Masculine Card for Allsorts Challenge

Hello and welcome!
It's Saturday again that means it's time for a new theme at Allsorts challenge. It's Wendy's turn to host this week and she wants to see something for boys or men. Hope to see you joining us this week. We have a great prize by Rare Earth to give away to one lucky, randomly selected winner.


*Please note, this post includes some affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission if you purchase something through the links, this is at no cost to you. 

Maybe this card looks familiar to you. I made and shared a similar one a couple of months ago, using a similar design and colors, but there are differences, you can take a look at that card here. 

I started out by inking the background using Tumbled Glass, Peacock Feathers and Pumice Stone  distress inks, then used stamps from the Penny Black set Nature's Friends to add to the scene. The trees (cut with the Penny Black die set  Beneath the Birches) were adhered to the inked card before adding the embossed frame.

To make the frame I first dry embossed a white card stock using an old Cuttlebug embossing folder (I can't find this exact one, but there are alternative options) then I used a die from the Wonky Stitches die set, but used the "negative" instead of the stitched piece as a frame. This was then adhered onto a white heavy weight card base.

Penny Black Nature's Friends // Penny Black Beneath the Birches Die Set // Avery Elle Wonky Stitches Die Set  // Cuttlebug Embossing Folder (Old - Alternative Options) // Sentiment from Penny Black (can't remember which set it came from) // Distress Ink Tumbled Glass // Distress Ink Peacock Feathers // Distress Oxide Ink Pumice Stone  // Distress Oxide Gathered Twigs // Bristol Vellum Paper // Ink Blending Tool

Related Products:

Thanks again for taking the time to stop by my blog. Hope to see you joining us this week. Anyone is welcome to play along, even if you never have and are new to crafting, just be sure to follow Allsorts simple guidelines. You can read all about them here. 

I'm linking up with these blogs:
Just Add Ink - Just Add "E" (Embossing) // Krafty Chicks - All Occasions // Fab n Funky - Masculine // WaterCooler Wednesday - Occasions // Shopping Our Stash - Birthdays // Crafting Happiness Challenges  - For Him // Penny Black Saturday Challenge - Use PB Products 

PS: You can also find me here:

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You can also use the "follow by email" function on the blog's sidebar to receive a notification when a new post goes live.

Fashion Over Forty: Blush Pink Cardigan and Light Wash Jeans

Good morning and thanks so much for visiting! Hope you are all doing well and most importantly are staying healthy! Our schools have extended the cancellations until the 7th (as of now), and like so many of you we're in a shelter in place order but allowed to go grocery shopping or on walks. I did stop at Aldi a few days ago and found it well stocked with everything on my list.

*Please note, this post includes some affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission if you purchase something through the links, this is at no cost to you. 

As I'm sure I mentioned before, even though I don't work outside of the house, I still need to get dressed in my regular clothes to be the most productive. Today's outfit is a variation of something I've been wearing for the most part of the past 7+ days.  In fact this cardigan I've worn 3 times this week. It's so easy to throw over a tshirt and jeans outfit for warmth and comfort. Everything I'm wearing is old, but they are basics and there are usually similar styles available, and most likely in your closets already.

These pictures were taken last Sunday when snowflakes were falling. Lots of big snowflakes! The random white specks you see are snowflakes. 

This dusty pink cardigan was purchased last spring from LOFT. I love this color! While I didn't see a similar color at LOFT at this time, this cardigan from Nordstrom comes in a similar color as well as this one and both are part of Nordstrom's Spring sale, marked down to $29.50 and as always Free Shipping and Returns. 

I don't think I've worn these lighter wash jeans over the winter months, but I love this wash for spring and summer. These skinny jeans are from Old Navy purchased last year, but this could possibly be the exact pair. I know many of us probably don't feel like shopping these days, but wanted to mention everything is currently on sale at Old Navy with free shipping on orders of $25 or more. The jeans I linked to are marked down to $12.

