I talk a fair bit about Hazel between my blog, Facebook, and Instagram. But I haven’t shared as much about River. Today is his day. He is 2! This sweet boy has my heart! He comes to me and asks to cuddle. (Didn’t you just melt?) He calls me by name as he runs to me. He eats. And eats. And steals my food. He has the sweetest voice; I love to hear him say “Sissy” and “Hazel”. He loves animals. He plays with my watch face searching for Mickey. He’s happy with Minnie, thank goodness, because I don’t have Mickey. He brings books to Greg, asks him to read to him, and climbs up next to him.
Some of our family is still in town following the trip last week with my brother. We were able to spend yesterday afternoon together. It was perfect, or almost perfect. My nephew, Chris, brought his kids over, and Haddie and Tyler were here with Hazel, River, and baby Nolan. The kids played well together while the adults and adult kids had a chance to catch up and visit.
My niece, Mallory, experienced sharing lunch with River. He ate the majority of her watermelon and then managed to steal bites from her sandwich. Before the day was over he finished off Hazel’s peanut butter and jelly sandwich, snagged bags of chips and claimed them, and shared drinks with anyone he could.
River’s Card
What to make? I was stumped. I don’t have any current stamps that jumped out at me as perfect. I could have made watermelon slices or even Mickey Mouse with dies or punches. A few stamps in the catalog were contenders, but I don’t own them, yet. When I didn’t find an animal or little boy that looked right I turned to bright colors and a big greeting.
This is the second time this week I’ve used the Butterfly Kisses designer series paper. I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that you have an extreme opinion about this paper or suite. You might not expect it to have patterns that would be masculine or neutral. If you are looking for bright colors it is a versatile set of patterned paper.
Heidi Collins inspired my card in some mystery stamping she recently did. You can’t go wrong with using designer series paper strips of any size when you need some inspiration. I grabbed 6 patterns of the DSP and cut strips varying in length and width and arranged them in a rather haphazard way.
Confession – the stars were punched with a retired punch. I keep most of my basic shape punches for times like this. In the video I used cardstock for the stars. And then I remembered the glimmer paper. It adds the perfect amount of shimmer.
I did stamp the bear image from the Happier than Happy stampset on the inside. He is perfect for card fronts, and I thought he would be a cute addition for River’s card. The whimsical greeting is from the Party Puffins stampset. Why yes, my office was a huge mess with all these stampsets out!
But Wait, There’s More
The adorable witches from the Best Witches stampset in the July-December mini catalog has been calling to me. Does that ever happen to you? I’m sure that it does. I knew when I started stamping I wasn’t going to be able to work on the blog post until I had a card I was satisfied with. My challenge was that I didn’t want to make a Halloween card. Did you hear the collective gasp from my friends and family?
I didn’t want to make a Halloween card first. That sassy witch with her hands on her hips and cape on her shoulders is a sassy princess superhero. I had to make that happen. I could envision the Rays of Light background for the superhero effect, but I wasn’t certain what to do about the broom. I ended up masking off the broom and adding a flower from the retired Nuts & Bolts stampset. This card isn’t on the video, but I’ve got several photos to walk you through the process.
I will probably do a few things differently next time. I don’t have any issue bringing you a card that isn’t perfect for a few reasons. First, I want to share that this is reality. I had to get this design created before I lost what I had in my head. Second, there is value in seeing the process. I was able to bring several different elements together that you might not think about otherwise. I did that with both of today’s cards.
I Can’t Forget Hazel and Nolan
The sassy princess superhero is absolutely created with Hazel in mind, even if that witch does have the wrong hair. Yesterday, Hazel played and played. I don’t see her with baby dolls often, but she had a wonderful time with Bitty Baby yesterday. She loves to make up crazy names and words. She called the baby Binny Baby and reminded us to please be quiet while Binny Baby was sleeping. I had to take a photo when I went inside the house and found the baby all tucked in bed with Winnie the Pooh and a bottle. My heart!
I grabbed this photo of Mallory with Nolan and didn’t notice his tongue until I uploaded it for the blog. Too cute! Nolan is doing very well; he’s a month old already!
Other News
The July Card Club features the He’s the Man Suite from pages 78 and 79 of the 2022 Annual Catalog. We are making 8 masculine birthday cards, 2 each of 4 designs. I shared some of the cards I’ve recently made from this suite. If you need manly cards and would like to know about this class you can check it out here. Register by July 20th. The class meets in person on Saturday, July 23 at 2:00 or Wednesday, July 27 at 10:00 Class fee is $30 for in person or porch pick up or $38 shipped to you. US only.
The card I created last week with the All Bundled Up stampset from page 45 of the July – December 2022 Mini Catalog is one of the featured designs for the July Christmas Card Class. You can find the blog post here. We will make 8 Christmas cards, 2 each of 2 designs that feature All Bundled Up and 2 each of 2 designs that feature the Boughs of Holly Suite. The Boughs of Holly is on pages 24 and 25 of the Mini Catalog. This is the first in a series of 5 Christmas Card classes that will be offered July through November. Register for July here by July 20th. The class meets in person on Saturday, July 23 at 4:00 or Wednesday, July 27 at noon. Class fee is $30 for in person or porch pick up or $38 shipped to you. US only.
The YouTube Live
Watch the replay to see how River’s Hooray card came together and learn how you can use your scraps or create strips of designer series paper for a bright and fun background.
As always, scroll down to the card recipe for the measurements and directions. I’ve included a printable PDF as well as the colorful card recipe photo. The video will guide you and offer some tips and tricks.
When you jump over to YouTube to watch the replay I’d love you to subscribe to my channel and leave a comment.
Join me July 21 for a FREE Class on YouTube Live. I’ll demonstrate 4 card designs featuring the Rings of Nature bundle and Rings of love Designer Series Paper. There’s no need to register; here’s the link to join the live at 9:00 am CST or watch the replay.
Download a Printable PDF of the card recipe here
Product List
I would love to hear from you and know what you are creating today. Please drop a comment or email and let me know. hello@michelesalchow.com. If you would like to receive an email with every blog post please complete the form at the bottom of the post.
Stamped Blessings,
Michele
