Make It Monday #313 - Mask & Stack

Hello friends.  Betsy has a FUN video for this week's Make It Monday challenge, showing how to mask and stack a single image.  I really had fun with this technique and can't wait to try it again with different images!!

I used the bunny image from Polka Dot Parade #1, and stamped and masked using a variety of bright PTI inks to make my little gathering of bunnies!  I used the little tail die to cut out the little bunny tails, and then lightly sponged the edges in gray before pop dotting them to add a little dimension.  The sentiment and little bunny paw print both come from Huggables: Bunny & Chick stamp set, and the little tag is from the Tiny Tags die.

Make sure to check out Betsy's adorable card and video right HERE, and then play along for some great fun and a chance at a $25 gift certificate!

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

Merry Monday #279 - Poinsettia

Hello friends.  This week's challenge at Merry Monday is being hosted by JoAnn and she would like to see POINSETTIA'S on your card.

I used a Penny Black stamp called Red Delight and came up with this simple card:

I used my MISTI and first colored the stamp directly with a couple SU! markers (Real Red, Cherry Cobbler, & Mossy Meadow) and repeated until I had the depth of color I wanted.  Then I used an Aqua Painter to lightly spread some of the color beyond the leaves and flower to give more of a water colored look.  I used another Penny Black set (Rejoice With Joy) for my sentiment, and then layered with a piece of Old Olive cs and then attached to a white card base.  At this point I should have just left the card alone, but thought I would add some gold WOS to the center of the flower.  It was a good thought, but nothing was coming out of the pen at first so I gave it what I thought was a small squeeze...apparently it wasn't a small squeeze!  A huge glob came out of course...oh no!!  I cleaned up as much of it as I could, and while it doesn't look terrible, it doesn't look like what I had envisioned!  At this point it was what it was, so I called it good! 

 We can't wait to see what YOU come up with using POINSETTIA'S on your card this week!  Make sure to check out all the beautiful inspiration from my teammates and then play along with us.  You can find it all right HERE.

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

Papertrey Ink Blog Hop Feb. 2018

Hello friends.  It's the 25th and that means it's time for Papertrey Ink's monthly Blog Hop!

Isn't this just the sweetest photo?!  It totally says Easter and Spring to me, so that was the direction I took my card!  

 I used the Huggables: Bunny & Chick stamp and die set to create my card along with images from Life Is What You Bake It and Simply Spring Borders.  Bitty Big Aqua Mist DSP was used for my background, and the Bitty Big Harvest Gold DSP for the chicks body.  I love how the chicks arms kind of hide what she's holding until they pop open and then you see her Easter basket/bowl.  The slit in the bowl worked perfectly to tuck in the little bunny and eggs too.  This was a fun little card to make and I'm sure my granddaughter will love it tucked into her Easter basket.  I think I'll do the bunny huggable next for my grandson...they are so much fun to spoil!!  :0)

I love seeing what every one else does on this blog hop...inspiration galore!!  Check it out HERE and then play along...I promise it will be LOTS of FUN!!  :0)

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

CAS Watercolour February 2018 - Hearts (#2)

Hello friends.  One more card for this month's challenge over at CAS Watercolour, where the theme is HEARTS.

I almost forgot to post this 2nd card, but I think it is too pretty to just ignore it, so here it is!

I stamped my image using SSS's Spring Flowers (and who doesn't NEED a little Spring right now?!!) with Versamark and heat embossed with silver, and then watercoloured with my zigs.  I masked the bottom portion of the stem and leaves and then stamped with Smokey Slate ink using SU!'s En Francais (retired) background stamp.  I also used the same background stamp to stamp very lightly on my card base.  To keep with the theme this month, I used SSS's Stacked Hearts die to add to my background in white, so that it shows up but doesn't dominate the card.  Using the hearts die in the background also means that it doesn't scream Valentine's Day and I can use the card year round.

I mounted my watercoloured piece onto a piece of black cs and then adhered to my card base.  I specifically left off a sentiment so I can decide later what to use the card for...a simple hello, thinking of you, sympathy, or even birthday.  :0)

This challenge is open till the 24th, so you still have a little bit of time to play.  Make sure to check out all the BEAUTIFUL inspiration from the DT, and then play along...you can check it all out right HERE.

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

Make It Monday #312 - Framing Sentiments & Images

Hello friends.  Laurie Schmidlin is up on this week's Make It Monday challenge, and she has a great video with tips on how to frame our sentiments (or images) to make them the focal point of our cards.  You can check out her video and BEAUTIFUL cards HERE.

I used the Leaf & Sprig Frames die set and Year Of Psalms: March stamp set along with a piece of Harvest Gold DSP to make my verse really pop.

