Painterly Pears for # Challenges

Today I finally got around to using some products that I "just had to have." I couldn't wait to get them, then they sat on my shelf for too long. When I saw the color challenge over at Sunday Stamps, my mind immediately thought the darkest color looked like Stampin' Up!'s Secret Sea. I was lamenting having only the card stock and no patterned paper to match when I remembered that I had the Painterly Pears Patterned Paper and that included not only Secret Sea, but all the other colors they were asking for as well. Perfect!

Then I saw the sketch over at Atlantic Hearts Challenge and thought that would be a perfect way to use up the patterned paper. And since it has never been opened (even though I had to have it right away!) I'm playing along with the NBUS Challenge too.

Here's my complete supply list:

• 
  Stampin' Up! Petal Pink Card Stock
• SU! Secret Sea Card Stock
• SU! Painterly Pears Patterned Paper
• SU! Perfectly Pears Dies
• SU! Daffodil Delight Card Stock
• SU! Basic Gray Card Stock
• Speckletone True White Card Stock
• Sizzix Ornate Labels Dies
• Hero Arts Sentiment

Before I began I had to do some measuring/planning so I created to sizes of the little squares. I though it would not only help me today, but also in the future so I decided to post it here too. Maybe it will benefit someone else as well.

This was a really fun challenge. Oddly enough, finding the right size sentiment to fit in the label was one of the most time-consuming parts of making this card. Often my sentiments are dictated by what fits rather than what I want it to say. That's part of the fun of stamping I guess!

Well that's all for today. Many thanks to all the wonderful people who put these challenges together. And thank you for stopping by!

Love Those Pretty Papers Entry #2

I am having so much fun using my pretty papers this week. Today I finished four cards for Easter. They are all made with "pretty papers" from a paper pad called Springtime Travel from The Paper Boutique. I bought this pack a year or so ago and it has taken me so far with making cards. 

Below are all four, but I wanted to only feature one over at Love Those Pretty Papers. I thought the one with the bicycle and the lamb would be a good one. I love how it can be for Easter or Spring. Their optional feature for the March challenge is Circles. These four images were circular, so that worked out perfectly, but you don't have to use circles, only pretty paper!

I had to do some fussy cutting of some of the images, but it was pretty easy. 

Here's my complete supply list:

• Stampin' Up! Soft Seafoam Card Stock
  
• Springtime Travel Paper Pack (The Paper Boutique)
• Papertrey Ink Lovely Lady Card Stock
• Spellbinders Circle Dies
• Spellbinders Scalloped Dies
• SU! Pear Pizzazz Ink
• SU! Basic Gray Ink
• Pink Butterfly Background Paper (Unknown)
• Michaels Pink Rhinestones
• Dollar Tree Butterflies
• SU! Various Sentiments
• Dimensionals

Here are the four that I made:

And here is the front of the paper pad:

If you have some pretty paper you'd like to use up, be sure to head over to Love Those Pretty Papers and play along. They would love to have you!

Thanks so much for stopping by today! :)

Love Those Pretty Papers Challenge

Today's card was made especially for a fun challenge over at Love Those Pretty Papers. Their March 2026 post is asking for circles (which are optional) in addition to most of your card having pretty papers on it. I started to think about circles, and decided that they would dictate the whole card.

I knew it would be a bigger card, since I wanted my circles to be about 2" in diameter and I also wanted a border on them. I ended up using a 5 x 7 card base, but the circle do stick off a little. It still stand up and looks cute and creative, however it doesn't fit into a standard 5 x 7 envelope. I think I'll get some nice kraft gift wrap from the Dollar Tree and use this on the top of a gift, kind of like a giant "to and from" tag.

Here's my complete supply list:

• Stampin Up! Always Mossy Meadow Paper
• SU! Flirty Flamingo Card Stock
• SU! Birthday Bouquet Patterned Papers
• Spellbinders Happy Birthday Die
• Spellbinders Circle Dies
• Spellbinders Circle Scallop Dies
• Doodlebug Designs Enamel Stars

I loved doing this challenge and may even join in again before the end of the month. I have so many more ideas (in addition to having way too much patterned paper!).  Many thanks to Diane and Darlene for putting on this and so many other wonderful challenges! And thank you for stopping by today!

