Sweet Pea Spring Song

So, this project is a bit of a cheat. I try to post only projects that are completely my design, but I couldn't resist showing you this one. My upline, Cindy, provided us with the bits & pieces for this one as the take home from our last team meeting. I did assemble it a bit differently & added a sentiment. I just had to share the way in which the Ornament Punch can make these great little vases when combined with the Oval Punches. And, of course, I adore the Sweet Pea Stitched Felt. That's why I just couldn't resist.

Mojo Monday 132/Picnic Parade Easter

Ah, it feels good to be back in the Mojo Monday swing of things. Now I feel like the week is off to its proper start! Today's sketch offered a choice between round & square and I opted for the square card. While scale is sometimes lost via the blog, this is a mini card. Its front measures just 3" x 3 ". Sometimes it's fun to switch up perspective a bit with a mini-twist.

Spring Song PPC Color Challenge

Everything is starting to green up (as the snow melts) and we're even starting to see a few early flowers. All of this turns my thoughts to spring as did the color selection for this week's PPC color challenge. They picked Elegant Eggplant, So Saffron, & Pretty in Pink. I have to admit that every time I check PPC for color choices I think of these little Big Shot daisies since PPC displays the colors as flowers. Today I finally gave in & used them. While making the daisies I got the idea to use one of the frames created from the Big Shot as a stencil to create the background images on the So Saffron. Such fun! I just took out my sponge & stamp pad and went to town creating little flowers. Let no paper escape untouched!

Lovely as a Tree Silver Emboss

Sorry for the extended absence! While I usually love snow, I am a little cranky with the latest spring storm to hit Colorado. To make a long story (and even longer night) short, I ended up stuck in the Kansas City airport for a full night. I feel like I'm just starting to get caught up again!

Enough of my bickering though... Today's card is a remake/remodel of a card I made for class several months ago (before I started blogging). Lovely as a Tree was the first set I ever purchased from Stampin' Up & the fact that I still use it all the time is a testament to its versatility. The oak leaves are elegant embossed in silver for a simple sympathy card. I like the strength of the full oak tree as well as a symbol of comfort. The "original" version of this card was in Kraft/Black with no embossing & the opposite orientation. I think I like round two a bit better.

Fish Card Gone Scrappy

I know it's not a Mojo Monday card, but I have a confession to make. I've been in Illinois away from my studio since Friday. Thanks to the wonders of technology I was able to create all my posts in advance, but I don't have a psychic link to the Mojo ladies. Therefore, I have no idea what the sketch will be for today. Oh, and one more confession. There won't be a post tomorrow...I didn't get enough made in time!

For today's project I decided to transform one of my cards into a scrapbook page. I'm new to the world of scrapin' so I thought I would start with something I feel comfortable & just expand a card a bit. Besides I can't get enough of these little fish made from the Ornament Punch.

A Flower for All Seasons Basket

When I cook I tend to check out what is around in the pantry, freezer, & fridge and create something from what I find there. This card was the same sort of thing. It's made out of leftover bits & pieces from other cards. The strips for the basket weave are the bits & pieces left after cutting paper for card classes. With Easter just around the corner, a basket seemed the natural choice. Oh, and before I forget, A Flower for All Seasons is one of the sets avaible for free via Sale-a-Bration. The frame was left over from my Sprinkes Purples card the other day. Waste not want not!

Build A Roo Pocket

Okay, I do love this little kangaroo. I know it took me a while to break down & get it but I am so pleased that I did. And with a kangaroo it's hard to resist making the whole card have a pouch! This little pocket card would make a great shower card or an excellent baby announcement. The little person's info could be included on the piece inside the pocket which is all ready to pull out via the flower brad. I see no need for all baby creations to be pink & blue. The other colors in the Soft Subtles work great too. This one will make an appearance at my Baby Card theme class later this spring.

Sprinkles Purples

Today's project uses one of my most versatile stamp sets, Sprinkles. I use it all the time to create backgrounds of all sorts. It also is one of the sets you can earn free through Sale-a-Bration. However, you need to act fast as this promotion only lasts until the end of the month. I think it's great fun to stamp on different textures and the twill tape used for the center stripe of this one is a perfect example. Remember stamping isn't limited to paper!

Fresh Cuts Color Challenge

Since I missed out on Mojo Monday thanks to the tummy bug, this is my first challenge card of the week. I've given the color combo challenge at PPC another shot. I think this will become a weekly thing for me. This week's colors are Not Quite Navy, Lavender Lace, & Whisper White. Not Quite Navy is one of the colors I have set a personal challenge to embrace (in fact, I just bought a full pack of it), so I thought this would be good practice. The real trick happened when the ink showed up so much darker on the Lavender Lace paper...then the card stock looked kind of off. Therefore, the project changed dramatically from what was in my head. I thought it would be a mostly navy card & it ended up with way more white. One never can tell! That's the fun of the creative process.

Heart to Heart Shamrocks

I'm back! Sorry for the prolonged absence. I haven't been a slacker, I promise. It seems that my immune system is slacking off though. First the nasty sinus infection and then a stomach bug. Ick. Hopefully I have that all over with now though and there will be no more blog interruptions. I couldn't let today go by without a St. Patrick's Day contribution. It just wouldn't be right! I made these little shamrocks using the Heart to Heart punch & a few of my favorite shades of Stampin' Up greens. It's a quick & easy one, but lots of fun too. The sentiment comes from the super catch all: Teeny Tiny Wishes. I don't know what I would do with out that set!

Shimmer Paint Emboss Resist

Today I utilized our Frost White Shimmer Paint & mixed it with reinkers to make a shiny inked background. I have been wanting to test this technique since regionals last month. It's a little hard to photograph, but the effect is pretty spiffy. I was excited to learn that all of our Shimmer Paints from the Holiday Mini Catalog are still available & wanted to learn new ways to put them to use. This is my favorite so far.

