Yoga Frog

There's a new sketch up at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #325! This challenge began on Monday, July 15, and will end on Sunday evening, July 21, 2019. I have a new stamp that I have been wanting to use so here was my chance to use it.

I dry embossed (texturized) a panel of white cardstock and adhered it to a green card base. The flourish was die cut from cardstock and adhered. The two notched mats were die cut and the stamped, colored, fussy cut frog with the googly eyes was adhered to the stacked mats using foam tape. This was adhered to the card, also using foam tape. Finally the sentiment was stamped, die cut, matted then adhered. The inside was lined with white cardstock and decorated with a die cut flourish. The inside sentiment says, "Ommmmm."

Visit the AHSC Blog and play along. There's a new sketch each Monday morning.

Size: A2 (5.5" x 4.25")
Techniques: Stamping, coloring, dry embossing, fussy cutting, die cutting

Materials
Stamps: Stampendous "Frog Yoga"
Inks: Memento Tuxedo Black; Copic Alcohol Markers
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White, Cucumber Crush, Elegant Eggplant
Paper: Doodlebug Dots
Dies: MFT "Large Flourish", Whimsy "Stitched Notched Rectangles"
TIEF: Stampin' Up!
Misc.: Foam tape & googly eyes from stash

Soak Up the Sun!

July 26 Update: Favorite of the Week ending July 20, 2019 at Splitcoast Stampers!

Sketch challenges are always such fun! Today, July 16, is the first day of the biweekly Try Stampin' on Tuesday Challenge #417. This challenge runs through Sunday, July 28, 2019. The optional twist is "Vacation Fun".  I tilted the sketch for my card that celebrates my favorite vacation spot - the beach! I lived in Florida for many years of my life and always enjoyed spending time at either coast. (The surf is better on the east coast but the waters are warmer on the west coast.)

 

I found some patterned paper that I decided to use for background but the images were quite tiny. I took a 4" square scrap of the paper and enlarged it in color with my printer/copier onto white cardstock. I then fussy cut the enlarged images as well as some of the original images. The splash design on the three rectangles were made with a stencil. The four words were die cut. Everything was assembled, some items were popped up with foam tape and a little bling was added. The inside was lined with white cardstock and decorated with the same fussy cut shapes.

We hope you'll join TSOT #417! Visit our blog for the guidelines.

Materials
Stamp: Stampendous "Life Words" (inside sentiment)
Inks: Stampin' Up! Pool Party & White Craft; Memento Tuxedo Black (inside)
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White, Soft Sky, Calypso Coral, Dapper Denim
Paper: Stampin' Up! collection name unknown (retired)
Die: Frantic Stamper "Sun Fun" (words)
Stencil: Frantic Stamper "Splash"
Misc.: Foam tape and mirrored sequins from stash

Party with the Pachyderms

It's time for a new biweekly challenge beginning today, Monday, July 15, through Sunday, July 29, 2019. Double Trouble Challenge #33 requires a project for a child or baby. The option is to feature a zoo animal. The Double Dare is to submit your card to our partner, Crafter's Café Challenge Blog #223. Be sure to check their guidelines before creating your project for submission.



Onto a white card base (4.5" x 3.25"), the die cut panel was adhered. The next layer is a panel of blue, followed by an embossed panel in white. The other elements (elephant, balloon & party hat) were stamped and die cut, then backed with foam tape and adhered. The banners & sentiment were stamped with silver ink and die cut. I found some glitter nail polish in my stash and drizzled that onto the two banners then adhered them with. The stars and sequins were added. The inside was decorated with a companion elephant stamp. The finished size is A2. (5.5" x 4.25")

We hope you'll visit our blogs and join in the challenge! Click HERE for DTC33 and HERE for CCCB #223.

Materials
Stamps: Lil' Inker "Pachyderm Party"
Inks: Stampin' Up! Bashful Blue, Peach Parfait; Delicata Silvery Shimmer; Memento Tuxedo Black
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White, Bashful Blue, Peach Parfait
Dies: Lil' Inker "Pachyderm Party" & Sunny Studio "Frilly Frames Polka-dot"
Misc.: Stampin' Up! TIEF; glitter nail polish, foam tape, sequins & stars from stash

Wildflowers

It's time for another color challenge at the Color My Heart Color Dare Blog. This is Challenge #351. The requirement is to use the Tic-Tac-Toe grid by selecting a row. There is an option that once you identify your selection from the grid you may add any or all of the colors plus black and white. I have used all of the colors on the grid but started with the center column: Lemon, Silver, Emerald.

