Spooky FMS#458

Created another Halloween card using this week's sketch at Freshly Made Sketches. I had all my Halloween supplies out, and I really wanted to use the pretty sparkly purple ribbon you see at the bottom of my card. It coordinates well with the dotted ribbon and the Spooky Sticker, but I didn't have any coordinating Halloween paper. Thanks to this week's sketch and a few stamped images, I didn't need any patterned paper! I really like using the great sketches at Freshly Made Sketches...it's overwhelming to stare at a bunch of supplies and just not know where to begin. Thanks to them for all the helpful inspiration!

Supplies Used: 

Stamps: Hobby Lobby: Spooky Stamps

Ink: Versafine: Onyx Black

Other: Nuvo Crystal Drops: Violet Galaxy Gloss - Ripened Pumpkin; Forever in Time: Chipboard Holographic Stickers; Michaels: Celebrate It Halloween Ribbon

Halloween FMS457

I set out to make a quick Halloween card using Sketch #457 at Freshly Made Sketches. I knew I was going to make a spooky scene with the haunted house and bats stamps, so I just needed to find a coordinating background paper. The one Halloween 6x6 pad I have turned out to be, well, too cute! The only design in it that almost worked was dark blue with silver stars. That color blue did not match any of my inks, and I didn't think stars would be appropriate. However, that did lead me to another paper pad - Stargazer - which is where I found this cool holographic black and silver paper. Success! I then created my focal panel by using a circle stencil (well, actually it's a circle template I saved from my computer programming days), some distress inks and the two Halloween stamps. I added a sentiment on coordinating orange cs, which I think was the perfect addition to this simple card. Thanks for stopping by!

 

Supplies Used:

Stamps: SEI: Eerie Alley, Hobby Lobby: Spooky Stamps

Inks: Distress: Spiced Marmalade, Ripe Persimmon, Chipped Sapphire, Faded Jeans, Pine Needles; Versafine: Onyx Black, VersaMark

Paper: The Paper Studio: Stargazer, Bristol

Other: Clear Embossing Powder, Circles Template

Loads of Birthday Wishes

My husband's nephew was born on my father-in-law's birthday which also happens to be the same birthday as one of my nieces! Because I like to make each card especially suited to the recipient, that means I have to come up with three very different ideas each October 11. I do try to get a head start whenever the mojo is flowing, and I was able to use a few pieces that I had made earlier which did help things along this year. 

For my first card (the one for my father-in-law), I was once again inspired with the sketch at Freshly Made Sketches. It kind of morphed into a bit more than the sketch, but that certainly was my inspiration for this card! For my focal image, I used a pick-up truck that I had colored awhile back while practicing with my Prismacolor colored pencils. I usually use Copics to color my images, but I actually like the 'grainy' texture the pencils brought to the truck. I then stamped and colored the gift packages to add to the truck. I fussy-cut both images out, which is quite easy to do. I grabbed an orange-gold rectangle leftover from a Thanksgiving place card project then stamped and embossed a sentiment from the coordinating die set onto it. I still had some leaves from my previous card lying around, so I used these as little bushes/trees for some added interest (and to add a somewhat rounded look to more resemble the circle of the sketch). I was going to stencil a very subtle cloud background, but I thought the rectangle was too plain, so I opted for cloud diecuts instead. I also added a few puffs of smoke by stamping pieces of popcorn that I inked with Hickory Smoke Distress Ink. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies Used:

Stamps: Honey Bee Stamps: Little Pickup and Sending You Sentiments, Sunny Studio Stamps: Autumn Splendor, The Stamps of Life: popcorn2stamp

Dies: Sunny Studio Stamps: Autumn Splendor, Nestabilities Rectangles, My Favorite Things: Cute Cloud Outlines

Coloring: Distress: Various, Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencils

Happy Fall

I've been trying to get better organized, so I am attempting to inventory all my stamps. Oh my, what an enormous undertaking that has turned out to be! I don't actually know how many stamp sets I own, but I store them in binders, and at the moment I have about five thick binders full. Wonder if I will ever see the end of this Inventory Project?? At any rate, I came across these delightful fall stamps and decided to ink them up and create TONS of fall colored leaves. I had such fun experimenting with various color combos...I think I had about 20 ink pads out at one time! More fall cards are coming soon!!

