A Blog Called Wanda

Flickr Challenge! Lawn Fawn and Simon Says Stamp - Craft with Kraft!

HAPPY FRIDAY!!!! Yesssss! OMG I am sooooooo excited to share this card today! I went down to Scrapbook Territory last week and got my new LAWN FAWN goodies and could not wait to ink them up! The new Lawn Fawn stuff was very high on my list of 'must haves' from CHA. The stamps are just so happy! So I was already excited... Then....I saw that Barb was hosting a Simon Says Stamp + Lawn Fawn Flickr Challenge! A match made in heaven if you ask me!

The theme for the Flickr challenge is Craft with Kraft using Lawn Fawn and SSS products. NO problem! I sat down with the Gleeful Gardens set and my Copics and went to town. These images are just so delightful and fun to color. This card makes me happy! I hope it makes you smile.

 

 

 

 

I stamped and colored all my images first and then cut them out with the perfectly matched dies. It felt good to get the Copics out - it's been a while. I just chose really cheery colors and bright colors. I wanted to match the pretty aqua and green paper borders to my snails as the focal point. 

 

 

 

Here are all the Copic marker colors I used for this card!

 

 

 

A close up of my favorite Simon Says Stamp Stitched Squares dies - the perfect layering pieces. My card base is Kraft woodgrain paper. I love how the aqua pops against the brown...

 

 

CLICK THE PHOTO to go to the challenge page - you can enter too!

The Challenge is open until March 5th so there's plenty of time! 

 

 

 

 

 

Most of my pieces are popped up with foam tape. I cut the hills using the awesome Stitched Slopes dies and put those down first. How sweet is that hummingbird?? 

 

 

 

I stamped the sentiment right onto my card base with rich black ink. The finished card is 5 inches square. I like a square card, don't you? I wrapped some twine around my layers before putting them on my card base. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I love this little snail bringing his friend a letter!!! EEP. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you for coming by my blog today! I loved sharing this card with you and hope I've inspired you to get crafty today! Have a blessed day everyone! XOXOXO

 

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Papertrey Ink February Blog Hop - Mosaic!

Howdy! Yes, another month has FLOWN by and it's time again for the Papertrey Ink Customer Blog Hop! This month, there was no specific theme, just a gorgeous inspiration image (it's shown below in my post). The color palette really spoke to me as did the shape/graphic nature of the image. I knew I wanted to try something new here! I tried to re-create the cool mosaic feeling of the inspiration image and used the luscious colors of aqua, pink, purple, and blue.... And, since Spring is coming, I put some butterflies on it! 

Here is my completed card:  

 

 

 

 

I used Hawaiian Shores as my card base because that is my favorite PTI color! I added my accents in vellum to let all the color show through. 

 

 

 

 

For this butterfly, I colored the bottom layer using the same ink as the mosaic piece so it would match exactly. then I layered vellum and pearly... Doesn't the purple look nice against that aqua?? YUM. 

 

 

Here is the beautiful inspiration image for this month! 

 

Here you can see my hand crafted mosaic - trying to look like that photo!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, here's how I made the background mosaic layer.... First I cut the beautiful quatrefoil cutting plate with some white cardstock. Then I picked out my ink colors using my little distress ink squares. 

 

 

 

These are the six colors I used for my project.

 

 

 

I taped my 'stencil' down onto a piece of watercolor paper with washi tape. Then I used the small size sponge daubers and just went to town with the ink colors. I was just really random with this.

 

 

 

Here is what it looked like after I inked all six colors. Kind of a mess! I had never tried this before so I was hoping for a nice result. You never know unless you try! 

 

 

 

Next, I gently misted the entire thing with a water bottle. I held it right over the paper and let the mist 'rain' down from above. Still looks like a mess! 

 

 

 

I took a paper towel and very gently dabbed the water away from the paper.... Looking better now...

 

 

 

And, VOILA! I peeled off the stencil and this is what I had! I kinda like it! Definitely need to try this some more with different colors and patterns! 

 

So there you have it - my card and tutorial for this month's Papertrey Ink Customer Blog Hop! Did you enter? There's still time my friends! Have a super day. XOXO

Happy weekend! Lots of announcements today!

