Boioioinnnng...

Just a very quick post with a happy frog card for the Really Reasonable Ribbons challenge. Boing!

Colds and Cards

Sooo...they put me on a temporary round of steroids for my spine, which seems to have worked nicely, except that the immune suppressing nature of steroids made me super-prone to cold/flu things one of which, I seem to be hosting now. Don't get too close to this post. You might catch it too.

I've been using my convalescence to goof off and make cards, so I have a number of them to show off today. :) First, one I made for my nephew Drew.

Hooray for bunnies! I pulled out some of my dresden, too for that shiny border at the bottom. I adore these vintage-style foil scraps. They're part of what makes those crumbling victorian period cards so charming. Though mass produced, they weren't flat printed plain things that seem to be in style now. Almost all commercial cards then had at least some sort of extra on it...embossed foil, layered scrap, a little lace, etc. One of my biggest pet peeves is people perpetuating the notion that "things were better in the old days" (after all, while they had nice cards then, they also had four year old chimney sweeps and lead-based makeup) but the cards back then deserve some sort of props. :)
I'm entering this card in the Cute Card Thursday Challenge, since I feel it is sufficiently adorable. :)

I had a request for black and tan doxies in my etsy shop, so I made this card to practice my canine marking skills. I think he turned out to be pretty cute. :) The image is by a digi artist called Sandy, and the challenge at Totally Paper Crafts was to use a digi stamp. So, this should do nicely.

You've seen this stamp in previous posts, but tis time I used Liquid Pearls and some floral paper from Club Scrap's My Funny Valentine line. I'm entering this one in one of my favorite challenges, the Digi Doodle Challenge.

Here's one from a set that I'm uploading to my Etsy shop today. Edcob? Jakward? You needn't choose werewolf or vampire with this guy. He's going into the Pattie's Creations pet challenge.

And here's my card for my design team at For Fun Challenges this week:

Isn't she cute? We used Michelle Perkett's images to say happy birthday to For Fun Challenges, so I'm entering my card in her challenge this week.
That's all for today...more to come!

A Little Love, A Little Late

So...my Valentines this year will be mailed out *on* Valentine's Day. Sorry, recipients, I've had a dreadful cold for the last week that's rendered me behind on just about everything life can hand a person. So, do forgive me for my belated tokens of love.

Here's a cute scottie card I made using Club Scrap papers, inks, ribbon and stencils. I inked the heart through a harelquin patterned stencil to get that cool diamond look. The gem dogs were a lucky find at a clearance sale. I immediately thought of the Stampin' Up set with the Westie dogs (white version of a Scottie for all practical purposes), hence the little guy stamped on the heart. This card is one I'm entering in the Really Reasonable Ribbon challenge. Check them out! Their ribbon selection rules!

But that's not all...I have a lot of Valentines to send cards to this year, so here is another card I made several of to send on their merry (late) way.

I'm in love with this stamp set by There She Goes, so you may recognize it from a card I made a week or so ago. Don't you just adore the little motion lines by his waggy tail? Anyway, this one is for another of my addictions, the Do You Stack Up challenge.  

So, don't dispair if your Valentine doesn't show up with any goodies today...they may just be really late, like me. :)

Happy Lunar New Year!

Losar, or Lunar New Year is colloquially called Chinese New Year though it's celebrated by Buddhists worldwide. It's one of my favorite holidays, especially since it's actually a whole week long. My cards today are a little behind, still celebrating Groundhog Day. Really, all rodents should have their own appreciation day, shouldn't they? While we're at it, why not all species...we could be celebrating every single day and then some. We'd have to have a new holiday every few hours, which I think is a darn fine idea! Anyway, don't worry, I plan to stuff you full of holiday goodness over the next week, but for now, here are some adorable little groundhogs from Little Scraps of Heaven Designs, who generously sponsored this week's challenge at my design team's home: For Fun Challenges. The prize? A $25 gift certificate, so get over there and submit your card!
 
I love a good challenge, too, so I created my groundhog card with the Really Reasonable Ribbons Challenge in mind. I used some of my favorite ribbon (love the layers!) from Club Scrap, and added a little silver heart to counterbalance the nifty butterfly paperclip adorning the springtime scene.

 Next, a little something I made for the Clean and Simple Sunday Challenge using their sketch and these freaking adorable stamps I got for Xmas from my ubercool friend, Jen K, who seems to always be on top of the coolest and newest crafting toys. It's like she has Scrap-dar. Amazing!

And finally, here's one I made for the Tip Top Tuesday this week, requiring "something girly". I was psyched to find this Hero Arts stamp on sale recently, since I've had my eye on it for about a year. And what good timing because it features violets which besides being my favorite flowers, are also February's flower (and, of course, my birth flower!) I added some sparkle with Doodlebug gems and offset those with some faux grey pearls. I'm very pleased with this card and will likely be sending it to someone else who also enjoys having a birthday this month.

That's all for today. I've got to get ready for the accupuncturist. The last month has been really dreadful for my spine. I've got to get it back in order or I'm going to go insane from being cooped up for so long.