So – if you’ve been a follower of my blog for any time at all, you know that I very recently got home from 4 ridiculously long months in California. In case you’re new here (welcome! 🙂 ) and let me just say that I wasn’t in the part of CA that you see Clint Eastwood talking about on TV. No indeed. But – I’m home now. And I’ve been taking a couple of weeks of vacation.
We live very near Atlanta. We have lots and lots of stuff to do here.
Six Flags over Georgia.
Water Parks.
Lake Alatoona, West Point Lake and Lake Lanier within an hour or two. And a nice fishing boat in the garage.
Calloway Gardens just a couple of hours south of us. And I hear the butterflies are hatching. De-robing? Un-cocooning?
Stone Mountain is close and apparently fun. Nope – never been there.
One of the best aquariums in the country – just up the road.
The Coca-Cola plant and museum – just up the same road. And it boasts the opportunity to try Coca-Cola products from all over the world. Sorry, though – until they make Diet Mountain Dew….I’m a Pepsico girl. And – other countries have some pretty……”hmm” ideas of what makes soda taste good. Just sayin’.
Bottom line? We gots lots and lots of cool, fun things to do – right here. So – what do you think we did?
Yup – you guessed it. We replaced the toilet in our master bathroom. I believe the old one is as old as the house (and it’s no young-un!) and was really ready to be replaced. Like coffee and toilet paper – there’s just some things that are life-critical. Toilets that WORK are right up there on that list (maybe for DH the entire outdoors is a valid alternative, but….not for the DW (that’s me)!). So it was necessary. But, I must say – if asked to write a one page (single spaced) essay on “What I did on summer vacation” – this would be kind of pathetic!
To top it all off – it’s been “one of those days”. You know the kind I mean? I’ve been in a completely stinkin’ mood all day. One might even say…..
No idea why or where-from the great B****-iness overcame me today – but it did. Which I’m sure added to the overall pleasantness of replacing the toilet for my DH. Oh! Did you think I meant “WE” when I said “we”? No – HE did the toilet while I supervised, read the directions (which he pretty much ignored), checked for leaks, etc. The usual.
But – it’s done now. Ready to roll. Or flow. Or….something. And I’m sure tomorrow will be much better! And hopefully the little bundle will be all gone.
Now – let’s get on with why you came here today, shall we? My card today was one I did to thank my friend in CA for all the help he gave me on this last trip. It uses the brand new Happy Birthday, Everyone stamp set, and is done in a few of the new 2015-2017 In Colors. Take a look-see:
I started by stamping a Tip Top Taupe card stock mat with the great Hardwood background stamp (hint: with these big stamps, lay the stamp on your work surface, ink it all up, and then carefully lay your card stock on top of it. Rub the back of the paper all over to ensure you’ve transferred the image to the entire thing. This is lots easier to manage than trying to hold the stamp and stamping the “regular” way!). I used Sahara Sand for this background – and for the sponged edges, as well. I punched one corner with my Envelope Punch Board – it has a handy corner punch incorporated right on it (sorry for the preposition-ended sentence). I SNAILd this mat to a piece of Tip Top Taupe, which I’d also corner-punched.
For the sentiment mat, I started with a square of Mint Macaron, cut with the 3″ square framelit. I sponged the edges in some more Sahara Sand and it was ready to be adhered to the card front. I dipped back in to my Wetlands set (I LOVE this stamp set!), and laid on the birds in Sahara Sand onto a square of Very Vanilla. Over the birds, I stamped the grasses a few times, in Sahara Sand and then colored them with my Delightful Dijon marker. Why not stamp them in Delightful Dijon to start with? No clue. Just goofy, maybe! 🙂 I colored the little water ripples with the Mint Macaron marker. And with that, I did my Sahara-Sand-Sponge-thing and SNAILd the sentiment to the Mint Macaron mat. The “Thanks” in the new Expressions Natural Elements set seemed like the perfect touch on this outdoors-y card. I stuck it on with some Multi-Purpose Liquid Glue.
