random.on purpose.

Easter's On Its Way!

Hippity, hoppity - I'm running late!  More like the White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland than the Easter Bunny, right?  I've been promising Easter projects, so here they (finally) are:

These are little holders for Hershey nuggets - they will hold five.  The original that I've based mine on (saw it somewhere on Pinterest, spent a long time looking for it again, unsuccessfully) was for three nuggets and was oriented so that the nuggets were on the left and the "card" part was on the right.  I knew that I was going to be using these stamps and dies from Taylored Expressions, so I re-oriented it and made it bigger.  Here's a closeup, and then I'll tell you just how easy they are to make:

Easy, easy instructions:

First, cut a 5" x 7" piece of cardstock, then score it at 1 3/8", 1 7/8" (yes, I know I messed up and did 1 3/4" in the picture, play along, please...), 3 1/4" and 3 3/4", like so:

Pre-fold and crease all of the scored lines with a bone folder or similar:

It is easier to decorate what will become the "front" before you fold up the box part and glue it together, so do that now.  I cut 1 5/8" strips of cardstock and used a border punch on both edges, then trimmed the strips to 5" to put on the front.  I also cut letters for the names out of white cardstock (Tim Holtz Market alphabet) and colored them with the same markers that I used for the stamped images.  In order to make that easier, I ran a few strips of tape on my craft sheet and stuck the letters to them so they'd hold still while I colored them:

After they were all prettied up, I cut slivers of foam tape to put on the back of each letter, then added them to the scalloped borders.  Next, put adhesive around the panel that will be the back side of the "box" part of the holder and fold it up:

 

Add the other embellishments, slide in the nuggets, and you're done!  Here they are again:

Depending on how involved you get with the embellishing, these are pretty quick to knock out.  Even quicker is the Easter version of the matchbook candy holder:

In case you need it again, the tutorial is on Splitcoast HERE.  I used an image from Close to My Heart's retired Somebunny Loves You set for mine.

Some past Easter projects that you may want to try (click on the title under the pic to go to the tutorial):

 BABY SOCK BUNNIES

PUNCHY BUNNIES

POM POM BUNNY

And that's all that I have time for today!  I'm sorry that I didn't get any of these posted sooner but, you know, life and things and stuff...  There's still time, though - these are all pretty quick!  Hope your week is going well, and thanks for stopping by!

 

Cherry Sweet

So the question du jour is: If you make cards, are you a tortoise or a hare?  The ways to use it challenge on Splitcoast today is to time how long it takes to make a card and determine if you're speedy (a hare) or pokey (tortoise).  I did NOT need a challenge to answer that question!  Tortoise, now and forever more, I'm a-feared...  Still, I had an idea in Odd Brain that needed to be let out, and there was a sketch that I liked, too, so...

Stamps: Penny Black Micey Day, Hampton Art Life is Sweet; Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Hero Arts Pale Tomato; Paper: Stampin'Up! Soft Suede, My Mind's Eye Fine & Dandy; Accessories/tools: Spellbinders Picot Edge Circle die, Lifestyle Crafts circle die, Fiskars apron lace border punch, Stampin'Up! Curly Label punch, Stampin'Up! ribbon, Prismacolor pencils

Fun sketch, eh?  Yeah, I thought so...  I broke out my sewing machine and everything for this one - I wanted to slide the circle into a "pocket", just 'cause.  I need to get more Prismacolor pencils to use with the Gamsol Magic technique - I always have to blend several of the limited colors that I have to get the color that I want!  Ditto on markers - I need some pastels....

Greg started a new job and the schedule is killing me - up at 3:30 so he's out the door just after 4:00 so he can get to work 20 minutes early and drink a cup of coffee before he starts at 5:00, then home 12-14 hours later, dinner, a bit of TV and into bed to start all over next morning.  I haven't adjusted yet, and I'm dragging!  Still, he's actually working, so he's even more exhausted than I am, I'm sure!  I keep telling myself that in another week it will be routine and we won't give it a second thought (please let me believe that, even if you think that I'm delusional).

On an up note - only four more of my stamp "bins" left to index (I have 17 total, plus 5 DVD cases of borders, which I indexed last night, thank you!).  I ran out of cards yesterday, so I had to wait until a decent hour for wandering before I could walk over to the store and get more - at least until the sun was up and the gate to our complex was open for the day (it's closed from 5:00 at night until 7:00 in the morning).  I now have 200 more cards (although, by my estimation, I only need 120 or so), and the desire to finish.  Excelsior!

