Happy Retirement! Me Too!

Well, it is Tuesday again, time for another Shopping Our Stash challenge! This week's challenge is all about using really old DP (designer paper)...any paper or cardstock with a print on it. And not just OLD but the OLDEST in our stash!

Challenge #90: Use Your Oldest Designer Paper

 I had to really dig for this one AND test my lazy memory! I chose an outdoorsy pine tree paper that I bought way back when I only did some scrapbooking, in my pre-card making days...I'm thinking around 1995 or earlier. Here's what I did with it:

My brother just retired from US Gypsum after 33 years so I sent him this card and it should arrive there today. Hope he likes it! The cute "guy" image is from Pollycraft called "Maurice-Ready for business". I colored him with Memento & Spectrum Noir markers. And that DOES kinda look like my brother! He was the IT guy (geek) at USG, has worn glasses forever and is definitely kinda pudgy! But the tie...nope, only at funerals!

The sentiments on the front and on the inside, and the Bible verse, are computer-generated (that font is called "Fineliner Script"), the old DP is from Hobby Lobby and the rest is just from my stash; the die cuts on the front are Spellbinders Labels 15 and the little sparkle dots are EK Success.

I'm entering this card in just a few challenges:

http://craft-roomchallenge.blogspot.com - "Something for a Man"

http://mytimetocraftchallenge.blogspot.co.uk - #209 "Men Only!"

http://www.totallygorjuss.blogspot.com - #171 "For the Men"

http://guylousinimitability.blogspot.com - "bingo Card Challenge"- I used the middle row across: starts with a G (Guy in Glasses), *FREE*(bling), die cut

So, about MY retirement...well it is not from a job, it is from this DT! I decided to step down from Shopping Our Stash too. I left another DT last month and decided I needed to simplify even more yet. This is my last contribution to the SOS team. This has been such a fun design team to serve on! My fellow DT members are SO creative and witty and funny! It has been a pleasure to get to know these uber-talented girls! Thanks, Girls, for sharing yourselves a bit with me, especially the individual creative genius each of you brings to SOS! I will miss the weekly interaction but will definitely be popping in to check up on everyone from time to time. Thanks especially to Carla for her patience and encouragement as well!

And thank you, Reader, for stopping by today and diligently reading all the way to the bottom!! I hope you are inspired to join in this challenge that should certainly help you use up some of your stash!

Have a very blessed day, my friends!

Love, Love, Love!

Today I'd just like to show you all a card I made for a very special couple from my church. They just got married last week! They are 81 & 78 years old! They are like youngsters in love....it is SO cute! We are so happy for them! They are both very active, healthy, vivacious people, both love the Lord...a great match!

The bride wore a lovely light red dress for the wedding so I colored the image accordingly!

The foil is actually some very old gift wrap. It doesn't show up well in the photo but there is pearl acrylic paint daubed on the embossed background and on the gray sponged ink as a frame around the image. Stickles were added only to the flowers...and to the heart on the inside of the card.

On the inside I wanted to carry through the "scrolly" idea and still keep it simple.

I thought the Bible verse was so appropriate because I remember the groom saying to me shortly after they got engaged, "Who would have thought we could feel like teenagers in love again?"

Here is my list of ingredients:

Card front

Cuttlebug embossing folder*- "Madison"

Spellbinders dies*- "Labels 15" & "Fleur de Lis Accents" (border)

Pollycraft digital image- "Cuthbert & Kiki Wedding" colored with

Spectrum Noir & Memento markers*

Memento ink*- "London Fog"

Adirondack Metalics paint dauber*- "Pearl"

Ranger Stickles*- "Star Dust"

Clear gems & white pearls- from my stash

Card stock and foil- from my stash

Card inside

Sentiment is computer generated

Spellbinders dies*- "Card Creator" (used for mask for sponged frame) &

"Fleur de Lis Accents" (corners)

JustRite Bible verse*- "Cast All Your Cares"

Inkadinkadoo heart stamp- "Love & Friendship"

*these items all came from my friend Cindy's wonderful online store www.stampingscrapping.com

I am entering this card in several challenges, some of which want us to use up old stuff from our stashes of supplies (I LOVE those challenges that make me rediscover and use up neglected items!). The really old and/or neglected stuff is: the Spectrum Noir & Memento markers, the clear gems, the foil and the Inkadinkadoo stamp.

http://celebratetheoccasion.blogspot.com- #99 "Valentine-Anything Goes"

http://diecuttindivas.blogspot.com- #102 "Color- Red, Pink, Purple and/or White"

http://sweetstampsblog.blogspot.com- #104 "Romance Challenge"

http://craftdoormagazine.com- TTCRD #2013-7 "Anything Goes"

http://clearitoutchallenge.blogspot.com- "Stash: red/white items- Anything Goes"

Thanks so much for stopping in today! I would love it if you'd leave a quick comment....I'd like to visit your blog too!

Happy B-day to Clayton & Calvin!

Its Tuesday again and time for another Shopping Our Stash challenge! This one was perfect timing for me...I had 2 birthday cards I had to make for 2 of my grandsons. Yep, that's this week's theme:
Challenge 89 - Birthday theme- birthday card or layout, tag, etc.

