A Sneak Peek to bring you some spring!

Hello friends!  I hope you are all doing well!  I don't know about where you live, but here we are having some real winter weather!  I think after the very cold weather, and now the snow, we are all ready to see spring come!  

Today... I hope I can give you just a little sneak peek not only at some spring weather, but also at a couple new stamps coming your way Mar. 1 from Our Daily Bread Designs.  This card uses a new background stamp called Christ the Lord Background.  I also used a sentiment from a new set called Happy Resurrection Day.  

For the background, I used Memento tear drops to dab on black ink for the musical score, and then two shades of green rocked and rolled on to the border.  I then colored in the open design florals with Copics, and highlighted with Spica Pens.  I stamped the sentiment from Happy Resurrection Day on vellum, using Stazon ink.  I tore the vellum, then wrapped around a piece of card stock and added the floral spray.  The ribbon is from my local stamp store and the flowers are Wild Orchid. I also did a little piercing in the corners for texture and interest.  It's a simple card, but I do like how it came out.  I hope you do too!  I hope you'll come back on March 1st to see the whole release and maybe even win some stamp cash!  

Meantime... here is today's blessing from the Word:

Rom. 8:27

"He who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God."  Isn't this a comforting thought?  We often don't know how to pray, but we have an intercessor who does! 

Have a wonderful day!!!

Friends are Flowers in the Garden of Life!

Hello friends!  I hope all is well with you and yours!

I'm sharing a card today that I made using an ODBD sentiment from the Zinnia set, and a Power Poppy Digi called Countryside Bouquet.

Power Poppy has a monthly challenge  called Power and Spark.  This month's challenge is "The Sky's the Limit"- find inspiration from the sky... whether it's a beautiful sunset or sunrise, a cloudless blue, snowy gray or whatever you see where you live.  Well... my house faces west and I do get to enjoy some gorgeous colors as the sun is going down!  I was so inspired by the colors that Rhea recently used with this image, that when I saw the sunset out my window, I knew I was going to use her basic color scheme and technique!  There are hues of blues, orange, violet and yellow... perfect representation of a NC sunset!

I have not done a lot with digis, so I played around with this one to make a corner treatment from part of the larger bouquet.    I did not add a second bouquet as Rhea did, and my layout is totally different, but I did try to use her incredible technique for coloring my background. Using copics,   I did a watercolor technique around the flowers, making lots of dots in blue and violet, then an empty copic filled with rubbing alcohol as a blender pen to soften it and blend them slightly.  Then I masked the image and moved my Memory Box stencil around while airbrushing in the two colors.  I then used my alcohol marker to blend that and soften it still more until I got the effect I wanted.

I cut the image with Spellbinders Nobel Rectangle, matted with Majestic Labels 8, and mounted on a soft sky base.  I added a sentiment from ODBD, a strip of K&Co paper lace, and some blue crystals.  I also used my opaque white copic ink to brush on just a tad here and there for highlights.

I really had a ball coloring this!  I've been longing to color some pretty florals, and this was my happy time for sure!

Here are the Copics I used: BG91,97, 10; BV20, 00;  YR12,10; R39; YG03,17,67; Y11,13,19; E37,31; and the Opaque White

As always.... thanks so much for stopping by!!!

Today's blessing from the Word has been such a comfort to me during those difficult times we all face at some point or another.  This particular one was given to me when my father died in 1973, and I found such comfort in it then, and it's been a go to  Scripture ever since!  I have often felt those everlasting arms supporting me!

Deut. 33:27

"The eternal God is your dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms."

Hello with wildflowers!

Hello my friends!  I hope you are doing well!

Today I'm sharing another card made with this month's release at Our Daily Bread Designs.  I used Life is a Gift for my image, and the new and wonderful Hello Die.  I stamped the image this time with Memento Bamboo Leaves and colored just lightly with Copics and Spica Glitter Pens. I made a recessed window using a Spellbinders Labels 38 die, popped the frame up on dimensionals.   I added Stickles to my little Martha Stewart punched butterflies and a gingham bow to finish it off. Again, my image is all sparkly but I can't capture that with the camera, so you'll have to take my word for it.  LOL!

Here's today's blessing from the Word:

1 Thessalonians 5:8-10 (NIV)

⁸ But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. ⁹ For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. ¹⁰ He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him."

Welcome to the February ODBD Release!

Hello friends!  Welcome to the ODBD Feb. release!

