FS134

I played the FS134 challenge this week, and the featured stamper was Darlene Pavlick; otherwise known as akronstamperdpk on SCS. This is the card I chose from her gallery to CASE.

I changed the colors, the ribbon, embossing folder, and the sentiment panel. I used the Victoria embossing folder and swiped the embossed image with a beige ink pad and adhered it to a Prisma Birchtone light cardstock. I used the labels four Nestabilities for the sentiment panel and eliminated 2 layers from Darlene's original card. The sentiment panel is by Verve from the "Because of You" set and was inked with markers and sponged with beige. Ribbon is from Sharon Johnsons ribbon store and the bow was made with the Bow-Easy. Chocolate pearls are by Kaiser.

Wishing you all a great Monday and a great week ahead. Thanks for stopping by :)

Carol

VLVSep01

I made a card for the Viva La Verve sketch challenge with a twist. The twist is to use little round things. I chose to use Kaiser lavender pearls for the twist. For this card I used olive and eggplant cardstock from a DCWV mat stack, along with pale plum and cottage wall dsp from SU! I punched the borders with a MS doily punch and embossed the focal panel with an Impressabilities and sanded it. I should note that the eggplant cardstock has a white core which is why you see the pattern after sanding. The ribbon is pale plum from PTI and the sentiment is from Verve, encased in some vanilla hodge podge hardware.
I hope you're all having a wonderful weekend so far. It's gloomy in PA today so it's a good day to stay indoors and stamp! Thanks for stopping by :)

Carol

Autumn Birthday

I got an order last night to make 4 birthday cards for late September so I went into Autumn mode and made this one first. I took a scrap of Autumn dsp (no name on the back) and stamped it with a Sugarloaf Inc leaf stamp in Versamark, and embossed it with gold ep. Then I sponged all over it with Really Rust ink to give it a little more depth of color. The leaf image is a Nestability die, and before I removed the paper from the die, I took a brown marker and drew the lines on the leaf in brown. It's popped up on foam tape and wrapped with gold cording. I punched 2 circles from the More Mustard cardstock and inserted a leaf brad in one, while wrapping gold cording around the open prongs of the brad. I glued the other circle on the back, and tied that onto the cording on the leaf. The sentiment is by Hero Arts and the cardstock is Tangerine Tango.
I hope you're all enjoying a great Thursday, and thanks so much for stopping by to say "hey!"

Carol

MMSC16

Here's my card for the Midnight Madness Sketch Challenge #16 found HERE. This sketch really had me stumped for a while, but I finally came up with this card. I embossed the background with a Cuttlebug embossing folder in dark gray cardstock. The card base is black. The 3 panels underneath the main panel were scraps from my stash and I don't know who makes them. The
butterfly was stamped with Versafine Onyx Black ink and embossed with clear ep, then colored with Tombow markers and blended with a wet brush. The sentiment panel was colored with markers and stamped and then pierced. The flowers are by Prima, the ferns are punches by MS and EK success. The button is from my stash and tied with embroidery thread.
I hope you enjoy what I finally came up with!
Thanks for stopping by and do enjoy your Tuesday!

Carol

stamps - sugarloaf, Inc., Upsy Daisy
paper - black, grey, PTI white, pink scraps for ferns, 2 dsp scraps (unknown)
inks - Versafine Onyx Black
accessories - clear embossing powder, Tombow markers, MS fern punch, EK rock fern punch, Prima flowers, ribbon, button, embroidery thread piercing tool, cuttlebug embossing folder

Flourishes Timeless Tuesday #30

I had time to play the FTTC30 today. The challenge was to use pearls on our cards. This one was quick and simple, and done with scraps from my stash. I pulled out a piece of magenta cardstock and stamped the floral images with Versafine Onyx Black, embossed them with clear ep, and cut them out. I popped them up on foam tape and added some black pearls to the centers. The top panel is a piece of dsp (name unknown) that I've had forever, and I matted it with a piece of matching magenta cardstock. I scored 3 lines underneath the panel, but they didn't photograph too well, perhaps you'll see them if you click on the picture. The ribbon is white grosgrain from my stash. The sentiment is from the Upsy Daisy set, and I colored it with markers and then stamped it. I'm glad I got time to join in the challenge today since I missed the last 2 weeks!
Thanks for stopping by and thanks for a great challenge!

