Back (and with a question...)

Second post for today. Maybe my nojo is on break and the mojo is covering for it...I surely don't know. What ever is happening, it feels pretty good.

Not sure if I've mentioned this before, but a couple of you bloggy folks already know that I have a mild form of dyslexia. Certain things refuse to either take hold, or only become a part of my memories/brain processes after finding a round about way to get in. For example, the only way as an adult that I can discern my left hand from my right hand is that I know that my wedding ring is on my left. That in turn, is a signal for all lefts and rights. Works most of the time. I don't know how else to live, and these little problems usually don't bother me too much. So here's my question, and it will probably be longish. (Is it my dyslexia that has caused me to not figure this out or am I just not blog savvy enough?) I'd love to add a couple more clickable badges to my right side bar. CASology is one, and Fusion is another. However, there is no code beneath the badges for me to copy and then go into my layout, add a gadget... Is there anyone who can give me some pointers on this? And the other part of my question, and it is truly just a wondering question, - why don't all challenge blogs put code beneath their badges? Sorry for sounding like a ditz.

Onward and upward (no lefts/rights here!).

Haven't played over at Muse for a couple of weeks. The incredible Jen Mitchell is the guest designer, and she's created something awfully cool. Take a peek:

For me it was love at first sight. *sigh* My take is slightly different, but definitely think that you can see Jen's work in my card.

Bazzill white card stock base, scraps of brown, aqua, and white. Avery Elle sunburst stamp, MFT sentiment, memento brown ink, Studio G aqua ink, the coffee cup sticker from K&Company, Twinery twine, Cuttlebug embossing folder, and some brown blings from Pebbles. Happy dances everyone.

There and back again

First, if you know what the title of today's post is from, let me know... Sorry. I was swamped after my Thursday post, and then Sunday, when all was supposed to be full of laughter and light, things went from walking on champagne bubbles to caca pretty fast. Won't bore you with the details here. Just wanted you to know that I'm getting things back on track. Hate wasting energy, time, and brain cells on unhappiness. Then, yesterday was migraine day, and all of you out there who suffer from these know exactly what I mean when I say it knocked me flat on my hinder. Today has started out promisingly.

So. Decided to play along with CAS on Sunday's #7 challenge. I've had a vague idea for a card (well, more than one vague card idea) floating around in my head, and the sketch over there was the perfect one for this particular idea.

I really made two cards for this challenge. Will admit that I'm only showing the one, but the second is nice too--just not as good as this one. Great sketch don't you think? I have to say that I will probably be using this on other cards...Lots of birthdays in May. 

For my clean/more graphic cards I find that I keep going back to the PTI Birthday Basics set. It fit perfectly below the artsy part. Once again, these are scraps from the cardstock box. SU black ink, three random black blings, and a Crate Paper brad whose little leggies I took off. That's it for this card. That's if from me for now, but as I plan to work in here for a few hours, I just might be back today. Happy dances everyone.

I'll have a little giggle, please.

After seeing the new cue card over at CASology, I had a ping moment. I tend to obey my pings. They can be irritating if I don't...Also, as many of you know, I'm really working hard to use up as much of my stash as cardmakingly possible. There, in my tackle box of brads, tucked away for at least 5 years (probably more...), I knew I had a brad that actually said "giggle"! The little hands in my head rubbed themselves together, and thought, "whoopie, we've got this challenge won!!" But the more the real me thought about it, the more I knew it just wasn't quite what I wanted. But at that point in my day, I had to stop thinking about it so hard, because Lizzy came over. She's 15 and funny. And fun! So while she was supposed to be doing her homework, I stood there and read her one-liners in hopes that a little better idea would ping. We both laughed at the one-liners until tears ran down our faces, and probably made grandpa wonder what the heck we were up to. When she and I get together, it's always fun!