I don't know about you, but I am really going to be ready for spring this year!  Here in sunny NC, we've had a really bad year for sickness and lots of dreary days!  So I was very happy when the new ODBD sets were revealed, because they make me think of a beautiful wildflower meadow in the springtime!  I have hope that spring is just around the corner!

Anyway... if you have not had a chance to view the full release, your might can see it HERE.

As always, there are prizes for viewing and commenting on the DT posts:

Three randomly selected winners will each receive a $25 gift certificate to the ODBD Store, to be used toward the purchase of ODBD Stamps found in the "stamps column" of the website just for commenting on the Design Team cards!  You have until February 2, 2015 at 9:00 p.m. EST to leave your comments on the Designers Blogs for a chance to win!  The Winners will be posted on the ODBD Blog on February 3rd, so be sure to check back there to see if you won!

For my first card above,  I used Miss You for my image, and Life is a Gift for my sentiment.  I love the solid silhouette image for it's many possibilities.  Here, I first masked off an oval (cut with a Spellbinders Petite Oval large) and sponged lightly with distress inks in Broken China and Shaded Lilac.  Then I stamped the image slightly off to the side with Midnight Muse Ink.  I stamped the sentiment on the bottom and matted with Night of Navy and Periwinkle card stock.  The ribbon is really pretty two toned wired ribbon from my local store, and the pearls are from AC Moore.  This is a simple card but I do love how it came out.

For my next card, I used Miss You and stamped it with ColorBox Pigment ink "Moss", then heat embossed it with clear embossing powder.  I cut it with a Spellbinders Heirloom Legacy die.  My card base is Neenah Solar White 140 lb card stock.  On that I layered a piece of yellow card stock from my stash.  Next, I used the SB Heirloom Legacy die for the fancy matting.    On that I layered an ODBD  Doily die cut from American Crafts Welcome Spring design paper.  I cut the die cut in half so I could spread it out to frame my oval the way I wanted.  I popped the oval up on dimensionals.  Next I cut the new and wonderful Happy Birthday Dies from a scrap of Yellow, and from a scrap of green card stock.  I used the green slightly offset to create a shadow for my yellow layer to make it stand out a bit more.  I painted the words with Wink of Stella clear glitter but it does not show in the photo.  :(  I punched 3 tiny butterflies with my MS Punch and glittered them too, and added a little bling, ribbon and flower to embellish.

In case you missed it, here is a sneak peek I did this week using these dies in a fun and different way:

If you'd like more info on how I created this card you can read about it HERE. 

Here are the links to the rest of the team!  Be sure to visit each one and leave a comment to qualify for one of the prizes!!! 

Cathy * Lori * Sandee * Dawn * Julie * Grace * Chris * Lisa * Angie * Silke * Wanda * Sabrina * Audrey

Thank you so much for visiting!!!

Blessings,

A Sunny Happy Birthday!

Hello  my friends!  It's been a while!  I hope everyone is doing well!

Today I'm sharing a sunny and bright Happy Birthday card I made using some fun new dies from Our Daily Bread designs, that will be released Feb. 1!  This  Happy Birthday die set is soooo fun to use and I thought this background that I had made earlier was the perfect "sunny" background for them.  To make it, I used watercolor paper (140 lb) and sponged on stripes of Distress Inks, then with a wet brush I blended them until I like the look.  I splattered some clean water on and then let it dry.  Once dry I used a hand made acetate stencil I had made by punching various sized circles from the acetate, and I sponged on white pigment ink in varying intensities to get that faux Bokeh effect.  I die cut the balloons from scraps of designer paper  from the ODBD Blooming Garden Collection, and the words from a scrap of So Saffron.  I cut the watercolor panel with a SB Curved Rectangle die and adhered to my white base, then adhered the various pieces.  The balloons themselves are popped up on dimensionals, and the letters are painted with clear Wink of Stella glitter pen. LOVE it but can't get a photo that shows the shimmer.

Anyway... keeping it short today, but here is God's Blessing from the Word for today:

Ps 130:1-2

Out of the depths I cry to  you oh Lord!

Oh Lord, hear my voice,

Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my pleas for mercy!

Where Words Fail, Music Speaks

Hello my friends!  I hope you have all enjoyed a wonderful weekend and are staying well in this epidemic flu season! 

