The Purge

I have, in some ways, become my church’s go-to person for old craft supplies. When people downsize their stash or have neighbors who downsize, they bring their old stuff to me. At first, I worried about this, but now I get it. 

This last batch of supplies came from a church friend whose neighbor wants his wife’s precious supplies to go to a good home since she’s no longer able to use them. He wants the joy the supplies gave to his wife to fuel someone else’s joy. That’s so sweet, isn’t it? 

Instead of over-thinking (as I have done in the past), I sorted through the stash pretty quickly. Three piles and trash. First pile, stuff I kept, the smallest pile. Second pile, stuff for our before-and-after school program at church. Third pile, Salvation Army, the largest pile that included wood-mounted rubber stamps. Very little went into the trash. The donation piles are in boxes in my car ready to deliver. 

I’ve told my husband that if I die before he does, he’s to ask my Facebook friends for help disposing of my stash. Or he can take it all to Salvation Army in one large truckload and be done with it. All these supplies will have done their job—given me years of creative fun and joy that I gave away happily. 

And just think how happy someone will be to find a fully functioning Big Shot with spare plates, a Betterpress, a high quality guillotine trimmer, and tons of useful dies, embellishments, cardstock, ink, and stamps for bargain-basement prices. Amen and hallelujah.

My summer plans include purging my unfinished basement area. We’ve begun the task, but it will take discipline and courage to tackle the mess. I love the concept of Swedish Death Cleaning…getting rid of our crap before it becomes a burden to our children. 

Playing around with an old Concord and 9th set, using a layout I’ve done before with colors I hardly ever use. But I like how it turned out. The photo is a bit darker than in real life, but you get the idea. This set is hard to get rid of…the poppies in it in particular really appeal to me. 

Mercy, grace, peace, and love,

Susan

Beautiful Butterflies

Just bought a new set from Simon Says called Beautiful Butterflies. It’s really quite lovely!

All cards were colored with Copics except for the final sympathy card. 

What have you bought recently that was particularly fun to play with?

Mercy, grace, peace, and love,

Susan

Play Play Play with Stickers

I haven’t used stickers in years, but this roll was on sale at Marco’s Paper, so I bit. Glad I did.

These soft, natural colors make me so happy!

Mercy, grace, peace, and love,

Susan

Sweet!

So there are still two grab boxes available. Anyone interested? They are medium, flat-rate USPS priority boxes. Each box contains at least 20 sets of stamps and lots of dies, with other random doodads included. Shipping included. $100 each.

Today, I’m sharing some sweet cards. 

We are once again suffering septic system problems. Cooper likes the flavored sewer mud and digs deep to the good stuff. My patience is gone. Just gone. So yesterday, before church, I was cleaning muddy septic sludge off his paws. Again. Jack asked, “Are you going to church, Mom?” I replied, rather loudly, “Of course I am. I need me some Jesus. NOW!” 

George also bought me cake. 

Jesus and cake sweetened me up. 

May your week be sweeter with Jesus and cake.

Mercy, grace, peace, and love,

Susan

A New Series: Play, Play, Play

In her book Life Is Good, Trixie Koontz, golden retriever, writes, “Play, play, play. Play like your life depends upon it. Because it does.”

Trixie was a wise dog, and she’s not wrong. We do this hobby because it’s fun, because creating is fun, because channeling our inner kindergartener taps into our innocent joy, because sending cards is really sending paper love, and because creative escapism is good for our mental health.

So this new series involves using my considerable stash to play. The only rule is to play, play, play with what I have. Pull out some random supply, make a few cards with it (using different techniques and tools, if so inclined), and move on to the next supply. 

Today’s cards represent some of this play. I chose to play with an ancient set that I’ve never been able to part with: Papertrey’s Text Style. 

The first card I made is not my favorite (wish I’d used a lighter ink for the text), but it was fun playing with my blending brushes to color the die cut flowers and leaves. 

