A Busy Season for Card Giving

This is a very busy season for cards. I shared a wedding card with you last week but that's just one card you might need in the next few weeks. Today I have a masculine graduation card to share. The feminine grad card will be coming soon.

I made this card for our nephew who is graduating from College!! Good job Peter, woot, woot!! 

The sentiment is from Our Daily Bread. The paper on the top half of the card is from Creative Memories. I think the bottom paper is from teh Paper Loft (I'd have to make Daisy, my protector, move to verify and she is sleeping so soundly :).

This is an anniversary card I made for friends. It stands to reason that if there's lots of weddings in June, there are going to be lots of anniversaries too. T'he paper is from My Mind's Eye, I think (again the dog's in the way!). The sentiment is from Inkadinkado and the flower is made from the same ribbon used underneath the sentiment. It's from Michaels.

 

I made this card for a masculine birthday. The paper used here IS from the Paper Loft. The brads are from Tim Holtz.

Finally, here is the dear one. She doesn't do much cardmaking but she does keep me company especially when we should be outside taking our walk. If you'd like to stay in touch, follow me!!

Off we go!

Blessings,
Lorelei

Cards to Share: Wedding, Baby and Military, oh MY!

June is the month for weddings and as the summer months approach, you might have a wedding or two to attend and this card is pretty fun and easy to make.  I stamped a swirl from Autumn Leaves with Sticky Stuff by Judikins and heated it just slightly (until it becomes shiny) then I sprinkled a bit of ultra-fine white glitter and heated it again. This seals the glitter into the Sticky Stuff  better than glitter glue. Then I added some ribbon, a Prima flower, misted with Tattered Angels, Olive Vine, and 2 stick pins from Maya Road. Easy peasy!

We had a wee, small baby, born into the extended family this month. He weighed 3 pounds 8 ounces! He was supposed to join us right around our Texas trip in June, but we must welcome him a bit earlier with this card. The stamp is from Inkadinkado. I used regular watercolor paints from Crayola to paint him! This is my favorite way to apply color. It is so quick and easy. The sentiment is from Whipper Snapper Designs and the heart was a random stamp. The background is embossed with a Sizzix folder called Beaded Ribbons.

This is the card I sent to Chris as encouragement while he serves our country in the Navy. He's been sharing the cards I send him with his "peoples" which means I have to send more!! Don't you know I just LOVE IT?? The stamped sentiment is over an anchor stamped very lightly in Antique Linen Distress Ink. These stamps are from Our Daily Bread (which I am fast becoming a shareholder in). The background map paper is something I got free at CKC and the anchor strip is from Stampin' Up.

I hope the sunshine finds you doing what you most love to do. I'll be making cards :).

Blessings,
Lorelei

Wow Has it Really Been This Long?

Clearly I have been up to something, but what, you ask?  I am really enjoying the added bonus of challenging myself  to read books I've had on my shelf or have wanted to read. I am averaging 3 a month which isn't fantastic but it's more than I thought I could read. Since I've been away from blogging, I enjoyed Easter with one of my boys (the other is in the Navy) and my mom and husband. I've been excerising more and reading about the Paleo Diet, thanks to my friend, Brenda. I spent some prescious time with Peggy and Mel, making cards and a Button Farm album kit and shopping with Laura. Oh yeah, and making cards :).

I made this sympathy card a bit more cheerful and hopeful than most. I used My Minds Eye "Be Amazed" paper, which is a huge favorite of mine! The oval die is from Spellbinders. The pearl swirl is by Zva and the sentiment is by Stampin' Up.

This is a pretty card and easy to make. I used book text for the background. The poppy stamp is from Hero Arts. I colored the poppies with Distress Markers from Ranger and distressed the image with Antique Linen Distress Ink also from Ranger. The scripture sentiment is from Stamp Camp.

This is a pretty, very feminine card that could also be used for Mother's Day by changing the sentiment. The paper is by Crate Paper, the die is from Spellbinders.  Improvise on the rest and you'll have a beautiful card also.

Thanks for looking at my creations today. I'm sorry it has taken so long to share my passion for all things paper with you!

Blessings,

Lorelei

Books I've Read for April (A little late I know)

I read some great books in April!

