Go fish!

Well, the smARTworks design team has just completed another challenge round, this time using the Trout Duo set. Being a good Montana girl, I'm very familiar with these scrumptious fish (best when cooked over an open fire) but can't say I've done much paper crafting with 'em. It's a very nicely drawn set, and I initally set out to make either a vintage or masculine type card. But then a little scrap of paper changed all that...

Yes, a little triangle that had somehow avoided the "trash sweep" ended up laying near my sample image, and for some reason that made me think of a party hat. And well, it was all bright colors and puns from that point on. I really did have a lot of fun with this card, from the pom-pom on the hat all the way to the googlie eye :) The greeting was stamped with Alpha-02, and it's supposed to be a play on the standard birthday wish (get it?). The card is quite small - only 4 1/4" square, but some things are better in small doses.

Check out the other smART Cookies creations here. See, you really can create some lovely things with this set!!

UPDATE: Interested in free rubbah? Get all the details at the In the Works blog!

A few more cards

I managed to participate in one other VSN challenge last night - this time we were to use the cracked glass technique. Frankly, I've had mixed results with that technique and much prefer using Ranger's Crackle Accents. Since I needed to allow for drying time, I started by stamping and coloring the Butterfly (End/Begin), then coated it and set it aside. I pulled out BasicGrey paper and fiddled with a few ideas before settling on this layout. I just love that sentiment (Soar), and I added the little caterpillar on the bottom as a creeper. Tied a bit of ribbon, and it was all set.







I also made this card yesterday, using this weekend's Sketch for You To Try. I really like the clean and simple lines of it, and know I'll be using it again. I grabbed a stack of 7gypsies paper, and stamped the girl (Paper Artsy by Inkadinkado) over the script. I added more paper, layered it onto a base made from Bazzill, then added some sheer ribbon and a lock padlock. The charm says "secret" on it, and I think it looks like this girl has one :) Final accent was three dew drops; the paper actually had dots on it already, so it made lining them up super simple!

Well, I think I've now shared all my weekend projects... time to take care of some household duties!

Aaaaahhhhhh! I can't stop stamping!

I've always wanted to participate at Virtual Stamp Night over at SCS, but the timing never worked out. Well, I just realized there was one tonight. Too bad I hadn't paid closer attention earlier this week! I did sneak in one card - I stamped the images (Daily Bread), then took them into the bathroom with me and colored while I supervised our little girl's bathtime. I guess tonight has a fashion theme, and this particular challenge was to follow a "pattern" (a/k/a sketch). Oh, and the harder part? Only 45 minutes allowed! My coluzzle is currently MIA, so I traced a vase to get my circle and then handcut it. Not perfect, but you get the idea. I cut the card base from Bazzill (4 1/2" square) and then layered on some Chatterbox paper and the loaf of bread. Fun times!

Feelin' My Mojo

I'd been wanting to play along with one of Julee's Mojo sketches for awhile, and it finally happened! This week's sketch featured a scalloped circle focal point - a large flower is close enough, right? I recently won some blog candy that included the SU Just 4 You Simply Scrappin' Kit, so this card went together really fast. Love the colors!

And thanks, Laurie, for the wonderful goodies!!

Clearly, this is a cool card :)

I love the look of clear elements on cards, but honestly haven't played around with them much. Well, yesterday's challenge on SCS was to use rub-ons. I had picked up these colorful rub-ons (American Crafts) somewhere last year, but had yet to use them. Part of the reason I'm drawn to rub-ons is that they can be used on so many surfaces - plastic, glass, etc. So howzabout I dip into my pile of saved packaging (I know I'm not the only one that does that, right?) and cut a piece of plastic to do this window card. I cut the front panel out of the DCWV card base (I liked that the inside was white) and then used the super strong tape to adhere the panel to the inside. Add a couple rub-ons, some tiny gems, and it's all done!

Happy Butterflies

I love techniques, and subscribe to the Technique Junkies newsletter. I hadn't played much lately, but was really impressed with the samples I'd seen using Reinker splash, so last night I pulled out Palette metallic inks (luscious lilac and satin sage). Very cool results - this card uses the 2nd generation pressing (and it's on matte cardstock) - yes, you'll be seeing something made with the original pressing soon :) I stamped the butterfly (End/Begin), then trimmed and matted the panel. I used Combo Sentiments to add the greeting, using the metallic ink on "happy." I tied on some ribbon and popped the sentiment panel up on foam dots just to add some interest.

This shot captures a bit of the shimmer. I just love sparkley stuff (but you may have already guessed that :) and I just wish that I could capture it better in the photos.

BTW, if you're not a TJ subscriber but are interested, you can get a 2008 online subscription for only $9.95. These are step by step photographed instructions, so they're very easy to follow. There's more info on this over at Pat's blog (the creator/publisher of the newsletter). Check it out!

Make people wonder...

I made it a point to squeeze in some stamping time today - I really enjoyed "forcing" myself to stamp each day last week. I used the SCS sketch challenge as a starting point, and had a lot of fun coming up with this sassy card :) The papers are from "Phresh & Phunky" Basic Grey collection; they're a couple years old and had been buried in my craft room. I stamped the vintage lady (Thoughts of a Stamping Diva) on the pink panel, and then added the sentiment (smile by studio g, "it makes people wonder" is a partial sentiment by Inkadinkado). I finished the card off by layering dots and stripes, did some minor distressing, and added a little prima flower.

Nothing fancy, but it brought a smile to my face and I'll be passing it along to a friend soon and I'm guessing it will make her grin, too.