Wednesday, August 5, 2026

Feather of Hope

 Welcome back friends. 
July went by quickly with some really crazy weather all month long!  
 
Today begins a new challenge on the Double D Challenge Blog.  The theme for the next two weeks is "Feathers".  Lots of inspiration on the colorful mood board.
 
 

 I used a mix of color inspiration from two of the photos.

hope 
 
I pulled the rose gold/pink color from the first tile and combined it with the turquoise from the fourth tile. The colors compliment each other beautifully.  I found a scrap of DP in my stash that had both colors and it worked well as the background for the die cut feather.  The feather is double cut from rose gold metallic with a white cardstock shadow. The sentiment stamp is a favorite from a company that is no longer in business and matted with the same rose gold metallic as the feather.
 
From my stash...
Sizzix Elegant Thinlits 
Verve Sentiment Stamp 
 
Sharing with the following challenges: 
 
Thanks for stopping by today!
Hope to see you again soon.
 
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Monday, August 3, 2026

for you...

Welcome craft friends... 
Wow, July went by so fast.  Fall  is just around the corner and I'm ready for the "ber" months.  This has been a hot, humid summer for us.   The leaves will begin changing soon and our grandkids will be back in school.  Fall is my favorite time of year and am anxiously awaiting sweatshirt weather, the leaves changing colors and cool, crisp air!
 
Today, I'm sharing a card with a "fall flower" theme for the August Challenge on A Cut Above, Die Cut Challenge Blog.   The theme is always "Anything Goes" but August has a fall flower twist that I followed when creating my project.  Love warm colors!
 
for you
 
I dug into my warm color stash to create this square card design.  The flowers are cut from cardstock scraps to match the ones in the patterned papers.  Wow, I've had this SB flower die since 2008, 18 years and don't use it often enough.  I added some sparkle to the centers using glitter dots and shimmer pens.  The sentiment was cut from two different colors with the green off setting the ivory and then backed with a vellum.
 
From my stash...
Bazzill Cardstock
CTMH Shimmer Pen 
Elizabeth Crafts Designs Dahlia
Heartfelt Creations with Spellbinders Vintage Floret 
Queen & Co. Goosebumps
Simple Stories Simple Vintage Autumn Breeze DP 
Spellbinders Sunflower II 
 
Sharing with these challenges:  
 

Thanks so much for coming by.  
Have the best day!
 

 
 

 
 
 
at 2 comments:

Thursday, July 23, 2026

Happy Birthday!

 Today I'm sharing a card created for a few challenges including one calling for a masculine theme.  The embossed background is a folder from years ago and no longer available for purchase.
 
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
 
The background is embossed using silver metallic cardstock to resemble an actual sheet of metal.  The diamond plate embossing design is used by manufacturers for door kick plates, vehicle running boards, truck liners and many other metal products.  I paired the silver with a royal blue accent color that stands out from the design. 
 
 
From my stash... 
TPS Matte Metallic Cardstock 
Tutti Designs Birthday Topper
 
Sharing with the following challenges:
Have the best day!

 

at 4 comments:

Wednesday, July 15, 2026

Sweet!

Hi Crafty Friends!
 
We're halfway through July already and more than halfway through the year.  The Double D is sharing their new challenge for the second half of the month with the theme, "You're Favorite Fruit".
Here's some inspiration....

I have several favorite fruits and one of them is blackberries. 
 Our local farm stand has the biggest and sweetest I've ever had!
 
sweet
 I embossed the background with a basket weave embossing folder and touched it up with some ink.  The blackberries were stamped, embossed and then colored with Copic markers.  The berries are highlighted with a white gel pen and sprayed with shimmer mist.  I added some dimension and tucked them in around the trellis like die cut.  The sentiment was cut three times for dimension and adhered between the stems.  A few opal sequins are the final embellishments.
 
From my stash
 Altenew Mini Delight Berry/Stamp, Die Cut 
Copic Markers
Darice Basket Weave EF 
Imagine Sparkle Shimmer Mist 
 
Stop by the Double D Challenge Blog and play along.
 
Thanks for coming by today.
Hope to see you again soon.
at 6 comments:

Monday, July 13, 2026

Christmas Cheer!

 Hey crafty friends!
 
We're just back from a trip to the beach and it was hot, hot, hot!  Of course, it's been too hot here at home also as we are expecting another "heat dome" to hit us on Wednesday.  I'm seriously ready for the "ber" months already and thinking of cooler weather and Christmas.
 
I've seen so many Christmas in July challenges that I decided to join in and create a pocket Christmas tag to start the holiday projects and Christmas cards.
 
cheer
I pulled out some Graphic 45 papers from years ago and made this pocket tag with a die cut set from Sizzix.  I adhered some fussy cut images to the back of a panel cut out, added foam tape for dimension and made it the focal image on the pocket front.  
 
The tiny die cut flowers are similar to the design in the paper.  I added glitter to the petals and jewels to the centers.  The pocket holds a matching gift tag with a plain back for writing a message and/or recipient name.  This tag is making me excited for Christmas already.  I think I'm going to work on Christmas card designs soon too!
 
From my stash...
Graphic 45 Seasons and St. Nicholas Collections
 Ranger Frosted Lace Stickles
Sizzix Interactive Tag Die Set
 
Sharing with these challenges:
Thanks for coming by today!
Hope to see you again soon.

at 5 comments:

Monday, July 6, 2026

It's A Celebration!

 Welcome Crafty Friends!
 
I'm excited to be sharing that July is the 2nd anniversary for my challenge blog, A Cut Above!  These past 2 years have flown by and I'm happy to say that I've enjoyed the ride.
 

So, we're celebrating twofold at A Cut Above for the month of July.  There will be extra prizes in multiples of two.  Two GCs to A Cherry On Top Craft Store and two stamps sets will be given away to four lucky winners at the end of the challenge. 
 
In line with the twofold, celebrating theme, I have created two anniversary cards, a silver wedding anniversary and a golden wedding anniversary.  On a side note, my dear hubby and I will be celebrating our 50 year, Golden Anniversary in October of this year.
 
Silver, "25 year" Anniversary
It's a Celebration!

And Gold for the "50 year" Anniversary
It's a Celebration

Both A2 sized cards use the same background design, die cut shapes and sentiment.  The silver and gold cardstock and embellishments are the only difference.

From my stash... 
Bazzill Coconut Swirl Cardstock
Cart Us Flower Branches Embossing Folder
CTMH Banner Wishes Sentiment
Doodlebug Silver Puffy Alphabet Stickers
Eyelet Outlet Gold Pearls
Paper Studio Silver Pearls
Pioneer Gold Numbers
Sizzix/49 Fine Stems Thinlits
Tsukineko Tuxedo Black Ink
 
Thanks so much for coming by today.
Stop on over to A Cut Above and play along with the July Challenge. 
 
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Saturday, July 4, 2026

Happy Birthday USA!!

 Today, my country of birth, the United States of America, celebrates the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.  This semiquincentennial is being celebrated throughout the country with parades, parties, fireworks and many other festivities this past week, today, and in the days to come.

Happy Birthday United States of America! 

In honor of this event, I'm sharing my tributes to the Red, White and Blue with both past and present cards made for the holiday.

LAND OF THE FREE & THE HOME OF THE BRAVE
 
Let's Celebrate!
 
HIGH FIVE
 
Last, but not least, my new card for the 250th anniversary of the USA!!
Celebrate the USA
 
Sharing with these challenges...
 
Proud to be an American
God Bless the USA


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