John 10:27

Just finished this bible illustrating and journaling this morning.

My sheep listen to My voice;

I know them, and they follow

Me.  I will give them eternal

life, and they will never

perish.                     John 10:27

In this verse, Jesus is telling us that He is the Shepherd and we are the sheep.  What does it mean to “follow” Jesus?

Webster’s Dictionary tells us that “9, to take as a model; act in accordance with; imitate; 10. to accept authority of; obey.”

Webster also tells us that a “follower (a) a person who follows another’s beliefs or teachings.”

When you ask Jesus to be your Lord and Savior, you are committing to Him that you obey and will be a “follower” and will “follow” Him all the days of your life. In order to imitate Jesus and to follow His teachings, we must study the Bible.  How else will we know what His teachings are? It is not enough to say “I believe.” We must read the Word, take it into our hearts, and act upon it.

Thank you for stopping by.

Blessings,

Annie

Easel Card - Modified

Hello again, stampers,

My card for today may or may not have a style name.  I couldn't find one, so I'm calling it a modified easel card.  I saw a similar one in a group on FaceBook; however the posting lady didn't know the name either and didn't have any directions.  So right there I had a new challenge!  I experimented with a couple of different sizes, and then finally decided this size is the one I like best.  Measurements and supplies are listed below the card photos.

Solid Light Yellow Card Stock

            *4” x 10 ¼ ”  -   Scored at 4 ½ ”, 9”

            *3 5/8” x 3 5/8”

            *Plus small scrap for stamping the Birthday Daisy image and punching small flower.  Cut out

              the daisy image.  Use 3D tape for mounting.

Solid Green Card Stock

            *Small scrap for stamping the image a second time.  Cut out only the center of the daisy.

            *Small scrap for die cutting the leaves

Decorative Paper

            3 ¾ ” x 9”

            3 ½ ” x 3 ½ ”

Rubber Stamp - Stampendous:  Birthday Blossom #F182

Die - Memory Box:  Sturdy Stem #98996   

Two Brads to match decorative paper.

This card is really quick and easy.  I hope you will give it a try.

Blessings,

Ann

Birthday Card for a Fisherman

Whew, what a busy morning card making!  I saw a card on Pinterest (my thanks to whomever created it) that inspired me to make it because it is just what I needed for my Pastor's birthday.  He is quite a fisherman so hopefully this card will be a hit with him as we celebrate his birthday on Sunday with cake and festivities.  The stamp set I used is from Stampin' Up called By the Tide.

The sentiment that I put on the left side of the inside card added just the right touch.  The stamp is from Our Daily Bread Designs called Fishing and the sentiment says,

"There is certainly 

something in Angling 

that tends to produce a 

Serenity 

of the mind.  

Washington Irving."

Blessings,

Annie

A Very Special Congratulations Card

What a lovely afternoon here in Wenatchee!  I hope you are enjoying these beautiful summer days.

I was commissioned to make a card for a gentleman member of the Moose Lodge.  He received the honor of earning the Pilgrim Degree of Merit, which I understand to be a very high honor.  I incorporated the emblem in the design of the card which I think made a nice touch.  And I just couldn't resist putting a small moose on the front of the envelope.  Since the colors of the emblem are red, yellow, and white, I chose those colors of card stock, and then added some black to hi-light.  Sure hope the requesting party likes it.  What do you think?

Thanks for stopping by.  Happy card making!

Blessings,
Annie

Banner Strip Card

Hello everyone,

Being a bit overcast ouside today led me to make some cheerful time inside.  So - card making is the name of the game.  I really like this Banner Strip card because when you lift the little banner strips, there is a secret message behind.  I also added a white card stock layer to the back where I could stamp a regular message, add a note, and sign my name.  Let me know what you think!

