Crafty Lizzie: Playing Catch Up... Again.

It's been a while. This TypePad account is getting pretty expensive if I break down the annual fees by the number of posts I write on an annual basis, but I'm going to pretend that I never had that thought. Moving on...

This post will feature five random cards I've made in the past four (or so) months. How's that for a tempting intro? Without further ado...

How cute is this card? The stamp set, and the coordinating dies, are by Mama Elephant -- "Three Amigos." You can mix and match the expressions on the critters' signs and it's just adorable. I colored it with some Copics, trying my best to remember some of the shading techniques I learned so many years ago, and forgot a few years ago. The colors are in the warm gray and walnut brown families. Green polka dot cardstock is vintage A Muse Artstamps. Ivory card base is Neenah. Pink and brown layers are by Stampin' Up!. I used (as usual) my Memento ink in Tuxedo Black.

This card... I had that sweet image from Rosie's Roadshow and I just had to use it. I stamped it in Memento ink in Rich Cocoa. Sentiment is vintage A Muse Artstamps. I colored the birds with Copics (canary yellow, apricot, lipstick red, and cool shadow) and used just a bit of crystal glaze to make the heart balloon stand out. All papers are by Paper Source, except the patterned piece, which was from a random 12"x12" scrapbook sheet I had in the house. As for cutting the shapes, the circle and scalloped circle are Stampin' Up! punches; the word window die is by A Muse Studio.

And then we get to Father's Day. I was (am) a little obsessed with the Lawn Fawn die for the "Say Cheese!" set, and have been feeling kraft paper (and the color navy) in a big way. Since time was short, I kept the design super simple. The image and sentiment are both vintage A Muse Artstamps, and I stamped in Memento Rich Cocoa ink. Kraft paper from Paper Source; card base from Lawn Fawn. I colored the superhero with Copics (lipstick red, canary yellow, skin white, special black, and cool shadow). Some carefully-applied yellow Stickles made the hero sparkle.

Of course I had to make a couple of cards for my kids' grandfathers, and because I was operating with little time, I decided to stick with the basic design of the last card. This navy card base is by A Muse Studio. These stamps and coordinating dies are the "Dad + Me" set by Lawn Fawn. I stamped -- surprise! -- with Memento Rich Cocoa, as well as with a couple of A Muse Studio inks. I colored the moose with Copics -- sand, light walnut brown, and walnut brown.

And last but not least, I grabbed a little time to make a few cards for the Fourth of July. I have had these images (again, vintage A Muse Artstamps) for years but have never gotten my act together in time to actually use them. Well, this design was super simple but at least I got some cards out the door this year! This card base is by A Muse Artstamps. I stamped the hats on Neenah ivory cardstock, colored them (again, with copics, in lipstick red and ultramarine), and then cut them out with detail scissors. I mounted them on the card bases with foam tape so they popped. I used a trio of Stickles to bling out the hat, and then added a little star piece of bling (again, vintage A Muse Artstamps) to give the sentiment a little zing.