Every once in a while SSS will come out with a card kit that just blows me away. Between the papers and the stamps, it quickly ends up in my shopping cart.

The January 2021 card kit was definitely one of those kits. At first I fought the urge and the I started to see the beautiful cards designers were posting. I was sold. Send me that kit please, and hurry.

The Whimsy Stamps papers are so beautiful and when I saw the embossing folder was the clincher. Give me…give me.. give me.

I ended up making 12 cards, using all 12 papers. I could have continued, but since I bought I February Kit (hee hee) I needed to stop.

I started making snowflakes on the pretty background papers. They were either die cut or embossed using the stamp set.

The I used the embossing folder to create texture. Such a pretty embossing folder with beautiful snowflakes.

The I made some shaker cards

The I decided to use the Honey Bee Stamps Thin Frames die so I could see both sides of the paper.

And finally I used the Simon Says Stamp Shimmer Snowflake Die. This was one of my favorites.

This was a good kit, looking forward to the February kit,

All my friends know I love Halloween, but they also know it takes me forever to make a card from a kit. What is a year to me….. Halloween will still stroll around.

Whenever I get a kit I try to make at least 5 cards. This time I made 13…. unlucky 13….. LOL

Just a little movie of the cards. I did this video to share the cards with my sister since I did not want to send 13 imagines.

I enjoyed making the cards and I do have my favorite.

Thank you for looking at my cards.

I finally got around to finishing my Halloween cards.   And before Halloween!   LOL  What an accomplishment!

I still had more ideas, but really, it needed to stop.

This first card came to me when I was looking at my stencils.  I loved all the brooms and thought they would be cute on a spooky skyline.

 

This card came to me while looking at the candies.  Nothing looks more yummy than a bunch of candies.  Besides I had just gotten the Nuvo drops and had to use them.

This card was a failed attempt to look like a lit pumpkin at night.  I made a mess of it.  But it did become a card.

I stole this idea from Jennifer McGuire.  She did some cute cards using mesh.

 

Close up of the cat.

 

Since I was stealing, I decided to steal more.  I took this directly from the kit.

I decided to use some of the stickers.   I am not a huge fan of stickers.  They always look odd to me on a card.  But I had to try.

 

 

In case you missed my other post.  These are the cards I did earlier.

 

 

 

So WITCH one is your favorite.

 

Thanks for checking it out.

 

It comes as no surprise to friends and family that Halloween is my favorite holiday.  Nothing is as exciting than cute critters in witches hats…   paper in orange, black, green and purple.  A ghost or two.

So when Simon Says Stamp came out with their annual Halloween kit I was right there…probably order number 17 in the list of people.

The stamp set is just awesome.

My first card I wanted to use a new bat stencil I bought recently.   I used black embossing paste but discovered it was matte and hard to see.  I ended up using some wonderful purple glitter paint on the card to highlight the bats.

My second card I had wanted to use the google eyes.

Isn’t that cute how they eyes come out of the paper.

I don’ know about you but usually the first two cards are a struggle when I start a kit, I seem to get better as the card progress.

You be the judge.

Pretty simple card but I like it.

I bought some cool green glitter I just needed to use.

I ended up using the green glitter on the witches brew….but to spice it up I used the glow in the dark drops and the crystal blizzard nuvo drops to create the bubbles.

A close up….too bad I cannot get a photo of the glow in the dark

For my 5th card, I wanted to use the shaker beads.

I used the moon stamp and then re-stamped it again to use the glow in the dark embossing powder.

There are more cards to post but I wanted to make the deadline for the Simon Says Stamp Challenge.

 

Look for more later this week.

 

I have been trying to catch up with old card kits.   I am on a roll, but I keep finding boxes that I have stashed away in interesting places.

I really like this card kit.  I like the red, white and blue color theme and the stamp set is just inspiring!

I made SIX cards with this kit.  I think I could have made more, but there are stacks on boxes to go thru.   I am sooooo behind!

To start with, I wanted to dive into the color theme.  I made a simple card that really focuses on the colors.

The next card is also a simple design.  I loved this pattern paper and really wanted it to be a major focus on the page.  I pulled out my favorite large word die from Simon Says Stamp.  This HELLO die has been on several of my cards and I just love it.    I die cut several “hello” and glue them together to give it thickness.   Whenever I do this I think it looks just like a Thicker chipboard word.

For this card I wanted to use some of the puffy stickers that came in the kit.  I die cut the typewriter print paper with a postage stamp die frame.  Which just pulls the whole “Mail/Typewriter” theme together on this card.

To continue the mail theme, I colored in a Tim Holtz crazy bird.  I even cut a slit in card to slide an envelope under his beak.   I used Glossy Accents on his eyes to give him some extra dimension, but I don’t think you can see it very well in this picture.   I copic colored the envelopes to change the color of the paper to match the bird.   I really like this bird.   I know this bird will be back!

I decided on this card to pull away from the mail/envelopes/color theme and do something different.  I used an embossing folder that gave this great dimension on the paper.  It is simple, yet elegant.

My final card, and my favorite card started out as a mistake.

