YOUR KINDNESS & CARDS

Hey All! It has been a busy couple of weeks for me. I celebrated a birthday, Shotsy celebrated a birthday, planting flowers, lawn work, etc. This is going to be a long post but only because it is going to be loaded with pictures! I finally got the pics of the cards that you sent off of the memory card. I've also got a few new cards and a project to share with you as well. By the way, did you all notice my new "blog pet" over there to the right in the sidebar? As you can see, his name is "Cardstock". You can feed him treats from the box, and if you click on the little white space that says "more", you will find a ball there that he loves to play with. If you throw it, he'll catch it and wait for you to take it from him to throw it again. OK, so on with the post:

I'll share my new cards here first.

This is a card I made for a friend who isn't feeling so well:



This is a Happy Hoppers image that was sent to me by my very sweet blogging buddy America. I colored it with colored pencils and OMS, matted it up with Bazzill card stock, and then attached it to DP from The Paper Company. I thought the basket weave paper was perfect for this image. The sentiment is from Artful Inkables and I stamped it out and cut it out with my Nesties. I sponged around the image and the tag with Tim Holtz distress ink. I attached the sentiment tag to the ribbon with a gold jump ring. Below is a close up of the thermometer to show how I made it look like glass with Diamond Glaze.



The next card is the card that went with the card set I showed you in the last post. Don't know how I forgot to include it in that post. Here it is:



How cute is that bunny??? Again, another Happy Hopper image, and again, colored with colored pencils and OMS. The background paper is from the "Summer Stack" from DCWV which is an actual photo of water in a pool. I added glitter to the ripples in the water of the image which you can see better in the close up below:



The next is my project to share. I did another tile coaster set. This time I did it for another neighbor who also brought us over food. I made this one a little different from the first one by using the DIY Topiary set from Flourishes. I chose this set because the neighbor this is for is way into gardening. Here is the box I made to gift them in:



This is an origami box. Bottom was made from an 11 3/4 X 11 3/4 piece of card stock, and the lid card stock was 12 X 12. I forgot to look who the paper was made by before I finished folding it. But it is very thick paper.

Here is the box open:



And here is the full set:



The background stamp is from Inkadinkado. I used Staz-On ink for the whole project because it is totally waterproof. I found these cool sponge daubers at Achievers that come in about 12 different sizes. They are attached to long skinny wood pieces and are perfect for daubing in different color to smaller areas. I don't know what set the small butterfly came from.

She really loved them and was just amazed that I had made them and the box. LOL It was so fun to give.


Here is the card I made to go with the coaster set:



Again, a Flourishes image from the DIY set. I cut out the image and did the embossed edge with my Nesties as well as the scalloped part. I did something a little different on this one. I used a colored pencil and OMS to also color around the embossed edge. I kind of like how it turned out. I created the background paper by using a small leaf stamp with Versamark ink to create a tone on tone look.


The final card I made was for the 4Th of July. I wanted something fairly simple because I wanted to make 5 of them to send to a few friends for the 4Th. Here is the card I made multiples of:



The image is from Stampendous. I created the background by embossing the fireworks with red and silver embossing tinsel. It is so sparkly. The ribbon is from Hobby Lobby.


OK, now for the cards from all of you who sent Jay a card:



Karen Goguen



Sharon Caudle



Claire Brennan



Shirley Ross (card for me - so sweet of you!)



Shirley Ross #2



Sharli Fredericksen



Lauri Ingram (and a sweet little summer stamp set tucked in for me! Thank you so much!)




Susan Roberts "Rainy"



Pat Gilliam



Judy Gordon



Percy Zabata

The cards below were sent to me for my Birthday (Thanks so much!)



Jen Young (LOVE this sentiment!)



Gina Wrona



Becca Aitken

Wow! Such gorgeous cards from such wonderful, talented people. I am so lucky to know all of you! Cards or not, I have so appreciated the cards, the well wishes, the thoughts and prayers, emails, and touching comments from all of you in regards to Jay. I know that you certainly helped in his recovery, because every time I would bring in the mail, he would smile seeing that he had cards. You guys are the best, truly you are!

Well, that's it (if that isn't enough! LOL) I hope all is well in your worlds! I wish you all a happy 4Th of July. May it be safe for all of you, and may you be surrounded by those you love most. Remember our Service men and women who fight hard and sacrifice so much for us to be here safe and able to celebrate this day!

