Cozy Birdhouse for Color Hues

Hello friends!  The summer is sure cruising by and here it is, August 1st! Over at Color Hues we have a new challenge, this time hosted by the amazing Carol.  She has chosen a lovely combo of pink and gray.

Color Hues

Making a bunny with these colors definitely crossed my mind but instead I decided to use a couple of cute die sets to make a fun little scene.  Since the dies are new, I'll be linking up to Darnell's NBUS as well.

NBUS

I started out by inking the background using a cloud stencil and a light pink ink on an A2 panel of white.

Next all the elements were die cut from white, which were colored with a variety of inks in pink, gray and brown.  For the sentiment, I took the inkpad direct to paper, let it dry overnight, then die cut it.  

I started creating the card front with the branch, which I layered on two additional die cuts, then wrapped some hemp twine on it before adding it to the top of the panel.  The twine was pulled taut, then I used a little tape to hold it in place.

Then came the birdhouse and fun little birdies.  I put the house together first, added foam tape to the back and positioned it so that the roof hid the taped twine.  The interior panel is also cut from the die but it's hard to get it exactly centered, so next time I think I'll create a slightly larger one.  After adding the birdies, the layered die cut sentiment was centered and I was done.

I encourage you to use the link above to see what my oh, so talented teammates have created with this color combination.  After seeing all that great inspiration, I hope you'll head off to your crafty space and join us!  The challenge will remain open until Thursday, August 14th at 3pm EDT.  

Thanks for visiting and take care!

Stef

• Simon Says Stamp Birdies and Cozy Birdhouse die sets
• MFT Mini Cloud Edges stencil*
• MFT Hello There Dienamic set*
• SSS Mocha Cappucino and Latte inks
• Altenew Baby Pink, Pinkalicious, Rubellite, Idustrial Diamond and Pure Graphite inks

*Sadly, MFT has closed but I am guessing there may be products available online or other retailers.

Merry Moose for The Paper Players

Hello friends!  It's Sunday and time for a new challenge at The Paper Players.  This week the lovely Ann is hosting our CAS week and this time it's back to nature!

The Paper Players

You are welcome to use any plant or animal on your card, just remember to keep it clean and simple.  For my card I used a fun moose!

Well, our silly moose found himself all tangled up in the decorations but not to worry, he's having fun!  The moose and the sentiment are both from the Merry Moose set from MFT and there are so many fun images.  I colored a number of the moose images with Copic markers but decided this guy was my favorite for this card  

In keeping this very simple, I used some older MFT pattern papers on the bottom of a panel, stamped the sentiment above, then die cut it with a deckled rectangle.  Two more layers of scrap cardstock were cut with the same rectangle die, added to the back of the main panel, then adhered to the card base. I did the same with the moose, layering up two additional die cuts.  If I'm making a CAS card, I like adding that bit of dimension for more interest.  Although you can't see it in the photos, I added Glossy Accents to the ornaments and lights in his antlers.

This is a great challenge because you can use any plant or animal, so lots of options for a CAS card.  We'd love to have you join us this week and if you drop by the challenge blog, you'll see lots of inspiration from my talented teammates!

Thanks for visiting and take care!

Stef

• MFT Merry Moose stamps and dies
• Waffle Flower Deckled Frames
• MFT Cool Collab patterned paper
• Ranger Glossy Accents
• Copics - E59, 57, 55, 53, R39, 37, 35, BG07, 45, 53, C9, 7, 3

A Class Act for The Paper Players

Hello friends!  Today, over at The Paper Players, the lovely Elizabeth is hosting our monthly color challenge and has chosen bright and fun primary colors.

The Paper Players

These colors reminded me of a cute MFT stamp set that couldn't be more perfect with these colors!

This little cutie is from an older Birdie Brown stamp set but I think she's ageless!  She is fun to color and this time her apparel reflects the challenge colors.  I used my alcohol markers and then she was die cut with the matching die.

I had a vision of making a scene card, but it didn't work out the way I liked.  I had stenciled the red brick white, so I just trimmed it down and added it to a 4" x 5.25" white panel then adhered that to the card base.  The circles were die cut and adhered to the card front, then the schoolgirl was popped up with thin foam squares, as was the sentiment.  The last touch was to use some bright red enamel dots.

We would love to see what you are inspired to make with these colors!  The challenge lasts through Friday Sept. 13th at 3pm EST.  Don't forget to pop over to the challenge blog and see what the rest of the team created.

Thanks for visiting and take care!