That just made me think of my dad, who introduced me to that word.  He told me that it meant "onward and upward" or something along those lines, and who am I to question him?  It's still fascinating to me the random times that my parents enter my memory and/or awareness.  I still have times where I think, "Oh, I should call Mom and tell her...", then remember that I don't need a phone any more to talk to her, so I just tell the air around me, and let her pick it up whenever/however she does :)

Alrighty, then!  I have a "homework" assignment as part of the hiring process for a job I think I might actually want, so I'd best be getting to it!  Have a fabulous weekend - start it tonight or tomorrow, if you want - I give you  my full permission!  (Don't you wish I were Lord and Ruler so my decree actually meant something?)  Ha!  Ah well, thanks for stopping by :)

Triple Play

Last Thursday the Ways to Use It challenge on Splitcoast was "Triple Play" - use as many "threes" as you want to/can on your card.  I ended up making three cards for the challenge - do I get virtual bonus points for that?  Here's the dealie-o:  I'm still in the process of stamping all of the index cards for my stamp storage system, and I spent Thursday morning doing the animal stamps.  As I was stamping, I began to notice how many "threes" I had, and the ideas started rolling around in Odd Brain...  That's always dangerous, and it was one o' clock in the morning by the time I was done with the last one (because, you know, dinner and stuff...)!  I started with The Three Amigos:

• Three colors: Stampin'Up! Yo Yo Yellow, A Muse Studio Burano, unknown green
• Three penguins: The Cat's Pajamas Hola, Tequila! playing three instruments
• Three techniques: Die cuts (Spellbinders Labels Ten), embossing (Cuttlebug Floral Fantasy) and doodling (with a Micron pen)

The mariachi boys were colored with Bic MarkIt markers.  Next up, Three Nice Mice:

• Three colors: Stampin'Up! Poppy Parade, Island Indigo and Daffodil Delight
• Three patterned papers: all from Basic Grey Cupcake
• Three mice: Penny Black Micey Day
• Three flowers with pearl centers: $1 bin punch and Stampin'Up! pearls

These party animals were colored with Prismacolor pencils and baby oil, the panel that they're on was cut with dies from The Cat's Pajamas Framed Up set, and the banner is a LaLaLand Crafts die.  Rounding out the trifecta are Lambert, Baarbra and Baab:

• Three patterned papers: all from My Mind's Eye Fine and Dandy
• Three sheep: Taylored Expressions Hello, Spring
• Three punches for the tag: Stampin'Up! small tag, EK Success 1" circle and 1 1/4" scalloped circle

I colored the lambs' faces and legs with Bic and Prismacolor markers before I cut them out, and paper pieced the little vignette.  I wanted a more interesting shape than "square", so I used a die from The Cat's Pajamas Framed Up set, then used a couple of circle dies from Lifestyle Crafts to help me get accurate cuts for a mat to put behind it.  The enamel dots in the corners (which are punched with the Stampin'Up! ticket corner punch) are from Stampin'Up! and I don't remember where I got the ribbon...

You may (or may not) have noticed that I'm using more patterned papers in my cards of late.  One of the recent threads I've been following on Splitcoast is about that very topic, and some great ideas have been shared there.  I've also been paying attention to layouts of cards that I admire and how the artist creating them has used patterned papers.  I'm trying to be more aware of my stash and how I use/don't use all of it so I can determine what gets to stay or has to go.  Useful information, that!

I suppose that's enough chatter for me today...  Greg is working for a few hours this morning, but we'll find something to do this afternoon, I'm sure - Sunday is "our" day, so we make it a point to spend it together.  I hope that you're enjoying your weekend, too!  As always, thanks for stopping by!

The Time Has Come...

I keep saying that I'm going to give you some information on how I organize all of my stuff, but I haven't done it yet, so today's the day!  I'm basically just going to give an overview, with a closer look here and there.  If you have any questions or want more information about anything, just shoot me an email or leave a comment, and I'll follow up on that!  Warning - lots of photos ahead...

