Halloween Card with Dynamic Duos, Sponge Grunge and MOJO

Boo!  :) How is it that I'm already making cards for Halloween and Christmas?  I guess it's because the challenges made me do it.  First, I blame the fab gals at Dynamic Duos, who encouraged us with their Black Tie combo this week to use Basic Black and Lucky Limeade.  

Next, I blame 365 Cards for the Sponge Grunge challenge, for which we were to add accents of color with our sponges...  You can see I added some to every shape on the card... 

...including the opening edge.

Of all my weekend's "toil," I'd say this project is one of my favorites (I hear MacBeth in my head now -- a witch's caldron project is sure to follow!).

Finally, I give blame credit to Mojo Monday (specifically MOJO258) for this great sketch...

Stampin' Up! Supplies:

Stamps:  Googly Ghouls (W128060, C128063)

Papers:  Lucky Limeade (2011-13 In Color -- 122926), Basic Black (121045) and Whisper White (100730)

Inks:  Lucky Limeade (2011-13 In Color -- 122984) and Basic Black (126980) Classics

Accessories:  Chevron Textured Impressions embossing folder (127749), Big Shot (113439), Finishing Touches Edgelits (127010), 2 1/2-inch Circle (120906), 1 3/4-inch Circle (119850) and 1-inch Circle (119868) Punches, Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack (for the eye -- 118309), 1 1/4-inch Square Punch (for the flagged ends -- 119865), Stamping Sponges (101610), Stampin' Dimensionals (104430)

{Stamp Set Spotlight} Snow Swirled: Day 3

What drew me first to this set was the snowflakes... I love the detail!

This quick and simple card allowed me to haul out some punches, use my Big Shot and use up some scraps. First, let's talk punches. I see five punches that were used; the Scallop Edge Border, 1-3/4" Circle, 1-1/4" Circle, Boho Blossoms, and Scallop Oval Punches.

For my color palette, I consulted my Color Coach and used Marina Mist, Old Olive, Real Red and Bashful Blue.

I also used the Top Note Bigz Die and the Perfect Polka Dots Textured Impressions Embossing Folder for the Bashful Blue piece at the top. Finally, a knot tied in Marina Mist grosgrain (adhered with a Mini Glue Dot) finishes it off!

Stampin' Up! Supplies:

Stamps: Snow Swirled !

Inks: Real Red and Old Olive Classics

Papers: Marina Mist, Bashful Blue, Real Red, Old Olive, and Whisper White card stocks

Accessories: Big Shot, Top Note Bigz Die, Perfect Polka Dots Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, Marina Mist grosgrain, Mini Glue Dots, Stampin' Dimensionals, Scallop Edge Border, 1-3/4" Circle, 1-1/4" Circle, Boho Blossoms, and Scallop Oval Punches

Thanks for your visit! Hope your day's a great one!

{Catalog Countdown: Day Four}

Hello, there! It's a busy week here in the Studio, as the current catalog retires on Wednesday, June 30 and the *NEW* catty goes live at noon (MDT) on Thursday, July 1! If you're going to place an order from the retiring catty, please do so as soon as you can to assure that your order goes in glitch-free! In honor of our retirees this year, here's another card...

• Best Wishes and More is the set used here (would you believe that I made the tag from the snowflake in that set?!). The images are versatile and fun and I love the sentiments!


• Bermuda Bay was one of this year's In Colors and sadly, it won't be stickin' around as part of the Color Renovation (I used card stock, and Classic ink in Bermuda Bay here)


• See that coordinating ribbon? Believe it or not, it's the polka dot grosgrain in Bermuda Bay. Flip over the ribbon and make a couple twists as you're tying and you can go dot-free, Baby!


• Cameo Coral is the juicy color that I used in the flower and on the paper charm. Sadly, that color is retiring, too.

Stampin' Up! Supplies:

Stamps: Best Wishes and More

Paper: Bermuda Bay, Soft Suede, Cameo Coral and Certainly Celery card stocks

Inks: Cameo Coral, Bermuda Bay and Soft Suede Classics

Accessories: 1 1/4-, 1-, 3/4-, and 1/16-inch Circle Punches, Modern Label Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals

Retirees: Best Wishes and More stamp set, Bermuda Bay (09-10 In Color), Cameo Coral

I'm so glad you popped by! Please contact me if I can be of further assistance!

Sunday Sketch

For this sketch challenge (always a sketch at 365 on Sundays), I opted for two of my favorite sets: Circle Circus and Baroque Motif. While the sketch suggests pompom trim, I don't have any of that (and I like to keep my cards to SUO, or Stampin' Up! Only materials). I chose to string baubles from Circle Circus and use half-circles in the middle instead of triangles.

I also thought I'd fiddle with the In Colors and so I enjoyed playing around with Bermuda Bay, Dusty Durango, and Soft Suede.

Stampin' Up! Supplies:

Stamps: Baroque Motifs and Circle Circus

Papers: Bermuda Bay, Dusty Durango and Soft Suede card stocks

Inks: Bermuda Bay, Dusty Durango and Soft Suede Classics and VersaMark

Accessories: Natural Hemp Twine, 1 3/4-inch and 1/2-inch Circle Punches, Linen Thread, Stampin' Dimensionals

I'm zipping off with the fam, so I have to keep this brief. Hope you had a great weekend and that your week starts off well! Stay tuned to the Studio this week; I'm hoping to post my first video and I'm teaching a class this coming weekend for an auction winner on basic card-making and I'll post our projects here...

Thanks for your visit!

Feeling a Little Blue...

Actually, I'm not, but I *LOVE* blue! The Ad Inspired Challenge this week at 365 Cards was right up my alley. I'm sure I've got this very ad tucked away in my inspiration journal.

