So Sweet for the Paper Players

Hello friends!  It's time for a new challenge at The Paper Players and this week the lovely Ann is hosting.  It's Theme week and Ann has chosen a great one that has loads of options for creating.  Let's take a look!

Paper Players

I'm also joining in with the lovelies at TOC, with their friendship/encouragement/support challenge.  My card, while a bit punny, is letting the recipient know they are appreciated.

TOC #296

Before getting to my card, I want to take a moment to congratulate Christy Stanford for being our newest member of the Paper Players Design Team!  Christy was a year-long guest designer a few years ago and has been joining us each week on a regular basis with her delightful and charming cards.  Welcome to the team, Christy!

For our latest PP challenge, and since we're heading into fall, I chose to use a little cutie eating her caramel apple.  I remember loving them when I was young. 

To start, I stamped the girl and the apples, then masked them off so I could create the scene using stencils for the sky and ground.  Once that was complete, the masks were removed and I colored her in fall colors using Copic markers.  

I decided to cut out and pop up the center of the panel using an arch die, then stamped the sentiment.  I added the outside to a white card base then popped up the center portion.  I finished off the apple with some Glossy Accents to make it shiny and when that was dry, also used a white gel pen to create highlights.

What are you inspired to create using this theme?  For more ideas, please head over to the challenge blog where my talented teammates have loads of great design to inspire you.  The challenge remains open until 3pm EDT, Friday September 12th. I hope you'll join us this week!

Thanks for stopping by!

Stef

• Stamping Bella Caramel Apple Bundle Girl stamp
• Altenew Sweet Jasmine sentiment stamp
• Simon Says Stamp Landscapes and MFT Mini Cloud Edges stencils
• Altenew Sea Breeze and SSS Fairway and Field inks
• SSS A2 Arches die
• Copics - YR18, 09, 07, 15, 21, 27, 23, R59, 37, 35, G29, 17, 03, E29, 27, 23, 21, 11, 00

Pumpkin Patch for Color Hues

Hello friends!  The first of the month has rolled around again (can you believe it???) and Color Hues has a new challenge.  The lovely Karen is hosting and has chosen a lovely color combo of orange and green.  Hmmm, rather fall-ish to me...🍃🎃.

Color Hues

As you can tell from the title of my post, I definitely went for a fall scene and used a sweet Bundle girl from Stamping Bella.

The scene was stamped, then before coloring with my Copics, the sky was stenciled using a light orange ink and a cloud stencil.  I completed the coloring, stamped the sentiment and die cut the panel with a rectangle die.  The panel was then added to a green matte that was barely larger than the colored panel.  

I added that to the card base, then as I was photographing it, I wondered to myself, where is all the green?  Frankly, there wasn't much because I opted to color the little girl's outfit in brown rather than green, and the leaves and the mat didn't provide much.  I think I lost my mind for a short time while creating this card lol!  Anybody else have those days?

A plaid cover die to the rescue!  It was cut with a Tim Holtz cover die, adhered to the card base, then the main image was added to finish the card.  Finally!

Thanks for taking time to stop by! I encourage you to pop over to the challenge blog where my very talented teammates have a variety of card design using these colors.  The challenge remains open until Sunday, 9/14 at 3pm EDT.  I hope to see your card in the gallery!

Stef

• Stamping Bella Bundle Girl at the Pumpkin Patch and Frightful & Delightful sentiment set stamps
• MFT Mini Cloud Edges die
• Hero Arts Nesting Rectangle die
• Tim Holtz Simple Plaid cover die
• Copics:  Pumpkin - YR18, 24, 09, 07, 16, Y38 E57, 35; Leaves YG67, 17, 03; Skin E11, 21, 00; Hat, Jacket and Boots E77, 74, 71; Scarf T2, 0; Ground E31, 41

Full of Thanks for the Paper Players

Hello friends!  I just want to thank everyone who joined in my theme challenge at the Paper Players last week - we had some amazing cards in the gallery!  And now it is time for a new challenge that the wonderful Claire is hosting.  It's a color challenge and she's chosen a beautiful palette that makes me think of fall.