Carol

Mojo 100

WOW! I had lots of stamping time today so I finished yet another card! This is for the Mojo101 sketch challenge found here. Since I had the Holiday Treasures dsp on my table from a card I made yesterday, I used it again for this card. I used the So Many Scallops stamp set for the sentiment, inking it with markers. I layered it on a chocolate chip panel cut with Nestabilities labels four, and added a blue snowflake brad. The only other thing I added was the square green gemstones at the top. Quick 'n easy - the way I like it!! I think my Mojo found it's way back home again and I'm glad!!
Have a great evening and take care!


Carol

FS 133_ Caseing jojot

I couldn't resist playing the SCS FS133 this week, since jojot was the stamper being honored. I've long been an admirer of her work and although I've cased this card before, I wanted to case it again. It's a crisp, clean look with great lines and it's perfect for many occasions and you can do almost any color with the great black and white combination of stripes and polka dots.
For this case I changed the light blue to taken with teal, and changed the ribbon from black & white to teal & white. I replaced the white brads with white dew drops. Other than those subtle changes, I left it pretty much the same. You can see Joanne's awesome work on her blog that's also linked on the sidebar. She creates some gorgeous cards and I love her style of stamping.
Thanks for stopping by today and make it a great day!

Carol

stamps - Echoes of Kindness
paper - Making Memories, Kaiser Ebony & Ivory, Taken with Teal, black, white PTI
inks - Taken with Teal, Old Olive
accessories - teal ribbon, white dew drops, piercing tool, blender pen, dimensionals

VLVAug04

Here's my card for the Viva La Verve Aug04 sketch challenge with a twist. The twist this week is to use our favorite color combination. That narrows it down to about twelve! LOL I chose red, white and black since it's one of my of favorite combos. I used the Verve "Because of You" stamp set and stamped the floral spray in Versafine Black on SU really red dsp. I stamped the spray again on real red cardstock and cut out the larger flower and popped it up after curling the petals around a paintbrush handle. The main image ovals were cut with shape cutters. I took another floral image from the set and stamped it off once in warm grey, then I took the sentiment stamp and curled it around on the block to create the oval sentiment and stamped that in Versafine Onyx black. The word "Mom" was stamped in Real Red, and the horizontal panel was done with Making Memories dsp and black cardstock. A large MS pearl was added to the popped up flower, while smaller Hero Arts pearls were added to the smaller flowers. The white dots were done with a white gelpen. The taffeta ribbon is by SU! and the white cardstock is by PTI.
Thanks so much for stopping by, and have yourselves a great Monday!

MOJOMary

I haven't played a Mojo Monday challenge in ages, but this past week they've been doing a sketch every day in celebration of Mojo turning 100. I found some time to do a little stamping today so I joined the challenge and made a card. I used the Holiday Treasures retired dsp and a Ruby Red cardstock base. I ran the card through the Zyron, and placed the squares on it, and then sprinkled the whole card with gold embossing powder and hit it with the heat gun. The image panel was done with 2 stamps. The Inkadinkado backgrounder was done with Sprout ink, and the Rubber Stampede Santa image was done with chocolate chip. I colored Santa's glasses with a gold opaque pen, and lined the edges of the ruby red mat with the gold pen as well. The gold beads came from Michaels.
Thanks for stopping by and I hope you're all enjoying your Sunday! Happy Mojo to Verve!

Carol

A Double Challenge

After playing with this photo endlessly, I've come to the conclusion that I need some new lights to photograph my cards! The colors on this card are soft Baja Breeze and it looks wonky, I mean SERIOUSLY wonky! Oh well, that's enough of my gripefest for one day LOL
This card meets the StampinB's challenge to use chalk, as well as the LSC234 challenge to create a masculine card with no flowers, ribbon or bling. I started with a Baja Breeze base and layered with Baja Breeze dsp and chocolate chip. The image was stamped with Versamark on a piece of Sweet Slumber specialty dsp (retired) and embossed with chocolate ep. I made a frame from a Nestability and masked off the image and colored it with blue chalk. I used a Tombow marker to create faux stitching around the frame. The two sentiment panels were from a HA stamp set. I added a large pewter eyelet in the center of the circles to match the brads on the corners of the main image. Brown and tan hemp were tied to the tiny tag.
Hopefully the next time I make a post I'll have better pictures!
Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by!

