Tuesday, March 26, 2019

Feel Better Soon

04/04/2019 Update: Top Three winner at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #309!


A member of my family has been in the hospital since September 5 of last year. She is finally preparing to return home. Along the way, I have been sending her cards, hoping to buoy her spirits. My card was inspired by a sketch at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #309. I have also been trying to reduce the size of my paper stash so found this gorgeous floral paper, now retired. I find that rich floral paper can look busy but I wanted this card to be bold and bright for my sister-in-law.


Elements that were die cut were the background paper, four label shapes to feature the sentiment and the faux string. The items that were fussy cut were the additional flowers on the sentiment piece and to decorate inside the card. Once the sentiment was stamped and everything was cut, the floral panel was adhered to a white card base, followed by the faux string and the white label. The remaining sentiment labels were adhered to each other and then backed with foam tape to adhere them to the card. The sketch has a bow, but because I did not have the right size bow die, I elected to pop up a few flowers cut from the paper. The inside was decorated with another die cut faux string and fussy cut flower.


Visit the Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge Blog #309 to find a great sketch and submit your project!

Materials
Stamps: Sizzix Layered Labels
Ink: Stampin' Up! Tangerine Tango
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White, Hello Honey, Night of Navy, Tangerine Tango
Paper: Stampin' Up! "Flower Pot" (retired)
Dies: Sizzix Layered Labels, Pretty Pink Posh (faux string), Waffle Flower Stitched Scalloped Rectangle
Misc.: Stampin' Up! Dimensionals (foam tape)

Caffeinated Cats



I am not involved with the big coffee blog hop that occurs twice a year but I enjoy some of the stamps that the coffee craze has brought about. This card is for Try Stampin' on Tuesday Sketch Challenge #401 with an optional theme to use frames.

The image was stamped, colored with Copics and trimmed to a rectangle. The Copic colors were specifically selected to match the plaid paper. The sentiment was stamped then cut using oval dies. Onto a brown card base a large die cut lacy frame was adhered. Next the plaid paper was added. The focal image was framed with a smaller coordinating frame and adhered using foam tape. At this point I chose to veer a bit from the sketch - let's call it artistic license! The hand cut banner was added directly to the card and the sentiment was backed with foam tape. The inside was lined with a panel of scalloped die cut cardstock in the aqua color.

 
It's always fun to review the beautiful cards that are submitted to our challenges. We hope you'll join us at the TSOT #401 blog. This biweekly challenge begins on Tuesday, March 26, through Monday, April 8, 2019.


Materials
Stamp set: Newton's Nook Caffeinated Cats
Inks: Memento Tuxedo Black & Copic Alcohol Markers
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White, Chocolate Chip & Pool Party; Spectrum Noir for alcohol ink
Paper: Lawn Fawn Perfectly Plaid
Dies: Memory Box Doily Frames, Lawn Fawn Scalloped Rectangles (inside card), Gina K nesting & stacking oval dies (sentiment)
Misc.: Stampin' Up! Dimensionals (foam tape)

Friday, March 22, 2019

You Are Extra Special



Welcome to Color My Heart Color Dare Challenge #335, which runs through Thursday, April 4, 2019. Our theme is to make a pink monochromatic card. White and one neutral are permitted. Stop by the challenge blog and check it out!
Onto a white card base, a panel of pink textured foil was adhered. Onto a panel of white cardstock, the floral image was stamped, followed by the addition of background with a tiny floral stamp. To define the images of the flowers, I used a white gel pen on the large floral image. The sentiment was stamped in silver ink and the ribbon was adhered. This panel was backed with foam tape for dimension and adhered to the card base. The inside was stamped with an additional sentiment, "Missing You", and decorated by stamping a few of the tiny flowers.


We'd enjoy having you play along at our biweekly color challenge, so visit our Color Dare blog and give it a try.


