Saturday Spotlight - Sunshine!

Ahhhh, a challenge I could get used to - Sunshine!! Over on the Saturday Spotlight with Hidden Potential blog, the challenge is to make cards that represent sunshine!

I've had this stamp from The Stamp Barn for a long time and I rarely ever use it. When I read that the challenge was about sunshine I thought I should dust it off and do something with it.

I stamped the image and then colored it in with my SU markers and a crayola blue marker (because I don't have a blue in SU that I liked for this image). Then, I used this great yellow designer paper from Creative Imaginations. I'm not sure if you can tell in this picture (maybe if you click on it and look at it larger) but there are embossed circles on it. It is actually Lego paper!! I found it a while ago and bought it for my son to use (he likes talking photos of all his great Lego creations and I thought he could use these pages to scrapbook them) but he has not gotten around to using this yellow up (there are other Lego colors). And besides, the yellow matched well!!

The card was too CAS so I decided to add the blue frame piece. I had to cut it from white cardstock and color it in with the blue crayola marker. I worried it would look like a 5 year old colored it, but it looks fine once the ink dried. I added this perfect sentiment and cut out the sun and popped it up on dimensionals!!

Supplies: Stamps - DES 037 CU (The Stamp Barn), Scattered Showers (Papertrey Ink); Ink - Jet black (Ranger); Paper - Really Rust, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!), Classic Yellow Brick(Creative Imaginations); other - Really Rust and Summer Sun markers (SU!), Blue Lagoon marker (Crayola), dimensionals.

Thanks for dropping in!

Donelda

Enjoy Life - KLSNS Challenge #14

Over at KL Stampin N Scrapin the latest challenge is to use Nestabilities, Punches, or Dies. Well, that's an easy one for sure!! I reached into the container where I keep bits and pieces and found this Lable 1 Nestability that I had cut from a sheet of cardstock that had been "played" with!! Look at those yummy colors ... reds, greens, and blue and a watercolor masterpiece!

I knew that some silhouette flowers would look great on top of all those bright colors. I decided to make a small note card which measures 5" x 3 1/2". I took Kristina Werner's advice that black card bases can look "flat" so I added some background with clear embossing.

A ribbon, some dimensionals, and rounded corners and the card was complete.

Supplies: Stamps - Life, Giga Guide Lines (both Papertrey Ink); Paper - Basic Black, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!); Ink - Jet Black (Ranger), can't remember if the watercolored look is made with classic SU ink refills or alcohol inks by Ranger - it is on regular cardstock with makes me think it is refills; Other - Fresh Snow satin ribbon (Papertrey Ink), clear embossing powder (Stampin' Up!), corner chomper (We R Memory Keepers), Lables 1 Nestabilities (Spellbinders), dimensionals.

I'm hopping on over to the KLSNS site to see who else has entered the challenge this week! See you there.

Thanks for dropping in! Enjoy your day!

Donelda

CAS 51 - Designer Paper Tree 2

For the Clean and Simple #51 challenge over on SCS the challenge was to use designer paper on our CAS cards. Well, that just happens to be one of my New Year's Resolutions!! I have challenged myself to use what I have....and trust me, I have a ton of designer papers!!

Some of my favorite papers are from the BasicGrey lines! I particularly love this multi-lined sheet from the Stella Ruby collection called Drive in the Country.

I adhered a 1" strip alone the edge of a white card base and rounded the corners. I had originally intended the card to be horizontal but I wasn't feelin' it and in the end, it turned out to be a vertical card.

I stamped this truely delicious tree that I just received in my latest order from Papertrey Ink. It comes from their brand new set called Through the Trees. After that, I was stumped as to where to put the sentiment. I considered placing one along the bottom between the tree and the designer paper but that didn't look right. Then I tried it up along the top right of the card...but again, yuck! Then I turned it sideways to run along the paper and I had an idea. I put away the sentiment I was using and pulled out my Around and About Sentiments (Papertrey Ink). It has the best long and skinny repeated sentiments so I stamped it along the edge of the designer paper. I really liked how this ended up. Glad I played around with placement before putting it in my original spot!!