Well we have been busy at our house, making repairs after a roof leak and laying new flooring in all our bedrooms!  We had planned on laying hardwood floors before the roof problem and had purchased the wood, but had waited to get started until my hubby was going to be off work for the week between Christmas and New Years.  So... while other workers were here doing other things like putting on a new roof, fixing dry wall inside, and painting, hubby and I have been hard at work getting the flooring down.  We have all the bedrooms done now except for the closets.   I'm loving the new look and I think it will really help with allergy symptoms, or I hope so at least!  :)

Anyway... with my SCS Dirty Dozen cards, and all the home projects, I have not had a lot of crafting time, but today I did manage to get in to my craft room for a little while, and this is what I came up with.  I used this month's Music Speaks stamp set, as well as the ODBD Blushing Rose Paper Collection, Vintage Labels, and Vintage Flourish Pattern Dies.  The trim is Recollections, and I used a Spellbinders Fancy Framed Tags die for my sentiment, and cut off one side of the fancy frame.  The image is stamped with Memento Rich Cocoa and then colored with pencils.  I then played around with the faux Bokeh technique found HERE.  I used Faber Castel Gelatos in pink and gold and the eraser on my mechanical pencil to stamp little circles on my background.  I used my finger dipped in the gold to add a touch of shimmer to the whole panel, and especially along the edges.  I also went over parts of the image with a Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Pen and I just wish the camera could capture shimmer because it never seems to really show it, especially on dark days like today!

Anyway... I love this new set and I had fun playing with something a little different for it.  I hope it inspires you in some way to have fun with different techniques too!   

Today's Blessing from the Word:

Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Romans 15:13

Thanks so much for stopping by!

The Ichthus and the passage of time!

Hello my friends!  

Wow!  2015!!!  Where did 2014 go???  Is it just me or does time seem to be just RACING by?

Well, with the speed of time, we realize that things creep up on us!  With that in mind, when I was thinking about what samples I could make for you using the newly released ODBD Faithful Fish Pattern Die and Debossing Plate.  The first thing that came to my mind was the retired set, Fishers of Men, which was one of my first sets purchased from ODBD!  The set has been retired, but the Fishing Basket Image is still available as a single stamp!  You can find it HERE.  

I love this image for all the guys in my family because they all love to fish!  So I decided to pair the image with a Happy Father's Day sentiment from The Waves on the Sea and make a Father's Day card up early to have ready in June.... which will be here before I know it!!! 

I started with a base of Early Espresso and then used Sahara Sand to die cut and deboss the Faithful Fish Pattern Die and Debossing plate.  I stamped the image with Memento ink and colored with Copics.  I added some baker's twine and splattered some ink on my image panel with a tooth brush and reinker.  Very simple, very quick!  Since time is flying by so quickly, being able to create a few cards quickly seems to be an expedient thing to do right now! :)

I'm sure most of you know the basic history of the "Jesus Fish" but if not, here is what Wikipedia says about it.

 The ichthys or ichthus (/ˈɪkθəs/), from the Greek ikhthýs (ἰχθύς, "fish"), is a symbol consisting of two intersecting arcs, the ends of the right side extending beyond the meeting point so as to resemble the profile of a fish. It was used by early Christians as a secret Christian symbol and now known colloquially as the "sign of the fish" or the "Jesus fish".

According to tradition, ancient Christians, during their persecution by the Roman Empire in the first few centuries after Christ, used the fish symbol to mark meeting places and tombs, or to distinguish friends from foes:

According to one ancient story, when a Christian met a stranger in the road, the Christian sometimes drew one arc of the simple fish outline in the dirt. If the stranger drew the other arc, both believers knew they were in good company. Current bumper-sticker and business-card uses of the fish hearken back to this practice.

I had a Jesus Fish on my car for a while, just as a testimony that I belong to Christ.  One day I parked my car in front of AC Moore and someone stole my fish!  Lol!  I guess they either were enraged by it, or maybe just kids being mean but you have to admit.... that's one thing you don't expect to be stolen!  Well I hope it's doing some good somewhere!  :)

Anyway... thinking about time flying by.... and thinking about Jesus' command to "Come follow me and I will make you fishers of men"... I am reminded that time is indeed short, and our entire lives fly by!  Even if we live an incredibly long life, humanly speaking, our days are still short!  It's important to keep eternity in view at all times, and to use our time wisely! 

Thanks for stopping by today and for taking the time to read my rambling thoughts!  I wish each of you a blessed New Year, filled with meaningful times.... meaningful days, meaningful moments! 

 Now if I can just remember to date my checks as Jan. 2015!!! LOL!