Fellow Cardmakers: What do you use to seal handmade envelopes??

Happy Sunday, My Friends!

This is just a quick little Blog Entry to refer you to an article I posted this morning to another Blog for which I'm a contributor,
THE CARD CHRONICLES.

The article is particularly directed toward fellow cardmakers out there and is entitled "More On a Sticky Subject: Sealing Handmade Envelopes".

I hope that you can take a moment to visit THE CARD CHRONICLES Blog and share any comments you might have!


AND, once again, if you haven't already taken my POLL (upper right hand corner here on my Expressive Papers Blog), please do! Only two more days of voting!

More posts to come later today or tomorrow . .


For now, I'm off to work with hubby Lee on some fall cleanup in the yard, before we're snowed in for the winter!


Until we meet again . . . . may you all have a lovely and restful day.

DANCE as though no one is WATCHING!

Every now and then, a particular phrase, sentiment, quote, saying, or song lyric touches me so strongly, that I simply feel compelled to create a card around it.

And "Dance as though no one is watching" is one of those phrases for me. I don't even remember where I first read or heard it, but it is a sentiment that I believe holds special meaning.

Yesterday, as I was looking through my various printed sayings and sentiments, I once again found this one, and felt that it was time to make another card with it.

I was in the mood to create a very special one-of-a-kind card, so I set about pulling together some of my all-time favorite paper combinations . . . . First, a patterned paper by Basic Grey in muted watercolor shades of a creamy orange, gold and teal blue . . .then textured Bazzill cardstock in a lovely pale orange cream shade, and a shiny textured Bazzill ("Bling") in two shades: rich teal blue and copper.

I chalk shaded the text block in a pale shade of yellowish gold to coordinate with the color palette I had chosen, then mounted it to alternating layers of the selected cardstocks, offsetting the text block slightly to the left.















Then to the right of the mounted text block, I set three small copper eyelets in a vertical fashion. Through these eyelets, I threaded narrow gauge copper wire, hand twisting it and adding tiny clear glass beads in a coppery gold shade.














To accommodate for the additional dimension behind the text block, created by the ends of the twisted copper wire, I mounted the text block to the card with 1/8" adhesive foam.












As you can see, I also added a small copper brad at each corner for a little added interest.



This card is 5" X 7" and like all my cards, will be completely lined with an additional layer of plain white lightweight acid-free cardstock.

Until we meet again . . . .May you DANCE as though no one is watching!

Update on Little Miss Ride

Some of you may have been wondering how our little greyhound Ride has been doing since my last post. As you'll recall, she had an emergency splenectomy and large tumor removed from her spleen a couple of weeks ago.

I'm happy to report that Ride is doing well! She had her stitches (staples) taken out on Monday, and the final report on all five tissue samples taken from the splenic tumor were BENIGN!


Our lady veterinarian cautioned me this week that in a tumor as large as this one was (12.5 lbs!), there is always a possibility that a malignancy might still be present, and not have shown up in the particular tissue samples that were examined.

HOWEVER, she also said that she thinks the percentages are in our favor with Ride and that she's hopeful the tumor was indeed benign. So, that's what Lee and I are banking on!

Ride has had a few ups and downs since her surgery, mainly related to eating and appetite. But for several days now, she's been eating very well, as long as I mix a little special "treat" like chicken broth, canned chicken, canned dog food, etc. with her regular kibble.

And our other greyhound, Harley, is LOVING all this special food and the attention that comes with it during mealtime as well! (That's Harley in the background of the photo below.)


Overall, our Little Miss Ride is doing great! And it is my fervent hope that she continues to do so. . . . . . . . . . .

Until we meet again . . . .wishing you and your family (including your furry family members) ongoing health, special moments, sweet dreams, and treasured memories.

Another Game of TAG!

I was honored earlier this week by being "tagged" by another Etsy artisan and fellow Blogger, Beth, who creates wonderful lampwork beads. Thank you, Beth!

Please check out Beth's blog, Fire and Glass to get acquainted with her and to see some of her beautiful work.

Here are the TAG GAME RULES:

1. Link to your tagger and list these rules on your blog.

2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.'

3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blog.

4. Let them know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.


So, Here goes . . . . .Seven Random Facts About Me

1. I'm a New Age music fan, particularly piano music.

2. I love all kinds of horse art (paintings, photos, notecards, scuptures, etc.), although I know next to nothing about horses and have only been horseback riding a few times.

3. I grew up in rural Kansas, but not on a farm.

4. I failed my first driving test.

5. I love potatoes, cooked any way.

6. I have blue eyes.

7. I am married to the great love of my life.


NOW, Here are my fellow Bloggers that I'm tagging this round . . . .

Angela, Pickles on Pizza Blog

Jennifer, The Art of Jennifer Lommers Blog

Erin, Crazy Times Candle and Bath Blog

Cindy, Cthings Blog

Sarah, In Shadows. . .Blog

Kathy, Four Dog Day Blog

Allie, AllieArt Photography for Children Blog

I'm off to notify each of them now that they've been "tagged"!

