A "Pulitzer" Prize?

I was flipping through a Love Nicole "Bouquet of Color" 6 x 6 paper pad, and mixed in with all of the pretty florals were these loud and proud designs that look like Lilly Pulitzer threw up all over them. At first I wondered how in the world I would use them, because each sheet was a little overwhelming, but then I came up with this idea to mix and match strips. The colors coordinate, and I think the white space in between the strips helps tone them down a bit.  This card is a little wilder than most of the ones I make for my card ministry, but there are lots of people in my church with lots of different tastes and styles, so why not offer a little something for everyone?

At first when my daughter saw these papers on my stamping table, she turned up her nose, but my finished card won her over, and I have to say, I surprised myself as well by how much I like how it turned out. I could put any kind of happy greeting on this, but I was short of "Get Well" cards, so I used this old Stampin' Up! stamp. How could these bright colors not make a person feel more cheery?

Here's What I Learned...

With it being Memorial Day, I was inspired to make a "patriotic" card that I can use in my card ministry to thank any military veterans in our church. Except, after I got the card made, I was Googling to see exactly what should be said on/for Memorial Day, and realized that Memorial Day is not an appropriate time to thank our military. (Oops!) According to Writology.com:

What Do You Say To a Veteran on Memorial Day?

To express noble Memorial Day sentiments, you should remember that this is the time to commemorate those who gave their lives in service to our country. That is why you should not thank the living veterans on Memorial Day but show respect to their fallen comrades in arms, friends, and family.

We honor veterans on Veterans Day to express our gratitude and reverence for their service. On Memorial Day, we remember and grieve for those who died in wars. In such a way, we can deliberate on the price of war and pay tribute to those who paid in full.

So instead of looking for proper words to say to a veteran on Memorial Day, you should better visit a Veterans memorial or the USSAH National Cemetery and place flags and flowers on the graves, attend the Largest Memorial Day Parade and Concert, buy a poppy, or take part in the National Moment of Remembrance.

While I definitely goofed, it was a positive in that it helped me learn the difference between these holidays, and I now know what is correct etiquette. With that said, I will go ahead and share the card I made, though it will NOT be given to a veteran today, but rather saved to send to a veteran on a more appropriate day.

I went to both Michael's and AC Moore to find flag print paper, because I had this paper-piecing idea in mind. However, I came up short at both stores, so instead I found a picture of a flag online to print. I stamped this Stampendous "Mega Thanks" word over the flag, then cut out the letters to piece them on my card. 

I also learned at Writology that you should not wish someone a "happy" Memorial Day, but it IS okay to say "I hope you have a nice day." And I do!

Grace

I mentioned this "Grace" verse in my last post; it is part of a Verve scripture set, and I love it!

I pretty much only make easy cards, and this one is no exception. As mentioned before, I can't add lots of layers, because with my card ministry, I will have other people mailing the cards who might not know that a thick, fussy card could require extra care or postage. I keep it easy for me and easy for whoever will end up sending this card off.

Here, I used a floral paper from Love Nicole's "Delicate Floret" 6 x 6 pad. I have a lot of the Love Nicole papers, because I live within walking distance of an AC Moore, and they always have these pads on sale.

Card ministry tip: This card, like all of the others I make, is an A2 size (4¼" x 5½"). I use this size exclusively for the card ministry because lots of times people who send cards don't know what to write inside, and thus are scared off from sending a card. For a card this size, with a scripture or simple "thinking of you/missing you" greeting stamped inside, there is only a half page or so of white space left. All you'd need to add is a sentence or two with a signature, and the inside looks full. I found through experience that this size card is sent much more readily than a regular greeting card size, which would sit on the card rack for months. These small cards are grabbed quickly, so it was easy to see that this size is preferred.

Thanks for stopping by today! Enjoy your Memorial Day weekend.

