Have A Great Day

 Hi there crafters!  Remember this one from the last show?  It was a demo that I did to show how you can save a card even if you haven't stamped it perfectly!  That happens quite a bit too for one reason or another.  I used the Tufted Background stamp by Justrite and inked it in clear Perfect Medium and stamped it on aqua card.  I heat embossed it with white powder, but a bit of the corner did not get enough ink.  I probably could have hid it with more flowers, but I decided to give it a vellum cover.  You can still see the stamped image softly below the vellum but now it has an additional texture to it which I really like.  I embossed the vellum with the Extra Confetti folder by Couture Creations.  It has a pretty swirly pattern to it.  If you put a dot of Cosmic Shimmer Dries Clear glue in each corner, then smooth it out with your finger, attach the vellum and you can't see the glue (I still like to add pearls to the corners, but it isn't necessary to hide the glue!)  I matted it on to a piece of white card, then a larger piece of aqua card.  I cut two of the Decorative Labels Eight dies in white and then slotted the aqua card into the corners of each one and taped them down in the back, they make a really lovely edging for your cards that way.  Next I stamped the Vintage Labels Seven Rose on white card.  I coloured it with Distress markers (Tumbled Glass, Spun Sugar and Shabby Shutters).  I lined up the template I made for the Vintage Labels Seven die to the image then taped one side so it hinged.  I covered it with a sticky adhesive sheet and then moved the die template back into place and cut it out.  I peeled off the backing paper and covered it with Iced Snow for some glitz.  I made a couple of roses using my Classic Rose die set, stamped the sentiment and cut it out with the tag die from the Nested Cloud die set.  The leaves were from the Bitty Blossom set.  I added some white pearl strings as accents and finished the card with a double white mat.  Finished dimensions are 6" x 7 1/4" in size.

A couple of quick things before I announce the card winner for this week.  I have noticed quite a few questions that have been left in the comments.  Since my posts are usually scheduled in bunches ahead of time, for the most part I can never remember to answer the questions when I write my posts.  Please just email me directly at americansue1@gmail.com if you have any questions, as I am happy to answer them.

   I have gotten quite a few emails recently about the Heart Lattice embossing folder so I wanted to let everyone know that the videos using that folder were filmed last July when we did have quite a good stock of them.  We are going to be doing another run of them so I will let you know when they have arrived.  We still have about three or four more videos in the original series to air and I have already filmed a second series of videos which focuses entirely on my new die line.  Those videos will be put up on the blog as soon as the first series is complete in about two weeks time.

On to the card winner now....  This week's card giveaway goes to:

Helen Terry!!!

Congratulations!  Please email me at americansue1@gmail.com to confirm your address and claim your card!

Today would have been my Dad's 94th birthday (sadly he passed away a few years ago), but I am going to place some flowers on the monument at Molesworth (where he was stationed during WWII) in remembrance of him this morning.  Every year I go back and reread the Lessons of Life that he sent me (he didn't write it, but came upon it and sent it to me), but I still think that it is just the most well written bit of advice that I have ever come across.  I am including it again in today's post after all the card pictures if anyone would like to read it.

Lessons of Life

LESSONS OF LIFE .Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio "To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me.
 1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good. 2. When in doubt, just take the next small step. 3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. 4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch. 5. Pay off your credit cards every month. 6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree. 7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone. 8. It's OK to get angry 9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck. 10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile. 11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present. 12. It's OK to let your children see you cry. 13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about. 14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it. 15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks. 16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind. 17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful. 18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger. 19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else. 20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer. 21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special. 22. Over prepare, then go with the flow. 23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple. 24. The most important sex organ is the brain. 25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you. 26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will this matter?' 27. Always choose life. 28. Forgive everyone everything. 29. What other people think of you is none of your business. 30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time. 31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change. 32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does. 33. Believe in miracles.3 4. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do. 35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now. 36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young. 37. Your children get only one childhood. 38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved. 39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere. 40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's,we'd grab ours back. 41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need. 42. The best is yet to come.. 43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up. 44. Yield. 45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift." Remember that I will always share my spoon with you! Friends are the family that we choose for ourselves I think that we all need to take a few moments every day and be grateful and appreciative of what we have.

I love you Dad!

