Berry Sweet

Happy Monday! I can't believe it is the 1st of August already. Summer always goes by way to fast. It is still hot and dry here, 18 days of 90 degrees or higher temps but no complaints from me though. We never did get to go to Jackson State Park last week like we planned to because Rich did so many things with his brother and nephew while they were here he just wanted to stay home and relax after they left. We hope to still go when it cools off though.
Today Emilia and I started homeschooling again. This is our last year with Calvert because they only go up to 8th grade. We will only be doing school part time until after Labor day but I am glad we are getting started now because after looking over the curriculum it looks like it it is going to be even more challenging than last year. This has me a bit anxious but hopefully by easing our way into it slowly it won't be to much for us.
Today I want to share a card I made over the weekend. This is what I came up with

Strawberries are one of my favorite fruits so when I saw this template I knew I had to have it. I started by cutting the base out of Stampers Select White Cardstock. After that I cut the front piece out of some paper from My Mind's Eye Stella Rose Gertie paper pack. The leaves were cut out of patterned paper from this digi pack. I made the daisy using the smallest beautiful blooms II die then added a yellow button. I stamped the sentiment from the PTI Mini Berry Stamp Set on a tag from this cut file. Some black polka dot ribbon and machine stitching finishes it off.
Rich, Emilia and I went to Sweet Williams Market on Saturday and I got the Vintage Silver Flower Frog that I used to hold the card. I have been looking for something like this for awhile now and was thrilled to find it.
That's all for now. I hope your weeks is a great one and I will be back soon with more to share.

July Papertrey Bloghop

Happy Monday! Today is also the 25th of the month so that means it is time for another Papertrey Bloghop.

This month we were to use this photo for inspiration.

This is what I came up with

My inspiration for this card came from the colors, quilt and pillow with the butterflies.
I started by punching out different patterned papers from
Tracy ann Digital Art and essentiallySCRAPN Etsy shops. Next I pieced them together then machine quilted them. After that I added the border then matted the quilt square on Orange Zest Cardstock that I embossed with a Moroccan Screen design. To finish it off I added different colored butterflies that I cut using the Fly Away die and added tiny pearls to the middles.
I look forward to seeing what everyone else has come up with now. As always thanks for stopping by and I hope your week is a great one.

Bluejay Birthday

Happy Sunday. I hope you are all having a good weekend. Today is Rich's Birthday. He wanted to go birdwatching at Jackson Lake State Park to hopefully see some new birds since we have not been there before but since his brother and nephew are here visiting we will do that later in the week. In the meantime I made him this card.

The Bluejay is his second favorite bird. The image is from the All Things of Nature Set from The Angel Company. Unfortunately it is retired but at least I am getting a lot of use out of it now. I started by stamping the Bluejay then I stamped some script from another retired TAC stamp on top of it using Chamomile ink. Next I colored in the bird and branch using Copics. After that I sponged around the image then did the cracked glass technique and matted it on a piece of PTI Blueberry Sky cardstock. The patterned paper on the left is from the TAC Amberly Grace Paper Pack. The paper on the right is PTI Ripe Avocado Cardstock embossed with leaves and branches. The Happy Birthday sentiment is from the PTI Birthday Basics Stamp set. I finished it off with some machine stitching. He likes his cards Clean and Simple so I had to stop there but am happy with how it turned out. He really like it too. Emilia and I also gave him a new bird book, a chirping stuffed nuthatch and a record. I also made him another Keylime Pie like the one I made last year too. Overall I think he has had a pretty good day. That's all for now. I will be back tomorrow with my PTI bloghop project. Until then I hope the rest of your day is a great one!

Peeps July Challenge

Happy Thursday! I hope your week has been a good one. We have only had one storm this week so far and it is hot again. Not complaining though. This weather has been great for our tomatoes We put them in pots this year in the direct sun and it has helped a lot. This hot weather also means Emilia can get back in the pool


Today I am sharing a project I made for this months Peeps Challenge which is hosted by Nerina. The challenge is:

"to take some inspiration from any picture or combination of pictures from the site ... but if you use co-ordinating scraps (those lonely little bits) of patterned paper from your stash and incorporate a flower - you get extra points in my book!"

I had never heard of Cath Kidston before this challenge but after checking out her website I was really inspired by the bags so this is what I came up with.


I was also inspired by the fabric in the upper left corner I found on this blog I started by using the new Carry Clutch Template from My Time Made Easy and shrunk it down to 50%. Next I cut the base out of PTI Blueberry Sky Cardstock then embossed it with tiny dots. After that I added some patterned paper from the Girls Paperie Kitch Line which I think is a great match to the fabric. Unfortunately they are not making it anymore but I was able to find some more online so I can make a bigger bag in the future with it. I sewed the patterned paper on to the base then I added the handles and silver brads. I had planned on adding a mini rose but didn't want to cover up the paper so I left it off. Instead I added a tiny tag in the corner. I am really happy with how this come out. I hope you like it too.
Sunday is Rich's birthday and his brother and nephew are coming tonight from Texas for a visit. I am off to make him a birthday card now so I will be back soon to share it with you. Until then I hope the rest of your week is a great one and as always thanks for stopping by.

