Favorite Cards of 2012

Happy New Year!

Thought I'd take a few minutes to share my three favorite cards from the past year, along with seven contenders.. Each caption has a sentence or two about the reason for selecting the card, as well as a link to each card's original post.

    

The Contenders...

A Divine Treat

This was one of my first attempts at coloring -- and with acrylics, no less!
It also provided me with the opportunity to "chat" with the cupcake's artist, Elizabeth Dulemba.

posted on 3/12/2012

For a Traditional Dad

This was my first time to use Core Paper.The design took a card I made
for my dad to the next level.

posted on 4/16/2012

Look Who's Turning One!

This card was a favorite for several reasons.
It was my first time to create a Tim Holtz-inspired background and to heat emboss with clear powder.
In addition, it was one of my first times to link to a site other than OWH.

posted on 5/6/2012

ROARing Good Day!

This was one of my first ever kiddie cards.
In addition, it was my first "official" adventure in paper piecing.
(BTW: This was one of hubby's Top 3!)

posted on 2/12/2012

A Patriotic Challenge

Those of you who have visited before know how much I love to make Any Hero cards.
My favorite Any Hero cards, like the one shown, often use Bo Bunny Liberty paper and a little jute.
Moreover, this was a sample card for one of the Sunday Sketch challenges. :)

posted on 9/30/2012

Jean Scene

This was my first shaped card -- and I was able to make 8 of them from some great
garage-sale-find stickers! Moreover, two of the eight were set aside for birthday cards
for my 11- and 12-year old nephews. :)

posted on 7/11/2012

Three Times the Greenery

Those who have visited before also have seen cards inspired by Ashley's fabulous scrapbook
designs. I loved how this card has a CAS-feel even though the design was fairly elaborate. I also loved
how the swirls in the paper were repeated in the stamped image, the trees, and the curvature
of the border punch. Finally, I was thrilled that this card was a sample card for the Christmas is for Kids
Labor Day VCMP challenge. :)

posted on 9/2/2012

And now the Three Favorites...

Love is in the Air

I absolutely adore everything about this card -- from the patterns and gems of the butterflies,
to the blueness of the paper, to the doodled butterfly trails.This was made for a CAS-ual Fridays challenge... and is my best CAS card... so far! (BTW This was another of hubby's Top 3! He likes the "simple ones.")

posted 4/1/2012

A Seussian Christmas

This card was inspired by a CAS-ual Fridays challenge -- taking another card I made for my dad
to the next level. I loved the result so much, I made these in three different palettes for this year's
Craft Fair. (And, for the record, this is hubby's #1 pick-of-the-year!)

posted on 7/24/2012

Frosty's L'il Friend

Just thinking about a little one receiving this adorable snowman-shaped card from mommy or daddy
brought me such joy that I had to choose it as my favorite. Moreover, it combined several of the techniques I had been working on during the year, including heat embossing and combining textures. Finally, it was a sample card for the Christmas is for Kids Labor Day VCMP challenge. :)

posted on 9/2/2012

Parting Thoughts

So, Sandy mentioned setting a crafting goal or two. 

• For starters, I'm going to continue to make an Any Hero card -- and also a Midweek Throwdown card -- for as many Sunday sketches as possible.  
• I'm going to do my best to clean up my space immediately after each cardmaking session. :)
• And, once this big deadline at work has been met, I hope to leave more comments for my fellow OWHers. I know how much comments mean to me.... and I know I've really dropped the ball on that one this past year. :(

It's been almost two years that I first started making cards for Operation Write Home. Little did I know then that I was joining such a talented, caring, and generous community of crafters. Not only do OWHers create fabulous cards for our heroes, they create a genuine sense of community and family for their fellow cardmakers. I am very grateful for the support and friendship of my OWH colleagues. Thank you all so very much for your amazing support of OWH and for your help in making me a better cardmaker. :)

As always, thanks so much for visiting. Here's wishing you many joyful hours of scrappin' in 2013!

You can click here to return to the rest of the OWH Top Ten links. :)

My Favorite Martian

Hi everyone,

Happy New Year's Eve!

