Seize the Birthday: Use a Stencil

Welcome back to a new challenge at Seize the Birthday! Teammate Vicki has picked our (always optional) topping: USE A STENCIL. I was inspired by Sandie's entry for our previous challenge to pull out a big floral stencil for my card: 

I also wanted to try one of my new mini distress inks, saltwater taffy. I blended it onto the flowers, with rustic wilderness for the stems. I found some dark green cardstock to mat the main panel and white-emboss the sentiment. Pretty and easy to put together! 

Lorraine continues as our surprise party guest, and she and all the regular birthday partygoers have created beautiful cards to inspire you! Make a birthday card and join us! 

Supplies: Neenah white & (?) green cardstock, Clearly Besotted Say What? stamp, Versamark & saltwater taffy & rustic wilderness distress ink, Wow opaque white embossing powder, ARTplorations Happy Flowers stencil

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Floral and Feminine for the Sisterhood

Happy Saturday! The Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers is back with a classic challenge: F is for F WORDS! There is, of course, the definitive F word; and Edna is showcasing a number of F word ideas behind her. For my card, I went with the F words Feminine and Floral. 

My snarky sister Chris knows me well enough to suggest I could also add a third F word: fibbing. :D I was in the mood to make a pretty card that initially hides its snarky intentions, so I pulled out this ATC panel and added some Copic colouring. The rose on her hat gave me the idea to add a rose die cut as an extra element. The Tim Holtz sentiment sticker works well with her "who, me?" posture, I think. The white of the sticker and the ATC background are both toned down with a little warm grey Copic to keep with the vintage feel. 

Given that we're the SNARKY Sisters, I think you'll be impressed at the range of F words from the team and our current guest designer and Queen of Snark, Tristan! Feeling full of fun or fury? ;) Come join us! 

Supplies: Hero Arts sand, Recollections black & Stampin' Up real red cardstock, STAMPlorations retro fashionistas ATC, Copic markers, Paper Smooches roses die, Tim Holtz snarky small talk sticker

 

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Seize the Birthday: Stitching

Seize the Birthday is back with another fun (but always optional!) topping: Faux or Real Stitching! I tend to stick to faux stitching on cards (although I may try embroidery some time). My sewing machine is old, there are no maintenance/repair shops close, and so I like to reserve it for actual sewing. ;) I did make sure I had lots of faux stitching: 

Before adding any stitching, I blended my panel with three distress inks, misted it lightly with water, then crumpled some plastic wrap on it while it dried. This adds some fun extra texture. When it was dry, I used both a stitched cover plate and a stitched rectangle die to add lots of stitchwork. Since I liked my background so much, I kept the rest of the card simple with a die cut balloon and sentiment. 

We have a new surprise party guest for the next two months that I'm sure you will recognize: Lorraine Aquilina, or Lols! She and my teammates have made beautiful stitched cards for the challenge, so be sure to visit and be inspired! 

Supplies: Neenah white cardstock, Koh-in-oor smooth white bristol, kitsch flamingo, shaded lilac & chipped sapphire distress ink, CUTplorations wonky stitched grid texture cover plate & shaker balloons #3 oval, MFT blueprints 24 stitched rectangle & Creative Expressions borderline happy birthday dies

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Happy Little Stampers: Stencils

It's time for the May Stencil Challenge at Happy Little Stampers! Here's what I came up with this month: 

I'm not 100% happy with this card, but decided to share it with you anyway. This is actually my second attempt at making it. The first time, I found some heavyweight blue cardstock, used two stencils - the cat, which actually fills a slimline card, and an oval to keep just the head and upper body - and added crackle paste. I thought the crackles would nicely complement the mosaic style of the cat. I didn't get back to it for a few days, but when I did... all the crackles were flaking off! The paste and paper obviously didn't get along. For my second attempt, I used a different blue cardstock. It's definitely not as heavy, since the moisture of the paste has warped it a bit - but it shows up much more in the photo than in real life, so there's that. The crackle paste also picked up dye from the paper! When it was still wet, it looked quite mottled, but fortunately dried to an even colour. And isn't flaking off! And that's the story of this far-from-perfect card. :) 

As always, this is an anything goes challenge, so as long as you've used a stencil, I hope you'll join us! 

