Fusion - Crayons

Our new challenge at Fusion is so colorful.  How can it not be with crayons as the design inspiration!  I didn't have any crayons in my stash but I did have some swooshes that I inked up in primary colors.

I changed the orientation of my cardstock but I followed the sketch otherwise.  Instead of crayons I used some linear swooshes that I colored in primary colors.  Super easy!

Thanks for stopping by!  My Fusion teammates have made some fabulous cards for this challenge so be sure to check them out.  Remember, you can play with the sketch, the inspiration, or combine them.  The choice is yours!

Supplies
Stamps:  True Colors (The Alley Way Stamps)
Paper:  Whisper White (Stampin' Up!)
Ink:  Fresh Lemon, Crimson, Carribbean Sky, Persian Blue (Altenew); Onyx Black (Versafine)  

Fusion - Valentine Gnome

I always associate gnomes with Christmas.  The hat and the full beard seem well suited to a cold climate, after all!  But our new challenge at Fusion places gnomes smack-dab in the middle of Valentine's Day!  I love the warm colors of the inspiration photo so I took my cues from those and combined it with the sketch. 

I used a bunch of things from my stash on this card:  a stencil, a punch, some very cool gingham paper, and some stamps, of course!  I spent some time happily rooting around in my stash to make this card.  I love it when I can show some of my older supplies some love!

Come join us at Fusion - where you can use the inspiration photo, the sketch, or both.  It's totally up to you!  And for some inspiration head on over to check out what our design team has put together.  

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies
Stamps:  Flower Doodles (The Alley Way Stamps)
Paper:  Desert Storm (Neenah); Basic Black, Naturals Ivory (Stampin' Up!); True Black Gingham (Papertrey Ink); X-Press It Blending Card
Ink:  Crumb Cake (Stampin' Up!); Nocturne (VersaFine Clair); Copics
Accessories:  Mosaic Heart Stencil (Simon Says Stamp)

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)

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

CAS(E) This Sketch 383

Hey there!  It's time for a new sketch from CAS(E) This Sketch!  I went far into my stamping vault for this one and used an old favorite flower die for my card.

A few days ago I was scrolling through my blog searching for a particular card that I made many years ago.  While I didn't find the card that I was looking for I did manage to reminisce about many cards that I had made and forgotten about.  A few cards used this fun floral stamp that I used on my card today.  I remember that when I got the stamp I was so in love with it that I used it frequently.  But then, for one reason or another, it got put in a drawer and I forgot about it - a short attention span is the problem, I suspect!  So I decided that floral stamp needed some love so I inked it up.  I made the card one-layer by drawing frames around the floral stamp and the sentiment.  I love doing that!

The challenge at AAA Cards is maxi white space with optional florals.  I think this passes muster!

Thanks for stopping by!  Check out our CAS(E) This Sketch challenge and all the wonderful cards our design team has made to inspire you to play along!

Supplies

Stamps:  Awesome Blossom, Give Thanks (The Alley Way Stamps)

Paper:  Whisper White (Stampin' Up!)

Ink:  Blush, Jet Black (Altenew); Copic Multiliner

CAS(E) This Sketch 369

I am finally getting around to posting my card for CAS(E) This Sketch!  This week has been a doozey and I've been behind on just about everything.  Even though I managed to squeeze in some time to make a card for the challenge I just had no time to actually post it here.  The sketch is actually a retro one and goes all the way back to #140 which debuted on September 10, 2015.

This sketch had me stymied for a bit 😳even though I played along with it all those years ago and apparently had no trouble with it then!  I made a card last Sunday but wasn't at all happy with it.  So I scrapped it in favor of one using the colors from the Global Design Project challenge.  I used some stamps that haven't seen ink in a long time to make an abstract design and added a fun sentiment. 

Thanks for stopping by.  I hope you are safe and healthy!

Supplies
Stamps:  Watercolor Wonder (Papertrey Ink); True Colors (The Alley Way Stamps); Halftone Circles (Altenew)
Paper:  Whisper White (Stampin' Up!)
Ink:  Mint Julep (Papertrey Ink); Night of Navy, Melon Mambo (Stampin' Up!)

Freshly Made Sketches 400 - Week Three

If you've been following us at Freshly Made Sketches for the last couple of weeks you may have noticed a theme.  First we dug into our archives and re-purposed Sketch #1 (which was also Sketch #100).  And then we did the same with Sketch #200.  Well guess what...we did it again with Sketch #300 this week!

