Holiday Ornaments - FMS566

 

I love this adorable suite of images, dies and paper called Deck the Halls from Doodlebug Design.  The card came together quickly with Narelle's sweet sketch.  Key word here for this time of year....quickly!

I feel like we are rounding third and headed for home in our holiday preparations.  Most of my cards are finished and in the mail, the tree is up, the house is decorated and packages are wrapped.  So far I have enjoyed myself.  Now comes the part I don't enjoy......the cooking, the baking and the food prep.  You know that game we all play and ask others what would you do if you won the lottery?!?!  My answer is always the same.....hire a chef!

Narelle has a great sketch for us this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Hope you join us!

Waiting for Santa....FMS 565

 

I am old no doubt about it but I still remember the days I believed in Santa.  I totally identify with these two critters searching for that man in the red suit!  Every Christmas Eve my dad and I would go hang out at an upstairs hall window for a while searching the skies for Santa.  We lived in the country so unless it was a cloudy night we had no trouble searching the stars for a flash of light that I would be sure was Santa.  At some point one of us would see a flash or a streak and I could go to bed convinced Santa was on his way!

It's a busy time of year for sure and I am still making holiday cards but I can see the finish line!  But oh the shopping......hoping Santa steps in and helps me out....

Karren has a great sketch for us this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Hope you join us!

Stamp Set: On The Lookout (Colorado Craft Co.)

Paper: Basic White, Storybook Gnomes and Santa Express

DSP

Ink: Memento Black, Copics

Holiday Wreath - FMS564

 

I did some Christmas Shopping in the LL Bean catalog yesterday before I started my card - can't you tell?  Yes I spent time - and money - in the flannel shirt department.  Nothing like a warm flannel shirt for winter - and nothing like a beautiful red plaid for the holidays!

Cecile's sketch is as sweet as can be this week!  Hope you join us at Freshly Made Sketches!

Stamp Set: Cottage Wreath

Ink: Evening Evergreen, Cherry Cobbler, Versamark

Paper: Basic White, DSP

Die from Simon Says Stamp

Snowflakes - Lawn Fawn

Fusion: Christmas Chalkboard

 

This was such a fun card to make!  I used the sketch and photo for my inspiration and used words and images from about a dozen of my holiday sets.  I smooshed things a bit to look like a chalkboard and added a pop of color.  Done!  And unfortunately.....so is Fusion.....

 Lesley Croghan started Fusion several years ago and I thought then what a great idea for a challenge - so many ways to be inspired.  When she handed the reins over to the very talented Karren Johnson I was honored to be asked to join the DT.  It has been a wonderful experience.  Karren's sketches and photo choices provided so much inspiration!  

But things seem to be shifting out here in the netherworld as I call it.  Challenge blogs aren't as popular as they once were.  So we are closing the doors here at Fusion but individually we will still be creating and posting on our personal blogs.  Many thanks to all of you who have participated or commented or just browsed the gallery over the years. Hope you join us one last time. Wishing you all the best as we enter this holiday season......

Have fun with Fusion this week - I did!  

                              

Holiday Snow! FMS563

 

Who says Fresh Freesia is only for Easter cards? I love an unexpected color for the holidays!  A few well placed die cuts made this card come together in no time.....because my time will be taken up by some pie making today.  I always volunteer to make the pies - way more fun than roasting the turkey!  

I love Jen Brum's sweet sketch this week!  Hope you join us at Freshly Made Sketches!

Stamp Set: Snowman Magic

Paper: Fresh Freesia, Basic White

Ink: Shaded Spruce

Stay Warm!

 

A sweet cup of hot chocolate definitely takes the chill off of a wintry day!  As I type this Buffalo, NY (about four hours west of me) expects three to five FEET of snow today and tomorrow.  Now that's a snowstorm!  The storm will drift northeast so we will only get a few squalls now and then.  But a hot cup of cocoa or coffee or tea will get you through the storm......along with boots, snow tires, shovels, parka, scarf, mittens, fireplace.....you get the drift.....

Squeezing this card in just before the end of the Coffee Lovers Blog Hop for Fall/Winter !

Stamp Set: Snowman To Go (Unity Stampa - which I won in last year's hop!), Newton's Candy Cane (Newton's Nook)

Paper: Basic White, Storybook Gnomes

Ink: Memento Black, Poppy Parade, Copics

Time for Holly.....FMS562

 

Just some more CAS stamping going on here in my craft room!  And I stamped without a net - meaning just inked the images up on blocks and went for it.  The holly is very forgiving!  Multiples are my nemesis so I try hard to keep them simple when I have to make them.

Every January I say I am going to make two Christmas cards a week ........ and every year I never do....sigh...

I love how perfectly the holly boughs worked with Kim's sketch!  Hope you join us at Freshly Made Sketches!

Stamp Sets: Joyful Holly, Cherish the Season

Ink: Shaded Spruce, Poppy Parade

Paper: Basic White

Fusion: Gingerbread

 

How could I not have a gingerbread man in my stash?  Sad but true!  So I went with the mugs and colors from the photo.  Perhaps the fact that I am a huge fan of hot chocolate also came into play....

I was inspired by both the sketch and the photo this week at Fusion!  Hope you join us!

