First, let me apologize for the sound quality. as I dropped my camera and broke it, so had to go to my back-up. It’s terrible, and I’m not making another video until I get my replacement camera.
To make this arrow fold card (that I saw on Mixed Up Craft), start with a 12″ x 6″ card stock scored at 6″. Make a mark with a pencil at 3″ on the bottom which is the exact middle of the card. Then make a mark on both sides at 2″ and 4″. Make sure your card is open before doing the next step.  Score from the top edge to the center 3″ mark at the bottom on both the left and right sides. Make sure you are right on the edge at the top score, so you have a good arrow. Then score from the 2″ and 4″ marks to the bottom center 3″ mark. I used 65 lb. paper that needed to be lined on the back, but worked great for the scoring.
After you’ve made your scores, fold the outer scores under, first with your fingers, then once the fold is in place, use your bone folder to make sure it’s crisp. The next fold is folded up, and you’ll use your ruler to lay against the score so you can make sure your fold is clean..then the scores closest to the center of the card, fold under. Next step is to use papers to line it with. 6 x 6″ paper pads work really well for this.
For the bottom layer of paper, cut 5 1/2″ across the top and 5 5/8″ on the sides. You’ll put a pencil mark on the bottom center at 2 3/4″ then draw a line from that mark to the top left and top right corners. Then cut this out. I showed doing it with a paper trimmer as well as with scissors, so you can choose which method works best for you. Keep the side pieces as they will also go on your card.
The top layer of paper is 5″ across the top by 5 3/8″ tall. You’ll make a mark on the bottom at 2 1/2″ and draw marks with your pencil to the top left and top right corners so your center is a V.
Erase the pencil marks once you’ve cut out the V. Glue the layers of card that you’ve cut out and glue those to the card. I used Tombow Mono Adhesive. The papers I used were from a retired Stamipin’ Up paper stack set.
I used a retired Stampin’ up ink called Blush Blossom and a dauber to distress the edges  of the “V”. I used a die to put my sentiment on from a Spellbinders set called DOMMarch 2018, and then laid a 1/4″ strip of the same peach card stock on the center of the V then laid the sentiment on foam squares over the center of the strip I’d adhered. I used a small flower peg stamp from the set called Sweet Song of Spring that you can buy individually from pegstamps.com.
I stamped the little flower on the sentiment and on the white edges of the V. The stamp set I used for the sentiment was from Hero Arts and was called Friend L351. I stamped another sentiment inside the card from the same set, and since it was a long one, put it on my ruler so it was straight (and to show you that you don’t have to have a long acrylic block to stamp a long sentiment.) I showed how to cut the sentiment in half if you don’t have the space for a long sentiment. I bend the sentiment in half and decide which word is closest to the center, then snip the stamp in half there. You can always put it back together if you want to stamp it in its original length. I used Baroque Burgundy ink from Stampin’ Up to stamp the sentiment (that’s also retired.)
I put some wet glue under my fold so it looked more professionally done.

Rich has been editing the video I made yesterday and he’s trying to fix the sound, but it’s not good.  He said he can fix my voice to make it loud enough, but there’s a clicking sound, possibly coming from the camera, that he’s trying to minimize…I can’t wait to get my replacement camera in the mail, as I have some videos I want to make and don’t want to waste them on this camera.  Nobody would be interested in listening to a camera making clicking noises, I’m positive of that.

So today I decided to clean my craft room instead of making videos.  I want to make good use of my time until the new camera comes.  What a horrible mess!  I was going to video the before and after, but was too ashamed of the “before.”  I spent three or four hours in there and only have about half the room clean.  The other half is a lot harder to tackle, so I’m leaving that for tomorrow.  I found some things I forgot I had, and discovered a drawer that I haven’t looked inside for at least a year, so am going to make good use of it.

I’d like to do more tonight, but I’m exhausted, and tomorrow is another day.

I really wanted to make a card today, and that means a video.  Since I broke the camera I’ve been using since the beginning of my channel (boo hoo!), I decided to try a video camera I had bought (thinking it would work better,) but didn’t do any research on it before buying it.  Here’s what I found after one use.  The microphone on it is HORRIBLE!  I sound muffled and like I’m talking from a mile away, but inside a box, if you can imagine that scenario.  I’d forgotten just how much I dread using this camera until I used it today.  When I watched the video, I could barely hear anything I said, and it was really muffled.  I immediately had flashbacks as to why I hate this camera.  The other issue is that it doesn’t have the capacity to add another microphone, so I’m stuck.  Rich said he can adjust the sound, and he better be able to work wonders, or this video is destined for hate comments and a bunch of thumbs down.