Here are some directions for you.  Hopefully they are easy to follow:

Recipe:

Green card stock panel 4 ½” x 5 ¾”

Orange card stock panel 4 ¼” x 5 ½”

Pattern paper panel 4 x 5 ¼”

Orange card stock banner 4 ½” x 1”

White card stock banner 3 ½” x 7/8”

Additional Materials:

Sizzix/Hero Arts Stamp & Die Cut Set – Floral #657776

3 Small Sentiment Stamps

Martha Stewart Leaf Sprig Punch

¾” Square Punch

Paper Cutter

Tape Runner

Glue Bottle and Glue Pen

Small Ruler and Pencil

Jewels

Extra Green CS for Leaves

Extra White CS for Stamping

Big Shot

Distress Ink Pads – Tattered Rose, Barn Door, Fired Brick

Black Ink Pad

Directions:

1.         Attach PP to orange panel.  Set aside.

2.         With the orange banner strips, score at ½” on one end of each and fold.

3.         Make a notch on the other end by lining the punch at an angle to form a notch.  Punch the other two plus the 3 white banner strips.

4.         At approximately ½” from the left side, stamp a different sentiment on each of the white banners using a black inkpad.

5.         On the assembled panel on the right side, make a tick mark 3/8” down from the top of the PP and another tick mark 3/8” up from the bottom of the PP.

6.         Glue the orange banners one at each tick mark and the third centered between the other two.

7.         On the inside of the orange banners, glue the white sentiment banners about 1/8” from the fold.

8.         Punch 7 leaves from the green CS.

9.         Using the large and small flower stamps, stamp one set on white paper using each of the 3 inkpads.

10.       Die cut with the Big Shot.  Lightly curl up the petals.

11.       Working on the left side of the card with the banners laying flat in place, put glue on only the bottom ¾” of a small flower and glue it to the PP.  The ¼” top of the flower should overlap the first banner at the bottom of the banner.  This will hold the banner closed.

12.       Put glue on the center portion of a large flower, between the second and third banners, and glue it to the PP, leaving the top and bottom petals loose.  This will hold those banners in place.

13.       Glue the remainder of the flowers and the leaves as shown in the sample.

14.       Attach the jewels to the center of the flowers.

Until next time.

Blessings,

Annie

Scalloped Punch Topper Card

Hi card makers,

Today I'm featuring the Stampin' Up Scalloped Tag Punch.  I wasn't really interested in purchasing this punch until I saw pictures of cards using this punch posted on Pinterest.   Well, I saw some great cards and now I own one of these punches.  So thank you to whomever the SU person is who came up with idea of using the punch in this way.  I love it!  It's really very easy and quick to make, so I hope you'll give it try.  Here's the card I made using this punch.  Directions are after the picture.

Blessings,
Ann

Scalloped Punch Topper Card

1.  One CS 5 ½ x 8” – Green

2.  One CS panel 2 ¼ x 5 ⅛” – Blue

3.  One CS panel 2 ⅟16 x 4 ⅛” – White

4.  One scrapbook paper 4 x 5 ½“ – coordinates with green and blue

5.  Blue Ribbon – 14 inches

6.  Dew Drops – 5 matching green

7.  One die cut from the blue – Spellbinders Shapeabilities Die D-Lites – Tiger Lillies

8.  Scallop Tag Punch – Stampin’ Up

9.  Guide marks for punch – 1 ⅟16”

 1.                       •                   •

                     ß Measure in from sides and mark at 1 ⅟16” in on

                         •                     •           both sides and at both ends.  Scallop Punch slides

                 in here:   á      Make sure the punch fits exactly between the marks.

2.  Cut off side pieces at top and bottom, leaving only the tab.

3.  Slide a scalloped punched end into the paper trimmer, from the right to the left.

4.  Score the tag.

5.  Next, score at 4 ⅛”. 

6.  Add scrapbook paper to inside – MAKE SURE THAT THE TAB CAN LAY OVER

     SMOOTHLY AGAINST THE CARD.

7.  Adhere layers.

8.  Cut the die using the blue CS, adhere it, and add Dew Drops to the center of the flowers.

Tools:

Paper Piercer

Small cutting scissors

Double Stick Tape or Tape Runner

Glue for holding embellishments secure

Ruler

Pencil

Paper Trimmer

Small Martha

Bone Folder

Scalloped Tag Punch from SU 

A Dahlia and More

This birthday card is the perfect combination for my friend

who loves Dahlias and music.

