Bildmalarna Cards

Here are some of the cards that I sent using Bildmalarna stamps. For Ace:

For Mel:

The mail service in the section of South Africa that I sent this card to is so "spotty" that I don't think Petra has ever received this card. Maybe the mail handlers are critics and decided that this card was too crooked for such a honey and fed it to the wildlife. Who knows? I just hope there were no bellyaches involved.

Can You Get More Sassy?

More Sassy Cheryl cards that I have sent recently:

"I'm sure they would think again, if they had a friend like Ben."

From Mo Manning and her amazing Digital Pencil: Ben! I was actually trying to make a darker watering can on these images than I normally would, so they are all colored the same except for slight variations in the dark, dark watering can. For Michelle:

For Cindy:

For Helen:

Lady Bug, Lady Bug Fly Away Home

Happy Weekend, all!! This Sassy Cheryl image, Callie and her Ladybug Friends is on it's way to a friend who just finished moving.

It seems I go through spells of having a favorite image to color. So, I use it again and again -- until I find a new favorite. Callie and her Ladybug Friends was also used for this card. With more to come...

"Readin' and Writin' and 'Rithmatic. Talk to the Tune of a Hickory Stick..."

Image from Karen's Doodles:

Image from Sassy Cheryl's:

Thinking of going back to school always made me want my teddy bear, when I was little, so, I also used these Sassy Cheryl images for Back to School cards.

This same image was used for a Get Well card for a dear lady, who was in an accident with a bicycle. Get Well Soon, Anne!

Resolution

I know, I know, it is a little late in the year to be making New Year's resolutions. But those of you who know me, know that I am a procrastinator and I'm even slow at that. So, here I sit, in August making a resolution for the rest of the year. It is: I am going to take a picture and post a picture of every card that I make, whether it gets sent or trashed, a picture is going to show up on this blog. Why? Because, I keep making the same mistakes over and over again and I'm hoping that if I spend more time with them -- I will stop making them. Whether it works or not, suffer with me and we will see. My apologies to those of you who will see the same cards more than once in more than one location. Here's an example of one of the things that I do over and over, but don't particularly like the look of after I go back and re-look at the card (which by then it is usually long gone in the mail). This is a card sent to Shauna; the image is "Lucy Lou and her bear, Paddy" by Sassy Cheryl's Digis.

One embellishment. That's it, stark, sitting there alone, like an accident or an after thought. I know it can work, I have seen it on other people's cards, but I can't seem to master the art of it. But me, in my stubbornness, stupidity or maybe, perseverance did it again on this card to Althea. The image is Farmer Sally from Sassy Cheryl's.

With only slightly more success, I did it, yet, again on this card to Tracy. The image is Callie and her Ladybug Friends by Sassy Cheryl.

Work in progress...

Sweet On-Line Friend

It is amazing how many sweet people that one "meets" on-line. One such person is BreAnn. BreAnn was such a sweetie as to remember me on my birthday, with a couple of gift certificates for digis. What a treat that was! Here is the thank you card that I sent her, using the digi she got for me at Sassy Cheryl's Digis

Thank you, BreAnn!!!

Thank God

Card size: 4 1/4 X 5 1/2. Image: House Mouse by Stampabilities colored with Copics. Verse: Printworks. Silver leaves: Hero Arts. Patterned paper: JilliBean Soup. Cardstock: Bazzill. Brads: Spare Parts. Destination: Ohio, U.S.A

Teddy New Year's Cards Sent to Pals 2012

This image I found on the web as free clip art. Colored it up and struggled to make them into cards... The bottles were painted with thick metallic gold paint to try to mimic the look of that crinkly gold paper. And there is glitter glue in the ice bucket, other than that it is straight Copics.

Bildmalarna Monochromatic

This little 4 1/4 x 5 1/2 card is done all in cardstock (my fav), no designer papers, please. The image is from Bildmalarna. The verse from a House Mouse and Friends set by Stampabilities (I've seen this verse around a lot lately). The inside includes a quote from Samuel Butler, "How dear to this heart are the scenes from my childhood." The disappointing part of this simple card is the paper that the image was stamped on. I tried some new paper and I am just not happy with it. The image isn't as blotchy as the scanner makes it look, but it wouldn't hold up to close scrutiny either. Ahh, well...

Cleaning Pumpkins

I was cleaning a bit in the craft room, when I found this stamped image -- tucked exactly where it shouldn't be. Naturally, I was forced to stop cleaning and make it into a card (well, really, what would you have done?). It seemed a little strange to be making a fall card in the middle of June, but if I didn't make it into a card -- I would probably still be stuck cleaning!

Stick Pins

After being prompted by the swap over at PCP, I dug out my beads and put together a few stick pins to use in decorating my cards.

Gardening Friend

I "met" Althea at Paper Craft Planet where we shared an interest in cardmaking. Soon, we discovered that we shared another passion -- gardening. Althea sent me this lovely gardening book -- I just wish we lived closer together, so we could share cuttings and divisions, too! Thank you, Althea!

Christmas Tri-Shutter Card

The inside of the card reads: "Wishing You an Old Fashioned Merry Christmas" The whole card is done in the same design paper with clear snowflakes embossed on it (although the snowflakes don't really show up here much).

Witch for a Friend

Here is a card that I made last year for Toni to send to her Secret Pal. The image is clip art.

Here is the inside of the same card.

There's a clear moon tonight...

Here is a stash card I made today. I don't know if I will use it for a male birthday, a sympathy card, or just a hello card, so I left the tiny area at the bottom right blank to be stamped later.

Used a Rubber Stampede stamp, ink, embossing powder and a punched circle for the image. Just added a strip of ribbon and flocked brads to the design paper for the card.

There is a Lovely Lady...

Here is the latest challenge sent to me for this week:
- 4 1/4 x 5 1/2 card
- Any inks and/or embossing powder
- Any sentiment mounted any way
- One stamp
- Absolutely nothing else
- 30 minutes from start to finish

Made this little quickie with a 50 cent Scrappy Cat image and a Impression Obsession sentiment:

Had almost 10 minutes left, so I made this card with a snowflake from The Paper Studio, but because the clock was running out, I stamped the sentiment (Serendipity) straight on to the card.

Fly on the Honeysuckle

Petra, Claire, Bridge -- My inspiration for posting this pic. If it was a challenge I would have to call it: Flowers/Flies

I wasn't actually trying to take a picture of the fly in this shot. I was practicing my depth of field, but if you look closely there is a fly hanging on the back half of one of the honeysuckle blooms. Here it is enlarged, so maybe you can catch a glimpse of that camera hungry fly:

It may not be the best picture of a flower or a fly. But check out that shallow depth of field!! I actually got that part right (for a change!).

Friends

Can you believe it? It was my turn to give a challenge and I failed it miserably!!

Here was my challenge:
- A 5 1/2 X 4 1/4 card
- No extra postage allowed
- 30 minutes start to finish
- Any embellishments
- Any stamps
- Black and White Only
- Happy Sentiment

I took it to the post office and it was over the first rate stamp price! So, I tore it apart saving the pieces I thought I could reuse. Starting over with only 10 minutes left on the clock, this is all I could come up with:

Next time, I will be more careful with what stipulations I impose on the challenge!