To Have and To Hold

Good morning friends! Super quick post today. It's a great sketch challenge from Taylored Expressions: Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge #143 (TESC143), and I have no doubt that I'll be using this sketch again. I love all the different shapes together in one card.

My card for this sketch is a wedding card. Not very traditional looking, but perfect for the couple I have in mind for it.

And, here's a photo of the inside:

Enjoy your Sunday. See you again soon!

Stamps: Wedded Bliss (Teri Martin); Wedding (Inkadinkadoo) 

Paper: Best of K&Co; Best of Brenda Walton (K&Co); Abrianna (K&Co); Recollections

Ink: Staz-on; Tim Holtz Distress Ink; Copic marker
Accessories: Dies: Lacy Squares, Classic Scalloped Circles Lg, Standard Circles Lg, Labels Sixteen; Curved Rectangles (Spellbinders); grosgrain ribbon (Offray); Wedded Bliss dimensional (Me & My Big Ideas); pearls, rhinestones; dimensionals

Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")

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Tomorrow's Forecast

Hello there! It's our last weekend before school starts back here, so I spent time with my daughter today rather than make cards. She's a big reader, so we sat on the front porch in rocking chairs with bowls of ice cream and read books. She read the Narnia series last year, and her dad is reading the Percy Jackson books to her now, so she was excited to find a fantasy book about Greek gods that has a girl as the heroine (Pandora Gets Jealous). I'm working my way through The Count of Monte Cristo. Great book--I recommend it--but teeny tiny print and still over 1000 pages, so plan on spending a lot of time with it!

I eventually got down to the craft room and here's what I came up with for the My Favorite Things Wednesday Stamp Club Sketch Challenge #30.

The Bright Blossom stack from S.E.I. is full of gorgeous designs. This was one of my favorites. I loved working with all the intense colors and glittery shine.  I got some new butterfly dies from Cherry Lynn Designs that I wanted to try out, so I put one on this card. It's the small one. I inked the die before cutting it, so the embossing shows up pretty good. The larger butterfly, underneath it, is a Martha Stewart punch. I originally put a few dots of Stickles on the MS butterfly, but I didn't like how it looked so, before it dried, I got a paint brush and spread it over the wings.

Here's the inside of the card with another dimensional butterfly:

The rest of the card is pretty straightforward.

Have a wonderful, crafty weekend!

 

Stamps: April Showers (Flourishes)
Paper: Bright Blossom (S.E.I.); Shimmer Stack (DCWV); Bazzill Basics; Recollections 
Ink: Colorbox; Tim Holtz Distress Inks
Accessories: Dies: Floral Doily Motifs (Spellbinders), Dimensional Butterflies (Cheery Lynn Designs); Monarch Butterfly Lg. punch (Martha Stewart); Diamond Lace Edge Punch (EK Success); Tropical Paisley embossing folder & Distressed embossing plate (Sizzix); roses (Recollections); Stickles; rhinestones; glitter
Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")

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Enjoy the moment

Hi, again! It took me longer than I expected to get this post out, but here it is. This card is for the Sketchbook Saturday Challenge # 21.

I enjoyed working on this card. The sketch was interesting with all the layers and I got to use another new stamp set from Flourishes: Kids at Play. I love silhouettes (wow, I actually spelled that right without looking it up :), especially of children, and the one I used on this particular card looks just like my daughter, from the curly ponytail and little fluff of hair sticking up in the front, to the girly way she's holding her dress out.

Isn't that stamp adorable? I like it so much, I used it inside the card too.

And, with that said...that'll do it for me.

Thanks for stopping by. Have a super duper weekend!!!

  

Stamps: Kids at Play (Flourishes); Playful Expressions (TPC Studio)

Paper: Just Chillin' (Making Memories); The Paper Co.; Paper Studio; Bazzill Basics

Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Ink; Staz-On Ink

Accessories: Dies: Classic Scallop Circle Small, Std Circle Lg, Floral Doily Motifs (Spellbinders); Scallop Diamond Edger (EK Success); twine (Twinery); brads (Studio K & Recollections); pearls; Stickles; Copic marker; dimensionals; thread

Size: 4.25" sq.

