Thoughts of a Grasshopper

The theme for this blog hop is new sets.  I made a fun card with the sprinkles of life set.  I think this set is going to get a lot of use over the next year. Stamp Set:  Sprinkles of Life CS:  Bermuda Bay, WW, Watermelon Wonder, Delightful Dijon, Cherry on Top DP Ink:  Delightful Dijon, Crushed Curry, Tuxedo Black Misc.:  dimensionals, banner punch, twine, circle punch Take a look the VC Rocks! blog for more inspiration with the blog hop.

Operation Write Home, a charity that has supported heroes since 2007 with handmade cards, will be closing later this year.  If you have or plan to make cards for service members that are deployed, you need to send them to OWH by August 1st.   I'm happy and sad for this at the same time.  It is wonderful that more of our military men and women are home.  At the same time, it is a little sad because this is organization has blessed the lives of so many with the help of YOU!!  You can find out more information of what they need to get them through 2015 HERE . Typically when I make red, white and blue cards they are what I consider the true blue and red, like our American flag.  This time I went with the a lighter shade on both.  Hope you like it. Stamps:  Build a Birthday (new 2015-2016), Big Day CS:  Pool Party, Bermuda Bay, Watermelon Wonder, Cherry on Top DP Ink:  Bermuda Bay, Watermelon Wonder, Pool Party Misc.: D...

I was putting away some framelits with the corresponding stamp set (best tip I've read in a while to store the framelit inside the stamp set case with the stamps) and I saw the Happy Watercolor set and thought how I really wanted to use this set and I never did.  I decided this would be the set I would use for the hop as it is a retired set. The strips on the side are done using the bokeh technique .  I find this a fun technique simply because I like watching the colors spread.   Stamps:  Happy Watercolor CS:  watercolor, WW Ink:  Tuxedo Black, Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight, White Craft Markers:  Cucumber Crush Reinkers:  Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight Misc.:  gems, sequin trim (I used leftovers from a paper pumpkin project) Participants in the hop are able to link to their blog starting Friday night through Sunday.  You can find all of the participants by going to the VC Rocks! blog . ...

This weekend is the first time VC Rocks has held a blog hop in December!  So happy to have a chance to share one of the cards I've made for Christmas. I'll share another card later but this is my favorite of the two I plan to put on my blog.  I've made 80 cards out of 14 designs.  The card above is the 1 and only I'm making of this style. Stamps:  Wondrous Wreath Framelit:  Wonderful Wreath Embossing Folder:  Stylish Stripes CS:  Pool Party, WW, Island Indigo, Crumb Cake, Silver Foil, Silver Fancy Foil Vellum, All is Calm DP, Quatrefancy DP Ink:  Crumb Cake, Pool Party, Island Indigo Misc.:  Multipurpose Adhesive Sheets (for "Noel"), banner punch I stamped off the Crumb Cake before stamping on the CS for a lighter shade.  I did the same thing for the bow using Island Indigo.  I put a piece of Pool Party CS under the vellum banner strip. Now to clean up my stamp room and start addressing envelopes. :) T...

The challenge for this blog hop was to rock our creativity using Stampin' Up! punches or Sizzix dies.  I actually used both on this card!  I've had both the Circle Card Thinlit and the Label Card Thinlit since they came out but I haven't used them.  Today I opened the packaging for the Circle Card Thinlit and this is what I came up with. In the next picture, you can see I did a gate fold for it.  I measured the Tangerine Tango CS at 5-3/8 x 8-1/4.  I tucked the end away from the circle through the thinlit so it wouldn't cut, but fold it when I ran it through the Big Shot.  A little of the Retro Fresh This and That Washi Tape to jazz it up a little for a note. I ended up using the 1-3/4" circle punch as a stencil for the stamped image after it was colored.  I put the circle on top of the image, traced around it, jumping over where the leaf and flowers extended and then cut it with paper snips and mounted it with Dimensionals.  You can see in...

Sketch 193 was my inspiration for this card.  I went with the sentiment "When my mind wanders, I usually find it somewhere thinking of you."  Perfect if you are deployed or the person at home missing them. Stamps:  Blooming with Hope Ink:  Tuxedo Black  DP:  WW, Night of Navy, DP paper pack, watercolor paper Misc.:  Blendabilities - Cherry Cobbler, Old Olive, Linen Thread Happy Memorial Day! Click the banner at the top of the post to go back to the hop.

With the hop focusing on tools, I took my envelope punch board out of the box and learned how to use it.  This is an awesome little gadget!  Of course, the tag I made was too small for the measurements listed on the board so I had to figure that out on my own.  I now have 6 various sized envelopes needing to be used. I loved how easy it was to score, punch and round the corners with this gadget.   Stamps:  Petite Pairs CS:  Lost Lagoon, Basic Black, WW, Watercolor Wonder DP, Pool Party, Daffodil Delight, Wild Wasabi Ink:  Tuxedo Black Punches:  Scalloped Tag Topper, Blossom and Oval (leaves) Misc.:  Envelope Punch Board, Spiral Flowers Die, White Bakers Twine, and Lost Lagoon Stitched Ribbon I used a 3-5/8" square of Pool Party CS and started at 1-7/8" for this 2" wide tag. The VC Rocks Hop can be found HERE . Enjoy the hop!

