Reindeer tag

This is a quick little tag inspired by The Lollipop Ladies #81, reindeer.  The reindeer (from A Muse) is gold-glitter-embossed and colored with pencil on a white tag.  The stars (from a Stampin Up background set) were clear-embossed, then I sponged blue over the entire tag.

 I ran the kraft sticker (from the Target Dollar Spot -- found it last week; hurry they might still have some) through the printer to add some of my favorite lines from "A Visit from St. Nicholas." (Don't know why, but I love the roll call of the reindeer names).  I added a little bling to the reindeer's nose and antlers. I briefly thought of giving him a red nose but I didn't want to mix up mythologies.

The smaller tag is attached to a larger one cut from 1/4 inch grid card stock, which is sponged around the edges with creamy caramel for a vintage look.  Some sparkly yard and a bow completes the tag.

Merry Christmas to all.

The tag is for the following challenges:

The Lollipop Ladies #81, Reindeer
Simon Says Wednesday, bling it on.

Sweet chickadees

Love this sweet holiday image of chickadees. And I even googled photos of the birds to make sure I had the coloration right. (Normally they frequent my bird feeder in winter, but so far this year we've been very short on birds. Perhaps because I keep taking the feeder away to keep the squirrels off of it....)

The sketch for this card is Sketch Saturday #278, selected for Sketch Saturday challenge #289 to pick a previous sketch.

The birds are black embossed and colored with pencils. Kraft and red seemed a good mix of colors for this lovely nature scene. The gingham ribbon also just seemed "right" for this card.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Sketch Saturday #289, previous sketch
Simon Says Monday, use a stamp
Loves Rubberstamps,  holiday blitz
Papertake Weekly Challenge, last Christmas card
Word Art Wednesday #111, Anything Goes.

Non-traditional Christmas colors

Almost all the Christmas cards I have made this year have featured traditional red and green, or at least red (sometimes with silver or kraft). So it was fun to make a card with non-traditional colors.

This card was inspired by the BE Inspired photo at The Alley Way Stamps, and features TAWS stamps as well.  The ornament is a free digi, which was cut out, colored with pencils, and   glitter was added to the top part. The strip along side it is meant to resemble snowflakes, and it includes stamps from Delicate Doilies set by TAWS.  Everything was stamped in Ranger Stream colored ink, but I used several generations of it to get some variation in color.

The card is for the following challenges:

The Alley Way Stamps Be Inspired #43, inspiration photo
Totally Papercraft challenge, Christmas with non-traditional colors
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge, use a stamp
Sister Act Card Challenge #37, Anything Goes
Just 4 Fun Challenge, Merry Christmas

Snow globe card

I made this snow globe card following the instructions on one of the tutorials at Splitcoast Stampers.  The tutorial was very clear and easy to follow, but it was time-consuming. It might be tedious to try to use this design for all your Christmas cards. I do think it came out cute, however. The most important piece for this card is a sheet of acetate, because everything in the card is based off the circle you cut to be the globe.

The snowman inside is from Paper Cupcakes.  He's colored in pencils. I also stamped snowflakes on the acetate globe and put glitter on the "snowdrift" on top of the globe.  It's finished off with some ribbon and a snowflake brad.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge, Snow
Sister Act Challenge #37, Anything Goes
Loves Rubberstamps #82, Christmas
Word Art Wednesday #110, Anything Goes
Created with Love #70, Anything Goes

House Mouse Christmas

This image makes me smile. I find it particularly funny because we have one of those "prelit" artificial trees, and currently about half the lights aren't working -- the tree looks like it's striped, with bands of working and non-working lights, kind of like a bunch of mice got in there and ate some wires.

The mice are black-embossed and colored in pencils. They are matted on a Spellbinders die, and I made a little embellishment out of a little designer paper and a ribbon. I was hoping to combat the unrelenting red and green-ness of this card, but I don't think I succeeded.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:
Papertake Weekly, Christmas Creatures
52 Christmas Card Throwdown, revisit a 2013 challenge = Christmas animals
Holly Jolly Christmas, Anything Christmasy
Created With Love #70, Anything Goes
Word Art Wednesday #110, Anything Goes

Joyful snowman

It's certainly feeling like December, which is good when you're making Christmas cards.  I made this one using Sketch Saturday Sketch #288, turning the sketch on its side.