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Top Secret

Happy Thursday! I hope you've had a good week...the weekend's almost here!

I think I've gotten back in the groove with my cardmaking now and have two cards to show you. To keep the post from getting waaayyy too long, though, I'll post each one separately. This card is covering three different challenges: a color challenge, a sketch challenge, and a theme challenge. Before I get into exactly what those are, though, here are some detailed photos of this card. See if you can tell what kind of card it is before you see the entire thing.

Is it too soon to guess yet?



Know what kind of card it is?

 

Does this give it away?





What about now?

It's a Christmas card! Both my husband and my daughter held this card in their hands and didn't know it was a Christmas card. Granted, it's not traditional Christmas colors, but I thought just the Naughty and Nice "clipboards" would have been enough. Then, adding in the date--well.... Just to make sure there was no doubt as to it being a Christmas card, here is the inside:

Now, for the challenges. I love the colors for Color Throwdown #152--rosy pinks and greenish browns. Anything that even hints at being green... I'm on it!

Flourishes Timeless Tuesday challenge #128 is one that I hadn't even considered doing. It's to make a Christmas card/project, and I don't own one single Christmas stamp, nor do I have any Christmasy paper, besides solids. So I was going to wait this one out and just admire the Design Team's creations. You should check them out--they are stunning. Oh, I have GOT to have that Vintage Post Card set). But, while pink and brown aren't traditional Christmas colors, I got to thinking that a vintage red and green card, with just the right amount of age on it, would probably be those colors, so I went with it. 

The sketch for this week's Mojo Monday #201 is a great one.

 I love the two tilted panels and they were perfect for Santa's Naughty and Nice clipboards. I only attached the notebook paper image at the top, and it can be lifted, so I think if I had someone specific to send this to, I would put their name underneath the "paper" on the "Nice" clipboard. The tag was a challenge, but I found a flower stamp that kind of looked like a poinsettia, so I colored it with Copics, tied it on, and said "Done."

I'll be back in a few hours with another post. In the meantime, leave me a comment--I love reading them and then I can visit your blog and see what you're up to, too ;). Come visit again any time!

 

Stamps: Blue Skies (Verve); Everyday Expressions (Paper Studio); Studio 112; all text generated in Word and either printed on a transparency and used as a rub-on or printed directly on the paper.

Paper: Simply Delightful (My Mind's Eye); Bazzill Basics; The Paper Studio; Recollections

Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Inks; Colorbox; Copics

Accessories: Dies: Oval Tag (Sizzix); Floral Doily Motifs, Labels Sixteen, Labels Four (Spellbinder's); Clockworks embossing folder (Cuttlebug); Morocco Lace Edger (EK Success); seam binding dyed with Distress Inks (Hug Snug); twine (Twinery); brads (Pitter Patter-Making Memories; Flora & Fauna- K&Co; Recollections); button (K&Co); corner chomper; Liquid Pearls

Size: 5" sq.

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Buzzin' By

I just love Flourishes' new bee stamp sets (Bee My Honey and Honeycomb), so I ripped into mine as soon as they arrived. What a fun set! 

 

 

The first stamp I used was the wildflower one. I remembered to stamp with Memento ink so I could color it without smearing the lines, and it was turning out so pretty. Then, out of the blue, one of my Copics attempted a coup! I stopped it, but not before there was some damage. I tried a myriad of strategies to fix it until I finally had an ah-ha moment and realized the problem was fairly close to the edge and I could just cover it up with something without losing the entire stamp. The sentiment tag worked great, but the little bee sitting on it is performing double duty. He's there as an accent, but I also needed him as part of my cover-up ;)  For all the bees, I stamped, heat embossed, and fussy cut them before attaching them to the card. For the background, I used the Honeycomb stamp with clear embossing powder to give it a glossy, wet, honeyish look, and added random drops of yellow Stickles for extra sparkle.