My scoop neck tshirt is from Target, I'm pretty sure I've had this tshirt for a couple of seasons already. I can't find a black and white striped tee at a reasonable price at the moment, but do like this navy and white stripe option from Old Navy. This black and white one is cute but it might not work under a cardigan with the twisted sleeves...although it would be great under a spring jacket or by itself when it's warm enough outside.

These loafers you've seen before in this recent post and this post from last year. They are so comfortable and one of the pairs of shoes I wear a lot during spring and fall. These are by Naturalizer and unfortunately no longer available. If you're looking for some casual blue slip-on shoes these boat shoes by Grasshopper are an option if you like that style, otherise DSW has lots of blue slip on shoe options. 

I've linked to similar options below for those of you interested. Both cardigans are from Nordstrom and part of their Spring sale. 

Gibson Cardigan (runs large - sizing down is recommended) // Leith Cardigan 

Super Skinny Light Wash Jeans // T-Shirt Options 

Not much more to say about today's look. I do change into my workout leggings for about an hour every weekday so I can do yoga or pilates (I alternate between the two). In case you're interested, the YMCA is offering virtual classes during this time and I'm pretty sure they are accessable to everyone, even if you  are not a member. You can find them at YMCA360, and I also like Yoga with Adriene on YouTube for more options. For Pilates workouts I like Popsugar Fitness on YouTube. Most of these videos are shorter than the group fitness classes I attend but at least I still get some of my daily exercising done.

Still not watching much more TV although I like to sit in the living room with my daughter and color  something for an upcoming card in the evenings while she has something running on the TV... I did start watching The Voice on Hulu for the first time this season (always been an American Idol fan) and then today Heidi Klum's and Tim Gunn's new show "Making the Cut" is being released on Amazon Prime Video, and I've been looking forward to it. Of course that means I need to sign up for Amazon Prime as we're not currently members.... 

Well that's all I have to share today! Thank you so much for taking the time to visit! 

PS: You can also find me here:

Pinterest // Instagram // Facebook // Twitter

You can also use the "follow by email" function on the blog's sidebar to receive a notification when a new post goes live. I do share papercrafts in addition to my fashion over forty posts, so keep in mind that you would receive a notification for both types of posts.

Linking up with these great fashion related blogs.

The Animal Kingdom at Allsorts Challenge

Good morning and welcome! It's time for a new theme at Allsorts challenge. Tracy is hosting this week with the theme of "Anything from the Animal Kingdom". Hope you can join in. Our prize this week comes from Stamp Addicts who are offering a wonderful gift certificate to one randomly selected winner.


*Please note, this post includes some affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission if you purchase something through the links, this is at no cost to you. 

I thought the Penny Black stamp Let's Go Wild was a perfect choice for this challenge and this was an extremely easy card to make. I wish I could tell you I made the background by myself, but it's a piece of pattern paper I found in my box of scraps. So I simply stamped the animals and tree (it's a red rubber stamp I won a while ago, but it's unmounted and I don't remember which company it was from) using Versafine Clair Nocturne ink. I wiped the inkpad along the edges to darken them then mounted onto white card stock. The sticky sentiment is another quote from Tim Holtz' Quotations set. The card base is from Stampin Up.

Penny Black Let's Go Wild // Tree Stamp Unknown Brand // Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink // Tim Holtz Quotations Sticker Set // Stamp Platform - Options // Tombow Mono Multi Glue 

I'm linking up here:

WaterCooler Wednesday - Masculine // Dream Valley Challenges - For the Boys // Path of Positivity - Anything goes opt. twist of Botanicals // Penny Black Saturday Challenge  - Penny Black Stamps 
Inspire Me Mondays

Thanks so much for visiting! To play along with us or to see what the rest of the team made please visit the challenge blog. 

Fashion Over Forty: Utility Jacket for Spring and What We've Cooked This Week

Hello and thanks so much for visiting! I hope you are all doing ok and staying at home if you don't have to be out. I'm finding plenty of stuff to do to keep me occupied and I try to get the kids  (teens) involved in many of the daily activities around the house. They are getting a few assignments from teachers but nothing is required here in our disctrict at this point, however I am very happy that they are deciding on doing them anyway. I've also had them more involved in cooking and general housekeeping. (I usually do these things when they are in school during the week - At the end of this post I've shared some of the things we've cooked in case you're looking for some ideas.) Earlier this week we finally got all the oak leaves raked when we had a sunny day. Now if we just had some warmer weather again...

