Inspired by a postage stamp

I thought it would be fun to do a couple of different color treatments to a lighthouse image. I have a sheet of the Post Office's New England Coastal Lighthouses series of stamps on my desk, and I took the color cues from the stamps, especially for the purple and orange sunset. (Oddly enough, I also have a set of knot-tying instruction cards on my desk, and I used them to try a few different knots for this card, but I have to say, to my untrained eye they don't look that different.)

The sketch for this is the current Papertake Weekly sketch, #86.

The image is from an old Stampin Up set (with the Father's Day greetings trimmed off),colored with pencils. The twine is Martha Stewart baker's twine, and the gingham is from Making Memories.

I am entering this card in these challenges:

Papertake Weekly, sketch #86
Clear it out Challenge -- Blues
Created with Love #74, Anything Goes
Totally Papercraft #203,  One for the boys (masculine)
Word Art Wednesday #116, Anything Goes
Sister Act Challenge #41, Anything Goes

More winter fun

By this time of the year, I'm ready for spring.  (I noticed some daffodils are pushing up in my garden. But snow flurries are in the forecast for tomorrow, so it's not spring yet.)  However, I signed up for some winter-themed swaps, and this is a card for one of those.

I started by flicking white paint on dark blue paper to created a snow storm.  I used a toothbrush, and the paint splatters ended up being really fine, except for the occasional dribble. I'm calling that "adding interest to the background."

The little penguin is from Impression-Obsession.  He's colored with pencils, and I used some Stickles for the ice he's saking on.  I embellished the sentiment panel with some snowflake gel stickers from EK Success. (found them for 70 percent off while trolling the clearance racks at Target. Score!)

The sketch is Sketch Saturday #292.

I would like to enter the card in these challenges:

Sketch Saturday #292, sketch
Simon Says Wednesday, Ice Inspiration
Totally Paper Crafts #201, Winter Wonderland
Simon Says Monday, Anything Goes
Sister Act Cards, Anything Goes
Word Art Wednesday, Anything Goes

Fun with Ice and Snow

It's been interesting hearing how cold it has been around the U.S. Personally, I prefer my ice and snow in the form of cute images on cards.  So here is my card in honor of the record-setting cold.

The layout is from Splitcoast's weekly sketch challenge. The image is from Impression-Obsession. It's colored in pencils. After cutting and embossing the oval, I sponged ink on the edges while it was still in the die.  I used a ribbon banner in place of the sentiment strip under the snowman.

I'm entering this card in the following chalenges:

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge, Blue
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge, Ice Inspiration
Word Art Wednesday #114, Anything Goes
Loves Rubberstamps #85, Anything Goes
Papertake Weekly Challenge, Anything Goes.

New year, new beginnings

Wow, it's 2014!  Happy new years to all.
"New Beginnings" is the theme at this time of year, and that was the perfect reason for me to make a new baby card for my niece, who is due in a few weeks.  I wouldn't consider her old fashioned in any way, but she doesn't know the sex of the baby, and doesn't want to, so I made a card that was neither pink nor blue. I went with pastel green and a very pale yellow.
The sketch is Feeling Sketchy #77.
The image (from Autumn Leaves) is black embossed and paper pieced. The panel is pierced around the edges, wrapped in light green bakers twine and popped up on pop-dots.  There's a little rocking horse charm hanging off of the twine.

I'm entering the card in the following challenges:

Feeling Sketchy #77, sketch
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge, New Beginnings
Totally Papercrafts #200, New Beginnings
Word Art Wednesday #113, Anything Goes
CRAFT #240,  Anything Goes