Goodbye, Farewell - April Blog Hop with NC Demos

Welcome to the April NC Demos Blog Hop.   If you just arrived from Melissa's blog, isn't her Kleenex box cool?!!

Our theme this month gave us a lot of leeway.  We could choose cards that feature the retiring products, Mother's Day cards or Feminine cards.  My choice was retiring products.  I lost about 18 stamp sets not to mention several thinlits and punches.  Many of them did not surprise me since they had been around a while but I am still going to miss many of them! 

The first few cards I used a new technique that I had never done before - the Whitewash Technique.  There are several You-Tube videos that you can find to show the technique.  Basically, you stamp and emboss the image.  Next paint the image with the white re-inker (I used Aqua Brush.)  After that dries, add a little color to the image with a marker.  Then use your blender pen or Aqua Brush and blend the colors.  After it dries, you can go back and add a little more color as needed.

My first card uses Swallowtail stamp for the butterfly.  I also used the retiring DSP Typeset and the sentiment from And Many More (which is a great set for sentiments.)

The next two cards are made with Vivid Vases, a single stamp.

On this card, I also used the Curvy Corner Trio Punch which I love!

 This beauty uses three retiring stamp sets - Trust God, Everything Eleanor and the single stamp, Blended Blooms as well as the retiring Candy Dots.

Next I did a couple of cards using the blending technique with my sponges using Serene Silhouettes.

Next it was time for a little watercoloring.  I spritzed my Shimmery White cardstock with water and then using my Aqua Brush, colored Melon Mambo, Tangelo Twist and Daffodil Delight all over the card.  I cut another piece of cardstock using the Hexagon Hive Thinlit and adhere it on top of the watercolored piece.  The sentiment is from Feels Good.

 This is one of the cards we made in Stamp Club this month using the single stamp, Blooms for You.  The "seize the cake" sentiment is from the retiring set, Something to Say.

This final card also uses Blooms For You, Everything Eleanor (sentiment) and the Decorative Dots embossing folder.  This is one of the cards I made from pieces of the Paper Pumpkin April kit.

Hope you enjoyed my portion of the blog hop.  Continue along heading to Laurie Meir's blog next.

Below is a list of all the participants and their links:

Jo Anne Hewins

Michelle Irinyi

Melissa Kerman

Sharon Maranich

Laurie Meier

Sue Root

Karel Standish

Pam Staples

Frances Wagner

Thanks for stopping by!

Serene Silhouettes

I created this card last week and I believe it is my favorite of all the cards I have made!

I cut the strip of Whisper White about 2" x 5" and using Post-It Notes for masking, sponged Island Indigo, Rich Razzleberry, Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight and Old Olive.  I started at the top and just moved my Post-It Note down but trying to blend the colors together as I sponged.    Using my Stamp-a-ma-jig, I stamped the wild flowers from Serene Silhouettes in black ink.  Then I adhered the sponged piece and stamped the wild flowers again.  Next I stamped the sentiment from God Is Love and tied the Denim Ribbon (just retired) around the card before adhering it to the Night of Navy card.  I am sending this card to a friend in my Stamp Club whose son only has a few weeks to live.  He lost his eye last year to cancer and it has now spread to his liver and the outcome is grim.  I can't imagine losing either of my children, even if most of the time I feel like I have lost my son.  But I have to remember that I know where he is and that he is happy so that is a blessing.

On happy news .... my friend, Margaret, (that I have mentioned in my blog many times) - her daughter who lives in Charlotte had a little boy last night.  He was delivered via C Section at 8:30 and weighed 8 lb. 6 oz. Both Mom, Dad and baby, Logan Darcy, are doing well!  I can't wait to see him.

Where is Spring?

Happy Monday!  Luckily this Monday finds me feeling better than yesterday.  Sonny has been down and out with the flu since last Tuesday and I have been really afraid that I would get it.  I don't have time to be sick right now!!  Friday he finally felt like eating something and wanted an Italian Sub from a restaurant in Mooresville.  So I got it for him and he devoured it.  Saturday I drove him (I know he's sick when he lets me drive!!) to town to get breakfast.  Of course that was after he woke up at noon!!  Then that night MY throat started hurting and I started coughing.  Oh no!!  Sunday I was achy all over and sleepy so I laid on the couch most of the day taking Alieve every few hours. Someone in my stamp club told me last week that her chiropractor's nurse told her if you mixed one tablespoon of honey with one teaspoon of cinnamon and take that, it would work on flu, cold, etc.  So that's what I did Sunday morning.  Needless to say, the others in my family laughed at me but ....y  I started feeling better in the afternoon and went upstairs to do a little crafting,  I decided to cancel my bridge playing for Monday so I could continue to recupe.  Today I am feeling ok - scratch throat and congested but not like I was feeling yesterday!!  Maybe it's time for more cinnamon and honey????

I am ready for spring weather.  We had a few nice days last week but this week is not going to be too spring'y - highs on Tuesday and Wednesday in the high 40s.  Go away winter!!!  I took a few "spring signs" pictures when I was out on Saturday so I know it really is Spring time.

My camellia bush is loaded with flowers.

a neighbor daffodills

Lenten rose in my front yard

Lenten Rose bush - wish they could not droop like that so you could see their faces!

Beautiful spring tree

Took this picture out of the car window of these beautiful trees

I can't take credit for this but isn't it lovely??

And today I saw a beautiful bluebird on the back deck.  So someone needs to tell the weather man, it is SPRING!

One of the gals in my stamp club had a masectomy last week.  We are all keeping her in our prayers.  This is the card I made and we all signed to send to her.

