Encre, papier, ciseaux

Thanks for Owl You Do

Inspiration: Inspired By #87

This card was done on a total whim. The initial ideas came really quickly, so I started putting everything together and once I had the embossed wood panel, the polka heart backdrop, the branch, the owls and the sentiment strip, I got a little hung up. The card was cute but a little boring.

I started trying out embellishments and die-cuts on the sentiment strip, but all attempts failed miserably at making the card better. Then, suddenly, I thought about adding a second ribbon next to the Lovely Lipstick one I already had in place and the weaving effect at the bottom with the sentiment strip instantly made the design more interesting. I then recycled the white die-cut heart I had cut earlier and that also made the card better. I added an enamel heart and it looked even cuter.

A few details:

• The sentiment was embossed in grey powder.
• The wood-embossed panel was initially inked with Hickory Smoke Distress Oxide ink, but it was not popping up enough, so I took my Craft Whisper White ink pad out and dragged it along the woodgrain pattern to add a whitewash effect. I love how it looks on the Grey Granite cardstock.
• The envelope was stamped in VersaMark using the graduation cap image from the Simply Celebrate Spring stamp set and embossed with clear powder, on a Lagoon Metallic envelope.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: So Owlsome, Simply Celebrate Spring (Lawn Fawn); Writing Note (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Lovely Lipstick, Whisper White, Coastal Cabana, Grey Granite (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Whisper White Craft Ink (Stampin' Up!); Tuxedo Black (Memento); VersaMark;
Hickory Smoke Distress Oxide (Ranger)
Accessories: So Owlsome Dies, Polka Heart Backdrop Portrait Die, Birch Trees Dies,
Woodland Critter Huggers Dies (Lawn Fawn); Pinewood Planks Embossing Folder, Brights Enamel Shapes, 
Smoky Slate and Clear Stampin' Emboss Powders, Sponge Daubers, 1/8" Lovely Lipstick Grosgrain Ribbon,
Pool Party Ruffled Ribbon (Stampin' Up!); Glitter Gloss Aqua Shimmer Brush (Nuvo);
A2 Lagoon Metallic Envelope (envelopes.com); Markers (Copic)

 

Welcome

Inspiration: Little Red Wagon #512 (Foodie)

This is a really simple card that was inspired by leftover papers from the Sunkissed collection from Doodlebug Design. I spotted the pineapple cut-apart and figured it'd make a great card (a great, BIG card!). I wanted to add "welcome" as a sentiment so I went to my French sentiment dies and luckily, I found what I was looking for in the set that was released last Spring by Stampin' Up! (Les bons mots).

The rest was really just paper, stickers and a die-cut border, and two little candy dots as embellishment. This kept me busy while I was watching some videos on Youtube, so I worked on something simple while I was keeping an eye on the computer.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Cardstock: Green Bazzill
Patterned Papers: Sunkissed (Doodlebug Design)
Accessories: Les bons mots Framelits Dies, Regals Candy Dots.
Envelope Punch Board (Stampin' Up!); Basic Stitch Lines Die-namics (My Favorite Things);
Fun in the Sun Icons and Sunkissed Fancy Frills Stickers (Doodlebug Designs)

 

Skating Outing

inspiration: Simon Says Stamp Monday (S is for... Skating)

The "S is for ?" challenge from Simon Says Stamp was a great excuse to pull out the Mice on Ice stamp set and make a skating card. Last week, I also went through my patterned papers. I have reorganized them this year and divided them by theme, which made it easy to quickly pull out my fall, winter, Christmas and Halloween papers as I'm now officially starting to work on those projects. I had put the Bundled Up papers from Crate Paper on the top of the pile as I was excited to use those pretty papers again.

I decided to have the two mice skating together, holding hands. I added pearlescent vellum to my square to make the ice and I embossed the heart trail pattern in silver embossing powder on it. I wanted to use the word dies, so I picked Happy and paired it with the winter word. The tag needed something on it, so I die-cut a Stitched Snowflake out of Dazzling Diamonds glimmer paper, and I added a few sequins around the card for embellishing. The scallop design border at the bottom of the front panel is actually one of the cut-away strips with the paper info. A ton of company are adding a pretty pattern to the backside of it, which is the case for Crate Paper, so I made sure to recycle it on my project and inside the card as well.

Another one of the tags cut-away was used on the envelope for the address block as well.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Mice on Ice (Lawn Fawn)
Cardstock: Thick Very Vanilla, Pretty Peacock, Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper (Stampin' Up!);
Pearlescent Vellum (Lawn Fawn)
Patterned Papers: Bundled Up (Crate Paper)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); VersaMark; Pretty Peacock, Basic Grey Classic Ink (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Silver Stampin' Emboss Powder, Mini Stampin' Dimensionals, Metal-Rimmed Pearls,
Pretty Peacock Scalloped Linen Ribbon, Stitched Shapes Dies, Woven Threads Sequins (Stampin' Up!);
A2 Teal Envelope (envelopes.com); Outside In Stitched Rectangles Dies, Mice on Ice Dies (Lawn Fawn);
Sentiment Labels Dies (Simon Says Stamp); Markers (Copic)

 

Fall Park Shadow Box

Inspiration: Simon Says Stamp Wednesday (Anything Goes)

I wanted to start working on fall projects and I thought I could use the Shadow Box Card Park Add-On dies to make a fall in the park scene. I initially pulled out the Small Stitched Leaves to decorate the trees, but I found that even the smallest leaves were too big to work. So I pulled out the Leafy Tree Backdrop Portrait dies instead, which include smaller leaves. I ink blended four colors of Distress Oxide inks (Fossilized Amber, Peeled Paint, Festive Berries and Peacock Feathers) on white cardstock and die-cut leaves from it. I did use the Small Stitched Leaves as well and added those bigger leaves to the side and back of the shadow box and to the envelope instead.

I wanted critters in the park so I went through my Lawn Fawn sets and decided the Forest Feast critters would work best. I gave them pilgrim hats and stamped Happy Thanksgiving (from the same set) on the back panel. The front felt a little bare, so I added some additional leaves in the grass. I used patterned papers from the Knit Picky Fall 6" x 6" pad to die-cut the trees and grass panels.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Forest Feast (Lawn Fawn)
Cardstock: Rose Red, Old Olive, Daffodil Delight, Taken with Teal, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Knit Picky Fall (Lawn Fawn)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Early Espresso Classic Ink (Stampin' Up!);
Foxxilized Amber, Peeled Paint, Festive Berries, Peacock Feathers Distress Oxide (Ranger)
Dies: Small Stitched Leaves, Leafy Tree Backdrop: Portrait, Forest Feast,
Shadow Box Card, Shadow Box Card Park Add-On (Lawn Fawn)
Accessories: Markers (Copic); A2 Teal Envelope (envelopes.com); Liquid Stardust (Lawn Fawn)

 

Row of Baubles

Inspiration: Fusion challenge

I wanted to use my new Holly Jolly papers from My Mind's Eye (it's really fun, with its candy colors and gold-foil details) and I thought the Fusion sketch would work well for that. As I was taking papers out of the stack I realized I could pick a mint paper and emboss it with my Brick Wall embossing folder to mimick the inspiration picture as well. I added striped paper at the bottom adn decided to use the Simply Celebrate Winter stamp set to add a long image in the middle mirroring the circles from the sketch. I picked the row of baubles. I stamped it in VersaMark on watercolor paper, embossed the image in gold and watercolored it with inks.

I was finding my card a little blah and then I realized I could draw further inspiration from the picture and add falling snowflakes on the left side. I used the Stitched Snowflakes and the Mini Snowflakes dies to die-cut snowflakes out of Gold glimmer paper and the card instantly became more interesting as soon as I glued the snowflakes in place. For the sentiment, I used "best wishes" in red cardstock, slightly offside to the right.