 

Using the Dahlia stamp from Stampin' Up's "Regarding Dahlias" set, I stamped on a light melon-colored card stock using clear embossing ink and heat embossed with white embossing powder.  The Dahlia was stamped two times, and then colored with Copic markers:  E13, R22, YR04, and RV52.  I cut out one complete Dahlia and then just cut out the center portion of the second Dahlia and mounted with mounting tape.  Next, tiny pearls were added to the center of the Dahlia.   

The leaf is from a Hero Arts set called "More Real Leaves."  I stamped the leaves with Distress Ink Evergreen Bough, then I lightly sponged them with the same color ink and also Distress Pine Needles. After I cut out the leaves I darkened the edges with the Pine Needles ink, and then finished off by slightly curling up the leaf tips. It's a nice way to add some depth to the leaves.

To make the background panel, I printed sheet music from Pinterest, used a distressing tool on the edges, and then embossed with the Tim Holtz Woodgrain embossing folder.

Pine Needles ink was used on the distressed edges of the panel and lightly sponged over the Woodgrain embossing.

The card base is white, 5 1/2 x 4 1/4.  The panel is 4 3/4 x 3 3/4.  You can find the music clip art on Pinterest here. 

This was a really fun card to make and I'm really loving this stamp set!  Thanks for stopping by.

Annie

Sketch Card – Red Flower

Rain and snow yesterday - sunshine today.  Spring has got to be just around the corner.  So flowers are my theme today.  Bright red flowers.  I made this card from a sketch I saw on Pinterest.  This is what I was inspired to do for my card.

Here are some step-by-step directions in case you want to make one of these . . . or just use your own mojo! 

    

1.         Fold the white card base, set aside (8 ½” x 11”).

2.         Stamp a small flourish element stamp 6 times on white card stock with black ink and cut out 

            each one.

3.         Using a small strip of white card stock as a base, line up the 6 flourish squares to it,

            aligning along the bottom of the strip, then glue/tape them in place.  You may need to 

            trim off a bit.  Set aside.

4.         Stamp a flower on  red card stock.  Shade the flower with PrismaColor pencils: #PC925

            Crimson Lake, PC1029 Mahogany, and PC939 Peach.  You can use a Germany (blender) to

            blend the colors.  Set aside.

5.         On the bottom part of the card base, mat a piece of black card stock (4 1/8” x 4 1/8”), 

            leaving the right top unglued.

6.         Mat red checked card stock on top of the black (4” x 4”).

7.         Glue/tape the flourish strip approximately ½” down from the top of the red checked layer.
            Trim if necessary.  Set aside.

8.         Next, using the Garden Circle Die - JustRite Dies, die cut it from black card stock.  The die
            cut a round piece of red patterned paper and glue it to the back of the center of the Garden
            Circle die cut.  Glue the assembly to the card as shown in picture.

9.         Taking the red flower in hand, lightly roll up the edges of the petals.  Add Flower Soft to the
            center, and then glue to card.

10.       With a distressing tool, distress the edges of the small script rectangle; edge the rectangle with
             a sponge and Bard Door Distress ink; and then tuck it under the top of the black mat at the
             top right.  Also, tuck in a couple of little red punched elements.

11.       On the left upper area of the card, glue the “hugs” which was die cut from the (KaiserCraft
            Decorative Dies, Comfort Pack.

12.       Add jewels or Dew Drops to the bottom left side of the card as shown in the picture.

I hope you will give it a try and let me know what you think.

Blessings,
Annie

Peek-a-Boo Card

Good morning friends,

Today I am sharing with you a new-to-me fold, called the Peek-a-Boo Card.  I saw this card on Pinterest and immediately knew that I had to try to make it.  I can laugh now, but at the time of the failure of my first try I felt nothing but disappointment. Whaaaa!  But . . . I saw what I had done wrong and jumped right in to try again.  I searched until I found video instructions and give credit and a big thanks to Norma Lee.  You will find her video at the end of her printed instructions.  Just for fun, see if you can find my mistake on the first card.

