Last night I finally took the plunge and made my first easel card! I had admired this type of card from afar for awhile, but had never tried to make one. It was surprisingly easy!

Here it is closed (mostly closed anyway):


And here it is open (that is a little heart-shaped brad chosen to go with the sentiment):


Stamp(s): Hero Arts (H772 Collage Friend, CG125 Friend Definition, CL402 Valentine Sayings)
Ink(s): Hero Arts (Punch, Latte); ColorBox (Chestnut Roan)
Paper(s): Hero Arts (Carnation Folded Card); The Paper Company (Kraft)
Other: Michael's (Ribbon); Making Memories (Brad); Prima (Flowers)
 
Thanks for looking! Comments are appreciated!

Hugs,
dustypenny (aka Joy)

Hello. Hope you are having a good day. Just want to share two sets of ATCs that I made last weekend for swaps at Wishful Thinking. Hmm, is it too soon to be looking forward to this weekend?

For the "Ladies Fashions" theme I focused on sewing and was inspired by a mini album I made at Archiver's recently (more on that after I finish it):



Stamp(s): Hero Arts (F3342 Stitched Ribbon, CL397 Sew Original)
Ink(s): Hero Arts (Night); Ranger (Broken China); ColorBox (Chestnut Roan)
Paper(s): GCD Studios (Vintage Sewing Pattern); Unknown (Metallic scraps)
Other: Ranger (Worn Lipstick Paint); Petaloo (Flowers); Silhouette (Dress Form)

I focused on Ireland's flag for the "When Irish Eyes are Smiling" theme, but added a cute shamrock to it just for fun:



Stamp(s): Hero Arts (CL408 Cute Uppercase)
Ink(s): Ranger (Shabby Shutters, Peeled Paint, Spiced Marmalade, Dried Marigold, Forest Moss); ColorBox (Chestnut Roan)
Paper(s): Unknown (White scraps)
Other: Silhouette (Hero Arts Shamrock), Tattered Angels (Pearl Glimmer Mist)

You still have a little time to enter Mary's Artist Class Giveaway HERE. You will have to act fast because she is selecting a random winner on Wednesday. Good luck!

Thanks for looking! Comments are appreciated!

Hugs,
dustypenny (aka Joy)

Hello. It has been awhile, I know... work is crazy (otherwise known as the new normal, but I digress) and I have also been trying to reorganize my craft space. If you have purging tips, please send them my way!

In between that I have also been making some cards for:

1. Jennifer McGuire's Cards for Kids Drive (two new kids have been added for this phase; please try to send a few cards their way!)
2. OperationWriteHome (general cards mostly: birthday, love, thinking of you, etc.)

Now, let me get to the point of this post! This lovely St. Patrick's Day card from Agata in Switzerland arrived in my mailbox this week for Deborah's February Card Chain Challenge!

It is a simple white and green card that makes a BIG statement. The four-leaf clover is made from four hearts that have been white embossed. It looks like Agata used Distress Ink(s) on them. I especially like the little text button with bow in the center and the fun sentiment! Thanks, Agata!


Here is the card I sent to Nancy, which arrived in CA earlier this week:


The Hero Arts images are stamped with Ranger Paint Dabbers (gold, copper, juniper, and eggplant) instead of ink, which was a technique I learned at Archiver's recently. I also added Stickles to the ferns and Glossy Accents to the butterfly.

Thanks for looking! Comments are appreciated! Hope you have a great weekend!

Hugs,
dustypenny (aka Joy)

... I lose track of time while stamping! Miss Penny is busy re-setting my clock! LOL

Here is a little corner of my scraproom. I didn't pick the wall color or style; it just came with the house. The clock has a picture of Dusty on it from right after we adopted him from the Humane Society and brought him home!

Notice lots of Hero Arts goodies in my room! Just don't look at the mess please!

Have a great weekend. TGIF!

Hugs,
dustypenny (aka Joy)

Quick post. Not enough hours in the day.