I gold-embossed the bauble image inside the card and on the Pink Quartz metallic envelope I picked to go with the card.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Simply Celebrate Winter (Lawn Fawn)
Cardstock: Poppy Parade, Gold Glimmer Paper (Stampin' Up!); Hot-Pressed Watercolor Paper (Fabriano)
Patterned Paper: Holly Jolly (My Mind's Eye)
Ink: VersaMark
Accessories: Mini Stampin' Dimensionals, Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder, Aqua Painter Brush, Brick Wall Embossing Folder (Stampin' Up!);
A2 Rose Quartz Envelope (envelopes.com); Simply Celebrate Winter Dies, Mini Snowflakes Dies,
Stitched Snowflakes Dies, Outside In Stitched Rectangles Stackables Dies (Lawn Fawn); Meilleurs Voeux Dies (Dee's Distinctively)

 

Narly Birthday

Inspiration: Color Throwdown #557

The colors of the Color Throwdown were fun and different and I realized that I had all of the right colours in my new Over the Rainbow paper pack from Honey Bee to play along. I was hesitant on which stamp set to use had I had a few that could have worked - could have gone more winter or summer, depending on how I used the paper. I decided to use the cute little Winter Narwhal, for something simple and colorful.

I die-cut four paper squares using the Stitched Shapes dies and created my card base with them. I then cut a stitched circle out of Pearlescent Vellum with the same dies, and matted it with Basic Grey cardstock using the Layering Circles dies to get a scalloped frame. I inked white cardstock with Shaded Lilac Distress Oxide ink and I spritzed water through the Waves stencil from Hero Arts to get the pattern. I pulled out the Shadow Box Card Ocean Add-On dies to cut my cardstocj with the wave pattern, and because I was not paying attention, I forgot that it would not only cut the top but also the bottom (I would have had to play with my cutting plates to avoid that) so I wound up with a much shorter piece than I anticipated, so I solved the problem by cutting the rest of my inked cardstock with the second wave die from the set and stacking them. Problem solved, and extra dimension added! I then glued the two waves together and ran them through the Big Shot again using the stitched circle to get the same shape. I stamped an colored my narwhal, die-cut it and added it in the waves. The circle felt a little empty, so I did a turquoise puffy cloud frame in the sky to fill the space, and I added a few sequins to create sparkly bubbles in the water.

For the sentiment, I found my round "happy birthday" die and realized it was the right size to add to my existing circle. It also filled out the space in the middle better, so it improved the balance on my card. I then added buttons in shades that match the patterned papers, and I created a square envelope out of matching patterned paper.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Winter Narwhal (Lawn Fawn)
Cardstock: Thick Whisper White, Basic Grey, Coastal Cabana, Silver Foil Paper (Stampin' Up!);
Pearlescent Vellum (Lawn Fawn)
Patterned Papers: Over the Rainbow (Honey Bee); I Am Me (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Marina Mist Classic Ink (Stampin' Up!);
Shaded Lilac Distress Oxide (Ranger)
Accessories: Buttons, Stampin' Dimensionals, Envelope Punch Board, Stitched Shapes Dies,
Layering Circles Dies (Stampin' Up!); Waves Stencil (Hero Arts); Rond bonne fête Die (MC Collection);
Assorted Moonshine Sequins (Simon Says Stamp); Sparkling Clear Confetti Mix (Pretty Pink Posh);
Shadow Box Card Ocean Add-On Dies, Winter Narwhal Dies, Simple Puffy Cloud Frames (Lawn Fawn);
Markers (Copic)

 

Pretty Pumpkin

Inspiration: Lawn Fawnatics #59 + CAS(E) This Sketch #336

This was a fun card to make. I like the new pumpkin dies from Lawn Fawn, I think they are adorable. It can be turned into a Jack-o-lantern, but here, I decided to do more of a fall pumpkin, using the new patterned papers. (I was on the fence about the new papers and now that I've used them, I think the colors are very lovely.)

I made a shaker for the pumpkin and in order to build the shaker walls, I simple stacked eight die-cuts together, then added a ninth layer over the acetate. I looked at my stash of embellishments and I found a mix that Stampin' Up! used to sell with their ice cream collection a couple of years ago that was the perfect size and mix of colors. I also sprinkled a few more orange metallic sequins from their Brights collection in there as well. I recycled yet another green button from the pile I rescaped from the tags I recycled and added Garden Green twine underneath. I used the Lacy Borders die for the bottom strip and sprinkled a few vintage shimmer pearls from Studio Katia around the pumpkin. Lastly, I added the words "Good Luck" over the pumpkin shaker. (The cardstock I used is Marigold Morning, an old In Color shade from Stampin' Up!, which I've always loved and works especially well paired with the Tango Tangerine shade.)

Little leaves from the same die sets were used to decorate the inside of the card and the envelope.

I am thoroughly enjoying all of the new Lawn Fawn release items I've used to create so far! They knocked it out of the park yet again.

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Cardstock: Tango Tangerine, Marigold Morning, Garden Green, Lost Lagoon
Patterned Papers: Fall Fling (Lawn Fawn)
Accessories: Outside In Stitched Rectangle Stackables, Outside In Stitched Pumpkin Dies,
Lacy Borders, Stitched Pumpkin Frame Dies (Lawn Fawn); bonne retraite chance journée dies (Simple à souhait);
Vintage Shimmer Pearls (Studio Katia); Brights Sequins, Ornement Mix, Garden Green Baker's Twine (Stampin' Up!);
Burnt Orange Envelope (Simon Says Stamp)

 

Christmas Jar

Inspiration: Lawn Fawnatics #59 Something See Through) + The Paper Players #456

Still inspired by the new Lawn Fawn goodness that just came out. I am happy that they are revisiting their Snow Day papers. I simply pulled out my old 6" x 6" which I still have some of and it became the starting point of this fun card. That jar is cute, but I think I love it even better with all of the add-ons they've created for it. The christmas cookies were a nice fit for it, and I think it'll be fun to use the individual cookies on their own as well. Lots of coloring and embossing options to make them cute and fun.

I've been sort of lazy in a sense and instead of hunting down and low for some French sentiments that would work with the new images, I've gone straight to the English sentiments from the sets. I thought the "Peace Joy Love (and cookies!)" one was adorable and has a great font. I also added the Happy Holidays to the tag as well. I hesitated as I didn't want to hide the cute cookies, but the tag made the card look more complete so I finally just went for it.

I used the individual cookies embossed in brown and in white embossing powders to make the matching envelope.

 

 

  

 

Supplies
Stamps: How You Bean?, How You Bean? Christmas Cookie Add-On (Lawn Fawn)
Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Snow Day (Lawn Fawn)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Watermelon Wonder, Cucumber Crush Classic Ink (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: How You Bean? Dies, How You Bean? Christmas Coookie Add-On Dies,
Outside In Stitched Rectangle Stackables Dies (Lawn Fawn); 1/8" Early Espresso Grosgrain Ribbon,
Brights Enamel Shapes, Early Espresso and White Stampin' Emboss Powder,
Stampin' Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!); A2 Lagoon Metallic Envelope (envelopes.com); Markers (Copic)

 

October 31st Bat Pocket

Inspiration: CAS on Sunday #162 (stencil) + TGIF #225 (splatters) + ColourQ #264

I wanted to use the Woodland Critter Huggers Bat Add-On dies and I decided I would use it added to a treat pocket instead of using it on its own. I had done a previous Halloween pocket using Stampin' Up!'s Copper Dotted Treat Bags and I decided to stick to the same format. I drew color inspiration from an old ColourQ combo and I inked the bag with Shaded Lilac and Wilted Violet Distress Oxide ink to create an ombre look. I then added water to Liquid Stardust and splattered the whole background, to add shimmer and to get the ink to oxide. I wanted to use the Mango texture paste from Izink and I decided to use the Numeric stencil from Tim Holtz with it. I then realized instead of using the whole stencil that I could use tape and isolate individual numbers to add a nice big 31 in the corner. I like how it turned out. (On a quick product review, the Izink pearly pastes have gorgeous colours, but I wish the texture was more firm. It's quite liquid, which makes it easy for the paste to get underneath the stencil. It also takes a surprising long time to dry, considering I didn't add a thick layer. I had to wait for the first number to dry before placing the stencil over the 3 to get the 1 in the right spot. I was working on other elements while the paste was drying and despite my best efforts, I still manage to get my hand in the paste while the first number was drying and again once the second number was added. My other pastes dry out much quicker than this one does, so that's a negative for me.)

