So Blessed Indeed

Sometimes I feel overwhelmed when I realize how blessed I am.  Wednesday evening I spoke to about 100 grade school children, talking to them about Veterans Day and the freedoms we have.  While preparing for that talk (and also as Thanksgiving Day approaches), I was reminded how blessed I am: family, friends, freedoms, home, etc.  And then when I top my list with what God gives me through my relationship with Jesus, I am overwhelmed.

This stamp set by Unity is cute and to the point.

The image and the sentiment are Itty Bittys called "So Blessed".  When inking up the stamp for the image, I inked it with brown but then wiped away the ink from the leaves, applied several shades of orange with a Tombow marker, "huffed', then stamped.  (Oh, I also wiped the brown ink off the bushes and applied green to the stamp.) When I colored the house, I just tapped the paper with my blending stub that I had dipped in OMS and then rubbed onto a Kohinoor pencil.  I wanted just a stucco or brick look.
For the border piece - it is a piece of digital paper by GKD which I stamped with a leaf from the "Where You Should Be" set.  I inked only some of the leaves on the branch before stamping.

Okay, that was a long description that you probably didn't even care about, but you got it anyway !
LOL
The sketch is at Unity

Thanks for looking and taking the time to comment.

Challenges:
Unity - sketch
Friends with Flair - anything
Sentimental Sundays - autumn
Our Daily Bread - Count Your Blessings
Crafty Creations - autumn colors

Sister Act - anything
Word Art Wednesday - anything

Harvest, Gratitude, and Apples

My favorite season, Autumn, continues.  Even though the weather is turning colder, I still love this time of year.  The end of the garden but now all the yummy  apples, pumpkins and squash.  And I put off making jam until now (I freeze the berries after picking them in the summer) so I have rows of jars filled with gorgeous shades of reds and purples.
Living in Washington, we have so many varieties of apples, all yummy and fresh - my inspiration for this card.

The image and sentiment are GKD.  Card stock is Kraft from MME Funday Everyday Fun 6 X 6, GKD Red Hot and GKD Jelly Bean.

This is the sketch I used at Tuesday Morning Sketches and decided to keep the card as close to the sketch as possible so I put a few "stitches" in the corners with hemp twine.

Thanks for looking and for taking the time to comment.

Challenges:
Sentimental Sundays - Autumn
Kraft Journal - harvest
Bearly Mine - anything
Crafty Creations - Autumn colors
Penny's Paper Crafting - lots of layers
Crafter's Cafe - friends
Stamp and Create - feathers or leaves
Love to Scrap - anything
Wags and Whiskers - fall colors
Your Next Stamp - photo inspiration
Twist of Faith - memories
Word Art Wednesday - anything

Another Birthday - Imagine That

This digital image by Imagine That is so cute.  I will definitely be using it again.  It is a freebie this month in the progressive challenge.

When looking for a background, I remembered this digital paper by GKD.  It reminds me of bubbles and I love the colors.  So talk about simple - print, print, and paste.  I did add some Diamond Glaze to the balloons to give them shine and polka dot ribbon to give a little interest.  You gotta love these colored digis!

Thanks for looking and for taking the time to comment.

Challenges:
Pile it On - animal with character
Bearly Mine - anything
Simon Wednesday - CAS
Imagine That - image
Divas That Cut Paper - celebrate
Paper Creators - blue
Cards Galore - animals
Ribbon Carousel - celebrate
Word Art Wednesday - anything

Look At The Bright Side

We said good-bye to one of the nicest Indian Summers I can ever remember; exquisite fall colors, warm temperatures, dry.   I knew it had to come to an end but it came abruptly with downpours of rain, high winds, and snow on the mountain tops.  But even though November brings cold, wet, weather, it also brings in a season of thanks - in fact several months of reflecting on our blessings and being thankful.
Here is a cute digital set by Paper Makeup Stamps that is a reminder to accept the "bad" as well as the "good"; to look at a glass half full and not half empty.

 

Putting  Diamond Glaze on the raindrops really makes them look wet.

I popped up the clouds with different dimensions.  You might be able to see some of them in the next pic.

There is a new Digi Makeover Challenge today at Paper Makeup Stamps.  The challenge is to use lots of layers. Come join the fun.

Thanks for looking and thank you for taking the time to comment.

