Freshly Made Sketches #255

Howdy all!
Today I have a card I made for the most recent Freshly Made Sketches challenge.
Here is my card:

And here is the sketch:

My Stampin' Up! Only Supply List:

STAMPS:  Totally Trees, Cottage Greetings

COLORS:  Soft Suede, Flirty Flamingo, Bermuda Bay, Crushed Curry, Whisper White

THE REST:  Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Dimensionals

Thanks a bunch for stoppin' by! See you again soon!

HUGS,

Mojo Monday #460 on Thursday

Howdy All!
I have for you today a birthday card that I created for my nephew, who is turning 3. I used this week's Mojo Monday Sketch Challenge.

Here is my card:

And here is the sketch:

Here is my supply list:

STAMPS:  No Bones About It

PAPER:  Cucumber Crush, Pool Party, Watermelon Wonder, Bermuda Bay, Crushed Curry, Whisper White, Cherry On Top dsp stack (retired)

INK:  Tip Top Taupe, Cucumber Crush, 

THE REST:  Crushed Curry and Bermuda Bay markers, Banner Triple Punch, Linen Thread

This was a fun sketch to play with. I am trying to use up some of my favorite retired dsp, slowly, but surely! 

Welp, that's all for now. Thanks a bunch for stoppin' by! See you again soon.

HUGS,

Hand Stamped Sentiments Challenge #243

Howdy All!
Received my Stampin' Up! pre-order in the mail and I wanted to use something from it right away! I started with the Cookie-Cutter Halloween stamp set! So cute! I also used the sketch from the Hand Stamped Sentiments challenge #243.

Here are my cards (I made two):

And here is the HSS243 sketch:

This little scarecrow is just so darling!

And he is so fun to color!

Here is my Supply List:

STAMPS: Cookie-Cutter Halloween, For All Things (retired)

PAPER:  Crumb Cake, Hello Honey (retired), Pear Pizzazz, Very Vanilla, Happy Haunting dsp (retired)

INKS & MARKERS:  2014-2016 in color markers (retired), Pear Pizzazz marker, Tuxedo Black Memento

THE REST:  Cookie-Cutter Builder Punch, Layering Circles Thinlits, Chevron Embossing Folder (retired), Burlap Ribbon (retired)

Well, that's all for now! Thanks a bunch for stoppin' by. See you again real soon!

HUGS,

Mojo Monday #459 on Wednesday

Howdy All!
I have for you today a card I made for my niece's birthday. I used this week's Mojo Monday sketch for my layout.

Here is my card:

And here is the Mojo Monday Sketch:

My Supply List:

STAMPS:  Baby Bear, Cottage Greetings, Best Birds
PAPER:  Watermelon Wonder, Bermuda Bay, Crushed Curry, Whisper White, Cherry On Top dsp (retired)
INK: Crumb Cake, Soft Suede, Early Espresso, Watermelon Wonder, Bermuda Bay
THE REST:  Banner Triple Punch, Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Birds & Blooms Thinlits dies










I had to do a little bit of fussy cutting, but it was worth it.

That's it for now. Short and sweet. Thanks a bunch for stoppin' by. See you again soon.

Hugs,

A Week With Best Birds and Birds & Blooms Post 8

Howdy All!
Today will be my last post for my 'A Week With Best Birds and Birds & Blooms' series. For this last post I have a set of cute tags and a little box to keep them in.

I used the Affectionately Yours Designer Washi Tape and grabbed my color inspiration from that. I created this little box to hold them with the Gift Bag Punch Board, starting with a 10"x5" piece of Watermelon Wonder cardstock.

This would make a cute Hostess gift or to keep for yourself.

Here is my Supply List:

Stamps: Best Birds
Ink and Paper Colors: Watermelon Wonder, Whisper White, Night of Navy, Cucumber Crush, Mint Macaron, Crumb Cake
The Rest: Birds & Blooms Thinlits dies, Affectionately Yours Washi Tape, Gift Bag Punch Board, Linen Thread, Whisper White and Night of Navy Solid Baker's Twine, Cucumber Crush and Watermelon Wonder 5/8" Mini Striped Ribbon, 5/8" Whisper White Organza Ribbon, Layering Circle Framelits, Scalloped Tag Topper

Well, That's it for today, and that's it for my Week of Best Birds and Birds & Blooms dies Bundle. I had lots of fun concentrating on just one stamp set and I really like my projects. This was a very versatile bundle to work with.

Thanks a bunch for stoppin' by and I will see you again soon.

