Loss

I lost my mother today - she died this afternoon. I always thought of her whenever the trees by our apartment building bloomed in the Spring - she loved flowers. This is in memory of my mom.

Thank you to all of you who sent kind wishes and prayers for her recovery. I will be taking some time away from my blog. Wishing you all good things.

Barbara Diane

WOYW? Wednesday on Thursday Again!

Hello!

Mixed up my days again! So here is my What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday photo on Thursday! I am working on a never-ending Halloween card - what fun I am having! I will hopefully finish it today and will post the card in all it's glory. :<) Go to  http://stamping-ground.blogspot.com/  to visit sweet Julia and all of the wonderful things going on at the many workdesk entries! Julia's desk looks awesome!

Thank you for stopping by to visit my blog! My photo is a bit dark as the sun wasn't shining yet in the early morning today. It is to be 97 degrees again today - best turn that A/C on! Wishing you a good day where you are!

Barbara Diane

Distressing My Brother's Card

Hello,

Distressing is not a technique that I have used often. The current challenge on Mo Manning's challenge blog is "Distressing" w/Mo Image and at first I thought to skip this challenge as I wasn't skilled in this technique. Forget skilled - I didn't even know how to go about it except for edging the papers maybe and adding ink on those edges. I was working on a card for my brother and thought why not try distressing on a male card as it might work for that. So here is my card. I roughed up the edges of the card stock and the patterned paper and sponged ink along the edges of all. The image is one of Mo's digital images and one of my all time favorites. I cut out the window and the image and added a sky pattern paper behind the window with a press-on star added to that. Then I glued the image to the background paper. The curtain is made from a piece of wide ribbon which I also sponged with ink and tied back with embroidery thread.

You can see great examples of distressed cards at Mo's blog http://mosdigitalchallenge.blogspot.com/ Her designer team always has wonderful cards to share and the entries are such fun to check out! I find so many new bloggers that way! 

This card was made for my brother - the image and the star - I think he may understand that is has to do with prayers for our mother during this time of her crisis. The card is in the mail.

Thank you for stopping by today to visit my blog. Thank you again for your kind wishes and prayers for my mother - she has now been moved to hospice. It has all happened so quickly. Wishing you a happy mid-week!

Barbara Diane

"Cat Blocks" by Inca Stamp

Hello,

When I saw a card that my friend Mrs. A had created and posted on her blog "It's An Alien Life" using this most wonderful cat stamp - I had to write to her to see where she had purchased it! She kindly offered to make some prints and mail them to me and I was very ezcited! You can imagine my surprise when I opened the package when it arrived to find the stamp! She mailed the stamp to me! What a gal! I love it! It has taken some time to create a card with it to post on my blog - but here it is. Thank you Mrs. A - you will see more of this bunch! Go to http://itsanalienlife.blogspot.com/ to see all of her awesome creations! 

Thank you for stopping by today to visit my blog. Bless all of you who sent good wishes and prayers for my mother to recover from her fall. I am sad to say that in a very short time she has become critically ill and needs a miracle. Please do continue to send her your positive energy! Wishing you all good things today.

Barbara Diane

Country Pumpkins

Hello!

This week on the Meljen's Designs challenge blog they have a sketch. The image I have used for my card is one of their digital images called "Country Pumpkins" - love that smile. It is always fun to see all of the many interpretations of a sketch and you can see them all here:  http://meljensdesignsdt.blogspot.com/ 

Thank you for stopping by today to visit my blog. I have a request of you today. My mother was injured at the nursing home where she lives - a nurse let her fall in the bathroom. She is now in the hospital and her condition is very serious. If you would pray for her - her name is Lucille Evenson and she is called Fritzie. Thank you.

Barbara Diane

A Girly Birthday Card

Hello!

This digital mage from Sassy Cheryl is called "A Special Girly Gift" and so I wanted this card to be girly and fussy and it has lots of that and some bling with Stickles and paste-on hearts. I have entered this card today in the Sassy Cheryl's challenge which can be found at http://sassycherylschallenge.blogspot.com/ The current challenge is to make a "Happy Birthday" card and I almost missed it so had to have a Sunday post so that I could enter it before the new challenge started! All of the images are paper pieced.

Thank you for stopping by today to visit my blog! We have lots of rain here today - so with our local community celebration "Good Neighbor Fest" happening this weekend, it is very iffy today if the craft show and food/fun booths and the carnival in the park can continue and/or if we will have the parade today. Wishing you a sunshine Sunday!

Barbara Diane

This Could Be "Double Trouble"

Hello!

