HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

I didn't make any new Halloween cards this year so I am pulling out pictures of two cards that I made in previous years.

 

 

A very simple card using designer papers.  The ghost was stamped with VersaMark and embossed with white powder.

 

This card was a case of a card my friend Georgia made.

It's going to be very chilly here this evening for the tricks or treaters but I have my candy bars all ready for however many brave the cold.

Thanks for stopping by!

STAMPIN' UP! SWEETBRIAR ROSE

This is a beautiful stamp from Stampin' Up!  I embossed the front of the card with the Swiss Dots folder.  The banner strip was added.  I colord the image using the SU Blendabilities.  The image was matted and then mounted with foam squares.

Thank you for stopping by today!

STAMPIN UP SERENE SILHOUETTES

 

I love making cards with silhouette designs and really like the images from this stamp set.  I haven't used them nearly often enough.  To start, I took an 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" piece of SU Baja Breeze card stock, folded it for the card base and then embossed the front with one of the SU folders. 

 

I had a piece of white card stock that was about 4 1/4" x 5 1/2".  Using SU Baja Breeze and Old Olive inks, I began sponging the colors on that piece.  I didn't need to cover the entire piece because I was going to trim it down for a matted layer.

 

After I had enough color, I stamped the design using VersaFine Black Onyx ink.  This layer was added to a black and then a white mat. 

 

Thank you for stopping by today!

CASE OF PENNY BLACK STICKER

 

This sticker was giving me problems for what color of card stock I could use with it.  I went to Pinterest and found one like this.  I used Kraft, Blushing Bride and White card stock for this card.  After putting the layers together, I added a "happy birthday", a Martha Stewart punched butterfly and Stickles Crystal Ice for the centers of the flowers.

 

Thank you for stopping by today!

CHRISTMAS REINDEER

This really pretty reindeer was cut with a Penny Black die.  I love the gracefulness of it.  I used a textured gold metallic dp and the picture does show some of that texture.  I found two pieces of dp from a paper pack that also picked up the gold color.

 

Thank you for stopping by today!

PENNY BLACK STICKERS #6

The main color on this one is the Stampin' Up! Baja Breeze card stock which goes so well with some of the color in the background of the sticker.  I decided not to emboss the front of this card at all and just added the sticker which was mounted on the Not Quite Navy card stock.  I scored a couple of lines and then stamped the "Merry Christmas" with the Not Quite Navy ink.  To finish the card off with a bit of sparkle, I added some clear stickle to random places on the design.

 

I hope you enjoyed seeing these cards and that maybe it has given you some ideas of your own.  Thank you for coming by today!  I hope to have something new for you again tomorrow.

PENNY BLACK STICKERS #5

The sticker was adhered to a piece of white card stock.  The "banner" was cut from a Stampin' Up! Not Quite Navy dp.  The front of the card was embossed with the SU folder.

 

Thanks for stopping by!  Tomorrow will be the final card made with this sheet of stickers.

PENNY BLACK STICKERS #4

This "Peace" was cut using a Penny Black die.

PENNY BLACK STICKERS #3

Once again I used Stampin' Up! Not Quite Navy card stock for this post.  The Spellbinders "Peace" die which was on the red card posted this past Monday also has a separate die for just the word which is what I used for this card.

 

Thank you for stopping by!  Be sure to stop back next week for the remaining three cards made from this sheet of stickers.

PENNY BLACK STICKERS #2

Very simple using one of the PB stickers and Stampin' Up! Not Quite Navy card stock.  Thanks for coming by!

PENNY BLACK STICKERS #1

Recently I purchased some Penny Black stickers.  They have such beautiful designs and can make it possible to put several cards together very quickly.  All six of the stickers on this sheet used colors that worked perfectly with the Stampin' Up! Not Quite Navy and Baja Breezed card stock.  I will be sharing the other five cards over the next few days.

 

The "Peace on Earth" was cut using a Penny Black die.  Glue is hard to use on these types of dies so I purchased some double sided sticky paper.  A piece of card stock was attached to one side of the adhesive.  Then the die was used to cut the words.  I peeled off the back side of the adhesive and carefully placed the pieces onto the card.  I like this particular double sided sticky paper because it does allow you to adjust the pieces if they are crooked.  After a while it does become more permanent.

Contact me if you have any questions.  In the meantime, thank you for coming by today!

VERY SIMPLE CHRISTMAS CARDS

Last week I thought I was going to have our two youngest grandchildren for the weekend.  Plans changed and my weekend was completely free so I thought I was going to have all kinds of time to play at my craft table.  WRONG!!!  Well, I had the time but unfortunately my husband's cold decided to find a home in me as well.  Guess it was a very good thing that the grandchildren wouldn't be coming.

