my friend (hand-lettered, sketched)

Excuse my funny blurs (below) but I didn't want to show my already filled in comments to the whole wide world! I used some of SU's stamps on here. From Butterfly Basics. I still keep coming back to that fern image. 

just a note

Dragonfly Birthday

At my Open House last Saturday we started with this card (above). It's simply emboss resist using sponges and different greens and blues meanwhile masking with a few different sizes of circles to create a sort of ripple affect in the water.  Below we stepped up the design by adding Garden Green ferns (from Butterfly Basics---YES!!!) and sponging a bit of pink in the water. I like both. While the cards below are more lush, the top one is soft and sweet. Everyone did a WONDERFUL job of their cards and they each turned out differently, which is what I love about this style of card.
Don't forget to outline the shadowed edges of the wings with a darker shade of turquoise to give your dragonfly a bit of depth.

toilet paper thanks

You wouldn't have guessed it would you??!! I wanted a soft-looking paper behind my delicate butterfly and I also wanted only blues and whites for this spring-like card. Sitting on my craft table was a roll of Charmin!!!! (Dunno how it got there!!!) Anyway, I figured "YES!!" Somewhere through the years I'd heard of using it for a background, but had long forgotten. I tried embossing it dry but that didn't work for me as I wanted a tattered look. Besides the dry layers just separated. So I gently spritzed it with my Stampin Misters and lo and behold it WORKED!!! And it tore just BEAUTIFULLY!!!
Next time I want to put a drop of color into my mister. Wouldn't THAT look fantastic???

hello friend

I enjoy making holiday and seasonal cards, but every now and then I like a change! So here's a Butterfly Basics card for you again! If you don't have this die/stamp set, let me know and I'll grab it for you! It's a Must Have!

happy birthday butterfly

There! I got to use my Butterfly die again! Love love love him!!! And my brick wall TEF. Another favorite!

tgifc throwdown (a challenging challenge!)

 

Ok!! I understand if you're a little confused here! I was too, until I studies the details which you can find on #tgifctd01 and then I was hooked!! It's a real challenging challenge!! Go check it out!

I was mostly ok with the pantry items, but hmmm, was I ever limited on my basket-ful of items! I HAVE EXACTLY 4 of them!! Both thinlits, and both ink pads/reinkers. SOOOO...you see how challenging it was?!!! If you ever need something to get your mind going check these people out! And believe me, you'll have fun meanwhile!! 

(Oh, and in the pantry items it says we could use clear blocks so I used them as my stamps! What else could I do?!)

Challenge Spark (wings)

Recently our family camped out for three nights and it amazed me how many birds and butterflies (bugs too, yes!) there were around our campsite. So I decided this week we would celebrate "wings"! Wings of any sort. Tara from Country Girl Creates and Jane from White Orchid are also a part of this Challenge Spark. Go on over to their wonderful blogs to see what marvelous flying creature they've come up with this week!

This is the card I made for "wings". My mind instantly flew to my beloved Butterfly Basics and then I also remembered a card I'd seen long ago on Pinterest that I was SURE I'd pinned, but do you think I can find it now??? If someone knows which one I mean, by all means let me know so I can give the artist credit! There are several different styles of cards designed similarly to this on Pinterest, but only one that is really close to this, that I've seen. Anyway, the artist who created the original card used this same Swallowtail background stamp and folded and cut her card similar to the one I did here. In fact I think her colors were blues as well. However, I'm certain it was a single layer card but I just couldn't resist adding the die-cut butterflies in vellum to add a  little ethereal quality to it.

fly away....in loving memory

I must explain a few things. 

My dad just passed away and we laid him to rest on the 2nd of June, last Tuesday.

I have this "thing" with butterflies and while the last hymns were being sung at Dad's graveside a big huge yellow butterfly fluttered out of nowhere, breezed over the spray of roses and merrily went on its way. Ok, so I'm not one for quickly saying these things are so significant, but I wistfully thought to myself, "Fly away, Dad, fly away..."

So the cards I'm sending out as Family Thank-you's are butterfly themed. It so well suits my suggested challenge for this week: WINGS. I've thought a lot about wings these days: angel wings, butterfly wings, wings of prayer, wings of song.....yes, fly away....

Here are several of the cards I made:

I realize the picture quality is poor, but I was too tired to redo them! Sorry...!!

May flowers (CYCI#70)

I've been so inspired with this week's challenge over on CanYouCaseIt? that I just HAD to make another floral card! I kept thinking of how I used to design arrangements in my flower shop years ago and the first thing that came to mind was ferns. Back then we started with a base of leather leaf fern. How wonderful that SU has the Butterfly Basics stamp set which includes this lovely fern image. I used a lot of emboss resist on the background and then what else did I use but FLOWERS!!! Flower Shop and Petite Petals with their coordinating punches made this so easy!

Designed especially with canyoucaseit #70 in mind!

The Challenge Spark (something tropical)

This week, since I am so loving anything springy and colorful, I challenged Jane and Tara to "think tropical" with me, using coral, yellow and green. My inspiration was triggered by this card by Ann Fitzgerald via Pinterest and I followed her directions, except for adding Butterfly Basics fern image on watercolor paper and then misting it, before adhering the heliconia blossom. I also added the rhinestones as water droplets. See? I was aiming for a rain foresty jungly look! All we need is a parrot and a monkey.

