Sorbet Birthday

This evening I have a card to share with you using this week's sketch at Pals Paper Arts.  It is also for the color challenge at Splitcoast Stampers and the very fun Tic-Tac-Toe challenge at Paper Players.  My card aligns with the left to right diagonal of the tic-tac-toe squares, as a birthday card using patterned paper and Pool Party ribbon.  

 http://www.palspaperarts.com/

http://thepaperplayers.blogspot.com/

http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/

Coincidentally , the color challenge at Splitcoast Stampers contains all the colors contained in the some of the Sweet Sorbet designer series paper, so that became the background for my card.  I also added "dessert" by using ribbon.  

I decided to make the top of the tilted panels into a tag containing the sentiment, using the Scallop Tag Topper punch.  I used a 1 7/8" wide piece of Whisper White, topping a 2" piece of Basic Black paper also cut out with the punch.  The tag was then decorated with the cork flowers from the Sweet Sorbet Accessories Pack (only one more day to get it free with your Stampin' Up! order of $50 or more!).

The two horizontal panels in the sketch are represented by the ruffle trimmed piece of Sahara Sand and the Crisp Cantaloupe twine wrapped around the top of it. 

Thanks so much for dropping by!  I hope your week ahead is great!

Hugs,

Stef

Product details:

Stamps:  Petite Pairs

Paper:  Whisper White, Basic Black Sahara Sand, Sweet Sorbet designer series paper

Ink:  Jet Black Stazon

Other:  Crisp Cantaloupe Ruffle Trim, Pool Party Ruffled Ribbon, White Baker's Twine, Sweet Sorbet Accessory Pack (Twine, sticker flowers), Basic Pearls, Scallop Tag Topper punch.

Loving Sympathy

Happy Saturday and welcome back.  The current challenge at Seize the Sketch provided a lovely design that I used to make the card I'm sharing with you today.

A friend asked me to make a sympathy card for her, so using the sketch above, this is my interpretation:

I used the retired Inspired by Nature stamp.  I will always love this beautiful cone flower image, and it is so suitable for a sympathy card.  I colored the rubber with markers in Wild Wasabi and So Saffron, and used a retired Pale Plum Stamping Spot to color the flower petals.  A couple of quick squirts of water from a spritzer on the rubber after inking resulted in the softened appearance of the stamped image.

The sentiment was inked in Versamark, stamped on vellum card stock and then heat embossed with Pewter embossing powder.  I've seen many others use vellum for a sentiment over a stamped image but I'd never tried it before.  I think the result is a nice ethereal look.

Well, that's it for today.  Thanks for taking the time to visit and please leave me a comment if you a moment, I'd love to hear from you.

Hugs,

Stef

Products details:

Stamps:  Inspired By Nature, Loving Thoughts

Paper:  Smoky Slate, Pool Party, Pale Plum, Vellum, Epic Day This and That designer series paper.

Ink:  Versamark, Pale Plum.  Markers:  Wild Wasabi, So Saffron

Other:  Pewter Stampin' Emboss powder, Stampin' Spritzer, Vintage Faceted Designer button, White Baker's Twine.

With Sympathy

Welcome back!  Tonight the card I have to share was made for a friend at work who lost his mother to cancer a week ago.  Rather than use something somber like gray or black, I decided to go a softer route, using a light green and a deep blue.

I started with a base of Island Indigo, then used designer papers from Venetian Romance. The horizontal piece of Island Indigo was embossed with the Woodgrain embossing folder.  The branches were stamped with Jet Black Stazon on Very Vanilla, with the leaves colored in Pistachio Pudding using a blender pen.  I couldn't quite make myself do Island Indigo berries (okay, too much of a realist sometimes!) so I decided to use my So Saffron marker, which blended well with the other two colors.  After coloring, I used my paper snips to cut out the branches.

Using the Envelope Punch Board, an envelope was created with Pistachio Pudding card stock, which was stamped twice with the same branch image.  The Envelope Punch Board was also used to round the corners of the card.

This week's sketch challenge at Pals Paper Arts was used for card layout.  There's still time to play, so go check out all the great inspiration.

http://www.palspaperarts.com/

Thanks for taking the time to look.  I'd love to hear from you if you have a moment to leave a comment.  I hope you have a great week ahead.  Myself, I'm looking forward to spending some time with my youngest grand kids at the end of the week!

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Simply Sketched
Paper:  Island Indigo, Very Vanilla, Venetian Romance designer series paper
Ink:  Island Indigo, Pistachio Pudding, So Saffron, Jet Black Stazon
Other:  Woodgrain embossing folder, Large Oval and Scallop Oval punches, Envelope Punch Board, Paper Snips, Linen Thread, Naturals Designer Button.

A Sweet Blast

Woo-hoo, it's been a beautiful day here in Sherwood!  It's wonderful when we get a clear, sunny day in March.

