Thank you for a glorious day!

Good morning, Friends!

Today, feeling grateful for a glorious morning, I decided to post this rather simple thank-you card for you to see, copy, whatever!

I found a very simple, free font that has this loose script that I like so much. There are many free font websites (and I forget which one I used to get this), just Google search "free downloadable fonts". I laid out the sentiment three times, cut one long strip of pink that I trimmed in three bars, embellished with this beautiful flower from Creative Charms, and tacked on three baby rhinestones on the right side of each strip as well. I rounded the corners of the white cardstock and mounted it on a small black card. The inside has a complimenting white card that has been embellished to match, for a writing surface.

Enjoy the day!

Friendship Card -- "I'd Pick You"

Happy Saturday, Blogettes!

Finally, I have a Saturday where I have few plans. This means as you might expect for a time-challenged cardist (that's card-artist combined, a mish-mash word of my own invention) ... time to make the cards!

I still am working on a surprise for my followers that begins on Thursday, September 16, which happens to be my parents' 59th wedding anniversary. Until then, friends, I will try to keep up by creating and posting card art that pops into my juicy brain while up in the Craft Loft.

Tonight, I decided to play with a set of new clear stamps that I just got in, from "There She Goes" Clear Stamp Company. (This is a clickable link posted here, so if you'd like to see what they have, just click to be taken to their front page.) I'm not on anybody's "Design Team" and so I actually pay for all my supplies. (Imagine that!) As we know, this isn't a cheap hobby, in any scrap-stretching sense of the word. This little scrap set with 18 images was about $30 with shipping ... but I splurged because I really liked the images and the sentiments on this set.

This stamp set is called "Dream a New Dream" -- the title of the set is what should be inside every fortune cookie I open! The two stamped images here are the flower trio and the sentiment. I colored the flowers with Copic markers. I cut each square 2.5"x 2.5" and mounted the foursome on a card that's 5.5" square. I machine-stitched around the two flower paper scraps, and adorned one with a felt flower from the Creative Charms collection.

I can think of many uses for this card, so I may have to make several more. Well, tomorrow is another day! I hope you have fun things planned ... enjoy life!

Corner Bookmarks

Good morning, all.

Last evening, I began work on other projects that I will start posting next week ... you'll see! So I only had time for this quickie project for today's posting.

In my spare time (haha!), I enjoy reading novels. Most of my current reading is either business reports (blahh!), magazines or easy-carry on my e-reader (a Kindle). But, I still occasionally carry an honest-to-God book. I know, I know, you're asking, "Book? You mean, from the library?! Who has time for those?!"

Not only am I always losing my train of thought, perhaps my mind too, but I certainly also lose my place in the book. I can never have enough bookmarks! So I came up with this fancy-fold bookmark using a folding technique like that we used to use as kids to make newspaper hats. Remember those? Fold here, tuck there and voila!

So, using a miniaturized version of that on a 6"x6" piece of paper, I first punched the Double Loop pattern (by Martha Stewart) on the exposed side. This happened to be on a printed pink border on a green piece of cardstock. I gently folded where I wanted the creases to be, and then scored and properly folded the final version. This holds so tightly that no glue was necessary. I adorned it with a Creative Charms felt butterfly, and I'm good to go back to reading.

I hope you have a sunny day!

(P.S. For those fans who have told me that leaving a comment has been difficult because of the format I had initially chosen for this blog, try again! I've updated the settings and I hope it will be easier. I would love to know what you think about what I am making in my Craft Loft.)

With Sympathy

I am experimenting with some of my photographs to see how I might be able to incorporate them into my cardmaking. Here is a card that I made this morning, offering sympathy:

To make the background for this card, I used a digital image of a flower that I photographed while on a trip to Costa Rica. The flower was interesting against the stark backdrop of the grey brick wall, but the bug-eaten leaves would require some PhotoShopping to make them look card-worthy (in my opinion, at least).

So instead, using the PhotoShop program, I "filtered" the view of the flower to the "Artistic - Cutout" version, which you can see here in the picture at right. I printed out the Filtered version of the photograph onto standard cardstock paper.

I then trimmed the card to 5"x7", embellished the flower with a loopy orange flower from Creative Charms, and added the text from the Cricut Calligraphy cartridge.


When I do this card again, I would likely print the paper on either a finer texture paper, or use my laser printer, and/or print on gloss stock to see if the dramatic colors would snap on the background. I think I would also use a shadow effect on the text, or perhaps set a different type for the same message, to give it a little more substance. What do you think?

Will he get the hint?

Yesterday, I got in a very sweet "Deal of the Month" from Creative Charms (Wexford, PA) with $23 worth of embellies in a grab pack that's only $6.99! This is such a good value (70% off the MSRP) that I've been buying two every month just to add to my stash and use when I can. There are 167 pieces in July's kit!

One of the inspirational blogsites I follow is Capadia Designs. There, Diane recently suggested creatively using the little cardboard "purse" that the Creative Charms flowers arrives on.

The cardboard backing has a cute sequined "purse strap" already affixed ... all it craved was a little decorating. Feeling challenged while awaiting my pack of goodies to arrive, I came upon a use that is quite needed around my house.

You see, Mr. Smiley is home mostly every day, disabled from the crush of arthritic knees. He's had one replaced and is scheduled for the next surgery in September. So while he's feeling more "up to it" and could possibly do some laundry, he contends that he just doesn't notice when the laundry needs shifting from basket to washer, from washer to dryer. What an opportunity! And how could he miss these signs, so bright and pretty?

Most of the type I used came from Cricut's Plantin Schoolbook cartridge; the "add" in the circle is from the "From My Kitchen" Cricut cartridge. I hand-cut the paper to cover the "purse" on both sides, then punched it around the edge with my Big Bite CropADile. I wove some ribbon through the holes to give it a more finished look, tying bows front and back to make the sign reversible, depending on the laundry's status.

I'm willing to take the risk that my whites become pink, if only I could get a hand with the mounds of laundry. Gosh, at least we're not down by the river, pounding the clothes on the rocks, ehhhh?