Pacific Hello

Hi there!  Today I have a card that combines two challenges - the sketch challenge at Pals Paper Arts and the color challenge at colourQ challenge.

http://www.palspaperarts.com/

http://colourq.blogspot.com/

I love the colors in the cQ challenge but wasn't sure if I could make them work because I thought I wanted to make a fall scene with leaves changing color, etc.  When I saw the Pals sketch, I went about trying to create various patterns and incorporate all the colors but it just didn't come together for me.  Then I decided I needed to use a different tact, just keeping an open mind as I flipped through my stamp sets.  In the end, I went a totally different direction, making a shabby/vintage/distress style card, using the stamp set Apothecary Art, one that has been long neglected.

 

I started with a lovely piece of the retired Comfort Cafe in Cajun Craze, which was then topped with a piece of Pacific Point embossed with the Woodgrain embossing folder.   Incorporating the Old Olive beyond coloring the leaves was a bit of a head scratcher until I settled upon the scallop oval beneath the sentiment.  A blender pen inked with Pumpkin Pie added color to the flowers stamped on the Apothecary Art label.

Scraps of ribbon and a half doily left over from another project were all pulled together on the card.  Then I realized I needed something to represent the circle at the bottom right of the sketch, so I added a Naturals Designer button with a bit of Linen Thread.

I'm happy with the way this turned out and have someone in mind to send it to.  It was a lesson to myself not to quit when what I planned does not initially come together, but instead be patient and let other ideas rise to the surface.

Thanks for your visit and I'd love to hear from you if you have minute to leave a comment!

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Four You, Apothecary Art
Paper:  Very Vanilla, Early Espresso, Cajun Craze, Pacific Point, Old Olive, Comfort Cafe dsp
Ink:  Pumpkin Pie, Old Olive, Pacific Point, Crumb Cake, Early Espresso Craft
Other:  Paper Doily, Burlap Ribbon, Chantilly Crochet Trim, Pumpkin Pie Cotton Ribbon, Linen Thread, Naturals Designer button, Cutter Kit, Labels Collection framelit, Scallop Oval and Large Oval punches

Moonlight Thanks

Welcome back!  I wanted to make a somewhat gender neutral thank you card, so I looked no further than this week's challenge at Freshly Made Sketches for my inspiration.

http://freshlymadesketches.blogspot.com/

I started this card with a Lost Lagoon card base, then topped it with a piece of Hello Honey covered with the lovely Moonlight dsp.

A rectangle of Smoky Slate was run through a crimper then mini silver brads were added before adhering to the card.  I really like the texture it adds.  I debated about hand cutting out the sentiment and then layering it directly on the Lost Lagoon piece cut out with a Word Bubble framelit but decided instead to cut them both with the framelit and then do a little shadow layering (at least that's what I would call it; maybe there's a more official term for it.  

That's it for this afternoon.  Now off to do some household chores.  Enjoy the remainder of your weekend!  As always, your visit and comments are so appreciated!

Hugs,

Stef

Product details:

Stamps:  Just Sayin'

Paper:  Lost Lagoon, Hello Honey, Smoky Slate, Moonlight dsp

Ink:  Hello Honey

Other:  Crimper, Word Bubble framelit, Corner Rounder punch, Hello Honey Stitched Satin Ribbon, Silver Mini Brads

Birdie Christmas

Hi there and welcome back!  Today's card uses the sketch at Mojo Monday.

  http://mojomonday.blogspot.com/

I love the tall and skinny card look, so this time I made my card a bit longer (6" x 3.5") to emphasize that look.  I also flipped the sketch 45 degrees to accommodate the main image.  The designer paper is the retired Snow Festival, which I continue to enjoy using due to the bright colors and images, however I am running out of Gumball Green card stock so I don't know how much longer it will remain in my stash.

This cute birdie was stamped in Jet Black Stazon on Whisper White card stock and colored with a Blender Pen.  His body was colored with So Saffron, so the beak had to be a slightly different color.  I used a touch of Crushed Curry and then layered a bit of Pumpkin Pie over top very lightly.