I continued the series by Debbie Macomber and read 74 Seaside Avenue. It is the ongoing story of the folks who live in Cedar Cove, Washington. This book was even better than her last one! There was a great twist at the end and then the tease for her next book. I like this series because the books are simple, the plot keeps me turing the pages and I don't get tired of cheesiness. I look forward to reading the next one! I read this book for the Finish the Series challenge.

One Good Dog by Susan Wilson was a great book! I would highly recommend it to you. It is a book about healing and finding what's most important in life--money or peace and the well-being that comes when you leave your selfish tendencies and help others.  The dog (yes, another dog read) has to learn to trust and love humans.

The Mermaid Chair by Sue Monk Kidd was an unusual book which got me somewhat wound up about the characters and would they do the right thing. It has a tilt toward The Thornbirds but there are other twists and turns that make it different enough. The main character learns the truths about her childhood which causes her to think about how she views herself and the choice she must make for love. The setting for the book is on an island outside of Charleston, SC.  I read this book for the Southern Lit. challenge.

I forgot to tell you that I read the Hunger Games in March!! Yes, it was a great book. I haven't seen the movie yet, but I want to. You have probably heard that Katniss has volunteered before the Council to take her sister's place in a game that is played and broadcast on TV every year. The game is to be the last one standing by surviving other kids that have been chosen to represent their district. I know it sounds grim, but it is a great story of love and survival.

6 Rainier Drive made me smile!!

I gave this book 4/5!

This book was even better than her last one! (50 Harbor Street). 6 Rainier is Book #6 in Debbie Macomber's Cedar Cove Series. There was a great twist at the end of this book and then the tease for her next book. I like this series because the books are easy reads, the plot keeps me turning the pages and I don't get tired of cheesiness and over dramatization.The books are about folks that live in Cedar Cove, Washington. It coves their lives as they face tragedy, family difficulties and family triumph. I look forward to reading the next one!

I recommended this series to my mom and I'm afraid she's going to pass me up! They are addicting!

I hope you have a good book that you can't put down and many more on the shelf!

Blessings.
Lorelei

Creative Chemistry!! Day 5 (Still Hangin in There!)

These are the tags for Day 5. I made a card using the first technique which is a resist technique.

All of the stamps used on this card are from Hero Arts. I changed up the technique and instead of using Kraft Resist paper which are beautiful, I just didn't have any, I used water color and stamped my own resist. The Ranger Distress Stains are used to make the background.

The third tag was a technique that created the marbled background. I love the look and want to make a card using this because it's so much fun seeing what your going to get when you turn your paper over! Did I mention I love Tim Holtz!! He is a rockstar in my book.

Back to the class!

Blessings,

Lorelei

Creative Chemistry!! Day 4 and Lovin' It

This is another technique that I'll do again and again. The technique is water coloring with Distress products. The stamp I used is from Magenta. The background white stamp is from Rubber Stamp Avenue, a local stamp maker her in Southern Oregon. Coloring is so calming and even though I have MUCH to learn about shading and the rest, I enjoy it so much.

 The tags I did for the day are on the right. The card I made used the second technique we learned today.  The stencil I used came from Tatterd Angels. You can find out how to do these techniques by taking Tim's class.  Adding the words in the different areas was based on the feeling that came to me when I saw the design.  The words are from Technique Tuesday. Thinking of You is from Hero Arts. There is only good when you send someone an uplifting card (especially when you have a teenager in College!).

Please consider following this blog if you like what you see. There is always something new to share.

Blessings on your day,

Lorelei

Creative Chemistry Day 3 (I'm just a little behind)

This was such a fun card to make because we used Alcohol Inks, one of my all time favorite Ranger products. Don't forget to always use glossy cardstock when you are using these inks otherwise the ink does not move on the surface creating this wonderful marbled look. The stamps I used are a special edition of stamps by Unity Stamps and it is called Brave Girl. I love the uplifting message of the card. The background music stamp is from Hero Arts. The embellishments are from Ranger.

