What I Do Instead of Laundry

I made this card for a lovely friend of mine with a very generous heart.  I hope that I have paid the goodness forward enough to match hers. One tip when using the Sweet Life dies is to start with colored cardstock in the lightest shade you want.  Then layer the ink accordingly, and there's no pesky white outline (plus, I can line up the stamps better that way) Supplies: Paper: PTI White, Sweet Blush, Berry Sorbet, Pure Poppy, New Leaf Ink: PTI Berry Sorbet, Pure Poppy, New Leaf, SU Cherry Cobbler, Garden Green Stamps: PTI Sweet Life, YOF Roses Other: PTI Sweet Life dies, dimensional tape

At the last minute I decided to take this Online Card Class.  It's my third, and they are always wonderful!   Here's my Day 1 card, based on a sketch by Kristina Werner.  I think it will be a great go-to sketch for masculine cards.  Partially die cut a shape at the edge of the card, stamp on the card base, add a little flagged sentiment, and voila! Paper: PTI White, New Leaf Stripes PP, SU Cajun Craze Ink: PTI Blueberry Sky, Versamark Stamps: MFT Gift Card Greetings, PTI Tweet Talk Other: Circle Nesties, square punch for flag end, white Filigree EP, dimensional tape

Here are two cards I finally pieced together, after having colored these images many moons ago.  The first is pretty straightforward, and the second is sparkly. Yay, sparkly!  I used Perfect Pearls mist on the background paper and the vase, which gives it a mottled look.  The sparkle on the tulips is a Sakura Stardust pen.  Love. Supplies: Card #1:  Paper: PTI White, Sweet Blush, Berry Sorbet, vellum Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Copics, Versafine Onyx Stamps: PTI Friendship Jar Summer Spring Fillers, Think Big Fave's #4 Other: PTI Mega Gracious Vases dies, Book Print IP Card #2: Paper: PTI White, True Black Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Copics, Pure Poppy Stamps: PTI Friendship Jar Spring Fillers, A Big Thank You Other: PTI Mega Gracious Vases dies, Double-ended Banner Die, Book Print IP, Perfect Pearls mist, Sakura Stardust pen-clear 

Here is a masculine thank you card using my first Clear and Simple set--Seashells.  I also tried to be fancy and nautical with the hemp twine with my knots. Supplies: Paper: PTI Kraft, Enchanted Evening, White, Vellum Ink: PTI Kraft, Enchanted Evening Stamps: Clear and Simple Stamps Seashells, PTI Think Big Fave's #4 Other: CTMH Hemp Twine, Dimensional tape

I'm playing in this week's CAS-ual Fridays challenge for the very first time.  Yay, me.  This week's challenge is to use markers in some way.  This image is one big, honkin' stamp, and it's so fun to color.  (Thank you, Joan !)  I used Copics for this card.  So therapeutic. Paper: PTI White, True Black Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Copic Markers Stamps: Mint Motif Very Square Sentiments, Stampendous Hydrangea Other: Sakura Stardust pen-yellow

This month's Papertrey Ink Blog Hop challenge is to use black backgrounds.  I had so much fun with this, I gave myself a crick in my neck!  We must suffer for our art, mustn't we?   I heat embossed this repeated Fancy Folk Art image in white, then colored over each line with Copic markers.  I love the bright effect this technique gives--I think I'll be doing this again! Paper: PTI True Black, Lemon Tart (for card base), Pure Poppy Ink: Versamark, Copic Markers Stamps: PTI Fancy Folk Art, Fillable Frames Sentiments Other: White Filigree embossing powder, PTI Harvest Gold grosgrain ribbon, Framed Out die, dimensional tape

This is the sympathy card I duplicated 6 times for my son's teacher.  Do you ever get stumped because your mojo has disappeared?  This one just took me forever to figure out.  Ultimately, I like how it turned out.  It's hard to tell, but there is a little sparkle in the centers of the flowers. Supplies: Paper: PTI white, Winter Wisteria Ink: SU Certainly Celery, Going Gray, PTI Spring Rain, Winter Wisteria, Blueberry Sky Stamps: PTI Pretty Peonies, Happy Hydrangea Other: PTI Simple Stripes IP, Happy Hydrangea dies

This card I duplicated by 7 for my son's former teacher.  Love gray and yellow together. Supplies: Paper: SU Basic Gray, PTI Harvest Gold, White Ink: PTI Summer Sunrise, SU Going Gray, Versamark Stamps: PTI Congrats All Ways, Background Basics: Chevrons Other: White Filigree embossing powder

I'm alive!  I know it's almost 3 weeks in, but Happy New Year!  I thought maybe I'd revive this little blog and post a few things. A week or so ago, my son's former teacher asked if I'd make her a set of 20 cards--a variety of sympathy, congrats and thinking of you cards.  I felt really rusty.  It's been a WHILE since I made a card--too many other Christmasy crafts going on.  Of course that didn't stop my shopping, because that would be silly. So this card is the second or third version of a very time-consuming card.  I love it, but it didn't make the cut for the set, simply because I couldn't make 7 of these in a reasonable amount of time. See that little peek of Summer Sunrise polka dot paper?  And look at me!  3-dimensional pearls colored with Copics?  Craziness. Supplies: Paper: PTI Summer Sunrise, Summer Sunrise Polka Dot, White Ink: SU Going Gray Stamps: PTI Think Big Favorites Other: PTI Simple Stripes IP, Pretty Peonies di