The snowman is from Paper Cupcakes, a digi company that's no longer in business.  I did an out-of-the-box cut on him and put him a little off-center to leave room for the snowflake embellies. I think it looks reasonable balanced.  Snowman is colored with pencils, and there are silver Stickles on the snowflake and on the snow at the bottom of the snowman

I'm entering the card in these challenges:

Sketch Saturday Sketch #288, sketch
Creative Inspirations Paints: Merry Christmas
Loves Rubberstamps #82: Christmas
Craftyhands #4, Winter
Stamping for the Weekend: Use some Red

A little glitter

When I was a kid, Christmas cards were a big deal with my Mom. She hand-wrote letters to go with each card she sent out, and I loved to look at the cards she received. I'm not really the glittery type, but glitter seemed to make any Christmas card special, so I still still to put a little glitter on Christmas cards.

On this card, I used Stickles on the snowman's hat, and put a little glitter on the embossed piece.

Beyond that, I just used a little color on the snowman's scarf and let the paper do the rest of the work. The paper is from Echo Park.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

CRAFT Challenge #236, Christmas
Sister Act Challenge #36, Christmas
Papertake Weekly Challenge, Anything Goes
Love Rubberstamps #81, Anything Goes
Word Art Wednesday #109, Anything Goes

Another day, another card

What with the late Thanksgiving and how busy I was in November, I am sorely behind in doing Christmas cards. With that in mind, I'm trying to do one or two a day, at least, and challenges are a big help in providing inspiration.

I used the color scheme from the Lollipop Ladies blog -- in inspiration photo of red and white cupcakes, to get going on this one.  The ornament is paper-pieced on a piece of sheet music (it's the Twelve Days of Christmas).  This old paper doily (found when cleaning out my parents' house) has a nice vintage feel to it,  so I stuck to more vintage-looking reds rather than bright ones.

The gold EP has gold glitter in it, and it really has a nice sparkle that's hard to photograph.

I'm entering the card in these challenges:

Lollipop Ladies #82 -- Christmas cupcakes and ribbon
Word Art Wednesday # 109 Anything Goes
52 Christmas Card Throwdown -- ornament theme
CRAFT  Challenge #236-- Christmas
Papertake Challenge -- Anything Goes
Clear it out challenge --  Anything Goes

With a Flourish

Here's a quickie card I made for a cake-themed exchange.  Love this cake image; it's from Impression-Obsession.  So is the sentiment, which says "you take the (cup)cake". (Sorry for the less-than-stellar photo; it's gray and rainy today.)  I added an flourish behind the cake panel to add a little interest to that side of the card.

The cake and flourish are both embossed in an EP called Winter Wonderland. It has some glitter mixed in with the white EP; again the gray weather limited what the photo shows. Actually this card has sparkle all over, what with the metallic silver and blue papers, the metallic ribbon and the glittery EP.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Simon Says Monday Challenge -- With a flourish
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge -- Anything Goes
Word Art Wednesday #108 -- Anything Goes.

Christmas time

It's time to start making Christmas cards.  I just got the new 'Tis the Season stack from Echo Park and wanted to play with it. This is what I came up with.

The paper is double-sided, so I only had to cut into two sheets to make this patchwork design. (Yes, I hate cutting into brand new paper, a common but terrible quirk for a paper crafter).  After I had everything glued together, I figured out how I could have made a pinwheel design, but then it was too late. The patchwork is mounted on a silver metallic paper layer

The tag features a couple of adorable stamps from Hero Arts. I added red fibers and a metallic silver bow, then popped it up on popdots.

This card is for the following challenges:

Simon Says Monday Challenge, patchwork
Created With Love #65, Christmas Red and Green
Holly Jolly Christmas Challenge, Red and Green with gold or silver
C.R.A.F.T Challenge #232, Christmas
Word Art Wednesday #105, Anything Goes.

Paper pieced mug

I love paper piecing. It's such an easy and fun way to add color and pattern to a design.  And the images from The Alley Way Stamps, like this mug, seem to be designed for paper piecing.

The minute the weather turns cool, everyone in my family turns to their favorite hot drink. My son likes the instant apple cider, my husband goes for hot chocolate, and I go for fruit-flavored tea. What a bunch, huh?

This card is based on the layout for Sketch Saturday. In addition to paper piecing, I used an out-of-the-box cut on the image and paired around the edge of the kraft panel.  The sentiment is from Purple Onion Designs.

