bird with chemistry

so you've been noticing i've got a dictionary i've been pulling pages out of to create some postcards from home, right? i found this one page i thought the daughter might like - with the chemical elements. it has sortofa graphic appeal to me. And then i got something in the mail - i can't even remember what it was - that had this sweet little bird on it. for some reason i decided they'd look good together. i slapped that dictionary page down, then trimmed that bird from the page he was on and added him on top of that page. I took a little tim holtz distress ink in linen, then tea dye, and finished the whole thing off with some ultra-thick embossing powder - then cracked it. i'm rather pleased with the outcome.

i ended up mounting the whole thing on a card base - that UTE powder - well it kinda warps a bit - at least for me :-)

so i figured it was safer to send to my daughter as a card in an envelope - than to hope it would go thru the postal service as a postcard.

that's all for today. i've got something fun to post - at least i think so - but i've gotta wait til it's reached its destination :-) - don't wanna spoil the suprise.

a few more postcards

been workin, doin stuff around the house, and trying to make stuff in between. I bought some new things (birthday money :-)) which i'll try and show as i go. Also been playing with stamps and such for christmas cards. (i'm thinking i'm makin batches of different cards this year - instead of one christmas card... we'll see what actually happens LOL)

in the meantime, i'll post a couple more postcards from home. Have a good one ~

Doing a happy aunt dance

My nephew called me yesterday (well actually Sunday but we played phone tag for a day) to tell me he and his long time girlfriend are engaged.
This wasn't entirely surprising - he'd told me a few months back they were talking about it and had gone ring shopping. But still - hearing it is finally official - and hearing how he asked her - well it just made me so happy and ... yes I got all teary :-)
This kid has a most special place in my heart. He's my first nephew (i have 16), my sister's child... and he is just the best nephew you could ever hope to have. I love him like he's one of my own.
His fiance - well this girl is a doll. We loved her the minute we met her - she just fit right in - kwim? She's funny and sweet and well we just love her.
Anyway... I wanted to send him and his fiance a card. They love getting my cards - and of course those are the people you enjoy sending them to! I used the Stampinup set "Together Forever" (i may have to use it for a wedding card in a little over a year from now!); nestabilities and some grosgrain ribbon. I must get a decent scissor just for ribbons (I've been saying this for forever - i'm doing it in the next few days! Enough is enough - I've ruined enough ribbon for heavenssake! I really wanted a slanted cut on those ribbon tails... but this will have to do!) Oh... I'd like to say this aqua-ish cardstock is really a much lovelier shade - very pale and looks really great with the black... it just isn't showing up so good here. Also there is a little shmutz on the scan... its not on the card.... i'm just sayin. Oh yeah - and I printed off the "You're Engaged" on my printer then cut it out....
Have a great day kids!

Postcards from Home Returns

I mentioned previously I'd started sending my daughter postcards. I'd sent my son postcards randomly over say the last 2 yrs he was at college. I thought she might enjoy the same thing. I, of course, enjoy doing it. The postcards aren't works of art. They are more "playtime": whatever i feel like doing at the time - stamps i feel like stamping, pencils i want to draw/color with etc... i have a little canvas and i can fill it with whatever suits my fancy at that given moment in time.

Daughter is at art school - she understands the need for stretching one's creative wings. She also appreciates my love of making things. And i think she knows these postcards serve 2 purposes (at least) - I get to make things + i get to send her my love. (i certainly email all the time but there is nothing like getting real mail at college!)

So, without further ta-doo... I am posting a few postcards I've already sent. Believe it or not, I've actually got a small stack I've made and haven't mailed yet. (i'm ahead of the game... who knew!)

Oh -I think i mentioned before - but if i didn't - I mailed the first postcard with a hole punch and one of those metal rings - so she could punch the postcards as they arrive - they'll all be together and she can save them that way.

You've noticed I'm doing a little gluing on these postcards (dictionary pages, things i find in the mail, tags from the dry cleaner.... as well as stamping, embossing; using ink, watercolor crayons, stamps, prismacolor pencils... yeah... everything goes this time). Have a wonderful day!

poppystamps

i mentioned yesterday i got a few new stamps.

i would have gotten a few more of the PoppyStamps if they had them. They're cute and different from what i've seen lately. And I love anything i can color in.

Anyhow, I picked up Peggy Polkadot and made a little card. I used some Basic Grey Wisteria (had that paper for so long!), a quickutz dragonfly die, a nestablilities die; and i used prismas and copics to color in Peggy.

well i'm off to see what else i can make.... have a good one...

more birthday

so i still haven't started my new job - Friday is my first day. So with a few more days to myself I decided to #1 - buy a few new stamps :-) and #2 make a few cards.

Yesterday i visited a local stamp store. Bought a few stamps. I'd seen these PoppyStamps online and they had a few in the store yesterday.

I indulged :-)

Bought the large kitty stamp and decided it would be a good choice to use on a card for my nephew - (he has 2 cats of his own) his birthday is the end of this week . I fooled around with some copics on the cat but decided i liked my prismas this time to color the kitty. But he lacked the proper festive-wear, if you will. So I cut him out a party hat. Yeah... that'll put this kitty in the party mode.

The cardstock is Lasting Impressions; the "celebrate" is Hero Arts I believe. I had the ribbon in my stash.

Let's see - I also made some thank you cards over the weekend:

I'd wanted to make some thank you's and also wanted to try using some stamps I hadn't really used (at least successfully). So I went on Splitcoast Stampers and took a look around. I really wish i could remember the name of the person who made the card that got me started - but suffice it to say she stamped with white craft ink onto a dark blue cardstock - i loved how hers came out. I thought i'd try that and then create cards of my own using that stamped sheet of cardstock.

Okay... that's all for today kids. I'll have to upload some "postcards from home" in the next few days. Til then, be good!

Happy Labor Day weekend kids

yes.. it has been a while

and a lot has happened in the past, what? 7 months since I last posted anything.

Between work, having 2 kids graduate (1 college, 1 high school), leaving aforementioned job, beginning a new one, shipping one child off to college... well I haven't lacked for things to do. I said I started a new job - I did some training for the new one and am waiting to actually start... so I've had a few glorious days to do whatever came to mind.

I've started sending postcards to my new college girl (and she's enjoying them). So I'll be posting those soon I spose. (I even sent her a hole punch and one of those metal rings - so she can save them).

The other day I was in the Walmart and saw these cute K&Company birthday hat embellishments and thought they'd make cute, easy cards. I haven't made cards in - how long... sheesh ... I don't even know. So I cut up some paper and ran it through the Cuttlebug with an embossing folder; cut up some cardstock and ran some of it through my Cuttlebug with some Nestabilities - voila... cards! They came out kinda cute and I was feelin more like the old me :-)

Oh i should mention I made one card not pictured here for a friend - Happy Birthday Michele

I'd like to say I'll be posting more often - but I'm just not sure quite yet how much free time I'll be getting. But I will say I'm gonna try :-)