Freshly Made Sketches 466

I finally finished my card for our last Freshly Made Sketches challenge of 2020.  The last couple of weeks have been really busy and I had a bunch of setbacks every time I ventured into my stamp room to make a card for this challenge.  But I was determined to finish out the year with my design team friends so here is my card.

A dear friend and co-worker is undergoing treatment for breast cancer for the second time and I very much wanted to send her a few words of encouragement.  So I took the opportunity to use the sketch to make a card for her.  She's a tough cookie so I'm sure she'll make it through this OK.

Thanks for stopping by!  Our sketch at Freshly Made Sketches is our last one for the year but the linky  tool is open until January 4th so you've got lots of time to play along!

Supplies
Stamps:  Fight Like a Girl (a.muse studio); Fancy Word Coordinates (Reverse Confetti)
Paper: Solar White (Neenah); Regal Rose, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!); silver glimmer (Recollections)
Ink:  Pretty in Pink (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories:  Support Ribbon Framelits (Stampin' Up!); Pierced Rectangle STAX (My Favorite Things)

CAS(E) This Sketch 401

One last Christmas card - I hope!  This one is for our latest CAS(E) This Sketch challenge which I combined with pine trees challenge at Challenge Up Your Life.

My pine trees are a little modern, but they are pine trees in spirit!  Two of them are embossed in silver and one is embossed in a sparkly blue.  By coincidence I had some sparkly blue cardstock that was a close match so I used that at the top of my card as a banner.  I then added some other layers on top of it, including a sentiment.

Thanks for stopping by!  My fellow CAS(E) This Sketch design team members have made some great cards with this sketch so be sure to check them out!

Supplies
Stamps:  Triangle Trees (Reverse Confetti); Fa La La (Simon Says Stamp)
Ink:  Versamark; Onyx Black (Versafine)
Accessories:  Vertical Greetings II die; First Place Ribbon die (My Favorite Things); silver embossing powder, tinsel embossing powder (Recollections)

Freshly Made Sketches 465

I'm still on a Christmas kick with my cards - despite it being December 9th already!  I should be done by now but I've got one last push.  This week Jacquie's sketch at Freshly Made Sketches made me think of a nice big Christmas gift!

I used some watercolor paper for the gift, added some glitter washi tape as ribbon, and finished it off with a big ol' bow!  It's time to celebrate!  And it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas over at The Paper Players so I'll be sharing this over there as well.

Thanks for stopping by! Our always amazing design team at Freshly Made Sketches has some great cards to share with you so I hope you check them out!

Supplies

Stamps: Holiday Bow (Altenew); Bold Christmas Greetings (Memory Box)

Paper:  Solar White (Neenah); Whisper White (Stampin' Up!); Watercolor Wash Brights (My Favorite Things)

Ink:  Dew Drops, Aqualicious, Galactric Stream (Altenew)

Accessories:  glitter washi tape

CAS(E) This Sketch 400

What a cool sketch we have for you this week at CAS(E) This Sketch!  I love the bold stripes on the sketch but wasn't quite sure how to incorporate them into my design so I ended up doing some subtle texture with embossing paste instead.  I think it looks just as good!

I made a little cluster of traditional winter greenery, stamped with the colors from the latest Sunday Stamps challenge, over my embossed honeycomb design.  I used pearlescent embossing paste for that honeycomb and it looks so pretty in real life!  The sentiment tucked in perfectly amid those hexagons.

Thanks for stopping by!  My fellow CAS(E) This Sketch teammates have made some great cards with this sketch so be sure to check them out!

Supplies:
Stamps:  Spruce & Sprigs (Papertrey Ink); Contempo Christmas (Stampin' Up!)
Paper:  Whisper White (Stampin' Up!)
Ink:  Pinefeather, Dark Chocolate (Papertrey Ink); Frayed Leaf, Ruby Red (Altenew)
Accessories:  Honeycomb stencil (Heidi Swapp); pearlescent embossing paste (Dreamweaver)

Freshly Made Sketches 464

Hi all!  We've got a great new sketch for you at Freshly Made Sketches.  This week our hostess is Judy and I absolutely love her sketch!