As I mentioned in my latest blog post, I am trying to keep my home life as normal as possible while following the government guidelines, that means I will continue to blog as long as I have something  relevant to my blog to share about.


*Please note, this post includes some affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission if you purchase something through the links, this is at no extra cost to you. 

For this week's style post I'm sharing a typical (to me) spring outfit - blue jeans, stripes and a thin jacket. Of course this outfit works just as well in fall, although our fall days here in the midwest are usually either warm where no jacket is needed or too cold for a thin jacket like this one.

My utility jacket was purchased at Rue21 a couple of years ago. Another one of those days when I took my daughter shopping and I ended up finding something for myself. I'm not used to shopping at Rue21 and that was the only time I ever shopped there, but I had to size up in this jacket as my usual size was way too small. My exact jacket is no longer available, this olive green utility jacket from Target looks very similar. 

If you've been following my fashion posts, then you might remember seeing this striped top before when I styled it with gray skinny jeans last fall. You can see it here if you're interested.

The tasselled sweater was purchased last fall from LOFT and is no longer available, but I found the same style of sweater in navy. Then this sweater is similar in the colors but a litte bit different style. By the way, LOFT is currently offering Free Shipping and Free Returns until through March 31st. Use code EXTRA.  

Options from LOFT below...

Striped Splitneck Sweater // Shimmer Striped Splitneck Sweater // Tasseled Tie Neck Sweater

My crossbody bag is by Nine West (similar option) and my booties are by Miz Mooz, the same style I've shared in this recent outfit post, but in black. While they are lace up boots, they do come with a practical zipper  in the back as you can see on the picture above. As mention in a recent post mine came from  Nordstrom. While no longer available there, Miz Mooz still has a couple of sizes left directly from their site, otherwise you can find them on Amazon. These are the Lennox style. But now that spring is here, I will be putting these boots away until fall.  

These jeans are my AG skinny jeans I got from eBay a few months ago. I would have preferred a mid rise over these lower rise jeans, but missed that detail when I bought them. Still, they are my current go to jeans. I'm sure most of us don't feel like clothes shopping at the moment, but I did notice some  great choices  of AG jeans at great prices (compared to the original price) at Nordstrom Rack.

So before I sign off for today, I wanted to share the things we've been cooking ....nothing fancy or special, but favorites that I hope my kids one day can cook by themselves because I know how nice it is it to be able to re-create meals from the childhood. 

We made French Toast. I don't follow a specific recipe but I make mine similar to this one (minus the nutmeg and vanilla - I like things plain :-). My son and hubby eat theirs with maple syrup, I love mine with plain granulated sugar and my daughter eats hers with powdered sugar. You can always add some sort of fruit or cinnamon, but we don't usually. 

We also made Semolina Pudding (ate it for breakfast). Again, I have no recipe, but it's similar to this recipe.  (Please note, this is a single serve recipe. I always make enough for 4, use regular granulated sugar and I also add one egg.) 

We made Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal. I just follow the instructions on the box of Old Fashioned Oats, then add a couple of diced apples, sugar and cinnamon.

For lunches we made Old Fashioned Cabbage and Noodles with Kielbasa. I found  this recipe a few years ago from Pinterest and we all love it. I don't use chicken stock, and use just water instead.

We also made Potato Salad (without mayo - we don't eat mayo). I just make mine with peeled boiled potatoes - sliced, sliced sweet onion and a simple oil, vinegar and salt dressing.

We made Pork Chop Sandwiches with thin cut pork on steak roll I buy from Walmart. ( I ususally keep a bag of these rolls in the freezer.)

We also made simple Homemade Pizzas. I love using Aldi's Artisan Flatbreads for the "pizza dough". This is another item I usually keep in the freezer for when we want to make pizzas.

