You Make My Heart Sing

I'm so glad that Melissa Phillips has started her Photo Inspiration Challenges.
She has posted her second challenge with this photo from A Creative Mint as the inspiration How wonderful it must be to compose and photograph such ordinary objects and create such beauty.


When I taught transcendentalism to my students, we would have great discussions of the Plato's idealism. We would have such wondeful talks explaining our ideal places versus what we experienced. I thought of those discussions when I saw this photo because this photograph is to me the ideal grandmother's catchall drawer. Bits and pieces of household items--buttons, thread, tags, twine, clothespins, scissors, and those keepsake letters with the beautiful manuscript. This is way that drawer would look; anything else is a pale reflection of that reality.

The colors and my bits and pieces came together in this card which is also for
this week's Crafty Secrets Challenge at SCS to use something old and something new on a card.
S

For the something "old", I chose the bird from the stamp set Fairyland, one of the first Crafty Secrets stamps I bought. The "new" includes the initial use of the crown stamp, the stamp kissing of the notes from Altered Art, the plaid paper, and the tag made with my Christmas Cricket Expression.

Thanks for stopping by,

Cammie

Supplies:

Stamps:Fairyland, Altered Art (Crafty Secrets), Bird Watching, Background Basics:Hearts (PTI)

Ink: Vintage Sepia (Versafine), Pure Poppy (PTI), Antique Linen (Ranger)

Paper: Rustic Cream, Vintage Cream, Kraft(PTI), Vintage Valentine(Fancy Pants)

Other: Pure Poppy Vintage Button(PTI), Spellbinders Classic Hearts and Scalloped Hearts Nestabilities, chipboard flourish (Making Memories), pearls

Hey There, CPS 151

It's a winter wonderland outside this morning. It began snowing yesterday afternoon and continued into the night with some rain and sleet mixed in, and although it isn't snowing now, more is forecasted for later today. So, I guess you know what I'll be doing today....STAMPING!!! Oh, and eating the red velvet cupcakes I baked yesterday. Well, I guess if I'm eating those cupcakes, I'll need to ride the exercise bike. Well, almost a perfect day. :)

Here is CPS sketch 151.

I pulled out Everday Button Bits again this week for this card.

Hey there again. I say again because as I was typing this post, the electricity went out around 8:00 a.m. I sat covered with my down coverlet by a window and read until it came on about 1 1/2 hour later. I didn't get internet service until noon.
Anyway, here is my CAS card.

I hope you get some stamping time this weekend.

Cammie

Supplies:

Stamps: Every Day Button Bits, Beyond Basic Borders (PTI)

Ink: Rich Cocoa (Memento); Berry Sorbet, Aqua Mist,

Paper:Berry Sorbet, Aqua Mist, Lemon Tart, Bitty Dot Basics (PTI)

Other: Berry Sorbet and Lemon Tart Vintage Buttons(PTI)

P is for Purple

This card is for both Flourishes Timeless Tuesday Challenge and Mojo Monday sketch 123.

This week's Flourishes Timeless Tuesday Challenge is hosted by Pat Adams who said,"For this week's challenge be inspired by the letter P. Sounds a bit crazy, but not really if you think about it for a bit. I'm thinking pink, pearls, poppies, purple, punches, and piercing. Do you get the picture? Sure you do so let's get moving and make those perfectly pretty and positively pleasing presentations."

So, here P is for purple.

Thanks for stopping by,

Cammie

Supplies:

Stamps: Sweet Violets(Flourishes); Petal Power, Tags for Spring(PTI); Fairyland(Crafty Secrets)

Ink: Rich Cocoa (Memento), Plum Pudding (PTI)

Paper: Stamper's Select White, Plum Pudding (PTI)

Other: Plum Pudding twill ribbon, Plum Pudding and Lavender Moon Vintage Buttons (PTI),

Cuttlebug, Prismacolor pencils

PTI Blog Hop and the Perfect Button

Yea! It's time for another Papertrey bloghop. I haven't participated in a few months, so it was fun to create a card for this month's blog hop. While I enjoy making a card for the hops, I have just as much fun visiting the blogs of all the participants, seeing all the amazing creations, being inspired, and adding even more PTI stamps to my wish list. :)

This month's challenge is to create the "whole package"--the outside, the inside, and the envelope of the card.



(You can click on photo for larger image)

I chose to use the floral image from Everyday Button Bits and use hearts as blossoms. I wanted to mix felt hearts with buttons. I cut the felt hearts with heart Nestabilities and my Cuttlebug. I had some heart buttons (a mix of red, pink, and white)that I bought last year, but the pink buttons were more Lavender Moon than Sweet Blush. You know you are a Papertrey Person when you view colors in terms of PTI colors.:) So I started looking through my Sweet Blush buttons for a heart, didn't see one, decided to mix heart buttons and round buttons when I glanced in the container and--there it was!---a sweet blush heart button!!! The perfect button!