 

This card took me an extraordinarily long time to make. It started out as a challenge card, but I missed the deadline because of all the setbacks (I only mentioned the Copic coup specifically, but that was just one of many design issues I had yesterday). So, this card went from having a dark green fern patterned paper background, no bees, and fuschia-colored accents to this:

Eventually, maybe I'll stop being surprised by how different, and better, my finished cards are from my original visions. 8-D

Almost forgot...my new lightbox and lights came, too! I'll save hours in editing time. Yoo Hoo!

                                 Hope you...

 

Stamps: Bee My Honey & Honeycomb (Flourishes)
Paper: The Paper Co.; Recollections
Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Inks; Staz-on; Memento; Clear Embossing Ink; Copics
Accessories: Dies--Parisian Motifs, Std Circles Lg, Fancy Tags (Spellbinders); Punches--Parisian Edger, Scallop Diamond Edger (EK Success); embossing powder (Zing); seam binding (Hug Snug); rhinestones; Stickles; Liquid Pearls; dimensionals
Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")

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Snips & snails

Hi there! I've got a cute baby boy card for you today. I don't often have an occasion to make a baby card--especially a boy one--so I was glad to see the Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge 127. It's perfect for a baby card, which I need for a shower next weekend.

Remember the nursery rhyme about what little boys and little girls are made of? Well, I could--sort of. So, I looked it up to be sure. It used to be "snips and snails and puppy dog tails" for the boys, but according to Wikipedia, the modern version is "frogs and snails...." If I'd wanted to use a frog stamp, I may have gone with the modern version, but luckily, I had a snail stamp because I prefer the alliteration in the original version best. I printed the rhyme on a transparency, then rubbed it onto the cardstock. I love being able to do that!

It's hard to see in the photo, but the blue panel is embossed with the Critters embossing plate from Fiskars--lots of insects and amphibians.

I just love that little smiling snail. Although, he does make me feel a little twinge of guilt for the way I treated his distant relatives when I was young (:-\

Thanks for stopping in for a visit. Have a joy-filled week, and come back soon!

 

Stamps: Don't Bug Me (Recollections)
Paper: Colorbok Pattern Pack; So-So-Sweet Pack (Paper Studio); Coredinations; The Paper Co.
Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Ink-Tumbled Glass; Copics: 0, Y21, YG03, G21, B00, BG34
Accessories: Critters embossing plate (Fiskars); twine (Twinery); Scallop Dot Edge Punch (Martha Stewart); buttons; rhinestones; adhesive dots; dimensionals; transparency film (for computer-generated sentiment)
Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")

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It's a pink and yellow day

Hi there, blog friends! Maybe you noticed that I was all about green and orange in my last two posts. I didn't plan it that way, it just happened. Sometimes it's a challenge for me just to stay away from green. So, when I saw that the CR84FN34 Color Challenge 34 was pink and yellow I immediately knew I wanted to play along. 

When I was choosing paper, I wound up with both soft and vibrant color possibilities. I couldn't decide which one to go with, so in the end, I just made two cards for the color challenge. For my soft version, I combined CR84FN34 with the Viva la Verve July 2011 Week 4 sketch challenge, and for the vibrant version I combined CR84FN34 with the Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge 126.

 

Here's the soft version--

Within Your Heart:

And, here's the vibrant version--
Pink Hello:

I still can't decide which I like better. What do you think???

Thanks for stopping by today. Have a happy weekend :D

 

Soft Version--Within Your Heart (CR84FN34 & VLVJUL2011-Week 4)

Stamps: Blue Skies & Sweet Treats (Verve); Faux Finish (Stampendous); Mark My Heart--interior of card (Recollections) 

Paper: Best of Brenda Walton (K&Co); Bazzill Basics; Recollections 

Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Ink; Colorbox; Stampendous; Inkssentials Clear Embossing Ink
Accessories: Dies: Tim Holtz Ornate (Sizzix); Heart Base, Heart Ornamental, & Oval Tag (Sizzix Sizzlets); embossing powder (Zing); paper raffia (Michael's); Flora & Fauna Metal Studs (K&Co); Perfect Pearls; Perfect Pearls Mist; paper mini roses (Recollections); pearls, rhinestones; beads; dimensionals
Size: 4.5" Square