Wildflowers For Two Challenges

Today's card was inspired by two challenges. First, over at The Alphabet Challenge their letter for this round is "W" for Wildflowers, which lines up perfectly with Triple B's March 2026 Challenge. They have a lovely inspiration board that features greens, and some wonderful cards to go along with that theme. But any kind of Bird, Blossom or Butterfly is eligible. And since my card has two of those, I'm playing along with them too.

Here's my complete supply list for this card:

• Stampin' Up! Garden Green Card Stock
• Whaline Bee Patterned Paper
• Michaels Ivory Card Stock
• Pink & Main Arch Dies
• SU! Wild About Flowers Stamp Set
• Memento Pistachio Ink
• Memento Bamboo Leaves Ink
• Memento Morocco Ink
• Memento Cantaloupe Ink
• Memento Grape Jelly Ink
• Hero Arts Sentiment
• SU! Burhsed Brass Butterflies
• SU! Wild Wasabi Ribbon

I used the bee hive patterned paper to keep in the theme of wildflowers. However while making this card I realized that I could really use a little bee stamp or some bee embellishments. I was grateful to have gotten the Stampin' Up! Butterflies, but they were much smaller than I thought they would be. Ordering online is funny like that. My need for more craft supplies never seems to end!

Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope you have a wonderful day! 

Happy 12th Birthday to Time Out Challenges!

This month is TIME OUT Challenge's 12th birthday! And on their blog, they have a link way back to their first post in 2014, which I think is really cool since I love nostalgia. 

Their theme this time is an inspiration card from Stef Perry. She's created a beautiful card with two flowers on it. I was inspired by her use of gold embossing around the flowers and gold in the background of the card as well. 

I'm still experimenting with heat embossing on a dry embossed surface. I've seen some really cool cards made with this technique, but mine is still a bit messy. I want to get better at embossing only the top and not the background as much Anyway, I do like this little creations, so I'm entering it with them.

Here's my complete supply list:

• Lawn Fawn Ballet Slippers Card Stock
• Stampin' Up! Pear Pizzazz Card Stock
• Unknown Pink & White Dotted Paper
• Tim Holtz Embossing Folder
• Ranger Embossing Powder
• Sparkle & Sprinkle White Embossing Powder
• Versamark Ink
• SU! Petal Potpourri Stamp Set
• Hero Arts Sentiment
• Generic Leaf Die
• SU! Build a Wreath (small flowers)
• Michaels Gold Card Stock
• Nuvo Crystal Drops in Dandelion
• Unknown Washi Tape
• Copics RV55, R81 and Y11

I know that they would love to have you stop over and play along. Thanks so much for stopping by and have a wonderful day! :)

Gold is hard for me to photograph, but here is a little more detail of the card. Instead of glue
for the small gold flowers, I used the Nuvo Drops as the adhesive, so it would show through
the little holes. Hopefully they will stay put!

Word Art Wednesday with Concord & 9th Prize!

Hi there stamping friends! Today's card is made especially for our newest challenge over at Word Art Wednesday. Our sponsor this round is Concord & 9th, and they're offering a $30.00 gift certificate to a randomly chosen winner! 

For my project I used their "Filled With Joy" Dies and Sentiments. I have the stencils too, but it was so very easy just to cut the flowers, centers and stems, give them a brushing of ink and glue them down.

Here's my complete supply list:

• Concord & 9th Filled With Joy Dies
• Concord & 9th Filled With Joy Sentiments
• Michaels Kraft Card Stock
• Stampin' Up! Lemon Lolly Card Stock & Ink
• SU! Soft Suede Card Stock
• SU! Pear Pizzazz Card Stock & Ink
• SU! Early Espresso Card Stock & Ink
• Copic E19
• SU! Falling Snow Embossing Folder
• Nuvo Crystal Drops in Dandelion Yellow

We would love it if you would join us! All of our challenges are always "anything goes" and you don't have to use the scripture of the sponsors product. Just play along and have fun. We love seeing the beautiful things that you all make!