Hugs,

A week With Best Birds and Birds & Blooms Post 7

Howdy All!
I am still playing around with the Stampin' Up! Best Birds stamp set and Birds & Blooms die bundle. I am having so much fun watercoloring the adorable birds, branch and flowers. For this first card I stamped all of my images with the Basic Black Archival ink onto Shimmery White cardstock. I water colored the images using an aqua painter. I could not get a good photo, but the shimmer shines through the color and is so pretty! If you click on the 2nd photo and zoom in, you can kind of see the shimmer.

Anywho, it's a pretty basic layout, which is my go to style. I really like a clean, crisp card! Oh, and I just love that gold metallic thread. It is so delicate and pretty! Such a great accent! My colors are Blishing Bride, Watermelon Wonder, Old Olive, Soft Suede, Pool Party and Crushed curry.

My second card also has a simple, clean and crisp layout. Instead of coloring this little guy in, I decide to sponge a background for him. I just cut out a circle from the Layering Circle Framelits and placed it where I wanted it and then sponged around it in Soft Sky ink. It is stamped in Chocolate Chip ink. My colors used are Soft Sky, Chocolate Chip, Wild Wasabi and Very Vanilla. I used the Woodgrain Embossing folder to add some extra texture and of course some Linen Thread. Another great masculine card.

Well, that's all for now. I have one more project to show you in my next post. Thanks a bunch for stoppin' by and I hope to see you again soon.

Hugs,

A Week With Best Birds and Birds & Blooms Post 6

Howdy All!
Wow! I can't believe I am on my 6th post featuring this awesome bundle. After looking at all the cards I have made so far, I decided I needed to see if I could create a kids card. I really wanted to see how versatile this bundle could be.  I have used this card idea for many years and I thought the birds and branch were perfect for coloring. You can buy crayons super cheap right now and make up several cards that are ready to go. This could even go to someone who is an adult and just enjoys coloring, right? I decided not to stamp a sentiment on the front and will instead add it to the inside when I know to whom it is going and for what occasion.

I thought I would have a second attempt at a kids card by using some primary colors. I found this fun layout at Pals Paper Arts, sketch #310.

I stamped the background using the cute little flower stamp and layered all of those circles using the Layering Circle Framelits.

One thing that I like about using these colors is that the card works well for boys or girls!

Here are my supply list:

Card 1:

Stamps: Best Birds

Paper: Crumb Cake, Basic Black, Whisper White

Ink: Tuxedo Black Momento

The Rest: Basic Black Solid Baker's Twine, 1/8" circle Punch, 3 different colored Crayons

Card 2:

Stamps: Best Birds

Paper and Ink Colors: Watermelon Wonder, Cucumber Crush, Daffodil Delight, Night of Navy, Whisper White

The Rest: Layering Circle Framelits, Birds & Blooms Thinlits

Whew, that's all that I have for you for now! Thanks a bunch for stoppin' by and I hope to see you again soon!

Hugs,

A Week With Best Birds and Birds & Blooms Post 5

Howdy All!
I am going to keep it moving with my week long challenge. While the Stampin' Up! annual catalog proves to be an incredible source for ideas and inspiration, I often find myself looking for something new and different. This is when I will turn to one or more of the many paper crafting challenge blogs. I have a list of about 2 dozen such blogs that I will visit on a weekly basis. I even have entered cards for consideration as a 'winner.' The ones I like to participate in most are the Sketch Challenges and the Color Challenges. But you can find challenges that include inspiration photos, specific themes or the inclusion of a certain tool or embellishment. Just look at my sidebar to the right to see some of my favorite blogs.
A couple of weeks ago I created this card to enter in the HSS Sketch Challenge #241 and was one of their Artist Picks! They even gave me a badge to display on my blog to show I was a winner. Check it out here and here.

You can see my Blog post here that gives the details for my card.

This next card I created for a Color Challenge over at the Colour Q Blog. As often happens with me, I will get the card finished and then forget to blog about it and upload and enter it into the challenge. lol.

The colors I used that were for the challenge were Blushing Bride, So Saffron, Old Olive, Pool Party and Whisper White.

I really like how it turned out, and even though I didn't get it entered into the challenge it will get sent to somebody special who will appreciate my effort!

Well, that's all I have for now. Thanks a bunch for stoppin' by and I hope to see you back again soon!

