CAS(E)#19 - Happy Birthday

Good morning all!   Today's card is for the CAS(E) this Sketch#19 and I was in need of a masculine birthday card - so it was a good match:

I grabbed my Skipping Stones wine glass stamp and used my new Lawn Fawn banner die cut! (So happy those came out!)

I added a few score lines and called it a day!

Here's the sketch:

Keepin' it short! See ya!

Thanks for your visit!

RS49 - Sorry for your loss

My friend asked for a doggy sympathy card and without knowing if it was a boy or girl dog - I made two cards using the Retro Sketches #49 layout:

I used a combo of Inkadinkado, There She Goes and Skipping Stones stamps.

Here's the sketch - but the challenge closes at 11:59pm CST today:

Have a great Friday!!!


Thanks for your visit!

FTL#221 - Doggy Sympathy

Sadly, I made another doggy sympathy card (hopefully it's gotten to it's recipient by now) last week for a blogging friend who lost her senior doggy too.  I used the Clean and Simple Sketch#221 for my layout.

The minute I saw the sketch - I knew I wanted to use an 'xxoo' theme and the layout was perfect.
So, I die cut my "x" and "o" from my Sizzix dies and laid them out on the card front.  I hand cut my sentiment banner using a MFT cocker spaniel stamp colored with my pencils and a Skipping Stones sentiment embossed in white.  I felt the card was still too stark - so I drew border lines around the card with my Sharpie.

Here's the sketch I followed:

Thanks for your visit!

Hurricane Sandy and a birthday card

Well, it's Sunday night and I'm setting up 4 days worth of blog posts.  Hopefully we won't lose power but by all weather reports, Sandy will make her impact on CT Monday/Tuesday.  I'm on 'call' for the CT State Animal Response Team and am waiting to be deployed to a shelter, if need be - but as of Sunday night - no word yet.

So, while we waited and prepared on Sunday - I was able to be quite crafty!  Here's the first card I made for the CAS-ual Friday's #76 challenge to use kraft cardstock and CAS(E) this Sketch # 3 challenge:

Quite manly, huh?  I used my Skipping Stones stamps and some brads. Not too much to talk about with this CAS card.

Hope all of those in Sandy's way are safe!!!!!!

Thanks for your visit!

Multiple Sympathy Cards........

OK - if you don't want to be TOTALLY depressed today - you should skip my posting.  I have MULTIPLE pet sympathy cards to post. It was a tough week for my friends and their pets - so I decided to get them all posted in one post instead of depressing everyone for an entire week!

I ended up using a bunch of challenge sketches for some of these cards - so here we go:

My neighbor's had to put their boxer Dizzy down.  I made a CAS card for them using a MFT stamp and Hero Arts sentiment.  I tried coloring it to look like Dizzy too.

My other neighbor asked for me to make her a sympathy card for them too. I used the CPS#276 layout, Inkadinkado heart embossed in gold and a Skipping Stones sentiment:

That same neighbor needed yet another pet sympathy card for a co-worker. I used MojoMonday 252 layout and finally used some of my UTEE Powder I've had on my desk for about 8 months. I used it on the hearts.

Then, friend's had to put their 16 year old cat down.......jeesh- it was getting quite depressing in my craft room!  I used a MFP cat stamp colored in with my prisma pencils, HA sentiment and The Pink Elephant Sketch#159

Lastly, one of the employees at CT Humane had to put her dog down - so here's yet another card. I rec'd this digi stamp from a blog friend and thought it was perfect. Colored with my prisma pencils and used Stickles on the wings and halo.  Popped up a bunch of Sizzix clouds and embossed a HA sentiment. (PS: The Stickles weren't dry at the time of picture taking - so it looks a bit cloudy {no pun intended{)

Here are the sketches:

OK - so let's hope that's it for AWHILE!!!!  I promise - a happy card tomorrow!!!!!!!!

Thanks for your visit!

SS216 - Pet Sympathy

Sadly, I had to make a pet sympathy card.  This one is quite different from my normal, totally pet-themed cards. I used the Sketch Saturday Week#216 layout and my There She Goes poppy stamp:

I keep working with my Distress Markers and am getting use to them a bit more.  I also used some bone embellishments  my blogging friend Cheryl sent me and glued them down with glossy accents.  The sentiment is from Skipping Stones.

Here's the sketch:

Hope you have a great Friday!!!

Thanks for your visit!

RS#13 & SSD#130 - Feel like a martini?

Happy Thursday!!!  Can you believe it's the end of May already???  WOW!  Time is flying!

I was able to put this card together pretty quickly on Tuesday and if you're a blog follower - you'll see why:

Recognize the image?  It's the same one I used for the There She Goes Mother Of All Blog Hops earlier in the month.  This was the first image I colored up and realized it didn't fit the size of card I wanted to make, so it has been sitting on my craft desk.  Until.....the Skipping Stones Design#130 Color Inspiration Challenge was posted.  All I needed was to add some yellow to the card.  After finding the Retro Sketches #13 challenge - I added my scallops as 'clouds' and a single scallop for the yellow sun!