Supplies: Stamps - Through the Trees, Around and About Sentiments (both Papertrey Ink); Ink - Old Olive, Bravo Burgandy (Stampin' Up!); Paper - White (Stampin' Up!), Drive through the Country (Stella Ruby collection, BasicGrey); Other - corner chomper (We R Memory Keepers).

Now I think I'll browse around on the CAS site to see what all the other crafty ladies did with designer paper. Then, maybe I'll make another card with some other designer paper....the lord only knows how many cards I could make with it all!! LOL!!

Thanks for dropping in today!! Hope you have a great day!

Donelda

Sympathy leaves

I created this a while ago for a friend. The leaf in this particular set is astounding (First Fruits, Papertrey Ink). I did the rock and roll technique on them with Summer Sunrise ink in the middle and Spring Moss ink (both Papertrey Ink) around the edge. The sentiment is from the Birds of a Feather set (Papertrey ink) which I think is so elegant. Finally, I added these swirls to the Summer Sunrise background, a bit of brown matting, and a few brads!!!

Thanks for dropping in.

Donelda

Hedgehog Thinking of You!

This cute little hedgehog is a stamp that my wonderful son gave me for Christmas. It is from Penny Black and is actually just part of the whole stamp called Make Believe. I decided to ink up only the hedgehog and not his little reindeer friend. I colored him in with my pencil crayons (Prismacolor) and blended it with some odorless thinner. The sentiment is from Around and About (Papertrey Ink). And look at that....some Basic Grey paper .... actually being used!! I am actually using the 'stuff' I have accumulated!! Thanks for dropping in today! Donelda

smARTworks - Blue Thinking of You

Here is another attempt at a masculine card. I love, love, love the Basic Grey collection of Granola becuase it is a totally masculine set of papers. For this card, I started out with some 'grain' and 'flax' papers (that's the white with blue spots and the blue paper). Then I stamped this smARTworks image called A Fishin' in blue ink that matched. I think hemp is a totally masculine embellishment so I added a bit of that. I also did a bit of tearing in order to add some texture in a masculine way. The sentiment is from Beyond Basic Borders (Papertrey Ink). I really like the clean font which feels very masculine as well!! Tip for making masculine cards --> start out with masculine designer paper, the rest will follow. And, did you see it ... I have used more of my designer papers!! Yeah for me!! I've had these papers for at least a year and it's finally getting cut! I hope you have a great week. Thanks for making my blog a small part of that week!! Donelda

Cards Blog Challenge - Squares!

Over on the Cards Blog, the most recent challenge is to use Squares!! I love using squares!! For this card, I pulled out some of the solid shades of BasicGrey papers sitting on my desk (new years resolution - use what I have). The orange = Mandarin Slice from Marrakech, the yellow/green = Citron from Sultry , the blue = Kazoo Blue from Cupcake , and the pink = Fandango from Sultry. I cut each square to 1 and 1/2" square. Then, I stamped various images from the Asian Frames set (Hero Arts) with versamark and then heat embossed them with white. I am particularly

loving that daisy image on the orange square. Next, I adhered them to this piece of kraft colored file folder (good recycling!). I wrote the sentiment with my white gel pen (Signo) an then added the white doodling around the 4 colored squares and also the kraft layer. I placed all of this onto a white card base. Believe it or not, this challenge is actually done in enough time to enter it!! Wow, that's kinda new for me -- LOL!!! Thanks for dropping in to my blog today and checking out all of the cards I've posted today!! Donelda

Corrosive Challenge #47 - Digital Hero Arts

The challenge this week on Corrosive Challenge Blog is to 'use digital images'. I am just starting to explore the world of digital so I am limited on my supplies but I have been gathering a few items.

On this card, the digital element is the pink polka dot paper. It is from Krystal Hartley and very yummy!!

I printed it off onto white cardstock and sewed around it with my sewing machine. Then, I stamped this butterfly (Hero Arts) onto the dotted paper and then again on 2 other sheets of designer paper scraps. I cut the bits and pieces of the butterfly out and glued it all back together again. I added the sentiment (Demask Designs - Papertrey Ink) and matted it on some matching blue paper. This was all on a white card base.

This card also qualifies for the Hero Arts challenge this month which is a theme - Friendship and Valentine. I think I'll send this little card to my mom for Valentine's day!!

