Can I resist / 4 challenges

Thanks to the generous comments on my recent stamping/sponging endeavor, I'm feeling pretty jazzed and ready for a new challenge! Or, in this case, four challenges. What can I say, I wanted a lot of inspiration! And I sure got a wonderful bunch:

1. Speedy the Cat's Friends Challenge #50: Emboss Resist Technique
2. All Things Unity Challenge #28: Unity/{ippity} stamps + Buttons
3. Color Throwdown #136: Orange, Soft Sky, Kraft
4. Critter Sketch Challenge #59: Fancy Folds

I really enjoyed making my first Center Step card last week, and I thought the fold would look really good with the {ippity} stamps I won from CPS/Banu. Love these stamps.

I probably should've done the emboss/resist on white paper, but I really wanted the kraft-y paper to come through (I'm out of real kraft, so I used Core'dinations to match the other papers). I do adore this technique; you just stamp it with watermark ink and clear-emboss it. After you apply the ink (I use cheap-o makeup sponges), just wipe off the stamp with a papertowel. And it really really works! The actual stamping portion of this card only took about 10 minutes.

I stamped the flowers in blue & orange onto the "kraft" paper, clear-embossed them, cut them out and sewed them, along with little flower buttons, onto the orange paper. It was a freakin' miracle that I happened to have matching thread. Wow! I also pulled out my fancy corner punch and a border punch (for the inside details), which always make things look good. I made this card for a friend's daughter, who just had shoulder surgery; I don't know her personally, but she's about my age so I made something I'd like!

Center Step card tutorial: Creative Moments with Sandy

Supplies: Regal Greetings set by {ippity} Stamps, Core'dinations glimmer cardstock, Stampendous clear detail embossing powder, ColorBox inks, Versamark Watermark ink, Martha Stewart detailing scissors and border punch, Fiskars papercutter and corner punch, ZipDry glue, Marvy heat tool, thread by Coats & Clark, needle, emery board

Update 4/20/11: This card made the top three for All Things Unity Challenge #28. Thanks!

Stampendous

I ran across Laura's Stampendous! Sketch Challenge and ended up making two cards, both little love notes to one of my favorite brands.
I'm entering the card on the right into A Day in the Life of the Paper Poppy's challenge (Laura's blog), and the card on the left into the twin challenge at Stampendous! Impressions (brand blog) as well as ColourQ Challenge #79 (Melon Mambo, Old Olive, Bermuda Bay, Basic Black + white).

I wanted to focus on embossing, because ever since I paired Versamark watermark ink with Stampendous detailing powder I've felt like an embossing genius. Seriously, it's practically fool-proof (fool knocks on wood). Plus, the opaque powders show on anything.

Although the sketch challenge only suggests that we use Stampendous products, I went through my stash and discovered that my Stacked Teacups stamp is actually by them. That stamp inspired this bright flowery card, which coincidentally contains many of the same supplies as my quieter Color Splash card. I also decorated the inside of the card, stamping a flourish "Happy Birthday"That was yesterday. Today we went to Michaels and they had Stampendous silicon stamp sets for $2.50! Still over my budget, but too good to pass up. I bought their Orchid set, which I used exclusively for the card below. As you can tell, I really like heat embossing!

Sponge worthiness and other worries

Last night, as I was putting off making dinner, I ran across this fun challenge at Handmade with Love: "Create a project using any stamping technique that you fear or haven't tried yet. It could be as easy as just stamping, if you are really afraid of it till now." To be honest, I'm pretty fearful of stamping in general. Stamping seems like a true art to me, a hailing to classic arts and crafts like Batik and Kings' Seals. Although I possess the kind of personality that leads me to boldly stamp away, I still haven't lost that pang of fear every time I hover a wet stamp over the paper: Eek what in the heck am I doing‽

In the spirit of this challenge, I thought I'd try the Retiform/Grid Technique. That makes me really nervous. Not only does it require precision stamping, it includes sponging and more precision stamping. I decided that I had to try this when I also saw the Are You Sponge Worthy? challenge at Drunken Stampers.

Well, I'm glad I met my fears: I'm so tickled with how this turned out. In fact, I can't wait to try it again! Now! If you go to the tutorial, you'll see that I copied it almost exactly (I took classic colors to mean primary), but now I feel like I can combine other colors too.