That last pic was actually my card for the original #300 sketch.  Whoo!  What a difference from my new card! 

I had it in mind to make a Christmas card with this sketch and even dug into my stash of ancient Stampin' Up! patterned paper to make one of those rectangles.  I was unsure of what to do with the sentiment portion of the sketch and then I stumbled on the "elf" challenge at Christmas Card Throwdown and knew I could sneak on this cute elf and give him a simple sentiment on a simple rectangle.  Simple is better!  The

Now, we are fresh out of old sketches at Freshly Made Sketches to repurpose so you know what that means...we've got a brand new sketch for you next week as we continue our 400th celebration.  That's right an actual Sketch #400!  😀There may be a surprise in store for you as we celebrate this milestone too so be sure to check us out!  In the meantime our design team has made some great cards with this sketch so play along with us!

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies
Stamps:  Toy Land, Chill Out (The Alley Way Stamps)
Paper:  Desert Storm (Neenah); Old Olive, Cherry Cobbler, Very Vanilla, Jolly Holiday DSP (Stampin' Up!); X-Press It Blending Card
Ink:  Black Licorice (My Favorite Things); Ruby Red (Altenew); Copics
Accessories:  Blueprints 15 die, Horizontal Stitched Strips die, Stitched Rectangle die (My Favorite Things); Christmas Sprinkles (Doodlebug Designs)

Freshly Made Sketches 352

Hello!  It's  time for a new sketch from Freshly Made Sketches!   This week our sketch is designed by Jen Timko.  A instant classic for sure!

My card was inspired by the inspiration challenge at Just Us Girls.  They've got a back to school vibe going on and I focused on the big alphabet on the wall which put me in mind of this stamp set I've had of the Periodic Table of Elements.  So I colored up a scientist and added some of those elements which "spelled" out a birthday!  Fun!

Our Freshly Made Sketches design team has created some fabulous card with this sketch so be sure to check them out!  We'd love to see you in the gallery!

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies
Stamps: Periodically Nerdy (Your Next Stamp); Bubbling Over (The Alley Way Stamps)
Paper:  Solar White (Neenah); Pool Party, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!)
Ink:  Black Licorice (My Favorite Things); Pool Party (Stampin' Up!); Polychromos

CAS(E) This Sketch 265 Meets Fusion

Easter challenges abound this week so it was a no brainer to dig out an old set from my stash with a bunny on it and put it to work for the CAS(E) This Sketch and Fusion challenges.

I rotated the sketch and a bunny became my circle.  :)  I've actually seen a few wreaths at TJ Maxx and Marshalls that are very similar to that bunny one in the Fusion inspiration and I've been tempted to buy one!  But for now I have to be satisfied with my floppy eared bunny!  There's an Easter challenge at Global Design Project so this fits right in there.

Thanks for stopping by!  There are some great cards to inspire you over at CAS(E) This Sketch and Fusion so I hope to see you in one (or both) of those galleries.

Supplies
Stamps: Spring Has Sprung (The Alley Way Stamps); Teeny Tiny Wishes (Stampin' Up!)
Paper:  Solar White (Neenah); Lemon Tart (Papertrey Ink); Garden Green, Wild Wasabi (Stampin' Up!); Bristol Smooth (Strathmore)
Ink:  Black Licorice (My Favorite Things); Jet Black (Altenew); Copics
Accessories:  Grassy Edges die (My Favorite Things)

CASology 268 Guest Designer

Today is an exciting day for me!  A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to have one of my cards chosen as a winner at CASology and I was invited to join the team as a guest designer this week.  The cue word is Fortune and I consider it pretty lucky that I had the image that I used on my card in my stash!

I'm pretty sure that treasure chest holds a fortune in gold and precious jewels!  The image is from a set of pirate themed stamps and I really didn't want to use one of the sentiments from the set.  They all qualified as certified for International Talk Like Pirate Day and that wasn't quite the look I was going for!  I started perusing my stash and lo and behold I came across this sentiment, in a nice font, that was perfect for my card.

Many thanks to Melissa and the CASology team for inviting me along this week.  I love to make CAS cards and there's always loads of inspiration to be found there from the talented design team.  I'm so happy that they like what I do!!

