Color Throwdown #495

Hello friends.  The colors for this week's Color Throwdown Challenge are so rich...Navy Blue, Burgundy, and Gold.

I could definitely handle a bedroom done in these rich and royal colors, however I went a little whimsical this week as I've seen several people use MFT's and Birdie Brown's Recipe For Happiness stamp set the past few weeks and I wanted to play with it again too!

For some reason the chef's in this stamp set always make me think of pizza and Italian food, and restaurants with brick walls, sooooooo.....  I started by using Merlot and Cobalt Blue Brusho's to create my background, and then when dry, I ran it through a brick embossing folder.

I used MFT's Peek-A-Boo rectangle die to make a frame over my brick background and then adhered my chef that I colored with Copics and fussy cut.  His buttons on his coat are Pale Gold Crystal Nuvo Drops.

My sentiment is also MFT and I stamped it using Delicata's Golden Glitz pigment ink...I love the shimmer this ink gives with out having to emboss it!

There are some FABULOUS cards from the DT to inspire you this week, so check them all out right HERE and then play along!

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

Make It Monday #323 - Cascading Die Cuts

Hello friends.  This week Stephanie Gold is hosting the Make It Monday challenge over at Papertrey Ink, and she shows us how to make a beautiful card using Cascading Die Cuts.  You can check out her video and GORGEOUS card HERE.

I still had the Bitty Butterflies Cover Plate die sitting on my desk from a previous card and I thought cascading butterflies would be really pretty!  Take a look:

I started by making a blended background using Spiced Marmalade and Picked Raspberry DOX inks and then did a little water splattering on it.

Next I die cut a piece of vellum using the Bitty Butterflies Cover Plate die and attached it over my blended layer.  A strip of Hibiscus Burst card stock hid my glue to hold down the vellum to the background layer and was also the spot for my sentiment from the Bitty Butterflies stamp set...I think this sentiment is just perfect for graduation cards!!

Before attaching my cascading butterflies, I added a little glue to the edges and then dipped them into some Dazzling Diamonds glitter.  I also added a piece of thick pink bakers twine at the top of the card, which also served to keep the top of the vellum attached to the card without unsightly glue showing through.

This was a fun challenge, so check out Stephanie's card and video HERE and then play along!

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

Merry Monday #292 - PENGUINS

Hey Merry Monday fans...this week's challenge is all about adding a PENGUIN (or two or three!) to your Christmas cards!

I have quite a few FUN and FROLICKING PENGUIN stamps like the inspiration photo, but I chose to use some brand new (to me) PENGUIN dies from AliExpress to make my QACAS card this week.

I started by using an older embossing folder from Quickutz to make my background and layered it onto a piece of Aqua Mist cardstock and then attached them to a white card base.  Then I simply used some pop dots to adhere the little penguin family to the center of my card.

A little bit of Caribbean baker's twine from The Twinery finished off this oh so simple and quick card.

We can't wait to see what YOU come up with using a PENGUIN on your cards!  Check out the rest of the inspiration from the DT and then play along.  I know Christmas seems like a looooong way off right now, but just making one card a week will help you be ready when it does get here, so play along with us each week...you'll be SO glad you did come December!!  Check it all out right HERE.

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

Simon Says Stamp WORK IT WEDNESDAY

Hello friends.  Just a short post here showing a CASE I did of a Kristina Werner card that uses stamping on patterned paper, paper piecing, and the new June SSS kit.

The paper that comes in this kit is so pretty, and Kristina showed how to use the flower stamp and stamp directly onto the patterned papers, and then shade in the flowers with a little bit of coloring with markers.  Kristina did a great video (HERE) showing the whole process, and it really would work with any stamp and light colored DSP, so check it out!

I'm adding this card to Simon Says Stamps WORK IT WEDNESDAY challenge...check it out and play along right HERE.

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

Papertrey Ink Blog Hop May 2018

Hello friends.  It's the 25th and that means it's time for Papertrey Ink's monthly BLOG HOP challenge!  This month's challenge is all about camping/glamping...I think I could be talked into glamping if it looked like this!!

Isn't that just the sweetest photo?!  Since I'm not a camper (not into dirt and bugs...yuck!!), I didn't have any camping themed stamps, however, the gingham tablecloths and flowers spoke to me right away!!

I used DSP from the Smoky Shadow Bitty Big pack for my background and then created my bouquet using flowers and leaves from both the Mixed Bouquet and Botanical Bounty stamp sets.

I lightly stamped the Just The Jar: Pint onto my white panel before stamping my flowers and then stamped the jar again on embossable acetate  (Embossable Window plastic by Judi-kins) with white embossing powder to give the jar a more realistic glass look.

