Monday Musings

Blog News

Hi, everyone,

I'm going to try posting on Mondays and Fridays -- Monday Musings and Friday Night Writes -- for a couple of weeks and see how that goes. So, welcome to the debut of Monday Musings.

OWH Sketch #110

I used remnants of my favorite patriotic paper for this week's Any Hero card. The layout is pretty true to this week's sketch, although I changed the rectangle dimensions to better fit the digi stamp. And, I rotated the sketch to fit with my pre-written Any Hero message.

This card came pretty quickly and seemed to turn out pretty well.

A New Twist on an Old Favorite

The stamp for the following OWH Mother's Day card was a Hampton Arts find in the Michael's $ bin. And, I've had the animal print paper since I don't know when. Nevertheless, this paper seemed to go perfectly with the shoe.

Heat embossed with clear powder over Ranger Distress Ink!
Stamp: Hampton Arts; Sentiment: Computer-Generated

What I love about the card is the image is embossed with clear powder over a Ranger Distress Ink. Did you know that you could do that? Well, I heard it was possible and got it to work! (When heating the image, it looks wet and bubbled up when it's done.)

A Card for a Friend

The following card is going to a friend in our workplace book club. She loaned me a fabulous book, The Book Thief, so many months ago -- and I finally got around to reading it. This card seemed perfect to thank her for letting me explore little Liesel's world.

One of my first ever cards -- waiting for the right moment.
Paper: Kaiser Secret Bird Society

News from the Homestead

Sound the alarm, call Brian Williams, and take an ad out in the paper... or send a tweat, text a friend, and publish a blog post.

Either way, the big news is that hubby and I entered the 21st century and purchased our first digital camera this weekend. Who knows what doors that will open?!

Think that's it for the first Monday Musings.  Thanks for stopping by and happy scrappin'!

OWH Midweek Challenge

Hi, everyone,

This week's challenge is a perfect fit with the current chaos on my card-making table. We are asked to work on half Mother's Day/half general sentiment box of cards for the mid-March campaign to get cards to our shippers in advance of the Mother's Day deadline -- which is exactly what I've been doing since the VCMP!  :)

Both Mother's Day cards for the first half of the challenge were made from My Mind's Eye Stella Rose collection. I have to say this first card was inspired by a Christmas card hanging on a file cabinet in my craft room -- and I'm so happy with the way it turned out. :)

For the other half of the challenge, I have been adding to my VCMP cards. The Thinking of You card was made from Kaiser's Secret Bird Society and the more feminine entry was embellished with Michael $ stickers from Studio112 and Hero Arts gems.

Off to make more cards. Happy scrappin'!

OWH Midweek Color Challenge

This week OWH posed a color challenge to make a card using green, blue, kraft/tan.

So yesterday, when I was making tone-on-tone cards from pastel cardstock for Mother's Day, I decided to make the same card using a blue and green printed paper.

Paper: KaiserCraft's Konstrukt collection
Punch: Martha Stewart punch-around-the-page butterfly
Embossed Border: Hero Arts Large Fabric Design stamp
Embossed Sentiment: 2000 Stampin' Up!
Butterfly Accents: gold gel pen and gold stickles

Technically, this card is green, blue, and gold. I hope all will forgive me as this was the closest I could come in the Mother's Day assembly line going on in my craft room yesterday. :)

A couple of points worth noting:

• Tone-on tone and masking ideas came from the recent CAS Online Card Class
• I lightly pressed a rectangular strip of paper into the embossing pad -- embossing the paper before punching out the butterfly.
• And, interestingly enough, I purchased this paper to make OWH Father's Day cards.

I never would have thought to heat emboss on printed paper before this challenge. It's an interesting result. And, I must say, the embossing and stickling really lose something in the JPG.

Well, off to finish up Mother's Day cards from yesterday.
Happy scrappin' to all!

OWH Sketch #109

Can't think of a better way to spend the observed President's Day holiday than supporting our troops through OWH!  :)

OWH Sketch 109 is a great look. I was drawn to its simplicity and immediately knew the 3 main papers I wanted to use. And, I quickly decided to forego a cut-out star and go with a heat-embossed, framed star image.

