Fusion Card Challenge

Hello!  My girls have been at a day camp all week, so I am getting some serious card making done!  Today I am back with a card that I created for this week's Fusion Card Challenge. 

Here is the GORGEOUS picture and the sketch for the week:

Isn't that a beautiful picture?  I tried to do it some kind of justice with the card I made:

I wanted this card to be pretty, so I added the white sequins and the dyed seam binding to finish it off.  I love how it turned out!  Doesn't seam binding just make everything pretty?  :)

While I am here, I wanted to share another card I made for some friends of ours who just bought a new house.

I used my Silhouette to cut out the stamp-edged background, house and heart.  The stamps are all from Avery Elle.  It's a simple card, but sometimes those are the best kind.  I hope our friends like it.

That's all for today!  Until next time...

Retro Sketch #123

Happy Friday, All!  Today I am playing along with this week's Retro Sketch challenge.  Here is the sketch:

And here is the card I made:

I'll be honest...I made the top part of this card to be a shaker card weeks ago, but I just couldn't get my brain to connect with my fingers when I was trying to make a card with it.  I ended up shelving it altogether.  So when I saw this sketch, I decided to pull it out and turn it into a non-shaker card.  I stamped the lightening bugs on vellum and then glued sequins on them.  Super cute!  I added all of the banners and some seam binding.  After the initial brain fog part of this card lifted, I was happy that the rest of it came together so seamlessly.  It turned out pretty cute! 

Here is a close up of the window:

That is all for tonight!  Until next time...

CAS(E) this Sketch #73

Happy Sunday my crafty friends!  It's been a while since I've played along with any challenges so I took some time for myself yesterday and created a card that I want to share with you all.  With this card, I am playing along with CAS(E) this Sketch #73, which just so happens to go hand-in-hand with Runway Inspired Challenge #58. 

Here is the sketch:

And here is the card I made:

I thought I would put a twist on this sketch and use it to create a baby bump profile.  Isn't it fun?  For the RIC side of the challenge, I used a fun floral pattern from Maggie Holmes.  I just happened to have some coordinating seam binding that I had already stained using my Iced Spruce distress ink reinker to finish it all off.  I love how easily this came together!

That's all for today!  Until next time...

Happy Fall Y'all!

I don't know about you, but I love fall.  The crispness of the air, the smells of leaves and fireplaces burning and the pretty colors that go with it are all wonderful.  Growing up in Arizona, fall came when the temperatures hit 80 degrees.  Fall is quite different now that I live in Kansas.  :)

In September, Sweet Stamp Shop released a great fall themed stamp set called Fall Gratitude and I wanted to share a couple cards that I made with it. 

First up is this card:

I used stamping markers to color in different areas of this great feather stamp and created a scheme that I am in love with.  I added the simple sentiment, some seam binding and burlap twine and this simple card is now in my top 5 favorite cards.

Here is another card I have made with this set:

I stamped the circlular stamps on watercolor paper and then smeared them a bit with my water brush.  I used a coordinating ink refill to dye some seam binding, then tied it on with a piece of dark brown burlap twine.  I love this wood grain patterned paper from Basic Grey's Life of the Party collection.  This card reminds me of fall in the mountains of Colorado.  Nothing beats the gorgeous colors of the Aspen's when they are changing colors.

That is all for now!  I'll be back soon with more!

Until next time...

I've been Challenged...

If one thing is for sure, it's that there are MANY amazingly talented paper crafters in this world.  Luckily for me, I get to call many of them my friend.  The one and only Kristy Lee (formerly of Scrapbook Steals mojo-creating fame) was feeling creative enough to dish out challenges to some scrappy friends.  I decided I needed to be challenged, especially since I hadn't made a layout in what seems like forever.

This was the challenge Kristy gave me: 

• 1 page, three pictures (filmstrip style),
• manufacturer starting with "c" because your name does,
• misting
• chevrons

Well that was just the kick I needed to get scrapping again.  This is what I came up with:

I am in love with this layout.  I used Echo Park's Everyday Ecclectic collection, some MME washi and enamel dots, Mister Huey's mist and, most importantly, Bazzil cardstock with a core that was a bit lighter than the outside.  I used a doily mask below the paper, pressed hard on the paper, then sanded the impression it left.  I love that it turned out more subtle than using a white doily would.

Another friend, Venetia Holbrook, issued her own challenge.  This one was for anyone who wanted to do it.  I jumped on this one.