I used the To The Point Edger's II dies at the bottom of my white stamped panel and then layered it over the Smoky Shadow DSP.  A few black enamel dots, some twine, and a Tiny Tag finished off my card.

Can't wait to go hoppin' and see what everyone else came up with this month...I'm never disappointed!!  You can check it all out right HERE.  

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

Make It Monday #322 - Above & Below

Hello friends.  Lizzie has a FUN video and BEAUTIFUL card over on the Papertrey Ink Make It Monday challenge this week using a ABOVE & BELOW technique.

I struggled with this technique...not because it was hard, but because I really wanted to use flowers like Lizzie did in her example, but kept thinking that I always do flowers and need to think outside the box a bit more.  So I decided to give Forest Floor: Summer a try since I hadn't played with it yet and came up with this:

I was thinking of a Summer picnic basket with fresh strawberries, and while it turned out ok, it just didn't thrill me.  Although with ALL the fussy cutting I did (I was too cheap to buy the dies...grrrr!!), this card ought to count for something!!

So back to the drawing board.  I decided to give Quilted: Summer a try and came up with this:

I used the die to cut all the triangles from Hawaiian Shores, Aqua Mist, & Green Parakeet Bitty Big papers and laid them out like half of a pinwheel on the top of the sentiment strip and the other half of the pinwheel below the sentiment strip.

I added a small pinwheel to the upper left of the card because it looked too plain with no stenciling up there and then added a few sequins to finish it off.  I like it, but...  Maybe I'll just save both of these for Transformation Tuesday and see what else I can come up with.  I know, I know...I'm my own worst enemy, but I think we all have cards like this where something just doesn't click for us.  For today though, they are what they are!

Check out Lizzie's FABULOUS card and video and then play along right HERE.

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

Color Throwdown #494

Hello friends.  This week I am delighted to be the Guest Star Stamper for the current Color Throwdown Challenge.  Check out the FUN colors you get to play with this week:

I usually think patriotic and stars when I think of RED, WHITE, & BLUE, but this inspiration photo says it's perfect for flowers too and that's exactly where I took it!  Take a look:

I used Altenew's Garden Treasures for my bright red flowers and used neutral black for doing an offset outlining of them and the leaves.  I used one of PTI's To The Point Edger's Dies to die cut the edge of my white panel and then added the sentiment in Blueberry Sky ink.  (PTI's Keep It Simple: Birthday)  My striped paper at the bottom is PTI's Blueberry Sky from their pattern pack.  A simple white bakers twine bow at the top and a few red sequins finished off my card.

 
Make sure you check out all the BEAUTIFUL cards from the DT and then play along using the RED, WHITE, & BLUE colors...we can't wait to see YOU in the gallery!  Check it all out right HERE.

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

Merry Monday #291

Hey Merry Monday fans...Kelly has a FUN challenge for you this week adding CANDY CANES, COOKIES, or SWEET TREATS to your Christmas cards.

I had FUN letting DSP from SU!'s Candy Cane Lane package do most of the work for me:

This paper was just too sweet to resist with all the candy canes, gumdrops, peppermints, and gingerbread cookies on it!  And I'm such a sucker for kraft and red together too, so this was a win-win for me!!  I used PTI's Window Works Dies to die cut the little oval opening where I placed a little gingerbread man that I stamped and colored using SSS's Christmas Squad stamp set.  My sentiment is from CP's Candy Cane Lane stamp set and the little candy canes on my sentiment are 3D stickers from SSS.  A simple piece of white bakers twine at the top finished off my sweet little card.

We can't wait to see all of your SWEET cards flood our gallery this week!  Check out what the DT came up with this week to inspire you and then play along with us!  You can find it all right HERE.

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

Twofer Challenge #5 - BUTTERFLIES

Hello friends.  Playing along with Darnell's 5th Twofer Challenge, and this month it's all about BUTTERFLIES!

I guess I didn't realize how many butterfly stamps and dies I have, so I had to think a bit on this one!  I finally ended up using PTI's Bitty Butterflies Cover Plate die and came up with these 2 cards:

Just something about these tiny little butterflies that I LOVE!!

For this card I started with SSS's Tap Dance stencil and lots of colors of ink, and then used the cover plate die to cut out all the mini butterflies.  I cut a few in Raspberry Fizz cs to match the sentiment strip I used...the sentiment is from PTI's Bitty Butterflies stamp set and I think it will be perfect for a graduation card I need for next month!