I hope you'll be sure to check back on their blogs to learn more about these wonderful artists and fellow Bloggers . . . .I know I'll be doing that!

My Newest Cardmaking Inspiration

I have to say that I've been a little low on "inspiration" lately, as well as on motivation for my cardmaking. I suppose everyone experiences those kinds of moments in their crafting, don't you think? (Please say YES!)

When I've had creative slumps like this in the past, my tendency is first to take a break from my artistic endeavors for a bit. So I did that.

Then, if that doesn't work to generate a new creative spurt.. . . . . . .I just keep plugging along and hope to get inspired along the way. That's exactly where I found myself the past couple of days. . . .plugging along and waiting for inspiration to come my way. And here's what happened. .


I found some scraps of a lovely patterned paper that I'd used in the past to make some cards. The patterned paper was a sort of abstract floral design in shades of deep rose, pink, and grey, with bright white accents. Using my sewing machine, I stitched a couple of pieces of this patterned paper to a background of white textured Bazzill cardstock cut to size for a 5" X 7" card front, and glued this to a pre-folded cardstock base.

Still unsure of where I was heading with this card design, I took a closer look at the patterned paper, and noticed a sort of shadowy floral and leaf image in the paper. Then the idea came to me to create a hand cut paper piecing, using the design in the patterned paper as a guide.

So, with first a little sketching on the back of a piece of hot pink Bazzill cardstock, then some hand cutting, I came up with a floral and leaf design that looked somewhat like what I was seeing in the patterned paper. I added some pen outlining with a fine point white gel pen to each piece, and then some Stickles glitter glue for a bit of sparkle.

After allowing each piece to dry after the application of the Stickles glitter, I began to arrange the stem and floral leaves (or petals?) on top of the patterned paper . . . . .a card design was finally beginning to come together in my mind! First I decided that I needed more petals, then I decided that the floral design needed more glitter . . . . . .and one thing led to another. But when I was reasonably happy with the paper pieced design, I glued each piece down with one or more mini glue dots.

Searching through my current stash of already printed (on my HP color printer) text, I found a HAPPY BIRTHDAY greeting that was the right size and color (rosy pink) to coordinate with my evolving card design. So, after a little more cutting, some chalk-shading, machine stitching, and some additional floral leaves/petals to embellish the new text block. . . . . this one-of-a-kind card is the final result:

Although it took a while, I think this most recent cardmaking effort helped get me through my current creative "slump," and now I'm ready to get going on some holiday cards!

Until we meet again. . . . may each of your days bring a new sense of discovery and renewed inspiration.

Handmade Card Design POLL: Whimsy and Simple Elegance are IN THE LEAD!

Good Morning, Everyone, Only 8 days left of my current POLL regarding "What Style/s of Handmade Christmas/Holiday Cards Do You Prefer?"

And, thus far, SIMPLY ELEGANT is in the lead, with 53% of the voters selecting this style (15 of 28 voters). Second is WHIMSICAL, selected by 39% of the voters (11 out of 28).

Thanks to all of you out there in Blogger Land who have already voted on this POLL! If you haven't already participated, please do take a minute to cast your vote/s! And remember, that you can select as many "favorite" handmade card styles as you like.

I think that all my fellow cardmakers will be interested in the results of this POLL, so I will be posting a summary of the final results, for everyone's review, on both this Blog, and on THE CARD CHRONICLES.

Thanks to all of you for your interest and for sharing your opinions on this topic.




Only 52 Days Until Christmas!

I'm just a LITTLE BORED with Cardmaking Right Now . . .

Yes, it happens now and then . . . . . .I get just a little bored with my cardmaking and feel the need to do some other "crafty" things for a change!

Guess this is one of those times.

As I was sorting through my Halloween -themed items recently, thinking about doing some handmade Halloween cards, I happened upon a little paper pieced witch that I had made a couple of years ago.

I recall putting this little witch away, along with her cat, until some later date, when I decided what to do with them.

Funny . . . . I also recall saying to myself at the time, "I'll build a Halloween scrapbook layout around this cute little witch one day."

Well, I guess the time came!

So, even though I've felt somewhat deficient on enthusiasm lately, I started working on a scrapbook layout for this little witch. And as is often the case, once I started working on a project, I found that it kind of evolved . . . .

This is the end result of my last two day effort . . . .an 11 piece paper piecing set designed for a two 12 X 12 inch page scrapbook layout.

Despite my lack of tangible "inspiration, " I can honestly say, that I'm pleased with the way this layout came out!

Let me know what you think.

I've listed this scrapbook layout/paper piecing set on eBay, and you can view it here in more detail, if you wish.

Until we meet again. . . . . . .I wish you continued inspiration and creativity, even during those times you may feel amazingly UNinspired!