SC765 Cheers

Made this using the Sketch at Splitcoast Stampers (shown below). After stenciling the background, I wasn't sure if another pattern would work here. I normally use solid strips, but I stepped out of my comfort zone a bit by using this scrap of gingham. I think it works...and it allowed me to cut the sentiment out of navy, which I think looks just right. Colored the Beer Stein with Copics, then added Glossy Accents for a great shine. Used a Snow Marker to create the foam. So fun! Hope my nephew enjoys his 21st birthday as much as I enjoyed making his card! TFL!

Supplies Used:
Stamps: Riley & Company: Beer Stein; Stamps By Judith: Pretzel
Ink: Distress: Chipped Sapphire, Memento: Tuxedo Black, Copics
Other: Altenew: Halftone Stencil, Glossy Accents, Marvy Snow Marker
Dies: Nestabilities: Standard Circles Large, Penny Black: Cheers Sentiment

CTS #337

Lots of patterns on this one even while trying to keep it clean & simple. Used the sweetest thing paper pad from My Mind's Eye and coordinating brads. The flowers were stamped using TSOL's flower2doodle and cut out with coordinating dies. The sentiment is from another TSOL stamp set (tv2stamp) - I just had to bravely snip the longer sentiment into two. Used sketch #337 at Case This Sketch:

Supplies Used:

Paper: My Mind's Eye: the sweetest thing

Stamps: TSOL: flower2doodle, tv2stamp

Dies: TSOL: flower2doodle

Ink: Stampin' Up: Calypso Coral, VersaMark 

Other: Stampendous! PEARLustre Aventurine EP, My Mind's Eye Brads, BasicGrey Candy Buttons

Summer Coolness

I was so excited to find this popsicle paper along with the coordinating drippy rainbow paper. How perfect for Lawn Fawn's here's the scoop stamp/die set! Sending this to my junior camp counselor on her final week. I miss my seventeen year old who has been gone all summer! She was home for July 4th, but that was forever ago. Guess it's good preparation for when she's off to college...I'm going to try to make the best of her last year home! 

Had fun coloring these cute little popsicles. Intended to add a coat of glossy accents, but, as usual, I didn't have time as I had to get this in the mail quickly so she would get it before she leaves camp! Funny thing about the glossy accents: I accidentally knocked it off my file cabinet, which led me to move the super-heavy piece of furniture laden with way too much paper. I ended up breaking the cabinet, so now I am forced to go through all my files! On top of that, I just bought a new standing-desk (with a huge crafting surface💙) so I was kind of already in the process of reorganizing my craft room. Hope I manage to finish this enormous task before Christmas!!

Supplies Used:
Ink: Copics, Memento: Tuxedo Black, Distress Oxide: Spiced Marmalade, Squeezed Lemonade
Stamps: Lawn Fawn: here's the scoop
Dies: Lawn Fawn: here's the scoop, Nestabilities: Labels Eleven
Paper: The Paper Studio: dp, Recollections: Pink

FMS394

Made a quick birthday card today using the sketch at Freshly Made Sketches. I had been practicing the multi-layer stamping with these beautiful Altenew stamps/dies using my Misti, so I was able to save a little time because I already had some leaves ready to go. I wanted to add a bit of color to the background, so I unearthed my splatter brush and some water colors and had some fun. Not being a careful crafter, I did end up accidentally splattering several card panels at once, but that just means I am one step ahead for the next card...it's all good! TFL!

Supplies Used:

Stamps: Altenew: Peony Bouquet

Inks: Altenew: Shades of Purple and Green Fields

Dies: Altenew: Peony Bouquet and Sunny Studio: Fishtail Banners

Paper: SEI

Other: Watercolors, Tim Holtz: Splatter Brush, MISTI

Wishing On a Star

Made these two cards for My Favorite Things Wednesday Sketch Challenge #435. I have a ton of cards to make for the month of May, but sometimes when I HAVE to make a card, it isn't as much fun as just making a card because Inspiration hits. So rather than setting out to make one of the cards on my To-Do List, I set out to see what supplies I had that could fit this sketch. My recently purchased Stargazer Paper Pad made me think of my Rocket Scientist Niece who currently works with satellites (but whose birthday is not until August). While I was at it, I did manage to make a second card for a May Graduate so I get to check one off the To-Do List and I am actually ahead-of-the-game for August! Woo-hoo!