For the candy the bat is holding, I was eager to try out the pearlescent vellum. Not my idea, this was shared in Lawn Fawn's videos and I thought it looked awesome. I went further with that idea, though, and added an additional layer of vellum on the candy itself, over a layer of colored cardstock, to get the look of an actual wrapped candy. You see the color through the wax paper wrapping, but it's not as bright. I used the wrapped candies on the bag itself, but kept the colorful candy in the bat's arms, to get a pop of colour against the black.

I punched two holes at the top of the bag to tie Pear Pizzazz chevron ribbon through. Regular punches were not going that deep, so I pulled out my Big Bite Crop-a-Dile punch. I've had that thing for over a decade and I rarely get it out. When I did a big stash purge a few years ago, I put it in the box of things that would go, then as luck would have it, I needed it to add a hole to a page and out of the box it came, then I put it aside to decide if I really wanted to keep it. So it doesn't get used every month, but it does get pulled out every so often, like for the project here. It's not so much trying to get money back that's my concern, more the fact that I'm running out of space to keep it all. This is one of those bulky items that doesn't get used a lot, but it serves a very specific purpose and when you need it, there's not a whole lot of alternatives. Anyway, I was able to punch through the two layers of the bag easily and to get wider holes that accomodated the wide ribbon nicely. Right now, the tails of the ribbon are a little too long for my liking, but there's reason for that: I will need to fill the bag with candy and retie the bow afterwards, so if I cut it short right away, I would have trouble tying the ribbon back without having the ends fray on me, so I've left some extra length to accomodate that and I will clip at my preferred length once the bag is ready to hand out to a lucky sugar lover.

To finish the bag off, I added one of the green buttons I have rescaped from an old project, crystal stars and Iridescent Mini Star Confetti. Those are tiny. To handle them, I use the precision glue from Stampin' Up! which has a needle tip and a jewel picker to pick the mini stars and place them on the glue dot. By the way, I have purchased other bottles with needle tips a couple of times to use with various adhesives (medium matte, collage medium) and I have been unlucky. Either the pin gets stuck in the top of the bottle and then the whole thing becomes useless or the adhesive inside is too thick for the needle tip. The precision glue from Stampin' Up! is very runny, so much so that you almost don't need to press on the bottle, just tip is down and the liquid will flow out. This means you have to be VERY mindful of the amount you put on your piece as it will very easily ooze out when you place it down on your project, and the glue dries shiny (not matte) so it really shows when it leaks. That being said, because the glue flows so easily, I do keep going back to it. I've learned how to control it better and because I don't need pressure, I can use my left hand (a.k.a. the almost useless one since I'm a righty) to apply the glue and add the embelishments with my right hand, which offers better precision. So right now the precision glue reminds my favored option, but I think there's room for improvement. If I could find something just a touch thicker with a matte finish that comes in a precision bottle, I'd be sold.

Another purchase I have made is the Nuvo craft spoon. It was one of those items that I eyed for a long time before splurging because having it will make your life easier, but you can definitely craft without it and find workarounds. I finally got it and it works so well to get embellishments out of the containers and also to place little quantities in shakers, I used it the other day to add a spoonful of glitter in the snow globe tag I made. It allows you to count quantity as well, to test out how much you should use to fill a shaker of a certain size. All in all, a purchase I am happy with.

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Cardstock: Basic Black, Basic Grey, Petal Pink, Whisper White, Pear Pizzazz,
Wisteria Wonder, Pumpkin Pie (Stampin' Up!); Pearlescent Vellum (Lawn Fawn)
Ink: Wilted Violet, Shaded Lilac Distress Oxide (Ranger)
Accessories: Copper Dotted Treat Bags, Stampin' Dimensionals, Pear Pizzaz Chevron Ribbon (Stampin' Up!);
Liquid Stardust, Woodland Critter Huggers Dies, Woodland Critter Huggers Bat Add-On Dies (Lawn Fawn);
Crystal Stars (Buttons Galore & More); Button (Autumn Leaves); Mango Paste (Izink);
Iridescent Mini Star Confetti (Pretty Pink Posh); Craft Spoon (Nuvo)

 

 

Llama Snow Globe

Inspiration: Lawn Fawnatics #59 + Little Red Wagon #511 (Tag It) + ColourQ #321

Another cutie from the new Lawn Fawn release is the Snow Globe Gift Tag. How adorable is it? And in true Lawn Fawn fashion, it's really easy to put together and be full of details since the die set includes the two little borders, the stitched frame, the tiny snowflakes and even the falling snow background. I couldn't help but wonder if the Dimensionals Domes released by Sizzix last year would fit in it. The short answer is, Yes they do. The reality of it is that it's not a perfect fit with the stitched frame. The dome is just a smidge smaller, so if you want to hide the seam, you will have to do a bit of creative layering to achieve the desired result.

For this reason, I pulled out the Tiny Snowglobes dies from Sizzix to have the correct size circle, I was surprised to find that it was a snug fit and that I had trouble layering the pieces flat, so out of frustration, I reached for a circle punch that was a smidge wider (the circle die is 1-1/4", and my circle punch is 1-3/8". I was much happier with the wider size and was then able to adhere everything flat.

So here are the various layers:

• the snowy background was die-cut in black and I layered white cardstock underneath.
• I punched a circle out of Kiwi Kiss cardstock and I used the full snowglobe die to die-cut a tag.
• I used the same full snowglobe die on kraft woodgrain cardstock and snipped the shape following the scored line beneath the globe, to keep only the bottom part. I layered over the Kiwi Kiss.
• I die-cut the two rounded borders out of Real Red cardstock and glued over the snowglobe base.
• I had the stitched border in black cardstock since I had done the snowy background. I glued it over the punched piece.
• I die-cut the top of the ornement out of Gold Foil paper and glued it on the ornement.
• I used a scrap of white patterned paper from my previous project and made the snowy background with it. I glued it at the bottom of the snowy scene.
• I stamped the llama on white cardstock, colored it with markers, die-cut it and glued it over the snowy scene. I stamped the fa-la-la-llama sentiment on Kiwi Kiss cardstock and found the perfect shape for it in the Stitched Hillside Backdrop Portrait dies (lucky find!).
• I die-cut the tiny snowflakes out of Dazzling Diamonds glimmer paper and added a couple on the globe.
• To assemble the front of the tag, I placed a little bit of white fine glitter on my snowy backdrop, took off the liner of the dome and placed it over the scene. That's where another bit of improvising is required. The dome is circle. The snowy scene is flat at the bottom, so there was a gap where glitter would have escaped, so I had to add clear tape to cover the gap. I added liquid glue behind the Kiwi Kiss circle and glued over the dome.
• I die-cut the full snowglobe out of Real Red cardstock for the back of the tag. I remembered that the Diagonal Gift Card Pocket dies include the "To: [heart]:" text, so I die-cut the words out of the tag shape and I added a little piece of black cardstock behind the words. I glued the center of the O in place.
• I then glued the front and back of the tag together and I threaded red ribbon at the top.

