A sneak peek at August!

Hello friends!  I hope your July has been fabulous, and that you are managing to stay cool!  It's been so hot here!  I hate to even go outside when it's this hot!   

Hard as it is to believe, July is almost over, and with August will come another new and awesome release at Our Daily Bread designs.  I'm sharing a sneak peek with you today.  This card is using a new set called Woodpecker, and also a new die, Trellis Strip.  I love them both!

For this card I did something I rarely do.  I started with a base of black, layered on a cream layer, and then a design paper layer from the ODBD  Vintage Ephemera paper pack.  I die cut the new Trellis Strip die from black, and then die cut my main panels, using the new ODBD Custom Pierced Squares dies,  Pierced Rectangles, Double Stitched Rectangles, and the ODBD Squares dies.  I embossed a cloud pattern on the cream layer and mounted my woodpecker on it.  I had colored him with Copcis and hand cut.  I also stamped and die cut the sentiment from the same set, and placed on the card using foam tape to pop it and the image up.  My embellishment in the upper left corner was made with red twine, and several elements made with the Fancy Foliage Dies and the  Lovely Leaves Dies.  I added a brad gem to the top and the sentiment panel.  I wanted to try to keep this card more masculine but I have to admit it's always difficult for me to do that!  Sometimes you just want to add flowers and ribbons! Hopefully the twine and greenery will work for a guy card.  

I hope you've enjoyed my sneak peek and that you will be back on Aug. 1 to see the entire release!

1 Corinthians 2:9King James Version (KJV)

 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

 

Have a wonderful weekend!

Blessings, 

Friends are never far apart!

Hello friends! Oh my... how the summer is flying by!  I feel like I have lost so much time this whole year being sick, but I'm so grateful for every day the Lord has given me!  Every day I look out my window at the beauty that's all around me and thank Him for allowing me this time... this day!  This is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice in it!!!

The beautiful flower sets from Our Daily Bread designs have been so much fun to work with!  I love to color, and these certainly have given opportunity to do just that!

For this card I used the new ODBD Forever Friends set, colored with Memento Ink and colored with copics, then hand cut.  I used the new Lacey Layered Ovals dies, ODBD Ovals dies, Lavish Layers dies, and the Pierced Rectangle dies.  I started with a white base and layered on design paper from the ODBD Birthday Brights Paper Collection, and the Blooming Garden Paper Collection. I popped up the sentiment panel and the flower with foam dimensional tape, and added a little sheer bow and ribbon trim.   I love this sentiment.  I had a dear friend,  who gave me a wall hanging that had this sentiment on it when we moved many miles away.  I have always cherished that gift... a perfect reminder of her every time I looked at it!

I thank you all for your prayers and notes of encouragement!  I am still struggling with some health issues, and my cancer treatments are not completely done, but time is flying by, and one day soon I hope to be able to say... "I'm done with treatments, and I'm cancer free!" 

 Thanks for stopping by!

Thank You!

Hello friends!  I hope you are all doing well!  I've been a bit laid up with reactions to my radiation.  Strange how I came through it beautifully... not hardly any issues, but then the day after I finished up... bang!  Swelling, extreme soreness and stiffness, and other fun stuff in the lymph node area.  So... I am thankful I had made this sample using this month's release from ODBD already! 

 Anyway... on to other happier things.  I am just in LOVE with this month's release!  If you know me at all you know I love flowers, and this Iris image in the A True Friend set is one of my all time favorites now!  I saw a gorgeous pink and white Iris photo on line and decided to try to replicate it.  Because of the beautiful detailed line work in this image, it is a perfect image to heat emboss.  So that's what I did.  I used pearl embossing powder on white watercolor paper.  In retrospect I should have used white embossing powder as it would show up better, but this has a subtle beauty of it's own as well.  Because Copics don't particularly like embossing, I used watercolor pencils.  The set I have only has one pink color, so I was pretty limited.  I got my shading simply by adding layers of color on to dried lighter layers.  I framed the image with a lovely new ODBD Layered Lacey Ovals die cut, and placed a black ODBD Ovals die cut on that.  I thought the black really made the image pop in a dramatic way.  I created the A2 card base using an ODBD Pierced Rectangle die to just emboss the white, and then layered on a black Pierced Rectangle die cut and a pink Lavish Layers die cut.  The sentiment (from the also new Forever Friends set) was stamped with black Memento Ink and cut and matted with two more of the pretty dies in the Layered Lacey Ovals set.

