I'm a Create with Connie & Mary Top 3 Pick!

BREAKING NEWS: I'm so stoked! My card was chosen as a Top 3 Pick in this week's Create with Connie & Mary Challenge!! I'm so honored!!

Boo To You!!

Today's card just sort of "came" to me. I saw the wonderful sketch over at this week's Retro Sketches challenge and knew it would be fun to use one of the label punches. I toyed around with some ideas and then inspiration struck me like a bolt of lightening. I love it when that happens!



I've said it before: I don't really "do" Halloween cards, but I was inspired to make some cute little ghosts on a pitch black tag. And I've been using the heck out of this sheet of Tangerine Tango DSP from the "Flowerpot" DSP pack. Good thing there are two of each design in each DSP pack!

(Stamp Set: Good Greetings (Hostess); Ink: Tangelo Twist; Card Stock: Tangelo Twist; Basic Black, Whisper White; DSP: Flowerpot; Accessories: Owl Builder Punch; Angled Top Tag Punch, Tangelo Twist Stitched Satin Ribbon, Snowflake Card Die--banner framelits)

The multiple ribbon wraps on the sketch reminded me of mummy wrapping and the punched label reminds me of a tombstone. I know I'm late to the "using the Owl Builder punch to make ghosts" but they were just what this card needed! And it all came to me in a flash!

For All Things Fall Card

This week's Create with Connie & Mary Challenge is a color challenge.


These colors are perfect for Christmas cards, so I decided to do something a little different with them and make a fall card! I knew I had a scrap of Garden Green DSP from the "Flowerpot" collection, so I went hunting in my scrap box and found it! I coupled that with the yummy Cherry Cobbler Sheer Linen Ribbon from the Holiday mini catalog. I embossed a Baked Brown Sugar panel with the Argyle Embossing Folder and layered that right on top of a Baked Brown Sugar base card. Great. Now how to make this a fall card?

I grabbed the "For All Things" stamp set and stamped the acorn stamp in Baked Brown Sugar and the "Grateful For You" greeting in Garden Green. I cut this out with an Oval Framelit. Et voila! A fall card using "traditional" Christmas colors!

(Stamp Set: For All Things; Inks: Baked Brown Sugar, Garden Green; Card Stock: Baked Brown Sugar, Very Vanilla; DSP: Flowerpot; Accessories: Argyle Embossing Folder, Cherry Cobbler Sheer Linen Ribbon, Ovals Framelits Collection)

Simple Fall Card

Stampin' Up's designer series papers (DSP) make card making easy. I love the "Color Me Autumn" DSP--it's gorgeous. I flipped through my pack and chose a piece for this week's Paper Craft Crew Card sketch challenge.

 

The "Color Me Autumn" DSP coordinates so well with the "For All Things" stamp set! That's another thing I love about Stampin' Up! Everything coordinates, and that makes designing cards easy!

(Stamp Set: For All Things; Inks: Cajun Craze, Mossy Meadow; Card Stock: Cajun Craze, Crushed Curry, Very Vanilla Mossy Meadow; DSP: Color Me Autumn; Accessories: Basic Gold Metal Button, Gold Baker's Twine, Banners Framelits Collection)

Fresh Friday Sketch

I really enjoy participating in stamping blog challenges. They really help me get creative in a hurry. Take tonight, for instance. I stayed late at work and ate dinner late. Then I received an email that I needed to take some time with and answer it right away. Around 8:30 tonight, my DD asked me, "Don't you have a card to make for your blog?" And I said, yes, but the email was important. Besides, it was still "early."

Fortunately, this week's Freshly Made Sketch challenge is one I can really sink my creative teeth into. It's clean and simple and fresh. 
 
