Simply Natural

If you follow this blog, you know that CAS isn't really my thing, but I like to try it every once in a while. I really love this week's color combo at The Play Date Cafe, so I paired it with the truly CAS sketch at Less Is More to make this:

 The sentiment is from the Wildflowers set by Crafty Secrets/Clear Art Stamps. I love this white leaf garland; I added color with Copics. I popped the band with foam tape, and that's it! I think I'll be making more of these... really like how it came out.
 

Inspiration/Challenges:
Card Makin' Mamas: Clean and simple Card
Less Is More: Sketch #8
The Play Date Cafe: Black & White + a Splash of Emerald Green
WordArt Wednesdays #64: anything goes

Thank you for visiting,

One sketch, four challenges

I liked this week's Unscripted Sketch so much, I used it twice: for Cupcake Inspirations #126, and the Play Date Cafe Color Splash Challenge.

For the Cupcake Inspirations card, I took a cue from this week's Pile it On challenge and piled on a Boatload of Anything with a B: Buttons, Bows, Brads, Baby (theme), Bliss (sentiment), Butterflies, Blue (for sentiment heat-embossed color).

Inspiration:
Cupcake Inspirations #126
Unscripted Sketch #122
Pile it On #36: B is for Buttons, Bows, Brads, Anything that begins with B!!

Stamps: Stampin' Up!
Paper: Hammermill, Recollections, stash
Tools: Fiskars papercutter, stamp block, Marvy heat tool
Other: ZipDry glue, Recollections embossing powder, Versamark ink, Offray & stash ribbons, Michaels brads, stash buttons

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I always love the cards for the Play Date Cafe Color Splash Challenge. The combo of black and white with just a splash of color is so striking. I haven't participated in a while and I'm so glad I did! Not sure what possessed me to white-emboss on white paper, I but I really like the result. The stamped pieces are raised up with pieces of cardboard I cut & edged in black.

Inspiration:
The Play Date Cafe Color Splash Challenge #97: Black & White + Red
Unscripted Sketch #122

Stamps: Stampin' Up!
Paper: DCWV, Hammermill, Recollections, stash cardboard
Tools: Fiskars papercutter, stamp block, Marvy heat tool
Other: ZipDry glue, Stampendous embossing powders, Versamark ink, We R Memory Keepers baker's twine, Copic #100

Thank you everyone for all the inspiration!

Enjoying the Journey...in purple

Paulette at TLC Creations recently gave out a special image to her CDAC followers, and as soon as I saw it I knew I had to pair it with Marion's sentiment that I used for my recent flower card. I sprayed purple glimmer mist onto a black ribbon. I whipped this together this morning, before shocking myself and cleaning the bathroom...like, with a toothbrush. A clean home signifies a clean soul! Guess you gotta shake out the dust bunnies every once in a while! Actually, the bird house is close to the color of our actual house...and we both love purple.

I took both images into PhotoShop, used the magic wand tool to select parts of the image, and added a "color overlay". I chose the gorgeous palette over at The Play Date Challenge and the groovy Deconstructed Sketch.

Inspiration:
Play Date Challenge #90
Deconstructed Sketch No. 11

Digi Stamps: Vintage New Home by TLC Creations, Happiness Ticket by When the Scrap Hits the Fun

Paper: Core'dinations, Recollections, Hammermill, stash DP
Tools: HP printer & ink, Adobe PhotoShop & InDesign, Fiskars papercutter & punch, Tim Holtz scissors, Recollections punch, EK Success corner punch, Martha Stewart border punch
Other: ZipDry glue, Stampendous embossing powder, Versamark ink, AtYou Spica glitter pen, Elmer's gel pen, Copics, stash ribbon (Thanks Sandra!), Tattered Angels glimmer mist

Blacked-Eyed Susans' Dream

Card Update 1/7/11
I had so much fun taking artsy photos of the card I made yesterday that I never really finished making it a card. I've already received some lovely comments on it, but since I'm in easel-card mode this morning I whipped up a base for it.

I had originally planned to make a standard 5.5x4.25 card, but due to the size of the image I changed the final dimensions to 6x5.25, so having to cut an odd size for the base wasn't much of an issue with the easel card. For the inside I used a white butterfly that was in my workspace from my mom's punch, which is now back at home in Arizona, and sprayed it with my favorite glimmer mist.

It snowed last night and now is a sunny morning, so I felt inspired to take the card outside. Those who know me best will understand the enormity of this. The photos from the back porch were absolutely worth the whole project.

Additional supplies: Core'dinations cardstock, Martha Stewart Butterfly punch, Tattered Angels glimmer mist (Jack Frost)

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Original Post 1/6/11

It's a chilly yet sunny day, so I thought I'd make something with the sunshiny butterfly I colored on Christmas night with my new Copics.

I've been saving this for a special occasion, and this week's ColourQ and SCS Sketch challenges fit the bill.

Since the ColourQ challenges are based on Stampin' Up! colors, I was happy to be able to use some of my Stampin' Up! paper. It's so yummy I hate to use it for just anything, but I had colors that matched this week's combo So Saffron, Daffodil Delight and Soft Sky. Just by chance, I had met the "basic black" criteria already by making the daisies Black-eyed Susans in a nod to my now-home State of Maryland. I added a glitter border to the "dream" sentiment to offset the black.

Inspiration:
colourQ Challenge #66: so saffron, daffodil delight, soft sky, basic black + white
SplitcoastStampers Sketch Challenge #314

Supplies:
Dream Butterfly rubber stamp cling by Impression Obsession, Stampin' UP paper (Subtles Patterns 2010), Recollections white cardstock, StazOn ink (I know I know, that's a big no-no for copic markers, but I didn't know that at the time & it's the only ink I had. I've mended my ways!), Martha Stewart border punch, Fiskars papercutter, ZipDry glue, Sakura gelly roll pen, Copic Ciao B color set