Two Cards - The Same, but Different

I like to make one-of-a-kind cards. I craft one and then move on to the next rather than making 2 or 3 the same. First of all, I get bored too easily and, second, that way each card is unique. Having said that, both these cards were made using the same paper - "My Mind's Eye Wild Asparagus". I figured, since I had all the paper laid out, it made sense to do both at one time. The white paper doilies are a nice accent for cardmaking and can be used in a million different ways. Both of the "mother" quotes are from the same line of Wild Asparagus papers which are aptly titled "Mother Plaid". The weather today fooled me - it's all bright and sunny but when I went outside, it felt like November. Hurry back, Spring!

Have I had a day off?

It seems lately that I have been working much more than I have been playing. I thought the adage was that the older we get, the more spare time we have. I'm not buying that.

I spent the day yesterday at the Creative Sewing Festival in Toronto (http://www.cnsf.com/) where, despite the name, there were lots of scrapbooking vendors selling their wares. Of course, I had to buy many of those wares, not because I needed them but because they were there. The show was packed and doing a good business.

This card was made with "imaginisce" papers which are very rich with an old-fashioned feeling. The papers are double-sided so you can get plenty of different looks from them. I hope to be back at the cardmaking later this week with some new posts to follow. Thanks for looking!

Baby Girl Card

I made this pretty card yesterday - all bright and frilly for a little girl. The papers are all from "Basic Grey" and the dress and pants were cut from Cricut "New Arrivals" cartridge. I took the picture on my newly cleaned-up-for-spring balcony. The patio furniture is up and ready to go and the Christmas lights are finally down. Don't you just love days like this?

Square Cards

Lately, I am really into the square cards. I think I feel like they give me a bigger work space than do the rectangular ones although that theory is probably just in my head.

Mother's Day is our next big "holiday" so I have been busy making cards for moms. This was made with "Bo-Bunny's Back to Backs" paper and I love how the papers complement each other. The red gingham ribbon is some of my favourite and a great deal that I picked up at Michael's for $1.49. The "M" is chipboard covered with paper and then I used various flowers and brads to pretty it up. I have started to use a lot more flowers on my cards. I just find that they are the perfect accent no matter the theme. Have a great spring day!

Spring Has Sprung

What a gorgeous day it is out there today. I saw my first robin yesterday so I hope this means winter is far behind us. The only problem with all the sunshine is that it shows how badly my windows need cleaned...but that's for another day.

Keeping with the theme of sunshine, I made this thank you card out of some white embossed Doodlebug Designs paper then added some rub-ons for the "Friend" and the black squiggly. The centres of the flowers are two big, silver brads. I think the card turned out really bright and cheery.

I somehow ended up at the scrapbook store today and brought home some great new papers I can't wait to try out. I'll get busy tonight and the dirty windows will just have to wait.

Inside and out

This is some very pretty paper from "Flair Designs" that, honestly, I thought was wedding paper. By pairing it with some dotted paper by "daisyd's", it becomes just a nice flowery pattern and works well for a birthday. I always try to decorate the cards both inside and out so that the recipient gets a little extra surprise when they open the card. The quote is by HOTP which I ordered from an on-line company called Paper Wishes (www.paperwishes.com). I have been in somewhat of a buying frenzy lately with big plans to start a family heritage album. Love the projects but need more time!

Finally...some new photos

I have been so busy these past couple of weeks that I haven't had time for anything. Today is cold, windy and rainy so what better day than to stay inside and make some cards. This is an Anniversary card that I think is pretty but kind of fun rather than formal. The paper on top is by "Two Busy Moms" and the bottom paper is some scrap that I had laying around. I used lots of decorative brads just to make it interesting and cut "love" with Cricut. Which reminds me - Michaels is having a big sale on Cricut cartridges so I must get over there and stock up. I always wonder why they are so much more expensive in Canada than the U.S. but then I wonder about a lot of things that don't make much sense......

Big Cat

When I dug this paper out, it reminded me that I hadn't used my Cricut Animal Kingdom cartridge for awhile. The shapes on this cartridge are so cute but do require some work to get them looking a little more 3-D. The photo does not really do the card justice...again, my picture-taking disability rears it ugly head...but it is cute, nonetheless. This card would be perfect for a child's birthday or for someone like me who likes cats of all sizes.

Could it be?

Both the cats adore looking out the window into the backyard. What a difference a couple of weeks makes - you can actually see some grass there now. Could it be that spring is not far off???

Another Baby Card

Here is another baby card done with some "Daisy D's" paper and Cricut lettering. Blue and green is a pretty combination and perfect for a new little boy. I used rub-ons for the sentiment at the bottom and the swirl at the top and a black gingham brad in the centre of the flower. It's my cat's birthday (Kona) tomorrow and he will be a big boy of 7. Happy Birthday, Kona!

I always wonder when people make cards if they have a plan in place before they begin or if they just do like I do - willy-nilly straight into the project and see what happens. I think a bit of pre-planning might be less time-consuming in the end...I'll have to try that sometime.

Now that the lights are back on.....

Now that we can all see again, I am back to my cards. This is a pretty "thinking of you" card that could be used for almost any occasion. I picked up some lace ribbon at the $1 store and added it to the bottom of this card. The $1 store has some amazing deals, particularly on ribbon which I find can be an outrageous price in some of the scrapbook stores. Hope you like!

Saving the Earth

I hope everyone did their part over the weekend during "Earth Hour". I was working during the event but we did manage to get some of the lights and appliances turned off as you can see in the above photo. Every little bit helps.