Loves' Color is Red

One crafting resolution I made for 2017 is to get more organized and use more of my stash...mostly papers that I have purchased and have yet to use.  

I decided to start using My Mind's Eye (MME) and Bo Bunny paper.  The goal is to create at least 10 cards from a collection before purchasing more paper, unless I have a special request.

I didn't do to well once I saw the new paper line from Graphic 45...I had to get Portrait of a Lady, but I did go back to my original stash to create two cards to share.

I used colors associated with Valentines' Day and February. 

Here are my two creations:

I'd like to enter this card in the following challenges. 

Paper Nest Dolls - #02 Anything Goes 
Pammie's Inky Pinkies - #1708 Anything Goes
Get Creative - #55 Use Red and 1 Other Color
Aurora Wings - #44 Anything Goes
A Snowflake Promise - #37 Valentines

I'd like to enter this card in the following challenges.

Path of Positivity - #46 Expression of Love

Love to Scrap - #94 Mid Month Inspiration
Crafting from the Heart - #147 Anything Goes
Artistic Inspirations - #173 Anything Goes
Digi Choosday - Wk#8 Anything Goes
Whoopsi Daisy - Love/Romance


Both cards use images from Mo Manning and both were colored using copic markers.

The paper was My Mind's Eye and the collection actually had two names; "The Station" and "Union Square", therefore I ended up purchasing it twice.

Hope you enjoyed my cards and thanks to Tracy MacDonald for my inspiration.

Thanks for stopping by.

Sending hugs from Texas

~Lesia

Season Change

The season change is slowly creeping upon us.  In the last week we have had temperatures in the mid-90s and now our meteorologist says to expect rain within the next couple of days and the good news is that immediately following the rain our temperature will fall into the comfortable 70s which is perfect for me and the season of course!  

I am so excited..I love this cool weather.  The only sad thing for me is I still haven't had time to get my hot tub back up and running (phooey).  Between stoves catching fire, remodeling issues in the kitchen and dryers blowing cold air, my focus has been on many things and unfortunately the hot-tub was not one of them.  Lucky for me, I can always raise my windows to let the cool air in while I sit in my craft-room and create.

Speaking of creating...I have another card to share. Its an image that could be considered Fall or Winter.  I decided that since it hasn't snowed here in Texas, I decided that it would be a scene with dusty dirt (its what we call it) that is found during the Fall time of year just before Winter.  The basket reminds me of a bushel of apples...ummm...like I said in the beginning...I love this time of year.

This is another gorgeous image from Northwoods Rubber Stamps called "Birds on Water Pail" (PP8884).  Make sure you check them out.  I used my copics and promarkers to color this image.  

I think the paper is My Minds Eye "Portabella" collection (don't hold me accountable for this guess).  I embossed one of the mats with my dots folder and used Walnut Stain to ink the edges of my paper.  Everything was adhered to Kraft card-stock that was cut to create a 4.5 x 6.5 card.

I'd like to enter the following challenges (mostly ATG).

Inspiration Destination - Challenge #104 ATG
Digital Delights - Delightful Challenge #14
Crafty Girls Creations - Challenge #26 ATG
Crafting With An Attitude - Challenge #19 ATG
Cardz 4 Galz - Challenge #31 Anything But Square
4 Crafty Chicks - Challenge #317 Colors of Fall

Well now its time for me to go demonstrate my domestic ability, you know what I mean...dishes, vacuuming, folding clothes, and other stuff that fall under housework.

Thanks for stopping by and remember all comments are welcomed.

Sending hugs from Texas

~Lesia~

Make Time to Make Stuff

Festive Colors

It's true, Autumn is actually upon us and you can tell by the changing of the air and the changing of the trees.  My fall flowers have started to produce buds and I can see the color peeking through.  

And of course our local stores reminds us with all the decorations being shown throughout the aisles. Can you believe they have Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas decorations out at the same time. 

Although it seems to be a bit much I have to admit that I do love the deep earth colors so I created the perfect card to showcase some of our Fall colors.  

This is my first official Fall card!  I purchased the stamp from Northwoods Rubber Stamps.  Its absolutely beautiful and its label is  Fall Bouquet in Pumpkin (item numberP10090). 

I used cardstock as my base and designer paper from My Minds Eyes as a mat for my image.  The ribbon and lace peeking from behind the image was purchased at my local craft store, and finally I used my copic markers to color it and a prismacolor pencil to assist in shading my shadows.

I'm not sure that the stickles I added to the flowers can be seen in this photo but under the light in my hand it has a lovely sparkle and shimmer that adds just the right amount of pizazz. The finished card size is 5.5 x 5.5.  