As I type that, it sounds really presumptuous, so I'd better explain. Years ago, it was recommended to me that I keep a journal (in my case, a composition book covered in pretty paper) of favorite color combinations, pictures of things that inspire me, quotes that I like, etc. It was excellent advice and I love to add to it! I'm a major fan of tearing things out of magazines and catalogs, so this gives me some license and reason to do it. I have all sorts of things in my journal, from the aforementioned pages to quotes from the Mary Engelbreit calendars that my mom gives me every Christmas. I also use a 1-inch Circle punch to punch circles of card stock in colors I'd like to tinker with (or that I've seen elsewhere). Some day, I'll take a photo of the journal and some of its bits and post them here. Until then, I'll return to the Ad Inspired Challenge.

Here's the ad:

And here's what I came up with:

I love the clean lines of blue with white and so I tried to replicate that using one of my faves, Night of Navy, with Brilliant Blue. I used Whisper White Craft ink on Night of Navy for the circles from the Circle Circus set (and heat-set them so that they'd dry quickly). I punched them out with a 3/4-inch punch and then using a Stampin' Dimensional, adhered them to a 1-inch punch of Whisper White card stock. The circles on the Brilliant Blue piece are also from Circle Circus (I used VersaMark for those). For a high-value, sure-to-be-a-favorite, VersaMark is a must-have for beginner and advanced stampers alike.

"Thanks" from the Thank You Kindly set is simply inked in Brilliant Blue Classic ink and stamped upon Whisper White card stock (and adhered to a bit of Night of Navy). The Brilliant Blue piece is also adhered to the rest of the card using Stampin' Dimensionals.

Stampin' Up! Supplies:

Stamps: Circle Circus and Thank You Kindly

Papers: Night of Navy, Brilliant Blue and Whisper White card stocks

Inks: Whisper White Craft, Brilliant Blue Classic and VersaMark

Accessories: 3/4-inch and 1-inch Circle Punches, Stampin' Dimensionals

Thanks so much for looking!

Medallion as Sunflower

"Every friend is to the other a sun, and a sunflower also. He attracts and follows." Jean Paul Richter, Humorist and Novelist

One of the challenges this week at 365 Cards is to include a sunflower. I only have one stamp that includes a sunflower, but I thought I'd see what else I could come up with. One of my favorite new stamps from the 2009-10 Idea Book and Catalog (aka, "The New One") is Medallion. It's one of those stamps that, at first blush, seemed pretty limited in its potential. The more I play with it, though, the more I find I can do with it…

--First, ink the entire stamp surface with Summer Sun Classic Ink. Use a Stampin' Sponge to add Ruby Red Classic Ink to the "middle" and Chocolate Chip Classic Ink in the very center. The sponges allow the ink to be more gradual and less precise, much like the coloring of the sunflower's petals. Give the entire stamp surface a few good huffs (heavy-breathing on the stamp) and stamp on a piece of Very Vanilla card stock.

--To add the effect of sunflower seeds, I placed a layer of Sticky Strip on the center of the sunflower and pressed it into the container of Microbeads.

--I used the Distressing Tool from the Cutter Kit to rough up the edges of the Very Vanilla card stock. Adhere it to a piece of Basic Black card stock (which has been cut just wide enough to allow for the Natural Hemp Twine).

--Wrap enough Natural Hemp Twine to go around the Basic Black piece three times and knot. Adhere this to the half sheet of Elegant Eggplant card stock, which has been folded in half.

--The sentiment is made with the "for you" stamp from the Fresh Cuts set. Ink it first in Ruby Red Classic Ink and then in the Chocolate Chip Classic Ink to mirror the colors of the sunflower. Stamp on Very Vanilla card stock. Use the 1-inch Circle Punch to punch it out.
**Studio Suggestion: Stamp the image first and then punch it out. It's easier to flip the punch upside-down to view your card stock and punch out the precise image, rather than trying to line up and stamp the image on your punched piece.**

--Use the Stampin' Sponge and Summer Sun Classic Ink to add a bit of color around the circle. Punch a circle of Basic Black card stock using the 1 ¼-inch Circle Punch. Punch a piece of Ruby Red card stock using the Designer Label Punch and assemble the three pieces.

--To add interest to the inside of the card, I used the remaining bit of card stock with the stamped sunflower as the writing surface.

Stampin' Up! Supplies:

Stamps: Medallion and Fresh Cuts

Inks: Summer Sun, Ruby Red, and Chocolate Chip Classic Inks

Papers: Very Vanilla, Basic Black, Ruby Red and Elegant Eggplant card stocks

Accessories: Sticky Strip, Microbeads, Designer Label, 1-inch and 1 1/4-inch Punches, Stampin' Sponges, Natural Hemp Twine and Distressing Tool.

What a fun challenge! Thanks so much for your visit! Hope you're having a lovely summer!

Sketch Challenge Entry

Whew! Is it ever good to be back stamping! The yard is much better; I'll upload pics soon... I was so anxious to start stamping again that I've left the laundry that I'd mentioned in my previous post in baskets in my bedroom. I promise I'll get it put away today! :)

Here's the sketch I followed and the card I made for the Sunday Sketch on 365 Cards:

Stampin' Up! Supplies:

Stamp Set: Warm Words

Papers: Whisper White, Certainly Celery, Rose Red and Almost Amethyst (from a retired Pattern Pack Hostess item)

Ink: Certainly Celery Classic

Accessories: Certainly Celery twill (retired from '09 Sell-A-Bration), Scallop Circle Punch, 1 3/4-inch and 1/2-inch Circle Punches, Linen Thread, Stampin' Dimensional

It's such a pleasure to be back in the Studio! Thanks so much for looking!