ATCAS Take Flight

It's time for a new challenge at Addicted to Clean and Simple!

I combined this with the challenges at Try Stampin' On Tuesday and Color Throwdown. 

I just love this color palette but two of those colors are retired so I substituted in Blushing Bride and Pool Party. I was also excited to get to use my new butterfly wheel. It is the first wheel I have been in LOVE with in a long time. I had pretty much stopped using wheels completely until I saw this one in the new catalog!

Stamp Sets: Petite Pairs
Cardstock: Very Vanilla
Ink: Blushing Bride, Crumb Cake, Pool Party
Tools: Small Oval Punch, Tasteful Trim Bigz Die
Accessories: Butterfly Collection Jumbo Wheel, Subtles Candy Dots, Rhinestones, Dimensional

Birthday Boy!

Today I am playing in the challenge at The Friday Mashup!  The challenge is to create a project with the Triple-Time Stamping Technique using Summer Starfruit, Pacific Point and Crumb Cake.  I wanted to use some of my new goodies!

I wasn't exactly sure where I was going with this card!  I started by cutting out all of the circles. I thought the colors could be pretty masculine so I used Six-Sided Sampler, thinking it would look masculine.  After I assembled it I realized that it looks like a soccer ball!  That totally happened by accident! :) I didn't want to take too much away from it so I just embossed the back panel and added the birthday sentiment. I would say that I am going to hold this aside for Brett's August birthday, but soccer is the ONE sport that he hates! lol

Stamp Sets: Banner Greetings, Six-Sided Sampler
Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Pacific Point, Summer Starfruit, Whisper White
Ink: Crumb Cake, Pacific Point, Summer Starfruit
Tools: Alphabet Press Embossing Folder, Circle Framelits
Accessories: Dimensionals

Washi Tape Fun!

Our challenge at Addicted to Stamps and More! this week is anything goes, so I thought it would be a great time to try out some new products from the new catalog!  One thing that I HAD to have right away was the new Gingham Garden Washi Tape.  It only took me two weeks to open it!  OOPS!  It is amazing though and I used it with this sketch at CAS(E) this Sketch!

I thought this was just the cutest sketch!  As usual I was pretty literal with this sketch. I have seen a lot of out-of-the box cards on different sketch challenges, and I really need to try it more. I have a hard time thinking like that though! 

I wrapped some of the Washi Tape around the outside of my layer of Whisper White cardstock. I was actually able to tear it in half and get double the use out of it!  For my tag, I put strips on a scrap piece of cardstock and then die cut it with the framelit and cut off one of the tabs.  The framelit cut through the cardstock and Washi Tape like BUTTER. I wasn't sure if it would even work, but I guess the Washi Tape is thin enough for it to work. I also used some of the clay mold flowers. I had made some up earlier by filling the molds and putting them in the freezer for a few hours. They release so much easier this way!  It is also good to dust them with your embossing buddy before putting the clay in them. After they are good and dry I use my Blender Pens to color them to coordinate with my project. This is a fun and cheap way to add some embellishment to your project! 

Stamp Set: Sweet Essentials
Cardstock: Whisper White
Ink: Island Indigo, Melon Mambo, Night of Navy
Tools: Apothecary Accents Framelits, Buttons & Blossoms Simply Pressed Clay Molds
Accessories: Subtles Candy Dots, Gingham Garden Washi Tape, Simply Pressed Clay, Dimensionals

Happy Anniversary Addicted to Stamps and More!

This week Addicted to Stamps and More! is celebrating it's first anniversary.  I have to say I was shocked to hear they have only been around for a year. It is a very well established blog with lots of participation in the challenges!   I am very impressed!  This week our challenge is a photo inspiration challenge.

I just love this photo! I decided to try a brayered background on vellum cardstock to start with.