Really cute, relatively fast but a lot of steps if you want to insert a dome. If you're doing a flat tag, which would still be totally adorable, assembly will be faster and easier. The dome was perfect for the "something see-through" challenge, though!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Say What? Christmas Critters (Lawn Fawn)
Cardstock: basic Black, Real Red, Kiwi Kiss, Whisper White, Gold Foil,
Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper (Stampin' Up!);Woodgrain Cardstock in Neutrals (Lawn Fawn)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Accessories: Dimensional Domes (Sizzix); White Fine Glitter (Martha Stewart);
Real Red Cotton Ribbon, Stampin' Dimensionals, 1-3/8" Circle Punch (Stampin' Up!); Diagonal Gift Card Pocket,
Stitched Hillside Backdrop Portrait, Say What? Christmas Critters Dies, Snow Globe Gift Tag Dies (Lawn Fawn)

 

Yeti on the Ski Slopes

Inspiration: Tuesday Morning Sketch #517

I love how this quick card turned out. I went through my paper stash and I put aside some Halloween, Christmas and winter papers to start working on my seasonal card. The fun Sub Zero papers from Simple Stories were one of the collections I pulled out and because they are ski-themed, they seemed perfect for the new Yeti or Not stamp set (one of the most adorable sets from the Lawn Fawn release).

I used the ski lift paper for the center part, matted it with green paper and added the striped paper underneath. I added a red striped banner in the top corner and I used my beloved Wonky Stitch Rectangle dies to cut it out. I recently cleared out some of my older 3D projects from my craft room and when I discard some stuff, I will sometimes take some of the ornements off to reuse on other projects. In this case, it was tags that I took the buttons off of, so they were sitting in a container on my desk, and they were the right green for this project, so it made for a quick embellishment. (On a side note, the room I dedicated to my stamp area has a crown molding going around the room that's placed at 2/3 of the wall height and creates a little ledge. I remembered thinking when I visited the place that this would make the perfect spot to display my creations and it's become a little art gallery. Seems like serendipity that the molding was added that way in the spare bedroom.)

For my images, I decided to have a yeti eating a snow cone on the ground and to have another yeti on his snowboard, flying in the air. I avoided adding a rectangle on the card because I didn't want to hide the chair lift pattern, so adding the free-standing images made it look lije a ski resort background. When came time to add the sentiment, I added "Have a really cool birthday" on a wavy banner. I had planned on putting beneath the red bannerm on the left side, but it was a little long and was not working well with the card, so I started moving it around, trying it in different spot and finally, I decided it looked best at the top, curved over the flying yeti, and I used mini glue dots and Dimensionals to make it 3D so that you can still see the snowboard underneath.

This left me with a blank spot at the left of the card which seemed a little bare so I stamped the two trees from the same set, colored them with markers, die-cut them and then added the texture embossing powder released by Lawn Fawn last year to mimick snow.

Some leftover pieces were glued on a green metallic envelope to finish off the set.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Yeti or Not (Lawn Fawn)
Cardstock: Basic Grey, Very Vanilla (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Sub Zero (Simple Stories)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Pretty Peacock Classic Ink (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Button (Autumn Leaves); Wonky Stitched Rectangle Stax Die-namics (My Favorite Things);
Textured Embossing Powder, Yeti or Not Dies, Simple Wavy Banners Dies (Lawn Fawn);
Markers (Copic); A2 Fairway Metallic Envelope (envelopes.com); Stampin' Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!)

 

You Know Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and Vixen...

The new Lawn Fawn release is here! This is where my resolve to focus on summer-themed projects ends - Halloween and Christmas, here I come! 

I wasn't that interested in the Flippin' Awesome dies initially as I've done many a waterfall card in my demo days and it didn't initially spark any particular interest. Of course, the many videos and samples had me reconsider. Ironically enough, it's the add-on dies that had me the most interest - I like having long narrow rectangles, which I am sometimes looking for to layer on a card and don't seem to have. It's also one of their easiest interactive card mecanism to put together, so I thought, why not.

Because I had this idea inspired by the Ho-Ho-Holidays stamp set, the waterfall die is the first one I pulled out of my new purchases. I will say this - the waterfall mecanism does not take any time to put together. Decorating the five panels (if you include the long one that pulls out at right - that's another story. In this case, I used an alphabet set, three different stamp set, I did ink blending, splatters, pulled out the stitched hillside borders to make snow mounds, I heat-embossed... I had to use Kelly's suggested trick to insert an acetate over the last panel if some of the die-cut get stuck in the mecanism when you layer - which mine did when I added the last sentiment strip. This probably took over four hours to put together overall. The good news is that I am pretty pleased with the result­.

So what I did is pull out all of the stamp sets I owned that had a reindeer in them - the new Ho-Ho-lidays, For You Deer and Say What? Christmas Critters. And I stamped "You know Dasher / and Dancer / and Prancer / And Vixen" and I did the various deers on each panel. I was already planning on using the deer's behind on one of the panels and I decided to make it Vixen and add a little red enamel heart on his butt cheek. (I think playing with Cabage Patch dolls, little ponies and Care Bear has me wanting to tattoo something on the deer or ponies' behinds!) For the last panel, I used my typewriter to add "But do you recall the most favmous of all?" (And I realized afterwards I had missed the word reindeer but I liked the length and didn't feel the extra word was necessary for it to work.) I colored the reindeer from the Ho-Ho-Holidays stamp set again and gave him a red nose, then added the sleigh with Santa's bag and a few gifts. I'm particularly pleased with the sky. I initially watercolored a sky in shades of dark blues and purple and while it was pretty, it didn,t go with the rest of the card at all. I decided ink blending would work better. (Another reason the card took so long to finish.) I looked at Distress Oxide inks and again, felt the blues weren't going with the shades of the Knit Picky papers I had used. So on a whim, I pulled out Weathered Wood and I added a touch of Black Soot at the top. It works so well! It falls somewhere between blue and grey so it complements the other shades beautifully. I used the new Liquid Stardust to add splatters and create falling snow, which also looks gorgeous.

I used white woodgrain cardstock for the card base and inked it with the Weathered Wood Distress Oxide ink and a blending brush. It was die-cut with the Dotted Rectangle Stackables.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Ho-Ho-Holidays, For You Deer, Say What? Christmas Critters, Riley's ABCs (Lawn Fawn)
Cardstock: Lost Lagoon, Going Grey, Poppy Parade, Cucumber Crush, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!);
Woodgrain Cardstock in Neutrals (Lawn Fawn); Acetate (IBM)
Patterned Papers: Knit Picky (Lawn Fawn)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Weathered Wood, Black Soot Distress Oxide (Ranger)
Dies: Stitched Snowflakes,  Stitched Hilside Borders, Flippin' Awesome, Flippin' Awesome Add-On,
Ho-Ho-Holidays, For You Deer, Say What? Christmas Critters (Lawn Fawn); Sentiment Labels (Simon Says Stamp)
Accessories: Blender Tool (Ranger); Liquid Stardust (Lawn Fawn); Brights Enamel Shapes (Stampin' Up!);
Markers (Copic); Starry Sky Gansai Tambi Watercolor (Kuretake); White Embossing Powder (Wow);
Typewriter (We R Memory Makers)

 

The Astronaut Princess

Inspiration: Global Design Project #203 (Sun, Moon and Stars) + Page Maps May 2019 Sketch

As a nice coincidence, my sister texted me a picture of my niece dressed as, to quote her, the "astronaut princess" the same week I received the Little Princess paper collection from Simple Stories. To explain my sister's reference, it was the name of a French children show when we were young and when they purchased the winter hat last year and my niece tried it on, my brother-in-law cracked up and said that she looked like an astronaut, hence the astronaut princess. That was a perfect title for my page right there! It was really easy to put everything together since the cut-apart pages, the sticker sheet and the princess bits & pieces provided a lot of inspiration. The sketch I used had some stars sprinkled on it, and I used both stars (to go with the astronaut theme) and butterflies, to mimick the ones on the princess dress.