These cards were made very similarly, using string (embroidery floss), a die-cut star and a full moon (cut from a one of the papers) for the three circle shapes on the sketch.  The stars were colored by using a Brush Strokes stamp - the card above was embossed in Sapphire, while the card below was embossed with VersaMark then topped with Perfect Pearls. Both sentiments were embossed in Sapphire. Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies Used:

Paper: The Paper Studio: Stargazer Foil Pad

Dies: Sizzix Originals: Stars #2, Simon Says Stamp: Wishing, Wplus9: That is All (amazing)

Stamps: Simon Says Stamp: Sending and Wishing, Wplus9: That is All, Hero Arts: Brush Strokes (inside of Star)

Ink: VersaMark, VersaFine Onyx Black

Other: Perfect Pearls, Sapphire Embossing Powder, Fun Foam (behind the star)

Two Scoops

Another Ice Cream card...this time for the challenge at Freshly Made Sketches (FMS383). I have so much matching ribbon that I decided to use it for the top of this card. I am having a hard time cutting ribbon without it fraying - I miss the Ribbon Cutter I used to have that melted the ribbon to 'seal' it as it cut (it broke). (It was that one from Imaginesce - when it did work, it did a nice job.)  So I usually wrap the ribbon around cs to hide the frayed ends, but I didn't have a backing piece for this card, so I wrapped the ribbon around a separate piece of cs, then just adhered that to the card front. (Yay! No frayed edges to be seen!) 

While all those creamy papers were out, I made another simple card. I absolutely love those Stamps & Dies. TFL!

Supplies Used: 

Stamps/Dies: MFT You're the Sweetest

Paper/Ribbon: The Paper Studio

Inks: Altenew: Pinkalicious, Rocky Shore and Sand Dunes, Colorbox: Pink, and VersaFine: Vintage Sepia

Dies: MFT: Stitched Circles and Spellbinders: Scalloped Circles and Classic Edges One

Other: Fiskars: Open Scallop Border Punch: 

Minty Sweet Friend

Today's card brings a taste of summer even though the weather here in the midwest is more like winter! I just love the mint, pink and chocolate brown combination of these papers - perfect for Ice Cream cards, don't you think? I'm entering this card in the My Favorite Things Sketch Challenge #432. Love the creative inspiration over there. Fun site to visit! Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies Used:

Stamps/Dies: MFT You're the Sweetest

Paper/Ribbon: The Paper Studio

Inks: Altenew: Pinkalicious and Rocky Shore, Colorbox: Mint

Stencil: Heidi Swap

Lacey Azaleas

Made another Azalea card, this time in blue. Adding it to the SC741 Challenge at Splitcoaststampers. The lacey circle was a challenge to create as the die was for only a half circle. It ended up being so large that it covered the whole front panel! The solid background was also die cut using only a half circle outline die. I somehow managed to line them both up quite evenly...whew! I colored the Azaleas with copics, then fussy-cut them. I usually use a die to cut out my colored images which leaves a lot of white space, but since I wanted to show more of the lace, I decided to cut them out. I made this for my mil's 85th birthday - I hope she likes it! TFL!

Supplies Used:

Paper: teresa collins: Everyday Moments, X-Press It Blending Card 

Stamps: Power Poppy: Azaleas

Ink: Copics

Dies: Heartfelt Creations: Layered Elegant Swirl, Spellbinders Die D-Lites: Sentiments One, 

Other: want2scrap: pearls

Azaleas in Violet

Adding this to Sketch Challenge SC737 over at splitcoaststampers.com. I was able to put this card together rather quickly since I had stamped several panels while making my sister-in-law's birthday card. These flowers were colored with blue-violet markers and the matching background paper is from two different paper pads- surprisingly, they matched very well! The sentiment, stamped here in Dusty Concord Distress Ink, is from Altenew. The inside was also stamped in Dusty Concord Distress Ink with stamps from Our Daily Bread and Simon Says Stamp. TFL!

Supplies:

Paper: Our Daily Bread Designs: Christian Faith Collection, Kaisercraft: Lilac Avenue Collection, X-Press It Blending Card 

Stamps: Power Poppy: Azalea, Altenew: Heartfelt Sentiments, Our Daily Bread Designs: Flourished Verses

Ink: Distress: Dusty Concord, Memento: Tuxedo Black, Copics

Dies: Nestabilities: Card Creator

Azaleas and a long-lost stenciled background

I have spent a lot of time with my craft supplies these last few days. I needed a project to work on while listening to a series of talks, so I decided to try to make  one of the DIY Ink Storage Units that I found on Pinterest. Once that was completed, I had to rearrange my other storage units to make room for the new one. That led to me basically tearing apart my current set-up and rediscovering oh so many things that were made long ago but forgotten and hidden away. One of those treasures was the piece that I used for the background of this card. I know I used Distress Inks, but I can't remember exactly which ones. I'm thinking it was Seedless Preserves, Wilted Violet and maybe some Worn Lipstick. At any rate, it matched my Violet-colored Azaleas, so I was happy! I was going to enter this into the challenge at splitcoaststampers.com, but I didn't want to split the background so then I wasn't sure if this card would be eligible. So of course I had to go ahead and make another card so that I could enter the challenge! One of the hardest things for me to do is to cut an image that I spent so much time coloring....and that flower stamp is so pretty! But I really do like the look of the ovals for a focal point. I added a simple sentiment embossed in white and finished it off with two Nuvo Drops. 