Shout Out to Verve Stamps

When linking to the Verve stamp I used on my last card, I realized that Verve no longer sells these "Plain Jane" scripture stamps. I was really upset to learn this at first, until I saw that these same scripture stamps that have become favorites of mine to use are now available in sets. AND, there was a great set on sale full of verses I don't have, so I quickly ordered the set, along with another clearance sentiment that was marked down to 75 cents. Are you kidding me? 75 cents for a beautiful sentiment? Yes, please!

I shouldn't have been shocked when my order arrived less than 48 hours later, because I've bought from Verve before. But not only did my order arrive FAST and packaged beautifully in pretty tissue paper, but there were lots of extras thrown in:

In addition to the stamps I ordered, they included some coordinated papers, a paper doily, a stamped sentiment, plus a free clear stamp that says "Enjoy today" -- everything I need to make a card. Awesome!

In case you're interested, this scripture set is called Scripture Medley 4. It includes 8 scriptures and one beautiful "grace" sentiment that says "Grace... meets us where we are, but does not leave us where it found us."

Needless to say, I'm thrilled with my ordering experience, and wanted to spread the word. I'm not affiliated with Verve in any way -- heck, I run a competing stamp company! --  I'm just sharing this as a happy customer.

Stencil 2 Ways

I have two cards for you today, both using the same "Dot Fade" stencil by Tim Holtz, but in a yin/yang kind of way. For the first card, I used different colors of Ranger oxide inks to color over the stencil, until I had a random pattern of colored dots. Over this, I stamped wheat stalks from Inkadinkado's "Meadow" set, and finally added the Proverbs 3:5 scripture stamp from "Scripture Medley 1" by Verve. This resulted in a very quick one layer card which will be perfect for my card ministry, in that it can be sent for any occasion.

As I began to clean up, I noticed that I still had quite of bit of oxide ink residue left on the stencil. Instead of wiping it off, I misted it up, turned the stencil over, and positioned it on a new white card base. Because the oxide ink reacts with water, I ended up with a beautiful water-colored design.

This time I used a Memory Box "Prim Poppy" die cut over the colors, and stamped a sentiment from Penny Black's "Faith" clear set. And just like that, two super simple, minutes-to-make cards!

Have a Great Day!

This card uses the same "dogwood" patterned paper that I featured on my first blog card. The paper is from a 6 x 6 Love Nicole pad called "Bouquet of Color." If you add this background, plus the strip used on the other card, you will see that I got 2 cards out of just one 6 x 6  sheet of paper. I finished this super simple card with a sentiment and butterfly stamp -- both from the Penny Black clear "Enamor" set.

I might be drawn to dogwood trees, because not only is it the state tree here in Virginia (and we have 2 beautiful ones right in front of our dining room window), but I also grew up with one outside of my bedroom window in Florida. That tree had also been pretty, until I tried climbing in it one day, and split the tree in half. It was never the same after that, and something that I always regretted! Funny thing about our trees now in VA: the 2 trees grow so close together, that they appear to be just one tree. The giveaway, though, is in the spring, when they bloom different colors -- one pink and one white. It still looks like a tree that's been grafted together, but if you look closely, you can see that they have 2 trunks.

Wishing you all a great day!

Monochrome

This card was originally going to be a Mother's Day card for my mom. Problem was, while she can appreciate a hand-made card, she likes the mushy verses found inside Hallmark cards. I'm not a mushy writer, and though I attempted some nice lettering and a verse inside, and I even put the card in an envelope with a stamp on it -- I ultimately pulled it back out of the mailbox. Instead, I decided the Hallmark card was less of a gamble, so I bought and sent her one of those. (I actually sent a Hallmark birthday card instead of a Mother's Day card, because I liked the verse better.) Still, this card was salvaged. I cut the front off and mounted it on a new white card base. The monochrome look is very pretty in person.

The flowers are from a Penny Black clear set called "Enamor." It's a handy set for general purpose cards because it has several different flower stamps, a butterfly and a saying. You'll see that I used more of the stamps from this set on my next card.

Thanks for looking!