The card is for these challenges:

Sketch Saturday #283, sketch
Sister Act #32, Anything goes.

Charlie Brown tree

I saw a bunch of cute little stick tree cards recently and decided to try one on my own. Turns out the ones I've seen on the Internet are actually a die cut, but I made mine with glitter and double-sided tape.  I just cut a strip of brown card stock and adhered it to the paper. Then I added strips of adhesive in a vaguely treelike shape and covered them with glitter. I figure it doesn't matter if the branches aren't straight. This was quick and easy and I think it makes for a fun tree, kind of reminiscent of a Charlie Brown tree. You could also do it with strips of paper or fiber instead of glitter.

To complete my tree, I added a button snowflake on top.  I used Feeling Sketchy #73 for the layout.

The sentiment is black-embossed and comes from Hero Arts.

I am entering this card in the following challenges:

Feeling Sketchy #73, sketch
Papertake Challenge: Christmas
Totally Papercrafts #191: Button It Up
Sister Act #31, Anything goes
Loves Rubber Stamps #77: Anything Goes
Word Art Wednesday # 105  , Anything Goes

Masculine birthday

My husband's birthday is coming up, and I really struggle with coming up with a masculine card for him every year. He loves fishing, so I usually try to focus on some element of fishing, and this is what I came up with for this year.

The background has been sitting around for a while, so I am not exactly sure what it it is. It's glossy cardstock that I think was colored with watered-down reinker then splattered with either salt or some sort of spray cleaner (like Lysol) to create the waterspot pattern. It's very possible I tried with salt, didn't like the results and sprayed with cleaner.  Doesn't matter, I thought would make a pretty sunset.

The silhouette image is stamped with Memento black. Oddly enough, I didn't think that would work, so I first tried it with Versamark and black EP.  I was surprised this came out so much better.

The image is from Victorine Originals.

I am entering this card in the following challengs.

CRAFT Challenge #231, masculine card
Just for Fun, your favorite color (It's the blue on this card)
Simon Says Wednesday, Anything Goes
Sister Act #31 Anything Goes

Inspired by a book

I have been reading "Z," which is about Zelda Fitzgerald, wife of F.Scott Fitzgerald. She was sort of the quintessential flapper, so I went looking for a flapper image.

The image is colored with pencils and mounted on a silver Nestabilities frame.  That really fascinating bit of tinselly ribbon is something I got on clearance at one of the big box craft stores a year or two ago when they were clearing out holiday merchandise. I love scouring the holiday sales for items that could work at any time of year.  I pulled some fibers off the ribbon and used it in the die-cut button, also made from metallic card stock.

I don't know of anyone running a "flapper image challenge," so this lady is going into several "anything goes" challenges, listed below:

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge, anything goes
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge, anything goes
Word Art Wednesday #104,  anything goes
Creative Inspirations Paints, anything goes
Tammy's Scrapping Corner #86, anything goes

Embossed flowers

This is a quick and easy card I made using the current Feeling Sketchy sketch #72.

The flowers (Stampin Up) are black embossed, with  gel dots at the centers. A bow of dotted ribbon is set where the two flowers cross. The flower panel is mounted on a piece of printed vellum cut with scalloped edges. The sentiment (Hero Arts) is popped up for a little dimension,  and I used a matching red dot to tie it in with the flower panel.

I'm entering this in these challenges:

Feeling Sketch #72
Challenges 4 Everybody #32, Anything Goes
Word Art Wednesday #102, Anything Goes

Blue Santa

This card went through a tremendous amount of changes from idea to completion. I changed sketches, backgrounds and sentiments. But I'm pretty happy with it.  I like doing Father Christmas in something beyond the typical red. Why not blue, it's my favorite color.


The details:
Santa (an old Hobby Lobby stamp) is colored in pencils, and Creamy Caramel is sponged around the edges of the oval.
Both blue and brown layers are embossed with a music score folder. I sanded the blue embossed piece of Coredinations paper to better reveal the design.
The awesome crocheted lace is a yard sale find.
Believe stamp is stamped in Night of Navy, sponged with caramel ink and layered on an offset bit of blue paper.  There is also caramel ink sponged around the edges.