Materials
Stamps: Stampin' Up! "Heartfelt Blooms" & "Avant-Garden"; Altenew "Extra Special" (sentiments)
Inks: Stampin' Up! "Pink Pirouette", W+9 "Shell Pink", Tsukineko Delicata "Silvery Shimmer"
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White & P-E-T Textured Foil (pink)
Misc.: Stampin' Up! Dimensionals (foam tape); MS pale pink silk ribbon; Uniball Signo Gel Pen (white)

Monday, March 18, 2019

Fly By - Masculine



Because I come from a family of aviators, it's always fun to make a card with an aircraft theme. One of my brothers has a birthday in April so I made this card with him in mind. I kept the design low profile for ease in mailing it. The card is being used for two challenges:

1. Brown Sugar Challenge #288  (Transportation Theme)

2. Double Trouble Challenge #24  (Using something metallic with a twist to follow a Transportation Theme.)


The images were stamped on alcohol-ink-friendly cardstock. They were colored with Copic markers. One challenge requires the use of something metallic so I added silver ink. The tiny dab of silver ink on the nose, propeller and wheels was applied with a very tiny dauber I saw on Jennifer McGuire's blog. The focal piece was backed with red cardstock. Onto a white card base, a panel of silver metallic textured cardstock was adhered. The focal panel was backed with foam tape and adhered to the silver base. The inside was decorated with a coordinating stamp, also colored with Copic ink.


Be sure to visit the challenge blogs to play along with a handmade project! Click here:  BSC #288 and DTC #24.


Materials
Stamps: Avery Elle "Fly By"
Inks: Memento Tuxedo Black, Delicata Silver, Copic Alcohol Markers
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White & Real Red; P-E-T textured foil (silver)
Misc.: Stampin' Up! Dimensionals (foam tape); The Essentials Disposable Micro Applicators (MA-100 in "regular" size)

Saturday, March 16, 2019

Hello Spring (Bunnies and Chicks)



Because I liked the sketch at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #307, I decided to join in. I enjoy using these sketches when I need a little inspiration. I turned the sketch for a landscape orientation so my selected images would fit better.

 
I selected the stamps from this set, stamped, colored, and die cut them. I also die cut four stitched rectangles, dusted them with ink using a brush, then adhered all of my little images. (The little flowers were adhered to two of the bunnies. Most of the images are popped up for dimension. This focal panel was adhered to a white card base that I covered with a panel of yellow striped paper. The sentiment and a tiny flower was stamped, die cut, and edge-sponged. The inside of the card was stamped with a tiny Easter basket and flowers then colored. The inside sentiment was stamped, die cut, colored and adhered.

 
 
 
Pay a visit to the Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #307!


Materials
Stamps: Sunny Studios "Chubby Bunny"
Inks: Copic Alcohol Markers, Memento Tuxedo Black, Stampin' Up! Pool Party, Daffodil Delight, Perfect Plum & Blushing Bride
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White & Elegant Eggplant, Spectrum Noir for alcohol ink
Paper: Stampin' Up! Painted Petals (retired)
Dies: Sunny Studios "Chubby Bunny", Gina K stacking/nesting scalloped circles, Unbranded stitched rectangles w/rounded corners
Misc.: Stampin' Up! Dimensionals (foam tape); dusting brushes by Judikins

Wednesday, March 13, 2019

Advice from a Cactus



Never did I ever think I would ever live in Arizona. Florida? Yes! Arizona? Never! But here I am spending my retirement years in the Sonoran Desert's Valley of the Sun - and liking it. And I have learned to see beauty in a cactus landscape. When I saw the inspiration photo (below) for the Try Stampin' on Tuesday Challenge #399, I decided to use these stamps to build a cactus garden and disregarded the sketch. This challenge has three options:

1. Use the inspiration photo.
2. Use the sketch.
3. Use both the sketch and the photo.
 
Photo:
 
Sketch:

Using alcohol-ink-friendly cardstock, the images were stamped and then colored using Copic alcohol markers. The images were masked so that the background could be colored blue using a soft brush and pouncing the color onto the card. The sentiment was stamped directly to the image panel. ("You are fan cactus.") Finally, two panels - one pink, one a green woodgrain - were angled and adhered to the white card base and the image panel topped it off.  The inside of the card was stamped with another sentiment and decorated with cardstock scraps and another stamped, colored and fussy-cut cactus image.
 

