Picking Up the Pieces Monday Vol. 18: My First Ever Video!

Can you believe I actually made a video?!  SURPRISE!

I had a lot of inquiries as to how this card was made...

I thought what better way than to actually make a video!  There's a first for everything right?!



I hope you'll find it helpful in using your dies in a different way.  Take a look at your stash of dies and see what kind of stencil you can make!

Mahalo for stopping by!  I'd sure appreciate your feedback and would love to make more videos if you all are interested!!

Trying Something New

Hello there!  I've been admiring the challenge called The Card Concept since its beginning, and finally made myself try a new style.  I admire that the challenge explains and shows examples of the various card styles and then encourages you to try one out.

Here's a snippet...

Can you guess which style I tried?  I'm hoping it's not too far off...remember this is my first go at this...haha!


So without further ado I've decided to try the freestyle collage...

Avery Elle Simply Labels and die, Avery Elle Laurels, Avery Elle Icon Fill in the Blank die, Tim Holtz Bubble Stencil, Doodlebug BonBon Twine, Doodlebug Sprinkles in Lily White, Memento ink in Rich Cocoa, Bamboo Leaves and Pear Tart, white embossing powder

So keeping to the theme colors I stamped out the Avery Elle label and die cut.  Then, stenciled the background after I white, heat embossed the laurels for a little "leafy" sprout among the die cut flowers.  I believe the flowers are actually an asterisk shape, but doubled them up to create whimsical blooms.  I used a sponge dauber around the laurels with a touch of brown for a little more detail.

This will also be entered in the

I actually liked how it all came together pretty quickly with having a theme color in mind.  Maybe that's the trick when doing freestyle collage!  

That's it for me!  Happy Hump Day and mahalo for stopping by!!!

Kitty Bee Designs Spotlight: Thanks A Bunch

If you're stopping by from the Kitty Bee Designs Blog...welcome!
Check out this cute image by Kitty Bee Designs!

I first started with the fabulous Sunshine Yellow cardstock from Simon Says Stamp and went crazy with the bananas from Avery Elle to create my own pattern paper.  I thought the colors were a bit too plain so I added in some left over strips of pattern paper from Lawn Fawn Into the Woods set.  This is why you never get rid of your scraps!  I thought it grounded my image a little better.

So that's it for me.  Thanks A Bunch for stopping by!

Picking Up the Pieces Vol. 17: Snazzy Birthday Balloons

Today's card was a fun one using one die to create a stencil and taking various ink colors and some masking to make this fun balloon bouquet!  I'll be entering this in the next Lawnscaping Challenge: Bling It

The tiny bows are die cut from the DCWV Glitzy Glitter Matstack...my favorite glitter paper!

Lawn Fawn Admit One balloon die, Lawn Fawn So Much to Say, Lawn Fawn Let's Roll, Lawn Fawn Let it Snow, Memory Box Tiny Bow, Memento Tuxedo Black Ink, Peanut Brittle and Lilac Posies, Hero Arts Shadow inks in Pale Tomato, Tide Pool, Butter Bar, Passion Flower and Green Hills

 I started with the center balloon and built upwards using the die cut as a mask and the negative of the die cut as the stencil.  (Tip: to create a stencil it's best to use heavyweight cardstock, I used 100lb cardstock.  It was sturdier and easier to color in using a sponge dauber).  To create the shadowing I used a neutral ink color like Peanut Brittle and just inked up the edges of the balloon stencil. Then I took the wavy line from Lawn Fawn's Let it Snow to create the balloon strings.  I had to add in the little smile from Let's Roll to create the balloon faces!  

Hope this makes your Monday a little brighter!  Mahalo for stopping by!!

Kitty Bee Design Challenge #18 Monochrome

I LOVE Fridays!  It means I get to stay up late and get my craft on!  For Kitty Bee Designs it means a whole new challenge and this week's theme is Monochrome.  If you'd like to join the fun for your chance to get a free digi link it up HERE.

I got to play with a fun digi from Lacy Sunshine (our sponsor this week).  I'm finally getting the hang of playing with digis...now to only practice coloring them!  I've learned I'm much more comfortable with watercoloring using Distress Inks and a water pen.

Here's my card...

Lacy Sunshine Bubble Up, Up Away digi, Sizzix Embossing folder, Stamps of Life Spinner2Stamp, Stickles Waterfall

 All the bubbles are filled in with stickles for a sparkly, fun look!  

I'd love it if you stopped by Kitty Bee Designs to check out my teammates and their fabulous monochrome designs!

Here are a few challenges I would like to share my card in:

Jellypark Challenge: Things with Wings

Stampin' for the Weekend: Sparkle and Shine

Milk Coffee: Emboss it Wet or Dry

Mahalo for stopping by!

Watercolored Lunch Box Notes...Stenciled 3 ways!

Happy Wednesday everyone!  Today I've got some itty bitty's measuring at 3inx3in...perfect for the lunch box notes that I need to restock up on for the kiddos.

This is how it all started...but keep on going because I promise it got better by my third bitty card!

I was going for the bokeh look.  First I masked the edges with painter's tape, swiped some Distress Inks in Ripe Persimmon and Squeezed Lemonade and used Heidi Swapp's confetti stencil to create the dots using Hero Arts Orange Soda and a sponge dauber.  After allowing to dry (using a heating tool) I stamped out the sun (with the mask still on) and the sentiment.  Of course I was not fully satisfied and followed the sentiment "never give up."

Here's another go at it...

Now this one I liked!  Of course it's in my favorite color (like my hair highlights!) Again masking the edges, swiping Tumbled Glass and Peacock Feathers Distress Inks, and then taking a chevron stencil and spraying with water (tip...remove stencil right away otherwise the water pools and the pattern gets lost).  Allow to dry (using heating tool), remove mask, then stamp out the sentiment.  All my cards are using the fabulous Hero Arts Stamp Set "You're a Rainbow."

Finally...I had to do a rainbow of colors...

This time I took my Distress Markers and colored away and instead of spraying water over the stencil I used a waterbrush pen to trace within the stencil.  I kinda liked the effect...a little more imperfect, but still cool!


I was completely inspired by a new challenge by the fabulous Virginia...

and A Blog Named Hero Challenge

And another look at them...

Until next time...have a fabulous day!  Mahalo for stopping by!!!

Picking Up the Pieces Vol. 16 My Lifesaver

So my weekend oncall for work was pretty demanding which left me with very little time to craft...BOOOOO!  I was determined though because my OLW for the year is BALANCE and I pretty much worked my bum off and needed some crafting time to unwind.

Today's card is dedicated to my hubby that ALWAYS makes sure I don't have to worry about the kids, cooking or cleaning while I'm at work.  Being an oncall nurse is pretty demanding at times (I do love my job), and I know I wouldn't be the nurse I am without the hubby's support.  He is my LIFESAVER!

So here it is following this week's Freshly Made Sketch...

Lawn Fawn Float My Boat, Lawn Fawn Critters in the Snow, Lawn Fawn Stitched Journaling Card, Lawn Fawn Stitched Scallops, Lawn Fawn Hello Sunshine paper pad, Hero Hues India Ink Black and Unicorn ink, Memento Lady Bug ink

So I paper pieced the cute little seal and then did a little "surgery" with the lifesaver to get it on the seal.  The waves were created using the stitched scallops left over pieces...and there ya have it!

Here's the sketch...

Mahalo for stopping by!