A site for my handmade cards, accompanied by my photos and written meanderings which are occasionally witty, often tongue-in-cheek, and rarely profound. Beginning in June 2013, you'll also see lots of NBUS, which is an acronym I coined for Never-Before-Used-Schtuff. Note: my Privacy Policy can be found at a tab below and you can find my NBUS Challenge online. I hope you'll join in the fun there! Thanks for coming by! Have a beverage and enjoy!

May 18, 2015

Sarntangle Spring Birthday

Good Day!

I am home with my body clock all out of whack, but it was worth it! I had such a fun time with my sisters and, as you saw earlier, meeting Mary and Bonnie!

Now it's home again, home again, jiggidy jig!

Before I tackle Mount Laundry, I wanted to share a card I made earlier this spring for my friend Sarn of Stamping For Pleasure that I remembered was in my "not yet blogged" (NYB) folder:
A simple watercolor smooshed background stamped with one of Sarn's limited edition "Sarntangle" stamps and a v.o. stamp from Hero Arts.  The square stitched dies are from Lil' Inker.

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~~~

Here are more photos to share of my holiday. The first is of me with my sisters and the second is a collage of mostly lily pad flowers which I don't remember ever seeing before. I was as enchanted by them as I am of my sissies.
Donna, Diana, Doris (Dood), and Darnell
It was a precious time for all of us, blessed by good weather, and lots of laughter. Knock wood, we have managed to meet annually for fourteen years with everyone arriving and departing safely with no loss of luggage. Well, there was that one time in New Mexico when the airline had to deliver Diana's "misplaced" bag, but still, that's pretty awesome!