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies
Stamps:  Black Beard's Loot (The Alley Way Stamps); Bright Days (Avery Elle); Sunny Days (Verve)
Paper:  Solar White (Neenah); Bristol Smooth (Strathmore)
Ink:  Black Licorice (My Favorite Things); Jet Black (Altenew); Daffodil Delight (Stampin' Up!); Copics

Freshly Made Sketches 304

To Halloween or not to Halloween.  That is the question today.  The answer is the newest challenge at Freshly Made Sketches where I took the sketch, added some shoes and some fun colors, and came up with this.

I'm not entirely sure this is a Halloween card.  In fact, I'm pretty sure it is not.  But it started out that way, what with the colors (courtesy of Cupcake Inspiration) and the funky Witchy-Poo shoes (courtesy of Just Us Girls) but in the end I opted for this fun sentiment which sent this card in another direction altogether!

Narelle is our sketch designer at Freshly Made Sketches this week and what a great, classic sketch it is.  Check out the inspiration from the design team and then join us in the gallery.  We'd love to see you there!

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies
Stamps:  Funky Feet (The Alley Way Stamps); Don't Hold Back (Dylusions)
Paper:  Solar White (Neenah); Orange Zest (Papertrey Ink); Black (Simon Says Stamp); Vellum (Stampin' Up!); X-Press It Blending Card
Ink:  Black Licorice (My Favorite Things); Jet Black (Altenew); Copics
Accessories:  Blueprints 13 die (My Favorite Things); 2-inch circle punch (EK Tools)

CAS(E) This Sketch 233

It's easy peasy lemon squeezy over at CAS(E) This Sketch today where we've got a great new sketch designed by Hannelie.

In retrospect I should have done two lemons instead of three to keep more in line with the sketch but I love lemons so I stuck them all on there!  The cue card this week at CASology is "juicy" which put me in mind of this stamp set that I've had for ages.  I even dug out my old Crystal Effects (pleasantly surprised to find that storing it on its side prevented the nozzle from clogging) and used that on the inside parts of the lemons.  It looks great in real life!

The work week is nearly over (yay!) and I'm looking forward to the weekend so I can relax a bit.  Thanks for stopping by and I hope we'll see you at CAS(E) This Sketch.  Be sure to check out the inspiration from the design team.  You're going to love all their cards!

Supplies
Stamps:  Lemon Squeezy (The Alley Way Stamps)
Paper:  Cloud White (Reverse Confetti); Daisy (Avery Elle); X-Press It Blending Card
Ink:  Black Licorice (My Favorite Things); Copics
Accessories:  Dotted Curve die (Poppystamps)

Freshly Made Sketches 298

I had bright colors on the brain when I sat down to make my card for Freshly Made Sketches this week.  I had recently watched a Kristina Werner video where she did a rainbow colored design with some hexagons.  I didn't have any hexagons, or use rainbow colors for that matter, but even still I was inspired to use a graphic image and some fun colors to make this card.  Linda gave us the sketch this week.  Check it out:

The stamp I used was only big enough to cover a certain amount of space so I made my card 4 1/4" square to make sure it went from corner to corner.  I colored it with some Copics in nice bright colors then added a die cut "hello" sentiment a-la the challenge this week at Fusion.

This card was shockingly easy to put together.  There was no fussing, fuming, or changing of anything!  I even managed to color within the lines!

Thanks for stopping by!  Our Freshly Made Sketches design team has got some fabulous cards to show you so be sure to pop on over there to check them out.  I hope to see you in the gallery!

Supplies
Stamps:  Stackem' High (The Alley Way Stamps)
Paper:  White (Spectrum Noir); Basic Black (Stampin' Up!)
Ink:  Black Licorice (My Favorite Things); Copics
Accessories:  Happy Hellos die (My Favorite Things)

Tag You're It 70

TGIF!  But Friday also means it's time for a new inspiration challenge at Tag You're It.  This time around our featured artist is Kim Heggins who has designed the cutest tag for us.  We are also joined by one of our previous winners Wendy Johnson.  So let's get to it.

I did not have any cute bears in my stash that we small enough for my tag so I had to do a little shopping!  Any excuse, right?  I found this adorable digital image on Etsy and he practically leaped into my cart!  I like how Kim's bear and my bear are both holding something - perhaps a gift for a friend.  I carried Kim's friend theme with my sentiment and kept some similar design elements.

You won't be surprised to know that the Tag You're It design team has gone all out for this challenge and has some adorable tags to inspire us.  I hope you will join us in our gallery!

Thanks for stopping by!]