Stef

• MFT Class Act stamps and die
• MFT English Brick Wall stencil
• Hero Arts Infinity Circle and Scallop Circle dies
• Lumberjack Plaid Distress Ink
• Altenew Tea Party Enamel Dots 
• Copics - E11, 21, 00, 29, 37, 33, YR23, Y19, 15, 13, R59, 46, 27, 05
• Olos - B0.7, 0.6, 0.5, 0.3

In My Heart

Hello friends, I'm back yet again this week, this time with a fun card for the current challenge at The Paper Players.  Claire has chosen some yummy, vibrant colors and I knew immediately what stamp set would work best with them.

PP685

I have had this cute stamp and die set for months but never used it so when I saw these colors I knew it was time to put it to use.

I stamped out all the images, colored them with Copic markers and then used the dies to cut them out.  The sentiment is from the set but I only used part of it, masking off the part I didn't want to include, then used a paper trimmer to size it appropriately.

Next the brick background was stenciled with gray about 2/3rds of the way down the panel, trimmed down to 4" x 5.25", then I built the scene, adhering everything directly to the panel except for the planters on each side, which were popped up with foam tape, as was the sentiment.  

Thanks for taking time to stop by!  I hope you're having a good week and that Spring has finally arrived where you are.  Here in Meridian, our weather keeps vascilating between 50s and 70s but I'm hopeful that by next week we'll be well into warmer weather. ;-)

Take care!

Stef

• MFT Sittin' Pretty stamps and dies
• MFT English Brick Wall stencil
• Simon Says Stamp Earl ink
• Copics - RV19, 09, 06, 04, 02, BG49, 13, 11, YG67, 17, 03, 01, YR27, 24, 15, 11, E11, 21, 00, C5, 3, 1, 00, W5, 3, 1, 0

Showers of Love

Hello friends!  Just popping in with a quick post with a card I made for Claire's Rainy Days theme over at The Paper Players.  I also decided to use the Color Hues colors of turquoise and green for our current challenge.

PP679

CH #82

I'm also joining the current Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge where the theme is to add a sentiment.

When I saw Claire's theme, I knew I had to pull out one of my older but well-loved Birdie Brown stamp and die sets from MFT.

I started by stamping the sweet little girl and the splash drops.  They were colored with Copic markers then die cut.  I also die cut the clouds and the puddle, then used my Copics to color them as well.  

For the background, I cut a panel of white cardstock with MFT's Stitched Modern Rectangle Stax die, then white heat embossed the sentiment before inking up the background with Altenew's Aqualicious ink.  I splattered the background with water droplets, but they didn't show up as well as I wanted, so I splattered some white paint on there as well.  Once the panel was dry, the clouds, puddle and drops were adhered directly to the panel, then foam tape was used to give our cute little girl some dimension.  

Thanks for stopping by, I appreciate it.  I hope all is well in your neck of the woods!  Take care!

Stef

• MFT BB Rain or Shine Stamps and Dies
• MFT Stitched Modern Rectangle Stax die
• Versamark and Altenew Aqualicious Fresh Dye inks
• Dr. Ph Martin's Bleed Proof White
• Copics - E29, 37, 33, 11, 21, 00, BG09, 45, 01, 11, 10, YG09, 07, 05, 01 R20, C5, 3, 1, 0, 00

My Favorite Human Bean for Just Us Girls

Hello friends!  Well, the month of January is flying by and today I'm sharing my 3rd card as guest designer for Just Us Girls.  This week we have a wonderful mood board that I think is one of the sweetest and coziest I've ever seen.

 Just Us Girls

I know the photos are a bit hard to see but if you head over to the JUGs blog, they have a larger version where you can see all the details.  

I'm also joining the current Inkspirational Challenge, where the theme is Stencils.

Inkspirational #307

I just love this JUGS Mood Board!  I was inspired by the kitty's warm cuddly sweater and hat, along with the cup of coffee.

I started with Altenew's Sweater Pattern stencil and used light brown and medium gray to create the pattern on a panel of white, which was then cut it down with a rectangle die and added to a white card base with foam tape.

Next I used the MFT Coffee Talk Bundle to create the die cut coffee cups and stamp the sentiment.  I laid the coffee cups on a sticky mat, then colored them with Copic markers.  Two additional dies were cut for each cup and they were layered up before adhering to card front around the sentiment.  The last thing was to add a heart.  I have some clay hearts from Trinity Stamps but the color was a little too tomato-y, so I just used a dark red Copic marker to change the color and after adhering it to the cup, I covered it with Glossy Accents for some shine.  I was tickled pink by how this card turned out because I've never used this bundle before although I think I bought it over a year ago.  Time to keep shopping my stash, I guess!

