A simple, masculine birthday card...

Whenever I need to make a masculine birthday card, I think "simple design" and "graphic."

So this is my take on a simply designed, graphic card.

To start, I pulled out my Die-Versions birthday banner die and some white cardstock. I also used my Elizabeth Craft "Happy Birthday" word die for the word "Happy." I found a paper pad that had some rather masculine looking designs in it. Not sure who the manufacturer is, and since it's nearly 11:30 p.m. as I write this, I'm too tired to go search for it!

Here you can see how I curled up the tails of my banners to add a little dimension. I added a few glittery stars (there are even two stars holding up the ends of my banner) because even guys need a little sparkle in their lives.

I also added a few stars on the inside to dress it up a little.

Well, that's my simple card for today. It's been a little hard to get back into "normal" card-making after all the Christmas cards and tags I made. Hopefully, my next cards will have a little more pizzaz.

We got about 4.5" of snow last night, so there was a bit of shoveling to be done today. It wasn't terribly cold out, so it was pleasant enough to be out in the fresh air. I don't mind shoveling if it's under 6".

Today I started a big kettle of turkey noodle soup, which I will finish up tomorrow. I'm using the leftover turkey from Christmas. My family loves homemade soup, and I love making it, so it's a win-win!

Stay warm wherever you are, and don't forget to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.
Cheryl

Merry Christmas to all...

We are ready for Christmas at our house. Our family members will gather here this afternoon and we will have some fun playing board games for a couple of hours. We had hoped to be able to go sledding, but the weather will just not cooperate! We had a bit of slushy snow yesterday, but not nearly enough to allow for sledding or even building a snowman. Once it gets dark, we will take a tour of our city to look at some of the beautiful light displays. Then, after a casual meal of hearty homemade soups (Chili, Cheesy Corn Chowder and Chicken Wild Rice), we will exchange gifts. That is the part that the grandchildren can hardly wait for!!

But before we do all that, I thought I'd share one more Christmas card.

For this card, I used an embossing folder that came free with the last issue of Cardmaking & Papercraft. I simply embossed the design and then added a little chalk to the leaves and vines and some tiny dots from my red and gold Viva Décor pens. The "Merry Christmas" die-cut is by Dee's Distinctively.

Here's a little closer look at the embossing.

I added a stamped Christmas sentiment on the inside to finish my card.












I hope that you have completed all your holiday preparations, wherever you are, and can now sit back and enjoy your own family's celebrations. I wish each of you a very merry Christmas and a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.
Cheryl

Wrapping things up...

I had these little boxes of Pirouline cookies that I wanted to give as little gifts. These boxes are only about 1 1/2" X 3" X 7". Because they are such small gifts in both size and cost (I found them in the dollar bins at Target), I wanted to make them special by dressing them up in a fun way.

First, I wrapped them in a couple layers of white tissue paper. Then I grabbed some scraps of fleece fabric I have had for years and cut a rectangle for a hat and a long narrow piece for the scarf. I used my sewing machine to quickly sew the two narrow ends of the rectangle together for the hat. Then I simply cut a fringe around one end, slipped the other end over my box and tied the top with some embroidery thread to make a sort of pompom. I also cut a little fringe on both ends of my scarf.

I used some black puffy paint for the eyes, mouth and buttons down the front. My nose was cut by hand out of a scrap of orange cardstock.

This was honestly SUPER QUICK to do, especially since my sewing machine and fabric scraps are always at hand in my little craft room.

I wrote the names of the recipients on the back and set them on the branches of my Christmas tree. They're very light weight so they sit quite nicely, nestled in the branches. And they look cute, too. My husband even noticed them!





I'm nearly done making cookies. Once they're done, I'll start working on the soups for Christmas Eve. We have a tradition of having hearty, homemade soups for our evening meal on that day. We like to go sledding in the afternoon on a nearby hill (IF there's enough snow - it doesn't look good this year!) and then come back for soup before we open gifts. This year I'll be making Chicken Wild Rice, Cheesy Corn Cheddar and Beef Chili. The wild rice soup is my family's favorite, so that is a "must-have." The other two soups vary from year to year, although I always tend to make Chili. On Christmas Day we will have a big meal of roast turkey and dressing with all the fixings. I will also need to make the pies (Cherry, Pumpkin and Apple) for our dessert on Christmas Day. I don't think I'll have to cook for a month after the holidays, as there should be lots of leftovers, which I love!

Do you have special foods that you only make during the holidays? I'd LOVE it if you'd leave a comment and let me know what they are.

Thank you so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.
Cheryl

Oh, "deer," it's nearly Christmas...

This card was inspired by one that I received last year from a fabulous lady in Germany who makes amazing cards. In fact, I shared her card on my blog in this 2014 post.

I cut an aperture in my DSP with a reverse scallop circle die (Spellbinders) and then a small aperture in the white mat underneath.

I used some 2" wide glitter tape by Heidi Swapp to create my background scene. I cut it out with a Tree Line die by Marianne Creatables. You can see that I've got a couple of layers that have been inked around the edges with some teal-colored ink. The cardstock that was used for the "sky" behind my trees is actually a very, very pale teal color, even though it looks white in the photo.