I recently received new House Mouse stamps and this one was perfect for their current challenge of "Double Trouble". This little guy is so excited with the big sparkly teeth he has created that you know he has great plans for Halloween - and his buddy is thinking he may want some too! Those two will be planning some trouble, no doubt of that! The colored image is outlined in marker, cut out and glued to the wonderful patterned Halloween paper, which is also layered on black cardstock. I have applied Stickles to the paper he used to cut out his teeth (and the teeth) to make them sparkly and also to the background paper in areas that did not have it. There are so many great entries at http://housemouse-challenge.blogspot.com/ as well as the DP inspiration so be sure to visit! I hope that you enjoyed my card today - Halloween is on the way!

I just realized that today is Thursday already which means that I missed my WOYW? Wednesday entry yesterday, but I have been ill and got my days mixed up this week. I have had such ear/neck pain and all Tuesday night it was very bad so yesterday I was worked into a clinic appointment. I have an inflamed carotid artery on my left side and that is causing great pain in my ear/neck and painful to move my head. When I went out to start the car to pick up my son Jim to go with me, my car battery was dead and had to call my friend Kris who bless her, came over right away to drive us so I didn't miss my appointment. Today I go to the dentist as I broke off a tooth so this has been quite a week. 

Thank you for visiting my blog today! We are to have thunderstorms and rain over the next few days here in this part of WI - we have our yearly community celebration this weekend so iffy for the events, craft sale in the park and parade. Hoping for the best. Wishing you a good day today!

Barbara Diane

Tie A Ribbon

Hello!

I love this sweet little girl! She is one of Meljen's digital images called "Little Girl Bear Hugs" and her smile says it all. This card is my entry into Meljen's Designs current challenge which has "Tie A Ribbon" as the theme. Visit http://meljensdesignsdt.blogspot.com/ for lots of ribbon inspiration!

Thank you for stopping by today to visit my blog! I am not feeling well today so this is a short post. Wishing you a good day and some sunshine!

Barbara Diane

Yellow and Polka Dots on Day for Daisies

Hello!

The current challenge on A Day For Daisies is "Yellow and Polka Dots" - a fun combination! When I first saw their new digital images children and their art projects I was enchanted! I loved them! Daisies does children so well - they call out to you with their sweetness. When the children are creating artwork - I'm there with my PayPal! :<) I love to combine images to make a scene and of course paper piecing is a given.

When I first started this card using the digital image "So Pretty" I didn't have in mind to combine images, but as it started to come together I felt that it needed more art work. So I took some of the drawings from a second image called "Wall Art" and here is the finished card. Every image on the card is paper pieced. I absolutely love it and this one I will keep. To see some great cards, go to http://adayfordaisies.blogspot.com/search/label/challenges 

You can see the second image below that I cut the additional drawings from for this card. I will have to be very creative with the card I make with the little sweetheart that remains. I'll think of something!

Thank you for stopping by today to visit my blog! I hope today is a good one for you!

Barbara Diane

P for Paper Piecing at ABC Christmas Challenge

Hello!

This is my first card for a new challenge that I came across called the ABC Christmas Challenge. I love Christmas cards and projects - it's my favorite time of year - and you know I LOVE paper piecing! A perfect combination for me! You can check out this fun challenge at http://abcchristmaschallenge.blogspot.no/ and see enough inspiration to get you started creating your holiday cards and projects today! 

Everything is paper pieced on this image except for Santa's face and the 3 smallest dots of berries. 

If you look closely you can see next to the scissors is the tiny red berry that I have just cut out.

The gifts, the leaves and berries, the nose, the beard, eyebrows, fur trim, etc. are all pieced. If you click on the photo to enlarge you can see the pattern in the papers.

Thank you for stopping by today to visit my blog today! I am excited to be getting a head start on my Christmas cards! Wishing you a happy Monday!

Barbara Diane

Does anyone know the maker and name of this clear stamp set?

Double the Trouble

Hello!

Today's card is my entry for the current Penny Black Challenge Blog. The theme is "Double the Trouble" and as the challenge is open the entire month of August, you still have time to enter your card here http://pennybfriendssaturdaychallenge.blogspot.com/. The image I've used is one from the Penny Black's transparent set called "Toadily" and they are all wonderful and fun! Don't these two look like trouble's going to happen?!

Thank you for stopping by today to visit my blog! Wishing you some fun trouble this weekend!

Barbara Diane

A Favorite Color Combo

Hello!