Hero Arts Stamps: K5339 Silhouette Vase, CG138 Ledger
Inks: AF180 Chalk Ink: Punch, AF136 Memories Ink Pad - White
October Afternoon Paper: Cherry Hill (finally stopped hoarding it!)
Other: Kraft, Picket Fence Stickles, Offray Ribbon Flower, Pearl Ribbon, EK Border Punch

TGIF tomorrow!

Thanks for looking! Comments are appreciated!

Hugs,
dustypenny (aka Joy)

Here are two cards for the current Hero Arts Blog challenge, Flowers and St. Patrick's Day. I tried to think "What would Jennifer do?" while making these cards, especially this first one (my favorite of the two):



This second one just sort of happened and I can't decide if I like it or not. Don't look too closely because some silly person stamped the words upside down...



Leaf Flourish (Hero Arts Silhouette file)
CG125 Friend Definition
CG119 Flourish Background (clear embossed)
PS561 Cerulean Folded Cards / PS551 Grenadine Folded Cards
CH205 Blush Print Flowers / CH165 Art Flowers White And Cream (plus some red Prima flowers)
AF183 Chalk Ink: Cerulean / AF180 Chalk Ink: Punch

We are expecting more snow tonight. Wishing it was spring (and Friday) already!

Thanks for looking! Comments are appreciated!

Hugs,
dustypenny (aka Joy)

Normally when I think of shabby chic I think of pink, lace, ribbon and pearls. My favorite designer in this style is the talented Melissa Phillips. Her blog is pure eye candy and I just love seeing what she will create next.

Like all art, I guess the definition of shabby chic is pretty subjective. Case in point: yesterday I made the four cards below at the Archiver's Shabby Chic Card Workshop. The class description says the cards have an "artsy, vintage look". That part sounds closer to how I would describe this particular style. Anyway, the best part of the class was that we used all Hero Arts stamps (my favorite!) in wood, clear, and cling. And instead of using ink we used paint (Ranger Paint Dabbers)! Great class for only $15!

Without further ado, here are the lovely cards:









Thanks for looking! Comments are appreciated!

Hugs,
dustypenny (aka Joy)

Just a very quick post showing the cards and treat jar I made last weekend at the Archiver's Very Valentine Card Workshop. Hubby is waiting impatiently for this computer now after I lost track of time on Google Reader...

It was nice to meet a fellow Hero Arts Flickr Pool member in person and maybe Deborah and I can get together again someday! If you want the long side of this story, be sure to visit Deborah's blog for a good laugh! Possibly slightly exaggerated in spots for humor (not the part about her glue affliction, though!), but as always, definitely worth the read!



And here is Miss Penny checking my work:





I will post close-ups of the cards in my Flickr Photostream. Don't look closely, because I did mess up in a few spots thanks to all the drama in the class that day!

Thanks for looking! Comments are appreciated!

TGIF tomorrow!

Hugs,
dustypenny (aka Joy)

I am finally sending in another batch of cards for Jennifer McGuire's Cards for Kids Card Drive tomorrow. It is such a worthwhile cause and I must admit I feel guilty that I procrastinate on getting them in the mail.

I like making the cards and I have good intentions, but when it comes time to write the messages inside I just get stuck. It breaks my heart to think of what these kids and their families are going through and I can't seem to find the right words. My sweet husband helped me and even packed up the box, too.

Several of the cards I am mailing are shown here and I am also sending the ones below:


The cat stamps are by Stampin' Up. My sister-in-law Carrie gave them to me when I first started stamping. The monkey stamp is by Stampendous and it was my first cling stamp purchase, back when the Hero Arts cling stamps weren't around yet.


The fish stamps are by Hero Arts. I colored them with a mix of glaze pens, markers, and glitter pens. I cut the fish tank and water shapes with the Cricut Animal Kingdom cartridge.

Thanks for looking! Comments are appreciated!

Hugs,
dustypenny (aka Joy)