Supplies: Memory Box light blue & Bazzill dark blue cardstock, Studio Katia You're So Sweet stamp, Versamark ink, Hero Arts white satin pearl embossing powder, ARTplorations kitty & oval flexi-template stencils, Nuvo Russian white crackle mousse

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Some Snarky Layers

L is for Layers at the Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers! Edna is taking the challenge quite literally, but the rest of us created our layers with paper, I do believe. ;) As a clean and simple cardmaker, I am not a big fan of layers, but I gave it my best shot: 

Some pretty patterned papers always help me when it comes to extra layers, so after I coloured (and matted - layers!) my ATC, I found a coordinating paper. The flowers on it inspired me to make some floral embellishments from another sheet in the pad - three layers of petals and a centre! Plus the blue stem thingies! :D I added a mat layer to the sentiment (designed by sister Chris) as well, breaking the sentiment into two parts to better fit alongside the ATC. 

I'm adding this to the never-ending STAMPlorations anything goes challenge. 

So many layered cards on the blog, from my sisters and the current Queen of Snark and guest designer, Rachel! Add some layers - and perhaps some snark! - to your project and join us. 

Supplies: Recollections black cardstock, Prima Introspection patterned paper, STAMPlorations Some Snark stamp, MFT intense black ink, STAMPlorations retro fashionistas ATC, Copic markers, Spellbinders mini blooms & sprigs & MFT diagonal stitched rectangle dies, Opalite golden mist reinker

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Seize the Birthday: Stripe It Up!

Seize the Birthday is sneaking in at the end of March with a new challenge thought up by Jules: Stripe It Up! I have lots of ways I can make stripes, but I also have lots of striped patterned paper, so I let some look after the topping: 

I also happened to have these flowers already stamped and die cut, and thought they were a fun, bright contrast to the muted paper. I wish I'd adhered the sentiment tag a bit lower, but obviously it didn't bother me enough to start over. ;) 

Lots of striped inspiration on the StB blog from my teammates and surprise party guest Deepti, but remember, we have an anything goes birthday card option, too. So make one and join us! 

Supplies: Neenah white cardstock, Sunny Studio Subtle Grey Tones patterned paper, Catherine Pooler Find Your Happy stamps & dies, Simin Says Stamp Furry Cat & Box sentiment stamp, Catherine Pooler party dress, tiki torch, tiara, mint to be & dress blues ink, Sugar Pea Designs card front element builder die

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Addicted to Stamps and More: Make Your Mark

It's once again time to Make Your Mark at Addicted to Stamps and More! There are so many choices with this one - but I decided it was time to get out my Twinkling H2Os for some watercolouring: 

 

I picked this pretty floral that hadn't seen ink before, so I'll add this to Darnell's March NBUS challenge.   The narrow pink frame just happened to be in my stash, so I adhered it to a panel I ran through an embossing folder. The sentiment stamped quite nicely over the texture. To keep the flowers from lying flat, I cut a few circles of cardstock and adhered them together to lift the image off the panel a bit.

I'm also adding this to STAMPlorations ongoing Anything Goes challenge. 

My teammates have made their marks on their cards in a variety of ways - you're sure to be inspired to join us! 

Supplies: Neenah white & SU melon mambo cardstock, Ranger watercolour paper, STAMPlorations Bloomfully: Beautiful stamps, Versafine onyx black ink, Wow clear gloss embossing powder, Twinkling H2Os, Darice diagonal stripes embossing folder

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The Sisters Celebrate Snarky Chris!

We have a special challenge starting today at the Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers, celebrating our very own snarky sister, Chris! Chris is the newest stamp designer at STAMPlorations, and her first two sets are (what? really?) snarky sentiments! Some of us snuck her sentiments on our cards for our last challenge, but today we wanted to give them a big shoutout. Here's mine: 

When I made my previous card, I showed off how perfectly Chris's sentiments work with STAMPlorations paper ephemera. This time, I thought I'd demonstrate they play well with others, too, so I grabbed a Tim Holtz snarky cat. Once I'd coloured him in somewhat fiery colours, I masked him and added a little stencilling to the background. I also added a little shading around the edges of the panel. And of course made sure the sentiment was prominently displayed! 

