Friends Having Fun Sketch Challenge Debut!

Happy Monday to you!  Hope you all had a lovely weekend! 

Today is the debut of the sketch challenge at at Friends Having Fun – whoohoo!  Who doesn’t love a good sketch?  The sketch team, called the Sketch Sorority Sisters, is led by the loveliest crafter you could ever meet, Dani (and I say this on good authority since I was lucky enough to meet Dani in person!).  So are you having fun yet?  Go over and check out the Friends Having Fun site and play along with us.  But no pressure – that is what this site is all about.

Here is this week’s sketch – a very pretty one!

And here’s my card – a very straight-forward interpretation of the sketch.  I loved using this one and will definitely keep this one in my arsenal to use at another time. 

This card is all about the designer paper I used (by Teresa Collins); the strip on the side is one of the edges from the 12×12” sheet.  I just had to find a way to use that beautiful border!  Since the paper was so prominent, I did not do my usual embossing – I actually only embossed the black label with a Cuttlebug folder.  This designer paper just happened to be a perfect match for one of my all-time favorite (and discontinued) Stampin’ Up! colors, Baja Breeze.  And they just announced that they are bringing that color back, which is great news.  I won’t have to feel tense every time I use the color now! 

Be sure to visit Friends Having Fun to see what the Sketch Sorority Sisters have in store for this week.  Thanks so much for visiting – see you again soon!

What I Used:

Paper:  Papertrey Ink white and black cardstock, Stampin’ Up! Baja Breeze cardstock, Teresa Collins designer paper

Stamp:  Anna Griffin

Ink:  Stampin’ Up! Baja Breeze and Versafine Onyx Black

Accessories:  Cuttlebug:  Diamond embossing folder, Spellbinders Nestabilities labels 9 & petite circle die; Michaels brads; dimensionals

Twilight Tuesday Sketch Challenge 8: A Little Dream

Hey everyone—I have a Twilight Tuesday project to share with you today – although we might have to use our imaginations to find the “twilight” in there.  But that’s okay.

I made this simple card for the Twilight Tuesday Sketch Challenge, one of two for the month of August.  The sketch challenges have been such a hit that we’re doing more of them now!  Click here to get the details on the sketch that I used for this card (TTSC8).  And the lovely Design Team member Dani just posted the latest sketch as well, which is another great one that I’ll be using soon.

So, for TTSC8, I flipped the sketch around and used the same color scheme from my card from last week’s Twilight Tuesday Inspiration Challenge (pictured at right).  I am really in a purple mood lately – I am actually about to start working on yet another purple card today! 

With this card, the main image is the center of things, rather than the sentiment.  For the sentiment, I used a very small stamp on a very small tag – pretty low-key.

I glitzed up the image a bit with my trusty Sakura Jelly Roll pen – one of my fave tools ever.  (But I think I’ve mentioned that a time or two before…)  As always, the glitter effect is tough to see in photographs, but this close up might show it a bit.  There are a couple of purple Dew Drops there as well.

I know I have not been posting quite as much lately – but there is a reason, I swear!   I’ve been working on several bigger projects, and since they’re all in various stages, they just haven’t been ready to be posted.   I’m altering a jewelry/treasure box (haven’t decided what to call it!), and I’ve also been working on several fabric-covered Bind-it-All books.  And I just got a Cricut too!  I’ll be dreaming up some projects using that soon. 

So, due to my severe perfectionist tendencies, I can’t seem to post things until they’re truly, truly ready.  And since my new projects have a bit of a learning curve, that makes for fewer posts lately!   I think that I’ll end up with a bunch of things that I can post soon, though, so I’ll definitely be blogging more. 

Thanks to you lovely, lovely people who are still hanging in and reading.  I appreciate every single one of you – truly! 

What I Used:

Paper: Stampin’ Up! Elegant Eggplant, Almost Amethyst, and Lovely Lilac cardstock

Stamps:  Inkadinkado from Nostalgia set (floral, butterfly); Anna Griffin (dream)

Ink:  Stampin’ Up! Elegant Eggplant

Accessories:  Cuttlebug: Floral Fantasy embossing folder & tag die; Spellbinders Nestabilities Petite Oval dies; Making Memories brad; Sakura Jelly Roll pen; Robin’s Nest Dew Drops; dimensionals

Twilight Tuesday Inspiration Challenge 40 – Blue

Happy Tuesday!  Here is a different type of theme for today’s Twilight Tuesday Inspiration Challenge – today is about the color blue.  Design Team member Jen issued our challenge today – read on…

Edward loves Bella in blue.

