CAS Mix Up January 2019 - Bokeh

Hello friends.  Playing along with this month's challenge over at CAS Mix Up and they are looking for cards using the BOKEH technique.

I had not used the Bokeh technique in a while, but it all came back pretty quickly when I watched one of the video's that's listed on the CAS Mix Up site HERE.  I used a couple shades of green ink (Gina K) to blend my background and then added my Bokeh using Hero Arts Unicorn pigment ink with a Color Box Art Screens stencil.  Here's what it looked like before I made it into a card:

I almost didn't want to make it into a card it turned out so pretty!  But I did and came up with this:

I used SSS's Circle of Leaves die to die cut my top layer and then added a piece of foam with the same size circle cut out of it to the back so that my die cut leaves wouldn't lay flush against the Bokeh background.  Here's a closer up so you can see more detail:

I love the dimension you get by popping it up a little and it also keeps from covering up too much of the Bokeh background.  I finished with a simple birthday sentiment from a an older (2005) SU! set called Sincere Salutations.

Make sure you check out all the GORGEOUS inspiration from the DT and their special GD 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 Jan. 2019 - Blue and Silver

Hello friends.  I'm playing along with this month's CAS Christmas challenge where they are looking for BLUE and SILVER.

When I was playing along with the CAS Stencil challenge last week I ended up making a card that would fit for this month's Christmas challenge with Blue and Silver.  Take a look:

I used a TCW stencil called Aspen Trees and several different shades of blue inks from Gina K.  I used my sponge daubers and started with the lightest color and then worked my way from the outside in leaving the center lighter to look like moonlight was filtering through the grove of trees.  I framed it with a white frame (PTI's Pierced Feature Frames) and then added stars (Gina Marie Designs) and the "Joy" die cut sentiment (PTI's Bold Borders: Flurries with a really soft finish silver cs that was gifted to me by Darnell.  Here's a closer look:

I just love the way this card came out...CAS, elegant, and oh so pretty!  Most people are pretty tired of Christmas cards by now, but I love making them all year round, and I'm even happier when I have a completed stash ready to go in the beginning of December!

Join in the FUN and play along with this month's challenge...you can check out all the inspiration from Loll and the DT HERE.  This challenge is open till the 24th.

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

Make It Monday #347 - Winter Watercolor

Hello friends.  I'm playing along with Papertrey Ink's Make It Monday challenge where Ashely shows us some great tips to make a Winter Watercolor card.  You can check out Ashley's GORGEOUS card and video right HERE.

I didn't stray too far from Ashley's card and used the tree's from the Enchanted Forrest set and came up with this:

I started just like Ashley did with Spring Rain and Blueberry Sky re-inkers and water colored the background.  Once that was dry I stamped the tree's using Ocean Tides, Pinefeather, and Cocoa Bean inks.  I didn't have any gesso so I used white acrylic paint to add the snow to the tree branches and the shadows beneath the tree's.  I also splattered some of the white paint to look like falling snow.  Here's a closer up so you can see better:

I stamped my sentiment from the O' Tannenbaum set and then framed out my Winter scene using the largest Pierced Feature Frames: Ovals in white and then added that to a piece of Bitty Big DSP in Blueberry Sky.  I mounted that all to a top folding white card base and then finished off with a piece of Rustic Jute Twine and a few enamel dots in light blue.  Oh, and did you notice the little bunny peeking out from the side of the oval frame (In The Meadow die)?

This was such a FUN challenge for me and Ashley's video really was filled with wonderful water coloring tips!  Check it out HERE and then play along!

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

CAS Stencil Jan. 2019 - Sponging

Hello friends.  There's a new challenge in town brought to us by Loll and her FABULOUS DT called CAS Stencil.  They're starting us out simple with SPONGING and you can check it all out right HERE to play along!

I love stenciling so of course it was hard to nail it down to just one stencil...so I have 2 cards to share today!

For my 1st card I used Altenew's Elegant Swirls stencil with pink and orange Gina K inks.  I cut my A2 size piece in half and made another card just like this one but with a "Thinking of You" sentiment on it.  I used PTI's Pierced Feature Frames dies to die cut the frame and added a simple white Daisy die cut from Penny Black called Bashful.  Here's a closer up:

The Daisy didn't seem to stand out from my background real well, so I put a dimensional at the top and then curved the petals a bit and then it showed up better.  I added a black sentiment strip that I embossed with the Happy Birthday and pop dotted this as well.  A simple light pink enamel heart finished off my CAS card.

My 2nd card was a really QACAS card where I used a stencil from AliExpress that had 4 different flower stencils all on one template, and I inked up this one with the crazy petals in yellows, oranges, and a little red (all Gina K inks again).  I die cut it with MFT's Peek-A-Boo Rectangle die and then sprayed it quite liberally with Sheer Shimmer Sparkle Spritz.  Here's a closer up so you can see some of the sparkle:

I only sprayed the small stenciled square and not the whole card, so IRL it really stands out!  I kept my sentiment VERY simple and used a really old wooden stamp from a company called Mostly Hearts and I'm not sure if they're even in business anymore.

