Merry Christmas!

Just a quick pre-scheduled post to say Merry Christmas to each and every one of you and thank you for supporting my little business! 

Here is the Christmas card I made in MDS to mail our close family and friends: 

and as usual, here is my favorite Christmas song and video to invite the true Christmas Spirit into your home if you wish: 

Best wishes for a peaceful and healthy new year to come! 

Calendars End!

And here we are, finished sharing the calendar pages! I hope you were at least a little bit inspired, haha! Today has some of my favorite pages this round, so here we go: 
November: 

And December...

On this one below, I asked my 5yr old if it was too pink or still okay for Christmas. She told me "it needed a little bit of gold." I added the thin gold Glimmer strips behind the plaid DP and it worked out great!

Oh, and since I really love how the covers came out, here's that too. I did the exact same cover, just swapped out the photos.

And next week is Christmas!! 

Calendars #5!

We're almost to the end of this series, and that means Christmas is approaching! Are you ready? More importantly, are you enjoying the festivities? We finally got that much-prayed-for snow!! This is Thursday afternoon, when I quit after shoveling a full hour...!

Today I have September and October calendar pages to share with you!

lottts of back to school pictures for this page! 

and October: 
This glimpse of our October covers ALL the fun we managed to have, between very cold temps, a ridiculous amount of sickness, and all the things that go with those. We did pumpkins twice because the first time was too early and wow, did those ones die... But it wasn't ALL terrible, hahaha, so I scrapped the good!

I usually do costume pictures for my family, but some costumes arrived late and some weren't photographed, but it worked out well anyway, didn't it? 

More Birthday Flowers

Still no snow, but the rain that is supposed to turn to snow is finally falling! fingers crossed! 

Today I have a card rather similar to Tuesday's but using a different color combo and sketch. This time I used the colors from Hand Stamped Sentiments, with the sketch from Inspire.Create.Challenge. And a whole lotta white space! And I used my other birthday words, lol! This one is also being mailed out very soon! 

Supplies:
Stamps: Sweet Strawberry
Ink: Merry Merlot
Paper: Soft Succulent, Basic White, Evening Evergreen, Merry Merlot
Accessories: Soft Succulent Open Weave ribbon, Harvest Dies, Glue Dots, Dimensionals, big shot (retired)

What are you making this week? Be sure and send it off so it brightens the day of someone you love, as well! 

Cute Little Christmas Tree

That's right, I got to make a Christmas card too! Today's card uses the color combo from Global Design Project, and it fits the theme for the latest SUO Challenge. 

This is the first time I've gotten to use this cute little girl! And this set IS retiring, so if you love it, you'll want to place an order of $150 or more, or host a workshop so you can earn this one for free! You could decide to add this greeting set to your order to reach your $150 because it too is retiring! AND, today only, there is FREE SHIPPING available on orders over $50, so today is a great day to place your order! 

This time I used blender pens and ink pads to color her. Not my favorite method, but it works okay, and that's where I have the colors for this challenge, haha. I did add two colors, but I think the yellow and brown were required here, don't you? 

Supplies:
Stamps: Seasons of Fun - Hostess Only, For Unto Us (both retiring)
Ink: Memento Black, Cherry Cobbler, Mint Macaron, Garden Green, Soft Suede, Daffodil Delight
Paper: Cherry Cobbler, Garden Green, Basic White card stocks
Accessories: Cherry Cobbler/Gold Ribbon, Blender Pens

Is there snow at your house?? It's plenty cold and supposed to get a lot colder but there is no snow... only over Fall Break for a minute... Even my kid who doesn't like snow is ready for a good, solid blizzard! Come on winter!! They're saying maybe tomorrow and I am sure hoping!! 

Blue Birthday Flowers

I. Got. To. Staaaaamp!!!!!
Hooray!!! haha! I got three cards made in fact, and that is super exciting to me.
So today I'll start with this fun card. This one uses the latest TGIF Color Challenge, along with the sketch from Just Add Ink. The cool colors say January to me, but it won't be around long enough for a January birthday. :)
This bundled set is in the June-Dec mini, but it isn't actually retiring yet! I'm excited about that because it's such a pretty bundle! I did use one stamp from the coordinating set and you can barely tell- it's a distressing image, hidden behind the bouquet. And then, I am in serious need of some current birthday words...!

Supplies:
Stamps: Inspired Thoughts, Nature's Harvest
Ink: Pool Party, Misty Moonlight, Whisper White
Paper: Pool Party, Basic White, Misty Moonlight, Just Jade
Accessories: Flowers For Every Season ribbon, Harvest Dies, Circle Dies, Glue Dots, Dimensionals

And then I'll have something else new for tomorrow! 

Calendars #4!

 Another Saturday, another four pages to share!
Today I have July and August! 
This was when I realized I have used stripes a TON in this first calendar... 6 times plus chevron... um....

And this might be my favorite calendar-page-for-my-side ever, hahaha, because every family member plus two extended made it on one page with only THREE photos! WAHOO!

And here is August! 
I did back to school in Aug for my inlaws, which is when school actually starts around here.

