Thursday, December 15, 2011

Winter Wedding Card

Some friends were just recently married and it is time to send along my congratulations.  They had a winter themed wedding and I wanted my card to follow along those lines while still feeling like a wedding card.  I have to admit I am a sucker for wedding gowns, tuxedos and those beautiful flowers and so I love making cards for weddings, bridal showers and the like.

The 365 Blog was the inspiration again for this card.  Two of the most recent challenges honestly.  The first being make your own flower and the second  to make a card using a base made from anything other than cardstock. 

So here is what I came up with...

The shimmer on all the layers is difficult to capture with the camera but it is there in person and oh so pretty!  I used Sheer Shimmer Mist from Tsukineko in Sparkle and Frost on this card.  The card base is acrylic.  The embossed paper was white cardstock that I ran under the faucet, crumpled and then put in a cuttlebug embossing folder.  When the cardstock was dry I inked a bit of distress ink on it and sprayed with the mist.  The flower is created from 3 scallop circle punches layered on top of one and another.



Here you can see the flower better as well as the shimmer on the paper from the mist.  Love those mists and with these you can get refills that are much less expensive than the original bottles.  The originals where around $8.00 for the two color set and each mister holds just under half an ounce.  The refills run between $9.00 and $11.00 for two ounces.  A much better price and if you order them from Amazon, and are a prime member, you get them shipped for free. :)

The 365 Blog challenges have really kept me creating the last few days.  Here is that link again should you want to check them out... http://365cards.blogspot.com

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Mt. Baker and an Aqua Winter Card

The sun has been shining on the northwest the last couple of days and it has been stunning!  Just absolutely beautiful!

 Here is Mt. Baker in all its glory during the sun filled day.  It is about 120 miles away across the straits from here.  Makes for a pretty view.

 And a view that only gets better as the pale pinks of sunset begin.


I had the need to make a card today that really did not call for a sentiment on the front.  There will be a note on the inside.  This time of year is all about Christmas however this card is not about the holiday so I really did not want to use any of those colors yet I wanted the card to be festive.  I got my inspiration from 365 Cards challenge to use blue-green on your card.  There is lots of it on this card.  The cardstock is aqua, the velvet ribbon is aqua and the pattern paper also has aqua in it.  I really like how the colors work together and I do not believe I would have pulled it together this way without the challenge.  So yay for that!


 The snowflakes are a favorite embellishment of mine that I found a couple of years ago at my local discount store in the sewing section even though they are not a button.  I add a flat back crystal to the center for just a little extra sparkle.  As you can see they have great dimension.


In this picture it is easier to see the crystal added to the center. 

The 365 Blog has a different card challenge each day.  Be sure to stop by there to get some inspiration. 



Sunday, December 11, 2011

Christmas Cards - Take 2

Here are a few more Christmas cards I have completed. This year for some reason it has been more fun and I have had less "scrapper's block" while creating. Maybe because I did not put any pressure on myself. I just began with the purpose of having fun and that...gasp...translated into stress-free fun?!?! It has worked out so well I plan to use this system again next year at the holidays! ;)







Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Christmas Cards - Take 1

It is that time of the year where we sing carols, bake yummy cookies (while getting to not feel bad at all for eating them) and we mail greetings to friends and family. Christmas cards are just about to go in the mail  here and I thought I would share some of them. 







Thursday, November 10, 2011

Rushing

There is a blog over on Tumblr that I follow and read each day.  Some days it makes me smile, some days tear up or still yet on others laugh.  This was posted a few days ago and I cannot help myself but share it.  This made me laugh because it is so very true.  I am a lover of Christmas yet I do enjoy the holiday that is all about family and friends (and all that really good food!).  I dislike that we humans rush it and seem to focus on the the hurry to Christmas and really the wrong aspects of Christmas.  We are not rushing to enjoy family.  We are not even rushing to remember the reason for the holiday in the first place, the birth of Christ.  Instead we rush to buy more and more.  So this seems to fit how I feel with a big dose of humor. 



Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Busy Scrapdesk

Although I have been busy I have managed to find a few minutes here and there over the past couple of weeks to work at my scrapdesk.  Here is what I have been working on.






Musical Morning

I have been busy, busy lately and music is something that makes the work go quicker as well as easier.  I saw Matthew Mayfield live in Birmingham last February and became an instant fan.  He has a new video for one of my favorite songs, Fire Escape.  He has also done a wonderful thing and made some of his music free in honor of it.  You can download Now Your Free his newest CD at the following link, http://www.mediafire.com/?648cs3qr899s643


 

Matthew covered this song when I saw him live and in my very humblest of fan opinions it was better than original.  I like the original however I LOVE his voice with the lyrics and wish I had an MP3 copy I could listen to anywhere. 