Paper Players

In looking through my autumn/fall stamps and dies, I found one that hadn't been used in a couple of years and thought it would work perfectly with these colors.  Except for a slight booboo I made...and fixed.

I began with stamping and Copic coloring the autumnal spray with the challenge colors, except I forgot that the only green was Old Olive.  I finished up and then it dawned on me that the bright yellow green I used on some of the leaves wasn't going to work.  Fortunately, alcohol markers are transparent, so I was able to use another color to glaze over the parts that weren't olive and avoided a redo.  After that, the image was die cut.

I wanted to keep things simple, so a panel of white was trimmed down and lightly ink blended with a brown at the bottom and the orange above.  The sentiment was stamped and die cut before both pieces were added to the panel, which was then mounted to the card base with foam tape.  All done!

What do these colors bring to mind for you?  My wonderfully talented teammates have a wonderful array of designs with these colors, so I encourage you to pay a visit to the challenge before heading off to your crafty space.  Our challenge will remain open until Friday, August 15th at 3pm EDT.  I hope to see your card in the gallery!

Thanks for stopping by!

Stef

• Simon Says Stamp Full of Thanks stamp and die
• Simon Says Stamp/CZ Design Clean Line Gratitude stamp and die
• Copics - YR18, 09, 07, 15, 21, R59, 39, 37, 35, YG99, 97, 95, 67, 63, 61, 17, 11, 05, 03, 01, V09, 06, 05, 01, E59, 57, 55

Grateful for You for The Paper Players

Hello friends!  This week at The Paper Players the lovely Joanne has chosen an autumnal color combination for our inspiration.

The Paper Players

I'm also joining the lovelies at Inkspirational with their gorgeous mood board inspiration.  I was inspired by the leafy photo and the fall colors.

Inkspirational #326

 

I had many, many ideas for these colors but in the end, I played around with messy, wonderful mica sprays to create my card.  And yes I did have orange and brown fingers for a day lol!

Right off the bat, I have to say the photos do not do justice to the beautiful colors and shine of the background.  I began with a half sheet of mixed media paper from Vicky Boutin and used two brown and two orange Distress Mica Sprays on the paper, adding water so they would mix a bit then set it aside to dry.

When it was dry the colors had mixed more than I anticipated.  Don't get me wrong, it was really pretty but the browns had dominated the oranges.  I put the panel in my Misti, arranged all the leaf stamps, then used a brown pigment ink to stamp.  That didn't show up well, so ended up gold heat embossing the leaves then used gold metallic paint to add splatters.

Next, I poured a bit of the mica spray onto a palette and used a small brush to paint the lightest orange over some of the leaves and I was so happy with that small step! When everything dried a second time the panel was die cut, wrapped with some gold twine and matted onto a dark brown rectangle before adding to the 5"x 7" ivory card base.  The sentiment was also gold heat embossed, die cut with the matching die and added to the card front along with some copper-ish gems.

We would love to have you share what you create with these colors this week!  The challenge remains open until 3 pm EDT Friday 10/18.  In the meantime, please take a moment to see all the beautiful cards my talented teammates have created for your inspiration over on the challenge blog linked above.

Thanks for visiting and take care!

Stef

• Simon Says Stamp Autumn Leaves and Graceful Florals (sentiment) stamps and die
• Waffle Flower A7 Frames rectangle die
• Spellbinders 5" X 7" Matting Basics A die
• Rangers Jack-O-Lantern, Mulled Cider, Crooked Broomstick and Fallen Acorn Distress Mica Stain Sprays
• SSS Ultra Fine Gold embossing powder
• Altenew Gold Metallic paint
• HoneyBee Stamps Fall Is In the Air gems

Gratitude for The Paper Players

Hello friends!  It's the fifth Sunday of the month and that means we have a Tic-Tac-Toe Challenge at The Paper Players this week!  The amazing Claire is hosting and created this fun TTT board to inspire you!

The Paper Players

My initial choice was to go across the top row, but in the end, my card also fit left to right diagonal as well as the center column.

I couldn't decide which way to go but then I challenged myself to use some patterned paper.  I don't have a lot (I purged most of it years ago) but have since acquired some through card kits or very selective purchasing.  

