"MAKE-IT-SNAPPY-MONDAY" MEMORIAL DAY POST

For today's MISM share, I decided to blow the dust off of my "Godspeed" stamp set and create a patriotic card honoring those who have served (or currently serve) in the military.  For some, the Memorial Day holiday means sale prices, cook-outs, and a long weekend but, hopefully, they'll take time to notice a lot of flags waving in honor of those who have served, are serving, or died serving to protect the freedoms that we all enjoy.  All gave some; some gave all.  Stampin' Up! products used to create my card include Crumb Cake, Night of Navy, Whisper White, and Vellum card stock, brad, star punch, Night of Navy, Real Red, and Early Espresso ink and, of course, one of the best patriotic stamp sets that Stampin' Up! has ever offered . . . "Godspeed." 

"THE OPEN SEA" MDS CARD

This card was going to my snappy Monday post, but I decided to do something else for that.  I designed this card on My Digital Studio using the following digital content:  Top Note shape, "The Open Sea" and "Vintage Overlays" stamp brush sets, button, stitching, and Baker's twine.  After printing the design, I layered it onto a piece of Early Espresso card stock, which was adhered to the Crumb Cake card.  I used the Word Window and Modern Label punches for the sentiment, which is from the "Teeny Tiny Wishes" stamp set.  I absolutely LOVE the ease of creating with My Digital Studio!  Colors used for this project are Crumb Cake, Not Quite Navy, and Early Espresso.  ETA:  I forgot to mention that this card also features the digital version of Nautical Expedition designer paper.

WHAT'S A "SCRAPLING"?

If you're like me, "scrapling" is a new word/concept for you.  A "true" scrapling is the 1-1/4" strip of card stock that is left when you cut an A4 piece of paper/card stock to make a 4-1/4" square card.  In the U.S., we don't typically use the A4 size (8-1/4" x 11-3/4"), so I never have scraplings when I make my beloved square cards.  I do, however, have a scrapload of scraps that were left from cuts made for layers, boxes, etc., so I dug (didn't have to go too deep) through my box of scraps and found the 2-3/8" x 11" strip of Crumb Cake card stock that I used to make this card.  The Whisper White scalloped strip and the Pink Pirouette embossed strip were also found in the scrap box, so I laid them on the desk in hopes of using them for this project.  In my little jar of punched and die cut shapes, I found the Early Espresso leafy cut and the scallop circle, and the Pink Pirouette flowers (from the Blossom Bouquet Triple Layer Punch) were already on my desk waiting to be put in the jar of punched and die-cut shapes.  This card may not have started as a true scrapling, but it was mostly created from scraps and leftovers.  I have to thank CherylAnn Robinson for sharing the idea of scraplings on one of the Yahoo groups because the idea behind her project totally inspired me to create this card!  While a scrapling may be smaller than a traditional card, I don't think any card should be considered too small for mailing.  So what if the envelope seems big and empty?  If anyone takes the time to send me a card (especially one that they took the time to make), I will not complain that the thought, hug, love, etc. arrived in the form of an undersized card.  All products used to create my card are from Stampin' Up! except for a Sakura glitter pen.  As I mentioned, my flowers are from Stampin' Up!'s new Blossom Bouquet Triple Layer punch, but I cut between the scallops to create petals so I could curl and lift them for a "fluffy" flower.  Other products used include "Elements of Style" stamp set, Early Espresso ink, white gel pen, Early Espresso and Pretty in Pink ribbon, pearl jewel, Square Lattice embossing folder, and the following punches:  Two-Step Bird XL, Modern Label, Scallop Edge Border, and Scallop Circle. 

WHAT DO A TURTLE AND A STRAWBERRY HAVE IN COMMON?

There's a story behind this turtle card, but a turtle and a strawberry don't really have anything in common except that I visited my parents and grandmother this past Tuesday, took a strawberry cake to my grandmother, and had a little excitement over a turtle.  When I arrived at my parents' house, my mother was pruning an overgrown bush.  After cutting a lot of the low limbs, she said, "Oh, look!  Here's a turtle that I didn't even remember was here!  I guess daddy will have to paint this one."  In their landscaping, they have two large turtles to which daddy recently gave a fresh coat of paint, and that's why mother said that he would need to paint this one because it's shell was quite faded.  As a matter of fact, it looked so much like a big rock to me that I didn't even know that I was looking at the turtle she'd found!  In retrospect, a painted turtle that had been covered by an overgrown bush would not have been faded by the sun, but you know what they say about hindsight.  Anyway, I had my back turned to my mother when she screamed, and her scream signaled an alarm in me that meant, "Critter (probably a slitherer)!!!!!!  Get away . . . FAST!!!!" and that's what I tried to do.  In retrospect (again), I know that I should have made sure that my mother was okay.  When she had attempted to lift the turtle, one of its legs, with a clawed foot, kicked at her and bunkered down, not wanting to be moved.  As far as I know, it was a snapping turtle, and it was aggressive and not happy to have been disturbed!  I'm not fond of critter encounters, but I also never knew that I should take caution around a turtle!  I think there's just no place for me in the great outdoors!  Daddy managed to get Mr. Snappy onto the E-Z-Go, and mother and I rode with him to the pond where he convinced Mr. Snappy to dive in.  I never thought I would see the day when a turtle would lurch and aggressively challenge an adult male, but that's where the hoe came in handy.  Whew!  It was an interesting time, and I was a useless spectator . . . except for serving as Event Photographer.  At the end of the day, we had dinner and strawberry cake for dessert.  The next day, I made the turtle card to send to my parents, and the strawberry card was made for my grandmother.  BTW, Stampin' Up! products used in the making of these two cards are the button, linen thread, and hemp twine.  ETA:  I forgot to mention that I used the Square Lattice embossing folder on the turtle's shell.  How on earth could I forget that?  I use that folder all the time!