I stamped the flowers onto white cardstock. The clear droplets were added and the card was adhered with foam tape to a white card base. The sentiment was stamped and die cut then die cut and matted with a scalloped die cut circle colored with blue ink. The clear droplets were adhered and the sentiment was added using foam tape. The inside was decorated with a stamped flower.

If you don't have the precise colors, you may substitute ink that is a close match. I used substitutes for all ink colors on the grid except Silver. Please visit our blog and join us for Challenge #351. The biweekly challenge started on Friday, July 12, and ends on Wednesday, July 24, 2009.

Materials
Stamps: Altenew "Wildflower Garden" & Stampendous "Life Words" (sentiment)
Inks: Distress Oxides; Delicata (Silvery Shimmer)
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White
Dies: Gina K stacking and nesting circle dies
Misc.: Foam tape and clear droplets from my stash

W

Fluttering Wings Thank You

I always enjoy playing along at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge. This week's challenge #324 began on Monday, July 8, and will end on Sunday, July 14, 2019. Here is the inspiration sketch that I flipped for my card design.

  

From white cardstock a coverall die was used to create the butterflies. They were lightly sponged with yellow ink. Onto a blue card base, a panel of white was adhered, followed by a die cut scalloped frame in polka dot paper. The reverse side of the polka dot paper was cut and layered inside of the frame then the butterfly layer was added. The flowers were sponged with yellow ink and added with foam tape. The sentiment was stamped, cut and adhered with foam tape. Pearls were added. The inside was lined with a panel of white cardstock and a leftover butterfly was included along with an additional sentiment that coordinates with the one on the front.

Visit AHSC #324 to play along with the challenge!

Materials
Stamps: Stampin' Up! "Gifts of Kindness" (both sentiments)
Inks: Stampin' Up! Marina Mist & Daffodil Delight
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White & Marina Mist
Paper: Stampin' Up! patterned paper in Marina Mist (name of collection unknown)
Die: Crafter's Companion "Fluttering Wings"
Misc.: Pearls and foam tape from stash


W

You Melt My Heart

The new biweekly challenge at Try Stampin' on Tuesday is starting today and there are choices! You may use the sketch, the inspirational word or both. I elected to use the word, which is "Melt".  I thought of ice cubes, snowmen, ice cream and candles but settled on the melting heart when I found the sentiment.

I saw a heart photo I liked so I started with a heart die then drew the melted portion to create a template of what I saw. The template allowed me to draw the melting heart on red cardstock. I fussy cut the heart, mounted it onto white cardstock then fussy cut the white mat. I also used a Copic marker to add a little reflective quality to the heart but it's not very noticeable. This was adhered to a panel of black cardstock, which was adhered to a white card base. The sentiment was free clipart that I downloaded, resized, printed and die cut. This was adhered using foam tape for dimension. The silver metallic "gems" were added.

The Design Team at TSOT #415 invites you to join the challenges at our blog. A new biweekly sketch challenge begins each Tuesday and runs for two weeks.

Materials
Stamp: computer generated sentiment; hand drawn heart
Ink: Copic markers
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White, Basic Black, Real Red
Die: Whimsy Notched Stitched Rectangles
Misc.: Foam tape and "gems" from stash

Mele Kalikimaka

 

Mele Kalikimaka! Double Trouble Challenge #32 begins on Monday, July 1, and runs through Sunday, July 14, 2019. Our theme is Christmas in July using a square card. The optional twist is to show Santa enjoying the beach. I selected Hawaii's North Shore for my beach. We are also partnering with Retro Rubber Challenge #114, which requires that you show a little love for an older stamp (at least one year old), either rubber or photopolymer.

 

I didn't have any whimsical or beachy Santa stamps so I used digital images for Santa and the lone reindeer. I downloaded, resized, printed and fussy cut them. I added a floral haku-lei to the reindeer's antlers and a hibiscus to Santa's straw hat and placed a ukulele in Santa's left hand. The lavender mountains, the Pacific waters, clouds and the sandy beach were die cut. The banner was cut freehand and placed in Santa's right hand with a strip of black cardstock.

The palm trees were the result of using an older stamp. When I first started this hobby, I came upon two old wood-mounted rubber palm tree stamps at a yard sale and had never used them. (Based on the label scrap, I believe they are Recollections brand.) After stamping the images, I colored them with Copics and discovered I needed larger palm trees. I have an excellent laser printer/copier, so enlarged the colored palm trees to better fit the front of the card. Once printed, I clear embossed all of my images, fussy cut them and used two large images on the front of the card. The clear embossing gives a fabulous shine to the trees. The two smaller original images were added to the inside of the card.