We moved last fall from a three-bedroom home with an attic, a basement and a garage.  Lots of storage, and I had a whole room to create in.  We now live in a two-bedroom apartment with ZERO storage (I'm not kidding - I only have ONE drawer in my kitchen, even - wha...?!), and the "craft room" also serves as an office and guest bedroom.  In this room I have everything divided between two walls: One wall has a daybed with a pullout trundle and a desk with the computer and printer and all, the other wall is this:

Here are some close-up views of things from left to right:

This is a desk organizer tipped up on its back, and I use it to corral things that are too long to fit anywhere else - a roll of parchment paper, my craft sheet, full-size score board, XL dies and cutting platform and plates, 12" templates, etc.  It sits behind where the door swings (the stop might have given that away already, lol).  There is a drawer, which I'm (obviously) not using as a drawer - it is acting as a shelf to support the little carry-all that contains the regular cutting plates and magnetic platform for my Big Shot, as well as some of the DVD-style cases from Stampin'Up! that contain my small dies and embossing folders:

These smaller embossing folders and dies generally come in sets of four, so I put each set into a trading card sleeve, then put the filled sleeves into the cases.

I also have my long strip dies in the organizer.  My eyes are getting old and I got tired of trying to read the tiny print or make out the design of the die, so I got some Contact paper and did this:

Now I can see at a glance which is what, and the Contact paper is thin enough that it doesn't interfere with the function of the die...  Next to this is the modem/router/whatever (don't care) for the computer, since the cable connection is on this wall, then we have this:

It is the small media tower that you can get at WalMart, and I got some "craft wood" and pegs to make a couple of extra shelves for it.  I have all of my dies on the bottom shelf, my embossing folders on the top, and a variety of punches in between.  I'm sure you can tell from the photo what is where...  

One more thing on the dies:  I cut magnetic vent covers to size and tape them with my ATG to laminated cardstock cut to size and stick the dies on them and slide them into CD sleeves and write the name on the sleeve and put them in a Really Useful Box (sans lid):

If they are too large for the CD sleeves, I put them into 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" page protectors cut down to 5 1/2" square (I also trim off the edge with the holes):

You can also see in the photo of the media tower that there is an outlet (three, actually) on the side of my workbench.  The bench has a fluorescent light under the top shelf, and I plugged it into the bench instead of the wall because I used one outlet on the wall for the computer-whatever, and the other for the main power cord for the bench.  This outlet on the side is where I plug in my heat gun when I'm embossing.  Moving on to the bench itself, here's the top half:

The pink box has a few squeeze punches and odds and ends in it, the cases are from THIS , and have embellishments: gems, brads and eyelets, epoxy stickers and frames, buttons, hardware, bookplates, etc.  The pencil cup is laying on its side so I can put my Prismacolor markers and Stardust pens laying down and still see them.  Greg's daughter brought us a shot glass from the Hard Rock in Rome and it holds my paintbrushes nicely, and my ATG is sitting next to that.  The spinner is one of those that you're supposed to put in your kitchen cabinet for your spices, but it holds glues and various mediums and tapes and cleaners and a can of colored pencils and a jar of faceted clear buttons.

Since the workbench is metal, I have magnets stuck across the face of it (handy).  The pegboard holds a TON of tools!  Corner Chomper, Crop-a-Dile, Stamping Gears, scissors, rulers, drafting tools, brayers, etc.  The baskets have (left to right): my MISTI and small scoring board and Pergamano pad and piercing template and envelope punch board; hand-held punches; adhesives and small, flat tools like the Bow-Easy and the Mat Pack from Stampin'Up!, as well as my Tiny Attacher.  The smaller basket above has double-sided tape, regular tape, and poster tape.  I can take them out of the basket, or just pull off a piece with them still in it, because they stick out far enough.  

Underneath the baskets are all of my ink pads:  A Muse Studio; Memento and Delicata; Distress Inks; my most-used Memento and Versafine and Versamark; Close to My Heart; Ranger Archival Jet Black; the Really Useful Boxes that house all of my Stampin'Up! "spots"; retired Stampin'Up! ink pads that I don't have refills for (so I can't make spots).  I also have a clamshell of Hero Arts shadow ink spots, but it is tucked away elsewhere (haven't landed on a permanent space for it yet).    I keep my guillotine cutter here, too, but took it off when I took the photo so you could see the ink pads.  It's usually like this:

and I just turn it to use it.  On to the bottom half:

The file box has all of my 8 1/2" x 11" cardstock (except neutrals), and the patterned papers that made the cut when I purged prior to our move.  I got a shoe shelf thingy and stuck it under here to maximize the space.  Top shelf has a container of small alphabet stamp sets on pegs and a few JustRite self-inking stamps; a container of Stickles and glitters; a box of ATG refills and other tapes; cover blanks for my Bind-It-All; a box of specialty items (foiling tapes and such), and some Really Useful Boxes with colored staples and fancy clips and such-like.

