Fa la fun-day at Marcia's

Last week I visited Marcia with the hopes that I'd go home with a good start on my final Christmas cards for my seniors... she never lets me down!  Good fun, good food can always be found at The Hill House!

Here are a few of the cards made with the darling Penny Black images I stamped from her stash...

PB Yuletide Delivery paired with PB friend edger; PB plaited frames

A second image from PB Yuletide Delivery; PB Plaited Frames; SSS Fir Sprigs; Wplus9 love notes; PB Linked EF.  It could almost be saved for Valentine's Day, right?

PB Bundled; sentiment from PB Frosty hops; PB Double Frames

This tweet little trio of birds were calling my name:

Impression Obsession: E19968; Gina K. Serene Branches

One more Halloween card - let's just say I was bewitched... and since she's playing

'dress up' I'll send this one to The Paper Players where Claire is

looking for costumes!

Thanks, Claire!

PB FaBOOlous; PB Frame it; sentiment: Colorado Craft Co. Birthday Wishing

A few weeks ago, Marcia posted some wonderful cards using C&9th Kristina Werner's Holiday Icons stencil set.  When you start with two half-sheets of paper, you end up with FOUR cards!  Well, you know I would NOT be able to resist a little stenciling with my friend - it's standard procedure!  I won't bother sharing the inks - here are my four cards with a fun little flurry of finishes so I could play at Christmas Kickstart's Challenge 103 - Snow Alert! with Jo and Loll!

All the sentiments are from Pinkfresh Studios: Holiday Large Sentiments

that were stamped in Altenew Obsidian black ink and clear embossed.

I found a few Altenew black enamel embellishments that 'brought them home.'

Simple white frames are from Waffle Flower Crafts: Nesting Rectangle Frames.

Marcia is always so kind to make chili for me - she knows I love it and Tom doesn't eat it, so I seldom make it!  I brought my honey cornbread which gets griddle-toasted with butter, and I tried a new recipe for dessert: LEMON brownies!  A winner in my book!  

Another all-together-wonderful day, my friend!  Thanks so much for sharing your goodies [and friendship] with me!

Now, let's go see what Marcia got up to after I left...

=] Michele

Color Throwdown #842

 

After all that color-blocking using those Joyful papers, there were 'leftovers' and I had just the card for Color Throwdown #842!

Though my 'wreath' is a bit different than the one in Kelly's photo, I think it works!

=] Michele

Freshly Made Sketches #707

Judy's play with blocks and a circle had me reaching for a new-to-me pad of papers from Scrapbook.com called Joyful - I seldom use patterned papers for FMS but I really had a fun playtime this week using them... here's Judy's Freshly Made Sketch #707...

It's screaming 'color block' to me!  I don't think it makes any difference at all

how or what size you make your blocks as long as the end result reflects Judy's sketch.

Are you ready for a very colorful card?  Get your sunglasses on...

Several Spellbinders sets contributed the dies for my florals.

I used my EH circles to create several rings to represent Judy's circle.

All topped with a better-pressed sentiment.

and here's a second version using four blocks of two patterns:

Is it too much?  This time I cut a full circle from a THIRD dsp and have 'sewn' them together using that old favorite MFT Stitched die!

Here's the trick... you now have to head over to Freshly Made Sketches

to determine which card landed in our DT gallery!  There's sure to be plenty of inspiration there to encourage you to play along!

=] Michele

Happy World Card Making Day!

While watching and listening to the gang at Craft Roulette, I was able to create a card in honor of World Card Making Day 2025!

I have Bobby to thank for my card as she is asking for die cut Leaves over at Just us Girls #795.

 

I have a fun die from Concord & 9th that fits the bill perfectly.

Autumn Inlay Die was cut from Bristol paper, and each leaf was popped

out and colored by type:

I also added blended ink to the background before inlaying

all the leaves and those cute acorns back in place.

My 'friend' sentiment is also from C&9th - Friendly Floral dies.

And 'thank you' is from Waffle Flowers' Label Maker sentiment strips.

I spent a wonderful day with Marcia on Wednesday - more about that soon - she had a sweet little pumpkin die that I didn't have any plans for but after playing around with ink blending I found a way to make them work for her gorgeous Autumn Color Hues #119 colors!

I do hope she likes it...

Marcia, I thought I was so 'together' this time... would you 

believe I didn't write this one down??

I found a sweet little gingham of yellow and orange which was darkened a 

little with blended ink around the edges!  I created a focal point using

an MFT Wonky stitched oval and a rubber mat to deboss it into the paper.

Topped it off with another of those Betterpress-ed sentiments.

Okay.  I'm going back in for Therese on Craft Roulette!  You can 

watch, too!  Just look for Craft Roulette on YouTube!

=] Michele

The Flower Challenge #107 - our color challenge!

Karren has chosen a lovely color for challenge #107 at The Flower Challenge!  I can think of many flowers that come in shades of PURPLE - can't you? 

Many months ago, I received a very generous gift from a crafty friend who

thought I'd have fun coloring these gorgeous flowers from 

Altenew's Flutter and Bloom - the first time I sat down [immediately after arriving if I'm honest] I used purple!  Then I remembered that there was a purple challenge in rotation at The Flower challenge.  