Don't forget the "Pic of the Week" below! Take good care of yourselves!

Best,

Curt O'Brien

"God help me be the person that my dogs think I am."

NEW NOTE CARD SET

Hey All!

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! I want to start this post by saying a HUGE THANK YOU to all of you who sent Jay a get well card. WOW they were wonderful. And a couple of you were thoughtful enough to include a little something for me! LOL You are all wonderful! They really meant so much to Jay, and he said he couldn't believe that people who didn't even know him would send him cards. He told me to be sure to let every one know how much he appreciated the well wishes. I'll be posting them next post. For some reason, I'm having trouble getting them from the memory card to the computer. All the other pics uploaded fine, but this batch of your cards that I took this morning for this post won't upload no matter what I've tried.

Today, I've got a note card set to share and a card using a new technique (new to me) that I saw at Stamp TV with Gina K. So, on with the post:

Here is the card I made using the technique called "Pullin' Pastels". Take a look:

This is kind of fun to do. You take a dark piece of card stock and and rub it with different colors of chalk (not ink). Then you take silhouette style stamps, ink them up with Versamark ink, and stamp the image right on the chalked card stock. The Versamark on the stamp literally pulls the chalk off of the card stock which creates the image. This card has an almost Asian feel, and I love how it looks like the images are silhouetted by twilight. I used EK Success chalks on black Bazzill card stock. The hummingbird stamp is by Stampabilities and the rest of the flora stamps are from Inque. The set is called Silhouettes. I don't know what the deal is with the color of the border. This photo was taken in direct sunlight outside, so the "yellow" border you see is actually the color of the pale green you see in the chalked area. You can find the video tutorial here.

My next project is another note card set. I made this for a neighbor who was so good to us during Jay's recent illness. She came over to offer to plant my flowers for me, and brought us food after Jay came home. She is wonderful and a wonderful cook too! Here is the set:

I call this one the "Summer Notes" card set. The note card holder is the same design I used in my last note card set, and again, you can see the tutorial here. I LOVE this card holder so much. I altered this one a little by not using the eyelets on the inside sleeves. They really have no purpose, and you really have to be careful to cover them up on the front. So this time I simply used red line tape to secure the flaps. I love how this turned out so bright and cheery. I wanted the outside to reflect "summer" and the note cards inside to reflect "summer things". Here are the inside cards:

The image is from Happy Hopper from Stampabilities. All the images for this project were stamped with Archival Jet Black ink. I colored it with my cheap colored pencils and OMS. I used my Nesties Labels dies to do the mat. I wanted to get the feel for home plate and these were close. I took white brads and used a red Sharpie marker to make them look like baseballs. Don't laugh, it is hard for a guy to work with small pieces! LOL I then added the corner brackets which I punched out and put those on DSP that resembles a grassy field.

This is also a Happy Hopper image. I colored it like I always do and then used my Nesties to cut out a frame for it. I used a black colored pencil to draw in the watermelon seeds on the frame and then attached it to watermelon paper. This paper came in one of those "stacks" but it wasn't by DCWV. I don't know who makes it, but it was perfect for this card. Added the rhine colored ribbon to finish it off.

Again, another Stampabilities House Mouse image this time. Colored it like I always do and then matted it with a piece cut out with my rectangle scalloped Nesties. I used foam squares to attach it to the card. The lemon paper was from the same stack above. Again, it was perfect for this card. If you look close (click on pics to make them bigger) you can see the "droplets" of water I added using Diamond Glaze. I also attached the yellow dew drops to each corner and then added my ribbon.

The last one is also a Happy Hopper. How sweet is this bunny eating an ice cream cone??? This is simply matted and attached with chocolate brown brads, attached a strip of DP matted with chocolate brown card stock, ribbon added and done!



Another shot of the whole set out of the holder.

Well, that's it for this post. I hope all is going well in your worlds. Again, thanks to all of those of you who showed such kindness to us. I'm such a lucky guy to have you! Don't forget the pic of the week below. I'll be seeing all of you on your blogs! Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving comments! They mean so much!

Best,

Curt O'Brien

"God help me be the person my dogs think I am."

BACK TO POSTING!