The center shelf has all of my ink refills, two cases of beads and findings, two photo cases of chipboard frames and tags, and the coils for the Bind-It-All.  The bottom has condiment cups (handy for mixing paints and such), coffee filters (I use these to catch glitter or embossing powder when I use either), a recipe box that houses my Dymo labeler and tapes, a red case that I will explain in a future post, and my Bind-It-All.

Underneath the bench are two Iris 12" cases that have papers I can't bring myself to cut down - Christmas and Halloween and glitter and metallic and Urban Prairie and Kazoo Kids, to name a few - so there they are.  the ArtBin in the center has Christmas and Halloween:

The top compartment has stickers and small embellishments and washi tapes and such, and I probably should have opened the lid so you could see that better (sorry).  Inside are larger tapes and all of the stamps (more on that in a minute):

The shoe box next to the ArtBin has "card parts" and other miscellany, and my watercolor pads and a decoupage sheet of vintage Christmas images sit on top of that.  The two drawers have these:

Border punches, a few dies, paper crimpers, my P-Touch labeler, and camera accessories (the camera is in here, too, when I'm not taking pictures with it, lol).  And the other one:

Whale tail and dollar bin punches, plus a few others.  Since these drawers were designed to hold  tools, they handle the weight very well without sagging or being difficult to open and close.  On to the bookcase:

My Big Shot and a sewing caddy (vintage - was my mother's and maybe even her mother's before that) are on the top, plus a lamp.  The next two shelves have stamps (more on that in a minute, I promise), as do the two farther down.  In between are a small drawer thingie that has small tools and pens/pencils, three binders of alphabet stamps, four cases of ribbon, a zippered case and a drawer unit.  Here are some details on those:

This is how I store my ribbon and twine.  I roll them into coils and secure them with clear, tiny rubber bands (dollar store).  This (obviously) is the red/pink/purple case.  The others are blue/green/yellow/orange, black/white/brown/metallic, and specialty (seasons, holidays, script).  This is what's in the zippered case:

I have no idea how I came by it, or what it's intended purpose was, but it works really well to corral my heat gun, embossing powders and superfine glitters, as well as the Versamark and embossing buddy to use them with.  I had more powders, but got rid of the colors (never used them) and just kept metallics, neutrals, and clear.  The drawer unit next to this on the shelf has BIC Mark-It markers  in the top drawer , and sewing supplies (pins and such) in the other drawer.

The lower shelf has a drawer unit with thread and beading supplies in it.  Next to that is a box laying on its side that has "mat stack" Christmas papers, doilies, etc.).  On top of the box are a Mary Englebreit daily calendar that I can't seem to let myself get rid of (actually, it's two or three years' worth - I purged and consolidated before the move), and a clamshell of punched/diecut pieces.  Next to that are my 6" papers, then a couple of paint palettes, and a tambour box my father made that houses craft paints and my bobbin box.  The bottom shelf is, obviously, books.  There is just enough space between the bookcase and the wall to slide my rotary cutting mat into.

And now, the promised "more information" on the stamps!  If you've followed my blog in the past, you know that I've tried multiple methods for storing them.  I've combined two of the previous methods, kind of, sort of, to come up with the current one.  In one incarnation I cut laminated folders to 4" x 6" and stored them in photo cases, and in another I laminated half-sheets of cardstock and put them in binders.  What I'm doing now is this:

I got THESE containers and cut the lids off (yes, I did!) so that I could fill them up with stamps (and embossing folders):

I got cheapo photo albums for 4" x 6" photos and cut them up to make "pockets".  First, remove the cover (if you can - some of them you can't) so you just have the pages:

 

Open them out from the center:

Lay a ruler on them to hold them even and then cut with a rotary cutter or craft knife, leaving about 1/8" or so beyond the seam, so that the pocket stays intact:

Repeat for the other side, and for additional albums, until you have as many as you need:

 

 

My favorite photo albums for this came from AC Moore - they cost $1.00 and had 50 pages.  There are no AC Moores out here in Las Vegas, so I found some at WalMart and Dollar Tree.  The ones from WalMart had the opening at the 4" side (so do the AC Moore ones), but the Dollar Tree have the opening on the 6" side.  At first that bothered me, but it ended up being a happy accident - more on that later.

