Christmas Kickstart #100 - SPOTS, DOTS & CIRCLES

Hello friends.  It couldn't feel less like Christmas outside (more 90's today in my neck of the woods!), but I couldn't let Jo's 100th challenge over at the Christmas Kickstart blog go by without playing along, especially since it involves SPOTS, DOTS & CIRCLES!! 

I've got a SWEET little card to share using a new to me die from Cottage Cutz called Santa Cupcake that I was enabled to buy after hearing about the BIG sale at The Scrapping Cottage from Leslie...thanks Leslie!!

Doesn't Santa look so CUTE perched on top of that yummy looking chocolate cupcake?!!  I die cut all the pieces from cardstock scraps including the cupcake liner, which came from PTI's Pure Poppy Pattern Pack DSP.  I used a CIRCLE die to make an opening on my background layer that was also embossed with an older Cuttlebug ef with lots of DOTS.

This closeup shows a bit more detail including all the glitter and my SWEET die cut sentiment (The Greetery - Sweet Tooth).  Also added a sub-sentiment that was embossed in white on a black strip (Gina K).  Pretty simple but colorful and pretty cute IMHO!

If you need to get a kickstart on those Christmas cards, this challenge is a great place to start and you can find all the info to play along right HERE.  Congrats on this BIG milestone challenge Jo and a big thank you too for helping us all keep ahead with our Christmas cards!!  :0)

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

PEACE*LOVE*JOY

Hello friends.  Even though it's July and hot, hot, HOT, I am still plugging away at Christmas cards this month!  A lot of the online stores are having great sales on Christmas in July stamps, and I recently picked up a few things at great prices from Papertrey Ink, including the Vase Collection #12 stamp and die set.  I used the sketch from Freshly Made Sketches and colors from the Peace On Earth Challenge to come up with this...

It was that milk can vase that pulled me in for this set, and also the simplicity of the greenery and berries!  And I love, LOVE the detail on that bow!  Here's a closer up:

My berries are looking a little smeared, and that's because they are!  I thought adding a little WOS to make the berries sparkle would be a great idea, until I remembered that WOS and RED don't mix...grrrrr!!  And of course they were already glued down, so it is what it is!  I die cut a 5 1/4" by 4" panel with an oval die and then used SSS's Holiday Greenery EF and layered it to a panel of Boho Blue cs and a white card base.  I did use foam tape behind the embossed layer and then replaced the oval piece and built my arrangement inside the oval.  I finished with a sentiment embossed in white on a strip of the Boho Blue cs using PTI's Christmas Blessings stamp set and also added a few red gems from PFS.  Other than the smeared red berries, I'm really pleased with the way this card came out!

You can find all the details to play along with the Freshly Made Sketches Challenge here, and this challenge is open till Monday, July 21st @ 3:00PM.

I'm also adding this card to the Peace On Earth Christmas Challenge where I was inspired by the red, white, & blue color scheme on their mood board.  This challenge is only open till tonight (July 17th @ 8:00PM), so if you want to play along, you need to be quick!!

 And one last challenge to add to is NBUS #76 since this is a brand new stamp set to me, although I believe the set has been out for quite awhile!

 

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

Color Hues #114 - YELLOW & GREEN

Hello friends.  Hard to believe the Summer is half over already, isn't it?!  Been a HOT one in my neck of the woods, and while I am ready for some cooler temps, I'm not ready for Summer to be over!  Our sweet hostess Bonnie has chosen a wonderful summer pairing here at Color Hues and would like to see YELLOW & GREEN on our cards.

My first thought was florals, so that's what I went with using an older stencil from The Ton called Wild Spray Stencil.  Take a look...

It's just a small stencil that fits so perfectly in the corner of your card and leaves plenty of "white space" for a CAS card.  Once I finished stenciling, I used SU!'s Subtle EF to give a little texture to the panel and then mounted it to a black layer and a white card base.  

