colourQ 150

When I first saw Arielle's colors for the challenge this week at colourQ I was very nervous.  (Actually, I will confess that this happens to me frequently but I think I hide it well).  For a few days I was mentally tossing a few ideas around in my head and then I just decided to throw caution to the wind and make a card with no clear direction using the latest Deconstructed Sketch as my layout.  For me, this is generally a very daring thing to do, because there's no telling what I'm going to end up with.  But I gamely grabbed cardstock and patterned paper, a few stamp sets, some Nestabilities, ribbon and whatever else I could find within easy reach and started layering them on.  Luckily halfway through this card, I realized that I actually liked it.

The Daffodil Delight DSP is from Beyond the Garden and I chose it because it's a relatively soft version of a very bright yellow and wouldn't overpower the other elements of the card.  The pretty rose and leaves are from a PTI set and the ribbon is the delightful Daffodil Delight Seam Binding.

I sure hope you have time to check out the cards my fellow design team members at colourQ have made this week.  Once again, they will amaze and delight you.  You might even find a scrapbook page to get your creative juices flowing.  And don't be afraid if you don't have the exact colors.  Even Ryan knows that you can use something close!  Just don't forget to join in and link up your project!

Freshly Made Sketches 47

The process for deciding how I'm going to make a card for a particular challenge is always a little entertaining for me.  Sometimes it's like watching a bad movie where the story is lousy you know the ending is going to stink but you have to keep watching because you've invested so much time in it already and it's too late to back out.  Sometimes you cut your losses and switch the channel and hope there's something better to watch.  Card making is similar in some ways.  When I sat down to make my card this week for Freshly Made Sketches I had some very clear color choices in mind.  But once I got more than halfway through my card, I thought "yuck" but I was a little too far in to it to change the channel, as it were.

So I fretted, and paced, and checked my watch to verify that the clock was indeed ticking.  And then I had an epiphany and realized that I was trying to make my card more complicated than it needed to be.  So I took a step back and thought of the things that appeal to me in a card.

I used lots of white space and background colors from Early Espresso and Wisteria Wonder.  I thought a little color was in order so I added a Calypso Coral piece of DSP from Berry Blossoms and some leaves from Summer Silhouettes stamped in Lucky Limeade.  The pretty flower is stamped from my new favorite Everything Eleanor.  Once I colored it, I added some shimmer with a clear Atyou Spica pen which is impossible to see in the picture so I thought I'd give you a different view here:

I happen to know that our amazing design team has created some fabulous inspiration for you so please stop on by Freshly Made Sketches and check them out.  Here are some quick links to the design team:

Cindy Hall

Tui Nathan

Jennifer Timko

Allisa Chilton

Jen Sannes

Ann Schach

Linda Suarez

Jennifer Brum 

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a chance to join us this week at Freshly Made Sketches.

Stampin' Royalty 135 and Deconstructed Sketch 63

I play along with color challenges so much that sometimes I forget that I've got colors in my stash that I don't use all that often.  I was thinking that I hadn't spent a lot of time with the new InColors and wanted to remedy that when along came the color challenge at Stampin' Royalty which uses three brand-new colors!  That's what I call serendipity!  I combined them with the Deconstructed Sketch and I was off!

I used some DSP from Patio Party and I've got to say that I have no idea why I bought this paper.  I think I liked that it featured several of the new colors, but I don't think I paid very much attention to the patterns because I don't like most of them!  Sheesh!  That being said, I do like this patterned piece of Summer Starfruit.  And I think it looks nice with that bit of Gumball Green peeking out from the edges.

I used a Verve flower and sentiment and a die-cut from a new (to me) Memory Box flourish.  I added a Dahlia Adornment to the center of the flower.  I really like those little things.  Very cool looking!

The other day I mentioned my kittens in a blog post and got a request from my sweet blogging friend Rita to see pictures of them.  So I thought I'd show you what they are usually doing when I'm in my stamp room

The one on the left is Bindi and she's usually sleeping on the floor next to my drafting table.  The one on the right is Bailey and he generally makes a nuisance of himself by plopping down right in the middle of the table where I work.  I can usually count on him getting bored within a few minutes and he takes off for other adventures, but every once in a while he settles in for the long haul and I have to convince him that I need my space back!  They were just a year old on July 3rd, but I still call them kittens!

The weather is looking a little iffy today so I might have a built-in excuse to spend time inside getting all crafty!  Thanks for stopping by today!

retro sketches 22 with Dynamic Duos 13

Today has dawned rainy and I figure that's as good excuse as any to spend some time with stamps and ink.  If I'm lucky I should be able to get quite a few cards knocked out today for some upcoming challenges.  First I tackled the newest retro sketch and paired it with the colors at Dynamic Duos.

These earthy colors made me want to do something with leaves.  I've got quite a few leafy sets that I like to use but I chose Gently Falling because it's the one I probably use the least and I wanted to see what I could come up with.  I paired it with some DSP from Woodland Walk and a wee sentiment from Tiny Tags.

This is the first time I've used the new Argyle embossing folder and I really like it.  It's gives a good crisp image without tearing the cardstock and it has an interesting pattern.  I also added a bit of Crumb Cake taffeta ribbon with one of the new Ribbon Slides and I highlighted my leaves with an Antique Brad.

Well, I'm off to recharge with some coffee and breakfast, then it's back to "work" in my stamp room.  Thanks for stopping by!

CAS-ual Fridays 62 and Just Add Ink 127

The CAS-ual Fridays challenge and Just Add Ink challenge are a match made in heaven, so I took this as a sign that I needed to participate.  The CFC62 challenge was to use black as a card base and at JAI127 we are to use black, white, and a color of our choice.  I picked Summer Starfruit.

I stamped the flourish from Everything Eleanor in Versarmark then went over it with clear embossing powder.  I experimented with layering the flower from that set, but it looked horrible so I just used the biggest one that I colored with a marker.  I thought it needed a little something extra so I went over it with a clear atyou Spica pen.

I popped up the flower using Deanna's Dots.  I love these things.  They're about half as thick as a dimensional and perfect when you want something popped up just a tad.  I think this picture shows it a little better.

And since the glitter from the Spica pen is still somewhat elusive in these pics I tried one last one to show that off.  Not a great picture, but I think you get the idea.

Well, I'm off to run some errands then to enjoy this beautiful sunshine by relaxing on the patio.  Thanks for stopping by!