Stamp Set: Cup of Cocoa 

Paper: Basic White, Celebrate Everything DSP, Gingham Cottage DSP

Ink: Poppy Parade, Memento Black, Copics

Easy As 1-2-3! FMS561

 

It is that time of year when Christmas card making takes over my craft room.  I went old school in my design - basic stamping to create my three elements with DSP providing the backdrop.  Simplicity is key for me this time of year!

                                                  

It is always fun to host at Freshly Made Sketches.  And I am always amazed at how many wonderful ways cardmakers interpret a sketch.  Hope you join us!  I would love to see what you create!

Stamp Sets: Time of Giving, Snowman Magic, Happy Holidays (Doodlebug)

Paper: Basic White, Storybook Gnomes DSP

Ink: Memento Black, Poppy Parade, Balmy Blue, Shaded Spruce, Copics

Holiday Greetings - FMS560

 

Yikes it is November - time to get serious about those Christmas cards!  I decided to use some fancy metallic and flocked vellum to make a batch of holiday cards using Jen's great sketch.  The sketch is perfect for using up a stash of  holiday DSP!  And this time of year I am happy to let the paper do the heavy lifting!

The flocked snowflakes photographed much better than the silver foil ones of course!

                                      

Jen Mitchell always rocks the square sketches!  Hope you join us at Freshly Made Sketches!

Stamp: Sentiment from Simon Says Stamp

Paper: Basic White, Polished Pink, Celebrate Everything DSP, Designer Vellum Silver and Flocked

Ink: Versa Mark

Fusion: Thanks Strawberries

 

In case you were wondering who works in the back room of the candy shop dipping all of those strawberries in chocolate......well now you know!

I used both the sketch and the photograph for inspiration this
week.  Hope you join us at Fusion!

Stamp Sets: Milk and Cookies, Berry Special, How You Bean - Lawn Fawn

Paper: Basic White, Berry DSP, Poppy Parade

Ink: Memento Black, Copics

Handmade Hugs.....FMS569

 

I like to have a few beachy cards on hand for my friends and family who head south for the winter. The images and paper from the Textured Chic Suite worked perfectly for a beachy scene. The shells on my card are trimmed with gold foil that is just my nemesis to photograph!  

In the meantime we are still enjoying a beautiful fall up here in the North Country and spent last night watching Emma's final soccer game......oh it gets dark so early now! But it was a beautiful fall evening and Emma scored two goals!

Have fun with Jen Timko's great sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!

Stamp Sets: Season of Chic, Crafty Strips (TE)

Paper: Texture Chic DSP, Distressed Gold Foil, Soft Succulent, Basic White

Ink: Soft Succulent

Soft Seedlings....FMS568

 

I am still in fall/leaf peeping mode ...... not much time left to enjoy the colors because the leaves are always all down by Halloween.  I love the set Soft Seedlings and stamped my image in Crumb Cake over blocks of fall color.  I used Post It tape to to create the squares and then applied the colors with blender brushes.  Easy to do  but I admit I hold my breath when I peel back the tape!

Our camp is tucked in behind the beautiful yellow and red trees in the middle of this photo.  My son was standing down by the lake when he snapped this.  Summer is fun up there but Fall is just gorgeous!

Can you spot Corduroy hiding in the grass?

I actually stayed true to Jacquie's great sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!

Stamps: Soft Seedlings, Sentiment from The Ton

Ink: Crumb Cake, Distress, Versafine Black

Paper: Basic White, Happy Forest Friends DSP

Fusion: Kitchen

 I was definitely inspired by the inspiration photo with its beautiful trail of leaves in that gorgeous white kitchen. I layered all the colors using distress inks and a new stencil set from Taylored Expressions.

It's been a beautiful fall here!  My son and I recently took a short hike with the pups up to Hope Falls

Pepper loved it!

And my son's two pups were asleep the minute we got back to camp!

I used the sketch and the photo for inspiration this week at Fusion!  Hope you join us!

Stamp Set:  Happy Harvest (Taylored Expressions)

Stencil: Falling For You (Taylored Expressions)

Ink: Distress

Paper: Basic White, 

 

Fall Harvest....FMS567

 

The local vegetable stands are almost empty here as the colder weather arrives.  It's all about pumpkins and mums now.  So I decided to break out one last wagon full of vegetables!  The images are from a retired SU! set called Grown With Love.  I colored the images with SU! markers which enabled me to use different colors for the vegetables and wagon parts.  Ancient technique but fun to do with images like these. 

So many options with Judy's great sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Hope you join us!

Stamp Set: Grown With Love

Paper: Basic White, Basic Black, Cottage Gingham DSP, Crumb Cake, Real Red

Ink: Memento Black, Stampin' Up! Markers

Hocus Pocus.....FMS566

 

My Halloween card today might have been inspired by Miss Emma's birthday party!  Hocus Pocus was the theme of her party this year and it was the perfect fall night to celebrate

After pizza and s'mores on the patio it was time for the main event. Thanks to modern technology and Disney's release of Hocus Pocus 2 the girls enjoyed the main event on the big screen!

                                       

I love Amy's great sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Hope you join us!

Stamp Set: Cottage Wreath, A Spooky Day (Picket Fence)

Paper: Basic Black, Basic White, Rustic Harvest DSP, Fresh Freesia

Ink: Versafine Black, Milled Lavender Distress Ink, Memento Black

Ghost Stencil from Newton's Nook