My second card went more textural and ended up being my favorite of the three cards. Just a little text on the small heart, but it works…the high contrast in color makes me happy!

And the final card went even more CAS but incorporated a wax seal, which was just delightful fun to make. Playing with FIRE! The spatter on the mat is just a bit too subtle, though. Instead of using the pale blue/green of the seal, I should have also speckled the color of the text as well. 

As my first experiment with Play, Play, Play, this set of cards made me very happy. If you feel so inclined, join me! Play, play, play with your stash. And see how much fun you can have!

Mercy, grace, peace, and love,

Susan

Lots of Thanks and I’ve Still Got Boxes

Many, many thanks to Charlotte, Sue, Eddie, Pat, Tammy, and Kathryn. They’ve contributed lots of beautiful cards to Karen’s Card Shop this year. I thank you, and my church thanks you! Many of the cards are packaged up and ready to add to shop. This bin includes all the birthday cards we’ve received, plus ones I’ve made. As you can see, we are set for quite a while with birthday cards! 

I still have three grab boxes unclaimed. See previous post for details, but every box has at least 20 clear stamp sets and a bunch of dies. Email me at susanraihala at iCloud.com if interested!

Today’s card was specially made for my pastor and his wife. In fact, I bought the set just for them. I dabbed Stickles on the embossed snowflakes and created “snow” with the Stickles on the church as well…subtle accents that sparkle well in real life. 

Mercy, grace, peace, love, and HUGE gratitude,

Susan

Grab Boxes Ready to Go

I have four medium size, flat rate USPS boxes full of goodness ready to go. 

Contents are mostly stamps (at least 20 sets per box, including some combo die and stamp sets as well). Most of the stamp sets are complete, though a few sentiment sets are broken up, combined with others, etc. 

Each box also contains quite a few stand-alone dies and die sets.

Other miscellaneous contents that may be included in your box: random embellishments, ink pads, Arteza markers, three Copic markers, a few wood-mounted rubber stamps, stencils, ribbon, sequins, washi tape, etc. 

Each box costs $100, including shipping within the United States. First come, first served. 

Payment may be made by check (shipped after check clears), money order, or by Apple Pay (shipped within two business days). 

To claim a box, email me at susanraihala at iCloud dot com. 

Thanks in advance for furthering my stamp budget for 2026!

Mercy, grace, peace, and love,

Susan

More Simon Says Flower Dies and Grab Boxes for Sale Soon

Simon Says Stamp has become my go-to brand lately, and their flower dies are part of the reason why. I now have 10 of them and love every one. 

I also have one of their sticky mats, almost all their inks, and the full color set of blending brushes—large and small—in a Simon brand tool holder.  These helped with cards #1 and #3 today. Card #2 was water colored. 

These larger flower dies work so well with embossing folders! And bling. Is there anything that doesn’t work with bling?

Some months ago, I mentioned that I needed to offer some grab boxes to clean out my crafty space. I’ve now got quite a stash to sell. It’s mostly clear stamps (a few wood mounted though) and dies, with a few fun ink pads and other miscellaneous stuff. I’m going to stop by the PO tomorrow to pick up some small and medium flat-rate boxes and bubble envelopes. Once I have them packed, I’ll post how many of each and what costs. 

As before, I’ll ship to U.S. addresses. I’ll accept checks/money orders by mail OR I can accept Apple Cash. I will ship out packages within a day or two of the funds clearing. 

More to come!

Mercy, grace, peace, and love,

Susan

Inky Stamps and Bling

I love heart stamps, and last year I bought an old Simon Says Stamp set of graduated sizes of hearts in solid and outline forms. 

It’s a new favorite and so very useful. 

Cards like these give me a chance to use my many Simon Says ink pads. I find at times that dies have somewhat taken over my crafting, and as a result I bought the Simon blending brushes in all the colors to make coloring die cuts easier. 