Then, after Lizzy left for home, another ping hit. A humdinger of a pinger (sorry...) (well maybe only a little...). I remembered what my older sister did to our younger sister's kids when they were little and full of mischief. Sara and Brett were probably 7 & 9 years old, it was close to Christmas, and the threat of no visit from Santa wasn't working. Now, I don't know where Sue came up with this, but she made tags, and attached them to bags full of marshmallows. After reading their tag, the two little jewels took notice. Brett burst into tears. His mother said to start behaving. He did, Sara did, and all was right with the world...at least until after presents on Christmas day....For today, and for the challenge, I made my own tag. I still chuckle at it, but I'm naughty like that. Just ask my friend Mary.

I tried to make it big enough to read without you having to click on the photo, but alas, you'll have to click if you can't quite read it. I found the snowman in a clipart gallery, and I regret to say, I didn't take notice from which company it came. But he fit just right. I colored bits of him with copics and SU markers, and added a snowball to his upturned hand, and then used some white flocking to fluff it up a bit. Computer generated font for the sassy saying, a bit of MME dp paper (scrap), and a scrap of ribbon. I used the Cricut to cut the tag. Giggle away my friends, and enjoy a little happy dance.

Whew! (so far at least...)

After two days of headaches that start with the letter "M", today has been free of the rotten, life stealing things. I'm not saying the "M" word; it might be a jinx! There are at least a couple of you out there who know exactly what I'm talking about. My granddaughter Lizzy is coming over for supper tonight, so I just don't have time to deal with all that head pounding. Plus, I really wanted to play in my craft room. Which I did. Over at Retro Sketches, Deanna created a fun sketch. Wasn't sure at first if I could make anything work, but after a few trips to the recycle bin, I got something to work. And in my world, it works pretty well.

I can see this sketch working for about a bazillion cards. That Deanna is a genius. Someone give me an 'amen' on that! Be sure to pop over there and see all the DT's cards, as well as those in the gallery. Well worth the trip. And this is mine:

Now, I made this for my daughter-in-law's birthday, but I could us some honest opinions. Is this too masculine for a female? The family birthday frenzy season has started, so it wouldn't go to waste...

The dp is from Bella Blvd., the white card base is Bazzill, scraps of white, orange and brown, a smidge of The Twinery's brown twine, stickers from Pebbles, SU ink, and HA stamps. Happy dances everyone!

Fuzzy brain

Woke up with a migraine this morning, took my rescue meds, and now my brain is fuzzy. Headache is better,  not gone, but better. However, you really don't want to hear about that...you'd rather see what pinged around in my little brain...(minus the pain, of course...)

So I decided to play at CAS(E) this Sketch, and after several recycled attempts, I came up with something. It's flipped, but the basic sketch is there. And I'm in this turquoise and orange mood...go figure. Must still be dominating my thoughts after seeing the TAWS inspirational challenge (here's the post). I just went with it. First check out the CAS(E) sketch:

Nice. Sweet, simple, clean. Fun!  N@Ali always makes killer cards. Love her work! And here's my take.

A little whimsy for your Monday. I cut out a fish bowl with my cricut, and used a computer generated font. All the stamps are from DeNami, and they are just the cutest little things! I colored the fish with Copics, and the other inks are from SU. CAS. Raise your hand if you love white space...then go have a little happy dance.

TAWS

Really fast here. It's no secret that The Alley Way Stamps are awesome. And they have a color challenge going on. So while I was in the mood, and the mojo was working, I am going to post what I played with. Check out these fun colors:

Sweet, eh? Here's my take:

White Bazzill card base, two kinds of washi, scraps of white, orange and turquoise, and then both the glasses and the sentiment are from TAWS Adorabowl set. I dusted the glasses with some MS glitter. Couldn't tell you the punch I used on the top - I used it on the blue yesterday and it belongs to my friend Kati. The flags were cut using MFT Fishtail dies. That's all folks. Happy dances.

Quick!

