10th Birthday Card

Next week is my youngest's 10th birthday.  Today is my last chance to make a birthday card.  I used this week's Fall To Layout plus the color challenge from Just Add Ink.

I really loved the sketch and decided to stick with the star images.  However, Marina Mist is not one of my favorite colors, so working that into the card was a bit of a challenge.  Luckily, Sarah's favorite color is green, so hopefully she'll like the card.  I took inspiration from Christine Blain's cool card and went for a grungy look.

I randomly stamped images from PTI's Grunge Me set over the card base and also over the stars and the "10".  The hardest part was deciding what to stamp in the Very Vanilla panel.

Details of the challenges:

Thanks for looking.

Products used (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise stated):

Stamps:  Grunge Rock; Grunge Me (PTI)
Cardstock:  Early Espresso; Wild Wasabi; Marina Mist; Very Vanilla
Ink:  Early Espresso; Wild Wasabi; Marina Mist
Accessories:  Large and Small Star Punches; MFT Fishtail Flags Die; Timeless Type Sizzix Alphabet Die

Edited to Add:  This card received an Honorable Mention at Just Add Ink this week.  Thanks, guys!

Cheers
Karren

Ornate Blossom

This is the third of three cards I've made today.  The other two will be posted shortly.  I made this card for two challenges - this week's Freshly Made Sketch challenge and the second challenge at Addicted to Stamps which is a Bingo challenge.  In case it's not obvious from my card, I chose Stamp, Emboss, Blue.

Here is my card:

and open (no insert as yet - I never do that until I use the card - because I'm lazy LOL):

I chose to use the sketch as inspiration for a gatefold card.  I haven't made one of these in years!  My stamp-a-majig came in very handy lining up the Ornate Blossom stamp across the center as I had to stamp each side separately to get full ink coverage.  Once I'd stamped in Whisper White Craft Ink, I used the VersaShadow Technique to highlight the images.

The main panel is white embossed on Island Indigo.  I also used a ruler to draw a frame around the main image.  An antique brad holds the card closed.

Here are the challenges:

Thanks for looking.

Products used:  (all Stampin' Up!)

Stamps:  Ornate Blossom
Cardstock:  Island Indigo; Whisper White
Ink:  Versamark; Whisper White Craft
Accessories:  Versamarker; Antique Brad; Stamp-a-majig; White EP

Cheers
Karren

Mixed Bunch

I got Mixed Bunch and the co-ordinating punch in my last order and today was the first time I got to use them.

I combined the color challenge at Create with Connie & Mary with the sketch challenge at Sketch Frenzy Friday and came up with this card:

Tell you what, doing color challenges has really highlighted to me how many colors I don't use!  Pumpkin Pie is one of those colors, so I used the smallest amount possible LOL.

I stamped the flower onto Whisper White and punched it out.  I then took a Pumpkin Pie marker and colored in the center.  For the sentiment, I used Basic Gray and Real Red markers and my Stamp-a-majig.  The end is shaped using the Modern Label Punch.

Here are the challenge details:

Thanks for looking.

Products used (all Stampin' Up!):

Stamps:  Mixed Bunch; Bring on the Cake
Cardstock:  Whisper White; Basic Gray; Neutrals DSP
Ink:  Real Red; Whisper White
Accessories:  Blossom Punch; Pumpkin Pie marker; Modern Label Punch; Pearl

Cheers
Karren

Just Buzzin' By

As mentioned in my previous post, here is my second card for this week's Freshly Made Sketch Challenge.  I'm also submitting this for a new challenge at Addicted to Stamps which is to use markers.

I caved and got some Copic markers (DH very kindly paid for them for Mother's Day).  I only got 25 colors but I already need more.  What have I got myself into??? LOL.  Anyway, this is only the second time I've had a play with these markers, so I'm very much at the beginning of the learning curve - but man, they're fun!

I went hunting for a stamp set that required coloring and found this one, which is so cute!  Everytime I see these little bees, it reminds me of The Bee Movie, which I love.  I dry embossed the base with a woodgrain EF and made sure to match the wood-graining on my Chocolate Chip scallops as well for continuity.