While I certainly enjoy the variety of techniques we can do with ink, there’s something to be said for old-school stamping. With bling. Always with bling.

Mercy, grace, peace, and love,

Susan

Shimmer and Sparkle

Last year, I bought a new product to replace an old product I used up. 

__________________________________

May I rant for a bit? I’m going to rant. If you prefer to keep your new year positive, skip down to below the second line. I don’t want to yuck on anyone’s yum this year. But I gotta say this. 

When companies come out with a product I love, say, Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist Dazzling Diamonds, they should never, under any circumstances, discontinue it, be bought out, or go out of business. Such losses disrupt my bliss, and I need my bliss. We ALL need our bliss. And if we can’t find bliss in our crafty spaces, well, then how the heck are we supposed to find it?

Outside these sacred creative spaces, people can be mean, crazy, or act like the whole world revolves around them and their petty tragedies. Check out this video of a woman being schooled by a restauranteur: Funny Video. What the video shows us is that people get upset about the most ridiculous of things and blow them out of proportion. After all, the lady could have just informed the staff politely that she got the wrong order and the staff would have replaced the problem fries with the correct fried. Seriously! Why get so upset?

Waaaaaait a minute. 

Am I being like the lady in the video? Am I assuming the whole world of paper craft products should revolve around me and my needs?!?!? Oh no.

Oh, no.

Oh, noooooooo!

Six months ago, I realized that my bottle of Tattered Angels was basically empty, and I tried to order a replacement. None to be found at any of my regular suppliers or brick-and-mortar shops, and the Tattered Angels website didn’t work. (I’ve since learned that you can buy the old Tattered Angels products at Canvas Corp Brands, if you’re interested.)

After sitting in a fit of pique for a few weeks—but no angry emails to thetatteredangels.com defunct website—I found Imagine’s Sheer Shimmer Craft Spray in Sparkle at Marco’s Paper brick-and-mortar store. 

Bliss restored.

And the moral of the story is this: don’t get mad. Find a substitute. There’s always a substitute. And if there’s not, say a prayer for the people who lost their jobs and move on with your life because there are things way worse than losing a crafty produce. 

And the second moral is this: on occasion, you’re going to get mad, fall into a pique, feel irritated or whatever you want to call it because we can’t necessarily control what emotions bubble up from our subconscious. You may not be able to control your emotions that bubble up, but you CAN and SHOULD control your words and actions because you are a grown-a** adult. Don’t be stupid. People have video on their phones, folks, and you’re gonna be embarrassed forever if your stupid ends up on the internet and random bloggers keep linking to your stupid. Sheesh. Was it worth it?

_________________________

Added some higlights to my ancient holly 
And berries punch with a Sakura Stardust pen.

So the Sheer Shimmer Craft Spray works great as a substitute for the Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist. The new snowflake embossing folders I bought at Marco’s work great, too. 

So I made this year’s Stephen Ministry ornaments (handed out at church to remind people that the holidays aren’t always jolly for everyone) using the new spray. Worked great!

Mercy, grace, peace, and love in a season of hope,

Susan

Another Year, Yadda, Yadda

 In the past, I’ve waxed poetic on the new year, resolved to achieve all sorts of idealistic goals, chosen a word, embarked on fitness and nutrition “journeys,” yadda, yadda. 

Not this year. Nope. Expectation is the mother of disappointment, and so I’m lowering my expectations for the year. 

Lower. 

A bit lower.

Almost there.  [Said in the voice I use to tell George he’s halfway through a marathon. He usually wants to unalive me when I say that.]

Keep going lower.

Any expectations left? No? 

Good.

I’ve always been an optimist, but a few years ago, I read a book on stoicism and decided that while I came out of the womb a “glass is not just half full but refillable” optimist, I might want to temper that optimism with a spot of realism. 

