Challenge #779 - More than One Fold or A/G

Also sharing with the Triple B  May 2024 challenge - 

Birds, Blooms, and/or Butterflies. Use 1,2, or all 3

Wishing you all a great day whatever you're doing. Thanks for the visit as always and keep smiling :)

Carol

Mother's Day Card

We celebrate Mother's day here in the US on May 12th so I made a few cards to send to my friends for the occasion. This one was done with a silver heat-embossed image panel using some very old Verve stamps that I've had for years. I added a tiny pink paper flower and put a rhinestone gem in the center for a little sparkle. The background was done with a Cuttlebug Geometric Rings embossing folder and I dotted the centers with some silver Stickles dots. The pink panel was die-cut with a Gina Marie Designs Venetian Label die.

I'm sharing this card with these challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - make it feminine

The Double D challenge - Pretty Florals for Mom

Shopping our Stash SOS520 - Make a Mother's day Card

Can you Handle the Pressure? Embossing Challenge - A/G using an embossing folder with an optional twist of "feminine."

I need to get my Mother's day cards addressed and mailed as this notable day for Mom is right around the corner! Thanks for the visit and have a fabulous day!

Carol

Black Magic Birthday Card

 I have a friend who is celebrating a milestone birthday today and her favorite color is pink, so I made this card for her. I used some Black Magic cardstock for this. It's black on one side and pale pink on the other. I embossed a piece of the pink side for the card front and embossed another piece of the black side for the sentiment panel and then sanded it so the pink shows through. I used an Anna Griffin embossing folder along with a Gina Marie Designs Venetian label die as well as a Gina Marie Designs sentiment done with pre-embossed white cardstock. I recently completely a candy dots project and had quite a few of the dots left over, so I used several of the pink and black ones on this card instead of gemstones. 

I will share this with

  the Embossing Challenge -

Can you Handle the Pressure? - 

must use an embossing folder with a twist of "feminine."

Thanks for the visit and may you enjoy a crafty and fun-filled day.

Carol

Spring Floral Birthday Card

 I've always been fond of this Mark's Finest Papers (now closed) floral stamp so I made this simple birthday card in shades of blue and green with touches of yellow for the flower centers. I colored the image with Copics, adding a pre-printed sentiment from SSS and 3 matching gemstones. It was quick and easy but I love how it turned out.

I'm sharing this with the following challenges:

Allsorts Week #776 - It Has to be Spring

the Four Seasons April 2024 Challenge - A/G Spring

the Sisterhood of Crafters April 10 - Showers or Flowers

the Triple B April 2024 Challenge - Birds, Butterflies and/or Blooms

We Love Stamping April 2024 - Spring or A/G

Seize the Birthday#281 - Any Color and Green

Thanks as always for stopping by and I wish you the best possible weekend with spring finally being in the air!

Carol

You Amaze Me

Through the kindness and generosity of two wonderful friends, I received this beautiful die-cut image along with the fantastic embossing folder that I used to make this card. I sponged this intricate image lightly with some chalks to add just a touch of color to the eyes and lips and the flowers in her hair, adding some crystal Nuvo drops to the centers. I covered the entire image with clear Wink of Stella and added a tiny eye to the bird with a marker. The SB hand-drawn scallops EF was done on an old blank notecard that belonged to my mother. It was printed with her name at the top so I cut that portion off with a Lil Inker stitched rectangle die.  It has a neutral color and a subtle texture that seemed to work well with everything. The stitched sentiment die is by Gina K Designs and has an Altenew sentiment stamped in chocolate brown. I put everything on a brown cardstock base and called this one done. Thanks to everyone for sharing your wonderful crafting items with me - I'm always grateful for everything!

I'll share this with the Allsorts Challenge Week #775 - the theme is "For the Love of Animals" or - the A/G option. 

the Can You Handle the Pressure? challenge - A/G  embossing

with a twist of "birds." (There is a bird in her hair 😉)

NBUS Challenge for April #61 - never before used schtuff 

(This is the first time I used this EF)

I hope things are well in your corner of the world. I'm patiently waiting for Spring to arrive so that I can start complaining about how hot it is after this long stretch of rainy, gloomy, cold weather! 😏

Keep smiling, and thanks for stopping by!