While pretty simple, I have to say I love how this one came out.  I hope you like it too!

Thanks so much for stopping by!  Have a blessed day! 

Welcome to the ODBD July Release!

Hello friends!  Welcome to  the Our Daily Bread Designs July  release!  I hope you are enjoying your summer and are ready for a garden full of luscious flowers!    If you have not seen the full release yet you can view it on the ODBD Blog.  

Three randomly selected winners will each receive a $25 Gift Code to the ODBD Website  just for commenting on the Design Team cards!  You have until July 2, 2016 at 9:00 p.m. EDT to leave your comments on the Designers Blogs for a chance to win!  The Winners will be posted on the ODBD Blog on July 3rd, so be sure to check back there to see if you won!

For  my center step card above I used the new A True Friend and the gorgeous  new ODBD Custom Ornate Ovals Dies.  Additionally I used Filagree Frames for the sentiment, Beautiful Borders, and the Pastel Paper Pack.  I created the center fold card, adhered the design paper from the Pastel Paper Pack, and die cut the various layers.  The image is stamped with Memento ink and colored with Copics, then fussy cut and popped up on foam tape.  The Beautiful Borders die was used for the bottom, as was the Filagree Frame.  I embellished with a pearl frame on the sides.  This image is so beautiful I didn't want to over-embellish!

For the card below, I used the new Forever Friends, and the new Vintage Borders, as well as the Pierced Rectangles  and the Blushing Rose Paper Pad.  The image was stamped with Memento Ink and colored with Copics, and fussy cut.  I used the new Vintage Border set to cut the layers, and matted with a plain pink paper die cut with the Pierced Rectangles.  I finished off with a seam binding bow, a tiny heart,  and some sticker backed trim. 

To recap, here are the new ODBD products I used today:

Here are the past  ODBD released products I used today:

Here are the links to the design team members participating in today's release:  Don't forget to leave a comment on their blogs for your chance to win some ODBD goodness!

Dawn * Lori * Robin * Melissa * Julie 

* Sandee * Cathy * Angie * Chris 

* Grace * Lisa * Sabrina * Diana * Diane (Guest Designer)

By way of personal update... I finished my 30 treatments of radiation yesterday!  Yay!  I have 4 more months of infusions and hopefully this LONG year of treatment will be behind me!  God has been so good and has given me the strength needed both physically and emotionally, and most importantly, spiritually!  I have much to be thankful for.... including my loving supportive family, friends and church family who have been such a help and support system for me!

To God be the Glory!!!

Happy Father's Day!

Hello Friends!  Happy Father's Day to all the Dads today! 

  

We are spending time with family to celebrate Dad, and I thought I'd share the card I made for my husband.  I  used the image from  the  ODBD set Living Waters.   I used copics to color this and I added a few white accents with a paint pen.  I had to extend the scene just a bit on the sides to fit in the Double Stitched Rectangles,  so I colored it out beyond the line with my copics, then accented with a Micron .005 black pen.  If you ever do that, be sure to use your copics first to color, and then add the Micron ink lines, because the ink will run if you color over top of it with alcohol markers.  I added the Happy Father's Day sentiment from the Good Man set, and die cut it with a  Stitched Oval die,  and matted with  the ODBD Ovals.  I made the frame for the image using the Double Stitched Rectangles along with the ODBD Rectangles so the center was cut out, leaving a frame.  I then matted the framed picture with another Double Stitched Rectangle.  The edges are sponged with Distress Ink.  I loved coloring this and it's a nostalgic image that I hope my hubby will like.  Happy Father's Day Alan!