When cleaning up my craft room, I found some old chipboard pieces. I don't use those a lot anymore but I'm reluctant to give them away since they are still a good base product. I have recently invested in a few Distress Oxide sprays and I was curious to see if they would work well with the chipboard, so that is how I initially covered the stars. I started with Picket Fence (white) and then splattered some Picked Raspberry and Wilted Violet. I sort of liked the result, but wasn't wild about it. I initially tried adding a thin line of glue covered with white fine glitter around them, but the result was uneven, so I decided to cover the whole chipboard pieces instead.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Skinny Mini Alphabet (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Night of Navy , Whisper White (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Little Princess (Simple Stories); Best Mom Ever (Photoplay)
Ink: Night of Navy (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Def. Articles Dies (Kesi'art); Alphanumeric Script Alphabet Dies (Tim Holtz for Sizzix);
Picked Raspberry and Wilted Violet Distress Oxide Sprays, Picket Fence Distress Spray Stain (Ranger);
Little Princess Bits & Pieces (Simple Stories); Pearl Rectangles, Glitter Gloss Aqua Shimmer Brush (Tonic);
Stars Framelits, Wisteria Wonder Seam Binding, Elegant Tag Topper Punch, Enamel Dots, On Board Chipboard (Stampin' Up!);
White Fine Glitter (Martha Stewart); Layered Butterflies Dies (Lawn Fawn); Funky Mini Silver Stars Adhesive Sheets (Funky Films)

 

Santa on Vacation

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #521

I'm still going through the pile of summer-themed papers I have put aside and I realized I could pair the So Santa stamp set wth them since the set includes an image of Santa on the beach. This stamp set came out last year, but the French version ended up in the Clearance Rack (very rare to see French sets, usually, it's just the English ones) so I decided to get one for myself. There's some fun and unique sentiments in the set that make a great addition to my collection. In this case, the sentiment reads, "Ho! Ho! Ho! Who needs snow?!"

My little scene was colored with Copic makers, die-cut with the Stitched Shapes Framelits and matted with a scalloped circle. I used a strip from the border paper to decorate a matching red metallic envelope.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Père Noël s'amuse (So Santa - Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Lemon Lime Twist, Brilliant Blue, Whisper White, Crumb Cake (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Beach Day (Carta Bella)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Blueberry Bushel Classic Ink (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Tropical Dies, Stampin' Dimensionals, Layering Circle Dies, Embossing Mats (Stampin' Up!);
Buttons (Autumn Leaves); Markers (Copic); Wonky Stitched Rectangle Die-namics (My Favorite Things);
Dotted Rectangle Stackables Dies (Lawn Fawn); A2 Jupiter Metallic Envelope (envelopes.com)

 

Monkeying Around

Inspiration: Fab Friday #170

That color combo is why I love challenge. I would never have paired a soft colour like Petal Pink with saturated colours such as Blueberry Bushel and Call Me Clover, but the result is really striking! Challenges push me to use colours aside from my beloved greens and teals! And in this case, to use the dreaded Grapefruit Grove. I still struggle with how intense this color is and how easily it can overpower a design, but here, I find it works nicely.

The reason I gave this combo a try is because during a previous experimentation session, I had made a green spaarkly background using Nuvo Shimmer powders. (Side note: I was watching a Live from Tim Holtz today and he mentioned there's making and then there's creating. He said it was important to sometimes just sit down and play, with no agenda. I sometimes do when I get new products and I'm short on time or I'm unsure how I will use them, but what he said made me realize I should do it more because I think he is right when he says that's how you learn to use the products and how you discover new things.) Anyway, it just happens that this fun shimmery background was sitting out on my desk and I realized it pretty much was a Call Me Clover background. The idea of adding the grid on top with the monkey came from the fact that I had also put those items on the corner of my desk in the hope of playing with them soon.

Considering the background was already created and I had a very clear idea of what I wanted to make, this card took deceiptively long to make!! I didn't count and I stopped in there somewhere to grab a bite, but I think it was close to three hours overall. The coloring itself took a while. I didn't think it would, since the images are tiny and I used only 8 markers overall for the whole batch, but I did stamp the full set - all 20 monkeys - and matching all the dies at the end took some time itself! (While I was doing that, I thought I could stamp the whole set and put the images on the magnet sheet to make life easier for myself when working with the dies as it's really hard to tell which images goes with which die in a set where everything is the same size and so similar!

Three if the squares were backed with cardstock to add different colours and I ran those squares through the Big Shot with embossing folders to added texture. I also decided to add the Stitched Rectangle Frames from Lawn Fawn around the card to have the Grapefruit Grove and Petal Pink next to each other, which looked really nice.

I used Foam Adhesive Strips from Stampin' Up! to glue the grid in place, which is taller than their Stampin' Dimensionals. In turn, I used that to my advantage when I added the monkeys in the square. Some are glued flat, some are glued with one layer of Dimensionals and others with two layers of Dimensionals so that they would match the height of the frame.

I had initially thought I would use one of the squares to add a sentiment, but I couldn't decided which monkey image to eliminate, so instead, I looked for a tiny French sentiment that would fit the little sign one of the monkey is hiding behind. I found what I was looking for in the retired Teeny Tiny Wishes stamp set - a little Thank You that was small enough to fit.

Because of the adhesive strip, the resutling card is bulky, so I made an oversize envelope out of blue cardstock and I used the leftover squares from the grid to decorate it. I used the same embossing folders on the squares before adhering them to the bottom of the envelope and I added my remaining monkey imges on them. I had three monkeys left - two went inside the card and the last one went on the envelope flap. (And here I was thinking I'd have some images left for another project, but once I got started embellishing, I couldn't stop!)

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Little Monkey Agenda (Mama Elephant); Voeux mignons (Teeny Tiny Wishes - Stampin' Up)
Cardstock:Petal Pink, Grapefruit Grove, Blueberry Bushel, Call Me Clover (Stampin' Up)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Accessories: Little Monkey Agenda Dies, Grid Window Die (Mama Elephant);
Dotted Lattice Embossing Folder (Taylored Expressions); Stitched Rectangle Frames Dies (Lawn Fawn);
Envelope Punch Board, Decorative Dots and Snow Burst Embossing Folders,
Fine-Tip Glue Pen, Foam Adhesive Strips (Stampin' Up); Markers (Copic);
Glitter Gloss Aqua Shimmer Brush, Falling Leaves, Atlantis Burst and Green Parade Shimmer Powders (Nuvo)

 

Cool Scene

Inspiration: CAS(E) This Sketch #335 + MFT Color Challenge #123

First of all, I realize my color combo is a bit off when I went back to save the picture of the color combo to post on my blog. I always print a summary sheet of current challenges before I sit down to stamp and on my printed sheet, the color looked like royal blue but I now see that it's actually purple! It's not that far off, but the change wasn't done on purpose.

One of the items on my desk to be used was the Mint shifter stencil from Tim Hotlz and when I saw the stripes on the CAS(E) This Sketch challenge, I knew I could use it on my card. I then layered some images from the You Make My Heart Spin set over the stripes, including a rink that was die-cut out of Dazzling Diamonds glimmer paper. For something different, I decided to die-cut the bottom of the card with the File Folder Edges dies and layered a piece of grey cardstock inside the card to show underneath. I noticed that one of the sentiments from that set was short enough to fit on the tab, so I added it there, embossed in Platinum powder.I covered the tree and the roof of the house with clear chunky glitter and I decorated an A2 Sapphire Metallic envelope to match using the Fold-Up Tags dies.

I didn't want to add more to the card but I kept looking at it and feeling like it was too bottom-heavy. Sometimes, white space is great on a project, but in this case, it didn't really work so I pulled out a cloud stencil and white texture paste and added a few clouds. It made a tremendous difference. It's still subtle since I did white on white, but I made sure to apply the paste messily so that it would be textured, and that was enough to balance the card design without taking away from the simplicity.

