How the heck are ya??? I'm back from my week's hiatus, and I'm feeling much better. You may not think my cards show it, but I am! LOL I took a week off from everything "blogging". So I have not visited you guys yet. I've got some catching up to do!
I'm anxious to see the results for this week's poll. I've talked to many bloggers who have pet peeves about the blogs they visit. I admit, I have mine too, but then again, some may have pet peeves about my blog, God forbid! So don't forget to answer this week's poll!
Tonight's post also includes a photographic series of photos I took this week. They are all nature related and I wanted to show them to you. I hope you enjoy them. They will follow my cards. . .so off we go!
Here's the first card I'd like to share:
I've had nothing but trouble getting good lighting for my card shots errrrr! This one looks a little bled out, so click on it for a better view. This is a new stamp from CowTown which I just discovered (Thanks Stacie!). They have wonderful stamps and I bought several. This is a "manly" thank you card. The ship is from CowTown. The two things I want to point out about this card are the "cork button" and the map background. I made the cork button by thinly slicing it from an actual wine bottle cork. I used a small hole punch to make the holes. The baker's twine was a gift from my blogging buddy Katie. She sent me some twine, ribbon, and seam binding to play with along with an awesome card. Thanks Katie, so much! It was really appreciated. The map background is from the internet. I did a Google search for "maps". Printed it off and cut it down to the size I needed. The ship and the sentiment are both clear embossed.
This is the newest Happy Hopper stamp in my ever growing collection. Is that little bunny adorable or what? All colored with my cheap colored pencils and oms. I stamped the background mat as well. The kite is popped up with foam tape, and the string on the kite is actually "sewn". I used a needle and embroidery floss.
This looks a little chaotic to me, however it is sort of what I had in mind. This stamp is called "birch branch" and it is from Memory Box. I used a new technique (new to me) on this where you color the stamp with markers and then mist it with water before stamping. It gives a wonderful watercolor effect. Before I stamped the main branches I stamped the image in "pumice stone" distress ink, stamped off, then stamped for the branches in the background to look further off. I added MS glitter in dots all over the flowering parts. Added pearls to the tiny butterflies and dotted them with a marker. It really is pretty IRL, but if you click on the photo, you'll get a better look at the shimmer of the card.
OK, on to the photo gallery. . .
I went out specifically to shoot objects in a different way than you would normally look at them, or just shoot stuff that I found interesting. I found a ton! It is amazing what you "see" if you really look. Also, be sure to click on the photos for a better view. Take a look at what I "saw":
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| AN ALIEN DRAWING ON A FALLEN LOG? |
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| A SEA SERPENT RISING FROM THE LAKE???? |
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| THE SKIN ON A TROLL'S LEG? |
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| THE WRINKLES OF AN ELEPHANT??? |
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| THE SKIN OF A DRAGON???? |
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| ALIEN BUTTERFLIES???? |
There were so many interesting things to "see" during this walk. Can you tell I have a child's imagination??? LOL I have a ton of other photos to share, but I don't want to blow them all in one post. I'll run out of "pics of the week"!
OK, I'm off to start my long journey of blog surfing. Can't wait to be inspired and to see what you've all been up to. I've really missed you all, and I'm glad to be back creating. Thanks for your kind remarks while I was gone. They were very encouraging. I have a big list of things I am working on, so no more dry spells for awhile.
Thanks so much for stopping by! You know how much I appreciate it and I always love to read the comments you leave. You all leave such thoughtful, interesting comments.
Best,
Curt O'Brien
"God, please help me be the person that my dogs think I am."
47 comments:
LOL...still laughing about the skin on a trolls leg...what goes through your mind man? hahaha Interesting pics this week. Of course I am partial to the fun happy hopper card and the wonderful coloring. The pink tree so reminds me of a tree I used to have in the front yard...awww such memories!
Welcome back ... I missed you! Hope you are refreshed and that things are a bit better with your loved ones.
Your nautical card is a perfect idea and design for a guy card ... we all seem to have difficulty making those.
Your bunny is so adorable, hanging onto that kite ... love the 'kite string'.