I would also like to honor my own Dad on this Dad's day.  He went home to be with the Lord back in 1973, at the age of 60.  I still miss him!   He was a Godly man, a Pastor, and a wonderful father.  I'm so glad that I have the assurance that we will see each other again one day! 

I hope you are all enjoying a wonderful family day together.... Happy Father's Day!

You Make Me Happy In My Heart!

Hello friends!  Today on the ODBD Blog, we are taking a look back at the June release at Our Daily Bread designs.  This is a card I made using the new set, You Bless Me So.  I used the new Birthday Brights Paper Pad, and the following dies:  Bitty Borders, Mini Stitched Hearts, Pierced Rectangles, Double Stitched Rectangles, Pierced Circles, Double Stitched Circles, Lavish Layers, Recipe Card & Tags Dies,  and Ornate Heart Dies.  Links provided below.

I started by embossing the largest Pierced Rectangle die on my white panel, then die cutting a blue panel from the Birthday Brights Paper Pad, and a plaid panel from the same paper pad with a Lavish Layers Die.  I die cut just a heart frame from the Ornate Heart Dies set, and wrapped that around my plaid panel in the corner.  I stamped the sentiment and smiley face from the You Bless Me So stamp/die set and die cut the sentiment with a Pennant die, and the smiley face with a Mini Hearts die.  I die cut the "You" word and adhered it to the top corner of my pennant.  I added  my various circles as mats for the smiley face, and simply put it all together.  While this isn't my usual style, I have had fun playing with this fun bright paper!  It's light hearted and happy, and it just makes me smile! 

Here are the  links to the ODBD  I used on this card:

For more inspiration using the June release, please visit the other designers participating today:

Cathy * Dawn * Lori * Robin * Melissa * Julie * Sandee
* Diana * Grace * Lisa * Sabrina * Jan (Guest Designer)

Celebrate 45!

Hello friends!  I hope you are enjoying wonderful week!  I am trudging along now in my 4th week of radiation.  After 5 weeks they will start what they call the "boost" week, which is a doubled up effort to get just the tumor area and incision line.  That will be the 6th and final week.  I've been praying that I would not burn and so far I have not really burned!  I have itchy rashes on the chest, shoulder and back, but no blisters or terrible discomfort!  So I'm praising the Lord for that!  

Anyway... the sets and dies this month inspired me to make a card for a special event coming up in August.  I used the Wish and Celebrate Dies, Balloons and Streamers Dies, the Numbers Dies, and the Sunburst Background die for this card.  I also used the Pierced Circle Dies and Double Stitched Circle Dies to make my frame for my window.  This is not a real shaker card.  Instead I used vellum for my window and just placed some fun confetti inside that is made up of the Streamers die cuts and some sequins. They are cut from the same foiled paper but the vellum softens the colors and the camera makes them look lighter but they are the same.   I used Foiled Gold and Mirrored Saffire because that is the 45th Anniversary gem.   For the word Celebrate, I die cut it from gold and saffire so I could shadow them.

I am really enjoying these Word die and sentiments sets!  They are going to be "go to" sets for so many occasions!  I hope you are enjoying all the design team samples this month!

Thanks for stopping to take a peek, and thanks for your prayers!  They are felt and being answered!  I'm looking forward to getting this phase behind me and letting things settle down a bit.  I will still need to leave my port in until Nov. because I still get one infusion for the completion of a year, which I am 6 months done with now.  So... when that port comes out you are going to hear me whooping and hollering as they say!  It will symbolize this entire year's battle with cancer being over and I'm hopeful that it will be the end, with no recurrences ever!  That's been our prayer!

Blessings,