Rainbow Stenciled Togetherness

Hi there, color lovers!

I'm popping in quick as a flash in the Brusho pan. No time to natter, waffle, or flibidolize! I know, more's the pity, but needs must and meeds lust and there's naught can be done for neither.

I came up with a design for another of my BSST panels which allows it to show itself off in all its Brusho Stenciled Spritzed and Toweled splendor:

It really is an embarrassingly simple design. I split the BSST with my die from Papertrey Ink and then bridged the split with a double-foam espresso vanilla sediment, also from PTI. The base card is strawberry slush from SU. I used Mod Podge Dimensional (like glossy accents) on the word to allow it to stand up against the vibrant rainbow colors.

I really toyed with adding some sort of embellies for and aft of the word, but in the end, I just decided to leave well-enough alone. I think this will make a sweet wedding or anniversary card or even a heartfelt friend-to-friend-I've-got-your-back card.

Challenges

• The Card Concept: The Rainbow Connection. My concept is "clean and graphic."
• Sketch Saturday: Below.

~~~

We are off to play again today, but before I go, I have an audience-participation photo that my sister Diana took recently:

What is this?! 

Diana lives in North Carolina so that is where this dragonfly/grasshopper/bug appeared. I am mesmerized by the neutral (yet striking) coloring, those feet and stockings, the hairiness all over, and that incredible backpack! Can you help identify this creature?

Edited to add: Several readers have properly identified this as Asilidae or "Robber Fly," an appropopo name considering the robber's bag it has on its back and the mask it wears! It lives everywhere in the world except Antarctica! It is harmless to humans, but is considered a "killing machine" to other (often beneficial) insects. Boo hiss, bad bug.

~~~

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

As always, thank you for coming by to visit the Playhouse and special thanks to you if you take the time to join as a follower! Please let me know you came by, so I can be sure and return the flavor. 

*Life is too short!

To open the pop-up comment box that let's you jump to the end w/o scrolling:

Click CTL + Home. 
Click the Home tab under my blog banner which resets the post.
Click Page Down to reach the end of the post.
Click Comments and a pop-up box opens.
Click "Jump to Comment Form" and walla, no more car pool tunnel!
Mwah!
If you ask me a question in your comment, please remember to leave me
your email address so I can respond. Thank you!

Oops!

Greetings,

Even though I'm trying to stay off the streets of Blogland to concentrate on trip preparations, I still have an active hamster who has his own Chromebook for checking challenges. That means in spite of my best efforts, sometimes I have to drop everything and play cards with him.

Like this.

BTW, that's spose to be a pee-pee puddle, regardless of the sediment. The message works for pee-pee, too. I don't want you to think I am being gross while you are trying to enjoy your tea and toast! My thinking was that grandma is on the move, stepping over the doggie puddle to take him outside. But now that I look at it, I see it looks like everyone is having an oopsie moment! Hey, don't judge until you're a grandma!

While looking through my stamps to find something that might be original for Less Is More's challenge, Hammy spotted this Art Impressions stamp, which I watercolored with my Ziggies. I went looking for an "Oops" sediment, but I don't have one. I could have made one with my Concord & 9th alphas, but when I spotted this Stamping Bella sediment, the search ended. (This fun sediment is meant to accompany a diapered and bottled toddler image, but I thought it was apropopo for this card's wee-wee splatters.)

You'll have to pardon my errant pink schmear near the right edge. Paint happens.

Challenges

• Less Is More: One-layer card with splatters!
• Freshly Made Sketches 
• Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Animal Magic.

~~~

A Squirrel By Any Other Name

In critter news, last month the Mister hollered in the door on his way to work that a couple of squirrels were playing in the front yard. I grabbed my camera and enjoyed several minutes with them. There was a big fluffy squirrel

and a baby squirrel. 

I thought the baby squirrel looked a bit odd, but I've only seen grown-up squirrels visiting, so what did I know? He or she was certainly an imp crawling up inside the wheel well of the Mister's truck!

A couple of weeks went by and then we saw two more baby squirrels playing in the back yard among my potted plants near the Playhouse. So cute!

Until they both took off and dove under the corner of the Playhouse.

Odd, I thought, why didn't they just scamper up the tree like their parents would do?

The next day they were back. I got a picture of one of them edging out from the corner of the Playhouse while the Mister was off on a motorcycle ride.

When the Mister got home, he told me that he had seen baby squirrels just like ours out along the road. And then he said, "The reason they aren't scampering up the trees is because they are GROUND squirrels!"

Oops.

We asked Mr. Google just to make sure. The tails aren't as fluffy and their front legs are much shorter. We've never had ground squirrels in the neighborhood before, but a nearby highway is being widened and we think they are being forced out of their own neighborhood. I feel badly about that and Hammy is thrilled to have new playmates, but I don't want them nesting under my Playhouse!

I think it might be time for me to get a mini-doxie to chase them out of the yard. I will housebreak him or her first so I don't look like my card! (Wait. Is that a poem?)

