A day spent with a friend is a day well spent indeed

I love these little scenes by Art Impressions. I have several of them and come back to them from time to time. They are perfect to watercolor.

Sweet Stampin' - Take a Leap
Just Us Girls - Inlay Diecut
Inkspirational - Leap
Daring Cardmakers - Take a flying leap

Stamp by Art Impressions
Watercolored using Koi watercolors

Hedgehog 4 fold card

Hubby's birthday is next month. I love it when a card comes together EXACTLY as you picture it. Sometimes this doesn't happen but when it does, I just want to shout from the rooftops. Know what I mean? This is a 4 fold card by Erin Reed. Her video is here if you want to try it. It's really very easy and goes together rather quickly. In her video, she used a 12x12 piece of paper and trimmed it down to 11.5 x 5.5 but I don't have any 12x12 pieces of paper so I used a 11 x 8.5 piece of paper and trimmed down just the one side to 5.5" and it worked fine. I kept all the other measurements exactly the same. I made a blank one that I stared at on my desk for several days, not knowing what to put on it and then I remembered this cute hedgehog stamp set and thought That's it. In fact, I think I was sleeping when this idea popped into my head. LOL

 I can't wait to make more of these :).

Little Red Wagon - Balloon Time
Watercooler Wednesday - All About Occasions
The Sisterhood of Crafters - Patterned Paper

Stamp set by Art Impressions (found at Hobby Lobby)
Happy Birthday sentiment by Elizabeth Craft Designs
Multiple dies used:
Gina Marie Designs Only Pierce Dots Nested Triangle (my newest die)
My Favorite Things Wonky Stitched Oval
Memory Box Pinpoint Circle

Most sentiments by Art Impressions
You are totally awesome sentiment by Reverse Confetti

Beach ball anyone?

I went on you tube and looked up fun fold cards. I found this Fancy W fun fold card by Erin Reed and you can see hers here. It's very easy if you follow her tutorial and it goes together pretty quickly.

This card screams "summer" and I actually made it for my daughter's boyfriend who's birthday is in May. (Getting ahead for a change!) I was lucky enough to find this House Mouse stamp at Tuesday Morning the last time I went. They have pretty neat things if you "pick" through everything. I was glad to find this gem :). I colored it with my Koi watercolors. I popped up the beach ball. I just love this little scene and will definitely be making more for summer cards.

House-Mouse & Friends - Anything Goes, Optional More than 1 Fold
Shopping Our Stash - The Great Outdoors
Always Fun - Inspired by a Cartoon (The Adventures of Crab)
Watercooler Wednesday - All About Occasions - Birthday
The Sisterhood of Crafters - Patterned Paper

Sentiments by:
Elizabeth Craft Designs,
Stampabilities,
Impression Obsession Zenspirations

Hot Cocoa anyone?

I wish I had some hot cocoa on this cold morning right now. Only 26 degrees (f) right now but warming up to about 45 degrees (f). How many days until Spring?

This is 2 stamps that I had to mask off the owl on the bench before adding the hot cocoa maker next to him. I watercolored him with my Koi watercolors.

Artstamper Digitals - Hot Drinks

Stamps by Purple Onion Designs
Die cut by Elizabeth Craft Designs

More candles .. bigger cake!

This girl makes me laugh every time I stamp her up!! I paper pieced her shirt :).

Allsorts - Make It Girly
Sweet Stampin' - Birthday Girls
My Time to Craft - No Digis allowed

Stamp by Art Impressions
Die cut by Elizabeth Craft Designs
For the candles I used some Nuvo Crystal Drops

Tacos & ice cream

I made this for my daughter's birthday. She will be 28 this year. Where did the time go?

Inspire.Create - Movement
Crafty Catz - Anything Goes, Optional Food

Stamps by Concord & 9th

Hello Inside/Out

I made a fun fold card after watching this video from Chicken Scratch. Isn't it cute? I colored both mice with my Jane Davenport watercolor paints. I want to start venturing out and making more fun fold cards.

Your Next Stamp - Inside/Out
Animal Friends - Mice

Stamps by Unity Stamp Company

Click, Clack, Tap, Tap, Tap

One more typewriter card ....

Crafty Gals Corner - Add a Heart
Little Red Wagon - Have a Heart
Inspire.Create - Movement (a typewriter keys move)
Stamp Corner - Interactive
Simply Create Too - Red and one other color (black)
Creatalicious - Anything Goes, Optional embossing

Stamps by Concord & 9th

Cut It Up - Challenge 194

At Cut It Up this week, the challenge is Your Favorite Color. I love the color purple and I made this card using this awesome bird die cut from STAMPlorations. Sentiment is by Impression Obsession.

At first, I wasn't sure how to make this bird stand out against that pretty paper so I looked at Pinterest and saw someone had did something similar and thought this is perfect so I added some little dots of stickles and that did the trick.

I can't wait to see what you make at Cut It Up.

