Paper and Ink Playground

2025-05-06T12:19:00.001-04:00

Hello again, Crafty Friends,

I've been creating but don't always have time to post each card. Someday I will retire and have more time for both.

This first card was for SplitcoastStampers CAS843 Butterflies challenge. I just the simplicity of white on white cards. Not sure where I got the butterfly border die and I don't mark all my dies but the sending hugs is from Pinkfresh Studio's Perfect Sentiments. I hot foiled it in silver.

This card was from CAS844 - Spread Kindness. A handmade card with a note can change someone's day. The rose image is from Penny Black Love Blooms watercolored onto Bristol cardstock with Zig Clean color markers. I've found the markers work best on the Bristol cardstock. The cross stitch border impression is also Penny Black. The sentiment is Pinkfresh Studio's Perfect Sentiments hot foiled in gold.

Finally, this week's Clean and Simple Challenge (CAS845) is Celebrate. This card is a bit more fussy looking but in reality is simply a rub on from 49 & Markets One Perfect Day. I just love the romantic look of the roses. The dyed seam binding has been in my stash for literally years. The sentiment is Papertrey Ink KIS Birthday embossed in Ranger Liquid Platinum embossing powder. I think this my new favorite.

That's is for me this week. Our granddaughter graduates from college this week!! She's not only beautiful she's bright too. She landed a job with the company she interned for last summer. So very proud of her!

Have a blessed and crafty week!

Charlene

2025-04-29T11:39:00.000-04:00

Well, Hello, Crafty friends!!

It's been awhile since I last posted....actually more than awhile but I have been creating and there's been some fun news as well.

First, I am a Dirty Girl! A member of SplitcoastStampers Dirty Dozen. Who knew?

Here are some of the projects I've submitted in case you haven't been on for a bit.

I hope to be posting on a more regular basis. I'd love to know what you think and how you are!

Much love,

Charlene

The Gift of Packaging - Christmas Tags

2019-12-18T10:45:00.002-05:00

Merry Christmas!

It's been a long while since I've been able to pop in and say hello but wanted to wish you all a very blessed and joyous Christmas and best wishes for the coming year.

While I'm here, I thought I'd share this years Christmas tags with you.

I made two versions of this tag...one on clear heavyweight acetate and one on a Kraft tag.

The tags are approximately 3x5. I sponged white acrylic paint around the edges then flicked paint on the surface. The paint was very quick to dry. I used an almost dry brush to swipe some of the paint across the reindeer as well.

The believe sentiment is heat embossed with white detail embossing powder. On the clear tag, I used Heat Resistant Acrylic to emboss the sentiment then die cut a circle to attach it to the tag.

Oh my goodness...so hard to get anything clear to photograph!

I love how these turned out! Which one is your favorite?

Merry Christmas!

I'm going to link these up to the Ink to Paper Gift Packaging Tag Contest

Supplies:
Stamps - Papertrey Ink Dash Away All
Dies - Papertrey Ink Dash Away All, Tim Holtz Woodlands
Ribbon - The Paper Sandbox
Misc. - Kraft Tag, Clear Acrylic, Heat resistant acrylic

CAS548 - A Hurt but Not Broken Heart

2019-09-01T13:10:00.002-04:00

Well, we are in the final prep stages for Hurricane Dorian. Prayers are most welcome and much appreciated for everyone in his path. This is a monster storm and we are praying for all those in the Bahamas.

Sweet Kia, on SCS Clean and Simple Design Team has a hurting heart...as she says, "hurt but not broken", so she challenged us to make cards with heart.

I will not show you the 4 previous attempts to watercolor this heart. I just couldn't get it right until I decided to dig out my old Stampendous Frantage Embossing Powders then, the card created itself...finally!!

If you'd like to play along, there is no time limit. The link is here: CAS548

Here's my card with a close up of the pretty sparkles:

I fussy cut the heart then cut along the broken line and popped the entire thing up with foam tape.

Watercolored with Distress Markers

Thanks for stopping by! Hope you have some crafty time to play along.

CAS534 - No Coloring

2019-05-20T14:34:00.002-04:00

Happy Monday! The challenge on SCS Clean and Simple this week (CAS534) is "No Coloring".

Let's face it, sometimes we just don't have time to sit and color all those beautiful images we own.

