Try Stampin' Sketch

 

Happy Tuesday!  My design team inspiration for the new sketch #596 at 

                     Try Stampin' On Tuesday

The optional for this sketch is 'Sweets'....which I did not use on my card. I guess I need to break out my cupcake stamps :-)  

The stamp set and sentiment for my card came from Simon Says Stamp You Shine set. I random stamped the orange blossom and leaf on a panel and colored with Copics. I also stamped some additional blossoms and leaves to color and fussy cut to pop up on the small circle element. I used stitched circle dies, and a punch for the sentiment label. 

I hope you will check out this sketch challenge and the rest of the design team cards at TSOT and join us!

April Showers Birthday

 

New sketch #514 at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge this morning!

And I had a great deal of fun playing with a new fancy fold I learned watching Gina K Designs (see here), and with a new set of dies from Spellbinders- Umbrella Bloom from the Vicky Papaioannou collection. It's an amazing set of 27 dies to cut umbrellas and flowers and foliage.

I began by cutting and scoring the main card base, and before folding I placed an oval stencil over the center and ink blended with blue and green inks. Actually just using residual ink on the brushes.

Then I die cut the umbrella, flowers and foliage from colorful card stock scraps and assembled the umbrella and filled it. I did use a Wink of Stella pen on the umbrella segments.

I also adhered a small bouquet of flowers on the inside of the narrow top folding card base attached to the back. Some sentiment strips and Twinkle Raindrops from Queen & Co. finished the project.  It folds to one side to fit perfectly in an A2 envelope.  Tough to photograph, but just thrilled with how this came out!  I hope you can see the sketch here...I did take a bit of creative license.

Also linking to Double Trouble #132 - Hoodie-Hoo!  and Creative Creases #51- Happy Anniversary

Circles

 My card uses Simon Says Stamp Round and Round background stamp. I heat embossed in white, ink blended, and then returned the stamp to the Misti and slightly offset the stamp in gray ink. I stamped some circles from SSS Circle Sayings set, and the sentiment from the same set was heat embossed in white on gray card stock. The background stamp was used again the the flap of the envelope.

My card was inspired by #574 Freshly Made Sketches and AAA Cards #234 'Circles'

Let's Get Tropical

 Good Morning!  

Time for a new sketch challenge at Sketch Saturday!

#720 option is to feature animals. My Design Team inspiration for you used a great Gina K Designs stencil Lush Leaves and some fun toucans, foliage and sentiment from My Favorite Things Toucan Do It stamp and die set (retired).  There is a silly 'happy bird-day' sentiment inside :-) Right now with freezing temps and some snow, tropical sounds great!

I hope you will check out the fun cards from the rest of the design team and play along at SS!

Folk Motif

 The theme for week #717 challenge at Allsorts

  ***  Anything Goes with an Optional theme Matching Pairs ***

Prizes for this month from our generous sponsors Highlight Crafts, Oakwood Direct , AALL & Create and Craft Stash.

My card used the main image from Altenew's Mini set Folk Motif. It's a layering stamp and I used all Gina K Design inks, and Island Blue card stock from Simon Says Stamp. The sentiment from the same set was heat embossed. And some Nuvo Drops completed the card,

Hoping you will check out the rest of the Design Team inspiration and join the challenge at ALLSORTS

Celebrate Your Birthday

 

Inspired by sketch #573 at

Freshly Made Sketches and some snippets on my desk...

A pretty in pink birthday card. I debossed the front of the card base with Dotted Swirls plate from Altenew. The sentiment die from Simon Says Stamp was cut three times from a dark gray card stock and stacked for a bit of dimension. The base of the panel in pink and the blue dots are Gina K papers, the others from past SSS kit papers.

With Wings

 I'm here this morning with a card for Allsorts new challenge - week 716

                  *** Anything Goes - Option 'Things with Wings" ***

This month's sponsors and prizes come from 

WOWVOW, Craft Stash, AALL and Create and Ruth Hamilton Design

Clearing out some older stamp sets has been a project lately - must make room for buying new things! Well, have you ever put something in the 'Moving On' box and then fished it out again?  Susan Raihala of http://simplicitybylateblossom.blogspot.com/ was one of the first crafters I followed. Her style and teaching really were an inspiration. She also once gave some advice about purging the hoard...er, collection.  Put them in a box, store it somewhere away, and after a year you can send it off knowing you really haven't missed any of its contents.  Todays stamp just got fished out of a box placed in the garage last spring. Rescued in the nick of time I say :-)  :-)

Stamped this set from CTMH and water colored. The top cream linen panel was cut with a Lawn Fawn stitched +scalloped circle die. 

