Classic Time

I've been working with some houndstooth-patterned papers, so I used some of those scraps to make one final card for Simon Says Stamp's Color Challenge:

SSSWC

The lavender and orange strips are strips of the black-and-white paper that I colored with inks and Copics. The orange houndstooth cardstock is a DP from my stash. I stamped the sentiment directly on it, and it's much more readable in real life. It is from a CTMH set and reads "Every moment in time is a gift and a blessing." The old-fashioned clock is a Tim Holtz die that I cut from gray & sparkly green cardstocks. I added some color to the grat outline with a dark gray Copic. I put it on an Action Wobble:

I notched the corners of the patterned paper base with a Marvy punch, and backed the card with a shiny black paper. Had lots of fun with this one!

Thank you for visiting & for inspiring my crafting,

Simply Autumn

The leaves are changing & falling in a major way, but I rarely have luck portraying the beauty of this season in a card. So I decided to try my hand at the "Autumn" challenge at Less is More (but I entered 6 challenges, not 5 (I thought it was 5 plus theirs) so it's ineligible, which always happens to me over there).

I used a "letterpress" technique to stamp/deboss the fence; the shape is actually a wooden shape (which I received from Linda as part of a City Crafter swap). Basically, I inked the wooden shape with brown chalk ink, carefully taped it, ink-side-down, onto my cardstock (with removable tape), and ran it through my Bigshot using the sandwich of: multipurpose platform, wooden shape, cardstock, extra piece of cardstock, one embossing pad, and a clear plate on top. Because the wood is so thick, I had trouble with getting a good embossing without the paper cracking, but it "stamped" great!

The leaves are embossed/cut with Spellbinders dies. I used craft foil for the copper leaves. The sentiment is stamped with brown StazOn, using a stamp from an Adam Prescott/Cardmaking & Papercraft magazine set.

The stamped portion is adhered to the card base with foam tape, so that it pop up a little bit (like I see the pros doing). I'm very happy with the results; just because it's "clean & simple" doesn't mean it was easy!

Inspiration/Challenges:
Cardabilities Sketch #61: Sketch
Critter Sketch: Embossing  
Divas by Design Challenge 58: Use some Orange
House of Gilli: Embossing, wet or dry
Simon Says Stamp: Autumn Leaves


Update: I ended up sending this, along with a completed repair order, to the State Police. Hey, working in Traffic can't be fun; and everyone deserves a card!

Thank you for visiting,

Ice Cream Time with My Sheri & Jellypark ... and MORE!

I've been so lucky these past few weeks to have won some prizes with my challenge cards. For example, I won this fabulous Ice Cream Truck digi from Jellypark via Fetch-a-Sketch Challenge 25:

This was so much fun to color! My husband surprised me on Saturday with a mini shopping spree at Michaels! ... Happily, they had restocked their Copics so we chose some fun new colors, including W1, my first from their "Warm Gray" series. Wow, it's awesome! Later in the day, he went over to his buddy's house to play Civilization (a computer game) and I stayed home and made this card. While I was coloring the image, I sent him a few photos of its progress; I am so glad he married me ha ha!

I cut the ice cream cone out with the Doodlecharms Cricut cartridge, added some shading with Copics, and sprayed it with Iridescent Gold glimmer mist from Tattered Angels.

The Sentiment is from the Sweet Treat stamp collection by Beth Gunnell for Quick Cards Made Easy. The daisy background is from Outlines Rubber Stamps, and I heat-embossed it in Kaleidoscope. The "snowball" wired ribbon is from Michaels; I used Copics to make them little balls of ice cream!

You might be wondering why I chose green for my main ice cream color; well, it's because it represent 3 of my most favorite flavors: Mint, Pistachio, and Daiquiri Ice!

Simon Says Stamp

Inspiration/Challenges:

Great Impressions: "Show us your best stay in the lines coloring"
The Hybrid Chick Card Caravan: Ice Cream

My Sheri Crafts Challenge #90: Nat'l Ice Cream Month

Pause, Dream, Enjoy Challenge #29: Your Favorite Summer Treat

Simon Says Stamp: Dawny's Sketch (right)
*Tuesday Alchemy Challenge #25: Ice Cream Social (Corrine from their DT invited me to link up here as well...thanks Corrinne!)

Update: This card won an Ooo-La-La Award for My Sheri Crafts Challenge #90!

Thank you for visiting,

My first attempt at quilling!

I've been threatening to try quilling ever since I started following Helen's fab blog, Let's Create, over a year ago, and after a few false starts I've finally made a project featuring the technique.

Mom gave me the quilling paper & tool, which she got free with an issue of Crafts Beautiful magazine, but even with the "right" tools I found that it was trickier than I had hoped... but Helen has offered many good tips, and I'm really quite thrilled my my first attempt!

I wanted to keep this card very clean and simple, so there's no edging or nuttin'. For the banner, I cut the shape out of white cardstock, ran it through my sticker machine, and smoothed on the natural cotton material. I folded the edges in, adhering them with double-sided tape. I stamped the Stampin' Up! sentiment with brown Memento ink, added some rafia, and glued the butterfly on with Glossy Accents. Easy-peasy!