Carol

A Milestone Birthday Card

 I made this card for someone who recently celebrated an incredible number of birthdays. I decorated the stitched oval panel with a Tim Holtz stencil and matching ink that looks like bubble wrap, and decorated the die-cut large numbers with little black gems. The background was embossed with an older Cuttlebug birthday embossing folder and the little flower was done with SU! mini punches and a cut-off portion of a die-cut stem. The sentiment is a pre-printed one from SSS matted with black cardstock.

I will share this with 

Seize the Birthday #275 - Embossing, Wet or Dry

Can you Handle the Pressure? January 13th, 2024 -

A/G using an embossing folder with an optional twist of snow people

Craft Rocket Challenge #110 - use Embossing

Here in PA we're having another snowstorm today with very cold temperatures, so it's a good day to stay indoors and craft! Thanks for stopping by and I hope it's warm where you are! Take care everyone.

Carol

Dogwood Birthday

 I unearthed this stamped image that I've had for years and decided it was long overdue to make it into a card. I'd previously made the card base with some dark purple cardstock and 4 strips of colored cardstock that I cut from leftover snippets. I lined them up into an embossing folder and afterward spaced them evenly on the card base and then covered it all up with the image panel. 😄 I colored the image with Copics and glaze pens then die-cut it with a Lil Inker stitched rectangle. I added a sponged, punched butterfly with a pink gemstone, drawing in the antennae with a fine black marker. The sentiment was pre-printed from SSS.

I'm sharing this with the following challenges:

The Triple B June Challenge - Birds, Butterflies, and/or Blooms

The Happy Little Stampers June Birthday Challenge - A/G

Seize the Birthday Challenge #262 - Make it Pop or A/G Birthday

Allsorts Challenge Week #731 - Use Your Dies *Option A/G

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

Always remember to keep smiling 😁

Carol

Birthday Card

Recently I was inspired by a card that came in an email advertisement and decided to make a similar one for my stash. I pulled lots of snippets from my box and put this floral card together.

The doily border was done with a Martha Stewart punch, and the pre-printed sentiment is by Simon Says Stamp. I used assorted flower punches and greenery dies to create the cluster of flowers, adding mini brads and assorted gemstones scattered about. I added a die-cut SU! butterfly to over up an accidental dab of glue in the wrong place. The embossed panel was done with a SU! Decorative Dots embossing folder.

I'm sharing this with the following challenges:

The Snippets playground #445 - Show us your Snippets!

  (They're celebrating their 11th blog birthday, yay!) 

A Place to Start January 2023 - A/G  

Triple AAA Birthday Card Challenge #43 - A/G Birthday

the Double D  Happy Birthday Challenge

(They're celebrating their 7th blog birthday, yay!)

Thanks for stopping by to visit, may your day be a great one!

Carol

Stenciled Birthday Card

 I made this card a while ago and forgot to post it. I started with a piece of Melon Mambo cardstock, stenciling it with white ink and a Tim Holtz stone stencil. I added a die-cut Cheery Lynn stem along with some polka dot flowers done with SU! mini punches. I placed some tiny pearls into the flower centers. The sentiment is a pre-print from Simon Says Stamp and the frame was a left-over remnant I found in my snippets box.

I'm sharing this with...

The Happy Little Stampers July Stencil Challenge - A/G

Thanks for stopping by and I wish you a great day whatever you're doing!

Carol

Birthday Card

 I made this card for my SIL late last year and unfortunately we lost her in March of this year. The gray designer paper was from a magazine and the polka dot paper was from my stash. The white stem is a die-cut from Darice and the little flowers were done with retired SU! mini punches and layered, with some black gemstones in the centers. The pre-printed sentiment is from Simon Says Stamp.

I've not been posting or creating for a while as I've come down with some sort of respiratory crud that has me coughing and quite uncomfortable most of the time. My husband had it, and then passed it on to me. He's doing well, but so far the antibiotics haven't kicked in for me yet. Turns out our neighbor came down with it yesterday and his toddler grandson has been diagnosed with pneumonia, so whatever it is, it knocks you for a loop!

Anyway, I just wanted to explain why I haven't made any new cards for a while, so I pulled this one from my unposted files to share with you.

Take good care everyone and thanks for stopping by!

Carol

Birthday Hugs

 While rummaging through my stash, I found several of these lovely hand-crocheted medallions sent to me by a former blogger who passed away several years ago. Her name was Jessi Fogan and her blog was One Crafty Mama. I've used several of them previously, but decided it does no good to hoard beautiful items like this, so I used another one to make this birthday card.