Today we're going to make Potato Soup with ham shanks. I again don't have a specific recipe but this one sounds similar. As usual, I don't use any chicken stock or broth and I use water instead. To me the soup get enough flavor from just using the vegetables and meat, but everyone's tastebuds are different and you may want to use the chicken broth instead. 

Still have some some frozen Salmon Filet left and frozen veggies and things to make a pot of Chili, but will definitely need to get to the grocery store this weekend. It's crazy how one full cart of groceries is just enough for a week....

Thanks so much for stopping by today! 

PS: You can also find me here:

Pinterest // Instagram // Facebook // Twitter

You can also use the "follow by email" function on the blog's sidebar to receive a notification when a new post goes live. I do share papercrafts in addition to my fashion over forty posts, so keep in mind that you would receive a notification for both types of posts.

Linking up with these great fashion related blogs.

Midmonth Inspiration for Penny Black and More March Challenge

Hello and welcome! Strange times we live in. I'm sure most all of us are in some way affected by this virus situation. Our schools have closed, as well as eat-in restaurants and a few other non-essential places. We're pretty much all staying home (besides my husband due to his work) but I'm trying to keep our home life as normal as possible under these circumstances while following the government regulations. Believe me, I'm not being insensitive over the issues but I chose to remain calm and plan to continue posting to my blog as I usually do. There is not much any of us can do about the situation at this point other than following the government guidelines...

Anyway, today we're sharing some midmonth inspiration at the Penny Black and More challenge blog. Still plenty of time to join us for a chance to win one of our great prizes! This month - perfect for the time of the year - we want to see "Spring Flowers".

*Please note, some affiliate links are used in this post, meaning I may earn a small commission if you purchase something through the links, this is at no cost to you. 

I was playing along in the #dailymarker30day coloring challenge hosted by Kathy of The Daily Marker and this was one of the images I've colored so far (I haven't had time to color many...)

The tulips from the Penny Black set Blooming Garden of course were perfect to use for this Spring Flowers challenge so I made a clean and simple-ish card with it. Heat embossed using my usual  Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink  and Clear Ultra Fine Embossing Powder , then I used Distress markers for coloring. I think the background is too yellow, but that's how it turned out and there is no reason to waste it even if it's not so perfect. I added some dots using Penny Black Oscillations stencil. A stitched frame die by Avery Elle was used to cut it out, then adhered onto a purplish card stock by Stampin Up. I no longer sort by color so I have no idea what this color is called or if it's still available. The sentiment is a sticker from Tim Holtz's Quotations set. 

Related Products:

A close up below...

Penny Black Blooming Garden // Penny Black Oscillations Stencil // Tim Holtz Quotations // Distress Markers // Avery Elle Wonky Stitches Die Set // Zig Detailer Brush // Bristol Vellum Paper // Stampin Up Cardstock // Tombo Mono Multi Glue 

I'm linking up here:

Always Fun Challenges - Flowers // Colouring in Scrapland - Spring // Path of Positivity - Botanicals // Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - Stencils // Use Your Stuff - Spring // Stamping Sensations - Spring Florals // Creative Craft Cottage Challenges - For the Girls // Daisy Chain Challenges - Dies // Penny Black Saturday Challenge - Spring

Thanks so much for stopping by! Hope to see you joining in. Remember you may enter up to 3 times and use any brand of stamps as long as they are physically stamped. You have until the end of the month to play along!

Lots of Dots for Allsorts Challenge

Hello and Welcome! It's time already for a new theme at Allsorts challenge. It's Mervi's week to host and she picked the theme of Lots of Dots. Two woodware stamps from Craft Stash are up for grabs and will go to one lucky randomly selected winner, hope you can join us for your chance to win!


*Please note, this post includes some affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission if you purchase something through the links, this is at no extra cost to you. Thank you so much for your support!

I decided to make an Easter card using a cute Penny Black stamp - What a Spring. This is one of their older wood mounted stamps and I only found one currently available on eBay. 