Hey All! I can't thank you enough for all the wonderful, supportive comments regarding Jay's emergency illness. He is back home as of last night and is recuperating. I was also very touched that I received over 20 personal emails asking for my address so that you could send a card to Jay. Instead of answering them individually, I decided to just post my address here. So, if you would still like to send Jay a card the address is:

Jay Rosello

12650 Cerromar Ct.

Carmel, IN 46033

I'm sure it would lift his spirits and you all were very sweet to ask. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I don't want to bore you with all the details of what happened, so I will put a blurb at the bottom of the post for those of you who would like to know what happened with Jay. There was also a very weird thing that happened during the emergency that I will tell you about. So, if you want to know what happened, you can read it at the bottom. If not, you can just read the post of the cards. So, on to the cards. . .

This post has LOTS of pictures. This first card is one I did for our doctor who's wife just gave birth to their first baby:

When I saw this image for the first time, I knew it would be perfect for a baby boy card. It is a Happy Hopper image from House Mouse. Again, I colored it with cheap colored pencils and OMS. I used cotton batting on the tail, and a silver metallic pen for the metal part of the clip board. The sentiment is computer generated.

We have been getting a lot of afternoon storms lately, and with Jay's illness coupled with the rainy afternoons, this card was born:

The stamp is from The Paper Company. I double stamped the image and cut out the top part of the umbrella after stamping it on patterned paper. I mounted them on top of a white piece of card stock that I ran through the Cuttlebug with the Swiss Dots embossing folder. I added brads to the top of the umbrellas and added glitter to every one of those little dots. This is one of those "long" cards, but I don't remember the measurements. Of course, it doesn't show in the photo. I plan on using this for a get well card with a sentiment inside saying "Heard you were under the weather".

I'm most excited to show you the note card set that I made for a friend of mine. This set includes a note card holder that I found cruising around the net. You can find the tutorial for it here.

The stamp set I used for this is the new set from Flourishes called DIY Topiary. I LOVE this set, and I can guarantee you that you will see more cards made with this set. The image on the front of this holder was colored with colored pencils and OMS. It was stamped on white card stock, but as I tried to use Tim Holtz's distress ink on the edges, I didn't like how uneven it looked, so I just daubed it all over and this is what I got. I kinda like it. . .a lot!

Here it is as it is being opened:

And here it is all the way opened:

Here is a pic of the whole set including one of the coordinating envelopes:

Below is the individual picture of each card in the set:

This one I used Flower Soft on. I LOVE this product. It really gives a great feel and 3-D effect to flowers or in this case topiaries!

What I especially love about this particular stamp set is that you can mix the different topiary plants with different pots. There are so many possibilities with this set.

Well, there ya have it. Don't forget the "Pic of the Week"! It is kind of creepy. Below is the "Jay Update":

It turns out that Jay was severely dehydrated due to a diuretic he was prescribed. This caused his kidneys to slow down and toxins were not being removed. This is why he was so disoriented and talking and doing crazy things which made me believe that he had had a stroke. He was in the hospital from Thursday morning until Monday night. He is doing much better, but still weak from the ordeal.

Here is the weird part of the story. On the morning it happened, he called out for me. I was sleeping, but Shotsy heard him and barked to wake me up. When I looked at the clock it said 9:11. As you know, I ended up calling 911 shortly after that. Weird huh?

Again, thanks so much to all of you for your thoughts, prayers, concerns, and emails. They were very comforting to me and I so appreciated your thoughtfulness. You are all WONDERFUL, and I am so lucky to "know" you.

Hope you are all well! I'll be seeing you on your blogs!

Best,

Curt O'Brien

"God help me be the person that my dogs think I am."

Quick Post - Jay's Health

Just wanted to let you know that I haven't fallen off of the face of the earth. I was going to do a post today, but Jay fell ill this morning and I had to call an ambulance. They think he might have had what is called a "mini stroke" or a TIA. He is in a local hospital and I've just returned home for the night from being with him. The Neurologists will see him tomorrow, and hopefully they will find out exactly what has happened. All of his test results so far have been good, but they still don't know why he is so disoriented and so out of it. So please keep us in good thoughts as we go through this. Hopefully it won't turn out to be too serious and he'll recover quickly from whatever this is. Thanks all! I miss you guys and hope to post soon.

