Dam # 5

One of my favorite things to do is to go for a drive, find a road I've never taken before, and discover where it goes. Sometimes it's just a nice drive and sometimes you discover little treasures...a beautiful scene, something historical, a new bird (for my bird watching list), a neat little flea market, etc. We so often overlook that which is right under our noses.


Last week, Gary and I took the long way home from a simple trip to Lowe's, traveling down a road we hadn't traveled in a long time. We live close to the C&O Canal, and we stopped at Dam #5. The day was cool and gray, but it was still a beautiful sight.



An old lockhouse.

A Birthday Challenge

This may look familiar. I used the exact same background for another card recently. Monday the 19th, our CCEE hostess issued a double challenge. Half of it was to make a card for Cindy's birthday. Cindy collects teapots and loves polkadots, so we were to incorporate this in our projects. I have no teapot stamps. But I did happen to have one image that I had stamped ages ago, using a friend's stamp. It was black on natural. Out of all the designer paper I have, the only paper that coordinated was the paper Cindy sent us for an earlier challenge. I had made an extra base card when I did that project, as I often do when I happen to do something I really like, and I love these papers. So please forgive my uncreativity, but this is the result.

Recipe: stamps- teapot (source unknown), sentiment (computer generated); paper- black, ivory, dp (source unknown); ink- black archival; accessories- paper flower (Creative Memories), button.

"Chair"man of the Board

Okay, I have a thing about chairs. I love them! It is very difficult for me to pass up a sturdy chair at a flea market, no matter how bad it looks...especially if it's in the $5 to $20 range. I kind of try to sneak them into the house now, because my husband is to the point that he gives me that "look", and I get "what in the world are you going to do with another chair?


I bought this for $5 to use for a desk chair. And of course, I forgot to take a 'before' photo. So I laid the old seat fabric over the finished one to get this picture. The seat was very uncomfortable due to a few broken support wires in the front, and was covered with a scratchy, faded fabric (not quite as orangey as the picture looks).

Using an upholstery fabric remnant I bought for a whopping $1, and replacing the broken wires, this is the result. Professional upholsterers shouldn't look too close, but I'm pleased with my $6 chair.

Shape Up Tall

Last week our CCEE shape challenge was square, this Monday's is to make a tall card. I turned it on it's side which I guess makes it a wide card, but I think it will pass. The four panels are cut from Basic Grey distressed designer papers, using a narrow strip on the inside part of the card behind the punched border to make it stand out. The stamp is one I've had for ages, but still love. I stamped it on four different printed papers, embossing it in black. Then I used close to cocoa and old olive SU markers to color the center and the leaves and stem, after which I cut them out. The brown base card is stamped with the "sanded" background stamp from Stampin'Up. The finished card fits a standard business envelope.
You may have noticed that I often do not put a sentiment on my cards. It's usually because I don't want to limit it's use to a particular occasion. I can always add a sentiment later, when I actually need a card.

Recipe: stamps- sanded (SU), sunflowers (Anita's); paper- brown linen (DCWV), Basic Grey dp, various dp; ink- white pigment (Color Box), versamark; accessories- black ep, ribbon (Offray), SU markers, eyelet border punch (SU).

Shape Up!

Although I really should be talking about a new shape up plan for myself, it's really the name of this Monday's CCEE challenge. Our hostess, Tosh, wanted us to make a round card. And of course, the first thing I thought of was a baseball. I used one of those wonderful distressed papers from Basic Grey for the ball. I think it captures the look of an old scuffed baseball. Then I just grabbed one of the many baseballs we have around the house and studied it. I drew the curved lines with a thin tipped black marker and added the stitches with a red sharpie. The bench was stamped on a woodgrained paper, also Basic Grey.

Recipe: stamps- Put Me In Coach (Storage Units, Inks and More); paper- Basic Grey, white; ink- black archival; accessories- SU markers, red sharpie, white gel pen (for coloring popcorn).

Going Digital

No matter what you're into, there's always something new to challenge you. A relatively new (at least to me) thing in stamping is the availability of digital images for purchase. You buy the image, download to your computer, print onto your cardstock, and color away! Some of the advantages of this is the fact you can change the size of the image or flip it to face the other direction. This is all new to me and I am still learning.
This is the supplies challenge week for our Monday CCEE project and our hostess, Frances, purchased for each of us this digital image called "End of Summer" from Mo's Digital Pencil. From that point on, we were free to do what we wanted.

Recipe: stamps- sentiment (Stamps and Smiles), End of Summer (Mo's Digital Pencil); paper- Buckaroo Blue (SU), white, designer paper (Chateau Toile Flat, from KandCompany); ink- black archival; accessories- paper flower (Creative Memories), button, Prismacolor pencils and Turpenoid.

Flower Pot Pocket Card

Say that four times, fast! :)
This is the Monday the 21st CCEE challenge, and there is an excellent tutorial for it on SplitcoastStampers. I had a lot of fun doing my autumn version. The flowers are attached to the panel that slides in and out of the pot. You can write your sentiment on this. I got the idea for using the 'sanded' background stamp on the pot from my Stampin'Up consultant, Carol, and I love the look. We did a beautiful summery one at her monthly stamp club. She also taught us how to do the crimped leaves for another project. You cut an oval leaf shape, fold it in half tip to tip, and run it through the crimper on a slant. Love it!

Recipe: stamps- sanded (SU); paper- white and terra cotta colored cardstock, designer paper (Hopscotch mat pad, K&Company); ink- white pigment (Color Box); accessories- eyelet border punch, green gingham ribbon (Offray), Flower Layers#3 dies (SU), crimper.