All for now, Sue x

Farewell To Heartfelt Creations

Hello bloggers!  I have a Heartfelt Creations card for you today which will be one of the last that you will see from me using this range.  We have decided not to carry this line any longer as we feel that the direction we would like to take the Creative Expressions range lies in a different direction to Heartfelt Creations.  Nikki Payne has also left our team and has chosen to do the shows directly for Heartfelt Creations on Create and Craft.  I know that many of you wait to see just what I will do given a specific stamp or die set from Heartfelt Creations, but after I post through the last few samples from my January show, there will be no more samples of Heartfelt Creations put up on the blog.
I started this card by stamping the Majestic Blooms on to silver card using a Clear Perfect Medium pad.  I heat embossed the stamped image with Silver shine embossing powder for a tone on tone look.  Rather than cutting out the flowers, I decided to use the stamped piece as a background for my card.  I added a scored strip in white to the bottom of the card.  I cut a border from an older set called Lace Doily Accents which I added to the join between the two pieces.  I tied a messy bow out of white seam binding and spritzed it with water and crumpled it for a shabby chic look.  I added it to the side of my card and made a flower to add to the centre of it.  The Bella Rose Swirl was added as an accent to it.  The focal element started with the Raindrops on Roses die cut in white.  I cut it in half and taped it so it showed behind the silver oval.  I stamped my sentiment and embossed it in silver then cut it out with the Fancy Tags Two die and mounted it in the centre.  I made a few more flowers from another stamping of the Majestic Blooms and added them to the upper corner of my focal element.  I finished the card with a double white pierced mat layer.  Finished dimensions are 7 1/2" x 8" in size.  All for now, Sue x

Blush Rosette

Hi bloggers!  We are nearing the end of the first video series, but this one is a beauty worth waiting for, I think!  Unfortunately, I was only able to find a few pictures of this card so you'll just have to watch the video to see some more of the close ups!  Finished dimensions are 7" x 8 1/2" in size.  All for now, Sue x

Wednesday Weekly Card Giveaway

Hello my crafty friends!  Today's card giveaway is from the gorgeous Hydrangea set by Justrite and I think it is a lovely set to make cards with as well.  I started by stamping the Justrite Tufted Background on to periwinkle card using a clear Perfect Medium pad.  I heat embossed it with gold embossing powder for a regal look.  I used the matching Vintage Labels Seven die to cut an aperture in the centre of the card. On a separate piece of white card, I stamped my sentiment and embossed it in gold.  I lightly inked around the sentiment with Weathered Wood Distress Ink to create a shadow.   I added some mounting foam to the background aperture and popped it over the stamped sentiment so it showed in the upper corner of my aperture.  I trimmed the excess away, leaving a very thin white mat.  Next I stamped the Hydrangea on white card with a clear Perfect Medium pad.  I heat embossed it in gold as well.  Using Distress markers, I coloured the flower and leaves, dabbing them with blues and purples for a more realistic looking flower and then cut it out by hand (I left in the small bits within the leaves).  I mounted it on foam so it was coming up out of my aperture.  Using a blue marker, I lined the tufted background lines to create the look of shadowing, then added small white flatback pearls to each of the cross sections.  I finished the card with a pierced gold layer, then added in some white and blue before finishing with a final soft gold layer.  Finished dimensions are 6 1/4" x 7 1/4" (a real baby size for me! LOL)
If you want to be in the drawing to win this one, just leave a comment on the post today!  I will announce the winner on Saturday's post.  All for now, Sue x

Raspberry Ripple

Hello crafters!  Today's video is a fun little card that can be made in any colour choice of your liking and still look great.  The video isn't too long so I hope you can take a few minutes to watch!

A quick reminder that Julia Watts has shows today at 11am and 6pm for your viewing pleasure!  Julia always comes up with great demos too so don't forget to tune in!

Finished dimensions are 7 1/4" x 8 1/2" in size.

Each Day

 Hi crafters!  I love the sentiment on today's card as it just says it all for me.  I am thankful, very much so for being able to do something that I love, write about here and have dear friends like you that want to come each day and read about it!  It's no wonder that this set by Becca Feeken called Friendship Vintage Labels Seven appealed to me so much!   I put the card together using the Hydrangea again as a background, but this time it was stamped in black Archival ink all over the aqua coloured card.  I covered it with a sticky adhesive sheet and then peeled the backing paper off and sprinkled Iced Snow all over it.  I burnished it in with my finger, giving me a nice sparkly background for my card.  I used the Filigree Flourish die and cut six of them in black and taped them to the back of the background edge so that they were just peeking over the top, giving the edge a pretty detailed finish.  I stamped the sentiment in black and cut it out with the Vintage Labels Seven die from Justrite.  I inked it with Aqua Adirondack before removing it from the die.  I cut another die that shape out of black card and cut it in half to use as a shadow for my sentiment.  I added a messy bow out of turquoise seam binding below my sentiment.  The bow was topped with a black jute bow and a crystal sparkler.  I made two stick pins from beads in my stash as accents for the bow.  I finished the card with a plain double mat of white card instead of my usual pierced layer today (didn't want to compete with that pretty filigree edge!)  Finished dimensions are 5 3/4" x 7" in size.  All for now, Sue x

