colourQ 180

I'm pretty sure that when you see the colors for this week's colourQ challenge you might be inspired to think of shamrocks and leprechauns.  I know I was.  The trouble with that is that I own a very boring collection of shamrock and leprechaun stamps and I really couldn't come up with any good ideas to use them.

So I pondered those greens and and eventually came to the conclusion that green also equals Christmas in my book, so I took these colors and with some help from the challenge at CAS(E) This Sketch made an unusual Christmas card!

I took some liberties with the sketch vis a vis the placement of the sentiment but I thought these trees needed to be the focal point of the card so I put them where the sentiment is supposed to go.  At the last minute I added the tiny "merry christmas" sentiment under the crochet thread.

Don't forget to head on over to colourQ and check out the other cards from the DT.  Then link up!

Supplies:

Stamps:  Jolly Holiday (The Alley Way Stamps), WTF (CAS-ual Fridays Stamps), Teeny Tiny Wishes (SU)

Accessories:  Crochet Thread

The Bunny Challenge

I very nearly didn't post this card.  It was just about to be tossed into the "meh" pile before I remembered some words of wisdom from a wise stamper named Linda.  She got it from another wise stamper, and I'm paraphrasing, but her advice is to proudly post the card as if it was the Mona Lisa and then continue on to the next card.

So, without further ado here is my Mona Lisa:

The colors are from Color Throwdown and the bunny theme is from CASology.  I'm making is just under the wire for the CASology sketch.  Although I knew the image I wanted to use (love those floppy ears), I couldn't decide on colors.  Then along came the Color Throwdown challenge and I made sure I set aside some time yesterday to make this card - getting it done just in time!

Well, the snow finally stopped (after about 34 hours of non-stop flakes).  I wound up with a few inches over a foot of the not-so-fluffy white stuff and I think I've about had it for snow this winter.  I REALLY hope that this last storm is it for us this season!  Time for spring, I say!  Thanks for stopping by!

You Make Me Smile For DS92 and PPA154

I made this tag Thursday night while the wind was howling and the snow was blowing around.  I was really hoping that after the blizzard we had at the beginning of February we had met our quota for snow this winter but apparently Mother Nature is not done with us yet!  The snow is expected to continue throughout the day and I really hope I don't come home from work to find a driveway that is so filled with snow that I can't pull my car into it.

But enough about lousy weather.  I've got a fun tag to share with you today!

Last year I discovered the joy of making tags and when I saw the Deconstructed Sketch this week there was no way I was going to miss it.  And yesterday was also the day the color challenge went up at Pals Paper Arts.  Obviously I had to combine the two!

I'm really pleased with how this turned out and after I made it I realized that I don't necessarily have to use this in the traditional "tag" sense.  I don't think it needs to be fixed to the front of a gift with the traditional "to/from" stamped on it somewhere.  I actually think that this would make a nice focal point on a card front.  So now I've discovered a whole new (to me) way to think about tags!

Thanks for stopping by!  And if you're visiting from the New England area I hope you stay safe until the storm passes.

Supplies:

Stamps:  You (Simon Says Stamp)

Accessories:  Tag Sale #3 die, Beautiful Blooms #3 die (Papertrey Ink); Labels Collection die (SU); You die (Simon Says Stamp); Calypso Coral brad, Calypso Coral baker's twine, Crumb Cake seam binding ribbon (SU)

Freshly Made Sketches 76

It's an exciting day today at Freshly Made Sketches!  Not only do we show off a new look to the blog (be sure to check it out) but there are two brand-new designers joining us!  We're so excited to welcome Narelle and Amy to the design team.  I'm sure you've seen them in the gallery week after week wowing you with their creativity and we're just tickled pink that they are joining us!

Now onto today's sketch designed by Linda Suarez and my take on it.

I always use the "rule of three" when I'm planting flowers in my garden so I find it a very useful creative concept in the card-making world as well.  Three of anything conveys a balance and harmony that any other number doesn't quite measure up to.  Although I spent some time pondering the three blocks on the sketch I finally realized that they didn't need to be three of the same thing.  So I chose a beautiful butterfly for the center and some of those easily recognizable pink ribbons as accents on the side.