 If you didn't catch my error, then let me give you a tip.  Be sure to die cut your ovals properly spaced.  😄  Hope you are challenged to give this fancy fold a try.

Blessings,

Annie

Triangle Joy Fold Card

Greetings friends,

Another cold day here in Wenatchee, Washington.  But also a perfect day to stay inside and enjoy card making.  Today I tried a new fold called Triangle Joy Fold.  The Triangle Joy Fold is quite different from the regular Joy Fold card.  It was brought to my attention by a challenge in a stamping group I belong to.  The sample tutorial that was given to us was in centimeters.  Although I translated the script to English, the measurements were still in centimeters.  Luckily I have a great centimeter ruler so the directions were quite simple to follow.  The card is 15 x 15 centimeters which is just under 6" x 6".  I'm going to try my hand at making a 5" x 5" using measurements in inches.  I think it would be fun to have a smaller version.  For now, here's the card I made for the challenge, in centimeters.

Here's the link where you can find directions:  my thanks to Stempeleinmaleins Blog.  Thank you for stopping by today.  Hope you are staying warm and cozy!

Blessings,
Annie

Triple-Tier Slider Card

I just finished making the cutest card (not in the bragging sense)!  I love it!!!!  Can you tell I'm excited? The coffee theme stamps were so fun to use and the slider mechanism is awesome. I couldn't have done it without using a tutorial I found at Dawn's Stamping Thoughts.  Ms. Dawn, thank you for your wonderfully, easy-to-follow tutorial.

Here's my version of the card:

I used Stampin' Up Gorgeous Grunge for the background, using Distress Ink Brick Red, Tea Dye, and Broken China.  This is really a fun card to make.  I hope you'll give it a try.

Blessings,
Annie

Comforting Others in Times of Sorrow

Hello friends,

This is not the kind of card making one likes to do during the Christmas season.  Sadly, my church needed some sympathy cards, and one for me, too, as a dear member of our church family just passed on.  Rather than purchasing store-bought cards, my church orders from me and then donates a sum for each card to my church library ministry account. Making greeting cards for my church is a wonderful way to make my library budget stretch just a bit further and also a way to serve my church family.  So, I just thought why not share with you all what I've been busy doing lately.  I pray that these cards will in some small way show love and caring thoughts to the deceased sweet family.

Blessings,
Annie

Remember These - Glass Slide Mailers?

Class time is coming around next week so I'm busy getting card ideas and kits together.  A while back I found a couple of packages of glass slide mailer folders that I had stashed away.  What a surprise - had forgotten that I even had them.  I used to do a lot of altered art but had really gotten away from it.  So I thought why not put these to use in a card - but what do I do, how do I go about it!  I didn't find much of anything to give me inspiration, actually nothing at all, so this is a totally "winging it" card.  And using Graphic 45 paper is always awesome!

 The red base card opens so you can add a Christmas sentiment inside.  Hope you like it.

Blessings,
Annie

Glass Slide Mailer Card

1.  Fold the card base and round the corners; lay aside.

2.  Emboss the green card stock with Elegant Dots; attach to card base; lay aside.

3.  Slide mailer – color all edges with the black marker.  On the inside color the center of the slider so that the cardboard won’t show after you attach the decorative paper; set aside.

4.  From the green dots paper, cut one panel to fit inside the glass slide pocket; glue or tape in place.

5.  With the red plaid paper, cut three panels – 1 ½ x 3 ¾ inches.

6.  With one of the red plaid paper panels, cut out the center of it using the smallest die from the A2 Matting Basics A.  Attach this panel over the glass slide pocket.

7.  Attach the other two panels to front and on the left inside the slide mailer.  You may need to trim a bit.

 8.  Cut out three ephemera from the G45 paper.  Tape or glue one to the front, one to the left inside, and mount one in the pocket on the right.

9.  Using Glossy Essentials to attach the slide mailer to the center of the embossed paper and the red Dew Drops to each of the four corners of the embossed panel.