Hugs,

A Week With Best Birds and Birds & Blooms Post 4

Howdy All!
I am back with 2 more cards I created using the Best Birds stamp set and inspiration from the Stampin' Up! annual catalog. So far I have used the "You Can Make It" feature to make a card, then I changed it by using different color combos, and then I Stepped it Up by adding different elements. When I get my new catalog, I go through it not only to pick what stamp sets I want, but also I mark individual cards that I like. I had this one card that I have been wanting to make, but I do not own the stamp set that was used on it. You can check it out on page 133 of the current annual catalog. The first thing that caught my eye about this card is that it is a masculine card. I never have enough guy card ideas and I love the simplicity of the layout. I wasn't sure I could pull off a masculine card with the Best Birds stamp set, but I was willing to give it a try. Here is my first attempt:

For my card, I used watercoloring but not in the same way that SU! did. Again, I wanted this to be an easier card so I just did a quick three-color watercolor background. Then I just stamped the image and sentiment right over the top. I made another one using some different colors and I changed which way the branch was facing. Oh, and I changed where I wrapped the linen thread. Man, I love linen thread for masculine cards! It's the perfect way to embellish a card without making it 'girly.'

 I am trying to figure out which one I like better. I am not sure, how about you? And I definitely think I pulled off the manly card using this stamp set!

Here is my supply list:

Stamps: Best Birds
Paper: Card 1: Crumb Cake, Dapper Denim, Watercolor Paper. Card 2: Soft Suede, Bermuda Bay, Watercolor Paper
Ink: Tuxedo Black Memento ,Card 1: Dapper Denim, Bermuda Bay, Wild Wasabi  Card 2: Dapper Denim, Bermuda Bay, Pear Pizzazz
The Rest: Linen Thread, Aqua Painters

That's all for now! Thanks a bunch for stoppin' by and I hope to see you again soon! Up next: Where else do I find inspiration?

Hugs,

A Week With Best Birds and Birds & Blooms - Post 3

Howdy All!
It's me again, continuing on with my creative process using the Best Birds stamp set and Birds & Blooms dies bundle.This is the card from my last post that I chose to work with. I just love how pretty these colors are together, don't you? Let me show you how adding a few different elements can really change the card.

So, I decided to start with the Blushing Bride layer. After I stamped the background stamp that is in the Best Birds stamp set in Blushing Bride ink, I ran it through the Big Shot using the Brick Wall Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, to give it some depth. Since I was inspired by the colors in the Playful Palette DSP stack, I layered a 1" strip between the Burlap ribbon and the Very Vanilla banner with the sentiment. The last thing I did was to change the size of the Pearl Basic Jewels to make them stand out a little more. Looks pretty good, huh?

Now, I decided to go a little bit further to really Step it Up. I added a piece of Playful Palette Washi tape below the Burlap ribbon as well as a piece of Very Vanilla 1/2" Lace Trim above the DSP strip. I then added 1/2 of a Delicate White Doily under the bottom of the sentiment banner. I stamped some of the little flowers in Sweet Sugarplum ink onto Sweet Sugarplum cardstock and cut them out with the coordinating die, then added some Pearl Basic Jewels to the centers. Lastly, I took the Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Brush pen and colored over the whole bird image. I'm not sure if this last step shows up very well in the photo, but it looks amazing in real life!

Just look at all that dimension and texture!! I love it! Who wouldn't be impressed receiving this beautiful card?!

So there you have it! You can decided how much or how little you want to add to get the final result you are going for. This may also depend on the supplies you have and how much time you want to spend on creating a card.

Don't they look neat all lined up next to each other? You can really see the progression of the first card to the last.

Well, that's all for this post. Thanks a bunch for stoppin' by. Join me again for my 4th post to see how else I use the annual catalog to get inspiration for creating my cards.

Hugs,

A Week With Best Birds and Birds & Blooms Post 2

Howdy All!
Here I am with my 2nd post of the week.
after finishing my 2 cards that I copied from page 53 of the 2016-2017 Stampin' up! annual catalog I decided to continue my creative process using this card.

I wanted to see what it would look like using a different color combo. I flipped through the catalog and the cards on page 143 caught my eye. Again, they were part of a "You Can Make It" so there was no guessing at what the colors used were. Here is my card using Pear Pizzazz, Bermuda Bay and Melon Mambo. I love it!

I wanted to try it in one more color combo, so this time I turned to the pages in the catalog that have the Designer Series Papers. I will often go here to find color combos that I know will work great because Stampin' Up! has done all the hard work for me! I chose the colors from the Playful Palette Designer Series Paper Stack on page 174 to work with. Here is my card using Blushing Bride, Sweet Sugarplum, Peekaboo Peach and Very Vanilla. I really like how it turned out!