I've been eying a certain sheet of the Confetti Celebration DSP and tonight it called to me. "Yay!" I thought. "I'll use this on a Basic Gray card base. What? I'm down to one half sheet of Basic Gray?! Ugh. OK. I'll use it." Then I sat down at my stamping table and lo and behold there was a pre-folded Crisp Cantaloupe card base. I decided to use that instead. And I found a just-big-enough piece of Basic Gray in my scrap box that I could use behind the DSP. Yay! Yay! Yay!

(Stamp Sets: Really Good Greetings, Teeny Tiny Wishes; Ink: Basic Gray; Card Stock: Crisp Cantaloupe, Basic Gray, Strawberry Slush, Pistachio Pudding, Whisper White; DSP: Confetti Celebration, Typeset Specialty Paper; Accessories: Circles Framelits Collection, Petite Petals Punch, Basic Rhinestones)

Retro Anniversary

Oh boy! Oh boy! The challenge on the Retro Sketches blog this week is a "stamper's choice." We can choose any sketch in the Retro archives. I love having a choice--but it wasn't easy!! There are so many awesome sketches in the archive. I had to go way back to April 2013 to find the sketch I wanted to CASE. I saw several along the way that piqued my interest, but this one said: "You need an anniversary card and you won't have time to make one the day before your anniversary 'cause you'll be away on business." I can't believe I have my anniversary card made almost a month prior to my anniversary!!



I've been wanting to make some flowers using the Petite Petal Punch and Typeset Specialty Series paper and this sketch allows me to do just that. I found an already made Cherry Cobbler card base on the floor near my cutting station. I love Cherry Cobbler with Very Vanilla and Basic Black. I knew two of the sentiments from the "Good Greetings" hostess set would be perfect on this card. I'm really pleased with how it turned out. Hope Hubby will like it. (And I hope I remember I have it when our anniversary rolls around!)

(Stamp Set: Good Greetings (Hostess); Ink: Cherry Cobbler; Card Stock: Cherry Cobbler, Basic Black, Very Vanilla; DSP: Typeset Specialty Series; Accessories: Fancy Fan Embossing Folder, Banner Framelits Collection, Petite Petals Punch, Banner Punch, Basic Rhinestones)

On A Clean & Simple Roll

I'm on a roll here with trying my hand at some clean and simple blog challenge. I figure if I try, try again, I might just get it right!! This week's cue card word at the CASology challenge blog is "splatter." (How can splatter be clean and simple?)

There are so many ways to splatter on a card and the CASology design team came up with some wonderful designs! Go check them out! 

I thought about using the "Gorgeous Grunge" set, but that would have been too obvious. I looked at my basket of pens and saw that I had a Stampin' Spritzer already filled with Blackberry Bliss ink. So I knew that would be my splatter. I flipped through my "Moonlight" DSP pack and found a sheet with Blackberry Bliss, Hello Honey, and Sahara Sand splatters that would also fit the theme. Then I chose another greeting from the "Really Good Greetings" stamp set--one that I think is encouraging--and there are so many people in my life who need encouragement! I decided that I wanted the sentiment to be BOLD.

(Stamp Set: Really Good Greetings; Ink: Blackberry Bliss; Card Stock: Hello Honey, Blackberry Bliss, Whisper White; DSP: Moonllight DSP Pack; Accessories: Stampin' Spritzer)

CASed Sketch Thank You

I really like the sketch at the CAS(E) This Sketch blog challenge this week. The design team came up with so many wonderful ideas! 



I started--as I am wont to do--with a scrap of DSP that was in my "scrap  box." I like the colors in this sheet of "Flowerpot" DSP. On my own, I never would have put together Tangerine Tango, Blushing Bride, and Crushed Curry--but I like this combination!! And I love the bold triangles. I needed to make a thank you card for a dear friend who sent me a handmade bar of sweet smelling soap as a random act of kindness.