Are you ready to get snarky with the sisters? Visit the blog to see everyone's creations using these fun new sentiments. And we're hoping you have something from STAMPlorations in your stash you can use to join us! 

Supplies: Neenah white cardstock, STAMPlorations Hot Mess & Stampers Anonymous/Tim Holtz Snarky Cats stamps, Versafine onyx black, MFT extreme black & antique linen distress ink, Wow clear gloss embossing powder, Copic markers, Heidi Swapp polka dot stencil, MFT wonky stitched rectangle die

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Seize the Birthday: Green and White

Happy St. Patrick's Day, and welcome to the newest Seize the Birthday challenge! In honour of the day, my teammate JoAnn has picked green and white as our (always optional) challenge topping. I decided to take the challenge as is, with no added neutrals or metallics: 

A lot of my plant stencils are florals, but this bamboo was was perfect to use with just green. It's actually a slimline format, but I used just the top portion, allowing the bamboo to trail off the bottom of the panel. The two part sentiment is stamped in the same green, and I also used it to colour the cardstock I embossed the secondary sentiment on. Then lucky me, I had a matching green card base already cut, scored and ready! I layered the happy portion on a few extra die cuts for a little dimension. 

I'm adding my card to the STAMPlorations March stencil challenge. 

Green and white cards galore from my StB teammates and our current surprise party guest, Deepti! Join the party with your own birthday card! 

Supplies: Neenah white & (?) green cardstock, Birch Press Design Make a Statement stamps & die, Versamark & Catherine Pooler garden party ink, Wow clear gloss & opaque white embossing powder, ARTplorations bamboo stencil, Winnie & Walter Katharine cutaways pierced rectangle die

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Happy Little Stampers: Stencils

It's time for the March STENCIL challenge at Happy Little Stampers! I picked a full card stencil for my inspiration this time: 

I started by blending yellow and orange distress inks on my cardstock panel - at first, I tried a third colour, but didn't like the result. I just flipped it over and started again! As you can see, I also splatted some water drops on for a little extra interest. Then I added the stencil and the same two inks. The orange was fine, but the yellow was almost invisible, so I blended off most of the orange ink on my brush onto scrap paper, then added just enough orange to the yellow so they showed. With the cheery colours, I thought the sentiment was apt - and as it turned out, I needed a get well card for a friend who recently broke her leg, and this makes a nice encouragement card. 

I'm adding this to the March STAMPlorations Stencil challenge. 

Lots more stencil inspiration on the HLS blog, and you have the month to join us! 

Supplies: Neenah white cardstock, Papertrey Ink Simple Sunflower stamps, Catherine Pooler orange twist & squeezed lemonade & carved pumpkin distress ink, ARTplorations happy flowers stencil, The Greetery speed tagging die, The Twinery marigold twine, foam tape

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The Sisters are Vibrantly Snarky

The Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers is back with a new challenge: V is for Vibrant! Early March seems like a good time to add a little extra vibrancy to things. Edna has certainly embraced the challenge, although I am a little worried about her hair. :D I decided to go vibrant with alcohol inks: 

This yellow and blue are two of my brightest alcohol inks, so I added a few drops of each to my Yupo panel and blew them around with some rubbing alcohol. While that dried, I matched a couple of Copic markers to colour in the backdrop of this retro ATC panel. And my sentiment? Part of one of two brand new stamp sets from our very own sister, Chris! I know, snarky sentiment sets, who would have guessed? :D 

With an ATC and sentiment both from STAMPlorations, I'm adding this to their ongoing Anything Goes challenge. 

You will find vibrantly snarky inspiration on the blog from my sisters in snark as well as our current guest designer and Queen of Snark, Granne! Design something vibrant and join us! 