I used a Poppy Stamps Happy Birthday die to die cut the images from Silver, Gold and Bronze cardstock that I first stuck onto Stick it paper.

I also die cut some beautiful woodgrain cardstock with the die. I saved the letters from the wood grain for another project.

After everything was cut, I just popped out the letters, then pulled the backing from the negative image and stuck it on the wood grain cardstock. I used all the colored letter on the card. I was able to get 6 cards from the 3 die cut images by using both the letter and the negative backgrounds.

This card also qualifies for CAS530 - Negative Die Cuts

Love when that happens!

Hope you'll play along with the challenge! There's no time limit on any of the challenges.

Thanks for stopping by!

Easter Blessings

2019-04-16T14:07:00.005-04:00

This week's Clean & Simple Challenge (CAS529) is Easter Celebrations. I hadn't planned on sharing this one but it fit the challenge.

No stamping except for the inside sentiment. Just die cutting. Dies are Spellbinders. I've forgotten the name of the blue cardstock...it is StampinUp though. The white is Papertrey Shimmer.

Thanks for stopping by. Have a blessed Easter

He is Risen!

Mojito Time - IC696

2019-04-11T16:04:00.001-04:00

I haven't done an SCS Inspiration Challenge in years so this one was especially fun. This week, the challenge is to choose a beach towel from the website Tesalate. (IC696)

The towel I chose is called - "Mojito Time"

Here's my card...CAS, quick and easy!

I loved the big tropical leaves and soft and cool summer colors on the towel. I had this stencil in my stash. Perfect, I think!

I sponged Papertrey Ink Leaf Green and Tim Holtz Shattered Glass on watercolor paper. Then, I just trimmed it a little and popped the panel on 110 lb cardstock with clear dimensionals.

The Thanks sentiment is PTI Smokey Shadow offset layered over white.

Thanks for stopping by...hope you have time to play along!

FS635 - Heartfelt Thanks

2019-04-09T09:43:00.000-04:00

It's a gray, cloudy day here...let's just call it partly sunny to look on the bright side!

This week's Featured Stamper challenge (FS635) is highlighting the work of StampinHappy aka Angie. My goodness! This woman is a stamping machine!

I chose this card to CASE. According to the rules, we are to change at least 3 things.

I kept her sketch and the floral theme. I changed the base design, left off the panel and since I didn't have her floral image or those pretty leaves, I used what I had on hand.

I'm not sure if you can see it but I put the tiniest bit of shimmer of the flowers. I put a bit of Wink of Stella on my finger and tapped it over the petals.

Full disclosure...the flowers started out to be no line watercolored...basically, I stink at it. I used a white gel pen to outline the petals after the water color dried.

Thanks for stopping by...be sure to visit Angie's gallery and play along.

Supplies:
Cardstock - Neenah 110 lb base, DP from my stash
Stamps - Flowers - Wplus9 Modern Anemones, Sentiment - Penny Black
Die cuts - MFT Greenery
Ink - TH Distress Antique Linen, watercolor, Copic fineline marker for stamens
Other - Wink of Stella, clear dimensional

CAS528 - Cherry Blossoms in Springtime

2019-04-07T21:22:00.000-04:00

Happy Monday! That means it's time for another Clean & Simple Challenge on SplitcoastStampers.

This week the challenge is "Show me your Bud" (CAS528). The challenge says, to show budding trees, flowers, buds pushing out of the ground with a bonus if you use spring green.

Here's my submission. I needed a card for a friend whose brother is facing 3 critical health challenges including needing a heart transplant, a spot on his lung, and liver damage. What we need is a miracle. But we know:

I had some seriously ancient Martha Stewart Cherry Blossom stickers in my stash. Since it's cherry blossom time in Washington, DC, I thought they were appropriate for the challenge. All remaining supplies are Papertrey Ink.

The Cardstock is PTI Linen which has such lovely texture and gave this card a softer look than bright white.

Thanks so much for dropping by and if you have a moment, please whisper a prayer for Pastor Rick.

Going to the Dogs

2019-04-04T11:14:00.001-04:00

Happy Thursday! The weather here is gorgeous! We are actually having spring instead of going right into summer which sometimes happens in the sub-tropical South.

Today's card was so much fun. I got to give my Copics some love and dressed up these pups for a
birthday par-tay.

The sentiment is heat embossed and the pups and their balloons are popped up on dimensionals.

