FYI Challenge #6

I am trying out a new challenge today! It's by the "For Your Inspiration" blog (find it here). They post an amazing picture, and you create a card or project based on how it inspires you. Here is this challenges' picture below:

And here's my card:


What most made an impression on me were the rainbow of colors, the blue, blue background, and all the many lines. The idea for the "twiney" flowers popped right into my head. Next, I had to actually make them. This is where a lot of my ideas just don't work out in practicality, LOL! But fortunately, these did. I love 'em and will make more of these for sure! Just think of all the embellishments that could be used for centers . . . (BTW, they were incredibly easy to make: Just cut some of the smallest die from Spellbinders' Inverted Scalloped Circles, tape a piece of twine to the back, start winding in the inverted part of the scallops, and tape the twine again when you're done! Add a center of your choice.) I used The Twinery twine. I did try PTI's but it's just too thin and subtle for the bright effect I was going for. The Twinery has lots of wonderful colors to choose from, and really matchless brightness and size--I hope they come out with even more colors! :-)

Thanks for stopping by today!

Supplies
Stamps: PTI--Tiny Tags, Flower Fusion #1
Paper: PTI--Blueberry Sky, S.S. White, Bitty Dots Basics
Ink: PTI--Pure Poppy, New Leaf; Versafine--Onyx Black
Misc.: Border Punch--EK Success; Dies--Spellbinders Classic Inverted Scalloped Circles and PTI's Tiny Tags; Embossing Folder--Cuttlebug; Twine--The Twinery; Buttons--PTI Pure Poppy, Terracotta Tile, & Plum Pudding; Corner Chomper

Eggstra Special Thank You

To understand the sentiment behind this card, you need to know something about me. I love deviled eggs. I mean I love deviled eggs! They are my second favorite food--after chocolate-covered strawberries. :-) And I have a friend, Sheryl, who makes the best deviled eggs in the world. And when she makes them--for a get together, a party, a picnic, a potluck--she always makes extra for me to take home. How sweet is that? Well, I wanted to make her a thank you, so I bought a gift card from Vons, and made this little card to house it. I could not resist using Verve's "eggy" stamps, and the chicken-themed paper from Melissa Francis. I fashioned the simple gift card pocket with ScorTape and wrote a thank you note on the top portion of the inside. She liked it!

Supplies
Stamps: Verve--Chicks Rule & Egg-stra Special
Paper: PTI--Lemon Tart; Melissa Francis--Kitschy Kitchen
Ink: Memento--Tuxedo Black; E.P.--Filigree Clear
Misc.: Die--Spellbinders Labels 8; Flowers--stash; Copics--Y00, Y32, YR00, YR12; Ribbon--Ellen Hutson

Papertrey May Blog Hop Challenge

Happy Blog Hop, PTI fans! Thanks for visiting my little home on the 'net. :-) This month's theme is flowers, and I'll bet everyone had a great time making a creation with what has to be the all-time favorite handmade card embellishment, right? I know you're busy trying to visit as many blogs as possible, so I'll stop talking now and list my supplies!

P.S. This is my 100th post! I should give away some blog candy, huh? ;-D Stay tuned . . .

Supplies
Stamps: PTI--Flower Garden Sentiments and Garden of Life
Paper: PTI--Rustic White, Hawaiian Shores, Beautiful Blooms, Bitty Dot Basics
Ink: Versafine--Vintage Sepia; Ranger--Antique Linen Distress Ink; E.P.--Filigree Clear
Dies: PTI--Picket Fence; Spellbinders--Large Scalloped Circles and Fancy Tags
Impression Plate: PTI--Woodgrain
Misc.: Felt--PTI Pure Poppy; Twine--The Twinery Honeydew, Brads--Making Memories; Corner Chomper

Make It Monday Challenge #16

This week's Papertrey Ink Make It Monday Challenge (details here) is to create a sympathy card. In an eerie coincidence, I just made this one. Eerie because I don't have anyone I've made it for, I just had a feeling that I should have one on hand. I hope it was for this challenge, and not because I will actually need to send it!

