La Dolce Vita Birthday for PP794

Hello friends!  It's time for a new challenge at the Paper Players and this week the amazing Jaydee is hosting.  This is color week and Jaydee has chosen a gorgeous combination.

Paper Players

My card uses products that have been languishing in my unused bin, so I'll be sharing this at Darnell's NBUS challenge.

NBUS

I'm also joining the Anything Goes option at Seize the Birthday and the Summer Vibe challenge at Inkspirational.

STB #330

Inkspirational #371

I had so much fun creating the first card that I ended up making two.

I started by cutting the lemons, flowers and leaves from colored cardstock that coordinated with Jaydee's challenge colors and then enhanced them with some ink blending.  

The embossed background was made using Shortbread cardstock from Concord & 9th.  It appears a lot lighter in the photos - in person it is the yummiest warm color between ivory and light yellow.  It was trimmed down and added to a black matte.

The sentiments are from a coordinating Betterpress set, which I inked up in black then used the coordinating dies to cut them out.  As someone who doesn't speak Italian, I always thought ciao was goodbye, but learned it can also mean hello.  So the greeting reads hello beautiful and I like the versatility of that.  Paired with the sub greeting above, I can use it for a birthday or many other occasions.

For the second card, I kind of when overboard with the flowers lol! 

This time I die cut everything from white cardstock then ink blended them for a slightly different look.  I used the same embossed background but added the arch panel as a landing spot for all the die cuts.  The sentiment is from the same Betterpress set and I finished this off with a few opal gems.  

Do you have a favorite?  I like them both, but I like the look of the ink blending on white for card #2 a bit better.

Thanks so much for stopping by!  Be sure to take a moment to visit the challenge blog, my talented teammates have some amazing cards using these colors in a variety of ways.  The challenge will remain open until July 17th at 3pm EDT.  I hope you'll join us!

Stef

Card #1

• Spellbinders Citrus Spritz die set
• SB La Dolce Vita Betterpress plate and die
• SB Lemon Fresco embossing folder
• SB Blush, Tutu and Rainforest cardstock
• C&9 Buttercup and Shortbread cardstock

Card #2 (same die and sentiment sets, and embossing folder)

• SB Essential Arch die
• Simon Says Stamp Shell, Salmon, Coral, Guava, Watermelon, Limelicious and Pearfection inks
• SB Opal gems

Christmas Berries for the Paper Players

Hello friends!  We have a new challenge at the Paper Players and this week the lovely Claire is hosting and has chosen a theme of fruit for our CAS week.  

 

Paper Players

 

I took a bit of a different turn with this challenge, creating two Christmas cards with berry branches, since I really don't have many fruit images, plus I always like to add to my holiday card stash. 

Both cards use the Gentle Berries dies by Kristina Werner at Concord & 9th.  This card was inspired by one of her samples on the web site, using a red background with the stenciled dashes.  The berry branch was die cut three times with white, red and green glitter cardstock then adhered as you see above to a base.  The sentiment was also die cut from white glitter cardstock.

I first tried to stencil the dash lines with white pigment ink but a combination of a rather dry ink pad plus the thickness of the stencil didn't yield a satisfactory result.  So I used a white gel pen, then I covered the dash lines with Distress Sparkle Texture paste so the dashes would also have some subtle sparkle.

The second card uses a different orientation of the branch and sentiment, along with a snowflake embossed background and a white glitter frame.  

I decided to go monochromatic with turquoise and light blue, although the photos look more on the blue side.  Both cards were super easy to put together and I think the sparkle lends itself to these CAS designs.  What do you think?  

My talented teammates have some wonderful and varied designs to inspire you, so please make a quick trip to the challenge before heading off to your crafty space.  The challenge will remain open until Friday, June 20th at 3pm EDT.  Hope to see your card in the gallery!

If you have a chance later today, come back and take a peek at my reminder card for The Flower Challenge.

Thanks for visiting and take care!