I brayered Pool Party, Wisteria Wonder and Wild Wasabi on the vellum and then stamped the floral image from My Friend on top of the brayering. I then decided I wanted the brayering to be darker so I flipped it over and also brayered on the back. I really like the way it turned out!  I couldn't decide how to adhere it to my cardstock so I just used the brads so I didn't have to worry about adhesive showing.  I love these mini brads!  There are a TON in a container too, so they last forever. I love embellishments like that!

Stamp Sets: My Friend, Papillon Potpourri, Trust God
Cardstock: Whisper White, Wisteria Wonder, Vellum
Ink: Gumball Green, Pool Party, Tangerine Tango, Wisteria Wonder, VersaMark
Tools: Heat Tool, Brayer, Ovals Collection Framelits, paper piercing tool
Accessories: Pool Party Seam Binding Ribbon, Mini Brads, Black Embossing Powder



ATCAS Teenager!

It's time for a new challenge at Addicted to Clean and Simple!  

I don't have any teenagers in my life that I would give this card to, but I DO have some stamps that I would consider to be something teenagers would like, thankfully! I used the layout at Freshly Made Sketches for my card.

I know there has been a lot of controversy about this "I freakin' love you!" stamp, but I freakin' love it! lol I have seen a lot more offensive things out there in blog land, so my advice is, if you are offended by it, don't buy it. :) 

This is SUCH an easy card. Just some quick stamping, a few snips with my scissors and some adhesive!  I wanted to be able to use my brand new candy dots, so I used some bright colors that I thought a teenager might enjoy.  They are amazing!  I will be getting some on every single order I place because I am sure that I will be hoarding them and afraid to use them until I have more than one pack in each color family. :)  

Stamp Sets: Spec-tacular, Seriously, Off the Grid, Yippee-Skippee

Cardstock: Crushed Curry, Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White

Ink: Crushed Curry, Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie

Accessories: Brights Candy Dots, Dimensionals 

Addicted to Clean and Simple at ATSM!

I just love Clean and Simple days at ATSM!  The possibilities are endless!  I am entering my card for our challenge this week in the challenges at Dynamic Duos and CAS(E) this Sketch.

I thought these colors would be perfect for a coffee card!  I think I'm pretty much the only person on the planet that hates coffee, including the smell, but I still LOVE this new set, Perfect Blend.

I stamped the coffee cup on Watercolor Paper with Black StazOn ink and then used my blender pens to color it in. I TRIED to do a little bit of shading on the left hand side of the cup and made it a little bit darker. I really need a lesson in coloring! lol The DSP at the bottom is from the NEW DSP Stacks.  I was able to get four of them for HALF OFF for recruiting a new downline in May. Another perk of being a demonstrator!  The coffee splatters are made with the Hey There stamp from the very first My Paper Pumpkin kit. There is a new set that would give a similar effect called Gorgeous Grunge, but I am getting that one for free at Convention in July so I had to hold off on ordering it!  

Stamp Sets: Hey There, Perfect Blend

Cardstock: Blushing Bride, Watercolor Paper, Shimmer White

Ink: Black StazOn, Blushing Bride, Soft Suede

Tools: 1 1/4" Circle Punch, Tasteful Trim Bigz XL Die, Blender Pens

Accessories: Subtles and Neutrals DSP Stacks

Stampin' Up! Christmas!

It's my favorite time of the year...Stampin' Up! Christmas!  I look forward every year to getting in my BIG order from my New Catalog Kick-Off party, which also includes a huge order for myself. :) Of course!  Here's a pic of all my new goodies!

I actually received the first part of my order yesterday and didn't get a chance to take a picture of it but it included the Six-Sided Sampler bundle that I received for FREE from Sale-A-Bration. I actually only spent about $100 and got the rest with my hostess benefits.  There are great perks for being a demonstrator, or even just hosting your own workshop...contact me today if you are interested in either and I can answer any questions you may have!

Here is my first card with some of my new goodies. I am entering it in the challenges at The Friday Mashup, Pals Paper Arts and retrosketches.