I just experienced one of those needed do-over moments.  I made the card below first, recalling measurements but not the direction the card was supposed to be going.  I had to adjust the Old Olive CS, because that measurement seemed small.  I went to link up to the sketch and discovered my error.  I was going to go with it because it is late, I'm tired and there are dishes to do.  I couldn't do it.  I tried but I couldn't post it today of all days.  The above card is my do-over.  I like it.  I'm going to do the dishes and go to bed.  We've got 4 girls sleeping over but I will sleep through their laughs and chatter.  Enjoy! I used Sketch 175 to make this card.  Stamps:  Gently Falling, Chalk Talk CS:  Pear Pizzazz, VV, Early Espresso, Old Olive, Cajun Craze Misc.:  Brads, Woodgrain EF Click the image below to continue .

VC Rocks is having a blog hop this weekend.  If you go to the VC Rocks blog , you can see the work of many talented stampers.  The theme of the swap is to use punches, simply scored or the big shot.  I went with the big shot. Stamps:  By the Tide, Banner Greetings, Hearts a Flutter CS:  VV, Coastal Cabana, Crumb Cake, Crisp Cantaloupe, Baked Brown Sugar Ink:  Coastal Cabana, Baked Brown Sugar (stamped off once), Crisp Cantaloupe Misc.:  Fancy Fan EF, dimensionals, dazzling diamonds Thanks for stopping by.

OWH is a wonderful organization that sends cards to our military that are deployed so they can write and stay connected with their family.  This group is near and dear to my heart due to our experiences in the military and knowing how much it means to have that mail on both ends.  When my husband was deployed, our kids looked forward to the times they could share a little of what was going on in their lives and know their dad was okay.  I'm grateful for those that serve and have served our great country. I made this card using sketch challenge 160 from OWH. Stamps:  Service & Sacrifice, The Brave & the Free CS:  Night of Navy, Real Red, WW Ink:  Stazon Jet Black, Always Artichoke, Old Olive, Crumb Cake, Real Red, Night of Navy Misc.:  Chevron EF, dimensionals, watercolor brush, star punch *I forgot to put the star on to the left of the sentiment.  I will have to take a picture later.  My husband has patiently waited for me...

I hope you have seen many great things.  I'm glad you stopped by my blog!     I was going to shoot for a winter theme with this hop but it was 90 degrees here today and that just isn't going to work for me.  I went with a Christmas card using one of the sentiments that you might win if you leave a comment.  See my post from Friday for details, or just leave a comment and you are automatically entered. I used Sketch Challenge 128 from OWH for this card.  I flipped it around so I could use the ornament set.  I had to make the banner slightly larger (7/8") and cut off some of the swirly to make it fit. Stamps:  Hand-Penned Holidays, Ornament Keepsakes CS:  Lucky Limeade, Early Espresso, Candelight Christmas DP, VV Ink:  Early Espresso Markers:  Real Red, Lucky Limeade, Early Espresso Misc.:  Dimensionals, silver cording,  Have fun hopping! Click  OWH   to get back to the hop. ...

Most likely you just came here from Robbie's blog, InkedX2 .   Aside from the traditional sized card, this is my next favorite size to make.  The card is 3-1/4" x 6-1/2".  The first time I made a card this size was June '09 with the Blooming with Love stamp set.  I haven't been able to part with that set because of that card.  Crazy!  I like today's card just as much.  Stamps:  Friendly Phrases CS:  VV, Pool Party, Cajun Craze, Comfort Cafe DP Ink:  Cajun Craze Misc.:  Beautiful Wings embosslits, Adorning Accents EF, Pearls Your next stop on the blog hop is with Janice at Stamping with Janice .  Enjoy!! If you need to start at the beginning or want to see the complete list of participants, you can go to the VC Rocks! blog. Thanks for stopping by.

So glad you are here.  You just came from Karen's blog where you saw her 3D bags.  I hope you will consider joining her swap.  Perfect way to get some ideas on 3D fun!  If you want to go back to any of the blogs, you can go to the VC Rocks blog and find the list of participating bloggers there. Somehow, time got away from me.  I'm still playing catch-up from being sick and have so much work to get done for the coming week.  Crazy what the last week of school brings but so glad that summer is almost here.  I was going to make a card for my husband.  He is so close to being done with his deployment so I wanted to make a fun, sassy card but I couldn't fit the hearts in, in a way that I liked.  I made another card using the Apothecary Accents Framelits.  You can see the large label is good sized.  I managed to include hearts with the adorning accents embossing folder, a heart punch and framelit and the stamped image has a heart...

This is your first stop on the blog hop.  For the complete listing, you can go to the SUStars blog .  I looked as I was posting and saw the list up and a project that uses flashing.  It just so happens that I bought some recently . . . now to decide what I want to make with it. The colors in the picture are slightly off due to lighting.  It was POURING when I took the picture.  The occasional flash of lightning did nothing to enhance the picture.  I made a card and post-it note holder using an acrylic picture frame for the holder.  I was going to stamp a sentiment for the card using the framelit dies but I couldn't decide who I'm giving it to, which determines what I want it to say. Surprisingly, I didn't use any stamps, yet the list of what I used, for something so simple looking, is long. CS:  Early Espresso, Sahara Sand, Perfect Plum, Blushing Bride Embossing Folders:  Perfect Polka Dots, Elegant Lines Punches:  5 Peta...

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...