 Supplies:

Black permanent ink marker (slanted tip)
One rubber glove (for use with the black marker)
Mounting Tape
Pencil
Scissors
Glue bottle or pen
Glossy Accents
Double-stick tape or tape runner
Corner rounder punch
Paper trimmer
Four red Dew Drops (or similar item)
One slider mailer
Two designs of complementary decorative paper (I used G45 Christmas paper – small red plaid and green dots)
A quarter sheet of green card stock
8 ½ x 5 ½ inches red card stock for card base, folded
Stampin’ Up embossing folder – Elegant Dots
Spellbinders Dies – Resplendent Rectangles; and A2 Matting Basics A

Out of Africa

Card making today was a birthday card for my pastor, who just made a mission trip to Uganda, Africa . . . which gave me just a perfect time to use some of my African design stamps.  More importantly, of course, was the team's opportunity to minister to so many children at the orphanages. Being inspired by a card that I saw on Pinterest at Cards by Teresa, I also got to use a technique that I haven't used in a long, long time. 

I started by cutting a 3 1/2 inch circle from a piece of scrap card stock to make a mask.  Next I cut and folded an 8 1/2 x 5 1/2 inch white card base.  After taping the mask in place, with Distress Ink Squeezed lemonade, I sponged the entire circle. Then while leaving a bright spot in the middle, I sponged around it with Distress Ink Dried Marigold.  I finished the outside edge of the circle with Distress Ink Ripe Persimmon. 

Rather than using a solid image stamp, I chose to us an open image for an entirely different effect.  The image was stamped with Ranger Archival Ink Jet Black.  For a final touch I used foam tape to mount the sentiment.  The dotted paper you see behind the card actually isn't part of the card -- just used to make the white card stand out. 

Wishing you wonderful hours of stamping!

Annie

Color Wash Backgrounds

Good afternoon, my paper crafting friends,

As often happens in early spring, I start cleaning out the cupboards and storage places.  And, almost always, I find something that I haven't used for a very long time.  The found object is the inspiration for these cards and this blog post.  Long before spray washes were so popular, Stamp Zia (Zana Clark) had created a color wash that was packaged in little bottles - without a spray nozzle.  I used them a time or two and then put them on the shelf.  Sound familiar?  Well, needless to say, my cleaning cupboards quickly came to a halt and I sat down and started playing with my "new" old toys.  Here are a couple of the final results.

Stamp Zia is now out of business, but Ranger has wonderful color washes, (with nozzles LOL).
The Ranger craft mat is perfect for this technique.  After spreading it out, I poured onto it a drop of three colors, followed by misting it with water.  Next, take a quarter sheet of white water color paper and lightly touch the ink with it, moving around to cover the whole paper.  You can blot off the extra water or just leave it.  Use a heat gun to dry both sides of the paper - it will curl then flatten out.  Once dry, I used a small paint brush to randomly brush on Pearl EX powder.  I used colors to match my color wash colors, but any complementing color should look good. I used Memories black dye ink to stamp the images.  On the green card, Clear Wink of Stella was brushed onto the black flowers and leaves.

The measurements for the blue card are:
8 1/2 x 5 1/2
Score at 2 1/8 inches and 4 1/4 inches.

May you have a gloriously blessed day!
Annie

Another Fun Class

Hello stampers and paper crafters,

At my class last week, I took us back to stamping images for our cards - just taking a little break from the die cuts except for the little bird, and also used embossing powder.  It was really fun to stamp and cut out, and actually be involved with making the images for our cards.  I'm not giving up die cuts by any means, but stamping was a creative boost that I needed.  Here are the three cards that we made.

This card is actually four layered panels on the card base - starting with the top panel it is a white panel, striped paned, white panel again, and polka dot panel.  I think it would make a great masculine card.  The die cut bird was mounted over the stamped leaf branch.