Carol

Stamps, Stamps, and more Stamps!!

If you'd like to win some new stamps, you've got to check out the Midnight Madness blog HERE.

Click on the link for the details - this is one amazing giveaway!!

MMSC15

Here's my entry for the Midnight Madness Sketch Challenge #15 found HERE. I'm relatively new to this website, but if you enjoy challenges like I do, you must check them out! They offer incredible prizes and lots of inspiration. Click the link above, or look for the logo on the sidebar to take you there.
On to the sketch challenge card. I used a white cardstock base and layered it with Making Memories dsp and Prismatics Iced Azalea, Frosted Azalea, and Intense Azalea. I layered the panels with black, dark grey and light gray in keeping with the variegated order. I hauled out the ole sewing machine to add the stitching on the top and bottom panels and added white dewdrops. The main image is a stamp by Tim Holtz, stamped with Versafine Onyx Black on white and layered with black and light gray. The sentiment panel was created with the Word Window punch and stamped with Versafine Onyx Black using an Inkadinkado stamper.
Thanks for stopping by today, and thanks to the Midnight Madness fun sketch challenge! Enjoy your Wednesday!

VLVAug03

This weeks Viva La Verve sketch challenge with a twist is to add a tag. I stamped the white cardstock base with various leaf images in caramel, beige and close to cocoa, all stamped off once. The leaf is a Nestabilities die cut (a Christmas gift from my DDIL) done on Kraft. I rubbed several colored inkpads all over it, and spritzed it with water. After it dried, I still wasn't happy with it, so I got out 3 tiny pots of H20's and painted here and there. After it was dry, I curled the portions around my cutting knife to give it dimension, and popped it up on foam tape. The acorns were also a diecut, and I rubbed them with a brown inkpad to add some color. The dsp is by PTI, the panel is Chocolate chip, punched with an EK small scallop border punch and the orange ribbon and brown twill are from my stash. The sentiment tag was hand cut and stamped with a Paper Store stamp (thanks Heidi). I added some brown yarn and fibers with an eyelet. If you click the picture, you might see the tiny topaz colored bling on the chocolate chip panel too!

Speaking of Heidi, has anyone seen her lately? Helloooooooo??? echo.........echo.......echo..........

Carol

MMSC#14

I decided to get my feet wet and play the Midnight Madness sketch challenge #14 today. I got out some Cuttlebug folders, punches, and some White, Navy, and Green Galore cardstock and got busy. I embossed the navy panel with the Cuttlebug leafy branch EF, and lightly swiped it with a white inkpad. I embossed the narrow white panel with a Cuttlebug buttons EF, and layered that on a navy and green galore panel that was punched with the MS doily punch. I adhered a piece of ribbon directly on the button-embossed panel, and layered the sentiment directly on the ribbon, using nesting ovals and a word window punch from SU!. The sentiment was done with an Inkadinkado stamper in Navy ink. I added a few silver beads for interest in the corners and on the sentiment panel. I've had the navy polka dot ribbon in my stash forever but I don't know who made it.

Thanks for taking some time to visit me here today - it's always great to hear from you :)

Carol

Beach Bum Birthday

As September approaches, I was in the mood to make one more card to remind me of the lazy hazy days of summer. I have a friend who always asks me to make beach-theme birthday cards for her, so this will be ready to go the next time she asks.
I used a stamp set my DDIL gave me several years ago but it's unmarked, so I have no idea who makes it. I stamped all the cute images in Versafine Onyx Black ink, embossed with clear ep and then colored with Tombows. The bottom panel is "paper cotton" cardstock, stamped in beige ink with the itty bitty backgrounds and punched with the EK border punch. It's layered on kraft cardstock with a yoyo yellow card base. The sun is just a combination of 2 punches, accented with yellow stickles. The sentiment is by Imaginisce and that cute crabby ribbon came from Michaels.
I hope you're all enjoying the last days of summer before they're gone. Where DID this summer go and how did it pass so quickly! Whew!!
Have a wonderful Sunday everyone!