Stef

• Kristina Werner/Concord & 9th Gentle Berries Dies
• KW/C&9 Kristina's Finishing Touches Stencils (card 1)
• Simon Says Stamp Flourished Merry Christmas die
• Lawn Fawn and SSS Glitter cardstocks
• Distress Texture Paste (card 1)
• Spellbinders/Simon Hurley Sparkling Snow embossing folder
• SSS A7 Nesting Frames

Cheers for The Paper Players

Hello friends!  Today we have a fun new challenge at The Paper Players.  The amazing Claire is hosting our CAS challenge and is asking us to use fruit on our cards.

The Paper Players

 

I decided to make a very vibrant card to share, which seemed fitting for summertime.

The glass and fruit were all foiled in gold using a pressplate, colored with Copic and Olo markers then die cut with the coordinating die.  The stamp set and pressplate create all the images at once and then there is only one die to cut it all out, which I love since it's all done in one pass.  

After I had all the elements colored, I ink blended the front of a white card base with super vibrant colors, then let that dry as I gold heat embossed the Cheers sentiment and stamped out the sub sentiment.  When I started to assemble the card, it just seemed to need a bit something more, so I added the foiled and die cut frame directly to the edge of the card, then added everything else.  Some things were adhered directly to the card front and some elevated with a bit of foam tape, but I made sure to leave lots of "white" space.  I love the bright colors and the festive, fruity elements!

Thanks for taking time to stop by and I hope that you'll join us this week!  My talented teammates have some amazing inspiration for you over on the challenge blog, so please be sure to stop by and take a look.

Take care!

Stef

• Pinkfresh Studio Cheers Stamp, Dies and Pressplate
• Pinkfresh Studio Decorate Frames Pressplate and Die
• MFT Skinny Strips sentiment lable die
• Simon Says Stamp Peony, Sherbet and Lemonad inks and Ultra Fine Gold embossing powder
• Olo markers:  RV1.7, 1.5, 1.3, YG1.6, 1.4, 1.2, G1.5, 1.4, 0.1
• Copic markers: Y26, 38, 08, 04, 00, R39, 37, 35, YR09, 16, B000, 0000

So Sweet for Time Out Challenges

Hello friends!  I'm so very pleased to be the Guest Designer at Time Out Challenges #270 for the next two weeks!  They have a wonderful photo to inspire in so many ways.

Time Out Challenges

  

I was literally inspired by the berries and in retrospect, wish I had used a heart too.

Just prior to being asked to GD, I purchased the cute House-Mouse Berry Good stamp, so it was a perfect match.  The image (which is bigger than you see here - more on than in a minute) was stamped then colored with Copic and Olo markers. I had trimmed it down to a rectangle and was getting ready to put together my card when I dropped an ink pad on a portion of the colored image!  AAWWWKK.  I'd had a hold of the lid, thinking it was secure but nope, it wasn't.  So I went to Plan B.

I was inspired by a card on the Spellbinders website (where they now sell the House-Mouse products) that spotlighted a portion of the image in a circle, so that is what I did.  I had a white woodgrain panel already trimmed down with a rounded rectangle die, so I used a circle die to cut a hole then layered the colored panel beneath.  Here is where I wish I'd used a heart rather than a circle but, you know, hindsight.  Everything was added to a plum card base, then I decided to create a frame around the window and that really made things pop.  Last came the sentiment which is also from the same stamp set.

Thanks for taking time to stop by and I encourage you to check out the challenge, where the DT have fabulous cards to further inspire you plus there are prizes to be won if you play along!

Take care!

Stef

• Spellbinders House-Mouse Designs stamp set
• Hero Arts Infinity Circle and Rounded Rectangle dies
• Copics:  Sky - B00, 000, 0000; Berries - RV69, 66, 55, 52; Basket - W5, 3, 1, 0; Mice - E37, 35, 33, 31, 30; Leaves - G29, 21, YG45
• Olos - Grass - YG 1.6, 1.4, 1.2