Sending You Love

Hello Friends!

With Valentine's Day just around the corner, I wanted to share a card that I made recently using one of the easy-to-use Heart Swing Card templates from Paper Wishes/Hot Off the Press.

All you need with this template is some printed card stock paper and a few embellishments to make this beautiful swing card.  I used a sheet of white 12 X 12 card stock, and following the instructions on the template, cut all the basic card elements. Then using a Valentine printed paper pad from Martha Stewart Crafts and cut the decorative pieces and adhered them to the background card. I then began the decorating.

I stamped and cut several balloon shapes using the Heart Balloons stamp set from My Favorite Things and a few words from the Lots of Love Words die also from My Favorite Things Die-namics.
After adhering them to the card, I also stamped a few sayings and postmark from the You've Got Love Mail stamp set from Winnie & Walter LLC.  To add a little bling, I adhered heart shaped pearls from Hero Arts to several of the balloons and glitter to others.

These "Swing" type cards are very popular right now, yet if you use one of the templates from Hot Off the Press they make it so easy to create a beautiful card in no time. Have a wonderful Stampin' Day, with Lots of Love sent your way!

Mindy

Hey Neighbor!

Howdy, Friends! Welcome to May 2014.  The start to another new month, boy how these months fly by!  I have a fun card to share with you today.  A scene stealer if I have ever seen one. i started out with a piece of watercolor paper that I had spritzed with several different Dylusions  Inks.  I cut it into smaller pieces to fit on the A2 size card base, so I have several different ones to pick from.

I then stamped out my parts of my scenery on Express Blended Card stock suitable for Copic coloring. I used the Thelma standing stamp from Deadbeat Designs, the Garden fence and bucket from Art Impressions, and the Bloodhound dog stamp from Art Impressions. I stamped the dog stamp first, and then masked it off, using a post-it note, before stamping the gate with bucket  Garden stamp. After coloring in the pieces with my Copic markers, I fussy cut around the dog and gate images leaving a small white border around the images. I also cut around Thelma after coloring her with the Copics, and then set the pieces aside to dry.  I then used my Cloud Stencil from Memory Box to stencil Golden Light Molding Paste in several of the cloud cut outs. As the clouds were drying, some of the Dylusion Inks bled up through the molding paste. I learned through my Art Journaling class I have been taking, that if you will be stenciling on your background, do that first, then apply the water based ink colors. 

This is what happened on this card. I applied the paste over the inks, and they re-activated with the wet paste and bled into the cloud shapes. So, to repair the clouds, I applied a layer of white Posca acrylic paint pen over the top of the stenciled cloud to make them whiter.

To complete the card, I die-cut a banner die, and then stamped it with a sentiment from the Howdy clear stamp set from My Favorite Things. I attached the fence and dog section with foam dots on the background to give it dimension.  I then placed Thelma behind the fence to look as if she was leaning on the other side of the fence. I attached the banner with foam tape to the right of the image, and glued a tiny gold star sequin for accent.

This card makes a great Friendship card, Thinking of You, or Welcome Neighbor card. I hope you all have a great weekend, and enjoy the beginning of May!

Cowgirl Becky

Hello friends!  I wasn't sure I would get this tag posted before our Stock Show and Rodeo closed this weekend.  February has been a crazy month for me, with the cold, cold weather, holidays, and an unexpected death in the family, I haven't been able to post any goodies this month.  I have been working on a few, but time just seems to slip away from me before I get them posted. Hopefully, I am back on track, and it will be much easier to post projects and card ideas in the future.

Today's card is a tag front using one of the New Julie Nutting Doll Stamps from Prima. I love, love, love these doll stamps, and "Becky" (the cowgirl) really spoke to me!  Ha Ha, I made a funny. . . . "spoke" . . . . . wagon wheel. . . . . Yee Ha!  The wagon wheel stamp is a new one from Deep Red Clingstamps, made in the USA.  Living here in Texas, I love all types of stamps that portray western life. I also picked up a wonderful clear set from My Favorite Things, called "Howdy"!  From this set, I used the star circle with dots as a hub cap for the wagon wheel, and the lasso rope that "Becky" is holding. The tiny random stars are a stamp from Deadbeat Designs, and the large word "hello" is from Winnie & Walter.  The background tag is one of the New tags from Prima, the Aquarelle Tag Pad which consists of beautiful pastel colors.