My pretty deer was cut with an Impression Obsession die.

I cut a second aperture in my card for my sentiment. I decided to add some clear flat-backed gems on either side of it for a little more sparkle.

Finally, the inside of my card was adorned with a few snowflakes punched from the same DSP that is on the front. I think I went a little overboard with the snowflakes. Looks like there's a blizzard happening there!! They were all firmly stuck down, though, so no changing it after the fact.

I can finally say I have "some" of my Christmas cookies made. I won't get any done today, but Monday and Tuesday I'll be chained to my kitchen to finish them up.

This afternoon we are going to a play with friends and then to their house for dinner. I'm really looking forward to it! I love live theater productions and spending time with good friends.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.
Cheryl

Snowflake Christmas card...

Here's a card I made with a large Darice snowflake die. It's nice to have a few dies this size, because they can really serve as the focal point of a card and not much else is needed.

 

I cut my snowflake from navy blue cardstock and then "sugared" it with a thin coating of clear glitter. Finally, I adhered a clear flat-backed gem to the center.

 

The sentiment on the front of my card was stamped with navy blue ink and then some sparkle was added to the little center star with a glitter pen.

 

The inside of my card was fairly unadorned, but I did add some glitter pen sparkle to the words "Peace" and "Joy." It just doesn't show up in my photo.

 

I'm entering this card in Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #217. Here is the fabulous sketch they provided for inspiration:

 

I finally got my wrapping and card-making messes cleaned up today. It took SO LONG - nearly all afternoon! I still have one little pile of paper scraps to sort out and put away, but it looks so much better. I can finally walk through my craft area without taking my life in my hands. I even found one of the two bone folders I had lost somewhere in all my craft stuff. My favorite one is still missing. I simply have no idea what I did with it or where I may have dropped it! Maybe after the holidays I can methodically go through ALL my stuff and, hopefully, find it.

 

It's bake, bake, bake now until the big day comes. That also means lots of taste tests. ha ha

 

Have a great weekend, and thanks so much for stopping by. Remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl

Vellum poinsettias...

My three sisters are VIPs in my life, so I wanted to send them some special Christmas cards. I first made an all-white card, which I featured in this post, and then decided to make two more cards based on this one. But instead of using white vellum for the poinsettia, I used a fairly deep pink vellum, which I happened to have on hand.

I cut the petals of my poinsettia (5 large, 10 medium, 5 small) using a Cheery Lynn Holly Leaves die. After they were cut, I took each petal and dipped its edges in liquid glue and then in glitter to give it a frosted look.

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When they were dry, I assembled my petals onto a 1" circle of double-sided adhesive with the backing paper removed from only one side of it. I didn't remove the other side until I was ready to adhere the entire flower to my card front.

The sentiment (a $1.50 stamp from Michaels) was heat-embossed with some silver embossing powder onto a strip of white vellum.


The dry embossing was done with a freebie embossing border from a past issue of Cardmaking & Papercraft. I enhanced it a bit by using my glitter pen on the holly berries and flower centers.

The inside of my card is pretty simple with more embossing across the top, a narrow strip of glitter tape and a heat-embossed sentiment.

I'm entering this card into Die Cuttin' Divas' Christmas Anything Goes challenge #246.

Here's a look at both cards together.

I apologize for the poor photos in this post. Our days have been so dark and gloomy that it has been impossible to get good photos.

I was in such a hurry to mail these cards that after I dropped them in the mailbox across the street, I realized that I had forgotten to sign them! Sheesh! I told my sisters to simply hang on to them and send them to someone else next year (after signing them, of course!). I'm a firm believer in Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. You wouldn't know it by looking at my craft area and the piles of stuff there, but a fair amount of it these days comes from a local thrift shop that sells used craft supplies.

Thank you so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.
Cheryl

Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse...

I have this sweet little House Mouse stamp that I wanted to use for a few Christmas cards this year. I stamped it eight times and had fun coloring the images with my ProMarkers. The cards I made all had the same layout, but different background papers.

It's very difficult to see, but I added some sparkle to the bows with a Wink of Stella pen. I also "spritzed" some faint color onto the background from a ProMarker with a Perfect Paper Crafting Airbrush tool.

Here are two of the cards....

...and a couple more. My corner die is by Cheery Lynn and the lacy border across the center was cut with a Marianne Designs die called "border stitch lace."


For the inside of my cards, I added a strip of the same cardstock that was used on the front.

I'm entering these cards into the  House Mouse & Friends Monday Challenge #209 Rainbow Colours. I'm not sure my different colored bows will meet the "rainbow colours" criterion, but they also offer an "anything goes" option for each challenge, as long as you use a House Mouse image. This particular challenge runs until January 2, so why don't you join in?

I am continuing to barrel through my holiday preparations. I will (hopefully) finish up my wrapping today and start my baking. That means extra pounds are on the way! All I have to do to gain weight is just look at all those Christmas cookies. Why is that???

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.
Cheryl