Flutter By Wednesday

Hi ho - I'm going to make this a quick post tonight because my little sore throat and cough that was almost gone blossomed into a full blown head cold over night ... I hate colds :(

So for this week's FBW we were challenged to use Kraft in our project.  I had a couple of ideas but decided on a kraft backdrop for my fave bold color combo

I used SU!'s crumb Cake for the card base and focal layer base.  The rest is Early Espresso (SU!) and Rasperry Fizz Pattern Pack (PTI).

For the focal layer I used Daring Adventure from SU!.  I loved the sentiment in the set (which is the main reason I bought it) and for various reasons I need to think "daring adventure" right now.  The butterflies are from PTIs Beautiful Butterflies

See - short, sweet!

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Inspired by ...

The last CPS sketch ever and a gorgeous print I saw at church today.

The actual challenge this time was to use your favorite sketch,  I really liked the one Tami showcased on the CPS blog so I went with it.

One of the ladies at church today had on a beautiful bold graphic print in royal blue, white and black.  The first thing I thought was "Gorgeous" the second was "I can recreate that in paper" :).

After several attempts at inking up my embossing folder I settled for just embossing Divine Swirls on white CS and coloring in the pattern with a black Copic multi-liner.  I colored part of the pattern in using B19.  That's how the dress was - just patches in the pattern were filled in.

I used a butterfly stamp from SU (Butterfly Patterns) on the focal image stamped in Melon Mambo so it would pop off the bright blue.  Added some blingie rhinestones for heads on the little guys for some extra sparkle.

For the sentiment I used Thanks All Ways (PTI) and colored in the outline letters with RV19 - again to make it really pop.

Thanks to Tami for all the sketches you done.  You have truly helped me progress as a card designer and I appreciate all the work you've done over the years.

Thanks to Michelle for your incredible fashion sense.

Thanks to you, the reader, for taking time to stop by and read all the way to the bottom!

CPS Sketch - Clean and Simple

Hiya -  I've decided I need to spend  more time to crafting and less time worrying about things I have no control over ... thus the many posts already this month :)

I used the CPS sketch and my new Kimono Kaylee for this card ... check it

I used my old stand by Kanji (SU! retired) to execute the basics of the sketch.  I love the sentiments and this card could be used for just about anything - midterm calm down for college girls or maybe something else ;)

  

Then I colored up my new Kaylee digi .  I thought I'd practice some more on blending reds and I really like how the kimono turned out.  I'm trying to focus on really accentuating the folds and pleats like on the sleeve.  Still some work to do there but I like my progress :D

Copic Deets:

Hair: Y21, YR23, YR24, E35, E37, R59(hair tie), E57, E59 (chopsticks)

Skin: E000, E00, E11, E13, R81, R85

Eyes: BG05, BG07

Clothes: C00, C0, C1 (socks), N04, N06, N08, N10 (sandals), R59, R29, R27, R24, R22 RV10, RV13, RV14 (kimono)

Thanks for stopping!!

A Pirate's Life For Me

The team that I have managed for the last year is breaking up this week.  Our department is reorganizing and as such we are getting "re-aligned".  We've known its been coming for several months and this Friday its finally here.

Our "mascot" is a cardboard golden retriever named Bud - taken by our manager at the time from a grocery store beer display and our M.O. is pirates:)  In honor of the men and women I have been proud to work with I give you ... a pirate card

I used the CPS sketch this week for the layout, my Pirate Kaylee for the focal image and a couple of "not specifically pirate but re purposed" stamps sets to make the rest of the card.

The jolly roger I found on the internet and printed off on white card stock.  I extended the black area of the flag using MS Draw

I also did a super quick coloring job on Ms. Pirate.  I wanted to have some shading and light source but didn't want to spend all day on it (since shhh ... I have to mass produce these)

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Saturated Canary -Bbbbb's

This week's SC challenge is to use your Bs ... you must use at least 2 things in your project that start with B.  My Bs are Brown, Blue (eyes), Blonde (hair), Buttons, Bow and Bajamas (cuz that's how we say it at my house :D )

I paired the SC B challenge with this week's CS sketch (barely in under the wire) and made this:

I used the Pack Lightly image from SC for the focal and Road Trip (PTI) for the sentiment.  TO add some texture I used the lattice embossing folder (SU!).  I tried a new skin color combo.  I like how it turned out ... kind of a healthy tan look (hopefully not TOO Jersey Shore )

Copic Deets:

R27, 29, 30, 32, 35, 37, 81, 83, 85

Y21, 26

YR24

E51, 53, 55, 57

C0, 1, 2

W1, 3, 5, 7

100

B91, 34, 97, 41, 45, 37

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CPS Goth Skull Cupcake

Um - yes ... you read that right.  Its a CPS sketch with Pinky ... who I tried to make Goth but ended up with Pink and Black  But there is a skull cupcake so that should count for something :)

For colors I used Basic Black, Regal Rose (both SU!) and Raspberry Fizz (PTI).  Stamps are Pinky (digi from TI) Fancy Flourishes, BB:Hounds Tooth, BB:Herringbone and Tiny Tags (PTI)

I tried a Black hair tut that I found on The Odd Girl blog

Copic deets:
Hair: B34, C6, C8, 100
Skin: E0000, E000, E00, E11
Cupcake: RV10, RV13, RV14
Dress: RV04, RV17, RV19,

CPS and FBW Remix

I'm so excited for some of these new challenges I've found on line - there are no company requirements so I can use what I have / what I want and just follow along with the theme (or layout)

This week I combined the CPS layout with the FBW theme which was to decorate the inside.

Here's my card:

 I started by Coloring the Brella Fairy (from SoG)  I used a new feathering technique I learned to color the dress.  I really like the  way it turned out.

Copic deets to follow:
YG17, 13, 11 (leaf)
V91, 95, 99 (eyes)
BV13, 08, 29 (hair)
R29 (hair tie)
E11, 13, 00, BV20, R81 (skin)
BG11, 13, YG11, 13, Y11 (dress)

To make the plaid I used BB:Retro striped image and stamped repeatedly in Lucky Limeade, Wisteria Wonder and Concorde Crush (all SU!)

Inside I stamped a sentiment form Thanks All Ways (PTI) in Concorde Crush and added the plaid pattern in Wisteria Wonder and Lucky Limeade.  I added the strips of Concorde Crush and Lucky Limeade to give a good separation between the writing area of the card and the decorated part (and to hide the little bit of a biff I made on the top row of the plaid .... creativity at work :) )

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A CPS Birthday

So Sunday is my usual day to catch up on stuff around the house, print off challenges for the week and nap :)  When I saw this week's CPS sketch I kept thinking ... bubbles, it looks like bubbles, I need a fish in the middle.  But do I have any fish stamps - No.  So I whooshed across the internets to one of my new fave spots (www.someoddgirl.com) and searched for fish stamps.  I found Goldie ... a  terribly cute little gold fish.  Lucky for me and my instant gratification soul Goldie is also a digi - so my fish stamping soul was gratified instantly (or in a minute or too - cuz I did have to actually pay first)

Here's my card:

I started with a Pool Party base and cut another layer just 1/4 inch smaller.  On the smaller layer I stamped the grass clump image from Peaceful Garden [PTI] in Lucky Limeade [SU!].  I stamped the sentiment from Peaceful Garden in Tuxedo Black on a 1" strip of vellum.  Then I used a trick I learned from Nichole Heady's blog and scored a 1/8" strip on either side and adhered the strip with scor-tape hidden by the score line.

This came out pretty much how I anticipated.  I did have a little trouble with the bubbles.  I wanted them more 3D but all my attempts met with failure, so I settled for simple vellum circles.  I used Divine Swirls embossing folder to give some texture instead.

For Goldie I used YR18, YR15 and YR12.  For the water around her, I used BG10, BG11 and BG000.  I used a colorless blender and dotted her with the brush end to simulate a scaled look.

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My very first ...

Tiddly Inks card.  My first half way decent Copic coloring project and my first CPS card in a coons age.

Yep its a blog of firsts today

 I'm just so excited how this turned out.  I used Wryn Birthday Girl digi stamp from Tiddly Inks and colored with more Copics than I know what to do with. But I LOVE how the shading turned out thanks to an online tutorial from Kristy Dalman of Some Odd Girl stamps (you'll be seeing some of those in the near future as well :)

I was so inspired by the tutorials that I wanted to take a class. Turns out Created From Color Basic Copic class starts next week.  I'm guessing you'll see a lot more more coloring from me in the near future.  This will be a good basis for comparison.

Oh yeah ... the card:) Colors are Wisteria Wonder, Lucky Limeade, Elegant Eggplant and Whisper White.  I cut the layers with Labels Framelits from SU! and the oval with Nestabilities.  Inside I stamped a sentiment from PTIs Birthday Basics set.

Thanks for stopping!!