I hope you are all enjoying my many posts for today!!

Donelda

Loonie Stamper's challenge #75

The Loonie Stamper Girls must think I've forgotten all about them. I haven't, honest. It just seems like I can't get around to getting challenges done despite it being one of my crafting resolutions! But, since my hubby is working all day today and it is cold and snowy outside so no option but to stay inside and craft, I pulled out these awesome colors and got ot work! (Note that this is last weeks' challenge not the current one...sheesh, late again!!)

The card is a mini using the envelope that Lisa Johnson used in THIS post (she shares the template).

I cute the Ripe Avocado cardstock to fit inside the envelope. I don't have Terracotta Tile cardstock yet so I used some scrap paper (Bazzill) that was already ripped like that (using scraps - resolution!!). I stamped the bird from Bird Watching (Papertrey Ink) onto a scrap of white with Spring Moss ink (I see it is not showing up very well in the photo) and cut him out! Then, I stamped the flight dots and the sentiment with Versamark ink and embossed with white! You can see that I decorated the envelope too!!

A great little card to drop on a friends desk at work!!!

Keep dropping in as I have a few other cards to post today. Maybe tomorrow I'll do the current Loonie Stampers Challenge LOL!!

Thanks for dropping in!!

Donelda

Saturday Spotlight - snowflakes

So, here is another late challenge card. Last Saturday the

Saturday Spotlight challenge was snowflakes. I could hardly bare to pull out my Snowflake set (Stampin' Up!) but I did and I love the results.

I took and painted the small snowflake with some Twinkling H2O paint, then stamped onto a scrap of white cardstock. I repeated this until I had a staggered row, stamping off for a few to get some variation of color. To see how glittery this paint really is, you can click on the smaller close-up photo! I did some tearing and added a sentiment (Remember-Papertrey Ink). Then, I adhered a bit of Teal (Stampin' Up!) cardstock that I had left over from making THIS card. A bit of black grosgrain ribbon (Papertrey Ink) and my card was finished.

Now maybe I'll pop over to Saturday Spotlight to see what the current challenge is.

Donelda

BasicGrey Challenge - Late

On the Basic Grey blog, the last challenge was an inspiration challenge using this photo. I love the colors and there are all kinds of things that peaked my interest. The striped chair on the right was awesome, and so was that wall paper on the back wall, I was even simply interested in the various shades of blues and greys. However, what won out was that arrangement of 3 square decorative pieces on the left grey wall!!

I used my Flourishes inchie stamps (Inkadinkado) and stamped 2 of the images onto Kazoo Blue paper from the Cupcake collection (BasicGrey) with Versamark ink. Then I heat embossed it with white. I cut them out and popped them up with dimensionals onto more Kazoo Blue paper. I added this to some Going Grey cardstock (Stampin' Up!) which was matted

onto a white card base. I finished the card off by drawing a rectangle around the focal image with my white gel pen (Signo).

Of course, I am too late to enter this into the actual contest because the closing date was yesterday!! Sheesh!!

I will likely be back with more posts today and tomorrow since hubby is working this weekend and it is a cold and snowy day -- great day for creating!!

Donelda

CAS 50 - Teal Thinking of You

This is the card I made for the 50th Clean and Simple challenge over on Splitcoaststampers. The challenge was to use the color teal, white and one other color.

I've got to admit that I'm not sure I've ever used this color! I pulled it out of my Stampin' Up cardstock pile and got to work.

One of my goals was to use one of the border stamps from thsi Floral/Swirl Borders stamp set from Stampology (Autumn Leaves). I decided to make the card base with the teal but I sliced off 3/4" from the bottom. Then I added a sheet of white cardstock with the scalloped border punched along the bottom edge. I then stamped this flower border stamp along the teal edge and the sentiment (from Simple Little Things set - Papertrey Ink) using Versamark ink and then embossed with white powder. Finally, the addition of one other color is the gold metallic gel pen (Scribblers) that I added to the centers of the flowers.

A quick, clean and simple card!! Now I'm going to visit the CAS50 gallery to see what everyone else created with this interesting color!

Thanks for dropping in!