 

 

 

  

 

Supplies
Stamps: You Make My Heart Spin (My Favorite Things)
Cardstock: Thick Whisper White, Grey Granite (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Blueberry Bushel, Berry Burst Classic Ink (Stampin' Up!); Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Accessories: A2 Sapphire Metallic Envelope (envelopes.com); Markers (Copic);
Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper, Stampin' Dimensionals, Clear Chunky Glitter, Fine-Tip Glue,
Patterm Party Decorative Masks, White Texture Paste, Snow Burst Embossing Folder (Stampin' Up!);
You Make My Heart Spin, Fold-Up Tags and File Folder Edges Die-namics (My Favorite Things);
Platinum Embossing Powder (Ranger); Mint Shifter Stencil (Tim Holtz for Stampers Anonymous)

 

Sunbathing on the Beach

Inspiration: Color Throwdown #556 + Simon Says Stamp Wednesday (Summertime Blues)

It's funny how I don't always end up using my favorite stamps right off the bat. Online challenges and various sources of inspiration will often dictate the order in which I pull out supplies. This is a good example here, as I really love the On the Beach set that was released by Lawn Fawn at the beginning of summer and yet, this is my first creation done with it. It's been on my short list of items to use next and it was the Color Throwdown combo that made it finally take shape. The yellow was perfect for the sun and beach, the blue for a nice summer sky and the green for the palm trees.

This card is not really different from all the samples floating out there made with this stamp set, but I did cover the bottom part of the Tropical Backdrop with Dirty Sand Baked Texture embossing powder to add texture. The result really does look exactly like sand. I also Stkcled the heck out of my sun and I'm still not sure if I like it or not. I think it draws the eye to the back of the card instead of the front, which is not what it should do, but that's part of creating. You should never be afraid to try something out, even though it doesn't always pan out.

At the last minute, I decided I wanted to add a sentiment in there. I looked at options and finally decided to do a speech bubble. I used the back of the die-cut to have the arrow pointing the bear's way and I stamped "Thinking of You" in there. I decided I wanted to add a little heart, which I found in the I Love You(calyptus) set.

For the matching envelope, I used a Fairway Metallic envelope and added the umbrella and drink embossed in yellow powder.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: On the Beach (Lawn Fawn); Voeux mignons (Teeny Tiny Wishes - Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Whisper White, Daffodil Delight, Old Olive, Seaside Spray (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Seaside Spray Classic Ink (Stampin' Up!); VersaMark; Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Accessories: On the Beach Dies, Tropical Backdrop Die, Sunrise Backdrop Die, Speech Bubbles (Lawn Fawn:
Dirty Sand Baked Texture Embossing Powder (Emerald Creek); Markers (Copic);
A2 Fairway Metallic Envelope (envelopes.com); Yellow Stickles (Ranger);
Stampin' Blends Markers, Crushed Curry Stampin' Emboss Powder (Stampin' Up!)

 

Serene Scene

Inspiration: CAS Colours & Sketch #334 + Hand Stamped Sentiments #321

I hadn't used my Waterfront stamp set basically since buying it so it was high time to ink it up again. The CAS sketch was perfect since it left a lot of room to create a scene and the colors from the Hand Stamped Sentiments combo also worked well for a nature scene. I used the new Birch background stamp to decorate the card front, and I stamped the speckles from the Waterfront set on the little cardstock strip for added interest. I then topped it with Pretty Peacock faceted dots. I stamped the sun (or moon - your choice!) in So Saffron and used a sponge dauber to add a glow around it. I added a sentiment from the same set in Cherry Cobbler ink. Easy-peasy design!

 

 

 

  

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Au bord de l'eau (Waterfront), Birch
Cardstock: Cherry Cobbler, Soft Suede, Pretty Peacock, Whisper White
Ink: Cherry Cobbler, Soft Suede, Pretty Peacock, So Saffron
Accessories: 2019-2021 In Color Faceted Dots, White Medium Envelope, Sponge Dauber

 

Just Beachy

Inspiration: Simon Says Stamp Monday (Summertime Blues) + Global Design Project #202

When I received the Sandy Toes set, I stamped all of the images on a sheet of cardstock. I used some of them on a scrapbook page and I kept the rest to make cards later. Yesterday, I decided to pair the remaining images with the Boardwalk paper from Bo Bunny. I also had another sheet of paper I had tested my latest shimmer powder purchase on (Golden Sparkler from Nuvo) and I thought it would make a great sandy background. I based my design around the Global Design Project sketch, which I slightly adapted to fit my design better (bow at the bottom instead of the top and banner at right instead of at left). Since the Boardwalk paper pad had a sheet with beach balls all over it, I decided to use the image of the little girl holding a beach ball to go with it.

I found a sentiment in a set from this past Sale-A-Bration offering that had a French sentiment that means something like "in the land of vacation", so I picked that to add to the card. I used an A2 Flame Metallic envelope to finish the set off.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Sandy Toes (Waffle Flower); Une part de mon histoire (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Blueberry Bushel, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!); Watercolor Paper (Fabriano)
Patterned Papers: Boardwalk (Bo Bunny)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Soft Suede Classic Ink (Stampin' Up!); VersaMark
Accessories: Sandy Toes Dies (Waffle Flower); Dotted Rectangle Stackables Dies (Lawn Fawn);
Markers (Copic); Navy Embossing Powder (Top Boss); Golden Sparkler Shimmer Powder (Nuvo);
Enamel Dots, Stampin' Dimensionals, Hello Honey Ribbon, Large Oval Punch (Stampin' Up!);
A2 Flame Metallic Envelope (envelopes.com)

 

Do Not Open Before Christmas

Inspiration: Simon Says Stamp Wednesday (Add a Die-Cut)

This card evolved in stages. I had pulled out my Gansai Tambi to make a watercolored background in various shades of green and use the Stitches plate from Ellen Hudson to add texture to it. Because I was working with greens, I decided, why not sneak a Christmas card in there. (I've said it in past posts, I'm trying really hard to make summer projects right now because once I go down the Christmas rabbit hole, I never come out and my summer-themed supplies get sadly neglected.)

As I was working on my background, I realized that the Jolly St. Nick from Tim Holtz would pop very nicely against my background. I hadn't used the dies yet and initially, I almost passed up on buying them because the assembly seemed so daunting! I'm happy to report that it turned out much simpler than I anticipated. I will not say it's quick, but it's not nearly as complicated as I had anticipated and here's why.

The colors are all written on the back of the metal dies so (contrary to the Hip Haunts dies, for example), you will only run the die once in your machine with that single color. Then my tip to you is to take the time to add adhesive sheet to the back of all of your cardstock pieces and this will make the assembly ten times faster than if you fiddle with glue on the small pieces. Then, last but not least, the bigger dies will add scored lines that show you exactly where to layer the other pieces. This part makes the layering so clear that I actually managed to assemble the guy without watching the video! The only place I messed up was putting down the grey piece before the black belt, so I had to lift it gently up and add the belt first, then the grey afterwards, but the rest was just instinctual.

Here's where's my creation took a turn. I glued the background on a regular A2 green card and tried adding the Santa and realize he's a tall fellow! (Note to everyone buying the dies - Santa doesn't fit on a regular 4-1/4" x 5-1/2" card, the hand and hat will overhang.) I could have left it and used a bigger envelope, but the resulting card wasn't showcasing the pretty Santa properly. I simply cut the card back and started looking at paper options to layer the Santa on something bigger. I pulled out the Christmas papers from Tim' last year's collection and picked the black paper with white type. I distressed the edges, used the back of a leftover piece to have a bit of plaid showing and die-cut three snowflakes out of white glitter paper. I then looked at sentiment options. I have this stamp that Stampin' Up! released last year where you have a bunch of tags that you can all cut at once with one die and some of those tags were perfect. I stamped the image on red cardstock, embossed it with gold powder, die-cut the pieces, tied some green and white baker's twine on them and tested them out. While I liked Ho Ho Ho and Naughty or Nice as sentiments, the shape of the "Do not open before Christmas" tag looked the best on the card, so I went with that option and recycled the two other tags on the envelope and inside the card.