For this card I downloaded a music background from Pinterest.  You can find it on my Pinterest board:  Ann Lancaster - Clip Art.  I stamped the Dahlia two times on pale salmon card stock and embossed with white embossing powder.  They were colored with Copic Chrome Orange #YR04 and shaded with a bit of Light Suntan #E13.  I cut out the center petals of the second image and mounted it over the whole dahlia piece.  The leaves were also stamped and cut out - stamped with Distress Pine Needles and sponged with Distress Evergreen Bough.  The music panel was embossed with a wood grain embossing folder and edged with Evergreen Bough.

On this card I used handmade paper for the background panel.  On the brown rectangle panel I used Scrapbook Adhesives E-Z Runner White, placing three strips of the tape and covering with glitter.  It holds the glitter wonderfully and you don't even have to press the glitter down - just sprinkle on and shake off.  To make the jewels match the olive green layered panel, I used a circle hand punch, attached the punch outs in place, and then attached the jewels over them.  This is a great way to make jewels match your color scheme.

Well, I hope you picked up a few handy tips for your card making.  Have a great time creating!

Blessings,
Annie

Cold Shot

Cold shot is a term used by snipers.  You make the shot without a practice shot first.  Chief Park Ranger Griffin McCray of Gettysburg National Military Park knows all about cold shots, as he was formerly a SWAT team sniper.  Therefore, when Griffin was called to a crime scene in the park at Gettysburg, along with Finley Scott, a forensic anthropologist, they were able to determine that an expert sniper killed the victim.  Also called into the case are two of McCray’s three best friends from college days – Declan Grey an FBI agent and Parker Mitchell a crime scene analyst.  However, the third friend, Luke McCray, brother of Griffin McCray, had mysteriously disappeared after the tragic death of his and Griffin’s sister.  Their world – and their friendships – crumbled.  Each of the group realized that if they were going to be able to work together and solve this case, they were going to have to confront the dark days of the past.  Little did they know that their investigation would lead them to the mysterious disappearance of Luke.

The plot of this story has a lot going for it.  I really liked the action and suspense and how the author led us through the collection of clues and tied them together. What I did not like is the author’s weak attempt to add to the story a budding romance between Griffin and Finley.  I mean how could this woman, Finley, – all at the same time – 1. be fearfully shaking in her boots,  and  2. so overcome by Griffin’s closeness and manliness that she could hardly breathe from the excitement of standing next to him?  These romantic notions seemed to be randomly thrown in and did not add anything of merit to the story.  It was the same with references to God and faith – just thrown in so it could be called a Christian fiction book.  Not!

Bethany House Publishers provided this book to me for free in exchange for an honest review.

A Special Valentine Card

Hello again, friends!

I had a special request from my pastor to make a valentine card for his wife.  Of course, I said yes, but, me oh my, could I do justice for the occasion.  I wanted to make something that was feminine and a bit elegant. Thankfully, once I got started it all fell into place.  I was happy with the result, Pastor was happy, and hopefully Pastor's wife will be, too.

Here is what I used:  background panel - Sizzix Textured Impressions Dots & Flowers Set;

layered motif:  Spellbinders Shapeabilities Lacy Doily Motifs; hearts:  Spellbinders Nestabilities Classic Hearts.

Happy Valentine's Day to you all!

Annie

Hearts-a-Plenty

Hello again friends,

I just got back from the gym and need to take a little rest break.  So I thought what better time than now to enter my next blog post showcasing two of the cards we made at my last class.

The first card is a case from Pinterest. I couldn't resist because I'm just smitten with the Impression Obsession Heart Flourish.  I also loved those little tiny flowers, made with the Impression Obsession dies Spiral Flowers and Leaf Cluster.  To make it suit my fancy, I used a different border punch (Stampin' Up hearts border) and added red card stock under the punched border.  I also decorated the inside of the card by adding red strips to both inside panels and decorated them with the punched out white hearts created by the border punch.  A big thank you goes to Kittie Caracciolo for inspiring me to create this card.