IT'S TIME FOR "FREESTYLE FRIDAYS"

It's Julie's turn to present an inspiring project for Freestyle Fridays, and pictured to the right is the beauty that she created this week.  It's quite a striking project--who could help but notice those flowers?  To learn more about this project, let's visit Julie's blog!  While you're there, take a look at some of her other projects and don't forget to leave a few kind words for her. 

ON THE GROW . . . VINTAGE STYLE

A couple of days ago, I worked with two of Stampin' Up!'s newest products (from the Summer mini catalog) . . . "On the Grow" stamp set and Flower Garden embossing folder.  I really like the distressed, vintage design and the colors, both of which just kind of evolved as I worked on this project!  The embossing folder was used on a piece of Vellum card stock, and Baja Breeze and Certainly Celery markers were used to color the backside of the embossed floral border.  I layered the vellum onto a piece of "First Edition" designer paper, which  had been sponged with Early Espresso ink and distressed.  An aqua painter was used to color the vase of flowers, which were stamped on a piece of Shimmery white card stock, and this layer was also sponged and distressed.  One of my favorite things about this card is the button because, as I mentioned before, I'm going through a button phase. 

WHAT THE . . .

I saw this quote really late last night and was too tired to create a card with it, but it was on the top of my "to do" list today.  Stampin' Up! products used to create this card include Crumb Cake, Baja Breeze, Sahara Sand, Melon Mambo, and Early Espresso card stock, linen thread, Melon Mambo button, Square Lattice embossing folder (which seems to go with every project), Decorative Label, Wide Oval, Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border, and Spiral Border punches.

"MAKE-IT-SNAPPY-MONDAY"

I love the card that I am sharing with you today!  Although it's a snappy one, it's loaded with interesting features . . . Bitty Button with linen thread knot, wavy stamped sentiment banner, colorful stamped image, texture, a fun color combo, and a unique 3.5" x 5.5" size.  All products used to create this card are from Stampin' Up! and include:  Crumb Cake, Baja Breeze, Whisper White, and Rose Red card stock, Stampin' Dimensionals, Square Lattice embossing folder, 3/4" Circle punch, Itty Bitty Shapes punch (circle), "Morning Cup" stamp set, assorted markers for coloring, and the sentiment banner is from the Petal Cone Sizzix die.  I'll have one more MISM project to share for May and then, for the month of June, I'll feature Stampin' Up!'s Blossom Bouquet Triple Layer Punch in a series of "snappy Monday" cards. 

AN "M" FOR CAMPBELL'S 2ND BIRTHDAY

Today was my great-nephew, Campbell's, 2nd birthday party at Dan Nicholas Park in Salisbury.  What a beautiful day for a party!  I was afraid that it would be too hot, but we were under a shelter in a wooded area that seemed to have been temperature-controlled just for me!  ;-)  After my class last night, it occurred to me that I hadn't made a birthday card for Campbell, so I worked as quickly as possible to get this one made before going to bed.  I used the Gypsy to design this shaped card, which was cut with the Cricut.  I love this little mouse, even though in real life I refer to the real critters as "m's"--can hardly ever make myself say the word.  There are cats in our neighborhood and, every now and then, one of them (or some other animal, which I don't want to think about) will leave a dead "m" on the sidewalk or driveway, and the sight will make me turn around and go back in the house until the critter has disappeared.  Yuck!!!!!!!!!  Paper "m's" are a different story . . . they're just cute! 

