Procrastinating...

Since, so far, my HCCC card is a total fail I'm posting this card to tide y'all over until I create something that I'm not totally embarrassed to share :) The kids had all their paints out the other week and I had so much fun making this card that I quickly joined them at the craft table. I made a couple cards but I left them all without a sentiment so I could add an appropriate when I needed a quick card. I needed a fun, little pick-me-up card for a friend and I knew this rainbow bright card would be perfect with this sentiment from Inkadinkado. I tried adding some more elaborate embellishments but, in the end, went with this simple black and white baker's twine bow. I also smudged the sentiment when I stamped it (I did the same thing on the last card? Weird?) but fixed it this time by going over it with a black felt-tip pen. It's a little wonky but I think it worked out okay. Anyways, I won't give up on February's challenge card so stay tuned for that soon!! Thanks for stopping by and indulging my procrastination :)

Sweet, simple Love

Another wedding card - Yay!! I learned my lesson and kept things sweet and simple this time. Knowing the bride prefers things modern and funky over floofy and flowery made it a lot easier for me. I was tempted to add some more layers or twine and buttons but, in the end, decided to leave well enough alone. I ended up distressing the edges of the main panel to add a little somethin' and I was really happy with how it added a little extra without going over the top. And it's hard to see in the picture but I did stamp a sketched heart pattern on the kraft base with versamark shimmer ink which looked totally awesome in real life :) I've got a whole whack of birthdays coming up and I'm looking forward to making a bunch of cards for some awesome people! Now if my house would just start cleaning itself...

Paper, Ink and heart punch: SU!
Patterned Paper: Basic Grey
Stamp: Unity (sentiment) sketched hearts (Verve)
Distress tool and ink: Tim Holtz
Other: Versamark Shimmer watermark ink

Little Sister's Birthday

My sister-in-law turned 20 yesterday. When I started dating Pete, she was only 8.  C-R-A-Z-Y!!!
Anyways, I saw this card and knew right away that it would be perfect for my SIL. Unfortunately, I waited until the last minute to make it (story of my life?) and knew I wouldn't have time to stamp the background and so I used the yellow doily patterned paper (Basic Gray) instead. Once it all came together, I wasn't lovin' it so much. I think what I really liked about the original card was the pop from the modern geometric design. Or maybe it's the cool pinks on the mustard-y yellow? I don't know. I'm definitely going to try this one again with the hexagonal background and some different colours. I'll keep ya posted :)

A little Somethin' Somethin'

I needed a quick card for a bridal shower. It needed to be good because the recipient is a fellow cardy but, as per usual, I left things till the last minute and so was making this the morning of the shower. I had pinned this card and was going to try and replicate it but I didn't have any frames. I know I could've cut one out myself but I literally had 10 minutes to finish things up. So when I found the little somethin' somethin' stamp in my stash ( I think it's an old hostess set from SU!) I knew I had to use it and I went from there. Some stamped hearts (SSS Music 2 My Ears) and punched hearts (SU! patterned paper and punch) on a simple kraft base. I adhered the tag with some foam dots and tied on a teeny bit of floss and - DONE!! Even though it's different than what I had started out to make, I'm thankful for the inspiration that gave me a starting point to work with. And now I've got another great layout for the next time I need a card in less than 10 minutes because, let's be honest people, don't we all work better under a little bit of pressure? ;)
Happy stamping!

Home Ec Class

 A couple weeks ago I did a short Bible study on being an encourager along with a cardmaking class for our homeschool group's 'Home Ec' class. I had eight girls, aged 10-14, over along with some of their moms and big sisters. I did my best to channel my 'inner Margaret' (best demo ever!!!) as I showed the girls some cardmaking basics and, boy oh boy, did we have fun! Such a creative group of girls - I really loved watching them take the skills/ideas I showed them and then seeing them put their own spin on things. Since I knew some of the girls would be new to stamping and didn't want them to feel like they needed to own a huge arsenal of supplies to create cards, I created 2 projects using simple craft/recycled supplies.

The first card used small circles cut or punched from paper scraps and a simple sentiment. I encouraged the girls to use things like old magazines, kleenex boxes or pretty packaging instead of buying patterned paper. For my example card, I used scraps I had from My Minds Eye Dilly Dally collection. I love being able to use the smallest of scraps to make a great card like this!