Carol

StampinB's #19

I'm a day late posting this challenge, but that's nothing new for me :) This is for the StampinB's challenge hosted this week by Faith, who asks us to use at least 2 diecuts on our cards. I started with a base of Blush Blossom and added some SU! and PTI designer papers, both cut with the Top Note die. I punched the edge of the yellow & white panel with an EK tiny scallop border and layered it on the green. The flower is also a diecut, done in Groovy Guava and rubbed with the inkpad after cutting. I snipped the petals apart and curled them, but when I attached it to the card, all of that extra detail disappeared LOL The long leaf stems are diecuts too, while the smaller ferns are done with EK and MS punches in various shades of green and blush scraps. The sentiment panel is also a die cut from Nestabilities and stamped with a sentiment from the Upsy Daisy stamp set. I colored a white flower with Blush Blossom reinker and added a few Kaiser Blush pearls for interest. The colors are much prettier IRL than this wonky photograph shows, but it was the best I could come up with under the circumstances.
Thanks to all the ladies at StampinB's for their fun weekly challenges, and thanks to you for stopping by too!
Have a great weekend!

Carol

OCC Christmas in August

I haven't played the OCC challenge in forever, so when I saw today they're having Christmas in August, I decided to play along.
Heidi sent me this stamped image last year so I'm not sure who makes it. I colored it with Derwent wc pencils and added some diamond stickles to the fur on the cap. I really sewed these panels together with my sewing machine........don't faint! LOL I used some retired SU! dsp and a white cardstock base. The sentiment panel is an old Inkadinkado stamper and I used 2 SU! punches to cut them out. Easy Peasy today........Merry Christmas in August everyone!

Carol
ETA: I recently discovered this image is called "Woodland Santa" and is made by High Hopes Stamps

Celebrate with Style, Stamp Simply #100

Here's a card I made that started out as a masculine birthday card, but I'm not so sure it turned out that way after it was done! LOL I realized I can use this now for Sharon Johnson's No Time to Stamp challenge #100, which is to make a birthday card. It's done with Kraft, Baja Breeze, Parisian Breeze, Paper Cotton, and Chocolate Chip. Punches used were the square scallop by SU!, the Fleur de Lis by EK, and the Fleur De Lis border by EK. The sentiment is by Hero Arts and I added some chocolate fiber and Kaiser chocolate pearls. Masculine or not? I'd love to hear your thoughts on this one :)
Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by!

Carol

Ways to Use it

I made this card for today's WT231 challenge, to use variegation of any kind. I created a variegated background for this card by stamping glossy white cardstock with Baroque Motifs in Versamark and embossing with white embossing powder. Afterward I sponged So Saffron, Certainly Celery, and Pixie Pink to create my background. I stamped the Sarah Kay image in Versafine Onyx Black and embossed it in clear ep. I colored it with reinkers and a blending pen, and a few Tombows too. The ribbons are Saffron and Celery by SU! and the sentiment panel was done with an Inkadinkadoo stamper and 2 SU! punches. There are 2 tiny Kaiser blush pearls on the sentiment panel for added interest.

Thanks for dropping in today and have a wonderful Thursday!

A Triple Challenge

I made this card to meet 3 challenges this week - the Color Throwdown #55 to use Black, White, Melon Mambo, Crushed Curry and Kraft; the Flourishes Timeless Tuesday challenge #28 to use scoring; and the SCS#241 sketch challenge. I wasn't sure about these colors but as I started creating, I found they worked beautifully together. I stamped the Flourishes Poppy image on white with Versamark and embossed it with clear ep. I colored it with Tombows, adding FlowerSoft and black stickles to the center. The black panels are matted with Kraft and scored diagonally. It was really difficult to capture the scoring on black, but if you click the picture you might be able to see it better. I scored in different directions for added interest. The sentiment is by SU! and colored with Tombows before stamping. The Bling was in my stash.
Thanks for all the great challenges ladies, and thanks for stopping by to visit me today :)