Year Of Flowers Larkspurs

Happy Friday. I hope your week has been a good one. Thankfully my dentist appointment went well and there were no new problems. Our rainy afternoons continued all week though with a major lightening storm Wednesday night. Yesterday afternoon we had torrential winds and hail. Thankfully the sky is still blue as I type this and not a cloud in site. I hope it stays that way for the rest of the day and that means we are done with all the rain for now.
Today I want to share another card I made for this months SFYTT
This is what I came up with.

Continuing with my use of the PTI Year Of Flowers series. I started by stamping this months flower the Larkspur on a piece of stampers select white cardstock that I cut with the Button Card Die. After that I colored them with Copics. The Simply Chartreuse piece was embossed with Script. A piece of Plum Pudding Bitty Dots Cardstock was added on the side. 3 die cut butterflies, a piece of Lavender Moon Saddle Stitched Ribbon, pearl embellishments and some machine stitching finish it off.
There is still time for you to play along with this sketch too. All the details are on Jen's blog. That's it for now. I hope you have a great weekend and I will be back soon with more to share.

Personalized Zebra Overalls and a CAS challenge

Happy Monday! I hope you all had a good weekend. It has been raining every afternoon for almost a week here. We got so much rain last Thursday our patio was flooding and water was coming in the house. Thankfully we caught it in time though. The humidity has also been terrible. I am use to dry air. What a crazy July. I know we needed the moisture but I think we have had enough now so I hope it stops soon.
I spent most of last week working on a custom order that someone on Etsy requested. I finished it on Friday but am still awaiting payment. In the future I am going to get payment before hand. I just hope she pays me soon.
The rest of the weekend I worked on a shape card. Today I want to share it with you. I am also entering it in the this weeks CAS-ual Friday Challenge which is to make a shape card too. I hope it qualifies though because I have a hard time leaving things clean and simple. This is what I came up with

I started with this template from The Cutting Cafe. I cut the front out of Blueberry Sky Cardstock then did the Faux Denim Technique to make it look like Jean material. Next I cut some Zebra PP that I got from this Etsy shop and added it to the middle of the overalls and the bottom of the legs. After that I cut some Bitty Dots Raspberry Fizz Cardstock for the bib and added some Ric Rac trim then I attached it to the front of the overalls. I personalized the overalls with the letter E. I wish they would have made real overalls like these when Emilia was little. I would have loved to have dressed her in them. To finish the overalls off I added 2 silver brads and some machine stitching.
That's all for now. I have to go to the dentist for my 6 month checkup tomorrow. I am already worrying about it. I hate going to the dentist. I just pray they don't find anything wrong. That's it for now. I hope the rest of your week is a good one and I will be back soon with more to share.

July Sketch For You To Try

Happy July! I can't believe the year is already half gone. Where does the time go? I always look forward to this time of year though because one my favorite shows Big Brother starts soon.
Since it is the first Saturday of the month it is time for another Sketch For You To Try.

This is what I came up with.

This month out sponsor is My Favorite Things. I chose to work with The Pure Innocence Tea Party stamps I love the PI images and this one has been on my wish list for awhile now so I was really excited to get to use it. I also got the chance to try the Die-Namics rolled roses dies with felt and am really happy with the results. Because the main images were so large I enlarged the sketch to 6x6. I started by stamping the images then paper pieced and colored them with Copic sketch markers. The PP in the background is from Create Paper Emma's Shop. The Lovely Lilac piece on the side was embossed with tiny dots. I finished the card off with machine stitching, Hibiscus Saddle Stitched Ribbon and a Lemon Tart button.
You might think this is just another card but look again.
I made a 6x6 box and added it to the top. Jen did a tutorial for how to make these boxes in the 4x4 size here. I made mine with 2 8x8 sheets of cardstock. I think these would make great favors filled with different flavors of tea for a little girls tea party.
This month please join me in welcoming Debbie Carriere as our guest designer. Also be sure to stop by Jen's Blog and the other sisters blogs to see what they did with this sketch as well.
Amber Hight
Amy Sheffer
Carol Burrage
Jodi Collins
Megan Lock
Kerry Johnson
Susan Liles
Jen Tapler
Sony Christoph
We are also saying goodbye to Kelly Luceford since she having a new baby very soon. She will definitely be missed but I wish her all the best.
I hope you will play along with us this month too! Be sure to link your card on Jen's Blog when your done. I look forward to seeing what you come up with. In the meantime I hope you have a safe 4th and the rest of your weekend is a great one!