Apothecary Art

Well it's almost here. Labor day is just around the corner. In protest I plan to wear white well into September. I know, I am such a rebel. Anyway I really can't believe August is almost over. I am beginning to think I need to live somewhere that doesn't have snow. I don't mind the cold as much as I miss all the summer colors in the dead of winter. I love color and the white just doesn't cut it for me for the length of time we have it. And as I type, there is a hummingbird right outside my window at some phlox. She even came closer to the window to take a peek inside. If that isn't a reason to love summer.

So onto color. Today's card is all Stampin' Up. The colors are Soft Suede, Poppy Parade and Baja Breeze (in the picture the Baja Breeze looks more like a light blue- sorry about that). I used the new die cuts called Labels Collection Framelits. They are much like the Spellbinders but you can't emboss an edge with the framelits. The stamp set- Apothecary Art, was designed to fit these framelits. Way to go Stampin' Up for offering these! The butterfly is from the set Creative Elements and the seam binding is Baja Breeze. The DS paper is also from SU but I can't remember the name. I got it during celebration this past year.



Even though I complain about winter, I do tend to spend more time in my stamping studio during the winter months. I guess that is my creative time of year. On a beautiful summer day I love being outside too much to be inside crafting. I am getting antsy though to do some more altered art. I have been hording away all kinds of little do-dads. We will see what fall brings.

 

~Have fun and enjoy!

Mon Amie

Today's card is out of the box for me in regards to color. These aren't two colors that I would normally put together but it worked. I used a color from SU which is no longer available but I still had a good stash of it. It is called Groovy Guava. The embossing folder is from Darice called Journal Flourish and I used it upside down- or maybe not. Who is to say which is the right way. Anyway, I used Spellbinders Label 10 and Fancy Tags 2. The sentiment Fancy Phrases and the Label 10 border is from Waltzingmouse Stamps. She has quite a few borders for several of the Spellbinders Labels. You can check her out by simply clicking the hyperlink. It will take you right to her online store.

I added a row of laced rosettes to the bottom. This was a great find in the clearance isle at Hobby Lobby although I had to buy the entire bolt. I also added a few black pearls.

The weather has cooled down a bit here in Michigan. I am sure there aren't too many people complaining as we have had an abnormally hot summer. We started working on a path from the driveway around to the back patio. I wanted something informal as you walk past the gardens so I went with an irregular stone that is meant to interlock but I am putting a one inch gap between them. It's not a very wide path, in fact it is only 36 inches. Just enough to lure you back but not enough to obstruct the lawn. Hopefully one day there will be moss between the stones. I had seen on an episode on Martha Stewart where she used yogurt to get moss to start growing on pots to make them look old. I might just have to paint the edges of the stones with the yogurt. First we have to finish laying the stones so I better get out there and start working.

~ Have fun and enjoy!

Create Kindness

I know it has been awhile since I have posted- sorry to dissapoint all of you that follow my blog. I wish I could say that I would get better at posting more often but life isn't always as we plan. I have noticed that my stamping mojo has taken a leave of absence again. When life seems to get chaotic; stamping takes a back seat as it should. Again we play the waiting game with my son's treatment. He has finished his radiation treatments but the radiation will continue to work for the next two weeks. I wish I could tell the radiation that there would be an extra bonus in it if it worked even harder. I wonder- would a mother's relief count as a bonus? Again it is one of life's challenges that is out of my hands and into another's higher than myself.

I know my love of stamping has slipped away when I didn't feel the excitement of beint at a stamping convention in Novi, MI. Nevertheless, I enjoyed a day with the grils and spending some money on new stuff. I had told myself before we left that I really didn't need anymore stamps, but guess what I came home with? You guessed it- more stamps. I was pretty proud of myself for having some restraint. When I found something that caught my fancy, I asked myself - do I already have something similar at home, and most of the time the answer was yes. So back on the vendor's shelf it went. Mind you, I did come home with a sizable bundle. I'd like to call it my therapy session (probably cost me the same).



Today's card is using a couple of Stampin' Up (SU) stamps. The three sets I used are Kindness Matters, Charming and Creative Elements. The image of the woman is from Hero Arts called Smart Style. It is just a collage of layered papers. The large scallop in the back is from an old dictionary. The woman was stamped in artprint brown and then I used SU Designer Frames Folder and cut around it. I dyed the flowers to match with a Ranger ink pad some water on a paint brush. I also brushed some ink on the lace to give it a vintage look. Here is a hint: A strong mixture of iced tea or instant coffee is also a great way to create that vintage look on your embellishments. Just dip your lace or flowers in it and then let them dry.

I was planning on sitting outside in the sun today with a good book. I am reading a collection of love letters and poems from an 1800 poet and theologist by the name of Francis Ellingwood Abbot. Boy they sure don't make men like that anymore. It looks like it is going to be cloudy most of the day, so maybe I can try to get back in the swing of things with my new stamping goodies. My DH has been gone all week camping in the rustic UP with no electricity or running water (not my idea of a vacation). He even took the dog with him, so I have had a clean house to myself- now that's a vacation!

~Have fun and enjoy!