Quick, look outside! The sun is actually shining!!! Not that it will last long.... More rain coming later in the afternoon. We had a contractor in after church today to look at the chimney on our fireplace. Old bricks, and a big, ol' crack. Mucho bucks, but the darn thing has to be rebuilt. It's either that, or the house goes down the tube. Guess we'll be forkin' over the dough to have the blasted thing done. Such as life, and I'm really not complaining. Much.

Yesterday was Scrap and Stamp at church. It's an open invitation to the community at large to come and craft for a day with us. We provide snacks and dinner, some die cut machines and lots of space to spread out and play. Usually, and my friends can attest to this, I'm too busy visiting to get much done. Yesterday was no exception...though I did manage to get two cards done, one of which is below. So who surprised me by dropping in for a few quick minutes??! My biggie sister Sue! Just made my day. She and family friend Kathy made a quick stop before heading to BWW for lunch with Sue's son Steve. Everyone should have a sister like mine. I am blessed beyond all blessings to have her as a sister, and she's also my best friend in the whole wide world. So, just in case she reads this post, "hi Sue".

This card is going into the challenge over at Addicted to CAS, where the code word for the week is:

I took that literally. I have one flower on my card. It's kind of fun and whimsical.

Believe it or not, the flower didn't come like that. If you enlarge the photograph, you can see the silvery edges. That's a sticker. The purpleish/blueish flower color is actually a piece of vellum onto which the sticker is stuck. (that sounds funny, doesn't it...) Then the center is an enamel dot my friend Jen gave me at S&S yesterday. I fussy cut the flower out, and it's on a pop dot with some Karen Foster Design twine for the stem. I put some random greenish pearls around it for balance, and used the "hi" stamp from TAWS Adorabowl set. So that's it, and I'm off to see what you all have posted. Happy dances everyone.

Go.

But in a nice way. This is a card for my granddaughter, Melissa, who will be graduating in June. She'll be off to UW in the fall and we will miss her. She joins her sister Jessica, who is in her first year even as we speak. We celebrated the youngest (in that family) granddaughter's birthday about a week and a half ago. As we were sitting around the dining room table having cupcakes and visiting, Lizzy said she loved the birthday card I had made for her. I said thanks, and not to look for it on my blog, cuz I hadn't posted it. Melissa said "You have a blog????" Well, yeah...She's so funny. Young people in general are so funny. I can remember being that age and thinking that 'old' people just weren't hep to the times. Boy, I couldn't have been more wrong! Now, granted, I don't tweet, and I rather dislike FB, but I can text with the best of them (lol). See....It's not that I can't, it's just that the other forms of social media would eat up the rest of my day.

And with that, we move on...

CASology has a new word this week, and it quite stumped me until I was trying to get to sleep last night. A giant ping shook my brain, and I knew that I would have to answer. Fortunately, I went right to sleep after that, and was able to make this card this morning in just a few, quick minutes. First, the new word.

Now for my  word:

I have to apologize for the not-very-good photograph. Still raining here, and with the overcast skies, even my best-ish lighting wasn't enough. But I think you get the idea. I think it's a good card for graduation. Inside it has that nice sentiment "Go confidently in the direction of your dreams". Ready for the deets? Okay.

Bazzill white cardstock base, scrap of navy blue (insert a squeency happy dance here), a computer generated world map, and while you really can't tell, I added glossy accents to the land masses. I used my Cricut for the letters and the arrows. That's it. Easy peasy. Happy dances everyone.

CASING Hannelie

Do you know Hannelie over at Desert Diva? Well, she's one of those card makers in blogland whose work I totally admire. Her cards are fantabulous, and I look forward to seeing what she's got in store every time her blog pops up on my right hand side bar. If you don't know who she is, if you haven't seen her cards, stop right now, and click on her link (found above), and go. You will be tickled, I promise. Oh, then come back here!

