What's Christmas Without Glitter?

     I'm not much of a glitter girl, but one of the VSN challenges this weekend was to do a panel covered in glitter. I decided to make my panel angels in a glittery sky.
     The card is based on the current Card Positioning System sketch (CPS248), which called for three stacked elements, so I just stacked the angels (unknown maker).  They are colored with pencils.  I used a thin two-sided adhesive film for Thermoweb to cover the panel, then added a light blue glitter. That panel is matted on navy paper, and the sentiment (from Serendipity) is in Night of Navy ink. Clean and Simple, it's as easy as that.
      I'm also entering this to the current Victorine Originals Challenge (VO23) to make a Christmas card.

Winter fun

     I got this cute penguin stamp during Impression-Obsession's annual Thanksgiving sale, and I'm so happy to have an excuse to use him. Cute images like this are "almost" enough to convince me that winter is fun (but I live in the South, where ice is serious and can shut the town down for days, so it's not "completely" enough to convince me).
     I also love this sketch from Card Patterns (sketch 145).  It went together so quickly I was amazed, and I really like that element I used blue vellum on -- it really gives the card an extra bit of pizzazz.  This card is also for the current challenge at There's Magic in the Air -- "winter fun with bling" (bling in this case being glitter).
     Image is stamped in Memento black and colored with pencils and OMS.  It's matted on a scalloped circle.  White layer has a punched edge and is also embossed with the Swiss Dot folder.  Blue vellum was punched with same edge punch.  Ribbon is actually sewn in place -- I sewed the button on the card with embroidery floss.
      What sort of winter fun do you enjoy?

Reindeer Games

     I was super surpised to see my name listed as winner of last week's Card Positioning System Challenge (yay for random selection).  A big thanks to CPS and Stamping Bella, the sponsor for last week. 
     On to this week's challenge at CPS (CPS 247).  I'm loving all these sketches that allow me to use up the little scraps of Christmas dp I have stashed in a folder.  This one is pretty self explanatory.  The reindeer is in glittery gold embossing powder because, like everyone else, I dig out the metallic EP for Christmas cards.  That gold cording is a recurring theme in my holiday cards, as well, it seems.
      Reindeer is from A Muse stamps.  It is cut out and matted on metallic gold circle, embossed with the nestie.  The little tickets are from Paper Cupcakes Christmas tickets set -- the bottom one shows Santa wih his sleigh and reindeer -- and are tied onto the cording with a small bit of cording (I punched tiny holes in the tickets first).  The scrap of striped paper has been corner-puched to add a little interest up there.
     Ultimately, it's really a CAS card, but I think it's quite festive.

Silver and Gold...

     I just can't believe it's only a little over two weeks until Christmas. I haven't bought a single gift. In fact, I have no idea what to buy. And the tree is up but not completely decorated yet. I really need to get moving on this.
     I was inspired to make a Christmas-themed card, at least. This is based on the current sketch at Card Patterns (#144). I'm quite pleased with how this came out and how the dark shades of red and green work with the metallic elements.  I used up my last scrap of that "merry Christmas" paper for this and it was the basis for the color choices.
     The Christmas tree (Impression-Obsession) is silver-embossed on dark green and has an "out of the box" cut with the star on top. It's matted on a metallic silver scalloped oval. I wrapped gold metallic cording around the printed paper and tied it with a silver bow in a thicker cording. (The silver and gold trim  make this eligible for the current Really Reasonable Ribbon Challenge, RRR 37; silver and gold ribbon/trim.) And everything is on a maroon base.

    

Vintage Christmas

     I wish could get as enthused about other aspects of getting ready for Chistmas as I can get interested in making Christmas cards. Things would go a lot easier that way.

     Today's card is a vintage-style Christmas card. The vintage aspect was inspired by this week's Magical Monday Challenge from Paper Cupcakes/There's Magic in the Air.  It's also based on the current Card Positioning System Sketch (CPS246).  And it uses ribbon, qualifying it for the current Victorine Originals Challenge (VO22).

     The old-fashioned Santa is stamped on white paper, colored with pencils and OMS.  There's a little  glitter pen on the ribbon on the wreath and silver gel pen on the jingle bells up the cneter of his coat. Edges are sponged with SU Creamy Caramel ink.  Image is mounted on  maroon paper that has been run through the Cuttlebug (textile plate) and came from the scrap file.  I wapped gold cording  around that with a little Chirstmas stocking charm hanging from the cording.  I added gold ribbon tabs at the top of the matting, which is popped up on popdots. I also sponged around the edges of the cream-colored card  and did faux-stitching around the strip of old-fashioned holly DP in maroon marker.