Amazing what some ink, a sponge dauber, and a stencil can produce, isn't it?!  I love all the CAS challenges, but I think this one is really going to be a lot of FUN for me!  Check out all the FABULOUS inspiration from Loll and the DT right HERE and then play along...the challenge is open till the 24th.

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

Spellbinders Dec. 2018 Kit

Hello friends.  Had time to finally play this weekend with the Dec. 2018 Spellbinders Kit.  If you are looking for kits that include EVERYTHING and are reasonably priced, check out the Spellbinders monthly membership kits HERE.  Here's all that came in the Dec. kit:

Dies, stamps, 6 x 6 pad DSP, 10 cards/envelopes, 2 rolls glitter washi tape, tags, enamel dots, die cuts, tear n tape, stickers, cardstock, & twine.  The Polar bear is what got me and I could have made all 10 cards with just the Polar bear!  I restrained myself (kinda!) and here's the 5 cards I came up with:

See, only 3 with Polar bears!!  I still have more already die cut and ready to go for more cards though!  This truly was such a FUN kit to play with, and honestly, there's enough supplies to make a whole lot more than 10 cards!  I watched a video by Nichol Spohr (HERE) that inspired my cards...check it out for lots of great ideas!

Loved all the DSP but especially this plaid!  Along with the die cuts this makes a great masculine Christmas, Winter, or Birthday card!

Isn't that Polar bear just the sweetest?!  Added more of the DSP to the background along with some die cut snowflakes, Nuvo drops, and a piece of the Washi Tape that comes with the kit.  This sentiment is a Penny Black from Yuletide Wishes.

This one is probably my favorite as it is a little more feminine.  More DSP from the kit for the background and the wreath that was cut with Reverse Confetti's Wreaths Confetti Cuts die, and then more die cutting using all the little dies that come in the kit for the greenery and snowflakes.  This sentiment comes from PTI's Winter Hills set.

And here's that adorable Polar bear again!  More of the DSP that I used on the 2nd card and the tree is one of the die cuts that came with the kit.  The warm wishes are also dies that come with the kit.

And surprise...another Polar bear!  More DSP, snowflake die cuts, and the glittery Washi tape along with a pre-cut sentiment and Nuvo drops completed this quick and easy card.

My Christmas card stash got pretty much depleted last month so I'm glad to say that I have started on my 2019 cards!  Blessings friends!

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

Transformation Tuesday with Dawn McVey #29

Hello friends.  I'm playing along with my 1st Transformation Tuesday challenge over at Papertrey Ink,  where Dawn McVey said this challenge doesn't necessarily have to be that you're transforming a card because you didn't like the way it turned out, but that maybe you really liked the way a card turned out and just want to switch it up for a different occasion or season.  When Dawn had made her 1st thank you card last Summer, I loved the layout and had to CASE her with a birthday card...I never posted it because it didn't fit with any current challenges at the time and then I forgot about it till she posted her 1st card again this week.  So anyway, it got me thinking that the same layout would be a great one for a baby card I needed for my niece who just had a baby girl!

Here was the card I CASE'd this past Summer:

I basically used Dawn's same layout but used the Life Is Beautiful stamp and die set and the Wish Big die for my sentiment.

And here's the same layout transformed into a baby card:

Again, same layout, just used the Bear Hugs stamp and die set along with the Snowfall Style Stencil Collection for my stenciled background.  Like Dawn I also used the Delicates Die to go along with my stenciled background and the Basic Bookmark #2 die to layer the mama bear with her baby on.

Isn't that just the sweetest image to use for a baby card?!  My sentiment came from Boutique Borders: Baby stamp set.  A little bit of Bitty Big DSP in Kraft, some iridescent sequins, and a bit of jute twine finished off my card.

Check out Dawn's 2 cards HERE and then play along.  

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

CAS Watercolour January 2019 - WINTER

Hello friends.  Welcome back...I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and that you are all ready to start out this new year at CAS Watercolour with a FUN challenge brought to us by Susan:

There hasn't been a lot of snow in my neck of the woods this month and lots of roller coaster temperatures...from freezing cold to the 40's!  I like the 40's better, but for everyone out there who loves the Winter sports, hope you're getting enough snow to ski, skate, sled, build snowmen, etc.  When I was young I loved to ice skate...my wonderful dad even made an ice rink for my brothers and I to skate on one year!  My ankles wouldn't hold me up now, but I sure do have fond memories of skating in my younger years!

I started by water coloring my background with Spun Sugar DI and salt.  I think the salt technique works better with darker colors, but I really had my heart set on a soft pink colored background.  The salt did do it's thing...it's just very hard to see because it's so light!  Here's a closer up photo:

Once my background was dry I added the die cut skates (Gina Marie Designs) and then added a Pierced Feature Frame (PTI) die cut to frame the skates.  It still felt like it needed something, so I added a few die cut snowflakes from MFT that I cut in half and added against the side edges of the frame.  A few sequins finished off my card and I added my "Winter Wishes" sentiment to the inside of the card.

We can't wait to see what you come up with for this challenge using WINTER as your theme!  Check out all the FABULOUS cards from the rest of the DT and our special guest this month - Janet...she's going to blow you away with her creativity!!  The challenge is open till the 24th and you can check it all out right HERE.

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