Today I have a card to share that was made for this week's challenge at Freshly Made Sketches.  When I first saw it I decided that draping those cute little banners from Banner Blast across the top would work great.

http://freshlymadesketches.blogspot.com/

Three of the banners were stamped, the fourth punched from a scrap of Sweet Sorbet designer series paper.

Love the geometric patterns of the banners, and the polka dots of course!  The banners were layered along the twine using glue dots.  Wee little flowers punched with the Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack in Pool Party and Summer Starfruit were topped with Basic Pearls and then popped onto a couple of the banners.

The sentiment is from Just Sayin' and was stamped on the Wooden Elements.  The Basic Black layer was added to give some contrast to the Pistachio Pudding layer, which just seemed to get lost on top of the Whisper White base.

Thanks for dropping by and taking a look!  Have a great remainder of the weekend!

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Banner Blast, Just Sayin'
Paper:  Whisper White, Basic Black, Pistacho Pudding, Sweet Sorbet designer series paper
Ink:  Poppy Parade
Other:  Wooden Elements, Sweet Sorbet Accessories Pack (twine), Banner punch, Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pak, Basic Pearls, Pistachio Pudding Ruffle Trim

Thinking of You

Welcome Back!  I made a card today for a friend who ended up in the hospital right after moving to a new town.  A few of us are sending her cards to cheer her up since we aren't able to be there in person.  I used the current sketch from Freshly Made Sketches and am also entering this in the Paper Players challenge to make a CAS card for Spring.

http://freshlymadesketches.blogspot.com/

http://thepaperplayers.blogspot.com/

I started by stamping the smaller stamp from So Very Grateful in Jet Black Stazon on Whisper White.  The colors used to color it were drawn from the Sweet Sorbet designer series paper (I guess I subconsciously took to heart the Paper Players link LOL!!).

After coloring the image with my blender pen, I cut it out with a Pennants framelit.  I used the "Out of the Box" technique, which is where a part of the image come partly outside the die (see the excellent tutorial on Splitcoast Stampers).  It was the first time I've ever tried the technique and was happy it worked.

I noticed that the flowers colored with Crisp Cantaloupe and Calypso Coral seem much more on the coral side.  However, IRL they blend together with the Crisp Cantaloupe card stock just fine.  I was having some issues with my photo editing today and I think it is the culprit here.

The Pool Party pennant was created by tracing in pencil on Pool Party card stock the outside border of the framelit used to cut the smaller pennant, then cutting it out by hand. The reason for doing so was because the next size framelit was too big for this card.

Time to get the laundry finished - the work week begins again tomorrow!  I appreciate your visit and would love to hear from you if you have time to leave a comment.  I hope your week ahead is rewarding and filled with at least a bit of fun!

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  So Very Grateful, Peaceful Petals
Paper:  Whisper White, Crisp Cantaloupe, Pool Party, Sweet Sorbet designer series paper
Ink:  Crisp Cantaloupe, Calypso Coral, Summer Starfruit, Crushed Curry, Pistachio Pudding, Jet Black Stazon
Other:  Distressed Dots embossing folder, Pennants Framelits, Postage Stamp punch, Blender Pen, Bitty Button, Linen Thread

Gold Star Birthday

Hi there once again!  The card I'm sharing today uses the sketch from Seize the Sketch. I'm also entering it into the Seize the Birthday challenge, where "anything goes" as long as your card is a birthday card.

 http://seizethesketch.blogspot.com.au/

http://seizethebirthday.blogspot.com/

I had some Bermuda Bay and Soft Sky card stock on my craft table, left over from another project that did not get completed, so they were utilized on this card, along with some of the fabulous gold vellum from the Stampin' Up! Occasions catalogue.

I have a dear friend that will be celebrating a milestone birthday later this month, so this card will work well for that occasion, as all the gold and rhinestones really dress it up! gold washi tape was even employed along the white card stock edge.

The star was stamped in Versamark and embossed with Stampin' Emboss Gold Embossing Powder and then cut out with my paper snips.

Thank you for taking the time to visit, and I'd love to hear from you if you have a moment to leave a comment.  Be sure to check out both challenge blogs with the links above, you'll see lots of great Design Team examples!