I tend to use natural colors and images when making sympathy cards. Most of the ones I've made in the last few years have been for men--I mean, to send to men, on the passing of their wives--so greens, browns, blues and the like are colors I reach for. For women, I also use greens and blues, but softer shades like Ocean Tides and Soft Stone, and I never use black for either. Smokey Shadow is gentler and more hopeful, I think. I also use PTI's add on sympathy set for the loss of pets regularly--that set is a perfect example of PTI's thoughtful and thorough inventory. I mean, who else would think of it?

For this card, I used Kraft, Fine Linen, Ripe Avocado and the patterned paper collection Pacific Vineyards along with the 2009 Anniversary stamp set, Round and Round--an excellent one for sympathy cards, especially when you need one quickly. I can tell that Royal Velvet will be added to my roster of colors for this type of card. I also used the sewing machine, leaving the thread ends long for a rustic look both inside and out. The twine hopefully added to the rustic feel too.

This is a card I would send to a man, or a family, but I could easily make the same exact card with different papers/color choices and a ribbon in place of the twine for a woman. These are cards no one wants to make, but nevertheless are needed. Thanks to PTI for the wonderful products that make this job easier.

Supplies
Stamps: PTI--Round & Round, With Sympathy (inside)
Paper: PTI--Kraft, Fine Linen, Ripe Avocado, Pacific Vineyards
Ink: Versafine--Vintage Sepia; Versacolor--Grape, PTI--Ripe Avocado, Tea Dye Duo; E.P.--Filigree Clear
Misc.: Buttons--PTI Royal Velvet; Embossing Folder--Cuttlebug; Twine--stash; Corner Chomper; Sewing Machine

Make It Monday Challenge #15

This week's task for Papertrey Ink's Make It Monday Challenge is to make your own spray mist (details here).

I haven't yet jumped on the spray mist bandwagon. I only own three reinkers. I don't have any of the pearly powder stuff. I *do* have a Tim Holtz mister or two laying around. What the heck, I thought, I'll give it a try. I knew I wanted the "mist" to have a metallic effect if at all possible, so I used the only metallic reinker I have, one called Amber Satin. And you know what? It worked. After I got over my panic that I had sprayed too much and permanently warped my paper I mean, it worked. (Flattening out after drying proved no problem.) I just may try this 'ole trick again--or actually invest in a "real" spray mist, LOL!

You can actually see the metallic-y finish in the first photo pretty well, I think, but I added a close up shot too. I sprayed Mr. Frog, the pennant banner, and the left-hand of the two patterned papers. This is actually a birthday card for a grown woman. When is Boy Basics: Frog Hop appropriate for an adult woman? When your small group has the frog as its unofficial mascot, and group members give major props for anything frog-related, LOL!

Supplies
Stamps: PTI--Boy Basics: Frog Hop
Paper: PTI--Aqua Mist, Rustic White; Basic Grey--Sweet Threads
Ink: Memento--Tuxedo Black; Ranger--Tattered Rose, Tea Dye, and Vintage Photo Distress Inks; E.P.--Filigree Clear
Dies: PTI--Frog Hop; Taylored Expressions--Pennant Border; Spellbinders--Labels 8 and Big Scalloped Circles
Misc.: Alpha Stickers--Making Memories; Googly eyes--Michaels; Rhinestones--Elements; Copic Marker--100; Reinker--Color Box Amber Satin

Play Date Cafe Challenge #81

Mojo, where are you?! Seriously, I've been occupying myself with organizational tasks lately because my creative mojo is apparently on vacation, without me. Sheesh. I haven't been on a vacation in 2 years, 3 months. (Not that I'm counting.) You'd think my mojo would invite me, but NO. ;-D