   

Supplies:

Paper: X-Press It Blending Card, violet cs 

Stamps: Power Poppy: Azalea, My Sentiments Exactly: Inspirational Birthday Innies & Outies

Ink: Distress: various, Memento: Tuxedo Black, Copics

Dies: Nestabilities: Ovals and Card Creator

Other: Stencil: Memory Box: Texture Flourish, Wendy Vecchi: Embossing Paste, Nuvo Crystal Drops: Sweet Lilac

SC736

I'm entering this in Split Coast Stampers Sketch Challenge #736. Grateful for the inspiration! I wanted to use some of my newer supplies, especially that marble background stamp. I started out by clear embossing the marbled image and inking over that with a few distress inks. I die cut a heart, then popped it up with foam to add dimension. I remembered that I had a stash of left-over little hearts, to which I added a few white highlights. However, when I went to adhere them, I somehow lost one of them....which happens too often! This time, I eventually found the missing heart (while cleaning up of course) stuck to the underside of my craft mat. Ugh. 

Supplies:

Paper: Recollections Valentine's Day

Stamps: My Favorite Things: Marble Background

Ink: Distress: Candied Apple, Worn Lipstick, Festive Berries, VersaMark

Dies: Sizzix Originals: Heart #2, My Favorite Things: LLD Hot Cocoa Cups Die-namics, Simon Says Stamp Mini Hearts Set

Other: Altenew: Splatter Stencil, washi tape, white colored pencil

I made a second card by adhering the marbled panel w/the heart cutout on red cs, then heat embossing a sentiment in white. Scattered a few mini hearts in white, red and worn lipstick to finish this card.  Thanks for stopping by!

Mojo Monday #509

I needed some inspiration to jump start my Valentine's Day cards...Mojo Monday 509 came to the rescue! I embossed the background, die cut a big red striped heart and added a second white heart to help the striped one stand out. Looking forward to playing along with more sketches!

Supplies Used:

Paper: Recollections: Valentine's Day Paper Pad

Dies: Sizzix Originals: Heart #2

Other: Cuttlebug: Swiss Dots Embossing Folder

More Doodlebug Design Cards

Finally getting around to posting the other three cards I made while I had the Doodlebug Design paper pad out. On this card, I added a phone cord - I tried using a die from my stash, but nothing seemed to connect the mouthpiece to the phone base properly, so I just ended up fussy cutting. I added several Nuvo crystal drops that I had pre-made. I made them in batches so that they are always ready to use. This comes in handy when I am in a hurry and don't have time to wait for them to dry. Plus, if one doesn't come out quite right, it doesn't ruin my card. I love my Nuvo Drops!! 

Supplies: 

Paper: Doodlebug Design: take note

Dies: Technique Tuesday: Say It - Hello and Sizzix Originals: Telephone & Diary, Edgeabilities: Classic Edges One

Stamps: Hero Arts: Truly Appreciated

Ink: Distress Oxide: Mermaid Lagoon

Other: Nuvo Crystal Drops: Dandelion Yellow

I just love all the bright colors in this paper pad! Added some solids to coordinate with that busy pattern. Used some white to make the phone and the sentiment stand out a bit. 

Supplies: 

Paper: Doodlebug Design: take note

Dies: Technique Tuesday: Say It - Hello and Sizzix Originals: Telephone & Diary, Nestabilities: Classic Scalloped Squares

Other: Nuvo Crystal Drops: Caribbean Ocean and Ripened Pumpkin

I brought out another Sizzix Original Die for this one and found some coordinating dotted papers for the border and cupcake. I also added glitter to the cupcake liner. 

Supplies: 

Paper: Doodlebug Design: take note and the Paper Studio dotted papers

Dies: TSOL: Cupcake, Edgeabilities: Classic Edges One, Sizzix Originals: Confetti

Stamps: TSOL happyBday2you, Stampabilities: Everyday Expressions

Ink: VersaMark and Stampin' Up: Wild Wasabi

Other: Nuvo Crystal Drops: Caribbean Ocean, Dandelion Yellow and Apple Green, Sparkle N Sprinkle Glitter: Fire Engine Red

Bright and Cheery Hello

I spend so much time finding inspiration on the internet and very little time actually creating anything. This searching often results in me adding more items to my Wish List and feeling like my current stash of supplies is inadequate. Well, today's card was made from inspiration found from my own stuff! While trying to come up with an idea for my super-chatty sister's birthday card, I found this delightful paper pad from Doodlebug Design. So many bright & fun papers! I then unearthed an old Sizzix Originals Die and paired it with a Big Hello Die from Simon Says Stamp and got to work. 

It was fun to pick and choose which papers to use where - they all coordinate so well! I popped the Hello and Telephone up with foam and added a few buttons for interest. The inside was stamped with a balloon string that reminds me of the long, old-fashioned telephone cords. The flower is part of the Telephone Die. 

So many ideas came to me from just this little 6 x 6 paper pad! I'm definitely going to make a few more cards while these supplies are out!

Supplies: 

Paper: Doodlebug Design: take note

Dies: Simon Says Stamp: Big Hello and Sizzix Originals: Telephone & Diary

Stamps: Close to My Heart: Celebration and My Sentiments Exactly: Inspirational Birthday Innies & Outies 

Ink: Distress Oxide: Spiced Marmalade & Mermaid Lagoon