Monday Montage #164

Happy Mother's Day!! I know I am a day late and a dollar short ... but sometimes that is just how it goes!! I'm really getting to a point where I really miss people! I talk to people on the phone or FB or whatever every day ... but it's just NOT the same!! I miss seeing my friends and family ... I miss HUGGING ... I miss just the basic human interactions we have all taken for granted! I am so blessed to have so many wonderful people in my life. I will be so happy when we can do things a little bit more "normally" ... which may take a while. I am grateful that this whole COVID-19 pandemic has taught me to be so grateful for so many things! And I'm grateful that I have been forced to slow down my life ... something I hope to be able to hold on to! And with all that said ... welcome to Monday Montage!

This is the card I made for our moms for Mother's Day. It seems I always do some sort of "bouquet" on cards for Mother's Day because it just fits, doesn't it??? I added a little bit of Old Olive with my Aquapainter in the background ... it doesn't show up much in the photo, but I'm really loving all the things I've seen with a bit of watercoloring!

Stamps: To a Wild Rose, Abstract Impressions (sentiment)
Paper: Blueberry Bushel, Mango Melody, Balmy Blue, Old Olive, Blackberry Bliss, Whisper White
Ink: Blueberry Bushel, Balmy Blue, Mango Melody, Old Olive, Mossy Meadow, Rich Razzleberry
Accessories: Wild Rose Dies, Stitched So Sweetly Dies, Whisper White Ribbon (retired), Rich Razzleberry Velvet Ribbon (retired), Subtle Embossing Folder

Here's a blog roll just in case you get "stuck" trying to hop around ...

Monday Montage Hoppers
Amy O'Neill - Amy's Paper Crafts
Breelin Renwick - Craft-somnia Momma
Cathy Casey - Sugar Shack Designs
Charlet Mallet - Painted Orange
Cheryl Curtis - Pomp and Sustenance
Dani Dziama - Dani's Thoughtful Corner
Elizabeth Price - Seeinginkspots
Julie Warnick - Julie Warnick Stampin' Up! Blog - NOT PARTICIPATING THIS WEEK
Melissa Stout - The Stamp Doc
Wendy Weixler - Wickedly Wonderful Creations - YOU'RE ALREADY HERE!!

After an 8-mile run this weekend, I am feeling pretty good! I'm still amazed that I am actually a "runner" ... never thought I'd end up calling myself that EVER!! I will never be fast, but I love being outdoors and doing something that I know is good for me! Listening to books, podcasts, music or just NATURE is great!!

Click "Next" to see what Amy O'Neill ... and "Back" to check out Melissa Stout ... can you say AWESOME???

Flowers for Mom

I think daisies and lilacs are my most favorite flowers. The smell of lilacs just sends me back to my childhood (we had oodles of them in our backyard!)! Plus ... they just smell DIVINE, don't they??? And daisies?? Well dang, friends!! Daisies just make me plain ol' happy! Which is what inspired me to make these cards for my mama and mother in law for Mother's Day.

True confession ... I haven't used a non-Stampin' Up set of ANYthing to make a card in, like ... FOREVER!! My bestie, Cheryl, made a card with this set from Simon Says called Folk Dance (and I didn't actually use the stamps from the set, just the background and sentiment dies). I also realized that I NEEEED to buy me the large (and small - as soon as it is released in June) Daisy punches from Stampin' Up. I resorted to cutting these daisies out with my Cricut (to the rescue!!)! The paper, inks and flower center embellishments are all from my Stampin' Up stash!


Stamps: Itty Bitty Greetings
Paper: Whisper White
Ink: Melon Mambo, Petal Pink, Mango Melody, So Saffron
Accessories: Simon Says Folk Dance Dies, Cricut Daisy, Classic Label Punch, Perennial Essence Floral Centers

Same card, different color scheme. I honestly had these creations in my head before I started ... and they came out as nicely as I had them pictured. That almost NEVER happens!!