Hi there crafty friends! There is A LOT going on lately and I just wanted to take a minute on this post to sort of catch up and make announcements. Whew. Hope you're having a great weekend! I'm going to spend all day in the craft studio stamping and watching Oscar pre-pre show, pre-show, red carpet, and show! LOL. Yep, it's like the Super Bowl of movies! I think I like all the 'before' stuff better than the actual show! I stocked up on popcorn and snacks too. Do you love to watch the Oscars too? 

So let's get started with announcements! 

Okay, first up, I don't have a card to share HERE on my blog, but I do have a card featured on the Simon Says Stamp Blog today! Yippeeee! It's a feminine, butterfly, shabby chic card I made using lots of Taylored Expressions supplies. I hope you will check it out - and leave a comment over there, starting at 8am EST today. CLICK HERE to see it! I'm just gonna give you a head's up - there is blog candy! Heidi is so generous with her prizes! Below is a sneaky peek at my card!

 

 

Second announcement! My WINNER for the Chinese New Year blog post giveaway is Linda H. from New York! I've already emailed her and her prize will be in the mail tomorrow. Congratulations Linda! Enjoy your cool new Avery Elle stamps and dies! It was REALLY fun to see where everyone is from - I loved reading your comments on that post - so many nice people from all over the world. From far away, and close by....Lots of other California girls! Thank you for leaving a note on that post and thanks for following along - wherever you are! XO

 

 

Third announcement! Be sure to leave a comment (if you haven't already) on each blog on the Hop To It blog hop! Today is the last day (the 22nd) and Simon Says Stamp is giving away a goody bag on EVERY blog. CLICK HERE to see the hop list. You have 12 chances to win! 

 

 

Still more announcements! On Wednesday (the 25th) on the Taylored Expressions blog I have a St. Patrick's day card that will be posted....and Taylor is giving away a little pot o' gold at the end of the rainbow in the form of a $25 gift certificate! Don't miss out on that. CLICK HERE for the Taylored Expressions Blog! 

 

The reason I'm putting on all these things is that I don't want you guys to miss out on any possible goodies you could win!! Because....we love prizes! 

Finally, my last announcement... Some of you have asked me about the ads in my blog sidebar that link to different companies, and/or the supply link lists at the bottom of my posts. So I wanted to take a minute and talk about all of that!

As bloggers, we have the opportunity to work as an "affiliate" for different companies. When our kind readers click on the links and order a product we get a small commission from that sale. So, any time you see a link list at the bottom of a blog post, and you click through and order, you are helping that merchant, and me too.

There are three companies that I am an affiliate for - and you'll see ads on the right. They are Simon Says Stamp, Sizzix and Picmonkey.  I PROMISE you that I will ONLY EVER be an affiliate for companies that I have used, and that I believe in!!! Truly, only companies that I would refer my friends to. This is a way for me to earn back a little money to buy more crafty stuff. YAY. THANK YOU SO MUCH to those of you who have helped me in this regard. I am VERY grateful. 

I'll be back on Wednesday here with a card for the Papertrey Ink Customer Blog Hop! Are you going to enter? The inspiration image is so beautiful this month. I haven't made my card yet...but I'm inspired...does that count? CLICK HERE to see the details about entering - open to all! 

I'll just say that I have the sweetest and kindest blog friends. Thank you for always making my day and all your wonderful comments. You make me happy! Best wishes for a great week ahead. XOXO

Hop To It! Simon Says Stamp Spring Release Blog Hop!

 

 

Well, the day is finally here! We've all been teasing you for a while on Facebook and Instagram... And now it's time to reveal the entire new release for Spring from Simon Says Stamp!  We have a super fun blog hop today to give you some stamping inspiration! Hop to it! That's what this awesome new release is called! Have a great time looking at the new items and the ideas along the way. CLICK HERE to start at the beginning of the hop!  

Simon Says Stamp is sooooo generous that each blog on the hop has a prize package to win! Yay! Be sure to leave a comment here on my blog, and on the others too so you have lots of chances to win. Winners announced on Feb 23rd! 

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE ENTIRE RELEASE - AND SHOP! 