After that, however, I felt like Goldilocks struggling to find just the right amount of detail and embellishment for the card shown below.

Paper: K&Company's Americana mat pad, BasicGrey kraft
Embossed Image: Stampin' Up!

• The kraft needed a little pop off the navy. So, I decided to go with a little white -- but I had to be careful not to use too much white and take away from the framed star.
• The framed star needed a little background to pop off the kraft and red -- but my first two choices of paper were too busy.
• The brads added nice texture and shine -- but the card still needed a little something more.
• I thought about red or navy corners for the top left and right corners of the kraft rectangle -- but, since the corners took away from the embossed star and red strip, the corners were too much.
• Hand-drawn stitching popped into my head. This looked nice -- but was still not quite enough. The kraft still seemed to be the dominating focus when I wanted it to be the star and red strip.
• Rubbing brown pastels intermittently on the kraft helped add more dimension -- but the kraft was still too dominant.
• Finally -- the card looks just right after adding the stamped sentiment!!!  The tone-on-tone sentiment nicely enhanced the kraft without detracting from the embossed star and red strip. And, since this is an Any Hero card, "Thanks!" was exactly what the card needed. [When hubby said he really liked this one, I knew I had landed on the right combination of details and embellishments. :)]

This was one of those times when there was a whole lot more involved in designing the card than will meet the eye. Isn't it interesting how some cards come together so quickly and others... well, not so quickly?

Happy scrappin'!

Romeo and Juliet...

Remember the lyrics from "Fire" by the Pointer Sisters?

Well, Romeo and Juliet,
Samson and Delilah,
Baby, you can bet,

A love they couldn't deny.

How about "Fever" by Peggy Lee, recently covered by Michael Buble?

Romeo loved Juliet
Juliet she felt the same
When he put his arms around her
He said, "Julie baby you're my flame"
Thou givest fever when we kisseth
Fever with thy flaming youth
Fever I'm on fire
Fever yea I burn forsooth

Captain Smith and Pocahontas
Had a very mad affair
When her daddy tried to kill him
She said "Daddy oh don't you dare"
"He gives me fever with his kisses"
"Fever when he holds me tight"
"Fever, I'm his missus"
"Daddy won't you treat him right?"

Well, those songs were the inspiration for the card below. Since the card was for hubby, who teaches history to high school sophomores, I decided to include a couple of historical references in addition to Romeo & Juliet and Scarlett & Rhett.

Paper: Reminisce, Fiber: EK Adornments,
white tulle, computer-generated font

Actually, the card ended up being larger (a letter size sheet of paper folded in half) and frillier that I originally planned. In spite of its frilliness, I think hubby appreciated the effort. :)

So, I'm already thinking of how this design can be tweaked for 2013 OWH Valentine's Day cards. Thinking I need to:

• include only 3 hearts on the front,
• place the larger heart on the inside of the card on the left side,
• omit the tulle -- maybe use double matting instead,
• and, of course, replace the names on the last heart with "You and Me"

Any other suggestions?

Thanks for stopping by and happy scrappin'!

Sketch 108 = VCMP Challenge 13 = Any Hero Card 7

One last OWH VCMP post.

VCMP Challenge #13 was to make a card with embossing. I chose to make an Any Hero Card using this week's sketch -- and took the liberty of rotating the sketch to make a horizontal card.

Sentiment: OWH Digi,
Cuttlebug star embossing folder,
Paper: Pages of Honor paper from SignifyPink
and navy with stars from Creative Memories

Okay, family Valentine cards and VCMP cards are done. Time to get going on those Mother's Day cards. :)

Happy scappin'!

OWH VCMP Challenges

Hi, everyone,

If you haven't checked out the challenges posted on OWH's Stars and Stamps blog in honor of OWH's cruise, make sure you take a look. There are some great challenges -- and lots of wonderful cards that have been linked to the blog posts.