I die-cut a stitched circle of pink to place inside of the medallion and added some die-cut SSS Bella Bloom flowers from pink glitter paper and silver mirror card, adding a drop of black Nuvo pearls to the centers. The butterfly was a die-cut with pink Nuvo pearls added to the center and the sentiment is a pre-printed SSS sentiment backed with some black card.

As for the background - this is one of my favorite ways to use those tiny snippets of cardstock and I think it's called Mosaic. I still have my ancient Xyron machine which adds a complete layer of adhesive to a piece of card. I snipped pieces of matching cardstocks in random fashion and adhered them to the sticky side, then added some pearl embossing powder and heat set it.

I'll enter this into the following challenges:

Seize the Birthday #240 - favorite technique (mosaic)

Triple AAA Birthday card Challenges #38 - Flowers

Happy Little Stampers June A/G with Dies

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

R.I.P Jessi, you won't be forgotten💝

Carol

Yellow Floral Birthday Card

 While I had my Altenew Dahlia stencils out recently, I decided to make another card with them using the color yellow. For this background I used Distress inks of Lemonade and Mustard. The flowers were stamped on pieces that match the card base, clear heat embossed, and fussy cut. I die cut the centers from polka dot dsp and placed them on the centers. The leaves and flowers are both from a very old Hero Arts Stamp set that I've had probably 8 years or more. The sentiment is by Sweet 'n Sassy (from 2009) and I colored inside the letters with a matching Copic marker, and placed it all on a die-cut MFT fishtail flag banner. 

I'll enter this into the following challenges:

The Retro Rubber Challenge #182- Flower Power

HLS May Stencil Challenge - A/G with stencil

The Four seasons May Spring Challenge - A/G Spring 

Craft Rocket Challenge #92 - Birthday

Just Us Girls Challenge #631 - Word Week - "Flowers"

Thanks for stopping by and make it a great day!

Carol

Pink Birthday Card

 I've had this Impression Obsession Geometric Background die for quite some time and haven't used it much at all, so I decided to make a birthday card for a blogging friend of mine who loves the color pink. I started with some GinaK bubblegum pink cardstock, and backed it with a piece of dsp from a DCWV black and white paper pad. I used a Darice die to cut some flowers in coordinating colors, and added a stitched tag combo for the sentiment - adding some pink twine to make a little bow.

I'll enter this into the Cards 4 Galz challenge #171 - think pink

We finally warmed up a little yesterday and I got to sit on the front porch for a while. Feeling that warm sun on my face was so relaxing!

Wishing you a beautiful day wherever you are, and thanks for stopping by!

Carol

Spring Birthday Card

 I'm trying to use my older purchased items instead of buying new. Today's card makes use of older dies, snippets of cardstock and designer paper and an embossing folder.

I started with the Joanna Sheen Daffodil die I've had for quite a few years. I cut it from snippets of green, yellow and orange, fussy cutting portions and interchanging them to look like the color of daffodils. The tag was cut with a Lawn Fawn die, and I added a heat-embossed gold circle to the top, adding a little twine bow. I stenciled the tag with a Data Dots stencil and some Pumice Stone distress ink before placing the flowers on top. The green strip of designer paper is by SU! and the yellow panel is from a paper pad by Teresa Collins (very old). I embossed the card base with a Cuttlebug pinking stitch EF and added a pre-printed sentiment from SSS, backing it with a snippet of black card. I'm pleased with how this turned out and it will be going in the mail in a week or so.

I'm entering this card into the following challenges:

The Flower Challenge #66 - use scraps

Dies R Us Challenge #189 -A/G using dies sold in their store 

(Lawn Fawn)

Seize the Birthday #234 - Green & White or A/G

the Allsorts Challenge Blog week #668 - Feminine

The Little Red Wagon #636 - Emboss everything

Happy Little Stampers March Stencil Challenge -A/G

That's going to do it for me today, but thanks so much for stopping by and I hope you're in the midst of having a great week!