The background is a piece of that pp that was included in a card kit about 3-4 years ago. This piece a pretty vintage style collage and even after trimming it down I was able to capture a sunflower and pumpkin for the background.  For the "table" I found a piece of brown from another paper pack and embossed it with a woodgrain folder, although you really can't tell in the pictures.  

Next, I went to my Fall dies and found the pumpkin already ink blended and assembled. The same thing happened when I was searching through my Autumn themed stamp sets.  The stamp set I pulled out had the leaves colored and die cut, and the sentiment already stamped, so I just used the coordinating die for it.  I used a rounded corner punch for the base and pp, then assembled all the elements, including the three enamel dots.  And I was really happy with how this turned out!

Claire's TTT board has many opportunities for a variety of cards.  I hope you'll find a column or row that suits your fancy and play along!  The challenge will remain open until 3pm EDT, Friday October 4th.  

Thanks for visiting and take care!

Stef

• Simon Says Stamp Layered Pumpkin die
• SSS/Memory Box Beautiful Moments Collaboration set (Stamptember 2022?)
• Tim Holtz Lumber embossing folder
• P13 Autumn and Honey Bee Stamps Harvest Festival patterned papers
• Spellbinders Corner Rounder punch
• Altenew Warm and Cozy Enamel Dots

Grateful for You

Hello friends!  Today I'm sharing a card created for the challenge over at The Paper Players.  This week Anne Marie is hosting the theme challenge and chose a perfect one for this time of year, which is to give thanks.

PP665

I went with a very fall-ish color palette because the colors this time of year (and the cooler weather) make my heart happy!  

I decided to color on kraft cardstock, which produces a more muted result.  The leaves were stamped in a random fashion on the panel, leaving room for the sentiment, then colored with Copic markers.  All the stamping was done with Gina K Chocolate Truffle Amalgam ink, which is Copic friendly.

 

With the coloring complete, next came the ink blending, which was done around the edges of the panel, leaving a center "glow".  I didn't want to trim down the panel, so I adhered it to a card base measuring 5.75" x 4.5" and called it good.  When I go to mail it, an A6 size envelope will work perfectly.

With so much going on in the world right now, for me (as I'm sure for many) it helps to remember all that I have to be grateful for, including you, my crafty friends!  Thank you for taking time to stop by and please take care!

Hugs,

Stef

Stamps:  Sunny Studios Elegant Leaves

Paper:  Neenah Desert Storm and Natural White

Ink:  Gina K Chocolate Truffe, Simon Says Stamp Cappuccino 

Copics:  R59, 46, 08, YR07, 68, 65, Y28, 26, 15, YG 17, 03, 01, BG75, 49, 15

Fall Hello for Sunday Stamps

Welcome back friends!  It's time for a new challenge at Sunday Stamps and this time we have some beautiful colors that just made my heart happy!  I hope you like them too!

Sunday Stamps

I'm also sharing my card at the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge for their Anything Goes theme.

To me these are wonderful colors for making Autumn cards, but honestly I love them any time of year.  Please excuse the photo quality - my camera definitely was not a fan of the foiled sentiment.

For starters, the pretty Forest Builder Frame was die cut from Distress Watercolor, then I used the ink smooshing technique to color them with Distress inks.  To get the frame a consistently darker color, I dipped a small paintbrush in Crackling Campfire Distress Spray Stain and painted the frame.  While that dried, a panel of Aqua Sky cardstock was embossed using the Tim Holtz Bark 3D folder, trimmed down then added to a Peacock panel layered on the white card base.

Next, I used a bit of Hero Arts gold wax on my finger to gently swipe over parts of the now dried leaves and branches on the frame.  While hard to see in the photos, I also swiped the gold wax on parts of the embossed panel to bring out the texture.  While that dried, I used my Spellbinders Hot Foiling system to create the sentiment, then adhered everything to the card front.  

So what are you inspired to create with these colors?  For more inspiration, head over to the challenge blog where my wonderful teammates have some beautiful cards to share, and hopefully you will join us!

On a personal note, this will be my final post as part of the Sunday Stamps design team. I've decided to take a step back and reevaluate my crafting priorities. The women on this team have been nothing less than fabulous to work with, and I will miss creating with them very much, and of course they will continue to bring you wonderful inspiration with each challenge. 

