Freebie Friday: Daffodils

It's been awhile since I offered a freebie on my blog. Here's a daffodil image I drew a few days ago that I'm giving away here for free as a thank you for your kind comments and regular visits. I hope you can use it.

Here is my card, which I'm entering to the Flourishes' Spring Has Sprung Challenge, Digis with Attitude! and Simon Says Stamps Challenge. The image was colored with my Copic markers and die cut using Spellbinders Labels 15, which I also used to sponge Memento Summer Sky as a background to my image.

Click on the photo to start downloading the free digi, which will not have the watermark. And leave me a comment, esp if you post online your project using it. Please take the time to read my Terms of Use that's included in the download. Thank you!

Enjoy your weekend!

3 cards for 3 sweet little girls

School just started this week in Croatia. My two older girls are in a Croatian school and they amaze me at how well they blend in there. They are the only non-Croat, non-Catholic, non-white (well, they're half :-)) non-native speaker in the whole school, yet they do so well. They can converse with the perfect accent with both English and Croatian. My oldest one is now studying German in 4th grade and in a few years, she can be fluent in that, too. They can do math, grammar in both languages. They are both excellent students. My youngest one still stays home with me and it will be a sad day when I send her off to kindergarten in a few years.

The Stampin' Sisters in Christ Challenge this week is to make a card that will encourage your children. It was a good reminder not to take my babies for granted. As missionary kids, they face more challenges than kids their age in America or Croatia. My husband and I voluntarily signed up to be missionaries. They just happened to be born in a family of one. Another term others use to refer to them is "third culture kids." They are neither fully American, nor are they fully Croatian, but they seem to embrace both very well. And for that I am thankful. God has truly blessed me with great kids and I pray that my DH and I will raise them in the ways of the Lord. Nothing will give me more joy than raising godly, kind, compassionate kids.

Here are my girls:


For my cards, I used the free images that Mo's Digital Pencil is offering at her PaperCraft Planet Group. I had so much fun coloring these with Copics. Mo is one talented artist. I also used my current favorite embellishment on these, which are buttons (for the Stamp Something challenge).

Here are the cards I made for them. This one is for Katy, my youngest, and it follows Sketch #3 of the Caardvarks challenge). She kinda looks like this cute Japanese girl and she loves kittens. She is very sweet and will tell me she loves me just because. The other day, she ran into my arms and said, "I can stay here forever." Awww, isn't that sweet?


This one, which follows the Crazy 4 challenges sketch, is for Gaby, my 2nd child. This happy image reminds me of her. She loves to laugh and people are naturally drawn to her. She's very cuddly and compassionate and will be the first one to offer to help me at home. She is also my most crafty. She loves making cards with me.



This one is for Gracie, my oldest and it follows Sketch #2 of the Caardvarks challenge and the ABC Challenge to use die cuts (I used the Spellbinders tags). She loves to read. I colored the image to match her favorite pants and shirt. Gracie is a thinker, very smart and mature for her age. She just absorbs everything like a sponge. And I've been able to count on her for many things around the house.


Thank you for letting me share about my girls. I am a truly blessed MOM. God is good!

Outside of my comfort zone

This is one card that is totally new to me. I counted 8 layers on this one with lots of elements. As usual, this covers several challenges: Taylored Expressions' #4 (color combo), #9 (shabby chic style), #10 (sketch), #11 (to use distressing), #13 (to use stitching). I used dies and punches on this one for the ABC Challenge this week to use die cuts.

I haven't made one of these in a long time....

...a card using a digital image. This hydrangea was a freebie I offered that you can download HERE. This card follows the sketch from Flourishes Feel of Fall Challenge, just in time for their release next week. The flower is colored with Copics (RV14, RV13, RV10, YG95, YG93, YG93). These colors are my favorite combo to color with markers, perfect for the Copic Creations challenge this week.

Stamps: Hydrange digital image, Damask Designs (PTI)
Ink: Copics, Memento Tuxedo Black
Papers: Hibiscus Burst, BG Eva collection
Others: MS lace punch, Ripe Avocado ribbon (PTI) and button

Have you seen these? So exciting!!!