The pompom on top of the stocking cap was decorated with Cherry Cobbler Dazzling Details to bring a little sparkle to the card, along with the Rhinestones colored with a Cherry Cobbler Blendability marker.

That's it for today.  Thanks for visiting and of course I would love to hear from you if you have a moment to leave a comment!  It's the cusp of the Labor Day holiday weekend and I hope everyone has a safe and fun time.

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  For the Birds 
Paper:  Whisper White, Cherry Cobbler, Gumball Green, Snow Festival dsp
Ink:  Baja Breeze, Soft Sky, Cherry Cobbler, Gumball Green, So Saffron, Crushed Curry, Pumpkin Pie, Encore Gold, Jet Black Stazon
Other:  Blender pen, Ovals Collection framelit, Snowburst embossing folder, Gold Elastic cord, Cherry Cobbler Dazzling Details, Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Cherry Cobbler Blendability marker

Razzleberry Party

Hello again!  My card tonight was made for the Pals Paper Arts challenge, which this week is a sketch challenge.

http://www.palspaperarts.com/

I was digging through my vast hoard stash of designer paper and found a couple pieces of the retired Razzleberry Lemonade.  The colors are so bright and cheerful, plus I could use my Blendability Markers to color flowers from I Like You.

I'd forgotten how much I enjoy the mix of colors in the floral print - Crushed Curry, Pumpkin Pie, Rich Razzleberry and Melon Mambo.  A nice, bright and happy mix.

After coloring the flowers with Blendabilities, I used the Rich Razzleberry marker to color some Basic Rhinestones that were then scattered across the card.

Be sure to use the link above and head over the the PPA blog to check out all the great inspiration!  As always, your visit and comments are so appreciated!  Take care and have a great week.

Hugs,

Stef

Product details:  

Stamps:  I Like You, Party This Way

Paper:  Melon Mambo, Rich Razzleberry, Crushed Curry, Whisper White, Razzleberry Lemonade dsp

Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Rich Razzleberry

Other:  Blendabilities, Pumpkin Pie Grosgrain and Rich Razzleberry Cotton ribbon, Basic Jewel Rhinestones, Word Window and Modern Label punches.

Cheerful Tags - A Sneak Peek

It feels like Fall is just around the corner (only a month away from the Autumnal Equinox!) and so it is time to roll out more Christmas cards.  We usually give about 80 cards between friends, family and co-workers, so I always like to get an early start on making them.  The years I haven't, I've paid for it with marathon card making weekends consisting of mass production, which takes most the fun out of the process for me.

Today I am sharing two cards made with products from the new Stampin' Up Holiday catalogue.  Trust me, if you have not seen it, there are so many wonderful stamp sets and products, it's amazing!  Everyone will be able to order from it starting August 28th.

The first card uses this week's sketch at Freshly Made Sketches, which is one with lots of options.

http://freshlymadesketches.blogspot.com/ 

I substituted a tag backed by a piece of card stock for the flowers in the sketch, so I could use the new Note Tag punch and stamps from the new Cheerful Tags stamp set.

The snowflake image was stamped in Versamark and embossed with Gold Embossing Powder. I attempted to use Heat and Stick Powder and Gold Glitter but the detail of the snowflake ends was obscured, so I switched to embossing.  I also embossed the sentiment with Cherry Cobbler embossing powder.  The line of trees is also part of the Cheerful Tags stamp set and because it is a photopolymer set, it was very easy to stamp straight on the cotton ribbon.  I love that!

The designer paper is also a sneak peek of Under the Tree Specialty designer series paper, which has a great rustic feel to it as well as some girth, as it is a heavier kraft paper.  It will be great for making gift boxes but today it backs the focal image and is glitzed up a bit by adding Dazzling Details to the centers of the snowflakes.

The second card I would like to share was made from an old Splitcoaststampers sketch, No. 6 to be precise.

http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/

This second card uses the Cheerful Tags stamp set along with another new set, Festival of Trees.  Behind the tag is Cherry Cobbler Core'dinations paper that was embossed with the new Lucky Stars embossing folder.

