Journey *SFYTT*

So, you may be wondering where I have been. Let me rewind a few days and I will tell you. Friday night I was exhausted, but knew I needed to make this week's SFYTT card. I would have tried to get it done earlier, but I was busy all week creating the invitations for the baby shower I am throwing. I am finally done with them, but guess what? I completely forgot to photograph them. I was so excited to finally be done with all 43; they were dry and ready to mail or be delivered, so I stuffed them in envelopes. I suppose I could create just one more and photograph it? We shall see. I will however, remember to photograph the rest of the things I make. Well...back to my story. Like I said, I was tired, so I decided to make my card first thing Saturday morning. I laid in bed and watched TV and all of a sudden the "Electrolux" commercial came on with Kelly Rippa throwing laundry magically into her children's bedrooms, when my eye spied something cute. I was trying to rewind it because on her daughter's dresser there was a framed piece of art that completely inspired me. I wasn't tired anymore! I was ready to go create my card!

I jumped up and my husband asked what I was doing. I said I was off to make my card as he scratched his head because 2 seconds earlier I was soooooooo tired! Go figure! Anyway, I got to work. I had also wanted to incorporate another inspiration that I had the other day when I was cutting a tag off of my daughter's new jeans. Retail tags, especially ones hanging from denim, have inspired me quite a bit over the years and this one was no exception. It was from some "Epic Threads" jeans from Macy's if you are interested.

So, I infused the two inspiring ideas only to come up with a creation that I was less than thrilled about. I fussed and mussed for over an hour, only getting more tired. I decided to call it a night and start over in the morning. Well....Saturday mornings don't always go the way I want them to, especially when my son has a noon football game. The night before, he got completely drenched after practice with an orange Slurpee, which meant I needed to clean his jersey again. So...laundry, breakfast, baby, etc. You get the picture, I am sure!
My card got pushed to the back burner and the day wore on. So here we are Sunday afternoon and I decided to "make it work" as Tim Gunn would say! I don't know if I did, but I really liked the initial concept I was going for. Everything always looks better with fresh eyes, too. I think I may "revisit" my original inspiration and see if I can make some tweaks.

The stamps are a combo of PTI and SU! I was excited to use some of my dusty "Crushed Curry" paper that I got last year from SU!, but rarely use. I actually really love the color and it worked really nicely with the gray. You won't want to miss the other gals creations:
Jen Del Muro and Tori Wild
Amy Rohl
Susan Liles
Amy Sheffer
Leigh O' Brien,
Jenn Diercks,
Amber Hight
Megan Lock
Sony Christoph
Jodi Collins
CAROLE
Thanks for fluttering by!

Genuine Birthday

I needed a birthday card for my FIL, so sunday afternoon I snuck in some stamping time as Daddy held the sleeping baby while watching football. Everyone is happy, right? I guess that depends on who wins the game! LOL! Anyway....I hadn't really created a "theme" as far as the wrapping paper matching the card, etc. I have really gotten into the habit of wrapping presents in the Sunday comics which is very earth conscious as well as super cheap! LOL! So...with that being said, I took the opportunity to make any kind of card I wanted and that ended up being a Cowboy Card. My FIL is NOT a cowboy, but maybe he always wanted to be one?

In all reality, I could probably make him a princess card and he wouldn't care. My MIL always has to make a special point to say, "Look Dear,...Kelly made this nice card for you." Then I get embarassed and turn red because I don't like the attention. Well...on to the card. My last post I was at a loss for words and today I can't shut up! I told you it was a rare occasion and that it proablaby wouldn't last! LOL!

I decided to pull out some relatively "old-school" techniques for this creation. I always like to pair copper with this particular pattern paper so I added some copper eyelets and added a touch of copper embossing. I was using my embossing gun for some shrink plastic the other day and it took me forever to actually find the thing. I guess I need to work embossing into my designs a little more regularly. Another thing that I used to *really* like to do, was crumple up paper, rub a bit of Versamark ink over it and then pour the embossing powder over it and then heat it. You can see that I used this particular treatment on the sage layer. I also decided to tear the edges of the computer generated happy birthday words, which I usually don't do, but used to all the time. I finished it off with a bit of hemp twine crisscrossed and knotted.