The card I made, on the other hand, is really cute*, and not at all difficult to make.  It’s called an arrow fold card and it’s exactly like it sounds.  I liked making it and was really happy with the results.  I know a lot of viewers will want to make this card, as I don’t think it’s all over the internet yet, and any new and different designs are always fun to try.   I have been keeping lists of cards I’d like to make, and this one was top on my list.  I enjoy trying all kinds of fun fold cards because I know I can make them, as compared to more artistic techniques that can sometimes be a struggle for all of us.

In the mean time, I ordered a replacement camera and I’m hoping it arrives quickly, as I might start to go into withdrawals if I can’t make a video in the next couple of days.

*When I say a card I made is really cute, I’m not trying to pat myself on the back..It’s the card’s concept that is cute..I know often I say cards I make are cute, but I seriously don’t want anyone to think it’s all about me and my card making savvy.  I simply like the card, whether I make it or someone else does, it’s the fold or idea of the card that I like.

I’m not going to freak out.  OK, maybe I am.  I went to do a really great fun fold card on video and my camera didn’t work.  I tried changing batteries and shaking it–that’s Sandy’s system for camera malfunctions, and my system was a big fat fail.  Darn IT!

So I pulled out a video camera I had bought a while ago and hated the audio it produced, but decided I could try it in the meantime.  And the battery is dead, so not sure how long it will take to charge.  Once it’s charged, we’ll find out if the audio is as bad as I remember…if it is, I can’t put a video online with audio that sounds like it came through a large bucket.  That means no new videos until my replacement comes in the mail.

I had some really great mojo going into this card making session, and now I’m just fretting.  I have a  video done, but it’s super long, and I just can’t make Rich put it online until he’s in the mood.  This could be the longest video I’ve ever made, and even I wouldn’t want to edit it.

Let’s cross our fingers that I can get the audio to work until my replacement camera comes, otherwise it might be a week before I upload another video.  Drat!

I went to several garage sales yesterday and bought four paint brushes and four stuffed animals.  The animals were for the dogs to play with, and of course, the paint brushes were for me.   After garage sales, we went to lunch with friends, then to Rich’s dry needling appointment.  I’ve decided I’m much better either reading in the lobby, or reading in the car, as I attract strangers like bees to honey.  Rich’s appointments seem to mirror another Richard’s appointments, so his wife and grown son are always there when we are.  The waiting area has five chairs, and I try to find the empty chair furthest away from them, so I can read.  The wife, who is in her seventies, likes to strike up a conversation with anyone and everyone, and she often doesn’t make much sense.  Her discussion with her son went like this.  “Joey, Joey, hey Joey!”  He couldn’t ignore her any longer, so he looked up.  “Are you doing homework?”  Since I didn’t look up, I’m assuming he shook his head no.  Her next question was this, and I’m not making it up.  “Joey, Are you trying to change the channel on the tv with your phone?”  His reply, “No.”  Since the tv she was talking about was in the medical office, I decided it was time for me to read in the car, or her next question would be for me.   She’s already held me captive for one of Rich’s hour long appointments, and I am better off in the car.

Today was absolutely beautiful outside and in the mid 70’s.  You can’t ask for better weather.  We decided to sit on our patio and read, but we were too close to the bird house that hangs from our awning, so the mother bird didn’t feel safe enough to feed her babies.  They started getting really agitated, so we retreated inside the house, and weren’t inside longer than twenty seconds, until she was at the bird house with food in her beak.  She’s a great provider.  I love watching them from my chair in the sun room, and since the same type bird makes her nest there every year, we have great front row seats to her and her family.

I got some really great cards and gifts from friends. Rebecca from Rubber Stamp Tapestry aka pegstamps.com, sent me Copic markers she was no longer using.  My friend Jane, sent me six Color Box petal pigment ink sets and the re-inkers for them, so I can re-ink them, as she no longer uses them. I’m excited as I like playing with different types of inks and there are so many colors to experiment with. Then Sherry sent me a purse that she had made as gifts, as well as the directions for all of us to follow, and a huge stack of 12 x 12″ Graphic 45 paper, and a template for me to replicate so I know what it looks like finished (or almost finished).. She also sent me Tonic Funky Glue pen and craft clamps and EZ Runner Vellum Tape as well as Spellbinder dies that are small for sentiments. I loved everything I was sent and really appreciate friends thinking of me.

Things I bought”
Creative Visions Goldfish: http://www.creativevisionstamps.com/goldfish/   $7.50

LDRS Background Stamps sold out on HSN, but here’s the link:  You can buy them individually from LDRS Creative, but the link is for HSN.
https://www.hsn.com/products/little-darlings-artful-background-stamp-set/8684360

Santoro 4 Willow Ladies Heads Stamps –these are on clearance for $17.95 so you should hurry if you are interested in them.
https://www.hsn.com/products/docrafts-willow-rubber-stamps-collection/8534588

I bought a kid’s cardboard book that I’m going to make into an art journal in an upcoming video, so if you want to play along, find yourself a kid’s book and we’ll have some fun..