And of course, your 'wishing you well' card would do exactly that!
Wow, those photos ... you have a VERY unique imagination, my friend!
OMG! Your "adventure" pix are simply stunning and show such imagination. Gorgeous, gorgeous work Curt. Love the cards too - the embossing on the ship really shows up when you click on it and that little guy with his kite is just adorable. I think the last card was my favorite though - must be because it appeals to my chaotic nature - lol! Glad you're back. All the best to Jay and a hug for the boys too. ~chris
Hmmm...some folks will do anything for an excuse to open a bottle of wine! What a fun idea, Curt! That card is awesome with the computer generated map, handmade button and fabby twine! Your lil' hopper is adorable. You always color them so realistically! Hope you never lose those 'cheap' colored pencils! The last card is really pretty when I click on it - the glitter shows up so well. Your photos are delightful - loved your take on them! And I must say, I saw everything in them that you saw! Cool! The pooches look like they are totally relieved to be out of their petal hats! Oh 0 by the way, my vote was for word verification. ESPECIALLY when I am trying to do a blog hop. It's like Chinese Water Torture to get thru a hop with word verification. I'm pretty mellow about everything else! Takes a lot to rile me up! Hope you have a good week, sir! Take care, and say hello to all the boys! (and your momma's!) cya!
Absolutely fabulous photos Curt. I do like your three cards, especially the stitched kite string.
All beautiful cards, Curt! It's so good to have you back with us in blogging world. :)
Welcome back! Your cards are wonderful and I love the one with the ship. A real wine cork - how clever is that? Your photos are too cool and some of them would look great framed. I love close up shots of relatively ordinary things like that. They make you look at things in a new way.
Welcome back.....you always amaze me with your ideas...the map was very clever as was the cork "button"....wonderful mans card.....the happy hopper is a cute one...new to me..and great coloring as always with your pencils.....the "watercolor" card technique is very pretty...so cheerful.....and I cracked up at your photo's...but just wanted to know when you took the pic of "me" legs without me knowing...LOL...great poll...mine was music...sometimes I get up in the night and blog surf and all of a sudden this music pops on LOUD and scares the He-- out of me!! Take care!!
Hi Curt
Welcome back. Lovin' the flower branch card. The other two are very nice as well. Love the pics of the week and so glad you have looked for something different in everyday things to photograph.
I am working on my first card for May but it isn't done yet. Unfortunately, it is a sympathy card so it is a wee bit harder to make.
Hugs to you and yours
Myrna
Great cards, Curt. I especially love the first one... Guy cards are hard for me and so always appreciate some creative ideas for them. And the photos are beautiful. Great captions, too!!
Hi Curt;
Love that map and boat,very masculine.And little hopper is just adorable flying through the air, wonderful shading very creative how the strings comes around. (thought we wouldn't notice) :) your third one is just lovely, I like how you double stamped this and the polka dot butterfly is so cute.
Pet peeves..
music is my number one pet peeve. I get home at 1 am and comment on blogs until 2 am, must get my beauty rest. I will have 15 to 20 blogs up at one time, and the music is nerve raking..if there is a tutorial I want to see, I have to shut all the blogs down just to listen.
Great pictures and great imagination :).
Hi Curt! So glad to see you are right back into the card making and the photography this week! That ship card is a wonderful male themed card and that is the cutest little hopper with the kite. A very fun card! Of course I always love any cards with flowers on them LOL! I can imagine how pretty yours must look IRL!
I do love the different bark textures and of course you would find way different ones to what we have here. Great photography and what is nicer than a walk through the bush!!
Your boys always pose so very well for their photos - another good photo of them!
Totally Fabulous cards Curt!!..I love the ship card...the map is perfect!!..great coloring and dimemsion on the Super Cute HM card. The flower branch card is Lovely!
Enjoyed the photos too...especially the alien log..LOL. Have a Great Day!!
Hope your week was relaxing - glad to have you back! Your pictures are wonderful and I got a kick out of the titles - you have a fabulous imagination!
