MFT Sketch Challenge

Happy New Year's Eve! I had just enough time between Christmas and now to play along with this week's My Favorite Things sketch challenge. My friend Emily has been a guest designer for them this month, and I'd so wanted to play along! So at least I'm sneaking into the last one for December. This is the sketch:

I didn't stray too far from the design for my version...

And look! I remembered how to make a non-Christmas card. 😂 Going with a cat for my first non-holiday attempt in a while likely helped. The cat himself is from Catitude, while the bench — I decided he needed to be on a bit of a pedestal — and sentiment are from I Knead You. It only took a bit of masking to pop him on his bench. Instead of the small banner in the sketch, I moved the sentiment down to the bottom of the card. 
I'll be back tomorrow with my first post of 2017 — the latest Naughty or Nice challenge! 

Supplies: white, grey & teal cardstock, MFT Catitude & I Knead You stamps, MFT black licorice & Versafine onyx black inks, Ranger clear embossing powder, Spectrum Noir markers, MFT Blueprints 24 dies, pop-dot tape

Merry Christmas

... And One More Merry Monday Card!

I have one more card to share for the current Merry Monday challenge: Winter Fun. This time, I went a little more traditional in style than with the too cool skiing penguin dude of my last card. 

Some simple watercolouring of the scene and an embossed sentiment was all this detailed image really needed. I did use chalk to colour the sky a bit... some day, just maybe, I will learn to do pale background watercolouring first. Although, probably not. 🙄 Of course, I couldn't help myself and added a little glitter marker to the snow at the end. 

Supplies: grey cardstock, Strathmore mixed media paper, Stampin' Up Winter Memories stamps, MFT black licorice & Brilliance starlite black inks, Zig clean colour real brush markers, $ store chalk, MFT blueprints 24 stitched rectangle die, Spectrum Noir clear overlay sparkle marker

One More Week!

Yep, one more week before the big day to get everything done. 😱 Luckily for me, I include making Christmas cards in my to-do list, and Merry Monday gave me a great theme to work with: winter fun. Here's my card: 

The angled photo shows off a little bit of the sparkle of his hat and the shine of his goggles. I used a treeline-punched paper as a mask to create the sky, then also added a little pale blue down the ski slope to mark his path. Do the wonky stitches along the edges of the panel look like ski trails to you, or is that just me? 😝

Supplies: white & American Crafts textured blue cardstock, MFT Chill Wishes stamp & die, Hero Arts Be Merry stamp, MFT licorice black, Versafine onyx black & tumbled glass & broken china distress inks, Hero Arts sparkle embossing powder, Zig clean colour real brush markers, MFT wonky stitched rectangle die, EK Success alpine trail border punch, frosted lace Stickles, Glossy Accents, pop-dot tape

Tag You're It Reminder!

Tags! This is a perfect time of year to make an extra tag or two, don't you think? And there is still time left to enter the current Tag You're It challenge, with this inspiration tag by Laurie Willison: 

For my challenge reminder tag, I wanted to use the same square format that Laurie used, as well as keeping to a clean and simple design. Here's mine:

I chose to use a large central image and a small sentiment, the reverse of what Laurie did. Since I don't have a square tag die, I used two stitched square die cuts and sandwiched a red circle between them. I added a baby snowflake to go with the main one, and punched a small hole through all the layers so I could add some silver cord. 

Supplies: white & Stampin' Up real red cardstock, American Crafts silver glitter paper, STAMPlorations Holiday Artsy stamp, Stampin' Up real red ink, MFT stitched square, Sizzix/Tim Holtz mini paper snowflake & Spellbinders circle dies. snowflake punch, silver elastic cord

Essentials by Ellen Pin-Sights Challenge GUEST DESIGNER!

I am beyond thrilled to be guesting for the new Essentials by Ellen Pin-Sights Challenge!  😄 The Pin-Sights challenge is a monthly inspirational challenge based on a Pinterest-inspired photo. Here is this month's: 

To play along, use Essentials by Ellen products, take inspiration from the photo above and link up your creation on the challenge inlinkz. One random participant will win a $50 gift certificate to the Ellen Hutson store!
I was inspired by the images of Christmas at home, and of course by the red — I'm amazed more red didn't end up on my card! Here it is:

The images and sentiment are all from Essentials by Ellen Homespun Holiday — it seemed an ideal set for the inspiration photo. I started by stamping the popcorn string in black on watercolour paper, then used a masking pen to mask the popcorn and cranberries before stamping the tree in brown. I also stamped the base of the tree in red onto a scrap of fabric I found in my stash. It has the perfect burlap-y look! I stamped the star for the top of the tree in gold, then swiped the inkpad along the edges of the watercolour panel. I used Zigs to watercolour. Finally, I stamped the sentiment in the same ink as I used for the tree bag before mounting the panel on a kraft card base. 
It's definitely a busy time of year, but it's so worth it to play along! Besides, you must need at least one more Christmas card... 😉

