DS92: Today Is A Gift

Thursday, March 7, 2013

It's been a really easy week at work and yet I'm still looking forward to the weekend...why is that?! I do have a couple of projects I'm looking forward to working on. Such as finishing off my daughter's AG doll bed. I've got to sew a cover to the mattress (foam), make a pillow and matching pillowcase. I have one side of the binding left to sew and the quilt will be done too. Oh, and I need to find some cheap eyelet lace so I can make a canopy for the bed. Then I also have a couple of small cross stitch projects I want to start and a beehive to paint! Not to mention Syd's first rock climbing class and an ice skating session with her school friends. If I get just one of each of those things done, I'll be happy! lol

Being that it's Thursday, I have a Deconstructed Sketch card to share with you!

 Jen's come up with a tag sketch for DS92 this week and I really enjoyed playing with a different base shape other than the normal A2 sized card! I used my Spellbinders Labels 8 Nestie to create my tag shape. Using it, I cut two panels - one from some designer paper from Simple Stories 'Fabulous' collection and another from kraft cardstock. I sewed the two pieces together so that they made for a stronger base rather than just one piece of cardstock. The orange panel was cut using the large scalloped oval Nesties and the sentiment panel was cut using a circle Nestie. Then I sponged the edges of that panel with Antique Linen and Tea Dye Distress Ink and ran my pattern piercing wheel around the edge of the panel to create the look of stitching.

Looking at the sketch below, the obvious thing would be to put the sentiment in the banner and have an image for the circle panel. I was feeling a little edgy last night and flipped things around a bit. I used some pattern paper for my banner and put my sentiment in the circle panel instead. Nothing wrong with switching things up a bit - it keeps you thinking outside the box! Instead of the heart element, I used a flower stamp from the same set that the sentiment is from, The Beary Best set from There She Goes. Then I added some buttons, ribbon and hemp twine for the finishing touches!

I hope you can play along with us this week! If you need more inspiration, just check out what the team came up with:

Amber Hight
Arielle Gordon
Cresta Woodruff
Dawn Easton
Donna Wardle
Jen Shults
Joni Wilson
Judy Rozema
Kadie Ensley
Lori Boyd
Sandra MacLean
Sheri Gilson
Tobi Crawford
Tracey Pickersgill

Thanks for stopping by today! I'll be back on Saturday morning with my mini quilt, but if I don't see you then, have a fabulous weekend!

{Supplies}

{Stamps} There She Goes 'The Beary Best'

{Papers} PTI Kraft Cardstock, Canson Manga Cardstock, PP - Simple Stories Fabulous collection

{Inks} StazOn 'Jet Black', Distress Inks 'Antique Linen and Tea Dye'

{Access} Twill Ribbon, Hemp Twine, PTI Button, Spellbinders Scalloped Oval, Labels 8 and Circle Nesties, There She Goes 'Just For You' Dies, Sponges, Dimensionals, Sewing

TSG197: Black Cardstock

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Hi everyone!

I hope you all had a lovely weekend. I came down with some stomach cramps on Saturday, so I pretty much laid around on the couch all day. But I was productive! I managed to hand sew the all the layers together of the mini quilt for my little girl's AG doll bed. Ad for the last few days, I've been hand stitching the binding on, so hopefully I'll have a finished product to share with you this Saturday! I don't know how you all do those big quilts! It would take me FOREVER to finish one! lol

Other than the quilt, I also managed to make a card for this week's There She Goes challenge #197 - which is to only use black cardstock for your layering. If you're anything like me, you probably gasped at the challenge! The idea of a totally black card freaked me out! So I decided to wait for a few of the other Trendsetters to post their cards before making mine! Hey! Just because I'm a trendsetter, doesn't mean I can't follow! LOL

So that's what I did. I waited and much to my relief, most of the girls used black to mat their layers, not exclusively! Phew! I can do that! Hahaha

I pulled out a set I haven't used yet...the Out Of This World set designed by Melyssa Connolly and whipped up this cute boy birthday card (because I need a few cards just for the guys!). I colored in the spaceship with my Going Gray (SU) reinker and adhered it to a panel that I sponged using SU's Buckaroo Blue and Distress Inks 'Broken China, Weathered Wood and Black Soot'. The sentiment is also from the Out Of This World set and it was stamped with Versamark Ink (once the sponged ink had dried), white embossing powder applied to it, then heat set. It made the sentiment pop, didn't it? The layout was perfect for this set too...it's this week's Retro Sketches Challenge #53.

There's still time to play along with us this week, so get your stamps out and get inkin'!


Thanks for popping in today!


{Supplies}
{Stamps} There She Goes 'Out Of This World'
{Papers} Bazzil Basics - Avalanche White, Black Cardstock, PP - Basic Grey's 'Oliver Collection'
{Inks} Stazon 'Jet Black', SU's Going Gray, Morning Marigold, Pumpkin Pie and Really Rust, Old Olive, Versamark Ink - Clear, Distress Inks 'Broken China, Weathered Wood, Black Soot'
{Access} PTI Buttons, Stampendous White Embossing Powder, Heat Gun, Sponges, Dimensionals

Life Grows Sweeter Everyday!

