Mo's DP2 Challenge #133 --- Anything Goes

Mo's challenge this week is "Anything Goes", with a Mo image of course.  That works perfectly for me since I have this wedding card that I made in March for a very special young couple, but hadn't posted it yet.  

The sketch is my own design, but is a close match for the optional sketch over at the challenge blog.  Check it out here.  All is very simple using red cardstock, white satin gloss report cover stock, and silk flowers from the bridal department at Hobby Lobby.  I used the Nesties die to create a frame for the image, rather than a mounting shape. 

This image is colored with Copics.  What really made this fun was that when I got to the reception the topper on the cake was very similar to this image!  Both reflect the joy of Lindsey and Josh on their special day. 

I also did the photography for their wedding.  This is one of the shots.  Poor Josh; he is so light sensitive and the photos were done at noon on a very sunny day.  

Thanks for stopping by today.  I'm hoping that my neck pain will subside soon and that I can get off the meds which make me a bit out of sorts.  (Neck pain from accident that I wrote about here.)  I have so many new images I want to color up and make cards! 

DP2 Challenge #125 --- Something New

Mo's challenge this week is to use something new or a new technique.  I had just finished making a wedding card for a friend I met through blogging, so I am going to use that.  But first, I have to wax nostalgic for a minute.  

I have found our blogging community to be a very friendly place.  How about you?  Comments lead to emails and on to phone calls and even meeting in person.  I have had the privilege of meeting several blogging buddies and building life-long friendships.  One of those is my friend Nancy.  Our in-person meeting resulted from a "dare".  Silly me, I facebooked about new ziplines going up here in Branson and she said how much she loved ziplining.  I'm more of a 'fraidy-cat but when she suggested that she and her daughter Shelbie stop by on their road trip and we can take a zip-ride I just couldn't say no.  So, that's how we met and we had so much fun they stayed with us for a couple of days!  We have since hosted Shelbie and her fiance, Ryan, too, and absolutely love them all.  This Saturday is their wedding and it is for them I made this card.

The card base is ivory card stock covered with scrapbook paper I've had for ages.  It is a field of white roses.  Keeping with a touch of vintage elegance, I used this gorgeous swirl of rhinestones and antique-colored pearls along with pearl-like flowers and brads.  So what is new about this card?  The swirl was new and the Nesties label the image is mounted on is new.  Not to mention that we are congratulating newlyweds as they start a new phase of their life together.

The image is Mo's "Bride and Groom", one of my favorites and so perfect for wedding cards.  It is colored with Copics, keeping with the pearl theme.

Here is a close-up of the swirl and the rose paper.  

Nancy, Shelbie, and Ryan --- we love you and look forward to meeting Tyler someday!  Shelbie and Ryan, best wishes for a happy life together!

Thanks for stopping by and be sure to visit DP2 challenge for more inspiration from the design team.

Wedding Photos --- Cakes and Toasts

I posted more photos from Paula and Scott's wedding on my other blog The Oyster's Pearl. These are of the cakes and toasts.  Thanks for stopping by!

This Is the Week We've Been Waiting For!

[This post is a little long but full of photos.]

 Before you all think I have fallen off the face of the earth --- again --- I have a really good excuse for being absent.  This is the BIG WEDDING WEEK!  My son Scott is marrying the love of his life, Paula, this Friday evening.  Mom and I are busy with last minute plans for the trip to Lawrence, Kansas, with all the food and decorations for the rehearsal dinner on Thursday. 

My mom is very crafty and artistic -- and she was kind enough to pass that gene on to her kids!  But she really out-did herself with the centerpiece for the dinner.  The theme is seashore and lighthouses and here is her creation.

The base is styrofoam that she painted with various colors and added sea shells, moss and greenery. She does beautiful floral arrangements so had all of this on hand. The lighthouses were picked up at a flea market. I am a lighthouse fanatic, as is my son, so this piece is really "wicked", as Ron Weasley would say!

I love the blue along the bottom and IRL it looks like crystals.  The piece will be set on blue clear wrap.

For party favors I didn't get quite as fancy. (Who could compete with that centerpiece, anyway?) But using little square boxes from the Bridal dept at Michael's I filled them with little bags of Jelly Bellies, Scott's request. The lighthouse die cuts are from the Cricut Wall Decor cartridge. 

On the tops of the boxes is a thank you message from the couple.