The stamps are from Mama Elephant called The Dogs Woof...

Thanks for stopping by!

CAS527 - Party 'til the Cows Come Home

2019-04-01T13:58:00.000-04:00

It's Monday and that means it's time for another Clean & Simple Challenge at SCS. This week's challenge CAS527 is "Humor".

This one qualifies for my 10 minute card stash and a guy card...that rarely happens!

Here's my birthday card...almost a one layer but I just couldn't resist popping the lead cow.

Thanks for popping in!

Supplies:

Cardstock - Neenah Solar White

Stamps & Dies - Amuse Go Hog Wild

Ink - Versafine

Other - clear dimensionals

SC742 Vintage Girl

2019-03-31T20:12:00.003-04:00

I had a few minutes today so thought I'd play along with SplitcoastStampers Sketch Challenge for the week - SC742

Here's the sketch:

and, here's my take on it. Apparently, I can't count...I added an extra paper layer.

I flipped the sketch to make it landscape. The rest was easy peasy...Just some pretty, pretty coordinating designer paper and a matching sticker. I used the embossing buddy to de-tack the sticker, then used dimensionals to pop it up. A simple sentiment and done!

Thanks for stopping by...how I've missed card making!!

Supplies:

Base - Papertrey linen Cardstock
Designer Paper - Photoplay Vintage Girl
Sentiment - Papertrey Ink
Ink - Versafine
Other - Clear dimensionals

Happy Birthday - Guy Style

2019-03-29T12:32:00.002-04:00

Happy Friday!

I find making cards for guys so much harder than cards for women.

This fun set from Amuse makes it easy! I happened to have some matching dp for one of the tie designs so that was the inspiration for the color.

I used my Misti to stamp the image a few times (what did we do before!) to get good solid coverage.

Thanks for stopping by!

Paper:

Papertrey Ink Basic black

Neenah 80 lb Solar White

DCWV designer paper

Stamps:

Amuse Father's Day

Papertrey Ink

Ink:

Versafine Black

CAS526 Birth Flower

2019-03-26T12:26:00.000-04:00

Hi!
Hope I don't shock everyone by popping back in with a card. I have made a few cards but since I went back to work, time is at a premium.

I couldn't resist this week's CAS Challenge (CAS526) at SplitcoastStampers. It's all about your birth month flower!

I've had this Year of Flowers set from Papertrey Ink for quite a while and have only linked up a few of the blooms so here goes:

I heat embossed the Lily of the Valley and the sentiment in white Wow embossing then colored in the leaves and flowers with colored pencils. I had some old acrylic paint so spattered some on the background...that's it.

Thanks for stopping in and be sure to play along!

Confetti Cookies and a Shaker Card

2016-08-19T16:38:00.000-04:00

Yay, it's Friday! I think that deserves a celebration.

Our oldest son raved and raved about these cookies over vacation. So naturally, I had to make them when we got home and I must say, they are absolutely delicious and pretty and happy and did I say delicious? Yep...all that with one very important caveat.

Do not under any circumstances use rainbow sprinkles from the grocery store. No, no, no. They have a weird taste and would ruin an otherwise perfect sugar cookie.

I went on a hunt for really good tasting sprinkles and I found them!

You will want to go to Nuts.com quickly...I mean like right now, because you will want to make this cookie right away, and order some. I just realized my review is at the top of the page! They are sweet and pretty and wonderful and and reasonably priced and come in a resealable bag and the coolest box evah! (and no, they did not pay me to say that!)

I was so pleased with mine, I sent some to our son (along with some chocolate sprinkles) for his birthday. Yeah, I sent him a check too. :)

He proclaimed them delicious and loved the surprise.

If you want to make the cookies, the recipe is here on the King Arthur Flour site. Please use real butter and full fat cream cheese and roll them in these fabulous sprinkles prior to baking.

I made a confetti card too! It's a cool shaker card in lots of bright pretty colors.

I used lots of tiny beads, glass rhinestones, and some smaller beads for lots of shaking fun.

To create the round shaker, I die cut two nesting circles from Fun Foam with my Spellbinders circle dies. I layered two of the circles to give plenty of shaking room for the confetti.