For the background I chose four patterns--the top panel is the newly released Background Basics:Petal Power (great set!) stamped with Spring Rain ink on Spring Rain cs. The next panel is Sweet Blush cs stamped with Background Basics:Hearts in Pure Poppy. Third is Bitty Dot Basics in Pure Poppy punched with a Martha Stewart border punch. The bottom panel is Bitty Box Basics in Spring Rain.

For the inside I used a sentiment from Heart Prints . Then I inked only two of the stems which is not difficult with an ink cube. I used the heart from Limitless Labels for the blossoms. I left some room to write a note.


Now on the t0 back which only includes a stamp from Trademarks.

And finally the envelope. Again I inked part of the stamp from Everyday Button Bits and added the hearts from Limitless Labels and Heart Prints.

I think my sister will get this Valentine Card; she is worthy of that Sweet Blush heart button!

Enjoy your visits to the other blogs!

Cammie

Supplies:

Stamps: Everyday Buttons Bits, Heart Prints, Limitless Labels, Trademarks, Background Basics: Hearts, Background Basics:Petal Power (PTI)

Ink: New Leaf, Pure Poppy, Sweet Blush(PTI)

Paper: Stamper's Select White, Spring Rain, Sweet Blush, Pure Poppy, Bitty Dot Basics, Bitty Box Basics (PTI)

Other: Deckled Rectangles Nestabilities, Classic Heart Nestabilities(Spellbinders), Martha Stewart Border punch, Sweet Blush Vintage Buttons, Pure Poppy Vintage Buttons(PTI), red heart buttons (Hobby Lobby)

Thank you

Good Sunday afternoon. It's a rainy day here--a good day for staying in and doing some crafting.

Here is this week's Mojo Monday sketch:

And my card:


After stamping the leafy swirl, I added a felt flower I cut with a Cuttlebug die and a button. The patterned paper is some I recently bought at LSS. Sadly, my cat found a piece of the floral and curled up on it. The next card I make with it will be very vintage looking-- distressed and wrinkled.
Thanks for stopping by,
Cammie

Supplies:
Stamps: Turning a New Leaf, Tags for Spring-sentiment
Ink: Ripe Avocado(PTI), Rich Cocoa (Memento)
Paper: Vintage Valentine (Fancy Pants), Raspberry Fizz, Ripe Avocado, Vintage Cream (PTI)
Other: Spellbinders Nestabilities, Cuttlebug die, Ripe Avocado twill ribbon (PTI), button (Hobby Lobby)

Be Mine

For me, often the most time consuming part of creating a card is choosing a layout. There are so many possibilities; I have a hard time settling on one. So I decided I need to participate in more sketch challenges this year. That way I won't spend so much time choosing a layout. I can focus on stamps, papers, and embellishments. This card is based on CPS sketch 150. The inspiration for using bright yellow and red comes from a birthday card by Sherry Wright that uses this same stamp set, Sweet Bee by Cornish Heritage Farms, in the latest issue of Card Creations. Because this is such a linear design, I chose to place the heart at an angle. I attached the heart with foam dots.

If you've seen the latest issue of this magazine or visited the Paper Crafts website, you know the focus is on completing the inside of cards. Is it a coincidence that PTI introduced the first of their in and out stamp set this month? I don't think so. I often add a strip of coordinating paper, a small image, or stamped message along with a handwritten note. How do you finish the inside of your cards?



This stamp set is cling rubber, and I was having a terrible time getting the sentiment straight. After the first attempt had to be scrapped, I praticed stamping on lined paper, tryint to get the sentiment stamped straight. I stamped and stamped and stamped and stamped..... Finally, I gave up, took the original sentiment and cut it out, using a Spellbinders labels die. I inked the edges, and glued it on the panel after stamping the pussy willow image. Problem solved. I colored the pussy willows with a Copic marker E51 and lightened with the colorless blender. In the photo, they look the same as the cream paper, but in "real life" they are darker. I used Y15 for the bees . I decided I needed to add some red inside, so I added another honeycomb heart. And there is still some room to add a note for DH who will get this card for Valentine's Day and who will gush about how wonderful it is. :) Actually, he is very complimentary of my cards, but gushing praise...I don't think so.

