Spring Cleaning!

Just in case you have a little extra time on your hands this weekend, there's some Spring Cleaning going on over at Doodlebugs this weekend!

Happy Shopping!  Don't forget to include the code SPRING23 at checkout!

=] Michele

Doodlebugs Friday!

 

I have another feathered friend for you today!  But never fear, if you aren't a bird lover as there's SO much more to love at Doodlebugs today!

Here's a little peek - 

Truer words have never been spoken stamped!

=] Michele

This land is your land - Just us Girls #680

Hello, my friends!  So happy you stopped by today - I've been a little quiet for the last few days but for good reason.  I've mentioned I have a granddaughter graduating high school his year.  The activities have begun: Baccalaureate, honors assembly, and tomorrow is her commencement ceremony.  So exciting!  

I haven't had much time for crafting, but a little reorganization in my studio called for revisiting a sweet little die [What the Doodle Map] with a few new-to-me mini sets from Altenew:

My flag, and fireworks are Altenew: Fireworks, and Giving Back.

I was really brave to heat emboss those fireworks directly onto my card base - just a little warping but not enough to worry about.  I didn't want to lose the CAS feel of my design, so I kept the 'night sky' blending around the fireworks.  What do you think?  

Of course, the flag needed to be grounded so I used a little silver thread wrapped around the die cut to glue the base and lifted the rest of the flag for dimension.  I love the movement of this stamp!  [CP Rockin' Red for the stripes, and The Stamp Market Navy for our flag's field of stars]

By now the girls at JUGS may have realized that I missed the deadline last week - Bobby's moodboard and photo for Just us Girls #680 sparked a detour before putting that little PTI die away - OH and I've added the stamping that comes with the map this time - love all those little details!

You'll find what sparked my playtime right away - I think!  My sentiment was based on 

that cool 't' on the cabinet.

I hope to be back to normal soon - as normal as I can possibly be, that is.  Summer is coming and there's work to be done outside.  I'll be back when I can and appreciate it so much when you have a spare moment in your own busy lives to stop by...

=] Michele

Playing Cards with Friends May 2023

Hello, my friends!  I'm happy to be Playing Cards with Friends again!  My guest should be very familiar to you - I have admired Leslie Miller's gorgeous designs for years but in the last few years I feel like we've gotten to know each other a little bit better - you know how that goes, right?  Blogging has a way of bringing us all together in one big happy family!  I dream of visiting her in Oregon one day and playing cards for reals in her little corner of the paper crafting world!

Leslie is a master at creating scenes on her cards - Lavinia stamps are among her favorites... please do check them out over at Running with Scissors!  Her DT work for the Double D Challenge is just one of the places she spreads her love of crafting.

Our playdate is all about the Honeybee today - not the stamp company, though they are most welcome - but this little guy...

Yes, today is World Bee Day and you can read all about it HERE.  Let's just say our assignment is a honey... 

                            

    Make a card that includes a honeybee!

    Flowers are welcome, but not necessary!    

    Add a honeycomb, the color yellow, or black and yellow stripes.

Fun, right?  Here's where the assignment took me... on my first try:

It's CAS. It's cute. It uses my latest embossing folder from Club Spellbinders,

and a sweet honeybee from HoneyBee Stamps!  But then an 'old friend' found its way into my shopping cart, and sparked a card of a different color...

You'll see the bag is empty - and neither of us lost a filling so there's that

bit of good news!  I just loved the BOLD graphics of their 'new look!'

• Some bright cardstocks in honey yellow and orange - don't ask... I'm quite sure they are from The Stamp Market, but they were both tucked in my stash unlabeled.
• A very old Gina Marie background die gave my bright orange card cover a bit of texture.
• Pigment Craft Co. provided the 'drippy' shape with a big leaf die.
• The Stamp Market's Hex Die Set for my honeycomb cut and sentiment.
• There's my friend from HoneyBee again - this time, stamped and fussy cut for a little pop of white.
• A good drizzle of Nuvo Crystal Drops on the 'honey' and my card is done!

One of these cards is buzzing over to Leslie right now - but I can't wait another moment to see how she brought our assignment to life!  Let's go!

Thanks so very much, Leslie for Playing Cards!  It was such fun I'll just keep dreaming about playing for real one day!

=] Michele           

Doodlebugs Friday!

 

I'm so happy you've stopped by today - even happier that it's weekend eve!!  YAY!

Let's call today's post and cards More than Words!

