Monday, August 31, 2009

O Holy Night - TSSC 85

I love MaryJo's sketch challenge and participate almost every week (except for those weeks when she posts aprons??? and other things that are too hard for this simple stamper!!!)

Since I'm on this Christmas/using items from my stash personal challenge, I considered what I wanted to do with this design.  This card came together for me very quickly last night; then I got too tired to post it.


Materials: card stock (white - Bazzill; silver - stash); designer paper (Basic Grey); stamp (Inkadinkadoo); ink (Colorbox); embossing powder (Stamp 'n' Stuff); embossing folder (Swiss Dots - Cuttlebug); brads (Making Memories); sheer ribbon (stash); adhesive (Pioneer mounting tape).

Thanks for looking.

Sunday, August 30, 2009

Amazing blog candy

Happened upon this blog by chance.  She's giving away AMAZING blog candy. 

She'll be picking a winner from her comments at 3 pm EST Monday, August 31.  Run; don't Walk!!!  :)

Clean & simple (improved) -- A clean & graphic challenge

I'm liking the improved version more.  I like the circle as an anchor for the turkey image.  I'm liking the rounded corners on the card.  This card I'll submit.


Thanks for looking, again.

Too clean & simple? -- A clean & graphic challenge

I wanted to make another card for the Moxie Fab World card challenges from this last week.  I thought that I would try my hand at:  Stretch Your Holiday Style: A Clean & Graphic Challenge!


But in looking at the completed card, it looks TOO simple with the elements just hanging there. I had fun paper-piecing the turkey, but.....I'm thinking that the elements look "un-grounded".  I'm posting this as a work in progress.  I'm going to think on it and see if I can improve the design before I upload a finished card to the card challenge site.

Materials: card stock (Bazzill); designer paper (The Fall Stack - Die Cuts with a View); stamps (Cornish Heritage Farms); ink (walnut stain distress ink - Ranger); ribbon (Michaels); adhesives (Mono-Multi & mini pop-dots). 

Thanks for looking.

Seasons Greetings -- Shabby Chic Challenge

At the Moxie Fab World blog this week there are a number of card-making challenges; I thought that I'd enter this card for the Stretch Your Holiday Style: A Vintage & Shabby Chic Challenge!

This is another made from stash card -- simple, frugal!!  The list of relevant materials follows. As I did in last weekend's WSC card, I tinted white card stock beige for the sentiment oval, with Ranger ink.  I used the same ink to stamp the sentiment and edged both the designer paper and the oval with that ink to "age" 'em a little.

My one design question on this card: does the pine tree need Stickles like the Christmas tree in my last post???  I can't tell if it's just supposed to be a plain pine or a Charley Brown scraggley Christmas tree.  

Materials: card stock (brown-Bazzill; white-Stampin' Up); designer paper (Flair Designs); stamp (Cornish Heritage Farms); ink (antique linen distress ink - Ranger); ribbon (Michaels); pine tree (Jolee's); die cut machine (Cuttlebug); dies (Nestabilities); adhesive (Pioneer mounting tape & mini pop-dots).

As always, thanks for looking.

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Jingle Bells - clean and simple version

Another card from the paper stash -- and look, Mom, no stamping!!  I loved this designer paper when I saw it in the scrapbook store and knew that I wanted to use it to make a card for Christmas.  I tore the paper with my Plaid paper tearing ruler and inked the edges with distress ink to both age it and to cover over the white paper core.
 

The tree embellishment was silver-toned and I knew that that wouldn't do with the color scheme for this card.  So I heat embossed it and decorated it with Stickles.  I tied the tree to the ribbon with brown jute thread.

Materials: cardstock base (Bazzill); designer paper (Flair Designs); tree embellishment (Making Memories); clear embossing ink (Ranger); antique linen distress ink (Ranger); evergreen embossing powder (Ranger); Xmas Red Stickles (Ranger); sheer ribbon & brown jute (stash); adhesive (Pioneer mounting tape).

Thanks for looking.

Monday, August 24, 2009

Weekend Sketch Challenge #94

More Christmas paper  and embellishments used; another card challenge attempted.

This time it's Beate's WSC.  I have some miscellaneous Christmas papers that don't necessarily "go" together.  Since I'm wanting to reduce the amount of accumulated "stuff" that I have, since I'm also trying to be more frugal and since this is a challenge, I'm trying to find ways to "put stuff together".