Donelda

smARTworks Masculine Celebration

I have decided that I need to be more purposeful in creating masculine cards. I am going to add it to my resolutions for the year ... use what I have, participate in challenges, and make more masculine cards.

Of the stamp companies that I use (mostly Papertrey Ink, smARTworks, Stampin' Up!, and Hero Arts), the company that I think has the best masculine images is smARTworks!!

This fleur de lis is an excellent example! It is perfect for a guy card!! Overall, the card is very clean and simple (CAS) but do you see that dark brown mat??!! I made that by taking a piece of Kraft cardstock and dragging my Chocolate Chip ink across it until it was colored to my liking. I love the bits of kraft showing through....kinda looks like wood!!

Tip for making masculine cards --> start with a masculine stamp and then use masculine colors, browns are an excellent choice!!

Supplies: Stamps - Lock & Key (smARTworks), Mixed Messages (Papertrey Ink); Paper - Kraft (SU!); Ink - Chocolate Chip (SU!); Other - hemp, dimensionals.

Thanks for dropping in!!

Donelda

Embellish Magazine - Purple, Brown, and Stripes

Here is my card for the Embellish challenge where the colors are Kraft, Brown, Purple with the twist of adding stripes!! Great challenge!!

This aweosme flower vase comes from a set called Fun Stuff sold by smARTworks. I stamped them onto Kraft cardstock and colored them in using my white and purple pencil crayons (Prismacolor). Then, I sponged around the edge with Walnut Stain distress ink (Ranger).

Next, the stripes!! Taking the stripe stamp from Background Basics: Retro (Papertrey Ink) I stamped Chocolate Chip ink onto Chocolate Chip cardstock. (Does anyone else love this particular background set as much as I do?? I can't seem to stop using it!!). Then I added the scallops (Fiskars) and tied on some linen thread (Stampin Up!).

I added the main image, and then matted that onto a piece of purple cardstock. It was originally a lighter shade of purple but I took my Lavendar Lace (Stampin' Up!) ink pad and dragged it across the cardstock to get a great look. Finally, I adhered everything to a Kraft card base that was also distressed around the edges with distress ink.

I must say that I really like the striped look and will definatly be using that again!!

Thanks for dropping in!!

Donelda

Daring Cardmakers - Hole in One challenge

The challenge this week over at the Daring Cardmakers Blog is called 'Hole in One'. That's right, Lythan challenged us to make cards with at least one hole in it!

Well, I certainly did not stop at one...I made a card with a whole bunch of holes in it :o)

I stamped the circle background from Background Basics: Retro (Papertrey Ink) and then took my eyelet setter and puched out random holes.

Then I backed it with this yummy Marigold Morning (retired Stampin' Up! color). I used my new Threading Waters border punch (Fiskers) too, just to emphasize the holes!!

Finally, I added a bit of brown cardstock and a sentiment from Giga Guide Lines (Papertrey Ink) - a great size!!

Thanks for dropping in for a visit today! Your comments are always appreciated!!

Donelda

smART Word Challenge Jan. - ICE

The word for the January smART Word Challenge is ICE!!! Wow, that one had me stumped for about a minute, but then I thought of these great Snowy Pines and knew they would look great along the side of a pond that is covered with ice!! (and aparently, so did Dina!!)

Obviously I did the reflection technique for this card. I also did some brayering and sponging for the background.

The sentiment is from the newest Cookie Plate #2 - Vintage Variety. It is an amazing set and can be purchased using smART Bucks (and one easy way to gather those is to play along with our smART Word challenges and use smART rubber!!).

Now it is your turn to play. How does the word ICE inspire you?? Grab your stamps and some paper and get creating!! Link up with Mr. Linky on the smART Word blog and you will have a chance to win!!

I hope that after this smART Word challenge is done so is the ICE!!!

Enjoy your day. Thanks for dropping in!

Donelda

Moxie Fab World - Color Challenge using smARTworks stamps

Well, I certainly would not have ever picked these colors to go together, but then that is why I guess it is called a challenge, right!!?? This is the Moxie Fab World color challenge going on right now. It's a doozie for me!!