So, what inspires you on the mood board?  Please take a moment to visit the challenge blog and see what inspired the DT and hopefully play along!  Thanks for visiting.

Take care!

Stef

Stamps and dies:  MFT Coffee Talk Bundle, Hero Arts Nested Rectangle die

Stencil:  Altenew Sweater Pattern

Ink:  Simon Says Stamp Latte and Earl, Versafine Clair Pinecone

Other:  Trinity Stamps Candy Apple Hearts, Glossy Accents

Copics:  R39, C2, 1, 0, 00, E35, 31, 30

Yeti or Not for Just Us Girls

Hello friends!  I am so honored to be the January Guest Designer for Just Us Girls!  And this week we're starting off 2024 with a fabulous color combination that I absolutely love!

Just Us Girls

 

I'm also sharing over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge where this week's theme is Something New, which is perfect since I used a new stamp and die set for this card.

I knew right away that I'd be using these colors for a birthday card for our great-nephew because they are perfect for creating a snowy scene.

I started with a panel of mixed media paper and ink blended the teal sky with Altenew Teal Caves.  Next I combined some Tim Holtz Distress Snowfall Grit Paste and Sparkle Paste then spread it through a snow stencil.  While that dried, the images were all stamped, colored with Copic markers and die cut.

Before adding the cute little Yetis, the background was added to the panel.  I used a Copic marker to add teal around the edges then used Stardust Stickles to add sparkle on top and also on the tree branches.  The Yetis were then added with thin foam squares, as was the sentiment, and lastly I used Glossy Accents on the balloon to make it nice and shiny.  I think my nephew will get a kick out of this card, especially the punny sentiment.

Thanks for taking time to stop by, and I hope you'll do the same at the challenge blog, where the DT have some fabulous inspiration for you!

Take care!

Stef

Stamps:  MFT Yeti or Not

Dies: MFT Yeti or Not, MFT Grounded

Paper:  Neenah Solar White, Vicki Boutin Mixed Media

Ink:  Versafine Clair Nocturne, Memento Tuxedo Black, Altenew Teal Cave

Stencil:  MFT Heavy Snowfall

Copics:  B39, 37, 34, BG07, 45, 53, YG67, 17, 03, E29, 25, 11, 21, 00, W3, 1, 0, C3, 00

Fragrant Peony for The Flower Challenge

Hello friends!  It's the fourth of the month, which brings a new challenge over at The Flower Challenge!  This month we are asking everyone to use a die.

http://theflowerchallenge.blogspot.com/

I'm also playing along with Addicted to Stamps and More where the challenge is to make a birthday card.

ATSM #453

Finally, I'm also joining the Anything Goes Challenge at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge.

For my card, I went all in with dies, using the lovely Fragrant Peony dies from Altenew, along with a couple others.

I recently decided to buy a few of the new Altenew Fresh Dye inks and this card was the perfect way to test them out, and quite honestly, they are wonderful.  I love my Crisp Dye inks and they work fine, but I did see a bit brighter results from ink blending and a clearer image when stamping the sentiment.

I started by ink blending the lightest blue, Water Hyacinth and the lightest green, Silver Sage, on white cardstock, then die cut the petals and leaves.  I then used the next two darkest inks from both ink families to add shading to the die cuts.  The center was die cut separately from a scrap of white and blended with Sunray and Yellow Ochre.  Putting the flowers together is easy with Altenew's keyhole design for lining up the layers.

With the flowers and leaves ready to go, I die cut the Waffle Flower Ring Panel die from white and layered it on a panel of Simon Says Stamp Fog cardstock, which was then added to a white card base.  The sentiment, from MFT's Stylish Sentiments stamp set, was stamped in Indigo Skies, the darkest blue, then die cut with label die.  The flowers were arranged around the sentiment and I was done.

No doubt you have a die in your collection and we'd love to see what you create with it.  But before you head off to your crafty place, be sure to check out the stunning array of cards the design team has created over at the challenge blog!

Take care!

Stef

Stamps:  MFT Stylish Sentiments

Paper:  Neenah Solar White, SSS Fog

Ink:  Altenew Yellow Ochre Crisp Dye ink, Sunray, Water Hyacinth, Alpine Aster, Crystal Violet, Indigo Skies, Silver Sage, Jade and Eucalyptus Fresh Dye inks

Dies: Altenew Fragrant Peony and Featured Sentiment dies, Waffle Flower Ring Panel die

You're the Coolest

Hello friends!  The Paper Players has a fun CAS challenge this week, so I thought I'd play along.

