Here Comes the Sun

Ah, Spring! Here comes the sun, along with:
COMMUNITY on Thursday
SPRING BREAK on Friday
TEMPS IN THE 80s this week. 

Not only that, but I actually spent part of last weekend MAKING A CARD.


And I say 
It's all right.

I have not made a real honest-to-goodness card for about 2 months (I had some occasions where a card was required, but I just sort of limped along and/or CASEd myself).  And then I was tasked with making a baby card for a coworker whose nursery theme is owls. 

This was a Silhouette file; don't you love the (Amuse) gingham bellies?  I'm sure you do, but you're also wondering how this is a baby card?  Oh, just you wait....

Oh, yeah, that card just pulled out to reveal a baby owl.  That just happened.  I used the same idea as my "I love you this much" card (I actually had to use my own tutorial to refresh my memory on it, so I'm glad I made it, if only for myself to use).

Thanks to everyone that dropped in to say 'ello during my blogging break (I wish I had a better excuse other than lack of mojo)--I hope to get back to commenting during Spring Break, and maybe even make another card or two!

I can't stop cutting things!

A stamping friend recently bought a house after being on the house hunt for quite some time.  The cute little card idea I had somehow morphed from this...

To this:

I started by drawing the house outline gatefold along with the windows and shutters (next time I would make the window trim a smidge bigger so I could easily use 1/8 inch scor-tape. I used my xyron to adhere the shutters). When I went to the silhouette store to buy a picket fence, I also bought a decorative house card from which I ended up using the flowers, grass, chimney, doors, and round window-I love the downloads that are packed with goodies. I made the banners by cutting out a diamond, then folding it over Twinery twine, which itself was adhered to the card with Crystal Effects.  The font is Chowderhead, and have I mentioned my love of both adhesive-backed paper and Echo Park paper?  

Here's an aerial shot:

And just so you don't think I've given up stamping for good, here's a little card I whipped up to enter in the Paper Crafts Gallery Idol contest (and yup, you can bet the house card will be entered as well!):

How can something so monochrome and clean come from the same person?  I don't even understand it and I'm that person.  The frame is Polka Dot Frame by Spellbinders, that I sponged Not Quite Navy onto.  The feet are from Lucky Star set by Fancy Pants, and the sentiment is A Muse Studio.  I like that font, don't you?

Swell News!

A friend requested a card for a relative's baby shower.  There didn't seem to be a "theme" on the invitation, so I went with this cute stamp from Amy R Stamps (from All That Scraps).  My friend told me she was giving a gift card, so when I saw this week's Waltzingmouse Sketch Challenge, I knew it would be perfect!  The paper is the current SU baby paper.  The preggo shirt was cut out and pop dotted, then framed using Waltzingmouse's Vintage Labels 4, which was also popdotted.  I sewed the pocked onto the card, then made the tag pull by attaching one end cut from a Nestie Labels 4 to a rectangular piece of cardstock.  I put two removable adhesive dots on the tag (with the backing still on them) so my friend could attach the gift card. I tied up the baja breeze ribbon with some chocolate twine and added the "baby" tag from PTI Mini Mixed Messages. Here's a close-up:

In entertainment news, we finally jumped ship from Blockbuster.  We were using their mail-in service, which was pretty sweet because you could trade in the DVDs at the store, so we used to have 3 mailed DVDs and 3 store DVDs out at one time.  Then I guess they figured out they weren't making much money that way, and cut it back to 3 only.  Then they filed bankcrupcy AND they didn't have The Office Season 6 AND my brother-in-law has been bragging about instant downloads, so we joined NetFlix.  Why did we wait so long?!?!?  I'm loving the instant play feature in my stamping room!  We also hooked up our Wii to it as well.   If you're a DVD or TV watcher, I'd recommend trying it out.  You can do a google search and easily find a free 4-week trial.  What are some of your favorite "background noise" movies?

CAS 78 Guest Designer

The theme for this week's Splitcoast Clean & Simple challenge is.....wait for it.....wait for it.... Ways to Use it: POLKA DOTS!!!  I cannot think of a better theme for me, unless it was Chocolate Covered Polka Dots Featuring Puppies.  I ended up making three cards!

This one is the "cleanest" and "simplest" of the bunch.  I actually already had the Eat Cake Graphics dog (name "Zero") colored, so all I had to do was cut him out. The hat is from The Cat's Pajamas, I colored it with copics (red) and aquapainter and ink (baja breeze).   The patterned paper is retired SU Sweet Slumber (LOVE).  I stamped the Eat Cake Graphics sentiment onto So Saffron using Memento Rhubarb Stalk, then matted with Baja Breeze and popped it up on foam tape (Zero & his hat are popped, too).  The Riding Hood Red is embossed with a Sizzix polka dot embossing folder.

I know what you're thinking, "baby?!?"  But I love those super-fun-bright modern nurseries you see every once in a while and thought this would be a fun card for chic new mom.  I used three sizes of Nestability Blossom dies to cut the Rose Red, then stamped each one with increasingly larger polka dots from PTI Polka Dot Basics II in Fresh Snow.  Then I crumpled and mashed and crumpled and mashed and snipped the petals of the larger circles.  I cut three Kiwi Kiss blossoms the same size as the largest flower, then glue dotted them underneath--I think it looks more proportional than using the next size up of the blossom die.  I added a button from my stash and the SU Jewelry Tag punch stamped with "baby" from PTI Mixed Messages.  I cut two Nestabilities Label One dies from PTI Summer Sunrise and embossed them with Swiss Dots.  I also cut some smaller edges from the Label One die in Kiwi Kiss.  Everything is mounted onto PTI Hawaiian Shores.
Close up of the flower:

Finally, I'm pretty sure this last card left the clean and simple building a while ago, but it *is* just one layer, so that's gotta count for something, right?!?

How could you *not* have a happy birthday after recieving this card?  This is another Eat Cake Graphics stamp that I stamped & colored directly on the kraft base, adding a paper pieced outfit.  I printed out the sentiment onto PTI bitty dot paper, cut out, and used my xyron to adhere.  A fun PTI Berry Sorbet ribbon finishes it off!

Thanks to everyone who stopped by today!  I know it's going to be a blast being a guest designer this week--I bet my eyes will be crossed by the end of the week looking at all those fabulous polka dotted creations!!!  Wheeeee!!!!!!!!!