Okay, off I go before the hamper explodes! The hamster is also nearly exploding with happiness to have me back in the Playhouse again, not to mention the Mister!

~~~

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95 comments:

Ксения Phedra Ли said...

Darnell, you take the sketch fantastically! Your colors are vibrant) love it)

Patti J said...

What a blessing to have an annual reunion with your family! You are all so happy and beautiful!!! Love your card, Darnell - those colors just woke me up, and said 'get busy'!!! Thanks for sharing and inspiring me to push away from this keyboard and create!

Tanja said...

love that watercolored background - such a pretty, vibrant card

Bananastamper said...

Gorgeous card, I LOVE the watercolour background as well as the fantastic and fun colour combo! So glad to hear about a fun and fabulous visit with your sisters!!! Aren't sisters the best? I have only one but love her to bits. I wish she lived closer, but such is life. We manage to get together quite often (usually twice a year or so, sometimes less, sometimes more) despite our distance from one another. I love and cherish our time together every single time and it might be that I appreciate her even more because I don't see her as often as i would like. Hugs to you!
Shanna :)

Mrs A. said...

I saw you had been on or travels. Bet hammy was pleased to see you just so long as he isn't expected to turn the handle on the old wash mangle! lol. Back on the iPad and predictive text. The Internet connection lasted all of 21hrs. We're into out 7th week now. I could write a blinking best seller on this.
Ps. Just taken me 5mins to edit all the words out that pd decided I wanted/should be saying. Iv'e had it with technology. Going back to a feather quill and ink splots.
Took me 3 goes to put splots in as pd decided I needed to say splits! I need a blinking drink now.
Pps. Feel free to change blinking!!!!!

Ardyth said...

Such a pretty watercolour background and I love how you showcased it by using a line stamp! Great photo of all you sisters and the lilies, too!

Suchi said...

Wow! Great card. Love that background Darnell! :)
Suchixx

conil said...

Hooray! We're glad you're back, too. Also glad that you had a wonderful time with your Sisterbuds. Interesting to note you all have "D" names. Your card is beautiful...that background is lovely.

Krisha said...

Beautiful card Darnell.
Looks like you had fun.

Linda said...

Beautiful watercolor background. It is so great that you get together with your sisters every year. What fun you must have. I'm sure there is plenty of laughter.

!neke said...

Your background is beautiful !
Like the names of you and your sisters ! DDDD!

Julie B said...

Welcome home, you looked to have had a blast.
Love the treatment of the fab background with simple line stamp. :)x

Regina said...

Nice to see you posting again. Wonderful card with a fantastic background! It looks so pretty in the combination of colors you chose.
Glad that you had a wonderful time with your sisters! I've 3 sisters too!
Regina*

Sarn said...

. . . and that wonderful card is even better IRL. Just LOVE it. Thank you so much Darnell.

Looks like you had a blast with your Sisters. FAB-U-LOUS.

Hugs, Sarn xxx

sandie said...

Looks like you all had a fabulous time and yes your card is grungy enough for us...that so doesn't sound good does it! The watercolours are gorgeous and I love the way they blend, thank you for thinking of promoting TO, we sure appreciate it x

Lisa said...

What a beautiful picture!! How awesome that you are able to get together each year!! I'm glad you had a great time!! The card is gorgeous!! I love the pretty colors!! Have a great day :)

Lisa
A Mermaid's Crafts

Kathyk said...

Gr8 make, splendid image and lovely pix - looks like a great time was had by all

Kathyk

Sue said...

Really pretty card.

Glad you had such a fab time. Lovely photo.

Hope you've had a good start to the week. Sue

Stella said...

Darnell you had a fab time with your sisters and so had I last saturday :) Love the photo of the four of you! And your card; bright and vibrant. I love it. It's a gem!

Karen said...

Gorgeous card and beautiful photos, Darnell! I love the color palette on your creation and the sweet sentiment. And of course I'm so happy you had such a blessed time together... moments to treasure forever. :o) Have a lovely day, my friend.

Hugs and blessings,
Karen

Unknown said...

This is lovely!! Love those watercolors!!

Dana M said...

Beautiful card Darnell! I love the colors. Looks like you had a great visit with your sisters. Family is the best!

Harriet Skelly said...

That is a great card Darnell - looks like you may be enjoying water coloring??? So glad you had a good visit with your sisters. I'm going in 2 weeks to my stamping gig - first to Omaha, then to Des Moines, finishing off in Minneapolis! Hugs, Harriet

Sharon Underwood said...

