Pen-Sketched Birthday

 

Hey, crafters, the struggle is real!  Holidays, computer glitches, snow storm, backward dies...I'm late to the game.  But Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge has a beautiful sketch this week.   Check it out!

This is my inspiration card - made with Pen-Sketched Flowers and foliage from Altenew, colored with watercolor pencils and using papers from my stash.  The stamp set is older, but I just ordered the coordinating dies on a recent sale...using them for the first time today, I discovered that two of the images I chose had dies that did not match - they are flipped.  I had already stamped and water colored so I held them up to my Ott light and taped them on the backside!  It worked fairly well...but I will call Altenew tomorrow and see if I can have those replaced. I have never had anything like that happen before.

I am going to make a New Year's resolution to schedule craft time everyday.  And to go outside every day even if it's just around the block - raining or whatever. Do you have any resolutions for this new year??

 

I always look forward to Freshly Made Sketches and am happy to be done with holiday for a bit and ready to begin my stash of birthday cards.  I send about 80-90 a year.  

I used Simon Says Birthday Wishes Circle and papers from my scrap box. 

Doggone Good Day

 

This week's sketch #691 at Sketch Saturday prompted a dig into my stash of papers. embellishments, and an embossing folder of paw prints. I saw the collar paper had a tag with 'Max' on it - that's the name of my brother's dog, so I made sure to trim it to show.  The sentiment is from an older Close To My Heart set.

I hope you will join us at Sketch Saturday this week.

Amaryllis

Monday morning means a new sketch at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge

My design inspiration for you used my new mini stamp and die set from Altenew, colored with Artist Markers.  Some CTMH papers from my stash and two favorites from Simon Says Stamp:  Falling leaves stencil and Chunky Scalloped Rectangles dies. I googled amaryllis images and there were so many varieties! That means I can do more variations with this flower image.  The stencil piece was also dry embossed, a technique I really like. It's not visible in photos but does add some dimension in real life.

I hope you will join us in the challenge.

Happy holidays and may you get crafty time!

Peace

 

I know this stamp image was part of a Simon Says Stamp Stamptember - either 2019 or 2020. I don't think I have ever used it....I have been trying to downsize/purge some stamps and I 'found' this.  Now it has been on my desk for a week or so.  The color challenge at Hand Stamped Sentiments inspired me to try heat embossing with gold on the deep red card stock.  I then painted the leaves with metallic watercolors for the green and soft blue green in the challenge.  The stamp is a pull apart rubber cling - the circle sentiment in the center pops out, so I stamped it separately and cut with a circle die and adhered it with foam.

I really like how it turned out. This stamp will be a keeper!

Calm & Bright

 

Loved coloring these sweet fawns.  I often see them in my neighborhood and they come and nibble on my front yard plants.  

The stamps and coordinating dies are from My Favorite Things, the trees and bird dies are Impression Obsession that have been in my stash a while.  I used Altenew Artist markers to color, Gina K powder blue ink blended in background. I added some snow flake dots with gel pen and a dust of perfect pearls which are sweet in real life and not very visible in the photo.

Time to start writing and sending these cards!

Linked to Through the Craft Room Door - Anything Goes

Sparkle & Snow

 

Some  big projects got completed today, and I had time to created a card that has been in my mind since AAA Card Challenge posted it's current 'along the edge + option of snow'...It didn't come out quite as I envisioned it, but I do like it.  Wondered if perhaps it needed another tree?  CAS design is always an exciting balance to attempt.

I used the die to cut along the edge of a 4.25"X 5.5" panel of #110 solar white card. I hand cut from the edge with a bit of a curve to release the tree, and carefully ink blended the side piece before adhering it to a top folding base. I stamped the sentiment on the larger left hand piece and glued it down to the base. I inset the tree and added some glue and fine glitter to created snow on the branches, at the base, and a bit down the edge.  It's quite sparkly in real life.  The grey winter days are making photos so difficult. :(

Also linking to Little Red Wagon Snow challenge #630

Penguin Christmas

 

Good Morning!  Time for a new sketch challenge at Sketch Saturday.

My card uses the Playful Penguin set from Gina K.  I colored them with alcohol markers and used the coordinating die to cut out.  The sentiment strips are Gina K also, cut with her sentiment strip dies. I hand drew the swirls and snow flakes with a white gel pen. The patterned paper is from my Christmas paper scrap box, and twine from my CHTM stash.

Check out the other designer inspiration cards and play along with us!

Happy weekend!

Sweet Friend

 

Color Throwdown challenge #671 inspired my card today.  I send a lot of birthday cards and like to use daisies on those to my P.E.O. sisters since that is an emblem of our group.  The pink, grey, silver and white is a soft and elegant palette.

I masked off the side of the card and ink blended and then silver embossed the greeting from Altenew's newest Paint-a-Flower set. I wrapped silver thread quite a few times around the card on the blended line, and added some Liquid Pearls to the center of the die cut and scattered some as well.

One Step at a Time

A card made today for a friend who was diagnosed with leukemia and has gone through her first round of chemotherapy.  

Two stars were ink blended using a Brutus Monroe stencil and Gina K Applemint ink. The shoes and sentiment are from the Brutus Monroe set called Christopher's Shoes.  I colored them with alcohol markers and then gave them a brush of Wink of Stella for sparkle, fussy cut and popped up with foam. The sentiment was stamped directly on to the front panel.  I used a die from my stash to cut stars from purple and green mirror card stock for embellishments.  The card front was covered with some black and fine line striped paper from my stash and the white panel was popped with a layer of foam.

Inspired by sketch #514 at Freshly Made Sketches.