So this week the challenge is simple… create anything you want focusing on the color blue. Twilight related? Well that’s up to you.
Comment challenge… What’s your favorite color to wear and why?

Visit Twilight Tuesday for all the challenge details, and play along with us!  Margie will be sitting out from the challenges for the next few weeks, but we have Erica filling in for her!  So visit the blogs of the Design Team to see what they have created.  (Only those listed are participating; some are sitting out this week.) 

Dani  ~ Eve ~ Jen ~  Rebecca

And Our Guest Designers:

Alison ~ Donna ~  Erica ~ Jacquie

I was happy to work with blue, my favorite color, for this week.  I just found this stamp that I LOVE (the one with the trees and the moon) and I designed the card around that, going with a lunar theme.  At least, I’m hoping that the lunar thing comes across – because otherwise, my having that offset silver circle behind the white circle will look really odd.  I did that to give an impression of the phases of the moon, and the four silver Dew Drops on the side – also for the four phases of the moon.   So, I might be the only person who would take note of these things – but, hey, I enjoyed it.

In trying to get the look of a moonlit sky, I used many glittery elements on this card.  The card base is silver metallic cardstock; there is a layer of Bazzill Bling white cardstock; and the front panel is a metallic dark blue.  I stamped the moon and trees image in Stampin’ Up! Night of Navy ink, and then glittered it up, with Shimmerz in Angel Wings,  and a couple Sakura Jelly Roll pens.  Here’s a better look —

Thanks so much for visiting!

What I Used:

Paper:  Papertrey Ink white cardstock; The Paper Company metallic silver and blue steel cardstock; Bazzill Bling cardstock in Diamond

Stamps:  Anna Griffin (sentiment); Inkadinkado from the Utopiary set

Ink:  Stampin’ Up! Night of Navy

Accessories:  Cuttlebug: Fiskars texture plate in dots, Spellbinders Nestabilities petite circle and ribbon slide dies; Robin’s Nest Dew Drops – metallic silver; dimensionals; ribbon; Shimmerz – Angel Wings; Sakura Jelly Roll glitter pens

Guy Cards

Really original post title, right?  Since I did a post called “Kid Cards” the other day, I thought I’d keep my titles consistent while I showed you a couple of masculine-styled cards I’ve made lately.  That, and the fact that I could not think of a more clever title…

These two cards both have very simple layouts, which I think suits masculine cards – you don’t really want to get too fussy with these.  I had designer paper for both cards that I loved, so much so that the paper became the center of both layouts.

Basic Grey is the focal point of the birthday card below.  They have a line of papers called Boxer that is really cool for guy cards.  It’s not actually visible in this card, but the base of this card is Papertrey Ink’s new Rustic Cream cardstock.  This cardstock has fibers and flecks in the paper and really suits a masculine card.

For the next card, for a college graduate, I got to use some of my fave paper, from the K & Company Blue Awning collection.  Love this collection – it’s gorgeous like K & Company always is.

Card components:

Birthday card:

Paper:  Papertrey Ink Rustic Cream and Vintage Cream cardstock; Bazzill Burgundy cardstock; Stampin’ Up! Always Artichoke cardstock; Basic Grey Boxer designer paper

Stamp:  Anna Griffin for All Night Media

Ink:  Stampin’ Up! Always Artichoke

Accessories:  Cuttlebug:  Fiskars texture plate-lines; Spellbinders Nestabilities curved rectangle dies

Congratulations card:

Paper:  Stampin’ Up! Kraft & Night of Navy cardstock; Papertrey Ink Vintage Cream cardstock; K & Company Blue Awning designer paper

Stamp:  Anna Griffin for All Night Media

Ink:  Stampin’ Up! Night of Navy; Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Tea Dye

Accessories:  Cuttlebug:  Script Texture embossing folder, Spellbinders Nestabilities long ovals dies; Stampin’ Up! ticket corner punch; Making Memories brads; dimensionals

Love and Marriage

…go together like a horse and carriage…(Can’t you just hear Frank crooning away?)

I had a request for an engagement card, and would you believe that I have never made one?  I just never had the occasion, and also, not a lot of “engagement” stamps out there.  So I turned to “love.”  That ought to cover it, and should also explain the title of this post.  I loved making this card – it’s nice to pull out all the stops and go really girly sometimes! 