I'm so glad you had a good visit with your sisters! Nothing like family to cheer you up and bring a(nother) smile. Cherish those times! I like your watercolor. Very striking!

Jenny L said...

Hi Darnell,
welcome back from your lovely time with your sisters.
You can't beat a good chin wag with sisters.
Now I am not sure if you know that saying in America.
Your sisters all look very lovely and happy people.
Love the super spring colour creation.
Those Sarntangle stamps are wonderful arn't they.
Your background colours look perfect, and beautiful.
Oh no the dreaded laundry after hols, I hate that part. lol.
Lots of crafty love. Jenny L.

Carole Z said...

Glad you had such a good time with your family, your card is gorgeous, I really love your watercolour background, hugs Carole Z xx

Carole Z said...

Glad you had such a good time with your family, your card is gorgeous, I really love your watercolour background, hugs Carole Z xx

Kathleen said...

Gorgeous card and a great use of one of the Sartntangles, love the colours and the layout.

Kath x

Oops glad you had a great time.

Jean said...

Your card is fabulous,I love the colours in the water colour background and the lovely sentiment.
Looks like you had a great time with your sisters.
Jean x

Bonnie said...

Ooh, pretty background and I always love to see Sarntangles! Love the photo of you and your sisters. I'll be you had that apartment rocking! Glad you all had good flights. Beautiful lily pads and other flora and fauna! Hope you and Hammie are playing happily right now!

Leigh Penner said...

Oh, looks like a wonderful time! And your card is lovely, as always!

Sue said...

Your card is gorgeous Darnell, I love the design and beautiful colours.
I am pleased you had such a fabulous time.
Hugs Sue xx

Verna Angerhofer said...

What a gorgeous card you created. I love those spring colors too!

Canonbury creations said...

Gorgeous colour combo Darnell looks amazing with that line stamp and sentiment. Just stopped myself from writing "sediment" think you must be brainwashing us :0)
Lovely photo of you and your sisters long may you continue to have your reunion!
Val x

Brenda in IN said...

Great card for Sarn. I love the pink and green combo. You and your sisters are so lucky to have that reunion every year. You have to want to make it happen and thats wonderful that you all get together and keep that bond.

Unknown said...

Just adore the colours on this card Darnell xx

Nessa's Crafty Place said...

Pretty card Darnell-love those bright colours-you made a lovely background :)
Love to see all those happy faces-and glad to hear you all had such a fabby time on your travels!
Hugs,Nessa xxx

Anonymous said...

Welcome back! I'm so glad you had a wonderful time!!! Mary said you and I need to meet up.....to kick me in the pants (oooops!! I meant because your a kick in the pants lol!! LOVE your card....so bright and pretty!!!

nancy littrell said...

Love your Smooched and zentangle stamped image card Darnell. Sounded like you had a Fabulous trip with ALL the girls. TFS your pictures and cards.Hugs, Nancy

BożenA said...

Hello, Darnell!
Your card is very beautiful. Great watercolor background colors so beautifully mixed. I adore her!
hugs,
Bozena

Barb Ghig said...

Welcome home, Darnell! I'm so glad you had fun visiting with your sisters...what a great pic of you all, too! Thanks for sharing the pics of the lily pad flowers...gosh, they are beautiful!!!

I love how you played with the Santangle stamp...it's so pretty with your lovely water colored background, and the sentiment is so sweet!

Hope you get through the pile of laundry quickly, so you can enjoy some time in the Playhouse!

cuilliesocks said...

Beautiful card Darnell, the most gorgeous colours and blending, lovely image and sentiment. Lovely photo of you and your sisters, hugs Kate x

Pam said...

How very wonderful that you are able to get together with your sisters. I am the oldest of 9, 7 girls & 2 boys. Fortunately we all still live relatively near where we grew up, so are able to get together quite often. Love your card!

oldpunca said...

What an amazing background on your card, dear Darnell! I like the colours and a super nice stamp.
Thank you for sharing the photo with 4D. :-) Lovely ladies. Happy to have you back. :-))
Hugs, Sonja

Hettie said...

Yeay!!! Youza back then from your holibobs with no major events.
Great card. Love that swooshy background.
Now say hi to Hammy for me...hope he doesn't burst his bladder!!
Hugs
xx

Nora Noll said...

What a nice photo of you and your sisters!! So fun that you get together like that yearly. (and you all get a long. If I had to go away for a weekend with my sisters I would have to phone in sick. Love them but we are very, very different people...and neither of my sisters is talking to the other.)

LOVE the smooshed background on your card too. The colors you chose are fabulous.

Carol said...