Thanks for looking.

Products used (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise stated):

Stamps:  Just Buzzin' By

Cardstock:  Daffodil Delight; Chocolate Chip; Whisper White; Shimmery White; Brights DSP Stack

Ink:  Brilliance Graphite Black; Chocolate Chip

Accessories:  Copic Markers; Oval Nestabilities; Daffodil Delight Satin Ribbon; Tim Holtz EF; Tasteful Trim die

Cheers

Karren

Monochromatic Sympathy

I was fascinated with a recent technique posted over on SCS called Masking Fluid Resist and wanted to give it a go.  So I incorporated that into this week's Dynamic Duos color challenge and Freshly Made Sketch.  I'm not 100% sure the sponging on this card qualifies as the "clean" that is part of the FMS challenge, so I made another card using the same sketch which I'll show you in a separate post.

I had some masking fluid because I'd seen Heather Telford use it on her blog before and wanted to try it for myself.  If you haven't seen Heather's work, check it out.  She is the master of sponging!  Anyway, onto the card.  I followed the instructions for the technique, except I only used two colors - River Rock and Always Artichoke.  This is a fun technique - the hardest part is waiting for the masking fluid to dry, but heat tools were invented for a reason LOL.

Here are the challenges:

I didn't put any embellishments in the top right corner because I wanted to keep the card more muted and somber.

Thanks for looking.

Products used (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise stated):

Stamps:  Dreamy (Penny Black); Warmest Regards

Cardstock:  River Rock; Always Artichoke; Whisper White; Neutrals DSP Stack

Ink:  River Rock; Always Artichoke

Accessories:  Windsor & Newton Masking Fluid; paintbrush; sponges; oval Nestabilities; Tasteful Trim die

Cheers

Karren

Edited to Add:  This card was chosen as the top pick at Dynamic Duos.  Thanks, guys!

S.W.A.K.

Today's card is for two challenges:  Create With Connie & Mary have a color challenge and the Stamping 411 Saturday Sketch Challenge.

I thought the colors tended towards masculine, so I went in that direction and made an anniversary card.

I couldn't find a way to make the strip behind the scalloped circle work, so I ended up leaving that off.  Both of the scalloped pieces are popped up on Dimensionals.

Thanks for looking.

Products used (all Stampin' Up!):

Stamps:  S.W.A.K.; Teeny Tiny Wishes

Cardstock:  Crumb Cake; Cherry Cobbler; Island Indigo; Very Vanilla; Jolly Holiday DSP

Ink:  Cherry Cobbler; Basic Black

Accessories:  Island Indigo Bakers Twine; Regals Button; Tasteful Trim Die; 1 3/8" circle punch; Scallop Circle Punch

Cheers

Karren

Lovely as a Tree

I'm scraping in under the wire with this week's Dynamic Duos color challenge!  I've paired it with this week's Freshly Made Sketch challenge as well.

For my card, I did some very basic masking and sponging with Regal Rose and Basic Gray before stamping the trees in Basic Black. The DSP comes from a really old DSP pack, which I think was a hostess gift a few years ago.

I had to take the photo under artificial lighting tonight, so apologies for the quality.  It's not often I stamp at night as I'm generally not in the mood after a day of work, but I didn't want to miss the color challenge, so needs must!

Here are the challenge details:

Thanks for looking.

Products used (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):

Stamps:  Lovely as a Tree; Perfectly Penned

Cardstock:  Basic Gray; Whisper White; Patterns II DSP

Ink:  Regal Rose; Basic Gray; Versamark; Basic Black

Accessories:  Sponges; Circle Nestabilities; White Taffeta Ribbon; Pearls; White EP

Cheers

Karren

Red, White and Blue

While the family was away for the afternoon visiting my mother-in-law, I managed to get another card made.  This one is for two challenges - Pals Paper Arts Color Challenge and Create With Connie & Mary who have a sketch challenge this week.