What's shaping up?

      I've done enough challenges that it's pretty hard to surprise me with anything. This week's challenge at There's Magic in the Air included something I've never seen before in a challenge -- the requirement is to include a half-circle in your card, along with the colors of orange, blue and brown. Actually, that's sort of a surprising color combo, but it's the shape that's a new one on me.  Aside from requiring an actual circular card, I don't remember shapes coming up in any challenge.
     This cute image is from Paper Cupcakes, and it's the freebie this week, so head on over to There's Magic in the Air and download it.  There are also some Thanksgiving sentiments offerent for a free download.  I just forgot about them, or I would have used one on this card.
     Card is pretty self-explanatory. Image is colored in pencils and OMS. I sponged Bliss Blue ink around the image.  Sentiment is from two different sets and is inked in Tangerine and Chestnut Roan Chalk ink.  Sentiment is wrapped in baker's twine and up on popdots. I put a big half circle behind the main image and echoed it with a small one behind the sentiment.
      The little acorn is from a set of buttons I picked up at Hobby Lobby on Monday (66 percent off). I don't usually buy buttons with shanks, but I couldn't resist these cuties at the clearance price. Aside from investing in a shank removing tool, does anyone have a suggestion on how to remove shanks?

White-on-White

     White-on-white always makes an elegant looking card.  Adding some dry embossing just seems to up the elegance quotient, or at least I hope that's the case for this Christmas card.
      It was as simple as could be to make. The tree is gold-embossed and popped up on a white mat that is embossed with the textile folder. That is popped up on a panel embossed with the swiss dot folder. A white organza ribbon with gold edging is wrapped around the larger mat and finished off with a bow. And that's all there is to it.  This would be an easy one to set up assembly-line style if you make a lot of Christmas cards.
     This card is for a VSN challenge to make a white-on-white card, and also for what amounts to the same challenge at Paper Cupcake's blog There's Magic in the Air.
     The embossing powder is called Pirate's Gold from Powder Keg. I love the stamp, but unfortunately I don't know who made it (it's from a clear stamp set I got at a consignment sale and it doesn't have any identifying info on it).

Cats Rule

     The theme of this week's Teapot Tuesday challenge is Diva Cats.  The layout is the current sketch from Card Patterns (#140)
     This cat stamp from A Muse seemed perfect -- the crown, or tiara, really seemed to capture the idea of a diva. The cat is stamped in Colorbox Chalk Yellow Cadmium ink, and additional ink is sponged around the circle. I always have ginger cats, and this color is pretty close to that of my current cat.
      To emphasize the diadem, I colored it in with a Spica pen and added gemstones. (Somewhere in my stash are tiny green gemstones that I intended to use and that would be perfect. Of course, I couldn't locate them.)
      The sentiment is computer-generated, and the little heart/paw stamp is from All Night Media. I used markers to ink it up so I could get two colors on it.
     The patterned paper was a gift, so I don't know the origin. Twine is Martha Stewart baker's twine. Border punch is labeled Recollections (I don't know anything about the company, but this punch works really well, although it could be because it's fairly new.)

Gingerbread Newsboys

     A few weeks ago, I saw several cards that used newsprint as one of the design elements. As a former journalist, this really appealed to me, but I kind of forgot about it until this week's Way to Use it Challenge at SCS called for us to use newsprint.  I ended up making a Christmas card that is for both for the current Really Reasonable Reason challenge (#35, Christmas) and the current challenge at Paper Cupcakes' There's Magic in the Air blog (Something sweet).
     Since I knew I was doing a Christmas card, I didn't want the news article to be about Greek debt or anything depressing, so I went through the newspaper looking for a block of newsprint that was both solid type and about a reasonably pleasant subject, just in case the recipient is like me and starts to read the background. (If it's in print, I will try to read it). I really hoped I could find something Christmasy, but settled for a food section article on growing water chestnuts.
        I DPT'd the newsprint with Creamy Caramel ink to make it look aged and so the gingerbread strip would pop.
       Gingerbread border stamp is from DRS. I stamped it in Colorbox Chalk lipstick red, and colored the gingerbread men with colored pencils, dotting in a little green marker on their bowties. Candy cane is from a bag of metal embellies from Michael's, purchased a few years ago.
       What do you think of the newspaper background? The solid block of type works well when you want the background just to be background, as I did here.  I would like to try different elements from the paper (ad pages, classifieds, etc) to see how they look on cards.  Yet another thing to remember when I'm making cards....