Of course, I also did some Emboss/Resist on the cardstock first. My Boho Blooms background is embossed in white so that the ink (plus paint) doesn't stick to the images. I love anything in stamping that feels like magic & this process definitely qualifies!

Little Flowers Color Challenge

Today I'm trying a new challenge. It's a color combo challenge from Picture Perfect Creations.

This week's colors are Rose Red, Basic Black, Whisper White, & Bashful Blue. I've been wanting to make a card that takes advantage of how perfectly suited the Little Flowers stamps are to become Build-a-Brads & this seemed like a great opportunity. Paired up with some Thoroughly Modern designer paper & I was all set. Color combo challenges are always fun because they make me stretch in ways I wouldn't have on my own & yet they leave room for all sorts of freedom too.

Butterfly Rainbow

Today's project is dedicated to a dear friend of mine who I know is facing a big day today. I adore the Beautiful Wings embosslit & the fact that I can make scads of lovely butterflies in moments. Apparently it is far more popular than Stampin' Up predicted. There is a crazy back order on this item, but it is well worth the wait! To create the sky on this card I used a piece of torn paper towel, a sponge, & Ballet Blue ink pad. It's a simple process that produces a dramatic sky. I would be happy to demonstrate this, as well as other fun & easy techniques at your very own workshop. Contact me today to schedule a date.

Winter Fun Scrapbook Page

Okay, I'm branching out. This month I have a new scrapbooking group starting up & so I need to get some practice in making scrapbook pages using Stampin' Up materials. I thought I would start small...6x6 pages seem the way to go for me. Perhaps I'll upgrade with time & practice. I had a lot of fun making this one, but I have stepped out of my comfort zone a bit. At least I still get to use my old friends, just in a new format. Lovely as a Tree was the first stamp set I ever bought from Stampin' Up and remains my all time favorite. I think it goes quite nicely with the real tree from Rocky Mountain National Park.

Mojo Monday 129/ Spring Song Hummingbird

Another fun Mojo Monday sketch. I've used my favorite coloring in technique as of late. First I color in with a Versamarker & then I add in color using Stampin' Pastels. The whole process is just so fun & easy that it makes me smile. I couldn't find a designer paper that worked well, so I decided to make my own using Razzle Dazzle and Sahara Sand ink. Of course, the hummingbird comes from another of my new Sale-a-Bration sets, Spring Song. My collection of stamps has grown leaps & bounds thanks to this great promotion.

Picnic Parade Miss You

Again, cards rarely turn out as I plan. This time I thought I was going to spend some time with my new Picnic Parade hostess set & some sort of watercolor technique, but I decided to leave the little images empty for this one. That way, the butterflies bring all the vibrant life to the card. The empty pictures seemed to make sense for a missing you card too. It's easy to tell when I get new sets because I can't wait to use them. So, I had to use the Three Little Words set too. It's one of my most recent Sale-A-Bration freebies. There are only a few weeks left to take advantage of the free sets from Sale-A-Bration. Contact me to get your order in today!

Build A Roo Flowers

At long last I broke down & purchased the Build A Roo set. I thought it was the cutest thing when I previewed the current catalog, but I showed restraint. Ah, that restraint has now come to an end. This card could serve all sorts of purposes from birthday to mother's day. It just makes me happy. That's an important thing on days when your nose is red & your eyes are runny.

Vintage Vogue Marble Background

Sorry for the lack of post yesterday. Whatever bug I've picked up knocked me out for the count & I was literally in bed all day. I thought it was just going to take my voice & then be done, but it had much more fight left in it than that. So, I am hopefully on the mend now. At least I felt well enough to putz around in the studio a little bit.

Today's project uses both the Very Vintage Wheel as well as the Vintage Vogue set. The background for the flowers were made using reinkers & several marbles. A good bit of fun there. However, it did take some experimenting with the technique to get a result I was happy with. I recommend sticking with light colors for this one. I found the tutorial on Splitcoast Stampers. For the wheeled section I tried out my new cartridge which is inked with Versamark. That way you can keep using the wheel on both colors of cardstock without having to clean it. I think that will be a great help at class!

Microbead Flower

Ah, the amazing things the Big Shot can do. Not only does it do great things to paper AND fabric, but it can also cut through other stuff. For example, I attached a piece of a Sticky Page to the Crushed Curry cardstock before running it through & the Big Shot cut both the card stock & the Sticky Page so my flower was all ready for microbeads. Cutting out the Sticky Page by hand would have never happened. At least not in my studio! Now if the Big Shot could only give me my voice back before I teach class this afternoon...

Mini Flower Pots

While yard saling this past weekend with my dear friend, I came across these tiny flower pots in a "free box". How could I resist? I knew I would never grow anything to fit them, but I am happy to create my own flowers! Perhaps I'll make the Popsicle sticks green next time? I think they make perfect little reminders to take time out to smell the flowers. They could make a great addition to any desk/office for just that reason. However, a stuffy nose means I won't be smelling much of anything for a while!

Mojo Monday 128/ Cute as a Bug

So, it's later than I would like but I at least got my Mojo Monday in for the week! Being at work by 6:45 doesn't leave a lot of room for blogging in the morning. I must admit I was relieved to see the simplicity in this week's sketch. Last night I had a class that included several of my past Mojo Monday submissions & they had LOTS of layers. For one card, I cut eleven pieces for each person. It makes for an excellent final product, but sometimes simple is nice too. That's why I like this little guy. There are times when I need to remember KISS (Keep It Simple Stamper)! This card is a continuation of my obsession with the color family I use the least...Bold Brights. I am quickly becoming a convert. I set a challenge to myself to start using them, and now it seems I can't stop.