Hugs,

Stef

Product detail:

Stamps:  Perfect Pennants

Paper:  Whisper White, Soft Sky, Bermuda Bay, Gold Fancy Foil Designer Vellum

Ink:  Encore Gold, Versamark

Other:  Gold Sequin Trim, Stampin' Emboss Gold embossing powder, Distress Dots embossing folder, Circles Collection framelit, Gold Washi Tape

Lucky Birthday

Hi there!  Tonight my card is for three challenges, the color inspiration challenge at Card Concepts, the sketch challenge at Mojo Monday and the challenge at Friday Mashup to make a masculine card and mash it up with stitching or sewing.  I chose not to mash it up this week but to just make a masculine card.

http://www.fridaymashup.com/

http://thecardconcept.blogspot.com.au/

http://mojomonday.blogspot.com/

I know I say this about certain sketches, but truly I love this sketch from Mojo Monday.  It is so versatile, it will be one to return to for sure!  And, honestly, at first the color challenge was one I wasn't sure I was going to join, it seemed just a bit too vibrant for what I would normally lean toward.  However, I needed to make a birthday card for one of my male co-workers, and this color combo turned out to be so very perfect!!  Goes to show, one should always look to stretch outside one's comfort zone. 

I'm not sure my photo truly showcases how bright the card is, using the lovely bright green of Lucky Limeade.  However, I went from having a bit of trepidation to being so happy with this color combo!  Lucky Limeade rocks with the Hardwood stamp applied in Versamark; add a little sanded Early Espresso Core'dinations paper and Vintage Trinket brads at each corner, and I was on my way to finishing a masculine birthday card.

The largest stamp from Starburst Sayings was stamped in Versamark,  heat embossed with Early Espresso embossing powder and cut out with the matching framelit on my Big Shot.  It was then popped up on Stampin' Up Dimensionals over some Hemp Twine criss-crossing the card.

While this card is pretty simple, the matching envelope, made from using the Envelope Punch Board, adds a little extra finish to the presentation.

The Card Concept asks that you define your style if playing along, so I think this card is definitely Clean and Layered, despite the wee bit of sanded card stock.  Hope they agree.

As always, I appreciate your visit and would love to hear from you if you have a moment to leave a comment!  Hope the remainder of your week goes well!

Hugs,

Stef

Product details:

Stamps:  Starburst Sayings, Hardwood

Paper:  Very Vanilla, Early Espresso card stock and Core'dinations, Lucky Limeade, 2011-2103 Designer Series Paper Patterns Pack In Colors

Ink:  Versamark

Other:  Stampin' Emboss Early Espresso embossing powder, Hemp Twine, Vintage Trinkets, Starburst framelit, Envelope Punch Board

Never Quit on Your Dreams

Hi there once again!  My card today is for the color challenge at The Paper Players and this week's sketch at The Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge.

http://thepaperplayers.blogspot.com/

http://kgiron.blogspot.com/2014/03/sweet-sunday-sketch-challenge-210.html

The large flower from Peaceful Petals was stamped in Versamark and Smoky Slate on watercolor paper, then heat embossed with clear embossing powder.  Using an aquapainter, it was water colored with Crushed Curry.

The card base is Smoky Slate, which was topped with a couple of different designs from the Beau Chateau designer series paper.  I just love all these colors together; Marina Mist and Crushed Curry look particularly beautiful together, to me.  I don't used Crushed Curry often and had forgotten how bright it is.  Still it looks lovely with the other two colors.

The sentiment is from Loving Thoughts.  I decided to use it and send the card to my sister.  I'm so happy for her, as she has dreamt of moving to Central Oregon for years, and it seemed as though circumstances would never fall her way - the economy fell into a recession and there weren't any jobs to be had, then there were jobs but the pay wasn't sufficient, or the people weren't a right fit.  Finally, it's all come together (a great job, great friends and a beautiful place to live) and I give her so much credit for never giving up, never quitting, for having a dream and persevering.

Well, that's it for now, I may have another post later or perhaps tomorrow.  Take care and thanks for coming by and taking a look!

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Peaceful Petals, Loving Thoughts
Paper:  Smoky Slate, Marina Mist, Very Vanilla, Beau Chateau designer series paper, watercolor
Ink:  Smoky Slate, Crushed Curry, Versamark
Other:  Stampin' Emboss Clear embossing powder, 2 1/2" Circle Punch, Circle Collections framelit, Basic Rhinestones, Scallop Border Punch, Envelope Punch Board (for rounding corners)

Hey There!

Welcome back!  Tonight the card I'm sharing was made for two challenges, this week's color challenge at Dynamic Duos and the Deconstructed Sketch challenge.

http://thedynamicduoschallenge.blogspot.co.uk/

http://deconstructingjen.com/deconstructed-sketch-141/

The smaller stamp from So Very Grateful was the perfect size for the main focal image.  It was stamped in Jet Black Stazon on Whisper White and colored with Blushing Bride and Sahara Sand.  It was then adhered to a piece of Blushing Bride that had been embossed with the Distress Dots embossing folder (love that!).

I finally made a card I thought would work well with one of the playful sentiments from Just Sayin'.  I love this font and the nice thing about this particular sentiment is that it can be used for anything...saying hi or thinking of you or even happy birthday...by stamping a separate sentiment on the interior.  I decorated the interior of this card with the flower image stamped in Sahara Sand, but I'll wait until I use it to add the appropriate sentiment.