And yes, I used Farmer's Market Florals and Brushed Birds AGAIN...sorry folks, just can't get enough of them!!  I was inspired by the colors Melissa Phillips used on a card HERE for my color palette, and used Harvest Gold, Bright Buttercup, Honey Nut, Canyon Clay, Simply Chartreuse, & Ripe Avocado.  I also added some WOS to the fern (Holiday Greens) and did some splattering around the edges with Honey Nut ink.

Love how bright and cheerful this turned out and after 2 solid days of rain, I needed some color!!  But on a positive note, other than a few mounds, the snow is gone...YAY!!  I am so ready for Spring!!

Make sure you check out Laurie's BEAUTIFUL cards and her video (HERE) and then play along.

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

Merry Monday #278 - Inspiration Photo

Hello friends.  Our hostess this week at Merry Monday is Debbie and she has a FUN inspiration photo to inspire your Christmas cards this week!

Isn't that a GREAT photo with the wreath, the tree, the dog, all the pops of red and gold, the staircase...LOTS to be inspired by here friends.

I came up with a very CAS card using the wreath and colors...

I started with SU!'s Wondrous Wreath and stamped the leaves in Mossy Meadow and Old Olive inks and then stamped the flowers in Real Red ink.  The centers of the flowers have four little dots, so I poked a hole in each dot and then tied real fine gold thread through each flower.  I also added some Honey Gold Nuvo Glitter Drops around the wreath.  Here's a closer up view:

The sentiment is from the same stamp set and I embossed that in gold.  And because I didn't have a stairway stamp or die, but LOVED the dog in the photo, I added a dog to the inside of my card to compensate:

He's all decked out in his red Christmas bow and ready to celebrate!!  So how will YOU interpret this wonderful inspiration photo??  We can't wait to see!  Check out what the rest of the DT came up with for this challenge right HERE, and then play along with us!

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

Color Throwdown Challenge #480

Hello friends.  Just a quick post today with a card for the current Color Throwdown challenge.  LOVED the colors in the inspiration photo and just had to play along!

Aren't the purple and green so pretty with the gray and white neutrals?!!  I used a SU! Sale-A-Bration set called Lots Of Lavender for my card.

 I embossed the image in white and then used my Aqua Painter pen with retired ink Lovely Lilac (SU!) to color up the Lavender and used a Zig pen to color the leaves.  I added a little bit of stenciling in Smokey Slate ink with PTI's Modern Background Stencils for my background, and then used PTI's Primitive Stitched Hearts die to lightly emboss the heart shape around the bunch of Lavender.  Here's a closer up to hopefully see the heart outline better:

I finished up with a sentiment from PTI's Banner Style with Smokey Slate cs and also added a layer of it behind the top layer, and then adhered both to a white card base.  I finished with a few iridescent sequins and some heave white bakers twine.

This challenge is only open for another day, but check out all the BEAUTIFUL cards from the DT and in the gallery already, and then play along if you have time!  You can find it all right HERE.

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

Papertrey Ink 11th Anniversary Celebration Day 10 - Stripes

Hello friends.  Papertrey Ink is celebrating their 11th Anniversary with 10 days of challenges, and Day 10 is all about STRIPES!

I love the look of classic black & white stripes...I think it is so elegant, so that is where my card started.

I have been seeing quite a few people pulling out their Tulip Time sets, and even though we are nowhere near Spring here in Michigan, I couldn't resist following suit and pulling out my set too!  I used Real Red and Scarlett Jewel for my trio of tulips and then pop dotted them up and then added an embossed sentiment from the Pen & Ink set.  A few iridescent sequins and some white string finished off my simple card.

Lots of lovely STRIPED cards in the gallery, so check them out and play along for a chance at a $100 gift certificate!  You can find all the info right HERE.

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

Twofer Challenge #2 - Hearts

Hello friends.  Playing along with Darnell's Twofer Challenge where this month the key word is HEARTS!

Soooooo last month I didn't read the directions too carefully and Darnell in her very nice and sweet way, let me know I didn't read the directions...how embarrassing!!  So this month I read them about 50 bazillion times and I think I got it right this time...two DIFFERENT cards...NOT just different colors!!  So here we go...

I used PTI's Limitless Layers: Hearts Dies on both cards...one for a Valentine's Day card and one for Thank You to a crafty friend.

For my first card I made another Valentine's Day card for my hubby, as the one I had made before wasn't quite manly enough with the swirls on it!  I've been playing around with the Faux Enamel Technique and used it for the heart, along with some die cut heart beats (AliExpress) and the small Rectangle Peek-a-Boo Window from MFT.  The sentiment is from PTI's You Have My Heart stamp set.  Do you think it looks manly enough for my hubby??!!