Fabulous cards Curt ,,, i have just bought the hopper one too,, i will be pinching your idea to sew the string on !! LOVE the way you did the cherry blossom tree ,, absolutely stunning and the ship is fab too ,, love the cork button !! You really do think outside the box !! :-)
Love the piccys and descriptions ,, yo have a fab imagination !! :-)
luv
Lols x x x
p.s I voted on 2 and am in with the majority :-)
So glad to see your creations this week, what a nice selection you gave us, looks like a week off revived your MoJo!! Love the card and the map was awesome, the string on the kite is just too cool and the last one with the branches is beautiful. Enjoyed scrolling through your photos never would have seen what you did - will surely make me look at nature a little differently now!!!
Your "Wishing you well" card is beautiful. Great colours and use of the image. Fabulous pictures and I love the way you described them!
Amelia
Beautiful cards Curt ... I really love the last pink one with the watercolour effect - it turned out beautifully! And your pics are amazing ... love that you showed these nature pics from different angles and shared your wonderful imagination with us! You rock Curt .. glad you're back!
Hugs, Danielle
I am so glad to see you back and fresh again.
Creative juices are just flowing that is for sure.
Love that last card for sure- that color is amazing.
Unbelievable pics you caught- we must all have a child's imagination because I seen the same things...lol
Hope the family is well and spring is coming to your little piece of the world.
blessings to you, Dawn ll
Amazing cards this week!! Glad you were able to find some stamps you liked from CowTown...I just love their selection! Great idea with the cork and map! The second card is sooooooo cute! I think I need to be looking for some floss as I have been seeing this used alot. Such a neat technique on the third card with stamping in the background with pumice stone to give it depth....really good effect! LOL at the things you "saw" on your walk! I still find shapes in clouds! Guess we are never too old to have an imagination! :P
Don't forget to let me know when Jays surgery is...I hope the appt. went well on Monday! Hugs!
I found your blog a couple months ago and have been enjoying it immensely! I don't live too far from you--up at the top of the state, so I really got it when you said you were sick of the rain, lol
cool pics Curt...gotta love em! also- love your ship/map card..the cork is an awesome idea..Lord knows I got a TON of corks here to play with! lol
Love the first card. Really a wonderful creation.
The bunny with the kite is very cute.
The third card is wonderful. Thank you for explaining how you did it. Very pretty!
Always love our photos.
I love your imagination!! Could actually see what you were seeing, after the fact of course. Love the Happy Hopper card, almost always my first choice, but loved the others also. Your polls have been great and enlightening. I really hate word verification as so many times you have to do it 3-4 times before it takes. I now do it once and if it doesn't go I move on. Music can be turned down. Blogs with black or very dark backgrounds are very hard for me to read, so pass most of them up also, too bad that I may be missing some great things. Hi to all.
Ahhh Curt, it's great to see you and the boys! Are they really that obliging, or do you have to bribe them?
Love the cards!
I didn't care for the 3rd one til I clicked on it! AWESOME!
Great pictures too!
Have a great week!
P.S.
I voted for music!
Annoys me to no end....uses up lots of my MB's!
Fabulous photos, Curt! I loved your interpretation of what I was seeing! Wonderful cards! I LOVED your masculine thank you, while the second card was just too cute!
Welcome back and from what I see the rest has done you well.
The cards are wonderful and I love the last one...but then again it suits my chaotic personality. The technique is super and I'll have to give it a try.
I have to agree there are some blog that drive me insane. Choice of font style and color are my biggest pet peeve though. I don't mind music as I have one on each of my blogs. But I put a statement at the very top of my blog to scroll down and turn the player off if you find it annoying.
Love the photo's...super job!
I have been back at my house for a couple of day and I never even turned the computer on... so I was pleasantly surprised tonight when I got the lap top up and running : )
wow all three are great , I love the flower / tree branch card...
your pictures are so amazing...I am so looking forward to the days when I can walk and shoot pictures again along with craft...
thanks for sharing and I hope your week off truly helped you...
hugs til next week...
