Spring 2011!

Well, I should call this post "ALMOST Spring 2011".  Here in Georgia, we've had terrific weather since Punxsutawney Phil declared Spring would arrive early this year!  So terrific, I've been able to open my windows during the day and in some cases, leave them open all night.  While it's pleasant now, I cannot help but think...  "Does this mean I'm going to have to turn my air on BEFORE April 15th?" (My general "cannot turn the air on before' date...)  Since I've begun to have some "personal summers" during the wee hours of the morning (wink, wink), I may have to lower my expectations this year.  We are new in this house, so I do not have a standard of what our electric bills will be like...  Therefore, for my sake and my hubby's, I may be spending a lot of the summer in my basement which is cool and where my craftroom is located.....  Darn, the bad luck...  ;-.)

Because Spring is on the way, I wanted to showcase this card.  I used a napkin found at Tuesday Mornings and used my encaustic wax process to adhere to napkin to the card base.  Encaustic waxing is very easy to do and a quick way to make a card.  I love the look.  

 The gold line stickers in the corners are from Hobby Lobby and I just love how they add a slight elegant feel to the card. 

On a side note, I received a wonderful surprise from my friend Deb at Playing with Color.   Deb sent me an award and I want to personally thank her! Thank you so much, Deb! I was so surprised and tickled!

This award is for someone to give extra attention to another person's blog so that more people are aware of that blog.  So, the award is not given to people with hundreds of followers.  The rules of this award are to:

Make a reference to the blog of the person from whom you have received the award (with a link). Thanks Deb!!!  You can choose to pass the award from three to five other blogs, with a link. Leave a comment on your chosen blogs to let them know that they have received an award.

Of course, you do not have to accept the award on your blog or you can specify from whom you have received an award but are not passing it on. Nothing is required.

In the spirit of giving, I have chosen to pass this award on to:

Heidi at Sugah Beez

Tara at Typing out Loud

Carrie at Creative Cards By Carrie

These ladies are very talented--check out their work on their blogs and share a little love!

Crisp Air

I'm sure it is getting cooler up north but it is still warm here, ranging about 88 for the highs. In Georgia, we have what we call Indian Summers. It is after the first cold snap when the days get warm again. So warm that you consider turning your air conditioning back on! We have not had Indian Summer yet this Fall. It should happen sometime around the first or second week of October . However, you can tell it is turning to Autumn. The humidity is very low, the skies are blue and every once in awhile, I see a leaf fall off of a tree. I love taking my dog out in the morning from my front door. I look out into an island of (mostly) pine trees. The sun rays are shining through and it's quite a lovely sight. I have a Japanese Maple out there as well and it's leaves will turn a bright red this Fall. It is my favorite time of year.

I created this card with that in mind. The background paper is encaustic waxing. If you follow my blog, you know it is one of my favorite techniques. It is a napkin that I waxed onto a glossy piece of cardstock. I then shaded it with gold wax. I love it. The pumpkins stamp is from Gina K Designs and it is the "Signs of Autumn" set. I colored it with my Copics (Y12, Y16, Y18 and Colorless Blender). I then added my Gelly Roll pen to add some shine. I cut the image using my oval Nestibilities and my scallop oval Nestibilities. I shaded using Tangelo and Cantelope Memento Inks while the shapes were still in the die cut. The ribbon I purchased at Hobby Lobby and the back ground papers were nothing special, except I always use Gina K Designs heavy weight Pure Luxury paper when coloring with Copics. I hope you enjoy it and enjoy the season!

Happy Birthday to Me!

Well, today is my birthday!   I will miss my son and oldest daughter not being here today.  Michael is in England and Jessica went to the beach with her boyfriend's family.  On the agenda today is: I have a final project for class to finish and my hubby and youngest daughter are planning on taking me out to dinner.  My hubby even took the night off from work just for me!!!  See, you can be treated like a Princess, even at my age!  It will be a good day, once I get it started!

This card is a napkin that I purchased at Ruby Tuesday's.  If you've never heard of the encaustic wax process, take a look on YouTube to see if there is a video on how to do it.  I really love the technique and love the results.  This napkin is actually waxed onto my card base.  I think it turned out so pretty!  In my last post, I stated that I was making cards for my 2nd cousin.  This is one of the Thank You cards that I'm sending her.  I hope you like it!