Happy Anniversary to Hubby and Me

Happy 34th Anniversary to Skip and me. 

Wanted to share cards we received from friends. 

This one is from Kat. So pretty. Kat, Skip picked the card up looked at

me and said yes we are "kindred spirits". Love crumb cake and red together. Oh 

by the way hubby's favorite color is red. 

Another pretty card from my friend Lisa. I also love red and gray together. 

Skip really liked this one to. 

 

Lisa happy anniversary to you and Geoff too. How wonderful that we share the same wedding day. 

 

 Thanks again girls for the cards! 

So Happy Anniversary to my hubby. We are going to the Richfield Taverne for dinner. 

This is the same place that Sarah and Jason had their wedding reception.

Stamping trails

Karen

Butterfly Basic Frame Art

Love how this 5x7 frame art turned out. 

I'm hosting an ABC swap (anything but a card), and

decided that I would also join the swap. Last

weekend me and Sarah were out hitting the thrift stores and

I found these black frames for .90 cents each. So I bought the 5 that they had. 

The designer paper is Typeset (SU retired). Stamp set Butterfly Basics. I also used butterfly

framlits. 

Here is a close up view of the butterfly I put on the outside of the glass. 

First I cut it with the framelit. Then inked up Lacy background with Island Indigo and 

stamped. 

Next step was to ink the butterfly with VersaMark then dip in clear embossing powder, and

heat emboss. 

Added some pearls and the antenna was made using black hemp. I like

how I could curl the hemp round my finger. 

I made a total of 5. The swap is 5+1, but since I'm the hostess I didn't have to make one

for myself, but now I think I want one! 

 

Stamping trails

Karen

Shaker Mason ATC

Look what I made! 

I signed up for an ATC (artist trading card) swap, and just finished

making them yesterday. 

Got to use my new mason jar punch. It was a perfect fit on the 3 1/2 x 2 1/2 cardstock. 

Stamp sets used: Swallowtail, Timeless Textures, and Wetlands. 

So happy that I bought the Fuse Tool. It is so wonderful for making shaker cards. 

Here is a view of the front and back of the card. 

Colors used: Marina Mist, Soft Suede, Pink Pirouette, Old Olive, and white. 

Shaker is filled with one sequin butterfly, and clear, and gold beads.

Hope the other swappers in the group love how these turned out as much as I do. 

Stamping trails

Karen

Misc Flower, Cat, and Coloring Books

I always post photos of my Christmas cactus so today I

decided to share my Peace Lily. 

It has two blooms on it and is very healthy. 

Of course Cherokee was really interested while I was watering the plants. 

And moving outside I got a pic of the tulips that I posted about yesterday. 

They were wide open today. Just enjoying the sunshine. 

Moving on to craft stuff......

Look what I found! Adult coloring books, but check out the elephant on the cover! 

And really check out the price. Only 1.49 at Marc's. 

Since I'm not crocheting anymore I wanted to have something I 

could work on while I was watching tv. Such a better way to use my hands

instead of snacking! I have a nice set of prisma pencils that I will be using, and

also going to color some of them in with a number 2 pencil.

I joined a few swaps and signed up to host an ABC swap. So I've been 

pretty busy working on them. Really excited about an ATC swap I joined. 

Making shaker ones using the mason jar punch I bought. I'll be posting those

tomorrow. 

Stamping trails

Karen

Tulips

We have tulips blooming in the front flower bed. 

It was a little cold outside when I took these so

the petals weren't open.

Some red ones. 

I got this angel right after my mom passed away. I can't believe it

will be 5 years this Mother's day that she has been gone. 

Stamping trails

Karen

Mailable Monday # 129

Let me start out by saying that I believe in signs.

I believe in angels. 

I believe that love ones that have passed over leave messages for you. 

Having said that.......

I had the pleasure of going to a slot car show yesterday with

my hubby, son, and my two nephews.

This was something that we all did with my brother Tony while he

was alive. Tony loved collecting cars and racing them on his track. 

While walking down the aisles looking at the cars for sale this

car case caught my eye. See the name? I believe with all my heart that

this case belonged to my brother. It looks like his printing. How it came to be for sale you 

might wonder. Well Tony did do some trading with other slot car collectors. I think

he just wanted to let me know he was at the show with us in spirit. 