 

I've entered this in the FMS Sketch Challenge 455 at Freshly Made Sketches. Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies Used: 

Stamps: Sunny Studio Stamps: Autumn Splendor

Inks: Various Distress and Distress Oxide

Dies: Sunny Studio Stamps: Autumn Splendor and Spellbinders: Labels One

Other: Hero Arts: Leaf & Flourish Stencil, Twine

 

 

 

SEI Celebration

Made a quick birthday card using more of the papers from SEI's Couture Collection. Had a leftover strip that I used as the background. Added a punched border strip, then used the same punch to create the background for the sentiment. Die cut two swirls, using the dark grey one as a shadow. Dug out some old Prima flowers, using an SEI brad for the center. Thought I was done, but ended up with a 'spot' from the glue, so had to add a few clear sequins. I think they added a nice touch! TFL!

Supplies Used: 

Paper: SEI: Couture

Stamps: Close To My Heart: Celebration

Dies: MFT: Medium Fancy Flourish

Border Punch: EK: Open Scallop

Other: Prima Flowers, SEI Brad, Pretty Pink Posh Sequins: Sparkling Clear 

 

FMS450

Made a few quick cards using SEI's Couture Paper Pad. Fell in love with these papers long ago, so bought both the 12 x 12 and 6 x 6 pads. Still find them perfect for so many different occasions. This one is card to cheer someone who is in the hospital. I made it following Sketch #450 at Freshly Made Sketches. Thanks for looking!

Supplies Used: 

Paper: SEI:Couture

Dies: Spellbinders circles, MFT Stitched Circle Stax, Sizzix: Swirls

Stamps: TSOL: Monograms2build

 

Ice Cream Ribbons

I set out to make a summery bday card so I pulled out MFT's Your'e the Sweetest Stamps & Dies. When I saw their latest Sketch Challenge, I just had to dig out these ice-cream colored ribbons - don't they just go so perfectly with the mint ice cream theme? I know I've made several of these types of cards in the past, but it was fun to be able to use all five of the ribbons, thanks to the inspirational sketch. 

The scalloped circle is popped up with a foam circle behind it, and the ice cream cone is popped up with foam adhesive squares for added dimension. I purposely adhered the ice cream scoops in a haphazard way to add interest. Finished off the background with a few creamy pink enamel dots. Thanks so much for stopping by!

Entering this in the MFT Wednesday Sketch Challenge #501.

Supplies:

Ribbons & Paper: The Paper Studio

Stamps: My Favorite Things: You're the Sweetest

Dies: My Favorite Things: You're the Sweetest, Spellbinders: Scalloped Circles

Ink: My Favorite Things: Cotton Candy, Altenew: Espresso and Mountain Mist

Other: Nuvo Crystal Drops: Bubblegum Blush 

Blessings

Needed a religious thank you card and had the alcohol inked backgrounds I made awhile ago out - they were just begging to be used! Was inspired by the sketch at CAS(E) this sketch which made this card come together pretty quickly (I just rotated it so that the sentiment was at the bottom).  Had to go and shop for the right color to match the dark bluish-purple ink, though! Purple is my favorite color, and I had every shade from lilac to wine, but for some reason none in my stash looked right. The photo is a little dark, but I do believe the purples match irl. Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies Used: 

Stamps: My Favorite Things: Cheerful Blessings

Dies: ODBD: Ornamental Crosses

Ink: VersaFine: Onyx Black and Ranger: Alcohol Inks (various)

 

Kindness Card

Made another card using Altenew's Vintage Roses Stamps and Dies. Changed up the color of the leaves this time to better coordinate with the rest of the card. It also uses the colors from the Mix It Up Challenge #68 at #SugarPeaDesigns. The card was inspired by #mojosketch539 from PoeticArtistry. The background was created using alcohol inks and an old embossing folder. Cut a a banner from Sunny Studio and added a delicate bow made from embroidery floss. The sentiment is from Altenew's Sentiments & Quotes Stamp Set. TFL!

Supplies Used: 

Stamps: Altenew: Vintage Roses, Sentiments & Quotes

Dies: Altenew: Vintage Roses, MFT: Stiched Circle Stax, Sunny Studio: Fancy Frames Rectangle (banner)

Other: Darice: Quarterfoil Double EF

Ink: Altnew: Pocketful of Sunshine and Sea Breeze and Memento: London Fog

 

 

FMS441

Very happy to be able to use another alcohol ink panel I created a few months ago. I believe this is Stream - my first alcohol ink that wasn't a Copic Marker! My stash has since grown to over a dozen little ink bottles along with Yupo Paper, Air Blower, Blending Tools, and Blending Solution.  And suddenly I now need more storage! 