I distressed the edges of the retiformed piece just for fun and also because that technique makes me nervous. Hey, why not go all the way‽ I did a little paper piecing and image popping too, because dinner was in the oven for 10 more minutes.

I'd also like to mention that I love Seinfeld pop culture references, but I mentioned the show to a group of 20-year-olds the other day and they looked at me like I was referencing Maude. Sigh, time does go on!

Inspiration:
Handmade with Love: Stamping technique that you fear
Drunken Stampers Challenge #61: Are you sponge worthy?

Retiform/Grid Technique tutorial: Splitcoast Stampers

Supplies: stamps by StudioG, Hammermill and Recollections cardstocks, Smirk For Him paper, Offray ribbon, Memento, Inkadinkado and Versamark inks, ZipDry glue, MS detailing scissors, Fiskars papercutter, emery board

...And that happy little doll in the background is something Mom found in the rummage sale; it's stuffed with sand or something, so it has a wonderfully precious weight that I think reminds us both of childhood, motherhood, and all that stuff. I could tell "he" wanted to celebrate this card and his favorite book!

Easter Candy Holders

I had so much making sliding treat holders with Crafty Ann's Faberge Egg digi stamp that I decided to use both the image and the concept for the following challenges:

The Pink Elephant Challenge #97: Easter
The Pixie Cottage Challenge #64: Paper Piecing

I printed the image on three different papers: glittered-yellow, glittered & patterned, and light blue. Sorta wish I had made the eggs bigger, as those pieces are pretty small! If I were a little more skilled at decoupage cutting (O my aching hand!) I would have pieced the pattern on the egg too, but using the patterned paper & adding detail with a gel pen was a good compromise.

I kept holders relatively simple, as I love the texture of each piece. But it feels very precious and Easter-like to me...all I need now is a bonnet.

Supplies: Faberge Egg 1 digi stamp by Crafty Ann's, Colorbok glittered paper, pre-embossed cardstock (Paper Co?), HP printer & ink, Martha Stewart border punches and detailing scissors, Offray ribbon, ZipDry glue, Marvy heat tool, Sakura Gelly Roll pens, tulle, flower eyelets, Crop-O-DileII

Sliding Treat Holder tutorial: Pioneer Party

Faberge Egg Treat Holders

As I recently mentioned, I'm a bit addicted to sliding treat holders at the moment. Honestly, I can't believe we haven't devoured the chocolate rabbits yet! I think these are also the perfect size for a packet of baby carrots...you could put a rabbit on the treat holder and then they would be "bunny snacks". I know I always fell for that when I was a kidlet!

I decided to make some using the Faberge Egg digi stamp I bought from Crafty Ann's for my Easter card, and I can't wait to get my hands on more of her eggs, 60 pence at a time (which is exciting for an American, especially when PayPal does the exchange rate for me)!

I really wanted to show off how easy it is to emboss digi stamps right off the printer. The fool-proof method seems to be to print on Vellum (the Recollections brand letter-sized version works great; they call it transparent but it's vellum) at Photo Paper/Best. It prints a bit slowly, but the ink stays wet long enough for the powder to stick right to it. Here, I used glittered-gold, so there's a rough, glitter texture to it. I wasn't sure how it to stick to the fine details, but I shouldn't have worried! I colored the egg on the back of the Vellum. I'm entering the card in the middle (CU below) into A Spoon Full of Sugar Challenge #146: Tons of Texture. There're at least 4 textures: the glittered cardstock, the polka-dot embossed white paper, the glittered-gold embossing on the egg and details, and the smooth clear embossing on the sentiment.
I'm submitting the orange & purple ones into Craft Your Passion Challenge #52: Anything Goes. Supplies: Faberge Egg 1 digi stamp by Crafty Ann's, Happy Blessings sentiment from Regal Greetings set by {ippity} Stamps / Happy Spring sentiment stamp from Studio g, Core'dinations glittered cardstock, Recollections Vellum, Stampendous gold/glitter & clear embossing powder, InkItUp ink, HP printer & ink, Martha Stewart border punches and detailing scissors, Offray ribbon, ZipDry glue, Marvy heat tool, Copic, American Craft & LePlumeII markers

Sliding Treat Holder tutorial: Pioneer Party