Ebay stamp sets:
Ranger Dylusions Heart Edge Stamp https://tinyurl.com/yauwxtb3
$4.95
Laugh Out Loud Stamps Friends Stamps SC062 https://tinyurl.com/ycllmpth $3.99
Dylusions Sentiments DYZ48343 http://tinyurl.com/yauwxtb3 $4.95

Dylusions Spray Inks
Joanns https://tinyurl.com/ybtctpav $4.99 each full price…but I’d wait for them to go on sale like I did.

I’m going to be making the purses this month from the information and paper Sherry sent me, as well as working on the art journal with the spray inks and paints I showed in my last haul. I hope you’ll find a journal and play along.

In case you didn’t know, I buy all of the things I show in videos myself, unless otherwise stated.

 

 

I hope all of you who celebrate the 4th of July, had  wonderful day.  We had a really nice time with our friends, and ate way way too much.  But isn’t that what holidays are all about?  It was 90 degrees outside and our house has a weird heating system (coils in the ceilings), so we don’t have vents, so no central air conditioning.  We have a window air conditioner in our bedroom, and two portable air conditioners that sit on the floor and vent through windows, but they did nothing to help with the heat.  It could have been just me though, because when I entertain, I’m never really relaxed, so might have been having slight hot flashes on and off all day.  Yes, I was a pretty, and I do mean pretty, sweaty mess.

We separated the women from the men, and we women ate at our dining room table.  We had one chair that Rich had “repaired” a while ago, and normally I really try to make sure no one sits in that chair.  Unfortunately, my closest friend sat in it and half way through lunch, the chair literally disintegrated under her.  It looked like a bomb had gone off, and all that was left was kindling.  I was mortified, and so worried that my girlfriend had really gotten hurt.  She kept saying she was fine, but I think she was more embarrassed than anything else, so didn’t want to say anything.  I’ll bet she’s got bruises everywhere.  I’ll be seeing her tomorrow and hope she’s not feeling terrible…What a way to ruin her day of fun.

Today we decided we would run the errands that we’ve been putting off.  Getting our passports renewed is a big one.  I hate getting those photos taken, and now they’ve changed the rules, so you can’t smile and eye glasses need to be removed.  I don’t know about you, but looking stern isn’t the way I want people to see me for ten years.  Gross.

Apparently facial recognition software doesn’t work well if you smile or wear glasses.  So going through customs, you’ll need to frown and remove your glasses, or they’ll confuse you with everyone else, apparently.  Frowning isn’t a problem, as I’m usually between connecting flights when I go through customs, and almost always on the verge of tears, knowing I’ll be delayed long enough to miss my next flight.  At least they’ll know it’s me from the frown I’ll be sporting.  Maybe having people frown on their passport is a good idea after all, since how many people do you know that are happy when they go through customs?

It’s been around 90 degrees here all week, so I’ve been spending more time indoors.  Today’s focus has been on cleaning and buying food for our picnic tomorrow.  We normally go to Lake Erie, but with Honey’s anxiety, we decided to stay here.  We’ve invited two other couples that we’ve spend holidays with, almost our entire adult lives.  When Rich’s dad was alive, he had picnics for every holiday of the summer, and that tradition has been lost since his passing.  Rich and I decided to bring it back (in a very small way), by hanging with a few of the same people his dad loved.  Along the way, they became our close friends too.

I’m not a fan of entertaining large crowds, so six or seven people will be great.  I can control Honey with a few people too.  The biggest reasons for us celebrating here rather than Lake Erie are the heat, and Honey’s anxiety.

Our friends were very understanding, as they’ve had pets before, and we’ve never asked to have a change of venue before.

I worked in my craft room yesterday, but it’s so unorganized and messy, that I almost dread going in there.  My girlfriend is going to be refinishing a dresser for me to put more crafty things inside, and that should give me more space for organization.  That’s the one thing that I’ve discovered about me.  I like organization that is hidden and not on shelves.  I’ve bought a few sets of shelves but don’t really like them, because everything I put on them is always in view.  I prefer hiding my messes.  That’s my advice to someone creating a new craft room.  Buy cabinets or dressers, anywhere you can hide the things you buy.  Ultimately, they are easier to keep organized, and hide what isn’t.   Trust me, you’ll thank me later for this tip.