For the second card I used my kids' poster paint and dipped the eraser from a plain old pencil into the paints to make the coloured dots. So fun!! Can you imagine all the awesome colour combos and designs you could do with this? The sentiment panel was a happy accident - I had originally stamped the sentiment directly on the card base...but smudged it. So in order to cover it up, I  re-stamped and embossed it on the turquoise cardstock and then taped it on with some washi tape that was sitting out on my desk. Love it!! Some of the girls even stamped the sentiment using paint, which looked a-ma-zing!
 Anyways, it was super fun doing this class with the girls - and the cleaning, organizing and prep I had to do totally got me back into stamping mode!! Double bonus :) Anyways, I'm hoping I won't lose my momentum and will keep making time to create cards and encourage others. A simple card is such an easy way to let someone know you are thinking of them, praying for them or grateful for something they've done. I think cardmaking is such a great hobby because as we enjoy creating cards we can also bless others as we give them away. So simple and yet so cool. I'm working on a set of cards to give to some older widows in our church whom I know have a hard time with these long, dark, winter days. A little bit of sunshine in an envelope :) Maybe you know someone that could use a little pick-me-up? Send them a card! Happy stamping!
"Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing." 1 Thess.5:11

Sparkly snowflakes

 December didn't include very much card-making for me this year. In fact, I only managed to squeak out a measly two cards - one for a wedding and one Christmas card. That's right folks, I only made ONE Christmas card this year. Somehow we all still managed to survive. And, I'm thinking, that things can really only go up from here, right? Anyways, both cards were snowflake-themed and used some new stamps in my stash, so that was pretty fun. The first card, for the wedding, turned out okay. I used their wedding colours, blue, white and silver, but I think I may have gone a bit overboard...

 

...it just seemed a little 'busy' to me. I used snowflakes from Bo Bunny's Powder Mountain set

and embossed the largest one in silver.  The sentiment is from an old Unity kit of the month and 

worked out pretty swell because, unbeknownst to me, the bride really likes U2 :)

 I dry embossed the navy background panel with snowflakes and rubbed white ink over it, which really made the snowflakes pop, but I think it kinda overdid things. If I made this card again, I would definitely leave the embossed navy paper alone.

Onto my most favorite card...maybe ever!? This was the sole Christmas card that was made this year and, boy, did I love it! :) I'm definitely tucking this design away for future inspiration. The hexagons and sentiment are from Simon Says Stamp's Holiday Apothecary Labels, a super cute set that is not only good for Christmas but all kinds of sweet wintery cards. I was drawn to the set because of its' versatility...and the cute matching dies that go with it! I have to say, these are my first SSS stamps and I LOVE THEM! They pick up ink really well, stamp a beautiful image and have the feeling of my favorite red rubber stamps - but are CLEAR! Definitely excited to add some more SSS stamps to my arsenal in the future :) I added a touch of glitter to the snowflakes that gave the card just that little extra something and finished it with some hot pink baker's twine. Super fun card to make!

I cleaned up my stamping desk earlier this month, which has definitely inspired me to get more creative and inky again. So, hopefully, I'll be back soon with some more cards to share. Thanks for stopping by! xo

Keeping up with the...Hoogkamps?

 This place has been quiet for far too long! The addition of a sweet little pumpkin to our family seems to have seriously affected my crafting time and put all my creative energies on hold :( Never fear though! At the nagging insistence kind encouragement of my dear friend, I am determined to get back into my stamping groove. I looked back in my folders and since Katie's birth, I made a grand total of 7 cards. That's one card per month - not so good. I hereby declare to at least double that from here on (I know, I'm not overly ambitious but I've learned it's better to keep my expectations low. That way I don't disappoint myself and am constantly exceeding my hopes. Win - win!!). So here's the card I made in June. I think it was a thank you card for someone...but I honestly can't remember. That's what happens to me when I only get 4 hours of interrupted sleep at night - all my cognitive thinking goes seriously downhill. I got the "Rosie Posie" stamp set from PTI in the spring and this was the first time I'd pulled it out. I had my eye on it for the longest time and, let me tell you, it did not disappoint. I can't wait to play with this set some more!! So here's to more card-making, more sleeping (are you reading this Katie? I'll send you the memo.), and more craftiness in The Scrapyard again. Can I get a 'What?!What?!'

Stamps: Rosie Posie, Signature Greetings (PTI), Musical Background (Unity)
Paper and Ink: SU!
Punch: Decorative Label: SU!