CREATIVE CARD CHICKS - October

There are times when I actually surprise myself. This is one of those times.

I posted a couple of months back that I belonged to a card swap group on Splitcoast Stampers. Until this month, I've not posted on time - or at all with the exception of one month until now.
1) I was determined to get my cards posted on time
2) this kit spoke to me.

StampinSpooky was our hostess this month. She used mostly SU products, including DSP from the Venetian Romance paper pack (SU - 2013-2014).
Colors that coordinated with the DSP:
Powder Pink
Tangerine Tango
Soft Suede
Island Indigo

The images are from Postage Due (SU)

I added:
Sage Shadow
Mint Macaron
Decorative Label Punch
Bitty Butterfly Punch
Love N Sympathy (stamp)
Thoughts N Prayers (stamp)
Heartfelt Sympathy (stamp)
Just Add Text (stamp)
Pearls

Next month, I'll try to remember to photograph the kit. In the mean time, here are the three cards I came up with:

The large image, the postage stamp and the dsp strip were from the kit. I added Island Indigo as a base and a mat then punched the lace border in white.

Again, the large image, the postage stamp and this time, the scallop was included in the kit.

I used a leftover piece of the DSP to inspire a sympathy card I'll be needing in the coming days:

I used Mint Macaron to stamp the images and for one of the butterflies. 

As I type this, I have been informed that Mike has passed and now Chrissy is left to build a new life without him. Chrissy is a strong southern belle but I think in cases as this, strength only goes so far. My heart aches for her and I hope the card brings her some comfort.

MIXED MEDIA MONDAY - En Mass Journal Returns!

Back in February of last year, I told you about a Junk Journal project I was starting - En Masse Journal. You can see the first post of how the journal began HERE.
The next post went along rather smoothly and on time (gasp!) HERE.
From there, I'm not sure what happened but the journal never made another appearance - because something got in my way (surprise surprise!) and I never got back to it.

So out it came for this week. Originally, I'd planned to run this the 4th Monday of each month. So I think I'll stick with that.
So here we are - October 23rd and I'm diving into one of the color sections of the Journal.

Originally, I had punched out all of the tabs for the journal, but had never sat down and labeled any of them. The initial pile looked like this:

I went to add them to the journal last week and they've vanished. Something in the back of my mind says I threw them out when I was decluttering the space, not realizing what they were for and determined that when I remembered I'd just re-punch them... so that's what I did. 

But this time... I labeled them and put them in place in the journal.. allowing a 2-page spread for each.  Here's a shot of the new tabs in place:

I used the tab punch as I had before for the categories. But the COLOR and ALPHABET tabs were punched from the new SU set  TABS FOR EVERYTHING from our current All Occasion catalog. I used Recollections cardstock for the colors. The letters were stamped using a retired SU set - Collage Alphabet, which I purchased from my stamping friend, Maggie  (aka Maggie's Cat House blog)

While I've not actually begun working in the journal, I can now that the categories and colors are in place. Each 2-page spread is interpretive. I can play however I want. 

I'm going to attempt to list the categories here - in no particular order just in case blogger throws me a curve in posting:

Circles, Finger Paint, Animals (wild), Tea & Coffee, Paper Dolls, Tags, Yarn & Fibers, Postage Stamps, Stars, Business Cards, Zippers/ Fastners, Textures/ Rubbings, Cowboys/ Western, Squares, Photos, Punches, Fabric, Washi Tape, Store Receipts, Faces, Triangles, Hardware/ Washers/ Gears, Glitter/ Sparkles, Colored Pencils, Buttons, Lace Doilies, Song Lyrics, Horse & Tack, Candy/ Food Wrappers, Quotes, Labels, Woven Paper, Markers, Rectangle, Leaves, Paper Scraps, Beads, Flowers, Crayons, Lists, Window Envelope, Security Envelopes, Dogs, Cats, Fruits, Vegetables, Birds, Books.

Then I added Holidays/ Seasons because I had pages left over in the signatures:

Snowflakes, Time, Valentine's Day, St. Patty's Day, Easter, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Wedding

As well as things I love:

Planners, Baby, Teddy Bears, Negatives, Flags, Witches, Water, Football, Hearts

There are also 4 FREE pages to whatever I might find that would make a good category.

I'm enjoying playing again.