~~~

Thank you for all your good wishes concerning my upcoming trip to England! Some of you thought I was leaving on June 16th, but I'm not leaving until July 16th. You will still see me here in the coming month, just not as often.

As always, thank you for coming by to visit the Playhouse and special thanks to you if you take the time to join as a follower! Please let me know you came by, so I can be sure and return the flavor!

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

*Life is too short!

To open the pop-up comment box that let's you jump to the end w/o scrolling:

Click CTL + Home. 
Click the Home tab under my blog banner which resets the post.
Click Page Down to reach the end of the post.
Click Comments and a pop-up box opens.
Click "Jump to Comment Form" and walla, no more car pool tunnel!
Mwah!
If you ask me a question in your comment, please remember to leave me
your email address so I can respond. Thank you!

Gold Beachiness

Greetings, stamplings!

There really is a Gold Beach. Well, come to think of it, there are prolly a lot of Gold Beaches in the world. The one I'm referring to is in the state of Oregon. We've enjoyed ourselves there many times. Our young son gathered up a lot of the beach in his swimwear and let me tell you, I didn't find any gold when I swept it out of the door of the camper!

If it were gold, I think it might look something like this:

A simple shaker made with circle dies and gold and coral sandals. All the dies are from Lil' Inkers. The gold-embossed NBUS sediment is from Technique Tuesday's "Summer" stamp set. The gold fragments are from a kit that Papertrey Ink sold a few years back. The day was overcoast (haha, my typos karack me up), but just as I was taking my pictures, the sun broke through the clouds, reflecting off the acetate. It's the little things.

If the card is standing upright, the gold looks like sand particles. Hopefully. Maybe. I also added a little bit of fine glitter.

It looks like I did something really spongey and artistic with the shaker background, but before you give me all kina kudos for it, let me admit that it is just a snippet of pretty sunset pp I've had in my stash since the last century. 

Challenges

• CAS Mix Up May Card Challenge: Heat Embossing +.
• The Paper Players: A Sketch from Laurie.
• Pixie's Snippets Playground: Use your snippets!

~~~

Schtuff 'n Such

Thank you to all of you who have asked how I'm doing in your comments. I'm feeling much better, but still wasting a big chunk of each afternoon napping, so I'm sorry if I haven't gotten back to you individually. And not only that, what happened was the Mister turned on the PC and walked away for a minute and Windows 10 was downloaded before he could click an emphatic NO. He's my IT guy and he's been busy, but it will get sorted in a few days. (I'm not as nimble and quick on these here other deVices.) I appreciate those of you who have remained constant the last many months as it's been one thing after tother. Mwah!

~~~

New Friends Corner

It gives me great joy to welcome these new friends and I'd like you to welcome them, too!

Michelle Gleeson of Stampin' Mojo. Michelle began blogging in August 2013. She is an independent Stampin' Up demonstrator who showcases the product beautifully with her pretty cards and she's on the Design Team for Pals Paper Arts. In addition to her cards, Michelle does a marvelous job of capturing her memories in Project Life posts!

K. Ritter of The Kitchen Table Crafter. Kathryn started her blog in 2008, but she only posted sporadically and then took a break from 2013 until a couple of months ago. Now she is posting often and entering challenges. You'll enjoy the read as well as the art! (BTW, she has a generous blog candy offer going on!)

Lynn B. of My Cards n Stuff. Lynn started blogging in 2010. She is a creative designer whose works of card art are often seen in challenge galleries. She also serves on design teams. I think her cards are so inspiring with their bright colors and happy images!

Esther of Siesta Scrap (see Esther scrap!). Esther is from New Zealand and she started her blog in 2009. She doesn't post very often, but when she does, her work is a treat for the eyes. You will find cards, tags, scrapbook layouts, and some truly sensational 3D art projects that you just have to see to believe!

Mouni Koneru of Craft Drama. Mounika has been blogging since June 2015. She is from Bangalore and a microbiologist by trade. Mounika has been paper crafting since 2013 and her beautiful and colorful cards have been rightly recognized in challenges. Her other hobbies include scrapbooking, fabric painting, recycling, and garment designing!  