My sentiment is from Honey Bee's Bitty Buzzwords stamps and dies, and then I finished with just a few Gina K Disco Ball Sequins.  

The DT and our Special GD Von Marie have some BEAUTIFUL inspiration for you right HERE, so check it out and play along with us!  This challenge is open till Tuesday, July 29th @ 9:00AM.

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

The Flower Challenge #104 - Be Inspired by our Colors

Hello friends.  Just a friendly reminder that there's still time to play along with us at The Flower Challenge where we're looking for you to be inspired by the colors in this photo...

And here's what I came up with using these colors...

My sweet friend Michele challenged me to use WF's Flower Focal Die for this reminder post, since she had used it the last time she was here using the colors in this challenge.  Make sure you check out what she did with these same flower dies!!  For my card I die cut the flowers and their centers 3 times and then ink blended the coral & turquoise colors onto them.  I die cut a circle into my top layer and then used SSS's Feather Spiral EF and lightly inked up the raised parts with residual ink from my turquoise blending brush.

I arranged my trio of blooms and leaves around the left side of the circle and then finished with a few iridescent gems (SU!) and a sentiment from SB's A Little Message Sentiments Pressplate.  I also added WOS to the flower centers.  A pretty busy card for me, but I still like the way it turned out!

The DT has lots of wonderful inspiration for you that you can find right HERE, so check it all out and then play along with us...we can't wait to see what YOU come up with using these colors!  This challenge is open till Friday, July 25th @ 5:00PM.

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

Double D Flower Pots Challenge

Hello friends.  Getting in under the wire, just a quick post today to play along with the gals over at the Double D Challenge where they are looking for Flower Pots.

One of my favorite sets from The Greetery (yes, I have MANY favorites!!) that I haven't played with since last year is their BotaniCuts: Geranium.  It's a fun and easy die set that when coupled with their Pretty Pot Die looks just like the pots of Geraniums that I put out in our front porch.

 I die cut the pot from kraft cs and inked the edges up a bit and then added the Geraniums (Cherry Cobbler cs) and leaves (Mossy Meadow cs) with a bit of extra inking on them too.  My card size is 3 1/2" x 5 1/2" and I added a piece of kraft dsp (PTI) to the bottom third, and a piece of kraft that I embossed with HB's Dogwood Blooms 3D and lightly went over the top with a white ink cube to make the flowers stand out a bit more.

I added a piece of seam binding ribbon where the two background pieces meet, and then arranged my flower pot and Geraniums on top.  I did add a bit of glitter to the Geraniums for a little sparkle and I'm not sure if I'm liking that addition, but a little late to change it now!  I left a sentiment off as I'm not sure which occasion I'll use this card for.

The DT has some absolutely BEAUTIFUL examples using FLOWER POTS that you can check out right HERE if you'd like to play along.  You'll have to be quick though as this challenge ends Sunday, July 13th @ 8:00PM.

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

Freshly Made Sketches #694

Hello friends.  I've never been much into playing sketch challenges, but have to admit that may be changing as I'm really enjoying playing with the Freshly Made Sketches challenges lately.  The current challenge by DT member Judy got me to thinking quite quickly how clawsome my WF Inquisitive Crab Die would work with this sketch...

I did flip the sketch on its side (you're rubbing off on me Michele!!) and came up with this...

Aren't they FUN?!!  They really do crack me up and I've had so much fun playing with them!  (Definitely getting my money's worth with this set!!)  I started by using an older SB's embossing folder (Splish Splash) for my background and lightly inked it up using residual ink from my turquoise and blue blending brushes.  Next I used The Greetery's Crimped Circle Die for the center circle of the sketch from just plain white cs and then added the 2 crabs that were die cut from Real Red cs (SU!) with inking around the edges using Cherry Cobbler ink.

I added my background and crabs to a white card base and then finished with a sentiment from MFT's Just Beclaws stamp set that I embossed in white on a black strip and added foam behind for a bit of dimension.  Easy peasy, and in my humble opinion, super cute!!