I am also entering this in the following challenges:

A Bit More Time to Craft - Anything Goes
A Perfect Time to Craft - Anything Goes
Happy Little Stampers - Anything Goes with Dies
Creative Crafters - Anything Goes

Hedge-Hugs to You!

Got our first big snowstorm of the season yesterday afternoon. 1" is all we got! LOL  We don't get much snow here in Concord, NC ... so I will take anything we get.

Who can't love this little hedgehog? I watercolored him with my Koi watercolors. I found this new set of Koi watercolor paints at Hobby Lobby. They have pastel colors and some are "glittery". Not sure you can tell in the cactus?

Freshly Made Sketches - Sketch 423
Colour Crazy - Week 7 Anything Goes with coloring
Creative Fingers - Anything Goes

Happy Birthday Typewriter

I've been going through all my stamps to see what other sentiments will fit on the part that pulls out. So far, I have found 2! That's it!! So I'm on a mission to keep looking as I just love this stamp set.

Color Throwdown - Challenge 581

Stamps by Concord & 9th

Birthday sentiment by Stampabilities

Hoppy Spring

It's time to start on some Easter cards. I love this image by Bugaboo Digital Stamps. I added some Stickles glitter to the center of the flowers. I found this Easter paper at Tuesday Morning for $2 for a whole pad of 6x6. Can't beat a bargain like that!

Tuesday Morning Sketches - Sketch 542

You've Been On My Mind

This monkey is so cute by Bugaboo. Sending this to my chemo angel who has heavily been on my mind lately since I was assigned to her through chemo-angels.com. You can read about how this group got started here .


AAA Cards - One Corner, Optional - Use those older supplies 
Addicted to Stamps - Make Your Mark
Fab 'n' Funky - For a Child
Little Red Wagon - Have a Heart

                   

Double Triangle Mini Fun Fold Koala card

Here's another double triangle mini fun fold card I made. You can see how to make it here. The inside verse is hard to read but it's a quote by Eleanor Roosevelt that reads "Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only TRUE FRIENDS leave footprints in your heart."

Little Red Wagon - Wild One
World Wide Open Design Team - Anything Goes
Di's Digi Design - Use digi image
Shopping Our Stash - The Great Outdoors

Digi koala by Lily of the Valley (found on etsy)
Sentiment by Elizabeth Craft Designs

Inside sentiment by Stampabilities

Helping one person might not change the whole world, but it could change the world for one person

I can't get enough of these koala bears from Unity Stamps. My pen pal in Australia is volunteering at a sanctuary and actually helping with the feeding of the baby koalas. How awesome would that be?? She sends me updates via messenger on Facebook. I made the sky using my cloud stencil from Etsy and I used my Martha Stewart grass punch for the grass. I paper pieced the balloon :).

Little Red Wagon - Wild One
Crafty Catz - Anything Goes, optional Critters
Daring Cardmakers - Love or Something You Love (I love this koala)
Your Next Stamp - Create Your Own Background
Dies R Us - Wild Things (Animals) (Martha Stewart die cut)
Allsorts - Dies and/or Punches
Always Fun - Animals

Stamps by Unity Stamps
Grass die cut by Martha Stewart

Sending smiles across the miles

Color Throwdown - Challenge 580

Sentiment by Taylored Expressions

Crafter's Cafe Challenge - Red or Pink

At Crafter's Cafe this week, our challenge is Red or Pink. Here is my card and I used this image from My Besties Shop. Isn't she cute?

I can't wait to see what you create at the Crafter's Cafe.

I want to enter the following challenges:

Creative with Stamps - Red
Creative Craft Cottage - Add a heart
Daisy Chain - For the Girls

Typewriter love

I made this typewriter card for a few different people and made them in different colors. This one is  using white embossing powder onto black cardstock.

Crafty Gals Corner - Add a Heart
Crafty Creations - Anything Goes
Creative Moments - Anything Goes
Inspire.Create - Sketch 062
Watercooler Wednesday - All About Occasions

Sending hugs and happy thoughts

I love this image by Unity Stamps. One of my favorites ....

Cupcake Inspirations - Challenge 486
Paper Minutes - Torn
Cute Card Thursday - CAS 621
Addicted to Stamps and More - Anything Goes

Stamp by Unity Stamps
Sentiment unknown

Spotlight Watercolor

I tried this Spotlight Watercolor technique that Kristina Werner tried last week in a recent video. You can find it here. My flower stamp is from Concord & 9th and I used my Jane Davenport watercolors.

I have been a part of a wonderful organization called chemo-angels.com and they match chemo patients up with "card angels" and we send them a card once or twice a week. I've had an angel for 6 months and she just graduated last week. Yay for her!! I got a new angel this week and this is my first card going to her. I hope it cheers her up. I love this technique and I will definitely be trying it again.

The Flower Challenge - Add leaves
Global Design Project - Let It Grow
Artsystamper  Digitals - Hearts and Flowers
Try Stampin' (or not) on Tuesday - Sketch 444