Supplies: Neenah desert storm cardstock, Strathmore watercolour paper, Essentials by Ellen Homespun Holidays stamps. Memento tuxedo black, cocoa brown & rhubarb stalk & Delicata golden glitz inks, Zig clean colour real brush markers, scrap fabric, Molotow masking pen

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X(XX)mas at the Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers

It's that time of year again! You know you want to. Ready to join Edna and the Sisterhood for our latest challenge, X IS FOR XXX Xmas? I have to confess, I always find this one a bit of a, well, challenge. But here's my card: 

I picked up this JJ Christmas Cheer image a little while ago imagining I could come up with something (in)appropriate. Right up until it was time to print out my sentiment, I thought I was going to do something along the lines of "but it's too nice being naughty", but then came up with this one instead. I couldn't let my Sisters down, so of course her glasses and glass have Glossy Accents on them. Shoes, bubbly and antler headband are sparkled with some Wink of Stella; and the pearl on her choker even has some Liquid Pearls on it. 
You definitely have to see what the Sisterhood came up with for this challenge. And great news, we're giving you double the time to play along! Since it's a busy time of year for many, you have until January 6th, 2017 to enter your x-rated creation! 

Supplies: white & black cardstock, red Craft Smith card base, Bugaboo JJ Christmas Cheer digital image, Prismacolor pencils, Wink of Stella, Glossy Accents, white opal Liquid Pearls, Stampin' Up dazzling diamonds glitter, MFT wonky stitched rectangle die

Guesting Again at Tag You're It!

I get to play along with the talented design team at Tag You're It again! The new challenge features a beautiful tag from featured artist Laurie Willison. 

I was inspired by the colours; the patterned and die cut sentiment; and the trees going along the bottom of the tag. Here is where I took those elements:

To start, I cut down two die cut wine tags so that my finished tag would be close to square and would have a decorative bottom. While I really like the square shape of Laurie's, I wanted to leave lots of room around the sentiment I'd chosen. I die cut the sentiment from one of the tags as well as patterned paper — dots instead of stripes just because. After adhering the two layers of tag, I inset the patterned sentiment into the die cut negative, adding back the white "o" centre and tail of the "y". Instead of stamping, I used some die cut holly and berries, adding glossy accents to the berries for shine and dimension. A little cord and ribbon (Look at that bow! I will never tie as perfect a one again...) completes the tag. 

Supplies: white & Stampin' Up real red cardstock, American Crafts green glitter paper, Teresa Collins Santa's List patterned paper, Avery Elle Cheers, Papertrey Ink Wonderful Words: Joy & Lil' Inkers Holly Jolly dies, Marvy-Uchida corner-rounding punch, Lawn Fawn Mistletoe hemp cord & scrap green ribbon, Glossy Accents

Bah! Humbug!

It's December! And now the holiday rush really begins. 😉 December also means it's time for a new Naughty or Nice Challenge, and this month we're asking you to choose between traditional and modern with A Christmas Carol vs. Frozen. 

I am a big Dickens fan, so this was an easy choice for me:

I used paper and stamps from Graphic 45's A Christmas Carol collection to make this quick card. And while not everyone appreciates an unrepentant Scrooge, I can definitely think of a few people that would get a chuckle out of this. 
You'll have to check the Naughty or Nice Challenges page to see whether the majority of Troublemakers picked traditional or modern. While you're there, check out the nice little prize that we are offering to one lucky entrant this month! Pick your style and join us! 

Supplies: Stampin' Up very vanilla cardstock, Graphic 45 A Christmas Carol patterned paper, Graphic 45/Hampton Arts A Christmas Carol stamps, Versafine onyx black ink, Ranger clear embossing powder

Tag You're It! Reminder

Yes, it's another tag! The current challenge at Tag You're It continues, and I'm back with a reminder inspiration tag: 

I was less literal in my CASEing of Loll's tag this time around. I kept the same colours and tree theme again, but chose to use just blues for the background and had the tree and ribbon pick up the bright green. I clear-embossed the snowflake background before sponging the tag. This little tree already had matching snowflakes as part of the stamp! 

The theme at the Simon Says Stamp Monday challenge is O Christmas Tree, so I am linking my little tag there. 

There is still almost a week left to play along, so I hope you'll be inspired! 

Supplies: white cardstock, Hero Arts Christmas Reindeer & Local King Rubber Stamp Snowflake Background stamps, Versamark, Colorbox Citrine, tumbled glass & salty ocean distress inks, Ranger clear embossing powder, May Arts green & Offray white ribbon