The Large Tag Pads from Prima are so wonderful, not only are they large enough to highlight the Julie Nutting Doll Stamps, they also give you lots of room for other mixed-media techniques. The other New Julie Nutting stamp I recently purchased is the doll stamp called "Mindy".  Of course, you may notice the connection of why I had to purchase that one, because my name is Mindy, and I will highlight her on a new tag early this coming week.

With the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo coming to a close this weekend here at home, and the Winter Olympic Games closing also,  I will probably be glued to the TV a few more days. (I also love the winter Olympic sports!)  We have also been forewarned there is another Arctic Front moving south from the North Pole, that should arrive here in So. Texas midweek.  So, I have a few more outdoor projects to tend to before the cold weather hits us again. Stay warm and safe, and have a pleasant rest of the weekend.  I will visit with you again soon.
Mindy

I Love You . . . This Much!

There are so many phrases connected to Valentines Day, and this one happens to be one of my favorites.

"I love you, this much" and then a figure with out-stretched arms is well known throughout the states. When I saw this Pure Innocence stamp set, I thought of that phrase, and knew I had to have it. 

I took the red card base and attached a sheet of printed paper to the front of the card.  I then attached a strip of loop braid across the bottom of the card with red line double stick tape. The little girl was stamped on white card stock with black ink, and then her features colored in with my Copic markers. I paper pieced her dress with a scrap of the reverse side of the background paper. (I love double-sided papers!)  The tag was punched from a Magnolia die, and was then accented and colored with Distressed Inks and Wink of Stella glitter pens. The " I love you stamp" was stamped on the tag and then a piece of red ribbon and "XOXO" die cut was added before popping the entire tag on foam tape and adhering to the front of the card. 

The supplies used for this card were as follows:

card stock:  wild cherry, primitive white, and smooth white from My Favorite Things

background paper:  Valentine mat pad by Martha Stewart Crafts

stamps: Pure Innocence "Love is in the Air" from My Favorite Things, and sentiment from clupScrap, Inc.

dies:  Romantic Tag Doohickeys from Magnolia Stamps, and Love Words from MFT

I hope you enjoy making Valentines cards as much as I do. Sending handmade cards to family and friends is one of my favorite things to do, so enjoy creating and sending cards to those YOU love! See you again soon.

Loads of Love

I have a Special Delivery of Hugs for you today from Stampendous and House Mouse Stamps. One of my favorite New stamps from Stampendous Stamps is this stamp called "Gifts Galore". I have a special kind of love for the little House Mouse stamps, and usually add one or more to my collection every year. I purchased this one before Christmas, but didn't get around to using it until after the holidays. I thought it would make a wonderful Valentine's Day stamp in beautiful pinks and reds. 

I started off by stamping it on a white card stock base with tuxedo black Memento Ink. I then colored it in with Copic markers, and some Smooch Inks. The Smooch inks are pearlized, and give a soft and shiny look to the boxes and bows.  I also punched out several red card stock hearts with my Fiskars small heart punch, and then highlighted them with my clear Wink of Stella glitter marker.  The sentiment, "Special Delivery" comes from one of the Pure Innocence stamp sets from My Favorite Things.

A very quick and simple card to stamp, color,  and send, if you need a quick card for someone you love. And as I always say, "Keep On Stampin"!  Until we visit again,

Mindy

Sending Christmas Cheer

Happy Holidays to One and All!  I am sending Christmas cheer this year, that you and your families have a happy and blessed Christmas.

I have feverishly been working on making these my personal greetings this year. I only had to make a few, so since these are a little fancier than I normally send, I decided to spend the extra time making for my "special friends."

The main stamped image is the "Holiday Shopper" from the Deep Red Clingstamps company, and I got these through Simon Says Stamp. I used my Distressed Markers from Tim Holtz to color in the images, and then used my Wink of Stella glitter pens to add a little sparkle. The die cuts I used are from the Spellbinders Resplendent Rectangles and Decorative Labels Eight sets.  The printed stock behind the stamped image is a page from the 12 Days of Christmas paper pad from Graphic 45. The rectangles are about the size of an ATC card, and let just enough of the beautiful prints show around the shopper.  The saying is  from a Christmas Greetings set from My Favorite Things.  Inside the red card base, I adhered a 3" wide strip of  Christmas patterned paper that I could write my greeting on.

