Happy 4th USA

 Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD;
and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance. Psalms 33:12

I love this post I did in 2023, and am running again for the Second on the 2nd over at Altered Book Lover hosted by Bleubeard & Elizabeth 

I wish all in the U.S a wonderful Independence Day!  I am proud to be an American and I am proud of my country.  I am thankful for our freedoms!  Celebrate!

T Stands for Patriotism

 ​¹ Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. Galatians 5:1

Good evening!  It is time for TSFT, and we post early because it is already Tuesday over the pond.  Tomorrow, we celebrate the 4th of July or our Independence Day in the USA. On that note, I thought I would share some patriotism from my neighborhood.  As you all know, sometimes on the trails I walk they decorate them for the different seasons and holidays, so I thought I would share a few photos. The didn't go overboard, but here are a few.

Because this replica of a Keeper of the Plains looks patriotic, I am including photos of it.  This one is at Cambridge Market right in front of one of our favorite diners, Livingstons.

As Elizabeth explained these replicas were commissioned to celebrate Wichita's 150th anniversary, I believe.  I now have a complete list and plan to find and photograph all of them.  So far I have visited and photographed this one and the one at Cozine Memorial Group, which I previously posted on my blog.

Parting shots:

And for our TSFT ticket over at Altered Book Lover:

I wish all in the U.S. a happy and safe 4th.

Thank you for stopping by.  I love reading your comments and visiting your blogs.  It is so fun to get to know bloggers from all over the world as we visit each other.

TIOT & Second on the 2nd

 "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction." Proverbs 1:7 KJV

First, here is a project for Try It on Tuesday where the theme is Summer Blooms.  I have to say as I take my walks I see a lot of these wildflower blooms.  Some call them weeds; I call them blooms.  I put the the TH die cut flowers on a gel print (with a stenciled bg.).  I added the sentiment.  It is on a yellow panel and then added to a white base.  (110 lb Recollections white.)

Now rhis is for my second on the 2nd over at Altered Book Lover.  In case you missed this technique I posted about in November of 2013.

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

WOYWW # 231 & Thumping

       What have I been doing? And why am I showing you my messy desk?  It is because it is What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday  Julia tells you all about it at her Stamping Ground. Check it out!
       I have tried to make three to five Christmas cards a month, so that I wouldn't have to make them all in December.  So  I have been busy stamping the insides, just as time consuming as making the card.  I have tried to stamp the inside sentiment and then cut the inside panels to match what is on the outside. Look at what a mess my die cut area is.  Also, these are my cards and their insides on my main craft area.  I have 40 cards made, stamped on inside, and my "made by stamp" on the back.  So, now all I have to do is address them.  And when I make them all different, just maybe five a like, it is difficult to choose which ones to send to who!!! LOL  Also, below, I did make a card yesterday!

Thumping Technique

This card was made using the Thumping Technique.  Here is a Splitcoast Stamper Tutorial.  I made this for my  You Can Do It Challenge to use this technique.
   It is such an easy way to achieve  added highlights and depth.  You just ink up your stamp with one color, this time I used SU! Certainly Celery.  You then  thump a marker of another color different places on the stamp.  I used Midnight Muse and Old Olive. Then you huff on your stamp and stamp it! :)
   This is a card I made for my GF that made me the gorgeous scarf that I showed you last week.

    Other credits for the card.  Cardstock: SU! Midnight Muse, Whisper White, Certainly Celery

                                             Spellbinders Labels 10 Die & SU! Petite Punch

                                             SU! Fancy Fan Embossing Folder

                                             Stamps:  sentiment- Pretty Petites

                                                            image- Watercolor Trio

                                             Saphire Rhinestone Stickers

Thank you for stopping by and for your comments. Love getting to know all of you!  I am off to visit your area and see what you are doing!

T Stands for Celebrations & Second on the 2nd

 "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction." Proverbs 1:7 KJV

Good afternoon on the 2nd and almost TSFT.  I am scheduling the next two weeks blog posts, because I will be away from my computer, so we will see how that works!  

We will do the Second on the 2nd first.  I will show you a post for the second time and on the second.  Something fun that Elizabeth hosts over at Altered Book Lover.  It is always fun to see a post from the past! :)

So in case you missed it here is a post I did on the Magical Masking Tape Technique from June 2013.