The Christmas tree, from Festival of Trees, was decorated with Cherry Cobbler Dazzling Details. The designer paper is another sheet from Under the Tree, with the kraft and white stars side the reverse of the Early Espresso stripes.

Well, that's a wrap for today.  I've been on vacation this week, so I've had lots of time to make cards, but must return to work tomorrow for a couple of days.  That's okay, it's how I fund my paper crafting obsession!

As always, your visit and comments are so appreciated!  Take care and have a great remainder of the week!

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Card One
Stamps:  Cheerful Tags
Paper:  Cherry Cobbler and Cherry Cobbler Core'dinations, Naturals Ivory, Mossy Meadows, Under the Tree dsp
Ink:  Mossy Meadows, Versamark
Other:  7/8" Cotton Ribbon, Cherry Cobbler Quilted Satin Ribbon (ret.), Gold Elastic cord (ret.), Large Oval, Scallop Oval and Note Tag punches, Snowburst embossing folder (ret.), Dazzling Details, Stampin' Emboss Gold and Cherry Cobbler embossing folder

Card Two
Stamps:  Cheerful Tags, Festival of Trees
Paper:  Whisper White, Kraft, Cherry Cobbler Core'dinations, Gold Foil, Under the Tree dsp
Ink:  Cherry Cobbler, Garden Green
Other:  Scallop Border, Tree, Scallop Tag Topper, Large Oval and Scallop Oval punches, Lucky Stars embossing folder, Stampin' Sanding System,  Cherry Cobbler and Gold Baker's Twine, Itty Bitty Accents Punch pack, Cherry Cobbler Dazzling Details

Bud Birthday

Hi again!  I've got a late post of another card I completed this week while taking some vacation.  One more day tomorrow before going back to work and I hope to sneak in some more card making time amidst other activities.

Tonight my card is for Mojo Monday.  The Hey There Buds stamp has been sitting on my desk for a while, waiving and asking to be used, so I decided this would be a great sketch in which to break it in.

http://mojomonday.blogspot.com/

The stamp was sizable enough that I decided to make a 5" x 7" card to encompass all the design elements of the layout.  The light pastel colors of Sweet Sorbet dictated the color them of the card.

I used markers to color the rubber, which was then stamped on Whisper White card stock and cut out with the Circles Collection framelit.  A very neglected Starburst framelit was dusted off and used for the base underneath, cut from Pistachio Pudding card stock. 

I added Coastal Cabana sequins around the main image and a Baked Brown Sugar sequin to the middle of the flower that was snipped out and popped up on dimensionals.  A pearl was then added to the middle of each sequin.  A fun sketch that came together easily.

Thanks for dropping by!  I hope to be back tomorrow to share at least one more card I've completed before going back to work on Thursday.  

Hugs,

Stef

Product details:

Stamps:  Hey There Buds, Curly Cute

Paper:  Whisper White, Pool Party, Pistachio Pudding, Crisp Cantaloupe, Sweet Sorbet dsp

Ink:  Pistachio Pudding, Crisp Cantaloupe, Hello Honey (under the Baked Brown Sugar sequin)

Other:  Circles Collection and Starburst framelits, Pistachio Pudding Ruffle Trim, In Color Sequins, Basic Jewel Pearls, Distress Dots embossing folder  

Watercolor Bliss

Hi there!  The card I am sharing today is the 4th in a series that will become a birthday gift to a dear friend at work.  I used Karen Giron's Sweet Sunday Sketch as the basis for the layout, although you'll see I took a few liberties with the design!

http://kgiron.blogspot.com/

I started by flipping the sketch on its side and then moving and elongating the focal point to accommodate the stamped image.  I used one of my favorite techniques with this stamp by using markers directly on the rubber, then spritzing with water and stamping on the watercolor paper.  The background was then colored with Soft Sky ink using an Aquapainter.

I love this color combination; it's similar to one I used with this stamp and this technique back in early July.  While this stamp has long been retired, it is one I will never part with.