These are all of the tags I made for Day 3. The first one is alcohol inks like the card above. The second tag is Adirondak paint dauber resist (it was supposed to be archival inks in different which I don't have yet). The technique is to stamp the background with a resist technique. I made a card for this also which I'll show in a minute. I love this look and would definitely do this again and again! The last tag for the day was doing a reverse stamp in an embossing folder. I don't have have an embossing folder that showed the technique tool well, but I love the Happy Birthday embossing folder from Cuttlebug.

I added some dimension to this card by popping up the banner which is from the My Mind's Eye "Be Amazing" stamp set. The stamps that make up the background, which are a bit hard to see, are both from Hero Arts. The rest of the stamps are from Ranger. "Live" is a Technique Tuesday stamp and "today" is from the My Mind's Eye stamp set.

I hope you are inspired to do some creating today!

Blessings for the day,

Lorelei

Creative Chemistry!! Day Two (Day 1 was informational)

Greetings!  I'm taking an on-line class from the fabulous, awesome, super talented, none other than,
t!m Holtz!!  Some of you know that he is my all time FAVORITE celebrity in this wonderful craft. I rarely ever make a card that doesn't have some form of his product on it. So I might just have been the FIRST one to sign up for the class. And oh baby is it FABULOUS.

The class is called Creative Chemistry and I am loving the way he teaches this class so thoroughly. I am learning lots in just the first 2 days and I've been working with his products since 2007!! How does that happen, you ask?  His class is just that wonderful and complete. And there's still time to sign up just check out his blog timholtz.com.

So with that tremendous introduction ,and without further ado, here are my cards from Day One:

This card was made with the Spritz and Flick tecnique. We used Distress Ink and water! Yep, that's it.

This card was made using the Wrinkle Free Distress technique.

 This is another card using the Wrinkle Free Distress technique.

There is one more technique that I am not going to show today, due to time constraints, Survivor's on tonight, and I've got to make dinner (almost like having to do homework, oh wait! It is homework!)

The following was added on March 29, 2012.

These are my tags for the 2nd day of class. The card for tag #2 will be shown in a later post. I love the technique used for this tag. The stamp I used is from Hero Arts.

Blessings on your day,

Lorelei

Stamp it 3 Ways!!

I have been intrigued by the idea of getting different looks and styles from the same stamp. I've seen this concept on Two Peas and some other sites I browse through.

So when my friend, Debbie said she wanted to learn more about cardmaking, I pulled out one of my favorite stamps by Hero Arts and made two quick cards showing my friend some of the reasons I think you should have a healthy supply of Ranger Distress Ink pads in lots of colors (wink, wink).

This is the first card I showed her. The stamp is Exotic Bloom. We stamped it onto watercolor paper with Versamark ink and heat embossed with Verdigris Antiquities by none other than Ranger! This is my favorite embossing powder but as you can see you can't use it on everything, but when the oppotunity presents itself....Seize it!! The little tag on the right is a Stampin' Up stamp that says HB. I stamped over my embossed images with Antique Linen Distress ink and distressed the edges with Vintage Photo Distress Ink.

The next technique I showed Debbie was "resist." For this look, stamp your image with Versamark ink and then put on some Clear embossing powder (Stampendous can't be beat!) and heat it with your heat gun. Using a foam applicator, I went over the image with Peeled Paint, Wild Honey and Stormy Sky Distress inks and a little Vintage Photo on the edges.  I sprayed the image lightly with Tattered Angels Glimmer mist in Gold and heated the card again to dry the mist. This intensifies the color alot, so you want to dry it pretty quickly. I matted the image and stamped the green cardstock with a honey comb background stamp in Versamark and the sentiment from Heartfelt Creations in Versafine, Vintage Sepia. This is a very different looking card than the first and we used the same stamp (Big smile).

After Debbie left with her brain full of possibilities (smile and wink), I made this card. I stamped the bloom in Pink Grapefruit Versamagic ink and then stamped it in Antique Linen Distress Ink to create the look of a shadow. I used a Spellbinders die to get the shape around the image. I stamped the tan paper from Penny Black with the bloom stamp and Versamark ink to give some texture and the rest is history!

One stamp, three very different cards. It was alot of fun showing Debbie what I like to do best. I hope I didn't scare her off!! Hmmmm.

Maybe you should fall in love with Ranger Distress Inks and make a few quick easy (really!!) cards.

Blessings,
Lorelei