Free hugs!

 

Hi friends!

We made it to Friday!

Woot!

Here in the US, it's Superbowl Sunday 

annnnnnnnnnnnnd I won't be watching, LOL!

(I'm still working on a huge project - no goofin' off for me!)

Today at SCS we're sharing hugs -

virtual hugs!

Since we are still not connecting in person as much as we'd like

and many of us are still homebound and missing our peeps,

we're sending virtual hugs (the safe kind!)

Today's card has the adorable bear from Just Saying by Hello Bluebird

and it has so many different sentiments in the set.

I used HUGS and stamped it onto his little sign :)

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Oh Happy Day!

Hi friends!

I hope your Monday is off to a good start 

or if you are like me,

 today is off to a good start! :)

I am honestly losing track of the days

and if it wasn't for the huge block calendar hanging in the kitchen,

I'd be forever lost!

 We're up to Day 10 in card camp

and I'm taking a break in between chores to photograph and blog.
It moves fast!

This is another card I worked on last week for spring camp,

taught by the incredibly talented Yana Smakula.

I've long admired her YouTube videos and her cardmaking style

so I was thrilled to see her name pop up as a teacher!

For this card, I used a lot of paper ...........

and the large Simon Hurley background cling stamp from Ranger Ink.

It's super fun because the lines are wonky and abstract

and it was perfect for creating this springtime scene!

Are we in spring?

It's 150° here in Florida and just so so SOOOO hot!

For this card, I've used the springtime stamp set from Hello Bluebird

and the matching dies 

and popped it all up on 3D foam.  

This card is thick and has a lot of dimension!

Here's my groovy wonky abstract paper,

all from my scrap pile,

and where this card went from this to finished!

  Thanks for hopping by today!

Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

Hot Mess ... Bee's Knees!

 Hi friends!

 It's that time again for the Hot Mess ~ Success card group

to share our cards.

(Here's how it all got started on my first messy card post.)

And, just like the name suggests, we make messes!

I do love creativity ...

and, even more, I love a challenge!

But messes?

Not. my. thing.

Which is why it's so funny ironic that we have 

once-a-month card challenge that requires us to make a mess!

But!

We are crafters, amiright?!

I used a watery, messy technique that I will definitely try again

(and that just may be the first time I've said that in a Hot Mess post!) 

If it has an official name, I apologize in advance ... I found it by mistake.

 I call it ... the paper towel technique!

 Barb is our challenge hostess for February's card

and her extra credit this month was: 'Use red.'

You can see Barb's card, Jeanette's card, and Terry's cards on their blogs.

 .
I started with #110 heavy weight white cardstock,

I spritzed it with water for a light misting.

While it was still wet, I dropped Tim Holtz distess reinkers

in Barn Door, Picked Raspberry and Tattered Rose and let it do it's magic.

Before it dried, I placed the patterned paper towel onto the damp cardstock

and lifted off all the color.

 I was a little heavy handed with the pinks so the red is slightly muted ~

but it's there :)

I hoped that the design in the paper towel would imprint onto the cardstock

but I'm digging the fun textures and swirls it left behind!

My images that I added are from Hello Bluebird 

and were colored during The Daily Marker 30 day event.

I'm glad I finally got to put these cuties onto a card ~

I'm super hap-bee with how this turned out ♥

This month's card = Success!

And that's it from this corner of the messy craft desk ...

until next month :)

Thanks for stopping by!
Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

I'll enter my card:  Word Art Wednesday

The Flower Challenge -  flowers with leaves 
Tuesday Throwdown - make your own background

Happy 4th of July, USA!

Hi crafty friends!

Here in the USA, it's Independence Day!

The kids are enjoying our gorgeous sunshine and the pool,

the hubby is getting the grill ready and prepping the buffet he has planned,

and I'm back and forth and back and forth cleaning and cooking ♥

And I also got into a scrap!

Not that kind of scrap!

Just my scrap PILE!

There's a new challenge at the CCEE Stampers this week:

Freedom Week!

Vicki is our hostess for the month of July 

and she's starting us off with this theme:

Hi, Vicky here . . . it is my turn to play hostess for the month of July.
Since both Australia and the USA have red, white and blue for their colors,

 let's use those colors to make a card. 

  It does not have to be for a holiday, just red, white and blue....

but, of course, if you send out patriotic cards, go for it!

Thanks, Vicki! 

I used paper left over in the scrap pile and ran it through my die cutting machine

using a Pretty Pink Posh die to get the stripes.

