http://www.kathynakata.typepad.com

Susan's Garden Roses

My friend, Susan Tierney Cockburn has started a new venture with her paper flowers. I have known Susan for awhile now, since I first took classes from her in the Seattle area making flowers from punches. Susan is now a licensed artist with Ellison and has designed dies to use to make her paper flowers. Her new dies are with Sizzix and her line is called Susan's Garden.

The large rose above is from the Rose die set. I used My Favorite Things Cotton Candy card stock for the rose and for the leaves, I used Bazzill Card Shoppe Easter Grass. I colored the leaves with 2 Copic markers, Pea Green and Pale Olive on both sides. Then I molded the leaves and put the stem lines in. There are videos that Susan shot for Sizzix. I have also seen 2 other videos where she shows how to use the leaf tool and the loop tool. If you type in Susan's name in the search bar on YouTube, you will see a couple of videos, one says Part 1 and another one says Part 2 and those specifically show using the tools. I know that Susan will have lots of information on her blog when she gets that up. I did find these 2 videos to be very helpful and informative on the tools.

Susan came up with a Tool Kit that has some different tools in it for making her paper flowers. I was not planning to buy the set as I have Susan's Punch Bunch tool set. I wasn't sure I wanted to spend more money for various reasons, but I finally decided to buy it and I am glad that I did. The Loop tool and Leaf tool are wonderful! So are the tweezers. I also like the various pads that are in the kit.

This photo above is showing the Mini Petals set which I LOVE! I love to make little flowers. These were fun to make. They are actually smaller than what you see here.

Have a good rest of the week and thanks for stopping by!

Dies: Sizzix Susan's Garden Rose dies & Mini Petals dies.
Paper: Bazzill Card Shoppe Easter Grass & Sour Lemon card stocks, My Favorite Things Cotton Candy card stock, Red card stock from my stash.
Markers: Copic Markers.
Other Products: Sizzix Susan Tierney Cockburn Tool Kit, Crafter's Pick The Ultimate Glue.

Chesapeake Circle

I needed a thank you card and this is what I came up with. I used part of the Memory Box In the Woods stamp on a light gray Twinchie! I found that the Memento Espresso Truffle goes well with gray. Espresso Truffle is a very dark brown ink. It looks black when you see it stamped out by itself. But when you put it near a black and brown ink, you can tell it is a very dark brown color. Almost looks more like a dark charcoal brown.

Those teeny tiny rhinestones on the bird's eyes are from Taylored Expressions that I bought when Taylor first started her business some years back. I'm not sure that she sells that little round container with the different size white rhinestones anymore.

Have a good week and thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Memory Box In the Woods, Impress Thank you.
Dies: Memory Box Chesapeake Circle, Resting Birds, Pippi Butterfly, Isabella Butterfly
Paper: Bazzill Card Shoppe Taffy for the card base, Rock Candy, Candy Necklace.
Ink: Tsukineko Memento Espresso Truffle
Other Products: Inchies - Twinchie Light Gray, Doodlebug Swimming Pool Jewels.

Lion & Friend Thank You

I made another thank you card to go with the giraffe thank you card I made a few weeks ago. These are actually baby thank you cards I am giving to someone as a late gift. Today's card is using the lion and one of the little birds in the Lawn Fawn Critters on the Savanna set. And the die cut is Memory Box Blooming Vine that I am only using partially. The length of the stem part of the vine is a little longer, but I die cut it shorter so that it looked better with the Inchie Plus size Inchie.

Have a wonderful week and thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Lawn Fawn Critters on the Savanna
Dies: Memory Box Blooming Vine die
Paper: Neenah Natural White 110# card stock for the card base, Bazzill Card Shoppe Easter Grass & Candy Bar
Ink: Tsukineko Memento Tuexdo Black & Rich Cocoa
Markers: Copic Sketch Markers & Prismacolor Pencils
Other Products: Inchies White Inchie Plus size

Giraffe Thank You

I needed some baby thank you cards as a gift and am late with getting them done. This is the first batch I made with Lawn Fawn's new Critters on the Savanna set. This giraffe is partially stamped on an Inchie Plus size Inchie! The tree is also partially stamped on the edge. I wanted to do something different for a card and remembered the Inchies I have not used in awhile. What I love about them is that you can use any size stamp you have and just use part of the image on the Inchie. Little faster to color in and makes it more fun too.