Your card is so pretty Darnell, I love the gorgeous background. Love your photos, great one of you and your sisters. Carol x

Birgit said...

Love the card-so simple but yet so pretty and sweet. I love the colour combo. Glad you had a great time with your sisters. That is so nice to have a close tie with your family. Laundry time can be so time consuming especially if you accidentally place something red in with the whites which I, of course, have never done:)

Lisa Elton said...

Oh, I like your smooshed background the is marvelous! Looks like you had a wonderful time. Glad everyone is home safe and sound!

stampwithsandy said...

Oh you must have had such a wonderful time with your sissies, Darnell! You are quite a handsome bunch I might add! Your card is gorgeous thanks to an amazing background. One of these days I am going to have to try smooshing! So happy you played along with us this week at Colour Me!

Taunya Butler said...

So glad to hear you had such a lovely time!! Sisters are great - I have 4 and I love each of them!! You are a PRO Smoosh-er, my dear, you make it look so perfect and your card is very wonderful!! Have fun attacking Mount Laundry - it is what I should be doing as well!! But, I'm not!! =]

Brenda said...

Wow, what a beautiful card Auntie! I love the smooshed background colors-heck I just love pink and green together. lol I love that you used the one of Sarn's Sarntangle stamps, they are just the coolest and I love it! Oh don't you and your sisters look fabulous?!!! I can tell you are all sisters as you look a like! I think it is your eyes and smiles, so pretty! I'm so happy that you ladies have been able to do this 14 years running, that is just the greatest! I also love your collage of the lily pad flowers, so pretty. I hope your body clock gets back in gear, I can just imagine the jet lag! Hugs, Brenda

Bobby said...

Wow! I love that smooshed background, Darnell. The colors are fabulous. I'd love a shirt like that. ;) So glad you had a wonderful time with your sisters but glad you're back.

Kelly Latevola said...

Gorgeous watercolor Darnell! I'm so happy you got to have a wonderful visit with your sisters. I am one of three girls and I know how happy I am when I get to see my own :)

Cheryl W. said...

So glad you had a great time with your sisters. I have three sisters, as well, and love getting together with them. Your card today is bright, cheerful and just plain awesome.

ike said...

Such a pretty card and I am so glad you had fun with your sisters and got home safely :-D Thank you very much for my gorgeous Birthday card. :-D

Hugz
IKE xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Greta said...

Every year for 14 years?! That is so wonderful, Darnell! Love the picture of you 4--a treasure! Beautiful colors & design--love the card! Lily pad flowers are intriguing. We had a pond with them many years ago & used to travel past some frequently--miss seeing them these days.

Katie Ann Brooks said...

Love your fun watercolor! Thanks for joining us at Colour Me!

Katie Ann Brooks said...

Love your fun watercolor! Thanks for joining us at Colour Me!

Lizzy Hill said...

Lovely it was to see the holiday photos.....& I bet it was equally good to get home - I think it always is! Love the colour combo here. Sooooo pretty!!!

Anonymous said...

Lovely card.
Bet you had a blast :)

Linda said...

Welcome home Darnell ..... Sounds like you had a blast ..... lovely pic of you and your sisters.
Beautiful card ..... so vibrant. Love the watercolour background. Hugs Linda xxx

pinky said...

Your card is stunning Darnell, love the soft colours. I am so glad you had a great time with your family!!

Sue - said...

So pleased you had such a great time, good to have you back. Love your card - aren't those Sarntangle stamps great?

Paper Creations by Shirley said...

Sounds like you had a fabulous time! Your card is beautiful, love the colours and the water colour background. Have a great week, Shirleyxx

Aileen said...

Darnell, this card is so meeeeee. I love love the colours, design eerything. Yummo

I Card Everyone said...

Love the colors in this challenge - love them even more on your water-colored beauty!
=] M

Geri said...

Pretty ladies, pretty card|! Seeing the pics of you & your sisters made me smile! You gals look like you had a blast!

Love your 'smooshed' background and LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that image...it's so cool!

Awesome pics of the lilies... and of "Greenie the Gecko" :)

wienerhoneymooners said...

Phenomenal watercolor!!

Donna said...

Fabulous card Darnell, love the watercolor background, I'm just starting to play with watercolor and I like my second attempt, lol. I'm much better at backgrounds than images, at least for now!

Gerrina said...

So great that you where together all! Looks like a fun time!
Your card us grungalified enough and a lovely brught one! Hugs, Gerrina

Jacquie Southas said...