Take care!

Stef

Paper:  Neenah Solar White, Hammermill, Distress Watercolor, Concord and 9th Peacock and Aqua Sky

Ink:  Crackling Campfire, Wild Honey and Carved Pumpkin Distress Inks

Dies:  Simon Says Stamp Forest Builder Frame and Elegantly Modern Greetings die

Foiling:  Simon Says Stamp Elegantly Modern Hot Foil Plate, Spellbinders Gold Glimmer Hot Foil

Other:  Tim Holtz Bark 3D embossing folder, Crackling Campfire Distress Spray Stain, Hero Arts Gold Wax

All the Best

Hello friends!  I'm back with a card for the current challenges at The Paper Players and Just Us Girls.  I'm also sharing my card at the Four Seasons Challenge, where their October challenge is Anything Goes - Fall.

PP662

JUGS 701

Four Seasons - AG Fall

I decided to give some love to an older stamp set from Impression Obsession called Fall Pumpkins - so perfect, no?

The pumpkin/floral scene was colored with Copic markers.  I'd forgotten how small and detailed this stamp was, with all the tiny leaves, berries and flower petals, but it still didn't take too long to color.  I used browns to ground the image and at first was just going to use a blue marker around the edges above the "ground" but then opted to color in the rest of the background.  When done, the panel was trimmed down to 3.5" x 4.75".

Next, I tried to stamp the sentiment onto the panel, but wouldn't you know it, my paper moved ever so slightly in my Misti and it blurred!  No worries, I just stamped it again on a piece of white scrap paper, die cut it along with another piece for a tiny bit of layering, then added it to the card front.  The panel was layered on a dark brown panel, then added to the white card base with foam tape.  I hope to get this card and a few others in the mail to some out of state friends.

I hope you're having a great week with some decent weather because soon enough, at least in the Northern Hemisphere, we'll be looking at things turning colder.  I think we'll have our last hurrah of high 70's by the end of this week, then brrrr lol!

It you have a chance, check back on Thursday when I'll have a Halloween card to share.

Take care!

Stef

Stamps and die:  Impression Obsession Fall Pumpkins, Pink Fresh Studio Wonderful Sentiments

Paper:  Neenah Solar White, SU Early Espresso

Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Versafine Clair Nocturne

Copics:  Pumpkins - YR09, 16, Y38, 15; Flowers - YR27, 24, 15, 11; Leaves - G28, 17, 05, & G46, 43, 40; Stems, flower centers and ground - E59, 57, 55, 53; Sky:  B000, 0000; Berries: RV69, 55

Thinking of You for Color Hues

Hello friends!  We're in mid-October, which calls for a new challenge over at Color Hues!  The fabulous Hannelie has chosen a wonderful fall-ish combination of Yellow and Kraft.

Color Hues

 

I'm also playing along with the monthly Four Seasons Challenge, where October is Anything Goes Fall (and look at that fab mood board, I'm sure I'm going to be playing along again this month!).

FSC - October - AG Fall

Many options with the Color Hues combo, but I decided to use a new floral stamp set which I think worked well with yellow and kraft (plus a little gold and white ;-)).

I started by stamping the Rose Reverie image (a Simon Says Stamp/Altenew collab stamp and die set from Stamptember) on a white panel then coloring with Copic markers.  I sampled a couple of brown marker combos before finding a blending group that was closest to kraft.  The image was then die cut with the coordinating die.

Next I cut a panel of white with the Tim Holtz Simple Plaid cover die, which was then layered on a panel of kraft, which was then adhered to a white card base.  Before adhering the floral image, both the flowers and background were splattered with metallic gold and white paint.  While that dried, the sentiment was gold heat embossed then die cut with matching die.  I also cut out two more layers each of the floral image and the sentiment.  When the splatter was dried, the images were layered up, then adhered to the background panel.  I then took a small paintbrush and added metallic gold to the little anthers (tops of the stamen) in the middle of the flowers and that finished things off.

I love this color combo and I hope you do too!  Take a moment to visit the challenge blog and see what my amazingly talented teammates created for your inspiration and hopefully you will join us - the challenge remains open until 9 am EDT 10/28.