I cut all of my previously 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" laminated cardstock (and covers) to 3 7/8" x 5 1/2" to allow space for the cards to slide into and out of the pockets easily after they were filled with stamps.  I stamped 4" x 6" index cards with the images and put them on one side of the pocket/page, then put the filled cards into the other side:

The "happy accident" allowed me to take all of my background stamps out of the DVD-style cases that I had them in and incorporate them in with the rest of the stamps, because it didn't matter if they stuck up a bit out of the pocket:

I still have my alphabet sets in binders because most of them would take multiple cards, and I still have long borders (previously wheels, mostly) in the DVD cases, like so:

Three laminated cards, cut to size, will layer in the case just fine.  I have the five cases on the bookcase on the top shelf.  If you paid close attention, I'm sure you noticed some other "page" looking things on the second shelf, too.  I need another container for a few stamps that won't fit into the existing ones, and I have a few oversize stamps that won't fit anywhere (Julie Nutting's Lorrena, for example).  I could put them in another binder, if I get one, but so far I haven't...

A couple of final things not covered elsewhere: there are two Really Useful Boxes on one of the shelves of stamps, and here's what's in those:

Various tools for inking and blending and misting and all...  The neutral cardstock is housed in the desk - it has a file drawer and I commandeered it for that purpose, although there are a couple of files for bills and such in there, too...  I think that about covers the whole shebang!  As I said before - if you have questions or need clarification or more details or what-have-you, just let me know!  I'm going to go enjoy the sunshine now (85 degrees is our projected high for today), so catch you all a different day!  Enjoy your weekend, and thanks for stopping by!

A Whisper of Spring

Yes, the trees are greening up and the air is warmer and the sun is shining and life is good...  The color challenge this week is Wisteria Wonder, Smoky Slate and Whisper White.  I've been wanting to try this technique for quite some time, so I decided that this was the prompt that I needed...

The "technique" is simple as far as the steps involved: stamp an image on watercolor paper, emboss with white embossing powder, then watercolor the image.  I used the Hero Arts Large Flower background stamp and watercolored with re-inkers in the wisteria and Pear Pizzazz.  I used my dye technique to tint the ribbon with the slate re-inker and used the Bow-Easy to tie the bow.  And that's that!

Question to ponder: how much of your life is spent in watching, waiting, planning, anticipating and how much of it is spent in doing and being?  I'm a Master Procrastinator on the doing, but I can plan all the day long!  I need to get out of Odd Brain and into GO!  Anyone else....?  And, on that note, I will now GO and DO something!  Further bulletins as events warrant...  Have a good one!

Carrot

...is one of my favorite Stampotique stamps, drawn by the very talented Jill Penney.  I made a card with him late last night, even though I should have gone to bed.  It was one of those have-to-execute-while-it's-in-my-brain moments, ya know?

The Featured Stamper challenge was already posted, and the gallery of Chitra, who was the FS today, had a lot of really fun cards that were CASE-worthy, but I was looking for one that would work with Carrot, because I had that in-my-head thing going on.  I settled on this one:

because all I really wanted was a background, Carrot, and a sentiment - this one filled the bill just fine!  I re-vamped it by doing a mirror-image of the layout and moving the sentiment up slightly:

Isn't Carrot FUN?!  Yeah - the computer-generated sentiment is what Odd Brain was trying to get "out there" in the world...  Really old, OLD Provo Craft paper (still cute, though, right?) and a fistful of markers and a scrap of Pale Plum cardstock and two enamel dots and I was done.  Finished size is 3 1/2" x 5".

I never did the other three Virtual Stamp Night challenges, but that's okay - I've been fairly prolific (by my standards), and I have other irons in the fire, anyway.  The new Jingle Belles challenge is what's on tap this week, along with some organization and Easter stuff...  Stay tuned, and thanks for stopping by! 