Of course, you'll have to come visit me at the Doodlebugs Blog to see what I mean!

Thank you!  

                                              =] Michele

Just us Girls #679 - Word Week

 Lisa Kind is the host over at Just us Girls and it's Word Week!

Wedding seems like the perfect word for May IMHO, Lisa!

Or perhaps a golden wedding anniversary... 50 years of marriage 

deserves all the gold!  Let me know if you have reached this hallmark event - I'd love to send it to someone!

I've had quite a time getting this beautiful Spellbinders panel die to play nicely.  An exchange with my friend Leslie caused me to cut it until I found the perfect sandwich - the method isn't my own someone on Instagram shared it months ago!  Your sandwich might be a little different - here's mine:

• Bottom plate of my Big Shot Plus - the Chrome plate works, too
• A panel of bubble-wrap postal packaging - I've just used some from an 
• order I'd just received.
• Neenah Solar White 80# cardstock - cut just a little larger than the die
• Spellbinders' Scroll Pierce and Punch die
• Top plate and passed through forwards, turned, passed back through

I taped the paper just so it would be secure while turning.

It worked so well that the middle panel just fell out!

It's the perfect time to pull out this tool!

Here is a closeup to give you an idea of how clean it cut!  

Phew - I was this close to throwing in the towel!

I hope if you've struggled with this die, or another intricate one, that 

this technique will help you, too!

I'd better get this over to the JUGS gallery! - and just like that I missed it! That's okay, I'll try again next week!

=] Michele

Freshly Made Sketches #586, Color Hues second helpings

 I can't resist a fun Sketch and Jacquie has just that over at Freshly Made Sketches!

My Spellbinders' embossing club folder had just been delivered so why not use it?  While I'm at it, why not make it in the fun colors at Color Hues #64?  They never get upset with second helpings - wink.

See those embossed candles?  imagine they have been 'extinguished' by 

the winds of my patterned paper! Ha!

A pair of balloons and a fun sentiment from Honey Bee's Big Time Kindness completes my card.

Thanks so much for breezing by!

=] Michele

Color Hues #64

 

I can't believe it's taken me this many hours to post my first card using the

fantastic color choices from Julie B for Color Hues #64!

Here you go, Julie:

From background to foreground:

Altenew Slimline Label die, then my flowers:

Altenew's Stunning Cosmos stamped in two shades of orange from 

Catherine Pooler:  Tiki Torch and Orange Twist.

I brought out another Pinkfresh Studio Noteworthy Frames [cut from MFT Steel Grey] to wrap around that label and for the first word of my sentiment from the Cosmos set... 

happy was heat embossed in white, birthday was stamped in CP Black Jack ink and freehand cut into a little fishtail.

Hope I have enough time to make another - I love any combo that includes grey!

=] Michele

Oh, thanks so much, Julie!!

Four Seasons Spring 2023

I have a new pastel paper and ink in my stash, and a brand-new cover die to test, too!  Now I ask you, who can resist those lilacs??  Thanks, Four Seasons, for the lovely Spring 2023 inspiration!

Sunny Studios Lovely Lilacs, Altenew Rounded Rectangles for the vase that I wrapped with a scrap of green and tied with a little linen twine, and the cover die?  Pinkfresh Studios Floral Lace to cut C&9th Lilac cardstock.

Another sentiment from that Waffle Flower Hello Friend combo set completes my card.

We had a beautiful weekend on Mackinac Island - it is everything we heard it would be! we're so happy to check it off our list!  It is a gorgeous step-back-in-time to a Victorian era and so wonderfully preserved and cared for.  

=] Michele

The Flower Challenge #80 - Reminder

 

Our gallery is so beautiful with pretty pastels - will I be seeing yours there, too?

Here's your gentle reminder:

This time I reached for the palest cardstock in my stash and a few SSS floral dies that haven't seen the light of day in quite some time!  Don't ask me why - they sure are pretty, aren't they?  One teensy bit of stamping - you may have to search for it - and my work here is done - like we can really call this work! lol

Hope you have one, two or three pretty pastels in our gallery - I'll be over to check!  If not, you have plenty of time to come play!

=] Michele

Doodlebugs Friday!

 

I'll soon be boarding that ferry to Mackinac Island!!  But our anniversary is tomorrow - how could I celebrate our 28th anniversary without my favorite flower?  

Hope you have a moment to come celebrate this gorgeous new member of 

my collection!!  Right HERE at Doodlebugs today!