Best,

Curt

MISSING IN ACTION

Hey All! Gosh it's good to see ya! LOL And it certainly is good to be back. Again, I have to thank those who sent emails to me making sure I was OK. Truth is, Jay was having some medical issues and I was taking care of all of that. Whenever he is going through something, it so effects me and I get a little depressed over it. But he is doing much better now, and I'm back! I'm also having computer issues! Errrrrrrrrrr! It keeps overheating and shutting itself off. I'm going to take the cover off today and have a look. Everything on the Internet says it needs dust cleaned off the internal fans. So, I thought I better get my post up before I take the chance of blowing up my computer.

The first cards I want to share with you are ones I did for my Mom and Jay's Mom for Mother's day. Here is the one I did for my Mom:



The inside says "Always There For Me" which Mom has always been. This is one of the sweetest House Mouse images. I love the Happy Hoppers and that little frog is just as cute as it can be. You can see in the close ups below (click for larger) how layered it is. I double stamped the umbrella and raised it with dimensionals. The rain drops and the puddle look wet. I used Diamond Glaze to get this effect.







This one I made for Jay's Mom:



It was made to match the gift I made for her below:











The box is one of the "Origami" boxes that I now LOVE to make. This box was perfect for this coaster set! The coaster set was inspired by Gina K's "Stamp TV" video. You can watch it here. The paper used for the box is from The Paper Studio. I went to Lowe's and hand picked these Venetian stone tiles. Since these are natural stone, each tile is totally different, and I wanted the least amount of holes in the stone. I then used Staz-On black ink for the image and "writing". Both stamps are Inkadinkado. I then used daubers to add the Staz-On mustard and Staz-On pumpkin ink colors on the butterfly. After I added the writing stamp, I used a sanding block to sand the ink so it looked aged. Just like in the video. I then added felt "pads" on the bottom to protect furniture. The Staz-On ink is totally waterproof, so it is the perfect ink for this project. I love how these turned out!

Here is the box that I made for my Mom:



As I said, I LOVE these boxes. You can see a great tutorial video on how to make these here. I can make them in less than two minutes and they are so versatile! The paper size I used for these boxes is: Bottom 11 x 11 and the top 11.5 x 11.5. For instructions go here. This box is such a nice size. The one above that I made for my Mom held 3/4 of a bag of Hershey kisses (her favorite). At the bottom of the box, I had hidden cash that I gave her as a gift. I paper pieced the flower (various punches) on top of the box out of Bazzill card stock in the colors of the patterned paper.

I also made another card for my Mom which held another "surprise":







These little flower pot cards are really cute. I first saw them on Splitcoast. They are perfect for hiding gift cards or in this case, scratch off lottery tickets.

My last card to share with you is a belated birthday card for a woman I used to work with:





I love this little image too! I came up with the sentiment (on the inside) that says, "I was a blooming idiot to forget your birthday". The image was colored with my cheap colored pencils and OMS.

Finally, I wanted to share with you a couple of RAKS that I received. The first one was so sweet and so thoughtful:



My very sweet blogging buddy Elaine Moore sent me this very sweet gift. She knows how much I adore my "boys" and she sent me these great bone shaped paper clips and this adorable box of dog themed bandages. Elaine, this was so very thoughtful of you, and I can't tell you how much it means to me for you to be so thoughtful. I wish she had a blog so I could share her with you! Please keep watching your mail Elaine, I haven't forgotten, just have been distracted as explained above.

My next RAK just blew me away:



This one was given to me by the very sweet America who recently won my blog candy which included the Copic markers. This package arrived and I just couldn't believe my eyes! It was full of all kinds of marvelous stuff, along with over 200 stamped House Mouse images and sentiments. I couldn't get over all the time it had to have taken her to stamp all of those images. I also told her in my thank you email that I have never seen so much stuff in any one's blog candy give aways! Be sure that you take a look at her work here. America, it was so kind and generous of you and I appreciated it so much! The card below was also included:



Well, there you go. . .It's nice to be back. I've saved some cards for the next post so you'll be hearing from me again soon! Thanks so much for your patience and sticking with me! I'm now going to take my computer apart and hopefully it will be successful! Keep your fingers crossed for me! Once I get it back together, I'll be visiting all of your blogs to catch up on what you've been doing! Can't wait to see all of your great stuff! Don't forget the pic of the week below!


Best,


Curt O'Brien


"God help me be the person that my dogs think I am."