heARTful stamping challenge

Shortly after making two tea bag folding cards, my friend Chris emailed me to see if I had any inspiration for her heARTful stamping challenge.  What do you think of these?

 I spied these folds on the Farmhouse Memories blog.  They will be giving a class on how to make these folds.  One look and I knew I had to give this a try.  The folds are very similar to the origami Christmas tree.

 The papers are from the new Close To My Heart Chelsea Gardens paper pack.  The flowers begin as 8 - 2" squares.  The Happy Birthday stamp, embossing folder and bling are also from CTMH.

Die cuts are from ODBD and  Cheery Lynn Designs.

Challenges:
Aud Sentiments Challenge #195 - Anything Goes 
Crafty Catz Challenge #401 - Anything Goes (twist:something new -fold and papers) 
Brown Sugar Challenge #274 - Birthday
Die Cut Divas January Challenge - Something New (fold and papers) 
Crafty Hazelnut's January Patterned Paper Challenge - Anything Goes 

Nick's a Teenager

Today my grandson celebrates his 13th birthday.  I made him a personalized card with a baseball theme, mailed it and never took a picture.  So, I won't be posting that.
 I do think his special day deserves a Happy Birthday post!

Challenges:
Cards in Envy Challenge - Black & White Cards
House That Stamps Built J2418 Challenge - Anything Goes
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Layer It Up
Shopping Our Stash Challenge #338 - Birthday
Crafting By Designs - Buttons and/or Bows

Cross-stitched name tag

Everyone is making a name tag for one of the card making clubs I have joined.  When we meet on Friday, one of the gals will be laminating them for us.  It was an excellent reason to try out the new cross stitched tag die cut I picked up at My Favorite Things last week.  After laminating, I'll add a fun ribbon or two.

 No stamping on this one.  Just some CTMH retired fundamental paper and washi tape.

Challenges:

Die Cut Divas January Challenge - Something New (Die) 

The Southern Girls Challenge - Stitch Me Up 

Creative Knockout Challenge #229- In Stitches 

Use Your Stuff Challenge #396 - Tag You're It! 

 

 

Paper ICR

No matter how often I tell myself that I am not buying any more paper, there are times when I find a piece that falls into the 

ICR (I Couldn't Resist) category.   

 Stamp is from CTMH.  Stitched die cut nesting flowers are from DieVersions.

I found a new card club that is just forming here in The Villages.  At the first meeting we put together these two simple cards.  

 

AHSC Happy Thoughts & SU Card Class

After struggling with what to make for yesterday's Joyful Stars CTMH blog hop post,  the Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge made today's card a breeze.  And, with the heart embellishments, this card will join the others I've been making for the 

Cards for Little Hearts current card drive.

Once again, I've used papers and zip strips from the 

new CTMH Chelsea Gardens paper pack. 

The sentiment is from CTMH, but is far from new.

Heart and dot embellishments finish off the card.

Here's the sketch I followed:

 

Challenges:

Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge # 246 

Shopping Our Stash Challenge # 336- Out with the Old (stamp, hearts) and In with the New (paper, dots)

Cupcake Inspiration Challenge #447 - Inspiration colors white, blue and gray

 

 

***************

Tuesday I attended Jan Hoyt's SU card class. 

Although we stay in touch, it was nice to see her again.

Her class focuses on fun and simple cards like these:

That's not dirty snow, just a coating of glitter pen that photographed badly.  Honest!

When in Florida, you can say this and know you won't be doing any shoveling!

I'm saving this one for my grandson who will be 18 in March.

Thanks for stopping by my blog. 

Joyful Stars Close to My Heart January Blog Hop

Welcome to the January

Close to My Heart Joyful Stars Blog Hop.

Have some fun hopping between the blogs of this group of talented Close to My Heart consultants, and me, where we share creative projects using CTMH products.

Have you seen the new CTMH Seasonal Expressions Catalog?

Hop along with us to see some awesome projects using the new products.

It was a struggle to decide what to make for this month's blog hop.   My current focus has been on making Heart Themed cards for the Cards for Little Hearts February card drive, and switching gears was proving difficult.  I knew I wanted to use the new Cross-stitch Love stamp set with matching Thin Cuts, and I just love the new Chelsea Gardens paper.  

