Wish!

A triple-challenge card to share today! I started with the Inspirational Card Sketch, used maroon, pink & lemon yellow for the BasicGrey challenge, and used letter stickers for the Caardvarks "Stuck on You" challenge. Lots of fun, although very unusual for me since it has no stamping at all on it...

The papers are all from the BasicGrey Lemonade 6x6 pad. When I cut the rounded edge, I accented it with Versamagic Thatched Straw ink just to bring in a bit more yellow. The letters are from a Chatterbox kit that I keep shoving around on my shelf, and I accented the "i" with a pink gem. I'm actually sending this out as a belated birthday card, so will write something like, "I wish I'd been on the ball and gotten this sent earlier" inside :)

On a side note, did you see the awesome things that Jessica Witty did with letter stickers over on the PaperCrafts blog? Genius. Maybe I will actually use some more of these in the future!

Live The Moment

Two cards in a row with lace and pink?! I'm shocking even myself!

I stamped the smARTworks' dragonfly image (Rossetti) onto a scrap of pink paper (BasicGrey Bittersweet) and roughed the edges up a bit. I layered it onto one of the prints and fiddled around with embellishments until settling on these flowers and a scrap of lace. I used Bazzill for the base (love that texture), and stamped a sentiment from To Life! to finish it off.

Time for me to live a few more moments straightening up my clutter :)

Fabulously Pink

I wanted to make a fun card for my daughter, and started with the image from Unity (Treasure To Me). I colored it with prismacolors, added pearls for the necklace, and covered the bag with glossy accents - how swank! :) The sentiment is from Verve (So Happy). I pulled out some old BasicGrey paper (Phoebe, I think?) and then layered on a bit of lace.

Over the top girly - mission accomplished!

Shaby Chic Blessings

I always adore Melissa Phillips' work - I love the way she incorporates so many elements, yet somehow it doesn't feel overdone. Anyway, I set out to make that type of card - and well, it was tough! I started by cutting the postcard from some patterned paper and then distressing the edges. I added the bird stamp (studio g) and the sentiment (Daisy Bucket), then played around with embellishments. I finally settled on a couple primas with buttons, a scrap of lace, a pin, and another page from that dictionary (as shown in my last post). The white card base was too stark, so I stamped a couple swirls just to break it up. Whew! I like the result, but you probably won't be seeing more like it a loooong time ;)

Quick reminder - you have just a couple more hours to join in the smART-word challenge. So throw some glitter on a card and win some stamps! (they're GOOOD ones - you can see them in the middle of this post)

Daisy Day

This is another of the images that I just couldn't resist from Tuesday Morning... seriously, ninety-nine cents?! Anyway, it's from Inkadinkado, and I liked the sketchbook feel it had. I stamped it onto some dictionary paper that I'd gone over with white craft ink, and the bits of color were added with twinkling H2Os - so yes, it's much prettier in person. I was also quite happy with myself as I threw on one of those little hardware bits that I just couldn't resist a couple years ago... and yet the box still sits there, nearly full! Continuing to chip away at the stash...

Simple Joys & Happy Times

Time to share my glittery contribution to this month's smART-word challenge... I started out by stamping the plant silhouette from the Cookie Botanicals Plate, and then added the lovely dragonfly from Rossetti. I filled the dragonfly in with 2 different types of stickles - distress rock candy for the wings, and tiara glitz for the body. Definitely an eye-catcher in person! The sentiment is from the latest "cookie" plate, Vintage Variety. I love the single-layer layout (which I'm always drawn to but have a hard time actually producing) - and hey, it could even work for a guy! :)

Using Scraps

What is it with paper crafters and our inability to part with even the smallest scraps of paper? I've actually gotten much better at disposing of bits and pieces, but I still have a substantial stash... When I saw the card that Godelieve had made here, I was instantly inspired. What a fabulous way to use those little bits of paper! I guarantee this will become a "go-to" layout for me.

