To A Dear Friend

Hello and Welcome!!

It's been a crazy week for me. And now, to top it all off, I have acquired a head cold! Yuck! Just enough sneezing, sniffling and blowing to interrupt whatever you are doing!

I did manage to make a Valentine for a very dear senior friend of mine. She is from New York and has taken beautifully to our mountains. Even works with animals every day to help out on the ranch where she lives. I only hope I have half her energy if I make it to her age!

I started with a Kraft card base and layered the background with a piece from a wonderful vintage bag. I added varigated rick rack down the sides. The heart and the sentiment are stamped with SU PinkPassion and heat embossed with clear powder. I went over the images with Antique Linen ink to age the paper a little. The cut out images are then layered onto pink card stock. The last layer is more Kraft stock. These are raised on dimensionals. I sponged all the edges with SU Positively Pink. I really like the vintage feel of this card and I think my friend will, too!

Thanks so much for stopping by today! Hope your week is going well! Come back by when you can and be sure to leave a comment to let me know you were here. It is such a joy to hear from you and I love the return visits to your blogs!! The weekend will be here soon...so, hang in there!

Blessings to you,
Vicki

Sweet Friends Blog Award

Hello Everyone!

It's a happy day today and I need to thank Shelly for helping it be that way! She has honored me with this Sweet Friends Blog Award! Thanks so much Shelly! Please be sure to check out her blog as she is an amazing talent and has some wonderful blog candy going, too!

With this award, I am to list ten things that make me happy. That's going to be tough to narrow down but here goes:

1) God's love
2) My family( they also make me crazy-lol)
3) My church family
4) My eyesight
5) Beautiful Spring mornings
6) Being in my kitchen
7) My animals ( yep, crazy here, too)
8) Coffee with a friend
9) Being in my craft studio
and last but certainly not the least
10) My wonderful online friends!!

I am also to share this award with five friends...yikes, only 5!!
I am going to make this award available to all my friends but I will name five to stick to the rule!

1. Renee
2. Kathy
3. Linda
4. Gina
5. Sue

With this award you need to:
1. Copy and paste the award on your blog.
2. List who gave the award to you and use a link to her blog (or hyperlink).
3. List 10 things that make you happy.
4. Pass the award on to other bloggers and visit their blog to let them know!

I am off now to enjoy the rest of this happy day! I hope your day is happy, too, and the blessings just FLOW!!

Blessings to you,
Vicki

Fur Family Update

Hello Friends!

Some of you may remember this picture from a previous post last summer. This was "Ria". a kitten that was abandoned by the mother and the only one to survive from a litter of five. Well, Ria turned out to be a "HE-A" so his name is now "Little One".

Little One will be a year old in April and is a constant source of joy! He has gone from laying in my arms to taking over my bed! He can be a "terrible twos" like terror with his antics, but he always makes me laugh! No shelf is too high, no plant is too wet, and no piece of paper ever stays where you put it! The other cats just look at him and shake their heads!! I keep thinking he'll outgrow his zest for play, but I hope not. He's the clown that keeps my spirits up!

I also wanted you to see what this little imp grew up to look like. He is small compared to the other cats but so was his mama. His lack of size has never held him back and his 'hit and run' tactics have served him well! I am thankful that all the special attention he required (just like those 2 AM feedings) has let him grow into a happy and healthy friend. He brings me joy and entertainment that none of my other animals can match!

It was a real chore to get photos of him STILL but I managed to get a couple of shots while he was distracted! (which is an easy thing for him to be...LOL).

I hope each of you has a "Little One" in your life! Be it dog, cat, bird, or fish, they are God's creatures and a living testimony of His love.

Well, I am off to see what I have to put back, replace or refill for the umpteenth time! Thanks for sharing your time
with us today and we hope you will stop by often! I hope to have some crafting time today if I can get Little One off my desk and out of my chair!!

Blessings to you,
Vicki

Take Out Treats

Hello Everyone!

So glad you stopped by today!

Just some treat boxes to share that I made from a Mirkwood template which you can find HERE.

I stamped my own DP, traced the template and cut it out. I used the template as a guide for the scores lines and folds. I embellished the boxes with stickers and cut outs. The handles are made from silver craft wire. I curled the wire just a little inside the box to keep it from pulling out. added a ribbon and filled with chocolate kisses.

I am always needing little treats like this for our seniors at church and for family friends. These came together fairly quickly and I think they are cute. They would be a nice gift anytime filled with candy or fortune cookies. Or maybe a nice teacher's gift filled with candy and desk supplies. So many possibilities!

Hope you are all having a great week and you will come back again soon!

Blessings to you,
Vicki

Glitterbees Challenge You Bless Me

Hello Friends!

Today's post is the challenge for the Glitterbees Blog Group! We were to use green, pink and blue in our project. I went a step further and challenged myself to make my first acrylic card! Whew! Definitely a learning experience! Still another challenge was trying to photograph it! I have so much to learn! I have to say, however, that I am glad I tried it. I will try it again someday, too, but not this week!!