I made this card for the Sketch Challenge #441 at Freshly Made Sketches. I love the multi-layer roses from Altenew, but the leaves have always been too frustrating for me to get just right. Every time I lined them up on my MISTI, I just wanted to keep them there forever. So this time, I made my own little DIY stamp positioners out of old CD cases. It did take a little while to get them all lined up just right, but once I did, I was able to easily stamp a whole bunch of these five-leave stems and my MISTI is free for all other stamping!

I stamped a sentiment onto a stitched banner then finished this card off with some clear sequins from Pretty Pink Posh. TFL!

Supplies Used:

Ink: Altenew: Cherry Blossom and Green Fields, Stream Alcohol Ink, Stampin' Up: Tempting Turquoise

Stamps: Altenew: Vintage Roses, Honey Bee Stamps: Sending You Sentiments

Dies: Altenew: Vintage Roses, MFT: Stitched Circle Stax, Sunny Studio: Fancy Frames Rectangle (stitched banner die)

Other: Pretty Pink Posh: Sparkly Clear Sequins

Rockin' It

Did not set out to make any cards today, but I woke up crazy early this morning and felt like I had gobs of time, so why not indulge? Was inspired by the sketch for PCC#381 at Paper Craft Crew and the inspiration photo for the Mix-it Up Challenge #68 - Fresh Inspiration at #SugarPeaDesigns. I just love SugarPea's Greatest Hits Stamps and Dies, so making this card was a no-brainer. It's rather difficult for me to keep my cards rather simple - I had to stop myself from adding way too many stars. I think these few were just enough. Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies Used: 

Stamps: SugarPea Designs: Greatest Hits and Altenew: Sentiments & Quotes (stars)

Ink: Altenew: Maple Yellow and Fresh Lemon, Gina K: Sea Glass(?), VersaFine: Onyx Black

Dies: SugarPea Designs: Greatest Hits

Other: Sparkle N Sprinkle: Sky Blue Spark Embossing Powder

Father's Day Card in Earth Tones

Using the sketch at Freshly Made Sketches, I set out to create a simple card for Father's Day. Instead of just using designer paper for the background, I decided to spruce it up a bit by stenciling one using Distress Inks. I inked up Altenew's Cube Builder Stencil, but decided to keep the design simple by only creating rows of diamonds rather than rows of cubes. I chose warm colors for an outdoor/woodsy feel, and used the bear and deer from the Let's All Party Die Set for accents. Stamped the sentiment onto the inside piece of a fancy frame die, added a few rhinestones and finished my card. TFL!

Supplies Used: 

Paper: We R Memory Keepers: Happy Campers

Stamps: Paper Inspirations: Happy Father's Day

Stencil: Altenew: Cube Builder

Inks: VersaFine: Vintage Sepia, Distress: Wild Honey, Peeled Paint, Fossilzed Amber, Tea Dye and Walnut Stain

Dies: Spellbinders: Let's All Party and Twisted Metal Tags and Accents

CTS #376

I made this quick card for the CTS #376 Challenge at CAS(E) this Sketch. 

Once I decided on using the lighthouse stamp, I grabbed some stencils and distress inks and created the clouds and sea. Used a few copic markers to add some color to the lighthouse, and finished the card off with a sentiment followed by a heart inked with more distress ink. TFL!

Supplies:

Stamps: ODBD: Light of the World, Altenew: Heartfelt Sentiments

Dies: Spellbinders Circles, SSS Stacked Hearts

Stencils: SSS: Clouds for Days, Stampendous!: water stencil

Inks: Distress Oxide & Distress, Copics, Memento Tuxedo Black

A Bunch of Birthday Wishes

Spending my "Sheltering At Home" Time in my Craft Room, adding to my stash of birthday cards. I'm really making good use of the DCWV paper pad called 'The Birthday Wishes Stack'. All of the papers are so cute just on their own, yet I still managed to embellish them all (even though I only added tiny enamel dots to the last one). I had so much fun making these bright and happy birthday cards! My 30 year old nephew got a big kick out of the card with his baby picture...hope the other cards can also bring smiles to the yet-to-be-named recipients! Thanks so much for stopping by!