PP649

I love Anne Marie's choice of Bon Appetit! but I don't have many stamps or dies of food, but I did remember one I bought last summer and never got to use.  So, this seemed like the best perfect time to try it out

I was debating whether to die cut and ink blend the popsicle layers or just use multiple colors of cardstock when I spotted an unused panel that I'd ink blended then covered with an iridescent spray, and I thought that would be a fun way to make the popsicles.  We'll just pretend that the spray is frosty-cold goodness lol!  As a child I spent many a hot summer day eating a popsicle or two and those first cool licks were the best!

For the fudgesicle, I originally used a cream cardstock for the ice cream portion but it looked rather blah next two the popsicles, so I ink blended it with Picked Raspberry.  The fudge layer was die cut from brown cardstock, then I added two layers of Ranger Glossy Accents to make it nice and shiny.  Once the sticks were created and everything was adhered together, the sentiment was stamped on the deckled die cut layer which was added to the white card base with foam tape, then the popsicles and fudgesicle were glued on and my CAS card was complete!

Thanks for visiting!  I hope you're able to stay cool and safe in this miserably hot summer.  Here in Idaho. we'll be up around 105 degrees for the next few days.  All the better to stay inside and make more cards!

Take care!

Stef

Stamps:  MFT Pair of Popsicles

Paper:  Neenah Solar White and Desert Storm, Stampin' Up Early Espresso, Strathmore Bristol

Ink:  Simon Says Stamp Amethyst; Distress ink in Chipped Sapphire, Wilted Violet, Pick Raspberry, Spiced Marmalade and Fossilized Amber

Dies:  Pair of Popsicles, Altenew Mix and Match Frames

Other:  Hero Arts White Iridescent Shimmer Spray, Ranger Glossy Accents

Peaceful Birthday for Sunday Stamps

Hello friends!  Well, isn't this month just rolling by?  It's time once again for a new challenge at Sunday Stamps!  This time it's a sketch challenge by yours truly - I hope it inspires you to join us!

Sunday Stamps

It had been a while since I'd made a slimline card and I like all the real estate for creating that it provides. For my card, I did rotate it so it is portrait rather than landscape style. I also apologize with the photo quality of the first shot - I had a heck of a time getting the sentiment to read clearly, even after photo editing.  I'm currently using an older smartphone and I think it's time for an upgrade lol!

The Peaceful Birds stamp and die set from MFT were perfect for making a slimline birthday card.  All the images were stamps, colored with Copics and die cut with the matching dies.  The MFT mini clouds stencil and some light blue ink were used to create the clouds on a 3.25" x 8.25" panel.  I then laid out my scene so I'd know where the grass layer would go and ink blended a couple of green Distress inks on a separate panel of white, then die cut it with a grass border die.

Before adhering the scene panel to the card base I colored a strip of white with the same Copic marker as the one used for the birdhouse, added it to the white card base, then layered the panel on to finish things up.

Do you like making slimline or mini slimline cards?  We'd love to see yours in the gallery, the challenge is open until 4pm MDT Friday 7/7.  In the meantime, please pop over to the challenge blog where the other DT members have created some fabulous cards for your inspiration!

Take care!

Stef

Stamps:  MFT Peaceful Birds

Paper:  Neenah Solar White, Black

Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Versamark, Simon Says Stamp Marine, Mowed Lawn and Rustic Wilderness Distress

Dies:  Peaceful Birds, Lawn Fawn Grassy Borders, MFT Skinny Strips

Stencil:  MFT Mini Cloud Edge

Copics:  B28, 26, 23, YG45, 41, G28, 17, 03, Y26, 08, 13, R20, C3, 000, YR16, E49, 47, 44, 43, 41

Vintage Birthday for Color Hues

Welcome back, friends!  It's time for a new Color Hues challenge and the lovely Julie Beech has chosen the combo of orange and slate gray.

Color Hues Challenge

When I saw this color combo I knew exactly what I wanted to use for my card.  Let me take us back a few decades....

...back to those ancient times before computers lol!  I've had this MFT Typewriter die and sentiment set for a while and was more than ready to play with it.  All the parts/components were die cut, some  multiple times, with orange, slate gray, white, black and silver card stock. Of course that meant I had enough for two typewriters and two cards.  The dies include one for the sheet of paper to be inserted in the typewriter, so I stamped in black ink the two different sentiments on white cardstock, then die cut them out.