First, the Elegant Post blog hop is still going strong. You can go directly to the post THERE and make sure you leave a comment to be entered in the blog candy that includes the Elegant Post stamp set and other paper goodies. Make sure you follow the links as there are so much inspiration in everybody's creations.

And second, have you seen my latest exciting news? I'm now designing for my favorite sketch blog, CardPatterns. I was a guest designer for them a few months ago and I thought that was exciting...being asked to be in the DT is a million times more! I couldn't believe my eyes when I read CardPatterns' sketcher extraordinaire, Michelle's email asking me to be in the design team. I am so honored to follow her easy-to-work-with sketches with some of my favorite cardmakers in the world. Make sure you go check out CardPatterns' blog and join us for this week's challenge.

Thanks, Michelle, for giving me the opportunity to be part of your super talented team. I know I will grow a lot as a paper crafter just by getting to know everybody in the DT.


The sponsor this week is My Grafico where you can find many beautiful digital stamps/images. I used one of the flower images in the Mix and Match Stems set. I printed it 4 times on a 6 x 6 piece of patterned paper, then cut the outlines to create the layered flower. I stamped the text stamp several times on Soft Sand CS to make the background.

Stamps: Mix and Match Stems by My Grafico, Birthday Messages by HeroArts, Text background by PTI
Ink: Versamark, Pink Passion
Papers: Soft Sand by GinaK, cardbase and DP by My Mind's Eye
Others: lace by Wrights, Hibisucus Burst buttons by PTI

Blog Candy Winner and a BONUS!

And the winner of the Squigglefly digistamps and a sampler of GinaK's Pure Luxury Cardstock, according to Random.org is... #9 Crystal.

Send me your mailing address, Crystal, via email (link on the left sidebar) and I will send you a sampler pack and the digistamps. And as a bonus to those who entered in the original blog candy post...the first 5 of you to leave me a comment here and send me their mailing address will also get GinaK's sampler pack. I love this paper so much that I want as many of you to try them out as possible. (By the way, I will send these out sometime after Wednesday. I got so busy packing for our trip to the US that I forgot to order the papers. But I know the wait will be worth it :-)).

Have a good weekend!

Simple Wedding/Anniversary Card

Here's my easy peasy card that combines the Stamp Something (to use a wedding themed card) and Color Throwdown's colors of chocolate chip, pink passion and Glorious Green. I substituted Certainly Celery for the last one.

I used my own illustration of the bride and groom, which you can purchase from Squigglefly. I printed it to match the Pink Passion CS. The love sentiment is from The Angel Company, I believe.


If you want to try how to work with digistamps, you can download some freebies I offer. The links are on the left sidebar. I just found out one of my cards using my Blossom for Mom freebie digistamp won in the Paper Crafts Mag May Gallery challenge. I'm so excited and honored.

Scribble this challenge #1

This is my entry to Lisa Spangler's challenge, Scribble This. Her challenge is unique in a sense that she teaches you how to use your camera and you use what you learn on your projects. For this challenge, she gave a few pointers on how to use the White Balance feature of your camera.

I used my own illustration (avaiable thru Squigglefly), which was inspired by one of my favorite photos of my hubby and youngest daughter. I added the pig tails on my drawing because my DD saw the original and said, "I look like a boy."

First, it's the Auto white Balance setting:


Indoor Lighting Setting


Sun Setting


With the Flourescent Setting


Taken Outdoors


I have lots more to learn about white balance. Taking pictures with natural light is always my favorite. I hope to play around more with the camera this summer.

Eye & My First Blog Candies!!!

To celebrate 3 months of blogging and 16,000 + hits, I am offering my very first blog candy!!! Thank you to all who come here and leave wonderful comments. I do appreciate them so much. I never knew that blogging could be this fun.

Now for some eye candy...I've been busy preparing for our upcoming extended trip to the US that I haven't had time to make anything lately. But, I have prettier things to show you. Just look at these beautiful creations made by amazing artists using my previous freebies.

