Superstitions & Traditions

I have a silly personal superstition that I'm lucky in "#100th" challenges, beginning with my wins for SPCC #100 and Raise the Bar #100, but in reality my wins-losses are more like 2-6. Still, a superstition's really all about the ritual (I wouldn't still be entering challenges if I only cared about prizes!), so I do like to participate in "100th" challenges if possible. In that spirit, I couldn't pass up Sketch N Stash #100, where we get to pick any of their past sketches. They're all great, so I had my husband pick a number at random, and he chose #17.

Part of the Sketch N Stash Challenge is to "your newest or neglected stash" and everything on this is long neglected, except for the green tulle, which I just got from Mom. Oh, and the white embossed background; I made that on Monday while over at a crafty friends' house. I've had the ribbon & foam snowflakes in my stash for several years, and the image, star, and backing paper are actually from last Christmas...I really thought that I had finished that card, but much to my surprise I found the pieces in my Christmas Crafts stash. Better late than never, I suppose!

I distressed the edges with some plain red ink. I colored the Stampin' UP! image (stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black) with Copics, and I cut the star on my Cricut (I did it so long ago that I can't remember what cartridge/file I used) and add the border with a fine black pen. I do remember that I sprayed the star with a Tattered Angels glimmer mist. I machine-stitched around the patterned paper with sparkly thread, and added the "ho ho ho" ribbon as my sentiment. The small snowflakes already were covered in glitter, so I added some Stickles to the large, plain snowflake. I'm really happy with this card, even if it did take a year to make!

Inspiration/Challenges:
Loves Rubber Stamps #25: Anything Goes
Ooh La La Creations: Christmas
Sketch N Stash #100: Free Choice + your newest or neglected stash 
It's All About the Vintage: Snow
Sweet Stamps #90: Christmas

Thank you for visiting,

Orange you glad I didn't say Banana?

I've really been grooving on the challenges over at Meljen's Designs recently, and I couldn't resist this week's "Orange" theme. Again, I raided my paper stash and found several scraps that were just right for this card.

Sketch n Stash Challenge #82

Inspiration/Challenges:

Meljen's Challenge #99: Orange

Sketch n Stash Challenge #82: Jill's Sketch (right) + stash (paper, decorative tape)

Digi stamps by Meljen's Designs

Thanks visiting, hope you'll join me in sending in some birthday cards for boys for Card Cupids' March Challenge/Drive. 


Update: Whoop whoop, I won the 3 digi prize for Meljen's Challenge #99! Thank you!

For the love of School Supplies

Bugaboo stamps recently celebrated 400 followers on Crafters Digital Art Center (CDAC) by sharing a couple wonderful freebies -- thank you! -- and I decided to have my own celebration & make a card with them for Bugaboo's Wacky Wednesday Challenge at CDAC.

I had lots of inspiration for this card, best explained with a bulleted list:

1. Bugaboo CDAC Wacky Wednesday Challenge #17
• Paper-Piercing: I used nine papers to paper-piece the two images (didn't seem like so many, really! I used mostly scraps)
• Faux Stitching: I digitally designed the background pieces with dotted lines, so all I had to do was poke out the holes with my awl & draw the faux stitching with a dark green gel pen
2. Sketch n Stash #69
• I rotated the sketch 90 degrees counter-clockwise
• Neglected stash: I used some graph-themed and patterned papers plus keyboard-letter brads I've been saving for quite some time
3. Use it Tuesday Challenge #14
• Back to School theme
• Hoarded supplies: I ventured into the attic & rescued some very cool paper: a sheet of actual Crayola-brand crayon wrappers that my husband got for me at a local printer's

Inspiration:
Sketch n Stash #69
Use it Tuesday Challenge #14: Back to School
Bugaboo Wacky Wednesday CDAC Challenge #17: Paper-Piercing & Faux Stitching

Stamps: CDAC 400 Follower Freebies by Bugaboo Stamps, Verve Stamps, the Paper Studio

Paper: Hammermill, Core'dinations, Recollections, Five&Dime
Tools: Tim Holtz paper distresser, awl, Fiskars papercutter & punch, MS scissors, Marvy punch & heat tool, Recollections punch, HP printer & ink, Adobe InDesign
Other: Tacky glue, Elmer's gel pen, stash twine, Around the Block brads, Stampendous embossing powder, Versamark watermark ink

"If Graffiti changed anything it would be illegal"

I was so excited to see the "Inspired by Banksy" challenge at Daring Cardmakers. If you're not familiar with Banksy, he's a graffiti artist out of Britain. His work isn't always easy to look at, but it's as powerful as any social satirist's. Be sure to check out the incredible DT & challenge projects.

My husband & I spent a nice bit looking at some of Banksy's work online, and he gave me the following suggestion for color theme: "Slightly militaristic...greens & browns...can you do a shiny black?" You know I can, Baby! 

I decided to make a card and then add the slightly satirical "graffiti". I designed the stencils in SCAL and cut them onto adhesive masking paper with my Cricut. I made the base card first, then added the stencils separately. The dog is inked with black ink (using a paper towel), then sprayed with Frost glimmer mist. The sentiment was inked the same way, but then inked again with watermark ink & heat-embossed in (shiny!) black.

The base card was inspired by Sketch n Stash. For their requirement to use "your newest or neglected stash", I pulled out my long-neglected decorative tape. Humph, that stuff isn't as easy to use as one might think! But I love it. I also pulled out this "Hello Friend" sentiment embossing folder that I haven't used since purchasing.

"Hello Friend" is dry-embossed with the Sizzix Boutique on Core'dinations paper, and sanded to bring out the sentiment.
The blue-green and brown ribbons are colored with Copics. I used the dog-shaped mask & a scrap to create the inside. I sprayed it with glimmer mist, after edging the message section with black ink.

Inspiration:
Daring Cardmakers: Inspired by Banksy
Sketch n Stash Challenge #68

Stencils: Begging Dog from Zazzle, Good Foot font by PizzaDude
Paper: Core'dinations
Tools: Fiskars papercutter, Cricut, SCAL, Marvy heat tool, Tim Holtz paper distresser & scissors, Sizzix Texture Boutique & embossing plate, Inkadinkado stamp masking paper, sandpaper, paper towel
Other: Tattered Angels glimmer chalk spray (Frost), ZipDry glue, Versamark & Memento inks, Stampendous embossing powder, decorative tape from Michael's, Offray & Celebrate It! ribbon
Copics: BG49, E47