 This second card has kind of an old-fashioned look which I love.  The ribbon overlaying the decorative paper (which has raised embossing on it) has an embroidered flower design with sequins attached.  Not sure how well it shows up in the picture but it's really pretty.  It originally was a wired ribbon, but I removed the wire to make it lay more smoothly.  To hold it in place, I used 1/8" Red Line Tape (can use Score Tape), on both sides of the ribbon and over to the back side at top and bottom.

I die cut the "love" heart from red card stock using the Savvy Die Love Heart #10061 and backed it with white card stock.  For the final touch, I punched two sizes of small hearts and then added white floss to one of the larger ones.  All of the hearts are adhered with mounting tape.

Well, that's it for today.  Thanks for checking out this post!

Blessings,
Annie

Glaze Background Technique

Hello again!

Today I have a technique to tell you about that is new to me.  I've done this technique before using alcohol inks and distress inks  and also Luna Lights.  But this time I used Golden Glaze, an artist medium.  I normally use it on pages when I'm making an altered book.  The product I used is a slow-drying, water-based acrylic with a satin finish; colors - Violet Earth, Sea Foam Green, and Fresco Cream.

On a piece of grey card stock, I randomly poured about 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of each color.  Using a Tsukineko Squeegee (a credit card is a substitute), I smoothed the colors over the card stock, lightly blending as I covered the whole panel.  You may need to add a bit more of one color or another, to your liking.  Keep in mind to not over blend or your colors will become muddied.  Lay aside to dry or if the piece is not too damp, you can dry with your heat gun.  Next, I lightly sponged Memories White Dye ink over the entire panel.

Once dry, I embossed it with Tim Holtz wood grain embossing folder.  The leaves were made using Impression Obsession Leaves die set.  Give it a try and let me know if you liked the technique!

Blessings,
Annie

Fun With TeePee Cards

A couple of my stamping friends introduced me to the TeePee card a few months ago.  This is something I have wanted to try since then but just no available time.  So after sitting on the back burner for a while, I finally got one made.  I also was shown a great video with easy-to-follow directions.  In case you haven't seen this particular video, I'm passing the link on to you.  My thanks to Debbie at The Crafty Pad Designs.  Here's my version of the card:

Hope you'll have some fun with this.  Until next time!

Blessings,
Ann

Fold-Back Flap Card

Good morning, blogging friends,
It is no surprise I have had hearts on my mind recently.  All the stores have their Valentine's Day displays up and hearts are everywhere.  But I was thinking hearts I don't want to just use my heart supplies for one event during the year.  Why not work them into any kind of occasion card? So with this in mind, this card was created:

It's a very quick and simple card.  Below are a few instructions to get you started.

Fold Back Flaps Card

5 ½ x 4 ¼ card base ( 8 ½ x 5 ½ )

5 ¼ x 4 Doublesided DP panel, BoBunny A Gift of Love

2 ½ x 2 ½ piece of Brown card stock

Spellbinders Nestibilities Classic Hearts S4-136

2 sizes of Cherry Blossom Punch or any flower punch (small and medium)

Brown Brad

Memories Baby Pink Ink Pad

Distress Walnut Stain Ink Pad

Sentiment from Impression Obsession, C8560 Loving Heart

On the DP panel on the right side edge, measure 2 5/8" down from the top.

Measure again 2 5/8" down from the top, only this time place the dot 2” to the left of the first dot.

Cut the paper between the 2 dots; that would be 2 inches from the right side.

Score from each of the right side corners to the center dot and then fold back the triangle flaps.

Lightly distress the edges of the pink flowers with the Memories Baby Pink Ink Pad.  Round up/mold the petals.

Using a brown brad to hold them together, assemble the 2 flower pieces, the brown heart, and the DP panel together.

Adhere the DP panel to the card base.

Stamp a sentiment in the opening between the flaps.

Hope you like the card and want to make one.  Blessings,

Annie

Song of the Stars

“Song of the Stars” is a beautifully written Christmas story by Sally Lloyd-Jones, a well-know author of children’s books.  The illustrations are as beautiful and inspirational as the story.