=] Michele

Then you turn yourself around...

No, I'm not doing the hokey-pokey but I have been a little bit slowpoke-y about sharing a fun day I had recently with Concord & 9th's latest Turnabout:  Mod Turnabout Stamp!  

I'll be totally honest, before I bought their Jig, I had a LOT of trouble lining up these stamps - but they are SO cute!  I'm so grateful C&9th conquered the challenge!

Because I didn't want to cover one little bit of this fun pattern, I chose to do some simple stamping with that sweet little snail-mail character.  Hope you like them!

I'm waiting on the new Concord & 9th inks to be back in stock at Doodlebugs - 

these were done with other inks that I love.

I love the look achieved by just stamping a few of the turns- 

or stamping more than one turn in the same ink!

I just love having a little fun with his snail-trail!

A little life share:  when my Doodlebugs Friday post hits tomorrow, Tom and I will be on the ferry boat to Mackinac Island!  Any Somewhere in Time fans out there??  It was filmed on Mackinac!  It's a favorite for sure - please do yourself a favor and watch it - how can you go wrong with Jane Seymour and Christopher Reeves? 

It's hard to imagine that this Michigander hasn't ever stepped foot on her Island before - I can't wait to step back in time, as there are no motor vehicles allowed on the Island!   What a wonderful place to celebrate our 28th anniversary!

=] Michele

Triple B here's one more bird!

Who am I kidding?  There will be more birds but only one more bird card for the May 2023 Triple B Challenge:

Open your minds because I have [what I think is] a funny card that has been brewing in my brain for some time now.  Ready?

Am I hearing laughter or groans?  My husband thought it was hilarious - perhaps his sense of humor has finally rubbed off on me?  LOL  

At any rate, my cousin is going to love it - maybe almost as much as I loved turning this PTI Feathered Friends mini 12 Sandpiper into a Tern!  I wonder if my bird-loving friends will be the only ones to 'get it.'  I guess you'd even have to be 'of a certain age' to even remember The Byrds and that song ... oy.  Maybe I'm not as funny as I think I am...

=] Michele

One of those fun scalloped ribbons from The Greetery provided the beach sand -

imagine all those details are their footprints =]

Just us Girls #678 a Color Challenge

 

I'm back to share a floral card which I made using this gorgeous duo of colors from JUGS Color Week #678.  Thanks, Nancy, for such a pretty combo!  

Here are the inks I used with Altenew's Build-a-Flower Ranunculus:

I skipped the first of the layers in the set to allow for nice bright white highlights on their petals.  I like the little leaves in the set but they don't include a stem, so I used them to create a strip of patterned paper to adorn the inside edge of my card and used a small scalloped-edged die* to nip a bit off of the front of my card to let it show!

While the inks were out, I thought I'd try my hand at a pink and yellow bird, too!  I use my finger daubers to add color to the base stamp.  This way I could keep the colors from mixing to peach.

Isn't she pretty perched on that sentiment.  I lost a very dear friend last week and this is one of many cards that will go to her daughter to comfort her as her mom fought for years with quiet courage.

I love the 'window' in this Spellbinders' 3D Four Petal Floral embossing folder!

Thanks for stopping by - I'd better get one of these into the JUGS gallery before I miss the window of opportunity!  Which one would you choose?

=] Michele

*MFT Scalloped stitched edge - very old!

My weekend was for the birds!

Yes, for the birds but I don't mean that in a negative way!  I recently added a few more PTI birds to my stash - their Brushed Birds sang to me over the weekend in a symphony of colorful notes!  Hope you like them: 

I swiped my embossing folder with Sea Glass ink prior to embossing.

This time, I swiped my embossing folder with Twilight ink prior to embossing.

If you know me at all, you'll know just which bird I'll share with the Triple B Challenge for May 2023!

=] Michele

Bird 1: 

Sizzix David Tutera die #663128

Wplus9: 4 Bar Stitched Rectangles

Sentiment included in the PTI Brushed Birds set

Bird 2:

HoneyBee Dogwood Blooms embossing folder

Pinkfresh Rounded Braided rectangles

MFT Stitched Mod Rectangle Stax

Sentiment from Colorado Craft Co. Baby Congrats

PTI burlap twine

Bird 3:

HoneyBee Dogwood Blooms embossing folder

Spellbinders die S4-910 Nestabilities Lacey circles

SSS Stitched Circles 

Sentiment from Colorado Craft Co. Baby Congrats