A 4-Leaf Clover For 3 Challenges

Just when you think you’ve got enough stamps, a St. Patrick’s Day challenge comes along! I quickly realized that this in and of itself was indeed a challenge, as I have nothing that even remotely resembles St. Patrick’s Day. I even wondered if I had a witches cauldron that I could use as a pot of gold. But the best that I could come up with is making my own four leaf clover out of hearts.

It actually took five different stamp sets to make this card. Here is a picture of the three sets that I used to I make the clovers.

But all this was actually perfect to play along with three different challenges this week. First, over at Retro Rubber (#rrcb266) they want you to celebrate “the luck of the Irish.” Then over at Shopping Our Stash (#SOS568)  the theme is Golden Years. Gold needs to be a part of your card. And over at Cardz 4 Guyz #383 the theme this month is a monochromatic card. And I’m thinking that since gold is a “neutral” color that this card will qualify since it’s all greens other than that. 

I started with a new color from the Stampin’ Up! In-Color lineup. It’s called Shy Shamrock. I thought it would be the perfect color to use on a stamped shamrock. I like how it looks, but I quickly found that virtually nothing, at least in my stash, matches this color. I searched high and low for different background papers to use. That’s when I came up with the idea of gold, which perfectly, and goes along with the St. Patrick’s Day theme. 

Here’s my complete supply list:

• Stampin' Up! Sure Do Love You Stamp Set (2018)
• SU! Tranquil Tulips Stamp Set (2017)
• SU! Happy Birthday Gorgeous Stamp Set (2017)
• SU! Layered Letters Alphabet Stamp Set (2018)
• Hero Arts CL342 Sentiment Stamp
• White Card Stock
• SU! Shy Shamrock Card Stock & Ink
• SU! Cucumber Crush Ink
• My Favorite Things Sentiment Die
• Ms. Sparkle Green Sequins
• Gold Paper (Joann)

I loved Neva’s idea over at Retro Rubber to make this a friendship card. And I have just the guy that Clark and I can send this card to. His name is Jerry McG and he is a good friend of ours from church. I’m thinking that the fact that his last name is McG and that he’s from the Bronx that he is of Irish descent. Either way, I think you’ll really appreciate it.

Thanks to everyone who worked hard to put these challenges together. This really stretched me but it was totally fun. And maybe, just maybe, I have more stamps than I think! :)

Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge 670

Hi there stamping friends! Today's card was made especially for the Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #670.  One really cool thing that they did over there is that their design team doesn't post their creations right away. That gives us time to think about what we'd like to create without having any outside influences. Brilliant! Many times I don't scroll down on challenges for that very reason.

I have to confess, this card really was a challenge for me. Not because of the sketch, but I really don't feel I have enough Easter supplies, and I really wanted to make an Easter card. I finally settled on this bunny, but it really wasn't perfect for this challenge because you're supposed to put a sentiment on the side and he's holding a sign that needs a sentiment as well. So, I did my best and put two sentiments on. Hopefully it doesn't look weird! 

Here's my complete supply list:

• 
  Close To My Heart Spring Critters
• Newton's Nook Springtime Patterned Paper Pack
• Doodlebug Yellow Dotted Paper
• Offray Ribbon
• Amazon Generic Tag Die
• Memento Black Ink
• Stampin' Up! Daffodil Delight Card Stock
• SU! Cucumber Crush Card Stock
• SU! Hightland Heather Card Stock
• SU! Gorgeous Grape Card Stock
• Copics R81, E34, E11 & Y21
• Doodlebug Enamel Hearts
• Spellbinders Circle & Scallop Dies

I'm really pleased with how this turned out, and that's my biggest reason for doing challenges. I am always left with a card that I would have never made otherwise. Many thanks so everyone over at Atlantic Hearts who put this together. I'm sure they would love it if you headed on over and played along.

Thanks so much for stopping by and have a wonderful day!

