Freshly Made Sketches 247

I love it when the big brown box arrives from the courier bearing Stampin' Up stuff. For me, delivery days are either Tuesday or Friday. Friday's good as that means I can unpack it after work and have the weekend to play - although I actually do try to ration it so that I can have new stuff for longer. No, I really do!

But this weekend, I've played with two new things, the second being Best Birds. I've used this set to create something for this week's sketch at Freshly Made Sketches, which is the kind of sketch I really like: open and not too fussy.

On this occasion, I managed to resist using the crosshatched background stamp that's part of this set because I've got a bit of a love affair going with masked and sponged backgrounds but I can see that I'm going to be going back to this set again and again as it's got so many possibilities. In this card, I've used Peekaboo Peach and Emerald Envy inside a circular mask to get the background for the bird. I've stamped the branch in Versamark and used the delicious new copper embossing powder and coloured the leaves.

I die cut the bird twice in Peekaboo Peach and once in Early Espresso and the peach peeks out just a tiny bit to give a very 3D bird. I smeared a little versamark on the chest feathers with my finger so he could get some copper to dress him up a bit.

It's funny how your opinion on a set can change. When I first saw this set in the new catalogue, I couldn't imagine ever wanting it. Now, I think you'll be seeing it often!

Ingredients

Card: Emerald Envy, Very Vanilla, Early Espresso, Peekaboo Peach

Stamps: Best Birds

Inks: Peekaboo Peach, Emerald Envy, Versamark

Other: Copper embossing powder, Emerald Envy marker, sponges, circle framelit, pearls.

JAI 322 CCMC 417

Onto a second card made with Touches of Texture, which arrived at my house only yesterday! For inspiration, I've gone to the colour challenge at Just Add Ink and the sketch challenge at Create with Connie and Mary.

Hard to see but the wings, leaves and flower centre have had Wink of Stella applied, which has given a really nice glimmer to them. I masked off part of the card to make the striped background while inking once but stamping three times to get the ombre effect.

As I don't have any Chocolate Chip, I've substituted Early Espresso.

Update: Delighted to be a Top Pick at Create with Connie and Mary

and also to be an Honourable Mention at Just Add Ink.

Ingredients

Card: Sweet Sugarplum, Early Espresso, Very Vanilla

Stamps: Touches of Texture, One Big Meaning

Inks: Sweet Sugarplum, Early Espresso, Blushing Bride

Other: Wink of Stella; Sweet Sugarplum, Blushing Bride, Early Espresso Stamp'n'write markers

As You See It 140 - DT card

Time for another challenge at As You See It and this time, we have a sketch challenge for you.

To begin with, those solid blocks got me thinking of a Mondrian painting but in the end, I went much more vintage looking than that! I just had to try out the Touches of Texture set that I received from the courier this morning.

It turned out to be such a fun set to use too. This morning, while browsing my feeds, I saw this lovely colour challenge at Inkspire Me, so I've used it in this card and will enter it there.  My mystery fifth colour is Early Espresso.

You have until 10 August, PST, to join us in this sketch challenge and to show us just how you see it. Inkspire Me closes sooner than that, if you want to play there too.

Update: Delighted to be a Runner Up at In{k}spire Me!

Ingredients

Card: Dapper Denim, Blushing Bride, Sweet Sugarplum. Whisper White

Stamps: Touches of Texture, Timeless Texture, Sunshine Sayings

Inks: Early Espresso, Sweet Sugarplum, Dapper Denim, Blushing Bride

Other: Sunshine Wishes thinlits, Early Espresso marker, linen twine, dimensionals, Moroccan Designer washi tape.

CAS Colours and Sketches 183

The final card of the school holidays was inspired by the unusual colour challenge at CAS Colours and Sketches.

The one new set I got that I hadn't properly tried out yet was Sunshine Sayings and the matching dies, Sunshine Wishes so I wanted to put together a card that made them the heroes.

I cut one flower of each of the three colours with the stylised flower die then layered them up with each colour shadowing the one before. The 'love' is layered and then lifted on dimensionals to bridge over the stem of the layered flower.

Update: Pleased to be a Weekly Winner at CAS Colours and Sketches.

Ingredients

Card: Crushed Curry, Whisper White, Island Indigo, Tip Top Taupe

Stamps: Sunshine Sayings, Gorgeous Grunge, Timeless Textures

Inks: Tip Top Taupe, Island Indigo

Other: Sunshine Wishes thinlits, corner-rounder punch, dimensionals

Freshly Made Sketches 246

The last day of school holidays is here and with it, the demise of unlimited crafting time. While the rest of the country is experiencing wet, cold weather and gale force winds, we are having a warm spring day. All the doors and windows are open and the sky is blue.

After an enjoyable walk with a friend, I got into my room and got on to an idea I had for this week's sketch at Freshly Made Sketches.

Ingredients

Card: Elegant Eggplant, Whisper White, Delightful Dijon

Stamps: Butterfly Basics, Papillon Potpourri, Sunshine Sayings

Inks: Old Olive, Elegant Eggplant

Other: Lots of Labels framelits, Softly Falling embossing folder, rhinestones, Wink of Stella (for the butterfly), Bitty Butterfly punch, dimensionals

Male card CCMC310 and PPA416

A quite off-hand comment by one of my card class women about not often making male cards resonated with me - probably out of all proportion to how she meant it. But I realised that I shied away from cards the might suit men. My menfolk, not being either petrol heads, hunters or having a single drop of DIY in their DNA,  don't automatically scream that I should use 'male' stamp sets.

Even so, I took the self-imposed challenge using three sources of inspiration: the new Thoughtful Banners set I'd recently purchased, the sketch challenge at Pals Paper Arts and the colour challenge at Create with Connie and Mary.