Saturday, June 29, 2013

Magical Masking Tape Technique

I have found another great technique!  All you need are ink pads and masking tape.  On this card I used SU! inks:  More Mustard, Crushed Curry and So Saffron. You tear off strips of masking tape and ink them up on the pad, and then put the tape on the card, and then lift off. It is a  wonderful color effect for a background!  I did that with three strips. You could do a background on the whole card doing this. Here is a tutorial on Splitcoast Stampers. On this card I used SU! Thoughts and Prayers stamp set.  I also colored directly on the stamp with markers before stamping it, so I could do the leaves with Old Olive and the trunk with Chocolate Chip, also SU! I hope you try this technique, so easy!   Have a great week-end!

And now to show some celebrations I attended this week which also includes my ticket to TSFT, also over at Altered Book Lover and also hosted by Elizabeth & (Bleubeard).  I don't want to forget Bleubeard!

I attended a few celebrations this week.  One was to surprise a friend for her 65th!  I loved the purple decorations!

I didn't realize this was so blurry. Sorry, but wanted to show the purple and the flowers.

Another was to celebrate a precious couple's 60th wedding anniversary!

I saved two napkins for crafting! LOL

We drank water rather than the lemonade.

The cake was delicious.  I had white, and hubby had the strawberry.

And this is after all a craft blog so I will share the card I made for this 60th anniversary.

Thanks for stopping by.  Have a great week!

My Desk on the Second Now & Then

 11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. ¹² For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. ¹³ Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

¹⁴ Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; ¹⁵ And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; ¹⁶ Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. ¹⁷ And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: ¹⁸ Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; Ephesians 6:11-18

It is time to show what is on our desks and to link to Julia over at Stamping Ground.  Since I am also joining Bleubeard & Elizabeth over at Altered Book Lover for Second on the 2nd, I thought it would be fun to show now & then. 

Here is my desk today!  What's On Your Desk? Wednesday #665

I couldn't decide what I was doing today.  The sunflower book is a junk journal I made last year.  Next to it on the right is what I was collecting to make a daisy junk journal, which is the March Stashbuster challenge by Julie Dear Julie this year.

The card on top of the little white organizer is a daisy card I made for the Alpha Challenge over at SplitcoastStampers, for P for petals this week.  That thingy with the handle is what I use to press harder on my Misti when stamping.  It is easier on my wrists.  What I originally got it for was to use to press down on pages on the Geli plate. On box it is a Speedball baren, made for a comfortable grip "for a shock-absorbent, smooth slide, this baren makes it easy to create even pressure for better ink images."  Great for arthritic wrists.  I bought it like 20 years ago, and just now getting it out to use on a regular basis, not just with the Geli plate.  It saves on my wrists.

Here is my desk then: November 26, 2013

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday #234 & EMS Scrap Sketch

Well, my workdesk is a mess, because I have been scrapping.  I even have stuff from last week still on here! Yikes!  You can see the yellow strip of CS that I tried to cut my letters out of.  It didn't work, too light weight, so I used some 12x12 SU!  Also, do you notice the 2 adhesives in lower left corner?  Well, they stopped working.  I have a whole sack of adhesive, that broke or quit working.  They are different brands.  Am I the only person that has difficulties with adhesive?
Also, in front of the Copics are some gift calendars I am working on. I stamped an image and am using the inks to water color.  There are some fun photos on there that I might incorporate on a card.   If you don't know what WOYWW is check it out at Julia's Stamping Ground.

WOYWW #234

A close up on my scrap page is below.  It is for several challenges:
             SCS VSBN English Degree ( my Bachelor Degree)  We were to use a conversation bubble on our page.
             Stash Busters Challenge:  We were to use two printed papers at least a year old, Epoxy sticker or put a shiny glaze over a sticker, ribbon slide, ribbon.
             Even More Scrapping Sketch Challenge # 50

EMS Sketch # 50

              Credits:  Printed Paper TPC Studio "School Days Alphabet Jumble"
                              Cardstock: So Saffron & Sage Shadow both SU!
                              Accessories:  SU! Alphabet Die, Certainly Celery Ribbon, Ribbon Slide from years and years ago!  Spellbinders leaf die.  Bubble sticker from Bernard J. Putt & Assoc 1985!
Yikes!! 1985! LOL    I thought it would be fun to use the letters and the negative of the letters on my page. 

                                                

                                                  Bless the Lord, O my soul; And all that is within me, bless His holy name! Psalm 103:1-2

  And finally, wishing my friends in U.S. Happy Thanksgiving!  Here is a photo of the pumpkin that my husband and I are slaughtering tomorrow to freeze lots and lots of bags of pumpkin!  But I thought it would make a nice Fall photo. :)  We do this every year about this time and then bake and freeze lots of mini loaves and regular size ones for Christmas gifts.

I hope you enjoyed seeing what is on my desk and a second look at 2013!  Have a glorious day!  Thank you so much for stopping by.

