queen amidala meets deer hunter (RIC)

Can you say "funky"?

I love this photo. Needless to say, the headdress is totally unexpected, and therefore right up my alley. And something about that gown. It's funky, but it's regal too. Just look at the way that fabric drapes. Wow.

Well, have you seen my teamie Shirley-bee's stamp set, City Girl? She had to come play at RIC.

I skipped the antlers but gave her some Glossy Accented shades instead :) OK, and maybe I should call her City Girl in Bondage, eh? Those bold stripes are looking a bit wonky in the photo!

If you're interested, there's a pre-release bundle sale going on over at STAMPlorations right now.

BTW, if you want to share a card with birthday-girl-Shirley-bee, the party's here.

I'm partying at:
Mod Squad - It's my Favorite cuz I love CAS cards



Supplies:

Paper:  cardbase The Paper Studio, Neenah, PP Echo Park

Stamps: STAMPlorations

Ink : SSS, Versafine, Versamark

Tools: 

Other: Glossy Accents

chocolate delightful (Altenew)

Gold. Pearls. Red roses. And chocolate.

Give me chocolate and I'm a happy camper. Give me any of the above and I'm a happy camper. Give me all and I'm probably through the roof. But that's not what this is about. It's what I got when I saw the inspiration photo at Altenew's October challenge.

See what I mean? Well I brought a couple Altenew sets back with me this summer and FINALLY broke out those gorgeous Painted Flowers. They definitely take some getting used to (and a college degree) but amazing images. This is what happened.

A lacy BG with Delicata gold ink. Three red roses with chocolate brown leaves. A two-tone turquoise embossed script sentiment and some pearls to accompany the secondary sentiment.

You can catch a bit more of the gold BG and clear embossed sentiment on this shot. I'm happy with my first shot at the roses.

BTW, I did break out the script sentiments previously for a big project (it made a guest appearance at our "161" party), but you'll have to wait to catch a glimpse of that one.

I'm playing at:
Crafty Calender - October Bingo where my items are "flowers, pearls and embossing"
Simon Says Monday Challenge - Anything Goes

Thanks for looking. Have a great week.


Supplies:

Paper:  CS Bringmann

Stamps: BG CHF, Altenew

Ink : various pigment and dye

Tools: 

Other: clear embossing powder, pearls

happy birthday shirley-bee!

Surely you know Shirley. Of Shirley-bee's Stamping Stuff. Known for her splodging, spritzing and squidging. And amazing watercoloring. Of the Mixed Media Card Challenge, STAMPlorations, Seize the Birthday and Take It, Make It design team fame. (Busy gal, eh?) And most recently, surely you've heard, stamp designer. Have you seen Shirley's new line of stamps? It's called The Bee's Knees. Of course.

Well today I'm having a party. It's Ms. Bee's Knees' birthday and some blogland buddies and I are taking this opportunity to wish her all the best for a great celebration today and health, happiness and success in the coming year.

What better way to show Shirley how much I admire her work, than by CASEing it? I picked this card that she created with one of her own stamps. Isn't that bloom lovely?

I stamped and watercolored and splattered. And heat embossed some PTI stacked die cut sentiments with two layers of sparkly embossing powder. It's a party, after all!

There's a linky tool below for any of you who would like to join the party. Make a card for Shirley and link it up by Sunday, November 9th.

It's sure a pleasure DTing with you, Shirley. Have an extraordinary birthday! Considering your kids got you your own domain for Mother's Day, I wonder what they've got cookin' for your birthday?!?!

Cheers to you, birthday girl!

An InLinkz Link-up

simply create too 73 (shop your craft room)

Shopping in your craft room. I've had so many people tell me I could open a store in my room. They're right. But that's not what this is about. This post is about the new challenge over at Simply Create Too where you're to shop your own craft room. Kinda along the lines of Darnell's NBUS (never-been-used-schtuff) idea. Use something you bought cuz you just had to have it, but then have never used.

That's what I did here.

I'm thrilled to say I layered two journal cards from Kesi Art, a chipboard frame and the Thickers ampersand which were NBUS. Booyah!

The little alpha stickers from KI Memories are ancient but I love to use them whenever I can.

Challenge yourself to shop your craft room and then Simply Create, Too!

it's raining cupcakes ... (CASOS)

(at least I hope it is!) for Debra J. (my lovely teamie over at STAMPlorations) who is having a birthday today! Shery is having a party for her over at the blog.

Debra has made the most beautiful and creative cards using the cupcake stamp from STAMPlorations, so of course I had to use it too.