Thanksgiving Card II

     When I saw the current challenge at Victorine Originals (VO20) was to use the color combo of black and orange, I immediately thought of Halloween. However, it's too late in the year to be doing Halloween cards, so I decided to challenge myself to use those colors for a Thanksgiving card. I was driving around when I came up with the idea for this card, and I was inspired by all the trees I was driving by, espically the variations in color found on a single tree.
      The layout is based on the current Card Patterns sketch (#139) .
      The bare trees image is from Posh Impressions. I stamped part of it on the white panel in Memento Tuxedo Black, letting the rest just disappear off the right edge of the paper.  I went thru my scrap pile and found a variey of different orange papers to punch leaves from, then added leaves to the trees and on the ground.  The sentiment comes from two different sets, with the "happy" in Colorbox Chalk Tangerine and the "Thanksgiving" stamped in black.
     To play on the variations in oranges theme, I used different orange papers to mat the main image and the sentiment; the ribbon has yet another shade or orange. Finishing touches include a corner punch and a leaf embellishment (too bad I didn't have one in orange)

Thanksgiving Card

I finally got around to trying some of the new techniques from the current edition of Tecnhnique Junkies.  One, called chalk resist, required chalk ink and a solid stamp, so I used this pumpkin. The technique takes advantage of the fact you can see what is stamped beneath the chalk ink, so the background stamping shows through (although the photo didn't pick it up very well, I just noticed)
I thought the curlicues of the background stamp (an old Stampabilities stamp) were a good complement to the curlicues on the stem of the pumpkins.
The sketch is Card Positioning System   sketch #242. I replaced the paper clip with a tiny safety pin and a bow. The flower seen in the picture looked too stark white; after taking the photo I sponged on some orange ink to make it fit in better.
Other details:
Inks:  colorbox Chalk in tangerine and chestnut roan; Memories shadow ink in pale leaf
Sentiment: taken from two different sets

I {heart} glue dots

This week's Teapot Tuesday Challenge at SCS has a King Kong theme.  I thought this little monkey stamp from Autumn Leaves would be a good one to use.
I based the card on this week's sketch from Card Patterns (#138).  To be honest, one of the most time-consuming part of this card was doing that half circle.  It's too big for a nestie, so I went around my kitchen looking for something circular and 5 inches wide to trace. (I eventually found the lid to a big cannister of pretzels that fit the bill.)
I traced the circle and cut it out, then stamped the vine in SU Garden Green and the monkey in Memento Tuxedo Black ink and colored them both with pencils and OMS.  Next I added the rickrack, which is both an embellishment and a way to disguise my not-perfect circle. I could have tried sewing it on, I guess, but I went with glue dots -- one on every other "zig" (hence the title of this post, in case you were wondering.  It was a lot of glue dots.)
The sentiment is computer-generated and cut with a tag punch.  The leafy patterned paper is from DCWV's "Kid Safari" stack. The sketch called for a ribbon across the top, and I added a few flowers to finish it off.
Funny thing about King Kong -- I've seen dozens of spoofs of it, but I've never actually seen any of the movie versions.  Folks on SCS assured me I really hadn't missed anything.

Fall Fun

You're probably sick of me saying that fall is my favorite time of the year. Looking at blogs and other sites, I think a lot of cardmakers are inspired by fall colors and images.  So, I was delighted to make a fall card that fits Really Reasonable Ribbon's Fun 4 Fall theme  (RRR34) and Victorine Original's Fall theme (VO19).
I don't usually do a lot of distressing, but fall seems like an appropriate time for the distressed look.  Two different distressing techniques I learned from Technqiues Junkies came in handy.
I used distressed coloring blocking in yellow and brown ink to add color to the image (which someone sent me as an RAK, so I don't know the origin), and framed the image with a "torn frame." I wrapped the image with gingham ribbon and added a leaf brad before matting it on the frame.
The autumn sentiment is from Purple Onion Design, and I finished the card off with faux stitching.