Here are the rest of the supplies:

Cardstock - Neenah 110 lb. and Papertrey Ink
Stamps & dies - Papertrey Ink Confetti Toss, Scene It Celebration, A2 Noted Die Collection
Ink - Amuse Pigment inks (LOVE!)
Other - Spellbinders circle dies, Fun Foam, beads, glass rhinestones, enamel dots, clear acetate

Celebrate the weekend and make some Confetti Cookies!

Thanks for stopping by!

Mojo Monday 459 - Love ya bunches!

2016-08-02T22:26:00.000-04:00

I haven't played in a sketch challenge for AGES... how did life get so busy?

At any rate, I wanted to make a card to send to our grandson...just because. :) It's so much easier to create when you have a sketch as a guide. That's where the Mojo Monday Sketch Challenge 459 comes in.

That child loves monkeys! He even had a monkey themed birthday party this year so I pulled out a really oldie but goodie Stampin' Up set called "Monkey Business", paired it with some gorgeous Graphic 45 paper and some odds and ends from different dies/stamp sets and this is the result.

I have a whole new respect for metal dies after fussy cutting that monkey! I switched the rectangle shape out for a circle. There's still time to play if you're feeling crafty.

Supplies:

Stamps - Stampin'Up Monkey Business, MFT Birds of Paradise
Cardstock - stash
Designer Paper - Graphic 45 Safari Adventure
Dies - MFT, Memory Box, Papertrey Ink
Ink - Staz On Ganache, Versafine, Hero Arts, Amuse
Misc. - foam squares, glue pen

Thanks for stopping by! Sure did make a mess on the desk with this one! :)

So happy for you

2016-07-20T06:30:00.000-04:00

Our son and his wife celebrated their anniversary this week. I did some speedy watercoloring with Distress Inks, added a quick die cut sentiment and a few sequins and done!

All supplies Papertrey Ink (Scripted stamps & die) except for watercolor paper, Distress Inks and sequins.

Congratulations!

2016-07-19T17:09:00.000-04:00

It's my favorite time of year! Peach season! We trekked up to Georgia and loaded the car with peaches to bring home to eat, freeze and share. Loving the way our house smells.

No peach themed project just yet but hubby needed a card for a male employee who just received a promotion so I was drafted to create one in company colors.

No stamping other than the sentiment. and the base swirls. All supplies Papertrey Ink except for the acrylic stars which came from my stash.

Thanks for stopping by!

Die Cut Birthday Wishes

2016-07-09T08:03:00.000-04:00

The talented Jennifer McGuire has a video using a partial die cut border technique. Her set of notecards was beautiful, so I set out to try it.

It was a lot harder than it looked! I just couldn't get the hang of the partial die cut border so I cheated and die cut the floral image separately and glued it down on the back of the white card stock. I think I got pretty close to the same look.

I spritzed the the background and birthday sentiment die cut with some Glimmer Mist for some subtle shimmer and instead of her stamped sentiment, I added a big die cut sentiment and butterfly.

Supplies:
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink, Strathmore Smooth white
Dies: Papertrey Birthday Wishes, Simon Says Stamp Calliope Flourish
Other: Martha Stewart butterfly punch, stick on pearls, Glimmer Mist

Thanks for stopping by!

Celebrate 100!

2016-07-08T06:27:00.001-04:00

Whew...it's been hot here but that's summer in the sub-tropics. I'll take that to snow...any day! :)

We have a sweet 96 year old long time friend who emailed and asked if I'd make a card for HER friend who is turning 100!

Yes, she does email! She doesn't see well and French is her first language but she handles that keyboard like a champ. She used to make Christmas ornaments for the grands every year until her eyesight got too bad for the tiny work.

Time was short so I totally cased a card by Danielle Flanders. I thought 100 years of life deserved a party on paper and I loved the happy colors on her card. I made just a few small changes.

Supplies:
Cardstock - Neenah 110 lb. Solar White, Gold- stash
Stamps/Dies - Papertrey Ink
Ink - A Muse Pigment Inks
Other - Sequins (Papertrey Ink), foam dots, Stick it paper, Crystal Effects

Thanks for stopping by! Stay cool!

Summertime, Birthday time!

2016-06-21T13:34:00.001-04:00

Our oldest son's family joined us at the beach last week for a fun time of wave jumping and exploring.

Our grandson celebrated his 11th birthday while we were there so I wanted to create a card that would remind him of one of the fun things he did at the beach.