First off, I apologize for falling off the wagon on the 13 Days of Halloween. I just ran out of time. I had the projects but could not get them posted before I had to focus on packing and leaving for the conference. Then my BIL/SIL visited for a week. Rhonda and I spent the best part of two days in the studio. I managed ALL DAY on Thursday where I put together my October Daily album together from start to finish! Well, except for actual inclusions - but the base of the book is done. I'm still debating whether to use it for this year or put it away and I'll be ready to go next October. We shall see. I'll keep you posted.

Creative Blessings!

Kelly

13 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN - Day 13

13 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN - Day 12

WOYWW #436 & 13 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN - Day 11

This is Day 11. Hard to believe we are almost through the 13 days! As you read this, I'll be packing for a writer's conference in beautiful Eureka Springs AR. I love ES but October is definitely my favorite time to visit. The dogwoods have changed color and Halloween is in the air.

This is the third and final card that I started back on Day 4:

I made the banner as I did the others using the framelit squares but added a mat for this one. I added the three bats using the bat framelit in the Spooky Nights set. Once they were in place, I scribbled over them with some black glitter stickles to give them a little shine.

Only two more days left!

What will Friday the 13th bring? I do know I won't be doing an October Daily flip-through video. I will be in the conference all day. But I promise to have something special plus possibly a video play of all the projects I've done.

Creative Blessings!

13 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN - Day 10

One thing you'll notice is I keep my cards simple. I want anyone to look at my card and say "I can do that... but here's how I want to make it my own.'

I made that Recollections moon-glow cardstock as the focal this time. The three small images are from the Michael's tower baskets eons ago.. back when they were $1 baskets. These came shrink-wrapped in sets of 2. 

The bats are from last year's SU Spooky Fun stamp set, as is the greeting.

For the greeting mat, I used the retired Curly Label punch from SU. I punched one each in the black and in the moon glow. the black one, I cut in half then clipped each one off again in the curve then off-set them on either end of the sentiment mat. The entire mat is set on pop dots. 

As I look at this I see my squares a bit wonky. I've been using more glue and less tape runner. I don't know about you, but it seems the tape runner doesn't have the same longevity it used to. I can put adhesive on something today and within a couple of days, pieces are falling off. My office is climate controlled so I know that humidity isn't a factor. One of my favorite liquid glues to use, aside from the Mono-adhesive from Stampin' UP! is the craft glue from $ Tree. They come in 1.5 oz bottles, I believe, with a blue cap. They squeeze out in a fine line.. or if you do like I did and manage to break the tip off, you can just squeeze it out the hole and smear it... or apply with a brush for good coverage. 

What's your favorite adhesive to use? 

Creative Blessings!

Kelly 

13 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN - Day 9

I am going to owe you a day!
I logged almost 10,000 steps yesterday emptying all of the sewing stuff out of the studio, moving furniture and cleaning. Bob put together two 6-cubby units along the south wall and I shampooed the carpet. Today everything goes back. I can't get to the work table to finish the witch hat door hanger I'd hoped to show you today.

I guess the scary part of this post would be if I posted how my living room/ dinning room looks at the moment.
I'd rather show you the finished product later in the week.

So today, let's take a field trip!

In the mean time, I invite you to view my Stampin' UP! blog
HERE is today's post

You can scroll through the previous eight days to see what I've been doing with current Stampin' UP! sets

13 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN - Day 8

Bob came home on Friday afternoon - six days earlier than was expected. And as is the case, we have been on the go ever since. Friday we went out to dinner. Saturday we drove to Lowe's in Sikeston MO (about two hours away) to pick up a few things we needed towards getting the house back in shape. We were on the go for twelve hours yesterday!

Today, I begin pulling everything out of the office that isn't in place, add in two cubby units in the sewing corner then put everything back -TODAY! So up before the sun to get today's and Tuesday's post up. I haven't decided what I'm doing for the 13 days of Halloween - Mixed Media post just yet. I'll be thinking about that as I pull stuff out of the office ;-)

In the mean time, here's today's card:

One of the reasons I love this blog in parallel to my Stampin' UP! blog is that I can use retired and non-su products here. Forcing me to use from my stash.  This card is a perfect example.