Stamping a bunch of the cross-stitched roses was a start.  (For me, it was much easier to cut the shape first and then stamp it.)   As I laid out the flowers on a piece of plain glacier blue cs, I spied the cross-stitched heart stamps in the set and began random stamping the cs.  Switching gears wasn't necessary, after all.  This will make a lovely card for one of the older girls in the hospital.

Now, since this is a blog hop,

you might have arrived here from Andrea Sherman's blog.

Your next stop is Marie Flayer's blog.   The hop is

circular.  So if you are just starting here, simply continue hopping until you find your way back, making the full circle.  If you get lost, the complete list of participants is on Joyce's blog.

Challenges:  

Heart 2 Heart Challenge - Winter Blues

heARTful stamping Challenge - Anything Goes 

Crafting from the Heart Challenge #189 - Anything Goes 

Simon Says Monday Challenge - Winter Blues 

Allsorts Challenge #449 - Something New (stamps) 

Moving Along with the Times Challenge #62 - Flowers

Thanks so much for stopping by. 

Anniversary Card Shower

A lovely woman, with whom I used to work, is celebrating her 58th wedding anniversary.  To commemorate the occasion, her daughter has organized a card shower for her parents.  This is the card I sent.

 

The Chelsea Garden papers are new from CTMH. 

The sentiment stamp is from SU.

And the pretty dotted lattice embossing folder is from 

Taylored Expressions.

 

Challenges:

Shopping Our Stash Challenge #336 - Out with the old (baker's twine and ef) and in with the new (paper) 

Stinkin' Inkers Challenge - It's a Banner Year

Crafting From the Heart Challenge #189 - Anything Goes

Use Your Stuff Challenge #294 - Something New (paper)

Allsorts Challenge #449 - Something New (paper)

 

 

I hope you'll stop back tomorrow to see what I've made for this month's Joyful Stars Blog Hop. 

Can't forget the boys

It's always seems easier to make cards for girls than for boys, especially when you need to have heart themed cards!  Here is one card I've made for the current card drive at Cards for Little Hearts, intended more for a boy.

Oh my, this computer is behaving badly today.

It is being just too testy to try and link this card into any challenges!

Very Pink Cards

These cards will soon be on their way to Ohio, 

and the Nationwide Children's Hospital.

You can find out about the Heart Themed Cards

for Little Hearts card drive here.

 Both cards feature digital images colored with pencils and markers, a CTMH sentiment stamp, die cuts, embossing, baker's twine and lots of pink.

Challenges:

Challenge Up Your Life Challenge #82 - Embossing Folders 

Moving Along with the Times Challenge #62 - Flowers 

Polkadoodles Challenge Week 1 - Anything Goes 

Just Us Girls Challenge #442 - Anything Goes 

QKR Stampede Challenge #277 - Anything Goes 

As You Like It Challenge - Anything Goes  

Tweet Hello

Why didn't I get these double stitched rectangle dies sooner? 

 I love them!

They are from Our Daily Bread Designs.

It's time to make cards for the Cards for Little Hearts current card drive, to be distributed at Nationwide Children's Hospital in February for Heart Month.

Challenges:  

4 Crafty Chicks Challenge #384 - Dies/Pinches 

As You Like It Challenge - Anything Goes 

Cute Card Thursday Challenge #511 - Anything Goes 

The House That Stamps Built DCC13 - Things with Wings 

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Something New (dies) 

Die Cut Divas Challenge - Something New (dies)

The Alphabet Challenge - "U" Use 3 of something (3 frames)

Colour Crazy Challenge Week 1 - Anything Goes (the digi image was colored with pencils and blended with clear Wink of Stella pen) 

Ice Skating

Ice Skating is a winter activity that I have never tried.

But, gee, if this cute little mouse can do it.....

The closest I ever came to ice skating was... 

One day, when I was a teenager I was headed to the bus stop and slipped on our icy sidewalk, landing hard on my bottom.  My books took off, sliding across the front yard in multiple directions.  My younger brother went running into the house to tell my mother, not that I had fallen but that I had said a 4 letter word when I did.

Getting back to the card...

The cute Ice Skating Mouse is a digital image from Gerda Steiner Designs.  I colored him with markers and added some clear Wink of Stella on the ice.  The sentiment and papers are from CTMH.  