I made two cards to share with you, an Easter card featuring the lovely new Cross dies and Rejoice Stamp Set, and one card featuring the adorable new Spring Showers Stamp Set. First up is my Easter card. I used some pretty and cheerful Spring papers to make my scene. I love all of these new products so much and I know I will use them for years to come in all my Easter holiday projects. 

 

 

 

The stitched hills dies are perfect here and combine so nicely with the stitched rectangles (supply links below) The sentiments in the new Rejoice stamp set are so beautiful and perfect. 

 

 

 

I used a wreath stamp with some pretty green ink to make a laurel around the largest cross on my card. Then I accented with some Doodlebug Sprinkles. My Easter word die is adhered with clear glue. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My large cross is mounted on some foam squares to stand up off the card. I layered the word die right across the front. I like pink and green this time of year. 

 

 

 

 

My next card is fun and cute and I'm saving it for a baby shower card! I used the ADORABLE bear from the Spring Showers stamp set! Don't you just love him? Seriously. I colored him with Distress Inks and a water brush for kind of an illustrated effect. Then I used some country flowers and polka dots for my papers. Kraft always works as a card base! 

 

 

 

The sentiment stamp is long, so I stamped one word, masked the stamp, and then stamped the other word underneath to fit onto my talk bubble. This is a good way to make your word stamps more versatile and to make them fit your card. 

 

 

 

I wasn't super fussy with my coloring - I wanted him to look cozy and friendly. I used the stitched circles dies to make a frame for him. What should his name be??? 

 

 

 

I hand dyed my own Tim Holtz ribbon using Distress Ink pads and water. This way it was just the right color to match the paper. I added some buttons and twine to complete my look. 

 

 

 

 

 

Remember there are PRIZES!! Leave a comment on each blog along the way for more chances to win. Plus, you really don't want to miss anything! Next up after me is the AWESOME Anna-Karin! (LOVE her)

Here is the full Hop To It Blog Hop list!  

Simon Says Stamp Blog

Shari Carroll   

Kristina Werner  

Jennifer McGuire 

Debby Hughes 

Laura Bassen 

Nichol Magouirk 

Lucy Abrams 

Kathy Racoosin 

Yana Smakula 

Wanda Guess  

Anna-Karin Evaldsson 

Yoonsun Hur

 

 

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Year of the Sheep - Gung Hay Fat Choy! Happy New Year!

Hello crafty friends! Happy New Year! Gung Hay Fat Choy! Tomorrow is Chinese New Year so I'm posting a fun card I made to mark the occasion. I love to make festive and pretty cards for this special celebration. CLICK HERE to see some of my other Chinese New Year cards from years' past.  I have lots of friends who celebrate this beautiful cultural tradition. Do you and your family celebrate the Lunar New Year too? 

This year is the Year of the Sheep. Is it your year perhaps? CLICK HERE for the list of the years and the corresponding animal. I am a DRAGON! Yep! Gotta love that. 1964 was a very good year indeed. I have lots of Dragon friends. 

People born in the Year of the Sheep are thought to be loyal, good natured and kind. They are believed to be introverts who can easily be overcome with emotions. Famous people born in a Year of the Sheep include: Michelangelo, Mark Twain, Thomas Edison and Julia Roberts! 

I made a festive card using a new-to-me stamp set from Avery Elle, and some gorgeous ink colors. I love red lanterns! And, in honor of the celebration of the Year of the Sheep....I am giving away a set of the stamps and dies I used to make this card! (details below)

 

 

 

 

I started by die cutting a crisp white panel to stamp on using my Stitched Rectangles dies from SSS. Then I stamped the strings in grey and black for more depth. Then I stamped some bright yellow stars on the panel. When those were all done, I stamped several lanterns in pretty red ink and die cut them out. 

 

 

 

 

In this photo you can see that my lanterns are placed on the paper using foam squares. My white card panel is also mounted with foam squares - onto a pretty red card base. 

 

 

 

 

I love that there are three different lantern shapes. I played around with the placement for a while until I found an arrangement that was pleasing to my eye. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PRIZE ALERT *** PRIZE ALERT *** PRIZE ALERT

I'm giving away this stamp set and die combo to one lucky winner! Just leave me a comment below and tell me where you are from! I'm always interested to see who comes by and where they live. I'll go first, I live in Sacramento, California! You have until Saturday morning (2/21) at 9am PST to leave your comment! I'll email the winner that day. Good luck! 