Oh Blogger drives me NUTS sometimes when it doesn't want to put my pictures in the same places where I WANT them!  Oh, well. You get the idea!  The challenge at Friday Mashup is to create a girly project with hexagons so Six-Sided Sampler arrived just in time!

I wasn't exactly sure how versatile this set was going to be but I LOVE it!  It's nice to have some shapes to work with instead of always having flowers. The flowers look really cute on the hexagons though!  Just a nice, simple floral pattern. The green hexagons are popped up with Dimensionals.  I had to throw in the Hexagon embossing folder too. :) Oh, and the friends sentiment is new to me too...AND it's on sale this month so you might want to add Sweet Essentials to your next order too!

Stamp Sets: Six-Sided Sampler, Sweet Essentials

Cardstock: Gumball Green, Primrose Petals, Shimmery White

Ink: Gumball Green, Primrose Petals

Tools: Hexagon Punch, Hexagon Embossing Folder, Perfect Polka Dots Embossing Folder

Accessories: Baker's Twine, Rhinestones, Dimensionals 

A Card of Encouragement for Myself!

I have been struggling lately with thinking I am not good enough. I sometimes feel like a failure for quitting my teaching job to become a stay-at-home mom. I don't know WHY I feel like that because I know how much of a full-time job that actually is, but that's just how I feel sometimes. So I decided to make a card for myself to help me remember that I just need to have faith in myself and know that God has a plan for my life! 

I used the challenges at Hand Stamped Sentiments and Just Add Ink on my card.

I have been seeing a lot of cards where they white emboss an image on vellum and then sponge ink on the back for a kind of stained-glass effect, so I wanted to try that!

These flowers are addicting to make!  I think they look so much better than on regular cardstock!  I bent the petals down and adhered them with part of a Dimensional, which I hid with rhinestones and tiny little pearls. I was kind of sad to not have my Lacy Brocade embossing folder that retired for the back scalloped oval, but I think the Mosaic embossing folder did the trick nicely after I sponged Midnight Muse ink on it.

Stamp Sets: Feel Goods, Secret Garden
Cardstock: Soft Sky, Vellum, Shimmer White
Ink: Midnight Muse, Primrose Petals, Summer Starfruit, Versamark
Tools: Secret Garden Framelits, Ovals Collection Framelits, Mosaic Embossing Folder, sponges, Heat Tool, Embossing Buddy
Accessories: Rhinestones, Pearls, Dimensionals, White Embossing Powder

Father's Day Frenzy

It's a girl's day and we are all making Father's Day cards!  I found a Man Up! challenge at Stampin' Royalty and paired it with the challenges at colourQ and Freshly Made Sketches.

I am just in LOVE with this color palette!  I thought it made the perfect masculine card.

I am STILL waiting on my Whisper White cardstock to get here, so I had to use Shimmer White instead. It is perfect for this type of a background, which I spritzed with water and then used my Aqua Painter to add drops of reinkers. I dried it with my heat tool and then added the stamps from Clockworks and my sentiment.  The banners are embossed and sponged with ink. I wasn't too sure about the Baker's Twine at the side. A bow looked too feminine but the knot was too small. I opted for this, which I thought looked kind of like spokes!

 

Stamp Sets: Clockworks, Delightful Dozen

Cardstock: Island Indigo, Soft Sky, Shimmer White

Ink: Island Indigo, Pear Pizzazz, Smokey Slate, Soft Sky

Tools: Heat Tool, Aqua Painter, Sponge

Accessories: Baker's Twine 



Addicted to Colors!

It's time for my favorite challenge over at Addicted to Stamps and More...Addicted to Colors!  Check out the beautiful color palette we had to work with this week!

I paired our challenge with the sketch at retro sketches.

 

Now that the new Stampin' Up! catalog is live, I am just ITCHING to get my first order and start creating with all my new goodies!  In the meantime, I've been using some of the items I was able to get in my preorder.

