Keepin' It Simple Sunday - Special Edition

I say "special" because, well, it IS. I sent off a request to an artist that I've admired for some time now, e-mailed her some of the cards that I had made with her work, and asked her permission to share them with you.

I'm humbled, honored, and tickled pink that she kindly said YES! {Dork Dancing} So, without further fanfare, my cards for Keepin It Simple Sunday featuring the artwork of the EXTREMELY talented Leanne Ellis....{applause}

"Complicated"

"Gifted"

"Pursuit of Happiness"

"Sincerely"

"Sincerely" (close-up)

"Time"

Card ingredients:
papers from My Mind's Eye, K&Co, Making Memories, & ProvoCraft
digital paper from Wench'd Grafix (punhed strip used in "Pursuit of Happiness")
punches from Martha Stewart & EK Success
Memento Inks in London Fog ("Sincerely" & "Pursuit of Happiness") and Tuxedo Black ("Gifted") from Tsukeniko
Ranger Distress Inks - walnut ("Time") and vintage photo ("Complicated")
Distress tool from Heidi Swapp ("Time")
paper doily ("Gifted")
COPIC markers used to accent the lovely sepia & black/white artwork
"Thinking of You" and "I miss you!" stamps from The Angel Company

I'd like to say a BIG thank you to Leanne for so generously allowing me to use her beautiful artwork. I really had a great time putting these pieces together & will be doing more in the future {wink}. I hope you all agree that Keepin' It Simple doesn't mean that you have to sacrifice beauty.

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Building my stash

Next year's Christmas card stash, that is! *LOL* So, did everyone have a good Christmas holiday? Did my Canadian, UK, and Aussie friends find some great Boxing Day deals? I certainly hope so! My Christmas was nice and mellow...just how I like it! The boys each got one gift, that they LOVED, and we just stayed here at home...together. All of our relatives are back in Texas and Oklahoma and our friends here all have their families, so it was just the five of us, and that's okay. I'm not one for running all over the planet, the way my guys all are, so for me it was fantastic to just hang out at home. I didn't hear any of them complaining either! *LOL*

Anyway, when it comes to crafting, for the last 10 years I've usually started making my Christmas things early and finishing up by September or October, but 2009 just did NOT want me doing that, so I was occupied with other things (like finding a home that we could afford to keep). 2010 isn't going to keep me from being ready, so I'm starting NOW.

I had a few of those vintage images cut out and left over from my card making frenzy of the last two weeks so that's what I used for the first two. (and yes, it was a frenzy...110 cards in just over 10 days qualifies as a frenzy in my book! *LOL*)

Paper on this first one is from My Mind's Eye, the paper doily is distressed with Ranger Inks, & the vintage Christmas card image was a freebie snagged from The Net. Sentiment is from Inkadinkado, stamped with Rich Cocoa Memento ink.

Background paper on this one is from ProvoCraft, another snagged vintage Christmas card image, my Ranger Distress Inks, and two types of a peachy-pink satin ribbon that match the coral in the angel's gown. Elegant simplicity!
Now this little cutie is listed in my DigiStamp file as "TRSDhalloweenfreebieDL" so I can't say with certainty where I grabbed her from. I thought she would be just DARLING as an elf, and I'm so happy I was right! I had to have one in green....
And one in red. Background paper on both is from K&Co, images colored with my COPIC markers, sentiment in Memento Tuxedo Black ink is from The Angel Company's purchase with purchase stamp program (Holly Jolly).
Tomorrow is Keepin' It Simple Sunday, so I'll see you then...and...if things go well, and I'm very, very lucky, I may have a bit of a treat for you in a few days. I'm waiting to hear from someone special before I share, though.

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Merry Christmas!

Remember the REASON for the season! I hope that your Christmas is full of love, laughter, family, & friends.

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!

3 cards to share

The mood to create hit me last night...just as all of my men were heading off to bed. I ran a load of towels, washed my hair, did the dishes, and sat down to make some more cards - I needed a ready-to-grab stash for those last-minute cards that come in or a teacher that a child might have suddenly remembered. I'd love to say that this is a jump on next year's card stash, but I'm not delusional! *LOL*

This first one was for Aidan's 1st grade teacher. It was a free digi stamp that I snagged while out surfing one day. I love the Anime look to it & I kept seeing "The Dance of the Sugarplums" from "The Nutcracker." I colored her with my COPIC markers, dusted some frosted lace Stickles on her hair bows & skirt, cut out some white & dusty plum cardstock with my two largest classic oval Nesties, & raised her up with some foam tape. The fun snowflake background paper is last year's DCWV Winter Mat Stack release.

