Sunday, March 17, 2024

Time Out Challenges + JUGS Collaboration Challenge

 
Blogging friend Michele directed me to a collaborative challenge between
Time Out Challenges and (new to me) JUGS, the acronym for Just Us Girls.
 

And the cue word for both challenges is BIRDS.  I'm a huge fan of birds and I feel that I was 
destined to enter the challenge. Here's my rather busy entry.


I just received Papertrey Ink's Into the Blooms Spring Nest Die and quickly put one together. 
I have several of their Feathered Friends cut, colored, and assembled in a "bird box" and chose
 a blue one that matched the eggs.
 

I unsuccessfully researched birds' egg colors and I believe blue colored birds don't lay 
blue eggs. I don't even know what species of bird this is but I was short on time to color 
a beige/brown bird. 

The nest and eggs were assembled and flowers and leaves were added, together with
the bird and a white embossed sentiment. Yes, it's the same sentiment that I used a 
few cards back that's a fave.

Ok, off to link this up! Thanks so much for stopping by and to Michele for
introducing me to the challenge.

 

Monday, March 11, 2024

Color Hues #82 --Turquoise & Green

 
I haven't played in a Color Hues Challenge in quite a while and when I found some
  Greetery dragonflies that were already cut and colored, I decided to enter a card.
 
Here's Tracey's color palette for Challenge #82



 
And here's my card. 


I colored them quite a while ago and I think I used Zig makers and a waterbrush.
I adhered him to an embossed panel and added the white embossed Honeybee Stamps
sentiment. Some Pretty Pink Posh jewels finished off the card.
 


Earlier I added some vellum leaves but took them off and decided simple is best.
Besides, I don't think dragonflies ever land on greenery--they're much too busy flitting.
Off to link this up with a few days to spare. Thanks so much for stopping by!

* * *
 
Edited to add: My card was chosen as the winner! Thank you Color Hues!
 
 

 

Friday, March 8, 2024

The Flower Challenge #89 -- Make a Square Card

 
This month's challenge theme at The Flower Challenge is to make a SQUARE card.
 
 Here's my little square number.

 
I  just received my Greetery order of BotaniCuts Lilacs. I thought they'd be a pain to assemble
but I watched Betsy create hers about a dozen times and I was sold on the set.


 
Betsy used daubers to color her lilacs but I took the lazy route and smooshed whatever
purple inks I had and picked up the colors on watercolor card stock, then cut them out.
The leaves were ink blended on white die cuts and I used the residual ink to color the
tops of the clusters. 

I added a frame to a 4.25" card base and sponged in a blue background. I spattered water
and blue ink then added the blooms and leaves when the panel was dry. The sentiment
is from Honeybee Stamps Be Still stamp and die set. Sequins finished off the card.

All in all it was fast and easy to assemble the lilacs and I'd like to try and make some
 white ones that Betsy shared. But that's for another day. 
 
Thanks so much for stopping by!


Saturday, February 24, 2024

Color Throwdown #781

 
I'm squeezing in a card to Color Throwdown Challenge #781. Here's the challenge graphic.
 

And here's my card using mostly Altenew products.


Flowers and leaves from the Mini Flower Cluster Layering Die Set were cut from
white card stock and colored with peachy/pink colors from The Stamp Market.
Two white card stock panels were cut from Reverse Wonky Rectangles then embossed


The panels were adhered together by a hinge and the flowers and leaves were
assembled on a slight diagonal. The sentiment and shadow were adhered below
the flowers and the card was finished off with sequins.

Thanks so much for stopping by. Hope you're having a good weekend!



Tuesday, February 13, 2024

The Flower Challenge #88 -- Add a Heart

 
I'm so happy to see The Flower Challenge back from a well deserved hiatus.
This month's challenge theme is to Add a Heart and it gave me a chance to use
some (two year old) Greetery products that were still in their packaging. Oh my!
 
 
Here's my card and I'm hoping that the heart isn't too overwhelming.


The heart wood slice was assembled and spattered then topped with Forget-Me-Nots that
were colored with Zig markers. I had no idea what color forget-me-nots were until I looked 
it up, so I apologize for these bright pink ones.
 
 
I added the love word and popped up the heart on Altenew's Masonry Wall. At the last 
minute I decided to add the sub sentiment to balance out the design.

I might redeem myself and color these blooms again in their "proper" color.
Thanks so much for stopping by!
 