Sassy Cheryl's current challenge has a theme of  "Favorite Color Combo" and one of mine is red, white and black. I had recently purchased this wonderful patterned paper with a Dr. Suess design and immediately thought of Cheryl's awesome digital image "Plays Dr. Suess" which I had also recently purchased and so here is the result. I punched out the Dr. Suess images and cut out the hearts and added them to the background card stock and I gave her a bow tie like Dr. Suess and added a heart to it and more hearts to the ball and the cups. This was so much fun to make - you know that I love to paper piece! Go to http://sassycherylschallenge.blogspot.com/ to be inspired by her designer team and the entries to try a color combination you may not have used!

Thank you for stopping by today to visit my blog! Wishing you a happy day of fun coloring! If you have not tried paper piecing - it's a great de-stressor!You just get in the zone and time passes! :<)

Barbara Diane

WOYW? Wednesday!

Hello!

The past few days have been very productive for me. My son Jim came to visit this past weekend and we both spent many hours creating from Friday night until Sunday afternoon - listening to the radio and visiting while I worked on my cards and he worked on his art work. Then Monday and yesterday I continued - I was on a roll. :<) This was my workdesk last night - working on another card. To see what new and fun projects are being worked on this week all around blogland, stop by sweet Julia Dunnit's blog "Stamping Ground" at http://stamping-ground.blogspot.com/ to see the current "What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday" entries. Leave a photo of your workdesk and a comment for Julia and join in the fun!

Thank you for stopping by today to visit my blog! I did get caught up on my visiting but now am behind again. I love for you to leave comments and will return your kindness as soon as I can. Wishing good things for you today!

Barbara Diane

Love Is All Around

Hello!

I am in love with this pair - Mo Manning's digital images "Oskar" and "Mummu" - they have my heart. 

In June, I posted a card http://www.whimcees.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2012-06-15T10:35:00-04:00&max-results=10&start=30&by-date=false using these two digital images for the first time and I wrote how they reminded me of a favorite uncle and aunt - my father's brother Hank and his wife Sally. My father and his family came to America from Denmark when he was a child. He was the youngest so here the longest and as an adult he had very little Danish accent left to his speech (although he said that he still thought in Dane) but most all of the rest of his siblings, especially the older ones, had the old country accent and way of speaking. These two remind me so much of the old country and Hank and Sally.

My aunt, uncle and my father have all passed but these two images bring back many memories of them all - one was the dancing. All of us cousins learned to dance with our parents - on the weekends at the local Moose Club where our fathers served as president. We learned the waltz, the polka, the shotishe, the two-step, the hootchy kootchy - yes that is a dance! :<) All of the classic ballroom dances and then some! Our parents were all beautiful dancers and we started young - standing on their feet while they did the steps across the dance floor.

Everything on the two images is paper pieced with the exception of the skin and hair. I used two patterned papers and even the small hearts on her skirt and the barrett in her hair are pieced. I am entering this card in the current challenge on Mo Manning's Challenge Blog at http://mosdigitalchallenge.blogspot.com/ where the theme is "Love is All Around" - and Oskar & Mummu and/or Hank & Sally share an abundance! When they dance together they are in a magic world of their own. 

Thank you for stopping by to visit my blog today! Wishing you love all around you - and dancing!

Barbara Diane

A Tag For Treats

Hello!

It is so dark and dreary here today that I could not get a bright photo no matter how I tried - so I apologize for this being so dark! The current challenge theme on the Meljen's Design blog is for "Tags" and I made this one for a Halloween treat bag I will be making for everyone at the group home where Jim lives. I wanted to get a head start on the design as the tags are large and the coloring/Stickles glitter will take some time to make 16 of them. The image is one of Meljen's digital images "Mother Goose" - I love her at first sight. I was not sure if she could become a Halloween goose, but here she is. Go to http://meljensdesignsdt.blogspot.com/ to see all of the fun ideas for tags from the designer team and the challenge entries.

Thank you for stopping by to visit my blog today! Wishing you a good Monday!

Barbara Diane

The House Mouse Olympics

Hello,

I had so much fun creating this card for the House Mouse & Friends Challenge. It took SEVEN individual stamps, many post-it notes for masking, some clip art editing for flags and hats and free hand drawing of the track and fence.

The theme is OLYMPICS and at first I was too intimidated by this to even consider entering. But then, I thought why not? So here is my card. There are so many original, creative and fun entries to see at http://housemouse-challenge.blogspot.com/ Check them out!

Thank you for visiting my blog today! I promise to visit every last one of you who left your kind comments this weekend! Too many things this week and I just kept getting lost. And today my printer stopped working. My computer savvy friends saved the day! My friend Sandra drove here from out of town to see if it could be repaired and she and my friend Doug found me a new printer on sale and it has been ordered. I am blessed with wonderful friends in my life. Just when one loses faith in mankind - someone like these two comes forward. Wishing you all a great weekend.

Barbara Diane