I remade the video from yesterday where my head was completely in the screen, and decided why not try making some fun cards with Dylusions paints and sprays.  I’ll give you a hint.  they are SERIOUSLY messy.  I really thought you could wash her paints and sprays off, but my hands are still pink after several washings.  My project isn’t the greatest and I’ll probably have to rethink it.  I’m just not sure if I shouldn’t wait to try something else before making a card.  I really like the colors, as they are seriously bold, but couldn’t come up with an idea that I liked.  I think I’ll wait and try again tomorrow.

We won’t be going anywhere in the evenings until after July 4th celebrations are over, as we’re trying to keep Honey as a priority.  We were invited out with friends on Wednesday, but had already made plans to stay at home and entertain, so Honey wouldn’t have to fret.  She definitely doesn’t like me doing anything crafty, and the barking that’s always heard during a video, it’s her explaining to me that it’s time for me to play with her, or at least keep her company.  The dog is neurotic.  We’ve put off putting her on anxiety medicines, but I think we’re fast approaching a time when we need to reconsider.

I’m not concerned about staying around the house, because I’m not sure how long it will take to get the Dylusions sprays off of my hands.  I think it’s safe to assume they’ll be pink for a while.

I saw a video by Splitcoast Stampers and Linda Bauwin on the making of this card and combined the two card techniques.
Start with a piece of decorated paper that is 12″ long by 5″ tall. (after making this card, a friend told me she thought it was supposed to be 4″ tall.) I used a stamp set by Stampin’ Up called “Hey Chick” and a stamp from Amuse Studio “For Peeps Sake.” I also used a wooden stamp that is really old called Image Tree EK Success IT04C, Just Chicken stamp. I used perfect layering circles from pegstamps.com  link to them: https://pegstamps.com/perfect-layering-circles.html ….
On the 12″ length, score at 2″, 4″, 8, 10″. Keep your score tool out and with a ruler, make a mark with a pencil at the top and bottom of the 6″ mark. Fold the 2″ and 10″ scores so you can see where they are. Then using your ruler, line it up at the top of the 2″ score and put the ruler diagonal from that to the 6″ mark at the bottom and score it. Then put the ruler to the bottom of the 2″ score, and put the ruler diagonal to the top of the 6″ mark, and score. Then do the same from the 10″ score to the 6″ mark on a diagonal at the top and bottom. Make sure your scores are accurate so they are exactly at the 6″ mark. Fold all of your scores, backward and forward. Pinch in the top and bottom of the “X” that you’ll see on the left and right side of the center. Rub your bone folder over it and burnish it. Pinch the other side, and fold the last score forward so it creates a flap on the left and right of the center diamond. To make a center paper, I put a white piece of paper on top of my center diamond and flipped the card over. Fold back the end flaps and you’ll be able to trace the white paper to cut out your diamond. I cut it a little smaller so it has a border. I used a Close to My Heart stamp set called Chairished to create a scene on my card. I stamped with black ink the chair and the lamp shade and then cut them out of the same paper as I used for my card. I thought it would be fun for them to match the background. I also had a long sentiment from the same stamp set and lined it up with a ruler and stamped the side of the diamond with the sentiment and SSS intense black ink. I used Tamnit markers to color the rug that I stamped near the bottom of my diamond shape. I wanted to color it in a little more, so scribbled the marker on my acrylic block, wet it with water and used a paint brush to paint in my rug.
I used a Little Darling Rubber Stamp Creative background stamp called “Wildflowers” to create wallpaper behind my chair and my lamp. I put the chair I’d stamped and the lampshade I’d stamped and put them on their respective images backwards, so they could act as masks. Then I inked my background stamp with “Sweet Corn” by Gina K. I laid the background stamp over my image with scrap paper under it and stamped it. I scribbled the sweet corn ink on my acrylic block and used a small paint brush to color in the flowers in the background so the wallpaper stood out better. I had a dog stamp from the same stamp set and colored the dog with another Tamnit marker and colored it in with the same marker. I glued the cut out chair and lamp shade down with foam tape so they had some dimension. I decided to surround my diamond with a scallop edge so using an edge punch from EK Success, I started the paper with one scallop showing on the right. Punch, then move the paper so it lines up with the images on the punch, and punch again, keep doing that until you get to the end. At this point I should have cut the scalloped paper in half, as I’d punched scallops on both sides, but lost my mind and forgot to do so.  I put glue on one side of my scallops right below the scallops and trimmed the edge. The next piece I lined the scallop up with the one at the end of the last piece and glued it down. At that point I realized I hadn’t cut it in half and then cut it, as I had cut scallops on both sides so I would have enough to surround my image…
I cut two pieces of 1 3/4″ x 4 3/4″ strips of matching paper for on the back of my card so I could write on it. If you use paper that has a single side, you can write in the inside, but mine was double sided.
Rich accidentally didn’t show the inside when you open the card, but it is cute when it’s open and I added a small square inside with hello on it.