Snowman Birthday (TAWS & Curtain Call: Smitten)

Hello!  Back with my second post for the day.  We've had several snowy days this week, so I figured a snowman card would be appropriate.  I chose this little snowman from TAWS' Chill Out set because his hat reminded me of the knit mittens in Curtain Call's inspiration photo.  I also thought this little snowman looks like he is celebrating, which I thought was fitting for a birthday card.  I've been wanting to make a birthday card for The Alley Way's 3rd Birthday link-up (BTW: They have tons of giveaways and a great discount going on right now), and I'm glad I finally had time to do it. :)

I get a kick out of the hot pink and orange snow on this card.  Hee.  Hopefully it will bring a smile to the winter birthday recipient. Oh, and the sentiment is from TAWS' All About You set.

Stitched Love (CC:Smitten)

 

Today's card was inspired by Curtain Call's Smitten Challenge photo.

I cross-stitched a panel cut with Papertrey's Strip Stitch Die (thanks Marybeth for sending some to try out!).  I enjoyed doing it, but it took me a lot longer than I expected....a lot longer.  I followed somewhat of a pattern for the letters and winged it with the mulit-colored stitches.  I was hoping it somewhat resembled the photo, replacing the swirly grey pattern with the letters.  The colors ended up being quite a bit bolder than I was going for, but I guess it gets the message across loud and clear. :)

Thanks! (BIC #45)

I was thrilled when I saw the inspiration photo for the current TAWS Be Inspired Challenge.  I'd seen this photo before and had never forgotten those gold glitter dipped balloons (love them!).

I LOVE this card.  Allow me to tell you why...
This year my son's Christmas requests were all over the place at first, but around the beginning of December every time anyone asked him what he wanted, he would say "two hammers!"  On Christmas day, (much to his delight!) he received not just one set of tools but three!  Apparently we all wanted to be the one to grant his Christmas wish. :)  As I was pulling out my TAWS stamp sets I saw the hammer in Toy Land and the idea for this card popped into my head.  Plus, I think this elf from Toy Land is adorable and I feel the same about my son, so it just worked. :)   I originally intended to color the elf using the colors in the inspiration photo and dip black letter in gold but two things stopped me: 1. I remembered Joyce's flower card where she kept the flowers black and white and used a colored sentiment...it was unexpected and I liked that.  2. I realized this card was turning out to be awfully similar to last year's Christmas thank you cards. The last little touch was using my craft knife to cut the glove so my little elf could hold the hammer.  Oh, this card just makes me smile...big!  I hope you like it, too.

My Hope...CAS-ual Fridays #125

Hi!  I'm back and with a card that is about as personal as it gets for me.  Those who know me well know that I'm very indecisive, so when I saw this week's "in a word" challenge at CAS-ual Fridays I panicked for a second.  The idea is to chose a word that represents what you hope for this year.  Well, I couldn't choose one...but the words on my card all work together for a common purpose. :)

I combined two sentiments from PTI's Inside and Out: Well Wishes.  This represents exactly what my hope is for this year: to focus on what I need (and what my family needs).  I've done a lot of pondering and know some things that I really need to do to have peace and growth in my life and that requires change.  As I make those changes I know I will especially need courage, strength, and faith because let's face it...some of those changes are going to be tough.

(I know...essentially the same picture but I couldn't decide if I liked it against the dark or light background...remember what I said about being indecisive? :) )

My card was definitely influenced by this card by Laurie Willison.  I admire her cards so much, and to me, her style represents so well one major part of my goal--simplify, keeping only things with meaning/purpose.  The changes I made reflect things I love like twine, woodgrain, and watercolors. :) The colors (coral, aqua, green, grey) have meaning, too.  They are my favorites.  I craft with them.  I wear them.  I decorate my house with them.  They make me happy.  And white is the main color because well, I want my life (and my home for that matter) to be cleaner and more pure.  And there you have it. Thanks for stopping by....I hope you'll come back soon.  I have a card to share later today that I'm super excited about.

Craft Dash #32 & Simon Says...Something New

We've been away enjoying lots of time with family over the past few weeks, and I haven't had time to make any cards.  However, I could not bear to miss the very last opportunity to participate in a 10 Minute Craft Dash Challenge.  This is one of my all time favorite challenges, and it is ending in two days.  I'm so sad!  The theme is "anything goes" and since this is the last Craft Dash Challenge ever...you should definitely participate!  Just sayin'.  I made this card using a previous Craft Dash Challenge color scheme....one that I had made two cards for but forgot to post them because I always meant to go back and take better pictures.  This card came together super quickly taking just over 7 minutes to complete.  It marks the start of several baby cards that I'm going to need to make in the next couple months.  ETA: And it happens to fit the Simon Says Wednesday Challenge that started today perfectly, which is Simon Says....Something New.  How fun is that? (Thanks for the tip Leigh.) Thanks for stopping by!  Happy New Year to you all!