Carol

Happy Haunting { a wee bit early }

I made this for the VLVAug02 sketch challenge with a twist. The twist this week is to use border or edge punches. I decided to use a MS goo punch and the rest of the card was built around that punch. I used scraps of green, gold, yellow, and purple and used a scrap of Bo Bunny dsp from last year. I layered the goo borders for a real drippy effect, and punched the spider with a MS spider punch. I dotted his eyes with a white gelpen and layered the mats with Nesties. I hand drew the spider web with a souffle pen because it was just too much black in that corner. The sentiment was stamped with Versamark and embossed with white EP. The ribbon was from my stash.
I know it's early for Halloween, but I'll be ready for it when it arrives now:)
Have a great day!

Carol

Stitched Christmas

Hey everyone........I hope your Monday is going well for you.
This was a stamped image my friend Michelle sent me with my last order from her fabulous store StampersDream.com. She embossed it in gold and it was just so pretty that I wanted to give it some special attention. OK, this was actually sewn on my sewing machine.....not faux stitching! This is a rare technique I use, simply because I'm too lazy to drag my machine out of the closet unless I REALLY have to use it. Lately I've seen several challenges and blogs that featured sewing on cards, so I just jumped in and started sewing.
I used the retired Holiday Treasures dsp from SU! and layered it and stitched it. It couldn't have been easier, and I have no idea why I don't do this more often. I may need to buy a new table so I can keep my machine visible and usable! I colored the stockings with Tombow markers and added some liquid applique for the fur and stickles for the berries on the top. The sentiment is from a G studio stamp and stitched on a piece of Ruby Red cardstock.
That's it for me today........ my granddaughter is coming over this afternoon to stamp with me. Whew, it's really hot out today, so I'm staying inside and chilling with my rubber!!
Have a good one and thanks for the visit........it's always great to have you:)

Carol

Vintage Santa

I recently drug out my Christmas stamps from storage and began to play with some I've neglected for quite a while. This card was done with a CTMH stamp set and a Tim Holtz Santa image stamp that I loved since the day I bought it. I'm not very good with vintage style cards, so this was a stretch for me. I found the piece of script dsp in my stash and thought it matched the Santa image since there was script on that as well. I love how the script showed through the tree image after it was stamped. After distressing the image, I colored it with chalks and touched up Santa's beard and hat with a white glaze pen. It's a different look for me, but hopefully someone will enjoy receiving it this Christmas :)
Thanks for stopping by today..........have a wonderful weekend!
Carol

Kitchen Sink Stamps Challenge #16

The challenge over at the Kitchen Sink Blog is being presented by guest hostess Emilia who challenges us to decorate the corners. I only had room to decorate one corner on my card since I made the floral image so large! I used some wasabi green cardstock and some PTI bitty box basics dsp for this one. I used the Lilies set for the flowers, and the Hibiscus set for the sentiment. I tore the edges of the dsp and ran my ink pad down the edges for a little distressing. The corner is a diecut I made with my Quickutz and the circles were cut with my Nestabilities. The ribbon is a precious scrap of retired Wasabi that's been waiting for the perfect card to place it on, and I think it works with this card. The pearls are by Kaiser and they're called Blush.
Thanks for stopping by today, and I wish you all a wonderful weekend!

Carol

stamps - KSS Lilies, Hibiscus
paper - PTI white, PTI bitty box basics, Wild Wasabi (SU!)
inks - SU! Blush Blossom, Pixie Pink, Cameo Coral, Regal Rose, Chocolate Chip, Mememto Sprout, Bamboo, Cottage Ivy, Versafine Onyx Black
accessories - Nestabilities, wild wasabi ribbon, Quickutz diecut, Kaiser Blush pearls