For my returning visitors, you'll notice I updated my profile pic.  The last one was nearly five years old and my hair has gotten much shorter since the beginning of this year.  My husband took this photo in the entry of our house today where he has several plants that thrive with lots of northern and eastern light.  You notice I say "he"...I am a total black thumb, so he is in charge of growing things.  ; - )  

Anyway, thanks for the visit and you know I would love to hear from you if you have time to leave a comment!

Hugs,

Stef

Product details:

Stamps:  Inspired by Nature

Paper:  Very Vanilla, Soft Sky, Blackberry Bliss, Mossy Meadow, Watercolor

Ink:  Blackberry Bliss, Hello Honey, Mossy Meadow, Soft Sky

Other:  Beautiful Wings embosslit, Curly Label punch, Honeycomb embossing folder, Hello Honey Stitched Satin ribbon, Basic Pearls

A Coastal Thank You for Freshly Made Sketches

Welcome back! I had a productive card making day today, and the first card I'd like to share is one made for this week's challenge at Freshly Made Sketches.

http://freshlymadesketches.blogspot.com/

I've seen several cards I really liked the last couple of weeks with sentiments surrounded by flowers stamped around the edge of the piece, so I decided to create something similar for the sketch.

I used the stamps from I Like You to surround the sentiment and colored them with Blendability markers.  I think I finally feel comfortable with my coloring technique with these markers...now I just need to focus on staying in the lines LOL!!  I actually do okay, but it's super frustrating to be on the 2nd to the last flower and oops, color in the wrong place!  In my experience, the Color Lifter is less than perfect in its effectiveness to completely move ink out of the wrong place...but it is fine for making highlights of already colored areas.

The remainder of the card is very CAS, with just the banners, In Color Sequins and the Coastal Cabana twine.  It was a fun sketch to use and the card went together super quick once the coloring was done.  

Thanks for visiting and, as always, I would love to hear from you if you have a moment to leave a comment!

Hugs,

Stef

Product Details:

Stamps:  I Like You, Four You

Paper:  Whisper White, Pumpkin Pie, Eastern Elegance dsp

Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black

Other:  Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight and Coastal Cabana Blendabilities, Coastal Cabana Thick Twine, In Color Sequins

Wild Hardwood

Happy Friday evening!  I have a card to share made for the 500th sketch challenge at Splitcoaststampers.  Number 500?  Whoo hoo, that's a lot of sketches!!  The challenge is to use one of the previous 499 sketches.  For this card I chose SC80.  I'm a week late to the actual challenge because I was out of town on vacation last week, but I still wanted to play along to show my support for the weekly sketch challenges at Splitcoaststampers!

I had need of a masculine birthday card, so being from the Northwest where we all love our out of doors, and after spending a few days camping in the woods in Idaho, I decided to make a card using the tree stamp from Le Jardin, a beautiful, long retired stamp set.

I already had a second card base stamped and ready to go from the last card I made, so I decided to use it for tonight's card.  I ran some Early Espresso Core'dinations card stock through the Big Shot with the Woodgrain embossing folder, and then adhered the stamped tree image on top.  Everything was distressed with the Cutter Kit and sponged with Crumb Cake.  I wrapped some hemp twine (old non-SU) around everything.  Burlap Ribbon was used for the vertical piece in the sketch.

The sentiment is from Four You, which worked great for this rustic, masculine card.

Thanks for dropping by, I'm always so  appreciative of your visits and comments!!  Take care and have a fabulous weekend!

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Le Jardin, Hardwood, Four You
Paper:  Very Vanilla, Wild Wasabi, Early Espresso Core'dinations
Ink:  Wild Wasabi, Chocolate Chip, Crumb Cake, Early Espresso
Other:  Woodgrain embossing folder, Burlap Ribbon, Stampin' Up! Sanding System, Cutter Kit, Hemp Twine (non-SU)

Mambo Wild Wood

Hi there!  I have a card to share tonight that I made as one of four cards I will be giving to a dear friend of mine who has a birthday at the end of the month.  She sends so many cards that I think she personally helps keep the US Post Office in business LOL!!  So, I decided I would make a series of water colored cards that are somewhat generic and easy to mail so she could use them for any number of occasions.  The first of the cards I made for her was with the Pleasant Poppies in this post http://stefperry.blogspot.com/2014/08/poppy-duo.html.