The Blushing Bride Chevron Ribbon adds some additional texture and a bit more balance between the two colors.  I'm happy with how this card turned out and it was fairly quick to make despite the coloring of the floral image.

Thanks so much for taking the time to visit!  If you have a moment I'd love to hear from you.  I hope your week ahead is enjoyable!

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  So Very Grateful, Just Sayin'
Paper:  Whisper White, Blushing Bride, Sahara Sand, Sweet Sorbet designer series paper
Ink:  Jet Black Stazon, Blushing Bride Sahara Sand
Other:  Word Bubble framelit, Distress Dots embossing folder, Blushing Bride Chevron Ribbon, Linen Thread, Basic Pearls, Neutrals Candy Dot, Blender Pen

Poppy Birthday

A fun sketch at Freshly Made Sketches was the inspiration for my card today.  I love the tilted panels!  I also used it as an opportunity to use up some retired designer paper.

http://freshlymadesketches.blogspot.com/

I played around with a lot of stamp sets trying to decide what I wanted to use for the circle image and finally decided on the flower from Gifts of Kindness.  The accompanying Happy Birthday sentiment was stamped directly on the Pool Party base using a Stampamajig.

The flower was stamped in Poppy Parade, cut out with my paper snips, and popped up on dimensionals in order to place it over the top of the ribbon running horizontally across the card.

A button in the middle of the flower and some pearls did the job to complete the card. The designer paper, from Sale-A-Bration a couple of years ago, was a vintage style and came with the distress coloring on the edge.  So my card ended up as a mix of modern, with the tilted panel card design, and a little vintage, with the paper and button, but still clean without distressing or addition sponging.

I appreciate your visit and hope you'll take a moment and leave a comment - I love hearing from you!

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Gifts of Kindness
Paper:  Poppy Parade, Pool Party, Very Vanilla, Everyday Enchantment designer series paper
Ink:  Poppy Parade
Other:  Poppy Parade Stitched-Poly Ribbon, Basic Pearls, Linen Thread, Very Vintage Designer Button

Hip Thanks

Welcome back, it's Sunday evening and I have a card to share that was made using the sketch this week at Pals Paper Arts.

http://www.palspaperarts.com/

I love the concept of repeat patterns that the circles represent, but I decided to do it a bit differently by have diverse geometric patterns represented by a chevron, a triangle and a square.

This is a very CAS card for me, but because of all the different patterns, it was already very busy!  The wood elements were lightly sponged with Basic Black ink to make them pop against the Pool Party Core'dinations paper.  The Crisp Cantaloupe Twine helps soften the look of the card

The Tiny Wave Stampin' Trimmer Rotary Cutting Blade was used to cut the edge of the Pool Party strip.

That's it for this weekend, time to watch the Oscars!  I hope you have a great week ahead!

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Hip Notes
Paper:  Whisper White, Basic Black, Pool Party Core'dinations, Sweet Sorbet designer series paper
Ink:  Jet Black Stazon, Basic Black
Other:  1 3/8" square punch, Squares Collection Framelits, Essentials Wooden Elements, Tiny Wave Stampin' Trimmer Rotary Cutting Blade, Sweet Sorbet Accessory Pack (Crisp Cantaloupe Twine)

Happy Day

Hi once again!  I finished my card for this week's Mojo Monday challenge, so I thought I would go ahead and share it tonight.  It's the time of month at Mojo Monday for a tall and skinny card:

http://mojomonday.blogspot.com/

I know there have been tons of gold and white cards since Stampin' Up! released the beautiful Fancy Foil Designer Vellum, (and I've done a couple too) but I can't seem to get enough of it yet.  This card, with the inherent glam that comes from the gold and white, plus the hearts design in the vellum, could be used for a wedding shower or an anniversary.  Or it could just be a fun card to send to your best friend or sister when something fabulous happens!

The sentiment from Starburst Sayings was heat embossed with gold embossing powder and then cut out with a matching Starburst framelit.  Washi tape was used to create the layers at the bottom, then a bit of Gold Baker's Twine was added on top of the solid gold portion.  My card ended up being a quarter inch wider than the skinny 3.5"  width, as I decided to pop the top panel up on a slightly larger base.

I added pearls to the right hand corner...they look okay but I do wish Stampin' Up! had some gold pearls or better yet, gold Candy Dots!  I tried adding gold sequins but it just didn't look right.

As always, I appreciate your visit!  Take care and have a great day tomorrow, enjoying the last of your weekend.

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Starburst Sayings
Paper:  Whisper White, Gold Foil, Gold Fancy Foil Designer Vellum
Ink:  Versamark
Other:  Watercolor Wonder Designer Washi Tape, Gold Baker's Twine, Basic Pearls, Starburst Framelit.