The sketch for this is the 365 Card's weekly sketch (day 293, if you are keeping up. Gosh, less than 70 days left this year). 
This card is also for these challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge -- Christmas
CRAFT Challenge 229 -- Christmas
Word Art Wednesday 102-- Anything Goes

Nautical story

This card might be a little more abstract than is typical for me, and it has kind of a long story.  It started on Saturday when I got this really large (about 4 by 5 inch) stamp of a nautilus shell at a craft consignment sale.  I think it's from StampZia, a company that's probably no longer around. (At least I haven't seen Zia at the stamp shows in a few years).

I was trying this stamp with a technique I'd seen in the latest Technique Junkies Newsletter called reverse background.  The stamp turned out not to be good for the technique -- you need something busier -- but I really liked how it looked embossed in white with a color wash over it. So I was really happy to see Simon Says Stamp's Monday Challenge is to create something with a nautical theme. Yippee, an excuse to use my new stamp.

I used Sketch Saturday #280 for the layout.

The large stamp is white embossed on white paper.  I mixed some Creamy Caramel ink with a little water and applied with a watercolor brush.  I then white embossed some smaller shell stamps (Impression

Obsession and Sunday International) and cut them out.  Some are applied with pop dots, so the card has some good dimension on it.

Not my typical card, but it's good to change things up every once in a while, right?

I'm also entering in Word Art Wednesday  #102, anything goes.

Double yard sale inspired

We're having a yard sale this weekend, clearing out an accumulation of items we don't use anymore. And yes, that includes some craft supplies (not many, but there are some things I know I'll never use).  While going through a box of craft items, I came across a flocked flower embellishment that I got at a yard or consignment sale awhile ago.  There were several in the package, actually, but the orangish-brown one with the polka-dot center really attracted my eye. I knew right away I had to design a card around it.

I decided a giraffe would work with the coloring of the flower, and that led to this card.  The giraffe is an old Rubber Stampede image, stamped in Chestnut Roan ink and colored with pencils.  I pierced in opposite corners, and matted the image on coordinating card stock. The other papers are from the scrap file. The sketch is Feeling Sketchy #71, along with their bonus option to do a monochromatic card.

I'm entering the card in these challenges:

Feeling Sketchy #71, sketch and monochromatic
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge, Going Dotty (dots on flower and pierced dots)
CRAFT Challenge #227, animals
Papertake Challenge, Anything Goes
Word Art Wednesday, Anything Goes
Loves Rubberstamps Challenge #72, Anything Goes

Quickie Card

This little masking and sponging technique was featured in the Technique Junkies Newsletter about a year ago. It's such an easy way to work color into a clean and simple card.

Colors used were SU Creamy Caramel, Summer Sun and Cameo Coral.  The images were stamped in Memento Black.

Images are from Impression-Obsession.  Sentiment from Mark's Finest Papers.

I'm entering the card in these challenges:
CASology #64, Harvest
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge, Say it With Stamps
Papertake Challenge, Anything Goes
Loves Rubber #72, Antything Goes
Word Art Wednesday #100, Anything Goes

More fun with flocking

I bought some flocking several years ago but never pulled it out of my stash until a few days ago. I love how it feels, and I had to use it again.  I think it looks great in the center of a sunflower, so this image is perfect for flocking.  I used double-sided tape to hold it this time; the first time I used dimensional glue, which held well but doesn't look as good.

The current CRAFT challenge is to be inspired by a book.  This image reminds me of the scene in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban where the kids are hiding in the Hagrid's pumpkin patch. (Actually it looks more like the movie version of that scene, because there were crows all over the place in the film version.)

Image: Mark's Finest Paper
Paper: DCWV
Accessories: Colored pencils and flocking

Sketch:  Papertake Challenge #83

I'm entering this in card in these challenges:

Papertake Challenge #83: Sketch
CRAFT #226: inspired by a book
Simply Create Too #47: Autumn
Word Art Wednesday #99: Anything Goes
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Anything Goes

Celebrating fall

Back with another fall card, just because I love fall.  For the center image on this card, I colored the stamp with a variety of fall-colored markers, right on the stamp, lightly spritzed and stamped it on watercolor paper. If you apply a fair amount of water, you get a really soft, watercolored look. I barely got this stamp wet, and since the lines are so fine anyway, I got just a slight mingling of the colors and a slight broadening of the outline. 

The sketch is Freshly Made Sketch #105.

The image stamp is by Stampcraft. Sentiment is from Mark's Finest Paper, stamped in either Creamy Caramel or Sepia (had both on my desk, and I'm not sure which one I used). The paper is Paprika from The Paper Company. It sounds kind of silly, but it's by far my favorite shade of orange.