Thank you for joining, ladies, and welcome to the Playhouse!

~~~

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

As always, thank you for coming by to visit the Playhouse and special thanks to you if you take the time to join as a follower! Please let me know you came by, so I can be sure and return the flavor!

*Life is too short!

To open the pop-up comment box that let's you jump to the end w/o scrolling:

Click CTL + Home. 
Click the Home tab under my blog banner which resets the post.
Click Page Down to reach the end of the post.
Click Comments and a pop-up box opens.
Click "Jump to Comment Form" and walla, no more car pool tunnel!
Mwah!
If you ask me a question in your comment, please remember to leave me
your email address so I can respond. Thank you!

DJKASEing KAY

Hello, Hello!

For those of you who celebrated Mother's Day on Sunday, I hope you had a wonderful day! Huge hugs to you if the day is a sad one. I also want to say my heart goes out to all the families whose lives have been impacted by the ferocious wildfire happening in Alberta, Canada.

I'm sure I've told you before that one of my card artist heroes is Kay Miller. Her blog is My Joyful Moments. I mean, first of all, what a great and befitting blog name! I can tell you I've had a mazillion joyful moments drooling scrolling through Kay's blog! If you live in the shady side of the forest and haven't yet had the pleasure, take a day and visit her to see for yourself. You might want to wire your jaw shut first.

So it was beciting for me to see that sweet Kay is the featured card artist to be CASEd over at the "CASE with a twist" challenge at Time Out. I couldn't pass that up! When I CASE (copy and share everything) someone's card, I call it DJKASE because I like to mess with letters and words and aaackronyms. And it confuses new readers. Wait. What?

Let's reveal.

Kay's card is this beauty:

Kay's card

And here is my DJKASE:

Darnell's card

I went old school and used a wooden stamp from Stamp City with a built-in frame. I colored the flowers and dragonfly in unusual colors with my Ziggies. I wanted to follow Kay's pretty colors and, hey, that's the beauty of having an artistic license, right?! I can paint pink irises with gray leaves if I want. The sediment stamp is from SU and the flourish was a die cut sent to me by a friend long ago. Of course, Stella wanted to play:

Challenges

• Cards in Envy: Just Us Girls: cards for girls or ladies.
• Pixie's Snippets Playground: Use your snippets.
• STAMPlorations Theme and Sketch: Stamp and anything goes.
• Sweet Stampin' Challenge: May flowers.
• TIME OUT Challenge: CASEing Kay.

Mother's Day

We were fortunate to have the grandtwinsons for a weekend sleepover! Many of you have seen the boys enjoying the Playhouse over the years so I thought you would love to see the cards they made for their marvelous mom:

Featuring watercolor pencils.

Featuring "that colored tape."

And if you'll indulge me, I'll add these:

Being goofy after their baths. They are going to be tall men; it wasn't that long ago they both easily fit onto just one cushion!

Don't mention it to them, but I'm still jealous of those eyelashes!

And this one looks like a good one for the Christmas card photo, doesn't it? Henry is on the left and Adam is on the right in all the photos. How does that happen? 

~~~

New Friends Corner

I'm so happy to be welcoming these five new friends and I'd like you to meet them:

Archana Bhurke (Ranjan) of Handmade Cards by Archana. Archana is originally from Mumbai and now lives in Germany. She started blogging in 2011 and has become a well-known and talented artist in Blogland. She is a frequent challenge award winner and a Girl Friday at Casual Friday Stamps. After trying her hand at jewelry making, painting, and sketching, Archana says that creating card art is the most satisfying of any hobby she has tried!

Deepti Aggarwal of Vishesh Collections - Handmade by Deepti. Deepti is originally from Bangalore and she now resides in the United Kingdom. She started blogging in 2010 and after taking a little hiatus the last few years, she is back to being very creative this year. You may have seen her in the winning galleries of some of your favorite challenges!

Lilian YF of The Leaf Studio. I'm sure Lilian needs no introduction to most of you as she has been blogging since 2007!! Lilian also loves photography, which she has been enjoying since 2000. She started working with paper craft in 2004. I am in awe of those statistics and of her beautiful and consistent card art! You will find buckets of amazing inspiration when you visit her blog!

Carrie Sheridan of Carrie's Custom Cards. Carrie just started blogging in 2015. She is the mother of four who loves making cards when she is not tutoring online in French and English or busy with her church. Carrie has become a frequent challenge winner with her beautifully designed and uplifting cards!

Susan Renshaw of Calling All Crafters. Susan has been blogging since 2013. She serves on design teams and excels at challenges throughout Blogland. Susan's card designs are always so unique and creative. You'll also be charmed by her talent in scrapbooking and journaling!