Saturday, September 10, 2011

Lovely Northwest Evening

Summer arrived late and with fall looming for most of the country our weather has just gotten perfect.  Warm days in the mid to low 70s filled with sunshine.  The Olympic Peninsula is the place to be right now.

This evening the sunset was simply lovely so much color lighting the sky.


I was also able to capture so of the lights as the sun has set as the water is so calm and there are no clouds or marine layer on the water this evening.


This is one of the Holland America ships bound for Alaska.  At night they seem to sparkle as they go by and tonight with the calm water just made the reflections even better.


The large tankers in the harbor keep things bright as well.



On the clear nights like tonight the lights of Victoria are a highlight of the view too.



Friday, August 19, 2011

A baby of any kind is just adorable!

Baby birds?  Cute.  Baby horses?  Cute.  Seriously, babies of just about any critter on the planet? Cute.  Last night is was a fawn.  The fawn is getting old enough that the spots are begining to fade yet the cute factor is still there.  This was the first time the four year old Mama deer has brought her fawn into the yard in the evening for apples.  The fawn was much more interested in the tender leaves of the maple trees though.





Sunday, August 14, 2011

Tree Topping and NOAA

Caught this use for a crane yesterday...Tree topping.



And one of the ships in the NOAA fleet was in the harbor yesterday.


Saturday, August 13, 2011

Seattle (in less than three minutes!)

Ran across this video set to Owl City's song "Hello Seattle".  In less than three minutes you will see the highlights of the area.  If you are local it is fun to pick out what you know as it flies by and if you aren't it is just neat to see.  (I remember back to when this place wasn't home.)

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Deep Blue Something

This past weekend I was thrilled to see an old CD in a friends collection.  It is one of my favorites, Home, and it is by a band called Deep Blue Something.  Its another Texas band that I adore like Jackopierce.  Interesting enough they broke up just like Jackopierce and have been back together since 2007. 

Home had a hit on it called Breakfast at Tiffany's.  I love the movie and adore the song.  Here is a link in case you don't recall it or would like to revisit this precious gem.  http://youtu.be/1ClCpfeIELw

One of my very favorite tracks from the CD is the title track, Home.  It reminds me of being young in Texas with close friends.  It also reminds me that home is a place in our hearts not a place on the map. 

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Arts In Action

This past weekend the little town I live in held one of my favorite festivals, Arts In Action,  (My other favorite is The Crab Festival in October.) and everything was perfect for it.  The sun was warm as well as abundant not something that we have been able this summer following a la nina winter.

The highlight of the Arts In Action festival are the sand sculptures.  The festival is a qualifier for the world event so competitors are drawn from all over the world.  The theme this year..."world wide sports".  In other words, sports that that had a fan base beyond the USA as well as in the USA.  The sculptures amazed us all again with their talents. 










With fond memories of last year and years before that milling in my head I am already looking forward to what they will create for us all next year.

Sunday, July 10, 2011

Walk In The Park Card

This was the second challenge card I made in June and it used pattern paper from Echo Park's Walk In The Park line as well as the challenge item which was a dark aqua rosette ribbon.  I cut the ribbon apart and used it to embellish the tree.  The inside was stamped "sending you sunshine".

Friday, July 1, 2011

Good Stuff

Happy Friday! 

Found this idea for making flowers for scrapbook pages and cards early this morning and wanted to share it.  Using the paperbags as she does would be great for cards or any application where acid-free wasn't a concern.  I think kraft paper could be substitute if acid-free was desired. The flowers remind me of the expensive ones I have seen over the last year from Prima.



And in honor of the Fourth of July...

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Mix of things

Things have been busy around my corner of late.  There have been some interesting sights as well.  The Wings of Freedom have been visiting my town and in the air there has been a B-17 and a P-51 from WWII.  I have not been able to get a photo when they have flown past the house I will admit I have been a bit in awe of the sight.  Click on this link to see a video post on our area newspaper's website.  It is short and gives a feel for the planes. http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/section/videonews?startID=25387325

The Wings of Freedom is a flying exhibition of planes that maybe coming to your town as well.  You may find out here... http://www.collingsfoundation.org/cf_schedule-wof.htm

Now to some of the things I have been working on over the past week or so at my scrap desk.