Love the watermelon walercolors - fresh & pretty and perfect for the black sentiment and sketchy zentangle image. I really "heart" the photo with your sisters, having 3 if those special relationships in my life too :)

Marisa said...

Gorgeous card. Love how you water coloured the BG. Yeah for good times with family too - always the best :)

Carole Pollard said...

Brilliant card just love the colours and your sentiment. looks like a great time with your sisters you all look amazing its always nice to go traveling but nothing beats home love and hugs Carole x

Joyce said...

Welcome home, Darnell. Your card is just so pretty. Love the water coloring.

MRS DUCK said...

Hi Darnell
Terrific smooshing as usual. Great colour choice too. Your cards always make me smile:-)
Glad you all enjoyed yourselves at the annual D Fest. You all look very happy girlies!
Best wishes.
Ang x

Marybeth said...

I'm so glad you had a wonderful visit with your sisters,Bonnie and Mary! You sure get around!
Love the pictures of you and your D sisters! ( I'm the Mary sisters)
On to that that gorgeous watercolor card....wow! That flower stamp you used makes everything seem to just flow,love this !

MaryH said...

Whoa, I saw one of your cards at HLS (where I finally got something that would fit & could join in). Already commented on that card, so went to Home to check up on you! So glad you got back home safely, even if you do have Mt. Laundry to climb. I know Hammie misted you so much. Loved seeing the picture of your sissies...you all do resemble each other. Just loved the gorgeous splodge water color with Sarn's spending Sarntangle. It's bee-U-tee-ful. You sure showed off Sarn's tangle great. TFS & Hugs

Shelly said...

This is so sweet and pretty! Love the colors! And what wonderful pics! Sounds like you had a great time! :)

OH Babs said...

Charming card using the smoothing technique. Oh how fortunate you are to have sisters you can continue to share memories with.

Kim Heggins said...

Welcome home!!! Love your fabulous photos, so sweet seeing you with blogging friends and family too! And your card, oh my goodness, I am in love with it! Your ink smooshing is simply amazing and I love it in the pink and green, so spring like and perfect for a birthday!

kiwimeskreations said...

So glad you had an awesome time with both your sisters and bloggy friends - and that card is fabulous - not only beautifully stampes but I love your use of colour on it.
Blessings
Maxine

Carole said...

Sisters...our first and forever friends.
The watercolor background is wonderful...I should try that.
Happy Trails
C

JoAnn said...

Nice card.
Great photo of you and our sissies. Glad you had a great time.

maria f. said...

Pink and green remind me of my preppy days at Hillsdale! Lovely card. Lovely group of gals.

MackieMade Paper Creations said...

Gorgeous colors! I love this!!!
I am glad you had so much fun with your sisters!

Michelle said...

Wow! What a BEAUTIFUL card! I love it! I also love the photo of you with your sisters. And I love how you managed to colour coordinate the waterlilies, the lizard, and the clover. ;-) Those lilies are stunning, and that lizard is super cute!

Renata said...

Waauuu. Čudovite barve in krasno sestavljena voščilnica.

Helen F. said...

Lovely watercolor, Darnell! It's such a pretty Spring time Birthday card. Very nice photo of you and your sistas

Petra Swart said...

Love the great watercoloured bg of your card, Darnell!!! The stitched frames really highlights your focal panel beautifully!! Lovely!!
Seems as if you and your sisters had a great time - what a great idea to get together every year and have some fun together!!! Love the idea to have all the names starting with a D!!
But as the Mister and Hammy, we're glad to have you back in the Playhouse!!!! Have fun!!!

Anita in France said...

So happy you arrived home safely after such a wonderful (from the photo's!) trip, Darnell ... and that the Mister and Hammy had the welcome banners out for you ... quite right too!! Grungalicious watercolouring ... so yummy with that simple line leaf flourish ... I can just imagine those leaves tinkling gently in the breeze softly wafting by the Playhouse! Delighted to have you playing along with us at Time Out! Hugs and bisous, Anita :)

Manuela said...

pretty card, love the bright background, sounds like you have had a wonderful time and wonderful photos of the waterlilys

Cat Craig said...

Fabby...I love watercolors...probably my favorite medium at least for the last year or so. S

Unknown said...

I love the combo of pink and green for your smooshed watercolor background. The stamp is so pretty. Lovely card. And it looks like you had lots of fun.

Redanne said...

Yay, I have finally seen your family picture!! You and your sister Dood sure do look alike, it is a lovely photo Darnell and you look like you are all having a wonderful time too! Hugs, Annie xxx