A Second Look at Feb 11, 2014

  A verse to think on: "That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:  The eyes of your understanding being enlightened: that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints."  Ephesians 1:17-18

I wanted to share a second look today and join Elizabeth at Altered Book Lover for her 2nd on the 2nd.  I decided to go back to early February 2014 to share.  Now, after looking at this, I know why I have so many stamp sets!  But I haven't been buying any new ones for a couple of years, and also, I have been trying to hone down my collection! LOL It is interesting, also that I mention in this 2nd look what it is like outside.  Although, I do not have the snowy photo any longer on my header, I know it used to be.  And that is what it looks like outside today, too.  It is blowing snow outside as I type this.  And since it is a picture of my desk, although old, and Wednesday I will join WOYWW. What is on your Workdesk Wednesday.

Here is my 2nd look:

    I received something fun this week!  My Stampin' Up order arrived, and I have been playing with it!  I saved up all year for Su! Sell-A-Bration sale.   So that is what is on my desk.  I have already opened and used two of the stamp sets and also the set of framelets. So new stuff really does inspire you to craft! :)  So, I am an enabler! Go get new stuff!  LOL
    Anyway, this week finds me crafting!  Especially, since outside we got 8 inches of snow today, and it is rather cold out.  So what else is there to do?  Oh, I did help my husband shovel snow for a few minutes. :)  My background photo is pretty much what it looks like here today! Pretty, but everything is shut down.

     For more information about What's on Your Workdesk? Wednesday visit Julia's Stamping ground.

 

The card on the left was made using Su! Hostess set Nature's Hello along with the Big Shot Die Framelets Backyard Basics and Secret Garden.  I made the background panel using the Glitter Highlighting Embossing Technique.  Here is a link to a tutorial for that technique.  I used a rhinestone for the bird's eye, and Stampendous Dot Sparklers on the butterfly.   I made that card for Challenges S2S14D, A2S14C, and AOCC2014 on SCS.

The card on the right was made using Night of Navy and Marina Mist cardstock.  I used Denim embossing Powder and VersaMark ink on the image from Stampin' Up set, Tea Party.  The DP is from SU! Regals Print Pack.   The ribbon is probably SU!, but not sure as it was in my stash. :)  That was made for Challenges S2S14D, S2S14E, and AOCC2014 on SCS.

Thanks for looking and stopping by my Blog to see what I am doing.  Thanks for your comments, too, always appreciated!  I am off to see what is on your desks. Happy WOYWW!

 A verse to think on: "That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:  The eyes of your understanding being enlightened: that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints."  Ephesians 1:17-18

Thanks for taking this 2nd look with me.  Thanks for stopping by.  I enjoyed our visit.

Happy Groundhog day! :)

Second on the 2nd & Tag Tuesday

 "Let my mouth be filled with thy praise and with thy honor all the day." Ps. 71:8

Hello Dear Readers.  I thought I would join Bleubeard & Elizabeth  for the  Second on the 2nd today over at Altered Book Lover.  I will show you  a past  post for a second time. But, first I will show you my Tag for the Tag Tuesday Challenge.  Valerie challenged us to do a vintage tag.

Mine started with this treated tag  from Artful Illusions/Mrs. O'Leary's.  Then I tore and inked up a digital image from Scrapbooking With ME.  I have watched her on you tube, and like her style.  I then added words and butterfly from Tim Holtz, inking both.  I added a scrap of lace, Nuvo dots, and some inked up canvass ribbon.

I haven't done a Second on the 2nd for a while, and am not sure how to do it.  Copy and paste?  I will try that here goes:

Saturday, October 12, 2013

Butterflies Are Free

A few weeks ago on my WOYWW post I indicated a box  on my craft area that had butterflies in it.  My Blogger friend Brandy sent them  to me.  It included about 40 butterflies of different colors and different cuts. I thought I would show you today two more cards that I made with the butterflies.   I thought they were all so lovely and lacy, I just love using them on my cards. They made these cards easy! Thanks Brandy! :)

Submitted to QFTD184 & AOCC13 Challenges

    I needed this card unfortunately for a friend this week.   I used SU! Thoughts & Prayers set.  I used Spellbinders oval and lacy oval dies.  I made clouds by punching a scalloped circle and sponging around it, a trick I learned from one of SCS friends. :)  The cardstock is SU! Baja Breeze & Close to Cocoa, & Whisper White.   The ink is VersaFine Vintage Sepia, ( my favorite go to ink pad).  I sponged with Baja Breeze.  Then I  used pearls on one of the butterflies that Brandy so wonderfully cut and sent me! :)

Submitted  for QFTD182 & AOCC13 Challenges

I made this birthday card for a dear friend.  Just gave it to her this week.  I ran the white through with a EF, and layered on Tempting Turquoise.  I stamped it with sentiment from Elegant Greetings from SU!  I just happened to have ribbon that matched the butterflies! :)  Really, the four butterflies are the stars here!