Thanks for visiting - take care!

Stef

Stamps and dies:  Rose Reverie, Tim Holtz Simple Plaid Cover die

Paper:  Neenah Solar White and Desert Storm

Ink:  Versamark, Memento Tuxedo Black, Versafine Clair Nocturne

Other:  Altenew Metallic Gold paint, Dr. Ph Martins Bleed Proof White, Altenew Antique Gold embossing powder

Copics:  Flowers - V01, Y08, 13, 11; Stamen - YR23, Y15; Leaves - E44, 43, 42, 41

Apple-solutely Wonderful for Sunday Stamps

Hello crafty friends!  I'm back with a card for the new color challenge at Sunday Stamps.  This time the colors are definitely leaning towards fall.

Sunday Stamps

I'm also playing along with Inkspirational, where the current theme is CAS.

Inkspirational #299

After reviewing their definition of CAS (one main focal point, lots of open space, minimal layers and minimal embellishments), I thought my card worked well within those parameters.

A couple teammates and I were tossing around what colors were close to the color board and came up with More Mustard, Pale Papaya or light peach, Pumpkin Pie, Cherry Cobbler and Basic Gray, which worked for me!

I recently got this cute stamp set, which is a Stamptember collaboration set between Simon Says Stamp and Art Impressions.  If you're not familiar with Stamptember, all month long SSS offers exclusive collaboration stamps with many of the best craft companies and once the sets sell out, they're gone.  It's over now, since today is October 1st but just something to put on your calendar for next year if you're interested.  The other thing is that even if the collab sets sell out, the companies usually have something similar in their lines of stamps and dies. Art Impressions has a large line of fun AI ladies and gents, if you like this style.

Okay, enough about that!  This cute lady was colored up using Copic markers similar to the colors listed above.  I then used my gray marker to give her some ground to stand on, then used two shades of peachy ink to blend the edges of the background, leaving a little halo so I didn't get the ink where I didn't want it.

When the background was complete, I used a Wonky Stitched rectangle die to cut down the panel and mount it onto the white card base with foam tape.  The sentiment was white heat embossed on a scrap of gray cardstock, then I fussy cut it out and added it to the card with foam squares.  The final touch was adding a few highlights with a white gel pen.  I have a friend that absolutely loves puns, so this card will be heading her way soon!

I hope these colors inspire you to join us - the challenge remains open until 6pm EDT Friday, 10/13.  For more inspiration, please head over to the challenge blog where my talented teammates have plenty more inspiration for you!

Thanks for visiting and take care!

Stef

Stamps:  AI/SSS Apple Cider Set

Paper:  Neenah Solar White, SSS Slate Gray

Ink:  SSS Peachy and Grapefruit

Other:  SSS Wonky Stitched Rectangle die, Sakura White Gelly Roll pen

Copics:  T6, 4, 2, 0, W1, 0, R39, 37, 35, 20, Y15, 11, 00, YR17, 24, 23, 21, 18, 16, 14, 02, 01, 00, 000, E59, 42, 41, 21, 11, 09, 00

Fall Birthday and a Christmas Tag

Hello friends!  Today I'm sharing a card and a tag made for two separate challenges, but both using the same technique with embossing folders and gorgeous paste.

PP615

First up is my card for Anne Marie's terrific Tic Tac Toe challenge at The Paper Players.  Although I used a few of the elements in the board, my three in a row is down the middle column - die cut, texture and birthday.

I so love how this card came out!  I started with a panel of dark brown cardstock and used the Forest Floor 3D embossing folder to get that fantastic impression.  Next, I applied Tonic Nuvo Fresh Copper Embellishment Mousse to the card using just my finger, touching the tops of the embossed detail but also letting some get in-between the images to give a rustic look.  I actually have a stack of embossed panels that I made one afternoon with various pastes/mousses.  The embellishment mousse dried quickly so I was able to trim the panel down and adhere it to a Desert Storm card base.  