Girly Birthday Card

I made this girly birthday card with the current sketch from Card Patterns (#137). 
The image is from Paper Cupcakes.  The cupcake holder (is there an official name for those little paper cups?) is paper pieced, and the butterfly and frosting are colored with pencils and OMS.  The nesties are popped up on dimensionls.
There's a row of lace topped by pink rickrack on the top section, and over that a die-cut flower and gem.
All those cool embellies are my recent bargain finds. The ribbon and rickrack is my most recent acquisition -- I bought a box at a yard sale that had more than a dozen unopened packs of rickrack and trim, yards of lace and ribbon, probably a couple dozen buttons and a bunch of embroidered appliques. The price for all this -- $1.00!.  You'll probably be seeing lots of lace and rickrack on upcoming cards.

Christmas scraps

The current sketch at Card Patterns (#136) is a perfect way to use up scraps of designer paper to color block the background layer. I pulled out a stack of Hobby Lobby Christmas papers to make this card.

I don't usually put things at an angle but I like the effect it has on this sketch.

I hope the flower looks like a poinsettia to you -- I improvised it by tracing around the red felt flower on green card stock and cutting out the leaves, then finding a little yellow flower to be the center part of the poinsettia.

Stamps of unknown origin (possibly Hero Arts or Inkadinkado).   SU Forest Foliage and Colorbox Lipstick Red chalk inks. Spica pen used on all the stars to add a little glitter that doesn't show in the photo.  Center panel popped up on popdots.

That's 1 Christmas card done, in possibly one of my earliest starts ever.

Silhouetted flower

     I was playing with silhouette stamps, because that's the theme of a COTM for a group I'm in. I black-embossed the black-eyed Susan stamp on kraft paper. The paper has a texture which showed up through the embossing, but it's kind of an interesting effect.
     The layout is this week's Card Positioning System sketch (CPS238).  I kept the card all neutral, so as not to draw attention away from the main element.
     Other supplies: Printed paper is from Hobby Lobby.  Stamp is from A Country Welcome (which is no longer in business, but someone bought their stamp line); gingham ribbon, half-pearls in two sizes.  The sentiment is a rub-on.

Fall Leaves, Part II

     Still celebrating fall while doing this week's sketch for Card Positioning System (CPS237).  I really like this sketch, because it's such a change  from the usual A2 size, and I see a lot of possibilities for the different elements.

     Image is from Chapel Road Artstamps, and it's so appropriate for fall -- "every leaf a miracle."  It's stamped in Chestnut Roan Colorbox chalk ink.  I decided to showcase a couple of leaf-shaped brads in place of images on either side of the main image -- kind of like framed art.
     I'm also entering this card in Paper Cupcake's Magical Monday challenge, to use at least 3 pucnhes or dies cuts on the card. This has a total of six die cut Nesties in four different sizes.

     Several of the elements on this card -- the brads, twill ribbon and ink -- are the same as yesterday's fall card, but I think they look very different in the two contexts.

Fall Leaves

     The weather has cooled in the South to where it's pleasant but still doesn't feel like fall. That's a good three weeks off. But fall is my favorite time of year, so I'm enjoying it in stamping if not in real life.  So making a card for Really Reasonable Ribbon's current theme, Autumn, (RRR32) was the obvious thing to do.
     This card was created using the Card Patterns sketch for this week, sketch #134. The leaf stamps are from Autumn Leaves (how appropriate!). Not sure of the origin of the other stamp, it's a foam backed stamped I picked up on clearance at Hobby Lobby. The ink is Chestnut Roan fluid chalk ink, which is one of the real workhorses on my stamping desk.
     Papers are all from an old Provo Craft mat stack, and the burgundy twill ribbon worked well with it. As embellies I added faux stitching, a leaf brad and a punched edge.
     So, I have my fall leaves, and I don't have to rake them up.

With a Flourish

This week's sketch at Card Patterns (#132) is a very nice CAS layout. I used it for today's Teapot Tuesday Challenge at SCS, which called for creating a card with flourishes and pearls.  I used blue as the color  for this card, qualifying for Victorine Originals Challenge #16, to use a primary color.

This card went together extraordinarily quickly for me.  I simply stamped the Autumn Leaves flourishes on the base card and the sentiment (from TPC) on another panel, using Ancient Page Cobalt Blue ink.  Matted the panel with blue and added pearls to the flourishes and ribbon tabs to the edge. Used pop-dots behind the matted panel.