A quick post for this week's OWH sketch.  The large rectangle seemed like a perfect place for a Bo Bunny chipboard ET. :)

                    

Bo Bunny Blast Off! dp and chipboard embellishments
AC and Core-dinations cardstock
stash ribbon

Parting Thoughts

First of all, I want to give a huge thank you to Julie for her wonderful sketches and wish her all the best in her new OWH role!  It will be exciting to see what Marlene has in store for us. :)

It will also be great to see everyone's Top Ten. There will be lots of mojo and creativity for all to see!

Thanks for stopping by. Happy scrappin' -- and ring in the new year safe and sound.

A Miss You Card Fit for a Gent

Hi everyone,

A quick post of a card for this week's OWH Midweek Throwdown challenge.

Momenta Paper
sentiment heat embossed in Distress Ink Fired Brick
black rhinestones

For this card, I went with one of my favorite go-to layouts. Two tips for asymmetrical pocket cards for OWH: 1) Adhering two pieces of cardstock back-to-back make the overlapping corner "sturdier" for shipping purposes, and 2) A width of 4 inches allows the card to fit nicely in A2 envelopes in spite of the overlap. 

After quite a bit of deliberation, I decided to go with Fired Brick instead of Black Soot for the sentiment. Maybe it's the OSU Buckeye fan in me, but I'm glad I did. :)

I wanted to make an elegant card that could be sent to either gender -- a card that I could give to hubby or hubby could give to me. And, since it got the hubby seal of approval, I guess this little card fits the bill. 

Parting Thoughts

Started work on those birthday cards earlier this evening.

Thanks for visiting and happy scrappin'!

As Quick as One, Two, Three

Hi everyone,

When I first read CAS-ual Friday's challenge to make a holiday card in 10 minutes, my first three thoughts were:

1. Really?
2. Really!
3. REALLY?!

My fourth thought was about a scrapbooking convention that a friend and I went to years and years ago. One of the sessions was something about making an album in a day. When the presenter said it wasn't necessary to spend hours on a page -- that minutes could do, my friend and I looked at each other in complete amazement. You see we didn't spend hours on a page. No, not us. We spent days on a page. LOL.  

So, my initial reaction to this challenge was pretty much the same. Then, I thought what the heck. Let's give this a try. And, three quick steps resulted in my first 2013 Christmas card. :)

Step 1: Emboss.
Step 2: Add brads.
Step 3: Adhere embossed image, attached to several layers of black cardstock.

AC textured black cardstock
white cardstock heat-embossed with gold powder
Hero Arts tree heat-embossed with green powder

What really excited me about this card was the way the embossing turned out. This was the first time that I tried embossing on top of embossing. The scan doesn't really do the card justice because the base has a great texture and the gold embossing is really spectacular. The tree turned out pretty well. To keep within the 10-minute limit, I didn't allow myself to obsess about the gold that was peeking through the tree's boughs and told myself it was okay to move on to Steps 2 and 3  :)

I'm pretty intrigued by the the idea of setting time limits for cards. I used this strategy when making the cards I wrote about in my last post and they turned out okay. Hmmm... Maybe this needs to be a resolution....

Parting Thoughts

Hope to post a Miss You card for this week's  OWH Midweek Throwdown. Also hoping to make this year's birthday cards for family and friends before heading back to work. Wish me luck!

Thanks for stopping by and happy scrappin'!

28 Acts of Kindness

Hi everyone,

Merry Christmas!

And the Stockings were Hung...

As surprising as it seems, I've actually had far more time to make cards these last few days than I've had the last month or so. The house is cleaned and decorated (actually it's quite peaceful right now as hubby and pup are nestled away), packages are wrapped, and Christmas Eve and Christmas Day dinners plans are well-in-hand thanks to hubby's efforts.

So, I settled in yesterday evening and this afternoon for some serious card-making. :)

But, there were so many seemingly disjointed thoughts running through my head.  I wanted to make cards for the current ODBD, CAS-ual Fridays, and OWH Sunday Sketch challenges. Then, I read Sandy's request to make cards for heroes to send home to their little ones. And, I wanted to make a special card in memory of my mom.