That boy has no fear and this is how he spent most of the week...in and out of the waves. Snorkel and all!. :)

I heat embossed the waves before coloring and cutting.

Supplies:

Cardstock - Papertrey Ink, Watercolor paper
Stamps - Papertrey Ink: What the Doodle Waves, Sand Swatch Mini Set; SparkleNSprinkle: Summer Fun
Stencil - Papertrey Ink Sund & Surf Stencil Collection
Other - Tim Holtz blending tool, Hero Arts Shadow Ink, Copic Markers, foam dots, Crystal Effects

Thanks so much for stopping by! Hope you're having a great summer in the sun!

CAS373 - His & Hers Birthdays

2016-06-08T15:05:00.001-04:00

Summer is finally here. Hot steamy days, followed by booming afternoon thunderstorms are the norm. Warm balmy breezes, palm trees and walks on the beach fill the longer days. Perfection.

The rush of spring weddings has slowed and that means I can steal a few minutes for card making. My love is still CAS style. CAS373 on SplitcoastStampers was birthday cards. I say "was" because this challenge was from April! Thank goodness there are no deadlines! :)

Papertrey Ink Brushed Off Stamp Set and a simple change of color way and I have sets of cards for birthdays that can also be used for just about any occasion by simply changing the sentiment.

I used my favorite A Muse pigment inks and simply gave them a quick dry with my heat tool to set the inks. I just love the vibrant colors.

Stormy days mean terrible photo lighting!

Thanks for stopping by. Hope you get some time to run through a sprinkler or wiggle your toes in the sand this summer.

CAS375 - Wildflowers in the Wind

2016-05-05T12:29:00.001-04:00

Yay! I actually had time to play in a CAS (Clean & Simple) Challenge on SCS this week.

This week's theme CAS375 is Weddings & Anniversaries and since our youngest and his bride are celebrating their 3rd anniversary next week, the timing is perfect!

I used Rubbernecker Stamps "Wildflowers in the Wind" and a sentiment from Papertrey's Painted Petals

I fell in love with these gorgeous flowers the first time I saw them and just had to have them! It was so much fun to stamp them and the MISTI made the stamping so easy, I decided to make multiples using all kinds of different papers.

Now, when I'm in a rush with no time to create, I can just stamp a sentiment for everything from birthdays to sympathy cards and be done in no time.

Here's a list of the supplies I used:

Stamps: Rubbernecker Wildflowers in the Wind

Papertrey Ink Painted Petals

Ink - A Muse Pigment Inks

Cardstock - Papertrey Ink

Miscellaneous - Sequins, Crystal Effects

Thanks for visiting and be sure to play along...there's still time.

Masculine Birthday Card

2016-04-29T15:51:00.000-04:00

Our baby boy's birthday is tomorrow. He's a grown man now but to us...he'll always be our baby boy. :-)

That boy loves fishing more than anything else. He keeps a pole and gear in his car in case he happens to see a spot to put his line in for even a few minutes.

I just love this stamp from Flourishes Kids Play. I've had it forever and adore the simple yet beautiful silhouettes and sentiments.

To create the background, I first stamped the image onto a scrap cardstock circle, then I lined it up side by side with the circle I intended to use. I drew a light pencil line at the horizon mark so I would know where the sky ends and water begins.

I used my Tim Holtz blenders and Hero Arts Shadow inks to blend two colors each for the sky and water. (sorry, I forgot to write them down!) All paper Papertrey Ink.

After the blending was finished, I stamped the image in Versamark ink, sprinkled with black embossing powder then heat embossed the image, stamped the sentiment, mounted on the black circle and done.

I hope he likes it.

Have a beautiful day and thanks for stopping by.

Secret Garden & Giveaway

2016-04-01T13:53:00.000-04:00

Yes, I know...it's been awhile. The shop has, thankfully, been busy but it also means less time for being crafty just for the sake of being crafty.

I love, love making these little mini notebooks...lovely little spaces to write thoughts, prayers and all the things to be thankful for.

I broke into my Graphic 45 Secret Garden, PTI's Phrases and Praises, a bit of lace, some stick on pearls and a bit of sepia ink

The inside is important too...a gentle reminder...

a bit of encouragement...

and don't forget the back.

Oh, and the giveaway...a Xyron Creative Station. (sorry, only US please.)

Just tell me what you love to create. I'll pick a winner next Friday.