Hannelie just got back from vaca in Thailand. *sigh* For sure, many of us in blogland are thrilled that she's back. I've missed her cards. In her post today, she let us know that one of her cards was chosen as the inspiration at Inkspirational. How cool is that?! And even before I went over there, I made a card just because Hannelie is my friend, and I love her work. So this is her card:

Lovely and delicate, isn't it? I know my sister will love this. The card I made doesn't quite look like this. I had some gorgeous crocheted lace ribbon in mind the minute I saw her card, but alas, it didn't work. Neither did the second card I tried. Or the third. Then a ping went off and the darn thing came together in a flash. And here is the final product:

Not lovely and delicate, but Hannelie's basic design is there. I tried an embossed panel, but it was just not quite right. (Remember?, I listen to all the little voices in my head when it comes to cards...) I had this scrap of 'woven' gold in my giant scrap box, and thought I might try it. That's when the pings began! Tada. Flash. Done!

Black card base, scrap o' gold woveny paper, a scrap of Fancy Pants, random gold ribbon, scrap of black, a chipboard sticker from K & Company, and the little flag and sentiment are from PTI. Go forth now and happy dance. 

P.S. Don't forget about Unscripted Sketche's 4th Blogiversary...here's a link to that...US

Playing again...

I had another Ping moment. If you haven't seen the sketch over at Unscripted Sketches, you can see it below, or better yet, head over there and let your own pings begin. This is my second card for their 4th blogiversary celebration. So seriously, go. (And then come back)

I can see some awesome Christmas cards using this sketch. Even a scrapbook page... Lotsa Possibilities. The card I made would go well with an attached gift, hence the tag. 

Bazzill white card base, scraps of black and polka dot papers. Random ribbon and washi tape. The blue fibers are from Magic Scraps and are at least 10 years old (just a bit more left on the card....), the brads are Crate Paper Story Teller line, and the sentiment is from PTI Birthday Basics using SU ink. Rather than punch holes in the blue, I just bent the legs off and used pop dots to attach them. That's all folks. Happy dances everyone

Let's all pray

Dear Lord,
Another tragedy has claimed the lives of some of your people, and injured scores of others as well. We pray that you comfort and heal the injured, with your loving care, sustain the families of those who were lost, and calm the fears of all who were near. Bless those who unselfishly rushed to offer their help to the injured; first responders, EMTs, nurses, doctors, police, fire fighters and all others. Quiet the fears of your people and help us, as a nation, to heal. We also pray that the perpetrators are soon brought to justice according to your will. We pray this in Jesus name, Amen.

Pretty good day for a Monday

It has been a pretty darn good Monday. Hooked up with my friend Jen this morning, after picking up coffees for us, then we headed about a half hour south to Archivers. Today they had an 'in store only' 33% off sale on washi and embellishments. I spent a few dollars because I just couldn't help it. You'll see one of the embellies on my card a little further on in this post.

I was blessed with an Honorable Mention from CASology this morning. I liked my card, but there were so many who were also worthy. Thanks to the DT over there! I'm honored and delighted. Also big congrats to the other winners over there. Can't wait to see what the cue card says tomorrow!

With this card, I'm going to play along with the new Fusion challenge. I combined both sides of the challenge:

I've got this thing for gray...and chartreuse, so this was the bomb for me. Love circles. Love chevrons. Love this sketch. My green is a smidgy bit lighter than in the pillow photo, but I think it works. 

I used scraps--all scraps, except for the Bazzill white card base. (can I get a yippee!!!) The stamp is from HA, and the ink is Memento London Fog. The little embellie is from Fancy Pants. I used my MFT chevron die, and my 1" paper punch. I will admit, that it looks way cooler in real life. Happy dances everyone.

Sunshine at last!

Sunny Sunday! What started out this morning at 6:00 as an overcast, snowy day, has now turned to sunshine. It's so good to see more than just a glimpse of the sun. However, one of the ladies at church said the rest of the week is supposed to be cloudy and rainy just like last week. That's the way it goes. And while it was cloudy last night, I did see a bit of the Northern Lights shining through. Usually they don't show up this far south, so it was a real treat. Have you ever seen them in all their glory? Oh my gosh, it's a sight to behold.

