Every Chapter is the Chance for a New Beginning

I was excited I won Challenge #13 at Stamping Pals and I get to be with their Design Team for this new Challenge #15. You can see the color challenge here. It's a color challenge and the colors are here:

I wanted to use my new stamp by Unity Stamp Company called "Not the End of Your Story". Why don't I have any book stamps until now? I read every single day!! So I needed to change that and this set has a lot of great sentiments. For the colors, I chose all Distress Oxide colors and I used: Shaded Lilac, Picked Raspberry and Spiced Marmalade.

MOTHER

Yesterday I went to the dr and they took off my bulky bandage and said my nose is healing nicely. Thank goodness my skin cancer wasn't any bigger and they could do the MOHS surgery on it and the cancer is 100% gone!! It will take a year to completely heal and hopefully I will have a very little scar. For now, I have to be careful and not get any sun on it for a YEAR!!  And I get to start exercising again, as long as I don't let my heart rate get up too much. (see pic below for a week after my surgery)

Cardz 4 Galz - Mother's Day or For a Special Lady
Addicted to Stamps and More - Anything Goes

Stamps by Colorado Craft Co.

I had MOHS surgery on my
nose exactly one week ago for
basal cell carcinoma. Now I 
just need it to heal!! 

Let's jump in the lake

This Hero Arts set makes it so easy to layer stamps and make this cute lake scene. It's going to be in the upper 80's today and tomorrow so it will definitely feel like jumping in the lake here!! Sure feels like summer!

Spot Challenge - Ink Blending (one of my fave challenges!)

Stamps by Hero Arts
Ink blending with Catherine Pooler inks

So Very Proud of You

I know, I know ... ANOTHER Anita Jeram stamp set you're asking?  Yes, I can't help it. I just love her newest release with Colorado Craft Co. (And a little secret I have to share is I won a $25 to their store for free stamps because I participated in a long blog hop which I do from time to time but never win) I made this card for my godchild who graduates this May and will become a kindergarten teacher for 2021-2022. She got an early contract with the school system so she knows where she will be teaching when August comes. I hope she likes this.

The Paper Players - Sketch PP538

Stamps by Colorado Craft Co.
Colored with Copics

This Calls for Extra Sprinkles

I'm continuing to heal and each day I feel better and better. I am still wearing this horrible bandage on my nose and it's trying to fall off, but I keep adding more tape to it. I go back on Thursday to have it taken off (HOPEFULLY). I also hope they give me the ok to start walking again. They said no strenuous exercise until after then!! Not that my walking is strenuous by any means, but I just want to be able to walk around the block a few times if I want :).

I have a friend turning 6-0 and thought this would be perfect for her. You have to really search for the "60" but it's there LOL. Newest stamp set by Flora & Fauna and I love it already!!!

Cupcake Inspirations - Pastels
Always Fun - Clean and Simple
Passion for Markers - Sentimental (with a sentiment on front)

Stamps and die cuts by Flora & Fauna
Inks by Catherine Pooler Spring Fling Collection
Cake plate colored with Copic marker

I must have flowers always and always

I'm not sure if this is "too busy" using these stripes, but I went with it anyway. I die cut the mouse and flowers out with black too to create a little "shadow" behind it so you can see it better with those stripes. I'm loving this color combo.

Sunday Stamps - Spring Blooms

Stamps by Colorado Craft Co
Stripes by Concord & 9th
Colored with Copic markers

All You Need to Paint is a Few Tools, A Little Instruction and a Vision in your Mind.

Another cute new stamp set by the great Anita Jeram. Here's a great you tube video on watercoloring. I did the wet on wet technique.

Beyond the Blue - Simple Watercoloring
Allsorts - Any 3 colors of the rainbow

I have no idea who I will send this card to, but I just think he's the cutest :).

Stamps by Colorado Craft Company
Watercolors by Jane Davenport
For his suitcase, I used my Copic
Blender Pen to make the dots.

A Little Hello

It's a wet day today here in the Carolina's and a little on the chilly side. I've made one card so far today and I am feeling pretty good. Stitches near my ear hurt worse than my nose does. Still haven't attempted to wash my hair yet!

Addicted to CAS - Sky
Allsorts - 3 colors of the rainbow

Stamps by Catherine Pooler
Grass punch by Martha Stewart

The Journey is Sweeter when traveled with a Dog

I had my MOHS surgery yesterday on my nose and it was pretty quick. I was there 2 hours which was a lot quicker than expected. They got all the cancer and my margins now show "clear". They ended up going in and taking 2 layers and then had to take some skin by my ear to make a skin graft to place it on my nose. I have these bandages I have to wear all week which isn't pleasant but not too bad.  I feel much better today than I did yesterday and I do believe I can resume crafting this weekend :). 

Inspired by - I Woof Celebrating
Time Out - Pets
TGIF - Dogs/Cats

Stamps by Taylored Expressions
Grass punch by Martha Stewart
Cloud stencil by Hero Arts

When Life Give You Rain, Play in the Puddles!

Have you seen the latest fun stamps by Catherine Pooler?  I love this BIG bear with his itty bitty umbrella.

I found out last month I have skin cancer on my nose. I am having MOHS surgery on Thursday so I don't know how bad I am going to be. I know several people who have had this surgery and they did great. I plan to stamp today and tomorrow to keep my mind off things!! I go in nice and early at 7 am and will be there all morning, they said. 

