Colour Me BIrthday!

Wow, can't believe September is over already!  I had such a great time playing along with the creative designers at the Colour Me Challenge!  It was an honor to design along side them and to be invited into their blog.  I really love the color combinations they create and plan to play along in the future!  

The color challenge (CMCC#91) for this week is a choice!

I decided to use the darker set of colors to match the fall weather we are feeling here in Chicago.

I need to catch up on some birthday cards so I have them on hand when needed!  I also wanted to try use a technique to change things up.  While I love the background stamps Stampin' Up! has for us to use, sometimes it's nice to create something unique!

For this card I sprayed a piece of whisper white cardstock with wateer and then used an aquapainter to add Lost Lagoon and Delightful Dijon ink to the smaller rectangle background.  You have to work fast because the water dries quickly and the paper may start to pill a little.  I love the way it turned out.

I decided to add a little interest to the card by adding the monochromatic scallops to the base.

The butterfly has some silver thread behind it to add a little flare.

This color combination is gorgeous!  I really like the Delightful Dijon cardstock.  Really all of the 2015-2017 In Colors from Stampin' Up! are just gorgeous!  

Well, that's it for today!  Can't wait to see what you create with the color choices!  Both combinations are beautiful.

Thanks for following me this month and I really appreciate the encouraging words!  

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Colour Me Thoughtful

Welcome back!  I have been so excited to be a guest for the Colour Me card challenge the past few weeks!  Such a fun challenge and tremendous talent.  I am inspired by what the team creates!
This week's challenge is a fun color combination (CMCC #90).

This is such a versatile combination, I love the fall image and yet these colors can work with just about any theme.

I needed a sympathy card so I decided to use the You've Got This stamp set for my project.  With Old Olive in the mix it seemed like a no brainer to use a floral theme.  I have to be honest, I bought this stamp set back in May and have not used it yet!  I thought I better use it before the holiday stamps start rolling in lest it get lost in the shuffle.

For the background I used Crushed Curry and stamped off the color once before stamping on the whisper white cardstock.  I didn't want the crushed color to be too dark in the background.

For the flower and leaves I stamped with VersaMark and heat embossed with black embossing powder and then fussy cut the flower and the leaves.  The flower is popped up with dimensionals to add a little 3-d effect.

I was pleasantly surprised at how mounting the greeting with tempting turquoise cardstock added a nice pop of color to the card without taking away from the focal point of the flower.  And layering the whisper white cardstock on the three different background layers draws the colors together nicely.

It's amazing what the design team did with these colors!  Can't wait to see what inspires you.

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Stampin' Celebration Sketch Challenge - Christmas wishes

Happy Monday everyone!  Time for another Stampin' Celebration Sketch Challenge (SC113).

I decided to make another Christmas Card since I fear the time will fly by so fast!

I love the Joyful Season Stamp set in the Stampin' Up! 2015 Holiday Catalog! In all honesty, when I first saw this stamp set I wasn't too sure.  Looking at what everyone has done with the stamp set help solidify the purchase!

I admit, I cheated a little and switched the sentiment and images ;0). And the grunge is in opposite corners (oops, guess my memory is not what it was).
But I love the end result and while this won't be the Holiday Card I send to my family and friends, it's nice to have for those special people in my life!  Too much fussy cutting!

Can't wait to see what you create with this challenge.

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Grateful Mashup

I am so happy!  I had a significant amount of time this weekend to make cards so I was able to play along with a challenge or two!  I know the next few weeks for me will not give me time to craft so I was especially happy to have the time this weekend!

I decided to play along with the Friday Mashup Challenge 226.  The inlaid die-cutting is a new technique for me so it was a nice challenge.

I decided to use Leaflets Framelites from Stampin' Up! for the inlay.  I just bought this set and was excited to be able to use it.

I did not use the sketch for the Mash-up so I guess technically I didn't mash anything up.  I actually borrowed the design in the (Video)  the design team used to explain the technique.  There isn't even any stamping on this card!

I love the idea of layering the greeting so that the various colors peak through the side view. It's very pretty!

I think I need more practice with this technique but all and all it was fun.

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Colour Me Birthday

Back again for a new Colour Me Design Challenge, CMCC #89!

I love the colors in this challenge.  Peacocks are beautiful and the blues and greens they have in their feathers are just gorgeous!

I decided to use these colors to make a birthday card.  I was hoping it would turn out somewhat masculine, or at least not girly!  I needed a few cards for some teenage boys this month;0).