Through it all, I kept thinking about Newtown and Ann Curry's challenge to perform 26 random acts of kindness.

Then came my epiphany: my act would be to make 27 cards for OWH heroes. And, if I remembered to stick to the CAS-ual Friday challenge to spend only 10 minutes on a card, I might actually be able to pull this off. Well, truth be told, I spent a little more than 10 minutes on most of the cards -- but not much more.

So, I made the following for my first OWH shipment of 2013:

• 20 cards for little ones,
• 6 cards for someone near and dear,
• 1 card fit for a mom

What's that you say? That only adds to 27?! 

You're right! Act #28 was to make an Any Hero card.

Acts #1-20: For the Little Ones



Bo Bunny Blast Off! paper, notebook, chipboard, and stickers
Yes, I actually stuck to the 10 minute rule for this one!  :)



Acts #21-26: For the Teachers

Momenta Paper, computer-generated font
This card was inspired by this week's OWH sketch.

Act #27: For My Mom, For Moms of Special-Needs Children

Bo Bunny Corsage rub-ons, Crazy Love paper; Fiskars border punch
BTW: This one took lots more than 10 minutes. LOL!

Act #28: For an OWH  Hero

Bo Bunny Liberty and Bazzill Admiral, inking in Stampin' Up! Night of Navy
This card was also inspired by this week's OWH sketch.

Parting Thoughts

As 2012 comes to an end, I wish you and  your loved ones a new year filled with peace, health, happiness, good fortune, and scrappin' time.

Thanks for visiting.

Holiday Cheer and Love Notes

Hi everyone,

Hope the week has gotten off to a good start for all.

Wonder if anyone else was crazy enough to go to a Toys R Us on a Saturday afternoon. Oh my... what was I thinking?! I just kept picturing a little 2 year old bpy who had asked for Legos and a Tonka truck on his McDonalds' tree ornament and somehow I managed to stay in the Christmas spirit the entire time.  :)

Now for the card-making part of this post.

OWH Sketch #150

Both of the following cards have 2 things in common. Each was inspired by this week's OWH Sketch and each was made from goodies in that fabulous Black Friday bargain bag from Scrapbook Art.

Paper, chipboard, and stickers: Bo Bunny Crazy Love

Paper, layered chipboard, stickers: Bo Bunny Liberty; cardstock: Bazzill Admiral

For Hearts and Flowers, I was pretty true to the sketch -- aside from the change to the small rectangle next to the right the oval. I've since added small strips of the brown paper at the top and bottom of the red rectangle and like the definition it gives, as well as the way the strips bring focus to the oval.

For this week's Any Hero card, I was a little looser in my interpretation -- rotating the sketch, replacing the oval with the chipboard outline of America, and foregoing the 4.25" by 4.5" inch rectangle in lieu of the pattern in the 4.25" by 5.5" background paper.

Craft Show Follow-Up

This year's craft show was lots of fun. It's always great to see the many talents of friends and colleagues. And, a little extra money for OWH supplies and donations is always a good thing. :)

Parting Thoughts

SEI paper,
Martha Stewart branch punch
miscellaneous embellishments

Some of you may remember Frosty's L'il Friend from last fall's OWH VCMP. Well, this week's challenge is to showcase something "knotty". So, I'm thinking this little guy just might make an appearance.

Hoping to get a flower card made for this month's ODBD challenge. And, then I really need to get my box of stamped-and-tucked love cards in the mail to Kris.

Have a great week!  Happy scrappin'!

Stars of Liberty, Tweet Love, and BOPPERS

Hi everyone,

Hope everyone's had a nice weekend. I've managed a nice work-life balance, which is unusual for me. :)

I have two cards and a craft show update to share.

Stars of Liberty and Tweet Love

I stopped by my favorite LSS, Scrapbook Art, to check out the Black Friday specials. And, I found a wonderful Bo Bunny package filled with Liberty, Crazy Love, and Blast Off! goodies. Often times, these grab bags have some good things, but others not so good. But, this was the perfect grab bag!  Not only was there a 6 by 6 pad of Liberty paper and embellishments, the package was also filled with tons and tons of love and kid themed papers, chipboard, brads, and transfers!!! It was the perfect package for OWH card-making!  Thanks, Terri!  :)

The cards below were made from this great find and inspired by today's Stars and Stamps sketch.