What Happens in Vegas

...keeps me from blogging!  My cousin and her daughters were in town this week, so I've been off playing with them a bit...  I did make a couple of cards before then, though.  The first is another card for the Virtual Stamp Night challenges - this one was to use a map or map stamp on a card:

I brought out another Stampingbella Uptown Girl for this one - Molly Makes a Detour.  She's colored with Bic and Prismacolor markers and fussy-cut, then mounted on the card with foam tape.  The card base and the mat behind the sentiment (which is included with Molly) were colored with one of the markers, as none of my cardstock matched well enough.

The other card is for the Queen for the Day challenge that I take turns hosting - yesterday was my turn, and here's my card:

The image is one of my digital stamps (you can find it under the RandomBliss Digital heading at the top of the page), colored with Bic and Prismacolor markers.  The cardstock is Stampin'Up! So Saffron, and the polka dot paper is from their Petals and Paisley collection.  I used their Petite Petals punch, an EK Success punch and some mini brads for my flowers.  The card is a CASE of this one by our Queen Jane (jbracht):

I decided to leave off the punched lower edge and sentiment and, since my flowers were smaller than her apples, I added another one...

I still have two more cards to make for VSN, but we're going to go partying for St. Patrick's Day today, and I think the deadline is tonight, so that may or may not happen...  Apparently, Henderson (a suburb of Las Vegas that our neighborhood is a part of) hosts quite the celebration.  They expect something like 50,000 people to attend the 2-day event, coming from Utah and California and Arizona, in addition to the local folk - who knew?!  Have a great weekend, and thanks for stopping by!

Happy Days!

After yesterday's melancholy I thought it would be nice to share a couple of happier things:

Stamp: Penny Black Micey Day; Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black; Paper: Stampin'Up! Pretty in Pink cardstock, Close to My Heart Precious Paisley dp; Accessories/tools: Prismacolor pencils, Stampin'Up! enamel dots

Another Virtual Stamp Night challenge - this one was to try the Spotlighting technique.  I'm not really a "technique" girl (I may have mentioned that a few times before, lol), but this one was easy and not messy and not frustrating.  The papers are at least a decade old, but I just really like the colors and patterns, so I don't care!

Stamp: A Day For Daisies Mermaid in a Jar (digital); Papers: Provo Craft dp, Stampin'Up! Pacific Point and Soft Suede cardstock; Accessories/tools: Sakura Stardust and Glaze pens, star studs, ribbon, Zig Painty silver pen, Ranger Glossy Effects, Cuttlebug Tiny Bubbles embossing folder

This one was for a scavenger hunt, and needed to include the following:

• A neutral layer with some type of distressing - my Soft Suede layer is edge-distressed and crinkled
• Metal embellishment - I have star-shaped studs in each corner
• A soft item - I used ribbon and my heat gun to create seaweed
• A stamped image of something you'd find at the beach - wishful thinking here, but it counts...
• A colored layer that's dry embossed - my blue paper was run through the Big Shot with a Tiny Bubbles embossing folder
• Doodling somewhere on the card - I doodled some "sand" on the strip of paper behind the jar to match the sand in the jar

If you want to crinkle ribbon with your heat gun, tape down one end of it to a heat-resistant surface, hold the other end down with the tip of tweezers or a stylus, and be gentle.  If you get too close or stay too long in one place you just burn holes in it instead of crinkling it.

And that's what I have for you today!   My cousin and one of her daughters are on their way out to my neck of the woods as we speak, so I may be off playing with them instead of holed up in my house for the rest of the week - we'll see!  Have a good one, and thanks for stopping by!

Trunky

I know - weird title for a post.  Let me 'splain...  In the church I spent the early portion of my life attending, there is a strong push to send young men out into the world to spread The Gospel for a couple of years.  When they are nearing the end of their mission, they tend to develop a syndrome of missing home and being half-packed to go there - "trunky".

One of the challenges for the Virtual Stamp Night this past weekend was hosted by Brenda (aka tessaduck), and she wanted us to incorporate a precious memory into a card.  Memories are very important to her, as she lost her mother to Alzheimer's and, for the eight years prior to her passing, the long-ago memories were shared over and over, although the recent ones were gone.