Vibrant Version--Pink Hello (CR84FN34 & SSSC126)
Stamps: Daily Junque (House of Three); Everything Happy (Stampendous)
Paper: Colorbok; Bazzill Basics; Recollections
Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Inks; Staz-on
Accessories: Satin ribbon (Michael's); mini round gems (Recollections); Daisy Edger Punch & Double Loops Edger Punch (Martha Stewart); Crop-a-Dile corner chomper; Liquid Pearls; twine (Twinery); sewing; dimensionals
Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")

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Dragonfly thank you

What is it with me and green this week? Today's card is for the Viva la Verve July 2011 Week 3 sketch challenge. This was a fun sketch to work on because the different papers gave me a chance to use several different embossing folders, and I love using a sewing machine on cards.

Rather than use two different papers for the large circular layer, I decided to do some double embossing instead. The large green scalloped circle (Spellbinders Blossom die)  is double embossed with Polka Dots on the "petals" and the Leafy Branch design in the center. You can't tell in the photo, but I used dimensionals in just the center of the circle, and glued the edges down, giving it a puffy 3-D look. The sparkly dots appear blue, but are actually crystal colored Stickles.

The dragonfly was one of my first stamped creations several months ago. I think I stamped 4 or 5 of them at the same time, colored each one differently, and now only have one left. I should make more--it's nice to have something ready to add to a card so easily. I embossed this dragonfly with a green embossing powder, then colored it with colored pencils. Back then, I didn't even know glue pens existed, so I applied plain white glue to the dragonfly with a toothpick and sprinkled glitter over it. I had also just gotten my first bottle of Stickles. Can you tell?  The wings are covered in little yellow sparkly dots :D  

The beads on the pins are from my knitting days. I had made beaded stitch markers and since I'm not planning to knit much anytime soon, I requisitioned the beads for my cards.

Thanks for visiting today. If you enjoy seeing my creations, you can subscribe at the top of my blog and have it delivered right to you.

 

Stamps: Sweet Treats (Verve); Gem Stone Insects (Inkadinkadoo)

Paper: Best of K&Co; DCWV Shimmer Stack; Darice; Recollections

Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Ink

Accessories: Spellbinders dies: Labels Four, Large Labels, Blossom; embossing powder (Adirondack); embossing folders: Polka Dots, Leafy Branch (Cuttlebug), Tropical Paisley, Diamonds in Diamonds (Sizzix); Stickles; rhinestones; glitter; sewing; colored pencils; glue pen; Perfect Pearls Mist; beads; pins; dimensionals

Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")

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Dancing in the rain

We had a great vacation, but I'm ready to get back to making cards. That said, though, I had no idea that a 10-day break would be hard to recover from. When I was making this card, I literally had to stop and ask myself things like: What kind of adhesive should I use to attach these different elements?; Does a Spellbinder's die face up or down and what is the sandwich for it?; and Just how big is an A2 card, anyway?! It was almost like starting over. When it came time to use my camera, the photos all came out green or orange, and I had to refer to my notes to get all that straightened out. Thank goodness I actually made notes!

My card today is for the Mojo Monday Challenge #200. Congrats to the Mojo Monday design team for 200 sketches! That's some serious creative collaboration.

This card turned out nothing at all like I envisioned when I started it, but I like the final version so much better. The filigree layer behind the sentiment began as this weird chalky hospital green colored cardstock, but after sponging on Crushed Olive Distress Ink, outlining the edges with a dark brown Copic marker (E29), and adding a few dots of liquid pearls (Platinum), it looks like an aged copper nameplate. I used Perfect Pearls Mist in Heirloom Gold on the brown cardstock, so it looks like old, rusted metal, too. Here's a closeup:

When I was finished with the front of the card, I felt like the inside needed something, so I did this:

I didn't notice until I was editing the photo that I went much heavier with the stamps on the right side than on the left, but I can live with that.