Supplies
Stamps:  Bear (Blackberry Jellys); Stackem' High (The Alley Way Stamps)
Paper:  Solar White (Neenah); Soft Sky, Wild Wasabi (Stampin' Up!); X-Press It Blending Card
Ink:  Tumbled Glass (Distress); Jet Black (Altenew); Copics
Accessories:  Tag You're It die (My Favorite Things); Puffy Clouds die (Memory Box)

Freshly Made Sketches 280!

This week at Freshly Made Sketches we have this great sketch designed by Linda.  Those may be butterflies on the sketch but you can, of course, use any shape you'd like!

I actually had no idea what shapes I was going to use on my card.  So I started to peruse some of my dies and found these clouds.  Once I saw those I immediately thought of this little flying bunny because what's more natural than an airplane, piloted by a big-eared rabbit, flying through the clouds?  It didn't help that Linda and I were chatting the other day about a Copic coloring class so I had coloring on my mind.  It's been a while since I've used my Copics so it was good to put those to work.

The sentiment on this card is an old one from The Alley Way Stamps, which is no longer in business.  I love how it fits perfectly in the space between the cloud and the plane.  Plus it's a pretty cool sentiment for my little adventurous rabbit.  I'm pretty sure it's about five or six years old so I'm going to add this to the "anything goes" challenge at Retro Rubber.

Thanks for stopping by.  And please join us this week at Freshly Made Sketches where you'll find awesome inspiration from our always-amazing design team!

Supplies
Stamps:  All About You (The Alley Way Stamps); Rabbit Traveler Airplane (Zlatoena Designs)
Paper:  Solar White (Neenah); Blueberry Sky (Papertrey Ink); X-Press It Blending Card; Gingham-Linen Rainbow Petite Prints (Doodlebug Design)
Ink:  Jet Black (Altenew); Copics
Accessories:  Puffy Clouds die (Memory Box)

colourQ 364!

We've got some great colors for you this week at colourQ!  They put me in mind of a Halloween card (thanks in no small part to that fabulous wreath)!  I was all set to use a certain image on my card when I decided to go back and look at some old Halloween cards that I had made to see what I would find.  Well, what I found were several stamp sets that I forgot that I even owned!  So in the NBUS spirit I scrapped my original idea and used some cute monster feet from an oldy-but-goodie set!

I only stamped half of the sentiment (the other half says "smell my feet")!  And I also used some really old patterned paper that's got candy corn all over it.  What says Halloween better than candy corn??!!  The layout for my card comes from the latest challenge at CAS Colours & Sketches.

I hope these colors inspire you to create a fun card with us at colourQ!  And I hope we'll see you in the gallery!  Thanks for stopping by.

Supplies
Stamps:  Funky Feet (The Alley Way Stamps)
Paper:  Pumpkin Pie (Stampin' Up!); Black (Simon Says Stamp); X-Press It Blending Card
Ink:  Black Licorice (My Favorite Things); Jet Black (Altenew); Copics
Accessories:  Stitched Rectangle STAX, Sentiment Strips die (My Favorite Things); Harvest Corn baker's twine (Maya Road); black button (a.muse studio)

colourQ 357!

I love the color palette this week at colourQ.  It's so vibrant and makes me think of tropical things.  Of course, I may have been thinking of a tropical theme because I was going through some old cards recently and I came across one I made a long time ago using a toucan.  It was such a fun, colorful card so I really wanted to use that image again.  Then lo and behold our latest colourQ challenge happened!

The Melon Mambo polka dotted background proved to be too over-powering for my little toucan so I cut out a stitched flower petal in white to layer behind him.  Although I was successful in creating a break between the two colors I can't help feeling that this is really an out-take from my favorite Looney Tunes cartoon Duck Amuck - with the part of the duck being played by a toucan!  LOL!  If you've ever seen that cartoon you may remember there is a scene in it where Daffy Duck is walking along and some giant flower petals frame his face.  Every time I look at my little toucan that's all I can think of!

I got my layout from the latest challenge at The Paper Players.  It was perfect for using up some of that old Melon Mambo patterned paper.

Be sure to check out the inspiration from my fellow teamies at colourQ!  I hope to see you in the gallery!  Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies
Stamps:  Tropical Hideaway (The Alley Way Stamps)
Paper:  White (Papertrey Ink); Black (Simon Says Stamp); Melon Mambo, Melon Mambo DSP (SU); X-Press It Blending Card
Ink:  Black Licorice (My Favorite Things); Jet Black (Altenew); Copics
Accessories:  Stitched Sentiment Flag die (Lil' Inker Designs); Flower Petal die (My Creative Time)