Bo Bunny Liberty paper and layered chipboard
Techniques: crimping, distressing, and inking

Bo Bunny Crazy Love paper and chipboard
Technique: crimping

The chipboard on the first card has that baked-in glitter that seems to be really, really well set. Since, it's triple layered, I thought it would be perfect for an Any Hero card. As far as the sketch is concerned, I went with the chipboard's multiple circles instead of one big one because I just couldn't resist this embellishment. :) In addition, my square is a little larger than the sketch to accommodate the chipboard.

For the second card, I cut out the square from a 12-by-12 piece of patterned paper. Since the image was soooo cute, I left off the big circle and added a few chipboard embellishments.

Craft Show Update

I'm hoping to make a few more cards during the second NFL game. But, everything is set and ready to go -- signage is made, cards are boxed up, ...

In addition to cards, I'm selling {gift} Bag Toppers, aka BOPPERS. If you want to read a little more about these, check out my last post. I'll try to blog about the process for making these adorable little guys next weekend. :)

Think that's about it for now. Thanks for stopping by and happy scrappin'!

The BOPPERS are coming! The BOPPERS are coming!

Hi everyone,

Hope it's been a good week.

I actually have a craft fair project to share, rather than a card. And, I have to say I was so excited when I saw this week's CAS-ual Fridays challenge to create a clean and simple gift tag. I have been working on tags for gift bags, aka {gift} Bag Toppers, aka BOPPERS for Wednesday's Craft Fair!

Craft Fair  BOPPERS

Paper: 3 Bugs in a Rug Deck the Halls collection, miscellaneous cardstock
Sentiment: computer-generated
Technique: OWH's Tuesday Tutorial on Tree Folding

Paper: Miscellaneous cardstock
Stamp: Hero Arts Stunning Snowflakes
Tools: snowflake punches
Embellishments: Best Creation stickers, gems

Paper: Authentique, AC cardstock
Embellishments: stash 3-D stickers

Not only do I want to give credit to OWH's tree folding tutorial, I also need to give credit to Crafting at the Spotted Canary . While I've coined the term "BOPPER", this wonderful idea itself aired on the Spotted Canary TV show.

The first BOPPER I made was a birthday bopper for hubby. And, I love that a BOPPER is a card, {reusable} bag, and gift wrap all-in-one. Let's hope my friends and colleagues love them as much as I do!

Parting Thoughts

Not sure how much card-making will happen this weekend. We are working at the local food pantry tomorrow morning, a friend and I are going to a Christmas concert tomorrow night, and I have work-work to do sometime this weekend. Oh well... The food pantry will be quite rewarding and the concert will be both inspirational and heartwarming.

Have a wonderful weekend. Thanks for visiting and happy scrappin'!

Greatest Couples throughout History

Hi,

Hope everyone enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving celebration with family, friends, and loved ones.

Greatest Couples....

Just one card to share today, which I will be posting for both OWH Sketch #148 and the Midweek Throwdown challenge to make a card using turquoise and silver.

Paper: My Mind's Eye Stella and Rose from several seasons ago
Sentiment: computer generated
Tool: EK Success triple  heart punch

Because of my crazy schedule at work and preparing for the upcoming Craft Show, I feel like I'm behind in OWH Valentine's Day cards. So, I decided to make a Valentine's Day card using a rather non-traditional Valentine's Day color palette. I originally created the sentiment card for a card for hubby last February. :)

As far as the sketch is concerned, I rotated the design and used 2 patterns instead of 3 for the background layer. As far as the color challenge, I'm not quite sure this is truly turquoise and silver -- but it was the closest match I could find in my stash. 

Craft Show Preview

The show is December 5. So, I'll share more details next week -- including a preview of an item that I am really excited to take to the show.

I spent the first part of the afternoon preparing signage, organizing items for transport, etc. My thinking is that I can always make a couple more cards next weekend if I have some time.  But, all the other details have to be done. 