Another reason I think he was there. Neil ( Tony's youngest) won the first door prize)

We've been going to the show for years and never won. 

This was taken in the lobby, and Neil doesn't like to smile for photos, but let me tell you he was

grinning ear to ear when they called out his number. 

And just like his dad he told me that he didn't want the track (they have enough)

all he wanted was the cars. 

Oh getting back to today's card. Made for my brother in mind using

Classic Convertibles (retired SU) Stamped all in Smokey Gray and accented 

with some purple washi tape (Tony's favorite color).

Stamping trails

Karen

Spice Pumpkin Chocolate Cake

So why didn't I know about parchment paper sooner?

It makes getting baked goods out of the pan so easy. 

I have a great recipe for those who like pumpkin.

1 Box Spice Cake Mix (betty crocker)

2/3 cup water

1 small can pure pumpkin

1 cup of mini chocolate chips. 

Mix the cake mix, water, and pumpkin in large bowl. You can

 

do this by hand or use a mixer. 

 

Fold in the chips. 

 

Line 13x9x2 pan with parchment paper and spray with non stick spray. 

 

Pour batter, and bake in pre-heated oven at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes. 

 

Hey speaking of pumpkin.....did you hear that General Mills has 

 

come out with Pumpkin Cheerios? I have to look for them at the

grocery store. I love pumpkin and I love Cheerios so I'm hoping they

will be good. 

 

Taking the kids to the slot car show today. I'll post more about that tomorrow. 

 

Stamping trails

Karen 

Butterfly Basics with an Easy Tip

I have a little tip to share with you today.

The stamp set used is Butterfly Basics.

 

For those who own this set you know that the fern can only be stamped in one

 

direction.....or can it? 

 

To get the image to go in the opposite direction follow these steps. 

Ink up the stamp then stamp it on wax paper. 

Lift up the wax paper and place on the card ink side down

and gently rub. Then lift the wax paper off. 

So easy to get a reverse image just by using wax paper! How cool is that? 

Stamping trails

Karen

Vintage Grunge Typewriter

I like nothing better than making grungy vintage collage cards 

This one uses Tap Tap Tap stamp set, and one of the backgrounds from 

Gorgeous Grunge. Love the look of vanilla on kraft cardstock.

I picked up three new lace ribbons from Pat Catan's while I was there over

the weekend. This is one of them. 

After I knotted the ribbon I pulled at the edges to fray them. Typewriter 

 

was stamped on vanilla, colored, then fussy cut and pop over the ribbon. 

 

I thought about antiquing the ribbon with a little brown ink, but decided I liked

 

the clean color of the ribbon on the brown card. 

 

Stamping trails

Karen 

Its Tiller Time

Time once again to break ground in the garden. 

Over the weekend Skip got to use his new tiller. 

He said it doesn't jump as much as the old MTD tiller. Which

is a good thing. 

And look at what he rescued from the tiller....little toad. 

Isn't it cute! At first when he brought it over to me I couldn't see and

I thought he found a bunny nest. Bunny would have been better as I would

have held that. No desire to hold the toad. 

Stamping trails

Karen

Great Find at Pat Catan's Distress Crayons!

I had a good shopping trip to Catan's on Sunday. 

What a great find!  

Brand new just released Distress Crayons! YAY

I was hoping at some point they would carry them but I didn't know it would be so soon. 

And the good news.....only 8.50 per set. These were the last two on the shelve. So I didn't 

get the brights set. After working with them a little bit yesterday I've come to the conclusion

that I'm going to need two sets. They are (in the words of Dr. Who) Fantastic! 

For the card I scribbled on watercolor paper then used just my finger to blend them out.

Then I misted with water. After dry I added the stamped images. Set used Garden

Collage (long ago retired SU), and Timeless Textures. 

Going to be playing with them some more today. Also going to match them up to SU in colors.

 

 

Stamping trails

Karen 

Tea Set and Quilt Card

Well I'm still having fun with some die cuts Ceil, and Kat sent to me. 

I just love the size of this teapot and cups. So many crafting possibilities.

So Ceil what is the name of this? Is it a thinlit or punch? I'm thinking I need one! 