 

Wanda

Gung Hay Fat Choy!

 

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Happy Valentine's Day - February 12 Tags of 2015!

Hello! Happy Valentine's Day! Happy sweetheart day! Hope you have a fun day with your sweeties today. I'm so fortunate to have an awesome valentine - and I never take that for granted. It's our 22nd VD together this year! My hubs is the best a girl could ask for. I am spoiled way more than I deserve, truly. God sent me this man to take care of me and be my protector and warrior. My best friend. Someone who puts up with me (which is harder than it might seem at first!) A blessing. Today we will go and do something fun together!

I made my Tim Holtz 12 Tags of 2015 February tag last weekend and thought today would be the best day to post it and share with you. The tag for this month is really cool (as always, right?) and spoke to me right away. I loved the red felt mixed in with the metal and different papers. Also, the neat technique of making a patchwork out of different papers. So, here's my take on it! I chose papers and sentiments to make a Valentine tag. You can see how I put in some different VD references....in the calendar and the little tag. This one was fun! 

 

 

 

 

 

I hand dyed my own ribbon as I love to do! This one is two shades of distress ink - Festive Berries and Barn Door. I added a clip and a pretty heart at the top too. 

 

 

 

 

I cut the felt heart out using a movers and shapers die from Tim Holtz and then added it to a pretty Ideaology metal frame. Before assembling everything, I tucked a bit of crochet lace underneath. 

 

 

Here is Tim's GORGEOUS inspiration tag! 

 

 

 

Here you can see all my layers of different papers...oh and my little section of music notes rub ons at the bottom. CLICK HERE for the tutorial on how to make the cool background!!! 

 

 

 

 

I added some words at the bottom too - wanted some accents! I edged everything in Black Soot ink - including the words. Then, I used the spritzer tool and the Barn Door Distress Marker to add speckles.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And....as a little treat for those of you who LOVE Buddy as much as I do....Here's a photo of my boo boo kitty from when he was a young lad on his first Valentine's Day! He is such a good sport don't you think? This would have been 2008. We used to dress him up for every holiday, and he would just sit there, and look adorable. Oh gosh, he is the best! In this picture he would be about 10 months old. L-O-V-E!

So, Happy Valentine's Day from Buddy too! XOXO

 

 

Have a very happy Valentine's Day weekend my friends! 

 

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Paper Hearts!

Hey friends! Just popping in today with a quick and easy project for a Valentine card! I am so sad that it's almost time to stop making Valentines! Do you have fun plans for this weekend? Are you celebrating with your favorite sweetie? The hubs and I haven't come up with any grand plans but I'm sure we will spend the day together in some way. We are not really 'fancy dinner' kind of people... So maybe we'll catch a movie or go for a drive. I'd love to hear your Valentine plans!

One of my mostest favoritest craft people ever featured my last project on her blog! I am so thrilled! Maybe you will check it out? CLICK HERE to see it! I adore anything and everything Brenda Walton does. Her products for K & Company are still among my favorite crafting collections. Her style is just so beautiful. I'm honored to be on her blog. 

Here's my card for today. SUPER quick and easy! You just need a heart punch and a sentiment stamp! I love that you can use all kinds of pretty patterned papers on this one. The sewing is optional, if you're not comfortable with that part of it. 

 

 

 

 

 

I adore these yummy paper hearts! Easy peasy to sew a straight line right down the middle. I very lightly tacked the hearts down first before sewing. The bottom heart is not folded, and the top heart is just folded in half using my score board. 

 

 

 

 

The hearts will lay flat inside the envelope, so even though it doesn't seem like it, this would be a good card to mail. I stamped a simple sentiment with jet black ink. The sentiment stamp is from Simon Says Stamp. 

 

 

 

 

I'm just thinking of all the paper scraps I could use to make more of this card layout! You could also use circles, or butterflies...or some other graphic element! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks for coming by my craft friends. I {heart} you! enjoy the rest of your week! I'll be back on Saturday with my Tim Holtz 12 Tags of 2015 tag for February! I already made it, but I still need to take all the pictures! Mwah. 

