2019 – The Year In Review

Phew! Another year and another decade have slipped by! Here’s hoping the upcoming year and beyond are WAY better!

Despite only being able to do 20 posts last year, I was tickled pink to have 3766 visitors and 82 followers from 78 countries visit and leave scores of comments. Thank you all!!!

Despite my limited activity, I did have a couple of special honors last year:

• On September 12, 2019, I was pleased to be featured in the ‘Caught by Altenew‘ Instagram post for this project (Blog post HERE; Instagram post HERE):

• June 28, 2019 I was surprised to be featured as “Caught by Quietfire” in the Suzanne Cannon Fan Group Facebook page for this card:

Here are the top nine from the 1150+ likes on my 34 posts on Instagram:

Looks like cards with beaches, cats and mice rule!

For the year ahead, I have some posts in draft that I wasn’t able to finish and I HOPE to get to do more crafting and posting this year. My health problems continue, plus now I’m battling the insurance company to reinstate my disability.  Dad is still doing chemo and his pancreatic cancer markers have fallen considerably, so that is good! My 5 year blogiversary is coming up this year, too. Thank you all for sticking with me and giving me so much encouragement as I continue to craft wherever the whim takes me!

Hugs,

~D.Ann

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Kindness is the Way Coloring Class Cards

I’m excited to tell you about a wonderful coloring class and a gorgeous digital stamp set you can get for FREE! Yep, $0.00!! AND, if you’re reading this before August 16, 2018, you still have a few days to enter the coloring contest and win one of up to $200 in prizes! You can find the details on these two sites by the two ladies who are so generously sponsoring this little bit of KINDNESS:

• Kindness is the Way Digital Stamp Set (by the artistic and kindly Marcella Hawley – Thanks Marcella!!) I chose to use the one without the sentiment, but there are some with it in the set, too.
• Kit & Clowder’s Free Floral Coloring Class for markers and pencils by the talented and generous Alice Keegan – Thanks Alyce!

I took the class and learned a lot. I tried coloring using two different sets of pencils…(and learned it’s a lot slower going than with markers, but maybe that’s because I’m more used to using markers. The first pencils I used: Spectrum Noir AquaBlend pencils (which I just colored, but was too chicken to use water to blend. maybe next time!):

See the fuchsia and pale yellow color combo? That was Inspired by Home  – the current Power Poppy Sparks Challenge… 

The color combo for those gerbera daisies inspired by one of my orchids that’s currently in bloom:

I then had a go with a new set of Faber-Castell Polychromos that I received as a gift. Yes, you can see lines in the border shading… I was coloring on leather covered lap desk… come to find out that made the surface too soft and it was embossing, too! Oh well, it has a distressed, shabby-chic look!

And, since this week is the first Creative Confetti Challenge at  PowerPoppy – You’re a Gem! using birthstone colors, I did the background in light emerald and added this sentiment in emerald as the leaves go so well with the flowers:

Supplies:

• Power Poppy Kindness is the Way digital stamp set (get yours HERE)
• Elizabeth Craft Designs A Way With Words: Thanks die by Quietfire Design
• Spellbinders Blooming Garden Especially Made For You die by Marissa Job
• Spectrum Noir AquaBlend pencils: Apricot, Azalea, Beeswax, Bison, Blue Marine Brunette, Carrot, Cherry, Claret, Cobalt Blue, Coral, Currant, Fossil Gray, Grapefruit, Mango, Oregano, Papaya, Persimmon, Petunia, Pineapple, Pink Tulip, Rose Sky Blue, Soft Red, Sorrel, Tobacco, Watermelon, Wheat
• Faber-Castell Polychromos pencils: Brown Ochre, Burnt Sienna, Cadmium Orange, Cadmium Yellow, Cinnamon, Cobalt Blue, Crimson, Dark Naples Ochre, Fuchsia, Green Gold, Leaf Green, Light Cobalt Turquoise, Light Green Light Magenta, Light Ochre, Middle Cadmium Red, Middle Phthalo, Naples Ochre Orange Glaze, Permanent Green Olive, Pink Madder Lake, Red Voilet, Rose Carmine
• Core’dinations cardstock: white, orange, blue, black and green
• Scotch tape runner
• Aleene’s Original Tacky Glue

I’m playing along with the following challenges – click on any one of them for more information on how you can join the fun:

• Power Poppy August 2018 Power & Spark Challenge: Inspired by Home
• Power Poppy 8/7/18 Creative Confetti Challenge: You’re a Gem! Birthstone
• Kit & Clowder 20 Days of Craft Giveaways Day 20 Free Floral Class
• Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Distress It

Feel free to leave a comment… I enjoy reading them!

~D.Ann

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You Are So Positive – I Love That You Will Always Be My Friend! Card

Hello and welcome!

I have a lovely card to show you today! Veronica Zalis has put together a special blog hop: Stamping for Autism Awareness – you can read all about it HERE. I have several friends with precious autistic children and they all could use encouragement and support!

Simon Says Stamp’s Wednesday Challenge this week is A Trio of Something. I used three layers of blue and three layers of white cardstock to create this card and put a few trios of pearl dots on as accents.

Congrats to Simon Says Stamp’s Monday Challenge on their 9th Anniversary, too!

Here is the inside of the card:

Materials used:

• Spellbinders Chantilly Paper Lace collection: Bella Rose Lattice Layering Frame and Lunette Arched Borders dies
• Justrite Papercraft/Spellbinders Just the Right Words stamp set
• Quietfire Design Gentle Thoughts stamp set
• Recollections Cardstock: white 65# & blue 110#
• Tsukineko Memento dye ink: Paris Dark
• Tonic Nuvo Crystal Drops: Gloss Midnight Blue
• Scotch adhesive runner
• Simply Defined ‘Stay Put’ liquid adhesive

I am playing along with the following hops and challenges… click on any one of them for more information on how you can join the fun:

• 2018 Stamping for Autism Awareness
• Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge
• Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge – A Trio of Something

Thank you so much for stopping by… have a lovely day!

~D.Ann

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Papertrey December Blog Hop Challenge – Lacy Anniversary Card

Hello and welcome! Today I have a lovely bespoke anniversary card to share with you. I was asked to use luscious layers of lace, pearls, sparkle and frills on the card. I also used this month’s Papertrey Ink Blog Hop inspiration photo:

I chose the pinks/cream/tans with just a touch of green and turquoise colors and the stars and rounded arch of the fans for this anniversary party card.

From sparkling cardstock  and ribbon to rhinestones, there’s plenty of bling on this lacy party card!

She was thoroughly delighted with the outcome and chose this lovely sentiment for the inside:

Supplies used:

• Papertrey Ink: Simply Jane die collection
• Spellbinders: Elegant Labels Four
• Justrite Dies/Spellbinders Heirloom Flourish One
• Quietfire Design: Always Be My Friend stamp collection
• DCWV Luxury Stack & Shimmer Stack cardstock
• Simply Defined Distinctions 200# card base
• Recollections: Spohia cardstock, Mixed Media Paper Word & Botique Fleur mulberry paper mini rose
• Tsukineko Versamark Ink
• Stampendous PEARLustre embossing powder – Rose Quartz
• Pebbles, Inc. Pearlescent Chalks Jewel Tones
• Tombow Xtreme permanent adhesive and E600
• Misc. laces, faux pearls, ribbon and flowers(mostly Recollections & Offray)

I’m playing along with the following hops and challenges… click on any one of them for more information on how you can join the fun!

• Papertrey Ink December Blog Hop
• Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Party Time 
• Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Make is Sparkle
• Crop Stop December Challenge Linky Party #23 – Anything Goes (Pebbles, Spellbinders and Versamark)

I’ll be back in just a few minutes with a much different anniversary card that will make you go ‘Awww!’, so do check back (or scroll up)! : )

~D.Ann

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I Know That Was You Tiger Card

Surprise! Betcha thought this was the winners post from the Cat Lovers Hop blog candy… That will be just a bit later today, I promise. : )

On the hop I saw an adorable card by 2amscrapper (HERE) she used the adorable Juggling Tiger digi by Gerda Steiner Designs. It was this month’s free digi in the Progressive Freebie Group over at the Outlawz site… You have to sign up, but it’s free. If you use the current month’s digi, you get the next month’s digi for free, and so it goes. I’m not much of a digi user, but maybe I’ll catch the bug. Guess I’m squeaking in on the last day!

Meanwhile I had this beautiful sentiment that Suzanne from Quietfire Designs sent me from her World Cardmaking Day celebration. (Thanks, Suzanne!!) I knew would go perfectly with this cute tiger (Thanks, Gerda!!):

Supplies used:

• Gerta Steiner Designs: Juggling Tiger digi
• Quietfire Designs: Sometimes I Just Look Up stamp
• Tsukineko Versamark Ink
• Inkadinkado black embossing powder
• Copic Markers: E000, 02, 04; RV04; YR02, 04, 24; C1, 5, 7
• Sizzix Little Sizzles Earth Tones cardstock
• Misc. card base, adhesives and trim from Michael’s $1 bin

I’m entering this card in the following challenges. Click on any one to find out how you can join the fun:

• Outlawz Monday Sentiments and Progressive Digi Group
• Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Thinking of You

I’ll be back in a while with the winners post… It may take a little longer than expected, so thanks in advance for your patience. : )

~D.Ann

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You Are My Friend Card & 1st Blogiversary Blog Candy

Welcome back sweet visitors and regulars!

I’ve been so out of it lately! I forgot my one year blog anniversary aka blogiversary was March 18. Seems like ages ago! Who knew that I’d have 1991 visitors from 58 countries leaving 1380 kind comments on my 129 posts?! Of course it’s fitting that this anniversary falls during the Spring Coffee Lovers Blog Hop… for it was these lovely ladies who encouraged me to start my blog last year and I’d say a large majority of my visitors are from these hops. So I’ll have a small little ‘thank-you’ giveaway for you sweeties at the end of this post.

I’m pleased that this lovely shaker card  serendipitously came together for today’s post:

I love the girly feminine look and I threw in some coffee grounds in the shaker, so it smells heavenly, too… Hmmm… maybe next time I’ll only use coffee grounds and write ‘in case of emergency, just add water.’ Lol!

Here’s a different angle so you can see the raised banner sentiment…

Materials used:

• Spellbinders dies: Elegant Labels 4; Labels 4; Tea Cups
• JustRite Spellbinders dies: Vintage Labels 7
• Spellbinders Celebra’tions Cup for Two stamp set
• Quietfire Design Stamp: You Are My Friend stamp
• Core’dinations Cardstock – white
• Recollections Floral Bunches paper
• Recollections Shimmer card – pink
• Memento Dye Ink: Rose Bud
• Pebbles, Inc. Pearlescent chalks
• Neat & Tangled – Lucy’s Little Things Chocolate Truffle sequin mix
• Martha Stewart Crafts copper microbeads
• Recollections: Boutique Fleur mulberry paper mini roses, lace on a roll, crochet embellishments, rhinestone stickers, faux pearls
• Copic marker RV29
• The Paper Studio – Gemstones pearl, small, flourish
• Offray Elegant loop flower with pearls
• Aleene’s Tacky Glue
• Tombow foam tape
• Misc. coffee grounds, acetate, seed beads.

In case you haven’t already joined the fun, but are thinking about it, here are the hops and challenges I am participating in… just click on the name to get more information on each:

• Spring Coffee Lovers Blog Hop

• DL.Art March Linky Challenge Anything goes
• A Colorful Journey – Let’s Play!
• CropStop Linky Party #14 Anything goes

 

***********    giveaway now closed    ***************

Thanks for taking the time to stop by today! Oh – wait! The blog candy!! Silly me – Brain fog moment! I have a lot of those… like the time I bought this Sizzix/Tim Holtz Texture Fades embossing folder: On the Go – I had already ordered one 3 days before. Sigh. At least I had a nice use for it… Blog candy!

I also found another lovely Studio Shop/Susan Winget Flour Sack towel for one of you:

Would you like to have a chance at winning either of these (each one is a separate prize)? Pay close attention: Leave ONE comment on this post before 8 am EASTERN time, Sunday, March 27, 2016, telling me: Do you prefer your coffee or tea hot or cold?  If you don’t answer the question in your comment, I’ll assume you’re not interested in the blog candy (and won’t be offended!). You can also tell me if you have a preference for just a specific one of the two prizes, otherwise you will be a random draw for each. If you are (or become) a follower of this blog, you may make a SECOND comment telling me so for an additional entry. For non-followers, ONE ENTRY/COMMENT per person. Duplicate comments will be deleted.

For those of you with allergy concerns, this is a pet-free/smoke free home.

On March 27, 2016 I will use Mr. Random org to draw a winner from the comments that qualify and will try to announce it here on the blog some time before noon EASTERN time. The way my days are going recently, I might run a little late, so be patient. That’s another advantage of becoming a follower… You’ll know when I post! : ) You already know it’s a pet peeve of mine when someone doesn’t post their winners ’til days or weeks after they say they will, so I always try my best to stick to what I say. The winner will have 72 hours to contact me with their snail-mail address or another winner will be chosen.

Thanks so much for your kind comments of encouragement and support over the past year! I look forward to sharing another year of crafty fun with you!

-D.Ann

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