Friends of Waltzingmouse Stamps Blog Waltz

I am happy to be a part of this month's Christmas- themed Waltzingmouse Stamps blog waltz. You can find the list of participants in a thread by visisting the forum here.

I LOVE the  gorgeous typography and wonderful sentiments in Seasonal Remedies. Envisioning these labels on old grain sacks,  I decided to make some little rustic gift bags.

 First, I stitched some burlap bags that measure 4x5 and ran some jute twine through the casing. Next I cut some muslin squares and stitched around the edges with red thread; the frayed edges add to the rusticity--ok, so I just made up a word. Then I stamped the image with red dye ink. I attached the stamped muslin squares to the burlap bags with 1/8 inch score taped placed beneath the stitching--easy peasy.

Felt holly and berries along with rusty bells add a little more Christmas cheer. Now these little homespun bags are ready to be filled with a glassine bag of homebaked cookies, hot chocolate packets, a gift card, or even sparkling jewels :).


Supplies:
Stamps:Seasonal Remedies (Waltzingmouse Stamps)
Ink: Jenny Bowlin Chili Powder (Ranger)
Other: Simply Chartreuse and Pure Poppy felt, Holly Jolly die (PTI)

WMSC 71--Nordic Winter

Oh what a happy day last week when my package from Waltzingmouse Stamps arrived with  three new Christmas stamp sets.! I loved Claire's latest release with such fun, festive designs and beautiful typography!

When I saw this sketch,  I knew I had to inaugurate Nordic Winter.

A peak inside. The sentiment is from Compliments of the Season.

The most difficult part of making this card was cutting off some the stamped patterned paper to make it the right size.  The large piece was so pretty, but since it is so easy to line up these stamps, I can easily make some more, and trust me I will. I have some white gift bags that will be Nordic Winterized. :)



Supplies:
Stamps: Nordic Winter, Compliments of the Season (Waltzingmouse Stamps)
Ink: Pure Poppy, Aqua Mist(PTI)
Paper: Pure Poppy, Aqua Mist (PTI), white glittered paper (The Paper Studio)
Other: snowflake die (Spellbinders), circle punches,  gingham ribbon (Michael's craft store)

Halloween Flourish

With Halloween just a few days away, I'm enjoying stamping with my Crafty Secrets Halloween stamps before putting them aside for another year.

The card base is Orange Zest (PTI) . The orange patterned paper is printed from Crafty Secrets Vintage Patterns CD. I love all the fabulous vintage patterns included in this cd. The purple patterned paper is Paper Studio.
The image of the couple dancing with flourish from Costume Cuties (Crafty Secrets) was colored with these Copics.

Of course, after coloring the image, I did a little aging with Antique Linen Distress ink before mounting the focal point a Vintage Cream doily cut with PTIs doily die.  A glittery flourish, cut  from Paper Studio glitter paper with the MFT flourish die, and a rhinestone brad are nice juxtaposition to the simple black and white baker's twine.

I'm linking this to these challenges
The Shabby Tea Room challenge #85 --use a Halloween theme with the colors purple, orange, black,and a neutral along with twine or raffia
Wee Memories Challenge #74--"Buttons, Brads, or Bows"

Enjoying Autumn's Splendor? FTTC 141

We've been taking advantage of the beautiful mild fall days by hiking in the Smoky Mountains; this past Monday we decided to hike to Charlie's Bunion, a trail that begins at Newfound Gap which is at a higher elevation and at the border between Tennessee and North Carolina . We knew that  this section of the Appalachian Trail would be past prime colors, but we didn't expect to see this

Yes, there were several snowy patches along the trail. We  managed to misjudge the temperatures. Luckily, I had thrown a couple of  hoodies in the car. I usually take off my top layer after about 15 minutes; it doesn't take  much physical activity to turn up my thermostat. So DH knew it was cool  cold when I didn't remove my hoodie which was the top of  three layers. Nor did I remove my adorable hat for a picture at the summit, well ,almost summit.  I chose not to scramble up those rocks to my left.

Here is Ed at the summit;

Here in the valley, the fall colors are at their peak, and our woods are beautiful now while our lawn is quickly being blanketed in fallen leaves.

Flourishes Timeless Tuesday Challenge 141 is timely. The challenge  hosted by Makiko is to use a tree/leaf element.

I used PTIs woodgrain impression plate and Distress Ink in Old Paper for the side panel. The leaf, stamped in  Red Brick Versmagic Chalk Ink, and the acorns, stamped in Memento Rich Cocoa, are from Flourishes Falling Leaves . The sentiment is from Flourishes Sweet Violets.

Have a great weekend .

Papertrey October Blog Hop Challenge

It's great to be a part of this month's PTI blog hop. In case you're not coming from the hop, you'll want to check it out by visiting Nichole Heady's blog  for the list of participants who are using this inspiration photo from  Retro Mama for this month's hop.

Here's my card and an explanation of the  four elements from the inspiration photo that I included and the PTI products I used.

!. Pumpkin--Fall Elegance stamp set
2. Acorns-- the narrow strip of patterned paper was made by stamping the acorn and leaf stamp from Mat Stack 1 in Spring Moss Pigment Ink (My PTI package with the new inks arrived the day after I made my card.) Remember you can click on image for a larger view.
3. Polka dots-Spring Moss paper from Pretty Pastels paper pad
4. Flourishes- I stamped the small flourishes  from Embellishments in Spring Moss after stamping and masking the pumpkin. The larger flourishes behind the seed packet are die cut from SM cs and stamped with SM ink.

I used these elements with Garden Variety stamp set. The seed packet was cut from paper printed from Crafty Secrets Vintage CD. I attached the round closure with dimensional tape and added the twine to hint at a twine closure for the seed packet. I used the seed packet frame die, button card die and Rustic Cream cs for the front panel of the seed packet. I colored the strip with a Copic. The sentiment is from Gratitude Journal. After using a 1-inch punch to cut it out, I topped it with a clear epoxy sticker. The final embellishments include cream seam binding ribbon and some Making Memories flowers.

This card is for all the participants in this hop. I am grateful for the wonderful creative inspiration each of you share.

Timeless Tuesday Challenge 140

Flourishes Timeless Tuesday Challenge is to make a Halloween card or project. While it's not a requirement to use Flourishes stamps, I always like to use a company's stamps in its challenges; however, I don't have a Flourishes Halloween stamp, so for me the challenge was to combine Flourishes stamps with  the Halloween stamps I do own.   I used the seed packet from Flourishes Seeds of Friendship and gave it a Halloween twist

I also used Flourishes Fanciful Flourishes and Lace Edges along with Crafty Secrets Costume Cuties and Halloween and PTIs Polka Dots 1.  I colored the image with Copics and added some stars and buttons punched from glittery paper.

Cute as a Button

Cute as a button? Where did that saying come from? What does it mean? ---something is round and shiny?  I've never really thought of many buttons as being cute.  However, I suppose if something can be compared to a cute button, it is this little girl decked out for Halloween.

I love those little Halloween black cats.
Thanks for stopping by,

Supplies:
Stamps: Costume Cuties, Halloween(Crafty Secrets); Button Boutique, Bitty Background Blocks (PTI)
Ink: Memento London Fog(Tsukineko), Berry Sorbet(PTI)
Paper: Rustic Cream, Melon Berry, 2008 Bitty Box Basics
Other: Button Card die, Parisian Doily die, Melon Berry Vintage Buttons (PTI); Label die (Spellbinders); corner rounder; seam binding