But still summer for my parents, haha! 

I like that these are all simple but happy. What do you think?

We Create Blog Hop: Holiday Quickies

And just like that, December has arrived! Can you even believe it?? I cannot.

A new month means a new blog hop, so here we are with some inspiration for quick projects! For mine, I did a few quick Christmas cards, because I am way behind in my Christmas card making... Also it works nicely with the current SUO Challenge.

The fastest way *I know to make a beautiful card is by featuring some beautiful DP and adding a quick something. This time I used roughly half a sheet of the stunning Peaceful Place DP and cut it into three equal sections, perfect for a card front. I used three colors for the ink and paper based on ribbons I had. They're flat, they're still pretty and they are perfectly mailable! I got these three cards cut, stamped, assembled and photographed in about 20 minutes. 

Supplies:

Stamps: For Unto Us

Ink: Real Red

Paper: Real Red card stock, Peaceful Place DP

Accessories: Gingham Ribbon

Supplies:

Stamps: For Unto Us

Ink: Misty Moonlight

Paper: Misty Moonlight card stock, Peaceful Place DP

Accessories: Flowers For All Seasons Ribbon

Supplies:

Stamps: For Unto Us

Ink: Soft Succulent

Paper: Soft Succulent card stock, Peaceful Place DP

Accessories: Soft Succulent Open Weave Ribbon

Which one do you like best? 

Now hop along over to Kimberly's blog and see what she's got for you. Then continue on through (we're a very small group this time) and let us know what you think! 

I hope you get some time to create something pretty this week too! 

Calendars #3

Happy Saturday once again! I hope you had a nice Thanksgiving this past week! 
Today I have for you May and June pages. Allll about Mother's Day and Father's Day, just incase that isn't completely obvious. 

So May...

and an even simpler May...

And June...which was actually time consuming!
Each hexagon was added and lined up manually (a better idea in my head than in application...!)

And these images were 'recolored' to look more accurate, tho not very perfectly...

What are you making this weekend? 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today is Thanksgiving! We're off enjoying family time, but I finally got to stamp yesterday so I'm sharing that here too!

I needed two thank you cards, so I made them almost identical. I used the sketch from Sunday Stamps, along with this adorable little guy playing in the leaves. The colors were based on the Stampin' Blends I own to color him in with, haha... I wasn't sure on the ribbon, but I think it worked out really nicely. 

Supplies:
Stamps: Seasons of Fun (hostess!)
Ink: Memento Black, Stampin' Blends
Paper: Basic White, Night of Navy, Beauty Of the Earth DP
Accessories: Pale Papaya ribbon, circle dies, Dimensionals, Big Shot (retired) 

annnd here is the list of Blends I used, haha... 

I am thankful you visit this blog, see my work, and support my little business. I am thankful I have this little business to require me to have a creative outlet. And I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving day, whatever you do with it! 

Calendars #2

Happy Saturday to you!
I have two more months of calendar pages for you today! Again, very simple. And this time you can see I kind of pick the color for the page based on the month events rather than the photos. But I think it works out okay. 

March:

And April:

'tis the season!

If you've been reading this blog a while, you know I make calendars every year for Christmas gifts for our parents, and my siblings. Have you noticed a very real issue with shipping?? I ordered photo prints for Christmas cards on Nov 1 and they still haven't shipped.... this has me truly concerned about getting the calendars here on time too! So now it's cramming time! This is the only real "creating" I've been doing lately anyway. 

I counted, and it will work out nicely to share two months worth of pages each Saturday til Christmas. You're welcome, hahaha. 

I make two calendars each year- one for my inlaws that features just our little household, and then one for my parents and siblings that features ALL of us. Which this year, I only cared if I got every grandchild on each page (there are 14). Adults were just a bonus. ha! So here are the January pages: 

And the February pages: 

They really are quite simple, especially this year. I wanted the photos to be the focus, and fitting 14+ humans makes it tricky to not look too busy.
But that's my start! 

Just Because

Today I have a pretty card that's already gone out in the mail. I love that! This time I used the latest Festive Friday challenge. From their list for World Kindness Day, I use flowers, pearls, embossing, lace and pastel colors! It looks like a time consuming card, but it really wasn't. And these coneflowers are more true-to-life than my last card, haha! 

Supplies:

Stamps: Nature's Harvest, Lovely You
Ink: Memento Black, Soft Succulent & marker, Fresh Freesia marker, Pale Papaya marker
Paper: Fresh Freesia, Soft Succulent, Basic White & Pale Papaya card stocks
Accessories: Lace Trim, Basic Pearls, Harvest Dies, Timeworn Type Embossing Folder, Dimensionals, Glue Dots, big shot (retired)

Today, I am thankful for a husband who knows how to do allllll sorts of things and spent yesterday afternoon and well in to the night finishing up the flooring and trim in what is going to be my new craft room! 

We Create Blog Hop: Gratitude and Thanks

And Halloween is over and November has arrived!
A new month means a new blog hop, so here we are! This time we're focusing on gratitude and thanksgiving, which is a close runner up for my second-favorite time of year. If you've never tried it, it is true- being aware of what you are thankful for makes a huge difference in your attitude and mood! 