A VERY CHEERY "FREESTYLE FRIDAYS"

It's a fun fold and a cheery design for Freestyle Fridays!  With her project share last Friday, Julie issued a mission for me to create a fun folded card like hers with something embossed on it.  My embossing doesn't show up too well, but I used Old Olive Craft ink and clear embossing powder for the grassy image from Stampin' Up!'s "Inspired by Nature" stamp set, and I used VersaMark ink and clear EP for the small flowers from the "Itty Bitty Bits" stamp set.  Other Stampin' Up! products used to create this card include Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie, Old Olive, and Whisper White card stock, "Fun Flowers" Sizzix die, buttons, Baker's twine, and "Happy Greetings" stamp set.  This is definitely a good cheery card to keep in the stash! 

BIRTHDAY CUPCAKE . . . AND A BUTTON

I recently worked on some swaps that were really late.  Each time I thought about how many I needed to make, I felt overwhelmed and pretty much told myself, "deal with it tomorrow."  I hate it when I procrastinate the inevitable!  It seems to me that when I keep putting something off, the days just fly past, as if to punish me or show me that they can pass even faster, putting me farther behind.  The last time I gave myself permission to put off the task, I ended up creating five cards in one night, and this is one of them.  Stampin' Up! products used include "Sunny Garden" designer paper, "Teeny Tiny Wishes" stamp set, Modern Label, Word Window, Cupcake, and Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border punches, marker (for the doodle lines), red glimmer paper, and one of those delectable Brights designer buttons.  Have I already mentioned how gorgeous these buttons are?  One of my customers ordered the Brights last month and, when they arrived, I fell in love with them and put them on my next order.  This month, she ordered the Subtles designer buttons.  And so did I . . . along with another container of the Brights buttons.  I'm having to stop myself from putting one of these gorgeous buttons on every project, but I {heart} them!!!!  How sad (wonderfully) that I'm having to copy a customer's order just so I won't covet her buttons when they arrive.

"BLOOM" SHAPED MINI ALBUM

After seeing some really cute shaped albums recently, I decided that I wanted to make one of my own.  The thin card board covers and pages for my album were cut with the Cricut, as were some of the images used to decorate it, and the paper I chose is from Stampin' Up!'s "Sunny Garden" collection.  Throughout the album, on most of the pages, I have used coordinating card stock and designer paper to create pockets for journaling, pictures,

etc.  Obviously, this album is still incomplete, but most of my embellishments and stamped images are from Stampin' Up!  This is definitely a work in progress since there are so many design opportunities with this little album.  I thought that its "chunkiness" might bother me, but I really like the dimensional elements that give this project "lumpy pride."  While  I'm used to creating projects, from start to finish, at one sitting, it's nice to step away from this one and give myself time to decide which products I want to use next and give design ideas a chance to come to me.  One of my favorite things about this album, so far, are the dangling elements (such as the birdcage shown in the picture on the right) between the pages.  Fun, fun, fun!!!

"THE OPEN SEA" CD CASE ALBUM

Did you know that CD cases make great gift items?  They're relatively simple to decorate, and mine doubles as a mini accordion album with a gift card holder and a masculine nautical theme.  Stampin' Up! products used to create this project include "The Open Sea" digital stamp brush set, My Digital Studio software, Cherry Cobbler Baker's twine, Bitty heart-shaped button, Itty Bitty Shapes punch (heart), "Nautical Expedition" designer paper, assorted circle punches, and "All Holidays" stamp set.  This particular CD case was a bulk buy item that didn't actually have the

 center portion that holds a CD, and it is made to fold completely open so that it can be used as a calendar stand or to hold mini scrapbook pages.  The designer paper for this project was cut to fit (approximately 4-3/4" x 5" and 4-3/4" x 5-1/2"), and I used two strips of 4" x 12" card stock, scored at 4" and 8", for the accordion album.

EASY PEASY "MAKE-IT-SNAPPY-MONDAY" CARD

I've mentioned before that I love Stampin' Up!'s "Morning Cup" stamp set, and I've used it again for today's MISM project.  I know you might be thinking that there are so many things that could be added to this card, but I wanted to keep it snappy simple.  I began by punching four squares with the new Postage Stamp punch from different colors of card stock.  I then used the mini Oval and Jewelry Tag punches (with a little knot of Baker's twine) and called it complete.  You could use up a lot of scrap card stock by employing the Postage Stamp punch for a few sets of cards like this!

PASS THE WALLET, PLEASE

Several days ago, I posted the car card that I made for my nephew's 16th birthday.  We're celebrating his birthday today, and I made this wallet for one of his gifts.  The greeting and tag were printed from Stampin' Up!'s My Digital Studio, and they both are part of the "Happy Bday" digital kit.  Other Stampin' Up! products used to create this card include the Square Lattice embossing folder, Chocolate Chip, Real Red, and Whisper White card stock, circle punches, Baker's twine, Stampin' Sponge, and ink. 