Have a good week and thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Lawn Fawn Critters on the Savanna set.
Dies: Memory Box Lorelai Leaf die.
Paper: Neenah Natural White 110# card stock for the card base, Bazzill Card Shoppe Candy Bar & Easter Grass.
Ink: Tsukineko Memento Tuxedo Black & Rich Cocoa.
Markers: Copic Sketch Markers & Prismacolor Pencils.
Other Products: Inchie Plus size Inchies.

Memory Box Owls

I was insprired to make this card from Cindy Lyles' post here. I agree with Cindy, these Memory Box owls are adorable and I decided to use them for a non-Valentine card. But what I love the most about this die set is the tree. I ran the die thru my Big Shot with Creative Imaginations Real Cherry Wood thick paper and I love how the embossing from the die looks so cool on the wood! I recently purchased a few of Lawn Fawn's new releases. The bubble piece is from their new DIE set called A Birdie Told Me that matches the stamp set that they released last year I think. Then I used the "thanks" from the new Critters on the Savanna stamp set that fits in this bubble. Lawn Fawn has now joined the die craze as has Paper Smooches! Oh no, not more dies! Lawn Fawn cleverly calls their dies Lawn Cuts! They released some dies that match some older stamp sets. I assume they will be releasing a lot more dies. Uh-oh....lol!

Have a good week and thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Lawn Fawn Critters on the Savanna.
Dies: Lawn Fawn A Birdie Told Me Die set, Memory Box Owl Heart Die set, Poppystamps Grassland Border die.
Paper: Neenah Natural White 110# card stock for the card base, Bazzill Card Shoppe card stock colors in Easter Grass, Robin's Egg, Candy Necklace.
Ink: Tsukineko Rich Cocoa.
Other Products: Zva Creative Taupe 3mm Pearls, Creative Imaginations Real Cherry Wood thick sheets.

Bella Bouquet

Happy Monday! I finally put this card together. I often fuss over things way too much, I guess it is the perfectionist in me. This is Memory Box's Bella Bouquet die and it is one of my favorites that Dave released last month. I used coffee filters for the flower petal parts of the die. This time I colored the coffee filter petals with Copics and then used Prismacolor pencils to shade over that as I do with all my stamped images on card stock. I put 2 layers of coffee filters on the petals. With the top copy of the coffee filter paper, I scrunched up the petals to give it some texture even though it already has some texture to it.

Have a great week and thanks for stopping by!

Paper: Neenah Natural White card stock for the card base, My Favorite Things Cotton Candy for the layer, Bazzill Easter Grass Card Shoppe card stock, My Mind's Eye Lost & Found Two 6x6 paper pad, coffee filters.
Markers: Copic Sketch Markers & Prismacolor Pencils.
Ribbon: Divine Twine Solid Deep Pink.
Dies: Memory Box Bella Bouquet & Cupid Heart.
Other Products: My Favorite Things Jellybean Green Felt.

Kitty Francin-Dalan

Today's card features what I think looks like Kitty Francin. Kitty Francin-Dalan. Westpoint graduate. This cute kitty is from Kim Hughes' Paper Smooches Nine Lives set. When I first saw this set, this kitty reminded me of Kim Francin's cat! Kim is one of my colleagues/lead at work and I have seen pictures of Kitty Francin-Dalan. Kitty with her mouth open like you see here! Kitty Francin is a white cat so I left this image uncolored which is hard for me as I think everything needs to be colored in.

I also used one of Dave's new Memory Box dies he just released called Precious Hearts. Dave outdid himself once again. But this time, went over and beyond. The dies in this new release are fabulous. Since this die had that very thin, delicate bow, I decided to use these Be Creative Tape Sheets that Ellen Hutson sells. Attach the tape to your card stock and then run it through your Big Shot (or whichever die cute machine you own). It really does make it so much easier when you do it this way. For the most part, I probably would not do this on a regular basis due to the cost of the sheets, but for the really delicate dies, it saves a lot of time.