Inspiration/Challenges:

Amusing Challenge: Sketch (right)

Color Throwdown #194: Crumb Cake, Poppy Parade, Very Vanilla, Soft Sky (left)

Tutorials: The Quilling Patch, My Creative Scrapbook, Origami Resource Center

Update: This was one of only 2 entries, but I still won Amusing Sketch Challenge #3! Was in great company with E.T., my Feline Playful teamie.

Thank you for visiting!

Anything Goes at Pattie's Creations, sponsored by Dude Time Doodles

Dude Time Doodles/Bonibleaux Designs is sponsoring this week's Anything Goes challenge at Pattie's Creations, and I couldn't resist merging their images to make a card. 

The quilt is digitally paper-pieced with the Tiny Polka Dot digital papers from Mel Stampz; I used 5 colors, 10 papers, out of the many choices. Mel, you are awesome, thank you!  I picked the solid colors from the digi papers, using the Eyedropper tool in PhotoShop.

I generated the ticket in InDesign using this fun sentiment I grabbed quite a while back at Create with TLC (thanks Paulette!)The embellishments were inspired by the Bingo! challenge at Simon Says Stamp Challenge. I chose the right-hand column: Brads, Ticket, Ribbon/Twine.

Cletus, my favorite banjo player is colored with Copics. The ribbon is from Crafty Ribbons, and the fuzzy brads are from Creative Imaginations (I've had these in my stash forever).

Hope you'll join us at Pattie's Creations, all you have to do is make anything ha ha!

Also, this week's Dude Time Doodles Challenge, All About Cowboys, runs through Tuesday (Mar 27), and DTD/BBD will also be sponsoring the Pile It On challenge starting Sunday (Mar 25). Have a crafty day & thanks for visiting!

Simon Says Stamp

Inspiration/Challenges:

Pattie's Creations Challenge #40: Anything Goes

Simon Says Stamp Challenge: Bingo / Brads, Ticket, Ribbon (right)

Digital Elements:

1. Quilt from Pattie's Creations
2. Cletus from Dude Time Doodles/Bonibleaux Designs
3. Bright on White and Bright Solid Tiny Polka Dot digital papers from Mel Stampz

For a little Jedi

I just had to buy the adorable Little Luke digi stamp, all proceeds from which go a family dealing with the heartbreaking illness of their son. There are several sets of digis available for this charity, all available, along with the background story, at Stamp and Create.

Whenever I am overwhelmed by sorrow and loss, I try my best to completely give myself over to joy and wonder. It's pretty much the best coping mechanism I've found. So I decided that for my first project with this digi stamp, I'd make a baby card. I'm of the generation that's pretty crazy about Star Wars (you know, before it came back), so I know I'll get a lot of use out of this since my childhood friends are now becoming parents.

I received just the inspiration I needed from the "Song or Film Title Inspired" theme on the Simon Says Stamp Challenge Blog. A New Hope (the subtitle of the first, er, fourth Stars Wars movie) seemed just right for a baby card!

I paper-pieced the image, mostly because I really wanted a texture on his cloak. For some reason, I really remember that cloak from the movies ... all those fancy special effects and what I remember is the texture of the cloth!

For the card layout I chose the always-fab Deconstructed Sketch. I'm also entering this card into the "Baby Love" Pollycraft Monday Challenge.

The background DP and the center white paper are both shiny (as are his boots & light-saber handle). The "Congrats" is heat-embossed in green, and filled in with a blue marker.

May your day be filled with joy & wonder!

Update: I sent this to a couple of Star Wars fans, on the birth of their daughter. To make it a bit more "girly" I glued a bow on "Luke"! 

When life gives you lemons, make fruit salad

You may remember my recent "Little Sunshine" card; well, Mom suggested that I make the same family another card for their granddaughter plus their two current foster children. That's the kind of suggestion I live for. I can't tell you how much I respect these folks: they have opened their hearts and home to many foster children over the years, adopting several and helping others to live happy childhoods until they can be adopted. Now that's what I call courage.

Inspiration:
iCopic Blog Hop Challenge: All about Children
Simon Says Stamp: Food & Drink
Card Positioning Systems Sketch #232

Stamps: Crayons The Baby and Picnic Ally-n-Edward by Tellen's Place Designs, Round Sentiments I set by SP & Company
Paper: Recollections, Hammermill, Core'dinations, stash DP
Tools: Fiskars papercutter, Martha Stewart scissors, HP printer & ink, Adobe InDesign, Marvy heat tool, Sizzix Texture Boutique, EK Success corner punch
Other: ZipDry glue, Versamark watermark ink, Stampendous embossing powder, AtYou Spica glitter pen
Copics: E37, E47, E17, E35, E33, E13, E11, Y08, YR12, Y13, Y04, Y17, Y02, YR31, RV02, RV11, G02, BG09, BG49, YG67, YG41, B00, BG000, B32, B23, B05, FB2, B39, B18, B28, BV02, BV00, BV000, V17, V06, R27, YR04, FY1, FBG2

Picnics, Puns, and Punches

When I entered the Tellen's Place Anything Goes & Must Use a TPD image challenge, I remember thinking how AWESOME the prize package was. Well, never in a million years did I think I would receive it!