I'm entering the card in these challenges:

Freshly Made Sketches, sketch #105
Loves Rubberstamps Challenges #71, Fall colors
CASology #63, Autumn
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenges, Anything Goes
Word Art Wednesday #99, Anything goes

Too late for Talk Like a Day

I needed a birthday card for my brother-in-law, so I decided to try injecting a little humor into the card. I used the Land HO set from The Alley Way Stamps, and the color scheme was inspired by The Alley Way Stamps Be Inspired Challenge #37.

To me, "arrgggh!" is a fun sentiment. And on the inside, a pirate completes the idea, shaking his fist and saying "another birthday," (which I computer-generated.)

The layout on both the inside and outside is CAS(e) this Sketch #46.

The images are colored with pencils and fussy cut.  The green paper has a nice shimmer to it.

This is also for Tammy's Scrapping Corner challenge #81, "Happy birthday."

Chocolate lover

This card is for a chocolate lover.  I have a great set of chocolate-themed stamps from Club Stamp, and I used several of them.  On the inside, the sentiment is "I could give up chocolate, but I am not a quitter." The  nutrition label is quite funny, too: "serving size, 4 lbs".

I used Freshly Made sketch #104 for this card,  converting the fishtail banner into the label, which is mounted on a scalloped-edge matting with ribbon woven through it.

Ink is good old Chestnut Roan chalk ink from Colorbox.  The embellishments are very narrow brown ribbon and a large brad in colors that look like dark and white chocolate.

Thinking towards Thanksgiving

Well, give me a taste of fall and my imagination runs wild. This week it ran all the way to Thanksgiving, so I made a Thanksgiving card.

The main image is on a piece of kraft cardstock. I was going to try a sepia technique (from the Technique Junkies Newsletter.  I saw a Christmas card using the technique at the Holly Jolly Christmas blog and I loved it), but I just couldn't make it look right. It's supposed to be mainly white highlighting, and I just wanted to add more color, so I went my own way and added color.  The center of the sunflower is covered with brown flocking, and I just love running my finger over it.  I'll probably wear the flocking off before sending the card out.

Details:
Stamps:  Mark's Finest Paper
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, SU Creamy Caramel (sponged on edge of main image)
Paper:  all from a very old stack, either ProvoCraft or DCWV
Accessories:  Flocking, colored pencils, OMS; ribbon

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Tammy's Scrapping Corner #80, Anything Goes
Challenges 4 Everybody #29, Anything Goes
365 Cards, Day 263, Garden Scene  (it's a fall garden scene)
Word Art Wednesday #98, Anything Goes

Embossed daisy

Do you remember the first time you saw someone heat embossing? Wasn't it like magic?  It still feels that way to me.

I stamped the silhouette stamp from SU's Upsy Daisy set in Versamark and embossed with black detail embossing powder on glossy paper. I then sponged on red and pink ink for an ombre effect. I repeated the ombre on the sentiment panel.

I put a pink gem in the corner and added a little piercing.

I'm entering this card in these challenges:

CAS-ology #61: Silhouettes
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Embossed
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Emboss It
365 Cards: Day 245, Word Wednesday "Pretty"

Happy Crocs

This is a quicky card, inspired by the current challenge from {The Lollipop Ladies}.  Their challenge #75 has as its inspiration piece some crocodile shaped candy. In addition, the card had to have washi tape on it.

I combined that challenge with a VSN "Opposites Attract" challenge to use rough and smooth textures on a card.  I found I had some crocodiles ready to go  -- they are from a mat stack by DCWV called "Safari Kids," and they are glittery and fun.  The glittery images have a rough texture, like sandpaper  almost, so the rough part was taken care of.  The washi tape was an easy way to incorporate the smooth element.

All the papers on the card are from the same Safari kids pack.  Sentiment is by CTMH, done in red Colorbox chalk ink.

"His and Her" Christmas tags

This is VSN weekend at Splitcoast, and the theme is "Opposites Attract."  One of the challenges called for us to make mini tags showing both a masculine and feminine side.  Since I wanted to make Christmas tags anyway, I made little gift tags.

My "masculine" tags are done on manila shipping tags. I sponged the edges with brown ink to give them more of a vintage look, and used simple, nature-inspired images on them. (I couldn't decide for sure it that Stampin' Up image was holly or mistletoe, so one tag has red berries and the other white).  I used the white string that came with the shipping tags.