They are now done and on their way across the USA, so I can now play a little with some of my other Christmas stamps for cards that I will attach to gifts or hand deliver to friends here in town.
I hope you all have a wonderful week full of baking and shopping and getting together with family and friends. Enjoy!

Sunny Thoughts

Hello Friends! I am sending Sunny thoughts your way today, because according to the weather, it may be getting cold and nasty again real soon!

I have also been playing with my newest Spellbinders Dies, making some of these layered lacy cards that I love so.  My friend, Lisa, at A Mermaid's Crafts, has gotten me hooked on these layered cards using the Spellbinders Dies. Hers are so beautiful, and I wanted to learn to make them for my personal use. So, I am playing with some older card stock, learning how to adapt the style of die to the various die layers, therefore creating a beautiful card.

This card is approximately 4" square and is made using the Marvelous Squares Die Set from Spellbinders. I also used a sheet of peach with white flourishes scrapbook paper to add a little color and depth to the card.

These are so much fun to make, and look so elegant to me. I think I may try to make a few as place cards for my Thanksgiving table this year. Since I have a very small gathering, I enjoy decorating the table to the hilt, and these will add to the formality and elegance of the decor.

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving, and that you and your families are blessed on this wonderful holiday. Stay warm and safe, and I will see you again soon.

Mindy

Happy Harvest to One and All

Happy Harvest to one and all!  I love this new Happy Harvest stamp from My Favorite Things!

I stamped the Doodle Garden Girl on Neenah white card stock, and then colored in the image with my Copic markers. I then tried to center the image within my Romantic Rectangles Die from Spellbinders.  As you can see, I didn't get it exactly in the center, so I added a row of tiny flowers from the recent Prima Mixed-Media Border Stamp Set on each side.  It helps to disguise the off-centered image.

I then mounted the image on the front of a royal blue card with double stick adhesive. A banner was cut from a strip of printed card stock, and I stamped Happy Harvest from the set, and added it to the front of the card.  I also added a sheet of the lined card stock to the inside of the dark card, so I would have a lighter colored surface to write my message on.

My allergies have cleared for the moment, so I have been coloring images with my Copic markers.  Another cool front is promised for tomorrow, at which time my allergies usually go haywire when the new pollen is brought in "on the wind"!  Enjoy your week, and see you again soon.

Mindy

Art Journal - My Family Tree

Happy Friday, to all my bloggie friends!  To celebrate this weekend, I am posting my first double page spread from my art journal.  I had watched so many videos from YouTube on art journaling, that I was blinded by the thought of starting an art journal.  I wanted to, so badly, and even ordered one of the blank journals from my friends at Paper Wings Productions.  The problem was that I blankly stared at the blank pages weeks before I finally got the nerve to put some ink on the paper!  Once I sprayed the first splotch of color, my world opened up, and I work a little in it everyday!

I was afraid to start a page, and not know how to finish it. Now that I have realized you don't have to sit right down and complete a whole page at once, it has become a lot easier and not so frightening.  If you have several pages "in progress" at the same time, you can work on which ever one you feel like working on. AND, if you don't feel like working on one you have started, you CAN start another!

So, on this layout, I started by spritzing several colors of spray mists. I used  The Dylusion Mists by Ranger in the orange, yellow, and green. On the right hand page, I adhered a sheet of handmade mulberry paper to the page with Golden Soft Gel Matte medium. It was a green color, so I thought I would draw a tree shape, since I love nature so.  Well, I am not an artist, and my tree was a little lopsided.  I also had adhered a hand full of inchie squares that had a peacock feather "eye" around the tree's branches.   After looking at the arrangement for a few days, and not really liking what I had done, I took some white Gesso from Golden Products, and painted a layer of gesso over my tree!  1- 2 - 3- GONE!

I decided instead, to use Light Molding Paste from Golden, and a Family Tree Scrapbook Stencil I had, to stencil a tree right in the middle of both pages, making it a two-page spread. I scraped some of the gesso from the peacock feather "eyes", stamped some flowers at the base of the tree, coloring them with purple Lumiere paint, and stenciled the letters from the tree stencil "My Family Tree" across the bottom of the page.  I then wrote ". . is full of nuts" and knew this page was finally coming together. I added the Wheelie Girl stamped image from My Favorite Things below the tree, and wrote the names of a few of my relatives on the leaves of the tree; each branch representing a branch of the family. In the top left of the page, I added a die-cut that says, " the acorn doesn't fall far from the tree, and added tiny white dots to the flowers with my picket fence white Distressed Marker.