Their DT member Sandra from England (& of Rose Petal Creations) put together a beautiful handmade box full of goodies, including the most beautiful embellishments I've ever owned, several wonderful varieties of ribbon, bunches of paper flowers, and a whole bunch of fun Tellen's Place images. Seriously, I cried a little. I love receiving packages from countries with "Royal Mail"...it seems even more special! I'm going to do my best to use these treasures to create beautiful items, but it's going to be so difficult to part with them.

My first project with my prizes is this flap card with Dorothy Diva, one of the included images. I'd neither made nor heard of a flap card before Joyanna's post on the Scrap Shack cardmaking group. I had terrible fun coloring her. I added flocking to the flower & ribbon details and red-gold heat-embossing to the shoes (because it's Dorothy & how can she go home without red shoes‽).

For the card, I was inspired by two challenges: the fruit theme at Simon Says Stamp, and the punches theme at Stamp-n-Doodle. I have big plans for these little fruit...they're so cute and fun to make!

The "Berry Sweet Wishes" sentiment (see image on bottom right) inspired a berry emphatic groan from my husband, and you can try for the same response by downloading the jpg.


Inspiration:
Simon Says: Let's Get Fruity / A Photo Inspiration
Stamp-n-Doodle Recipe Challenge: Use more than 1 punch/diecut + circles
Stampin' Dymonz Scrap Shack cardmaking forum: Flap card

Tutorials:
Flap card: Splitcoast Stampers

Stamps: Dorothy Diva by Tellen's Place Designs, pile of gold (for strawberry seeds) from Lucky Day set by SP & Company, dots (for blackberry seeds) from Studio g, AnAkronism font
Paper: Hammermill, Recollections
Tools: HP printer & ink, SCAL, Cricut, Marvy heat tool, Sizzix Texture Boutique, Recollections & Marvy punches, Martha Stewart border punch, squeeze hole-punch
Other: ZipDry, ZIG glue pen, Glossy Accents, Stampendous flocking & embossing powder, Martha Stewart embossing powder, clear Atyou Spica pen, green Sakura gel pen, embroidery thread

Upcycling and Old Maids

I've been following the Simon Says Stamp and Show blog for a while now, but didn't feel ready to participate in their challenges quite yet. However, I couldn't resist their "Old Wives' Tale" challenge.

My favorite Old Wives' Tale is "Don't take the last piece or you'll be an Old Maid." By favorite I mean I've been married for over 6 years and I still hesitate on taking the last piece. I've stood over the last sad piece of cake with many a woman with that saying in her head...

So I used the concept to create the front cover of my multi-media art journal for the current theme at the Stampin' Dymonz Scrap Shack Off the Page group. For the flower pattern on the platter, I was inspired by the Cowslip pattern on my Grandma's Spode dishes. The colors are bright and interesting, and I definitely went outside my comfort zone to imitate the painting (sometimes not coloring inside the lines is a good thing!).

Above is my blank journal, which I made with cardboard scrap from our Sarah-Cynthia-Sylvia-Stout-esque recycling bin. The pages are sanded and distressed with Mustard ink.
...and I even made a matching bookmark! The fortune cookies are stamped onto polymer clay, baked, and then shaded with copics.

Inspiration: Simon Says Stamp and Show an Old Wives' Tale

Supplies: Asian by Design & Asian Influences stamp sets by Inkadinkado, sentiment from Regal Greetings set by {ippity} Stamps, Recollections cardstock, Tim Holtz Distress Inks, Martha Stewart detailing scissors and chalk ink, Fiskars papercutter and deckle scissors, Stampendous clear embossing powder, Marvy heat tool, stash twine, polymer clay

Copics: E33, E11, E35, FY1, E08, FB2, R59, G02

Certainly Lovebirds

So I've only had my Copic markers since Dec. 24, and I'm already low on several of my blue shades. But I find myself getting better at coloring with them, so I continue to indulge myself and just try not to color with blue. This week's Picture Perfect Creations Color Combo fit the bill: Concord Crush, Certainly Celery, Crumb Cake.

I had lots of inspiration (see my list below) for this card, but the part that took me the most time is the most difficult to see: I stamped the front cardstock with hearts in Antique Linen distress ink, and did the same for the XOXO circle. I sanded down the circle to give it more depth, and added a bow because I had just that much ribbon leftover!

Digi stamp: Lovebirds 2 by PaperFacesDesigns

Inspiration:
Sketch: Mojo Monday #177
Color: Picture Perfect Creations Color Combo 48
Sketch: Critter Sketch Challenge #51: critter/animal image
Theme: PaperPlay Challenge '11 Week 5: Stamp It Out

Supplies: Core'dinations cardstock, Xpress Copic paper, MS detailing scissors, ZipDry glue, HP printer & ink, Fiskars papercutter, deckle scissors, and corner & circle punches, Copic Ciao markers, Tim Holtz distress ink, InkItUp! ink, silicon stamps from gstudio and Hero Arts, Recollections border punch, Celebrate It! and Offray ribbons