Friendship

 Good Sunday morning all!  They do seem to come around quickly, don't they!  Another sample from my shows this past month, this one using the Hydrangea stamp set from Justrite.  I selected teal and white card as the combo on this card.  I stamped the hydrangea stamp all over the background using a Clear Perfect Medium pad.  I heat embossed them with white powder.  Using some green zircon seam binding, I wrapped it vertically around my card and taped the ends to the back and matted the background with a thin white mat.  For the focal element, I picked the Majestic Labels 25 and cut it in white.  I used the smaller sizes to emboss the design into the inside area of the die.  I stamped my sentiment from Creative Expressions stamp set called Sincere Sentiments in black Archival ink on white card.  I used a flourish from the Justrite set called Friendship Vintage Labels Seven as side accents.  Using the Justrite Vintage Labels seven die, I cut it out and inked it lightly with Broken China Distress ink before removing it.   I cut an additional die from teal card, cut it down the centre and used it as a shadow mat behind my sentiment.  I cut a Bitty Blossom flower from white felt and rolled it to complete my flower.  I seated it upon a messy bow tied from the green zircon seam binding.  I made two matching stick pins as accents.  I completed the card with a double white pierced mat and added a thin teal layer in the middle.  Finished dimensions are 6 3/4" x 8 1/4" in size.

Lots of winners again this week in the Comment game.  The first set of winners for the week are:

Clair Hughes!!!
Maggie Phillips!!!
Lydia Jordan!!!

For the extra qualifying post of Mar.23rd, the winners are:
Sarah Board!!!
Alice G!!!
Tandy!!!

For the extra qualifying post of Mar. 24th, the winners are:
Susan White!!!
June Ballenger!!!
Karen Stafford!!!

For the extra qualifying post of Mar. 26th, the winners are@
Debra Denman!!!
Veronique L!!!
Beverley Arthrell!!!

Congratulations all!  Please email me at americansue1@gmail.com to confirm your address and claim your prize!

By the way, some of you are emailing me that you are having issues trying to "pin" the cards.  It used to be that you hovered over the picture and the button would appear.  I had to disable that function when the videos started last year.  Now, the "pin it" button is at the end of every post, just scroll down to find it.   All you have to do is click that and it will open up a whole page of pictures and videos from the week and you can select any or all of the pictures or videos from the page to pin, the more the merrier!  If you are still having any problems, please email me at the address above.  All for now, Sue x

Thinking Of You

Hello blog friends!  I was asked to make a couple of cards for our recent trade show using some of the new Baroque Ballgown stamp and the new Spellbinders dies.  Here is one of the cards that I came up with.  I started by selecting a piece of decorative card from my craft stash (Graphic 45 I think this is) and I covered it with a sticky adhesive sheet.  I peeled off the backing and covered it with Iced Snow glitter jewels for a nice blingey appeal.  I wrapped a piece of chalk seam binding around the card and taped the ends to the back.  Next I used milk coloured card and cut out the new Mystical Embrace die from Spellbinders as a backdrop for my ball gown.  I used the smaller die from the new Romantic Rectangles Two die set and cut it also out of milk card.  I stamped my gown in the centre of it and shaded around the edge with a blue pencil.  I stamped the gown two more times, once on milk card and once on a decorative card.  I cut the gown portion only out of the decorative card, then glued it on top of the stamped imaged on the milk card, then cut the entire image out.  I used some mounting foam and attached it to the image stamped in the die cut as my focal point.  I stamped the sentiment and cut it out with the tag from the Mystical Embrace set.  I inked through the die with Tattered Rose distress ink before removing it.  I mounted it with foam to the side of my focal image.  I tied a messy bow out of chalk seam binding and added it to the left.  Using my Classic Rose die, I made several different sized flowers, sugared them with Iced Snow and added them to my bow and top of my focal point as accents.  I made two pretty pearl stick pins and finished my bow with them.  A final double pierced mat layer out of milk coloured card and some flatback cream pearls to the corners and focal element was all that was left to complete the card.  Finished dimensions are 6 1/2" x 8" in size.

This week's winner of the Wednesday Card Giveaway is :

Sheila-Ginger!!!

Congratulations!  Please email me at americansue1@gmail.com to confirm your address and claim your card!  All for now, Sue x