Happy Thursday everyone! Just a quick update on the flooding. It rained all day yesterday and believe it or not, we also had a little bit of snow. Just 30 miles north of us, it was snowing. I spent the entire day yesterday, carpet cleaner in hand, suctioning out the water in my NEW stamp room. I hit it every hour on the hour and tried to stay on top of it. Last night when I went to bed the carpet squares and floor had started to dry out. Now, all eyes are on the Ohio River and what it is going to do. We’ve bothered Kate relentlessly – How many steps do you see now? What’s on the floor in the garage? This is Kate’s first year of living on the river but we’ve all been through it before. It never failed that when my parents were out of town, the garage would flood and we would be moving everything up into the upper levels. The river is supposed to crest on Friday morning, and I think we are going to be okay.

Enough of my babbles . . . .

Every month the Splitcoaststampers Dirty Dozen, current and alumni, get together and have a challenge among ourselves. This month the theme is Everything Old is New Again. The focus of the challenge is to use one of the oldest stamps sets we own along with long forgotten embellishments and supplies. Our restricted element is that we can’t use stamps, tools, or supplies that we have purchased within the last six months. Now there is a bonus challenge to use a technique or style we haven’t used in a long time, but was a favorite at some point in our stamping history.

I have to admit, that I made my card before I read all the restrictions and requirements – and what else is new? I seem to do that quite often! Or I read it, and forget it – uh huh, CRS! I got lucky – everything I used does stay within the guidelines. The only thing, if I had paid closer attention to the bonus part, I definitely would have done something different. I actually started another card, but I spent so much time messing with the water in the stamp room, that I never got it finished.

I used my most beloved, well-worn, and stained stamp set that I have. The one set that I’ll never part with no matter what. Roses in Winter! For my background stamping, I picked another favorite and rarely used set, Baroque Motifs. I rarely use my Stampin’ UP! Stamps anymore, and I hardly ever post them. I use them only for Stamp Club which meets every other month, and have only purchased – well, maybe five sets – from the last two catalogs.

My background panel and image panel are both Very Vanilla. For the background, I stamped Baroque Motifs in Old Paper Distress Ink and then sponged the edges. This panel was then sewn to a panel of River Rock. I cut the image panels with oval Spellbinders Nestabilities (which I’ve had since they first came out) using my Cuttlebug. For the rose, I inked the image in Tattered Rose Distress Ink, and then rock and rolled (my technique I suppose) the stamp with Worn Lipstick Distress Ink. To add more definition to the petals, I edged the rim of the stamp with Fired Brick Distress Ink. All three images of the rose were inked in the same manner and stamped twice, rotating a quarter of turn with the second stamping. The edges of the Very Vanilla oval were sponged with Old Paper Distress Ink. The ribbon is from my scrap ribbon jar and the pin is something I found in my stash that I’m sure I probably purchased on clearance some time ago.

Stamps: Roses in Winter and Baroque Motifs from Stampin’ UP!

Paper: SU Very Vanilla and River Rock; Prism Herbal Garden Medium

Ink: Ranger Tim Holtz Tattered Rose, Worn Lipstick, Fired Brick, Old Paper, Peeled Paint and Shabby Shutters Distress Ink

Accessories: Oval Spellbinders Nestabilities; Cuttlebug; Sewing Machine; Tsukineko Sponge Dauber; Ribbon; Decorative Pin; Mounting Tape

One other required element of this month’s challenge, is to RAK any of the Dirty Girls. I haven’t decided yet, but it will go out in the mail today!