Supplies: Neenah white & Recollections black cardstock, Yupo paper, STAMPlorations Some Snark stamp, Versafine onyx black ink, Wow clear gloss embossing powder, STAMPlorations Retro People ATC, Copic markers, Piñata sun bright yellow & Baja blue alcohol inks, Sugar Pea Designs cardfront element builder & MFT blueprints 29 die

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Inkspirational: Shaped Cards

Happy weekend! We are introducing a new challenge category today at Inkspirational: technique challenges! And we are starting off with a fun one, SHAPED cards. Of course all cards have to have a shape, but we're looking outside the traditional rectangles or squares. Mine is takeout coffee shaped!

I got the idea and basic measurements for this from a tutorial at Splitcoast Stampers. There's a local coffee shop where I live that uses bright green lids, so that inspired my colour choices. I could have used one of my saved coffee sleeves (yes, I have a few) but embossed some kraft cardstock instead.  

On the Ink blog, you'll find cards of all shapes and sizes! ;) Hope we've inspired you to join us. 

Supplies: Neenah white & desert storm & scrap green cardstock, Lawn Fawn My Cup of Tea & STAMPlorations Literary Caffeine-ations stamps, Versamark, Versafine onyx black, Memento London fog & Catherine Pooler garden party inks, Wow clear gloss embossing powder, Sizzix/Tim Holtz Pinwheel embossing folder, MFT double stitched rectangle die

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Color Hues: Navy and Pink

More than halfway through February, so it is time for a new Color Hues challenge! My teammate Kristie has selected a pretty pairing: NAVY and PINK. It just so happens that another teammate, Carol, had shared some beautiful navy and pink ATCs with me, so I put one to work:

More pink than I'd normally use, but I do like the way this turned out. I found both pink and navy cardstock that would go with the colours in the ATC. I ran the pink through a never-before-used embossing folder to add texture and interest. Both the ATC and the pink panel were matted with navy before being added to a white card base. This card could be for just about any occasion, but I decided this scripty "thanks" would go well. 

Lots of beautiful navy and pink inspiration from my teammates and our current guest designer, Rosemary - I hope you'll visit and then play along! 

Supplies: Neenah white, Memory box navy & (?) pink cardstock, (?) thanks stamp, Versamark ink, Hero Arts white satin pearl embossing powder, STAMPlorations Blue Blooms ATC ephemera, Crafter's Companion regency swirls embossing folder

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Addicted to Stamps and More: Christmas

After taking a short break (thanks, Kylie!) I'm back in time for Christmas in February at Addicted to Stamps and More! Often I use this time of year (when I actually have the time) for more intricate Christmas cards, but for today, kept it simple but I think cute: 

A card like this will certainly be easy to put together come December crunch time if I find myself running short! I think these little holiday mugs are adorable. I chose to use the snowman one, backed him with a kraft panel die cut for some extra interest, then mounted on a white card base. I also had a bunch of these simple sentiments already stamped and embossed, so I simply needed to cut and add one. 

I'm adding this to one of the newer card challenges on the crafty block: Caffeinated Christmas Card Challenge! (Hearts on the mug - small but there!) 

I always advocate year-round Christmas card making, so I hope you'll consider joining us! Lots more inspiration to be found on the ATSM blog. 

Supplies: Neenah white & desert storm cardstock, Taylored Expressions Just Saying Christmas stamp, Versafine onyx black ink, Wow clear gloss embossing powder, STAMPlorations Christmas Mug Cuties ephemera, CUTplorations wonky stitched grid texture cover plate

 

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Color Hues: Red and Black

A new month means a new challenge at Color Hues, and I think it's a great one: RED and BLACK! While pondering a few Valentine ideas, I remembered I had a buffalo check background already stamped, and my card became a Christmas one: 

With the check already done, the rest of the card came together quickly: two deer die cuts adhered together, and a little banner sentiment. I was going to keep to entirely red and black, but decided on the pop of white embossing at the last minute. 

I'm adding this to Simon Says Stamp's Wednesday Anything Goes challenge. 

Beautiful cards from my Color Hues teammates and our current guest designer, Michal, so I hope you will check them out and then join us! 

Supplies: Stampin' Up real red & Recollections black cardstock, Concord & 9th Plaid Background & Simon Says Stamp/Kelly Purkey Oh, Dear stamps, Versamark & MFT extreme black ink, Wow white embossing powder, CUTplorations Two Reindeer & MFT Blueprints 29 dies 

 

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