Love your blog. I stumbled upon it from I'm not sure where. ( can you say serendipity ). I spent about 2 hours going through old posts. Love your cards and have many new ideas. The ship one would make a nice Father's Day card. I love to read blogs with humor and yours is definitely one of the funny ones. Only 1 other I read cracks me up ... okieladybugsscrapnmore.blogspot.com. No I have 2 to make me laugh. Thank-you. Oh, and your dogs are adorable!!
dndfletch@aol.com
LOVED THIS POST.CARDS ARE GREAT..AND ALL YOUR PICS. GOING TO STAY OUT OF THE WOODS, FOR SURE. LOVE YA, MOM
Your cards are wonderful. I love the photos and the descriptions of them. What a wonderful imagination you have.
I am glad you took the week off... and I hope you are feeling better...Sometimes you just have to take some time for yourself. My blogging has been spotty too. My Dad in hospital, my MIL in hospital, moving into new office and plant space... Sometimes it's all too much!! A nice glass of wine and some sunshine - yes that should do it!!
As always, I love your work. That cork button is perfect for the sailing ship (love the map). And that little bunny really tugs at my heart! And I embrace the chaos of your beautiful spring get-well card - sure to brighten somebody's day!
Thank you, also, for taking the time to share your delightful pictures! How fun it is to look at things in a new way. Until next time, take care.
Great card, I love that Happy Hopper, those have become some of my favorite stamps right now. Love all the photography too and that you say you have a child's imagination! I think that is what helps us all see beauty that some might pass by.
Hi ya Curt!! Hope you're well rested and photos look fabulous!! :) I so would've liked to have done that!!
I love seeing your creations!! The Happy hopper card is sweet and beautifully colored!! The cherry blossoms card with the butterflies is so beautiful too!! Really gorgeous creations!! Thanks for sharing! *Vicki* from Stamped Smiles
Great cards! Loved the idea with the cork and the map!
Love your photos! I used to take pics of some really unusual things too. I'm out of the habit now. I need to get back out there now that I have a new camera. I am using my sister's computer as mine is down for now. Hoping to be back up next week.
My Curt loves the first card ....... and the photos ......we are a total sailboat tree kinda family!!! OH and we love wine ...... just had a bottle with dinner :) Always beautiful work Curt. All the cards today are stunning but I do have to go with Curtie Pie and say that the first one is JUST PERFECT!!! xoxox
Hi Curt! LOVE your art work and the photos are terrific (the subtitles even better!). I would have never thought of using a map from the internet for the map background - awesome idea and that card is a stunner!!
Hugs!!
I think I must have checked every box on your poll...When I saw the results I was not surprised to see music as the number one peeve. If I blog has music I rarely visit again and it definitely doesn't go on my visitation list. The other peeve is blogs with ginormous banners that require the reader to scroll almost the length of the screen to see if there's anything new posted.
Thanks!
dmc
The wait was worth it! Great image and background for the masculine card. The flying mouse card is adorable.
Thanks for sharing your photos. I especially liked the 'serpent' picture.
hi curt-3 great cards -love the ship card-great idea to print the map-saves on buying the dp-cork button is a creative idea
the bunny & kite are super sweet-I have never tried the technique of misting on a stamp but I love the look every time I see it
Hi Curt.As always scrumptious creations.Fantastic pics,what a great imagination you have.Cuddles for those gorgeous Big Furry Boys.xx
seriously thought you took pictures of my legs!!!! LOL....ewwwww....LOL!!!! Just popped in to say "HELLO!!!!" How's the spring cleaning going? I need to do that at my house! (((hugs))))
You're so clever! I love the cork "button"! As always, I love your cards and am inspired by your creativity!
Your cards are all fabulous, Curt...I love the map and cork button on the first, the adorable little bunny on the second, and what gorgeous flowers on the third!!! Your pictures are sooo cool....you have the ability to find beauty in all things!!!
Wow, you cards are so getting ready for Spring too! Love your pictures!! and that mushroom is wonderful too!
Hey Curt
FABULOUS photos, you really have a talent for spotting these things!
You've come up with some awesome cards recently too.
Take care
Zoe x
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