I love it when clean and simple is also quick and simple.

Baby Shoes

     I find baby shoes adorable -- almost as cute as baby feet. So when I saw Really Reasonable Ribbon's challenge (#31) to make a baby card, I wanted to use a baby shoe image.  I really thought I had a stamp of baby booties, but if I do it's lost in the stash, so I ended up just printing out some line art onto a pastel checked/plaid paper, and cutting out the shoe image.

      The sketch is this week's sketch challenge layout from Splitcoast. I embossed the green and blue layers (Swiss Dot seems so perfect for a baby card) and sewed the green layer onto the base card. I added a pastel ribbon and button, and a clear sticker for a sentiment.

Cooking up a cowboy image

I spent part of Saturday playing in the Virtual Stamp Night challenges at SCS.  One challenge called for using a technique to create faux leather with masking tape and clear embossing. It's a technique I've done before and, while the results are fun, tearing up little bits of masking tape can get tedious.  So, the two small diamonds on this week's Card Patterns sketch (#130) were the perfect size -- big enough to have impact, small enough not to take too long -- for me to use this technique.
The VSN theme this time was rodeo, and paired with the leather technique, a masculine card seemed appropriate. The image is one I simply found through a yahoo image search.  A little plaid paper, a few eyelets and lots of piercing sponging around the edges completed the look.

Goodbye to OTWC challenge

     This week is your last chance to take part in the Off The Wall Craftiness Challenge. Kim is stopping the challenge, which I have participated in regularly since the start.  We'll miss you Kim -- good luck with your future plans.

     The color combo for OTWC#58 is navy and coral (see inspiration photo to the right).  I combined the colors with the sketch for this week's CardPatterns sketch (Card patterns #129) to create this card. 

     The image is from Inkadinkadoo, stamped in SU Night of Navy ink.  The squarish panel and the coral panel are both stamped with the same flourish background stamp to tie the pieces together and add a little depth and interest-- I used versamark on the coral and looks quite subtle on the photo.

     I went punch crazy as well, adding punched corners to the square panel and using a new border punch on the white strip  (it's a new punch for me, and it appears I'll have a bit of a learning curve getting things to line up on it.)

     Hope everyone is having a great week.

Wish I were here

     Victorine Originals new challenge (challenge 15) is to use the theme "summer."  Where I live, there's plenty of summer left. Unfortunately, there is no beach around, so I can only wish I was here.

     I used the current CPS sketch, (CPS323) for the card.

    The challenge this week at Magical Monday (There's Magic in the Air) is to use a scene, and this beach scene says "summer" all the way.  The image is a new one from Purple Onion Designs, colored in pencils and OMS.  
    Clean and simple seems appropriate for summer.

CAS and pink and brown

     I rarely do one layer cards -- years of stamping have ingrained a desire to do some matting on every card into my brain.  Today, however, I'm sharing a one-layer card. It's about as clean and simple as possible -- two stamps, one ink, a little Flower Soft and some ribbon.

     What has me keeping it so simple?  Really Reasonable Ribbon's current challenge (#30) is to keep it clean. The colors -- white, pink and brown -- are for the Magical Monday Challenge at There's Magic in the Air. Those colors made me think of spring, so even tho fall is (hopefully) coming our way, I went with a spring-like card.

     The tree stamp is from Posh Impressions. The images are stamped in Colorbox Fluid Chalk ink, Chestnut Roan is the color.  The Flower Soft Mix is called Sweet Pea, and I found a ribbon that picked up pinks and greens like in the Flower Soft.

     I usually agonize over cards and where to place things, and it was kind of freeing to keep it to one layer.

Quick and Easy Birthday card.

     I have a personal, ongoing challenge  called "look what I found in my stash"  where I'll go thru my stash of paper or embellies and see what comes up for air. Today, I found this super-cute, shimmery birthday-themed paper from Heidi Grace.  And it worked perfectly with the theme for the current Victorine Challenge (#14), to create a birthday card. 
     I used the current sketch for Card Patterns (Sketch 128) to create the card, but I simplified the layout a little to take advantage of the sparkly paper.
     Stamp is from Clearly Defined. Cupcake is stamped in Ranger Stream ink, colored with pencils and OMS, and I used a spica pen to add a little glitter to the candle and flame. My stash also coughed up some ribbon that sort of coordinates with the paper.  The blue layer has been thru the Swiss Dot folder to give it a little texture and match the dots on the other elements on this card.
     As a member of one of the online stamping groups I'm in always signs off her posts -- May we live long enough to use up all our stash.

