Freshly Made Sketches 81

I could hardly believe the news this week that Stampin' Up! is giving Baja Breeze the ax!  I figured it was a pretty popular color especially since it showed up a lot on vintage style cards, but apparently not.  So in a little homage to the prettiest of blues, my card this week for Freshly Made Sketches features some Baja Breeze and a bit of Regal Rose too.

Our sketch this week comes from Cindy and it's the sort of classic sketch that will fit in with everyone's stamping style.  There's plenty of room for interpretation here!  Let your creativity shine!

In my effort to show off Baja Breeze, I cut into my precious Parisian Breeze DSP which, if you don't remember, is gorgeous, textured patterned paper.  Unfortunately all that texture doesn't provide a good surface for stamping as is evidenced by the splotchy sentiment that I stamped in Chocolate Chip.  It actually looks better in real life and I'm sure that the recipient of this card will be able to read it just fine.

Now, head on over to Freshly Made Sketches and check out the inspiration from our always amazing design team.  Trust me, there's a lot there that you will love!

Supplies:

Stamps:  You (Simon Says Stamp)

Accessories:  Parisian Breeze DSP, Fire Circles Rhinestone Brad (SU); You die (Simon Says Stamp); brown brads (American Crafts); Labels Four die (Spellbinders)

TAWS Plus Three!

It's not very often that I do the triple-crown equivalent of challenges, but today I managed to pull off a card using the awesome chevrons from The Alley Way Stamps tag-alongs that fits the LIME and BLACK color challenge at Less is More, the FRIEND challenge at Addicted to CAS, and the sketch at the brand-spankin' new Fusion challenge!  Whew!

I tried to carefully stamp the chevrons using a stamp-a-ma-jig and ended up having to do it twice because I had some cat hair on the stamp (which created a rather abstract design on the image) and I also managed to make a big smudge because I couldn't seem to hold the stamp-a-ma-jig steady for some reason.

I love how the buttons take your eye in on this card right to the chevrons.  Sometimes all you need is a pop of color to make something very eye-catching!

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:

Stamps:  tag-alongs (The Alley Way Stamps)

Accessories:  Woodland Park button (October Afternoon)

colourQ 184

Hold on to your hats folks, because the colors this week at colourQ feature some oldies but goodies!  I had to go way inside the box of stuff I've been meaning to sell on eBay for ages, but I did manage to score a piece of Creamy Caramel.  You remember that color don't you?

Now this bag, a nearly $3,000 number from Nieman Marcus is in stock and waiting for your purchase!  And it's also our inspiration this week.  I wanted to a some kind of justice to the color-block look of the bag and got it in my head that the retro sketch this week was perfect for what I had in mind.

I wish I had used a bit more Going Gray (yes, I found some of that in my stash too) instead of just using it on the polka dots on the gift.  But live and learn I say! In any event, I'm happy with how this came out.  Who could ask for anything more?

So hop on over to colourQ and check out the latest colors and inspiration from the design team.  Then join us in the gallery because we love it when you do!

Supplies:

Stamps:  Happy Moments, It's Your Birthday (SU)

Accessories:  baker's twine; white embossing powder; Blushing Bride button (SU); Dimensionals (SU)

Dynamic Duos #47 and Deconstructed Sketch 96

I'm not sure I would ever have put Pool Party and Cherry Cobbler together, but luckily the ladies at Dynamic Duos knew that made a great combination and that's what they've made their latest challenge about.  I thought the Deconstructed Sketch was pretty interesting this week, so I combined the two.

Isn't this a great color combo?  I love it!  And I know that red stems are not exactly what you'd see in real life but I've come to realize that card-making gives us a lot of poetic license.  And I think that a red stem behind a blue layered flower looks pretty cool!

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies

Stamps:  Bloom & Grow (Verve)

Accessories:  Chloe Stem die (Memory Box); Everyday Enchantment brad (SU); Dimensionals (SU); Pool Party baker's twine (SU)

Thinking of You for CTS22 and PDCC176

I've taken a mini vacation from my stamp room the last few days and I missed it terribly, so when I got home from work last night I was determined to get in there and create something.  I chose to make a card using the sketch at CAS(E) This Sketch and the colors from The Play Date Cafe.

That little tag on the sketch caught my eye and I knew it would be perfect for the sentiment from The Alley Way Stamps called Jibber Jabber along with this "you" die cut.  Plus I got to use some of my burlap ribbon that has been languishing in my stamp room since last fall!

Well that's it for me today.  Thanks for stopping by!

Freshly Made Sketches 80

Ahhh!  Wednesday brings a brand new sketch from Freshly Made Sketches!  This week the incomparable and devilishly witty Linda Callahan has designed a sketch that is wide open to interpretation.  Take a peek:

I don't mind saying that I fretted a bit about the horizontal ribbon across the top.  Nothing I tried seemed to go the way I wanted to so I ended up sticking down some washi tape.  Then I thought that looked a bit plain so I stitched a zig-zag across it which, of course, you can't see because the thread is white, and that barely shows up against a white background, and what was I thinking!!!

But I do like the colors which are courtesy of the Dynamic Duos challenge which gave us some poetic license this week to make a project using Primrose Petals and another color of our choice.  I chose Pear Pizzazz which made some lovely leaves.

Thanks so much for stopping by and don't forget to pop on over to Freshly Made Sketches to check out what the design team has created this week.  Lots of inspiration there, I tell you!

Supplies:

Stamps:  Dream Big, Hope Blooms (Verve)

Accessories:  Lorelai Leaf die, Lorelia Outline Leaf die (Poppystamps); washi tape; Certainly Celery button (SU)

Something Wonderful

The ladies over at Nacho Average Challenge have a really awesome color challenge this week and as soon as I saw it I knew what I wanted to combine it with the Mojo sketch.

I don't have a lot of Perfect Plum designer paper and what I do have is from an SU Halloween set called Cast-A-Spell.  I only have a small amount of it so I only bring it out on special occasions!  I thought this color challenge was pretty special so I used a sliver of it layered on the scallop circle.  The sentiment is from life is short, a brand-new set from The Alley Way Stamps that has got a little something for everyone.

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:

Stamps:  life is short (The Alley Way Stamps)

Accessories:  Pool Party button, Pool Party ribbon (SU); Stitched Mat Rectangles die (Lil Inker Designs); crochet thread  

colourQ 183

It's Tuesday and that means it's time for another beautiful color challenge from colourQ!.  This week Arielle has given us another palette that I think is perfect for a spring-time card full of flowers.

I was inspired by the sketch at Create With Connie and Mary so I inked up the very pretty leaf and flower images from Secret Garden for the focal image on the sketch.  Then I thought that some baker's twine would be a fun twist to the scalloped horizontal layer.  I very nearly forgot the Daffodil Delight from the color palette but luckily I had these wee buttons in my stash and since buttons make the very best centers on flowers, I added it!  

Thanks for stopping by and don't forget to pop on over to colourQ and check out the cards from the design team.  They're pretty terrific!  

Supplies:

Stamps:  Secret Garden, Kind & Caring Thoughts (SU)

Accessories:  Daffodil Delight button (SU); Calypso Coral baker's twine (SU), crochet thread