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Tuesday, June 14, 2016

Lyla is 5!

Lyla Kate will be five years old on June 30th! She has wanted to be 5 forever... such an exciting day!

Here's my card for her...


Using the PTI Superheroes stamp and die set and the Comic Strip die, I made this card thinking of all the things that Lyla loves! The backgrounds are sponged on the card base, masking each one, and with the comic die also cut in fun foam to make it have more dimension and seemingly to make each rectangle stand on its own. The glitter letters and number just add that special touch. The candle flames are heat embossed with gold sparkle...

I love the busy look of this with the colors and different sparkle letters and candles ... kind of like Lyla's personality! She loves to dress up and play superheroes as well as princesses and mermaids... The inside is "Hope your day is action packed!" I know it will be...

Happy birthday, Lyla Kate!

Get Well Mason!

Our grandson Mason, had his tonsils out on June 8th. This is the get well card that I sent him from an idea I got on Pinterest ...


Using the PTI So Striking stamp and dies, this card worked up very quickly! The two grey clouds are attached with foam tape while the sun is inlaid on the card base. The black cloud sits directly on the card base.

I used the dotted dies for the first time ever! I have had them for years and never used them! Didn't they work perfectly for the rain? It allows the charcoal paper to show through..

The greeting is gold heat embossed and sponged gold also surrounds the sun. Love how the card came out!

Put a iTunes gift card inside since I have no idea what Mason would like to do as he recuperates! Two weeks on the couch!

We're sending healing thoughts, Mason!

William is 9!

So hard to wrap my mind around the fact that William is 9 years old! I still see him as that smiling "from ear to ear" little guy! He's really into comic books and reading everything he can get his hands on as well as keeping track of his bank account. I promised that I would send some cash in his birthday card!

Here's the card...


I used designs that I saw on Pinterest to help design this card. Using PTI Superheroes and Striking stamps and dies, this is the card I came up with. The city in the background is from Altenew city skylines stamps. I also used PTI GIve Me A Hand stamp and dies.. to be honest I use them quite a bit!

The PTI comic strip die was a lifesaver for me! I will use this many times, I'm sure... I also cut it with fun foam so the card base is really a layer below. Love the dimension that gave the whole look.

Many of the pieces are attached to stand  out from the design. Love how this card turned out!



Happy birthday, nine-year old William!

Mystery Reader...

My favorite school activity with grandchildren so far happened recently... Mystery Reader! I had never heard of this event before this year- let along take part in it... and as a retired literacy coordinator- that's sayin' something!

Here's the scoop... You sign up to read a favorite story to the kindergarten kids and give three clues as to who you are so they can guess which kindergartner you belong to! Parents, siblings, grandparents, etc. are all encouraged to get a time slot. So I traveled to my granddaughter's schools and got a time to read...

Campbell was first in kindergarten and was just so excited to see me and hear my story. It was amazing!  Two weeks later, I signed up to be the Mystery Reader in her sister, Lyla's pre-K! It was simply the BEST thing ever!

I decided to send thank you note to both teachers for sharing this tremendous experience. Here are the cards:


Clearly Besotted Simply Scrumptious was perfect for this since strawberries are just starting to show up everywhere on fruit stands. I love the clean and simple look to this card and made two different examples... one high and one low on the plants. Clear stamps work so well for this because you can see where they match to stamp on the other layer.


I used PTI's strawberry for the inside of the cards with berry much...


This gives an idea of the fun foam backing on the top layer to give the card dimension... I did not use it on the "thank you" piece. Although I did heat embossed the letters with black to stand out better.

I noticed that on one of the cards I went around the die cut with black marker, but not on the other! It really does make a difference when you look at it.

So my three clues...

  • Love to boogie board with my grandkids 
  • LOVE strawberry ice cream sodas and shared them on my birthday this year (btw ... Every kid LOVED them!)
  • Live in Vermont but spend time in Florida in the winter...
Yes- Campbell and Lyla guessed who I was... Thanks to two great experiences in teaching an old dog new tricks! 

First June Anniversary

June is the best time for a wedding- our wedding 45 years ago included! There are two anniversaries to celebrate in June...

Here's the first...

Special friends that have shared so much of their time, energy and gifts with us celebrate this year on the 20th. We don't see them often but they helped to change my entire view of the world!


Peonies are one of my most favorite flowers- and ours are just finishing the most beautiful display ever! The smell as you approach them is magnificient! I wanted to share this with these very special people..

PTI Border Blocks stamp and die set, on Tim Holtz watercolor paper helped me do that. There is a piece of fun foam between the black layer and the watercolor paper which achieves a great sense of dimension in real life. I used watercolors to paint the block. The sentiment is heat embossed with silver... and I added the heart bling just to dress it up a bit!

Happy anniversary, Barry and Wendy! Our anniversary is next...

Sunday, June 5, 2016

June Birthday and a retirement ...

Love, love June weather- and this year it has started off so well! Memorial Day weekend was definitely the very best! We celebrated my birthday a few days early, actually still in May with family and friends. The pool was the biggest hit with 85 degree days...

Here's my card for a friend on June 10th. He's going through a very tough time with health issues right now, both he and his wife. I really admire how strong they both are... and count my blessings everyday!




It's actually a picture of the second card because I sent the original without taking a photo! PTI Guiding Light stamp and die set, the lighthouse is actually stamped with three separate stamps on the card base. Using the die, I cut it out from Tim Holtz watercolor paper, then painted the ground and sky. The watercolor paper is attached with fun foam and the lighthouse shows through the cut. "Happy" and the birds are stamped on the watercolor paper in black, "birthday" is diecut with black and glued on the paper with some of the letters leaving a space above the lighthouse. I love the dimension of this card!

Happy birthday, John!

And a retirement... a friend is retiring from teaching after 40 years in the same school library! Here's my card for her...


It is from a card class that I took some time ago, but the sentiment was perfect! The inside says... "All the best!" I need to make a few more of these to have on hand especially now that I seem to be connected to watercolor! This is PTI Flower Favorites and one that I use as a go to for several basic cards... I especially love the little bee in the corner...

Enjoy that retirement, Georgeanne... You deserve it!

Wednesday, June 1, 2016

It's Been Awhile... The Start of June Birthdays...

Trying to get my mojo back for card making! I hadn't made a card for over three months! Where did the time go?

Painting... I am so interested in watercolor painting! Wishing I could be more of an artist in terms of drawing, but I continue to find real peace in painting, mixing colors - watching videos on YouTube. It seems to take all of my crafting/cardmaking creativity!

Our granddaughter Emma, had a piano recital in Pennsylvania on Sunday which we were not able to go to. So sad to miss it, but we did send a card to let her know how proud we are of her with cash instead of sending flowers. Her mom gave her the flowers. That was the first card I made since January... and I forgot to record it!

Now I know I have some birthdays, anniversaries and graduations coming that I'd really enjoy sending cards to celebrate. So I started by cleaning the craft room, as it always reminds me of why I love making cards; sending family and close friends handmade cards. So first up is a birthday card for a good friend- she helped us to secure a great spot for February and part of March in Florida next year!


Using PTI Botanical Blocks frames, and watercoloring PTI Favorite Flowers on Tim Holtz watercolor paper gave an amazing result for this iris. It is a classic color combination for them. I used the diecut for the sentiment and attached it with Zig pen glue. The framed flower is on a fun foam adhesive. The card base is SU Natural Confetti paper.

Happy Birthday, Kathy!