Saturday, March 2, 2013

I hope you're enjoying your Saturday morning! I thought I'd pop in and share a couple of cross stitches I did years and years ago...probably close to 20 years ago now...man, that went by fast!

I'm not sure who made these patterns because I can't seen to find the paperwork for them! I have all the other ones I did except these! So bizarre. I must have lent them out or something. I tried Googling it too but nothing came up. If anyone recognizes the pattern, I'd love to know who makes it and give credit where it's deserved.

I remember choosing this pattern because it was going to be a challenge...and it was! Lots of single stitches and outlining!

It's so pretty, isn't it?? All the sunflowers and bees are what attracted me to it in the first place! The finished size is about 8" x 19". I thought about framing it, but I've never seen a frame this size...I may have to make one for it. Actually, I've never wanted to hang it anywhere...until recently.

It's so appropriate that I'm sharing this piece with you all today because we're off to a local apiary this morning to buy....a bee hive!! Yes, we're going to try beekeeping this year! And I'm SOOOOOO excited! I've been reading up on it and we have our first bee keeping class in a couple of weeks. I have my bees ordered and they arrive April 8th....eek! If you'd told me 20 years ago that I'd be beekeeping in the USA, I'd have laughed at you! Who knew this is where my life would take me?!

You can see in this detail that I never got around to finishing the outlining of the leaves, sunflowers or bee in the third panel. (That little yellow speck above the sunflower is a bee! lol) Since I can't find the pattern, I'm going to have to figure out on my own which stitches the lines will follow. Hopefully it wont' be too difficult!

Next week I'll show you the matching garden angels that I finished around the same time!

 Have a great weekend everyone!

DS91: You Rock My World!

Thursday, February 28, 2013

Hey there!

By the time this post goes live, I'll be on my way to the airport to pick up my two favorite (and probably very sun burnt) people. My family is coming home today and as much as I've enjoyed the alone time, I'm glad they'll be back, safe and sound, home with me again. :)

In honor of their homecoming, I made a card for them!

This week's Deconstructed Sketch #91 is nothing short of AWESOME! I love how, some week's, Jen's sketches really challenge me. This was one of those weeks! I'm in my comfort zone if I can include a colored image on my cards, so this sketch really tested me, but I really do like to push myself every now and then. 

I kept everything pretty simple and let the papers do all the talking. The sentiment is a Hampton Arts stamp I picked up at Michaels a few years ago. I stamped it on some translucent paper and used a mix of October Afternoon, Sassafras Lass and MME papers to really bring this sketch to life.  The hearts are stickers (from Michaels) and I used a black button and a valentine brad to balance out the hearts. Each panel was sponged with Tea Dye and Vintage Photo Distress Ink.

Think you're up for the challenge?? I hope so! I love seeing your takes on the sketches each week.

Please check out what the rest of the Deconstructed Sketch girls have come up with and leave them some love:

Amber Hight
Arielle Gordon
Cresta Woodruff
Dawn Easton
Donna Wardle
Jen Shults
Joni Wilson
Judy Rozema
Kadie Ensley
Lori Boyd
Sandra MacLean
Sheri Gilson
Tobi Crawford
Tracey Pickersgill

Have a fabulous day everyone!

{Supplies}

{Stamps} Hampton Arts

{Papers} Black Cardstock, Translucent paper, PP - October Afternoon, MME and Sassafras Lass

{Inks} Versamark Ink, StazOn 'Jet Black', Distress Inks 'Antique Linen, Tea Dye and Vintage Photo'

{Access} Recollections Heart Stickers, Recollections Brads, PTI Button - Black, Sewing, Sponging, Dimensionals

TSG196: Case A Trendsetter!

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Happy Hump Day everyone!

This week's There She Goes challenge (TSG196) is to CASE a Trendsetter! The TSG team has had a ton of talented trendsetters over the years, so the hardest part for you all will be picking just one! :)

For me, there was one card from last week's release sneak peeks that really caught my eye - THIS CARD by the talented Danielle Lounds!

And this is my CASE of it...

What do you think?? I ADORED her layout, and that paper she used reminded me of this piece of October Afternoon's Fly A Kite collection that I've had sitting on my desk for ages now! I had be dying to use it again, and as soon as I saw Danielle's card, I knew I'd found my muse! :D To CASE a card you're supposed to change at least three things on your card, so I switched up the papers, the stamp (of course) and used banners instead of the Spellbinder nesties that Danielle used.

The sewing machine stamp is from the Cute As A Button set and I paper pieced it with some cute pink polka dot paper from the same OA collection. I've been sewing so much these past few days that it was the perfect set for me to use.

I hope you can join us this week!

Thanks for stopping in today!