Once again it's a Christmas card and once again it features a poinsettia.  I really need to find a new holiday flower to use!  I chose the colors from Global Design Project on this card.

I stamped the leaves in two different shades of green and layered them on top of each other to make one of the layers on the sketch.  Then I cut a poinsettia out of red to make the final layer.  The sentiment is a nice block one that mimics that slim vertical layer nicely.

Thanks for stopping by!  My fellow Freshly Made Sketches design team members have made their usual beautiful cards which will surely inspire you to play along with us!

Supplies

Stamps:  Holiday Bows (Altenew); Joy (The Stamp Market)

Paper:  Whisper White, Real Red (Stampin' Up!)

Ink:  Volcano Lake, Ruby Red (Altenew); Pistachio Pudding, Garden Green, Real Red (Stampin' Up!)

Accessories:  Layered Poinsettia die (Penny Black)

Freshly Made Sketches 463

Once again, our latest sketch at Freshly Made Sketches has inspired me to make a Christmas card.  Our sketch designer this week is Amy, and I fell in love with her design!

I'm always intrigued with the one layer challenge at Less is More because I like to try and take a sketch that seems to have layers and make a card without them.  For this card I started with a pierced square die and embossed the center of the card with it (click on the pic to see the detail).  Then I took some rectangular scrap pieces and drew them on the sketch with a black pen "behind" the square.  The square ended up looking a bit lost, so I outlined it in the same black pen.  Then I colored in every other stripe on the H in red to add some color!

Thanks for stopping by!  My fellow Freshly Made Sketches design team members have made some great cards with sketch so be sure to check them out!

Supplies

Stamps:  Santa's Greeting (Close to My Heart)

Paper:  Whisper White (Stampin' Up!)

Ink:  Black Licorice (My Favorite Things); Pentel red pen; Copic Multiliner 3mm

Accessories:  Pierced Square STAX (My Favorite Things)

Freshly Made Sketches 462

Forgive me but I've got another Christmas card for you!  We've got a new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches and Santa has something to say.  Our hostess this week is Narelle and she's got a fun one for us.

I used some patterned paper with a bit of a mod design to make those wonky squares and then topped them off with this ZZ Top Santa.  Another Christmas card off the list and one for The Paper Players challenge.

Thanks for stopping by!  Check out our new challenge at Freshly Made Sketches and the great cards made by the design team.  We'd love to see you in the gallery!

Supplies

Stamps:  Tis the Season (Essentials by Ellen)

Paper:  Solar White (Neenah); Sahara Sand, Taken With Teal, Ruby Red, Holiday Lounge DSP (Stampin' Up!)

Ink:  Onyx Black (Versafine); Ruby Red (Stampin' Up!); Copics

CAS(E) This Sketch 398

Hi all!  It's time for a new sketch at CAS(E) This Sketch.  It put me in a Christmas mood and if you scroll down you'll see why!

These stained glass sentiments were perfect for the sketch.  It was a little nerve wracking making sure they were lined up properly, but patience persevered and I love how this came out.  I used the colors from The Paper Players - you'll have to squint to see the gold in the tiny diamonds on some of the letters!

Thanks for stopping by!  As usual my CAS(E) This Sketch teammates have made some amazing cards with this sketch so be sure to check them out!

Supplies:
Stamps:  Stained Glass Greetings (Simon Says Stamp)
Paper:  Whisper White (Stampin' Up!)
Ink:  Onyx Black (Versafine); Real Red, Gold Stampin' Dazzle Marker (Stampin' Up!): Copic Maker

Fusion - Holiday Blessings

The inspiration theme at Fusion is "thankful" but this week I decided to play along with just the sketch and make a Christmas card instead.  I'm approaching that time of year when I suspect I'm woefully behind on my Christmas card stash...and I'm too scared to check!  So I keep plugging along and hope I hit my target!