 

My 2nd card uses the same heart that I die cut twice...once from some cs that I blended Peacock Feathers Distress Ink on, and once from a piece of plain white cs.  I inlaid the blended heart back into the white piece and then stamped my image from MFT's Pure Innocence: Crafty Friends set.  This is a NBUS stamp set that I HAD to have and then it sat...and sat!!  Grrrrr...don't you hate when that happens?!!  But anyway, I stamped it along with the sentiments, and then added a pink enamel heart, WOS'd her heart in her hair, added some white polka dots to her top, and then layered it onto a piece of WOW Silver Glitter paper and a Smokey Slate cs base.  Pretty CAS but I like how it turned out!!

This challenge is open till the 24th, so lots of time to still play along!  You can check out all the FABULOUS cards from the DT and read all the directions right HERE and then play along!

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

Inspired By All The Little Things #79

Hello friends.  I'm playing along with the Inspired By All The Little Things challenge today.  They always have the most wonderful inspiration photos and this one's no exception!!

I was inspired by the brick wall, the bicycle, and the hearts.  I kept my card kind of simple so I could use it for a masculine card if I needed to, and although the photo suggests Valentine's Day, I wanted to use my card for a birthday card.  Here's what I came up with:

I used a Paper Studio embossing folder for my brick background and sponged it with TH Walnut Stain Distress Ink and a little bit of PTI's Americana ink.  I attached the brick layer to a piece of Americana cs and also cut out the heart from PTI's Primitive Hearts Dies with Americana cs.  My bicycle die cut is from an MFT die and I added a couple white brads to the centers of the wheels.  The sentiment is from an older SU! set called Wonderful Words.

This was a FUN challenge and there's still a couple more days to play along (closes this Friday the 16th), so check out all the wonderful inspiration from the DT and in the gallery and play along.  You can find all the info right HERE to play along.

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

Papertrey Ink's 11th Anniversary Clebration - Day 8

Hello friends.  Day 8 at Papertrey Ink's Anniversary Celebration is a color challenge...I love color challenges!!

I chose to work with Betsy's color combination...totally LOVE these colors together!!

And because I can't seem to get enough of Betsy's little birdies in her Brushed Birds set, I went with a floral theme using the Beautiful Berries: Spring and the little birdies together with the above color combo.

 

I used the Brushed Off Rectangle die first and blended Aqua Mist onto it, and then added the berry sprig in the Green Parakeet, Winter Wisteria, & Royal Velvet, and the birds in Aqua Mist and Tropical Teal.  Because I'm still trying to ramp up my birthday card stash, the sentiment from the Beautiful Berries: Spring worked perfectly!

You can check all the amazing color combinations and cards from the DT out right HERE and then play along for a chance at a $100 gift certificate!

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

CAS Mix Up Feb. 2018

Hello friends.  This month's challenge over at CAS Mix Up is all about using either CORK, CANVAS, or FELT on your card.

I used CORK...take a look:

I used the leaf die from PTI's Songbirds to die cut my leaf branch from a piece of cork, and then placed it on a piece of Linen cardstock that I sponged a bit with Tempting Turquoise ink.  I did not have any canvas, so I used the Linen cardstock to add a bit of texture like the canvas would have.  Here's a closer up view:

Still a little hard to see, but it's there and IRL it looks really nice!  For my bird I used the Faux Enamel Technique using chipboard and embossing powder....LOTS OF FUN!!  I used PTI's Brushed Birds dies to cut my bird shape out of chipboard and then used OLD SU! embossing powders in Tempting Turquoise, Gumball Green, and white.  My sentiment is from PTI's Keep It Simple: Thinking Of You.

So for this card I used: Cork, die cutting, embossing, ink blending, & stamping.  Quite a few elements for such a CAS card but I love the way it turned out!!

Still lots of time to play along with this challenge (ends the 24th), so check out all the beautiful examples from the DT and in the gallery, and then play along!  You can find all the info you need to play right HERE.
 

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

Papertrey Ink's 11th Anniversary Celebration Day 7 - ONLY DIES

Hello friends.  Still lots of fun and celebrating going on over at Papertrey Ink's 11th Anniversary Celebration!!

Day 7 challenge is all about using DIES...NO stamps!!

Other than some colorful sequins, I made my card using only black and white.  I started with a Bold Blossoms Coloring Sheet (that I didn't color!) and then layered on 5 die cut Coverplate: Circles.  I added an acetate sheet to the back of the top layer to make this somewhat of a shaker card...the circles prevent the sequins from moving other than in the circle they are placed in.  My sentiment is from the Big Basics: Wish Big die.  This came out so different than what I had first envisioned, but I really like the way it ended up!!  :0)

You can check out all the other entries and play along for a chance to win a $100 gift certificate right HERE.

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!