Aren't these beautiful. Make sure you check out their links to see more information:

1. Happy Hearts
2. Sue's Sentiments
3. Lyn
4. Crystal
5. RainbowKreations
6. Wendy

And if you were inspired by these, you can download the images they used here on my blog. The links are on the left sidebar. Let me know if you made something and I'll highlight you here on my blog.

Next, I am offering my very first blog candy. This is what you will get...

These are digital images that are resizeable. They are now available for purchase from Squigglefly.com.

But, that's not all (I sound like a commercial ;-). I will also include a paper sampler pack of GinaK Designs' Pure Luxury Cardstock. They come in two weights: 120 lb., extra smooth cardstock in white, cream, brown, black, red and navy; and 80lb extra smooth layering weight that you can use to print the images above for copics, pencils/OMS or watercoloring. You will get a variety of 8.5" x 11" cardstocks. I may add other suprise goodies there, too. I know you will not be disappointed.

There are three ways to be eligible to win:
1. Leave a comment here and let me know what kind of images you would like to see as rubber or digital stamps?
2. Tell others about this candy by linking to this post on your blog. Leave another comment with your blog link if you do this. If you don't have a blog, just leave another comment to tell me you told other people about this post. I trust ya ;-).
3. Follow my blog, so you won't miss out on my future freebies. Leave me another comment if you're a follower, both old and new.

INTERNATIONAL COMMENTERS WELCOME!

I will pick the winner from the comments left on this post, so make sure you leave me one for each one you do of the above list. The deadline for this drawing is next Friday, June 12th at 8PM EST. I will post the winner on Saturday, June 13th.

I have a few more blog candies planned for the rest of the summer, including my new GinaK Designs rubber stamps, so stay tuned.

Blog Awards and one exciting news

Please bear with me as this is a long post.

My, oh my, I am one blessed blogger for having received so much love in cyberworld. I've gotten these wonderful awards from dear friends whom I haven't even met yet.

First, Lisa gave me this:


“This award is bestowed upon a fellow blogger whose blog content or design is, in the giver’s opinion, brilliant.” Okay, I'm blushing. Lisa is just an all-around wonderful lady who leaves me the most encouraging comments. Thanks, Lisa, it's an honor that you think my blog content is brilliant.

The conditions of this award are:

• I must thank the person who gave me the award, list their blog and link to it
• I must list ten (10) honest things about myself
• I must put a copy of The Honest Scrap Logo on my blog
• I must select at least seven (7) other worthy bloggers & list their links
• I must notify the bloggers of the award

10 Honest Things About Me …….

1. I'm a Christian, saved by grace alone. I give God credit for all the wonderful things in my life.

2. My favorite dessert is cheesecake.

3. I have a pretty high tolerance for pain - even had a "minor" root canal done in Croatia without novocaine (OUCH!!!). Oh, and I had a C-section, too, in Croatia with only Tylenol for my post-operation pain medication.

4. I am a big Jane Austen fan.

5. I used to hate pink and anything girly, but God has a sense of humor and gave me THREE girly girls who love pink. They've converted me to do the same.

6. I had a long "must have list" for a husband, so I didn't think I would ever get married. God proved me wrong again and brought me a wonderful husband who is everything I wanted and more.

7. I was very career-minded when I started college and changed my mind before I finished. I don't regret that choice for even one second. I love my life!

8. I'm a tech geek and loves to learn new software.

9. I got to know and fell in love with my husband while on a missions trip to Siberia (yes, THAT Siberia).

10. I was one of the many stranded travelers after the Sept 11 tragedy, while being 8 months pregnant. It wasn't fun, but we can laugh at the experience now. :-)

I nominate these wonderful ladies for the above award:
Crystal, Sue, Marcie, Paula, Selma, Tami, Joni and Tenia.

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The other award I received is from Sue and Paula. These wonderful ladies have been a source of encouragement and inspiration with their beautiful creations and comments. Go check out their blogs and you'll know what I mean.