"FREESTYLE FRIDAYS" WITH JULIE

Pictured to the right is the sneak peek photo that Julie shared with me of her Freestyle Fridays project.  The colors look pretty, and I can tell that it's a floral project but, other than that, we'll have to visit her blog to learn more.  Hopefully, she has been able to upload the post to her blog about this project.  Unfortunately, Blogger has been acting up for the past 24 hours and has managed to lose the post and pictures of the heritage album that I put up yesterday or the day before.  ARGH!!!!!!!!!  Anyway, don't forget to visit Julie's blog to see her project in full.  Yesterday, I used Stampin' Up!'s My Digital Studio software to design the signature blip for my blog posts, but I'm not sure if I will use it all the time.  I love the fact that I was able to design it to coordinate with my blog banner, and would love to hear what you think about it.  Patty Bennett has been using an MDS-designed signature for her blog posts, shared a tutorial of the design process, and inspired me to create one of my own.

ETA:  Blogger found the post about my heritage album!!  WOOHOO!!!!!  Thank you, Blogspot!!!!

HERITAGE ALBUM

I am soooooooooooooo excited to share this project, but . . . shhhhh . . . you have to keep a secret.  Pictured to the right is the cover of the heritage album that I designed for my daddy using Stampin' Up!'s My Digital Studio software.  I was expecting this album to arrive tomorrow, so imagine my surprise when it showed up today.  Just looking at the cover was almost exciting enough for me, but I have looked through the album several times already.  One word will describe Stampin' Up!'s professional print service . . . A-W-E-S-O-M-E!!!!!  I began this project in early April, and I will present it to daddy as an early Father's Day gift because I can't wait much longer. I am not a very patient person and, when you factor in excitement and pride, well . . . it's a dangerous combination for someone who can't keep a secret for as long as they probably should.  I {heart} old photographs and, when I found several pictures from a source that I will not reveal, I knew that I had to do something special with them.  In this post, I'm sharing a picture of two of the pages that I designed for this 41-page album.  One of the most exciting things about this album is that I don't believe daddy has ever seen some of the pictures (at least not for a very long time), and I included some photos of actual documents that I found on ancestry.com, and I know daddy hasn't seen those!  When I decided to create this album, I truly had no idea just how involved it would become.  My intention wasn't to get into the whole genealogy process--I simply wanted to use the pictures that I had found and then search for other supporting documentation that might be of interest regarding the people and places that daddy remembers from his childhood.  One of the most interesting tidbits of information was a death certificate that ruled the death a HOMOCIDE.  Now, how exciting is that?!?!  I've said it before, and I will say it again . . . Stampin' Up!'s My Digital Studio software is one of the tools that everyone should own!!!!!  Just look at what a special gift you can design for someone special.

"MORNING CUP" STACKED & SQUARED

One of my current favorite Stampin' Up! stamp sets is "Morning Cup."  As a matter of fact, I like it even better than I thought I would, and that might be because it enables me to use the Jewelry Tag punch, which is also a favorite.  Two of the word stamps in this set fit perfectly on that punch!  For this card, I used the following Stampin' Up! products:  Old Olive, Marina Mist, Very Vanilla, Early Espresso, and Pumpkin Pie card stock, assorted markers, white gel pen, 3" and 3-1/2" Circle dies, Square Lattice embossing folder, Scallop Trim Border punch, linen thread, "Greenhouse Gala" and "First Edition" (or "Newsprint") designer paper.

"SUNNY GARDEN" CD FOLDER ALBUM

This cute little album is a work in progress, and it began with two CD folders, which I joined with a card stock binding.  There are two handy pockets built into the construction of the folders, which can be used for additional stamped/decorative inserts to add interest to the album.  I used Stampin' Up!'s My Digital Studio software to design the cover, which I printed and layered onto So Saffron card stock and added the punched, layered, and embossed butterflies.  The "moments" title was also printed from a My Digital Studio design, layered onto a Decorative Label punched Old Olive piece of card stock that I embossed with the Square Lattice embossing folder.  I used Crystal Effects to adhere the rectangle glass fragment to the title, and I added rhinestone jewels to the butterfly.  Throughout the album, I have repeated the use of "Sunny Garden" designer paper, which coordinates perfectly to the paper used in the My Digital Studio cover design. 

"MAKE-IT-SNAPPY-MONDAY"

With the fun of Mother's Day yesterday, I almost forgot to make a MISM project.  This card got its start when I pulled the die-cut scallop circle card from the box of scrap card stock that needs to be sorted and filed (but that will probably never, ever happen).  I then decided to use Stampin' Up!'s "Morning Cup" stamp set to create my snappy card.  The stamped cup was colored with Pink Pirouette ink and an aqua painter, and I used an Early Espresso marker to color the heart.  Other Stampin' Up! products used to create this quick card include linen thread, Very Vanilla, Rose Red, and Early Espresso card stock, Square Lattice embossing folder, 1-1/4" and 1-3/8" Circle punches, and 3" and 3-1/2" Circle dies.