I think she's just darling! (NOTE: the matching of her sweet eyes to the blues in the paper was NOT intentional, but I LOVE how things like that just happen to work out!)
This next one was SO MUCH FUN to make. I followed all 12 days of Tim Holtz and his annual "tags" tutorial/festival of eye candy in green-eyed jealousy and head shaking awe - that man has more crafting talent in his little pinky than any one human should be allowed! *LOL* I actually used Tim's wonderful tags for inspiration on this card & I just HAD to make another brown Christmas card. I colored the sweetest freebie image from Inger Harding at Simply Inger with my COPIC markers & cut her out. Then I took some K& Co paper, mounted it onto a pre-made A2 card base & grunged it up with some Ranger vintage photo Distress Ink. The piece of paper that makes the "pocket" is from My Mind's Eye, with Ranger ink on the edges - I have this really cool ruler in my EK Success 1-2-3 set that has a deckle edge for tearing curves - my secret to perfect quarter circles.
Here you can see the finished tag, peeking out...
Here's a shot of just the tag. It started out an ivory 3.5"x5" tag. I trimmed an inch off the bottom so it would fit into the pocket, then used vintage photo, walnut stain, and tea stain Ranger Distress Inks on a sheet of acetate (just like Tim taught us!) & spritzed it with water, and dipped the tag 3 times, till I got the look I was going for. I used vintage photo & a makeup sponge to darken the edges. I used a swirl from Inque Boutique's SeeD stamp set "Boutique Grunge" inked with old paper Distress Ink at the top and bottom. The snowflakes at top & bottom are from the TAC set "Vintage Santa" and inked in tea stain Distress Ink.

The inch that I cut from the bottom of the tag was edged on top & bottom with deckle edged scissors, then inked all around with vintage photo & a makeup sponge. The sentiment was stamped in walnut stain Distress Ink and a stamp from TAC's Vintage Santa, then mounted to the center of the tag. To finish it off, I took my copper leafing pen from Krylon & went around the tag hole for just a touch of shimmer.
And my final creation from last night. You've seen this angel before...she's from TAC's November Vintage release "Fall and Winter Whimsy." I can't NOT use her - she's just so much fun to color up. This time I used the blue-green shades I had in my COPIC markers; some diamond Stickles dusted over her wings, flower centers in her hair, the candles & the star on the tree. My largest classic oval nestie was too small to cut her out with, so I penciled around the OUTSIDE of the die, then cut it by hand. The snowflakes were run through my Xyron for some "sticky" & dusted with clear & silver MS glitters. The fantastic soft teal background paper is from K&Co.
Look at those bits of shimmer...just like angel's kisses!
Well, today was the boy's last day of school till the New Year begins, so you know what that means...I'll be back OFTEN with more crafts (gotta stay sane somehow! *LOL*).

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

K.I.S.S.

Merry Chris-Moose! *LOL* Sorry, couldn't resist. I was sitting today going through my scrap paper box and came across some embossed punch-outs that I picked up at a Ben Franklin sidewalk sale nearly 2 years ago. Took a minute to kick myself for not using them sooner, then I pulled a couple out that I liked. This one just BEGGED to be done up today!

I took some quick dry glue by Scotch, some Designer Impostor Flower Soft, my black Glaze pen by Sakura, a piece of K&Co paper, an A2 card base, a few pop dots, and started playing...

Look at him up close...I mean, how CUTE is he?!?
I love his face - he's just so stinkin CUTE! Easy, peasy...and DONE in under 30 minutes (that Scotch glue is FAST drying - thanks for turning me onto it Kat!). I'll do up some more next Sunday for ya!

Thanks for stopping by and have a great rest of your day!!

Simon Says Challenge

I was going to take a break from making Christmas cards, but I couldn't resist the double challenge. Lorraine wanted us to enter the Merry Christmas Challenge at Simon Says in order to be eligible for her blog candy. How could I resist? Blog yummy from Lorraine (and it's GREAT too) AND a chance to win $25 worth of stuff from Simon Says Stamp? No brainer!

Don't know what it is, but I'm SO non-traditional this year!! For this card I used a wheat-colored 5x7 pre-made base by K&Co, a paper doily grunged up with Vintage Photo Distress Ink, an oval punched sentiment from TAC (Little Cupcake), a handwritten sentiment on the 2nd oval, image colored with COPIC markers by Mo, & background paper from My Mind's Eye to tie it all together. Perfection in under 20 minutes - I'm HAPPY - now if I could just win 'em BOTH! *ROFL*

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Rising to the challenge...