I heat embossed the image using Versafine Clair Nocturne ink and Clear Embossing Powder, then colored using Copic markers. I had this design in mind which meant fussy cutting the image. All animals and butterflies are part of this stamp. 

The sentiment is is also by Penny Black, another wood mounted stamp, unfortunately I can't find a link to it anywhere - it's really old, and was part of a lot of stamps I bougth from eBay a few years ago.

Related Products:

To follow the 'lots of dots' theme I decided to use dotted pattern paper for the sky and I inked a die cut "hill" using distress ink. My stitched hill border die is from a set I received when I was on the Whimsy Stamps design team years ago and retired. This set by Lawn Fawn is similar. When everything was assembled on the card front I framed it with yellow card stock then added to a Heavyweight White Cardstock base. It's hard to see, but all the images were adhered with Foam Tape to make the pop up. Should have added some glitter to the butterflies and flowers, but didn't think of it until after I had taken the pictures.

Penny Black What a Spring // Penny Black Spring Sentiment (no longer available) // Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink // Clear Ultra Fine Embossing Powder // Copic Markers // Bundled Sage Distress Ink // Whimsy Stamps Stitched Border Die Set - retired, Similar Option // Cutterbee Scissors // Foam Tape // Tombo Mono Multi Glue  // Pattern Paper from Stash // Yellow Stampin Up Card Stock // Heavyweight White Cardstock

Thanks so much for stopping by! Hope you're having a good week! Our state (Illinois) cancelled all schools here for the next two weeks, so that means my schedule will be somewhat different. Kids will have to do their schoolwork on their computers at home. Not ideal, but at least they will still be able to do some work. Hoping everything will be back to normal in April! But who knows....At least I have enough papercrafting supplies to last me forever 🤓, although I may run out of glue...in fact I only have an open bottle so may need to stop at the craft store tomorrow. And I’m out of glue dots! They better not close the craft stores!!!

Linking up here:

Inspire me Mondays

Fashion Over Forty: Striped V-Neck and Boyfriend Jeans

Good morning and happy Friday! Hope you are all doing well! I'm still a little sore from a dentist appointment yesterday. It's ironic how you can't feel anything even while you're given the numbing injection, but then after it wears off  I'm always so miserable! (In fact I even noticed a small bruise on my left cheek this morning (the side I had the work done).  For that reason I usually don't get the injection unless it's a large filling that needs work on. Yesterday I had a loooong appointment to get a new crown and replace another old one. So numbing was definitely needed! But I am so glad to have this behind me, I don't know why, but things like these get me stressed out more than they should!! Plus appointments like these mess with my regular daily schedule and not for a fun reason!

On another note, last weekend my daughter and I got to see the Tap Pack, they are a group of highly entertaining and very talented tap dancers and singers from Australia currently touring the United States. There are still a few tour dates left here in the States (TX, NM, AZ, CA unless canceled due to  the current circumstances), after that they'll be touring Australia, Japan, Germany and Austria. If you like this type of entertainment I highly recommend it! You can take a look here, maybe they'll be in a city near you! Btw, I am not in any way affiliated with The Tap Pack, we just really enjoyed their performance and wanted to recommend it.

But let's get to the point of this post - my take on "Fashion over Forty". And no, today's outfit post isn't what I wore to see the tap pack. I did dress up a little more for it - maybe it could be a future outfit post :-)

*Please note, this post includes some affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission if you purchase something through the links, this is at no extra cost to you. 

These pictures were taken last weekend when it was nice and sunny although pretty windy and I decided to style boyfriend jeans (I haven't worn boyfriend jeans since last fall since they aren't practical to wear with boots) with my blue and white striped double v-neck sweater I shared in this outfit post from last year. I did end  up exchanging that sweater for an XSPetite size which I'm wearing here. While this sweater is sold out now, LOFT always has such  a nice selection of sweaters.

I did have my trench coat with me on this day, but my hair was blowing crazy in the pictures I took with it on, so I decided to skip those. But if you're looking to add a trench coat to your wardrobe this spring, Nordstrom has a great selection and as always free shipping and free return shipping! 