Posies For Two Challenges

I've been playing around in my craft room thinking about getting rid of some stamp sets that I don't totally love anymore. But one that doesn't make that list is this one from Stampin' Up! It's called Gorgeous Posies. I think I like it so much because it's a two-step stamp set that gives such a dimensional look with little effort. There's no die that goes with it, but I don't mind fussy cutting. 

I was inspired by the sketch over at Sunday Stamps (SSC380) to add the two lines at the bottom, and divide up the sentiment to be a bit on both lines. I'm also playing over at Triple B Challenge. There are definitely lots of blooms on this one. I have some brushed butterflies on order from Stampin' Up! and when they come I think I'll stick a few on this card. Until then the "blooms" will have to do.

Here's my complete supply list:

• Stampin’ Up! Gorgeous Posies Stamp Set
• SU! Perfect Peach Card Stock & Ink
• SU! Calypso Coral Card Stock & Ink'
• SU! Pumpkin Pie Ink
• SU! Baked Brown Sugar Ink
• Memento Cantaloupe Ink
• SU! Pear Pizzazz Ink
• SU! Garden Green Ink
• Memento Black Ink

This was also a fun card to make because it gave me a chance to experiment with all my orange inks. Sometimes it's easy to forget what they actually look like.

Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope you have a wonderful and crafty day!

Word Art Wednesday with Not 2 Shabby

Welcome back, stamping friends! This time at Word Art Wednesday we have a returning sponsor. Not 2 Shabby has  graciously supplied us with a $25.00 gift certificate to spend at their wonderful online store. One thing I love about Not 2 Shabby Is that their products make creating wonderful cards so very easy. They have a wonderful assortment of coordinating ephemera, patterned papers and stamps. 

For my card, I used two of their products. The first one is called Serene Escape Ephemera. Adding to that, I used the Serene Escapes Patterned Paper. I finished off the card with a purple card stock base and frame from Michaels. The sentiment is from a Stampin’ Up! Set called Hello. Easy peasy!

Be sure to hop on over to Word Art Wednesday and play along with us. We have a lovely scripture that you can use, but it’s never required. Neither is using any of the products from our sponsor. Just play along and have fun!

A Simple Easter Wish

Today's card is a simple Happy Easter card that was made with several challenges in mind. First, over at Retro Rubber, they have a fun Tic-Tac-Toe Challenge (#rrcb265). The elements I chose were across the middle row - Kraft Paper, Your Choice, and Embossing (mine is a folder).  You always have to use a stamp that's older than a year, and both of my Stampin' Up! sets are.

And then over at Can You Handle The Pressure, you always have to use an embossing folder, but this time the optional twist is "die cutting." I used a Stampin' Up! Embossing Folder on the Kraft Paper and the eggs were die cut.

Then I thought about the NBUS Challenge #83 where you have to use a product that you've never used before. Mine in the main stamp set, Abstract Impressions. Although it's an older set, I've not used it until today! 

And that also qualifies me for The Neglected Stuff Challenge. In fact, both of my stamp sets are neglected. The flowers I've never used and really forgot I had. And the eggs are something that I love but don't pull out too often. I think that all those little dies actually intimidate me.

And lastly I'm entering over at Beautiful Blossoms Challenge where your main focus must be flowers. 

Wow, five challenges. I don't think I've ever done this many before. But I really appreciate all the challenges out there and the way they encourage our creativity to blossom!

Here's my complete supply list

• Stampin' Up! Abstract Impressions (2018)
• SU! Arrange A Wreath Stamps & Dies (2021)
• Speckletone True White Card Stock
• SU! Shaded Spruce Card Stock

• 

  My die-cut eggs.

  Michaels Kraft Card Stock
• SU! Lemon Lolly Ink
• Memento Cantaloupe Ink
• Memento Cottage Ivy Ink
• Memento Rose Red Ink
• Memento Lilac Posies Ink
• Memento Tangelo Ink
• SU! Embossing Folder
• Copic E19

Again, many thanks to everyone who puts these great challenges together! Thanks so much for stopping by my little blog and have a wonderful day! :)

U is For Uplifting

Today's card is made especially for The Alphabet Challenge Blog. Every other Friday they have a challenge that uses one letter of the alphabet and a theme corresponding to that letter. This round the letter is "U" for Uplifting. 