I was trying to make stripes and they looked funny and awkward.  So I blended it all together and it started to look like a sunset on the ocean.

I added some black foliage on the bottom.  It looks so serene I decided to make it a somber card that I can send to someone having a hard time.

I hope you enjoy looking at my creations.

Posted in Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge – Anything Goes

 

Well it comes as no surprise to me that I have been so busy and not inspired to do any cards lately.   However that does not mean that there are deadlines to upload images and new card kits coming. So get a move on girl!!!  I decided to do the homework from the Online Card Class Heat Wave from the SSS July 2016 card kit, killing two birds with one stone.   I had sketched out the ideas for my cards so it was easy to add the techniques from the Heat Wave Class to my ideas.

Take this kit……and add this class

and you get 7 cards from one kit.

First day of class taught us some basics on embossing as well as some interesting techniques.   The following card is just simple embossing on watercolor paper.

I tried to get the illusion of leaves floating on some water.  Very Zen like.  Calm.

Also on the first day of class, they showed us several techniques.  Some I tried, others I wanted too but did not have the time.

The first technique (which I have done before) is embossing a die cut.

In this card I used the paper from the kit that had a lot of triangles.  I added additional triangles and heat embossed an entire die cut.

I used some WOW copper colored embossing powder.    I stamped some additional triangles that were a scribble look and added some bling.

Here is a close up of the die cut.

Another technique they used was glitter embossing powder.

I copic colored the small panel underneath and then covered the whole thing with versamark and some glittery embossing powder.

It is hard to see how pretty the card looks with the shimmer over the copics.

The final card from day one was embossing on something besides cardstock.   I decided to use wood veneer to make this card.

The wood cracked and split on the bottom thru the flower.   I am not sure if the heat was too much for the wood, or if it was a user error.  Most times it is me making a mistake.  I still like the card.  I think the stark white on the wood is very pretty.

On Day Two, Jennifer showed us some pretty techniques that can add detail to your cards.

I used the technique of a small strip of double sided tape and embossed it with pink powder.

I masked off the middle and stamped the flowers using a mask so the images did not overlap.  I then colored the card with some colored pencils.

She also showed a technique of splattering water and embossing over the wet area.

I really like this technique.   I took the paper that already had the purple splatters and added gold splatters.

She also did the technique of using a glue pen to make little dots to add additional embossing to fill out a space or enhance an image.  I ended up doing that on the vellum window.

You can see the sequins captured behind the vellum to make this shaker card.

On the last day we learned about ironing off embossing powder to create a look.  But the project that caught my eye was the batik looking card.

I used the stamp set to create a background and embossed in white.   The after the fold and refold process I used three shades of purple distress ink.

I always ask my brother to rank the cards and this was his favorite.  His logic: Today I like purple.

Overall I enjoyed the class and I liked this card kit.

I hope you enjoyed looking at my creations!

 

  Posted in the Online Card Class Heat Wave

  Posted in the Word Art Wednesday Challenge #238-239 Anything Goes

Posted in the Simon Says Stamp Card Kit Gallery – July 2016

I have been challenging myself to finish old Simon Says Stamp Kits.   Of course I had no interest in doing Christmas cards or Valentine cards.  So I was lucky to find a summer card theme.This  August 2015 card kit screams summer.

So let’s just jump into looking at the cards

I love this card.  I made a watercolor beach with the flip-flops.   I embossed the crashing waves and used small bronze dots for the sand.  I really like the way it came out.

A couple of folks asked me about the wave stamp.   It is from Papertrey Ink called

What the Doodle: Waves Mini Stamp Set

A great set for $5.00

I went for a clean and simple look with this card.  I used the stamp on 5 different pages and die-cut the Sunshine out of shiny gold paper.

Here is a close-up.  I also added glossy accents on the letters.

When I started this card I did not have high hopes.  But as I was working on it, I started to love it.  Especially when I noticed that the puffy stickers were mirror images.  So when I stuck them on the end of the cord they matched up perfectly.  I made the waves out of cork so it looked more beachy.  I really like this card.

Here is a close up of the puffy stickers.

When I saw this paper, I really liked the sun burst in the middle.  When I laid the margarita die on the top of it I liked how it seem to radiate.

I used the 100% happy stamp on the inside of the glass so when you tipped the sequins you can see the image.

Here is a close-up of the glass so you can see the stamp.

I used a stencil on this card.  I colored the embossing paste with ink to have a graduated sunray look.

I will be honest.  I did not like this card.  I loved the paper but it did not sing to me.  But it still made the cut.

Last but not least, a shaker card.  I stamped SUMMER on the clear acetate.  and added sequins that matched the paper.

Thanks for looking at my SEVEN cards from ONE Kit!

Posted in the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge – Anything Goes

 

  Posted in the Word Art Wednesday Challenge – Anything Goes #236-237

 Posted in Dies R Us Challenge #52 Outdoor Fun

 

Ok I am guilty.  Very Guilty.   I am guilty of “buy the kit and do nothing with it – itis”

I subscribe to the Simon Says Stamp monthly card kit.   And the kits just sit in their boxes.  Sad little brown boxes, just wanting to be made into fantastic cards.