Be sure to visit the TSOT challenge blog. The challenge runs through Monday, March 25, 2019.


Materials
Stamps: Scraps of Love "Advice from a Cactus" (card front) & Cactus Doodle (inside)
Inks: Memento Tuxedo Black; Stampin' Up! Soft Sky; Copic Alcohol Markers
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White, Sweet Sugarplum; Spectrum Noir for alcohol ink
Paper: Sunny Studio "Amazing Argyll" (back side has wood grain)
Misc.: Judikins brush

Friday, March 8, 2019

Just Because...



Using a favorite stamp is always inspiring and this "Extra Special" stamp is definitely a personal favorite for the biweekly Color My Heart Color Dare Challenge #333. This is a Tic-tac-toe challenge using the grid below. After selecting a specific row for my project, the challenge allowed one neutral not on the grid. In addition, participants can add more colors as long as they appear on the grid. I selected the top horizontal row (Lemon, Lagoon, Sapphire) plus gray as my permitted neutral. I did not use any of the additional colors in my design.



The image was stamped twice, colored with Copic Alcohol Markers, then die cut. The Lagoon cardstock was a scrap simply adhered on the diagonal and trimmed to fit along the left edge. Another floral shape was die cut from Sapphire cardstock and adhered directly to the card base. The first floral die cut image was adhered using foam tape slightly offset over the Sapphire cut, allowing the dark cardstock die cut to create a shadow. The second floral die cut was fussy cut into pieces and the flowers were added directly to the card base. The yellow hearts were added for color. The sentiment was die cut from Lagoon cardstock and backed with Sapphire cardstock. The inside was decorated with a remaining piece of the second floral die cut and a yellow heart.


Give our color challenge a try - you may use colors from your stash as long as they are similar to those in the grid at Color My Heart Color Dare #333. Our biweekly challenge runs through March 21, 2019.


Materials
Stamp: Altenew "Extra Special"
Inks: Copic Alcohol Markers
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White & Lost Lagoon; CTMH Sapphire; Spectrum Noir (for alcohol ink)
Dies: Altenew "Extra Special" (flowers) & Creative Expressions by Sue Wilson CEDSS003 (word die plus shadow)
Misc.: SU! Dimensionals (foam tape); Illustrated Faith Hearts (yellow)

Monday, March 4, 2019

St. Paddy's Pig


 
Over at the Double Trouble Challenge Blog, #23 is now open for entries through Sunday, March 17. Partnering with the Heart2Heart Challenge makes it even more fun to play along. Visit the blogs to ensure you understand the theme and guidelines then let the creativity begin!
 
The photos were taken outside on my porch. I live in Arizona and it was a sunny day so the photography in sunshine over-emphasizes the gold hot foiling on the images. I also included the color orange on my card, as my Irish ancestors came from Northern Ireland not the Republic of Ireland.

 
This card is so easy to make. It's a new twist on an old technique - decoupage. Recently, while visiting one of only two scrapping stores in the Phoenix area, I found a packet of images that can be stacked using foam tape. Once that's done, then  the card base is created using the maker's own stash. Adhere the stacked images to the base, finish as you wish. I selected a pig in clover image along with the flower with clover and combined for this St. Patrick's Day theme. I included a gold frame to satisfy the optional "twist". The sentiments were computer generated, die cut and matted, then adhered with foam tape. The inside was decorated with a scallop strip and another sentiment.


Join in the challenges when you visit the blogs: DTC #23 & H2H!

Materials
Stamp: Computer generated sentiments. Front: "Kiss me, I'm Irish" and inside "Lucky You".
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White & Gumball Green; P-E-T textured foil (gold)
Paper: Doodlebug "Swiss Dot" (limeade, tangerine)
Die: Poppy Double Stitched Scalloped Rectangle Frames; Gina K stacking/nesting ovals
Other: Hearty Crafts "Good Luck" Easy 3D Toppers w/glitter paint & hot foil finishing (HC 8694)