Playing Cards with Michele...IN PERSON!!!

Hello friends.  It finally happened!  After over a year of not seeing each other in person, Michele and I got together last week and had a "play date"!  Oh let me tell you, it did the soul so good to be together in person, and to share our love of card making with each other!!  We spent the morning talking, laughing, hugging, (we've both had both our vaccinations!) and of course playing!  Michele had asked me to bring all my Pinkfresh Studio stuff along, and we both had fun using the Layered Sunburst Stencil (blended with multiple colors of DOX inks), and here's how I finished mine off...

  Michele and I both share a love of Anita Jeram's little critters (Colorado Craft Co. - Birthday Wishing), so I stamped my image once on my colorful sunburst, and then again on a plain piece of white cardstock.  I colored the image with my Copics and then die cut.  Before gluing down my die cut image over the stamped image on the sunburst, I snipped off the balloon so that the stamped image of the balloon on the sunburst would show.  

 To finish off my card, I used The Greetery's Crimped Frame Dies to cut my sunburst panel and then attached to a white card base.  My die cut "Celebrate" is also from The Greetery (Birthday Blooms), and I also added a few sequins (Gina K) for a little sparkle and shine. 

Michele also graciously let me borrow an Altenew stamp set called Statement Flowers, and in keeping with the rainbow theme, I came up with this quick and simple card...

I used some washi tape to tape off my edges first, and then ink blended in rainbow order using Gina K inks.  After carefully removing the washi tape, I put my panel in my MISTI and then stamped the image several times using Catherine Pooler's Twilight ink until I was happy with the gray color.  I trimmed the panel down just a bit and then added to a white card base using foam tape on the back to add a little dimension.  To finish I heat embossed the "Hello" (from the stamp set) in white on a small piece of black, and also added foam tape to the back before adding to the card.  A couple more sequins and I was done!

I can hardly wait to see what Michele did with her Layered Sunburst Stencil piece, so hop on over to her blog along with me and check it out...Michele NEVER disappoints!!  And thank you, thank you Michele for the BEST day last week...I can't express in words how much I NEEDED that friend time together, and I'm already looking forward to our next get together!!  :0) 

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

Color Hues #16 - YELLOW & GREY

Hello friends.  Playing along with the Color Hues Challenge where they are looking for cards using the Pantone In Color combination of YELLOW & GREY.

And here's what I came up with using a Pinkfresh Studio stencil...

I ink blended the Floral Print Circle stencil with a combination of PTI and Gina K inks in yellows and grays, and then die cut with a large circle die.  I used the same circle die to die cut the center of a Smokey Slate piece of cardstock, and then used Pinkfresh Studio's Diagonal Stitched Plaid cover plate die to add some texture to my background piece.  I also sponged gray ink around the outside edges and around the circle edge of this piece.  

I used foam tape on the back of my gray background piece and attached to a white card base, and then inset the stenciled circle.  My sentiment is from The Greetery's Opposites Attract stamp and die set, using Smokey Slate cardstock and Basic Gray ink for the "happy" die cut, and the Basic Gray ink also on the banner part of the sentiment.  A bit of gray & white bakers twine on the banner strip and a few light yellow gemstones finished off my birthday card.

There are some absolutely STUNNING cards from the DT and their Special GD (Amy Kolling), and cards already in the gallery using the YELLOW & GREY color combinations that you can check out right HERE if you'd like to play along.  This challenge is open for another week.

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

Christmas Kickstart #49 - You Sleigh Me

Hello friends.  I'm playing along with the Christmas Kickstart Challenge where this month they are looking for Christmas cards with a SLEIGH.

I used SU!'s Santa's Sleigh Framelits Dies and came up with this...

I wish I could have captured the shimmer and shine of this card better, but my lighting and camera were NOT cooperating...grrrrr!  I die cut the main body of the sleigh with Blackberry Bliss cardstock and then sprayed quite liberally with Sheer Shimmer Gold Mist, and then die cut the fancy overlay with the same cardstock and glued it to the main body of the sleigh.  It really sparkles IRL!!  The tree dies are also included in this set of dies, and I cut them also from the Blackberry Bliss cardstock and then added Frantage Shabby White Embossing Enamel.

I added the sleigh and trees to a panel embossed with an older Darice snowflake embossing folder, and then layered that to a piece of Balckberry Bliss cardstock and a top folding white card base.  My sentiment was embossed in gold using Gina K's Ornamental Snowflakes set and then die cut using Gina's Master Layouts 3.  I love everything about this card except for all the Shabby White Embossing Enamel that is all over my desk and floor...if you've ever used this stuff before you know exactly what I'm talking about...you have to heat it from below (instead of on top) and it inevitably goes flying everywhere before just some of it sticks to your cardstock!!  There is gold embossing powder mixed in with the white, so I'm working in quite a white AND sparkly space right now...hahaha!!