No, it's not a snowflake

 

I hope you are enjoying your summer as it is slipping by quickly. We have had some much needed rain here in Michigan and some fabulous thunder storms. The flowers are so large and vibrant and I think the insects are just as much.

Don't let the name of the die cut scare you. Winter is still 5 months away. I used the Sizzix die called Snowflake #4. This die also came with an embossing folder. I have to say though that once I cut out the snowflake, it was a little tough getting it to match up in the folder. The circles at each peak are to help you line it up, but that is where I found they didn't quite match. It was no big deal, it just causes a bit more of an edge around some of the scallops.

I used this die not even thinking of it as a snowflake and it made a nice card for any season. I used the Framed Tulips embossing folder from SU. The sentiment was punched out with SU Modern Label punch and is layered onto a Spellbinders Fancy Tag. You can see a close look at the die cut below. The embossing folder created some very nice deep impressions.



All is quiet on the home front. My son has two more weeks of radiation and has been going through it fine except for a bout of pneumonia. At least he was able to hold still for the treatments. If not they would have had to stop the treatments which wouldn't have been optimal for his treatment.

This weekend is a free weekend with no exact plans. Those are the best when you can do whatever you want, when you want. It is also supposed to be a nice sunny weekend in the low 80's which is perfect. I am looking forward to a lazy fun weekend.

~have fun and enjoy!



Anna & Lara

I don't know how I did it, but I managed to get some great pictures of my new nieces. They are 8 weeks old and 7 lbs in these pictures. Even though they are newborn size, they are picking up their heads like pros. My sister-n-law decided not to go away to a wedding as planned and she wasn't that crazy about me doing a photo shoot. I didn't get to pose them they way I had envisioned. Mama wasn't going for it and the girls really don't like to be on their tummies. Anna slept through it all, even the headband changes. Lara on the other hand was not having it. She did end up falling asleep for a couple of pictures.

I have to say they are the most precious babies I have seen, and to know what transpired prior to them being here is nothing short of a miracle. Our family is truly blessed. They are so identical that you really can't tell them apart. They are put in different color outfits so they know which is which. For the photo shoot, we had them in the same outfits, so my brother put a big "L" on Lara's diaper so we could tell them apart.

On the drive home every now and then I swore I could smell them. It brought a smile to my face when I thought of them. I don't think my brother and sister-n-law got to hold them hardly at all during the day while we were there. It was so nice to have two of them so we didn't have to fight over holding a baby. Just pure joy in a very tiny package.

~have fun and enjoy!

Music Birds

Not a lot to share today except this card. I have been spending time with my daughter and getting ready to head over to see the new twins. We had to fit in a bit of shopping of course so we didn't show up empty handed. I don't think these girls are ever going to wear an outfit more than twice. But at least we had a ball shopping for them.

Today's card is using an unmounted stamp from Magenta's Crafty Individuals which doesn't seem to have a name on the package. Oh well, let's just call it Music Birds.  I used a MS edge punch called Vintage Floral. For the life of me I could not find the name of the designer paper. If anyone really needs to know, send me an email and I will do some more hunting.

I stamped the image in Momento brown on ivory card stock. The sentiment was layered with the Stampin' Up (SU) Modern Label. I finished it off with some teal seam binding. I thought by turning the image slightly on an angle it gave the card more depth.





I really love the robin's egg blue and brown together. In fact these are the colors I changed out master bedroom to this winter. It was quite easy to find a comforter as these colors seem to be very popular.

I hope you all have a good week. We have really been in a heat wave here in southeastern Michigan but it supposed to cool down a bit this coming week. I noticed we have been even warmer than Florida. Go figure.

~Have fun and enjoy!

Tea Time

 Every now and then you just need to take some time to slow down. We don't always hear what life is trying to tell us when the outside noise is too loud. If there is one thing I have learned, it is to sit quietly when life seems to be unraveling and just listen. Listen to what your heart and that little inner voice is saying. Things seem to fall into place and we realize that worrying over something we have no controll over is pointless. So make some tea and listen.

Today's card is using the SU set Tea Shoppe. I used Baja Breeze card stock and seam binding and Pear Pizzazz ink. The embossing folder which created the frame is also from SU called Framed Tulips. I did have to cut out the teacup by hand but it wasn't that hard. The designer paper i used is no longer available from SU but I am sure there is something in your stash that would work just as nicely. I added a few rhinestones to the center of the flowers on the cup and a few on the tag. Did you notice how I offset the bows to each side of the card. It balanced the card without taking away from the teacup. You can see a closer image of the teacup below.

Working out in the garden and relaxing in the sun is my agenda for today. I do need to help the DH with the bathroom fan in the spare bedroom which used to be my stamping room. The fan in that bathroom has always been really loud. Since my daughter will be home and staying in that room, I figured it was about time we make some repairs. I know she will be very happy to have this room and her own full bathroom. The guest room had a Jack-n-Jill bathroom that was shared with our youngest son's room. Neatness is not one of his atributes so I was always reminding him that he would be sharing his bathroom and to please pick up. I am looking forward to a quiet weekend and hope the same for you. I see next weekend as the holiday not this one.

~Have fun and enjoy!