You still have a little time to enter for this week’s final blog  candy giveaway of the month!  Leave a comment on this post, up until 11:59 p.m. Eastern time on Thursday, June 25th, for your chance to win!  I will announce the winner tomorrow.

Card components:

Paper:  Papertrey Ink vintage cream, Bazzill rose cardstock, Bazzill Bling cardstock in Glass Slipper; Anna Griffin designer paper

Stamp:  Inkadinkado from the Love Letters set (Love) & Flourish Dot Set (flourish)

Ink:  Papertrey Ink Plum Pudding

Accessories:  Cuttlebug:  Swiss Dots embossing folder, Spellbinders Nestabilities heart and scalloped heart dies; EK Success border punch; ribbon; dimensionals; Stampin’ Up!  ticket corner punch; Kaiser pink pearls

A Box Filled With My Faves

Making gift sets has been my thing lately – I really hope you’re not sick of seeing them yet, because that is what I have to show today!

This one uses some of my all-time favorite stuff – Stampin’ Up!’s Riding Hood Red cardstock and ink, Anna Griffin designer paper that I adore, Inkadinkado stamps, Papertrey Ink’s vintage cream cardstock, Nestabilities, Cuttlebug embossing, a huge bow – I got ‘em all in here!   Seriously, I could work for a long time with that list of supplies and not get bored – love them.

This set is composed of identical cards with a variety of sentiments – thank you, best wishes, happy birthday, with sympathy.   I love the “best wishes,” since it’s something that you don’t see all the time.   

I know that my blog has been quiet, but I will definitely be back soon to post some other projects; hopefully I will have something other than box sets to show you!  I’ll also be back on Tuesday with the next Twilight Tuesday Inspiration Challenge. 

And…coming up soon – an announcement about Blog Candy!  Whoohoo!  Stay tuned!

Have a lovely Memorial Day Weekend!

Card details:

Paper:  Papertrey Ink Vintage Cream cardstock; Stampin’ Up! Riding Hood Red and Kraft cardstock; Anna Griffin designer paper

Ink:  Stampin’ Up! Riding Hood Red

Stamps:  various from Inkadinkado sets

accessories:  Cuttlebug:  D’Vine Swirls embossing folder; Spellbinders Nestabilities circle and scalloped circle dies. 

For Box:

Same as above, with Spellbinders Nestabilities Label One dies; ribbon; dimensionals

Bella Bleu Gift Set and Exciting News!

I have some exciting news today – I have suddenly found myself taking orders for cards!  What started as one set has blossomed into requests for several more sets, so it’s time for me to get to work!  I am in the process of setting up my Etsy store and will post information on that as soon as it’s ready.  I am really thrilled to be entering in to this new venture!  I think it will be really fun.

For this set of 12 cards, I used some favorites of mine – Brocade Blue and Bella Bleu paper from Stampin’ Up!.  The cards are identical; only the  sentiments were changed.  I included four sentiments (three cards of each):  Thank You,  Thinking of You, and Happy Birthday, all from different Inkadinkado sets, and a With Sympathy stamp from Anna Griffin.  Something led me to my corner rounder when I made this – I never think to use that one!  I thought it gave a softer look that seemed to work since these cards have such a feminine style.  The background is embossed with the Swiss Dots embossing folder and the strip in the center is embossed with a Cuttlebug border embossing folder from the Just My Type set.  The sentiments were stamped and mounted on pieces cut from Nestabilities rectangle dies.   For the box, I made a computer-generated label (simple, just “greeting card set” with a flourish) and decorated the lid of the box with the same components used on the cards. 

Card details:

Paper:  Papertrey Ink Vintage Cream cardstock; Stampin’ Up! Brocade Blue cardstock and Bella Bleu designer paper; American Crafts cream cardstock (box)

Stamps:  Inkadinkado (Thank You, Thinking of You, & Happy Birthday); Anna Griffin (With Sympathy); type and flourish on box computer-generated

Ink:  Stampin’ Up!  Brocade Blue

Accessories:  Cuttlebug: Swiss Dots embossing folder, Just My Type border embossing folder; Nestabilities rectangle and scalloped rectangle dies; EK Success corner rounder;  dimensionals (on box); ribbon (on box)

Thanking a Friend, Once Again

The other day I posted a thank you card I made for Dani from the Twilight Tuesday Inspiration Challenge Design Team, and here is another card for yet another team member.  I sent this card to Eve a while ago to thank her for some lovely items she sent to the team; can you tell that we’ve got a very generous group? 