I really like the Wildflower Meadow stamp set, but once you pair it with the coordinating embossing folder it becomes a WOW!  Just that little bit of embossing adds so much more interest to it, I think!  I stamped the flowers twice and cut the second pair out and folded them a little to add some more dimension.  When I colored my stamp, I actually did not even color the dots. They just happened to have some extra ink on them from my dirty scrubber. Oops!  It turned out to be a good oops though because I cleaned it all off really good and tried stamping it without the dots and it didn't look as good!  Oh, there is some retired DSP there from the DSP stacks while I am waiting to get my new ones. Can't wait to see the new designs in person!

 

Stamp Sets: Banner Greetings, Wildflower Meadow

Cardstock: So Saffron, Whisper White

Ink: Perfect Plum, So Saffron, Wild Wasabi

Tools: Wildflower Meadow Embossing Folder

Accessories: Subtles DSP Stack (retired), Pearls, Dimensionals



Time's a Tickin!

Don't you love it when yo find a sketch challenge you want to do and you realize you have less than an hour and a half to get your card done and posted?!  That JUST happened to me!  Luckily the sketch I found was at CAS(E) this Sketch! so it was nice and simple.

I originally wanted to do an all white card but would you believe that I am COMPLETELY out of full (or even half!) sheet of Whisper White cardstock?!  All I have is scraps!  Who does that?!  Luckily my order should be here in a few days and I can breathe again. :)  I opted for a Crumb Cake card, as I have about 5 full packages of it!

I decided to make a Father's Day card for Brett, since it is less than two weeks away and I sometimes have a problem with waiting til the last minute to make one. This one is very simple...I'll probably do a more detailed one for him from myself but I thought this would be cute from the kids with that fun sentiment. 

 

Stamp Sets: Clockworks, Hey There and Seriously My Paper Pumpkin Stamps

Cardstock: Crumb Cake

Ink: Gumball Green, Midnight Muse

Accessories: Dimensionals



Gettin back in the groove!

I've been really busy lately with Stamp Camp and getting ready for my New Catalog Kick-Off Party and I haven't had much time for the blogging world!  That's all over now though and I am trying to get back in the groove. I found some challenges at Dynamic Duos and Fab Friday to help me out!

These colors instantly made me think LOVE and I wanted to make a card for my sweetheart Brett who is always there for me and loves me unconditionally no matter how much of a pain I am!

Hearts a Flutter is the perfect LOVE stamp set and I haven't used it since Valentine's Day, I think!  I don't think we should only share cards like this on Valentine's Day though...I love Brett every day of the year! 

 

Stamp Sets: Hearts a Flutter, Seasonal Sayings

Cardstock: Raspberry Ripple, Very Vanilla, Wisteria Wonder

Ink: Raspberry Ripple, Wisteria Wonder

Tools: Hearts a Flutter Framelits, Stamp-a-ma-jig

Accessories: Dimensionals

ATCAS Circles!

It's time for another Addicted to CAS challenge and this week's code word is Circles!  Fun!  I combined this challenge with the Clean and Simple challenge at The Friday Mashup and the photo inspiration challenge at Stampin' Royalty.

I used the colors and circle candy necklace for the inspiration for my card.

For my sentiment I put drops of ink refill on a small stack of baby wipes and used that as my ink pad. I love the marbled effect that it gives. I stamped it on Shimmer White cardstock for a little bit of contrast between the sentiment and the Whisper White card base. I then glued down all of my circles around the sentiment, pierced a circle through them with my paper-piercing tool and added the Vintage Faceted button to jazz it up a bit.  Easy peasy!

Stamp Set: Feel Goods
Cardstock: Daffodil Delight, Lucky Limeade, Melon Mambo, Shimmer White, Whisper White
Ink: Daffodil Delight, Lucky Limeade, Melon Mambo
Tools: 2 1/2" Circle Punch, 1/2" Circle Punch, Paper-Piercing Tool
Accessories: Vintage Faceted Button