Yoshi card: Celebrating Shirley

Yet another unique Yoshi card was created for his Aunt Shirley (his grandpa's mommy). It is amazing how much I have learned about pugs since I got to Texas. She is a close friend and supporter, so her satisfaction is one of my goals when I make her cards.

She loves the cute tricks he can do, like sitting up when he wants a treat or just to watch his favorite western on TV.

The photo I used may have been indoors but the card is all about the great Texas scenery.

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Handmade envelope: Gracias envelope to Kathi

 

I wanted to share this envelope which I created to accompany yesterday's Yoshi card. Heidi Swapp's Color Magic paper is so much fun to work with that I strongly recommend it. You can customize it to any project. I used chalk inks and distress inks, as I have yet to purchase any mists. 

 

It has been forever since I worked with buttons but I had a blast adding these to my envelope label. The black and white twine was tuxedo black by the Twinery (recent purchase on yardsellr), I love the richness of the color!

 

...and the final product is one I am immensely proud of to say the least. I trust Kathi will love it as much as I did creating it!

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Handmade envelope: Heaven sent

I have fun choosing the perfect stitched brad for every handmade envelope. It has to complement and enhance the overall look of the envelope.

 

The  front of the envelope was embellished with a felt flower, lace and smash tape ribbons, pinwheel button, bling and pearls. The paper is by Heidi Swapp's Color Magic line. I love working with this paper by coloring it with some Tim Holtz peacock feathers distress ink. The middle of the flower I embellished with a found object before placing the pearl into it.

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Handmade tag: Summer's fancy

 Yesterday I set out a challenge to think outside of the box, and believe it or not, this is what I came up with. I wanted the colors to POP. In my everyday I prefer working with kraft paper but in this case I wanted the most contrast possible. I achieved that by using this black tag I found in my stash by the incomparable Teresa Collins.

I thought of making the paint chips look like ribbons across the paper and reinforce that with real washi tape. In the past I focused so much on making everything perfect that I failed to see the beauty in the imperfections. In this case I did not worry about the ribbons being perfectly straight, since I was concentrating on an overall summery feel. I am very happy with the result and would love to see anything you guys/gals may have created in my challenge.

 

Again I thank you for indulging my fanciful creations. Thanks always for stopping by my blog!

Handmade Tag: Discovering my style

I have this crazy love for wood patterned paper. It may be the distressed thing or just the realistic thing. This tag was a fun challenge to myself. The feather I added just for kicks (I found it in the backyard today!)

 When I saw these K&Co slide stickers in the store I knew they were the dimensional fanciful embellishments I needed on my cards. A little change of pace from all the canine cards. You know what they say about variety being the spice of life. Back to canine cards tomorrow! Any requests or challenges?! Please let me know and I will gladly oblige.

 

Thanks for stopping by my blog! Enjoy the journey!

Canine card: Chows

 

This breed always reminds me of those big lions in front of courthouses. They are extremely loyal and protective. Their fur reminds me of a big fluffy stuffed toy in this myriad of colors!

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Pug card: Really liking this!

Yoshi's back! This time gnawing on one of his favorite bones. He really really really likes it.

What do you think? Do you like it?

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Mini Album: Many moons ago

Yes they cringed a little bit when they saw this picture I used. It was taken many moons ago (early 90s). I can almost hear the music in the background. Creating this mini album was a blast!

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Mini Album: True love

Valentine's flowers in the background, since it was their first one together. She loves red roses. If I remember correctly she also received a humongous stuffed animal. It's like a time capsule to me and it brings so many happy memories to see this photo. Young love looks like this.

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Handmade envelope: French bulldog

 

 This envelope just makes me smile and it reminded me of the stripes on the French Bulldog's sweater. The closure features a Marah Johnson heart brads with some Martha Stewart Crafts baker's twine.

Thanks for stopping by my blog! Happy happy FRIDAY

Handmade envelope: Le Cordon Bleu graduate

This envelope was created for my brother's graduation card. He just reached his goal of becoming a Chef and Le Cordon Bleu's support helped him achieve it. We are very proud of him and all the sacrifices he has had to make to achieve this. Congratulations again!

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Handmade envelope: Blissful

This envelope was created to match the  card to follow tomorrow. In a way my favorite challenge of  cardmaking is making sure the envelope complements it. I trust you will think I hit the target on this one.

Thanks for stopping by my blog! Stay tuned for more goodies.

Canine card: Dachshund

Another installment of my canine cards. In this card I feature one of my favorite breeds, the Dachshund. Growing up I had 2 of them in the house, and then they had puppies! It was a great childhood in a menagerie of other animals as well.

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Handmade envelope: Pixelated and Trendy

STOP! Don't  adjust your screen resolution! The look of the paper is indeed a pixelated image with trendy borders.

This handmade envelope was created with some specialty paper I found at PAPER SOURCE. Upon entering the store here in Austin I felt like a kid in a candy store. I resisted the temptation to go nuts and only purchased one sheet of paper and the SMASH calendar tape.

The sides of the envelope are held closed with some Queen & Co. Ziggy Girl trendy tape from one of my favorite online stores (ScrapbookPal).

For the closure on the handmade envelope I used a white corduroy and a pink jewel brad, brought together with some Martha Stewart Crafts baker's twine. The final product came out better than I envisioned.

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Card: Warden Hall's Farewell

 Manly cards are a wonderful challenge for me. In my experience, all farewell cards are not the same. For this one I knew the warden loves golfing and is retiring to be closer to his family after 20+ years in service.

Once I found the image of an old fashioned golfer, the look of the card materialized. I had some weathered wood paper that I wanted to make the background. Even though I was unable to graphically show his love for Texas, I believe I achieved the rustic look I envisioned.

The envelope is from SEI's Savory Collection. I loved the almost barn color I see everywhere here in Central Texas. I want a step further by lining the inside of the envelope with the green plaid paper I used on the card.

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Envelope: Handmade floral

 A bigger (more beautiful) view at the handmade envelope I mentioned yesterday.

My goal was to make a colorful and floral envelope. The patterned paper is from Tim Holtz' Lost and Found paper stack. The scalloped cardstock is from Ditto, and after embellishing it with some chalk inks all it needed was a little yarn.

The closure, as with the other envelopes, is made with coordinating brads. The jewel brad is from Recollections and the smaller patterned brad is from Making Memories. Martha Stewart Crafts baker's twine brings the closure to completion.

It is a refreshing feeling to not be restricted by the worry of "where will my card fit?"... I create the card and a matching envelope that takes everyone's breath away. What else could I ask for than a total card giving and receiving experience.

Thank you all for stopping by my blog! and allowing me to share my creations with you.