For this card I used the same butterfly cover plate die for the two butterflies that I die cut in Hawaiian Shores and Berry Sorbet cs and placed on the outside of my die cut tree (AliExpress).  I made the card into a shaker and used an old Fiskars punch to cut out the teeny, tiny flower shapes that I used in place of the normal sequins I use in shaker cards.  I blended Salty Ocean Distress ink onto the background before building the shaker portion of the card and the sentiment is from PTI's Delightful Dahlia Additions stamp set.  I think a shaker card is definitely a great way to send a little happy hello to someone!!

The DT outdid themselves this month with inspiration using BUTTERFLIES, and there are lots of beautiful cards in the gallery too!  Check them all out and play along right HERE.

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

CAS Christmas May 2018 - SNOWMAN

Hello friends.  This month's challenge over at CAS Christmas is to add a SNOWMAN to your Christmas card.

This was a hard challenge for me...because I am such a snowman lover and have way too many images to choose from!  Took me almost 2 weeks just to decide which one to use...geesh!  I finally ended up choosing a really old wooden red rubber stamp from Stamp City that I bought when I very first started stamping.  It really is a cute, cute image, but I chose it mainly because of it's small size so that I could make a shaker card.

I stamped the image in black and then embossed it in clear embossing powder.  After coloring the image with a few Copics, I lightly blended around it using Salty Ocean Distress Ink.

I used MFT's Peek-A-Boo Rectangle Die to cut a window on the top layer of my card and then attached acetate to the back that I had dry embossed with a Darice snowflake embossing folder.

The embossed acetate looks so cool, but I had a dickens of a time trying to photograph it, so here's a photograph of just the acetate:

The acetate I use (Judi-Kins Embossable Window Plastic) comes with a thin piece of tissue paper behind each sheet, so I left it on when I embossed the snowflakes and now I have a really cool piece of embossed tissue paper to use on another project!  But anyway, hopefully you can get a better idea from this photo what the acetate really looks like over my snowman.  I finished off the shaker part of my card with some clear sequins and my tiny sentiment is from Pretty Pink Posh's Happy Snowman stamp set.

You have until the 24th to play along with this challenge and there are so many cute, CUTE snowmen cards from the DT and in the gallery to inspire you...check it all out right HERE.

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

Papertrey Ink's Create Along With Us - May 2018

Hello friends.  It's release week at Papertrey Ink and that means it's time for the Create Along With Us challenge!

There's always so much to be inspired by, but I just can't resist when Dawn McVeigh uses her signature Aqua Mist and New Leaf color combo with flowers!  Check out Dawn's card HERE.

I changed up a few of the flowers and colors, but stuck with Dawn's basic layout and the Aqua Mist card base stamped with the Cover Up: Quatrefoil stamp in New Leaf ink.

I used flowers and leaves from Farmer's Market Florals, Gran's Garden, and Stitching Garden with a variety of ink colors and then fussy cut them all out.

After arranging them all on my card base, I die cut and stamped my sentiment from the Wet Paint set.  I added a little WOS in the centers of a few of the flowers and leaves, but too subtle to see in my photos.

A little bit of work with all the fussy cutting, but I love the end result and it totally reminds me of a Dawn card!

There's still time to play along with this challenge, so head over to the gallery and see what inspired everyone else, and then play along right HERE. 

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

CAS Watercolour May 2018 Reminder - RAINBOW

Hello friends.  Just a friendly reminder that this month's RAINBOW challenge at CAS Watercolour is still open until the 24th.

If you haven't had a chance to play along yet, and still need some more inspiration, the DT is here to help out with some more FABULOUS ideas for you!  Click HERE to check them out!

Here's what I came up with:

I know butterflies aren't really rainbow colored, but how pretty is this little butterfly (AliExpress die) with ALL the colors of the rainbow on him?!  I started with my ink cubes again and smooshing them into an acrylic block, and then using a paint brush and water, added all the colors to my 110lb cardstock one at a time and drying with my heat tool in between each color.  After die cutting the butterfly, I dipped the edges into some Versamark and added some silver embossing powder to add a little more shine to his wings...I know, I know, as if he wasn't colorful enough all ready!  But artistic license and all that, right??! :0)

For my background I used one of the 4 dies that comes in a Tim Holtz set called Mixed Media to get that honeycomb look in the upper left corner, and then finished my card with a silver embossed sentiment from Catherine Pooler's Faithful Flutterings set.  I think butterflies are a beautiful image to use in sympathy cards...a simple reminder that life isn't over, but just a CHANGE of address!

Again, you have until the 24th to play along with this month's RAINBOW challenge, so get ALL those colors and your paintbrushes out and play along with us...we'd LOVE to see your work in the gallery right HERE.

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