I used the quilt embossing folder by Darice on Pink Pirouette cardstock, and sponged

the edges with Soft Suede. 

The music note paper was already embossed so I sponged the circle with Soft Suede

ink as I thought a darker color would highlight the tea set better. The completed layer was

then attached to a white doily.

I'm thinking the only thing that this tranquil card needs is a little cat. What would

go better with a quilt, music, and a cup of tea? 

Stamping trails

Karen

Mailable Monday #148

Another quick and easy card using April's paper pumpkin kit. 

If you get the PP kits make sure you save the negative piece 

leftover from the wreath. It is perfect to use as a stencil because it

is on heavier cardstock so it will hold up to the stenciling many times. 

The ribbon is another scrap from the kit. 

Here is one more card using leftover pieces from the wreath. Love the 

extra stamp set SU gave us in this months it. 

 

 

Did you that US postal stamps went down 2 cents? First class

stamps were 40 cents, and are now 47 cents. Another reason to make

a Mailable Monday card and get it out in the mail!!! 

 

Stamping trails

Karen 

Canning Jar Trim Holders

So I finally got the canning jar die that I've been wanting. Along

with some other goodies. Which I'll post after I write about this project. 

I used the small canning jar from the die to make these cute little

trim holders. I looking for a way to hold trims so I could give them as gifts. 

The small jar was perfect! 

They are cut from chipboard coasters so they are strong enough to hold up to being

wrapped many times. 

I cut some lace paper doilies to go under two of the lids, and one I used real lace. 

The flowers were made using the boho punch. 

Here is the die I used for the jars. 

But I also got some other cool mason jar stuff. 

The mug had a matching stamp set that I had to have. Also had to have the mason jar punch. 

Shown in the back are two rolls of scor tape. 

Last week at Hobby Lobby I picked up some Tim Holtz Stencils. 

My craft confession for the week...who am I kidding this is my life all the time. 

 

Guess who's going to Pat Catan's today......go ahead guess.....LOL 

Stamping trails

Karen

April Paper Pumpkin Wreath

I got the April paper pumpkin kit yesterday and had to 

make it right away! Just love 3d projects so this kit was 

just for me. What a fun wreath! I had some leftover pieces

which I always keep from the kits. 

This kit was really special because it contained an additional stamp set. 

I used some the leftover greenery from the wreath and used it for grass on this card. 

The flowers are part of the extra stamp set in the kit. 

I'll be back tomorrow with some more cards from the kit. 

Inside view. 

Stamping trails

Karen

Get Well to Me

I made this card for me late yesterday.

Was not feeling good Wednesday night and was up half the night 

with a splitting headache. 

So I napped a lot yesterday. 

Kat and her friend Ceil sent me these cute little die cuts of pots, saucers, and cups

(thanks girls!). 

They are great for making a quick and cute card. Really nice to have when I wasn't feeling overly 

 

creative. 

Inside view. 

So get well to me! I am much better today. Since its going to be 

warm and sunny think I'll get out of the house and get some air. 

 

Big Happy Birthday to my nephew Corbet. Hope you have a great day!!!!! 

 

Looking forward to going to the slot card show with you later in the month. 

Stamping trails

Karen

Mini Cups and Holder

Had fun making this little cup holder set. 

 

Used Cups and Kettles framlits along with the matching designer paper pack, 

 

and Cuppa stamp set. 

 

 

Here is a view of the cups outside the holder. I decorated 

them with the designer paper, and a strip of basic gray cardstock that was

stamped with an image from Timeless Textures. I wanted

the cups to match the teapot. And speaking of the teapot....

Remember using fun fibers? Well I still have a bunch

of them most of which I purchased with the Basic Grey paper. I used

some to dangle from the teapot. I thought it looked like tea being poured. 

 

I'm excited because today I'm suppose to get my order from Amazon. 

 

Got some cool mason jar stuff coming that I can't wait to play with. 

 

Hoping the mail runs early! 

 

Oh I got the test results from my blood work. Everything is fine. Didn't get

 

any flags on the report. I'm in normal range, and the hemoglobin is back to normal. 

 

Happy day! 

 

Stamping trails

Karen