Stamps: Itty Bitty Greetings
Paper: Whisper White
Ink: Gorgeous Grape, Highland Heather, Mango Melody, So Saffron
Accessories: Simon Says Folk Dance Dies, Cricut Daisy, Classic Label Punch, Perennial Essence Floral Centers

TOMORROW is the Ogden Half Marathon for me!!! The weather forecast is showing some rain, so I am gonna carb up tonight and bring all my wet weather gear for tomorrow! Wish me luck!!

Fab Friday #137

Hooooooly COW!!! I can't tell you how EXCITED I am!!! I finally placed my Stampin' Up catalog preview order this week! I don't want to fess up to how much I spent, but let's just say I "bought the farm"!! I can't WAIT for my box to arrive (it will be coming TODAY, actually!)! In the mean time, I got to play with the new "Apron of Love" bundle for this week's Fab Friday challenge.

What is NOT to love about teeny-tiny little aprons??? I mean ... SERIOUSLY?? I have a feeling that this set is going to get used a LOT in the next year or so by ME!! I totally LOVE it!! And I'm happy that I was able to make a fun little Mother's Day card for my own sweet mama. I am so grateful to have her in my life ... many blessing have come her way in the past couple of years as far as her health is concerned. YAY!

Stamps: Apron of Love
Paper: Basic Black, Whisper White, Powder Pink, Pool Party, Whole Lot of Lovely DSP
Ink: Basic Black, Powder Pink
Accessories: Apron Builder Framelits, Basketweave Dynamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, Polka Dot Tulle Ribbon, Rhinestone Basics

caaaaYOOOOT!!! Right???!!??









Here's a link to the Fab Friday Challenge Blog so you can play along:

Fab Friday Challenge Blog

Check out the Fab blogs of my fellow Fab Friends:

Mindy Backes
Cindy Beach
Heather Heroldt
Brian King
Amy Koenders
Justin Krieger
Amanda Mertz
Brenda Myers
Jan Tinklenberg

I am looking forward to a weekend filled with sunshine, good food and time spent with family. These are the BEST kinds of weekends, don't you think???

Mamas, Friends ... and Freaks!

Happy April, my friends!!! Welcome to another go-round with the Control Freaks!!! This month we are making projects that you can give to your mother or to a friend.  LeeAnn Greff ... did you just come from her blog???? She can mail me her projects ANY time!!

Remember SEVERAL years back when these double-fold cards were all the rage??? Don't know WHAT made me think of these as I sat down to create ... but I decided I wanted to make some ... because they are so much fun!!!

Stamps: Flourishing Phrases
Paper: Whisper White, Early Espresso, Melon Mambo, Pink Pirouette, Pear Pizzazz
Ink: Early Expresso
Accessories: Woodlands Textured Impression Embossing Folder, Botanical Buildings Thinlits Dies, Project Life Tags & Labels Thinlits Dies, Linen Thread

Here's the same sort of card ... just flipped horizontally.  I had forgotten how much I loved making this style of card "back in the day" ... it was great to revisit ...

Stamps: Flourishing Phrases
Paper: Whisper White, Early Espresso, Peekaboo Peach, Pear Pizzazz
Ink: Early Expresso
Accessories: Woodlands Textured Impression Embossing Folder, Botanical Buildings Thinlits Dies, Project Life Tags & Labels Thinlits Dies, Linen Thread, 3/8" Burlap Ribbon

Next up???  ... my brilliant friend, Cindy Elam!! She makes the most beaUTIFUL things, doesn't she???

Fun with Some Sneaky New Products for Mother's Day!

What a weekend!!! Was so grateful to spend Mother's Day with my own mama and mother-in-law, as well as some of my daughters friends, my daughter and one of my sons (had to settle for a Skype session with my oldest son who is having a WONDERFUL adventure in China at the moment). My daughter had ACL reconstructive surgery last Thursday, so I have been in FULL-ON Mom Mode ... doing all the things that us mama's do best when our "littles" (even if they have grown into "bigs") need help recuperating. It's been great having her home and being able to spend some one-on-one time with her! Makes this mama happy!