On Tuesday I happened to catch the sneak peak of The Color Throwdown challenge so I used those colors for my card.  They also happen to be a favorite color combo of mine for Christmas cards!

Instead of layering three circular shapes, per the sketch, I used dotted circle dies to create two of the circles then layered blue and red cardstock behind so that the color showed through.  The third circle is, obviously, the poinsettia.  I happen to think this looks pretty good - a clever idea - but I wonder what the recipient will think.  The poinsettia, the sentiment, and the colors say Christmas, but they might be scratching their head over the purpose of those circles!

Thanks for stopping by!  My fellow Fusion teammates have some great cards to show you so be sure to check them out!

Supplies:
Stamps:  Peace Love Joy (Right at Home)
Paper:  Baja Breeze, Real Red (Stampin' Up!); Solar White (Neenah): silver (Recollections)
Ink:  Onyx Black (Versafine)
Accessories:  Layered Poinsettia die (Penny Black); Circles die (Little B)

Freshly Made Sketches 461

We've got a great new sketch for you at Freshly Made Sketches.  Our hostess is Karren and I love the simple lines of her sketch.  So many possibilities!

Using the colors from Less Is More, I made yet another Christmas card!  Washi tape made a colorful patterned stripe and the rest of the card is taken over with a poinsettia that was done in white embossing powder on vellum.

Thanks for stopping by!  My fellow Freshly Made Sketches teammates have made some beautiful cards with this sketch, so be sure to check them out!

Supplies

Stamps:  Winter Flowers (Simon Says Stamp); Joy (The Stamp Market)

Paper:  Solar White (Neenah); vellum (Stampin' Up!)

Ink:  Pool Party (Stampin' Up!)

Accessories:  Opaque Bright White embossing powder (WOW!); washi tape

CAS(E) This Sketch 397

We're going back in time for this week's CAS(E) This Sketch challenge.  Our muse is a sketch that first debuted on August 4, 2016.  For that card I chose snowflakes.  For today's card I went with an entirely different season!

I cut some stitched leaves in the color of the Sunday Stamps challenge, arranged them like they were falling, and added a sentiment.  Easy peasy!

Thanks for stopping by!  Be sure to check out CAS(E) This Sketch for some fabulous inspiration!

Supplies
Stamps:   Give Thanks (The Alley Way Stamps)
Paper:  Very Vanilla, Rich Razzleberry, Pumpkin Pie, Crushed Curry (Stampin' Up!); Cherry (Avery Elle)
Ink:  Fallen Leaves (Lawn Fawn)

Freshly Made Sketches 460

It's another Christmas card for me for our latest challenge at Freshly Made Sketches.  Our hostess is Karren and she gave us a big banner as a focal point.  Lots of room for interpretation there!

I dug into my old bag of tricks and used a snowflake stamp, inked in a couple of shades of green, to make a wreath on that banner.  How cool is that!  The "joy" stamp fit perfectly in the center and I embossed a white sentiment onto black for the slim layer to complete the look.  The background is a simple red and gold plaid on white.

Thanks for stopping by!  My Freshly Made Sketches teammates have made some fantastic cards with this sketch so I'm sure you'll be inspired to play along with us!

Supplies
Stamps:  Snow Flurries (Stampin' Up!); Bold Christmas Greetings (Memory Box); Stained Glass Greetings (Simon Says Stamp)
Paper:  Whisper White, Basic Black, Wrapped in Plaid DSP (Stampin' Up!)
Ink:  Pear Pizzazz, Mossy Meadow, Cherry Cobbler (Stampin' Up!); Versamark
Accessories:  Opaque Bright White embossing powder (Wow!)

CAS(E) This Sketch 396

The fun sketch at CAS(E) This Sketch got me thinking about how I could fill up that background with something.  Then I remembered I have a "plaid" coverplate die that if cut twice then layered together in opposing directions would create a cool background.  So that's what I did.