This week marks Unscripted Sketches fourth blogiversary. Isn't that cool?! It's such a fun place to play and I for one am glad they're here.

Be sure you stop over there to find out the different ways you can win. Hint: there are four of them...
This will be my second--the card below:

It's obviously a Four-tieth birthday card. Not sure I can believe that one of my sons is turning 40! It was hard enough when the youngest hit 30! Hopefully I can hand deliver this next month when I head over to the Twin Cities to see him and his family, as well as another son and his family. 

As far as supplies, I used Bazzill white for the card base, the wood-like dp is a scrap, as is the little piece of  kraft . The four little "men" are by Studio Calico, the twine is Lime Twist by MME, the speech bubble is from a great piece of paper by Pebbles - Take Note, and I used number stickers from Making Memories. So with that, happy dances everyone.

Doesn't a beach sound good right about now?

Or a cruise, or a baseball game in a warm and sunny ballpark? We've had rain every day this week, and while I don't mind so much, I miss the sun. I guess I will content myself with card making. A pretty darn good alternative.

Had an appointment this morning with my NP in my neurologist's office (yes, they did find a brain...) and things are okay as far as migraines go. More importantly, going up to Oak Creek gave me the opportunity to stop in by Sharon, who owns My Paper Playground. Hi Sharon!! I did a little shopping, lots of visiting with her, and had a great time. If you live anywhere near Milwaukee, you've got to make it a point to stop there. She's got a website, so you can easily find your way there physically or webbily. Well worth a stop!

So, (I know, I say "so" a lot, sorry) (I actually write pretty much like I speak, only without the naughty words that sometimes escape...) today I wanted to make a card for CASology. Here's the cue card:

I love to travel, but then who doesn't?... If I could go anywhere in the world right this minute, I'd go and see my kids in the Twin Cities and Madison. I'm feeling the need for a little grandma time. But that's not happening today. What is happening, is card making. Again, not a bad second choice. And I like what I made.

Bazzill white card stock. Memento inks on the flags, which are really the PTI Square Prints. I tore a piece of vellum, cut out a ship's wheel with my Cricut, and the cloud is a MB die. Computer font. And that's all I've got for now. Happy dances everyone.

Muse 12

Post number two for today. I just might make more cards and keep adding posts allllll day long. Then again, the mojo might disappear and this is the last one. Which ever way the wind blows.... For this card, I pulled out an old flourish stamp - one that's been taking up space in the drawer, but one that I just couldn't give to my granddaughter, or toss, or give to a friend. Some small voice in the back of my head said to save it and since I always (usually) (sometimes) listen to those little voices, I did save it. Now I'm glad I did. It was the image that pinged around my brain when I saw this beautiful card by Theresa Calvird over at Muse.

I have this stamp set, and have used the leafy stamp fairly often. Not today. As much as I like it, I couldn't erase the flourish that was pinging. Stubborn old brain! Anyway...I did use a portion of the set. You'll see...

The three little flowers are from that SU set. I was inspired by the colors that Theresa used, as well as the 'flow' of the card. Really quite a quick card to make. Bazzill white card base, SU inks and water color pencil/blender pen, PTI Birthday Basic sentiment, random pale green pearls, a dab of stickles (see Susan, trying to use up more clutter : ) woohoo!), and the flourish is from Stampabilities. Now, I'm off to do the happy dance--I've got more time to make more cards, yipee!--and you should too. 

Monday, Tuesday, Craftday....