For the remainder of the card, I wanted kind of a graphic background.  First I stamped the Sketchy Lines Background stamp in gray ink, then die cut that panel and the orange panel with dies from Altenew's Mix and Match Frames die set.  Both layers were adhered to the white card base, the sheet of "typed" paper inserted in the typewriter and adhered on the back, then I used foam tape under the top part of the typewriter and glue for the lower part to add them to the card fronts and I was done.

Thanks for stopping by! And if you're looking for more inspiration with these colors, head on over to the challenge blog, where the endlessly talented design team will not disappoint.  I hope to see your card in the gallery - you have until 9 am May 28th to play along. 

Take care!

Stef

Products used today:

Stamps - MFT Typewriter Sentiments:  Friendship, Simon Says Stamp Sketchy Lines Background

Paper - Neenah Solar White, SSS Slate Gray, Black and Matte Silver, SU Pumpkin Pie, Concord & 9th Clementine

Ink - Altenew Obsidian pigment ink, SSS Charcoal

Dies - MFT Typewriter, Altenew Mix and Match Frames

Rhymes With Birthday!

Hello friends!  Today I have a fun birthday card to share with you that I made for my SIL's birthday last week and it happens to work just perfectly with the new challenge over at Seize the Birthday, where the toppings this time is alcohol.

STB 259

I found this card to be a tiny bit tedious to make because of all the itsy, bitsy die cut pieces but it humored me so much I just had fun with it!  My card is made from various MFT beverage related die sets listed below, along with the Raise A Glass stamp set.  It became kind of a blended CASE of a few of the MFT design team cards, such as those by Sara Zoppi, Nicky Meeks and Barb Anders, which you can find here.

Hee, hee that sentiment just makes me laugh!  While it's been many, many years since either my SIL or I have gone out for cocktails for our birthdays (I'd rather sit at home and have a glass of wine), I knew she would love the funny greeting.  

To start, the glasses were all die cut from adhesive-backed vellum and all the other pieces were die cut from white card stock. I then proceeded to use my Copic markers to color all the bits before assembling the various cocktails.

For the background panel, I laid out the drinks without adhering them to ensure I had sufficient room then I used a pencil to mark where the top of the "wood" table would be.  Below that, the sentiment was gold heat embossed, then I blended Simon Says Stamp Cadette ink on the upper portion of the background, splattered it with gold metallic and white acrylic ink, and when dry, the strip of Lawn Fawn Woodgrain was adhered and the beverages added on top.  I used glue on the front of a white card base and added the decorated panel.  The final touch was to use a white gel pen to add foam to the beer, bubbles to the colorful drink and salt to the rim of the margarita glass.

Thanks so much for taking time to stop by and take a look!

Take care and have a great weekend!

Stef

MFT products:  Raise A Glass stamp set; Barware Basics, Long Stem Barware, Garnish and Drink Decor dies

Hugs for Sunday Stamps

Hello and welcome!  The first of March is already upon us (wait - where did February go??) and it's time for a new sketch challenge at Sunday Stamps.  This time Amy has given us a terrific sketch to work with so I hope you'll be inspired to join us!

Sunday Stamps

My card turned out to be very quick and easy to put together because the main image had been previously completed in a class I took recently.

In February I attended the Distress Watercolor Pencil class taught by the amazing Jenn Shurkus (link to her website here).  We learned to use the pencils in a variety of watercoloring applications, including using the pencils directly on our stamps along with water.  I was so thrilled with how this image from Stampin' Up's Nature's Harvest turned out I knew I had to use it on a card.  It was stamped multiple times onto Distress Watercolor paper using my Misti.  When I went to create this card, the panel was die cut with a MFT Stitched Modern Rectangle Stax die.

Next a piece of patterned paper from MFT's Plaid Patterns 6x6 paper pad was die cut with a larger size of the same die set and adhered directly to white card base.  I strayed from the sketch a little bit by wrapping Lawn Fawn hemp twine around the floral panel, then attaching a tag with the sentiment.  Both the sentiment and tag die are from Waffle Flower's Special Delivery Sentiments and Dies set.  Finally, I attached a Doodlebug Tiny Hearts Shaped Sprinkle to the tag.  There were green and yellow hearts in the packet but I liked the pop of red.

Lots of options with this sketch, I do hope you'll join us for this challenge!  In the meantime, be sure to pop over to the blog linked above and take a peek at the beautiful cards by the other DT members!

Have a great week and take care!

Stef

Distress Watercolor Pencils - Fossilized Amber, Wild Honey, Vintage Photo, Twisted Citron, Rustic Wilderness.