I have been using this "joy" die a lot lately because...wait for it...it fills me with JOY!  I think I've also mostly cut it out of glimmer paper because that is even more joyful!  In this case the red glimmer letters and my maxi white background were also perfect for the challenge at AAA Cards.  

Thanks for stopping by!  My CAS(E) This Sketch teammates have made amazing cards with this sketch so be sure to check them out!

Supplies
Stamps:  Joy Stamp (The Stamp Market)
Paper:  Solar White (Neenah); red glimmer (Recollections)
Ink:  Onyx Black (Versafine)
Accessories:  Joy die (Concord & 9th); Diagonals Plaid Cover Up die (Lil' Inker Designs)

Fusion - Autumn

It's getting cooler outside and the leaves are changing colors here so the Autumn challenge at Fusion is very appropriate!  I went in a completely different direction than the inspiration photo though, choosing the sketch and a fun turkey instead - turkeys being the ubiquitous autumn ambassador around here!

I colored the little fella up in lots of warm colors - I'm pretty sure the turkeys around here are not nearly as colorful!  Nor do they have polka dots and stripes!!  But he's cute all the same.

Thanks for stopping by!  My teammates at Fusion have made some fantastic cards for this challenge so be sure to check them out! 

Supplies
Stamps:  It's Fall About You (The Alley Way Stamps)
Paper:  Pure Ivory (Gina K); Fine Linen, Fall Prints and Patterns (Papertrey Ink)
Ink:   Black Licorice (My Favorite Things); Onyx Black (Versfine); Copics

Freshly Made Sketches 459

Hello everyone!  Today is sketch reveal day at Freshly Made Sketches.  Our sketch hostess is Jen Brum and apparently she was determined to confound me with some angled layers!

I set out to do a Christmas card using some pretty patterned paper that was specifically designed for Christmas themes.   I chose some highly contrasted colors and patterns, chose an appropriate holiday sentiment, and was fully prepared to pat myself on the back for a job well done.  But when I got done with it I realized absolutely no one was going to recognize this as a Christmas based solely on some pretty paper.  So I figured I better add something to the mix.  Enter some long skinny trees - obviously Christmas trees  - in complementary colors!  All is right in the world!

My fellow design team members at Freshly Made Sketches have really done some amazing things with this sketch so be sure to check them out.  We hope you'll join us in the gallery!

Supplies
Paper:  Whisper White, Holiday Thyme DSP (Stampin' Up!)
Stamps: Ways to Say It Merry Christmas (Papertrey Ink); Peaceful Forest (Ink to Paper)
Ink:    Cranberry Crisp, Old Olive (Stampin' Up!); Onyx Black (Versafine)

CAS(E) This Sketch 395

I took the opportunity of the great new sketch at CAS(E) This Sketch to make another Christmas card.  I went quite literal with the sketch and incorporated a wreath with my fave - a poinsettia (!) and a few holly leaves.

I dug into my stash for some pretty Christmas patterned paper and found this oldie-but-goodie striped one.  I think it matches perfectly with the poinsettia and leaves.  I managed to find a sentiment that was small enough to fit in the center of the wreath - I love how it tucks in there!

Thanks for stopping by!  My fellow CAS(E) This Sketch teammates have made some AMAZING cards with this sketch so be sure to check them out!

Supplies
Stamps:   Modern Christmas (Clearly Besotted0
Paper:   Solar White  (Neenah); Ruby Red, Garden Green, Old Olive (Stampin' Up!)
Ink:   Onyx Black (Versafine)
Accessories:  Whirl Wreath  (Penny Black);  Poinsettia die  (Paper Smooches)

Freshly Made Sketches 458

The last couple of cards that I have made have featured Halloween colors and themes so I thought for our newest challenge at Freshly Made Sketches I would make a Christmas card.  Our hostess this week is Kim and I knew instantly when I saw her fun sketch that sparkly paper was in my future!

