It's Really Spring(at least on the calendar!)

Yes today is the first day of Spring. Last week the weather was beautiful, my heart lifted and I was sure spring was here.  Today it is 33 outside and the wind feels icy!  But I am still glad that it is spring. The daffodils are blooming and many trees are flowering.

I just returned from Charlotte where Spring is a little closer. The Bradford pears are blooming and daffodils and crocus are everywhere.

As a child growing up in central Florida we didn't have daffodils, crocus and tulips and as a result I always have been fascinated by them.  The first time I read "The Secret Garden" I was enchanted by the description of all the shoots of the spring flowers pushing up through the soil. I have loved spring flowers since then.

I also am in the mood to make spring cards, and Easter stuff although(as always) Easter is sneaking up on me again. I just love this new frog stamp set I got. It was a cheap no-name Easter set that I got on sale at Hobby Lobby but I just love the little frog. I painted him with markers and a water pen like AmyR did over at Prairie Paper and Ink 

 I am very happy with the card. The other two stamps were from the set and I used the same method with them.

This card is just a Springtime card with some new butterfly paper from the Paper Studio. 

Hope you like looking at my stuff. I hope to be putting stuff on Etsy soon but it has been a long time since I tried that.

Have a Happy First Spring day and stay warm.

The Ice is Going

 Thankfully the ice is beginning to melt. My van was encased in an armor  of  silvery ice last night and everything was very still here..  This morning it all has started melting so we will be free to come and go.

Last night I made a couple of cards but I also just piddled with my art stuff. It is a great thing to do.  I looked at papers and opened lots of boxes with no idea what I would find inside.  It was peaceful and inspiring and is good thing for any crafter to do once in awhile.

I am revamping my blog but cannot get things to work right. I can't make the left  side of the background move over closer to the center and I can't get the blog title to be in the right space. That is not soothing at all but  I will work on it more later.

Here is my card for the 3-2-1 Challenge over at CDAC.  The image is by Priscilla Styles and she  has some nice ones so check her out. The challenge is to make a card with:
 1 Flower  2 design papes  3 Bling
There are 3 rhinestones on the butterfly.

This card is made for a special little boy who is undergoing Chemo and loves to get mail. Yes it is the same little owl  stamp and paper from their new Happy Days Paper pack at Paperwishes/Hot Off the Press that I just love. I am not usually a big fan of bright colors but this pack is just perfect!. Plus all the papers are double sided.

Well hope everyone has a great and warm weekend. Stay away from ice!

No, it's not an old post!

From the above card it looks like I am confused as to what month it is. But I am not that confused these days. My second challenge over at CDAC is for a seasonal card and since it is still winter I thought a Christmas card was appropriate. I have been wanting to make a card from this image anyway. I love the kewpies and how cute they are with the reindeer. I think I got this image off a blog but I am not sure which one. I colored them using Tombow markers and a blender pen and a stardust gold pen.

I have begun to make myself do one creative thing a day(which does not include cooking) to train myself to do it naturally again. I have been amazed at how much crafting other people get done and how little I do these days. So I am trying to make it a habit again.  Sometimes I just color digi images but that inspires me to make a card with it the next time. It is important for us to experience creativity of some kind I think. It makes you look at the world differently. It  helps you to calm your mind and be soothed from too much of a technological world.

Anyway this card is for a color challenge over at the Paperwishes message board.  I just got this Hot off the Press owl stamp and I love him.  He will be showing up quite often.

Well I am off to babysit 2 of my granddaughters and of course make crafts with them. The 1 year old made a valentine by putting stickers on a heart. She is well on her way to becoming a great crafter.  Have a great day and stay warm!

I had nearly decided to give up on blogging but I like it too much. I am joining a group that does cardmaking challenges and I am hoping it will keep me focused on crafting.  It is snowing here today, the first snow this season and a really wet one.  I love when the  snow is big and fluffy.

Here is a pic out my window over the computer. I did have to lean out to take it!