Lots of awesome inspiration using this sketch from the DT that you can see right HERE, so check it out and play along.  This challenge is open till Monday, July 14th @ 3:00PM. 

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

The Flower Challenge #104 - Be Inspired by the Colors

Hello friends and welcome to a new challenge here at The Flower Challenge.  We have a fun challenge this month using an inspiration photo that we'd like you to use the colors from on your flower cards.

I see lots of oranges, corals & peaches, and then all kinds of shades of turquoise in this photo and here's what I came up with using these colors...

 I used a new stencil and die from PFS called Petal Perfection and ink blended with mostly Gina K inks in the corals and turquoise family.  I love the die for these stenciled florals as it doesn't leave a white border around the flowers and leaves like most dies do...it cuts them right to the edge on your inking.  

I die cut an oval (Gina K's ML #9) from my top layer and then lightly stenciled the background using Gina K's Brick Wall stencil with residual ink left on my orange/coral blending brush.  I attached this layer to a top folding white card base and then arranged my stenciled blooms in the oval cut out.  My sentiment strip was embossed in white on black using Gina K's All At Once Greetings stamps and dies.  Pretty simple, but I love the way it turned out!

The DT has some gorgeous cards to share with you and inspire you to use these challenge colors, and you can find them all right HERE.  This challenge is open till Friday, July 25th @ 5:00PM.  We can't wait to see YOU in the gallery!!

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

Freshly Made Sketches #693

Hello friends.  Playing along with the Freshly Made Sketches Challenge where DT member Amy has a FUN sketch for us to follow this week.

My first thought was birthday candles, and I have a set of candle dies from Memory Box (Tall Birthday Candles) that I've had for many years but never used!  Gasp...I know, I know, time to get crackin'!!  I made a set of 2 cards that are very generic and can be used for kids or adults, male or female. Here's the first one...

I started by stamping my background using The Greetery's Ticker Tape Background Stamp in Pacific Point ink (SU!) and then die cut using the largest Crimped Frame Die (also The Greetery).  Next I used the candle dies and scraps of colored cs and arranged them over the background and then used the smallest Crimped Frame Die to stamp my sentiment (The Greetery's Sentiment Suite: Birthday) and adhered with foam tape on the 2 ends.

I finished by adding a Pacific Point layer of cs and top folding card base to my stamped panel and then added a few Disco Ball sequins (Gina K) and some Glossy Accents to the candle flames.

Here's the red version (Real Red ink & cs by SU!) which I made the same as the blue version except that I placed the candles in a more wonky layout to make it a bit different.  

And here they are both together, and I'm tickled to have a few more birthday cards to add to my stash that will work for just about anyone (I tend to make so many floral cards that don't really work for kids and guys)!

Lots of inspiration from the talented DT to get you inspired to play along and you can find it all right HERE.  This challenge is open till Monday, July 7th @ 3:00PM.

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

Color Hues #113 - RED & WHITE

Hello friends.  Happy July and hoping you're all having a great Summer so far?!!  It's time for a new challenge here at Color Hues, and our sweet hostess Tracey has chosen the color pairing of RED & WHITE.  

My first thought was to do something patriotic in honor of July 4th, but I am so far behind on my Christmas card stash that I thought these colors would be perfect and help me get crackin' again!  So here's my very simple Christmas card...

I started by embossing in gold Taylored Expressions Seasonal Sprig and then coloring in the berries with my Copics (R24, R37, & R39).  Next I used WOS on all the leaves and IRL this card really sparkles and shines between the embossing and the WOS.  The sentiment was embossed in gold also and is one of the many sentiments that come with this Seasonal Sprig stamp set.  

To finish off this card I added a frame (PTI's Pierced Frames Dies) in Cherry Cobbler and also added a few Cherry Cobbler enamel dots.  