Vintage Pocket Heart for Valentine's Day!

HI FRIENDS! Oh my goodness, I have been soooo dying to share this project with you all week! It has been a super stressful work week with lots of extra hours and this girl is so tired. I haven't had the energy to do anything except flop on the couch after work! I made this project over the weekend and just haven't made the time to sit down and edit the photos and write a proper blog post. BUT, finally, here I am! Got some college hoops on TV in the background in the craft room and a kitty at my feet. Yay...Friday is a comin'!! I bought this awesome Brenda Walton Pocket Heart die (from Sizzix) a couple months ago and never put it away. It has been sitting out the whole time as ideas turned around in my brain. 

I just think that vintage Valentines are the best, don't you? To make this project I first scurried around in my studio collecting vintage-y stuff. A Tim Holtz Ideaology bird and some silver tinsel, some pretty floral paper, some trim, text paper, pearls.... Just sort of let it all talk to me. I adore how it came out. If it hadn't taken me all day to make it, I might have made some more! LOL. (Next year!)  

 

 

 

 

 

Here is a close up of some of the elements. After I die cut my pieces, I inked the edges of everything gently to look aged. There's part of a doily, some ribbon roses trim, some stick pins....

 

 

 

 

I made my own rosette by cutting strips of text paper with my trimmer and then scoring it each quarter inch... Fold it up, and there you have it! After I glued it together I inked the outer edge and added silver Stickles too! Then...I put a bird on it! Everything is better with a birdie, right? 

 

 

 

 

Here are my basic starting die cut pieces...

 

 

 

 

You know, I just kept adding stuff! The pearl drops are baubles from Tim Holtz... The stamp is from Hero Arts. I stamped my sentiment on cream paper with brown ink and then free hand cut a banner. You can see I crinkled the ends with my fingers. 

 

 

 

 

This ribbon rose trim was PERFECT for this project! OOOH la la! The whole thing is very Paris, don't you think? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How is your Valentine crafting coming along? I'm sorry it's going to be over next week because I'm just finding my groove! I have so many more ideas and I'm gonna run out of time (but what's new???). I always run out of time! 

 

Thank you for popping in today to see me! I hope you have the most FABULOUS weekend coming up! Lots of crafting and relaxing on the horizon. XOXO Until I see you next time - take care! 

 

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Beeeeee Mine - Another Valentine Card! CASE(E) This Sketch and CAS-ual Fridays Challenges!

Hi! Happy Weekend! Happy February! Happy Super Bowl Day! Dang, there's a lot going on today! LOL. I am in full on Valentine mode and trying to get cards made before the holiday comes and goes. Don't you loooooove to make Valentines?

Yesterday in the craft room I challenged myself to do some challenges! I found two that I thought would go together nicely - a sketch and a technique! I made a Clean and Simple (CAS) card using watercoloring with markers and then used a cool sketch to put it all together. I'm entering this card in the CAS(E) this Sketch #108 Challenge and the CAS-ual Fridays #CFC136 - Must Love Watercolor Challenge. Click on the links, pop over, and enter your card too! 

Here's my card, and I used a new stamp set from Avery Elle! Beeeee Mine!

 

 

 

I stamped my beehive onto the smooth side of some Ranger Tim Holtz watercolor paper in Archival black ink. Then I colored my images using Tim Holtz Distress Markers and a watercoloring brush! It's such an easy and pretty way to watercolor! I added a pretty enamel heart to the center of my hive. Can you see the yummy stitched rectangles....new dies!! Yippeeeee! 

 

 

 

I used three shades of yellow markers to achieve my desired effect. Then I outlined the beehive in blue and used my watercolor brush to soften the edges.

 

 

 

 

Here's how you do it! Color directly onto the paper with your Distress Markers as you see I've done here. Then take your water brush and 'paint' the colors together until they blend in the way you want them. I used darker shades towards the outside, and a lighter color on the center. 

 

 

These are the yellows I used. The full marker list is in my supply links! 

 

 

 

 

Instead of stamping stripes, I used a pretty striped paper as my background. Man, I love me some stripes... I think I probably have 10 nautical striped shirts in my closet too! LOL. 

 

Here is the sketch image:  

 

  

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