These flowers have been patiently waiting to be shared... thanks a million, TK!

They were SO much fun to watercolor loosely with my Distress inks!

Mounting this onto an embossed panel of kraft card gives my card all the dimension

I desired - and a little texture, too!  I think I used SB's Tile Reflection!  lol

Any and all florals are welcome to our challenge - just don't forget that this month they MUST be purple!  Let's go see which purple flowers the team has shared, shall we? 

=] Michele

Freshly Made Sketches #706

My friends, can you even believe it's October 1st? 

Amy O'Neil is our sketch artist this week at Freshly Made Sketches #706 ... not another word until I've shared her stunning sketch...

 

Since I'm in Christmas card mode, it wasn't hard to imagine 

how to use that main circle in her sketch ... 

This old thing again? ha! Yes.  It's that Wplus9 set from 2020 which is a layered stamping set called Bells and Bows.  But, hey doesn't it look fresh and new mounted on my new Penny Black Plaited Frame?  There's that old Neat and Tangles tag, too!

A sweet little sentiment from Penny Black's Heartsong and my work here is done!

Lots to love from my FMS team - we can't wait to see where your heart takes you!  

=] Michele

The Paper Players #757

While I had my stencils out for JUGS, I made another stenciled card using Altenew's Classic Pine A&B and [as I was taught by my friends in the Group of Cardmakers] I couldn't let that residual ink go to waste but instead did a monoprint!  ALL THAT to say I used that very monoprint as a background for my card for The Paper Players #757!  It's sketch time and Stef has a great one for us...

What might look like mud to some pleases my eye very much!

Would it help to see the stenciled card?  Maybe...

So much pretty ink to take advantage of with just

a fine spritz of water flipped over and pressed onto a panel of paper!

I wonder if Lisa and the JUGS team would mind second helpings?

Okay, I'd better get this little Chickadee over to The Paper Players before

their door closes!  Have a great day!

Penny Black: Plaited Wreath. Spellbinders: Hemlock Cones and Chickadee

The Stamp Market: 'Tis the Season.

=] Michele

Penny Black 3D Berries Abound color trio

It's Saturday, and I will not take more than a moment to show you that Penny Black's Berries Abound came out to play today - three berry nice colors and bit of sparkle and the same sentiment... that really takes some time off the creation when one has so many to make! 

Starting with three A2 panels of Bristol paper and the stencils I got to work.  All three were embossed with the coordinating embossing folder and got a finishing spritz of Wplus9's shimmer spray through the berry stencil when my cards were complete... pretty risky, right?

This color combo was my least favorite but after spritzing and splattering

a bit of gold I was very happy with the end result...

Embracing the teals for my berries next...

and finally, my favorite of all in orange...

One of them will be in the Just us Girls #794 gallery where Lisa

is looking for stenciling! You'll have to go there to find out - hey, why not

play along while you're there?

Off I go... thanks for stopping by!

=] Michele

One post - two Seasons!

Hello, my friends!  If it seems like I'm around a little less these days, you'll know I'm knee deep in Christmas creating!  However, I did a little clearance shopping recently at HoneyBee and this gorgeous Plumeria layering die spoke to me... by the way don't give me any credit at all for the colors I've used today as I unabashedly followed HB's lead on their packaging/layering guide.  Always a good idea for the first use in my mind.  

Here is a little summer on a gorgeous fall day...

The Lil' Inker Quilted Spirals plate is no longer available but still 

adds just a bit of movement.  A smattering of Aura sequins from Spellbinders,

and a stamped-at-Marcia's sentiment cut in a circle found the perfect spot.

That gorgeous green cardstock is from Concord & 9th: Eucalyptus

I added just a kiss of The Stamp Market's Fern ink to add depth.

The blooms were all cut from Bristol paper with a bit of Pigment Craft Co.'s Seagrass ink.

And now for a few of those winter Christmas cards... Penny Black, of course...

Sharing a Song: 2016 and one of their Double Frames dies

Cuddle Up, Merry Boughs, and Triangle Pattern EF

5X7 Cuddle Up, Merry Boughs and a sentiment from PFS Poinsettia frame.

I've also been harvesting green beans grown on strings from ground 

to the top edge of our deck - after a very slow start, we are getting lots of yummy 

stringless green beans!  Plus, I've made 4 batches of hot pepper jelly with

the cayenne pepper pots on my deck!  Hot as heck but just delicious!

I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

=] Michele

Freshly Made Sketches #705

Narelle is our Sketch artist for Freshly Made Sketches #705, and it challenged me in all the fun ways! 

Very simple and CAS in my book - sometimes those are the most challenging of all, don't you agree?  But I had just the dies for it... and perfect timing as I needed

a 'get well' for my cousin who was struck by a car at the grocery store!

I found tipping it on its side helped with my design - Narelle won't mind a bit!

You'll remember that darling Spellbinders Sunflower my friend sent me?

This time I had help from Color Throwdown #841 to choose cardstock colors.

Narelle's 'strips' were created using a die from Waffle Flower Crafts: Nested Domes

and the sentiment is from Alex Syberia Designs: Tulip Treasures. 

We hope you'll have just the right supplies at your fingertips!  Come play!

=] Michele