 

Friday I had made three VERY simple Christmas cards with Spellbinders dies that I had ordered.  I love the dies! 

I couldn't get a good picture of this card so that it would show the embossing along both sides.  Love the die but I'm not real happy with this card so I'm looking for alternative ways to use it.

 

 

Sorry I didn't get this picture cropped.  The embossing folder that I used for this was one that I borrowed from a friend this past summer in Des Moines.  I simply added a die cut which was made using gold shiny paper.

 

Of the three simple cards, this one is my favorite.  I love the design of this die.  All three designs were cut using a new double sided sticky sheet and then adhered to the cards.

 

Thank you for coming by today!

AUTUMN LEAVES

I have a list of ladies who are in independent living or care centers that I send cards to during the holidays and sometimes for birthdays.  One of those ladies has always thanked me and told me how much she appreciates those cards and knowing that someone is remembering her and thinking of her.  This card is for her just as a random act of kindness. 

 

After seeing so many beautiful fall colors while we were traveling with our trip to the Dakotas, I decided to pull out the Penny Black stamps and dies I recently purchased.  The lady who will be receiving this card may not get out to see some of the lovely foliage around here so maybe I can bring some to her.

 

I chose Stampin' Up! Wild Wasabi, Cajun Craze and Crushed Curry inks to randomly stamp the leaves and the "Autumn".  I then cut one of the Maple leaves, stamped it with the Cajun Craze and mounted it with a foam square over the banner with the sentiment.

 

I hope wherever you live, you are blessed with some of the gorgeous colos of Fall.  Too bad Winter has to follow..............

 

Thank you for stopping by!   I hope to be back Monday with something new again.

PEACE

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As promised yesterday, I finally have a new card for you to see.  The dove and "Peace" are both from Penny Black.  The "Peace" is very delicate and it was hard to get just very small dots of Tombow Liquid glue on it, but it worked. 

 

The solid and striped dp are from a paper pad which I have had for a long time.  The striped paper has some gold metallic stripes in it which worked perfectly with the gold dp I used for the dove. 

 

The dies were cut with a textured gold metallic dp which I believe I got at Michael's.

 

I hope to get back to getting more new items made on a regular basis.  Thank you so much for stopping by today!!! 

THEODORE ROOSEVELT NATIONAL PARK

 

After visiting the Rapid City area of South Dakota, we headed to Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota.  The weather was dreary and it was late in the season.  We didn't find any shops open so we just did the drive through the park, grabbed a bite to eat at a cute little bar and headed back to our room.  The next day we were on the road headed for home.

 

While we drove through the park loop, we saw buffalo, wild horses, prairie dogs and wild turkeys.  We also saw some deer but I didn't get a picture of them.

 

 

Wild Tukeys

 

The buffalo were on the move.  We parked on the road and many of them crossed over in front of us.  I got a really good video of  some of the bulls actually running from one side to the other.

 

Wild Horses

 

Prairie Dogs

 

Tomorrow, I'm going to get back to posting cards for you.  My husband drove an activity bus for our granddaughter's Junior High volleyball team  last night and will again tomorrow night.  Since I managed to get a card made last night I will be posting that tomorrow.  It really felt good to be making a card again.  It's been quite a while since I've produced anything new.  I hope to take some of that "alone time" again tomorrow night to be inspired at my craft table.  Wish me luck!!

 

Thanks for coming by today.

CRAZYHORSE VOLKSMARCH

 

 

With big smiles on our face we started the 10K Volksmarch Walk to the face of Crazy Horse Mountain.  My camera date was wrong yet here but it was Sunday, September 28th and projected high temp for the day was only 71 degrees.....perfect for this challenge for someone who has never done a walk more than about 2 miles other than when I used to take a short walk for exercise or running errands.  And this was not an ordinary 10K (from beginning to end) since it was through rough terrain in the woods and eventually up steep inclines.  Two-thirds of the walk was to get to the top and I was beginning to be worried because we were walking a long way and for a long time going down!!!!  I thought we were supposed to be going up which made the climb all the more difficult.

 

I think you can see that there were rocks in the walk way.  There were slippery areas of pine needles and lots of twigs and limbs to get over as well.

 

At the second checkpoint, one of the workers had his bird along with him.

 

 

This was Checkpoint 4.   As you can see we still had a very long way to go.

 

More woods to go through but a better path.

 

 

Just one of the last main inclines we had to climb. 