Happy Monday and have a good week! Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Paper Smooches Nine Lives set.
Paper: My Favorite Things Cotton Candy for the card base and die cut hearts, Girl's Paperie Vintage Whimsey for the patterned paper (no longer available), Bazzill Card Shoppe Candy Bar card stock, Neenah Solar White 110# card stock for the stamped image.
Ink: Tsukineko Memento Tuxedo Black, Ranger Gathered Twigs Distress Ink.
Markers: Copic Sketch Markers.
Dies: Memory Box Precious Hearts dies, Spellbinders Nestabilities Circle dies.
Other Products: Hero Arts Accent Pearls, Doodlebug Cupcake Mini Jewels.

Birthday Card

It has been too long since I last posted. Today I have a birthday card to share. I was anxious to play with PTI's Stitched Sentiments stamp set and matching dies. I needed a birthday card coming up in January for my sister-in-law and decided to use this set. I used to embroider many years ago when I was little so this set brought back memories. My mom taught me. Then I used to do cross stitch before I got addicted to stamping. I was drawn to this stamp set by the sayings in it and also the various images in the set and how everything works well together. I hope that PTI puts out more companion sets to this, like holiday sayings to fit on the banner, etc.

The above photo shows the inside of the card where I stamped one of the images and made a border with the Toffee Crunch ink. I love this color as it goes nicely with Rich Cocoa. The sentiment is from PTI's Wishing You set.

I hope to get back to a regular post on Mondays again. Best wishes for a Happy New Year!

Stamps: PTI Stitched Sentiments and Wishing You sets.
Paper: My Favorite Things Pink Lemonade 100# card stock for the card base and banner, Neenah Natural White 110# card stock for the layer and stamped images.
Ink: Tsukineko Memento Inks in Angel Pink, Rose Bud, Bamboo Leaves, Toffee Crunch, Rich Cocoa.
Dies: PTI In Stiches Die Collection.
Other Products: Ranger Rock Candy Stickles.

Freezy Fella

It's been awhile since I last posted. I have been working on a project and have not had time to do more holiday cards. But this past weekend, I made this cute Paper Smooches Freezy Fella snowman card using the Sizzix Circle Flip Its die. This card was very easy to make as most of the work is done using dies.

The above photo shows the other side of the card where I stamped the sentiment.

This photo above shows the card closed up. Have a wonderful week and I'll try to post something next week. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Paper Smooches Freezy Fellas set & All Yule Need set, WPlus9 Pretty Patches Trees stamp set.
Paper: My Favorite Things Sno Cone card stock, Neenah Natural White card stock, Bazzill Card Shoppe Candy Bar card stock, October Afternoon Make it Merry 8x8 paper pad.
Ink: Tsukineko Memento Tuxedo Black & Rhubarb Stalk.
Markers: Copic Sketch Markers & Prismacolor Pencils.
Dies: WPlus9 Pretty Patches Tree dies, Sizzix Circle Flip Its die, Spellbinders Nestabilities Circle dies.
Other Products: Doodlebug White Crushed Velvet, Ranger Glossy Accents.

A Holiday Tag

I have a holiday tag to share that I made last December. This is pretty much copied from Ellen Hutson's tag from Day 4 of the 12 Tags of Christmas with a Feminine Twist 2011. I did do some different things with my tag. I used patterned papers from Melissa Frances' Deck the Halls 6x6 paper pad. I used a different Copic green on the foil tape. I used Copic Yellow Green.

Have a good week and thanks for stopping by!

Paper: Melissa Frances Deck the Halls 6x6 paper pad, Neenah Solar White 110# card stock.
Markers: Copic Yellow Green.
Ribbon: Venise Lace - Mini Fringe 3/8".
Bling: Tim Holtz Baubles.
Other Products: Ranger Foil Tape Sheets, Sizzix Ornaments 2 Die, Essentials by Ellen Craft-a-Board, Art Glitter Vintage Shards Glass Glitter - Krystallos.

Pretty Patches Tree

I still have not finished the squirrel card I was working on. But I do have a holiday card to share today. The dies used are from WPlus9 - the Quilts Cut 2 dies and Pretty Patches Tree die.