I wish you all a great week-end!  Hope you get to craft some.  Thank you for stopping by and for your comments!
Hugs!

Well it sort of worked.  I picked a short one from the year I first began a blog.  Here is the link to the real thing if you care to go back and see what my blog looked like back then.  Side bar is different.

Thank you for stopping by today.  Have a wonderful 4th of July if you are in the USA.  

Second on the 2nd for Elizabeth

I thought I would post for Second on the 2nd to cheer up Elizabeth who is operating with a patch over one eye for a while.  So, I looked back and chose one from 2013.  That is what we do; we join in with Elizabeth over at Altered Book Lover, and we take a second look at one of our past posts.

But first I wanted to show you some projects  I have been doing while "at home"

 I have been watching lots of you tube videos and I watched one by Lisa Curcio on how to make accordion card.  It is my new fun fold card that I like to make.

 

I think it makes a card special.  Measurements:  Base 4 1/4 x 5 1/2  white embossed panel 4"x5 1/4"
The long piece is 4 1/4" x 11" and scored at 3", 5 1/2", 8", 9 1/2"  Fold with largest to go on the embossed piece.  DSP 1 1/4"x 4" (2), 2 1/4"x4" (2), white for sentiment 2 3/4"x4"
Belly Band : 1 1/2"X9 1/2"
All measurements as given by Lisa.

Another new fold to me is the bridge fold I saw on you tube by Kelly Acheson.  I found this with all different measurements.  This one is larger than I like. It needed a larger envelope.  There are several versions and I am sure you can find one that fits in a regular A-2 envelope.  This folds flat, but is just a little more  special than a regular card.

My last card is using a technique from SplitcoastStampers.  It is the rubber band technqiue.  I have a brayer that I can click off the handle.  I put rubber bands around it and then put it back on the handle.

I then inked up the rubber bands with Bermuda Bay ink.  I rolled the brayer going one way over some card stock. Then I cleaned the rubber bands.  Then I inked up with my second color, Gumball Green.  This time I rolled the opposite way.  I did it on a whole sheet of paper , so actually got four panels.
For this card I layered a 3 3/4x5" panel of the rubber band background on a 4"x5 1/4" panel of Bermuda Bay card stock, then put the whole thing on a Recollections white 110lb base.  I used the strip I cut off the Bermuda Bay on the card, and die cut hello out of the center of the Bermuda Bay panel, because no one will see the middle of that piece.  I added sequins.

So, now for my Second on the 2nd:  ( origianlly posted August 27th, 2013)

Vintage Ladies Card and Ex 33:14

Oh, my goodness!  It is Tuesday again!  Where did the past week go to?  I am trying to get into a schedule for these posts.  I do better with a schedule.  So, Tuesdays might be it! :)
    I thought I would post a few more of my favorite cards from DTGD .

 I made this card using some favorite lady stamps from Mrs. O'Leary's Artful Illusions.  They are really detailed images and show up best when stamped with VersaFine ink; I used Vintage Sepia.  The printed paper is Stampington, an insert  from a Take Ten magazine. :)  I have several sheets of really neat paper from when I used to get that magazine.  A couple of years ago, I picked up these little frames that are just right to frame an inchie, from a garage sale.  My Mona Lisa inchie is also from Mrs. O'Leary's Artful Illusions.  I stamped it and punched it out and put it on that cute little frame and then there is the clear top to stick over it. The ribbon is Chocolate Chip from SU!  I added a copper brad, ( I love copper hardware best.) and the pearls. I really enjoy making vintage cards.

I did this for the following challenges:

DTGD13UnderstandBlueB

DTGD13CassieT

Vintage Ladies

This next card is a mixed media card.  I used acrylic paint with a stencil.  I had fun doing this card, and might use acrylic paint again.  The stencil is one that I picked up at a stamp show a couple of years ago and had never used!  I added the stick on gems from my stash.  The Bible verse is from Words of Wisdom by SU!  And this  verse gives me such comfort!

This card was for the following challenges:

DTGD13Beate

DTGD13bfinlay

DTGDsummerthyme64

MIX26

BVC13

Exodos 33:14

Thank you for stopping buy!  Have a great holiday week-end, For the ones in the states.  I guess I should have posted something patriotic!