Stamp images are from a variety of companies - if you see something that you absolutely MUST know about, leave a comment and I'll get back to you with the deets

Fish'n you were here

Time for another smARTworks Designer Challenge - this time featuring the Swimmin' set. After playing around with it a bit, I ended up using the fishbowl image and then coating the water portion with gem-tac (I was originally going to use glossy accents, but in this case wanted something a bit cloudier as opposed to the clear shine) Anyway, I then trimmed it out and layered it with some paper I stamped with the Accents #1 set; I pulled my blo-pens out of deep storage to add the orange splatters :)

So would you like to see more? Hop over to Susan's blog for a peek at what the other cookies did, plus a chance to win a set for yourself!

Vintage-y Love

First off, I have to share a little story about this image. I've gotten to the point where I avoid purchasing wood-mounted stamps, simply because I don't want to store 'em. Guess I'm a bit of a snob now? :) Well, last month I went to Tuesday Morning to purchase a gift - and I just happened to go down their crafty aisle. They generally have a nice variety of items, but they're just not my style (or I already have it - sheesh!). Well, they had a small stack of Inkadinkado stamps for 99¢ each - and I ended up purchasing THREE. But seriously, who could resist this adorable couple?! I love the comfortable companionship that their pose conveys, and I decided to keep the card pretty simple so as not to detract from that. I colored them in with prismacolor pencils, then added a grungeboard flourish, prima flower (stamped and inked up), and a big epoxy brad with the word "loved." Definitely sweet.

Spreading some love

A quick little project to share today. The hearts are Hero Arts (pieced with BasicGrey cupcake papers), and the layout is super simple. After assembling the card it looked a bit plain, so I added a few staples around the heart panel, and then two tiny red gems by the sentiment (from Unity). Fun and cute - perfect for a friend!

Valentine Kitty

Valentine's Day is right around the corner, and I used the CardPatterns sketch to make this cute little card. I stamped the kitty (from Barrow Buds) and then paper pieced it with BasicGrey Sugared papers. I punched a strip with a Martha Stewart scallop border punch along the top and bottom, and then used my Coluzzle to cut both the main panel and the layers. I pulled out the Combo Sentiments set to add "for you" down in the corner - perfect!

Bookworm Cutie

I was able to go away this past weekend for a scrapbooking retreat - except I was the rebel of the bunch who didn't make a single layout, but instead cranked out cards :) I had purchased this adorable image, along with the coordinating sentiment, from Stamping Bella last year. I've been itching to play along with the BasicGrey challenges, so worked with the sketch. I used Euphoria papers so that I could play along with the Daring Cardmakers Amethyst challenge - they're offering up a fabulous prize from Craft Obsessions this time around!

I colored the main image with prismacolor pencils, and then played around with the different patterned papers and embellishments - ended up going with a grungeboard flourish, a few flowers, and a couple gems (which are rich & sparkly IRL)... I love to give books as gifts, so I'm all set for the next occasion!

Bird-Day Wishes

I sat down this morning with the Mojo Monday sketch and the Feathered Friends set. I then proceeded to waste a good amount of time - and materials - trying to come up with a card... just not feelin' it today, I guess. Anyway, I was finally able to come up with this cutie. Don't you love that scalloped circle piece? I love that it's only 1 layer! Yep, that circle is also part of the stamp set, and it's a great building block. I punched it with the Marvy scalloped circle Marvy (pink one - can never remember whether it's mego or jumbo), and broke up the sentiment with the help of my trusty stamp-a-ma-jig. The bird portion was colored with prismacolor pencils, and the hat is topped with a bit of purple stickles just for fun. The card base is a printed card base (DCWV).

A bit of enabling: this stamp set is one of the full sheets o' rubber available from smARTworks, which means that it's 25% off this month. You're welcome ;)

Glittery {heart} Day

Can't believe it's February already! And a new month means it's time for a new smART-word: glitter! You can see some great examples (and get details about playing along) here. Also, smARTworks is back up and running! Get caught up on the news here.

For my card, I started with a dictionary I picked up from the Dollar Store. I ripped out the page that included "love," then masked off that entry and painted over the remainder with white acrylic. I used the words from Combo Sentiments, and grabbed a punched heart that's been floating around in my scrap box. A coating of ruby red stickles definitely added some punch!

On a funny note, when I was looking at the photo, I suddenly started cracking up and my daughter came running in to see what was so funny... somehow I couldn't bring myself to explain that I was laughing at the word "booty" on my Valentine's card. I'm thinking that a bit more white paint may be needed before this gets mailed out :)