Influenced by Susan’s Garden…

A few years ago, I was entertaining the notion of taking my A2 cardmaking to a different level and direction. It was then that I stumbled upon an article within the Chameleon Pen’s e-newsletter showing the outstanding paper flowers by Susan Tierney-Cockburn. Wow! So extremely impressive.

I searched Susan out on Facebook and You Tube and continue to be amazed by her talents. (What I first found interesting is that she only designs dies. It is up to you to give the flowers shape and life.) She is the reason I have challenged myself to study and create flowers.

Last October, Susan presented a project entitled Southern Magnolia, Y’all! That tutorial has intrigued me ever since. I have been collecting her dies for the last few years and realized last week that I actually had all the ones she used for that project…I just had to give it a go.

First, let me direct you to Susan’s original tutorial: https://stierneyc.wordpress.com/2017/10/. Impressive!

For the most part, I followed her technique. The only major changes I made were to use White Foamiran for the flower and Stickle’s Rose Gold for the berries.

I do wish Susan lived closer as I would be visiting her studio regularly. For now, I’ll have to settle for her weekly FB/YT classes. If you had trouble finding her site, go to Elizabeth Craft Designs and look under Susan’s Garden Spot.

Thank you for dropping in today. I’m really excited with my results, but mostly with the chance to express my admiration for a gifted lady and her love for flower creations.

May God Bless You and Yours.  

In Our Thoughts…

Welcome! Thank you for dropping by. The coffee pot is on, so pour a cup and relax for a few.

Today’s card was designed for a new friend and his family. We wanted them to know that our thoughts and prayers were with them during this difficult time in their lives.

Sympathy cards are the most difficult for me to create. Usually, I stay with a more traditional appearance.

As a rule, when a specialty cards is needed, Jim and I will talk about the style of cards we send. Since I did not feel comfortable with the results of my first, more traditional card, I asked Jim for help.  That was when he suggested that our new friend might appreciate one with my flowers.

Flower – White Foamiran die cut using the Sweet Peony die by Heartfelt Creations. The petals were accented with Gelato’s Pistachio.

Leaves – Light Green, Indian Batik papers from USArtQuest, cut with Sizzix’s Garden Greens die.

Top layer background – Green Felt like paper (source unknown)

Cardstock – Elizabeth Craft’s White Soft Finish.

Mandala Shaped laser cut chipboard (source unknown) painted with the Vintage Metallic Watercolor paints from USArtQuest.

Again, thank you for visiting today,

Till later,

May God Bless You, Everyone!

Friendship…

What a wonderful day and especially since you dropped by. Thank you. Why not pour a cup of coffee and relax for a moment?

During the past few weeks, I have been reflecting upon our many friends, especially those celebrating upcoming anniversaries. Each couple has a special place in our hearts. We love each one because of their own beautiful and unique characteristics. Got me thinking about friendship.

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Friendship, per Wikipedia … Although there are many forms of friendship, some of which may vary from place to place, certain characteristics are present in many types of such bonds. Such characteristics include kindness, love, virtue, sympathy, empathy, honesty, altruism, loyalty, mutual understanding and compassion, enjoyment of each other's company, trust, and the ability to be oneself, express one's feelings to others, and make mistakes without fear of judgment from the friend.

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Materials for today’s card:

Flower – Soft Peach Foamiran die cut using the Small Sweet Peony die by Heartfelt Creations. The petals were accented with Gelatos' Tangerine. For the centers, Lemon Chiffon Prills from USArtQuest.

Leaves – Light Green, Indian Batik papers from USArtQuest, cut with Sizzix’s Garden Greens die.

Top layer background – Green Felt like paper (source unknown)

Cardstock – Elizabeth Craft’s Pale Peach Soft Finish. (Outer side peach and inside is white.

Fan Shaped laser cut chipboard (source unknown) painted with the Vintage Metallic Watercolor paints from USArtQuest.

Double-sided tape and hot glue.

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Time to get back to my “card-room” and start another project.

Till later my friend,

May God Bless You and Yours

Across the Years and the Miles…

“If you make one, true, long-lasting friend in your life time, you are truly blessed.” My father gave me that advice as my best friend and her family were leaving North Carolina for Hawaii. Our fathers were Marines. At that time, we were 13 years old. During the next 60 years, we managed to stay in touch even-though there were sometimes hundreds or thousands of miles between us. I feel so blessed that today, we can pick-up the phone and still talk for hours.

This card is to celebrate her and her husband’s 49^th anniversary. Hope they have many more of these special occasions.

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The flowers are a pale peach Foamiran, blended with Mango by Gelato’s. The centers are Lemon Chiffon Prills. The Mandala is a laser-cut design found through 14 CraftBar and accented with several pearled watercolors. The leaves are die cut out of USArtQuest’s, Indian Batik Marble – Harvest Green.

It is always such a joy to create special cards for special people. This month, there are at least four more anniversaries and two birthdays (one being my husbands!). Guess I had better get off the computer and back to my “card room!”

Till next time,

May God Bless You and Yours

Materials:

Foamiran from Whimsy Stamps

Prills, watercolors and Harvest Green paper from USArtQuest

Laser-cut Mandala from 14 CraftBar

Dies - Unbranded

(T+Y) x 3…

Thank you for dropping by today. Here in Michigan, we finally have had some long-awaited rain. Our desert brown lawn actually has a little green showing. But wouldn’t you know, just as the drought started, our push mower/trimmer died! So later today, it’s lawn-mower shopping!

We all know people who go out of their way to do the “behind the scenes” jobs. The three cards presented here today are for all the extra cleaning and TLC given by three wonderful ladies in our church. We recently had a new custom kitchen made to replace our old, well used kitchen in the church building. These three ladies gave up their day to polish and make the kitchen (and assembly hall) shine. Wish there was another way to express our thanks for all they continue to do for our Christian family.

Since I love to surf the net for something different in card-making products, I discovered Flonz Crafts, a family owned supplier in New Zealand!  They carry a lot of fantastic vintage stamps which captivated my imagination. The three stamps I used for this project are from their Vintage Flowers Engravings / Large Sheet 8"x 10"collection. They are just the perfect size for an A2 note card.

I stamped the image with a Gunmetal ink and heat set with a fine clear embossing powder. Next, I finished adding my color using the delightful Chameleon Pens. These pens were a joy to use, and the finished coloring was what I had imagined.

Hope this project will encourage you to look into different areas for exciting and diverse stamp designs. There is so much out there, just have fun.

Till next time –

May God Bless You and Yours