Don't know why I don't make tall cards more often. It happened naturally after I created my watercolor BG (supposed to look like a cloudy/rainy sky) and then had to get some falling cupcakes into the scene. So the falling computer-generated sentiment kinda happened too!

I'm joining the fun at:

CAS on Sunday - #44 Emboss It

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - Anything Goes

Thanks for looking. Take a peek at what the others came up with. And enjoy your special day, Debra!

STAMPlorations sketch #22 (ATCAS, Seize the Birthday, CASOS)

Welcome to a new sketch over at STAMPlorations. This is what she looks like. Harmless, right?

Leslie, of The Crooked Stamper (great blog name, eh?) is guest designing with us this time around and she has a really fun design over on the blog. As do my teamies. Have a looksee.

Here's my card. Make that "cardS".

So ever since my family's "161" party back in September, I've had combo birthdays on the brain. Saturday we were invited to a party for a couple, both of whom turned 50 this year. Thus my "celebrate 100" card.

And, well, my folks have birthdays within two weeks of each other and are sharing a present this year (we're sending them to see Michael Grimm who won America's Got Talent back in 2010 - sure hope they enjoy it. Tangent.) So they're sharing a card too.  Celebrating 173. Those are the words "one, seven, three" stamped on the BG of this one. Blows my mind that the four of us plus Ellie plus our anniversary added up to "161", and the they are celebrating "173" with birthdays alone!

Had some fun with heat embossing and watercoloring on these cards. Used a line stamp, curved and stamped twice to create a stem for the beautiful daisy from Bloom Sketches.

Nice sketch. Easy sketch. Give it a go. Don't forget, there are prizes to be had ;) And there's a never-ending Anything Goes challenge too if you use STAMPlorations stamps!

I'm hooking up at:

ATCAS - #50 Vellum (I would be lost without vellum - love the stuff)

Seize the Birthday - Anything Goes

CAS on Sunday - #44 Emboss it

beauty markers (Craft Stamper, ATSAM, SSS)

I love this technique. Apply various colors of waterbased markers to a stamp (TIP: works best on a rubber one), spritz with water and stamp. Then spritz and stamp again. Two images for the price of one. And usually the second is purtier.

I have to say that this time, cuz I sent out the first one without taking a photo of it for you to see and decide for yourself. Duh.

Here's the second print.

A bit hard to imagine the blooms and berries in the negative spaces, eh? Wanted to share the stamp set with you, but I can't find it on the web, so... I think it was Hero Arts.

I'm joining the fun at:

Take It, Make It - October Multicolored Stamping
Addicted to Stamps and More - #117 Make your Mark
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - Letter "O" for ombre

Fall break has arrived in these here parts. Yippie. Happy weekend everyone.


Supplies:

Paper:  cardbase The Paper Studio

Stamps: Hero Arts, sentiment PTI

Ink : markers, Hero Arts

Tools: 

Other: water

fall colors (AAA, Time Out, SSS, Make the Day Special)

Happy Fall, ya'll.

Inspired by a 6x6 pad from Simple Stories. Saw the label and decided to put it to use as the sentiment for my card. Next came the idea of mimicking the tree and leaves by using the PTI Mighty Oak and embossing it then applying some watercolors over the embossing. And because the "feel" of the card heads in the direction of warm and cozy... a couple buttons made an appearance too!

I'm playing (can you tell I'm in the challenge mode these days? ;):

AAA Cards - Fall colors

Time Out - #16 CASE Heather with a twist

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Use Watercolors

Make the Day Special - Try a technique (I brought buttons back to life)

Hope you are enjoying a beautiful Fall if it's Fall where you are. I love this time of year. Thanks for coming by.

p.s. Did you see this post over at Paper Crafts and Scrapbooking? It's about using your tools wisely. They're featuring one of my cards that I really, really love:)

Supplies:

Paper:  Bringmann, PP Simple Stories

Stamps:PTI

Ink : Versamark, watercolors

Tools: rectangle die Lil Inker

Other: buttons, twine

i'm stickin' with yellow (RIC, Crafty Cardmakers, HOC)

Maybe you saw my first card for the Runway Inspired challenge...

No butterfly this time, but I'm stickin' to the black and yellow. And light and airy.

I let myself be inspired by some Kesi Art PP and that heart die. Added some splatters and sequins and a sentiment.

And cuz it's all about the sentiment at Crafty Cardmakers #125, I'm hooking up. Also playing at House of Cards again where it's about Punches and Dies.

Thanks for looking.

