Here Goes

This is my very first post - so welcome. During these first few posts, it seems appropriate to name some of those folks responsible for my entry into blog land.

Nichol Heady at {capture the moment} is one of the driving forces at Papertrey Ink. Her blog is my creative nirvana. If you love to make simple elegant cards using beautiful paper, ink, buttons, dies, and clear stamps, then this is a blog you should not miss. On occasion, I will post my humble creations using their fabulous wares. (By the way, I'm not their shill - just an enthusiastic customer and creative groupie.)

Jumping in with both feet, here is a Thanksgiving invite I made for Make-it-Monday #39 - multi stamp background building at Papertrey's blog. The background images are from Table Service. (One of the things I love about Papertrey's stamps, is their size. The smaller proportions are perfect for building background papers and creating scenes.) The word 'holiday' is from Wonderful Words: Holiday Die Collection. There are more die cuts hiding in the turkey. The body and chest are the two smallest dies from Buttoned Up #2, and the neck and head are the spoon die from Table Service Die Collection. The tail is made of the three different sizes of  Tim Holtz's Paper Rosettes, and those demure feet are punched using Martha Stewart's branch paper punch. (This latter punch may not be available any more.)

Earlier, for Make It Monday #31's background challange, I used stamps from Papertrey's genius stamp set, Guide Lines Two, and the motifs from their special edition stamp set, Iconic Images. The 'Guide Lines' grid stamp was applied to Kraft Cardstock using Versamark's Champagne Watermark ink, making a nearly invisible grid on which to 'build' lace. The motifs from Iconic Images are just the right size to make the lace background using white die ink. The more transparent look of die ink enhances the lace effect when over-stamping images.





I used the 'You're Invited' stamp from  Table Service on the satin ribbon. (The detail of the font on the ribbon is nothing short of miraculous.) The stamps and dies for the cup, pot, spoon, and tea tag are from Tea for Two and Tea for Two: additions. To make the Chintz-ware cup and pot, small prints from K&Co's 'Water Bouquet' paper pad were combined with colored pencil shading and highlighting.

The wonderful 'Table Service' and 'Tea' sets were part of a prize I won for leaving a comment on Papertrey's blog during a release. Up until that moment, I had never won anything in my nearly 60 years. That win alone made up for all the preceding barren years. Be sure to visit them every month and leave a remark. You won't be able to resist commenting when you see the newest offerings and the amazing samples Nichol and the very talented design team make.

Thanks for visiting today.
Marcie