Paula will be keeping her bouquet as it will be specially made by her aunt.  So, in keeping with the latest trend of having a throwing bouquet she asked me to make one for her based on an idea she had seen the "The Knot" of one made with paper flowers. My plans were for more handmade paper flowers like I've seen in some fabulous blogs, but with 17 weddings in 3 weeks (photographing) I just simply got crunched for time.  However, in cleaning out my stacks of stash I found a tablet of die cut flowers ready to punch out and assemble! There are three large ones in the bouquet from that set and a few smaller one.  I filled in with silk roses and stems and lots of glitz, including a sparkly butterfly.  All is assembled on the styrofoam ball with plastic handle. The hardest part was the bow --- I just don't do well with those.

I sent some pics to Paula last night and she loves it! Whew!  The thing is quite heavy so I hope it doesn't clunk someone on the head .... and I hope it remains intact during its flight and ultimate catch. 

Now, for a sampling of Paula and Scott's engagement photos they had done last month.  I have to give a plug to Rebecca Peters Photography in Kansas City. She is tops in her field and will be doing the wedding as well. 

Yep, Scott's car! When he first gave Paula the keys I knew she was the one! He is like me, picky about who drives our 4-wheeled babies! BTW, the sky actually looked like that the evening of the photo shoot.  They put off doing the engagement photos because of the winter months, then every other opportunity they had it was raining. This was just after the rain.

I think this is Paula's favorite.

This is part of a series that Scott initiated.  He is not one to keep a straight face for very long so after too many "sober" shots he told Rebecca to keep shooting, then he started tickling Paula in the ribs.  This is my favorite picture because it is truly who they are.  I now use the same trick in my wedding photos after secretly asking the groom if his bride is ticklish.  I get some very funny results!

My heart is filled with joy for this wonderful couple!  This day is a long time coming, but definitely worth the wait.  It's easy to see they each have found their soulmate.

Thank you for letting me show off a preview of the week to come. I am so happy! There's just no other way to say it! You can bet I will be sharing more photos later from the wedding!

Card #3 for the Bachelorette Bash

Card #3, in the series of cards for my future daughter-in-law, has more to do with the Bachelorette Bash, to be held at a later date.  I used two images for this one.

On the front is "Aunt Flo" from Mo Manning.  She is colored with Copics and I made it as drab as I could.  The sentiment is my own -- creative, eh? The dp is wrinkled burlap scrapbook paper and a corduroy brad holds the sentiment tag.

She looks pretty grim............

This is the inside of the card.  I computer generated the "Partaaaay!" background. The image is from Kenny K's new wedding collection.  Quite the contrast. 

Colored with Copics, of course, and cut out with Nesties Labels Ten. 

This is Paula when she saw Aunt Flo on the front of the card.........

...... and when she saw the inside!

This is Paula's mother when she saw the front of the card............

....... and when she saw the inside! Yep, I got the reaction I was going for!

That is my series of cards for Paula's shower.  Now there is the wedding card to make.  That has to be really special!  Thanks for stopping by.  I hope this card brought you a chuckle or two, also.

Card #2 for Bridal Shower

Big thanks to everyone who posted comments here and on FB about yesterday's card for my future d-i-l.  Now here is the second card, which is the one I gave her. 

After I found the new wedding digis at Kenny K I just had to have them! This one is called "Wedding Dance" and I have seen Scott and Paula do this hip-bump.  It is so typical of the joy they show everyday.  The dp of wedding cakes and flutes is by The Paper Studio that I had just found at Hobby Lobby.  I used a paper doily, velvet embossed ribbon and a medallion from the Making Memories Black Tie collection.

The image is colored with Copics and sparkled with Spica gold on the tiara and p.o.b. (point of bump)

The inside sentiment is from the Printshop 21.  Like I've said before, I'm just not good at writing sentiments, so I'm happy when I can find one that is just right!

Paula liked this card, too, and mentioned the hip-bump action.  The wedding is on all our minds right now and everything that catches my eye is wedding related.  So, when you see Card #3 (hopefully tomorrow) there will be TWO images -- by two different artists.  Thanks again for stopping by.  Have a joy-filled week!

Card #1 for Bridal Shower

We are in serious countdown mode for Scott and Paula's wedding! Just 40 days away!  Yesterday was Paula's Bridal Shower hosted by her maid of honor and her sister-in-law. What a wonderful party and we met more of Paula's family and many of her friends. I must say I was honored to be in their company!  Mom and I went together, making it a one day trip to the Kansas City area.  Along with a beautiful gathering of lovely ladies, we had good weather and an easy drive.  Mom and I never want for something to talk about.... but that's a whole different story........