The photo shows the designs I have for sale, most of which have made an appearance in earlier posts. Hope it's a good variety -- and that I have a lot of traffic at my table. :)

Parting Thoughts

I'm hoping to find a little time after dinner to make an Any Hero card made for this week's sketch.

Have a great week. As always, thanks for visiting and happy scrappin'!

Hey L'il Monster

Hi everyone,

Hope the weekend's going well.

I have three cards to share with you today. :)

Card #1: Hey L'il Monster!

This first card was inspired by 3 things:

• This week's OWH Tuesday Tutorial on Fussy Cutting,
• Adorable monster paper on clearance at Michael's, and
• the sentiment "Hey L'il Monster" from Lesiure Arts' card- making sketch book.

Paper: Recollections Monster and All Over Monster, AC Cardstock
Sentiment: computer-generated in Andy style
Techniques: heat embossing with clear powder, punching

Tools: Creative Memories cutting system, circle punches, border punch

Seriously, what was I thinking?

This card initially had a gem in place of the eyeball. It was late last night -- okay late's a relative thing since it was 10:30 on a Friday night (lol) --  and I felt like it needed something over on that side. Why not a cute little lime gem? And, then sanity returned this morning when I asked myself what I was thinking putting a swallow-able object on a child's card! Then the idea of an eyeball popped into my brain -- and I'm so glad it did. I really like the way this l'il guy turned out. :)

One thing I really like about this card is its strong focal point. What I know about graphic design could probably fit in a thimble. But, I think the fact that the eyeball connects to the sentiment and the sentiment connects to the monster is making for a great focal point.

I LOVE how the heat embossing turned out on the monster. On thinner paper, the result is usually bumpy, which is perfect for this little guy. He is shiny and bumpy -- and popping off the page. :)

The eyeball has about 4 layers of circles underneath to give it a little pop off the page. And, there are strips of cardstock under the arms and leg to reinforce them just a bit. Finally, there's a tiny little monster looking out from inside the card. :)

The best news is I have 2 more monsters I can fussy cut for 2 more cards!

Card #2: A World of Thanks

This card was inspired by this week's Midweek Throwdown Challenge to make a thank you card.

Paper: DCWV Travel Stack, miscellaneous cardstock;
Sentiments: ? stamped in Distress Ink Black Soot, computer-generated in Abadi MT Condensed Extra Bold
Techniques: heat embossing, border punching, inking

 This card was a bit of a challenge.

• I wanted to make something that could go masculine. [Check]
• I wanted to use the DCWV Travel Stack to use the international stamp
  and computer sentiment [Check] but....
• I'd already used all of my favorite papers from the stack. Hmmm....

All in all, this is a good little card. It definitely has a nice physical weight to it. It's just not as shiny and attention-grabbing as the L'il Monster -- but then what could be? :)

Card 3: Snowflakes of Sympathy

This last card is for a girl at work whose mom died quite suddenly about a week ago.  It'll be 25 years next month that I lost my mom. I still remember a card received from friends the following Christmas. Actually, I have no idea what the front of the card looked like -- nor do I remember the manufacturer's stamped sentiment. But the handwritten note... well, that's another matter.

May your most treasured gift this holiday season be
your memories of Christmases past.

This is a sentiment that I have written on more cards than I care to remember throughout the years -- and the sentiment that will be shared with my colleague. I hope the design of the card below conveys the peace and comfort that Kevin and Denise's message brought to me all those years ago. Think I'll post this for CAS-ual Fridays' Winter Blues challenge.

Paper: Recollections embossed with Hero Arts snowflake stamp, AC cardstock, stash cardstock
Embellishments: white sheer ribbon, gem
Tools: Creative Memories square punches, snowflake punch

Parting Thoughts

Not quite sure I'll get to the Sunday sketch tomorrow since Craft Fair prep time is waning.

Picked up some wonderful pads of paper for next year's OWH Christmas cards. I especially love We R Memory Keepers' Winter's Frost Collection. Those papers are sure to make some beautiful cards. 

If I don't post anything else this week, have a blessed and joyous Thanksgiving celebration with family, friends, and loved ones.