The square is another die from Spellbinders

and the outside frames are from My Favorite Things. 

The sentiment is from the Moose and friends stamps from Hello Bluebird ~

it was fun to find it hidden among the celebratory sentiments 

and ended up being just perfect! 

You can link up your cards celebrating

Freedom Week

by heading over to the blog and scrolling to the end of the post.

Thanks for stopping by and wishing you a safe, wonderful holiday!

Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

Entering this to SSSWednesday Challenge 

:  Stars and/or Stripes

Hello frosty friends!

Hello, friends!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas 

and Santa was good to you!

 

I'm still wishing for snow ~

so I'm still making snowy, post Christmas cards :) 

 

For this card, I used Frosty Friends by Hello Bluebird stamps.  

I went with colors that resembled a gingerbread theme ~ 

brown with white scallops, a lined frame and cute winter critters!

Here's another look at the card from it's aerial view ↓

 

 

  Thanks for stopping by today!

Big hugs, bigger blessings! ♥

~Kelly

CYS: "Witching" you a BOO-tiful day!

Hi friends!

*Picture heavy post!  Lots to see! :)*

Today's the day that we post our cards 

for the Challenge Your Stash (CYS) group.

Our hostess this month is the group's founder, Barb!

She asked us to create a card with a fancy fold and a fall theme

 :::: insert panic face here! ::::

In the summer, I was blessed to visit the REAL MFT store 

and it was an absolute dream come true!

My Favorite Things is as wonderful to visit in real life

as it is to shop online and create cards with their stamps and dies!

I chose for my fall theme:  Halloween!

It's not my favorite holiday ~ but being mommy to 4 kids,

we absolutely enjoyed seeing our kids pick 'the costume' each year,

getting excited about going house to house for Trick 'O Treat,

and getting the chance to visit the neighbors!

They ESPECIALLY love visit the Manzanares family ~

"Mommy!  Daddy! They give out full bars!"

♥

So the "fancy" to my fold is I made a bouncy/springer/flattening card!

How's that for a name?! :)

It's similiar to a basic tent fold - mountain and valleys ...

 Here's the top view ~
and there is a card that pulls out from the center :)

 This card, when it bounces down (or springs up?)

folds completely flat and fits neatly into an A2 size envelope!

Which is wonderful ~

since this has to get into the mail! ♥

I hope it's not too soon to consider this *stash*,

but I purchased this Halloween set in the store 

and just now am getting it out to ink it up.

If it is, I'll take the L! 

Barb is one of the kindest and sweetest ladies I know ...

and she's retired from education but I am SURE she won't get out her red pen

and give me a bad grade! 

LOL!

What is your favorite fancy fold?

I'd love to see yours, too, and visit your creations!

Big hugs, bigger blessings! 

~Kelly

Let me {stencil} you in!

Happy weekend, friends! 

I wish I could say fall is in the air,

but it's still super hot here in South Florida.

The only fall I'm seeing is in the decor in the stores

and on all the pretty autumn cards on social media :)

One thing that i absolutely love in this card making hobby

is creating a card that tells a story ♥

Some great techniques to do this are to using scene building dies,

masking and stencil work!

 

Yesterday, I stenciled in some time to make a new card

using some super cute fall critters!

I quickly fell in love with these fall friends and had an idea of a card,

then another, then another!

This is the first of three cards using one stamp set ..

first up, a stencil!

I found an amazing stencil during that massive Hobby Lobby stamp/die/etc

liquidation a few months back and it was one of the many things

that ended up in my cart and followed me home!

Thinking of an outdoor scene, it just made sense :)

 I used the Tim Holtz distress oxide inks in warm tones

of worn lipstick, fossilized amber and squeezed lemonade.

Using my mini blending tool, I applied the inks directly to the stencil

on white cardstock to give the illusion that they are birch trees.

Last, I colored the friends with a mash of prismacolor and promarkers

in a similiar color palette and added the sentiment and iridescent sequins.

And that's it from me today!

Wishing you a wonderful rest to your weekend! ♥
Big hugs, bigger blessings!
~Kelly

F.Y.I. ~ Play in the Puddles!

Hi friends!

You may remember from this post my F.Y.I ~  Find Your Inspiration blog series ♥
It's been fun through-out this year finding pieces 
and memories that inspire a card :) 

My children and I went to see the Christopher Robin/Winnie-the-Pooh movie
last month and it was absolutely adorable!
The quotes, like this one, always warm my heart ♥

 

During the Daily Marker 30 Day coloring challenge, 

I colored a lot of stamped images.