I started with a transparency sheet and cut it to a standard card base. I then scored it and folded it in half. Now's when the fun started! I used a 1 1/2 " and a 2" scallop punch to cut circles from embossed card stock. I had the layout in my mind but covering the adhesive was going to be tricky. I went back to my old friends, glue dots, and managed to get the circles where I wanted them. I used a white brad for the center of the flower and adhered it the same way. The white scallop you see in the background is an oval punched piece which I adhered to the back side of the card. This gave me a place to add a greeting and signature. I used my stampamajig to line up the sentiment which is stamped with black StazOn ink. The ribbon is from Basic Grey and I used my glue dots once again. The layout is not my favorite but it let me learn about working with the acrylic without too much stress!
Since I know enough about photography to fill a thimble with your thumb in it, I guess my hardest challenge was the picture. I tried several backgrounds and angles but I just couldn't get the outline of the card to be seen. I comforted myself with the fact that it is supposed to be CLEAR and to go with my best shot! You photographers out there can feel free to leave your pity remarks in the comments! I'm a big girl...I can take it!!

Thanks so much for coming to visit today and sharing my learning experience! Each of you is special to me and YOU BLESS ME! Please come back by when you can. Next time, I may even try an acrylic album!! .........Nah!

Blessings to you,
Vicki

A Blast From the Past!

Hello and Welcome!

Have you ever found something you made a while ago and thought to yourself, "I did a pretty good job on this!" That's what I thought when I found this triangle box in my Valentine box from last year!

I started with white card stock and rolled the swirls pattern in red. I then cut out the box and inked all the edges. I stamped hearts and the sentiment in SU Real Red Craft ink and punched them out with a scallop punch. All are adhered with dimensionals on each side. The red bow is added to the top with glue dots. I filled these with Valentine candy and shared them with friends. Wonder what I could do with this box this year?!?!? Hmmm...What do you think?

Thanks so much for visiting today and sharing my little blast from the past! I hope you will stop by often and let me know your ideas and suggestions. I will make a new version of this box this year and post the most popular choices!

ETA: I have had several inquiries about the template for this box. Sorry to say I am not computer savvy enough to put the template in this post; but I would be happy to email the template to any who ask. Just use my email address on the sidebar and let me know!

Until later...LOVE YA! and

Blessings to you,
Vicki

Love Always

Greetings!

Just a simple card today filled with a lot of love!
I got a couple of new stamps and just had to try them out! You know how that is! You open the package and suddenly everything around you screams INK!! The Hearts-a-Plenty background stamp and the Tree of Hearts focal stamp are both new. I really like the tree stamp!

I stamped the background and added a layer of white card stock stamped with the tree and "love always". I used a MS border punch on the sides, added a small silver bow, and said ahhh! Cute, clean and simple! Very nice once in a while.

It is so nice of you to stop by today! Did you see that you can now subscribe and be notified by email when there's a new post? It took me a while and some frustration, but with the help of my friend Monica (bless you!), Feedburner and I are "on the same page"! I hope you will subscribe and/or come back when you can! Have a wonderful weekend!

Blessings to you,
Vicki

Love Birds

Hello Friends! I hope your week is going well!

I have a card to share today that I have wanted to do for some time, but I always got caught up in other directions! Now I get to play!!

This card is for two challenges. The first is the WCYC Wednesday challenge from
Paper Pleasures and Stamping Delights
where we are to create the card using our own ideas and no sketches. It is also for the Designing DIVAS Blog Group challenge that asked us to use real or faux stitching.

I started with a kraft card base. I then layered a scalloped piece of DP which is actually wall paper, as are two of the birds! The birds are cut with Nestabilities. The large bird is blue metallic textured card stock that I crumpled and distressed. I also distressed the edges of the smaller birds and the card base. I used a needle paper punch to punch the holes for the faux stitching on the large bird and the card. I "connected the dots" on the bird with a blue metallic gel pen. I used a white gel pen on the card base. I then added a pearl "eye" to the smallest bird. The Love sentiment is stamped with SU craft ink and heat embossed. I used pink satin ribbon to add a final touch! I really like the shabby chic look of this card that can be used as a Valentine or even as an anniversary card. Hope you enjoy it, too!

Please be sure to check out the details for the WCYC Wednesday challenge on the blogsite. Everyone is welcome to play along and there will be prizes each month! You can also see the other DIVAS cards by visiting their blogs which are listed on the sidebar. As always, it is a blessing and a joy to have you visit and I hope you will visit often! Have a great week!

Blessings to you,
Vicki

Mountain Birthday

Hello Friends!

Today I am sharing a card I made for a new challenge posting. Check out
Paper Pleasures and Stamping Delights!
Each Wednesday we are challenged to make our own project with no sketch or other challenge...just our own ideas! Love it! Be sure to check out the details and come play along! You are asked to submit only two projects a month!

I need a masculine birthday card this month so I started with black card stock. I stamped everything in white SU Craft ink and added the birds with white gel pen! The inside reads, "Hope your special day has you soaring!".

Thanks so much for stopping by and please do come by often. Lots of challenges in the works!

Blessings to you,
Vicki

Glitterbees Challenge Valentines Are For Friends

Hello and Welcome!