Supplies:

Paper:  Bringmann, PP Kesi Art

Stamps: WPlus9

Ink : Versafine

Tools: you die SSS, heart die Kesi

Other: sequins, spray ink

up in the sky (Lawnscaping, Seize the Birthday, TCEC)

Quick one. A birthday card for a six-year-old gal. Lawn Fawn PP. Some balloons and some clouds. And a part of a sentiment stamp from Stampendous from which I have certainly gotten my money's worth. (It's actually from a baby set.)

Toughest part was deciding on which PPs to combine and then tying those stinkin' little threads!

I'm joining the fun at:

Lawnscaping Patterned Paper

The Cutting Edge #12 cuz I'm up in the air (and have clouds!)

Seize the Birthday without toppings

Supplies:

Paper:  Bringmann, PP Lawn Fawn

Stamps: Stampendous

Ink : Versafine

Tools: balloon and cloud die PTI, number MFT

Other: thread

i saw a butterfly (RIC, Dazzling Divas, ATSAM)

What do you see when you look at the latest fashion photo from Runway Inspired Challenge?

Well forgive me for this one, but at first glance I thought skinny model here was wearing giant wings (maybe it's something about the position of her arms. Or just my eyes.) Ping. Butterfly. Then I got the whimsical, light and airy overall feel of the photo thanks to that sheer backdrop. Ping. Vellum. Then the black "outlines" on the outfit and finally the XXL black clunker on her finger.

Which all turned into this card. Which is yellow and black, cuz my mind's eye assumed this was yellow. (Must really be my eyes!) 

Stamped the sentiment and then the stems of the STAMPlorations tulips in black on card. Heat embossed tulips yellow on vellum and backed the vellum strip with PP. Stitched and adhered to card. Die cut butterfly from Add a Little Dazzle metal sheet in black and adhered it with glue dots. A strip of PP along the bottom was the finishing touch.

I'm joining:

Dazzling Divas #46 Fall or Anything Goes

Addicted to Stamps and More - #116 Anything Goes

Just as a reminder, the October challenge over at STAMPlorations is open 'til the end of the month.

Appreciate your visit. Enjoy the weekend.

Supplies:

Paper:  Bringmann, vellum, PP MME and Pink Petticoat

Stamps: STAMPlorations, 

Ink : Versamark, Versafine

Tools: die Hero Arts

Other: embossing powder, sewing machine

then this must be a bathroom roll (Dazzling Divas, AAA, ATCAS)

It all started with this.

To me it's just a toilet paper roll, the one that sits next to my workspace for cleanup. But to Dyan Reaveley, queen of the "kitchen roll" it would probably be a "bathroom roll". So there. But actually, it's more about that pattern that I noticed on it. See the leaves?

Wanted to make another mixed media card. Wanted to use fall colors since there are so many challenges out there these days. Decided to play with my Dylusions spray inks and see if  I could get that TP design to show up on my background when I "rolled" the "bathroom roll" over the "roonin puttles" of ink. (You must watch the video I linked above. Dyan's accent is brilliant!) It didn't. Show the design that is. But that's OK, cuz the process was oh-so-fun and looks oh-so-purty anyhow!

Did my spritzing in my cardboard box with the piece of contact paper backing (TIP: I sop up the leftovers that "puttle" up on it on tags or scraps to save for other projects.)  The phone rang after yellow and orange so those blotches happened then cuz it dried before I could go over it with the bathroom roll! What you see in the photo above is the reaction when I sprayed it with water and then a bit of green. Then I "rolled" it. Alas, no leaves.

So then I attempted some ghosting (spritzed water through an alpha stencil then flipped the wet stencil over to get negative ghosting on the lower left) and stencilling, or "spritz/flip" as Dyan calls it, (sprayed orange ink through a circle stencil then flipped it over to get the negative image on the right). You really must watch her video! Added a few opaque red splatters and called it quits. My masterboard was born.

What to do with it?

The October theme at the Mixed Media Card Challenge is "Vintage" with the optional element of a key. I love this vintage-y lady who usually sports seashells and a ship on her head, but I gave her a key in the hand and a nest full of leaves on her head. Cuz it's fall, ya'll! Oh, and a strip of kleenex box up top cuz I love that B/W houndstooth!

Where am I going with this card?
Dazzling Divas - #46 (I've got the orange and white going on)

AAA Cards - #23 Watercolors (although technically I used inks and water)

Addicted to CAS - #49 (I used stencils and think it's possible to get messy and still be CAS!)