However, today I am happy to have a card to blog! I was looking through challenge sites over the weekend and saw the color combo that the Play Date Cafe is using this week--I LOVE purple and green together and really wanted to make something for this challenge, even if my mojo is in Cabo without me. I scored a card base of Royal Velvet about 1/2 inch apart in two columns on either side of a central area. I used Scor-Tape to add a line of glittery goodness to the center of each scored area. Next, I die cut the flowers from PTI's Delightful Dahlia in Soft Stone, stamped them with a background stamp, and then with the Dahlia stamps. I glittered the centers and added rhinestones, and popped them up in the center area, with the leaves framing them. Lastly, I combined white embossing powder and glitter and embossed the Happy Birthday sentiment and added tiny rhinestones under it.

{I apologize for the picture--I went to use my "good" camera, only to find that its batteries need recharging and I have no replacements for the meantime! So, I had to use my point-and-shoot and I don't feel that the colors are quite true. Also, the flash kept flashing in the center tiny rhinestone, making the trio look uneven--they are even IRL, I swear, LOL!}

Supplies
Stamps: PTI--Delightful Dahlia; Stampendous--Pattern Trio
Paper: PTI--Royal Velvet, Simply Chartreuse, Soft Stone
Ink: Versamark; Versacolor--Hyacinth; Memento--Grape Jelly; PTI--Ripe Avocado
Misc.: Dies--PTI Delightful Dahlia; Glitter--Palette Prisma; Scor-Tape 1/4"; Embossing Powder--Stamp Diego Ultra Detail White; Rhinestones--Recollections

Happy Mother's Day: SSIC #87 & JUGS #82

I can't believe I have my mom's Mother's Day card finished. I'm trying hard to make cards ahead of time, and right now at least, I'm doing pretty well! This card was a real departure for me. I wanted to play around with vintage-ness and not use a sketch. I thought Stamping Sisters in Christ's challenge to not use any patterned paper, and Just Us Girls' challenge to use the emboss resist technique both would lend themselves well to what I was picturing in my head. Aqua Mist and Ocean Tides are my mom's favorite colors, and last year's card was Ocean Tides, so . . . the color was an easy choice. I went with white on white too, because I like the look of it when the white is embossed. I have to give a shout out to Diane Jaquay on this card--it wouldn't have been possible without her. Why? Because I won some lovely blog candy from her several months ago, and the doily is something from the goodies that I've been hoarding. Also, she's been using amazing flowers like the one here, and thanks to her I've ordered some (and that lace too, come to think of it) from Frog Feathers on Etsy. Thanks for the enabling, Diane! :-D Here are the details:

Supplies
Stamps: Verve--Thankful Blossoms
Paper: PTI--S.S. White
Ink: Versamark; PTI--Aqua Mist; E.P.--Filigree Clear
Misc.: Embossing Folder--Sizzix; Border Punch--EK Success; Doily--stash; Flower and lace trim--Frog Feathers; Pins--Maya Road; Ribbon--PTI; Pearls--Prima; Corner Chomper

Market Street Stamps Sketch Challenge #1

Have you checked out Market Street Stamps yet? They are super cute, they have one bilingual set, and I have high hopes for more! They have just started their sketch challenge, and since I recently got my first order from them, I rushed to enter . . . just under the wire . . . :-D They have some unique backgrounds. I love full-sized backgrounds, and I knew I could get a lot of use from this "Loopy" one! I embossed it in silver to match the robot theme, and then stamped and fussy cut the cutest robot ever for my top layer. The ribbon had to be silver too, of course! I borrowed a "robot-y" sentiment from another company that I thought would go perfectly. I can't get over how adorable the robot is!

Supplies
Stamps: Market Street Stamps--Loopy Polkas and Robo Love; Wordsworth--Robots
Paper: PTI--S.S. White, Enchanted Evening, Scarlet Jewel; stash
Ink: Versamark; Versafine--Onyx Black; E.P.--Filigree Clear & Silver
Misc.: Pen--Sakura; Trim--stash; Decorative Scissors--Provo Craft