This card is really simple. There's no stamping, as I relied on pre-printed images from a Valentine's Day sheet of paper. It's made especially for a friend and her new husband in South Carolina.

Here's my complete supply list:

• Simple Stores "Kissing Booth" (Lovebirds & Saying)
• Bo Bunny "Back To Basics" Red Background Paper
• Papertrey Ink Ballet Slippers Card Stock
• Unbranded Arrows (Amazon)
  
• Stampin' Up! Self Adhesive Sequins

I wanted to put the arrows going in opposite directions, but I put the bottom one on first and then realized the top one had the heart, and I didn't want that to be upside down. Anyway, I think it looks good. Perhaps it can signify that they're both going in the same direction in life!

Thanks so much for stopping by and have a wonderful day!

Word Art Wednesday with The Stamps of Life!

Welcome to my blog! Today's card is made for Word Art Wednesday's Weeks 738 & 739 Challenge. As many of you know, every two weeks (or fortnightly as they say in England, which sounds so much better) we have a new "Anything Goes" Challenge that features a giveaway from a sponsor. This round our sponsor is The Stamps of Life and they're giving away $25.00! So be sure to come over and join us!

My card this round is made using the scripture that Word Art Wednesday provided. It's a scripture about love-perfect for 10 days before Valentine's Day.

I make cards all year long of course, but every time I make a Valentine's Day card I feel like a little kid cutting and glueing everything. Definitely a throwback from my childhood days. And making this card was no exception.

I have a supply list, but when it comes to Valentine's Day, I'm always saving scraps and such and not keeping track of where everything comes from. I do know however, that 4 of the 5 patterned papers for this came from Stampin' Up! A few years ago they featured a DSP set that included golds, peaches, pinks and muted purples. I fell in love with that and so the few leftover scraps that I have here are from that pack. Here's my best shot at what I used:

• Bible Verse From Word Art Wednesday
• White Core Plum Colored Card Stock (Michaels?)
• Gold Card Stock (Michaels)
• Stampin' Up! DSP
• Stampin' Up! Bubble Bath Ink
• Heart Patterned Paper (Hobby Lobby?)
• Honeycomb Glitter Card Stock (Probably Joann, whom I miss so very much!)
• Stampin' Up! Berry Burst Card Stock
• Flat Plastic Enamel-like Hearts (gifted to me)
• Gold Bow (gifted to me)

Fun facts about this card:

It's a 5 x 7, which I've started making more of. It's fun to have a bit more "canvas" to work with sometimes.

After cutting out the scripture freehand, I thought it looked a little uneven which is why I shaded the edges with the Bubble Bath ink.

It was my hope that the placement of the papers in a haphazard fashion would resemble someone walking, thus tying in with the scripture about walking in love. 

Well that's all for today. I'm so glad you stopped by and we would love it if you stopped by Word Art Wednesday and played along with us!

Oh, and if you'd like to use the scripture feel free to snag it below! 

Valentine’s Phone Wallpaper & Cards

I wanted a new wallpaper for my phone that would reflect the Valentine’s Day season, but I wanted it to go even deeper than chocolates and hearts. Valentine’s Day can be difficult for many, especially if you’re alone in life. But the one thing that we can hold onto is that all of us have God‘s Love in our life.

Sometimes I struggle with feeling the love of God. Maybe it’s because of my current struggles in life. Or perhaps I’ve had too much condemnation in my life and think that He’s just like everyone else. I know from scripture that’s not true, but getting it from my head to my heart is often another story. But each day I try to understand and grasp it more and more.

The scripture that this inspiration comes from is Romans 8:35-37 which says…

Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.” No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

Here are three paper cards I made using this image.

So no matter what we’re facing today, let’s always remember that despite it all, God truly and deeply loves us. 

