a card for my Aunt

Hello, my friends,
 Hope you had a very happy Christmas with your beloveds.

 At our region, the peak of the biggest cold wave this month was over this afternoon. The consumption of electricity at our supply company seems to be decreasing gradually. Thank you.

 Yesterday, I finished a card for my aunt. Though I was going to make it after the coming New Year holidays, I couldn't wait to do it, because I received the HA new released stamps yesterday morning. This time, the delivery was quicker more than I expected for this time of year.　(But judging from the tracking report, my parcel seemed to have taken enough 'ZZZ time' for about a week at LA before going through the customs clearance.

Well, here is the card, Thinking of you'.

And, this is a close up.

 The methods I used: Blended several Distress Inks after stamping with oil based ink, or after heat embossing. Spread the Distress Stickle Rock Candy on two hearts' surface after blending inks with blending foam.
 By my broad interpretation of the sketches, I'm going to send this to Flickr to join in HA December challenge Round 2. Hope this qualifies their requirement.

Merry Christmas! and about the electricity shortage of our city

Hello, my friends,

Merry Christmas!

 After the earthquakes hit Touhoku and Kantou area this March, the amount of electricity supply comes to decrease at Kyushu island where I live, without exception. Just only one works among four nuclear reactors stands on neighboring prefecture. Because those under suspension to be inspected can't restart even now. (There's one more plant at southern part of our island. But it is under similar situation now.) So I use my personal computer to check the rate of the consumption of electricity on the website of our power supply company to escape a large scale of power cut.

By the reason of increasing the consumption - it has been unusually cold this winter, and it stormes now -,  I'm going to access friends' blogs after checking the situation, though I want to visit all by today. Thanks for your understandings.

If all the nuclear reactors restarts, it changes to be a stable supply. But we are very scary, because the nuclear power plant in neighboring prefecture is located on just only 60 km west of Fukuoka City where I live...

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas!
Tomo

Christmas card for my father

Hi, again,
 I have one more post today. Just finished a Christmas card for my father. When I thought about its design, I hit upon a good idea to take on two themes of Hero Arts December challenge Round 2.
Made the design to combine 'pocket card' with 'one of the sketches'. Wow, the card for my father was done, and I can join the challenge!

Here is the card.

 The bottom half is a pocket. The method I used is stamping with distress inks and blending for the oval shaped area, and heat-embossing for the pocket area.

Here is a close up.

 The reason I chose Starry Night stamp for this card is ...

a card and an ATC for sharing

Hi, there,
 Today, I'd like to share you a card which I rushed to make and already sent it to one of my friends yesterday. I used a paper piecing technique for the retro trees.

Here is the card.

And this is an ATC that I made after finishing my first card posted here on Dec.15.

 I liked the combination of the girl holding the big ornament and the winter tree, so I made a few card last year. This year, I made to use Music Background with it.

 The Music Background stamp by Hero Arts was omitted from my shopping list at first. 'Cos I already had a few similar stamps when it released, and I had actual music scores that I could digitize easily. BUT, while looking at so many beautiful works using it at Flickr HA group pool, I decided to order. Do you have it in your drawer? You are to blame! ;) But this is really a good purchase. It's one of my favorite. :)

Stamp used:
American Art Stamp: Robin Pickens Retro trees, Karen Stolper Stick Chick
Hero Arts: Winter Tree / H5244, Music Background / CG222, Poly Clear Holiday Sayings / CL343

Other supplies:
Bazzill CS, Basic Grey PP(left over)
Tsukineko Versa Fine / Onyx Black, Memento / Tuxedo Black
Ranger Distress Ink / Tumbled Glass, Stickles and Distress Stickles/ several
HA shadow Ink / Soft Pool, Felt Snowflake, button,
Faber-Castell / watercolor pencils (aquarelle and Albrecht Durer etc), Design Memory Craft /several painting tools

Thanks for stopping by!
Have a wonderful week!!
Tomo

Finally finished my 1st card in 2011 (Warmest Wishes)

Hi, there,
 My first paper craft creation in 2011 was a season's greetings card to use Fabulous flourish and Classic Holly which I ordered at the beginning of last November, but I received them on Christmas day. Oh yes, this was my first use.
(Last year, there were much rationing delay, misdelivery, and floating mail or parcel among the mails that I sent or I was supposed to receive last holiday season for maybe the security or a economic recession. Did you also annoy it?)
 We are still now in a severe recession spread over the world. It's difficult to recover soon, as you know. Hope we will be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel next year!