I applied an adhesive sheet to the back of a piece of vellum, die cut it with a circle die and adhered it to the front of the panel, along with some die cut Desert Storm leaves also covered with the copper mousse and a die cut sentiment.  My SIL will receive this for his birthday later this month and since he's a woodsy sort of fellow, I think he'll appreciate it.

Next I have a Christmas gift tag made from one of those embossed panels, which I'm sharing at Just Us Girls for Carol's fabulous challenge!

Just Us Girls #656

I love making handmade gift tags but don't always take much time to make them super decorative (mostly because they seem to just get tossed lol!), but the embossing plus Simon Hurley's Lunar Paste on this tag certainly gives it a bit more of a wow factor I think.

This time a panel of Peacock was embossed using the Snowflake Visions 3D embossing folder and I used my finger to apply Clear Skies Lunar Paste over it (my camera always seems to adjust the color when I use teal products, so the tag appears much more blue than in real life).  The panel was die cut using a large tag die, then I added two sparkly die cut snowflakes to anchor the sentiment, which came in a pack of pre-foiled holiday sentiments from Pinkfresh Studio.  Next I die cut a second tag from white cardstock, silver embossed "to" and "from", and a row of snowflakes, then attached the white tag to the back of the embossed one using some satin ribbon from my stash and tying them together with some silver twine.

Here's a little close up of the front.

Thanks so much for stopping by, I appreciate it!  Take care!

Stef

Birthday Card

Stamps:  None

Paper:  Dark Chocolate Brown (Simon Says Stamp), Neenah Desert Storm and Natural White, Vellum

Ink:  None

Other:  SSS Forest Floor 3D embossing folder, Altenew Essential Sentiment Strips die, Hero Arts Nested Infinity Circle die, SSS Berry Stems dies, Tonic Nuvo Fresh Copper Embellishment Mousse

Noel Tag

Stamps:  Tag, You're It: Holiday (Honey Bee Stamps)

Paper:  SSS Peacock and Silver and White Glitter paper, Pinkfresh Foiled Sentiments 4 holiday

Ink:  Versamark

Other:  SSS Snowflake Visions 3D embossing folder, Simon Hurley Clear Skies Lunar Paste, SSS Daphne and Eliza Snowflake dies, Ellen Hutson Tag Trio die, Hero Arts Silver embossing powder, retired SU White Satin ribbon and silver twine

With Gratitude for the Tic Tac Toe Challenge

Hello friends!  It's time for a new Tic Tac Toe challenge and this week Silke has given us lots of options for making fun fall cards.

Tic Tac Toe Challenge

I'm also joining the Fall Colors Challenge at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge, along with the fall themed/October challenges at Double D Challenges and the Four Seasons Challenge.

For my card I went down the middle column of the Tic Tac Toe board - slim card, grateful and mixed medium.  My mixed mediums are Copics and dye inks.  I was going to make a fold card but time got away from me and I chose the easier route. ;-)

I used one of my favorite Birdie Brown images for fall to make this card.  I stamped all the images in brown, Copic safe ink, colored them then die cut them with the matching dies.  The sentiment was stamped in brown pigment ink, die cut with a label die. 

For the slim layers I used dies from Pinkfresh Studio's Mini Slimline Essential dies, cutting both from Neenah Solar White.  I used various distress inks to create the background, along with a cloud stencil.  When complete the layers were adhered to a 3"x 6" base.  I adhered the girl on the pumpkin and 2nd largest pumpkin directly to the panel then used thin foam squares to mount the squirrel and the smallest pumpkin.  The sentiment strip was trimmed down to fit the card front, then also added with thin foam squares.  Lastly, I used a white gel pen to add polka dots and the little girl's sweater.

Thanks so much for visiting, I appreciate it.  Be sure to use the link above to check out the fabulous cards by the rest of the design team and hopefully join us this week!

Take care!

Stef

Stamps:  Fall Friends (Birdie Brown/MFT)

Paper:  Neenah Solar White

Ink:  Gina K Chocolate Truffle Amalgam; Versafine Clair Pinecone; Dried Marigold, Scattered Straw, Mustard Seed and Salvaged Patina Distress Ink

Other:  Fall Friends dies, Mini Slimline Essential Bundle dies, Mini Cloud Edge Stencil (MFT), Copic markers, white gel pen