May this phone wallpaper be a blessing to you today.

And for more Phone Wallpapers, click HERE.

Valentine House Cross Stitch Freebie

Here’s a really quick and cute Valentine’s Day house that I stitched last year, but never posted it. I used leftover linen and Turkish Red Floss by Weeks Dye Works. I then bought some red felt and made a little pillow out of it.

I found this pattern on Pinterest, but couldn’t trace it back to its original owner. I did a reverse image search but couldn’t locate anything. There are many freebies like this floating around, and if anyone knows of any copyright infringement, please let me know in the comments below.

Otherwise, I guess it’s free to use, and I’m so glad that I found it because I think it’s a really cute and quick pattern. I’ve included it below for your convenience. The quality isn’t the best, and the top is cut off, but it was pretty easy to figure out how to continue the pattern.

Wishing you a wonderful and creative day! 

Bright Baby Blanket & Pouf

My best (and longest) friend’s daughter is having her first baby this spring, and I’m going to her baby’s shower in February. I already bought a store-bought gift from her registry, but really wanted to make her something handmade as well.

After finding out that there was a mural of a flamingo painted in the nursery, I came up with this east and fun baby blanket. It’s a simple single crochet back-and-forth in three bright colors, with a small smaller white strip in between. I think what I like most about it is the bubble border at the edge.

I used Herrschner’s Cheerful Fleece yarn in the colors, Tango, Lime, Flamingo, and Polar. The bobble stitched border is made with a much thinner #4 white yarn that I got at Walmart.

Since I had a little bit of each left over, I attempted to make a small pillow, but it got out of hand and I ended up with a big “pouf.” It’s kind of like an ottoman but smaller. I think it will be perfect when the baby is older. She can use it as a pillow or a cushion.

I’m so pleased with how both of these came out. I don’t have a pattern for the single crochet. I just made that up as I went along.The same is true for the pouf. But I did use a YouTube video for the bobble stitched border. You can find that HERE.

A Flamingo For Three Challenges

There are 5 layers on the card stock, which is the "layers"
part of the Pick 3 Challenge. Also, there are 3 "squares."

Today's card was made for my best friend's daughter. We have been friends since 2nd grade, and now she's going to become a grandmother for the first time. I'm invited to the baby shower and  have made an adorable blanket and matching pouf (I need one more day to finish it then I'll post it). But I wanted to make her a special card. 

Grandma told me that she's having a girl, and that there is a flamingo mural painted on the nursery wall, so I went with that theme.

For my three challenges, I'm playing along with a brand new challenge called Pick 3. From the six choices shown below, I'm using a Square, Texture and Layers. Next I'm entering this over at Triple B's January Challenge where you have to use a bloom, bird or butterfly, and I've used the first two. And I'm also playing over at Time Out Challege #305. They want you to use a favorite card making technique, and I'm going with Ephemera. I love stamps and have so many, but I love ephemera for several reasons. First, when you want to use an image just once or twice, it's so easy to buy a pack of stickers as I did here. Also, it's so quick and fool-proof.

Here's my complete supply list:

And there are 3 layers on the
flamingo as well! 

• Papertrey Ink Hibiscus Burst Card Stock
• Stampin' Up! Pumpkin Pie Card Stock
• SU! Granny Apple Green Card Stock
• SU! Basic Gray Card Stock & Ink
• SU! Swirly Embossing Folder (the "texture" in Pick 3)
• Doodlebug Designs Stickers
• Sizzix Scalloped Round Die
• SU! Scalloped Square Die
• Paper Smooches Welcome Die & Stamps

Well that's all for now.  Be sure to check out these wonderful challenges and play along! Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope you have a wonderful day!

Stamp Simply with Word Art Wednesday

Today over at Word Art Wednesday we begin our 2nd challenge of 2026, and this time there's a $25.00 gift certificate to spend at Stamp Simply! You'll love their whole line of wonderful stamps and dies. And our challenges are always "anything goes" so feel free to link up with us at you'll be entered for the prize!