Clayton's card

Clayton just turned 11 and his 2 main interests are 'video' games (I think they are called something else now!) and skinny jeans. We got him a couple pairs of skinny jeans and he was quite pleased....whew! It helped that his older sister told him they were cool. (Thanks, Pearl!)

For his card I wanted something not "little boyish" so I drew a simple pair of jeans, long and skinny, and painted the image with watercolor paints. Added a sideways sentiment and a little strip of denim* with faux stitching instead of ribbon. And not even any Stickles! But the brad does have a black rhinestone!

*the denim has been hanging around my laundry room for years for patching (which I haven't done in years!)

Calvin's card

Inside

For calvin, who is only one year old, I could still do a cutsie little-boy card! The image is a digital one from Pollycraft Stamps called "Frog" (go figure!). He is colored with Spectrum Noir and Memento markers. I used my Spellbinders Standard Circle die and Lg Scalloped Circle die, Microsoft Word to make the "1st", Stampin' Up HB stamp, and several really old buttons. On the inside the greeting is computer generated and the Bible verse is a JustRite clear stamp. The striped paper is a few years old and was a bit dog-eared...had to trim all the edges to use it. Super-old heart stickers too!

Everyone needs birthday cards frequently, right? Why not whip one up and join the challenge at SOS this week. We'd love to see what you create!

I'm also going to enter these in a few challenges:

Skinny Jeans card-

http://craftingwhenwecanchallenges.blogspot.com/- #37 "Cards for Boys"

http://fairytale-challengeblog.blogspot.com/- #60 "Sewing, Real or Drawn"

http://craftsandmechallenges.blogspot.com/- #119 "Favorite Color Combo" (red, black, white)

Frog card-

http://avenue613.blogspot.com/- #6 "Sketch #1"

Framed Sentiment...Beautiful Words

Today when I visited the Word Art Wednesday challenge blog I saw that one of their DT members (Diane) had taken this week's FREE Bible verse artwork, simply printed it and framed it. It turned out just lovely! And since I really, really like the verse (Is. 54:17) I decided to CASE her project. COPY would be a better word because I even used the same background paper!...it is a digital paper from Daydream Designs called "Carmele-Grunge" from the Fall Papers set. Diane had stamped a filigree stamp in each corner but I didn't have room to do that because my frame is a rectangle instead of a square (like her's), so I stamped a design along the sides.

Sorry about the poor picture quality...the glass picked up a glare from the windows on the opposite wall and I couldn't use flash because of the glass either! Should have photgraphed it before putting the glass in the frame...hind-sight is such a wonderful thing! I still like Diane's project better...the verse fits so well in a square.

So I am entering this in the http://wordartwednesday.blogspot.com -#65 "Anything Goes" challenge.

A Trip "Up North" + Craft Time

Last week my hubby and I got to go with friends "up north" in Michigan to the Leelanau Peninsula area and stay for a few days on the shore of Lake Michigan. When we left home it was rainy and looked ugly outside...no snow, just lots of brown dead stuff and plenty of mud! But by the time we arrived at Glen Arbor it was snowing quite steadily and the scenery was breath-taking! It was cold but absolutely beautiful everywhere you looked! We bundled up and walked around outside taking lots of  pictures.

Here's the condo we stayed at near Glen Arbor, MI at the Homestead...

a total winter wonderland! Cold, but SO beautiful!

And the view from the back of the condo...Lk Michigan! Brrrrrrrr!

One of the fun things we (my friend Sherry & I...she is a cardmaker, too) did was to try some "Rough Rolled Roses" that I'd found a tutorial on at my friend Diane's blog. We left the paper* sit out and made more and more of them over the next few days. Very easy, very pretty...at least I think so! So, thanks so much, Diane!! And I used a couple of them on a "thank you" card for the people who let us stay in their condo.

*The paper stack I used was K&Company "Julianne"

Thank You card w/ Rough Rolled Roses           Daydream Designs Digital Images card

Before I left home I had printed off some digital images that I wanted to work with. They are from Daydream Designs Digital Stamps, Diane's online store. They are from the "Sending You Love" sets and are so fun and easy to work with...they can be resized and layered and printed on any paper. The phrase that fits perfectly over the umbrella says: "God's love is a shelter over your heart" which I thought would be great for a "thinking of you"-type card. All the soft pastels are like a warm hug!

Just in case someone wants to know, here are the other things I used to make these cards:

Square card~

Spellbinders dies- Labels 15

Sizzix/TH dies- Tattered Flower Garland

Cloud Nine Design stamps- Flower 1

StampingScrapping Design stamps- Dash It All (heart)

Card stock and ribbon- from my stash

This card I am entering in the challenge at

http://paperprettiesblog.blogspot.com - "A Square Card"

Umbrella Card~

Spellbinders dies- Big Scalloped Circles Lg.

Martha Stewart border punch- Doily Lace

Card stock and ribbon- from my stash

This card I am entering in the challenges at

http://www.wordartwednesday.blogspot.com- #65 "Anything Goes"

http://www.craftyourpassionchallenges.blogspot.com- #148 "Pastels"

Thanks for stopping by today!