Challenge I am entering:
Crafty Creations - make your own BG paper
What if Wednesday - paper piecing
Sister Act - anything
Crafty Catz - paper piecing
Word Art Wednesday - anything

Happy Announcement

So happy to announce with this post that I am now on the Design Team for Created With Love.  I am really excited to work with these gals and excited to work with digitial images from many different digital stamp companies.  This card is one of the cute digital images you can find at DigiDarla Designs.  They are the sponsor for the challenge this week at Created With Love. This week the challenge is to use red and green.

I had so much fun making this card.  Musical BG paper.  Paper piecing the book of carols.  For the trim on the carolers hats, I printed out the images on white card stock and then ran the two images through the Cuttlebug using a different embossing folder for each.  I also used an embossing folder for the snow.  (It is really a wood grain folder but cut out and pieced on, I think it looks like snow.)
I added a few blue snowflakes with a StampinUp stamp.  The clothes and faces are done with  Prisma pencils.

Thanks for looking and thank you for taking time to comment.
Simon Wednesday Challenge - anything
What if Wednesday - paper piecing
Sister Act - anything
Pink Gem - Christmas is coming
Great Impressions - holiday card
Crafty Catz - paper piecing

Another Cup of Coffee, Please

I had so much fun printing out coffee mugs from the new released Doodle Pantry set, I made two more cards.  The sketch for both cards is House that Stamps Built 
I finally learned to print the digital image on regular paper first to see if that is the size I need for the card.  (Don't know why I didn't do that before.)  After printing them onto a white cardstock, I cover those images with designer paper.  You can use a removeable tape runner or permanent if you tape it above the image.  Print the image on the designer paper.  One extra step I did for these was to print the image on white cardstock, color the coffee on the white cardstock, use a craft knife to cut out the opening on the designer paper, then glue the cup over a piece of  the white cardstock that had the coffee.  This way the coffee looks like it is inside.  More of a 3-d effect.

Miscellaneous designer paper was used for strip and mug.  The BG designer paper comes with the Doodle Pantary digital set.

I love the sentiment on the card above.  I used a variety of designer papers and the numbered tape is washi tape.

In my post yesterday, I forgot to mention a sale at Doodle Pantry November 1 - 7.  25% OFF all new release sets. You can find the details here.
Also, don't forget to play the challenge at the Doodle Pantry Digital Doodles Blog.  You could win $15.00 worth of digital images and you will receive a free featured set (pic below) just for entering if you use a Doodle Pantry image.

Thanks for looking and thank you for taking the time to comment.
Now I think I will go have another cup of coffee.

Challenges:
Simon Monday - anything
Simon Wednesday - anything
What if Wednesday - paper piecing
House that Stamps Built - sketch
Sister Act - anything
Party Time Tuesday -  anything
Our Daily Bread - no ribbons or lace
Word Art Wednesday - anything

November Doodle Pantry Release

Okay, I confess - I am a coffee snob.  I won't drink coffee made from grounds in a can.  We grind beans as we go and we pay extra for the beans we like.  My son is worse than I am.  He roasts his own coffee beans.
Having said all that, I was excited with a new set from Doodle Pantry.  Great big mugs and really cute sayings  about coffee.

For this card I used the lined version but printed on one of the patterned papers that comes with the set.  I actually used  pieces of three of the patterned papers in this set.  To make the coffee rings on the paper and newspaper, I just rubbed ink on the bottom of a spray bottle I have on my desk and applied it to the paper.The sketch I used is the the #40 sketch at From the Heart

For this next card, I used one of the precolored cup images and then  super imposed a sailing ship from the Doodle Pantry set " Old Ship".  I will probably be sending this to my son sometime.  I think he will agree with the sentiment!

Recently I obtained a die by Memory Box which is three sizes of buttons.  I used it for the first time on this card cutting out brown c/s and one from an old dictionary page.  I like them because they are flat - great for mailing.

The sketch is Sketch Saturday.  It was a perfect sketch to change the card a bit, having the front smaller than the back.

I hoped you liked these cards.  I know you will LOVE the new release at Doodle Pantry so check them out here.
Oh, before I go, here is a pic of some of the images and sentiments in this set. There are more options than show up on this pic page.   Look at those biscottis  and beautiful papers- love them.

Thanks for looking and thank you for taking time to comment.

Challenges:
From the Heart - sketch
Sketch Saturday - sketch
Simon Monday - anything
PartyTime Tuesday - anything
Simon Wednesday - anything
House that Stamps Built - paper piecing
Pile it On - 2 embellishments
Word Art Wednesday - anything