Thank you for joining, ladies, and welcome to the Playhouse!

~~~

As always, thank you for coming by to visit the Playhouse and special thanks to you if you take the time to join as a follower! Please let me know you came by, so I can be sure and return the flavor!

*Life is too short!

To open the pop-up comment box that let's you jump to the end w/o scrolling:

Click CTL + Home. 
Click the Home tab under my blog banner which resets the post.
Click Page Down to reach the end of the post.
Click Comments and a pop-up box opens.
Click "Jump to Comment Form" and walla, no more car pool tunnel!
Mwah!
If you ask me a question in your comment, please remember to leave me
your email address so I can respond. Thank you!

Just Saying Hi.

Hi.

I say that because of this.

I love the adorable and fun stamps that Stampingbella makes. You'll be seeing a few of their stamps featured in posts to come because, well, because I just bought a bunch, okay?! Mt. NBUS is excavated to the point where I can now see over it if I stand on my tallest ladder tiptoes, so I felt Justice Fied.

This NBUS tiny townie stamp is called "Penelope has a pencil." The "Hi." is a separate stamp in the same set. The written words panel is also NBUS. It's from the "Out Loud" set by Casual Friday Stamps. I stamped it off on a piece of scratch paper first so that it would look soft and not overpower Penelope.

(I don't know why Penelope's hair and the silver band of the pencil are the color of wisteria. I used my black Ziggie to paint them, which apparently photographs purple. I also have to tell you, it was really, really, really hard to hold back the hamsters from putting a dot where her nose should be. They just do not understand how she can breath. I distracted them with strawberries and got the picture taken.)

Challenges

• CAS(E) This Sketch. Below.
• Less Is More: Use 3 stamps. 
• Pals Paper Arts: Colors: wisteria, daffodil, and pool party.
• Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Make it girlie.
• Virginia's View Link-Up Party: Miss you, hello, any type of friendship.

Sometimes I make a card and then find challenges that coinkiedinkly match and sometimes a card is born directly as a result of seeing challenges. Either way, I want to say thank you to all the Challenges People for lighting warm fires of inspiration all over Blogland!!

~~~

So Odd

Does anyone know what's going on with JoAnn's? I sent the company three emails in the last couple of weeks regarding a problem with a gift card (after going to phone hell first). Each time they sent me a receipt saying I would hear back within 24-48 hours, but that didn't happen. (I checked my spam folder.) And BTW, they charged me a dollar fee for the gift card, which I've never had a company do before! I'm not a happy costumer and I needed to vent, so thanks. But have you heard that JoAnn's is going out of business or something? Cousin, this is odd.

~~~

Giveaways

I have new items up on the Giveaways tab at the top of my blog:

The directions for entering can be found by clicking the Giveaways tab. You have until April 29, 2016 to enter.

~~~

New Friends Corner

Please give a warm welcome to these new friends! Ladies, come on out!

NieNie Sambuco of SambuCOrona Papercrafting Adventures. NieNie began blogging in February 2015. She only posts now and then, but I think her creations are fabulous. She has a vivid and very creative imagination. And she recently made a quoteworthy statement on her blog: "Even the unintentional can be beautiful." We've all found that to be true, haven't we?!

Jamie Martin of Stamp This! Jamie started blogging in - whoa! - 2007! She is a pro at it, that's for sure. Put a pillow behind your back because there's a lot of inspiration and tips and tricks waiting for you when you visit Jamie!

Kay Wallace of Art From the Main House. Kay and I could retire away together, she in the Main House and me in the Playhouse! Kay has been blogging since 2012 and loves playing in challenges. She has also served on many design teams! Her works of art will blow your socks off so you'd better put your garters on!

Carol of Crafty Carol's Cards. Carol only just started her blog in January of 2016, so please pop over now and welcome her to our supportive community in Blogland and leave her some encouraging words about her lovely cards!

Sharon of From My Craft Desk. Just like Carol, Sharon has only been blogging since January of this year, so ditto the above! Sharon, too, makes terrific cards, especially for the Less is More challenges. It feels so great to give back and remember how thrilled we were to have visitors and receive comments! For that matter, how thrilled we still are!

Thank you for joining, ladies, and welcome to the Playhouse!

~~~

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

As always, thank you for coming by to visit the Playhouse and special thanks to you if you take the time to join as a follower! Please let me know you came by, so I can be sure and return the flavor!

*Life is too short!

To open the pop-up comment box that let's you jump to the end w/o scrolling:

Click CTL + Home. 
Click the Home tab under my blog banner which resets the post.
Click Page Down to reach the end of the post.
Click Comments and a pop-up box opens.
Click "Jump to Comment Form" and walla, no more car pool tunnel!
Mwah!
If you ask me a question in your comment, please remember to leave me
your email address so I can respond. Thank you!