Well, here is the card.

Made a simple card, though it was a hard task for me to cut out the holly branch. Its coloring is by Copic markers. The Fabulous Flourish stamp is just only heat-embossed. Stamped the sentiment on the sheer part of the ribbon to use StazOn.


Here's a closeup. (Click both photos to enlarge, please.)

The holly branch is a little raised partly. I'm going to send this to Flickr HA group pool to say hello to the members there and to join the ongoing contest.


Stamp used:
Hero Arts: Fabulous Flourish / S5449, Classic Holly /CG229, Christmas Sayings/ CL343

Other supplies:
Bazzill CS
Tsukineko StazOn / Jet Black, Memento / Tuxedo Black
Ranger Adirondack Dimensional Pearl / Cranberry, Stickels / Diamond, Embossing Powder / Seaform
Diamond Glaze, Copic Markers, button, ribbon

*I have a trouble in my both eyes. So I can't make out whether the photos is good or not. Sorry.

Thanks for stopping by!
Have a beautiful week, and have a wonderful holiday season!!
Tomo

Thank you! (9 months have passed since my last post)

Hello, my friends,
How are you getting along? Hope you have a wonderful holiday season!


 Thank you so very much for all of your/your countries' supports for the damages by the huge earthquakes and tsunamis hit the eastern parts of Japanese island this March.　Much of the information was fragmented and inconsistent here in this country. I always doubted to see the TV coverages while a few months since then. - that was correct? Or incorrect info to escape from the panics?　To date, it seems that the situation of the important problem related to nuclear power plants have not improved. << This is really my personal opinion. It hangs in the balance, because, even now, middle-scale earthquakes occur frequently over approx. a half area of Japan. The center of the shocks is sometimes Fukushima area where those plants stand. I wish the Japanese government, 'Not blot out, and send true infos over the world'. (Almost of the Japanese maybe think the same, because I often hear by several mass medias that their uneasy feelings that he/she should trust which information. I hope the infomation at present time is really true...)
 Once again, thank you very much my friends, your family members, your relatives, and the governments of various nations of the world!

 I should have post earlier than I do. I'm sorry, but I couldn't.
I've been suffering from Bronchial Asthma again and a frequent fever caused by it.
And I was unable to decide quite a while whether to tell you about my eye disease. This June, my left eye came down with myodesopsia by an infectious disease, and this October my right eye also came down with it. I'm bothered with its symptoms, when I have sore eyes, when my eye sight comes to 50 - 60% momentarily - this is a basic routine -, when I come to be very sensitive to light (cannot go out on sunny days, and cannot see the monitor of my computer for many hours), and so on.
Since I heard that this kind of patients sometimes lose his/her eyesight from my doctor, I decided to tell you on this blog today. But don't worry about me! I was very shocked when I knew my condition, but now, I gradually accept it as one of the pieces of my destiny.

 P.S. My Dad and 16 years old cat Gray are not fine, but it looks like they spend time peacefully. :) Thank you.

Oh! I have one more P.S. Ha!
On Dec. 10, I went to 2Peas and bought a few 2012 stamps, there was no holiday stamps that I need - all that I wanted to buy was sold out. (Take it for granted? Yes, we have only 3 weeks left this year.) But I got a catalogue as their gift, and my order was despatched there yesterday. :) :) :)
And I checked HA December contest theme, too! ;) I don't know whether I can make a card or not. But I've got a few images already. So I'm going to try it. Even if it isn't a good one, I'm going to post here. Because there's no my works in 2011.

Thanks for reading!
Have a beautiful week!
Tomo

- 日本の皆様へ -
寒い日々が続いていますが、お元気にしていらっしゃいますか？
My近況報告は、近日M〇xiにでも載せようかと思っています。　プチ復活と言ったところですので、心配しないでね～　Tomo