Thanks for stopping by,
Cammie

Supplies:
Stamps:Sweet Bee(CHF)
Ink: Rich Cocoa (Memento), Pure Poppy (PTI)
Paper: Grandma's Christmas Soup(Jillibean); Vintage Cream, Summer Sunrise(PTI)

Other: Summer Sunrise grosgrain ribbon, Rustic Wooden buttons,cream twine (PTI),Copic markers

A Litte Something for the Fenwood Girls

Who are the Fenwood Girls? Three little girls who lived on the same street in, who played kickball, who learned to ride bikes and then rode to each other's houses (thanks to neighbors who let us ride through their yards), who played Beatles and Bonanza (married to three of the fabulous four and the Cartwright brothers), who climbed into the baby bed when one little sister was born, who walked to the library and the ice cream shop, who celebrated birthdays, who caught lightning bugs, who rode skateboards, who then went to high school together, who learned to drive, who had to have school supplies so they could take the car out and run around, who experienced first boyfriends, who experienced first loves and broken hearts, who graduated from high school and slowly began more separate lives, but who shared weddings, births of children, and deaths of parents. Three women who have known each other for 50 years.


Dawn and I became playmates when we were four or five, and a few years later Sherry, a year younger, joined, and the duo became a trio. Seven years later, Sherry's little sister, Mary Ann was born, so we often had a little tag along. We grew up together and have so many wonderful memories to share. Even though we still live in the same town, in fact on the same side of town, we only see one another about once a year. After our lives began to take us down separate paths, Dawn, Sherry, Mary, and I always got together before Christmas; then when children came along and the holidays became hectic, we met in January; for some reason, last year's gathering didn't take place, so we had two years to catch up on last Saturday. Needless, to say that was one long lunch. Major changes during the last two years included my retirement and the births of Dawn's and Sherry's granddaughters. How did we get from playing house to retirement and grandchildren? What a wonderful afternoon of catching up and warm friendship.

I made some notepads to give them --an explanation of some of what I've been doing since retirement. I used PTI's set Take Note with some Basic Grey Papers.











Cellophane bags (5x11.5x3),tags using a sentiment from Every Day Button Bits, and a little ribbon---and just a little something for the Fenwood girls.



Cammie

A Little Love

This card is for a couple of challenges. First, Flourishes is sponsoring a Feel the Love Challenge to coordinate with their release this week. Second, this week's Just Us Girls Challenge is to use stitching on your card.
The focal point from Flourishes Seasonal Wreaths set was colored with Copics. Speaking of Copics, I received a flier from local art store yesterday with a sale on Copics; oh no, Copics on sale and three of my favorite stamp companies having releases very soon! Ka-ching!
The sentiment stamped on the heart is from PTI's Mixed Messages--a real go-to-set. The
scallops, roses, and pink, of course, add to the romantic feel of this card.

Supplies:
Stamps: Seasonal Wreaths (Flourishes), Mixed Messages (PTI)
Ink: Rich Cocoa (Memento), Hibiscus Burst(PTI)
Paper: DP (My Mind's Eye), Hibiscus Burst, Stamper's Select White (PTI)
Other: Martha Stewart border punch, Scalloped Heart Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Hibiscus Burst Twill Ribbon (PTI),Copics

A Breath of Spring and Timeless Tuesday Challenge

Flourishes' Timeless Tuesday Challenge this week is to use yellow, black, and a color of your choice. With the frigid weather and snow flurries here, it was nice to think spring. I inked the large daffodil from the set Signs of Spring, one of the three Flourishes sets my sister gave me for Christmas. I colored the image with Prismacolor pencils and stitched on a strip of gingham paper, another nod to spring. While I like the silhouettes of the leafless trees, I look forward to an awakening spring and a little more color in Mother Nature.

Cammie

Supplies:

Stamps:Signs of Spring (Flourishes)

Ink:Tuxedo Black (Memento)

Paper: Lemon Tart, True Black, New Leaf (PTI), gingham (Paper Studio)

Other: Prismacolor pencils, New Leaf Vintage button(PTI), yellow buttons (Hobby Lobby)

Happy New Year!

Wishing you a most wonderful 2010. Isn't the first of the year wonderful? So full of promises, possibilities, and changes. New goals and challenges to meet. A testing of ourselves and our resolutions.

I've made a few cards to send to relatives using this wonderful image from The Graphics Fairy.

Have wonderful day, and let's get to work on those resolutions.
Cammie

Supplies:
Stamps: Polka Dot Basics (PTI)
Ink: Smoky Shadow (PTI)
Paper: Spring Rain, Scarlet Jewel, Soft Stone (PTI), 29th Street(My Mind's Eye)
Other: Fiskars border punch, ribbon, chipboard flourishes