My card is made using the Stamp Simply Sunflower Season Stamp Set and the Vintage Seed Packet Bundle. I just love the vintage feel of this set and how you can use the seed packet for any season or holiday.

In addition to those two Stamp Simply items, I also used:

• Speckletone True White Card Stock
• Speckletone Oatmeal Card Stock
• Doodlebug Designs Yellow Dotted Paper
• Paper PIzzazz Brown Patterned Paper
• Memento Black Ink
• Stampin' Up! Dots
• Copics in E37, YR21, YR23 and YG63
• Raffia that I've had so long that I forgot where it came from!

And if you'd like to use our Bible Verse for this round, you can download it right here below. But you never have to use the verse or supplies from our sponsor. 

I'm really loving this seed packet and can't wait to pair it with other images in the future. Be sure to check out their site, and we'd love it if you played along with us at Word Art Wednesday!

Sunday Stamps & Welcome Back Retro Rubber!

Today’s card was made for two challenges. First of all, I followed the sketch over at Sunday Stamps  (SSC377). And second, Retro Rubber Challenge blog (#RRCB263) is finally back! As many of you know, Typepad closed last year without giving anyone much notice. I’m so glad that they were able to save all of their old challenges and bring them over to a new platform. 

Right now it’s cold, even here in Florida. It was 38° last night. And now that Christmas is over, I have spring on my mind. So today’s card is an Easter card. The bunny is standing in front of a sunrise, and there are two eggs on either side of him. I’m hoping they look enough like Easter eggs so that the person who gets this will understand and not wonder what those weird blue ovals are.  😅

Here’s my complete supply list:

• CTMH Spring Critters Stamps and Dies (2016 release date)
• Memento Toffee Crunch Ink
• Micron Pens (to trace the ink that didn't do a good job!)
• Various Copic Markers
• Newton's Nook Patterned Paper in "Springtime"
• Big Box Rhinestones
• Gifted Yellow Ribbon
• White Card Stock
• Stampin' Up! Daffodil Delight Card Stock
• Spellbinders Dies for Sun and Scalloped Edge
• DCWV Glitter Blue Paper

And lastly, today’s happy thing is that it is my wonderful husband‘s birthday! He has the day off of work and is relaxing, but I wanted to share his picture here too.

It may seem like he’s got a ton of gifts, but they are all books, and thankfully, he’s fine with used ones.
He did however, get some Moon Pies, which our dog Bella tried to claim for herself!

Thanks so much for stopping by and have a wonderful day!

A Prayer Shawl Finish

You may see the Christmas tree in the corner. We keep it up each year
until hubby‘s birthday, which is January 16!

This month I finally got back in the swing of attending the Prayer Shawl Group that I attended years ago. A local church that a friend used to attend has a ministry where we get together and crochet (or knit) prayer shawls and other items for nursing home members. I want to make it a point to try to make at least one item for them every two months. So far, I’m off to a good start!

This is called the Mesh Cluster Stitch and I learned how to do it HERE on YouTube. It’s really easy to stitch, and because there are distinct squares on it, it’s very easy to work on this while you’re having a conversation or watching TV.

I started with one skein of

Lion Brand Mandala Sparkle Yarn that I bought at Walmart. You can see the screenshot for that on the right. I had intended to use it for a different purpose, but changed my mind. After going to the crochet group, I got a very large skein of gray yarn. I thought these would go fairly well together. I was able to make a really nice shawl for not too much money.

The Mandala yarn that I bought at Walmart was purchased at two separate times, although from the same store. One seemed thicker and less shiny and the other was thinner with more sparkle. I knew that die lots could vary colors, but I didn’t think that the actual quality would be different. I learned something new!

The ends are finished in the gray to tie it all together.

Here are a few more pictures of this piece:

You can fold it to make a large snuggly scarf!

It looks nice folded too! 

I did find time to squeeze in some paper crafting today, but not with making cards. I was able to help my mom who’s putting together a scrapbook. That was a lot of fun! It was great to spend the morning with her. Here she is with one of her finished layouts.

Thanks for stopping by, stay warm and have a wonderful day!