CAS Colours & Sketches - Challenge #416
Crafting Happiness - Anything Goes, optional Hanging Out
Double D - April Showers

Stamps, ink and die cut by Catherine Pooler

I'm lucky to have you as a friend

I was in my Joanne's the other day and found this cute set by Hero Arts. I thought it looked a little plain so I doodled around the edges :). 

Color Hues - Yellow and Grey
Mod Squad - Gray and Yellow
Sisterhood of Crafters - Mellow Yellow

Stamps and die cuts by Hero Arts

Flower Power

Simply Create Too - Stitching (real or faux)
Krafty Chicks - CAS

Digi image by Angie Blom

No line watercoloring

No line coloring has always been a challenge for me. When I first saw the no line coloring ink pad come out, I had to buy it because I saw how "easy" it looked.. Well, I am here to tell you, it's not that easy and I do think it takes a skill to pull it off. After many months (possibly, even a year or more of trying), I am pleased with this latest card I did using Tracey Hey's elephants. The challenge at Splitcoast was Abstract Watercoloring and you can see Lydia's you tube video here. This only took me 4 tries but I love the end result. I decided to add some washi tape to the side and I watercolored this using my Jane Davenport watercolors. You really need PATIENCE when doing this and I find myself lacking that.

Happy Little Stampers - Watercoloring

Hubby and I went hiking today and we saw not one, not two but FIVE waterfalls and I can't wait to see more. We have so many beautiful waterfalls in NC that I want to see them all now. We had a great time and here are a few pics and a video of one of them (Tory's Falls at Hanging Rock State Park, about 85 miles from us)

Much cooler today than it was last
week when my daughter and I went

Lots of stairs to these
waterfalls but somehow we
managed to get up and down them

Aren't we cute together? LOL

Hello, My Friend

This is the newest April 2021 Sunshine & Rainbows sentiment kit by Unity and I just had to add it to my collection. Fast shipping too!! The inks I used were: Distress Oxide Faded Jeans, Catherine Pooler Cranberry Fizz and Catherine Pooler Sand Castle. I love this set because the rainbow stripes can be stamped in different color inks which is why I got it. I will definitely be making more cards with this cute set. 

The Paper Players - Challenge #536
Tuesday Taggers - Make a Rainbow
Day of the Month Card Club - Find a Rainbow Day

Stamps by Unity Stamps

Hello

Global Design Project - By the Sea
Cupcake Inspirations - Challenge #516
Paperminutes - Longing for the Sea
CASology - Hello

Stamps by Hero Arts

Wishing You a Top-Down Kind of Day

 Just Us Girls - Use more than 1 stencil

Stamps, diecuts and road stencil by The Greetery

Added some purple stickles glitter
(my friend's fave color)

Dots all around

I recently came across this challenge blog for the very first time and I wanted to jump right in for this "dot coloring" challenge. Jennifer McGuire shows how to do it on her blog and I have never done it. You can see hers done here:  https://youtu.be/u0D5EkW2CDY.

Here is my card, using my Tombow markers and I just chose the colors of the rainbow and went around it in a circle. Then we had to leave the main image black & white. Mine doesn't look as good as hers does but this is my first time so I just left it "as is". Will try this again soon!!

 Lift Challenge - Dot Coloring

Stamp by Tracey Hey

Hello

Happy Saturday!! This week my daughter took a day off work and we went hiking 85 miles north at Hanging Rock State Park. They have 5 waterfalls there, many different trails. We saw 1 of the waterfalls and hiked to the top of the hanging rock and what a trek that was!! It was 1.8 miles each way and by the end, I thought I was going to "die". We had a great time and we stopped at Chick-Fil-A on the way back for some Frosted Lemonade and fries. Yum! (see pics below)

I recently saw this beautiful rainbow flower card by Kavya on Instagram and decided to duplicate it. She used washi tape but I used strips of colored cardstock. I laid down the strips of paper, then put it in my Tim Holtz positioner and stamped it that way, right on top of the colored cardstock. I showed it to hubby and asked him what he thought and he said "I'm not sure I like that!" What?  I do like it. lol 

You can see Kavya's card here on Instragram @handmadebykavya.

Day of the Month Club - Find a Rainbow Day
Let's Craft and Create - Add flowers
Papercraft - Rainbows

Stamps by Concord & 9th

Yes, this is a girl reading a book
at the bottom of this
waterfall. No, it's not me. Look
closely at the waterfall and see
if you see the smiley face
in the upper right. Weird,
huh?

You Float My Boat

Color Hues - Pink and Green
Creative Craft Cottage - Include an Animal

Stamps by Taylored Expressions
Paper pieced boat

Cruisin' by to say Happy Birthday

All of a sudden, winter is gone and summer is here this week in NC. Almost 85 degrees!! So I had to make more cards with this great convertible, still wishing it was me in it with my hair blowing in the wind!!

The Spot Creative Challenge - Color Challenge #156

Stamps, Die Cuts and Stencil by The Greetery

Added glitter pen to hair and car accents

Just a little itty bitty car on the go

I think this is the smallest card I have ever made. It only measures 3 1/2" wide x 2 1/2" tall (LOL). I wanted to make a shaped card and I decided to get out my car die cut by The Greetery and this worked perfectly. Now to find a cute little sentiment to go inside. Yes, I am going to mail it to a friend for her birthday.

TGIF - Challenge #310
AAA Birthday - A Shaped Card