From the fish in the sea, the birds in the air, the animals, to the plant life, all of creation was joyously heralding the coming of Christ Jesus.  There was music from the crashing waves and whispering praise from the leaves of the trees.  All the animals sang songs of worship and adoration while keeping watch for the Savior, and then spreading word of His arrival.  The whole world and every created thing were in awe and praise of the newborn King.  Reading this story gave me an unexpected sense of wonderment, joy, and thankfulness that I had not expected to experience.

Although written for children, this little board book is a gem for all ages as a reminder of how we are to worship the Savior and look with great expectation for His return.  If you don't have any little ones in your home, just read it for yourself and experience the magic!

Blessings, Annie

In exchange for my review, the publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book through BookLook Bloggers.

Celebrating Thanksgiving!

Hi friends,

 Thanksgiving Day is fast approaching.  Now that my cards are made, I can concentrate on planning a menu and doing the shopping.

All through the year we have things to be thankful for, but isn't it wonderful that we have an annual day set aside where we show special thanks for our blessings, family, and friends.  I love making and sending Thanksgiving Day cards, so today I'm going to share with you two more designs.

I love this clean and simple design.  The colors of the image and the layered panel just really pop out against the white background which is partially embossed.  It is a 5 1/2" x 4 1/4", side folded card.  The burgundy panel measures 4" x 2 1/2" after using the scallop border punch.  The white panel is 4" x 2" and stamped with a Kaleidacolor rainbow dye ink pad called Autumn Leaves (by Tsukineko).   Emboss the large 5 1/4" x 4" white panel, leaving 2" unembossed at the bottom.  I used the Stampin' Up/Sizzix embossing folder called Square Lattice, one of my favorite backgrounds.  After all pieces are attached together, wrap white ribbon around the whole assembly and tie a bow.  Then after you have stamped Happy Thanksgiving at the bottom of the panel, it is ready to be adhered to the card base.  For the finishing touch, I embellished the three flowers in the image with clear jewels.

The image stamp is by Inkadinkado #98700-DD (Pumpkin Trail).

                                                                                             

I just have to smile every time I look at these little Pilgrim mice.  Who knows - maybe their ancestors came over on the Mayflower, too!  This sweet little stamp set is by Lawn Fawn called "Thankful Mice" (LF936), which coordinates with the "Thankful Mice" dies (LF937).

This card is the same size as the first card.  The embossed panel (Thankful Background & Borders Set by Tim Holtz) is layered onto a black panel, then attached to the card base.  A ribbon was tied around the sentiment panel in a square knot before it was attached to the decorative paper panel.  

Well, there you have it.  Thank you for joining me today.  I wish you a very blessed Happy Thanksgiving Day!

Annie

On this Foundation, by Lynn Austin - Book Review

“On this Foundation,” is the third and last book of The Restoration Chronicles by Lynn Austin.  I really appreciate how thoroughly Ms. Austin did her research for this series of books.  Once again, I was captivated by her story-telling skill and character building.  Her words became so alive in my mind’s eye that I could almost see the characters and the story taking place.

As the story begins Nehemiah, a Jewish exile, is the trusted cupbearer and chief of security for King Artaxerxes, ruler of the Persian Empire.  This empire included The Promised Land and its holy city, Jerusalem.  When Nehemiah learned that the wall of Jerusalem still had not been rebuilt, from its destruction nearly 20 years ago by the Babylonians, he became extremely distressed because the people and the Temple were completely unprotected from their enemies.  Feeling God’s call upon him, Nehemiah obtained permission from King Artaxerxes to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the wall.

This book depicts Nehemiah as a righteous man, who God blessed with courage and unfailing faith, just as he was written about in the Old Testament of the Bible.  No matter the danger from his enemies and their plans to either stop the rebuilding of the wall or kill Nehemiah if they had too, Nehemiah carried out his God-given assignment.  In his real lifetime, Nehemiah was an inspiration to his people and a perfect example of living by faith in God.  The biblical account of this man is still inspiring to me, as I am sure it is to many others.

This is an absolutely wonderful book, just like the previous two books in the series.

Bethany House Publishers provided this book to me for free in exchange for an honest review.

Blessings,

Annie