I thought of this inspiring wings of HOPE stamp set because I work with this wonderful lady who is a breast cancer survivor and I wanted to give her a little something to let her know that I recognize her struggle and appreciate her.  Originally I started out with a bit more pink on this card but in the end I went with the simple white squares mounted on black.  And I have to say (with pride and a goofy grin) that I doodled those squares free hand!  I was a little apprehensive about doing it but once I got going I realized that it was an awful lot of fun and mistakes are not only welcome but part of the charm!

Now don't be shy and head on over to Freshly Made Sketches and check out our new look and what our always amazing design team has cooked up to get your creative juices flowing.  And don't forget to show some special love to Narelle and Amy!

colourQ 179

The color palette this week at colourQ is usually one that I can wrap my creative arms around.  But when I sat down to create something I developed the card-makers equivalent of writer's block.  I'm not sure what that's called but I think I'll call it Ink Stop.

After much muttering to myself and puttering around my stamp room I finally settled on combining the colors with the nifty sketch at CAS(E) This Sketch.

I recently got this new washi tape which luckily fit the color challenge pretty well, so I stuck a few pieces on my kraft card base then added a felt flower and a daffodil delight button.  I stamped the sentiment directly onto the washi tape before I remembered that washi tape and ink don't go so well together.  Not only is the image kind of faint, but I don't think it's dry yet!

The crafty gals at colourQ have got some great cards this week, so I hope you have a chance to head on over there and check them out.  Then join us in the gallery - we love to see what you do!

Supplies:

Stamps:  Chit Chat (Paper Smooches)

Accessories:  Felt, washi tape (October Afternoon), Daffodil Delight button (SU)

Retro Sketches 53 and Dynamic Duos 42

I'd been puttering around my stamp room all weekend and seemed to be at loose ends.  I felt like I had lots of ideas in my head but none of them seemed to work their way onto my card.  Finally I found the sketch at retro sketches and the colors at Dynamic Duos and karma brought them together for me so that I could make a card!

I ended up with a CAS card using some DSP from Greenhouse Gala and the simple TAWS sentiment from words to live by.  A cute little button finished the look!

Supplies

Stamps:  words to live by (the alley way stamps)

Accessories:  Sentiment Strips Die (My Favorite Things), washi tape, Midway button (October Afternoon)

Thank You for Inkspirational 9 and CTD31

I meant to post this card the other day and I totally forgot!  I still feel like I'm trying to catch up after going almost four days without Internet access earlier this week, so I've been somewhat discombobulated.  Anyway I wanted to share this card that I made for the Inkspirational sketch challenge with the colors from Color Throwdown.

I broke out the pretty flowers from Summer Silhouettes to do these colors justice.  I stamped the leaves from that set thinking that I had a die to match.  Well, I don't so I fussy cut them with a lot of patience.  It actually wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be and I didn't even rip some of the delicate stems!

Well that's it for me today.  I'm off to run some errands than it's back to creating in the old craft cave!  Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:

Stamps:  Summer Silhouettes, Made for You (SU)

BE Inspired 23

Today is the BE Inspired challenge over at The Alley Way Stamps blog and this week there is an extra twist!  For this challenge we are joining forces with the lovely ladies at 3 Girl JAM!  For those of you that don't know, 3 Girl JAM is owned and operated by Julie K Bling and her two daughters.  They make hand dyed crinkle ribbon and sell some other fun crafty things.  You can check it all out here.

Your challenge is to make a project using this BE Inspired photo, a stamp (or two) from The Alley Way Stamps and ribbon!  Remember the photo is for inspiration only.  Be creative, use your imagination and show us what this photo inspired you to create. And if you need some inspiration, hop on through the line-up and see all the gorgeous projects the design teams have created.

I took my cues from some of the colors in the photo.  I've always been inspired by earthy colors so it was no trouble at all to dig out Sahara Sand, Early Espresso and Cajun Craze.  I stamped the sentiment from the brand new Words to Live By and to jazz things up I added a pop of Pacific Point and some of the awesome 3 Girl JAM crinkly ribbon in yellow.  This cool layout is courtesy of a sketch challenge I just found called Lucy's Cards that is sadly ending.  

I hope you are inspired to join in The Alley Way Stamps and 3 Girl JAM challenges.  Don't forget to check them out and link up your project, because you'll have a chance to win some awesome prizes!  Just hop on over to Scrappin' Madge to continue on the hop!