Today I would like to share our first Glitterbees Blog Group Challenge! This one was a doozy for me but I had fun with it!

I started with a white card stock card base and stamped a background with a flourished swirls roller. I then added the pink layer. Next came a piece of white card stock stamped in black ink. I stamped the sentiment in SU black craft ink and heat embossed it. I punched it out with a McGill deckle square punch and layered it to a red deckle edge square. These are raised on dimensionals. I added a red organdy bow and the black pearls for accent. I also deckled the outer edges of the card.

I already have someone in mind to send this card to. Hope they like it!

Thanks so much for your visit today and I hope it is just one of many! Be sure to check out the other Glitterbees versions of this challenge on our challenge blog here. So much talent in this group!! You can also join us if you like and post your card with Mr. Linky!

See you again soon!
Blessings to you,
Vicki

Sweet Dreamers Challenge Stylin'

Welcome Friends!

The Sweet Dreamers Blog Group has posted a new challenge for us (thank you, Marti). Challenges are not my forte but I always want to try them. I just have a hard time with someone else's vision for some reason. I need to work on that!!

I started with a purple card base. I then layered 1" x 4 1/4" bands of metallic lavender card stock. I ran these bands through the Cuttlebug in the Bloom Dots folder to add a little texture. Next I cut the scalloped circles with my Nesties and stamped the sentiment on the smaller one. I added dots on the scallops with a lavender souffle pen. I adhered these circles with dimensionals. I punched two sizes of blossoms out of white card stock colored with Brilliance ink. I used rhinestone brads for the centers and adhered them with glue dots. Sorry the pic is a little dark on one side. I was trying out a new lighting system and obviously I had the wrong angle somewhere.

Hope you like my attempt at this challenge and you will stop by again soon!

Blessings to you,
Vicki

Five and Six...A Bit of a Mix

Good Morning All!

Today I have the fifth and sixth cards to show you made from my card kit stash! These are the last two thank you cards I am doing for a while! ( and everyone in the house says, Thank Goodness!").
I appreciate those of you who have taken this journey with me and I feel so much better about using up some long neglected kits.

The fifth card is all kit items. The card base, accent and sentiment are all from My Mind's Eye. I think I will be avoiding stripes for a while at least!! LOL!

The sixth card is also from a kit. I brought out the crimper again and used the floral embellishments from the set. I just added buttons to the centers, put the band and sentiment on and DONE!

I am so looking forward to making other kinds of cards and projects! Look out Valentine's Day...here I come!!

Thank you so much for your visit today! I promise no more thank you cards for at least the rest of the month (gotcha)!

Blessings to you,
Vicki

Yep! It's Number 4

Hello and Welcome!

If you haven't stopped by for a while, you may wonder what Number 4 is about! It is the fourth card in a series of Thank You cards I am making in an effort to use up some long neglected products.

This card I really had some fun with! It is another My Mind's Eye card kit ( yes I went overboard on these things!). I used the card base, the flower embellishments and the sentiment also from this kit. The pink band under the sentiment is also in this set. I crimped the flowers with my fingernails to give them some dimension. I then added a flower brad to the centers. The buttons were punched from coordinating cardstock with a Martha Stewart embossing punch and adhered with glue dots. I love this card! I think it really says a cheerful thank you! Hope you like it, too!

I have a side tip for you today! I use a good deal of glue dots in my crafting and it can get rather pricey. I was fortunate to find a tip in a You Tube video that helped me save some real money.(Sorry, I don't remember the name of the video!) I use Tack It Over and Over glue to make my own dots! I just have to put drops of the glue onto parchment paper and let them dry for 24-36 hours. That's it! I dot them on folded paper and then I can fold the blank side over the dots. Please don't try wax paper for this! It won't work! The only snafu is that the glue is not that easy to find. It is available on line and on Ebay sometimes. I have also been lucky enough to find it at Michael's a couple of times. It runs around $5 a bottle and a bottle makes thousands of glue dots. You can make them any size you want this way, too! They will adhere almost anything and they are great for buttons and paperclip bookmarks! Just a little FYI to share so we can all get the benefits!

I'll be back with you soon with the next card in the series!

Thanks so much for stopping by! Come as you are and come back often!

Blessings to you,
Vicki

Number 3 in the Series

Welcome Friends!

So glad you could stop by today! I hope your New year is starting with joy and love! A very quiet New Year's eve for me and my family, but lots of love to share!

The next card in the Thank You series is very basic but with bold lines. The card base is from a My Mind's Eye card kit as is the sentiment. The sentiment is matted to coordinating cardstock and adhered with dimensionals. I added some geometric-shaped paper clips for a little interest. Super quick!

I am still working on using these kits and reducing my "stash". It is slow going but I am determined not to buy any new paper until I use a good deal of what I have on hand!

There are still a few cards in this series and I hope you will visit again. I so appreciate all your nice comments and suggestions!

Blessings to you,
Vicki

Happy New Year!

Thank you so much for sharing your time with me and visiting my blog! It is always a joy to hear from you and I hope you will come back often in the New Year!

Blessings to you,
Vicki
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