Hope you enjoyed the long post. Happy weekend. We're in the middle of a busy one.

Supplies:

Paper:  Bringmann, metal sheets Add a Little Dazzle, recycled kleenex box

Stamps:  lady Paper Artsy, nest Crafty Secrets, key 7Gypsies

Ink : Dylusions, Kesi, Versafine

Tools: leaf die Impression Obsession, stencils Walmart

Other: 

say cheese and thank you (WW, SSS)

Image Source

Before we get down to card business, may I just point out that it's easy to work when your workplace looks like this. That's a 2014 Dry Riesling waiting to be born, folks.

Harvested last Saturday.

Dolce vita ;)

So... good thing the deadline has rolled around or you might have seen even more cards for the challenges over at Winnie and Walter in celebration of WCMD.

This time I'm having a go at Lea's - On Trend - where it's about cameras.

I've purchased a few camera images (dies from Amy Tangerine and MFT) cuz I think they are cool, but I must admit I hardly use them :(  For which occasion? With what kind of sentiment? Well then there was this gold journal card in a set from We R Memory Keepers that I just bought... And it all kinda came together.

Before you see my card, I've got a word for you - "JOCEWIDA". Rhymes with "dolce vita." OK, now take a look.

JOCE - as in Jocelyn O. I'm totally channeling her here with her wonderful, whimsical layers. Hers always look heavenly.

WIDA - as in Wida. Who likes to string a thing or two across a card every now and then. Thanks ladies!

Here you can better see the sentiment on the journal card which led me to think of a card to thank someone for a nice time. Like a dinner. As in "I'm so glad we had this time together" (definitely dating myself, but got that tune in your head now?)

I trimmed the journal card down and added a watercolor wash around the edges as well as some splatters on the card base. So I'm hooking up at the current Watercolors challenge at Simon Says Stamp on Wednesdays. And cuz I stuck with the pink, peach and gold colors again, I'm hooking up at Gayatri's color challenge at W&W.

So love it when you stop by. Have a good one.

Supplies:

Paper:  Bringmann, DCWV, PP Lawn Fawn, vellum

Stamps: 

Ink : watercolors, embossing paste

Tools: sentiment die PTI, camera die MFT

Other: journal card, crochet thread, stapler, sewing machine

sketched and unexpected patterns (WW, Seize the Birthday)

So can you tell from the photo where I'm going with this card???

Playing along with three more of the challenges for WCMD (or week) over at Winnie and Walter. Kelly G. is on the design team and I just love how that girl's brain works. She is hosting one of the challenges called "Unexpected Stamping."

I had a card published where I used tiny alpha stamps to stamp a "pattern" inside the negative of the Simon Says Big Hello, thereby creating the word "hello" on my card front. Kinda like Jennifer M. stamped through a stencil here.

Well I did something similar now, but more along the lines of masking. Cuz I decided to combine Kelly's challenge with Julie's - which was a sketch. Check it.

And cuz I couldn't leave well enough alone, I tried to make my result be very graphic. Cuz Shay's challenge over at W&W is called "Pattern Play." Whew. Here she is. Actually, he cuz I also tried to give it a masculine feel ...

Die cut the smaller circle from copy paper and stamped the heart from Clear and Simple through it, then heat embossed blue. Masked it. Die cut the larger circle and stamped "happy" with Hero Arts Soft Granite (love that gray!) through it. Masked it and used Post Its to mask for the banner which I stamped with Artemio polka dots and heat embossed green. That was about all the masking my non-spatial-thinking brain could handle.

TIP: When using this technique, it's wise to use solid-ish stamps to fill in the openings so that you get maximum coverage around the edges/outlines. This helps the eye see the intended shapes better. Notice the lower part of the "happy" circle? That tiny bit of a tail of a"y" barely defines the edge of that larger circle between the banner and blue circle.

Moving along...Added the "birthday" sentiment along the curved bottom edge and a teensy die cut heart and strip to the inside.

And cuz it's a birthday card, I'm hooking up at Seize the Birthday where there's no specific topping.

Now if this were going to my Dad, I'd be in trouble. The card doesn't stand up! Either I send it to someone who does not display birthday cards on their mantle, or I better put a piece of acetate inside the front flap ;)

There's still time to play at W&W. The challenges are open until Saturday. Thanks for looking.

Supplies:

Paper:  Bringmann, digi PP Melstampz

Stamps: Artemio, Clear and Simple, Winnie and Walter

Ink : Versamark, Hero Arts

Tools: circle die MFT, heart die Amuse

Other: embossing powder