my all star

Well, hello again.  So, did you remember to set your clocks forward last night?  Every year I am SO paranoid that I'll forget.  Thank heavens for my alarm clock which automatically springs forward and falls back all on its own.  (Thank you Sony).  I've sorely depeleted my stash of cards to give away, and have been trying to fill that box back up.  The baby card mojo has been free flowing lately, but I need to focus on making masculine cards.  Like this one.

The patterned papers are from BasicGrey's Marjolaine collection (you must be getting sick of this stuff.  I use it on almost everything.) and two of my favorite PTI colours, Spring Moss and Rustic Cream.  The card base was impressed with the Woodgrain plate, then I used a foam blender and some Pumice Distress Ink, to bring out the impression.  Of all the Fillable Frames, this is my favorite.  I stamped the frame in Baja Breeze (SU)and the sentiment in Pear Tart (Memento) and Pumice before I stuck it on with foam dots. 

Hope you like.  Hope you have a great rest of the weekend.  And, I hope you'll drop by for another visit.  Happy Sunday!
 

crazy rejects

A couple of us in the Papertrey Posse decided to try our hand at some of the crazy sketches put out during the last Paper Crafts call.  Well, here's my take on Sketch #35.  Thanks Becky for the challenge.  This card is pretty much all Papertrey products.  I had planned a wedding cake type card, but really wanted to use some fun and bright colours.  The cake layers are impressed with the In Bloom plate and I switched out the top layer of squares for candles.

The last one that I wanted to share is one of my least favorites of the lot.  I can't remember which sketch I used, but I did flip it to make the layout in my head work.  For this one, I combined dies from Papertrey, Lawn Fawn stamps, and glitter (yes, I used more glitter) to create this sparkly number.

I can't remember all the details, so I won't even try.  Thanks for dropping by and I promise, no more rejects.  On to cards I like and can't wait to share.  My March Challenge card should be up and ready for tomorrow.  Hope you come by and check it out.  Or better yet, why not play along with this month's challenge.

Have a fantastic evening.

elegant thanks

Monday, already?!?  This is going to be a lightning quick post.  I sometimes wonder if I blather on too long, when really, I should just get right down to the reason you're all here.  Cards.  Or, is it Papertrey?  Then again, can we have one without the other?

This baby was yet another PC leftover that used one of their top 3 sketches.  If there's something this call has taught me is that just because it doesn't get published, doesn't mean your card is NOT worthy of being shared.  In fact, the "reject" I posted on Saturday sold yesterday from my Etsy shop.  WooHoo!!

Not sure who'll get this gem.  I am so in love with this felt flower (LOVE this colour combo, too), that it'll be hard to sell or give away.  But, I've put it up on Etsy and am crossing my fingers.  Have a good rest of the day and I'll be back tomorrow with my Make It Monday card.  Hopefully.

Cheers!!



** All supplies Papertrey Ink, unless otherwise noted. **
Paper - smokey shadow, rustic cream
Felt - terracotta tile
Stamps - Just the Ticket, It's Official, Turning a New Leaf
Ink - VersaMark, London Fog, Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
Tools - Beautiful Blooms #1 die, ticket border die
Other - vintage cream button, grey floss, clear EP

all things grow with love

Happy Saturday! Now that the Paper Crafts call has closed and submission notices have gone out, I can share the first of five cards that weren't picked up. I won't call them rejects because frankly, I think they're pretty darn good. I had a bit of a "oh darn, it's crooked" moment when I stuck down the mat. Which was followed by a heat-gun fueled removal which caused one corner not to stay stuck flat for long. Unfortunately, I just realized the lifting corner today when loading the pic. I wonder if the editors saw it?  LOL

Oh how I love the weekend. Even if it's rainy, grey, and I've got a wicked migraine ... I'm still in jammies, not at work, and have a stack of good books and blogs to keep me company. Absolute bliss, I tell ya.

Have a great rest of the weekend, peeps.




** all supplies Papertrey Ink, unless otherwise noted.

Paper:  Rustic Cream & Sweet Blush, Penny Candy print (Hopscotch collection from BasicGrey)
Felt: Fine Linen, Harvest Gold, and Ocean Tides
Stamps: To The Moon (Verve), “all things grow” sentiment from Everyday Button Bits
Ink: black (StazOn), Bahama Blue & Rose Bud (Tsunkineko)
Other:  Take 3 die, Double Ended banner die, spring and holiday vintage mix buttons, ecru floss (DMC)

viva la verve

Happy Monday!!  To make up for lost stamping time, I spent most of this weekend working with sketch layouts for the Viva La Verve challenges.  Since I was late getting last week's done, I decided that I would just do weeks 1 & 2 at once.  So, sit back, relax and enjoy!

These were the two sketches I was working with:

 

And here are my takes on the first two sketches for February.



VLVFeb2011 - Week 1



Details: 

Paper:  damask print (SU), aqua mist (PTI), solar white (Neenah)

Stamps:  Kind Words (Verve), Fancy Flourishes (PTI)

Ink:  VersaMark

Other:  white seam binding (Hug Snug), C3 (Copic), silver EP (AC), large circles (Nesties), limitless layers (PTI)

 

VLVFeb2011 - Week 2



Details:

Paper:  rustic cream & enchanted evening (PTI),

dictionary print (SU), cork (unknown)

Stamps:  Upsy Daisy (SU), Butterfly Dreams (PTI)

Ink:  new sprout, rhubarb & london fog (Memento), tea dye duo (PTI)

Other:  book print impression plate, butterfly dreams, & notebook die (PTI), baker's twine

A big thanks to the ladies at Verve for two great sketches.  I can't wait to see what they have in store for week three. 