The first card is for the CDAC challenge and it is a digi from Shelly.

The second card is just a card I made with Bo Bunny paper that I just got.

The third is using my new bird stamp.

The last one is a baby card made from Paperwishes supplies.

Hope everyone has a great week!

Fall

Fall is Here Again!

I guess I get excited about Fall because growing up in Florida we didn't get spectacular fall color like we do here in Tennessee.  Not that there are not fall changes in Florida, there are, but they aren't really exciting.

I love when the leaves change, the colors are so gorgeous! But I love the crisp cool air and the sky so blue it seems unreal. I always want to hug fall to myself and never let it go.  I even like it after the leaves fall.  All the way to the first day of winter I enjoy the fall. And then it is gone again and the dreary days of winter come in to stay!

But today I am not thinking about what will end.  I am embracing the beauty and comfort of the season, the feel of nostalgia in the air, the smell of leaves burning, the inner longing to cook and bake and create and the need to see my whole family.  I want to spend time with the people I love most in the world. 

"All the earth is filled with His Glory..." (Isaiah 6:3) seems to sum up Autumn completely. I can see God's creation in all it's glory everywhere I look.

Have a great week and enjoy this time of year!

Candy Winners WCMD

We have 2 winners!!

The winner of the Halloween Blog Candy is:

Ms Pat

And the winner of the Christmas Candy is 

PennyD

Please send me your addresses and I will get the prizes in the mail asap!!

Thanks to everyone who played along and left nice comments. Check back in the next month as I hope to give away more! Have a great week everyone!

World Cardmaking Day/Paper Wishes Blog Hop

Paper Wishes Blog Hop and Red Robin Lane "Blog Candy Giveaway!!"

Welcome to the Paper Wishes*BLOG HOP - we are so glad you are here to help us celebrate World Card Making Day! Some card making day trivia for you:

Today, card making is a worldwide hobby, especially popular in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
1 in 6 U.S. households participates in making cards
86% of scrapbookers also create handmade cards
92% of paper crafters create cards more than any other type of project
Be sure to check out all the blogs in this blog hop, as well as visit the Paper Wishes message board*as there are lots of things going on there today, all sponsored by Paper Wishes, with some great prize packages! You don’t want to miss a chance to win!
To win a prize package of Paper Wishes products: leave a comment on ALL THE BLOGS by noon, Eastern time on Sunday, October 7 and a random drawing will be done to choose the winner.
So on with the fun – it doesn’t matter where you start the blog hop, just see where you are on the list and make sure you visit them all and leave some sweetness behind!
Participants:
Penny

Nancy 

Michelle

Patti Prince

Robin -----you are here

Jackie

Cheryl

Sam

Here is my card using Paper Wishes Supplies:
This year's theme for the blog hop is gardening. I chose the
Typeset Layered Papier Tole (the center flower)

as a highlight on my card.
This is a great set of flowers that have a real Vintage look and you can mix and match the different ones any way you want. 

I used the Noted Paper Pack(it is double sided) and the wonderful Washi Tape that I am really loving.Paper Wishes has a lot of beautiful papers and embellishments as well as stamps. I really love their stuff and am happy to tell others about it.  They are also very generous with prizes.Thanks for stopping by and don't forget to leave a comment on all the blogs for a chance to win!

And now for even more giveaways!

And for all of you who read my blog I am giving away my first ever blog candy.  I am giving 2 different prizes, a fall prize and a Christmas Prize.  All you have to do is leave a comment here by Sunday October 7 at 10:PM.  I will randomly pick a winner for each prize and announce it Monday the 8th at Noon.

Here is the Fall candy and it includes:

Large sheet of embossed Halloween stickers

Pack of 10 black scalloped cards with envelopes

Halloween die cuts

Fabric covered spider web brads

Here is the Christmas Candy and it includes:

5 Pack Red glitter cards with envelopes

Set of 16 clear stamps

Twinkle pack with brads and Christmas ribbon 

Thanks for stopping by our blog hop and Good luck!