The "feminine" tags are bright white with images of the more "commercial" side of Christmas -- candy canes and stockings. These images are both parts of larger stamps, so I ended up coloring the stamps with markers so that only the part I wanted to use would be inked up, and I didn't have to worry about stray partial images. I used coordinating ribbon and fibers on these tags.

I made all eight tags in the 45-minute time limit imposed by VSN, so I feel like I did well. Personally, I prefer the so-called masculine tags.

I am  entering these tags in the Holly Jolly Christmas Challenge "Anything But a Card."  The are also for the CRAFT challenge #223 "Christmas."

All-star ink

This week's Simon Says Stamp Monday challenge is to feature your "stamping all-star," the item you couldn't stamp without.  For me, it's the Colorbox fluid chalk ink in the color Chestnut Roan, which is a dark brown. This has been my go-to brown for years, both because it's a great color and because the chalk ink seems to work better than die ink on a lot of surfaces. 

I'm anxiously awaiting fall, and the cooler temperatures it brings, so I made a fall-themed card.  The brown panel is actually part of a paint sample card (this one is a Martha Stewart, I noticed). I'd have to say that paint chips are another favorite supply of mine -- maybe not quite "all-star" status, but super fun to play with. The leaves are gold-embossed.  The larger leaf is Stampin Up; the smaller is All-Night Media. The sentiment (stamped in that all-star ink!)  is from Purple Onion Designs.

Vintage collage bookplate

It's no secret that I'm somewhat collage-challenged, and I don't do vintage very well either. But when I saw the antique bookplate technique in the Technique Junkies Newsletter two years ago (Oct 2011), I really liked it. Well, I finally got around to trying it, and it was incredibly easy. It probably really helped that the Stampin Up Botanicals set turned out to be the perfect choice, because it had everything I needed -- script stamp, good sized image and lots of small detail stamps to work with.

I don't usually like distressed edges, either (boy, I'm sounding opinionated here, aren't I?), but I made one without the distressed edges, and I think it works better with a little distressing.

Supplies
Stamps:  Stampin Up Botanicals set
Ink:  SU Creamy Caramel (DTP to age paper) and Memento black
Other items: Colored pencils, flat-back gems, fine-tipped black marker, distressing tool.

I'm entering this card in these challenges:

Simply Create Too #45, Vintage
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge, Anything Goes.
 

Batty and Dotty

Here's a CAS card I hope makes someone smile.  It is inspired by The Alley Way Stamp Be-Inspired Challenge #35 and features TAWS images as well.

The bat is paper-pieced and has micro-beads on his dots.  He's also popped up popdots for added
dimension.

I was going to sew around the edges, but that didn't quite seem to fit the goofiness of the bat, so I decided hand-drawn dots would be a good border element. They were done with white gel pen.

Since there are dots everywhere in this card, I am also entering it for the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge, "dotty."

Girly birds

A tiny young bird landed on my deck yesterday. I was really worried it was injured because it was all fluffed up and had its wings extended, but I guess it was just catching some sunshine during what I think might have been its first flight.

These girly birds are for a couple of sisters. The image is from The Alley Way Stamps, and it's paper-pieced.  The sentiment is computer-generated.  I added piercing both around the main image panel and the sentiment. I used printed paper for the bottom layer of flag and a ribbon with a print that echoes the pink plaid on top of that.  I've never liked that pink stripe before, but I cut it on the diagonal and that really improves it.


The sketch is Freshly Made #97.

I am also entering this card in these challenges:

Simon Says Stamp: Anything Goes
C.R.A.F.T. #218: Monochromatic cards

Going for a ride

I love bike riding and now that DH has a new bike, we're trying to go biking a little more.  So I thought I'd have some fun with this bike image from Rubbernecker Stamps. I used the current Sketch Saturday sketch (#269) for the layout.

The biker is black-embossed on a pale blue card stock.  I used the "out of the box" (or, in this case, out of the circle) technique when die-cutting, so my biker is popping out of the mats. I also added eyelets to the center of the wheels -- an old trick but a fun one that adds a little interest and color there to the center of the main image. And since I have a lifetime supply of eyelets, I used a few to hold the sentiment in place as well.

The background paper is some of my favorite summer paper -- the colors just look like summer and the striped one reminds me of a beach towel.  That qualifies this card for Victorine Originals challenge #64, to use summer colors.