So here are my “realistic” resolutions for 2026:

I will do some stuff. Some stuff will be useful, some frivolous, some fun, some not so fun, some likely rather painful, but there will be stuff done.

I will write some stuff. Some stuff I write will be useful, some frivolous, some fun, some not so fun, some likely rather painful, but there will be stuff written, even if it’s just grocery lists.

I will create some stuff, even if no one cares. 

I will love some stuff and some people. I will offer grace, peace, and a sympathetic ear because I’m wired that way. 

I will hate some people and some stuff. I will hate myself for this, but as long as students turn in AI-generated essays, I will hate. I will keep open the possibility that quitting teaching is a good thing, and I will hate myself for that, too. 

I will say yes to some stuff. There will be consequences, some good and some bad. 

I will say no to some stuff. There will be consequences, some good and some bad. 

I will do my best, even if my best isn’t the best because I’m a human. I will beat myself up, but not as badly as before because I’m learning.

I will continue to learn, unlearn, be right, be wrong, get excited, get frustrated. Because life is that way. 

I think that’s enough. Can you relate?

And now for birthday cards. Karen’s Card Shop is critically low on birthday cards and somewhat low on sympathy and get well cards. I pulled out some pretty designer paper that’s been gathering dust in a closet and made a bunch of cards. Here are a few. 

I have found that my style of cards doesn’t sell well in the shop, so I’m trying to stretch into more colored card stock and less white space. But not always. These made me rather happier than I thought they would!

Last night, we celebrated with friends as usual, only this time I won the Fruit Ninja tournament handily. The tall guy in the middle usually wins. 

Aria the friendly kitty photo-bombed us.

This morning’s mood,
despite the opening of this post.

And as for New Year’s Day, 2026, I wish you a peaceful one full of love and compassion and crafty goodness. 

Mercy, grace, peace, and love,

Susan

Wildflower Cuttings in Three Cards

A few months ago, I splurged at Simon Says because my husband had splurged on something or other, and I told him we needed to keep things fair. He agreed. 

He knows what’s good for him. 

Included in that order was Simon Says Wildflower Cuttings, which I liked because of their loose, sketchy style. My first two cards have a very similar vibe, very LateBlossomy. 

The third card takes a different approach, which I adore for its monochromatic harmony.

I have a bit of a problem. Perhaps one of you might help?

Several ladies at church are downsizing their craft supplies and have given me boxes and boxes of stamps. Most are wood-mounted rubber, rather old and not at all my style (think early 2000s cutesy). I won’t be able to mail them anywhere (so many heavy boxes!) and need to know what to do with them. I live in the Dayton, OH, area, and do not have time or energy to sort these stamps. 

I am considering taking them to Salvation Army and being done with them, but what do you think? Any other suggestions for my area? 

Thanks in advance!

Mercy, grace, peace, and love,

Susan

Flower Dies from Simon Says and Update

 Simon Says Stamp released a bunch of really pretty flower dies this year, and I confess to splurging on them. Let’s take a look at a few of them!

First up, the buttercups colored with Copic markers and placed on an embossed circle.

Second, a background made with Distress ink and water spatters highlights the Cosmos Duo dies. A bit of Stickles on the sentiment strip and flower centers adds a bit of sparkle.

The Delicate Wildflowers dies were colored with my new set of blending brushes (also from SSS). The background is embossed with a script folder.

Finally, we have the Sunrise Stem die, similarly colored with SSS inks and blending brushes, embellished with some bling and a textured embossed background. 

So much fun and all going to Karen’s Card Shop!

News Since my Last Post, If You’re Interested

Well, I did not get the full time teaching job but do have three classes this term. I’m fine with that.

My mother-in-law passed away suddenly. She was battling pancreatic cancer. I’m not fine with that. Not at all. 

I preached my sermon on care, and if you’d like to see it, check out THIS LINK. The experience was both meaningful and fun, but Pastor Joe watched and noted my southern accent came out. I’m fine with that. 