I am not a fan of bright reds, so used only a tiny bit for an accent color.  The flower was made using the Fancy Flower Punch; the 5-Petal Flower Punch and the long-retired Spring Bouquet Flower Punch that went with the Looks Like Spring set.  After I put the flower together, I liberally sprayed it with Frost White Shimmer spray, heat set it to dry it quickly and then used a Real Red button for the centre. Each layer is popped up with dimensionals so it's definitely a lumpy-bumpy card not designed for the mail.

The photo is a bit glare-y, sorry.  As it gets more into winter here, it's harder to get a natural looking photo and all I have to help is one OTT light.

Here are the challenge details:

Thanks for looking.

Products used (all Stampin' Up!):

Stamps:  Petite Pairs

Cardstock:  Night of Navy; Whisper White; Brights DSP

Ink:  Real Red

Accessories:  Fancy Flower Punch; 5-Petal Punch; Spring Bouquet Flower Punch; Scallop Punch;  Playground buttons; Bakers Twine; Frost White Shimmer Paint

Cheers

Karren

Paper Daisies

I have had the Stampin' Up! paper daisies since they were first introduced and today is the first time I've used them!  I combined three challenges with this card - the Hand Stamped Sentiments color challenge; the Just Add Ink challenge to just add pearls and the Stamping 411 sketch challenge.  Here are the challenge details:

For my colors I substituted Whisper White for Sahara Sand.  I sponged color onto the paper daisies and left them for a few minutes to dry before sticking them together with glue dots.  A large pearl in the centre of each flower finished them off nicely.

It wasn't until I was adding the watermark that I realised there was no stamping at all on this card.  But there was lots of scoring!  I diagonally scored the Basic Black layer and scored a frame on the Whisper White layer.

Products used (all Stampin' Up!):

Cardstock:  Basic Black; Basic Gray; Whisper White

Ink:  Daffodil Delight; Basic Black

Accessories:  Paper Daisies; Pearls; Daffodil Delight Satin Ribbon

Thanks for looking.

Cheers

Karren

FMS#38

On the second of our snow days this week, I tackled this week's sketch from Freshly Made Sketches:

I bought a Hero Arts stamp and framelit set a few months ago and thought I'd better actually use it. You can't see in the photo but I stamped the fern image randomly on the Basic Black card base.

Products used (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):

Stamps:  Fern and Hummingbird set (Hero Arts); A Little Birthday Cheer 

Cardstock:  Basic Black; Old Olive; Whisper White; Not Quite Navy; Regals DSP

Ink:  Old Olive; Not Quite Navy; Basic Black; Versamark

Accessories:  Framelits (Hero Arts); Old Olive Satin Ribbon; Antique Brad

Thanks for looking.

Cheers

Karren

Snow Day

All day today Christchurch has been covered in snow and there doesn't seem to be any sign of it letting up.  Several parts of the city also had electricity failures and unfortunately we lost electricity twice today for almost 2 hours each time.

Add to that 2 boys who fought with each other all day and don't know what to do with no electricity to power their various devices and it made for a stressful day.  I'm actually looking forward to being able to go back to work when this lets up.

In between power failures, I did get into my craft room and tried the faux patina technique which I've been wanting to try since I first saw it on SCS.

I also used the sketch from Stampin Queens but the link is closed so I can't link it up but do want to give credit.

Here's the card I made with my sample:

For this background I used the same ink colors as in the sample on SCS, but I did try another sample using some distress inks, which was also quite cool.  I love the richness of this technique and will definitely do this again.

I don't like the size gaps between the framelits, so I took the same framelit as the espresso layer and traced around the outside with a pencil, then cut it out by hand.  It's not as defined as using a framelit, but I like the layering better.

Thanks for looking.

Products used (all Stampin' Up!):

Stamps:  Engraved Greetings

Cardstock:  Crumb Cake; Early Espresso; Whisper White

Ink:  Crumb Cake; Marina Mist; Always Artichoke; Early Espresso; Versamark

Accessories:  Gold EP; Labels Framelits; Vintage Wallpaper EF; Early Espresso ribbon.

