Happy Mother's Day!

I am so excited that, for the first time in YEARS, I get to spend Mother's Day with my mom. Last July she moved down here to Southern Cali to be nearer her girls, so this is a great day to celebrate together! My two kids will be coming over today, along with Mom and my sister and brother-in-law, for BBQ chicken. The chicken has been marinating all night, the potato salad and deviled eggs are waiting in the fridge, the beer is in the cooler on ice, and everyone is bringing a side dish or dessert.

Today is a good day!

The only thing that didn't happen today was, I didn't get breakfast in bed! I waited and waited, until finally I had to get up to let the dog out to potty. Sheesh, sometimes I get no respect.

This was one of the cards we made in the Second Saturday Stampers Club yesterday, and I let everyone customize the greeting the way they wanted. I wanted to make it for Mom, so I pulled out Delightful Dozen (retiring) to use that greeting.

I hope you all are having a wonderful day today, whether you are a mother, want to be a mother, are a mother-like figure to someone, or have a mother yourself (heehee)! Blessing to you all!

STAMPS: Regarding Dahlias, Delightful Dozen
CARDSTOCK: Very Vanilla, Calypso Coral, Champagne Glimmer Paper, Venetian Romance DSP
INK: VersaMark, Basic Black, Calypso Coral
ACCESSORIES: White Stampin' Emboss Powder, Heat Tool, Sponge Daubers, Hexagon Punch (banner ends)

Swappin' with the Freaks!

The theme this time was "Flat and FABULOUS"! Since we've all run into problems mailing our multiple-layer, highly embellished cards, Lisa challenged us to make cards without bulky knots or bows, buttons, or brads. We could use the smallest Basic Jewels (pearls or rhinestones) or Candy Dots (without the brad bases).

I love me a good challenge, so I set out to create something without too many layers, but with plenty of texture and visual interest. Nothing too CAS (clean and simple). I immediately thought of the loose sequins from the Gold Sequin Trim.  Can't get much flatter than that, right? And I wanted to use fresh, Spring-y colors, since everyone has had more than their fill of Winter.

I really liked the design I came up with and then set to work making 24 of them. And that's when it struck me.......what was I thinking?! What looked so good as a single card became somewhat more of a challenge than I had planned. I mean really......punching and sponging 72 of those tiny flowers wasn't my most brilliant idea, lol. But I think the result was worth the pink fingers I had for two days. Plus, it was a good reminder to myself that when Convention rolls around in July, plan something a wee bit less time-consuming for swaps! (Yeah, right. Like that'll really happen. *snort*)

STAMPS: Flower Shop, Gorgeous Grunge, Regarding Dahlias (greeting)
CARDSTOCK: Whisper White, Pool Party, Pink Pirouette
INK: VersaMark, Melon Mambo, Pool Party, Bermuda Bay
ACCESSORIES: Big Shot, Fancy Fan folder, Heat Tool, Embossing Buddy, Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder, Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack, Dazzling Details, Gold Stampin' Glitter, Pearls Basic Jewels, Gold Sequin Trim, Stampin' Dimensionals

Chomping at the Bit!

Still have lots of thank-yous I need to send, but meanwhile, I needed a get well for a friend.  I used the Stampin' Addicts Pinterest Recycle Challenge #6, which happens to be a sketch, for the inspiration.  The monochromatic look works well on this card, I think.  And you can't see it in the photo, but the dahlia has Dazzling Details glitter accents and looks fab in real life. ;-)

This sketch would work for so many occasions! I can see it as an Autumn card, with leaves and acorns, Halloween with a group of pumpkins, or a birthday card with a group of balloons.

It is soooo nice to get back in my craft room! I really missed the "therapy" that creating gives me.  These past few weeks have been a hectic whirlwind, to say the least. From the date of my husband's diagnosis to his surgery was just SIX DAYS, so we didn't really have time to prepare (probably a good thing - no weeks of dreading it). Now it is two weeks out from the surgery and he is doing remarkably well.

I am so grateful for the blessings we've been given, from the diagnosis being something that could be repaired with surgery, to the doctors who were so skillful in doing the surgery, to the wonderful nurses who took care of him in the hospital, to being able to stay with him overnight in the ICU (and the regular room when he was moved upstairs), to all the prayers and well-wishes from family and friends.

Stamps: Regarding Dahlias, Delightful Dozen
Cardstock: Rich Razzleberry, Whisper White, Rich Razzleberry DSP (retired)
Ink: Rich Razzleberry, Basic Black
Accessories: Big Shot, Circles Framelits, Dazzling Details glitter glue, 1-1/4" and 1-3/8" Circle Punches, Rich Razzleberry Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon, Brights Designer Buttons, Stampin' Dimensionals

Make It Mailable

Ever have one of those days where everything is going so smoothly, and you seem so on top of things, that you wonder if you've forgotten something? Today is one of those days. I had a great time Saturday at the Holiday Catalog Open House, spent a relaxing day Sunday with my hubby, and had the cards prepped for today's Christmas Club well ahead of time. Even had time to check Pinterest before the club started!

So, what was I forgetting?  Hmmmmm, today's blog post - d'oh!

This is the last of my "Single Layer" cards for the Stampin' Addicts Meet & Greet swap.  And yes, it really is a single layer. Don't let the trompe l'oeil fool you!

After stamping the flower (Regarding Dahlias) and masking it, I used a sponge dauber to create background paper without using any background paper (one layer only, remember?).  The right side of the cardstock was trimmed with the Stampin' Trimmer down to the dahlia, then fussy-cut around the flower. If you click on it, you can see details better.

The shadow that makes it look like the entire flower is cut out and popped up is actually a bit of Smoky Slate drawn on with a Blender Pen. Fool the eye, indeed!

Since I just had to add some texture, the back panel of the card was embossed with the Delicate Designs folder.

Only 134 days until Christmas.....have you started your cards yet?

Stamps: Regarding Dahlias
Cardstock: Whisper White
Ink: Melon Mambo, Pink Pirouette, Smoky Slate
Accessories: Big Shot, Delicate Designs folder, Sponge Daubers, Blender Pens, Rhinestones Basic Jewels