CTD#54, VLVAug01 double challenge

This week it's LeAnne's turn to choose the colors for the CTD#54 found here. She asks us to use Blush Blosson, Tangerine Tango (or Pumpkin Pie), Basic Grey and Really Rust. These colors are so pretty that I didn't have any trouble putting them together to make my card. I'm out of Really Rust cardstock, so I substituted a piece of dark brown cardstock......the closest match I had on hand. I started with a panel of Tangerine Tango and embossed it with the Flower Impressabilites. I lightly rubbed my Really Rust inkpad all over it to give it a distressed look. The floral image is from the Ever After SU! set, and that was stamped in Basic Grey and colored with glaze pens. The sentiment panel was stamped in blush on blush cardstock with the "Because of You" Verve stamp set, then the sentiment itself (also from Verve) was stamped in Really Rust. The 4 "faux" brads you see are actually punched pieces of Blush cardstock, covered with CTMH liquid glass. This card also qualifies for the VLV sketch challenge with a twist for the first week of August found here.
Thanks for stopping by today, and have a great Wednesday!

Christmas card and back to school!

Here's a composition book I altered for my granddaughter who starts middle school this year! It was done with different Cuttlebug embossed scraps of paper and went together quickly. The flower was cut with a Sizzix die, and the name panel was cut with Nesties label 4 and embossed with an impressabilities. The name is a sticker. I've made her a different altered book for the beginning of each school year and she looks forward to having that one-of-a-kind item that nobody else has! LOL
Next up is a card I made with a stamped image my friend Michelle from StampersDream.com sent me with my last order. I think this image is just the cutest thing, and I colored it almost as soon as I opened my order! I used Tombows to color it, and then used H2o's to color the outside of the cup. I added some Geo sparklers (click on the photo for a better look) to the image for added interest and sparkle, and some liquid pearls to the tree. The hands and feet were done with a white glaze pen. The checkered background and ribbon are by SU and the cardbase is by bazzill. The tag is a word window punch that was stamped with an old Inkadinkadoo stamper and tied on with some copper cording. Thanks Michelle, I just LOVE this adorable image!
And thanks to every one of you for spending part of your day with me :)

Carol

Cuttlebug Spot Challenge #42

Good Monday Morning! I hope you all enjoyed a pleasant weekend.
Today I made a card for the Cuttlebug Spot Challenge #42. I needed to make some male birthday cards so I chose the Argyle embossing folder and began with that. I ran a piece of gray cardstock through and then swiped it all over with a Memento London Fog ink pad. The silver metallic element is a piece I bought on clearance last year at a LSS. I didn't know what I'd do with it at the time, but I loved it and it was only 75 cents. I knew eventually I'd find a perfect use. When I recently purchased the big brads from SU, I immediately thought of pairing them together with this silver embossed border. It has masculine written all over it. I put a silver metal button in the center, tied with some red crochet thread. The sentiment is from Hero Arts, cut out and popped up on a black circle punch, and then a red scalloped punch. I dotted the scallops with a silver deco paint pen for added interest. This card went together quickly and I'm happy with the masculine feel of it........hopefully the gentlemen who receives it will like it too. BTW, the inside sentiment says "Have a one of a kind birthday".
Thanks for stopping by and have yourself a fine day :)

Carol

Christmas in August!

Can you believe it's August already?! What happened to July? Wow, this summer is flying by much too quickly!
I spotted this awesome Obsession Impression stamp at StampersDream.com last week and immediately ordered it. I've always loved horses and when we were much younger, we had horses of our own. This is one of the best horse images I've ever seen and I couldn't wait to ink it up.
I stamped the image on wc paper with Versafine Onyx Black ink and embossed it with clear ep. I colored it with Tombows and a wet brush. After it was dry I decided to add some texture to the fence they're leaning on, so I added frayed burlap, vintage photo, and broken china Distress crackle paints from Ranger. You can always click on the picture to see the details better. I drug the thick paint around with a toothpick to make it look like wood grain. I added some liquid applique to the fur trim on their Santa hats, let it dry overnight and then hit it with a heatgun to puff it up. The ribbon was a piece I had left in my stash from years ago. The sentiment was done with an old Inkadinkado stamper. The card base and mat are True Thyme and River Rock - 2 retired SU! colors that I've been hanging onto for some time now!
I hope you enjoyed today's post because I enjoyed having you stop by. Have a great weekend!

Carol