Thoughts of a Grasshopper

I like using the designer frames embossing folder and the oval punch.  I've been punching images to put in the frame other times but today I opted to make a frame.  Fun card to make, although cutting the main image took some time. Stamps:  Pines & Poinsettias, Occasional Quotes CS:  Real Red, Wild Wasabi, WW, Holly Berry Bouquet Ink:  Real Red, Wild Wasabi Misc.:  Dimensionals, designer frames embossing folder, lg. oval punch

I really appreciated all of the comments I got from the blog hop and through e-mail.  I wish I had the time to for a tutorial but time is something I lack.  Someone could get rich if they could bottle time and sell it because so many are looking for more of it.   I've had quite a few e-mails with questions on various aspects of the box and I've been responding to them as they come in.  I thought I would post some of the answers here in case anyone else is trying to make it.   Question:  How did you cut the DP for the box? Answer:  I'm sure there is an easier way than what I did but this is what I did.  I cut a petal cone on scrap paper and cut at the score line and then proceeded to cut the other edges so I was left with one panel.  I then cut off from each side 1/8".  I used that as a template. Question:  When I stamp the leaf you said you used on the poinsettia, it doesn't cover the petal.  What did you do...

I hope you are seeing a lot of great ideas to help spark your creativity on gift-giving.  You probably just came here from Shelly's blog.   Welcome! I'm happy to share this cute box with you today.  I saw a Halloween themed one that I thought was darling.  I wanted to make something similar and this provided the perfect opportunity. I didn't secure the poinsettia on top because I don't have anything in the box but you get the idea.  I used the Petal Cone die and cut three of the cones for this box.  Every other flap has the red scallop border. To make the poinsettia, I used the Island Floral die, the Stocking Accents die, and the 5 Petal Flower punch.  The light bulb from the Stocking Accents die is a perfect shape and is a little smaller, complimenting the 3-petal cluster from the Island Floral die.  The second layer from the top has a mix of the single petal from the Island Floral die and the light bulb, because it is true of poinsett...

Not a whole lot to say on this. CS:  Paper Pack (retired?), Early Espresso Punches:  1-1/4", 1", 1/2" Dies:  Pillow Box, Oval Scallop Frame (for the wings)

Yay, you made it here from Barb's blog . We were asked to prepare something from the mini catalog for one of the upcoming holidays.  I thought I'd use the Holiday Stocking Die.  Above is what you might think of when you see this die, the traditional stocking.  Cute and fun and endless possibilities with papers and embossing folders. Stamps:  Beautiful Season CS:  Real Red, VV, Holly Berry Bouquet DP Ink:  Real Red Misc.:  Holiday Stocking Die, Stocking Accents Die, Glimmer Brights brads. What I thought of was this baby booty.  Nice to be able to use this die for something other than Christmas.  I made the stocking and the booty as a card.  So, it doesn't have anything to do with a holiday but I wanted to share it anyway and tossed in another option for the die after this. CS:  Blushing Bride Misc.:  Holiday Stocking die, Snowburst EF, Victoria ribbon, VV taffeta I decided to give the witch's boot a go after se...

I caved!  I have avoided owls for the past couple of years as they became popular.  They make me think of the 70's when they were over-done in home decorating.  My mother even had a macrame owl that she made that hung on a door.  I happened across this blog entry and thought it was pretty darn cute and had to make it.  I really like theirs with the glitter but I didn't want the glitter all over the kids when they get them so I stuck with the gold paper. I didn't use their template, or even look at it for that matter.  I like to try to make things on my own from a picture.  It may be easier to use what they have.  What I did was cut a strip of black cardstock 1-1/2" x 7-1/4", scored at 2-1/2, 3-1/2, and 6 inches.  I used the scallop punch for the feathers and cut it to 3/4" and rolled it on a marker to make them stick out a little.  The eyes I used a 1", 3/4" and 1/2" punch.  The center piece is 2 x 1-1/2.  I marked it i...

How cut is this?  I love this card.  I had 3 different ribbons on it and none of them were working for me and then I remembered that I had some Wild Wasabi that was retired a while ago and it is perfect with the stitching to coordinate with the stockings.  Yay!! Stamps:  Stitched Stockings CS:  Crumb Cake, textured Wild Wasabi, WW, Holly Berry Bouquet DP Ink:  Real Red, Wild Wasabi Misc.:  Wild Wasabi double stitched ribbon, Real Red 1/8" taffeta, jingle bells mini, cherry cobbler bakers twine, basic pearl jewels, jewels basic rhinestone, dimensionals, stocking punch

I went out to the ranch yesterday to teach the Communications merit badge to two different groups of scouts.  We had a lot of rain this weekend and it was raining hard when I went.  One of the leaders joked with the boys when I got there asking what troop slept in the lake.  Apparently their tent leaked and they had several inches of water in it.  That must have been miserable but they seemed to be in good spirits.  They decided to cancel the activity and reschedule due to the rain and three of the merit badges having to be canceled.  This meant I had 4 extra hours to my day and I used it to make a couple of cards. Today I'm sharing one that I copied from the current issue of Paper Crafts (p. 49).  The original creator of the card used a color or two from another company, so I picked what I thought went together.  On the splotches of color, I used Soft Suede but stamped off on paper before stamping the card. Sets:  French Foliage, Thank...