The final card measures 5-1/4" x 6-3/4" – I used green cardstock and my envelope punch board to create an oversized envelope. I am so happy I cut my first card apart and made a bigger one. The new card looks a thousand times better.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Étiquettes des Fêtes (Tags & Tidings)
Cardstock: Cherry Cobbler, Real Red, Whisper White, Basic Black, Smoky Slate, Shaded Spruce (Stampin' Up!);
Watercolor Paper (Fabriano)
Patterned Papers: Christmas (2018) (Tim Holtz for Idea-ology)
Ink: VersaMark
(Accessories: Gansai Tambi Watercolors (Kuretake); Garden Green Baker's Twine, Envelope Punch Board,
Distressing Tool, Gold Foil Paper, Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper, Christmas Tags Thinlits Die,
Rhinestone Basic Jewels (Stampin' Up!); Christmas Day Snow Dies (Echo Park);
Jolly St. Nick Thinlits Dies (Tim Holtz for Sizzix); Stitches Cover Plate (Essentials by Ellen)

 

Relaxing by the Pool

Inspiration: MFT Sketch #449 + Time out Challenge #141 (Relaxation)

Aren't those mermaids adorable! I particularly liked that they have floaties and scuba gear. I colored two of them with Polychromos pencils and added Stickles and clear gloss to the tail and goggles, and black Enamel Accents for the mermaid's eyes. I flipped the dome shape from the sketch around, because I thought it looked better with the shape of the "pool" following the direction of the mermaids' tails.

On a strip of patterned paper, I stamped my sentiment and embossed it with navy powder. It reads, "It's time to relax." I still felt like the card needed a little something more, so I reached for my Swirl stencil to add water splash. I looked at various paste options and I finally pulled out my Moonlight Pearl Luna Paste from Cosmic Shimmer and I dyed it using a Tempting Turquoise ink refill. I had leftover paste, so I repeated the stenciling on an A2 Mirror envelope. Note to self: the next time I use the stencil, I'll try my new Pixie spray because this time, I just used tape and the paste went underneath the stencil, so my shapes aren't as sharp as I would like for them to be.

I then remembered I had cute little embellishments with fish scales on them, so I pulled them out and added one to the sentiment strip. I used the sequins from the same embellishment kit to decorate the rest of the card.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Mermaid for Each Other (My Favorite Things); Étapes de vie (Simple à souhait)
Cardstock: Melon Mambo, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Paper: Make a Splash (Bo Bunny)
Ink: VersaMark; Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Accessories: Moonlight Pearl Luna Paste (Cosmic shimmer); Let's Be Mermaids (Little Things from Lucy's Cards);
A2 Mirror Envelope (envelopes.com); Polychromos Pencils (Faber Castell); Swirl Stencil (Hero Arts);
Mermaid for Each Other Die-namics, Stitched Dome Die-namics, Wonky Stitch Rectangle Stax Die-namics (MFT);
Stickles, Enamel Accents (Ranger); Tempting Turquoise Classic Ink Refill, Stampin' Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!);
Navy Embossing Powder (Top Boss)

 

Pretty Red Bow

Inspiration: Freshly Made Sketch #400

I was looking through my patterned papers and when I spotted the Magical Adventure collection, I decided to pair it with the Magical Characters kit from Queen & Co. A lot of people love Disney, so I'd like to have a few Disney-inspired cards in my stash. I pondered which shape to use first and finally decided to pick the Minnie bow, which worked nicely with the Freshly Made sketch and the papers. I discovered that the kit comes with the cutest little shaker shapes, including stars and hearts. Here, I mixed the red and clear hearts to fill the bow. I also use one of the sentiments from the stamp set included in the kit, which reads "Have a magical day." The sentiment and their fonts are really great, it's just too bad they're all in English, which I don't use as often. The rest of the designis really simple. I only have one qualm about the design of the kit - I think the dies should include a full shape, so that we can die-cut the transparency to put inside the box and also to back the bottom with either plain cardstock or patterned paper. I had to freehand and the kit would have been more complete for me if a full shape had been included.

I liked the leftover pieces from the die-cut so I used them to decorate a black envelope. Because the envelope is dark, I decided to add an address block, which I die-cut out of patterned paper twice - in yellow for the frame and in blue for the center.

I ended up making a second project, which was inspired by the leftover foam shape from the inside of the bow (the outside part being used to line the shaker box) and the opposite parts of the square frame I had used on the envelope. The foam box is dimensional and sticky so I knew I could make something fun with it. I decided to pour red glitter on it to cover it. I found some red chunky glitter in my stash, but I soon found out that the red foam was showing through, so I pulled out some red fine glitter to fill in the holes. I like the mix of the two, as I think the chunky glitter creates an interest texture. I then realized I could use the bow die again and add the shape on top to add detailing. Here's where I could have worked more efficiently, had I glue the die-cut on the foam before adding the glitter, which would have made the die-cut stay in place more easily. In this case, I had to use a strong adhesive on the very thin parts in the center of the bow, as the foam is smaller than the die-cut (because it's the inside part of the shaker). I was going to use regular red cardstock, but then I remembered about my red foil paper, which I'm really glad I did because the result is spectacular! I added a bit of seam binding at the top, five red gems at the bottom and voilà!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps, Dies and Shaker Supplies: Magical Characters Kit (Queen & Co)
Cardstock: Real Red, Whisper White, Bashful Blue (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Magical Adventure (Echo Park)
Ink: Real Red Classic Ink (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Crushed Curry Grosgrain Ribbon, Window Sheet, Black Rhinestones.
Angle Tag Topper Punch, Banner Triple Punch, Baja Breeze Seam Binding, Red Chunky and Fine Glitter (Stampin' Up!);
A2 Midnight Black Envelope (envelopes.com); Wonky Square Frames Dies (Avery Elle);
July Crystals (Studio Katia); Hole Reinforcer Punch (We R Memory Makers)

 

Birthday Banners

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #520 + Simon Says Stamp Monday (Happy Birthday)

I wanted to use the Sending Sweet Celebration Wishes set (with images from talented Stacey Yacula) and I paired it with some fun papers from the Summer Dream paper pack. My Gansai Tambi watercolors were out so I decided to use them. I have to confess that I hadn't watercolored the sample chart found in the cover of the box since buying them - not sure why, I guess I didn't want to screw up and waited until the "right time." Which was silly, because I always struggled to use the palette since you can't judge what the color is going to be by what you see in the box. The colors are so pigmented that half of them are just dark squares and you can't tell that they are teal, brown, black or purple. So this weekend, I quickly filled in the sample table and what a difference that made when I pulled the box again today to color! I can see what matches and what I could mix to get my color where I want it to be.

Because I was planning to use watercolors, I stamped my image in VersaMark on watercolor paper and embossed them with Platinum embossing powder. I was working with the Mojo sketch, so I followed the dimensions to make my life easier , but once I started adding the pieces, including the stamped banner, the whole card felt really cramped, so I decided to go a size bigger than A2 and made a 4-3/4" x 6" card (then made a matching envelope out of purple cardstock using the Envelope Punch Board). Then I struggled some more when came time to add the sentiment. Initially, I had put the banner at an angle from the top to the right side and placed the sentiment over it and the card was not feeling balanced at all, no matter how many different pieces I tried. I finailly put the banner at the bottom and saw that it totally solved my problem, so the pieces from the sketch are all there, just not placed in exactly the same spot. Sometimes, you gotta do what you gotta do, since the goal should always be to have a pleasing resulting card.