I've had this glimmer paper in my stash for a while but have only used a tiny bit (what a surprise)!  It is super sparkly and the colors are so bright and fresh and modern.  I love to use colors like these on Christmas cards.  They are a bit unexpected and just so darn fun!  My photography skills don't do this card justice because in real life it is super sparkly!  

So that the smaller white layer didn't get lost on the card front I dragged out a ruler I've got with holes all along it and my paper piercer and hand-pierced all four edges.  So old school!  Remember when  stitched and pierced dies didn't exist and we had to hand-pierce everything? 😜  I'm so glad I never got rid of the ruler or the piercer because sometimes a die just won't do!

Thanks for stopping by!  My Freshly Made Sketches teammates have made some amazing cards with this sketch so be sure to check them out!

Supplies:

Stamps:  Joy Stamp  (The Stamp Market)

Paper:  Solar White (Neenah); glimmer paper (Stampin' Up!); silver  paper (Recollections)

Ink:  Onyx Black (Versafine)

Accessories:  Joy die  (Concord & 9th)

CAS(E) This Sketch 394

I seem to be in a bit of a Halloween mood lately since I keep making cards with bats on them!  And I've got another one on my card for our latest challenge at CAS(E) This Sketch!  This one is on the cutesy side, though!

The dangling spiders were perfect for this sketch and I added the little bat for no other reason than it's adorable!  The spooky halloween sentiment is a favorite of mine too.

Thanks for stopping by!  Our CAS(E) This Sketch design team has made some fabulous cards with this  sketch so be sure to check them out!

Supplies

Stamps:  Best Fiends,  Autumn Apparitions (Stampin' Up!)

Paper:   Solar White  (Neenah); Watercolor Wash Brights (My Favorite Things)

Ink:  Nocturne (Versafine Clair)

Fusion Purple Night

We've got a great new challenge for you at Fusion.  The purple night theme put me in mind of a Halloween card so that is what I made.

Don't adjust your set, folks, I really did use purple on my card.  But well-documented here, photography is not in my skillset, so no matter what I tried my picture came out looking blue.  

I don't often have the time to get adventurous with my cards but wanted to try my hand at some alcohol inks for this moody theme.  It had been so long since I used mine I had to refresh my memory on how to use them by watching a few videos on YouTube!  Apparently I need to add 90% alcohol to my stash to get those color to swish around, but since the pandemic that is in short supply so I had to rely on Ranger blending solution.  I added some silver mixative to make things interesting and used a straw to blow all the colors around my paper.

Thanks for  stopping by!  I hope you can join us at Fusion.  Our design team has created some amazing cards to inspire you!

Supplies
Stamps:  Bite Me (Stampin' Up!)
Paper:   Solar White (Neenah); Yupo (Ranger); black glimmer (Recollections)
Ink:  Amethyst (Ranger Alcohol Ink); Silver Mixative (Ranger); Nocturne (Versafine Clair)

Freshly Made Sketches 457

Once again I have decided to add another Christmas card to my stash using our latest sketch from Freshly Made Sketches.   Our hostess this week is Linda and her sketch immediately put me in mind of my favorite poinsettia die.

That long panel as well as the slim vertical layer practically screamed at me to add the poinsettia and a Christmas sentiment.  And the color combo at Christmas Card Throwdown is a favorite of mine when it comes to Christmas cards  so I jumped at the chance to use it for this card.   I chose to add some texture to the white background as well as the long blue vertical layer and finished it all off with a vellum poinsettia.  It's quite pretty in real life!

Thanks for stopping by!  My Freshly Made Sketches teammates have, of course, made some amazing cards this week so be sure to check them out!

Supplies
Stamps:  Holiday Messages  (Mama Elephant)
Paper:  Solar White (Neenah); Crumb Cake, Baja Breeze (Stampin' Up!); vellum  (Graphix)
Ink:  Onyx Black (VersaFine)
Accessories:  Pierced Rectangle STAX (My Favorite Things); Subtle Dynamic embossing folder (Stampin' Up!); Snowflake/Speckles embossing folder (Tim Holtz); Layered Poinsettia die (Penny Black)