For the three sentiment banners – I just cut a few scraps out in Mint Macaron and Very Vanilla, stamped the sentiments from Happy Birthday, Everyone in Sahara Sand, and snipped the ends to make them all banner-y. (PSA – Happy Birthday, Everyone is a set available only to workshop hosts. Want it for yourself? Let me tell you how to do a catalog workshop!) I also used a little Sahara Sand ink on the Hardwood stamp and VERY lightly stamped each of the banners (hard to see in the pictures – sorry). The Vanilla piece got some sponging with more Sahara Sand. Then, on the top banner, I just stapled the end with my Handheld Stapler and adhered it with Stampin’ Dimensionals. The next two, I actually stapled the banners to the card front. With that all done, I SNAILd the whole layered shebang to my corner-punched Mint Macaron card base. And the outside was done!
On the inside – I went with two pieces of Very Vanilla (I knew I was going to have a lot to write to my friend!) and stamped across the bottom with more of the birds (I laid the two pieces on my work surface with the inside edges touching and then stamped the birds right over the joint) and grasses – all colored in exactly the same way as the front (yes, even the grasses 🙂 ). Then I used the sentiment from the new Friendly Wishes set, stamped in Delightful Dijon.
I completed the set by stamping some of the birds onto a Crumb Cake Medium Envelope – again in Sahara Sand. And the card was done!
Only a couple more days for this week’s new Weekly Deals – get ’em while they last!
Hope you all had a great day – and that you didn’t “be like me!” 😉
See you Monday!
TTFN
Mary
WEEKLY DEALS FOR 30 Jun – 6 Jul 15!! Click here to see the Weekly Deals from Stampin’ Up! in my online store. The Weekly Deals are only while supplies last and only available at these great prices through 6 Jul!
Catalog Shares – Round Two
Did you miss out on the Catalog Shares? Are you kind of kicking yourself and doing the Deatherage-Dither (that’s what we call it here when we say “Coulda-woulda-shoulda”!! We say it a LOT!!)? Well, if you are – fear not. I’m going to do it ONE. MORE. TIME! Don’t dither on this one, okay? I’ll leave this round open for a week. Go here to see what’s in a share – and to sign up. This craziness will end on 7 Jul!
Stampin’ Up! announced that the previously unavailable Neutrals Collection and Regals Collection Designer Series Paper Stack are now available!! So – if these were on your wish list…..they’re here!
Stampin’ Up! Products Used in Today’s Project:
Built for Free Using:My Stampin Blog
Card Cuts Used in Today’s Project:
Shop the Clearance Rack here.
Earn FREE Stampin’ Up! Products – Join my Punkin Head Peppermint Rewards – My online customer thank you program!
BACKORDER LIST AS OF 2 Jul 15
6 July
124267: Basic Black 12″ x 12″ Cardstock
126697: Wetlands Clear Stamp Set
138295: Tree Builder Punch (initial shipment will not cover all backorders; learn more here)
138764: Heartfelt Sympathy Photopolymer Stamp Set
9 July
138424: Mint Macaron 1″ Dotted Lace Trim
138425: Watermelon Wonder 1″ Dotted Lace Trim
138426: Delightful Dijon 1″ Dotted Lace Trim
10 July
129381: Ovals Collection Framelits
138377: Cottage Greetings Card Kit (initial shipment will not cover all backorders; learn more here)
138378: Tin of Cards Project Kit (initial shipment will not cover all backorders; learn more here)
138444: Timeless Elegance Designer Series Paper
13 July
138288: Brick Wall Textured Impressions Embossing Folder
15 July
113475: Big Shot Standard Cutting Pads
31 July
135862: Gift Bag Punch Board
Date to be Determined
138376: All Boxed Up Kit
138395: Expressions Natural Elements
138402: Silver Metallic Thread
Card Stampin' With Clara
Inky Bee Stampers
KarensCardCorner
Stamp with Amy K
Stampin With Shirley G
Tarabeth Stamps
TL's Bright Spot
Wild Wing Creations
You day sounds like ours a few weeks ago when my husband chopped though the sewer line while working on one of his many rewiring expeditions!! 🙂 But your card is beautiful! Love the colors and the way that you did the sentiment banners is awesome!!
Thanks, Amy. It does, indeed, sound like a similar day!
Well then..guess you have just proven the old “ill wind” thing. That such a fine effort could emerge from such a yucky day, well..there you have it. Beautiful card!
Thanks, Mom! Thankfully, today, the “bundle” appears to have taken a hike. At least so far! 😉