 I set most of them aside for a time i could add them to a card or use the colored images as a focal point.

  Today's card is just one of those moments!

I  love stamped images with umbrellas ♥

To me, the represent the beauty of the promise of what is after the rain!

I have so many, I just had to get my stamps out and play ...

using Hello Bluebird.

Oh these little ducks are so cute!

 

I hope you find what inspires you, too,

and you let it guide your creativity!

Thanks for stopping by today!
Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

RSG: My flowery friends in the springtime!

Hello friends!

It's springtime on my blog today!

There's a new theme for the Ready, Set, Go Challenge ~

a mountain of a challenge that Barb, Jeanette and I climb 

every third Wednesday of month.

These challenges are typically 'out of the box'

(some would say not for the faint of heart, LOL)

It's wildly creative and always tons of fun!

This month it's a spin off of Barb's fantastic theme last month

which I loved so much!

My husband - fresh out of surgery and quite loopy -

had me laughing with a rendition of Groundhog's Day :)

 Jeanette's challenge was similar in that we three - Barb, Jeanette and I - 

asked each other 3 questions and created our card based on the reply.

Since Barb was my partner, this is what she said:

1.  What is your favorite season?  Spring!

2.  What is the first word that comes to mind when I say the word fun?  Friends!

3.  What is your favorite embellishment to use on cards?  Ribbon!

Such a sweet theme, Barb!

You made this month's card easy!

 I chose my Hello Bluebird stamps for 2 reasons:

It's a springtime stamp set and it has 3 little animals friends ♥

For the friends element, I colored the bunny, lamb and kitty

using my promarkers.

Spring is represented by the springtime paper called Welcome Spring

by American Crafts and I've created little hills with it.

Finally, the ribbon was tucked behind the trio as green grass.

I stamped a sentiment onto the cardstock from another stamp set.

Thank you, Barb, for your wonderful answers ~

it was a lot of fun to create this card with YOU in mind!

 You can see Barb's card here and Jeanette's card here. 

I'm up for next month ~ and need to put my thinking cap back on!

Stay tuned! :)

Thanks for stopping by today!

Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

 

Day 5: Friends in any weather!

Hi friends!

It's the final day of my weekly blog series
 "5 days of ..."

The Alphabet Game!

It's been such a fun week
and I'm already excited for the next one ahead :)

Today's card is based on letter "H!"

 

 This was such a happy draw for me as I have quite a few stamp sets

with this letter

and almost all of them haven't seen ink.

This darling set is by Hello Bluebird stamps and it just touched my heart 

when I saw this various social media sites during release week!

I used a background panel to create the weathered look 

with distress/oxide inks and popped the images up on the card with foam. 

I stamped the sentiment on the completed background piece

and popped up a die cut to frame it in - 

then added coordinating sequins.

 

 This card is part of my #kindess cards

(as per kindness being my word of the year!)

Each of the cards during this week's release

 is being sent to someone in particular!

While this rainy day card is vibrant and bright and cheerful in color,

so is she - my friend :)

We have weathered a lot together, too!

Thanks for stopping by each day!

Remember there is a prize for one lucky commenter,

and each winner will be annoucned at the end of the weekly series:  July 27th.

Thank you for your KIND and sweet words, your encouragement,

and inspiring me with each of your creations as I visit your blogs, too!

Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥ 

~Kelly

CCEE ~ National Tartan Day!

Hiya friends!

I hope you have your kilts on - today is National Tartan Day!

Lois, hostess of this month's round of unique and interesting challenges over at 

CCEE Stampers has sure come up with some good ones.

Like today!

Being of sound mind and body Irish/Scottish roots,

 I absolutely love the idea of making a card with any type of plaid in mind!
Her challenge was to use plaid somewhere on your card to 
celebrate Tartan Day.

My card is using a new to me stamp company that's quickly popping up over

 the internet!  They are BEYOND adorable!  I'm absolutely smitten ♥
 Perhaps you have heard of Hello Bluebird stamps :)
I was intriqued so I ordered a set and WOW!  

So. Very. CUTE!

Here's my card using plaid from Doodlebug,

a die from MFT and the rest is from the adorable springtime set 
 is from Hello Bluebird.
And some enamel dots to complete the look! :)

 Be sure to check out the other CCEE Stampers and their pretty tartan cards!
You can find them here on the CCEE Stampers blog.
Thanks for stopping by today!

Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly