His and Hers ~ Fusion ~ Dynamic Duos

Hi there!

I've a busy day today with appointments about This and phone calls about That.  You know how it goes.  So, banterless, we begin:

Yesterday I started taking another of the delightful classes given by Online Card Classes (OCC).  This time the class is about making "His & Hers" cards, a similar idea you can find via the sketch challenge Seize the Birthday (STB) .  With STB, one week you use a sketch for a lady and the next week you use the same sketch and make a card for a gent.  With OCC, there are lots of terrific trips and tricks and techniques via excellent videos. 

 

Well, there aren't so many trips actually, unless you count going back and forth to your closets, drawers, and shelves.  I meant to say "tips," of course.  Anyway, it would sure be nice if I could get in the habit of killing both sexes with one card, as it were, making two each time.  One can hope.

If you'd like to take the class, I believe the above link will give you the info.  If not, lemeno.

 

~~~

 

For my two cards today, I'm playing in the Fusion Card Challenge. The Fusion hypothesis this week is:

 

For the first time, I did not "fuse" my cards!  This week I chose to use only Jackie's fun sketch challenge for both my cards.

 

For the feminine version, I also used the warm colors of this week's Dynamic Duos. 

The DD DT have made all their inspiration cards birthday cards in honor of Vicki Burdick!  I made a birthday card for Vicki here for Lesley's personal blog hop, so my cards for this post are "thinking of you," per the OCC.

As well, my cards are Quick And Clean And Simple, a new category we shall call QACAS.  That just sounds wrong.

~~~

Firstly, my Lady Card:

 

I love that sparkly and fun button paper, from either K&Company or DCWV.  I just punched the buttons out of the sheet and then applied the third adorable button (shankless) from GKW.

 

Secondly, my Gent Card:

 

The kraft paper is heat embossed with white embossing powder using a mesh background stamp from SU!.  The gentlemanly burlap bow tie is from Dear Lizzy.

 

I have to admit it felt really good to use the same sketch and create a second card, this time for a man.

 

~~~

 

Before I go, there is always time to have you meet two new friends!  Today I'd love to introduce you to Marie of Ink'd Wings and Chris of Pear Shaped Crafting.  I always adore the blog names you crafters come up with!  Thank you for joining us, ladies, and providing us with your amazing inspiration!

 

~~~

 

Enjoy your day!  No, seriously, enjoy.  LITS*!

 

Thank you so much for stopping by the Playhouse. Special thanks to you if you take the time to leave a comment or join as a follower! 

 

*Life Is Too Short!

 

Paper:  PTI white and kraft; SU! blushing bride;

  Bazzill textured tan; unknown DP

Stamps:  SU! Mesh Background; unknown

  sentiment stamps

Ink:  Memento and Ancient Page blacks;

  WOW white embossing powder

Bow Tie:  Dear Lizzy

Button from stash

 

 

A Letter Celebrating "Life Is Too Short!"

Happy Monday!

I just came across a letter/poem that I have never read in full before.  It's been around a while and many of you may already be familiar with it.  I hope so.  Since I'm always nagging you about life being too short, it seemed appropriate to dedicate a special post to it here on my blog, especially at the start of a fresh week.  I am doing it as much for myself as for you, as now I'll have it in a place where I can refer to it again and again for inspiration.

 

Unfortunately, the author is unknown.  Fortunately, that gives me a little leeway to juizz it a bit.

source

We Might As Well Dance

 

Too many people put off something that brings them joy just because they haven't thought about it, don't have it on their schedule, didn't know it was coming, or are too rigid to depart from their routine.

I cannot count the times I called my sister and said, "How about going to lunch in a half hour?"  She would stammer, "I can't.  . . . I have clothes on the line . . . My hair is dirty . . . I wish I had known yesterday . . . I had a late breakfast . . . It looks like rain."  And my personal favorite, "It's Monday." She died a few years ago. We never did have lunch together.

 

Because we cram so much into our lives, we live on a sparse diet of promises we make to ourselves when all the conditions are perfect!

 

"We'll go back and visit the grandparents when we get the baby toilet-trained." "We'll entertain when we replace the living-room carpet." "We'll go on a second honeymoon when we get two more kids out of college."

Life has a way of accelerating as we get older. The days get shorter, and the list of promises to ourselves gets longer. One morning, we awaken, and all we have to show for our lives is a litany of "I'm going to," "I plan on," and "Someday, when things settle down a bit."

 

My lips have not touched ice cream in ten years. I love ice cream. It's just that I might as well apply it directly to my stomach with a spatula and eliminate the digestive process. I got to thinking one day about all those women on the Titanic who passed up dessert at dinner that fateful night in an effort to cut back. From then on, I've tried to be a little more flexible. The other day I stopped the car and bought a triple-scoop cone. If my car had hit an iceberg on the way home, I would have died happy.

Have you ever watched kids playing on a merry-go-round or listened to the rain lapping on the ground? Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight, or gazed at the sun into the fading night? Do you run through each day on the fly? When you ask someone, "'How are you?," do you hear the reply?

Have your kids dropped in to talk and then just sat in silence while you watched Jeopardy on television, or sat immersed in your iGadget?

 

When the day is done, do you lie in your bed with the next hundred chores running through your head? Ever told your child, "We'll do it tomorrow." and in your haste, not see his sorrow? Ever lost touch and let a good friendship die? Just called to say "Hi?"

 

When anyone calls my "seize the moment" friend, she is open to adventure and available for trips. She keeps an open mind for new ideas. Her enthusiasm for life is contagious. You talk with her for five minutes, and you're ready to trade your bad feet for a pair of Rollerblades and skip an elevator for a bungee cord.

 

Now, go on and have a nice day. Do something you WANT to, not something on your SHOULD DO list. If you were going to die soon and had only one phone call you could make, who would you call, and what would you say? And why are you waiting?

 

When you worry and hurry through your day, it is like an unopened gift, thrown away. Life is not a race. Take it slower. Hear the music before the song is over.  Life may not be the party we hoped for . . . but while we are here we might as well dance!

 

~~~

 

Enjoy your day!  No, seriously, enjoy.  LITS*!

 

*Life Is Too Short!

Challenges Be Fitting a Musical Card

Hey, how's it going?  Where have you been?

Ha, did you see how I did that just then?  How I turned that around and asked you?

I had no plans to make the card I'm showing you today.  In fact, I have the beginnings of three cards on my desk, which might be par for you, but is unusual for me ... you know, the whole shallow thing.  I usually can't do more than one card at a time or I end up with unicorns popping out of wishing wells.

 

So, the last thing I expected to do was get going on a fourth card.  Then what happened was I saw Arielle's sketch this week over at retro sketches #61, shown here.

This sketch is from a card Arielle made a little over a year ago, which you can see here,  It  is one of the most stunning cards I've ever seen in my life.  I loved her card and, hence, the sketch, so I made this:

 

 

I used metallic gold paper to cut my die from Memory Box "Virtuoso Music" and then attached it to a matching piece of glazed ivory card using Glossy Accents.  I'm also entering my card in a few happenin' events around town:

 

1.  The uber talented and generous Lesley over at Always Playing With Paper is holding a birthday hop for another well-loved lady, Vicki Burdick of It's a Stamp Thing, so I'm linking there.

 

2.  The gold metallic paper I used to cut my musical notes was just a snippet, so I am happily hopping over to play at Pixie's Crafty Snippets Playground (Week 70!).  Thaz a lotta weeks and I send an exuberant thank you to our hostess there, Di, for continuing the tradition started by Jules.  You take good care of us and the playground, Miss Di!

 

3.  Since Michele's special birthday hop is still going on over at CAS-ual Fridays, I'm going to link up there again.

 

4.  Finally, the challenge is "Anything Goes" over at Simon Says Stamp. 

 

It's always a popular challenge and why not, with the fab prize of a $50 gift voucher!  The number of entries is up over 800, so it's sort of like buying a lottery ticket!

 

~~~

 

That's a lot of links and a lot of fun.  You have no excuse not to play and be inspired!!

 

~~~

 

And as if that wasn't enough, more inspiration is available to you via our latest friends!  Please visit and make welcome:

 Sharyn Polesel of My Crafty Place

Regina Hamilton of My World My Solitude. 

Tracy of I Wanna Build a Memory

Sue of Sue's Card Craft

Thank you for joining us, ladies!  It is an honor to have you here sharing and playing with us!

 

 ~~~

Couple little things.

• The Lettermen concert was a disappointment.  That's all I'm going to say because musical concerts and performances and performers are so dependent on individual tastes.  Not unlike cards.  If you're interested, you should definitely go and see them for yourself!  Mister and I had fun anyway.
• And we really had a good cackle while preparing dinner last night.  Let me just say that if you have any doubt about how fast time flies, please take a few minutes and go through your cup boards!

                                        Why it just seemed like yesterday . . .

 

 

and yet . . .

 

 

It wasn't even opened!  And we have a very small pantry so it's not like it got lost in there! I'm thinking it might still be okay as vinegar, but maybe no longer winey?  What kills me is that I swear I am good at checking expiration dates once a year.  NOT!  Oh, my, the things kids must find when their parents, well, exit.

 

~~~

 

Enjoy your day, in the pantry or out!  (I say "out," let the kids find it!  The way time is flying, you have better things to do!)  No, seriously, enjoy.  LITS*!

 

Thank you so much for stopping by the Playhouse. Special thanks to you if you take the time to leave a comment or join as a follower! 

 

*Life Is Too Short!

Paper:  unknown glossy ivory and metallic gold
Sentiment:  Mrs. Grossman
Die:  MB "Virtuoso Music"
Ribbon:  Offray CA07795
Pop Dots

MUSE #14 ~ Yes, Virginia ...

And we're back around to Friday, whoosh!

 

Not really, it's Thursday night here, but it will be Friday by the time most of you see this.

 

This week's MUSE Card Club Guest Designer is one of my favorite ladies, Virginia Lu, of Yes, Virginia . . .  Virginia made this delightful card for Mother's Day:

 

 

I made this CASE of Virginia's card to play along in the challenge:

 

I wanted to just turn Virginia's card inside out so that where she has the blank circle, surrounded by flowers, I was going to have a big colorful blossom surrounded by white space.  This rarely happens to me, but it was just too meh with all that white space, so I added a couple of little blossoms.  Then a couple more and a couple three more and before I knew it, I was off to the blossom races, but I only went once around the track.

 

~~~

 

I'm going to bed early for me.  I've been having a round of just routine blood work and appointments taken care of due to one of my physicians jumping insurance groups.  Today the flea bottomist took nine vials of blood from me.  Oh.Kay.  She was supposed to take two more, but she couldn't because they misplaced a standing order.  Hee! Hee!  So you see, once again, it coulda been worse! 

 

And anyway, I gotta rest up because tomorrow night the Mister is taking me on a hot date to a Lettermen concert.  Yes, they're still alive!  It should be a hoot with a houseful of our geezer peers getting all jiggy with us!

 

~~~

 

Before I go, it is a pleasure to welcome and introduce you to Lisa Haines of The Purple Place.  Lisa is a seasoned card artist and blogger and she is an enormous wealth of inspiration for all of us!  Thank you, Lisa, for joining the party!!

 

~~~

 

Enjoy your day!  No, seriously, enjoy.  LITS*!

 

Thank you so much for stopping by the Playhouse. Special thanks to you if you take the time to leave a comment or join as a follower! 

 

For my family and friends in the Midwest still (frown) being snowed on. 

 

*Life Is Too Short!

 

Paper:  PTI white

Stamps:  Hero Arts alphabet and flower

  from Rubber Stamp Tapestry

Ink:  SU!

Die:  Spellbinders Dahlia

Bling:  SU! and stash

Corner Chomper

 

CASology 41; Dynamic Duos 49; Paper Players 142; Update on Google Reader After Math

Hi There!  I hope Thursday is treating you well!

 

I came temporaneously out from under my closet/drawer cleaning to run up the back end of several challenges.  It's so funny to me because IRL, I'm never, ever late to anything.  Then again, in my real life, I don't have competing appointments or close calls for my attention, so it's not a good comparison.

 

In my Blogger Life, in alpahant order, I'm playing with:

 

Casology #41 ~ Giggle

 

Well, right off the bat, who's not gonna like that?  I have lots of stamps that make me giggle, but only one that's a stand out in the field.  When it learns how to behave, it can come back in.  What?

 

I hope you get a chance to click on the link and join in the giggly fun!

 

Dynamic Duos #49 ~ Basic Black and Basic Gray (w/ a manly dessert option)

 

I'm not sure my card is entitled to dessert.  It's gender neutral.  You can find some sensational masculine and elegant cards here to dog-ear for future inspirations.

 

The Paper Players #142 ~ One Layer Card (OLC)

 

Here is the link to awemazing ideas for those always-challenging OLCs.

 

Jaydee is the host for this challenge and I think, once you see the cards, you will agree that these OLCs are NOT boring!

~~~
 

Here is my card:

 

 

I hope my card made you giggle!  It was really hard not to color him, but the more I looked at him, the more I liked him in black and white and gray, like a vintage pen and ink cartoon.

 

~~~
 

Update on Google Reader Changes

 

My go-to girl for all this HulaHoopToDo over blog followers and blog readers, Kim S. of Joyful Creations With Kim has written an update.  She reiterates that you just leave your Blogger "Follow" button as it is; your followers aren't going anywhere. 

There are people, who may or may not be followers, who use "readers" to access your blog through smart phones and crack pads, I mean iPads, and Notebooks and whatnot.  They "read" or bring your blog front and center, easy to locate and easy to read from those devices.  Google made a "reader" that is shutting down in July.  People need to switch to Bloglovin or Feedly for this service on their devices.

Again, nothing to do with following.

To make it easier for your fans who use "readers" to find you, Kim gives clear instructions on how you can add both Bloglovin and Feedly buttons to your side bar.  I followed her easy directions and you can see the new buttons installed on my salad bar, located directly under the staying-put Follow button.  Thank you, Kims!

 

~~~

 

Speaking of followers, we have three new friends and I'm tickled for you to meet them!  Please welcome:

Valliam from n.i.f.t.y c.r.a.f.t.y

Dottielottie from Lottie Luvs Lilac

Maudieroff from Roffey's Creations

Thank you so much, ladies, for joining the party!  It's wonderful to have your fun and talented blogs to inspire us!

 

~~~

 

Enjoy your day!  No, seriously, enjoy.  LITS*! 

 

Thank you so much for stopping by the Playhouse. Special thanks to you if you take the time to leave a comment or join as a follower!  And remember, spit happens.  No use getting your diaper in a wad.

 

 

*Life Is Too Short!

 

Paper:  PTI white

Stamps:  Mo Manning MO155 image and sentiment from
  Stamping Bella;  starbursts from Rubber Stamp Tapestry

Ink:  Memento tuxedo black; SU! markers

Bling and eyeballs from stash

Corner Chomper

 

Now, does anybody know why all of sudden signature blocks have a frame around them and the deets look double-spaced after they are published, even though they are single-spaced in draft and preview formats??  And how to fix it?  Thank you!

WOYWW #203 ~ Cyber Spring

Welcome to this stop on the WOYWW blog hop!  You have come here from an amazingly creative desk and the one you hop to next will be well worth your snoop d'boop.  For details on this hop, please check with our wonderful hostess Julia over at What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday and join in the fun!

Before I move on to my desk, I just want to take a moment to condole with all the folks in the world and particularly in the Midwest states who should be welcoming Spring by now, but instead are experiencing flooding from excessive rains, or continuing to be otherwise blustered, frozen, or snowed on.  I can only send you cyber Spring from here and hope you get the real thing soon!

Here is my desk.

Of note this week is the beautiful floral card in lush hues that I received from a lovely lady who doesn't follow and doesn't blog, but who is a loyal reader and supporter!  Thank you, Pam, and thank you, too, Tracy, Mamie, Laura, and all you other silent cheerleaders.  I appreciate you very much!

But what is happening to me?!  I'm Messy Bessy again!  I'm sure it's not that tall vodka since that's nothing new.  And another thing, it's getting to the point where my focus button is useless.  I got distracted by some noise or critter out the window and, then, as I shifted my attention back to my card, my elbow knocked over my little container of blue brads,

 

which all had to be immediately picked up because SAS I would step on one in my bare feet, wince, bleep, grasp my knee, lose my balance, hit the back of my pin head on something, lose my conscience, leading me to do something illegal or immoral . . . well, you get the idea.

Doesn't it make you snigger when a well-meaning young person looks at you with a bit of pity and says, "And what do you do all day?"  Like it's boring, for heaven's sake!  If they only knew the adventures we have just trying to stay upright!

~~~

For those of you who might only visit on WOYWW days and have asked, I am reposting a picture of the button shanker tool I mentioned in last week's WOYWW.

 I have no idea where I purchased it, but you can find options when you ask the ever-amazing Mr. Google.  Or you can check with Lunch Lady Jan who tells me there is a cream for removing shanks.  I'm still chuckling about that a week later!  You may find wire snips work just fine for you.  All I know is I had a whole container of buttons to deshank, so I found it was worth the few bucksters. 

~~~

I'm delighted to introduce you all to my latest friend, someone many of you know well already!  Please welcome Valerie from Canonbury Creations!  Valerie is a seasoned card artist and blogger, so you'll be happy you made the time to stop in for a visit with her.  Thank you, Val!

~~~

I'm trying not to think about the fact that this is the last Wednesday in April already and the next time some of us will meet will be on May Day!  Aacckk!  May!  Time to finish up those baskets and those ATCs!

Here's a little cyber Spring to cheer you on!

 ~~~

 

Enjoy your day!  No, seriously, enjoy.  LITS*!

 

Thank you so much for stopping by the Playhouse. Special thanks to you if you take the time to leave a comment or join as a follower!  Please let me know if you stopped on the WOYWW hop, so I can make sure and return the flavor!

 

*Life Is Too Short!

A Fusion Flower

Happy Tuesday to you!

A quick postlet today.  I had the pleasure of spending the day yesterday with two of my besties shopping for, gasp, nothing to do with card making!!  We each got some colorful new toggery and shoes and purses.  It was so fun!  We totally scored!

 

The hidden nonmonetary cost involved in such frivolity is that I have to clean out my closet.  I've learned the hard way what happens to new clothes when you bring them home and just jam them in between Willy and Nilly in the closet.  So that's my project for today and zokay because it's long overdue.

 

I had black and white card vibes still on my desk from my last post, so last night I made a card for this week's Fusion Card Challenge (Hypo #3):

 

Once again I fused the two challenges, which I think is a blast!  (Oh, ha ha!)  There don't seem to be as many of you playing this time.  If you're quick you can still play along!  If not, I hope you can make the next one!

 

Because I used a flower on my card, I'm also entering it into the current Addicted to CAS (ATCAS #11) challenge: 

 

where they have this cool sponsor:

 

 

And here is my card:

 

For the flower, I used a heart punch to mimic the flower in the Fusion sketch.  For the flower center, I took one of my "Starfruit" In Color SU! Dahlia embellies and colored it black using a marker.

 

~~~

 

I have three new friends for you to meet today!  Please welcome:  Nancy Williams from What's On My Kitchen Counter and Denise Price from Green Crafting.  You will all be greatly entertained and inspired when you visit these ladies!  Welcome to you both and thank you!  We are happy to have you join us on our little adventure!

 

~~~

 

Wait, where's the third one?  The third one is this Cooper's Hawk. 

 

 

Isn't he handsome and scary?  Actually I don't know if it's a "he."  There is a pair of them that have been regular visitors in our neighborhood maple trees.  How do we know they're a "pair?"  Let's just say we know.  Between them and the majestic white kites you've met earlier, I'm having a hard time getting anything done around here.  Okay, okay, the closet . . .

 

~~~

 

Enjoy your day!  Please, seriously, enjoy your day.  LITS*!

Thank you so much for stopping by the Playhouse. Special thanks to you if you take the time to leave a comment or join as a follower! 

*Life Is Too Short!

 

Paper:  PTI white; DCWV patterned

Stamps:  Flourish:  "family/scroll" by Rhonna Farrer;

  "For You" by Verve VS9010-018

Ink:  Ancient Page coal black; Marvy marker

In Color Dahlia

Heart punch; Corner Chomper scallop

 

Happy Birthday, Big Sis!

Hi Everyone!  If you are peeking in here, that makes me happy because it means you are getting some crafty time for yourself!  I have a card today for four challenges:

 

~~~

CFC #99 ~ CAS-ual Fridays "Birthday Bash."  The prize is sponsored by the fabulous:

 ~~~

LIM Week 116 ~ Less Is More "Case It"

 

We can CASE Jen's card or Chrissie's card or both.  I chose Jen's, which you can see via the linkie. 

~~~

Pixie's Crafty Snippets Playground Week 69  ~ Just use scraps or snippets! 

 

 

I keep telling Di that she needs a logo for her challenge, so until she comes up with one, I think I'll put her picture as the logo!!

 

~~~

 

RIC #34 Reem Acra ~ Runway Inspired Challenge,

 

 

where the sponsor is the wonderful company, Ellen Hutson!

~~~

 

That's the challenge line-up.  Sorry it's long today.  By the time I get this written, prolly two of them will have closed!  But last night after dinner out at a Scottish Gastro Pub*, with our extraordinary twin grandsons and their parents, I was too jazzed to sleep, which means the little cray-cray hamster in my head had to take over and she's a bit of an overconceiver! 

 

(Lucky for you, RIC only allows you to combine your card with three other challenges.)

 

~~~

 

Finally my card:

 

 

I was inspired by the stitched layers in Jen's card and by the label she has in the bottom right with the flags below.  I hope will see the same design element in my card.

This card is not only for the challenges, it's a cyber Happy Birthday to my only older sister, Diana.  Happy Birthday, Sis!  I hope you have a great time today at the alligator reserve!  Please don't fall into the water in your enthusiasm to take a stunning photo!

 

~~~

 

The other day I mentioned that I had a tool to remove the shanks on buttons and several of you wanted to know more.  Here is a picture of mine.  I have no idea where I purchased it, but you can find many options when you ask the ever-amazing Mr. Google.

 

 

You may find wire snips work just fine.  All I know is I had a whole container of buttons, so I found it was worth it.  You can see the side view here; it slices through the thickest shank like butter. 

 

 

~~~

 

*So, BTW, the pub listed "hedgehogs" as an ingredient on the menu!  I'm not kidding, look:

 

Chicken:  pressed thigh, cabbage, mustard, hedghogs, carrot butter

  

I was outraged on behalf of all the hedgehogs world-famous in the card-making community and I so informed Kristoph our waiter.  He said he gets that comment second after, "What is 'bubble and squeak'?"  He assured me their hedghogs are a type of mushroom and not an adorable critter. Phew!  Now about the "pressed thigh," . . .  Stop it.

 

~~~

 

Enjoy your day!  No, seriously, enjoy your day.  LITS*!

 

Thank you so much for stopping by the Playhouse. Special thanks to you if you take the time to leave a comment or join as a follower! 

 

Life Is Too Short!

Paper:  PTI white and true black; Stampland glossy;
  SU! real red, basic grey
Dies:  Memory Box:  "Perched Reed Bird" and "Twigs
  and Berries"; Lil' Inker "Stitched Rectangles"
Mrs. Grossman's stickers
Glossy Accents