{Supplies}
{Stamps} There She Goes 'Cute As A Button'
{Papers} Bazzil Basics - Vanilla, PTI Kraft Cardstock, PP - October Afternoon 'Fly A Kite' collection
{Inks} StazOn 'Jet Black', Regal Rose, Ruby Red
{Access} Hemp Twine, Pattern Makers Wheel, Sewing, Dimensionals

TMS187: You + Me And A Cup Of....Coffee?

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Howdy peeps! 

It's Tuesday so that means I have another Tuesday Morning Sketches card to share with you all! This week's one is REALLY EASY...so you have no excuse not to play! LMBO! (But seriously, no excuses, ok??) :)

    This week's challenge is being sponsored by....wait for it....Sweet 'n' Sassy Stamps! I bet you're excited to play now, right?? Yeah, I knew it. :) They have all kinds of rubber stamps and their line of digital stamps is CRAZY huge! I had a hard time deciding which image to play with, but in the end, I picked out the CUTE Cocoa Latte image!

Told you he was cute! lol I paired him with some sentiments from the Perk Up! set by There She Goes. Cocoa Latte was colored with my SU reinkers (Creamy Caramel for his body, Going Gray on the mug, with Morning Marigold on the detail and Sahara Sand on the sleeve) and my trusty aquapainter brush. Then I cut him out and mounted him to a panel that was sponged with Antique Linen, Tea Dye and Vintage Photo Distress Inks (also sewed to some cardstock matting). I used a honeycomb embossing plate on the wood grain designer paper and sponged the edges of it with Walnut Stain Distress Ink. Then I mounted it to some Bazzil Basics cardstock and stitched them together. The middle panel was cut from some scrap paper from October Afternoon's 'Fly A Kite' collection, sponged with Antique Linen and Tea Dye, then stitched to some cardstock. That swirly detail on the sketch; I don't know if it's supposed to be an element, but I used it as an excuse to add some ribbon, a button and some twine to my card! Hey - when in doubt; go ahead and do it! lol

This is actually my final card as Tuesday Morning Sketches guest designer this month. I've had A TON of fun with the sketches and I'm so glad there's a sketch challenge blog like this one still going strong after so many years! Keep up the great work Melissa and the girls!!

If you need more inspiration for this sketch, check out what the TMS girls have come up with!

Angela
Bonnie
Cheryl
Dawn
Debbie
Jenee
Jessi
Laura
Theresa
Melissa

Thanks for popping in today!


{Supplies}
{Stamps} Sweet 'n' Sassy's 'Cocoa's Latte' and There She Goes 'Perk Up!'
{Papers} Bazzil Basics - Bitter Chocolate and Latte, Canson Manga Cardstock, PP - Woodgrain paper (Unknown) and October Afternoon's 'Fly A Kite'
{Inks} StazOn 'Jet Black', SU's Creamy Caramel, Morning Marigold, Sahara Sand, Going Gray, Distress Inks 'Antique Linen, Tea Dye, Vintage Photo and Walnut Stain'
{Access} Spellbinders Oval Nestie, Fiskars Decorative Scissors, Seam Binding, PTI Button, Jute Twine, Sewing and Dimensionals

Weekend Ramblings and a Cross Stitch

Monday, February 25, 2013

Hi everyone!

Hope you had a lovely weekend! As much as my husband hates to hear it, I had a great weekend! lol Him and the kiddo are sunning it up in Florida (which isn't  bad way to spend your pre-spring vacation) and I'm at home looking after the 4-legged family members. On Saturday, I woke up on my own free will, ate breakfast while reading the online news at my leisure. Then I headed out to run some errands and to take my first Pump It! class at the YMCA. Holy cow am I (still) sore today! We did some weight training and cardio work and my arm muscles feel bruised! lol  Then in the evening, I made a couple of cards.

I also started cutting up some fabric for a mini quilt that I'm making my my little girl's American Girl doll bed. We found an old canopy bed at an antique store a month ago, and I thought a cute little quilt would look so darling on it! I should have the pattern done by the end of the week, so I'll share it with you then.

Remember how I said I had stayed up into the wee hours of the mornings working on a cross stitch I had just picked up? A few of you had asked to see it when I was done, so here it is!

Isn't it cute?! The design is by Little House Needleworks and it's the first in a 12 month series of sheep-themed ornaments that I am IN LOVE witth! I'm planning on finishing them just like the company suggests, so I can hang them on my Christmas tree this year. I've already ordered February's pattern and can't WAIT to get my hands on it! I suspect I'll have a few more late nights in my future! lol

Because I'm the gluten for punishment that I am, I went back to the YMCA yesterday to take my first every yoga class! But unfortunately they had already started before I got there, so I did some treadmill work instead and burned 400 calories too! Woohoo! I'm not sure what's gotten into me because I also signed myself up for a spinning class this morning!! At 5:45am!! I think all this free time has gone to my head! lol Hopefully I'm not too sore tomorrow....what was I thinking?! 

I'll be back tomorrow with another Tuesday Morning Sketch card, so I hope you can pop in again then!

Take care!

Sandra