Autumn Greetings!

Every year, I usually take the week leading up to Halloween off since there is always a buzz of activity due to the holiday and it's also my wedding anniversary. I wanted to take some time for crafting and I'm so glad I did. It was SO NICE to have a whole morning to myself to color and craft. Originally, I was going to start my Christmas cards, but I had gotten these cute Fall stamps from Hello Bluebird and I never got to use them. (I basically have a pattern of buying stamps and not using them until a year later) I also wanted to try and create some leaves with some die cuts that reminded me of the leaves from Pocahontas. The leaves were a true project since after cutting and gluing them together, I had to use different distress oxide colors to create a fall palate. I really loved the way they came out and I feel like they need to be a staple in all my fall cards to come!

Now if only I could find time to start Christmas cards!

This is Halloween!

This year, I signed up to be the class parent for my son's 2nd grade class. He started a new school and I figured this would be a great way to meet new people and get to know the parents in his class. 

For holiday parties in the past, I've usually bought a book for every kid and created tags with their names on them. This year though, I thought I'd step my game up a bit. I purchased copies of Halloween Mad Libs Junior and used some Disney ghost dies that I got from Scrappy Boy Stamps. I used some sparkly paper for the ears and the bows but the die really did all the work. This was super quick and it was nice to craft something after so long!

 

A Teacher Thank You

This next thank you card was difficult for me simply because I can't believe we're at the end of the year already! My son is graduating the first grade and moving to a whole new school and his teacher this year has been absolutely wonderful. No one ever tells you that the hard part about having such an excellent teacher is having to deal with the prospect of leaving them at the end of the year. First grade was such a tough transition for him but I really think he never would have succeeded the way he did without this dedicated and nurturing woman. She just understood him and encouraged him on a level that I never had to worry about him falling behind or feeling lost. Kinda makes you wish you could pull a Mr. Feeney and have her follow him to his next grade level. 😄

For this card I wanted to use supplies I hadn't touched yet (slowly but surely getting to everything!) This After the Rain die from Hello Bluebird caught my eye because I wanted to use the rainbow. I discarded the clouds for favor of stenciling my own with Tumbled Glass distress oxide (I do so love this technique) I roughly eyed my Copics and tried to recreate the colors of the rainbow. The mistake I made was gluing everything first and THEN coloring. I tried to keep it neat but it wasn't easy. For the sentiment, I wanted to give it a 3D feel and I asked my son what color it should be. Purple is her favorite color and I have to say- it popped really well!

So here's to teachers who are amazing superheroes who most certainly don't get enough recognition. (or money for that matter) 💜 

Friendship is my Favorite Adventure

It's funny how effortlessly this next card came together because the person I made it for became a friend just as quickly. I tend to think the older you get, the harder it is to make real, genuine friends. And that's still true but sometimes, life surprises you! I sat down to make this and usually, I spend hours deciding on what to do, but this card just came out in a little more than an hour and I haven't worked on a card that quickly in ages. It was really calming and fun too which is how I would describe my new friend as well. 😊

I wanted to try some stamps I haven't touched before and these from Hello Bluebird were still in the original packaging. I wanted to make the bear resemble a polar bear and I'm pretty proud with how the coloring came out. For the background, I wanted to create a darkening sky so I blended Salvaged Patina, Salty Ocean and Wilted Violet but that top layer looked waaaay too bright still so I mixed some Speckled Egg to darken it a bit. Then I went in with my MFT cloud stencil and with Chipped Sapphire, I blended all the way down. 

Once I adhered the images and stamped the sentiment, it still looked a bit too plain so I made a border with an MFT diecut and tried to trim both sides equally (I failed) But looking at the finished product, I am so happy with how this thank you card came out.

Heart Shaker

For Valentine's Day, I was only able to make one card. However, I forced myself to FINALLY sit down and create a shaker card. I should preface this with every SINGLE Christmas, I buy all the supplies to make a holiday shaker card and I always get too intimidated to do it. My fear is that the recipient will open the card only for the whole thing to fall apart. 

But I told myself to just try and worse thing I just throw the whole thing out (you'd be surprised how many times THAT does happen)

I bought the heart cover from Waffle Flower which if you are going to create shakers, they are the folks with the most idiot proof supplies. The insides were a Recollections glitter palate from Michael's. I used the Waffle Flower heart background stencil and kept the pink and purple color theme throughout. I was really happy with how it turned out until I realized I adhered the whole thing onto the card crooked. I did let out a few expletives there, but overall, I decided this was really good for a first try! I decided to send this to my close friend Rachel who is always encouraging me to craft and try new things. She would always tell me shakers are totally doable so I knew my first one should go to her.

And what do you know- it arrived all in one piece. 

Thinking of You

I made this next card for another coworker who sadly lost his mom over the holiday break. Sympathy cards are undoubtedly my least favorite to make for obvious reasons, but I also want the person to know that I am truly thinking about them. When my dad died a few years ago, I remember getting notes from people and just putting them aside. Then a few weeks later, going through them again, the sentiments hit me in such a powerful way. After all this time, it's still hard to navigate a reality without him. 

I wanted to create a twilight effect with my distress oxides and I used Spiced Marmalade, Peacock Feathers and Chipped Sapphire to make that. The dandelions are from a Simon Says Stamp set and looking back (because I always have to be nitpicky) I wish I would have stamped the sentiment sliiiightly lower in the lighter shade. Sigh.

Happy New Year.... a little too late

This card really should have been posted last month, but here we are. I made this card for a close work friend who just moved into her first apartment with her boyfriend over the holidays. I was so happy for her and excited for her to start this new chapter with her wonderful guy. I found this adorable background stamp from Michaels and I was going to add some sparkle to it but then chickened out before I could ruin it. Instead, I added the HNY sentiment from Waffle Flower and tried to match the background color. 

Who says simple cards can't be nice?