I have some lovely Basic Grey paper pretty close in color to the beige in these two designer papers, but with most of my crafting papers still packed up, I have NO idea where those BG papers are right now.  So I "made" a paper close to what I wanted by stamping the flourish image on white Stampin' Up cardstock and then sponging Antique Linen distress ink all over the white cardstock to make a beige.  When I found that I liked the result on the flourish element, I did the same for the sentiment panel.  A complete list of materials used can be found below the photo.


Materials: green cardstock base & red cardstock (Bazzill), white cardstock (Stampin' Up); designer papers: green (Paper Pizazz), red (SandyLion); stamps (Autumn leaves); ink: Versafine Sepia (Tsukineko), Antique Linen distress (Ranger); (poinsettia (Making Memories); adhesives: Pioneer mounting tape & mini-popdots.

As always, thanks for looking.

Sunday, August 23, 2009

TSSC #84

I've decided that I'd like to get a head start on Christmas cards, plus I'll probably be moving between now and the end of September and have been wanting to use up some of the paper and other supplies in my stash.  I always enjoy MaryJo's TechnoStamper Sketch Challenge and wanted to make a card using this week's sketch.


The card base is Bazzill cardstock, the designer paper is some old SEI Christmas paper that I bought a couple of years ago.  The ribbon is also stash.  The scalloped circle behind the stamped image is the reverse of the striped paper.  

Materials: Bazzill cardstock, SEI Christmas paper, white cardstock (Stampin' UP); stamp (Christmas Seals from Autumn Leaves); embossing ink (Ranger); embossing powder (evergreen - Ranger); grosgrain ribbon (stash).

I like this sketch & will probably use it again, like, tomorrow.  There's more Christmas paper to play with.

Thanks for looking.


Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Sympathy card. redux

When I cut the paper for this card, I originally had planned on making another card using the Weekend Sketch Challenge design used on Sunday.  I was going to make another square card but I messed up on the fold and ended up with 1 side about 1/4 inch shorter than the other. Okay..... so how do you fix that mistake?  Add a scalloped edge..... hmmm, so a scalloped edge didn't exactly work with the WSC design, so...... what do I do with a square card with a scalloped edge???


I really like the Thoughts and Prayers stamp set from Stampin' Up and thought I'd use this set to make a sympathy card.  Luckily I don't need a sympathy card at this time, but it never hurts to have one or two set aside.  

The images were colored with Marvy LePlume pens and were stamped on watercolor paper.

Materials used: kraft cardstock (stash), black cardstock (Bazzill), watercolor paper (Strathmore); pens (18 dark brown, 72 pine green -- Marvy Uchida); die punch (EK Success); dies (oval & scalloped oval -- Spellbinders); die cut machine (Cuttlebug); ribbon (stash); adhesive (Pioneer mounting tape, pop-dots -- mini & regular).

Sunday, August 16, 2009

no stamping swap card

I belong to a couple of online stamping groups; one of them does monthly card swaps.  I've taken part now for 2 months and this is one of the cards that I did for July.  Ironically though it's a stamping group, this particular swap called for: NO stamping!!!  I enjoyed the challenge (not that I haven't made no stamping cards before).


The card base is white cardstock to which a piece of red Bazzill was attached; the green panel is pre-embossed Christmas Bazzill.  The sentiment/ribbon and the poinsettia flower are from Making Memories; the thin white ribbon is from the stash.

The card design might have been for an online challenge, but at this point since August has been so crazy at work, I can't remember for sure.  (Crazy, huh?)

Thanks for looking.

thinking of you - WSC 93

After a couple of crazy busy weeks at work I have the time and inclination to make and post some cards.  Beate's Weekend Sketch challenge seems like a good place to start.

I'm beginning to understand why kraft cardstock can be a fun card making base.  


This card starts with a 5 1/2 inch square of kraft cardstock and some scraps of Bazzill and Graphic 45 designer paper.  The sentiment is from Hero Arts stamped with black Colorbox ink; black soot distress ink was used to ink the designer paper scrap.  I struggled for about a minute trying to find a round image/idea to follow the original design, then decided to opt for a piece of medium copper ArtEmboss metal cut & embossed with my favorite Cuttlebug butterfly die cut/embossing folder.  Adhesives used: Pioneer mounting tape along with mini & regular pop-dots.

Fast, easy, fun.  Great way to edge back into crafting.  Thanks, Beate, for a fun sketch.  Thanks to all who come to take a look.