It was finally to a point where I was somewhat pleased with how it turned out. I admitted to myself that I wanted this journal to be a learning and growing experience, and if I started out with a "Perfect Work" I wouldn't need to learn a thing.  Realization can be a very humbling experience!

I hope you have enjoyed travelling down this road with me, and have learned a lesson or two along the way!  If you don't jump in with both feet, you will never be able to learn or grow!  So have a great weekend, and go try something NEW whether it be a sport, or  craft, or dance, or wherever your interests lie. See you again soon.

Mindy

HATS OFF TO YOU!

Happy Sunday to all out there! Here is another Graduation card I made in my quest to find a design I like,  to send to a sweet girl who is graduating from college.

Here is how I did it! I started with a black card stock base card and added a sheet of background paper from the "Almanac" 6 X 6 pad by Prima.  I then added a strip of  black & white polka dot washi tape across the paper, about 1/2" from the bottom of the card.  I then stamped my Pure Inocence-"Freckles" girl stamp from My Favorite Things on a sheet of ivory card stock and colored her in with my Copic Markers.  Like the card before, I wanted her dressed in the traditional cap & gown, so I drew on the outline of the gown, and colored it in with my black copic marker, right over the clothes that were on the stamp. The mortarboard "hat's" were all stamped in Tuxedo Black Memento ink from my Lawn Fan set,"Hats Off to You". I cut each out leaving a small ivory border around each. Then I used foam tape to adhere the graduate and the flying hats to the front of the card.  The sentiment, "hats off to you" came from the same Lawn Fawn set as the mortarboard, and I just stuck it to the card right above the washi tape.

I am entering this card in the Little Scrap Pieces Fun Friday Challenge- "Congradulations Graduates"!

Can't you just imagine seeing all the "hat's" flying in the air at the end of the graduation ceremony? I remember years ago when I graduated, the Principal told us that if we "flung our hats into the air" at the end of the ceremony we would be severely punished!  What was he gonna do?  We HAD just graduated!
I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend, the first weekend of summer! (Yikes!)  Where does the time go?  See you soon!
Mindy

A Pocket Book or Money Holder for Graduation

Hello Everyone! Hope you are having a wonderful week. Today's post and project is called a Pocket Book, but I have adapted it to be a Money Holder for a gentleman's Graduation gift. I'm not sure who the original creator of this mini pocket book is, but it has been around for awhile and I have seen different versions of it in Mini Book magazines and books.  All I know is, it is fun and easy to make, and only uses one sheet of double sided 12 X 12 scrapbook paper.

I started out with pictures showing a smaller version, because I use my computer's scanner to scan my images. (I couldn't fit the 12 X 12 page on the scanner bed.)

1.  Fold sheet in quarters;  first fold in half, then fold each side to the middle.(you don't need to mark with white, I just did so on the dark side to show where to fold.)



 2.  Fold in 1/4" from left and right edges of the page. (I'm sorry you can't see the fold here, it is lost in the design of the paper.)

 3.  Fold each corner to the first fold line. DO NOT place over the fold! Up to the fold line ONLY! (do this on all four corners)

4.  When your 1/4" edges and all corners are folded, fold each side into the center of the paper.
(on the next step I will be showing the full size 12 X 12 sheet.)

 5.  Flip the entire unit over and fold 1/2" down towards you from the top of the unit. You will notice that you have created two tiny corner pockets at the top of the fold. (in my picture they are black)

 6.  Bring the bottom of the unit to the top, folding the paper in half, and then tuck the bottom corners into those two little pockets at the top of the card. (in this picture you will see two diagonal pockets, one on the left and one on the right) If you have a bone folder or creasing tool, use it now to set all of the folds in the card.

7.  Fold the unit in half and crease again with your bone folder or creasing tool. Now you have a pocket book with four pockets; one on the front, two inside, and one on the back.( I have placed a sheet of paper in the front pocket just to show you how big the pocket is.)

Now you can decorate the front with a graduation theme, as I did, or you can decorate it with any theme you wish. You can even leave it blank if you want to. I decorated mine with the Marcel stamp from Paper Wings Productions, stamping him on a sheet of Art Angel Element Deck Tags with Tuxedo black Memento ink and coloring him with my Copic Markers. I wanted to dress him in a black graduation gown, so I took my copic and drew the gown outline and then filled it in over the clothing of the stamp. I used the mortarboard hat from the Lawn Fawn "Hats Off to You" set and the sentiment "hat's off to you" from the Marcel set from Paper Wings. The hat was a little large, so I had to alter it a bit to fit his head. The sentiments inside on the various elements, are from the set "About New Beginnings" from My Favorite Things, and "Happiness Messages" from Hero Arts.