(Stamp Set: Teeny Tiny Wishes; Ink:Tangerine Tango; Card Stock: Tangerine Tango, Blushing Bride, Crushed Curry; DSP: Flowerpot; Accessories: Banner Punch, LabelCard Thinlit (Arrow), Essentials Paper Piercing Pack)

While I'm trying hard to embrace my clean and simple self, I still needed to add a bit of texture in the corners of this card. It looked too "naked" without the piercing!

Live the Life You Imagined

One of my best work friends retired last week. I miss her already! We worked together in our office and we traveled together with our team to all corners of the world. She's smart and funny and hard-working and kind and caring and just an all-around great person. I miss her already!

Fortunately my friend is retiring locally so we'll be able to get together often. In fact, several women from our team are taking our friend out to dinner tonight. I think the sentiment "Live the Life You Imagined" is a great retirement send-off. My friend is retiring because she wants to accomplish lots of other things in her life and work was just getting in the way! That's the way to retire!

Here's a card I made for my friend. I CASEd this awesome card from UK stamper, Julie Kettlewell. You ought to take a look around at the rest of Julie's blog, too. She's got some amazing work there!!

(Stamp Sets: Traveler, Really Good Greetings, Hardwood Background; Inks: Soft Suede, Night of Navy; Card Stock: Soft Suede, Night of Navy, Naturals Ivory; Accessories: Angled Tag Topper Punch,Early Espresso Baker's Twine)

I can't believe I'd never inked up--or mounted--the Hardwood Background stamp. It's awesome!! I'm going to use it a lot now that it's seen some ink (and I've remembered that I own it)!

Here's the inside of the card. Another sentiment from "Really Good Greetings" was fitting here, as well.

(Stamp Sets: Traveler, Really Good Greetings; Ink: Soft Suede; Card Stock: Soft Suede, Naturals Ivory)

Creation Station Celebrates Fall & Halloween!

Welcome to another edition of the Creation Station blog hop! This time we're featuring the set "Fall Fest" and our theme is Halloween.  Since I don't have that stamp set and I don't own any current Halloween stamps, I've had to improvise--but isn't that what creativity is all about??

The only Halloweeny stamp I have is one from the "Mingle All The Way" stamp set. I colored the stamp with Tangerine Tango and Basic Black markers to get a two-color image. I cut the image with one of the circles from the Circles Framelits Collection and punched the Tangerine Tango mat with the 2-1/2" Circle Punch. I used a panel from the "Flowerpot" DSP pack for an accent and tied a piece of Calypso Coral seam binding onto the front of the card. Cute, huh?

(Stamp Set: Mingle All The Way; Card Stock: Basic Black, Tangerine Tango, Whisper White; DSP: Flowerpot; Accessories: Circle Card Thinlit Die, Circles Framelits Collection, 2-1/2" Circle Punch, Calypso Coral Seam Binding, Tangerine Tango and Basic Black Stampin' Write Markers)

Since Halloween is such a fun holiday, I wanted the inside of the card to be fun, so I pulled out all the stops!

(Stamp Set: Good Greetings Hostess Set; Ink: Tangerine Tango; Card Stock: Basic Black, Tangerine Tango, Whisper White; Accessories: Circle Card Thinlit Die, 2-1/2" Circle Punch, Elegant Butterfly Punch, Modern Label Punch, Word Window Punch, Zig Zag Embossing Folder, Calypso Coral Seam Binding, Basic Gray Baker's Twine)

I strung a bunch of bats inside the card! When you open the striped flap, the bats "fly" across the card. To cover the hole I made in the circle, I added an extra bat--it makes me think of a bat flying across a full moon. The greeting is from the "Good Greetings" hostess set (available through the end of October with a $300 order or workshop).

Here's how to make the bat using the Elegant Butterfly punch. First, punch the butterfly as usual. Then, attach it to a post-it note to use as a handle. Then, put it back into the punch like this and punch again.

(Elegant Butterfly Punch used to make a bat!)

Here's a close-up of the bats. I think they're so adorable (if I do say so myself)!!!

