Positively Picturesque

I spent today playing with the latest Paper Pumpkin kit - Positively Picturesque.  It is a really cute one.  I just love getting my surprise box of fun each month.  It is so easy to travel with, easy to share and just plain fun!  Where else can you get a kit to make several cards, an ink spot or two and a stamp st for $19.95 delivered to your door??

I made a few alternative cards with the pieces.  I made at least one card (of each design) using the Paper Pumpkin directions and switched things around with the rest of the cards.  I ended up making 13 cards total and I still have a few things left so I can probably make 2-3 more.

The card on the right is the Paper Pumpkin direction one.  I just moved the washi tape up and stamped Happy Birthday on the other one.  (2 rolls of washi tape were included in the kit!)

For this card I used the Daisy Punch for the flower and Embossing Paste for the center.  The leaves are die cut from Flourishing Phrases.

I stamped the Pool Party piece with Tranquil Tide ink using the Hardwood background stamp.  Next I ran it through the Bricks embossing folder and rubbed White Craft Ink over the whole thing to soften the color.  The edges of the card are covered with strips of washi tape.

The flowers on this card are little wooden flowers that came in the kit.  I used a dauber to ink them with Berry Burst ink.

The Lemon Lime wash in the background is made with Work of Art.

This is one of the Paper Pumpkin instruction cards.  The circle is covered with washi tape.

This is another of the cards just following the directions.

I love how this one turned out.  I randomly put strips of washi tape in the background.  The wooden "love" is inked (with dauber) using Powder Pink, Flirty Flamingo and Berry Burst.

I used the Pretty Label Punch and cut the pink label in half.  

This is the card just following the directions in the kit.  The card below is just a tad different.

How do like the plaid background?  I used the Brushstrokes Background stamp and stamped it vertical and horizontal to create the plaid.  

I hope these cards give you some inspiration to make your own Paper Pumpkin cards!

Travel

Well, I thought I was on a roll with my blog posts but guess my rock got slowed down!!  In all honesty though, I have been out of town for about a week.  We drove to Mobile, Alabama on July 13 and 14 and met Ashley.  She was there for a friend's wedding along with several of her girlfriends that we also know.  So, it was a good little visit for all of us.  We stayed in Mobile from Friday - Monday and did a little sight seeing.  We were surprised to discover that Mobile is a smaller version of New Orleans downtown at night but not quite as crazy as NO!!  We took a historic tour on Sunday but were a bit disappointed with the tour.  The guy mostly just drove us through the historic districts to see houses.  We were hoping for more of a Mobile history tour.  On our own though, we went to the Mardis Gras Museum which was really cool and the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception which was gorgeous!  I had hoped we could go to Fairhope which is a small city on the shore where Ashley's friend lives but the traffic on the interstate was horrendous and after sitting in it for a while, we decided to U turn and go back where we could walk around to see the sights!  We also wanted to visit the Bragg-Mitchell Mansion to hear Civil War stories but unfortunately, it was closed Sat., Sun. and Monday!  There was a restaurant that was recommended to us that looks out onto the bay 40 stories up but it was closed for renovation!  We were striking out all over so ended up checking out of Mobile a day earlier than we planned and driving to Montgomery to do some sightseeing.  We were all happy we did that because we got to visit the cemetery where Hank Williams was buried, Rosa Parks Museum, the first White House of the Confederacy and the state capital.  We walked a little on the Civil Rights Trail and went by Dexter Ave. Baptist Church where Martin Luther King preached and the Civil Rights Memorial.  On the way to Montgomery, we stopped off at the Tuskegee driving by Tuskegee University and stopping at the Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Park where the black airmen fight was on two fronts - overseas during WW2 and racism at home.  It was really interesting.  We left Montgomery on Tuesday and stopped off in Atlanta dropping Ashley off at the Atlanta airport for her flight to Chicago for business.  We spent the night in Atlanta and met up with some old friends Wednesday for lunch.  We had not seen Jim and Melanie in 44 years!  We used to hang out with them and two other couples when we all lived in a singles apartment complex in Greensboro.  We all got married within a few months of each other and went our separate ways.  We have kept in touch over the years with Christmas cards.  It was great to visit and catch up after all these years!  Here are a few pictures from our trip:

Mardi Gras float - don't we look great???!!

A few of the capes worn by the Mardi Gras queens - aren't they beautiful?

I can be a Mardi Gras Queen!

This is my King!

Do you remember when the McDonald's looked like this?  I do!  This was one we visited on our trip (just for the bathroom!!)

We had brunch on Saturday at Spot of Tea to celebrate Lisa's birthday.

