Surfing Gnome

 Summer is here, so let's use some fun summer stamps. I can't tell you how cute I think this gnome from Pattie's Creations is. And look, I had a snippet of printed paper with surfboards on them, and a few of the boards have the same palm tree design as the gnome's surfboard. (I don't know much about surfboards -- are palm trees a traditional design or something?) The gnome is colored with pencils (notice the cool ombre on the surfboard!). The sentiment is from The Alley Way.

The surfing gnome is entering these challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday -- add a sentiment. 

Simon Says Stamp Monday -- starts with S (surfboard)

Double D challenge -- beach time

Pattie's Creations #195 --Use an image

Pammie's Inky Pinkies #2225 -- anything goes

Word Art Wednesday #547 -- anything goes

Christmas Birds

According to the weather app on my phone, the "feels like" temperature right now is 102, so let's think cool Christmas thoughts. 

These cute birds are from a Clear Art Stamps set, and I know at least one has never been inked before. They are stamped on a snippet of white card stock, where they are having  a little Christmas tweet-off. They are colored with pencils. The panel is matted on a gold metallic snippet, with a corner punch used on alternating corners on both panels.

The blue panel is embossed with a music score EF and sanded. (That is actually a piece of coredinations, which has a white core, but I did want to sand too hard and lose the raised embossing, so it's a sort of distressed look. I've been digging around in my supplies and finding all kinds of supplies you probably haven't seen in a decade, such as Coordinations and Flower Soft).

This card is entered into these challenges:

Can You Handle the Pressure -- embossing and birds

ABC Christmas -- L is for Little, M is for Music; I think this fits both

Winter Wonderland -- flying high at Christmas

Snippets Playground #430 -- show some snippets

Word Art Wednesday #547 -- anything goes

Pattie's Creations #195 -- anything goes

Pammie's Inky Pinkies #2224  -- anything goes

 

Father's Day

 

This Father's Day card features a very old image by Stampin Up that I have always liked. The background was created with a variety of chalk inks using a scrunched-up piece of plastic wrap (daub on ink, pounce on paper). I decided to create waves by using a Spellbinder's scallop die and using what would be the "waste side" of a traditional scalloped edge. There's some white gel pen to signify foam and differentiate between layers.

This card is entered in these challenges:

Die Cut Divas -- summer days

Dies R Us  #194-- masculine/Father's Day

Word Art Wednesday #547 -- anything goes

Pammie's Inky Pinkies #2223 -- anything goes

Crafts Galore Encore #100 -- anything goes

Vintage style

 I challenged myself to do a vintage style card this time, and the secret seems to be lots of layers. The main image is from a set from Lost Coast called Vintage Labels. It's stamped in Sepia on a grayish snippet, and I added some coloring with pencils. Along the bottom of the label, I added some paper lace that was aged with Antique Linen ink. The label is tucked into a frame cut from another pale gray snippet that was embossed with a flowery EF. (With the embossed gray, it almost looks like an old ceiling tile.) I then dragged a pink ink pad along the top of the embossing to highlight it. There is a metal photo turn on the left of the label. On the right is a butterfly cut from a blue-gray snippet on which I stamped a bit of script to add a little interest before die-cutting. Everything is on top of a lovely, vintage-looking flowered patterned paper, and it's all on a pink card. 

This card is entered in these challenges.

Can You Handle the Pressure -- embossing folder and butterfly

Snippets Playground #429 -- use snippets

Word Art Wednesday #545 -- anything goes

Crafts Galore Encore #100 -- anything goes

The Paper Shelter #514 -- inspired by a movie (Sense and Sensibility)

Monchroromatic and masculine

 I don't usually think of a Christmas card as "masculine," but I guess this one fits the description. The central image is "Christmas Emphemra" from Stamplorations -- it's a set of watercolored Christmas images in ATC sizes you can build a card around.  I used two shades of kraft, adding an embossed texture (Marianne Crafts) to the darker one.  Sentiment is embossed on a piece of vellum with torn edges, using an EP called woven tapestry.  Added a couple of brownish brads to hold the vellum in place.

This card is entered in these challenges:

Rudolph Days -- Christmas

Double D Challenge -- monochromatic

Jingle Belles -- Masculine Christmas card

CRAFT #638 -- Christmas

Can You Handle the Pressure -- Use an embossing folder

ABC Christmas -- K is for Kraft 

Pammie's Inky Pinkies #2221 -- Anything Goes

Word Art Wednesday #545 -- anything goes

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday -- Anything Goes

For an antique guy

 We have lots of family birthdays in the spring, so I make lots of birthday cards. This one is for my FIL, who may or may not have seen one of these in action in his younger days.

The Model A die-cut is mounted on a snippet of a houndstooth print (which was the most masculine pattern I found in my stash), which is in turn mounted on a black snippet. A piece of black grosgrain ribbon runs across the bottom of the houndstooth, and it's attached with three brads. There are also brads for hubcaps on the car.  The sentiment is black-embossed.

This card is entered in these challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Monday -- masculine

CRAFT #636 -- birthday

Die-Cut Divas -- anything goes

Word Art Wednesday #541 -- anything goes

Snippet Playground #427 -- use snippets

Spring wildflowers

 I tried a new watercolor technique, where you create blocks of color, then sprinkle a little table salt while they are still wet. It's quite a cool affect. After the paint dried, I brushed off the salt and stamped some wildflowers and the sentiment.

This card is entered in these challenges:

Simon Says Monday  -- Wild and wonderful

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday -- anything goes

Time Out #212-- spring

Pammie's Inky Pinkies #2217-- anything goes

Pattie's Creations # 193 -- anything goes

Word Art Wednesday #541 -- anything goes