This was a fun image to color and I am pleased with how it turned out. I will most likely grab a few more stamps from this company before the year ends. Use the link above to go check out what they have to offer and no I am not being paid to say this...I just think their stamps are beautiful.

I'd like to enter the following challenges:

(unless noted all challenges are Anything Goes)

Scrappers Delight - Challenge #59

Ellibelle's Creations - Lets Color Linky Party#12

Digi Designs - Autumn

The Corrosive Challenge Blog  - Challenge #9

Lil Patch of Crafty Friends - Challenge #41

Great Impressions - September Challenge (ATG)

Fashionable Stamping - #115 Use Autumn Colors

Lacy Sunshine - September Challenge (ATG)

613 Avenue Create - ATG w/twist "Colors of Fall"

Until next time, sending hugs from Texas

~Lesia

Make time to Make Stuff

Happy New Year

I've made it through another year of joy, pain, laughter, sadness, hope, and so forth.  As usual I will start the year with three resolutions the same as last year, and I'll reminiscence of the days past and imagine the days that will come this year.

What better way to celebrate the New Year than with a card and perhaps a small glass of wine combined with a sampling of various cheeses from around the world.  I just hope the effects of the wine isn't reflected in my card...you be the judge.

Created with basic Bazzill Espresso card-stock and My Mind's Eye "Portabello Road" Designer Paper. I printed the calendar from the Internet and re-sized it to fit my card. 

My embellishments include a velvet piece of ribbon and two  studded brads.  I also used a Petaloo flower and used a Martha Stewart fern punch to add some greenery. 

My image is Mo Manning's Digital Pencil "Herald Harry" that I colored with copics.  My inspiration came from Tracy McDonald.

Copics Used:

skin--E000, E00, E11, E13

hair--E21, E23, E25, E27, E29

clothing--B0000, B000, B21, B41, B45, B97

To all my lovely friends, crafters and followers

thanks for stopping by and don't forget

to join in our newest challenge by

clicking on the Challenge Tab above.

!!!HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Hugs

~Lesia~

The Frenzy Continues

Yep, I'm back with another imitation of a Mo Manning favorite.  I think I almost captured it completely, but there are still a few subtle differences.  Do you see the difference?...not to easy huh?

Anyway let me start with the original creation by none other than Tracy.  Hello my lovely crafting mentor person....

Tracy's coloring skills never cease to amaze me...just fabulous I tell you.  You can check out the details of her card by clicking here.

While you're there check out her tutorials and other creations.  You will find yourself wanting to try your coloring skills and what I like is her ability to create something lovely with very little.

Not a lot of over-kill and yet a creation that draws attention and shares a message.  Now to move on to my very own creation of which I am simply proud.  Now to share my lift of this delightful card.

My card doesn't appear to be as bright as the original but I am sure I used the same designer paper so perhaps I don't have the best lighting in my craft-room.

Anyway I followed the basic coloring scheme and layout using what I had on hand for the most part.

I managed to get the greeting using my PC and Word, and the buttons came in a pack I had gotten some time ago.  As I said I am getting used to coloring still but my own technique and style is starting to merge although I find it real interesting to see how others color.  

Light to dark or dark to light, or do they lay a base color and then start the shadows.  Everyone does their own thing and for some reason they all turn out pretty darn good.

I continued using the left over paper to finish off the inside allowing a space for a personal message but keeping the color scheme the same inside.

Additionally, I have made it a habit to always create an envelope for every card I make.  This way should I need to give it up, the inside will be complete, my stamp will be on the back, and there will be a endorsed envelope that matches the card making it even more personal and special.

For this card I used "7 Gypsies "Venice" DSP, Mo's Digital Image "Sailor Boys" Distress Inks, Miscellaneous embellishments and the following copic markers:  

Skin E00, E11, E13
Hair E55, E57
Clothing B93, B95, B97, R35, R37, R39
Boat E35, E37, E39, E000, E00, B000, B00
Shading E41, E42, E43, C00, CO, C2

I'd like to enter this card in the following challenges:

Sister Act Card - Challenge #74

Craft for the Craic-Challenge#8 "Something With Circles" (9/28)

A Creative Romance - Anything Goes (9/25)

Treasure Time Rubber Stamp - Anything Goes (9/19)

Suzy Bee's Blooming Challenge - Anything Goes (9/18)

Crafting At The Weekend - Anything Goes (9/25)

Lifting Case Frenzy

Hello everyone.  This past week I have been so busy just handling everyday things that I really couldn't get my noggin in the creative groove. Hackers make it really hard to keep trust in others...this week my debit card was compromised so I've had to deal with that mess.  Lucky for me "Bank of America" was on top of things and noticed an inconsistent or unusual spending habit for me and immediately began to decline charges against my debit account.  So we think the crooks got nothing! It had to be someone with a weight problem because the items were all around nutrisystem, treadmill, scales and stuff like that. Glad to know that folks want to be healthy but not at my expense.