Ashley and her friends who came for the wedding - Ashley, Lisa, Debbie, Claudia and Courtney

The gates at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception - so beautiful!

Ceiling of the Cathedral

On Saturday, the streets downtown were blocked off for a pole vaulting competition!!

We wandered through this cemetary looking for the grave of Joe Cain who started Mardi Gras in Mobile.

We got caught in a torrential downpour of rain on Sunday night and were drenched when we got back to the hotel. About halfway back to the hotel, someone from one of the bars ran out and gave us an umbrella.  We returned it the next day!

These painted shells were all around town and so colorful!

Rosa Parks statue

Civil Rights Memorial - built as a monument for 40 people who died between 1954 and 1968.  Maya Lin designed this memorial and the Vietnam Memorial in DC.  It was inspired by a line in MLK's speech which is etched in the wall.

Civil Rights Memorial - that piece they are looking at is a marble dish filled with water and events of the civil rights is carved into the marble (see next picture)

Civil Rights Memorial 

Alabama State Capital

Dexter Avenue King Baptist Church where MLK began his civil rights movement.

Hank Williams grave

July Stamp Club Cards - Colorful Seasons

The day after we got home from our Alabama trip, I had Stamp Club.  Luckily I had done most of the prep work before I left so I just had to get everything set up on Thursday.  I only had 4 gals on Thursday with the rest coming tomorrow.  We did some great cards - one of the gals told me I had outdone myself this month with the projects!  I concentrated on one of my favorite bundles in the new catalog - Colorful Seasons (pg 147) and made a fall card, winter card and a spring/summer card.

This is a great fold - a Z fold card.  I used DSP from the Color Theory pack.

This is a great card for spring time or summer!  I just love the chair!

This is the winter card.  One of the gals said it makes a great Hanukah card!

This card takes all of about 5 minutes!  I wanted to showcase the Memories & More card pack.  The DSP is from the Color Theory pack.  Everyone will make a different card using the Memories & More.

Last but not least is our August calendar card using the glasses from Pocketful of Sunshine.  The background is made using a stamp from Lovely Inside and Out.  The letters I used on this are all retired.  Notice the shiny lenses of the glasses??  I applied some glue from the Fine Tip Glue for the shine!

Color Theory Memories & More

I want to bring your attention to a product in the catalog that you might have skipped over if you are not a scrapbooker but just a card maker.  It is the Memories and More suite on pages 190 - 193.  I have the Color Theory Card Pack (pg 193) and love all the things I can do with it.  The artist-designed, coordinating Memories and More card packs, with their included stickers and printed acetate sheets, make it easy to create more great projects with fewer supplies and less time.

Here are a few cards using some of the Color Theory Card Pack.

For this card, I stamped the seat of the chair with Versamark (stamp set - Colorful Seasons) onto some of the card patterns and embossed them with Clear Powder before cutting each one out.  They were adhered to the wooden chair that I stamped directly onto the Old Olive Color Theory DSP (pg 187).  The sentiment was also stamped with Early Espresso ink directly on the DSP.  I used my Blender Pen and a little Sahara Sand ink to make shadows under each chair.  This was so easy to make!

This card is one we made at Stampin' Up On Stage.  The flower was cut from one of the Memory Cards.  I stamped the flowers and sentiment onto the Old Olive card with Old Olive ink and onto the Island Indigo card with Island Indigo ink.  Another easy card to make.  The ribbon is the 3/8" Stitched Satin Ribbon.  

This card is one that my downline, Debbie, made for one of the Quarterly swaps.  Some of the leaves are already stamped onto the card and she added a few more that she die cut with the Seasonal Layers thinlits

Here is my Color Theory Pack.  It includes 72 total double-sided cards (52 3"x4" cards, 20 4"x6" cards, cardstock sticker sheets, printed acetate cards - 1 4"x6" and 3 each 3"x4").

Here are some other ideas for these cards:

The 3"x4" cards make quick and stylish note cards.  Write a note on one side and put it on someone's desk or in a lunchbox!

Stamp a greeting on a 3"x 4" card.  Layer the stamped card and a patterned card on a pre-cut, scored note card.  Write a note and place it into a coordinating envelope to mail or hand deliver.

Cut a card base in a coordinating color.  Cut a 4"x6" card to 4"x5 1/4".  Layer a printed acetate card onto a 3"x4" patterned card.  Add ribbons or embellishments for a finished project!

Create an album by adding coordinating patterned cards, journaling cards, and photos in pocket pages.  The catalog will give you inspiring examples of ideas using these Memories and More cards (pg 190-193).