Projects & Posts »

Hi again, Stampers,

Here’s the second card using the same technique and stamp set as yesterday’s post, but this time it became a Thank-you card.  Another difference is that I embossed two leaves (as in the background)  in gold on chocolate chip cardstock and brushed gold cardstock and cut them out to give it some dimension. Chocolate Chip twill 1/4″ ribbon was used for the accent.

Compare this card to yesterday’s post and see how easy it is to take basically the same card and yet dress it up slightly differently for a new card and new purpose!

Love & Friendship, Projects & Posts »

Hi Stampers!

Today’s card serves two purposes:

1) With the flu and disease-of-the-week season coming up, I assume I’ll need a get well card at some point. How’s that for being morbid?

2) I have two dear friends who have told me that while they like my cards, they sometimes feel they couldn’t duplicate them easily on their own.  OK. I know I get carried away sometimes.  So here you go, Terri and Amie…

This one couldn’t get much more simple. Two pieces of  Autumn Meadows Designer Series paper (Item #116769). Actually, it’s one piece of the same sheet of paper — just flipped over and torn down one edge.  Then I tied a piece of Twill Tape (Item #105245) on the side. Lastly, all of the sentiments are from Chit Chat rub-ons (Item #111804). How easy can you get??

Projects & Posts »

Hi Stampers,

It must be because it’s a bit dark and gray out lately that I’ve felt a need for bright colors.  Here’s a baby girl card using another one of our clear window sheets. I used some retired rub-ons on the plastic and colorized them.  The “Sweet Little Baby” sentiment was done on shrink film. The background on the pink is done with the stamp set Fifth Avenue Floral,  stamped with Versamark and embossed with clear embossing powder. Thanks for stopping!

Here’s a list of the items I used:

Pretty in Pink cardstock — Item #100459

Cute & Cuddly stamp set Item #113682

Fifth Avenue Floral — Item 113734

Clear Window Sheets  — Item #114323

1/4″ Grosgrain Ribbon

Eyelet Border Punch — Item # 11369

3-D & Folding, Projects & Posts »

Hi Stampers!

You won’t believe what this card was meant to be in life.  What do you think? Now if you guessed a baby shower card, you’d be right! Say what?? Well, here’s what happened. My son called me from work and said he needed a baby shower card for a baby boy, but here were the restrictions:

1.) Don’t use traditional little baby colors. 2) Don’t use any cutesy bunnies or other animals. 3) Make it Art Deco or Frank Lloyed Wright and 4) Think outside the box! Don’t make it like every other baby card.

Be careful what you ask for, that’s my motto! When you ask for art deco (a love of mine), that’s what you get. I think even this one was a bit of a shock for him though. “Well, mom, maybe a LITTLE blue would be ok.”  LOL Back to the drawing board, but I still like this one and I thought I’d share it with you. I’m saving this card for a different occasion now and I’ll figure out later what the sentiment should be.

Items used — Just click on the link to take you to the ordering page:

Brushed Silver cardstock (Item #100712)

Night & Day Specialty paper from the Holiday Mini (Item #116768.)  It’s folded in a lattice pattern –which is easier than it looks. This was done freehanded. I then rubbed it with a little Lavender Lace craft ink

Lavender Lace craft ink  (Item #103144)This was  used to rub to a burnished look on the cardstock.

I used SU Two-way glue (Item #100425) to attach everything.

A CB die was used to cut the diamond shapes and the small fleur de li’s and dots.

Happy Birthday, Projects & Posts »

Hi Stampers,

How easy is this?? An quick birthday card using only rub-ons from the sets Dots & Designs (Item #115728) and Chit Chat (Item #111804.)  Now don’t try to tell me you can’t make cards!  The base is Kraft cardstock with a small piece of Chocolate Chip to border the Naturals White piece where the sentiment and flower were placed. Then I tucked in some 1/4″ grosgrain ribbon in Rose Red and Chocolate Chip.

You can’t believe how fast this went together, so give it a try!

Projects & Posts »

Hi Stampers,

A couple of weeks ago my dear friend, Linda Hansen (who’s like a household name to you demonstrators out there) opened her lovely home to us for a day of good food and stamping. She had a darling project ready for us to make. It was unbelievable what a good hostess she was and all the work she went to in preparation for our invasion.  Here you can see Connie, Linda, and Terri working away. You’ll notice I didn’t take any photos of us eating!

And look at this woman disappearing before our very eyes! She’s done an amazing job of losing weight! I think this was taken at about 80 pounds down!

Projects & Posts »

These photos are of my mom as a young mother in 1948 at the age of 33 and then a more current one. Pretty good for a gal in her 90’s, huh!

Hello Friends,

It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything at all on the blog, but I’ve been preoccupied for quite some time now. My mom, Ruth E. Linn, lived in an assisted living center near me and started going downhill quickly in December. She passed away in the early hours of January 1st, 2010.  She was 94 years old.

Mom’s wedding anniversary to my dad was on New Year’s Eve, but this time she was in a coma and too far away to enjoy it. She was being kept alive by an oxygen face mask.  In fact, we as a family knew that we’d have to take her off life support as she wished, but we wanted her to see the new year. So we brought in some sparkling grape juice and cheese and crackers. We thanked her for the life we’ve had and toasted her on the way to her new life. Family and friends stopped by to take her hand and tell her she was loved. Others called from long distances and I held the phone up to her ear so they could say good bye. At the end, it was only my brother and I holding her hands till she left us. I’m so thankful she was never in any pain and I’m so grateful for the wonderful care she received in the hospital.

Mom was one of 11 children — five of whom died at birth or in infancy. Another brother was lost in the great influenza pandemic of 1918.  She was a  young woman during the depression and never stopped being frugal with any money she had for the rest of her life. She was half Irish, so perhaps that’s where the stubbornness came in or the feistiness or her sense of humor.

When she married my dad on New Year’s Eve of 1937 out in California, they were going to return to Iowa but only had enough train fare for one person. Dad wanted to put her on the train and hitchhike home, but she wouldn’t hear of it. So they both hitchhiked across the country in January! Can you imagine the lack of roads or cars back then? I always thought that was the bravest and craziest thing she ever did (I mean, besides having us four kids.)

My dad died 32 years ago and  her beloved sister a year later, so I would imagine that they are having a great reunion now. She has her parents and grandparents there, as well as a daughter, two sons-in-law, and two grandchildren. A few years after my dad’s passing, she married a man named Howard and they were together for 20 happy years till his death in 2004.

Mom was a master organizer and was always in charge of the bake sales for our church building fund. They baked pies and bread and cakes all from scratch and had a city-wide following whenever a sale was held. One day she was calling her customer list for some preorders and she got a wrong number. That didn’t stop her and she sold them some pies and bread anyway. Looking back,  I think the ladies of the church built that chapel out of whole wheat bread loaves instead of bricks! She was also a nurse who ran a halfway house for people coming out of the mental institution and the home for those who were mentally challenged. They all thought of her as their mom too.

In 2007 we moved mom (almost with dynamite) out of her home of 62 years in Iowa.  She actually loved it out here in Utah and made a lot of friends too at the little assisted living center. I’ve been with mom nearly every day for the last two years. It’s like second nature to me and even while I was arranging things for the funeral, I’d stop and think, “Oh, it’s almost 5:30. I’d better get over to mom’s.” I wonder when that will stop. I know I’ll miss her.