Here's a photo of the originals and the enlarged images during card construction:

After sponging the sky a bright yellow for sunshine, the elements were adhered to cardstock using varying heights of foam tape to add dimension. Finally, the finished panel was adhered to a white square card base. As mentioned above, the inside was decorated with the original stamped palm trees.

Play along with us by visiting the DTC #32 blog and the RRC #114 blog. You could win something special!

Techniques: Stamping, coloring, sponging, fussy cutting, die cutting, heat embossing
Size: 5.5" x 5.5"

Materials
Stamps: Pre-owned Recollections rubber palm tree stamps & free digital images
Inks: Stampin' Up! Daffodil Delight; Memento Tuxedo Black; Versamark; Copic Alcohol Markers
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White, Wisteria Wonder, Island Indigo, Basic Black; Xcel for alcohol markers; Tonic Studios Satin Mirror Card (Silky Sky); The Paper Studio Solid Glitter (copper)
Dies: Reverse Confetti "Doin' the Wave", MFT (clouds), Lawn Fawn (mountains)
Misc.: Stampin' Up! Embossing Powder (clear), foam tape

Celebrate with Roses

 

Color My Heart Color Dare Challenge #349 starts Friday, June 28, and ends on Thursday, July 11, 2019. The colors for this challenge are perfect for a festive summer card. The requirement is to use at least three colors. I used equivalents of five colors plus white, excluding Pansy.

The floral elements were die cut from cardstock and spattered with ink. I  embossed them with clear powder to achieve a soft shine, causing the spatter to disappear. This technique will darken the cardstock's color but the shine will reflect when photographed. A scrap of watercolor paper was watercolored in green. Once dry, the scalloped frame was die cut from the green paper along with the leaves. The leaf detail was die cut from light green cardstock. A panel of white cardstock was stenciled and applied to a white card base with sponged lilac edges. The flowers and leaves were added using foam tape for dimension. The sentiment was stamped, die cut, matted with a coordinating heat embossed die cut oval and adhered with foam tape. The inside of the card was decorated from leftover elements.

The Design Team at Color My Heart Color Dare Challenge Blog welcomes you to visit and give our challenges a try. You are not required to use the exact colors shown on the grid, but rather, colors that are from your existing stash that are close. It's fun and often results in creating something out of the box.

Techniques: Stamping, sponging, die cutting, heat embossing, stenciling, water coloring

Materials
Stamp: Sizzix Sentiments #663510
Inks: Stampin' Up! Wisteria Wonder, ZIG Brush Marker (watercolor), Versamark
Cardstock: Stampin Up! Whisper White, Crisp Cantaloupe, Strawberry Slush, Pistachio Pudding
Paper: Stampin' Up! Watercolor
Dies: Waffle Flower Scalloped Frame, Sizzix Framelits #663510, Altenew "Layered Rose"
Stencil: Altenew "Halftone"
Misc.: Stampin' Up! Embossing Powder (clear), foam tape

Desert Sunset (Route 66)

Double Trouble Challenge #31 is calling for a theme of "Vacation with Embossing" for this new challenge running from Monday, June 17, 2019 through Sunday, June 30, 2019. Our partner, Pile It On #155, is asking for a "Transportation/Vacation" theme so this is my card, featuring the twist of using a road sign. US Route 66 is a historic highway that started in Chicago and ended in Los Angeles. There was even a song written about it.

 

The background was sponged with sunset colors then embossed with clouds. The mountains were die cut. A landscape die was used to provide the desert floor with a horizon. The travel trailer, fire and cacti were stamped, colored with Copic Alcohol Markers, fussy cut and adhered. The road sign was a digital download. The mountains and road sign were adhered with foam tape for dimension. The inside was decorated with another digital download of a similar sign with the words, "Get Your Kicks on Route 66."

We welcome you to participate with us at Double Trouble #31 and our partner, Pile It On #155. Visit the blogs to find out all about these challenges. You could win a prize!

Techniques
Dry Embossing, Sponging, Coloring, Die Cutting, Fussy Cutting,

Materials
Stamps: Stampendous "Campground"
Inks: Stampin' Up! Daffodil Delight, Peach Parfait, Melon Mambo, Baked Brown Sugar; Memento Tuxedo Black; Copic Alcohol Markers
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White, Basic Black, Baked Brown Sugar, Elegant Eggplant, Wisteria Wonder; Xcel for alcohol markers
Dies: Lawn Fawn (Mountains and Landscape), Frantic Stamper (Cactus)
Misc.: Stampin' Up! TIEF (clouds); foam tape

Congrats! in Hollywood Regency

Hollywood Regency is the primary inspiration for my card. I have a friend, Sylvia, who goes over the top with glam décor in blue so this card is to recognize her recent community volunteer achievement. I also followed the color grid presented by Color My Heart Color Dare #347, which is to use the color blue. I added neutrals in white and silver. Challenge #347 starts today, Friday, June 14, and ends on Thursday, June 27.