This card was a little brighter for me as I usually use softer colors, but it’s good to stretch a little every now and then, right?  That purple cardstock and ink are in Papertrey Ink’s Plum Pudding shade.  The white background is embossed with the Swiss Dots embossing folder (where would I be without that folder?).  For the vertical panel, I made a background with a floral flourish stamp from Inkadinkado and that is mounted on a panel of Plum Pudding cardstock trimmed with a Martha Stewart border punch.  The sentiment is on Nestabilities’ ovals.  I added a few more embellishments, as detailed below, and that did it! 

Card Details:

Paper: Papertrey Ink white and Plum Pudding cardstock

Stamps: Anna Griffin – Sentiment; Inkadinkado Floral Flourishes set – background image

Ink:  Papertrey Ink Plum Pudding

Accessories:  Cuttlebug:  Swiss Dots embossing folder & Nestabilities Oval dies; Martha Stewart border punch; Stampin’ Up! ticket corner punch; Dew Drops; ribbon; dimensionals

Sending a Little Encouragement

This card was made for a very sweet friend of mine.  I was happy to finally get the chance to break out the Stampin’ Up! Parisian Breeze paper!  I love this paper so much that it was hard to cut into it.  I immediately want to hoard it, which makes very little sense, really, so I moved forward, as you can see!  

The base of this card is Stampin’ Up’s Baja Breeze.  I stamped and mounted the sentiment on labels cut with the beautiful Nestabilities Labels Four set.  I used a Martha Stewart border punch on the Baja Breeze and Chocolate Chip panels and then embossed the top panel with a Cuttlebug border embossing folder for a little texture.  The embellishments in the corners are from the Cuttlebug Vintage Corner set.  The jewels are from a K & Company Christmas  set, and I wish they were not just a seasonal thing because I love the color and it coordinates really well with Baja Breeze. 

Card components:

Paper: Stampin’ Up!  Baja Breeze & Chocolate Chip cardstock and Parisian Breeze designer paper; Papertrey Ink white cardstock

Stamps:  Anna Griffin (sentiment); Inkadinkado Love Letters set (floral flourish)

Ink: Stampin; Up! Baja Breeze

Accessories: Cuttlebug: Vintage Corner die & With Love embossing folder; Spellbinders Nestabilities Labels Four dies; K & Company adhesive jewel; Martha Stewart scallop border punch; dimensionals

JustRite Monogrammed Notecard Set

Here is a set of cards that I made for my sister’s  birthday.  This set needed to be really special, so I had to break out the really good paper for this one!  The designer paper that I used for this set is from K & Company’s new Madeline line, which is just gorgeous and coordinates really well with Papertrey Ink’s Plum Pudding cardstock and ink. 

First up – the notecards (see the photo on the left) featuring that Madeline paper.   The monogram for the cards was stamped with the JustRite Stamper Damask Border kit and mounted (with dimensionals) on circles die cut with Nestabilities.   The lace border was done with a Martha Stewart border punch.  The Madeline paper and a panel embossed with the Cuttlebug Swiss Dot embossing folder make up the background, which is popped up with dimensionals. 

Next came the box for the cards (see the photo on the right), done with the help of my Scor-Pal and made with the same materials as the notecards.  (The top of the box is basically another card front.)

And finally, the actual birthday card!  I kept this consistent with the set by using the same materials, but in a different layout.  I really wanted this Madeline paper to be prominent on this card, so I went with a square card (5 1/4”x5 1/4”), which gave me a little more room to fit that square panel.  The background, in Papertrey Ink’s Vintage Cream, was  embossed with a Fiskars Texture Plate (leaves) and I used an EK Success Deco corner punch.  The sentiment is from Anna Griffin and stamped and mounted on Nestabilities circles.  Pink Dew Drops are in all four corners of the card.  I really hope that my sister enjoys this set!

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Components:

Paper: Papertrey Ink Plum Pudding and Vintage Cream cardstock; K & Company Madeline designer paper in Wild Roses

Stamps:  JustRite Stamper – Damask Border set; Anna Griffin (sentiment)

Ink: Papertrey Ink hybrid ink in Plum Pudding

Accessories: Cuttlebug: Swiss Dots embossing folder. Nestabilities circle and scalloped circle dies, Fiskars texture plate in leaves; dimensionals; ribbon; Dew Drops; EK Success Deco corner punch; ribbon; Scor-Pal; Martha Stewart lace border punch