I used all Recollections cardstock. This is a black base 4.25x5.5". After folding, I used my Martha Stewart spiderweb border bunch. I lined the inside of the card with kind of a moon-glow yellow/orange cross to pull the same color in the mat behind the cauldron image. That image is one of the new ones in the Michael's Tower Bins for $1.50. I colored the top in a Japanese version of Wink Of Stella in a sparkly bright green. The bordering papers are cut from last year's SU Pick Your Poison Designer Series Paper. 

I didn't notice the 'stars' on the card mat until after I'd uploaded. They dusted of. But kind of cool as an initial effect :-D

Are you making Halloween cards? Passing out treats? What's your favorite Halloween treat? 

Creative Blessings!

Kelly

13 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN - Day 7

Today's card is from that set I started with with on Day 4.

This one uses the witch from Spooky Fun (Stampin' UP! 2016 Holiday catalog)

I used orange glitter stickers for embellishment and the EK Success ticket punch for the sentiment.

Rather than measure for the banner notch, I pulled out my Square Framelits from Stampin' UP!

Square framelits?  Here's a shot of how I cut the banner notch:

I found the correct square framelit that would allow me to line up the cross-corner points with the corners on the strip of designer series paper. Doesn't always come out exactly, but once the die cut part is finished, a snip of the scissors will fine-tune the points.

As I'm scheduling this on Day 5, I'm figuring out what to share tomorrow. I hope you'll come back and see.

Creative Blessings!

Kelly

13 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN - Day 6

As I prepare to decorate the house for Halloween, I wanted to have something that reflects Bob's personality. He collects 'skull' type items and dragons. So when I saw THIS on Pinterest I knew I needed one for Bob's desk or on the table between our recliners.

In the picture you'll see Rustoleum Glitter paint. After a few sprays, the nozzle clogged. The spray also didn't come out as black as I wanted it. I wound up raiding hubby's shop and found a can of black. 

I found the skulls at $Tree, the candle at Hobby Lobby as well as the terra cotta saucers.

In the original, she painted the skulls black. I thought the skulls needed to remain their natural tone. So this is what I came up with:

I want to add either a skull or dragon charm to the side of the candle. I thought I had one in my Tim Holtz items but apparently not. I'll have to pick one up to finish it up when we go to the city next.

Tomorrow, I bring you another take on the card from Day 3.

In the mean time, I'd love to hear your opinion. Would you have followed the Pinterest example and painted the skulls, or do you like them al natural?

Creative Blessings

13 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN - Day 5

In an earlier post I told you about plans to finally embroider Halloween dish towels. I'm making progress. This is the stamp set I've chose:

This set from InkaDinkaDo is configured to create a marionette. My plan is to stamp the images in position on white cardstock. I will place the cardstock on my lightbox then position the dish towel over the image and pencil-trace for embroidery.

Here are the DMC colors:

Top Row: #721, #740 (Pumpkin), #51, #741 (Med. Tangerine), #608 Dk. Burnt Orange

Middle Row: #552 (Violet Med.), #52 (Shading Purples), #208 (Lavender Med.), (Black),

 #53 (Black/ Gray Shading)

Bottom Row: #907 (Parrot Green, Light), #472 (Avocado Green Ulttra Light), #92 (Shading Greens)

I hope to get some embroidery time in this weekend and have an update next Thursday.

Creative Blessings

WOYWW #435 & 13 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN - Day 4

Okay... here's my desk as I left it last night....

I know.. clean? Sort of. About two-thirds of the top is cleared ready for the next project.

The stuff to the left - the stacks of night shirts for the girls I still need to trim with puff paint, and the witch hat door hanger in progress. I need more flowers. 

A shot at the full length taken from the office door. 

And full scope of what you can't see in either of the other two pictures.

My punch rack is attached to the end of the work table, you can see a pile of stuff by the paint can I need to go through. The paint can is being used for cubby's I'm painting. The stack to the left  is all of my fair ribbon binders I told you about, the September Paper Pumpkin kit and nesting Paper Mache boxes for one of the 13 Days of Halloween projects.

Speaking of 13 Days of Halloween... I started on Monday October 2nd HERE and am putting up a new Halloween-related item every day through Friday the 13th.

And here is today's project - 

13 Days of Halloween Day 4:

I was inspired by THIS Pinterest post.

The actual post is on a Bloglovin' blog that has a pop-up at the bottom requesting you sign up for her newsletter. There is no way that I can see to get rid of it without actually signing up or connecting with her on FB. 