Carol

Just for You

 I pulled out a very old Rubber Stampede stamp called Woman in Repose to make this card. I stamped the image with Memento London Fog ink on a piece of pastel yellow cardstock to match the card base. I found a piece of dark grey script dsp from Recollections and used that for the background. I used 3 embossing folders on this card. The card base was done with a CB Pinking Stitch to give it that pretty edge. The Smoky Slate verticle strip was done with another very old CB strip ef. I also embossed a yellow panel, fussy cut the flowers and glued them on top of the grey embossed panel, adding 3 basic grey enamel dots to the centers. I used a SU! square lattice ef on the 2 accent flowers at the bottom that were done with 2 different punches, adding 2 more grey enamel dots. The sentiment panel was done with a SU! Chalk Talk framelit die and SU! teeny tiny wishes.

I'll enter this into these challenges:

Color Hues #16 - Yellow and Grey

Let's Squash It! Challenge #7 - use at least 3 embossing folders and include a person

Thanks for stopping by and may your day be one of the best ever!

Carol

Melon Mambo Birthday

I'm still working on using up that pack of 5x7 cards/envies I discovered hidden away for quite some time, so I made a card with some Melon Mambo cardstock and snippets of matching dotted designer paper. I used a SU! Petal Burst ef along with 2 different sized Cheery Lynn flourishes for the stems, and then used snippets pf white, black, and matching dsp to create the flowers. I used 2 different sized punch-a-bunch flower punches to make the layered flowers, and then used an ancient mini starburst punch to make the black centers. I dotted each center with a 2mm pink gemstone. The birthday sentiment was heat-embossed with white on black snippets using a SSS sentiment stamp and this one is now ready for mailing.

I'll enter this into the following challenges:

Happy Little Stampers March - anything goes with dies

Snippets Playground #373 - must use snippets

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - something feminine

Craft Rocket Challenge #68 - flowers

Thanks for checking in with me today - I wish you all a fabulous day!

Carol

Stenciled Birthday

I recently chose this Stencil Girl "Rooted in Nature Botanical" stencil as part of a prize package I won from Simon Says Stamp. I placed it on a white card base, and sponged distress inks of Coral, Marmalade and Amber. I used Memory Box Darla and Vivienne butterfly dies, and cut them in daffodil, orange, red, and early espresso - swapping negatives to make a colorful butterfly. The sentiment was heat-embossed on black with white ep and I used both SSS and SU! stamp sets combined to personalize this for a daughter's birthday card I was asked to make.

I'll enter this into the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge which is to use a stencil.

I'll also enter this into the Seize the Birthday #181 challenge - stencils

Have a happy Friday and a great weekend as well! Thanks for stopping by as always :)

Carol 

Giving Life to an old Punch

I bought many punches through the years and they've been collecting dust since cutting dies came out, so I decided to use the SU! Boho Blossoms punch with some matching SU! dsp to make the flowers for this card. The card base is Melon Mambo and I hand-cut a curve in a piece of white card stock, scoring it randomly and adding it to the front. I placed the punched flowers along the curve, adding black Nuvo drops to the centers to keep it flat for mailing. The sentiment is from SU! Teeny Tiny Wishes and was cut with a Lil Inker stitched die, adding one more flower for an accent.

I'd like to share this with the Paper Players PP454 color challenge

Use Black, White, plus one other color

I'm also adding this to the Retro Rubber Challenge #117 - anything goes

(must use stamps older than 1 yr. I've had Teeny Tiny Wishes for several years)

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day! 

Carol

Milestone Birthday

I have 2 friends who are turning 80 in August and September, and here's one of those milestone cards I made for one of them. I used a SU! stencil to add a little pink color to the card base under the rose. The SU! Fifth Avenue Floral rose was stamped twice with Versamark on Rich Razzleberry card stock, heat-embossed with white; then fussy cut, and layered with foam tape for dimension. I took a few snippets of Wild Wasabi card stock and folded them in half, then ran them still folded into a paper crimper and fussy cut them to create the leaves. The birthday wishes sentiment was cut with Gina Marie Design dies and layered with razzleberry and pink cardstock. The "80" was die cut with my Quickutz from glittered gold card stock and placed on a black die cut banner done with a SU! die from the "Hearts a Flutter" framelit set. The 'For You" was stamped with Versamark and heat embossed with gold ep and die cut with a MFT Labels die.

I'm entering this card into the following challenges:

Dies R Us challenge #125 - Birthday

Double D Challenges - Birthday

(Happy Belated Birthday Darlene - I hope it was a good one!)

Thanks for stopping by and celebrate this life every day!

Carol