Christmas in July

     This week's Teapot Tuesday Challenge is Christmas in July -- create a card feturing a gingerbread man. I didn't have any good images, but luckily fellow SCSer Leigh, who runs Happileigh Scrappin, offered up this cute image for challenge participants.

     The image is colored with pencils and OMS.  The layout is this week's Card Positioning System sketch (CPS228).   I added a scalloped edge and ribbon to the panel on the left of the cookie, and also did a little piercing in each corner of the main image. (Papers are from an old Hobby Lobby Christmas pad.)

     I'm so proud of myself for being able to locate all my holiday supplies.  I found an aluminum candy cane (from Michael's several Christmases ago) and added red and green gems to it, because this card is also for Victorine Originals Challenge #13 to add bling, and that's about as blingy as I get.

Kick back and relax

I own a fluffy orange cat, and I can almost imagine him in this pose. He loves to stretch out on his back with the sun hitting his belly, and I'm sure he'd be happy to do so with an inner-tube cushion, as long as it was on solid ground, not water.  OK, he probably wouldn't want an umbrella drink, but "carefree days" sure captures his life.
But back to the matter at hand.  This card is for the Off The Wall Craftiness challenge #57, which is to make a "beachy" card.  Additionally, it is for this week's Magical Monday Callenge at There's Magic In the Air -- this week's challenge is a sketch, which I had to tweak just a bit to fit my image.
That cute image is a free digi I picked up a while back, but I'm pretty sure it's Hambo.  Colored with pencils and OMS.  There's some Martha Stewart baker's twine wrapped around the edge of image, and the chipboard sentiment is from an old pack by Colorbok. Patterned paper is from My Mind's Eye.
Take it easy in the heat!

Birthday Collage

I don't do collage very often, as I'm just not comfortable doing it. But the Ways to Use it challenge at SCS this week was to do a collage using at least four stamps.  The sample cards inspired me, and this is what I came up with. (It is in part a CASE of the sample by Collette, challenge hostess).

It's also for this week's Magical Monday challenge to do a birthday card.  (And it's really different from anything I made during my month as guest designer for Paper Cupcakes).

The puffy flower (Purple Onion Designs) is clear-embossed on gray paper. I overstamped with a script background stamp using Ranger Slate ink, wiping the ink of the embossing.  Then I added the butterflies (Impression Obsession) in opposite corners using SU Eggplant Envy ink. 

The sentiment is also stamped in Eggplant Envy ink.  I used half-pearls to tie the sentiment in with the bottom of the card.  The border punch is by McGill.

Bright and cheerful flowers

     Outside, it's about 97 degrees and any flowers in my yard are wilting. But in my stamp room, I can make them as perky, bright and cheerful as I want.

     This card was inspired by this week's teapot at Mother Mark's Teapot Tuesday.  Usually I get inspired by Cindy's fun stories, rather than the actual teapot, but this teapot was so cute, I couldn't resist translating it to card form.
      The flowers and leaves are from an SU set, and I've lost track of where the bee is from (probably a grab bag of some sort or another). I arranged them close to how they appear on the teapot and colored with pencils.  The yellow layer went thru the Cuttlebug with the Swiss dot folder, and since the bottom of the card "needed something," it got half pearls.  
     The ribbon came from Mike's a few years ago -- it was among the Christmas clearance ribbon, and I was grabbing anything that didn't look "too Christmasy."
      The Victorine Stamps challenge is back, and this card is for Challenge #12 -- using flowers.
Stay cool.

A touch of '20s glamour



Glitter and gel pen details



The Magical Monday Challenge at There's Magic in the Air has a true challenge for us this week. The challenge is "Blast from the Past," doing a card that reflects the era from the 1920-30s.  Looking at photos from then (thanks to Yahoo's photo search), I found lots of women in suits and hats, wearing impeccable makeup. The Paper Cupcakes image called "dresser bureau"  seemed to reflect that era.  Doesn't the perfume atomizer and strand of pearls look like your grandmother's dresser?



Fun with feathers



In addition to coloring the image with pencils, I added a little spica glitter pen to the glass vase, silver gel pen on the silver on the jewelry box and atomizer hardware, and white gel pen for the pearls.