You'll see that mine is quite different. I think she used the larger card mat. Three banners will not fit across a standard 4.25x5.5 card base.

Since I'd already cut three circles/ mats/ banners, I turned them in to three separate cards you'll see throughout the 13 posts. 

I used the Spooky Fun stamp set from last years Stampin' UP! Holiday catalog as well as the Designer Series Paper, washi and bakers twine from there. The three Black Rhinestones are from this year's 2017 Holiday catalog.

I intended to have the witch hat door hanger today but I ran out of flowers so I need to pick up some more at $ Tree before I can finish the project.

I'm racking up the Halloween cards and I intend to mail every one. 

I'm not sure what tomorrow's post will be but Friday I'm hoping to have the video of the beginnings and first week of my October Daily album. I hope you'll come back.

That's it for my desk this week. Who's Miss Julia and why am I here?  That's my desk? What's on yours? When you are done visiting me in the Ozarks, please hop on over to Stamping Ground where Miss Julia has a long list of other studios you can peek into. No standing on an up-turned milk pail to look in the window. We open the doors wide and welcome you.  Please leave your number and you'll be among the first on my list. 

Creative Blessings!

~Kelly

13 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN - Day 3 & WINNER!

Before I go any farther with today's post I need to announce a winner of the giveaway I offered up HERE

For comments on the Christmas Notebook post, I offered up the Countdown to Christmas from Heidi Swap - Kind of a December Daily in its own design.

There are 25 daily sheets to journal and add a picture as you count down the days to Christmas.

And the WINNER is - 

Cara. Cara is a talented stamper/ creative over at Crafting Bunnies! I hope you'll hop over and Congratulate her!  

Okay.. now, on to today's project. I thought I'd do a simple card today as I have several that need to go in the mail this week. So here we are:

I made this card using mostly scraps and some of my non- SU stamps that I don't get to use very often these days. This image is one of the new ones by Craft Smart from the tower baskets at Michaels. I've also used Recollections cardstocks. They are a bit 'rustic' so lent themselves to this project. I stamped the witch on vanilla with SU Basic Black ink then cut the circle out using the #3 Spellbinders circle (If you count from the largest ring in towards the center of the rings). After cutting out the circle, I dusted the edges with Basic Black using a finger dauber.

The purple patterned paper is from Karen Foster and the larger orange/ black panel is called Haunted House by Craft n Craftin'. The orange flag is from my paper stash. I decided I needed a little something extra so I cut one of the spiderweb doilies from last year's SU holiday catalog into quarters and adhered one of the sections. This helped to tie in to the Martha Steward spider web punch trim. 

Are you getting ready for Halloween? Tomorrow I'll have another card and I have the witch hat finished to show you.

Creative Blessings!

13 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN - Day 1 & 2

First day of my event and I'm already behind. My job as Marketing for a publishing company has definitive drawbacks. Something I hope to fix in the next couple of weeks. For now, it is what it is.

So here's the beginnings of the project you were supposed to see yesterday:

DAY 1:

Okay, these are just the components of a project to come... probably tagged onto Wednesday's post as I'd really like to get this made today. Everything except the cat figurine (didn't realize you couldn't see him but he's just to the right of the sign) all came from $Tree.

Here was my inspiration piece from Pinterest  The original idea came from homebnc.com I've removed the actual link to the webpage because when you go there, they have a pop up for you to get their ebooklet and the only two ways out are to either agree or to close the window. I get link marketing but I'm not a fan of being forced to sign up for something just to look. But I really like the hat. 

I've actually pulled several things from Pinterest to incorporate into blog posts and around the house this year. I'm determined to enjoy my favorite holiday. 

Okay.. for DAY 2 I have a video for you. Not mine, but more of a scroll through using Kizoa (as I've done with photo-laden posts in the past) 

Last year I wanted to take part in December Daily. I put my basket of goodies together then never got to play because of this job. I'm not doing that this year. So when I saw Sabrina Ann and lyriclover on YouTube talk about doing October Daily, I knew I wanted to get involved. 

Basically, you are documenting things in your life on a 'daily' basis that you want to remember throughout the month. A more artsy form of Project Life, if you will. 

So here is my collection of goodies to incorporate into an album:

I will be back tomorrow with a Birthday card for a friend.

Creative Blessings!

Kelly