It looks like my fellow party goers are publishing separate posts for each challenge -- and I know that short posts are preferable in the blogging community. So, I apologize in advance for going with one longer post for the sake of efficiency. That being said, I have 5 cards to share. :)


Card 1: Challenge 2 (Masculine Nautical) and Challenge 6 (Sand and Sea)

Yes, I confess that I posted the following card twice because it fits both challenges perfectly. I'm telling myself I'm really not cheating because I liked this first card so much that I made 3 more -- 2 more for OWH and 1 for my brother's birthday. :)

The most exciting thing about this card is that the sand dollars were cut and embossed using a Zip'e Mate that I purchased at a scrapbook garage sale!  I'd been able to use it for embossing, but this was my first success at getting it to die cut!!!

DMC floss, garage sale brads, background paper: DCWV Travel Pack,
blue netting: your guess is as good as mine -- just a great leftover in the scrap pile,
and a Zip'E Mate!!!!

Card 2: Challenge 7 (CAS)

This card actually came together quickly, which is not always the case for me.  I was pleased that the stamped sentiment blended in so perfectly with the aged look of the printed paper.


Bo Bunny Timepiece Collection from last year: 6 x 6 pad and card-making set


Card 3: Challenge 8 (Jungle Animals -- for a kid's card)

Well, it's a good thing a couple of the other cards came together quickly, because this one did not. I didn't have one blasted jungle animal in all my stash! So, I went online and found an adorable pattern/template for a lion at DLTK's Growing Together.

The mane, face, body, and tail tip are all created from punched-out hearts. The ears and nose are also supposed to be hearts. But, since I printed the pattern at 50%, the hearts were too tiny for my liking. Hope you like this one because I'm thinking it was well worth the effort. I'm also thinking I need to make more kid cards for OWH. :)

DLTK template, EK Success 3-heart punch,
Sizzix croc embossing folder, Kaiser rhinestones,
computer-generated font,

Card 4: Cut It Out! (punches and die cuts)

I started the following card for the Hot Tropics challenge, but the orange and green butterflies just didn't look quite right. The white butterflies with a light-blue grid pattern look so much better -- even though the pattern doesn't show up very well in the JPG.

Jillibean Blossom Soup paper pad and embellishment

Card 5: Vintage

This last card also came to me very quickly. When my hubby saw it, I think he was hoping it was his Valentine card. I must admit, it probably is more suited to him than the card he will be receiving. But, since I had already written in his card, it was too late to switch. Guess it will just have to be sent to one of our troop's loved ones... Oh, darn!  :)

Once again, Bo Bunny Timepiece 6 x 6 pad and card-making set -- perfect for a vintage look

This week's VCMP was great fun!  At first I wasn't going to participate because I had planned to get a jump on Mother's Day cards. But, the variety of the challenges have resulted in a nice assortment of cards for the "other half cards" for the half Mother's Day/half other cards challenge. Nice job, OWH blog team!

Thanks for visiting! Happy scrappin'!

OWH Virtual Card-Making Party -- Birthday Card

Last year, for the McGraw-Hill Craft Show, I made a batch of Christmas and birthday cards. The birthday cards were the same basic design -- which I learned from Tiffany at Pizazz It! -- but in different color combinations. (The card on the right was my kids' birthday version.) My Christmas cards sold well -- but my birthday cards sold like hotcakes! 

I decided to do a similar thing this year -- come up with a design I could use to give to family and friends throughout the year, make for OWH, and sell at this year's craft show.

After a little tinkering, I came up with the card below. I gave it to a friend this week -- and she loved it. So, with a bit more tinkering, I think I might have my 2012 birthday card!

Bo Bunny Snowfall paper, icicle Stickles, Fiskars border punch,
EK Success and Recollections snowflake punches, EK Success leaf punch

What most excites me about this card is how I created the cupcake -- no die cuts or punches here! I trimmed the sides of a rectangle, scored the ridges, and went over the ridges with a metallic pen to form the trapezoidal cake base. For the top mound of icing, I cut 3/4 of a circle, border punched its edge, and cut along hand-drawn arcs. Mini pop dots and 3-D glue dots add a little dimension, while Stickles add a little glimmer. Applying Sandy's guidelines for mixing patterns helped tie the whole design together.