The DT and our Special GD Kim have a lot of wonderful inspiration for you that you can find right HERE, so check it out and play along with us.  We can't wait to see the gallery flooded with RED & WHITE creations!  Remember that this is a Color Hues challenge, so different shades of red & white are fine and neutrals also.  And just FYI...green is NOT a neutral!  This challenge is open till Monday, July 14th @ 9:00AM.  

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

Just Us Girls #781 - STENCIL WEEK

Hello friends.  Had a brand-new stencil to play with and it's STENCIL week at Just Us Girls, where my friend Bobby is hosting.

I have been a BIG fan of the stencils from The Ton company, but only get one every now and then because of their prices.  I've also been a BIG fan of the postage collage stencils and dies, so when the Postage: Wildflowers stencil came out, cost didn't matter...HAD to have it!!  I know, I know...I have a problem but truly have no desire to be cured!  

I have 2 cards to share with you using the same stencil set, the first one being done in the colors they suggested.  Take a look...

Isn't that such a pretty grouping of flowers?!  They look a little on the lavender side to me, but they really are a light and medium pink and then some yellow & green!  There's 4 stencils in the set and they all are very small and very detailed!  I still need to work on lining them up better, but with them being so small, it's hard to see to match some of the layers up!  

I used some of the price stamps from WF's postage collage sets, and then finished with some jute twine and a few Disco Ball sequins (Gina K).

My 2nd card is basically the same, but I used different colors and a bit of background shading to come up with this...

 A bit more colorful than my first card, but still happy with both of them.  I did add a sentiment from WF's Paper Hug Sentiments and some postage stamps to add a bit more interest.

I did add foam tape behind my sentiment and also the "HUGS INSIDE" circle stamp/die cut.  A bit of black & white bakers' twine and a single iridescent gem (PFS) finished off this 2nd card.

I am also going to add this card to the Stencil Fun Challenge where the challenge is summer themed and I'm thinking colorful flowers are always something I look forward to after a long and cold winter.

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

DD Beach Challenge

Hello friends.  Playing along with the DD Challenge today and they are looking for "Going to the beach" cards.  While I think my going to the beach days are long over, the weather here in my neck of the woods has been in the mid 90's with heat indexes over 100, so the beach is definitely the place to be!!

The timing of this challenge was perfect as I had just received some new goodies from Waffleflower that I think fit this challenge perfectly!  I actually have 2 cards to share with you, and the first one uses a stencil that I've had for over 2 years (I think) and never used, and also a small crab from WF's Happy Crabs Dies.  Take a look...

I stenciled the lined circle first (Newton's Nook Retro Sun & Palms stencil) with residual ink left on my pink, orange, & turquoise blending brushes, and then used the 2nd stencil to ink up the palm trees.  

 Isn't that little crab adorable?!  Well, I mean as adorable as a crab can be, right??!  I die cut the pieces from white cs and then ink blended with the same brushes I used for the lined circle.  You can just see the hint of blue underneath the top layer...I was going for a bit of a blue crab vibe here.  He was pop dotted for some dimension and to make him stand out a bit.  The sentiment is one of my all time favorites from Catherine Pooler called Vitamin Sea.  I finished with a few gems from PFS.

My 2nd card uses a few more new WF goodies, including the Coastline Die n Stencil, and the Inquisitive Crab Die.  I stenciled my background first with A Colorful Life Cloud Edger and then added the stenciled and die cut waves.  The ginormous crab was die cut from white cs and once again blended with coral inks from PFS.  I love, LOVE the size of this guy!!

I also added a strip of kraft cs at the bottom for my sandy beach and then finished with another Catherine Pooler sentiment from her Hook, Line and Sinker stamp set.  I also added a few gems from PFS.  

The DT has so many wonderful beach scene cards to inspire you to play along and you can find them all right HERE.  This challenge is open till Sunday, June 29th @ 8:00PM.

I'm also adding this card to Darnell's NBUS Challenge #75 since the Retro Sun & Palm stencil is a little older and never been used...cough, cough!!

   

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