In the past two weeks, I've had two aunts pass away.  The first one lost her battle to breast cancer and the most recent one had a gun accident and didn't survive.  I keep a stash of cards ready to use and usually don't use them unless I'm short on time.  I depleted my stash of sympathy cards and needed to make more for the recent death.  This started off as a sympathy and I decided to toss it into my general section. It was the first time I used the fancy fan letterpress and I love the look.  Very subtle because I used VersaMark and did it on the bottom layer of the vanilla cardstock. Stamps:  Field Flowers Ink:  Pumpkin Pie, Old Olive CS:  Rich Razzleberry, Old Olive Misc.:  Dimensionals, brad, old olive satin ribbon, lace ribbon border punch

I am so happy to have the opportunity to join this hop.  Being military and having experienced deployments and  knowing first hand how happy everyone is on both ends when mail is received, this makes my heart happy.  I haven't been stamping lately but I'm jumping back in and taking time to enjoy the little things, which includes stamping. I'm thinking by now you know what OWH is about, but just in case, people send them cards for holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, etc.  They (OWH) package them up and send them overseas so the military can use them to send greetings to their family.  Another way to stay connected. I chose to use the Pines and Poinsettias stamp set for my card.  I must confess, I was on the fence about this set.  I didn't plan to even get it because I tend to go for sharper, crisper images and this blends together a lot for me.  Why did I get it?  Because I didn't pay a penny for it.  I'm still deciding on this s...

I came across this on another blog and liked it. What is a military wife? Each one may look different and each is wonderfully unique, but this they have in common: Lots of moving… Moving… Moving… Moving far from home… Moving two cars, three kids and one dog… all riding with HER of course. Moving sofas to basements because they won’t go in THIS house; Moving curtains that won’t fit; Moving jobs and certifications and professional development hours. Moving away from friends; Moving toward new friends; Moving her most important luggage: her trunk full of memories. Often waiting… Waiting… Waiting… Waiting for housing. Waiting for orders. Waiting for deployments. Waiting for phone calls. Waiting for reunions . Waiting for the new curtains to arrive. Waiting for him to come home, For dinner . . . .AGAIN! They call her ‘Military Dependent’, but she knows better: She is fiercely In-Dependent. She can balance a chec...

I hosted a male swap on VC Rocks. These are the cards that I received. Ria Blackwell Roseanne Urbanc - it is hard to see in the picture, but Roseanne stamped the bonsai in Tangerine Tango on the Tangerine Tango CS. Sharon Field Pam Staples Mary Grauel Julie Wick Janice Heighway Mary Campbell Jane Hignite Elizabeth Kratzer Catie Palmer Beth Ratliff Barb Furlong

You probably arrived here from We Grow By Our Dreams , your next stop is Paper Therapy Ponderings . The card I envisioned doing since I signed up for the blog hop, it turns out I don't own the set. How did that happen? I went with a ship thinking of those that we are an ocean apart from. The sentiment reads "You're never more than a thought away." Stamps: The Open Sea, Whimsical Words CS: Crumb Cake, Early Espresso, Not Quite Navy, VV Ink: Not Quite Navy, Choc. Chip, Crumb Cake Misc.: Espresso Baker's Twine, Dimensionals I hope you have a great weekend with whatever you have planned. I was excited to hear the next town over from us is having a parade. We will be giving thanks and honor those that gave their lives and health to keep our nation safe. On behalf of my family, I want to thank all veterans this Memorial Day.

I've been so bad about posting for a long time now. I take pictures upload them to the computer and never get around to posting. By the time I do, I don't remember what I used and I skip posting. It has been crazy busy and will be for the next couple of months. I wouldn't have it any other way. I love the way this card turned out. It is beautimous, if I do say so myself. Stamps: Fabulous Florets, Afterthoughts CS: WW, Old Olive, Daffodil Delight, Early Espresso Ink: Early Espresso, Cherry Cobbler, Old Olive Misc.: Elegant Lines EF, Daffodil Delight taffeta, scallop punch

The first stop of the hop is the VC Rocks blog that has a complete list of all the participants. You just came from Lori's blog Paper Castles . Your next stop is Kris's blog Maddiebug Designs . The theme for the blog hop is "Color My World". I have to admit, when I signed up for this, I wanted to brayer a sunset and use the Extreme Surfboard stamp. It didn't quite work out that way. Our son is having his Eagle Court of Honor next month and I have ~75 invitations to make. I wanted to make several samples for him to pick from and this is what he likes best. I made a criss cross card, roughed up the edges a little on the diagonal cuts and the chocolate chip oval border of the eagle. I used 12x12 textured crumb cake for the band around the card. Stamps: In Wilderness CS: VV, Always Artichoke, Crumb Cake, Watercolor Ink: StazOn Jet Black Misc.: Watercolor Pencils, Blender Pen Enjoy hopping!

Stamping has been so limited lately. Crazy things have been happening (not to me personally) that have eaten a lot of my time lately with communications to a lot of people working through details. Our son has been working hard wrapping up some merit badges and working on his Eagle project. He has his Eagle Board of Review in a couple of weeks. I'm so excited for him. I'm thinking it was last fall that I saw this card in a Stampin' Success magazine. I thought it was such a creative way to use the words from these two sets. I got around to making several of these cards a few months ago. These next two cards I CASEd but I don't know from where. Please, if you know whose ideas these were, let me know. I want to give credit to them. My husband put on a camporee for our district in March and he needed some thank you cards. I knew the set I wanted to use but nothing was coming to me for it. I changed the sentiment and the paper to use up some old DP but took everyth...