I made three cards for Paula.  One for Mom to give her, one for me to give her, and one for her Bachelorette Bash, to be held later.  Today I am posting the card Mom gave her.  The image is one of Mo Manning's new digis called "Married".  I used gold metallic for the background and The Luxury Stack by DCWV for the front.  With silk flowers from the bridal department at Michaels, a pearl swirl, and a 3D sticker from a wedding collection, it makes for a fun card with a touch of elegance.

I colored the image with Copics, resisting my urge to slather on the colors!  I did highlight the bride's gown with gold Spica markers.

The inside is a sentiment from the book The Ultimate Guide to the Perfect Card. I'm not good at creating card sentiments so this book is like gold to me! 

Paula liked the card then looked forward to what the other two cards had in store.  I will share those with you, too.... over the next couple of days!

Thanks for stopping by on this wonderful Father's Day!  I hope all the dad's out there are being pampered!

A Wedding Planner

It's no secret that I am over the moon excited about my son's engagement and upcoming wedding.  Obviously, they are, too, and have already set many of the arrangements.  I started thinking back to planning my own wedding and remembered all the little details that came up; the dozens of lists, the reminders, and the contigency plans.  Then there were the funny stories, the not-so-funny stories and moments to remember.  So, I used one of the composition books I had purchased to make back-to-school gifts and made it into a Wedding Planner for Scott and Paula.

The front and back are covered with my very own dp made with photos I took of gerbera daisies.  They haven't really picked out colors yet, but Paula mentioned how much she like gerbera daisies.  On the front I placed a text box before printing the photo.

The spine is covered with white satin ribbon.

One of my favorite bride and groom images is from Mo Manning.  The tuxedo and gown are colored with Copics E00 and E000 and their hair matches Scott's and Paula's.  The heart lace medallion is cut from exquisite wedding gown lace from dresses my mom has made in the past. 

I added a ribbon marker for the inside.

Just in case Scott and Paula see this in the next couple of days, I intend to mail it off to Paula tomorrow.  I had fun making it and I hope they have fun using it.

Thanks for stopping by today.  Take good care of yourself and those you love.

Mo's Digital Challenge #19 --- Clean & Simple

This is, indeed, my second post tonight!  I just couldn't wait to post this card!  Mo's Digital Challenge this week is "Clean & Simple", not an easy task for me! Here are the specifics:  white or cream card stock, the Mo Manning image of our choice, and a ribbon.  That's it!  What? No layers?? What will I do?  Hmmm.... how about the elegance of a wedding card?  Mo's "bride and groom" illustration is so exquisite that it doesn't need much more than a simple ribbon embellishment.  The beauty of digital stamps is positioning them on the card stock and getting the size I want, then printing in one step!

In this case I chose the ribbon first and matched the bustle on the bride's gown to the lavender butterflies on the ribbon.  I used Copics BV01 and V00 for the bustle.  The gown is lightly colored with E000 and E00.  My computer monitor is showing these hues to be much bolder than in actuality.  For example, the bride's hair is quite a bit lighter than I am seeing here.  But I did use Copic Spica glitter pens on her hair and bustle, which might be distorting the colors somewhat.  In any case, with a parchment liner this card will be put aside for the next wedding.  I think I might sneak a lavender butterfly embellie in the white area under the word "Wedding" later.  (grin)

Thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments.  I hope you have lots of love in your life!

Presenting the Newlyweds!

I just couldn't wait to show off my brother and new sis-in-law!! I have sent them some photos already so I just had to take one and blog it. Aren't they just radiant?

You would never believe what a fairy tale story they have had. Let's just say my brother endured a shocking event in his life, followed by an eye disease that was taking his sight. Then along came this beautiful angel who brought him back to life, so to speak, has been there through thick and thin, and has been his eyes while he has undergone several surgeries. The miracle that is not so obvious here is that on this day he could see his bride more clearly than ever --- and she is a beautiful woman, inside and out. The miracle she gave me: she gave me my brother back.

The wedding day was one of family, friends and good times. Not the usual stress of a wedding, and yet the most beautiful one I have ever seen. I still well up as I go through the photos I took one week ago today!

God bless you, Andy and Beth!

Wedding Card for My Brother and His Bride

Just a really quick post tonight to show the wedding card for my brother and his bride. I put this together in no time at all. The card stock is Papertrey Vintage Cream with a layer of shimmery card stock in between. The verse is computer-generated then encased in an embossed Mega-Nestibilities Curved Rectangle. A variety of layered flowers with pearl brad centers make this card simple and elegant.

I'll be checking back in during the next few days. Maybe with some photos!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you are having a great week.

Barb

In God We Trust