To Travel is to Live

 Since retiring,  I have tried to take at least one big trip each year. COVID made 2020 and 2021 a stay at home, but I'm happy to be back on the road :-) again.  So far I have visited Japan (3 times because my oldest son lives there), Thailand, Italy, China, Mongolia, Russia, Morocco, Spain, Germany, Poland, Austria, Czechia, Hungary...Greece and Canada on the schedule this year and likely another trip to Japan.I have learned so much and met marvelous people.  

My card was inspired by the Travel & Adventure challenge at Beyond the Blue. I embossed a white card using the Darice World Map folder, and ink blended around the edges. The central image is a ephemera piece that was in a package from a friend. I stamped and fussy cut the little suitcase and camera images. They are really old wooden stamps that have been in my stash for a couple of decades! lol The card is sitting on my travel journal for this photo.

A Furry Friend

                                      A new sketch at Try Stampin' On Tuesday!

I wanted to make a silly pun card for my grandson - he's 5 and just loves having fun with words. Goofy jokes, puns and rhymes are always a hit.  I did have to check Google to be sure a sheep was in the list of animals with fur.

I ran some Neenah Desert Sand card through Altenew's Deck Planks embossing folder and then dragged some Sandy Beach ink across to highlight the texture.  I used MFT Grassy Edges stencil to create some grass which I then fussy cut, and punches for clouds. A scallop punch formed the sheep body which I covered with some cotton ball.  The sheep's face (colored with Copics) and the sentiment were computer generated.  A fun and very silly card for a fun and silly cutie.

Come on over and join the fun. We look forward to seeing your creations!

Wishing you Happiness

Good morning!  

Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #512 is new today.  For my Design Team card I played with some Distress Texture paste, Nuvo Shimmer powders, and the Tumbling Leaves stencil from Simon Says Stamp. I gave a little spritz of liquid shimmer from Brutus Monroe as well.  When it was dry I tore it for the right side element of the sketch.  It was adhered to a linen textured card base.

The floral images (Altenew- Charming Doodles) were stamped and gold heat embossed and colored with Altenew Artist markers. The sentiment is from Altenew's Waterlily Dahlia set.

All the Design Team cards for this sketch are posted on Wednesday - but don't wait! Have a crafty session and join the challenge.

* Oops! I just noticed that the sequins were not adhered and all but one slipped off for the photo. I don't think the card really needs them.

Inked Lotus

Hello! Welcome to the blog this morning. There is a new challenge at 

Sketch Saturday. 

The optional twist is to use an old stamp.  My design team inspiration for you uses an older Altenew set, Inked Lotus, and some papers from  my stash. The image was colored with Altenew Artist Markers.

Check out the wonderful cards from the rest of the team and play along.

All About Hearts

 Good morning!  It's time for a new challenge at Allsorts!  For week #715 the theme is

                     **** ANYTHING GOES     or      ALL ABOUT HEARTS ****

                  Prizes for the month of February are from some marvelous patrons

WOWVOW, Craft Stash, AALL and Create, WOWVOW and Ruth Hamilton Design

My card features some striped paper from Altenew; a scalloped die, heart die, and sentiment from Gina K Designs; and stamp Center Cut Heart from Simon Says Stamp. I colored the small heart in the center with red Copic and then applied some clear Glossy Accents.

Please check out the rest of the Design Team inspiration at Allsorts and join us with your crafty creations!

Pretty Pink Floral

 My card today was inspired by two blog challenges. For Retro Rubber #199 I've used a stamp from about 2000 called Paris Floral purchased from CTMH before they began selling acryllic  and I used pink, green, silver and cream colors. The design is a Sunday Stamps #302 sketch. 

The cream card stock is linen, the center panel is layered on matt silver card, the center piece cut with a Lawn Fawn scalloped circle die. I stamped and fussy cut the images and they were colored with Copic markers. The sentiment is from Gina K Designs So Many Sentiments set and a few Share Kindness mix sequins finished the project.

  

"I Love..." Week 714 at Allsorts

 I do love stencils, and that is my answer to this week's very fun theme at Allsorts!  Your card can be Anything Goes or complete the optional "I love..." prompt.  

Challenges at Allsorts have some spectacular prizes from our patrons:  WOWVOW, Craft Stash, AALL and Create and Ruth Hamilton Design

My card uses a layering stencil from Gina K Designs, inked with Distress Oxide inks Saltwater Taffy and Salvaged Patina. I added some stenciling on the envelope as well.