http://www.fridaymashup.com/

I used this weeks fun challenge at Friday Mashup for inspiration for today's card.  The challenge was to use the colors Wild Wasabi, Melon Mambo, Black and White, and mash it up by including a wood element.  Here's what I ended up with:

Wild Wasabi and Melon Mambo are colors generally not on my radar, so this truly was a challenge for me initially. However, once the card was done, I found I really like them together. The flowers and leaves from Peaceful Petal were stamped in Memento Tuxedo Black then colored using Classic Inks and a blender pen.

The Hardwood stamp was inked with Wild Wasabi and stamped on the card stock to add the wood element for the challenge "mash up".  I love my old Woodgrain background stamp but this one is slowly stealing my heart for use as a wood background.

That's it for me until the weekend.  As always, I so appreciate your visit and comments!  Take care!

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Peaceful Petals, Hardwood, Chalk Talk
Paper:  Whisper White, Wild Wasabi, Melon Mambo, Watercolor
Ink:  Wild Wasabi, Melon Mambo, Memento Tuxedo Black
Other:  Melon Mambo Scallop Dotted Grosgrain ribbon, Linen Thread, 1 3/8" Circle punch, Paper Snips, Blender Pen

It's All About You for DTGD

Hi there and welcome!  I have a card to share that I made for a few of the Dare To Get Dirty challenges at Splitcoaststampers.  This is an annual event for Fan Club member participation. I was out of town until yesterday (more about that below), so my creation was kept pretty simple as I am uploading on the last day to join in the challenges.  If you're not a fan club member or want to find out more about Splitcoaststampers, check out this link http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/about/fan.  If you're not familiar with SCS, it is a wealth of crafting knowledge.  I encourage you to go check it out!

I love polka dots, so I grabbed a piece of retired Modern Medley dsp.  To liven up the look of the card, I used Island Indigo and Smoky Slate card stock and topped it all off with a Daffodil Delight flower.  Even with the layers, I left plenty of "white" space in order to keep it more CAS.

The flower was started by punching out two sizes of scallop circles from filter paper.  My big epiphany was that I could use my Daffodil Delight Blendability marker to color the filter paper and it would dry immediately!  In fact, it colored two layers at a time.  And no more waiting for the ink to dry!  After coloring, a small brad was used to hold the layers together while the flowers were scrunched up around it to give the flower its dimension.  Not a new technique but always a pleasing result.

The sentiment is from Endless Birthday Wishes, a new photopolymer set with the cutest fonts plus tons of words and phrases that can be combined in a multitude of ways.  I decided to ink it up in Momento Tuxedo Black and was pleasantly surprised to find it did not stain the photopolymer!  The set does not have any punctuation stamps so I used a Stampin' Up! journaling pen to add the exclamation point and heart rather than a period (the heart was also colored with the Blendability marker).  Although I don't have a photo of it, the sentiment "Happy Birthday" from the same set was stamped on the inside piece of Very Vanilla.

Sketch design #230 from a couple weeks ago by Karen Giron was used for the layout.  The challenge has since closed but I liked the layout so I went ahead and used it anyway.  Karen has the weekly Sweet Sunday Sketch challenge http://kgiron.blogspot.com/ - be sure to drop by and check it out.

That's it for the card.  Thank you so much for taking the time to visit and I would love to hear from you if you have time to comment!!

(Here's the card recipe:  Stamps:  Endless Birthday Wishes; Paper:  Very Vanilla, Island Indigo, Smoky Slate, Modern Medley dsp;  Ink: Momento Tuxedo Black; Other:  Daffodil Delight Blendabilities, Filter Paper, 1 1/4" & 7/8" Scallop Circle and Decorative Label punches, Large Polka Dot embossing folder, Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Stampin' Up! Black Journaling pen)

Read on if you are interested in about our trip this last week.

Kev and I were able to join his family in Idaho for the annual Friends and Family camping trip. This year was a record crowd; all told about 30-40 people.  We had a group site reserved on the Upper Payette Lake and it was gorgeous.