One thing I discovered is that Tsukineko's Memento inks actually work well with solid stamps. I used Bamboo Leaves for the tree and Rhubarb Stalk for the heart. One thing I did do with the little heart stamp, I swiped the Rhubarb Stalk ink pad across the solid heart stamp and then stamped it out. I did the same with the tiny rectangle stamp that is for the trunk of the tree, using Rich Cocoa. It did not leave those spots that dye based inks often leave. I used the Bamboo Leaves on the Pretty Patches Tree stamp and just tapped the Dew Drop on the stamp and it did not leave those spots.

Another shot of the card and you can see that I applied Glossy Accents on the heart to give it a little shine. The oval piece is a die cut piece from the handle of PTI's Front & Center #1 Die.

Have a good week and see you next Monday. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: WPlus9 Pretty Patches Tree set, PTI Love Lives Here: Holiday.
Paper: Neenah Natural White 110# card stock, October Afternoon Holiday Style 8x8 paper pad.
Ink: Tsukineko Bamboo Leaves, Rhubarb Stalk, Rich Cocoa.
Dies: WPlus9 Pretty Patches Tree & Quilt Cuts 2 Dies, PTI Front & Center #1 Die.
Other Products: Gutermann Ivory Extra Strong Thread, Ranger Glossy Accents.

No Card Today

I have nothing to post for this week, at least at this point. I colored in a cute Memory Box squirrel, but was doing my usual fussing over what to do with him. I had one idea and was not happy with it. Now I have another idea and will keep playing with it and maybe I will have something to post later in the week otherwise I'll be back next Monday.

I was playing with this patterned paper pad from Little Yellow Bicycle called Acorn Hollow. I love the patterns and colors in this paper pad. See you later!

Holiday Tri-Fold Card

Today's card is from Cindy Lyles' tri-fold card here. Cindy has been making cards using this tri-fold and I finally got around to doing one. The dies I used are all from WPlus9's Seasonal Sentiments Die set. Which is now one of my favorites! I die cut the snowflake with felt and I love how detailed the die is and how well the felt cut. The Love die was cut with Craft-a-Board and patterned paper from Simple Stories Handmade Holiday paper pad. I did the same with the little heart die. I love how Dawn, owner of WPlus9, designed this die. The "o" in Love and also the Joy and Hope dies, was left out of the die cut. You can die cut the heart in the "o" part or leave as is and add the heart as I did. Or put a button in the "o" part or any embellishment you may have. And what I especially like about these dies is that you can use them for other occasions.

The above photo is another shot of the front of the card.

The above photo shows the card opened up. I used the same Basic Grey Small Magnetic Snaps that Cindy used on her cards. They help to keep the 2 flaps closed. You can see the one magnetic snap in this picture inside the card. The other magnetic snap is under the Love piece on the other flap.

Hope you enjoyed today's card. I'll be back next Monday or Tuesday. Have a great week!

Stamps: WPlus9 Pretty Patches Trees set.
Paper: Neenah Natural White 110# card stock, Simple Stories Handmade Holiday 6x6 paper pad, Memory Box Latte card stock, Essentials by Ellen Craft-a-Board.
Ink: Ranger Coffee Archival Ink.
Dies: WPlus9 Seasonal Sentiments Dies, Memory Box Small Debutante Frame Die, Spellbinders Nestabilities Labels Fourteen.
Other Products: PTI Cream Wool Felt, A Muse Mini Heart Twinkle Stickers, Gutermann Ivory Extra Strong Thread, Basic Grey Small Magnetic Snaps.

French Doors Die Card

Today's card uses Dave's new Memory Box French Doors die and two other companies dies. And stamps. I love this French Door die which can be used for a window as well. But I love how when you die cut the door, the doors open. I taped some of Ellen Hutson's Crystal Clear Plastic (heavyweight) behind the doors. I know I have mentioned this before, but this is the best clear plastic I have ever owned. It is crystal clear and excellent quality and looks so much like glass.

I used PTI's In the Meadow dies and the stamp set that matches these dies. The deer, birds and squirrel. The holly leaves I placed at the top of the doors on the corners are from the Impression Obsession Twig Wreath die set.

The other new product I used is Ranger's Stickles Clear Rock Candy Dry Glitter. I love this glitter! It's always fun to have new glitter to play with.

The above photo is another shot of the card with the doors slightly open.