 

But I made it.  It was very emotional for me to have made it because it was a challenge to my body that I had never made and certainly hadn't trained for.  I gave my husband a hug with tears in my eyes out of relief and pride that I had MADE IT!!!!  It was his help and patience that I was able to do it.  Toward the end on the steep inclines he walked slightly behind me and put his finger in the middle of my back.  It sounds crazy but it is amazing how much that helps.  Others tried it after they saw us and found it was true. 

 

The walk down was much easier with more flat areas BUT.......

 

They made us walk one last long incline to reach the High Fives from a park worker and a couple other volunteers.  That was the best feeling to get back!  Most of the time when people sign up for a 5K or 10K walk/run, the surface is much better than this and not nearly as hilly.  When I finished I told my  husband I had done my first Marathon because it was so much more of a challenge than regular 5K's or 10K's.   I'm so grateful that it wasn't 90 degrees as it had been the three days prior.  It's a journey that I won't ever forget!!!

 

And this was my reward for doing it...........

 

 

A NATIONAL TREASURE

Mount Rushmore is truly a National Treasure!  As you enter, the Avenue of Flags features flags from the states......what a beautiful site!

 

 

Naturally I want a close up of Iowa's state flag.

 

 

Two of the views of the Mount Rushmore carving which if I remember correctly took 14 years to complete.  It was funded through government funds. 

 

 

 

The man responsible was 57 years old already when the project was started.  It is magnificent!!! 

 

That's all for today but be sure to come back tomorrow if you want to see what happened on the 10K walk to the arm of Crazy Horse carving.

 

DAY 2 IN CUSTER SD

On Friday, September 26th, the annual Buffalo Roundup was held.  We had been there in 2007 too.  When I realized that it was going to be held again 2 days before we had planned on going we added 2 days to the front of our trip because I love watching this.  It means a very early morning but I was so glad we got to see it again.

 

 

There are two viewing places to watch.  The picture shows the crowd across from us at the North viewing area.  Both times we have gone to the South viewing area and have been told that it is the best one and there were even more people on our side.

 

Buffalo are herded in with a lot of riders and some pickups.  This was when the herd was brought around close up to us.

 

They drive the herd up behind this hill and then they "run" them in.  It is like what you see in the movies with around 1300-1500 buffalo come running over the hill.  So cool!!!   (I took video of it but by zooming in to get a better look the video is pretty jumpy so I won't post it.) 

 

The buffalo are guided into a controled field and then over about 3 days they are all run through "gates" where they are given necessary shots.  They decide which ones will be sold.  When they release the buffalo from the "gates" they take off running and kicking like crazy.

 

 

After the round up we took a short nap because we had been up before 5:00 AM.  In the afternoon we went to a great place with wonderful wood carvings.  We found this one which was made by a man from a nearby community to where we live.

 

 

Then it was off to Crazy Horse Mountain to get some information.  We had been there before but this time was going to be different.  The picture above shows what the mounting carving will eventually look like with the actual one in the background.  The four heads of Mt. Rushmore would actually fit inside the head of Crazy Horse.  It is massive and will not be completed for many many years.  Sorry I won't live long enough to see it completed but I envy those who will witness it!!!  I have a deep respect for the Native Americans love of the land and their art.

 

 

I zoomed in on the carving so you could see the outline of the horse's head.

 

 

There is an annual June walk and now the second year of a September walk from the visitor's center to the top of the outstretched arm of Crazy Horse.  I had hoped to take a van up but that isn't done on the days of the walk.  It is a 10K walk from beginning to end.  I've never even done a walk more than 2 miles but I was determined to get up there because my husband was already planning to walk it. 

A later post will show what happened so be sure to come back.

BACK SAFE AND SOUND

I was shocked when I realize the last time I posted anything was September 10th.......way too long!!! It really has been a busy time though.  The stamp sale I was preparing items for was very successful so glad I took the time to get so many things ready.  Then it was time to start getting things ready for our trip to the Dakotas.  I don't have any cards to post for you but over the next few days I'll show just a few of the pictures I took while we were gone.

 

The first visit we made was unplanned but so glad we had learned of it from a lady who happened to start a conversation with us while we were enjoying ice cream comes.  The first two pictures were taken at an actual Mammoth "dig" in Hot Springs, SD.  The site was accidentally discovered by a contractor who was planning on using the property for apartments/condos.  When he started preparing the property he found bones and called the proper authorities. 

 

 

The last three pictures shown here are from Custer State Park.  We drove through there the first day just to see what wildlife we could find.  We knew they would have begun the process of gathering the buffalo for the roundup the next day but we did still find a few up close.  And of course the wild donkeys are always fun.  They will put their heads right in the car as you can see.  (The date on my camera should have been 9/25)

 

The fun continues tomorrow............