The weather was perfect during the days in the mid-80's although, because it is a high mountain lake at about the 5,000 foot elevation, the nights were COLD!!  A great time was had by all, with kayaking, horseback riding, hiking, biking and even golfing (the campsite is located about 5 miles outside McCall, Idaho with plenty of golf options available)

Here's the view from just in front of my tent.  The lake has areas of marsh and lily pads, which were no problem for the canoes and kayaks to navigate.  They were also a great source of the most annoying, persistent mosquitos!!  Probably the only negative to this lovely piece of paradise.

Take care and have a great week!

Hugs,

Stef

Poppy Duo

Hi there!  Hope you survived your Monday!  I have a card to share that was made for this week's sketch challenge at Splitcoaststampers.

http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/

I've had the Pleasant Poppy stamp for a while but have not used it until this weekend.  I watercolored two cards, one with an Aquapainter and one with a blender pen, to have fun with the different watercolor methods.

I used identical colors on both cards.  The one on the left was colored with an Aquapainter, the one on the right the blender pen.  Using the blender pen definitely produced a brighter result, as you can see with the card on the right (both backgrounds were colored in Pool Party with an Aquapainter as it was easier to spread and get a lighter result).

This first card will be one of a group of 4 watercolor cards I am giving a friend for her birthday.  A sentiment was not added in order to give her flexibility as to how she wants to use it and it is also pretty flat so it's easy to mail (she sends alot of cards).

The second card sports a sentiment that was embossed with black embossing powder on a banner of vellum card stock that was anchored with a Candy Dot on each side.  The embossing didn't come out as black as I was hoping, but it still did the job of masking a flower that had a wee coloring woops that was unrepairable.  Gotta love that!

Thanks for taking time to drop by and I would love to hear from you if you have time to leave a comment!  I hope the reset of your week is splendid!

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Pleasant Poppies, Sweet Essentials
Paper:  Pool Party Core'dinations, Basic Black, Poppy Parade, Vellum, Watercolor, Everyday Enchantment dsp
Ink:  Jet Black Stazon, Pool Party, Poppy Parade, Old Olive, Versamark
Other:  Black Stampin' Embossing Powder, Subtles Candy Dots, Black Baker's Twine, Pretty Prints embossing folder, Aquapainter, Blender Pen

Wish on a Star

Hi there!  Hope you're having a great weekend!  The card I'm sharing today was made for the current challenge at Seize the Sketch and this week's color challenge at Splitcoaststampers.

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

http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/

When I saw the sketch, I knew I wanted to use my new Stars Decorative Mask.  Using a sponge dauber, I created the gold star background behind the sentiment.

I don't often join in with the weekly Splitcoaststamper color challenge (I have good intentions but most weeks it doesn't work out) but I LOVE this color combination, so I made a point to be sure to work it into one of the cards I created this weekend.  I included some gold as an accent.  The gold star was popped out with a retired Stampin' Up! punch and the smaller star was stamped in Calypso Coral on Whisper White card stock, then cut out with my Paper Snips.

The sentiment was first stamped in Bermuda Bay and cut out with a Chalk Talk framelit.  It was stamped a second time in Calypso Coral, with the mid section cut out and popped up to give it a bit of dimension.

This was a fun card to make and it came together quite quickly.  If you have not been to Splitcoaststampers, I highly encourage you to check it out.  A remarkable resource for all levels of stampers.  Be sure to head over to STS as well, where you will find some terrific inspiration and a last chance to play along until midday tomorrow.

As always, I so appreciate your visit and comments!  Take care and enjoy your evening!

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Perfect Pennants
Paper:  Whisper White, Pool Party, Bermuda Bay, Calypso Coral
Ink:  Bermuda Bay, Calypso Coral, Encore Gold
Other:  Pool Party Ruffle Ribbon, Calypso Coral Organza ribbon, Banners and Deco Collection framelits, Extra Large Star punch, Stylish Stripes embossing folder, Stars Decorative Mask, Paper Snips