I want/need to make a Valentine's Day card for my sweetie of a husband. Then, I'll set my sights on making cards for OWH's half Mother's Day, half general sentiment challenge. A few of these birthday cards are sure to make their way into this next shipment. :)

Happy scrappin'!

6 for 6!

Hi, everyone,

Yay!!!  OWH Sketch 107 = 2012 Any Hero Card #6

This card might have been CAS-inspired, but it took 3 tries to get just the right look.  :)

Paper: K&Company Americana Mat Pad and BasicGrey kraft
Embellishments: garage store brads and generic packing twine

Long -- but good -- day at work. Calling it a night.  So glad the DVR is set to record "Smash!" because there's no way I'd make it up to 10!

Happy scrappin!

2 Birds with 1 Stone -- CAS and ribbon challenges

CAS cards -- what a wonderful idea for an OWH Blog Skip!  Thanks to our CAS blog hostesses for posting such lovely cards.

There are so many OWHers and cardmakers who make fabulous cards -- with great vignettes, amazing layers of textures, and wonderfully colored images. And, then there are my cards. Well, for those of us who have seen Steve Martin in "The Jerk", remember the scene in which his character discovers his kind of music? I must say that's what I felt like when I first came across the term CAS!  :)

I, too, enrolled in last month's Clean and Simple class. The class was full of creative and inspirational ideas! Fortunately, there is lifetime access to the lessons because our desktop computer experienced some technical difficulties -- and I have not yet viewed all the lessons.


In spite of this, I'd like to share three cards inspired from this class. The first card will be included in my next OWH shipment. The second card was featured on last Sunday's OWH Sketch Challenge #106 post, while the third card is going to be linked to this month's ODBD challenge, which is to do something creative with ribbon. The last two cards were sent out in this week's shipment.


Card 1: Masking Technique, Tone-on-Tone Palette

Techniques: Masking and Heat Embossing;
Supplies: Hero Arts Cling stamp, Stampin' Up sentiment,
Martha Stewart punch-around-the-page butterfly punch

Card 2: Layering Elements

Technique: Layering Elements
Supplies: BasicGrey kraft, Creative Memories dp

Card 3: Stamping on Watercolor Paper

Technique: Stamping on Watercolor Paper, Embossing and Distressing
Supplies: DMC floss, Hero Arts stamp, watercolor paper,
Sizzix folder, Ranger core paper,

Time to make a couple of CAS cards for friends before starting on more Mother's Day cards for OWH! 

Thanks for stopping by. Happy scrappin'!

My First OWH Shipment of the Year!!!

First of all, my thanks to everyone who has left such nice comments about Sketch #106 and my congratulations to everyone for posting such great cards! And, for folks who left blogging advice, my sincerest appreciation. A techie colleague at work is going to help me out during lunch. :)

I'm thrilled to say that I sent my first box of the year to Kris! I am really pleased by this shipment's assortment. It was a nice mix of feminine, masculine, and patriotic cards. And, it had 5 Any Hero cards!!! Woot! Woot!


Some of the cards have already been posted for OWH challenges or featured here. So, I will just share the ones that have not yet made a public appearance.


Building on my "Your Service Means the World to Me" Any Hero card, I included 11 cards along the lines of the following made from the DCWV Travel Stack. The sentiment is computer-generated.

It also included 11 of the following cards, which were made distressing Ranger Core Paper and embossing with Sizzix folders -- including one of Tim Holtz's folders. As with the previous cards, the sentiment is computer-generated. Although I would have preferred to attach the sentiment with a little more pizazz, I was at a day-long crop at a school and out of pop dots. But, in all honesty, the less-embellished cards are the ones my hubby prefers. Here's hoping there are some troops that feel the same way.  :)

Finally, for the females, there were 8 of the following made from Kaiser's Secret Bird Society paper. I used Creative Memories square punches, Martha Stewart's punch-around-the-page butterfly punch, and Dixie's ribbon technique. Thank you, Dixie!

Think that's it for tonight. Thanks for coming by. Happy scrappin'!