So I decided to get off my butt and commit to making at least 5 cards from one kit.  So grabbed the current kit, the June 2016 kit.  To be honest I was not that thrilled with the colors of the kit, but I loved the stamp set.  I also loved the coloring cards.   I have to admit,  I am seriously crushing on Suzy Plantamura and her adorable drawings.  I actually went to Simon Says and bought the sets.  Here is her newest one.

Doesn’t this make you want to sharpen your colored pencils.

Ok, to get back on track.  Here is the kit for June 2016

 

 

So my first two cards are made from the cute coloring card fronts from the kit.  It was  great paper to use copics on.  On a side note, I almost have all the copic colors.  I have been collecting them for a long, long time.  I just wish there was a better storage solution.  I did check out Sandy Allnock’s post on copic storage and it did give me some ideas.   You can check out her post here.  I am seriously thinking of the new suitcase, but back to the cards.

Besides using copics, I used a white gel pen to add some dots.

I decided to make this a shaker card.   The body of the sun was just begging to be made into a shaker.  I also used some zig glitter pens to the sun rays, you can see it better in this closeup.

Next I wanted a card that has some elegance.   I decided to emboss on some gold vellum with the new Simon Says stamp Rose Gold Embossing powder.   I also used the same embossing powder for the “dream” die cut.   The glitter strips were from Anita’s 3D Border Glitterations.  She has some cute stuff and I thought this puffy glitter strip was just perfect.   I recently went to the CKC Expo in Mesa Arizona and found some orange colored Twinkle Goosebumps that matched perfectly.

For my next card I wanted to use the Look for a Miracle stamp.   I water colored the card front with some pinks, green and yellows.

For my final card I wanted to use the pretty rainbow type paper, but I could not think of design that was not overwhelming in colors.   I finally decided to do a die cut that showed the pretty color underneath.  I actually like how this card came out.

I hope you enjoyed my cards.   I really enjoyed challenging myself to come up with some designs.

 

Posted in the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge Blog

 

This was the 2nd card kit I grabbed.  At least it is the most current one.

I really liked the bright colors of this kit!

It is hard to see in this picture but there is another butterfly under the gold one that is a soft metallic pink.  I struggle using journaling cards onto cards.  So this time I intentionally made it work.  I also did a mix of patterns which I never feel comfortable doing.  But overall I liked the card.

Since the last one was so busy, I thought I would simplify this card.  I loved how the scalloped circle worked with the words underneath.    The HELLO is several layers to give it some lift!

I loved this cardstock with arrows.  It screamed put a heart on this.   So I embossed and water  colored the heart.  I could not figure out where to put the sentiment so I ended up making a tiny tag which hung from the heart.  I like how it came out!

I had some dies of glasses and decided to make a glasses/I See You card.    Glasses always remind me of the 1960’s  No clue why, but they do.

 

I wanted to try another journaling card but was not sure what to do.  Sitting on my desk was some older wooden snowflakes I got from Michaels.  I picked up the ink from the kit and said, what would happen if I inked it up.   The color was pretty, but boy did it take a long time to dry.  I think I added it to my card wet because it was taking so long.    It is in the lower right corner under the journal card in case you cannot see it.

Well I did my kit this month so I deserve a pat on my back!   Pat Pat Pat!

 

Thanks for looking!!!

 

I am woefully behind in my Simon Says Card Monthly Kits.   I love each one but get so distracted by everything else in life that I never get around to making the cards.

So I grabbed out two cards kit (one being September 2015) and started to create.

One of my goals is to push myself and try something different, either a technique or a style/look.

I usually check out what others had done to make sure I am not “creating” something someone else posted.  LOL,  done that before

 

I was taken by the wood grain with the white triangles.  I love that look.   I decided to continue to design by adding gold embossing in both the triangles and the sentiment.  My Brother in Law said it looks like my scraproom floor.   Wood floor with scraps of paper on it.   LOL.    The card front is attached to gold foil.

 

This time I went Silver.   This card looked so wedding, special event to me.  The paper was grey with white florals.   I made a vellum die cut and then drew on the edges with a versamark pen and embossed in silver.  I also edged the sentiment banner.

 

 

This time I went for a different look.  When I saw this paper it reminded me of the currently popular adult coloring books.  So I decided to color it myself.   Or as I said to my sister, I am channeling my inner Laura Bassen (with the rainbow colors)

Then it dawned on me that the stamp set was all about balloons.  Opps.  then I focused on those for the next two cards.

 

I did this card using pastel distress inks.  I wanted it to be light and carefree.

I told myself I needed to use the white gesso that came with the kit.  Using the stencil I covered watercolor paper and then once dried I painted it with Peerless Watercolors.  I then decided to do a shaker card.  I love those sequin bags from Lucy Abrams.   They have the coolest shapes and colors.  That woman has an eye for color.   Even after adding a shaker to the card it still looked a little bland.  So then I decided to use the balloons (smaller size) to the bottom.  I used black sewing thread stiffened with matte medium.

 

So there is my creations for the Month of September!!!

Thanks for looking!!!