The cardstock and papers were cut into strips of varying sizes. The silver pieces were embossed using a die. The strips were adhered onto a white card base. The doily was cut with a two-die set - one in white glimmer and one in bright blue foil. The doily was adhered using foam tape for dimension. The sentiment is also cut from a die. The inside was decorated using the same papers as seen on the card front.

Join the color challenge and play along with everyone at Color My Heart Color Dare Challenge #347.

Materials
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White; WRMK Foil (blue, slate)
Paper: Recollections "Holographic Dreams"
Dies: Frantic Stamper Doily & Word; Poppy "Delicate Stitches" (x-stitch)
Misc.: Foam tape

Thinking of You - Vintage

Biweekly sketch challenge #411 at Try Stampin' on Tuesday begins today and is open through Sunday evening, June 16, 2019. Following the sketch below, the optional theme is to make a vintage or grunge card.

A number of years ago, I attended a CTMH card class. Included in the fee was a package of materials to make eight Christmas cards. The cards were finished and mailed but being an admitted paper hoarder, I hung on to all the little bits and pieces of cardstock and patterned paper in spite of the fact that there were no sentiments, stickers or ephemera remaining. When I saw this optional challenge was "Vintage", I went right to that pack and used up almost all that was left.

Using a favorite die set, I cut the centerpiece from scraps of cardstock and paper. I stacked the die cut pieces together and backed the stack with foam tape. I dry embossed a cardstock panel to add texture to the card. This embossed panel was adhered to the black card base. In keeping with the sketch, I added the horizontal piece, backing it with a die cut strip. The sentiment was stamped and adhered, the centerpiece was adhered and a few gold sparkle gems were added. I should mention that I sponged the edges of the papers to add a vintage look. The inside was lined with coordinating cardstock.

The TSOT Design Team invites you to visit our blog and play along!

Materials
Stamp: Stampin' Up! "That's the Tag"
Ink: Stampin' Up! Baked Brown Sugar
Cardstock: CTMH - all except black; Stampin' Up! Basic Black
Patterned Paper: CTMH (retired)
Die: Sue Wilson "Montreal" (centerpiece); Gina Marie (border on strip)
TIEF: Stampin' Up!
Misc.: foam tape and gems from stash

Hang in There!

Meet Betty Sue! Today is the start of a new Double Trouble biweekly challenge ending on Sunday, June 16, 2019. Challenge #30 requires that you use a stencil or embossing folder to create your background design. The optional twist is to include a farm animal. Double Trouble is partnering with Two Crafty Critter Crazies Challenge #26 so be sure to check their blog for guidelines.



I made a stencil from cardstock using a cloud die. The pink sky was created by sponging ink at the stencil's edge. The landscape panels were die cut. With a stylus, a few lines were added to the lighter green landscape piece to give a little texture. The tree branch and leaves were made from a tree die. I smudges a bit of ink onto the tree trunk for texture, adhered the leaves, turned the tree on its side and trimmed off the excess leaves. I left the small branches free for movement.

The cow was stamped, colored and fussy cut. The eyes were added. I hand drew the sign, colored it, stamped the sentiment and fussy cut it. The elements were assembled onto a panel of dark blue cardstock and a white card base. The inside was decorated using the portion of the tree that was cut away from the front. The inside sentiment says, "Happy Birthday, Party Animal".

If you've never visited the Double Trouble Challenges, now is the time to join in the fun. You could win a prize! Visit the Two Crafty Critter Crazies blog and double your fun.

Materials
Stamps: Stampin' Up! "Honeycomb Happiness" (front sentiment), My Favorite Things "Jungle Friends" (inside sentiment), Whipper Snapper Designs "Betty Sue" (cow)
Inks: Stampin' Up! Soft Suede, Crumb Cake; Distress Oxide Worn Lipstick; Copic Alcohol Markers
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White, Pistachio Pudding, Crumb Cake, Cucumber Crush, Dapper Denim; SN for alcohol markers
Paper: Lawn Fawn "Spring Fling" (green dotted landscape)
Dies: Lawn Fawn landscape dies; Memory Box "Grand Oak Tree"
Misc. from stash: handmade stencil, googly eyes, foam tape, cord for swing