You can also decorate the pockets inside, and they can hold pictures of the graduate, a nice size check to get them started out in the work-a-day world, a gift card to their favorite coffee house, a list of things that they have done to make you proud of them. . . . . . . and on and on! Of course, depending on how much decorating you do, depends on if you can mail it or not. It will fit inside a letter size envelope, but since it is such a special gift that will be treasured a lifetime, you may just want to hand it to them in person at their graduation ceremony.  Whatever you decide to do, I'm sure you will be thrilled with the way it turned out, and know that it is a special gift that was made with LOVE;  From you to Someone Special!

Thanks for stopping by today. I would appreciate any comments you would like to leave on this post. Have a great day, and I will see you again soon.

Mindy

Happy Graduation 2013

Happy Graduation 2013!  School is out, and many students are graduating. Now is the time to complete a few of those graduation cards, so they can be sent out in a timely fashion.

I need to send out several cards this year, so I have been trying out a few designs, both for male and female.  Here I am using the little Pure Inocence clear stamp  from My Favorite Things, titled "Freckles." Since I decided to put her in a black graduation robe, I stamped her out on Neneh white card stock in Tuexdo black Memento ink, and drew a robe shape around her and colored over her stamped clothes with the black Copic marker. For her mortarboard, I stamped it from the Lawn Fawn clear stamp set, "Hats Off to You" and also used the sentiment from that set also.

The card itself, is a black A2 size card base and I used a black and cream damask printed paper from the Teresa Collins 6X6 paper pad- "Noel" for the background. I rolled a strip of the cream card stock into a diploma like shape and  tied a tiny black grosgrain ribbon around it, before adhering it to the background.  For the sentiment tag, I cut a circular scalloped die from a piece of the damask background. It was double sided paper, and the other side was red, with a small design on it. I stamped "happy graduation" on a scrap of the cream stock and cut it from a smaller scalloped die. I added three small adhesive pearls below the wording, and then used foam tape between both layers to pop it up to the level of the rolled diploma.

I will be entering this card in the following challenge:
DL Art- Thankful Thursday-May Linky Party Challenge


I hope you are all having a wonderful week. My schedule is all messed up because of the holiday on Monday. My work week is one day shorter, and I always have to stop and think, "Is today Tuesday or Wednesday?   See you again soon, and keep on stampin!

Mindy

Your Kindness IS Appreciated!

Happy 1 year Blog-aversary to ME! 

Happy Thursday to one and all! Today is my 1 year blog-aversary, and it has been a fun year that has just flown by. It doesn't seem like it has been a whole year since I started my blog, back on May 9. 2012.

I hope the next year will bring New projects, New ideas, and New friends together sharing the Paper Arts that we all love so much.

Today's card is to thank you all that have visited my blog and commented on it over the past year. Your kind words ARE very much appreciated, and I hope you will continue to visit in the years ahead.
I started with a white stock card base, and added a bright pink background. On this background I sewed a strip of polka dot paper across the top, and a cute striped pocket below it.  I also stamped the Pure Innocence Hula Girl from My Favorite Things on white stock and colored her with my Copic Markers.  After fussy cutting her out, I used foam tape to pop her up next to the stripey pocket.  Onto the pocket I added a circle punched from printed paper with a tiny pink brad, and stamped the word "Thanks" on it. To complete the card, I printed the phrase on white stock, cut it to fit in the pocket, and then rounded the corners with my Corner Chomper and placed it in the pocket.

A very simple, and nice card to remind those you love they are appreciated. Before I close for today, I want to remind you that there are still a few more days left for you to leave a comment on my blog and be registered to win the prize package- blogaversary give away mentioned in the right margin of this blog. I have collected a lot of fun products I want to share with you, and all you have to do is leave a little bloggie love to be eligible for the drawing on Sunday, May 12.  I will announce the winner on my post next week, so get busy typing, and let me know what is on your mind and if you have any questions on any technique you have seen on my blog.

Until I see you again, "Happy Stampin', and journaling!"
Mindy