I want to hear you ROAR

Hello,

So I know things have been a bit quiet on the blog front of late... hangs head... I have been busy working on lots of stuff, some of which I can't show you yet.... ;)   But mostly, I have just been busy.

One card I wanted to share with you today is my paper ode to Katy Perry's pop anthem/song Roar.  I don't know if it's hit your radio waves yet, but it's all over stations in Northeast Ohio and I kinda love it. It's so catchy and a great message too.  Check out the video here.

When you find inspiration in recent popular culture, sometimes it's a challenge to figure out how to capture it without a stamp set, for example, that spells it out. So I turned to my computer and came up with this:

 

I created a text box in Microsoft Word and typed my text and printed onto a piece of lightweight cardstock.  Next, I stamped the image of the lion (The Craft's Meow- Birthday Puns) and the starburst (Avery Elle- Bright Days). I trimmed the cardstock, punched the corners and mounted it on red cardstock.  I adhered some enamel dots in the corners before adhering it to a embossed piece of Aquamarine cardstock and attaching the completed panel to a white cardstock base.

The fonts I used were Orniste and Simplicity.  Both can be downloaded for free on DaFont.

Well, that's it for me today!  I will be back a bit later this week with a fun Neat & Tangled Halloween project.  Hope to see you then! Thanks for stopping by!

Katie

The Bicentennial Blog Post + Giveaway!

Hello, hello!!

It's a big day here at Our Charmed Life!  Today, I am celebrating my bicentennial blog post (cue the confetti!)! The BIG 200!! I made a birthday card to commemorate this occasion....

Anyway, it's hard for me to believe that I have reached this milestone especially since I started this blog back in 2008 as a place to record stories and share pictures with my family.  There are still a few personal stories and photos sprinkled in along the way, but my blog really evolved in 2011 into a place to share cards and paper crafted projects.

I went back into the archive and found the first cards I shared on the blog: 

That bird and branch set you see in the pink card was my very first clear stamp set- it is by Hero Arts.  I think I got it as a gift with purchase at Archivers. How do you like the lighting?  My automatic flash is rocking those cards and the cake stand. :o)

I feel like I have learned SO much since those early days, and the fact that I continue to learn, evolve as a crafter and maintain a desire to learn new things is what keeps me so passionately interested in this fantastic creative outlet. 

So I am doing a little giveaway to celebrate!  This first winner will get this fun set called Banner Up by Technique Tuesday:  

The second winner will get this Floral stamp + die set from Hero Arts: 

Just leave me a comment if you would like to be entered in the drawing.  If you follow my blog or become a follower, leave another comment. :o)   Please make sure that I have a way to get a hold of you via your comment profile or spell out your email address in your comment.  It makes me so sad when I can't get in contact with winners.  The giveaway is open to international friends as well! 

Please leave your comments by Sunday, April 28 at 8 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time.  I will draw winners and announce them here on the blog on Monday, April 29. Woo hoo!

Oh, and I should mention that these giveaways are not sponsored. This is just me sharing. :o) 

Good luck and thanks for stopping in to celebrate with me!

Katie

Wishing You Card Supplies: 

Stamps: The Craft's Meow (Vintage Clocks) and Avery Elle (Petals and Stems)

Cardstock: Bazzill

Ink: Hero Arts and Versafine

Embossing powder: Stewart Superior

Gems: Hobby Lobby

Fairy Party Invitation

Hello again friends!

So with a paper-crafting, shutterbug jumkie mama in the roost, birthdays are kind of a big deal at the Gehring household.  I start planning months in advance, create elaborate themes and invitations and really try to make the event a special celebration for each birthday princess.  In years past, we have tackled themes from Toy Story to Ballet, Teddy Bear Picnics to Kiddie Cruise Ins and many stops in between.

This year, Sophie has requested a fairy party.  (Keep in mind that she is only 4 and her birthday is not until September, so this could change....) Fairy party, I like, and moreover, I have the perfect stamp sets already in my stash!  Being of the mindset that it is never too early to start planning,  I created this little prototype:

The beautiful fairy silhouette is from The Craft's Meow Butterfly Kisses set.  I paired it with a dandelion seed stamp from Skipping Stones Dandelion Dreams set. I printed the invitation on white cardstock and stamped the images.  I carefully trimmed around the text box and matted the invitation to a piece of green cardstock.  The finished invitation size is 5x7 and with the exception of a small gem that I couldn't resist adding to the "i" in Sophie, it's completely flat and totally mail-able.

As for decor and food, I am thinking something along these lines:

via Pinterest

I just love the butterflies and those bright saturated pinks, oranges, yellows and greens.

Then there is also this scrumptious fete:

via Pinterest

That little party goer is certainly enjoying some tasty treat.  I an thinking of setting up a table and chairs for Sophie and her little girlfriends outside under our large pin oak tree.  The leaves will provide a nice canopy, and the branches are low enough that I can hang lanterns or pom-poms from them.

Of course, this is all months away (as I look out on the 8"+ of snow that blanketed our home this weekend), but in these dreary winter months, it is fun to look forward and plan for celebrations to come!

Have a splendid Wednesday, friends!  Thank you for stopping by!

Katie

Pinterest Project- Celebration of the Cityscape

Hello friends!

I know it's been a little quiet on the blog front, but for good reason.  The family and I just returned from a 7 vacation at Walt Disney World in Florida.  It was, sigh, magical! I will have some photos to share on the blog soon!

As I have been getting settled in and caught up with some life stuff, I came across a very cool print that I had pinned to Pinterest a few weeks ago and decided that last night was as good as any to create a card based on this inspiration print:

via Pinterest

And using one of my newer sets from The Crafts Meow, I came up with this card:

Celebrate- City Style

On dark gray cardstock, I embossed the cityscape image from the Happy New Year set in Mustard Zing embossing powder and the fireworks in Teal embossing powder. Below the dark gray cardstock, I added a strip of light gray cardstock that I stamped with PTI's Background Basics Circles in yellow ink.  I added the sentiment from one of the Fillable Frames sets in black and accented the sentiment with a turquoise gem. I added some ribbon in Hawaiian Shores where the two colors of cardstock meet and adhere the finished panel to a card base made from the light gray cardstock.

I hope you find some inspiration in the card and print I shared today.  I will be popping by later in the week with some more fun things to share- like the release of Skipping Stones newest set- Sassy Cats and a sweet party invitation inspired by another image from Pinterest.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great day!

Katie