Check out the inspiration from Jo and her special ELF Jane right HERE and then play along...this challenge is open till the end of the month.

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

CAS Mix Up - Paper Piecing

Hello friends.  I'm playing along with the gals over at CAS Mix Up where this month they are looking for CAS cards with PAPER PIECING.

Paper Piecing has always been one of my favorite techniques (probably because I'm one of the strange ones that actually likes fussy cutting!), so this was a FUN challenge for me to participate in!!  I used a SU! set called Painted Poppies and came up with this...

I stamped the Poppies and leaves onto white cardstock first, and then stamped them again onto dsp from SU!'s Ice Cream Corner.  I die cut the flowers and leaves that I had stamped on the white cardstock, and then fussy cut the flowers and leaves that I had stamped onto the dsp, and then attached  the dsp to the die cut cardstock.  

I stamped my birthday greeting (Gina K's Fancy Greetings) and then arranged my flowers and added the stems and leaves on a die cut panel that I layered with a piece of Blackberry Bliss cardstock before attaching to a white card base.  A couple clear sequins finished off my card and I'm thrilled with the way this one turned out!  I mean who knew ice cream dsp would make a lovely flower?!!

There are some absolutely BEAUTIFUL examples of paper piecing from the DT for inspiration, so make sure you check them all out, and then play along right HERE.  This challenge is open till the 24th.    

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

CAS Christmas Reminder - RAINBOW

Hello friends.  Just a friendly reminder that there's still time to play along with us at CAS Christmas where we are looking for RAINBOW cards this month.

I did some ink blending for a RAINBOW colored background for my card this time, and came up with this:

I used a combination of Distress and Gina K inks to come up with my background, and then used a Lil Inkers Stitched Circle die to die cut my 4 1/4" x 4 1/4" white piece of cs and also the ink blended piece.  I inlaid the blended circle into the square piece and attached both to a black layer and a white 4 3/4" x 4 3/4" card base.  

I used a Gina Marie Designs die cut of a snowy little cabin all nestled into the woods, and kept it completely white as I wanted it to stand out and also because there is so much color in my background and I still needed to keep my card CAS!  For that reason too, I left off the sentiment on the outside and just used one on the inside.

We hope you will play along with us this month and get a start on those Christmas cards, and what better place to start than with a FUN challenge like this one to use a RAINBOW theme to your card?!  Check out all the FABULOUS inspiration from our host Trina, the rest of the DT, and of course our Special GD too!  You can check it all out right HERE...this challenge is open till the 24th.

 

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

The Flower Challenge #55 - Pretty Pastels

Hello friends.  Playing along with The Flower Challenge today and they are looking for PRETTY PASTELS on our flower cards.

I used an oldie from The Greetery called Sketchbook Roses to come up with this birthday card...

I started with a white card base and then added a die cut layer (Pinkfresh Studio) that I stamped the rose image on a few times in Smokey Slate ink.  I also added foam strips behind this layer for some added dimension.  I stamped the same image again with the Smokey Slate ink and inked the layering stamps with Lemon Tart and Harvest Gold inks (PTI) for the pastel yellow roses, and Fresh Pear and Aquamarine inks (Pinkfresh Studios) for the leaves.  

I added foam dots behind the die cut image for even more dimension, and then added the love die cut (The Greetery - Let's Have A Word: Love Die) that I die cut 3 times in Smokey Slate cardstock.  I finished the sentiment at the bottom of the card on a skinny strip of Smokey Slate cardstock and then also added a few score lines above that.  To finish I added Distress Glitter (Tim Holtz) to the leaves.  Love how soft and delicate this card came out!!

There's still plenty of time to play along with this challenge (open till the end of the month), so check out all the great inspiration from the DT HERE and then play along.

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

Twofer Challenge #37 - LEAVES

Hello friends.  It's that time of month again and we have a new challenge for you here at The Twofer Challenge, and this month we'd like to see you use the same stamp, die, or stencil of a LEAF/LEAVES to make your TWO distinctly different cards.

I had gotten a new (to me) stamp set for Christmas from my sweet friend Sue that ended up being just perfect for this challenge...Altenew's Leaf Clusters.  Here's both of the cards together that I created using the same stamp from that set:

I made a "Just a Note" rainbow card using all the leaf clusters in the set, and then made a birthday card using just one of the leaf clusters.  (The red leaf cluster is the same stamp I used to create the green cluster on the birthday card.)

I went in rainbow order (ROYGBIV) stamping the different leaf cluster stamps around the outside perimeter of my panel, and then matted with a thin black layer and attached both to a white card base.  Next I stamped and die cut the "Just A Note" from The Greetery's Opposites Attract stamp set, and also die cut two extras to give some dimension to the sentiment.  A little bit of black & white bakers twine finished off this easy and colorful card.