For this card I used the Amazing Birthday stamp set from Stampin Up!.  I like using markersto ink up the Happy Happy Happy Happy Birthday to You stamp and then fussy cut and layer.  Such a fun versatile stamp!

I used the star punch and the confetti star punch to add some color and pop to the white background.  I just love this effect.  The curled paper and the silver metallic thread add to the celebration!

Hope you enjoyed the card and the projects from the other design team members!

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Colour Me Merry!

Welcome back to another Colour Me challenge (CMCC #88)!  

This week's colour challenge is Real Red and Lost Lagoon.  For this colour challenge I decided on a Christmas card.  It seems early to me, but the way time goes by these days, perhaps it's not early enough!

I still love the rustic look of the Hardwood background stamp from Stampin' Up! It's so versatile and really adds character to any project!  I decided to keep the card simple with an ornament and greeting.  

My other favorite Stampin' Up! product is the Greetings Thinlits Die so when I saw the Christmas Greetings Thinlits dies in the 2015 Holiday Catalog I could not wait to use them!  While difficult to see in the photo, I die cut the greeting using red foil paper.  It adds a nice shine to the card!

I am inspired to start making my holiday cards for this year.  I will certainly need a little time to get the card designed and then replicate!

I am excited about seeing what you create with these color combinations!

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Sweet and Starry SC Inspiration Challenge

Welcome back.  It's time for another Stampin' Celebration! inspiration challenge!  

I needed a baby card for our former Nanny.  She was married about 2 years ago and expecting their first child.  Such a sweet time for them!  

Confession, I actually made this card for the sketch challenge we just finished but decided to use it for this inspiration challenge instead.  The colors were perfect for this inspiration as well as the baby theme.

I used Sweet Lil' Things Designer Series Paper from the Stampin' Up! 2015-2016 Annual Catalog.  I loved the images as they could be for a baby and yet the images are versatile enough to be used for other occasions as well.

I wanted to bring a rustic effect to the card so I used burlap ribbon and a wood grain stamp for the star.  For the woodgrain star, after stamping the woodgrain I die cut 3 of the smallest stars from the Stars Framelits collection and then glued them together.  I wanted a larger darker star behind the top star to add contrast on the burlap.  I had to make the layer by die cutting the next size from Early Espresso cardstock and then trimming the star down so it was not so large.  

I used linen thread to hang the onesie from the star.  A small glitter gold star and a fussy cut greeting finish the effect of the card.

I guess with all of the blue and brown color this could be a card for a boy.  If it's a girl I may have to make a new card ;0).

Hope you join us for this challenge!  I could see using this sketch for Holiday cards as well!

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So Sweet for a Baby Girl

A fairly quick post today to show you a card I made for a friend.  She had a baby girl on September 1st.  I originally made her a different card (check back tomorrow) and apparently my instincts were not exactly on cue.  So....

I decided to use the retro sketches rs#180 as inspiration for the new card.

For my card I decided to go with a rustic theme and stars.

I stamped Top Top Taupe cardstock with the Hardwood background stamp using Top Top Taupe stampin' pad and then punched the stars with the medium star punch (all Stampin' Up! products in the annual catalog).

The onesie is from the Baby's First Framelits Die set cut from Blushing Bride cardstock. And the greeting is from the Hello Life stamp set (you will see I liked this look ;0) ).  Layering on some stars punched with gold glimmer paper and the confetti star punch added some additional texture and bling!

Now, off to get a gift and mail everything off soon!

Hope you have a great day!

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Colour Me with Flowers

I am so excited!  I was asked to be a guest designer for the Colour Me challenge team!  I am happy to participate and it's a great way to push me to take time to do the things I enjoy!  So thanks to the team for including me!  

  I love the idea of designing with a given set of colours.  It's a great way to push the creativity factor!  This week's challenge, CMCC #87, is Mossy Meadow.

I love the monochromatic look.  For this challenge I decided to make an anniversary card using one of my new favorite sets, Wild about Flowers from the Stampin' Up 2015-2016 annual catalog. 

I decided to make light background using the Watercolor Wash background stamp by stamping off the first time on scrap paper and then stamping the image on the cardstock.  This way the background is not too dark and the leaves from Wild about Flowers can stand out in front of the background.

For the flowers I used the 4-petal flower punch from Itty Bitty Accents punches and folded, curled and cut out petals to get the various looks of each flower.  I like the 3-dimensional effect of the flowers.

I hope you enjoy the card!  Visit the other design team members from Colour Me challenge!  They are a talented bunch with some great ideas to share!

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