Mercy, grace, peace, and love,

Susan

Purple and Some Chit-Chat

Purple appeals to me on many levels, so it’s a mystery why I use it so rarely. This monochromatic birthday card is just darling! 

The Stickles on the bowl gives a hint of frosty shine to the card, and coloring was done with Copics.

George swam the Mackinac Bridge faster than anticipated, and he gave me a thumb’s up sign afterwards. The finisher medal is super cool: a piece of the actual bridge, acquired when bits of the bridge were replaced. 

Being his support for this event was a piece of cake after being his Iron Sherpa through a bunch of Ironman races. First off, there was no bike tire pump to carry around during the swim and no sticky, sweaty bike to retrieve from T2 (the second transition area) and roll back to the hotel. Second, while our day did start early, George finished the swim around 9:45 a.m. His last Ironman in 2016 started even earlier and ended around 9:45 p.m. 

THAT was a long day.

And here’s a random Lily picture. How this dog sleeps in these weird positions is beyond me. If I sleep even a little awkwardly, I struggle for the whole day. Dogs are much bendier than humans…especially middle-age humans. 

Mercy, grace, peace, and love,

Susan

Merry and Bright…With Some Crazy Thrown In

Our card for today is a Christmas card I made last December and never posted, which is weird because I love its aggressive minimalism. 

This cool color scheme and the expanse of white feel very authentic for me and makes me so very happy. Hopefully, its recipient will feel the same!

George and I are currently in Mackinaw City, Michigan. He’s going to swim the Mackinac Bridge tomorrow (Saturday), along with several hundred other crazy people. 

He’s crazy. But not as crazy as when he did the Ironman races. 

We’ve had a lot going on in the past two weeks. We got new carpet, which was LONG overdue, and the new lighter color has transformed our finished basement. 

Yay! The dirt-colored carpet is history, and now we need to paint the house interior so the walls and trim look as fresh as our new carpet!

Also, I will not be considered for the full-time teaching job at my college, but I WILL teach three classes this fall. I’m happy. 😃 

Mercy, grace, peace, and love,

Susan

Thanks and Two Blue Cards, with a Side of Discernment by Nausea

First up, THANKS to Charlotte, who sent lovely cards for Karen’s Card Shop. They are beautiful and so very appreciated! 

Next up, the blue…because you’re here for cards, not nausea.

Today’s two cards use the darker shades of blue. Blue is my favorite color, and my favorite color combination is blue and green, but I’m much more likely to use medium to pale shades instead  The sympathy card uses a delightfully elderly Papertrey sentiment (heat embossed in white) and some watercolor brushstroke stamps (also elderly Papertrey). I used a very dark blue ink and spritzed the inked stamp with water. Simple, as most sympathy cards are, but impactful. 

Next up, an equally high-contrast card. To make the blue circles, I have no idea what I did. This card was made months ago when I was experimenting with different ways to create graduated colors. I’m not sure why the bling looks so dark except to say my photo editing skills are not the bomb. Anyway, I have several friends who really love the beach and for whom this card will be perfect!

And now for the nausea. 

Not sure who coined the term “discernment by nausea,” but whoever it was knew a thing or two about the Holy Spirit. The following text exchange happened today:

What doesn’t come across in the text is how my stomach lurched with the request. God doesn’t want us to sit still in our faith but to grow it, and often, His call is to something that’s really quite scary. I like to think this old dog has learned a few tricks, and one is to trust the Holy Spirit when it taps me on the shoulder, especially if it scares me. Because it’s not about me. It’s about worshipping a God who loves us, cherishes us, and wants us to speak that truth with love. 

And Lord knows I can speak. Often, it’s the shutting up that’s the challenge. 

Have you ever experienced discernment by nausea? It doesn’t have to be within a faith context for those of you who aren’t religious. Opportunities to do stuff that scares us 

Mercy, grace, peace, and love,

Susan