No appointments today. Ahhhh.....So instead of today being Wednesday, it's really craft day. In about 10 days, I have overnight guests (son, dil, grandkids x 3) and then grandma is taking them all to the airport so they can catch a plane to Disneyworld. Wish I were going with them. Can you imagine their faces when they see the Magic Kingdom for the first time? They're little-ish. Six, five and three. I can just see them all having a great time and being in full-blown awe at the whole experience. Daddy had better text me lots of photos! But before they get here, I have a few things to get done around the house. It will all get done in time; I'm not worried. And I'm excited to have a sleepover here with the kidlets. I've got lots of grandchildren. Seriously. It's getting to the point where I'm beginning to lose count. 18 or 19? Not stopping to count today, but I'm pretty sure I'm going on 19. I can highly recommend grandchildren. While I won't trade any of mine, I sincerely suggest that you have a houseful of them--as your age permits--some of you are still in the kids-at-home stage. There are two set of little and big ones over in the Twin Cities. I see that Southwest is having a sale on airfare, so am thinking of going over for a weekend next month. Could be a blast (and a little exhausting, but in a good way)! We'll see how things go around here...

Made a card last night, but waited till today to photograph it. I wanted to play along with the Paper Smooches Sparks challenge. It's Designer Draft week over there with a great sketch:

With all of the gloomy weather we're having, I needed something bright and colorful. It is not CAS. That card will come later. And taking Susan's advice, I hauled out my stash of brads and bent the little legs right off, using them as sort of enamel dots. See what you think:

SU white card base and black ink. Scraps of orange and green dp. Scraps of blue, orange, and brown (for the 'coffee'). Washi tape from Michael's, PS Hot Concoctions stamps, and for the sentiment I used Studio G ink. Sorry about the lighting. Much to rainy and gloomy to get a better shot.

Rainy Days and Mondays

Of course, it really doesn't matter to me if it's raining or a Monday. Every day is a good day. Got lots of errands to run today yet, but had a bit of time to post. Btw, who sang that song (Rainy Days and Mondays)? No cheating now. Don't open Google in a new tab and look, unless you truly are stumped. Think 1970s and girl drummer. Let me know if you knew. ; )

Have you checked out Susan's blog posts lately over at Simplicity? Another brilliant mind and card maker extraordinaire in blogland, and I would imagine IRL too. I enamored with her beautiful CAS style, and she's got some brilliant tips for using up the old stash. Head over to her blog and have a peek. I won't tell you what she's posted the last couple of days, but trust me, you'll be going "dang!, why didn't I think of that!"

Onto the cardy stuff....I wanted to play with the sophisticated colors over at the Playdate Cafe. Had a sweet scrap of chevron paper that just called my name again. And you know me...I had to listen. First, let's look at the colors from PDCC:

When my niece gets married next year, I'm dreaming of that gray color. A shantung silk suit, with maybe just a splash of lime--a bracelet or pin...Anyway, these colors are dreamy, don't you think?  I couldn't resist. And I paired the colors with Retro Sketches #58. Great sketch for what was pinging around inside my skull (no migraines with the pinging today!!) 

At first I thought I couldn't come up with the right combination of elements for this card sketch. Then, what do you know, they pinged right into place. See what you think:

I've used Bazzill white for the card base and slate color for the mat behind the SU chevron paper, and the larger of the two flags. A polaroid frame from Studio Calico, with a little flair button from Dear Lizzy (and it's our dear Lizzy's 15th birthday today too!), a random scrap of dp for the smaller flag, a random button, a scrap of brown polka dot dp, and a bit 'o twine from MME. This was fun to make. Happy dances everyone!

Have you heard?

Have you heard that Jackie Rockwell put together a new challenge? It's called the Fusion Card Challenge. Oh. My. Gosh. This is soooooooo fun. You have got to go check it out, if you haven't already. It's a 'scientific' challenge. Pick one side of the challenge, or pick the other side of the challenge, OR, fuse the two challenges together. Seriously. So many possibilities and so much fun.



PROCEDURES:
1. Play with just Jackie's sketch challenge.
2. Play with just Lesley's inspiration photo challenge.
3. Or you can create FUSION by combining BOTH challenges into one card.
4. Use the challenge graphic and link back to Fusion in your post.
5. Please read the other considerations on the Experiment Page before playing along.