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Sending Sweet Celebration Wishes (My favorite Things); Vases divers (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Opulent Orchid (Stampin' Up!); Watercolor Paper (Fabriano)
Patterned Papers: Summer Dream (Craft Smith)
Ink: VersaMark; Blackberry Bliss Classic Ink (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Sending Sweet Celebration Wishes Die-namics (My favorite Things);
Simple Wavy Banners Dies, Dotted Rectangle Stackables Dies (Lawn Fawn); Confetti Card Dies (Concord & 9th);
Stitched Shapes Dies, Stampin' Dimensionals, Eyelets, Envelope Punch Board, Aqua Painter Brush,
Woven Threads Sequin Assortment (Stampin' Up!); Gansai Tambi Watercolors (Kuretake);
Stacked Deckle Rectangles Dies (Tim Holtz for Sizzix); Platinum Embossing Powder (Ranger)

 

Is That What a Dinosaur Would Do?

Inspiration: Card Maps July 2019 + Lawn Fawnatics # 58 + ColourQ #361

Friends fans, this one is for you!

Rawrsome was one of the stamp set I was really excited about from the Spring Lawn Fawn release and yet, I still had not made anything with it. Not sure why, probably because I was waiting to be hit with an original idea. Inspiration struck when I spotted the sentiment that reads "You can't give up! Is that what a dinosaur would do?" in my Friends-inspired stamp set from The Ink Road Stamps. I remembered that this sentence was told to Ross in the TV show, but I was hazy on who has said that to him. I was thinking Phoebe, but a quick Google search reminded me it was Joey. (You can see the clip HERE, if you want to refresh your memory.)

I liked the Card Maps sketch with the circle in the center, as it reminded me of the Reverse Stitched Scalloped Circle Windows dies, which I love to use. I inked a sky using the Cloud stencil and the ground using the Palm Tree Border. Then I decided to make an interactive element and have the lava pull out of the volcano, using the Let's Toast Pull-Tab Add-On Die. Of all of the interactive dies from Lawn Fawn, this is my favorite, as it is really easy to use and can work is many different scenes. You just need to trim the pull tab to a smaller size when using an image that's smaller than the toast from the original set, which I did here.

For the front panel, I used some Woodgrain cardstock from Lawn Fawn in brown, for additional texture, and at the last minute, I decided to add the little baby dinosaur and the egg to fill in the space some more. (This is a 5-1/4" x 5-1/4" card, so there's a lot of ground to cover.)

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Rawrsome (Lawn Fawn); The One With All the Stamps (The Ink Road Samps)
Cardstock: Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White, Tango Tangerine (Stampin' Up!);
Woodgrain in Neutrals (Lawn Fawn)
Designer Series Paper Stack: Brights (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Early Espresso Classic Ink (Stampin' Up!);
Vintage Photo, Tumbled Glass Distress Oxide (Ranger)
Accessories: Rawrsome Dies, Reverse Stitched Scalloped Circle Windows Dies, Let's Toast Pull-Up Tab Add-On Dies,
Palm Tree Border Dies (Lawn Fawn); Brights Candy Dots, Stampin' Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!);
Blender Brushes (Picket Fence Studios); Cloud Stencil (My Favorite Things); Markers (Copic)

 

Thelma and Louise

Inspiration: Just Us Girls #499 (Summer)

Sunglasses, convertible car, tank tops and luggage - everything that speaks to summer!

I wanted to use my Thelma and Louise stamp and was looking through my papers for inspiration before coloring the image (with Polychromos pencils). The Little Bit Lovely design from the Little by Little collection from Shimelle caught my eye and it became the background piece for my stamped image. A matching Lagoon metallic envelope was stamped and embossed to finish the set.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Uptown Girls Thelma and Louise (Stamping Bella)
Cardstock: Night of Navy, Whisper White, So Saffron
Patterned Papers: Lil' Bit Lovely - Little by Little Collection (Shimelle for American Crafts)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Night of Navy, Pool Party Classic Ink (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Stitched Oval Stackables Dies, Outside In Stitched Rectangles Dies (Lawn Fawn);
Polychromos Pencils (Faber Castell); A2 Lagoon Metallic Envelope (envelopes.com);
Stampin' Dimensionals, Pool Party Satin Ribbon, Daffodil Delight Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon,
Primrose Petal Stitched Satin Ribbon, Clear Stampin' Emboss Powder (Stampin' Up!)

 

Craft Fail

Inspiration: Tuesday Morning Sketch #514 + Just Add Ink #468 (C for Crafts)

Inspiration for this card came randomly. I realized I hadn't used the Turnabout templates I had purchased, so I pulled them out and decided to give one a try, selecting the Crafty turnabout. I then remembered a funny sentiment I had jotted down to use on a future project: "I feel like a failure. I've been shopping for craft supplies for 15 years and I still don't have everything I need," Perfect!

I don't have that sentiment in a stamp, so I used Word to put something together, using RGB codes to match my cardstock. The colour combo was inspired by an old ColourQ combo.

About the turnabout tools - having the templates helped, but the background is still not perfectly stamped, which bothers me. Despite my best efforts, I just can't seem to ever line up all four sides correctly, which really shows with a turnabout like this one as the labels are supposed to be centered on the containers. That's just annoying. I probably will not be buying a whole lot of turnabouts because of that.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Crafty Turnabout (Concord & 9th)
Cardstock: Thick Whisper White, Cherry Cobbler, Tango Tangerine, Daffodil Delight,
Basic Grey, Brushed Silver, Bermuda Bay (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Cherry Cobbler, Tango Tangerine, Daffodil Delight, Bermuda Bay
Accessories: Crafty Dies (Concord & 9th); A2 Flame Metallic Envelope (envelopes.com);
Bermuda Bay 1/8" Glimmer Ribbon, Stampin' Dimensionals, Scallops Embossing Folder (Stampin' Up!)
Fonts: Grand Hotel, Cooper Black

 

Lemon and Vodka

Inspiration: Simon Says Stamp Wednesday (Anything Goes) + Global Design Project #200

After I was done with my Picnic in the Park card, I was left with three rub-ons from my Bo Bunny pack: a lemonade pitcher and two lemons. I knew I could make something small and cute with it. I was thinking of doing a tag or a bookmark, but then I remembered a sentiment from an old The Cat's Pajamas stamp set that talked about finding someone who had vodka when life handed you lemons, so I went looking for it and the project turned into a card.

The full sentiment, when you combine the two stamps, reads "Whrn life gives you lemon make lemonade / and try to meet somebody whose life has give vodka and have a party." To me, it was just too long and I only wanted the vodka part. I was lucky enough that I was able to omit the parts I didn't want using a black marker and my stamping tool so that I could stamp a few times to get a darker, even image. (Sadly, markers do not work as well on photopolymer as they do on red rubber.) I remembered that I had a polka dot dry embossed cardstock leftover from a kit somewhere on my desk, so I recycled that for the main panel, and I added my rub-ons at the bottom and around the sentiment. I wanted baker's twine at the bottom, but didn't want to cover the pitcher image, so I used a handheld punch to add holes on each side - and this is where I messed up because I went as far as the punch would go and ended up leaving two marks at the bottom of my paper from where the metal part had gone in. I was a little upset with myself and couldn't do this again since I was working with a leftover piece of embossed paper and rub-ons, and that's when I had the idea of using narrow washi tape on each side of the panel to hide the marks. And what do you know, the card looks even prettier with the washi! (Look at me, turning lemons into lemonade...)

I added yellow sequins here and there and embossed a green metallic envelope with yellow powder to finish the set. I think it turned out so cute, especially for a project that was made using leftovers!

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Lemons (The Cat's Pajamas)
Cardstock: Granny Apple Green, White polka dot embossed cardstock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); VersaMark
Accessories: Sunshiny Day Rub-Ons (Bo Bunny); A2 Fairway Metallic Envelope (envelopes.com);
Yellow Baker's Twine (Doodlebug Design); Lemon Sherbet Sequins (Little Things from Lucy's Cards);
Washi Tape, 1/8" Handheld Punch, Crushed Curry Stampin' Emboss Powder (Stampin' Up!)