Strawberry Fields {for ever}

Hi ho - a couple of weeks ago I borrowed the Strawberry Patch sets from a friend.  I was having a terribly difficult time getting anything to work out whenever I used the stamps and was resigned to return them having done nothing of interest.

That changed today.  I got to play along on the CPS sketch this week and had this vision in my head of the strawberries.  Here's how it turned out.

I started with a Soft Suede card base and then die cut the Happy Hexagon cover plate in white.  I also used the Fine Linen striped pattern and embossed using the Divine Swirls folder.

I cut the Lacey Circle form Cherry Cobbler card stock and another circle from white.  I stamped the largest image from Strawberry Patch then used the solid images in Cherry Cobbler and Always Artichoke.   I colored the flower center with the Y35 copic.  The sentiment is stamped on a double ended banner die cut.  I made the mat layer by hand.

Inside I carried the strawberry theme through with a leaf and berry cluster.

Thanks for stopping!

Papertrey Ink June Blog Challenge (with a CPS Sketch)

Its been a while since I could play along with a PTI blog hop.  This months inspiration photo had lovely aquas and yellows and greens.  It was a study in pleats and ruffles as well, but I got caught up in the colors and just went with it.

I used the Happy Hexagons set to stamp the trail.  I cut out the hexagon cover plate and used it as a stamping guide.   The colors I used were Pool Party, Delightful Daffodil and Lucky Limeade.  The sentiment is form Take Three: Winter.  The button is an Aqua Mist vintage button.

The layout is from this week's CPS sketch # 271

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CPS - Sweet as can be

This has been a good weekend.  I can only guess its the discovery of jazz that has sparked my creativity because nothing else has been that different.  So I actually did the CPS sketch this week.

 I started out thinking I would do a sailing theme for this card and make the wavy center,  well,  waves.  Then I got Early Espresso and Raspberry Fizz paper out and all of sudden I'min sweet shoppe mode .

I used the scalloped border die to create the "wavy" part of the sketch out of raspberry fizz striped patterned paper.  I stamped the sentiment in Early Espresso right onto the stripes.  The ice cream cone and sentiment are from the Sweet As Can Be set.

I added a piece of chocolate grosgrain ribbon to break up the pink a little

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Miss You - Double

Well not miss you double but this card is a two-fer - this weeks CPS sketch challenge as well as PTI's May blog hop.  I love the colors in the inspiration photo and although I tend to shy away from too much pattern mixing, I really latched on to this one because its really just different size squares ...

So the layout is totally from CPS ... I didn't fiddle with it at all..  For the inspiration blog hop challenge, I keyed off both the colors and the patterns.

Lets start with colors shall we ... I used Black, White and Orange Zest from PTI and Lucky Limeade from SU!  I didn't have the Simply Chartreuse and the New leaf wasn't the green I was looking for so I had to cross companies a little.

I created the large check pattern using a 1.25" square punch and trimming the edges off.  The large scale (focal layer) and small scale (flower center) gingham is from Background Basics:Gingham.  I created the brad using the Build A Brad set from SU!.  The flower is Bloom Builders cut from Orange Zest CS.  The grass and sentiment are from Peaceful Garden (PTI)

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CPS Sketch Challenge

I was up and at it early this morning so had time to craft before heading of to the days activities.

I used Early Espresso card base and embossed ripe avocado with a Tim Holtz embossing folder I bought a while back (Notebook).  The red layer is Tea Leaves patterned paper from PTI.

I matched the sleeve on the to go cup to the tea leaves layer also paper pieced the lid so it looked more white than the cup.

The sentiment is from Warm Happiness (PTI).  The tea bag is from Morning Cup (SU!) and the to go cup is from Heart 2 Heart (my new favorite set :)

The focal layer was cut using SU!'s new Framelits dies

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A little vintage

When PTI did their new release this month they had a set called Simply Jane ... inspired by the era and writings of Jane Austen,  Now I'm not a huge Jane Austen fan, but I love this set and its companion patterned paper titled Dearest Jane.

This weeks CPS sketch just screamed (figuratively not literally ... that would just be weird) "use the Simply Jane set on me!"  So I did ....

I used my ticket corner punch [SU!] on just the outer panels to create a more unified backdrop for my silhouette.  The paper is from Chapter 1 of the Dearest Jane collection ... its vintage handwriting script of some of Jane Austen's works.  This one happens to be from Pride and Prejudice which is the only Austen work I've seen as a movie (and I haven't read any books although I am now reading Pride And Prejudice because I did sort of like the movie).  I also aged the paper a little using the Chai Tea from Tea Dye Duo

The frame die cuts the scroll part as well as the cuts the oval out of the center (brilliant).  The card stock is dark chocolate but the ink is Early Espresso to give an added contrast.