So .... I pulled all of the goodies out of my preorder box that I received from SU on Thursday. I feel I hit the jackpot with the Floral Wings stamp set ... I guess I didn't "get it" when I saw the picture of it in the catty ... I am SO IN LOVE with it!!!! So happy to have it in my collection! Thought it was a PERFECT set to make Mother's Day cards for my mamas!!

Stamps: Floral Wings
Paper: Mint Macaroon, Tip Top Taupe, Whisper White
Ink: Mint Macaroon, Tip Top Taupe, Watermelon Wonder
Accessories: Bold Butterfly Framelits (New), Butterfly Thinlits, 1" Dotted Lace Trim (Top Top Taupe), Venetian Crochet Trim, Bitty Banners Framelits, Fun Frames Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, Project Life Corner Rounder, Linen Thread, Pearl Basics

After a few more days of nurse-maiding and running my daughter to and from PT appointments, I will be leaving toward the end of the week to fly to Reno with MY mama to watch my niece graduate from college!!! SO proud of this girl!!! Never a dull moment around here, I swear!!

Monday Montage #19

Helllllooooo Monday Montage Friends!!! So glad that you are able to join us!!! Can't believe we are on our NINETEENTH blog hop together!! Man-oh-man how time does fly!!

Today I'm sharing the cards I made for my "moms" for Mother's Day ... I was actually taking a nap (something I NEVER get to do!!) right before I sat down to create these ... and to be HONEST I was only HALF sleepin' because I kept trying to lay these cards out in my head the WHOLE time!! Kept telling myself, "You GOTTA get up and get those cards made!!" Hahaha ... I also seem to slightly remember dreaming about having a HUGE argument with my son ... whom I am not even REMOTELY peeved with ... and I can't even REMOTELY remember what we were arguing about in my dream ... so there ya have it.

The part I kept dreaming about the MOST was the background ... I knew I wanted to created a "subway art" sorta look with a bunch of different things, so this is what I came up with!!

I opened up my trusty ol' MDS software and pulled in two square punches, which I ten proceeded to resize to 3.25" x 4.5" and 4.5" x 3.25". I left the punches "empty" ... I just needed them as a frame of reference for size. I then proceeded to do searches in MDS for words that I knew would work on this background ("mom", "love", "family", "happy", etc.). Needless to say, there was a LOT to choose from. Yes, my name is Wendy and I AM an MDS addict!! I then proceeded to drag my words into my punch boxes (which were now actually RECTANGLES) so that they would be nicely arranged when I printed them out. I colored all of the words Crumb Cake. Once I had finished all that, I deleted the punch boxes (rectangles?) so that they wouldn't print out (they were just gray, so I didn't want them showing up!). Ta-DAAA!! That's all there is to it!!

Here is my second one, which is the "90-degree-flip" version of my first one (couldn't have my moms get the exact SAME card, now could I??)

Stamps: Petite Petals, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Crumb Cake, Whisper White, In Color DSP, Maritime DSP
Ink: Real Red, Calypso Coral, Crumb Cake
Accessories: Petite Petals Punch, 1 3/8" Square Punch, Word Window Punch, Real Red Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon, Burlap Ribbon, Paper Distressing Tool, Sewing Machine
MDS (My Digital Studio) Downloads: Holiday Blitz ("my mom"), Greatest Moments II ("you & me"), Moments Ago ("family" and "moments"), Hooray for Today ("fabulous friend" and "amazing"), Family Fun Photobook ("together", "happy", "remember", and "fun"), Amped Up Ampersands ("love"), Compilations of Recipes ("always"), Convention 2012 ("oh so fabulous"), All Time Fave ("the best")

Click "Back" to check out Melissa Stout and her wonderful creation, and/or the "Next" button to see the fantastic Amy O'Neill!