For this third photo, I opened the doors so you can see the outside scene.

Thanks for stopping by and I'll be back next Monday or Tuesday. Have a great week!

Stamps: PTI In the Meadow stamp set.
Ink: Impress Fresh Ink in Chocolate & Red Currant.
Paper: Neenah Natural White 110# card stock for the card base, Bazzill Card Shoppe Candy Bar, Bazzill Card Shoppe Easter Grass, October Afternoon Holiday Style 8x8 paper pad.
Dies: Memory Box French Doors die, Impression Obsession Twig Wreath die.
Other Products: Essentials by Ellen Crystal Clear Plastic, Ranger Stickles Clear Rock Candy Dry Glitter, Gutermann Ivory Extra Strong Thread, Kaisercraft Red Rhinestones, Mark Richards 5mm Silver Metal Pearls.

Sweet Holiday Card

Today I have a holiday card to share! I used Lawn Fawn's Sweet Christmas set and WPlus9's Pinking Squares Dies. I love these pinking square dies, but there was one thing about them that I did not like so I cut it out! The pinking square dies are like most of the dies out there. The steel part of the die is just the outline part except for the smallest die. WPlus9 has a plastic clear piece glued to the underside of these dies. Which is not a big deal since I do have some Memory Box dies that have the same clear plastic piece attached. The thing that I did not like about WPlus9's is that in the middle of the clear plastic piece, there is a mark to mark the middle of the die for stamping purposes (being able to line things up). But it is not only a mark, there is a cut in the plastic marking the cross so that when you run it through your die cut machine, it leaves a dent in the middle of the paper. With patterned paper, that doesn't matter. But for someone like me that was using this one size of the pinking square to color on, I didn't like this! LOL! It leaves the dent and when you color over that, it shows. Most people probably would not notice this. I do!

I took another picture this time of the card laying down and it does show the Glossy Accents I used on the lollipops. I also used Glossy Accents on the piece of candy that I used to embellish the bottom of the card.

Have a good week and I'll be back next Monday or Tuesday. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Lawn Fawn Sweet Christmas set.
Paper: Memory Box Parsley for the card base, Bazzill Card Shoppe Wax Lips card stock, , Neenah Solar White for the stamped images, October Afternoon Holiday Style 8x8 paper pad.
Ink: Tsukineko Memento Tuxedo Black, Ranger Gathered Twigs Distress Ink.
Markers: Copic Sketch Markers & Prismacolor Pencils.
Dies: W9Plus Clear Cut Stackers - Pinking Squares.
Other Products: Ranger Glossy Accents, Memory Box Cherry & Grass Green Jewels, Gutermann Extra Strong Ivory Thread.

Squirrels

You are probably wondering what this is. I came home from work one day a few weeks ago and found these critters in a low sloped area on my property around 6:30 pm. At first all I saw was something brown on the grass and figured it was a dead rat or something. I got a little closer and realized it was 4 squirrels. One was dead as you can see although I kept looking at his stomach to see if I saw some movement (you know, breathing) and nothing. Then I saw the 3 dark brown squirrels huddled down next to the dead one. The one closest to the dead squirrel had his eyes on me and the other two pretty much kept their heads down. They never ran from me which I thought was odd. Usually these rodents run when they see humans. I went inside to get my camera and they let me take pictures. There were some cars going by behind me. They never ran off. I couldn't figure out what they were doing. But I wondered if they were mourning their dead friend. Little grieving session. Went back into my house and then about an hour later, I went back out to see them and they had left. I assume they hauled off their dead friend. I would love to have seen them haul the body off.

I googled squirrels online and found one link that had comments about squirrels and their dead. One person mentioned that squirrels have wakes for their dead in the early evening in ditches. Well, it was early evening and it was in a sloped area off the road.

Here is another photo of them, a bit more up close. I have never seen dark brown squirrels before. I have only seen gray ones. And they looked young to me, not full grown adults. Maybe teens. LOL! But they were so cute. I just wish they could tell me what they were doing.

This photo is more up close, but a little blurry.

If anyone is an expert on squirrels and their behavior or you might know what they were doing, please leave me a comment. I would love to hear from you!

That's it for today. I should have a card posted next Monday or Tuesday. Thanks for stopping by.