I am so thankful for all the new friends I've made through blogging and one of my greatest wishes is that I will have a chance to meet you all someday! Thank you for adding more beauty and joy in my life through your wonderful creations.

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One of my exciting news that I can share now is...I now illustrate for Squigglefly. They sell my illustrations as digital images (or digistamps, as others call it, too.) that you can download instantly and resize to whatever size you want. I hope to post some projects in the next couple of days using my images from there. I have some father/child, wedding images, flowers and Scripture word arts there. If you've read all the way down here, thank you. Have a good day!

Cards for Heroes Blog Hop

I'm so excited to be a part of a worthy cause. I just heard about a great organization, Cards for Heroes, that sends blank cards to soldiers that they can then send back to their friends and families. I'm so honored to be doing this for the men and women who sacrifice so much for our freedom, which we often take for granted.

I wasn't able to sign up in time, so I'm not technically part of the hop. If you want to participate in the hop and win prizes along the way, you need to start by clicking on the image below.

As missionaries, we are often told how much we sacrifice. Though there is some element to that in many missionaries' lives, I don't think we live sacrificially as much as the brave soldiers and their families who give up so much for people who don't always appreciate them. They are truly my heroes. I am so glad that I can be of service to them in some little way by sending them these cards. Thanks, Cards for Heroes, for giving us the opportunity to give back to our brave soldiers.


The birds were digitally drawn by me and printed on the computer. The sentiments are from Stampin' Up and There She Goes.

Have a great day!

My first exciting news this week

I am so thrilled to be the Guest DT for Card Patterns this week. I won this spot with this card. I've never been a guest DT before, so this is really exciting. Here's the sketch for this week.


I was so excited I made two cards. I used a beautiful floral digital image from The DigiShack store. For the first one, I colored the image with reinkers and use it as background paper. The curvy edge was sketched by me on the computer, then hand cut.

For the second one, I changed the color of the image to red using Microsoft Publisher, printed it on So Saffron cardstock and used it as a BG paper. I also printed out two stanzas of one of my favorite songs, a modern hymn called How Deep The Father's Love For Us (read the story behind the song here) by Stuart Townend. The words are just awesome.


I made this card to be doubled as a wall hanging by sliding a ribbon inside, as sampled here. I make this type of cards frequently and love receiving them too.


Supplies for Butterfly Card
Stamps: Garden Delights by Inkinkadoo
Inks: Old Olive, Summer Sun, Mint Melody
Paper: Old Olive, Summer Sun
Others: Olive ribbon, silver pearls, paper piercer

Supplies for How Deep Card
Papers: So Saffron, Bailey Collection by KI & Co
Others: Prima flower, Melon Berry buttons by PTI

For my girls...

Make sure you check out my left sidebar for more digital freebies as I plan to offer them weekly. Happy crafting!

I'm offering another free digi stamp called GGK flowers, in honor of my sweet girls who are my daily inspiration.


I initially drew this for them to color. GGK stands for their initials. The download links for better resoultion are below the quote.

The quote is from one of my favorite historical figures, Charles Spurgeon, known as the Prince of Preachers. I just love it.

Flowers...are but the thoughts of God solidified -
God’s beautiful thoughts put into shape."
~ Charles Spurgeon ~

*******DOWNLOAD HERE********

GGK Flowers and Quote (274 KB)
GGK Flowers only (217 KB)
Quote only (57KB)

To see a sample using the image, you can view this post and this post. If you would like to, I would greatly appreciate a donation (Donate button on my left sidebar, just below the About Me section). ALL the proceeds will go towards literature publication for our church in Croatia. Thank you so much.

Terms of Use:

You MAY use my drawings for personal use. You MAY use it commercially ONLY by selling your finished projects using my drawing.

You MAY NOT print out several copies and sell them. You MAY NOT sell my drawings in any form whatsoever. You MAY NOT claim them as your own.

I prefer that you don't share your downloaded copies of the drawings, but rather direct others to this post to get their own copies. Thanks. Comment if you have any questions.