Supplies Used: ODBD: Ballons & Streamers, SSS: Wishing

Supplies Used: MFT: You're the Sweetest, Penny Black: YAY, Spellbinders: Classic Edges One, Brutus Monroe: Birthday Surprise Faux Sprinkles

Supplies Used:Sizzix: Stars #2, Graffiti

Supplies Used: Sunny Studio: Sweet Shoppe Stamps and Sweet die, Lawn Fawn: Here's the Scoop Stamps and Dies, Copics, TPS: small scallops scissors

Supplies Used: Nuvo Crystal Drops: Carnation Pink

FMS432

Spent some time coloring up a whole bunch of these cute images from Lawn Fawn's Here's the Scoop Stamp Set. Using the sketch at FMS helped me to create a clean & quick little card. Added some background embossed dots and a die cut circle frame and called it a day! Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies Used:

Stamps: Lawn Fawn: Here's the Scoop

Ink: Colorbox Pink, Copics

Dies: Sizzix: Circle Frames

Other: Cuttlebug EF: Swiss Dots

Pretty Blooms

When I saw the colors for this week's Color Challenge #358 at CAS Colours & Sketches, I knew I just had to make some cards using the Blooms Fill-in Stamp Set. This background stamp set is rather time-consuming, and since I tend to mess up sometimes, I decided to make several backgrounds at once - and I only messed up ONE. YAY! I'm glad I had a not-so-perfect panel to cut this bloom from because how can you destroy a perfectly stamped background?? I also created several plaid background panels to coordinate with the blooms panels. I used one to mat my front panel (which is really three separate pieces -- I accidentally cut the Tangerine Tango paper too short, but then I realized if I cut it in half, I could place the patterned paper over the gap between the two smaller pieces. Save!). I popped up the blooms with foam, added the die cut 'You' and finished with a green sentiment. Hoping to make a few more cards with the other panels...stay tuned!

Supplies Used:

Stamps: Concord & 9th: Blooms Fill-in and Plaid Background, Simon Says Stamp: You Matter

Dies: Concord & 9th: Blooms Fill-in, Simon Says Stamp: You

Ink: Stampin' Up: Pear Pizzazz, Tangerine Tango, Daffodil Delight

Paper: Stampin' Up

You Make Me Melt

Made this 'quick' Valentine for the MFT Wednesday Sketch Challenge. The ice cream cone, cherry & sentiment are all from My Favorite Things You're the Sweetest Stamp Set while the little drips are from Sunny Studio Sweet Shoppe Stamp Set. After I stamped the three pieces for the ice cream cone, I decided to use foam to add some dimension. Because the ice cream piece lays on top of the edge of the cone, it was a little tricky to get the foam pieces right. I figured out that I had to cut the top of the cone out of the ice cream foam piece in order for the whole thing to lay flat. I'll have to remember that trick! I then added some hearts using Distress Ink and a heart stencil and some white hearts from Simon Says Stamp Stacked Hearts Die. Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:

Paper: The Paper Studio

Stamps: My Favorite Things: You're the Sweetest, Sunny Studio: Sweet Shoppe

Dies: My Favorite Things: You're the Sweetest, Simon Says Stamp: Stacked Hearts

Ink: Distress Oxides: Picked Raspberry & Candied Apple, Memento Luxe: Peanut Brittle

Stencil: Hedi Swapp

Holographic Wishes

Entering this in the SC786 Challenge at Split Coast Stampers. Thought this would be super-quick because I used a panel I created some time ago, but as usual, it took some time to decide on which papers to use (I love that Stargazer paper!) and how to add the sentiment. I ended up using only part of the sentiment 'wishing you a lot of' so that I could simply add 'Happy Birthday' inside. I bought the holographic paper on clearance, and I can't help myself from always using it for any star. Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies Used:

Paper: The Paper Studio: Stargazer Foil Pad, DCWV: Holographics Mat Stack

Dies: Sizzix Originals: Stars #2, Sunny Studios: tiny double star, Simon Says Stamp: Fancy Frame Rectangle

Stamps: Simon Says Stamp: Happy 3x4

Ink: Distress: Fired Brick, Faded Jeans, Iced Spruce, VersaFine Onyx Black

Other: Perfect Pearls, Altenew Cube Builder Stencil

Masculine Camper Card

Acquired some new nature dies recently so put them to good use for my outdoor-loving nephew's birthday card. I paper-pieced the leaves and bird for the tree, which added a nice bit of color. Since it was a masculine card, I didn't want to add sequins or gems, so I just added a few tiny butterflies to complete the card. Linking it up to CTS #356 at CAS(E) this Sketch. Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies Used:

Paper: We R Memory Keepers: Happy Camper

Dies: Momenta: Happy Camper, Spellbinders: Let's All Party, SU: Beautiful Wings