I didn't need to use a Skipping Stones stamp to qualify for their challenge, but I always like to represent the Company's blog I'm playing along with IF I have their stamps - so I used a sentiment from the Dogs Volume#1 set.  I always feel like having a drink when I'm laying on a beach!

I also added some white enamel accents to the 'ocean' and lapping water and some bronze to the darker areas of the beach.

Here's the Retro Sketch and the Skipping Stones Design color challenge:

Thanks for your visit!

Doggy Sympathy

Good Morning!  Thanks for coming to take a look today.  Sadly, it's not a happy card today.  One of my co-volunteers at the CT Humane Society suddenly lost her dog last week.  Tyson was at our shelter for a while after coming in as a neglect case (along with his sister, Hanna, who Cindy adopted).  Tyson was probably 30lbs and should of been 65-70 lbs.  But, with great care, he filled out and was adopted by our husband-wife volunteer team.

Tyson had some separation issues and ended up doing quite a bit of damage to their home, but they stuck by him through good and bad times. Unbeknownst to them, Tyson had cancer and it all came to a head last week and they had to put him to sleep.  We all loved Tyson and feel their pain.

I used my Skipping Stones sentiment and pawprints along with American Crafts paper and a PTI bloom die. (sorry - I had to take picture with my iPhone).

Here are a few of my favorite shots of Tyson from the shelter:

Here's Taz and Tyson after a fun run-a-round.  Can you say exhausted??

RIP Sweet Boy!

Thanks for your visit!

SSD122 - Long Time No See

Happy Easter Everyone!!!!!!!!  First thing I'm doing this morning is putting a spoon in my Nutella jar!!!!  I gave up sweets for Lent and I've been missing my Nutella!!!!!!!!! But, I lost 7 pounds over Lent so I really can't complain too much!!

Hope you have something nice and sweet this morning too!!!

I'm sure not too many people are posting on Easter Sunday..........but I wanted to get in my card for the Skipping Stones Design Sketch # 122.   I actually made two similar cards:

I used my Skipping Stones Designs stamps and heat embossed the doggy with black powder.  I gave him a little color using Distress Inks.  I used American Crafts paper too!!   That's about it!

Oh - here's the sketch:

HAPPY EASTER!!!!!!!!!

Thanks for your visit!

Mama's Baba & Papa's Baba.......

Does that title have you thinking??  Well, I won't keep it a mystery!  Remember the post two weeks ago about the Baby Shower?  Well.....Cody Davidson has entered this world healthy and happy!  I know Mama was jonesing for a little bit of wine after her 9 month sabbatical - so what's a friend and neighbor do?  Get her one of her favorite wines (and of course - one for the proud papa too!)

You know me...I just couldn't bring the wine over in a brown bag.........so here's what I came up with.  "Mama's Baba" and "Papa's Baba"

I used the same papers from her shower invites and inked up the Skipping Stones wine glasses.  Added a few touches her and there.........and mama and papa have their "baba's" right along with Baby Cody!

Have a great day!!!!


Thanks for your visit!

CPS158 - Fine Wine

I came across the Card Patterns Sketch #158 for this week and thought it would make a nice layout for the masculine birthday card I needed to make.  We have a friend who enjoys fine wine, so I grabbed my Skipping Stones set to use for his card.

I stamped and embossed the wine glass on water color paper and used my distress inks to color it in.  I put glossy accents over the entire glass too.

I used a Lawn Fawn banner to put my sentiment on and the inside of the card reads "Or rather, we feel better about our age with lots of wine!"

You have until Friday the 30th to use the sketch!  Come play :)

Oh - things went our way in court! Yah - tenant has to be out by April 30th.

The vet said Sweet Pea did good in surgery too.  I didn't get to speak with the surgeon.  I have to call today at 10am to get an update and what time I have to pick her up! Thanks for all of your kind thoughts :)


Thanks for your visit!

CFC41 & ESS161 - Punny's

I had a crafty afternoon on Friday while my husband was off in Miami with 'da boyz'.   I came across a new sketch challenge blog and I played along with CAS-ual Friday's #41 challenge - which was "Jest for the Pun of it".  The challenge is sponsored by Skipping Stones stamps - which worked for me because I have a few sets!

First up are the CAS-ual Friday cards - all the same image, stamped on patterned paper and popped up. Just used a few different sentiments.  There are some score lines under the sentiments, but you can't see them :*(

And here's another card (not so CAS) that I used the  East Sleep Stamp Sketch:

This is another Skipping Stones image.  I'm not sure I've ever made a card with an image I didn't color in - but I was trying to keep it Clean and Simple.  I only added glossy accents to the cone.  Then I made my own background paper using a Studio G stamp.

Here's the sketch:

Hope you have a great day :)

Thanks for your visit!