Part of the reason it took me so long to do the challenge is because I just couldn't think of anything to do with these colors. But then, I got those awesome butterflies in the mail from smARTworks and knew I had to play with them. Don't you love them?? You will probably be seeing them a lot because I love them!! They are from a set called Fun Stuff which has a ton of great fun images in it!!

Supplies: Stamps: Fun Stuff (smARTworks); Paper - Grey, white (Stampin' Up!); Ink - Summer Sunshine, Scarlet Jewel, Plum Pudding (Papertrey Ink); Basic Black; Other - dimensionals, scallop rectangle (Spellbinders), white gel pen (Signo), corner chomper (We R Memory).

I have to go see what everyone else did with this intersting color combo!!

Thanks for dropping in!!

Donelda

Birthday Wishes

I love the new Giga Guide Lines set released a few months ago by Papertrey Ink. You can create some great designs with them and the regular sized Guide Lines II set like I did here.

Thanks for dropping in!

Donelda

Monkey Business

When I saw this monkey paper at my local scrapbooking store I knew I had to have it!! My son is a monkey .... as well as my husband (where do you think my son learned it??!!) so the paper just had to come home with me!! And little Changito is so cute haning in there. This sentiment actually comes from a smARTworks set with winter trees and sentiments about spring being around the corner!! It was a perfect match for this image!! My monkey was colored in with Copic markers - they are just so quick and easy!! Supplies: Stamps - Changito (Stupendous), Snowy Pines (smARTworks); Paper - Monkey paper - not sure who made this, Whisper White (SU!); Ink - Brilliance Jet Black (Tseukino); Other - markers (Copic), dimensionals, corner rounder. I hope you are hanging in there!! Have a great day!! Donelda

KLSNS Jan. Challenge - pink and black

(note: my clean and simple challenge card is posted just under this one -- I posted it late last night -- so make sure you scroll down to see it!!) The challenge over on KL Stampin N Scrapin is to use pink, black, and a neutral color. I couldn't resist!!!

I had made this striped background a while ago while I was trying to use up some scraps. I knew it would work perfectly. I colored in this image (sent to me by a friend) with my Prisma pencilcrayons and blended with some odorless thinner. With the addition of my Copics, I'd forgotten how much I enjoy doing this technique!!

You can see that I have added some Star Dust Stickles (Ranger) to her wings. They are so sparkly in real life!! For now I have left a sentiment off this card. I will add one just under her arm when I decide what I want it to say :o)

So, what pink and black project are you planning on creating??!!!

Thanks for dropping in!!

Donelda

CAS 49 - Cut it Out - Finest Flourishes

The Clean and Simple challenge #49 tonight was to Cut it Out! Well, I've had this flourish made from moulding paste sitting in my scrap bin for a very long time and decided I would "cut it out" and use it on a small 3x3 guft card.

The molding paste was colored with acrylic paint and then smeared into the Finest Flourishes stencil template sold by Stampin' Up! (although I suspect it is retired by now). The texture is awesome as you can see in this close up photo.

I adhered it with dimensionals and added the sentiment with Close to Cocoa ink (SU!). The sentiment is from the Rustic Branches set (Papertrey Ink).

A quick little Clean and Simple card. Off to see what the DT created and any other inspirational ideas on the CAS49 thread.

Donelda

Birthday Splat

This was such a fun card to make!! If you've been on T!m Holtz's blog, you've probably seen him use a can of air to move drops of ink around glossy cardstock. That is how I created this card.

dropped Read Red, Brilliant Blue, and Garden Green on glossy card stock and squirted it with the air. Then, I cut out parts of it using my 1" square punch. I added small mats to each inchie using the appropriate color.

A simple sentiment (from Birthday Basics, Papertrey Ink) was all it needed to finish the card using my favorite Clean and Simple layout!! Wouldn't this be a great birthday card for a male teenager!

Thanks for dropping in today!! I hope you enjoy your day!!

Donelda

Kathy's Blog Candy Give Away

Kathy over at The Daily Marker is giving away the most awesome Blog Candy I've seen -- as you can see here:

I'm crossing my fingers!!!

Embellish Magazine - Pink, Red, and Black

Over at Embellish Magazine, the challenge is to use these yummy colors!! How could I ever resist??

And I am continuing to focus on using my stash.

I pulled out some of this delicious Basic Grey paper that I've had for years and some rub

ons too!!!