I also raided my husband's fly-tying goodies for a few feathers -- a "tip of the hat" to the hats of the 20s and 30s. (And I quite like the look of feathers on the card, and will have to do this again.)

This is my last card as June Guest Designer for Paper Cupcakes. Head on over to the blog to see how the design team handled this challenge, and take a shot at it yourself.  One lucky winner gets 2 free images of her choice from Paper Cupcakes.

Thanks, Nina, for letting me be a guest designer.

Farewell to Etsy Inspired Challenge.

After more than three years hosting the Etsy-Inspired Challenge, Ashley is ending the challenge.  EIC was the first blog challenge I ever entered, and it's always fun because each challenge takes us to a different Etsy shop, usually one I would never, ever visit on my own.

For the last challenge, EIC141, the shop is called Homes and Weddings, and it features metal wire items such as place card holders.  My inspiration for this piece is the silver wire heart-shaped table decoration.

The inspiration piece reminded me of this silver wire heart-shaped clip.  I got the sketch from a Yahoo group I am in. It's a large tag with a smaller tag and library evelope on it.  The large tag is clear-embossed with butterflies, and the smaller tag and evelope are decorated with punched butterflies.  The silver heart is set off by matching ribbon.

Stamps: Inkadinkadoo (butterflies) StampinUp (sentiment)

Inks -- versamark; Memento Tuxedo black, VersaMagic Pretty Petunia (sponged on small tag)

Thank you, Ashley, De and the EIC DT --- it's been fun, and I will miss the challenge.

Inspired card

This week's challenge at There's Magic in the Air is an inspiration challenge. Make a card inspired by the image you see over to the right.

I used the Paper Cupcakes image called Tulips in Bottles -- pretty appropriate, huh?  I also got to use one of my favorite "supplies," a paint chip.  I thought this one in various shades of blue was perfect. It came with holes punched near the bottom, so I used that area for embellishments -- weaving a ribbon through it and adding extra ribbon on the side. (This particular kind of paint chip is from Lowe's, but I don't know if that's the style still available at the store or not.)

The image is colored in pencils and OMS, and I sponged some blue ink on the edges of the oval, which is popped up on the scalloped oval.

Winner of this week's challenge gets 2 free digi images of her choice, so be inspired and make a card.

Home Sweet Home.

Love this sweet little image, which is being introduced today by Paper Cupcakes. You can get it for free this week at the There's Magic in the Air blog. 

The Magical Monday Challenge at TMITA is to "pick two" from a list of embellies and use them on your card.  I chose ribbon and flowers.  It's an easy challenge, and the winner gets 2 Paper Cupcakes images of their choice.

This card is the first I've made using my new (for me) sewing machine, which I picked up at a neighbor's yard sale for $10.  I don't want to use my regular machine for paper, so this seemed like the perfect deal. I used it to zigzag stitch the patterned paper to the main card. The paper is from the Twitterpated Collection by Pepples, and I think it's the perfect match for this little house. Image is colored with pencils and OMS.

Masculine cards

Woot, woot. I'm the guest designer this month for Paper Cupcakes and the Magical Monday Challenge, found at There's Magic in the Air.  This week's challenge is to create a masculine card.
My card features the Paper Cupcakes image "On the Road Again." I did a little "out of the box treatment" with the front tire and exhaust coming out the back when I cut the image out with nesties.
The striped paper is from the Safari Kids collection

from Die Cuts with a View, and I used coordinating solids from my stash. The image is colored with pencils, and there's some Glossy Accents on the frog's eyes. My favorite detail on this card is the hubcabs -- I had these fun beads in my embellishment box, and they fit perfectly -- it seemed like a good "masculine embellishment."
The tickets are also from Paper Cupcakes -- the set is called Summer Tickets and there are tons of different designs on the file. They are great fun.
Head on over to There's Magic in the Air. The blog features a free digi image every week.  Additionally, all cards posted for the challenge are entered in a random draw for two free Paper Cupcake images of your choice.

Texture all the way

I made this card for a couple of challenges. It's a case of a card by jandjccc at Splitcoast, who is the subject of the week's Queen for the Day Challenge. She's a big user of embossing, so it was natural to pull out the cuttlebug folders for this card.
This is also for the current Off the Wall Craftiness Challenge (OTWC54), which features the color combo of brown, blue and white. (see inspiration photo at right).