Artisan Wednesday Wow - 05/08/13

Hello, again, Artisan Wednesday Wow followers!!! How GORGEOUS was the project made by my fellow Artisan and SUPER talented friend,Sarah Sagert?? She is a-MAZ-ing!!



The stamp-y goodies we received for this month TOTALLY lend themselves to making tributes for our moms and dads. So ... this week I am showcasing a card I made for my own sweet mother for Mother's Day ... Nothing super fancy or intricate ... just a simple bunch of flowers. And because she is my mother and she loves me, she wouldn't care WHAT this card looks like ... she would love it even it were drawn with a thick black sharpie. (She has previous Mother's Day cards I have given her still displayed in her china hutch and on her dresser in her bedroom ... a fact that does NOT go unnoticed by me. It makes me happy each and every time I see them!) Yay for moms, right??

Stamps: Best of Flowers, Amazing Family
Paper: Primrose Petals, Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla, Print Poetry DSP
Ink: Primrose Petals, Raspberry Ripple, Crumb Cake
Accessories: Perfect Polka Dots Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, Raspberry Ripple Stitched Satin Ribbon, 1 1/4" Square Punch, Large Pearl Basics, Sewing Machine

Next up? The ever-fantastic Amy Bollman!! She NEVER disappoints!

For the Moms ...

This year, I made the same card for both of my moms for Mother's Day (I usually try to change it up a bit, but being as I had just gotten back from Disneyland and was on borrowed time, I just made two of the same thing ... good thing they will never know!)!

Stamps: Bordering on Romance, Family Reunion
Paper: Wisteria Wonder, Pear Pizzazz, Whisper White, Vellum
Ink: Whisper White Craft, Wisteria Wonder, Concord Crush, Always Artichoke, Pear Pizzazz
Accessories: Whisper White Embossing Powder, Large Oval Punch, Framelits Labels Dies, Elegant Lines Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, Beautiful Wings Embosslits Die, Wisteria Wonder Ruffled Ribbon, Pearl Basics

I am sooo grateful that both moms are out of the hospital and on the road to recovery. Best Mother's Day present, ever!! Sooo nice to have my boys home, too. We had a great family dinner together ... lots of food, laughter and CHOCOLATE (I swear, my family is trying to fatten me up!!)

Cherish Your Mother's Today ...

I am sooo blessed to have my mother in my life ... so many of my friends have already lost their mothers. I can't imagine a world without her in it ... or my mother in law, for that matter. She is so NOT the "wicked mother in law" ... kind, sweet and loving in every way. Both women are such beautiful examples of everything right in the world. I couldn't feel more lucky.

I made my moms these cards for Mother's Day. After having completed one, I realized I needed to run to the local scrapbook store to acquire another pearly-blingy sticker thing. Arrived there only to discover that they had used every single stinkin' one like the one I wanted for some kits for a class they were doing. What the heck???? Why didn't they SAVE me one???

Soooo....I had to readapt the design a little to work with the second pearly-blingy sticker thing I bought (and I can't for the life of me remember who made this second one ... I threw the packaging away and have already emptied the little garbage can in my craft room ... not gonna go dig through the big trash can outside, either!)!

I am also soooo grateful to be a mom myself ... my kids are the biggest challenge, yet the biggest blessings I could ever imagine. Motherhood has been the greatest thing I have ever attempted to do ... love you, Devan, Garrett and Amelia!!

And if you missed it, here a link to a tutorial I did on how to make those big paper roses:

Paper Punched Flowers Tutorial

Stamps: Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Whisper White, Cherry Cobbler, Pear Pizzazz, Peach Parfait, Paisley Prints DSP
Ink: Cherry Cobbler
Accessories: 1" Square Punch, Large Oval Punch, Elegant Lines, Elegant Bouquet and Perfect Polka Dots Textured Impressions Folders, Fancy Flower Punch, Rolled Roses Die by My Favorite Things, Zva Creative Pearly-Blingy Sticker Thing (and a second one by unknown company), Cherry Gingham Ribbon, Double Loop Border/Corner Punches by Martha Stewart

Look Ma ... NO STAMPS!!