So, there you have it! I love how each card looks different. There are so many options when selecting colors this way.

For my next post I will take this same card and show you how to 'Step It Up' by adding a few more elements to create something new while still keeping the same basic layout and colors. Fun!

Well, that is all for now. Thanks a bunch for stoppin' by! See you back again soon!

Hugs,

A Week With Best Birds and Birds & Blooms Post 1

Howdy All!
I belong to a Stampin' Up! Team called the Glad Heart Stampers and our amazing leader, Missy Shipman, has given me the opportunity to create and share 8 projects using the Best Birds photopolymer stamp set and the Birds & Blooms Thinlits Dies. So, over the next week I will be posting all of my wonderful projects along with a little bit of my creative thought process along the way.
Here is the actual bundle that Missy sent me to work with.

I wasn't sure where to start, so I looked to see if there were any samples in the Stampin' Up! Annual Catalog that I could use as a starting point. Sure enough, I found just what I needed. 

Lucky me! This set had a "You Can Make It!" section which gives the exact 'recipe' to make the projects that are shown! Here are the 2 cards that I made and I think they turned out perfectly.

It was a great way to get my stamps inked up and become familiar with the stamp set and dies.

What I love about using the catalog as inspiration is that I can quickly and easily make a card without having to think about what colors I should use or what the layout of the card should be.

I know for me, that when I first get my new catalog and start making my 'Wish List' I usually am attracted to the samples first and then I look more closely at the set to determine if I 'need' it or not. lol. 

Up next, I will talk about how I can take one of these cards and make it my own and also how to "Step It Up" as much or as little as you want!

Here is my Supply List:

Stamps:  Best Birds

Paper:  Whisper White, Night of Navy

Ink:  Flirty Flamingo, Mint Macaron, Night of Navy

The Rest:  5/8" Burlap Ribbon, Pearl Basic Jewels. Banner Triple Punch, Birds & Blooms Thinlits Dies

Well, that's all I have for now. Thanks a bunch for stoppin' by. I will be back soon for my next post using this same bundle!

Hugs,

Mojo Monday Sketch #456 on Tuesday

Howdy All!
I have for you today a card that I created using the current Mojo Monday Sketch Challenge.
Here is my card:

And here is the sketch:

I stuck very closely to the actually sketch and I am pleased with my result! I have been on a watercolor kick lately. I love how quickly and easily I can color and image and I don't have to worry too much about staying in the lines.

I used all current Stampin' Up! products and here is my Supply List:

Stamps: You're Sublime
Paper: Playful Palette DSP Stack, Emerald Envy, Peekaboo Peach, Blushing Bride, Watercolor paper
Ink: Emerald Envy, Peekaboo Peach, Blushing Bride, Crushed Curry, Tuxedo Black Memento, Basic Black Archival (to stamp the image)
The Rest: Layering Circles Framelits, Aqua Painter, Woodgrain Embossing Folder, Emerald Envy Solid Baker's Twine, Dimensionals, Pearl Basic Jewels

Well, that's all I've got for now. Thanks a bunch for stoppin' by! See you again soon!

HUGS,

Freshly Made Sketches #244 & SAS4Kids

Howdy All!
I worked on a set of cards last night to go along with 2 different challenges.
First is the current Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #244 and second is the CAS 4 Kids Challenge.
Here is the sketch:

I love how Clean & Simple it is and it fit perfectly with the CAS 4 Kids Challenge!

Here are my cards:

I used some retired Stampin' Up! DSP and a brand new stamp set called Pretty Kitty. The images in this stamp set are just adorable and work really well for kids' cards.

I used watercolor paper and my Aqua painter to stamp and color my cute kitty and sentiment. The Layering Ovals Framelits were exactly what I needed to cut them out and mat them. It is really hard to see in the pics, but I also used the Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Brush pen on the butterflies and the kitties' bows for a bit of glimmer.

I will be sending these along to Send A Smile 4 Kids which is a wonderful Organization that collects and distributes handmade cards for children who are inpatient at Children's Hospitals.

Here is my supply list (all products are Stampin' Up!):

Stamps: Pretty Kitty
Paper: English Garden DSP, watercolor paper, Melon Mambo, Mossy Meadow, Hello Honey,          Blushing Bride
Inks: coordinating inks pads from the colors in the DSP
The Rest: Layering Ovals Framelits, Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Brush Pen, Dimensionals, Aqua painter

Well, that's all for now. Thanks a bunch for stoppin' by! See you again soon!

Hugs,
Sandy