Vicki's challenge, that is! *LOL* "The music within my soul?" How 'bout the music bouncin around in my noggin? I had three ideas, got them all put together & scrapped two of them. This is the one that I was happiest with. I'm going to disable my Christmas music for a few days so you can enjoy the music I'm embedding here to explain my card...I used the lyrics to inspire me. It's so pure and beautiful that I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.


Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Playing along & more cards

Kristine over at DbyK (aka Wench'd Grafix) received an award the other day. She asked us to take the questions & post 'em on our blogs to share, & the responses can only be one word, so here goes:

Your cell phone? Charged
Your hair? Long
Your mother? Mean
Your father? Spineless
Favorite food? Bagels
Your dream last night? SCOTTISH (bwah-ha-ha-ha-ha!)
Your favorite drink? Pepsi
Your dream/goal? Solvency
What room are you in? Cave
Your hobby? Crafting
Your fear? Poverty
Where do you want to be in 6 years? Confortable
Where were you last night? Home
Something you aren’t? Liar
Muffins? Punkin
Wish list item? COPICs
Where did you grow up? Oklahoma
Last thing you did? Shower
What are you wearing? Clothes
Your TV? Off
Your pets? None
Friends? FABULOUS
Your mood? Creative
Missing someone? yes
Vehicle? Oldsmobile
Something you’re not wearing? Makeup
Your favorite store? Craft
Your favorite color? Blue
When was the last time you laughed? Today
Last time you cried? Yesterday
Your best friend? GOD
One place that you go to over and over? Bathroom
Facebook? Nope
Favorite Place to Eat? MacCool's

'K! Now I've shared a bit about me. If you have a blog, copy these questions for your blog, post 'em & lemme know you've done it so I can come visit you! Now for more vintage Christmas cards....














Hope you liked looking as much as I've liked making! *LOL* Now, I'm off to run some errands with Chris, then I'm coming back to rise to Vicki's challenge. I've got a song that I can't get out of my head (or heart, depending on how you look at it!) and I've got to find a way to make it work...

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

"It's a Boy!!!"

Three words said to me at 19 minutes past 6am, fifteen years ago. I was told that I'd NEVER have children & he's the oldest of three. Started out a little spaghetti noodle - 6 pounds 10 ounces, 19.5" long...now he's 160 pounds and just a little shorter than my 5'10" - he can bench press over 100 pounds & can RUN. Man, can the kid run! Biker Boy & I keep telling him he should go out for Track & Field, but he's happy drawing graffiti on books and skateboarding. *LOL*

Because he loves graffiti and skateboarding so much, I made this card for him this morning. Upper left corner is a sticker, the rest of the writing on the wall is all mine...took some crash courses online today on tagging! *ROFL*
I've got those vintage Christmas cards to share with you still but I'm afraid three posts from me in one day might throw ya into shock, so I'll put them up tomorrow morning, first thing. Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Blue & Brown challenge entry

Today's Stampin' for the Weekend challenge is "blue and brown" - how CONVENIENT because I just made this card last night & had NO IDEA that it would work so perfectly! *LOL* I used papers from Prima & My Mind's Eye, the largest Nestie from Labels 2, the tree out of my TAC set "Joy of Christmas" stamped in Memento rich cocoa, and some pearl Dew Drops colored with COPIC E49.

It could also have been this Sunday's Keepin' It Simple post, but the timing is right...I feel lucky! Maybe it has something to do with the fact that today is my oldest son's birthday.

Happy Birthday, Cordell! I'll be back later today with some more cards to share. Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Those vintage bits n bobs...

Remember? The ones at the end of my post yesterday? Well, I wanted some vintage Christmas pieces to mail out & I wanted them fairly simple, so as not to detract from the old artwork, which I adore. I made SIXTEEN last night. On top of the four I made yesterday, that puts me at my personal best of twenty cards made in one day!

This is going to be long just with the photos, so I'll keep it short n sweet for ya: most of these are on A2 bases; I've used paper doilies (some coffee-stained), a Sakura stardust clear gel pen, a Sakura clear Glaze pen, some cardstock pieces that have been through the Cuttlebug, and free images snagged from various sites around the internet. I antiqued everything with a makeup sponge and Ranger's vintage photo distress ink.

Now, without any further delay, I'll leave you to see what I've come up with (remember if you want a closer look at each card, just right click the image & select "open in a new window or tab")... So...which one was YOUR favorite? I'd have a hard time choosing, because I really enjoyed putting these together. Come back tomorrow & I'll have the fifteen that I'm working on today all finished up for your viewing pleasure.

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!