And an even bigger thanks to you all for dropping by.  I love having company and reading your comments really makes my day.  {{hugs}}

Have a blessed day.

2S4Y66 -- Havin' a Hoot

I know.  I know.  I'm MIA, neglecting the poor old blog then TWO posts in one day.  Not sure what's going on but I will confess.  I pretended that laundry & vacuuming don't exist and have been hiding in my stamp room all day.  Absolute bliss.

This second post is actually one of three cards a customer (I LOVE saying that) ordered as a result of a fundraiser I did at my sister's office last month.  Since I had to get the cards done today to deliver to her on Monday, I figured I'd draw inspiration from some of my favorite card challenge websites.  This week's 2 Sketches 4 You layout was the jumping off point for my card.  Their Mr. Linky closes tonight which is the real reason I'm posting this today.

This is also one of the first pics taken in my new, homemade light box.  I have Ted over on the PTI forum to thank for his instructions.  It's actually quite fitting since he's also on the DT for the digital stamp I used for my card. 

Details:

Paper - Solar White (Neenah), brocade blue & polka dot print (SU - retired)

Stamps - Owl (Dustin Pike), Signature Greetings (PTI)

Colouring Mediums - Fresh Snow (PTI), PrismaColor pencils & Gamsol

Other - Button Twine (PTI), Labels 14 (Nesties), Bird Punch (SU), White EP

Thanks for dropping by.  Toodles!!

while you were out ...

I am loving my new Lawn Fawn stamps. These sets have such a carefree and whimsical look to them. They just make me smile. Today's card uses three stamps from the Just My Type set and MTSC 80. If you've never checked this company out, you don't know what you're missing!!

To build an office-y theme, I used thin cork to ground the image & sentiment. The floral print is part of the BasicGrey Green at Heart collection. I have such a weakness for BG papers. I can't resist them. Really, I need a 12 step program. LOL

The telephone was stamped twice in Tuxedo Black on Dusk (Bazzill) and Solar White (Neenah). Because the cork is noticably thicker than cardstock, I outlined the image on the white with Copic BG10 to give dimension without adding extra height.

To spice up the layout, I cut the coral mat and put the top askew, using the turquoise ribbon & white circle to cover up the seam. This was a last minute improv but I really like it.


A scrap of lined paper was torn, punched and stamped in Bahama Blue to balance out my makeshift bulletin board. A quick ruffling of my message, a new sprout & black pushpin and this baby was finito. I can't wait to ink up the rest of the images in this set. Toodles!!

Details:
Paper - Emerald (BG), Pen Pals (Grandma's Kitchen - WRMK), cork sheets (unknown)
Inks - Memento Dew Drops
Ribbon - Michael's
Tools - spiral, border, & 3/4" circle punches (EK), circle cutter (MS)

2S4Y Sketch #56

I've visited the 2 Sketches 4 You site often and used Kazan & Laura's sketches for inspiration, but this is the first time I've actually played along.



I recently bought some yummy, summery striped paper from Jillibean Soup's Egg Drop Soup collection. I'm such a paper addict. But, it's such a happy print. Who could resist? And the floral on the back is also smile-inducing. (You'll see that soon in another post, I promise. It's waaay too cute to stay hidden.)

So, fellow stampers, if you've got some time today, why don't you give this sketch a whirl?

Thanks for coming by!!

Supplies:
Paper - white (Neenah), green (Bazzill), soft suede & cameo coral (SU), stripe (JS)
Stamps - On My Couch (PTI)
Ink - new sprout, bamboo leaves, pear tart (Memento), fresh snow (PTI)
Other - white gel pen (Sakura), border punches (EK), ribbon (unknown), chair die (PTI)

OTWC Challenge #13 & ICS #72

After looking at this week's Inspirational Card Sketch and the Off the Wall Craftiness colour challenge, I decided to maximize what little time I had and combine them into one card. My mojo started flowing after looking at this week's ICS sketch:
and the stunning table layout for colour inspiration seen here:



For my take on these challenges, I raided my stash of SU, PTI, and Bazzil cardstocks and a bubbly SEI print. The cute car is from Papertrey Ink's Enjoy the Ride set. I love the die that makes trimming this baby a snap. To save space, I stamped the sentiment from Enjoy the Ride onto a blush pink satin ribbon and ruched one end.



So, what do you think? Did I do these challenges justice?

June Sketch Challenge

Welcome to my stop in the Papertrey Posse's inaugural Parade of Blogs. This month's hostess gave us all a sketch that we were to use to create something fab using Papertrey Ink products.



I started with the fabulous Beautiful Blooms paper from PTI. I fell in love with the Pure Poppy dots on sight and just had to use it. Sparingly, of course. I wanted the paper to be front and centre, so I chose light grey and basic black cardstocks (both SU) for the base and accents.

My Making Memories SLICE zipped out the two circles needed for the focal image. I then stamped the wooden floor from Chair-ished onto the solar white (Neenah) circle using London Fog dye ink by Memento. The chairs were done in Tuxedo Black. The mod-ish chair in the middle was heat embossed on another pattern in the Beautiful Blooms paper pack and cut out.



The sentiment, also from Chair-ished, was stamped in Fresh Snow ink from PTI. Can I tell you I am in LOVE with this ink. It truly provides the amazing coverage on dark cardstock that it claims to provide. To finish prepping the pieces, I dragged the black mat through the white ink to make it pop. Throw a few foam dimensionals under the printed chair, sentiment strip, and the main image, and a snap of my trusty corner rounder and the card was complete.

Thanks for all great challenges this month Jessica.

And thanks everyone for taking the time to look. Blessings!