Cheers

Karren

Just Add Ink Inspiration Photo

Firstly, let me say that this card is a real departure from my usual style and I'm still undecided if I even like it.  But a challenge is just that, so I'm putting it out there.  Here is the inspiration photo over at Just Add Ink

I took inspiration from both the boxes and the colours.  I started with a blank Whisper White card base which I semi-randomly stamped by inking up various acrylic blocks with ink.  On top of that, I stamped En Francais background in Tattered Rose Distress Ink - love that colour!

To finish off the card, I used the DTP technique to swipe ink on Whisper White cardstock and then cut out some flags.  A large button and a cute sentiment and I called it quits!  And here's the finished result:

Products used:

Stamps:  En Francais (SU); Cake Party (Penny Black)

Cardstock:  Whisper White (SU)

Ink:  Soft Sky; Blushing Bride; Pale Plum; Daffodil Delight; Basic Black (all SU); Tattered Rose Distress Ink (Ranger)

Accessories:  Blushing Bride button; White Bakers Twine; Various Acrylic Blocks

Thanks for looking.

Cheers

Karren

Birthday Party Invites

My youngest will be 10 next month and has been nagging me for ages to make the birthday party invitations.  So here's the prototype - for which I used the colours of this week's Dynamic Duos challenge and had a second go at the sketch from Freshly Made Sketches.  This also meets the criteria for this week's Stampin' Royalty challenge, which is to go masculine.

For the card, I embossed the guitarist in white EP on Whisper White cardstock.  I then cut him out with an oval nestie and while the die cut was still in the nestie, I sponged some Island Indigo ink.  BTW, this took me four attempts because the nestie kept moving.  I think because my cutting pad on my Big Shot is so warped, it's actually warped the nestie, so it wouldn't sit nicely on the cardstock.  Time for new cutting plates, methinks!

Anyway, once I finally got that sorted, I layered onto another Whisper White oval.  The rest of the card is pretty self-explanatory.

Here are the challenges I used:

Products used (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise stated):

Stamps:  Extreme Guitar; Introducing

Cardstock:  Real Red; Island Indigo; Whisper White

Ink:  Versamark; Read Red; Island Indigo

Accessories:  Stripes EF; Nestabilities; sponge; Tasteful Trim die

Thanks for looking.

Cheers

Karren

Reason to Smile Debut

Here is my card for this week's Stamping 411 sketch.  I really liked this sketch and I can see myself using it again.

This card uses the brand new set Reason to Smile, which arrived on my doorstep yesterday morning.  Those flowers are tedious little suckers to cut out - let me tell you LOL.  The sentiment comes from a retired set Afterthoughts.  I undertook some surgery on the image and deleted the words underneath the "Thanks".

Here's the sketch:

Products used (all Stampin' Up!):

Stamps:  Reason to Smile, Afterthoughts

Cardstock:  Basic Black, Whisper White; Daffodil Delight; Old Olive; Attic Boutique DSP; Watercolor Paper

Ink:  Black Stazon

Accessories:  Daffodil Delight marker; blender pen; faux brads; Bird Punch; Daffodil Delight Satin Ribbon

Thanks for looking.

Cheers

Karren

Bright Summer Days

The theme over at SUO Challenges this week is bright summer days, which is appealing as it's officially the second day of winter where I am.  Having said that, we have a lovely sunny day today, so I can't complain!

I paired up this challenge with the sketch challenge at Freshly Made Sketches and the color challenge at Create with Connie & Mary and this is what I came up with:

I used a retired set called Hello Blossoms, which I had to mount before I could use (hangs head in shame...).  I had to flip the sketch on its side to fit the stamped image.  All of the stamping on this card was done using markers.

Here are the challenge details:

Thanks for looking and all the very best to Rita for her upcoming adventure.

Products used:  (all Stampin' Up!)

Stamps:  Hello Blossoms; Happiest Birthday Wishes

Cardstock:  Lucky Limeade; Whisper White; Early Espresso; 2011-13 In Color DSP

Accessories:  Lucky Limeade; Wisteria Wonder; Calypso Coral; Early Espresso markers; Mat Pack; 

Cheers

Karren