(Card Stock: Basic Black, Tangerine Tango; Accessories: Circle Card Thinlits Die Elegant Butterfly Punch, Zig Zag Embossing Folder, Basic Gray Baker's Twine, 2-1/2" Circle Punch)

I hope you enjoyed my improvisational creativity. Use the "back" and "next" buttons to continue hopping along the Creation Station blog. I know you're going to be amazed by the creations the design team has come up with!!

Retro Hello Friend

Yesterday's card was based on a bold, geometric sketch--which I loved! Today's card is based on a sketch that is a little more "frou-frou," which is harder for me to accomplish. I thought about this sketch all day and I had planned a completely different card, using Typeset DSP and Blushing Bride, but somehow Crisp Cantaloupe and Baked Brown Sugar were calling to me instead. In fact, yesterday when I was using the 2014-16 in-color collection I thought that I had abandoned the 2013-25 in-colors. And I felt bad about that.

So the sketch over at the Retro Sketches challenge blog looks like this:



I grabbed some Crisp Cantaloupe and Baked Brown Sugar card stock and designer series papers and the also neglected "Four Frames" stamp set and went to work. Oh my gosh! I used so many different patterns and punches. This is a bit out of my comfort zone...but I like the colors together and the gold and pearl accents, so I think it works.

(Stamp Sets: Six-Sided Sampler, Four Frames; Inks: Baked Brown Sugar, Crisp Cantaloupe; Card Stock: Baked Brown Sugar, Crisp Cantaloupe, Whisper White; DSP: 2013-2015 In Color DSP Stack,Lullaby; Gold Glimmer Paper; Accessories: Stylish Stripes Embossing Folder, Scallop Edge Border Punch, Oval Punch, Decorative Label Punch, Petite Flower Punch, Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack, Hexagon Punch (for banner ends), Basic Pearls, Gold Metal Buttons, Gold Baker's Twine)

It's Your Day!

I love the sentiments in the "Really Good Greetings" set. I especially love the one that says the day is finally about YOU--because that's what I tell my kids. "Who is it all about? Yep, me!" Until they wised up and answered: "It's all about God, Mom."

This week's sketch challenge at the Create with Mary & Connie challenge blog sang out to me. I love the simple geometric sketches that don't have too much frou-frou. (I have another card in mind that follows a more "frou-frou" sketch, but you'll have to wait another day or two for that.) Bold colors, strong geometric shapes, and simple greetings--that's what I like in my own designs.

Here's the sketch for this week. Check out the cards the CCMC design team came up with--they're awesome!


For my card, I grabbed the "Moonlight" DSP pack. I love those bold colors. I'm also still using the big, bold Blackberry Bliss piece from the "Sweet Taffy" DSP pack. I wanted the "YOU" to stand out a bit, so I stamped it in Hello Honey ink and I made a banner. It took a little finessing, but I think I'm close.

(Stamp Set: Really Good Greetings; Inks: Blackberry Bliss, Hello Honey; Card Stock: Hello Honey, Blackberry Bliss; Whisper White; Accessories: 2-1/2" Circle Punch, Circle Framelits Collection, Hexagon Punch (for flagging banner ends))

Hello Fall, Nacho Style

This week's sketch on the Nacho Average Challenges blog is a clean and simple sketch. I LOVE a CAS challenge!! When I first saw the sketch, I thought I'd pull out my Simply Scored Scoring Board and make some vertical and horizontal score lines. But as I was cutting my base of Cajun Craze card stock, I saw some strips of "Color Me Autumn" DSP and got the idea to use that for my lines! I think it worked out nicely.

Here's this week's nacho sketch.



Here's my card.

(Stamp Set: For All Things; Ink: Mossy Meadow; Card Stock: Cajun Craze, Crushed Curry; DSP: Color Me Autumn; Accessories: Basic Gold Button, Gold Baker's Twine)

 I added a Basic Gold Button and Gold Baker's Twine for some added interest.