I drew and cut the heart by hand and

covered it with some yummy red

glitter!!

Supplies: Stamps/In - none; Paper - Pink Pirouette (Stampin' Up!) Blush (BasicGrey); Other - black satin ribbon (Papertrey Ink), red glitter (Ritz), rub-ons (EK Success).

I can't wait to see what everyone else does with this great color combo! Off to check them out. Thanks for dropping in to my blog! Enjoy your day!!

Donelda

Saturday Spotlight - Calendar Craze

Hey everyone!! Over at Saturday Spotlight with Hidden Potential they have posted their first challenge of 2010. The challenge was to create a project using a calendar. They have links to get calendars and a ton of great projects created by the design team !! Jessica's calendar has the cutest image ever and Erin made the greatest card that incorporated a calendar page as an element!! In creating my calendar, I decided to stick to my New Year's resolution. I wanted to participate in more challenges and use the materials I have. For this calendar, I used a stamp set that I loved and had to buy but I have rarely used. As well, I used some Stampin Up rub-ons that I just had to have...and again, have yet to use. Finally, I decided to actually use some of the digital papers I've been collecting (and not ever using!!). I decided to create this desk calendar. It is the size of a regular A2 size card. I added the digital papers onto each side of the Kraft "card base". (Sadly, I realized that I put the wrong colors on the wrong pages....as you will see). Then, I added the calendars on the bottom of each side in groups of 3. I decorated each page with some of trees decorating them appropriately for their season. The calendar is tied open with a ribbon with the winter and spring calendars on the outside. When those 6 months are finished, the string gets untied and the card is flipped inside out to reveal the summer and fall pages.

I am defiantely going to make more of these (being more careful of the colors and patterns I use for each season! ) and maybe even get started on some Christmas gifts for next year!

Supplies: Stamps - Lovely As A Tree (Stampin' Up!); Ink - Black (Ranger); Paper - Kraft, Basic Black, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!); Digital Paper - 12 Days of Snowflakes (Kristin Bueter), Green Stripes (Tracy on fred-she-said.blogspot.com), and two different designs by Becky Oehlers; Other - Anchor rub-ons (Stampin' Up!), black gingham ribbon (Stampin' Up!), Copic markers, dimensionals, 1 1/4" circle punch, Cropodile.

Thanks for dropping in for a visit!!

Donelda

January SmART Word Challenge -- ICE!!!

Hey everyone!! The January WORD is up over at the smART Word Challenge Blog. This month the word is:

ICE

So, put on your thinking caps and create a project inspired by ICE!! You can use any supplies you want but if you use smARTworks products you will recieve a smART Buck which gets you closer to owning some awesome products!! Check out the card created by the ever talented Dina over on the smART Word Challenge Blog and keep an eye out for my card that will be revealed in the coming weeks!!

Donelda

Welcome Home

We arrived home today from a short family holiday to Las Vegas. I had always said I would not take my underage son to Vegas (not until he was 21) but in the end, we went with friends who were taking their children. It all worked out and we had a great time.

I made this house warming card a few months ago for friends who moved into their new home. The background is created using my home-made cloud template!! The little birdhouse is one I hand drew and cut out.

Supplies: Stamps - Father Knows Best (Papertrey Ink), Of a Feather (Memory Box); Ink - Not Quite Navy, Wild Wasabi , Old Olive, Chocolate Chip (all Stampin Up!), Paper - Close To Cocoa, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White (Stampin Up!); Other - 1" circle punch, white gel pen, brown marker, home-made cloud template, sponge, brown ribbon (Stampin' Up!).

I look forward to getting some new cards created over the next few days...too bad I have to go back to work. *wink*

Donelda

Get Well Cards - various

So, I had made a bunch of Get Well Cards for a friend. Her parents are at that age where they have lots of sick friends...so she wanted a bunch!!

Here are two of them. Check out the spots on my frog....get it.. the frog is sick, he has spots!! I thought it was hilarious...but no one else seemed to get it.

And this other one is a sweet get well card. I saw this Happy Hopper at a LSS and fell in love with him. I hope you are feeling good today! Thanks for taking time to drop in to see what I am up to!!

Donelda