Next week Jane says we will make a card using something currently retired. Make sense? Not really? Newly retired. Is that better??!! The new catalogue is on the brink of bursting into our lives so now's the time to order those retiring products that you still have on your wish list.

The Challenge Spark (Pop-up card)

Tara challenged Jane and me to do the absolute IMPOSSIBLE!!! She chose a pop-up card for our challenge spark this week. When I heard what she chose...well...my eyes got bigger and bigger and I yelled, "OH NO!!!" in my mind! (In case you're wondering just how animated I really am, well, not that much, anyway!) And so I googled it and this tutorial helped me tremendously with my pop-up box card.

Here it is! Hard to believe this summery bouquet full of butterflies and even a bird is a CARD!!! But yes, my friends, it is! And it was so much work I figured my dear MIL deserved it, since she's a marvelous lady and we love her! (Hi Mom!!)

I used DSP in coordinating design to make an envelope with SU's wonderful envelope punch board. (Tara and Jane, did you see that I actually used DSP TWICE for this card??? Did you SEE???!!!)

Now, my MIL is a smart lady, but I figured I'd pop a belly-band on my card to explain the why's and wherefore's of how to unfold this rather awkward looking package. Because if I got it in the mail, I just might say, "Hmmm, now WHAT is THIS and HOW do I unfold it?" And I'm smart, too...so....

 That's it for today folks. It's ready to pop in the mail as soon as I address it to my husband's dear mom!

The Challenge Spark (DSP aka designer series paper)

Tara from Country Girl {Creates} challenged Jane from White Orchid and me (from HERE!) to use SU's designer series paper for this card. Since I'm greatly DSP challenged, I used Irresistibly Yours from Saleabration. THAT STUFF I thought I MIGHT be able to use since it has my favorite EMBOSSING on it to ink over! 

I made both cards using the same emboss resist technique. That top one sure looks like St. Patrick's Day, but oh well! The bottom one looks like Easter! All without trying! LOL!

(Tara, don't do that to me again! Didn't your mom teach you that it's not nice to tease!)

Next week I'm challenging ALL of us to something none of us finds easy: something for a young teenage boy.

wow! what all you can do with Just Kidding!

Simply stamp the words and image onto Crumb Cake card stock, sponge a bit behind the lady and color the picture. I added flowers and the ferns from Butterfly Basics. Oh, and a bit of color around the edge. Easy. And I was rather delighted with the outcome!

Don't you just love this funny ol' lady from Just Kidding? I'll gladly order you this stamp set! It's a really good one!

a tough week (good-bye is hard)

A young wife is left to raise her children alone after her husband died in a logging accident early last week. Her parents and siblings live close to us, so we are well acquainted and feel the deep sadness along with the family. While listening to an audio streaming of the funeral service with all the gorgeous singing that seemed to be coming  straight from heaven, I idly made cards. Keeping my hands busy helps me understand better, seems like. This one (above) almost made itself since I wasn't really concentrating on my art. I was surprised to find myself using a stamp from Just Kidding for the sentiment. Truly, saying "goodbye" is hard. And I'm glad to be able to use this stamp set for something sad as well as humorous. I don't have anything inside the card since I do love having lotsa room to say my own thing now and then. Especially for an occasion such as this week's tragedy.

Another card borne out of an aching heart. Same occasion; same soothing tear-stained colors. I love using watercolor paper and re-inkers. Here I was also able to use my new Little Letters dies. Since I couldn't bear to toss the little strip I had to remove to fit my card base, I adhered it into the inside of the card. Nice touch, anyway!

two butterflies for you

One more post tonight and I'll give you a rest!

The pink Mother's Day card uses Hello You's "happy" as a negative space. It was a tad tricky getting the li'l insides into the word, but it worked! The butterfly is made from both DSP in that typeset I like so much as well as Basic Gray cardstock.

The bottom card is an easy Butterfly Basics collage with an orange butterfly and a bit of linen thread.

What I love about this butterfly is you can make it elegant, romantic, or just plain fun!

Truly a BASIC that you really can't be without!

That's all folks...

Butterfly Basics again! (thanks)

Not a lot to say about this card! It seems fairly self-explanatory! Dictionary, ever a favorite, along with the butterfly punches and Hello You thinlits dies "thanks".

layered embossing (tutorial)

Recently I've been playing around a bit with different embossing techniques. I don't know that they are REAL techniques, but I love this layered look. Seems kinda vintage to me. And it's really simple although maybe a tad time consuming. But who cares? It's creating, so who minds taking a li'l extra time?!

 

First thing, get out your Basic Butterfly stamps. (Again! I know...!!) Stamp a few of them in a sort of collage using whatever colors and images you desire.

Unlid your VersaMark pad and pat it ALL OVER your paper, leaving no area uninked. 

 Dump your black embossing powder over it. (Go ahead! Do it! Don't be scared!)

 Using a tissue and a cotton ball, wipe away some of that black stuff, edges included. Just wipe off whatever you think needs it! There's no right or wrong and if you wipe off too much, just dump more powder over it again and start over!

Heat emboss the black area.

Now we'll do it again. Take that VersaMark and swipe it around the edges and wherever you would like your gold to go. Dump gold embossing powder over it and wipe off any that appears in places you don't want. Heat emboss it. 

This is the finished card, complete with a butterfly punched and sponged and a matted background also stamped using Butterfly Basics.