I need to dip into my "cache" of techniques a little more often to get a little bit more variety in my creations. Thanks for fluttering by!

P.S. I think I mentioned it before, but I am hosting a baby shower in a few weeks, so I will be posting the all of the things I create for that soon.

Vintage {thank you} SFYTT

I am just a tad late...I hope you all will forgive me. I sat down to make this week's SFYTT early, believe it or not and I just couldn't decided which images, papers, etc. to use. I finally "decided" Saturday evening while my family was playing Guitar Hero. I sang a song here and there, but I really needed to stop so that I could get this done. Lately my biggest battle is actually getting to my stamp desk. Once I am there, I don't want to leave.

I have had this "Life Stories" paper by My Mind's Eye for a while now and I thought I had better cut into it. As I sat looking at the roses, it reminded me of the roses from one of my favorite sets; "Gentler Times". Everything just fell into place after that.

I stamped the image using Walnut Stain Distress Ink and then colored it with Copic Markers. I sponged all of the edges with Vintage Photo distress ink. The lace is from Making Memories, which I have been hoarding because I love it so much, but it worked perfectly with this card.

Well.....

Maybe it is because I am tired or maybe because this card is very straightforward, but shockingly, I am at a loss for words, so without further adieu.....

Jen Del Muro and Tori Wild
Amy Rohl
Susan Liles
Amy Sheffer
Leigh O' Brien,
Jenn Diercks,
Amber Hight
Megan Lock
Sony Christoph
Jodi Collins
CAROLE
Thanks for fluttering by!

Welcome Whale

Correction: My watermark in the photos is incorrect. I must have not noticed that I needed to change it. The images on this card are The Cat's Pajamas and SU! Sorry!
I have a confession to make. Are you ready? Two weeks ago when I made this card for Saturday's SFYTT, it wasn't my first attempt. I was so tired when I sat down to make my card, that I really couldn't think straight. I stayed up way to long and spent way too long on a card that I ended up by not being very proud of. I guess I knew that I was capable of more. So...I woke up Saturday morning and started again, working with things that made me happy and I ended up really liking the results.
The more I looked at my first card, the more it started to grow on me. I decided to share it with you today. I thought it was interesting that I used almost the same color combo on both cards; completely unintentional. I guess I was in a blue/green mood.

I absolutely had to have this darling whale stamp from TheCat'sPajamas, especially after being tempted by some of my favorite designers. Yes...you all know who you are! LOL! I didn't really do it justice...like I said, I was tired. I am itching to sit down and use it again when I have more time. He is just so stinkin' cute! I used a lot of PTI goodness (embellishments and paper) on this card as well. Thanks for letting me get that off my chest and of course...thanks for fluttering by!

Lookin' Great *SFYTT*

ETA: I totally forgot to mention that this week's SFYTT is sponsored by The Stamping Boutique! Check it out here for all of the info! I didn't end up by using one of their images, but they are all super cute!
I have totally switched gears from last week's SFYTT card. My SIL has been working her butt off....literally. She is competing in a body-building competition today and I thought I would make her a "good-luck" card. Maybe I will wrap a few Protein Bars to go along with it, since I am sure some good luck chocolate would truly defeat the purpose! LOL!I have had this stamp set since I was a guest designer for PTI, but I never used it. I thought it would be perfect for my card today. I also pulled out some retired SU! paper that I have had forever, but it really worked nicely for the "feel" I was trying to achieve.

Everything is pretty straightforward, but I did add a few details that I thought added to the design. I decided to dig into my neglected bucket of Fiskars scissors and add a postage stamp border to the focal square. I also decided to put some stickles on the circles on the bikini and flip-flops. The finishing touch was a simple zig-zag stitch down the side. I had fun making this card and although I love Autumn so much, it was making me sad that summer has come to an end.

You won't want to miss the other gals creations!