Birthday card for long-lost friend.

Recently, one of my best friends from high school and I reconnected through the magic of Facebook. We even got to visit in person when she happened to be in town. Today is her birthday, and here's the card I made for her.

The image is by Rubbernecker Stamp Co.  I worked at the Rubbernecker booth during a recent stamp show, doing demos of the stamps the company has designed for the misted watercolor technique -- you color on the rubber with water-based markers, wet it with a mister and stamp.  It makes it look like watercoloring.  This coloring was done with Distress inks and markers.  (I added some green around the edge of the oval with Versacolor Bamboo ink.) All the embellies come from my stash and some, like the leaf, have been there for a while.

I'm entering this card in the current C.R.A.F.T challenge (#217) "For the Girls." 

Bird-day greetings

This is just a fun little birthday card inspired by The Alley Ways Stamps' Be-Inspired challenge #33. You can see the inspiration photo on the right here.  The stamps are all from The Alley Way Stamps.  The birds are paper-pieced in bright yellow, and I wrapped twine around the blue panel -- both inspirations coming from the photo, along with the entire color scheme and gray-striped background. 

The layout for this is Sketch Saturday Sketch #268.

Pirate's cove

The current C.R.A.F.T. challenge (#216) is a photo challenge.  Most of the people who have taken the challenge are posting idyllic beach scenes, but I went in another direction.  It is a beautiful beach, but with those ominous cliffs and the deserted look, I can see this being the kind of place pirates hide out. And since I have the new pirate set from The Alley Way Stamps, that's the tack I took on this card.

The image is stamped and then colored with pencils and OMS.  I don't usually do a lot of distressing, but since pirates aren't known for being shiny and new, I used a few distress techniques on this card as well. The dark blue panel is embossed and then roughed up with sandpaper  -- it you use a white-core card stock, this makes the white show thru in random places and gives you a nice distressed look. I also made a panel by splattering ink onto it. That gave me another distressed look.

The layout for this is Feeling Sketchy #65, although the original sketch calls for the image to be quite horizontal, and I switched it to vertical.

Gotta love that "arrgggh!" sentiment -- it covers so many different emotions all in one word.

Sew fun

This pin cushion really takes me back. I remember my mother having one just like it.

I got this image as an RAK, and I decided to play up the sewing theme by adding stitching around the image and using a button as my embellishment.  The image is colored with pencils with silver gel pen on the pinheads. The button is die cut, and it was originally hot pink. I sponged red on it to make it fit the color scheme for this card. The adhesive lace also seemed like a "sewing" kind of detail, so I used a strip of it, too.

The layout is from Sketch Saturday, sketch 266.
This is also for Tammy's Scrapin Corner challenge #70, to use animals.

The old red, white, blue

I shy away from doing red/white/blue color combos because I associate the combo with flags, but I decided to try making a non-patriotic card with that color combo.  I'm pretty happy with the results.

I used Feeling Sketchy #64 for the layout. Even though there are a lot of elements, everything seemed to come together easily for this one.  The image is from an old Stampin Up set, Country Morning, that I  got at a consignment sale. I've always liked these little bouquets but I don't think I'd actually inked up this image before.  Blue glass jars and red and white flowers seemed just right for this.  The image is stitched on a navy panel (and for once the sewing machine didn't act up on me. Yay).

The partial circle is embossed with dots to add a little dimension to that side of the card, and the flower image is up on pop dots, both for dimension and to accommodate the ribbon tabs. 

I am also entering this card in Victorine Originals challenge #62, to make a red/white/blue card.

Bold and Bright

My card today features bold, bright colors that I typically shy away from.  I have to do a COTM in orange, red and yellow, so I figured I might as well embrace them big time. Boldly I went. 

The sketch is Freshly Made Sketch #92.  There was something about the curve on the design that really attracted me.  I guess because it's not a shape you generally see. I simply drew the curve on a piece of copy paper and used that as a pattern to cut my layers.

The flowers were first inked in YoYo Yellow, and then I added another layer of  color by using a marker on the stamp as well before applying it to paper.  The butterfly is black embossed, cut out and popped  up.  Flower stamp  is from Autumn Leaves, sentiment from Stampin Up; and butterfly is from Stamps on Fire (I'm fairly sure on that last one).

This is also for the current Simon Says Stamp Challenge, "Anything Goes."