So just to keep my faith and not lose sleep I went to visit my friend "Tracy" to check out what she had created that I felt I could case and I found quite a few, although my coloring will never match hers.



First let me share with you the original card that caught my eye and click here to go to Tracy's post where I found it.  You'll have to scroll down to around July 9th to get to it.

Isn't it absolutely adorable? I have several Mo Manning images and if I don't have one but need it, then its off to get it.  You can't go wrong with Mo's images.  They are all so perfect for any occasion and for any age as well.  But moving right along I want to show you my version of this adorable card.

And here is my inspirational version.  I know it is missing in so many ways but that's okay. I did try to follow the color scheme and capture the overall concept of the design.

I enjoyed coloring it and now that I have a complete set of Spectrum Noir, Copics and ProMarkers I feel like the Queen of Markers...I just have to learn how to master each of them.  One day at a time, right?

So what is the verdict? I think it turned out pretty good and my coloring on this one did make me smile for once.



I hope Tracy takes my mimic as a compliment because between her and a few other designers, I think I have grown quite a bit in my coloring, my style and my technique, but when I find it to stressing to sketch out a design its good to know that you can always find inspiration on the internet.

Different styles, techniques and designers.  From Shabby Chic, CAS, Steampunk, Whimsical and even the Gothic and Dark can be found.  I tell you when I stress I surf and it usually helps bring back that smile.  Oh such a delight this crafting is.

The paper used was from My Mind's Eye and I forgot all about writing down the markers.  I did mix both my copics and the Spectrum Noir... and yes they do blend together.  The new brush tip on the Spectrum Noir is a bit different from the Copic but work the same with less pressure.  Give'em a try.

Okay that's it for today.  Thanks for stopping by.

Hugs

Lesia

First Anniversary Card

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Hello all, hope you had a wonderful weekend.  My weekend was uneventful for the most part but there were a few events of interest. It was a 3-day weekend for me so that made my weekend even better (yipee!). I managed to get my hair taken care of, so as not to scare any more little babies at the grocery store and to eliminate all the stares.  Guess I should have kept my wig on...oh well, that wig just got to hot and since it was mine, I didn't think of what would happen if I  politely removed it from my head. Underneath the wig I did have my hair twisted so it wasn't a horrible sight at all, but it scared the dickens out of one little kid which disturbed the mother who stared at me with eyes of ice. I didn't respond to her stare...she looked younger and in better shape so I just prayed that her daughter would quit screaming.  I didn't kill anyone with my wig...I just took it off.

Anyway, I was enjoying the mornings without an alarm and the rush to shower and dress, let the dog out, put the food down and all the rest of a working morning. I didn't miss that routine at all.  Mother Nature cooperated this weekend by cooling the temperature with a few rounds of nice soothing and cooling rain.  Those beautiful drops of water falling from the sky were welcomed and appreciated after suffering the triple digit temperatures for a while now.

Our 100 store outlet mall opened this weekend and it was tax-free weekend as well here in Texas.  But trying to get to that mall was harder than trying to hide an elephant downtown.  Every highway was crowded and God forbid if you had anything going on in your vehicle because there was a policeman at every stop and turn.  Some folks love the thrill of the fight...its an adventure for them.  If my wallet had just a bit more green in it, I would have been out there with the rest of the bargain hunters, all for the deal of a discount.

During this wonderful weekend I had the opportunity to create an Anniversary card for a co-worker.  I tried to add a bit of elegance and flair and then afterward I decided to create a matching envelope.  I'll know tomorrow if she likes it, but I'd appreciate hearing your thoughts.

The CS and double-sided DP is by Anna Griffin.  I found one of her paper packs in my stash and it had the perfect pastel colors that I needed, so whoopee.

The bling and the flower is by recollections. I used a Cheery Lynn die to cut the doily and then inked the edges with tumbled glass distress ink.

In this photo you can see a snippet of the matching envelope I made.  I added a sentiment in the lower left corner of the envelope and on the inside I folded the paper so the coordinating pattern was visible on the opening flap.




The sentiment is computered generated and I picked up some chipboard stickers at Tuesday Morning that had numbers included.

I continued on the inside with the same paper and added a verse for my co-worker, while leaving room for a personal hand-written message.

Well that's my anniversary card and I can't wait to read your comments, so don't forget to give me your thoughts.