As an aside, Tip Top Taupe always makes me smile because, in New Zealand, Tip Top is the leading brand of ice cream.

The marriage of these things lead to...

It's turned out quite well and I think that with different colours and bit of bling that it would make a pretty good girl card too.

Ingredients

Card: Dapper Denim, Mint Macaron, Whisper White

Stamps: Thoughtful Banners, Playful Backgrounds

Inks: Tip Top Taupe, Mint Macaron, Dapper Denim

Other: Banner punch, circle framelits, dimensionals, Dapper Denim enamel shape.

Global Design Project 45

Having two weeks of school holidays has been a great boon to my craft time and I'm really enjoying the chance to play lots of challenges and experiment with lots of bits. I'm really glad to have had the time to play at this week's colour challenge at The Global Design Project.

I think it's a fun combination and it lead me to this congratulations card.

Ingredients

Card: Smoky Slate, Melon Mambo, Whisper White, DSP from Everyday Chic

Stamps: Wild About Flowers, Thoughtful Banners

Inks: Tuxedo Black, Melon Mambo

Other: Melon Mambo thick baker's twine, dimensionals

Just Add Ink 320

I really liked the sketch at Just Add Ink as soon as I saw it last week but I kept delaying starting because I had it in my mind to make a shaker card .... and confession time - I've never made one before.

So I've dillied and dallied my way to almost the last day of the challenge but have come up with this.

I cut the DSP so that the pattern of stripes was as symmetrical as possible.  The little scallop shells are clear embossed over Mint Macaron and Mint Macaron ink, with little touches of gold to tie it in with the anchor. 

Because the sentiment is quite small, the lower portion of the card looked too empty, so I added the anchor from the set. I stamped and fussy cut it, then worked a bit of magic on it to make it look more like it was made from aged metal.

I'm quite glad that I waited until the new foam strips became available before tackling a shaker card. The foam strip made making the well for the sequins much easier than I'd anticipated and in the end, it wasn't such a scary proposition after all!

Ingredients

Card: Dapper Denim, Very Vanilla, Mint Macaron scraps, DSP from By The Shore, Window sheet

Stamps: Seaside Shore, Thoughtful Banners

Inks: Mint Macaron, Dapper Denim, Calypso Coral, Soft Sky, gold, versamark

Other: Clear embossing powder, sequins from the sewing box, Night of Navy solid baker's twine, sponges, foam strips, circle framelits

CAS Colours and Sketches 182 CYCI 129

Although I loved the sketch at CAS Colours and Sketches this week, I did struggle to get started until I saw the colour challenge at Can You Case It?

Their marriage produced this...

The little butterfly has a coat of crystal effects that gives it a luminescent glow.

Update: Delighted to be a Top Pick at Can You Case It? and also at CAS Colours and Sketches.

Ingredients

Card: Night of Navy, Whisper White, Melon Mambo

Stamps: Kinda Eclectic, Papillon Potpourri, Endless Birthday Wishes

Inks: Night of Navy, Melon Mambo, Tuxedo Black

Other: Bitty Butterfly Punch, dimensionals, sponges, Crystal Effects

Pals Paper Arts 305

Another lovely colour challenge this week, this time at Pals Paper Arts.

I'm enjoying the school holidays: no work = more time in my craft room! By chance - although a well-planned chance - a big box of Stampin' Up goodies arrived on the first day of the holidays. In amongst it, was Floral Phrases and the matching Detailed Floral thinlits. And actually, also included in the box was Sunshine Sayings and its matching thinlits, Sunshine Wishes - among a few other things, yet to be inked...

What you're meant to be seeing here is the Wink of Stella on the 'love' although I'm not convinced it's visible. What you can see clearly is the Island Indigo layer, slightly offset, creating a shadow effect.

Ingredients
Card: Island Indigo, Sahara Sand, Sweet Sugarplum
Stamps: Sunshine Sayings
Inks: Island Indigo
Other: Detailed Floral thinlits, Sunshine Wishes thinlits,  Wink of Stella.

As You See It 139 - DT Card

This week at As You See It, we have an enchanting sketch for you to play with over the next fortnight.

I took this sketch as a chance to showcase the beautiful new ombre stamp pad I got from Stampin' Up during the week. This one is Rich Razzleberry but it comes in intensity-graded stripes that gives you the lovely shading effect when you stamp with it. Also getting an outing in this card is the new Swirly Bird stamp set with the coordinating Swirly Scribbles thinlit dies and the Sunshine Sayings stamps with Sunshine Wishes thinlits.... yes, I got a big box of goodies this week!

So, why not join us and show us how you see it? You have a whole two weeks, until 11.59 pm Wednesday 27 July (PST).

Ingredients

Card: Rich Razzleberry, Old Olive, Basic Black, Whisper White

Stamps: Swirly Bird, Sunshine Sayings

Inks: Razzleberry Ombre stamp pad, Tuxedo Black

Other: Swirly Scribbles thinlits, Sunshine Wishes thinlits, Old Olive baker's twine, dimensionals.

Stampin' Royalty 338

I love the colours at Stampin' Royalty's new challenge and couldn't wait to play with them.

By chance, this coincided with the arrival of a couple of new items: the Floral Phrases and Detailed Floral thinlits. So, here they are on their first outing...

Update: Delighted to be a Top Pick at Stampin' Royalty this week.

Ingredients

Card: Mint Macaron, Night of Navy, Whisper White, paper from Birthday Blooms DSP

Stamps: Floral Phrases

Inks: Mint Macaron, Night of Navy

Other: Night of Navy solid baker's twine, dimensionals