You can see how I styled my trench coat in this post from last fall.

In the above picture you can see the v neck in the back. I love it when details like this one for example are added to ordinary looking tops. I think it just makes them a little bit special but still perfect for everyday wear. While I can no longer link to this top, I think many of LOFT's tops have a "special" factor. I'm not going to look for specifics as their site is always so tempting to me, but you can take a look here. You might find that special top to add to your spring wardrobe. 

My crossbody bag is by Nine West. It's no longer available, this crossbody bag would be a great alternative from Kohl's. 

These jeans are NYDJ "Leann" boyfriend jeans (old) but there are similar styles available, like these high waisted jeans from American Eagle or maybe you'd prefer the slim boyfriend jeans, also from AE. Old Navy also has several styles of boyfriend jeans. High rise is trending at the moment (if that matters to you.) Personally I prefer a mid rise as the high rises are just too high for my body type.

I've shown you these jeans before in this post styled with a yellow top. 

My slip on shoes are by Naturalizers, if you've been following me along then you might remember them from  this post from last fall. This style is unfortunately no longer available, but any slip ons/ casual loafers I think would work with this outfit. 

It's hard to see, but I did wear a silver necklace to fill in the neckline and for a change I switched out my small  diamond studs with dangly earrings I recently found at TJMaxx. 

As always thank you so much taking the time to visit my blog! I so appreciate it!

PS: You can also find me here:

Pinterest // Instagram // Facebook // Twitter

You can also use the "follow by email" function on the blog's sidebar to receive a notification when a new post goes live. I do share papercrafts in addition to my fashion over forty posts, so keep in mind that you would receive a notification for both types of posts.

Linking up with these great fashion related blogs.

Anything with Wings for Allsorts Challenge

Hello and welcome! It's Saturday again that means it's time for a new theme at Allsorts challenge! Brenda is hosting this week with her chosen theme of "Anything with Wings". What a great theme with some great options of stamps to use! Our prize this week come directly from Brenda who bought the same stamp twice, lucky for one of our participants who will receive a beautiful Lavinia fairy stamp. It could be YOU so hopefully you'll play along with us!

Please note, this post includes affiliate links. 

I saw this challenge as another great opportunity to use one of my Lavinia stamps on a distress oxide inked background. Very easy and quick to do following Loll's Splash Watercolor technique on Bristol Vellum paper. 

The hardest part is always waiting on the first splash of ink to dry before adding the second one. On this card I used Blueprint Sketch and Cracked Pistachio Distress Oxides for the inky background. After both layers of ink were completely dry, I stamped the faries using Versafine Clair Nocturne ink with the help of my stamp platform. I have the Tim Holtz one by Tonic, but it is no longer available. However there are alternatives on Amazon.  The magical fairy verse is also by Lavinia and the music notes is an old background stamp from Hero Arts. I think this stamp would be a great alternative. I had my sticky quotations stickers out from another project I've been working on and thought this would be a great fit for the fairy stamp. I layered it onto some striped pattern paper from my box of scraps and then onto a white heavy weight card base. Currently I use Michael's Heavy Weight Recollection brand for my white card bases.  

Fairy and verse stamps by Lavinia (if you're in the US you can now buy them from Laviniaworld and there are also a couple of Lavinia retailers on Etsy) 

Also used:

Hero Arts Music Notes Stamp (old - alternative option) // Distress Oxide Blueprint Sketch // Distress Oxide Cracked Pistachio // Distress Oxide Tumbled Glass (for music notes) // Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink // Tim Holtz Sticky Quotations //  Bristol Vellum Paper // Stamp Platform (mine is no longer available but there are other options // Craft Mat - Similar // HeavyWeight White Card Stock // Pattern Paper by DCWV (I think)

Thanks so much for stopping by!

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Amazon shopping links are below for the products found there. As a reminder, these and some of the links above are affiliate links meaning I may earn a small commission if you purchase something through the links. This is at no cost to you. As always, thank you for your support!