* * * 
 
Edited to add: 

Many thanks to The Flower Challenge ladies for choosing my card as the  
winner for Challenge 88! Honored to display this badge.

 
 

Saturday, January 27, 2024

Simon Says Stamp January Flickr Challenge -- Anything Goes

 The theme for Simon Says Stamp's January 2024 Flickr Challenge is Anything Goes 
so I decided to enter a card made with some new Simon Says Stamp goodies.
 

I ordered the Printmaking Hearts Stamp and Die set which has layered stamping on
9 hearts. Feeling a bit lazy, I decided to cut out the hearts from several alcohol ink
panels that I've accumulated.
 

 The hearts were spritzed with alcohol, some gold Kuretake watercolors and I found
my ancient set of metallic rub ons that all added touches of gold. The hearts were
adhered to a kraft card base and a popped up sentiment finished off the card.

Thanks so much for stopping by!



 

Thursday, January 25, 2024

Freshly Made Sketches #620

I decided to enter Freshly Made Sketches #620 after my Concord & 9th order arrived and 
I pictured the knitted heart as the main element in the sketch.

 
 And here's my card with a simplified take on the sketch.
 

After watching Jennifer McGuire go through her stash of AI backgrounds, I went through
mine and looked for the most appropriate ones for a heart. All of the dies were cut from
one inked piece and assembled with the "stray" yarn coming off on the side.
 

I stamped the sentiment before running the card base through Waffle Flower's
Quilting Texture Die. In hindsight, I didn't have to add the extra stitches over the
heart because it looks super variegated even without it. But I do love the texture.

I'm off to link this up with a few days to spare. Thanks for stopping by!


Friday, January 12, 2024

Inspired by Challenge #271 -- MITTENS

 
The theme for this month's Inspired by Challenge is MITTENS. 
 

Here's how I was inspired.

Meet a 5-year old stamp and die set from Simon Says Stamp. I remember buying it and 
it never touched ink until recently when I watched some of Kristina Werner's Christmas
Card series on You Tube. I spotted Critter Sweaters from 2018 and dug through my
SSS Christmas stamps and found it! 

They appear to be snuggled in mittens, or is that just me? The stamp set is unique
because it's simply stamped on each die cut critter to resemble cozy sweaters.
The background uses MFT's Knitted Sweater Background, stamped on kraft with
Versamark for a tone on tone look. The stamped sentiment finished off the card.

Ok, I'm off to link up my card. Thanks for stopping by!


Monday, January 8, 2024

SSS Wednesday Challenge--Something NEW

 
Happy New Year to you! I made this card for a friend and decided to enter it in 
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge with a theme of Something NEW.
 


While the theme may be "new" the stamp itself is old and long retired. I used 
Birdie Brown's Warmest Wishes stamp and die set and had this cut and colored 
in my scrap bowl. She must have been waiting for a chance to make an appearance.

After die cutting a card base from Reverse Wonky Rectangles, I inked a sky, stamped
the sentiment, then ran the panel through a falling snowflake embossing folder. I used 
a sanding block to take away the color and leave the appearance of "snow" behind.

I grounded the girl with a torn bottom and finished off with some extra snowflakes.
The back panel was hinged so the card can stand to be displayed.
 
I'm off to enter this and mail it out, too! Thanks for stopping by!
 
 


Friday, December 1, 2023

Guest Designer Caffeinated Christmas Card Challenge #24 -- SNOWMAN

 
Me and my gnomies were chosen as the Top Pick for Caffeinated Christmas Card  
Challenge #22  and I was invited to guest for the last challenge of the year with the 
theme of SNOWMAN.

 
The prize sponsor for this month is Frantic Stamper
 
 
 Fran is generously offering this trio of goodies to the winner:
 



My card uses one of my favorite snowpeople from Paper Smooches and all patterned 
paper is from  Catherine Pooler's Daily Grind which is sadly discontinued. 
I love his plaid attire!


The sentiment is from Catherine Pooler (also discontinued) and I stamped it 
before running the card through a falling snow embossing folder. To finish off the card, 
I added a mug from a Casual Fridays set and some snowflakes from my snowflake stash.
 
Kim Hughes closed her Paper Smooches shop and blog three years ago, but you can 
now find some of her products at Queen & Co and a few Catherine Pooler products 
can be found at Frantic Stamper.

* * *

Huge thanks to Amy and Lisa for the invite and we hope you'll join the last
challenge of the year. You have until 11:55PM PST on December 25th, 2023
to link up your caffeinated creations.