The die cut frames are from MFT.

Challenges:   

Gerda Steiner Share Your Designs January Challenge - AG with a GS stamp

Send a Smile 4 Kids Challenge - Winter Fun 4 Kids

Star Stampz Challenge - Winter

4 Crafty Chicks Challenge #384 - Dies and/or Punches

Crafty Animals Challenge #10 - AG

2 Crafty Critter Crazies Challenge #10 - AG

Pause, Dream, Enjoy Challenge #1 - Die Cuts

Crafty Gals Corner Challenge #156 - AG

 

 

Cocoa with Marshmallows

I treated myself to two new stamp sets from Sweet n Sassy.  Yesterday, I shared two cards I made with the For the Birds stamp set.  Today, I'm sharing two cards featuring the Cup of Cocoa stamp set.

 This little guy was stamped, colored with markers and then fussy cut.  Two of the ladies in my Red Hat Chapter will find these cards in their mailboxes, which explains the red and purple color scheme.  Inside of each card is a simple stamped "Happy Birthday".

Challenges:

2 Crafty Critter Crazies Challenge #10 - Anything with a Critter Goes
The Crafty Addicts Challenge #44 - Anything Goes (I decided not to use the option of blue)
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Something New (stamps)
Scrapy Land Challenge #81 - Anything Goes (I used Spellbinders and La La Land dies.)
Crafty Creations Challenge #357 - Anything Goes
Crafting By Designs Challenge - January Edition - Anything Goes

Yesterday, I went to a card class here in Florida. 

Marlene Bovee designed these two cards for us to make:

1. a great masculine card

 and
2. a sweet Valentine

 

and Joan Fetterman designed the first card below which uses a 3 layered image.

 

I really like this sentiment.  And I also like the black and gold card base.  So when I got home, I cut off the card front and then die cut the sentiment and a frame from the inside and substituted a white card base.  Now I can use the remaining piece for something else.

For her second card, Jane turned us loose with some fabulous Anna Griffin card bases, inserts, sentiments and cuts out to make a Christmas card.  The choices made this card the hardest.

Wow! A Valentine, a masculine Birthday, an Anniversary, a Christmas card and great fun in The Villages!

Missed you Linda! 
and miss the girls back home, too!

Sweet n Sassy Warm Winter Hugs

These two cards feature a new stamp set, For the Birds, that I got at Sweet n Sassy stamps.  My intention was to use it to send greetings to my family and friends back in Pennsylvania where it is really cold, while we are vacationing in sunny Florida.  But, the joke is on me because this week isn't going to be warm or sunny here.

 

 
The stamped images were colored with pencils, then blended with a water brush before being fussy cut.  The sentiment was die cut and the edge faintly colored with marker before being positioned on a cricut cut piece of glitter paper.  Snowflakes are a cricut cut topped with a punch cut and a gem.

Challenges: 

Simon Says Monday Challenge - Something New (stamps)

Through the Craft Room Door Challenge week of Jan. 2nd - Anything Goes 

Shopping Our Stash Challenge 335 - Watercolor

Crafty Hazelnut's January Patterned Paper Challenge - Anything Goes 

A Perfect Time to Craft January Challenge - Anything Goes 

A Bit More Time to Craft Challenge #59 - Anything Goes 

Happy New Year

I thought I'd start the new year by finishing up some things I didn't get done in 2017.  Posting this Christmas card is one of them.  Originally, I saw a similar card on Pinterest but had to adjust it for the stamps, punches and die cuts I own.  I only made two of these, for two special friends.  But, I was very happy with the results.

 The stamps are all from CTMH.  The stitched circles are La La Land die cuts.  The glitter paper snowflakes and hearts are from CTMH cricut cartridges.

Challenges:

The Merry Christmas Challenge #49 - Anything Goes + Christmas 
heARTful stamping challenge - Anything Goes + a stamp 
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge #366 - Anything Christmas Goes + option of something beginning with an "S" (snowflakes, stamping)
QKR Stampede Challenge #276 - snowmen, snowflakes, or anything goes
Fussy and Fancy Challenge # 202 - Christmas 
C.R.A.F.T. Challenge #448 - Anything Goes 

Happy New Year!