I am planning to send at least one thank you card each week in November to tell someone I appreciate them. I hope to do more, but October was a doozy of a month at my house and I don't need to set myself up for failure, haha! This is a happy goal, not a frustrating one! So here is a thank you card to get me going!
I used the color combination from the latest Color Throwdown and this card can be sent to anyone! I chose to use a lot less leaves this time because while the trees in my own front yard are still mostly green, a lot of trees have already shed their leaves for the season around here. 

Supplies:

Stamps: Inspired Thoughts

Ink: Early Espresso

Paper: Very Vanilla, Crumb Cake, Early Espresso & Cajun Craze card stocks 
Accessories: Linen Thread, Inspiring Canopy Dies, Bark Embossing Folder, Dimensionals, big shot (retired)

Now hop on over to Kimberley's blog using the button below. Then hop the rest of the way thru (we're a small group, it won't take long) and let us know what you think! 

We Create Blog Hop November 2021 Blog Roll
Kimberley Morris
Tricia Butts
Cheryl Curtis
Tanya Harvey <-- ME

In November, my family has a tradition of writing down things we're thankful for each day on a paper leaf and then sticking it on the front door as reminders. Today I am extremely thankful to live in such a beautiful corner of the world. Two weeks ago, I snapped pictures of some of my favorite little spots to observe on my daily drives, and here is one of my favorites: 

What are you thankful for today?

Nature Heals

Today's card has already gone out in the mail and hopefully arrives today. I love this sentiment stamp, and I know it's true in my own life: nature brings healing and peace.
For this card I used the color combination from Hand Stamped Sentiments, and the sketch from The Paper Players. 

Supplies:

Stamps: Peaceful Cabin, Nature's Harvest
Ink: Misty Moonlight
Paper: Smoky Slate, Rich Razzleberry, Misty Moonlight, Basic White
Accessories: Flowers for All Seasons ribbon, Metallic Pearls, Timeworn Type embossing folder, Dimensionals, big shot (retired)

I hope you are getting some time to be creative this week! It's been pretty rare lately, haha, but I sure enjoy it, and I know it brightens the day of the person who receives the card too. So make sure you share your creations too! 

Sunny Coneflowers!

An afternoon post because I just got this card finished AND I think I'm too late to link up anyway, but! I am sharing it because I think it worked out to be lovely and maybe YOU could use some sunny thoughts today too!! But if you wondered, I did use the sketch from Freshly Made Sketches, which ended today. 
I googled images of coneflowers and wanted yellow to go with the sunny greeting, so I kind of stippled the Cherry, Pumpkin and Black Blends in the center of the flower. I also used the Light Daffodil Delight Stampin' Blend to color the gingham ribbon. 

Supplies:
Stamps: Nature's Harvest, Sunny Sentiments
Stampin' Blends: Light & Dark Old Olive, Light & Dark Daffodil Delight, Light Cherry Cobbler, Dark Pumpkin Pie, Dark Basic Black 
Paper: Daffodil Delight, Crumb Cake, Pear Pizazz, Very Vanilla card stocks
Accessories: Black Gingham ribbon, Harvest Dies, Timeworn Type Embossing Folder, Dimensionals, big shot (retired) 

Ink: Memento Black, Daffodil Delight, Crumb Cake, Old Olive

Lighthouse Congrats

I did get one thing made yesterday, so that's happy, haha.
And that means I have something new to share with you today!
But best of all, it was dropped off at the post office in time to go out!! 

This card uses the sketch from the latest Fusion Challenge, and I flipped it sideways. The DP is retired, and so is the tiny brad in the center of the compass, but I love how it all turned out! 

Supplies:
Stamps: Sailing Home
Ink: Night of Navy, Misty Moonlight, Balmy Blue, Smoky Slate
Paper: Basic White & Balmy Blue card stocks, Come Sail Away DP (retired) 
Accessories: Smooth Sailing Dies, Flowers For All Seasons ribbon, Dimensionals, Mini Brads (retired) 

STAMP SALE!

There has been a lot going on at my house and I have not made anything with paper all month long! And I am feeling it!!! I am really hoping to get to play today, but in the meantime, if you're not on my email list and you don't yet follow me on facebook, I wanted to make sure you knew about today's sale:

The entire list can be viewed (and ordered!) by clicking right HERE. If you don't have a demonstrator, choose me as your demonstrator. And your order will be shipped directly to you! Feel free to contact me if you need any help! 

Happy Shopping! 

World Card Making Day #3

Guess what?! My mom's order arrived sooo I made one more card to share with you today! This one uses the TGIF Challenge color combination, which I think is gorgeous! 

Supplies:

Stamps: Nature's Harvest

Ink: Blackberry Bliss

Paper: Very Vanilla, Blackberry Bliss, Basic Black card stocks

Accessories: Scalloped Lace Trim, Gingham Ribbon, Basic Pearls, Harvest Dies, big shot

How about you? Did you get to make any cards today?