Jen Del Muro and New September Guest Designer
Amy Rohl
Susan Liles
Amy Sheffer
Leigh O' Brien,
Jenn Diercks,
Amber Hight
Megan Lock
Sony Christoph
Jodi Collins
CAROLE
Thanks for fluttering by!

Get Well Soon, Friend *SFYTT*

I was still in a "Vintage" frame of mind when I created my card for this week's SFYTT. I am in love with Jen's new sketch, but I think I say that every week. She is one talented gal and I feel quite fortunate to be part of her team. I haven't used Tea For Two in quite a while and as you know it is one of my All-Time Faves! I always use it in the same type of way, but I just can't help it.

I pulled out some of my favorite vintage prints from K & Co. and got to work. I knew that I wanted to create an accordion medallion for the circle piece from the sketch, so I got that done first so it would have time to dry. I also added the same glitter down on the sentiment panel at the bottom, so I let that dry, too. I really need to invest in some of these (the ones that go with this set)to make my life easier when cutting out that darn tea pot.

I also added some liquid pearls as I did on my card in my previous post. I had someone ask how I got my liquid pearls to go round, rather than pointy. The fabulous Amy Sheffer gave me the fabulous tip to lay the paper horizontally, then flick your finger under the paper to get them to settle. It is kindof the same concept as tapping your chocolate molds to get the bubbles out. I hope that makes sense, because it really, really works! Thanks again, Amy! I am making up for lost time using these on all of my projects since they have been sitting un-used for some time. You won't want to miss the other gals creations!

Jen Del Muro and New September Guest Designer
Amy Rohl
Susan Liles
Amy Sheffer
Leigh O' Brien,
Jenn Diercks,
Amber Hight
Megan Lock
Sony Christoph
Jodi Collins
CAROLE
Thanks for fluttering by!

P.S. I am off to this week's football game! Last week they won 77-0, which caused quite a controversy. Our team has been put on probation and we are limited to a 35 point spread from here on out.

You're Queen for the Day *SFYTT*

There is a story behind today's card, which I will get into later. Also, I really didn't mean to be {this} late with my SFYTT card. I know I forcasted Sunday, but reality struck and I couldn't get to it until today. I had in my mind what I would be doing and I was excited to see it turn out similar to my mind's eye. I was able to incorporate some of my favorite things.

Okay...on to the story. Rockwell came home from school on Monday saying that he hadn't had a good day and that he wasn't enjoying school anymore. This really sent up the red flags with me because he has really been enjoying his new school year and his teacher. At the beginning, she told the kids that they would get "paid" for doing the things that they needed to do, but would also have to pay her if they did things they shouldn't be doing. I have been hearing things throughout the weeks that certain kids had to pay her for this or that or even that the whole class had to pay because of all the talking. Well...this week he told me that she was "taxing" them and that they had to give her money to go out to recess, etc. This seemed a little extreme to me...until I got an email from her addressed to all of the parents. She explained that she would be doing some heavy taxing. They are currently learning about the colonies, etc. She is calling it her "Mock Revolution". One of the other 5th grade teachers has been secretly sneaking in to the class to give them money; representing France. Anyway, we aren't supposed to let on to our kids about what is going on. She signed her email, "The wicked queen of England". I will be seeing her tomorrow at the PTA meeting, so this will go to her along with some chocolate, because I am sure she will be needing it with all of the super grumpy kids.

The focal image is the Queen of Hearts from this set from TJ Designs. The sentiment is also from that set. I paired it with some of the great images from this set. I haven't made a vintage card in a while and these images are perfect. I added some liquid pearls here and there. I used Amy Sheffer's advice and tapped the bottom of my card to get the pearls to be rounded rather than pointy...thanks Amy! I smudged up quite a few in my excited haste to get it finished, but hopefully she won't even notice. I hade fun making this and I really like this sketch. Thanks for fluttering by!

Here is the sketch. I shared it on Saturday, but if you haven't had a chance to play along, I highly recommend it. This is such a fun sketch.