If you click on the link, you'll get a better idea of what Jackie and the DT has in mind.  For my card I went with Jackie's challenge. It sort of fuses the two, but not enough in my mind to be eligible for the true 'fusion'.  

The photo looks a little goofy. Someday, I'm going to take a small item photography class. (or not...) If  When I win the lottery, I'll just have a professional photographer on call to do that part. It looks better IRL. Here are the deets. Bazzill white card base. Green and floral scraps. (And I try so hard to use up my scraps, but somehow, the boxes don't seem to be going down...why is that???!!!) PS Sentiment Sampler and random flower flairish sticker thingys. Popped up the green panel and rounded those corners. Channeling Geri G. So how's your Sunday going? Mine's great. Later today we're headed over for birthday cake for our DGD Lizzy. 15. *Sigh* Where has that time gone... Happy dances everyone.

Nojo

The ever fabulous, funny, witty, amazing and new-word-maker-upper, Darnell over at djkardkreations came up with the word nojo. It's a condensation of no and mojo. Perfect word. I had that yesterday. Nojo. And while there were no pings banging off the interior of my skull, the ideas were there--I could feel them. Maybe they were hiding because I was (gasp), crabby for a bit yesterday. Might need some shopping therapy to make sure the crabbiness doesn't return today! What a great idea...Who wants to come shopping with me?! Get your running shoes on, grab your plastic money and lets go!! First, coffee...

I'm playing along again with Paulina's 10 Minute Craft Dash. Her challenge really got my brain going this morning while I was doing my little workout. I first pictured a general card, then refined it in my head. In my world, that's the key--finish it in your head first. Once you've got the card finished there, break it down into your supply list. Then it's just a matter of grabbing and creating. It's really fun. I love to see if the picture in my head can be done in the 10-minute or less time frame, and if it turns out to match what was pinging around in my brain. It's a really fun challenge, and if you haven't popped over there to check it out, please do! Paulina and her DT always has really fun colors to play with. This Dash reminds me of  The Lake in the morning on calm days. Lake Michigan, that is...

And for the winner, Paulina's got a prize from Gossamer Blue, a new-to-me company. Take a look:

So many possibilities....

And this is my under 10 minute card. It took me 9:13 to make. Seriously. I'm sure DH was wondering what all that scurrying was all about...

What took the longest, was adhering the flags onto the "poles". But that still took less than 2.5 minutes. The card base and the center white are SU, the blue, black, pink, and stripes are random scraps (yea!!). I die cut the flags with MFTs Fishtail die, used my SU punch, Jenni Bowlin for Ranger Spice Tin ink, PTI's Birthday Basics stamp, and MME enamel dots. And for real, I made this fast. In less than 10 minutes. And hey, if I can do it, you can too! Happy dances everyone.

Wasn't "Ugly Card" fun?!!

Oh yeah. I laughed all day yesterday at the comments on my ugly card, and the comments left on all the other cards over at Suzanne's the card yard. I for one am hoping that Suzanne makes this an annual event. I'm pretty sure I have more ugly cards tucked here and there...

I have been a busy little crafter today, and am hoping to redo a birthday card for my sweet granddaughter, Lizzy, a bit later this afternoon. I've made two cards to post, the second is just to view. It's for my dear friend Val in Florida. Her birthday is Friday, so this was a priority for me to finish on time. The first card is going into the Muse #5 Challenge, and I thought I'd play at CAS on Sunday too.

Laurie Willison made the Muse inspiration card. Isn't it gorgeous?! Is is just me, or are you in awe of her work too?! Love her designs. For my card, I used the green, and the way  the focal point is popped up over the background stamping.

The theme this week over at CAS on Sunday is Thank You. I found the most appropriate stamp for my design, and I think I hit it straight on. So without further ado, this is my card:

The gray was calling me again today. Just had to go with it. All the paper are scraps (again)!! The stamp is from SU, using Memento London Fog ink, the three little blings are from K & Company, and the white flourishes are an old Basic Gray rub on. Clean. Simple. Done. Happy dances everyone!