 My 2nd card came out a bit different than what I had originally planned in my head.  I had envisioned covering the whole front of the card with green leaf clusters, and then die cutting smaller circles (maybe 2 or 3) from the covered card front and placing little monkeys behind the cut out circles...like they were swinging around from branch to branch.  Just one little problem...I couldn't find any monkey stamps in my collection!!  After digging for what seemed like hours I finally found one stamp from waaaaaaaay back when that had never even been opened from Stampendous called Changito Cheer.  Only problem now was that the monkey was too big for my original idea and he was already holding onto the pom-pom and megaphone so that it would have been a bit tricky to cut those off and still make it look like he was gripping the tree limbs!  OK, on to plan B!  I just stamped the leaf cluster at the top of my white panel and then colored the monkey with my Copics, fussy cut him out, and then pop dotted him to look sort of like he was swinging through the trees doing a birthday cheer!  The "celebrate" was stamped and die cut from The Greetery's Birthday Blooms stamp set.  I added a piece of foam to the back of the panel and then adhered that to a top folding white card base.  Not what I originally planned but I still think it came out cute!!

The possibilities are limitless with a prompt like LEAVES, and we can't wait to see what YOU come up with!  Make sure you check out what our talented DT and Special GD have come up with this month to inspire you, and then play along with us!  You can check it all out right HERE.  This challenge is open till the 24th.

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

Color Hues #15 - Pink & Green

Hello friends.  I'm playing along with the Color Hues Challenge today where they are looking for PINK & GREEN as the focal point on our cards.

I've been having fun with a new and whimsical stamp set from the Ink To Paper (it will ALWAYS be Papertrey Ink to me!) company called Prominent Petals, and came up with this card...

I started by stamping and die cutting the flowers and leaves using different shades of pink and green inks from Pinkfresh Studios.  Next I die cut a frame from Papertrey Ink using the Bold Borders: Polka Dot Die in white cardstock and adhered it to a white card base for a white on white look.  

It's really hard to see in my photos, but I took the little center rectangle die cut and ink blended very lightly some pink ink and then inset it back into the polka dotted frame before arranging my flowers around it.  My birthday die cut is from Gina K's Lace Flowers set.  I finished my card off with a few pink gems from Pinkfresh Studios.

You can check out all the beautiful cards from the DT right HERE and play along until the 14th.

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

Inspired By #168 - I Carrot About Spring

Hello friends.  There's a beautiful inspiration photo over at the Inspired By Challenge that definitely says Spring to me!!

I was inspired by the colors in this beautiful spray and also the vertical design, and came up with this card using a Gina K stamp set called Wild Blossom.

My colors came out a little more peachy than orange, but I still love the light and Spring-y feeling to this card.  I used a technique Gina showed in one of her video chats to achieve a 2 step look by inking up the stamp in one color and then adding a 2nd layer of coloring using a marker (I used some of my old SU! markers) directly onto the stamp before stamping onto your cardstock.  I did this with both the leaves and the flowers to create the layered look.

Here's a closer up so you can see the stamped layering a bit better.  I finished this card with a birthday die cut from Gina's Lace Flowers stamp set and also added a few Disco Ball sequins also from Gina K.  A pretty simple card but love the soft and delicate look to this one.

Lots of absolutely GORGEOUS inspiration from the DT and you can check it all out right HERE to play along.

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

CAS Christmas April 2021 - RAINBOW

Hello friends.  Welcome back to another challenge at CAS Christmas where this month we have a really FUN prompt for you...RAINBOW!  Yep, we want you to create a CAS Christmas card using RAINBOW colors.

Trina is our host this month, and her and the rest of the DT have some AMAZING inspiration for you if you're not quite sure where to start with this prompt, but I'm thinking the ideas will be flying this month!  They sure did for me!!  

Here's what I came up with:

I started with one of the sweet little polar bears from MFT's Polar Bear Pals stamp set, and because I wanted his RAINBOW scarf to stand out, I chose not to color the bear (well except for a little pink chalk blush on his cheeks...I mean it is COLD out there!!).  I used my Copics in RAINBOW order (ROYGBIV) to color his scarf and then die cut him out and pop dotted him to a circle die cut that I ran through an older Darice snowflake embossing folder.  My sentiment comes from an older PTI stamp set called Think Big Favorites: #20 and I thought it was pretty fitting for this sweet and colorful little guy!

What will YOU come up with using a RAINBOW this month?!!  We can't wait to see our gallery flooded with lots of colorful RAINBOW Christmas cards...just remember that this is a CAS challenge, so even though we want to see lots of RAINBOW color, we still want your cards to be CAS too!  Again, we've got lots of inspiration for you from the DT and our Special GD, so check it all out right HERE and then play along with us.  This challenge is open till the 24th.

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