Here was her challenge:

This girl is on FIRE... 
This one's all about you. We all avoid it. Find that fabulous picture of you, not from 5 years ago, but of you now.  You are outstanding and unapologetic. You are awesome, you know it. You're living your best life. Now scrap that picture and celebrate you!
Journaling- must celebrate you as an individual.
Color- include your favorite color.
Embellishments- include one embellishment that represents something you love.

Scrapping about yourself is hard for some reason.  Raise your hand if I'm not alone.  :)  I had intended to scrap totally and completely about myself, but when I went to pick up the pictures I had printed for these layouts, the one I wanted wasn't there.  So, I chose another picture that depicts me as a mother.  This is what I came up with:

I hid my journaling because I really wanted the picture and the title to tell the bulk of the story. But if you pull out the tag, it talks about how I am human and I make mistakes.  I might bark at my girls too much or feel way too overwhelmed I get at times.  But what it really boils down to is that I never knew what I wanted to be when I grew up other than knowing I wanted to be a mother.  I'm not perfect, but I'm trying the best I can.  And hopefully I'm not screwing up two gorgeous girls along the way.  :)

As for the rest of the challenge requirements, I dyed the seam binding my favorite color (any flavor of aqua, turqoise, etc.).  And for the embellishment, I chose some of my favorites:  flowers, flair buttons and enamel dots.  Oh, and the MME Collections paper is a fave, too.

If you are in a creative rut, ask a scrappy friend to challenge you.  You just might pop out of your creative coma to create something you're really proud of, like I did.

Thanks for stopping by today!  Until next time...

Guest Designing Again!

Good morning!  Today I am guest designing for Sweet Stamp Shop again!  This time around I got to play with the new Drops Background stamp set.

This set is so completely versatile, if you haven't seen already from the amazing creations the other guest designers have showcased on the SSS blog. 

Here are a couple cards that I created with this set.  The first card uses the heart background.  I stamped the image and dyed the seam binding with the same color so they would coordinate nicely.  Don't you love the fun arrow patterned paper from Simple Stories' 24/7 collection?

My second card uses the dot background in an unconventional way.  When I saw the pattern on the stamp, I knew immediately what I wanted to do with it.  My MIL is retiring from teaching at the end of this school year and I wanted to make her a card for her retirement.  The dots on the stamp worked perfectly to create the bubbles in a glass of champagne!  I stamped the image with Versamark and used clear embossing powder to create the desired effect.  I love how it turned out!

Thanks for stopping by to check out my creations!  I'll be back tomorrow with some new cards for your viewing pleasure.  :)

Until next time...

 

Chalkboard art

Today is my final How To'sday tutorial for the Scrapbook Steals blog.  Make sure you head over there to see how I created these cards:

I can't believe my term as a Scrapbook Steals design team member is already over.  :(  Those three months FLEW by!  I enjoyed my time with them and am thankful that they gave me the opportunity.  On to (hopefully) bigger things! 

Until next time...

Feeling Challenged...

Hello, all!  I know my posts are few and far between lately, but I usually show up with good stuff, so hopefully you don't mind.  :)  Today I am back with something I created for this weeks Paper Smooches Sparks Challenge.  This week's theme is

When I saw that the challenge was typography or subway art, I immediately knew I wanted to try and create a layout using Paper Smooches stamps.  Their sentiment stamps are PERFECT for this!

Here is the layout I created:

Here is a close-up of the burlap flower I made.  The pink flower was white until I sprayed it with some Mr. Huey's in Pretty Pink.  

I came to the realization recently that I have a "style" when I create cards and/or layouts of late.  For the most part, my style is shabby chic.  I think this layout does a good job of showcasing that.  I used MME's Nostalgia collection and created the burlap flower to go with it.  The muted colors go well with the colors in the picture.

I hope you enjoyed my latest creation!  Until next time...

Showing some Paper Smooches love...

I recently stated that Paper Smooches stamps were solely responsible for reigniting my love of card creating.  I reach for their sentiment stamps for almost every card I make lately.  The Paper Smooches SPARKS Challenge Blog is looking for new design team members, so I thought I would throw my hat in the ring.

I created this first card on Tuesday for my daughter's birthday using the challenge from May 28th (and some Pinterest inspiration):



Here are some cards I've created from some past challenges:

 

Here are a few more cards that I recently created while attending the Scrapbook Steals retreat this past weekend:

And, because I am on a roll, how about a few more that I've created:

As I've mentioned in previous posts, I don't have much of a creative brain.  Heck, I don't have much of a brain left period after talking to short peeps all day for the last six years.  :)  I do much better when I have a sketch or some sort of inspiration to follow.  That is why the SPARKS Challenge Blog is right up my alley.

I hope you've enjoyed looking at my cards as much as I've enjoyed creating them!