 

I masked the moon and sponged pink, yellow and blue onto the white card stock.  Next I stamped the images from Serene Silhouettes in Stazon Black onto the card.  I tore a strip of Coordinations card stock and adhered it on the bottom; wrapped a piece of ribbon around the bottom (Pool Party) and adhered the whole thing onto the Pool Party card.

September Stamp Club

I think it is going to be a long football season for the Steelers this year!  I just finished watching them get beat AGAIN.  They are now 3-0 for the season - no wins!!  Isn't that crazy??  I can't ever remember a start to the season like this one.  Sonny will be hard to live with this winter.

I had Stamp Club last week and we made some great cards and learned a new technique.

We made this card using the Faux Cloissone Technique.  I did this technique years ago and forgot about it until we made Belinda's card in the shoebox swap a couple of weeks ago.  I thought it would be a fun thing to do with my club gals.  They loved it!  The flower is from Secret Garden so we used the die to cut it out instead of having to cut it free hand.  The butterfly is cut with the die from Backyard Basics.  To do the technique:

• ·       Select a colorful page from a glossy magazine.
• ·       Rub your Embossing Buddy over the part of the magazine page you want to use.
• ·       Ink the Secret Garden flower stamp with Versamark ink and stamp on the magazine page.
• ·       Pour Gold Embossing Powder over your image.   Tap off excess powder.  Use the heat gun & emboss the gold powder.

 

 This card uses the Peekaboo Sizzix die.  I really have not used this die as much as I should have.  I just forget about it.  But it is so easy to use and makes such a cute card.  The stamp set is Halloween Hello. 

This card turned out so pretty!  I used Natural Composition DSP and rubbed white ink over the DSP with a dauber.  Then I wiped the ink off the flowers with a paper towels.  It's like the ink resist technique.  The stamp set is from Serene Silhouettes.

 This was my favorite card!  I used Shimmery White cardstock and just did a color wash with my Aqua Brush.  You just have to be careful and not get the card stock too wet.  First we used painters tape and taped the edges of the card stock.  I squeezed my ink pads to get ink in the lid to paint with.  I used Soft Sky for the top half; next Marina Mist; and finally Soft Saffon and a little bit of Baked Brown Sugar for the sand.  Then stamp the birds and sentiment.  I love this stamp set!
 

Sponged Serene Silhouettes

Today’s a HUGE DAY!  Today is the last day of the 2013 Spring Catalog and the first day of the 2013-2014 Annual Catalog.  For today only - all three books (Spring Catalog and two Annual Catalogs) are open for business.  Woo hoo!  The order entry system will be down until noon MD (2 pm EST), so don’t worry yourself with trying to enter your order beforehand.  I’m SO excited!  First of all, here’s a link to the 2013-2014 Annual Catalog:

 CLICK HERE

Many of you have been flipping through this gem for a while.  Some are just seeing it live for the first time.  Soak it in.  There are lots of great treasures hidden inside the covers of this book.  Don’t flip too fast or you’ll miss them.  AND don’t forget that the online ordering doesn’t start until noon MDT.

ALSO - Stampin' Up is offering 3 of the greeting stamp sets for 25% off!!!   

If you want to put in an Online order, please use this hostess code:  N4PTTCS7  Or call me and I can place the order for you.


I have also added a easy button to the left side of my blog any time you need to access the catalog.  Right under the picture of the catalog is a "How'd they do that?" link.  That will link you to all the supplies used to make all the projects in the catalog.  If you see a card you like in the catalog, you can find the supplies used to make it by going to that link.


Here is a card I made using Serene Silhouettes (It is NOT retiring!!). I used repositional tape to adhere the middle white card stock panel to the card and sponged the Baja Blue, Regal Rose, Daffodil and Celery across the card trying to blend the colors slightly where they met.  I then removed the tape from the center piece and matted it onto black and adhered it to the card.  Next I stamped the image in black ink.  Very simple card to make but it is a WOW!

Serene Silhouette Sympathy

For your information, here is the time line for ordering from the OLD and NEW catalogs:

Friday, May 31 – last day to order from the Spring Mini Catalog
Friday, May 31 – first day to order from the 2013-2014 Idea Book and Catalog
Monday, June 3 – last day to order from the 2012-2013 Idea Book and Catalog

What does this mean?  It means that Friday, May 31 is your day!  That’s the one day when all three catalogs are open for business.  On Saturday, Sunday and Monday, you can order from the two main catalogs, but the Spring Catalog is off the table.  Contact me with your order OR you can order on-line yourself and have the order shipped directly to you by using code #N4PTTCS7.

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Don't you hate it when you need a sympathy card?  I needed to send a card to a friend who lost her husband recently.  He had been sick for a while and in Kay's own words " I’m thankful that Bruce and I had this time during the past year or so while he’s been ill, to talk and cry and laugh and share feelings, to ask forgiveness of each other for past hurts and to grow closer as we walked this journey together. "  Isn't that what we all would ask for?  Just a chance to enjoy those final days together.

I haven't had this stamp set very long but I really like it.  I always seem to use Thoughts and Prayers for my sympathy cards but now I will have another "go to" set for sympathy cards.

The card is Island Indigo although it doesn't look like it in the picture and is embossed.  I stamped the tree with birds in Black StazOn ink on Shimmery White card stock.  Then I used my Aqua Painter and lightly brushed Summer Starfruit over the bottom and Island Indigo across the middle.  I matted the piece with black card stock, tied a black ribbon around the piece and stamped the sentiment from Thoughts and Prayers.  Very simple - took about 20 minutes from start to finish.