I lost my father to Alzhiemer's, so I could totally relate.  Making the card reminded me of so many things about him, and memories of family times with him.  Because of his love of the sea, many of the memories center around beach-y pursuits.  Today I am missing both my father and the sea...  I'm "trunky" - not so much for a physical place, but for a space in time...

The image on my card is a photocopy of a drawing I made for my father when I was eleven.  After his passing we were cleaning out his desk, and found the drawing still under the glass on a pull-out writing shelf.  It had been there for over four decades...  I loved my father, and I knew that he loved me, but there were many times that I struggled to relate to him as closely as I longed to.  Finding this scrap of my childhood that he apparently treasured reinforced his love and care for me on a very profound personal level.

The sentiment (from Stampendous) pretty much sums up how we both felt about the sea, I'm sure.  Often he would come home from work, load us all into the station wagon, and we'd drive down to the beach to watch the sun set, roast hot dogs, and go for ice cream cones at Swenson's.  The cares of the day were definitely forgotten...

And that's my story and my creative output for now.  I hope that you have treasured memories a-plenty, and that there is much sweetness in remembering them!  Thank you for stopping by my corner of Blogland...

Already?

I can't believe it's already time for Daylight Savings Time!  I thought it happened closer to (or actually in) April!  No matter - it is what it is, and it means spring and summer are a-comin'!  I know that the folks that have been snowed in all winter are counting down the days!  You have NO idea how grateful I am that I am no longer among them - Las Vegas doesn't really "do" snow, lol!

Friday evening and yesterday from noon until nine or ten there were challenges posted on Splitcoast for an event known as Virtual Stamp Night, which happens several times a year.  I've played along with three of the challenges so far.  The first card I made was for a challenge to CASE a card from an amazing gallery belonging to one of the past hostesses for VSN, Tammie E.  I chose this card to CASE:

What a great card, eh?  I have five or so of the Uptown Girls from Stampingbella, and I struggle sometimes to find effective layouts for them.  I thought that this one was perfect!  The other thing I loved about this card (well, I loved everything, but...) was that the scarf extended beyond the panel.  I kept that in mind when I did my version:

This is Lolly and Her Brolly.  I obviously went with a brighter color scheme.  Happily, the papers I used (My Mind's Eye Quite Contrary) were the colors for this week's color challenge on Splitcoast - Coastal Cabana, Real Red and Daffodil Delight.  The mats for my layers are all Coastal Cabana.  I used Bic and Prismacolor markers to color Lolly and her brolly, and used a couple of flower punches (SU!) to make my accent.  I let the umbrella extend beyond the panel a bit.  'Nuff said...

The next challenge I attempted was "Treasured Furry Friends", and we were to make a card featuring our favorite furball.  I don't have any actual pets (unless Greg counts) so my faves are all rubber,  especially Stacey Yacula's (Purple Onion Designs) darling creations.  I used Puddles to make this card:

The sentiment is from one of the Inkadinkado mini sets, and the papers are My Mind's Eye Fine and Dandy,  matted with Stampin' Up! Early Espresso cardstock.  The sentiment is on a shape cut with a Spellbinders die from the Address Book set, the border punch is Martha Stewart, and I used a couple of dollar bin punches to punch bones and hearts for the little string across the image panel, which is cut from a Spellbinders Framed Tags One die.  No idea where the ribbon came from...

This next card looks kind of washed out to me in pictures, because - especially compared to the other two - it's very pastel.  It doesn't look quite as light in person, but it's still definitely pastel.  It was for a challenge to make an Easter card or project:

The only stamping here is the sentiment, from Stampin'Up!'s A Good Egg set.  I used their Top Note Die to cut some really, REALLY old Provo Craft paper and put that over a panel of equally ancient DCWV paper and put all of it on a card base of SU! Pale Plum.  The ribbon has been in my stash for a hundred years, at least, and I used a Spellbinders Basic Tags die to cut the oval tag for the sentiment, which I embellished with a couple of things fussy-cut from the paper.

Just a little side note here:  The tails on my ribbon were originally longer, as shown in this photo:

I think that trimming them down made a huge difference in the balance of the card!  Why am I telling you this?  Because it's good to remember that a tiny little tweak can have a big impact...

I have another card in the works, and an idea or two for several more, but I may have hit burnout already.  We'll see where the day/week takes me.  Meanwhile, have a great Sunday, and thanks for stopping by!