Thanks for stopping by. Have a spectacular day!

Stamps: Blue Skies (Verve)

Paper: Best of K&Co; Recollections; The Paper Co.

Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Inks

Accessories: Spellbinders dies: Fancy Tags, Floral Doily Motifs, Labels Two, Std. Circles Lg., Parisians Accents; Tim Holtz Tattered Florals die (Sizzix); Binding Edge Edger Punch & 2" Square punch (EK Success); seam binding; Pearl Brad (American Crafts); mini round gems (Recollections); paper leaves (Recollections); Perfect Pearls Mist; Liquid Pearls; Glossy Accents; Copics; Dimensionals

Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")

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Celebrate summer

Hi there, blog friends! We'll be spending a few days visiting The Mouse in Orlando next week, so here's one more post before we go. It takes care of two challenges: the July Sketch for You to Try, over at iheart2stamp; and the Crazy 4 Challenges summer theme challenge. I live in the deep south and summers here can be HOT! I'm a very cold-natured person (80-85 degrees is probably my ideal temperature range), so summer is my favorite time of the year, and normally, I would think of a summer-themed card as one with lots of vibrant colors, maybe a pool or beach scene, kids playing--something along those lines. Well, this weekend I took my daughter to a pool party. It was 102 degrees and I don't swim, so I was outside in that heat for over two hours. It was almost unbearable, even in the shade, even for me. Let me tell you, I wasn't feeling those fun, bright colors...I was feeling hot--white hot! So, when I decided to make the summer-themed card, I thought about the way a blazing, hot sun can make everything look a little washed out. The color is still there and just as beautiful, but muted through the glare. So, here's my idea of summer today.

The card says "Celebrate Summer." It's hard to see it in a photo, so here's a close up. Not sure that's much better, but it shows off the iridescence on the butterfly, too, so I'm going with it anyway ;)

I really enjoyed making this card. I love layers, and this sketch has plenty. The Prima paper was an easy choice. Lots of bright colors, but with the watercolor effect, they weren't too bright. My original intention was to use plain white paper for most of the card, maybe with just a hint of texture. But, it needed a little bit of oomph if it was going to sit right next to that happy Prima paper, so I pulled out my embossing folders. I think it's the first time I've used either of these particular folders and they look so good together. I'm sure I'll be going back to them again soon. Also, I had started out wanting everything but the dp and embellishments to be solid white, but the embossing was so pretty I wanted to show it off so, I sponged Spun Sugar Distress Ink over it.

Buttons were an obvious option for the three circles on the sketch. The flowers caught my eye, and the colors were a match, so I glued them on. It took me a little while to decide what to do on the sentiment panel. I didn't want a big empty space next to the sentiment and I couldn't get ribbon and bows to cooperate, so I punched a butterfly and it fit pretty good. I wanted just a little bit of shine on the card, so an iridescent butterfly and a few pearls seemed to fit the bill, just fine. I have some pots of Perfect Pearls, but the only thing I've ever used them for is to mix with water and reinkers to make my own mists, so I wasn't exactly sure what to do with them. My first attempt to cover the butterfly was to ink Perfect Medium over the butterfly, then brush the Perfect Pearl powder over that. I don't know if I did something wrong, but the powder never would stick. So, I went to the trusty web for guidance. I ended up mixing the powder with a little water and painted it on. It turned out so pretty. The butterfly looks like it was punched from a sheet of pink copper.

Hope that wasn't too much on the process, but I like knowing how other people "figure out" their cards and thought you might, too.

Thanks for stopping by!  I won't be posting for a few days, so have a great week!!!

 

Stamps: Everything Happy (Stampendous)
Paper: Fairy Flora (Prima); Darice; Recollections
Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Ink
Accessories: Diamonds in Diamonds & Tropical Paisley embossing folders (Sizzix); embossing powder (Zing); Monarch Butterfly Lg punch (Martha Stewart); Crop-a-dile Corner Chomper; Perfect Pearls; buttons, pearls, mini roses (Recollections); dimensionals
Size: A-2 (4.25" x 5.5")

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