I just had to share this project with you, as I am SOOO excited with how it turned out! (Even though there isn't a SINGLE stamped image ANYwhere on it!!)

Many of you know that I recently helped my mom move from her house (can you say 40 years' worth of STUFF??!!??) to a beautiful condo only a couple of minutes from my house (hooray!). In the process, I found a lot JUNK, but I also found several little treasures ... among them were my grandmother's button jars (full of sooo many wonderful keepsakes) and a jar that had a dried rose from my grandmother's casket).

The rose was VERY delicate. In fact, it was nothing but a pile of petals and leaves. I bought some high gloss spray stuff (made by Krylon) and sprayed some of the petals and leaves. They are still REALLY fragile, but at least I was able to handle them a little bit. So, what you see here is a photo of my grandparents surrounding by Grandma's buttons/treasures and some of her rose petals and leaves. This is all put together in a box frame, which I opened to take this photo because of the glare I kept getting from the glass.

The best part? I now have something special and meaningful to give my mom for Mother's Day ... I'm SO excited!!

And ... by the way ... I have not only found my video camera, BUT I have also found my AC adapter so that I was able to plug it in and charge it. Soooo .... yesterday I went and bought an SD card to use in it, so now I am ready to go to make a video tutorial for y'all on the black magic technique ... it should be up in the next couple of days, if I can finish the rest of my Mother's Day projects!!

Hugs to All!!

Today is a Palindrome!!

Check it out, friends ... today's date - 01/22/10 - is a palindrome!! It is the same forward and backward!! So, as today's Limited Supply Challenge over on SCS (for which I am the hostess!), I chose to ask everyone to create a card full of palindromes. Use a sentiment that was a stand-alone palindrome (like "MOM"), or at least one that had a palindrome IN it!! Plus, background paper, Cuttlebugging, etc., had to be symmetrical - a mirror image of itself - in order to be a palindrome, too!! Stripes, polka dots ... you name it!! There really are more options out there than ya think!!

So, this is what I came up with!! It was super quick and easy! LOVE it!!

Stamps: Women of Life by PTI
Paper: Basic Black, Pink Pirouette, Whisper White
Ink: Melon Mambo
Accessories: Small oval punch, Cuttlebug Emily's Bouquet embossing folder, whisper white organza/satin ribbon, rhinestones

And a little PSA (Public Service Announcement) - this is a two-parter - first of all, I did NOT forget about sharing photos of other things I do for organization in my craft room. I am workin' on it!! I hope to have some photos to take with me to CHA this weekend that I can share with ya (if I can finding some working internet!). AND, since SO many have asked, I am creating templates for the little boxes I made for the Control Freak Blog Tour in the last post I put up (on Tuesday). So, stay tuned ...

Happy Friday, everyone!! I'm off to CHA later today with my darling daughter ... can't wait!! :)

Happy Mother's Day!!!

I big wide WONDERFUL hug to all you moms out there! If you aren't a mom, HUG a mom!! They totally deserve it today!!

As promised, here is another hinged card (see tutorial HERE). As you can see, I also used Patty Bennett's wonderful watercolor rose technique again as well! I made this card for my own dear mother. She is truly one of the most selfless people I have ever met. Truly a "one-of-a-kind" mother. She loves roses, too, so I know she will like this card (oh yeah . . . and the hand-dipped chocolates I bought for her as well!)!

Hope y'all have a wonderful day!! Hugs and smiles to all!!

Stamps: Fifth Avenue Floral, Bella Toile bg, One of a Kind
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Shimmery White, Cameo Coral, Barely Banana
Ink: Cameo Coral, Summer Sun, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White
Accessories: Clear embossing powder, EK Success Parisien border punch, D'vine Swirl Cuttlebug embossing folder, chocolate chip corduroy brad, chocolate chip taffeta ribbon, pop-up glue dots




And here is my mom's card with the hinge open . . . this is fast becoming my new favorite type of card!!