Both the stamps are from Club Stamp. I used the Cuttlebug Script folder on the background and Dotted Swiss on the heart. The ink is Colorbox Chalk Chestnut Roan. Ribbon is from Michael's.
See you all Monday when I start my term as June Guest Designer for Paper Cupcakes and the Magical Monday Challenge at There's Magic in the Air.

Hidden sentiments

The Technique Lover's Challenge at SCS this week was hidden sentiments. You simply attach the main image by a brad, so it swings up to reveal the hidden sentiment underneath. How easy is that? This week's Card Positioning System (CPS219) sketch worked perfectly for me to try the technique.

Details: Stamps by Impression Obsession; paper by Cosmos Cricket; Inks are SU Kiwi Kiss and Stampcraft Baby Pink. Other supplies: mini brad, nesties, piercing tools.

Make your own flowers

The theme this week for the Magical Monday Challenge is "make your own flowers." I went with a simple flower punch for the flowers on the bottom of this card, adding the centers with a marker. (There's always a free digi at the challenge, and the winner gets to choose two Paper Cupcakes images.)

The card is a CASE for SCS's Queen for the Day challenge, which honored one of my favorite stampers -- sleepyinseattle.

The Details: Sentiment by TPC Studio, flourish by Autumn Leaves. Stamped in Chestnut Roan chalk ink. Ribbon by KI Memories. Paper tearing by me.

Embellished Circles

I've been wanting to try a technique from the latest Technique Junkies newsletter for a while. It's called embellished circles, and the title pretty much says it all. As part of my haul of goodies from last week's yard sale (see previous post), I have a new pack of Autumn Leaves stamps that are all variations on circles, so I'm fully prepared.

I used the color scheme from the current Off the Wall Craftiness challenge (OTWC53, inspiration photo at right.)

I like the fun, casual effect of the technique.

Supplies -- Large circle is Impression Obsession, the rest are Autumn Leaves (except sentiment).

Inks -- Colorbox Prussian Blue; Ice Blue and Dark Moss; Versamark Sand and Bamboo.

Bow (Martha Stewart), rhinestones, silk flower and mini brad.

Enjoy the ride

I hit the jackpot while I was out visiting yard sales last week. One of the vet organizations (American Legion or VFW) had an entire table full of brand new stamping/scrapbooking supplies. They were selling stickers 4 packs for $1 and clear stamps 2 packs for $1. I got 4 packs of Martha Stewart premade bows, rub-ons, etc, and 2 packs of Autumn Leaves stamps. I should have bought more.

I used the ribbon colors my color inspiration for this card. The theme was inspired by the current Etsy-Inspired Challenge, EIC 168. The store this time is called Bear Creek Designs, and it features hand-felted little critters -- talk about cute! I was inspired by this needle-felted horse. (I'd be tempted to adopt him and bring him home if my son were younger,)

Carousel horse stamp from Sweet Impressions, colored with pencil and OMS. Sentiment is computer-generated. Ribbons by Martha Stewart (who makes much prettier bows than I can, what a surprise!)

On an angle

This week's challenge at There's Magic In the Air is a sketch challenge. I don't put elements at an angle very often (I've spent way too much in my life checking pages to make sure everything is straight to intentionally put things askew), so this was a fun change.

The image is a digi from Paper Cupckaes, colored with pencils. The sentiment from a set I picked up at Mike's on deep discount -- the pack says TPC Studio (that's a new one to me). The distressed paper is from my stash, and I love it -- it's so wonderfully summery. There's piercing a round both the angled pieces.

Happy Birthday, Bro

May is a big birthday month in our family, so this is a good month to find inspiration for birthday cards. I made this birthday card for my brother, thanks to inspiration from a couple of challenges. I used the same printed papers as for a father's day card I made, so I guess the Father's Day card goes to my FIL -- not that I seriously think my dad and brother would notice the similarities in papers. (Would yours?)

The sailboat inspiration is from this week's Etsy Challenge (EIC137). The shop is Imagine Studio, and it sells some amazing art prints. I took my inspiration from this one of three boats.
The layout is this week's Mojo sketch, MOJO189.

Finally, this qualifies for this week's Magical Monday Challenge, to make a birthday card.

Supplies: Stamps -- Stampin Up and CTMH. Ink -- Momento Tuxedo Black; colored pencils and OMS, border punch, red bakers twine, tiny ruby faux gems.