Whoops, almost forgot to show you the other card...

I like that it's cheerful. Happy is so important in this world, don't you think? So often when I read the newspaper or look at the news, there is such sad, evil, or horrid stories. God wants us to be happy in our lives. No matter what befalls us. That's why I'm happy dancin' everyday. You should too! Grins and giggles as you do your own happy dances!

My ugliest card ever...

Suzanne over at the card yard is having some April Fool's day fun. As she so perfectly put it "it's time to get your ugly on..." The idea is to find the ugliest card you made and remake it (if you can/want to/have time...), and post on her blog. You'll get better information if you pop over to her blog.

Seriously, we've all made them, we're all embarrassed by them, and we all wish we had never posted them. How fun is this???!!!! Now, I've looked at the cards you brave souls have posted, and let me tell you, the one you're about to see is the ugliest of the ugly. No question. Hands down. Somebody say "Amen". I am only posting it here because now, I think it's funny. Stupid funny. And I'm laughing. And hoping I've gotten better at my craft...

Eeewwwww.... hahahahahahahahahahaha. This is so ugly. But, you've got to read the full post to get a truly full dose of ugly. Yep. This cracks me up (oh! a pun. that only makes this uglier!!). Now laugh, and be brave. Post your ugly. It can't be any worse than this....

I'm not even attempting to remake this beauty. I'm laughing too hard to hold scissors.....hahahahahaha

April Fool's Day

Well so far, today is no fool's day. Instead there's only been really good news for a couple of blog friends. First of all, Ardyth from Maskerade has been named by Jackie Rockwell as the new DT Coordinator at Muse. Stop over at both places and check out Ardyth's work, leave a little love, and also pop over to Muse and check out that challenge--it's a blast! Be sure to tell Jackie how much you enjoy Muse, and hey, while you're there, play along! Doin' the Happy Dance for Ardyth and Muse!

Then, Geri G. from Manitoba Stamper won last week's CASology challenge, Hope. Her card was amazing, and I'm so pleased for her! You will be too when you stop at her blog and see what she made. Am doin' the Happy Dance for her too!

Now on to other things...

I'd like to say thank you to the DT over at Unscripted Sketches. My card was chosen as a Top Three pick for last week's challenge, along with Glee's and LeAnne's. I am tickled, and at the same time very humbled. With all the wonderful card makers out there, it still amazes me that a DT finds my work worthy of such an honor. Thank you US.

This month really starts the avalanche of birthdays in our family and friends network. Three this week, plus one anniversary. Just in case Jennifer reads this today - Happy 18th Anniversary to you and Dennis. Blessings today and always my dear friend! And for the first birthday on the list, I played along with the Be Inspired 25 Challenge at The Alley Way Stamps, and used the sketch from Unscripted Sketches #204. That sketch is so cool, and when I started placing my elements, they fit into the sketch really well. And if you head over to the TAWS blog, you'll find this incredible inspiration photo:

  

Can you just imagine the possibilities?!! I have to tell you what inspired me from the photo. Naturally, the polka dots, the colors, and the daisies, but if you look closely in the lower left hand corner, you'll see little pie chart thingys. When you see my card, you'll get it.

Feels springy to me. And a happy birthday card. Our DDIL will get a kick out of it. Every single piece of paper, except the SU white card base, was a scrap. So I really don't know which manufacturer made which paper. I used the Die-namics Crown Border die from MFT with a scrap of green in honor of the bits of green in the photo, and it gives it a good finishing touch, I think. The daisies are from somewhere, but couldn't tell you exactly who made them. Same with the ribbon scrap. However!,...the stamps are from TAWS Adorabowl set. If you don't own any TAWS stamps yet, put them on your wish list. Seriously. The inks are from Memento London Fog, and Hero Arts Neon Pink. So did you get it? Pie, pie chart....ok, dorky, but it works for me. (Don't say anything, Sue J...) So anyway, have a good day, and do a little happy dance!