I also die cut the silhouette , but opted not to stamp the matching stamp on it.  Instead I added the  necklace and flower, again in early espresso.  (by the way I actually die cut the silhouette from the oval center piece so no wasted scraps on this project either).  The ribbon is Dark Chocolate satin.

For the sentiment I selectively inked just the Happy Birthday part of one of the sentiments in the set and created the banner .

Thanks for stopping!!

CPS 251 and Make It Monday: Ghost Mask

I had an idea for the CPS this week.  An awesome idea, then I saw the MIM video while I was waiting for my daughter at the dentist (LOVE my smart phone) and my awesome idea got awesomer ... combine the 2 challenges this week into 1 utterly amazing pile of paper awesome-ness.

That didn't work out.  I tried 5 times to make it a reality.  My biggest problem was that the dies I have with matching sets cut the dies bigger than the stamp and so the masking overflowed the stamped frame and that just sort of blew the effect in my mind.

Then this morning - bright and early - I realized I didn't have to use a die ... I just drew lines in and cut the vellum mask to fit it ... a dream of argyle later and voila ....

I must confess it took me a couple of attempts to get the argyle right ... I ended up printing a picture off and using that as a guide.  It seemed beyond me this morning without the help.

I used a harlequin impression plate for the card base to carry the pattern over subtly to the rest of the card.

Stamps are all PTI: A Little Argyle and Flower Fusion 6 (sentiment).
Colors are Smokey Shadow, True Black and Raspberry Fizz (also PTI)
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Birthday Blitz countdown - only 2 more to go

So I have just 2 more cards to go after this one for my dad's 80th birthday.

I used the CPS sketch this week (#249) for the basic layout.

I don't know why but I felt like making a tufted pillow card today.  I don't know if that's really what its called, but I saw something like this a month or so ago on the 'net (I think Moxie Fab World, but I can't remember right off the top of my head)

To increase the elegance I did all white.  I scored the background layer on my Scor-Pal (see Tara I do use it :) at 1" intervals going in both directions.   At each intersection I placed a half pearl from SU!

I added a plain white strip and the sentiment from Birthday Basics [PTI] to complete this weeks CPS sketch.

Another Birthday Blitz - CPS 248

I had a birthday blitz back in November to celebrate my aunts 90th.  I figure my dad's 80th should be equally blitzed (1 card for each decade).

Here is the first one using the CPS 248 sketch:

 I used Tiny Tags 2 along with the Tiny Tags die for the stars.  I pulled out my pour neglected Fancy Flourishes for the swirls.  And see that Celebrate stamp ...

Thats from my SU! Sale-a-bration preorder ... coming in January.  Its called Outlined Occasions and can be selected free with any $50 purchase. I colored the outline in using Copic Sketch markers R24, R29 and R59.

Inside I did a little more with the Flourishes.

CPS #246 and a Color Bleed

I wanted to try the OWH Tuesday Tutorial this week - a Copic color bleed technique that produced some awesome samples.

I started out creating the background layer by coloring with BG02, 05, and 07.  Then I dropped colorless blender solution on it, let it dry and dropped some more.  I wanted the primary drops on the darker squares to represent the circles in the sketch

When I saw how the background layer turned out, I knew I had to get out my a la modes Groovy Girl stamps .... it was just too hippie not to.

I actually stamped the girlie twice and did the color bleed technique on her dress as well, although I colored in a spiral pattern hoping for a nice tie-dye effect.  I paper pieced the dress in, then did some light coloring on the rest of the image. 

Thanks for stopping!

Vacation Project #3 - A Christmas Card

I finally got to a Christmas card (new design) today.  I mass produced a few already but I've posted those already so didn't re-post.  This is the first new design I've made so far this week.  I used the MIM Layered Background using Sentiment Stamps technique and paired it with this weeks CPS sketch

For the stamps I used In The Meadow and Background Basics: Music, both from PTI.  I stamped off once with the sentiment then stamped multiple times on the card stock.  I stamped the horse and sleigh in True Black.  I distressed the edges with Cherry Cobbler, Garden Green and Tim Holtz Tea Dye Distressing Ink.

I also added a little bit of glitter to the rolling hills background layer.

Thanks for stopping!