Seeing Spots

This week, Paper Smooches SPARKS has their "picture perfect" challenge, and this is the inspiration photo:

Cupcake roses -- how brilliant is that? So of course my card has neither flowers nor cupcakes. Instead, I took my inspiration from the polka dots and the blue.

Lots of dots! Why yes, that is Target washi tape. Welcome to Canada, Target -- and it's true, I did mostly check out a new store in order to see if their tapes had come to Canada. The red panel is embossed with dots as well, and even this happy puppy is spotted. His nose and eye got some enamel accents, while his collar received some glossy accents. (I think Polaroid could be revived if they came out with three-dimensional photos -- as my puppy is, popping off the background -- don't you?)
With slightly better odds than the average lottery, I'm also entering this card in the current Simon Says Stamp "Anything Goes" challenge.

       

Supplies: white & Stampin' Up real red cardstock, Recollections patterned paper, Paper Smooches Woofers and Tweeters & Birthday Buddies stamps, Memento tuxedo black & Stampin' Up real red inks, Prismacolor pencils, Lil' Inkers instant camera die, Spellbinders large circle die, Cuttlebug embossing folder, Target washi tape, pop-dot tape

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Vintage Friends with Flair

Happy Friday! I thought I'd join in on the Unity Friends with Flair fun this week with a vintage birthday card. 

Unity weekend sales are tough to beat, aren't they? I picked up this Itty Bitty during one of them recently. This Graphic 45 paper is a perfect match for the vintage autos. I think this is a great way to recognize a *vintage* birthday with a bit of subtlety. ;)
Of course this is going into this week's Anything Goes challenge at Simon Says Stamp. 
Have a great weekend! 

Supplies: Stampin' Up Very Vanilla & Naturals Ivory cardstock, Graphic 45 A Perfect Gentleman patterned paper, Consider Yourself Vintage stamps, Brilliance coffee bean ink, clear embossing powder, Lil' Inkers instant camera die, pop-dot tape

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Pink Plus at Crafty Creations Challenges

           

This week at Crafty Creations Challenges, we are looking for cards or other projects featuring pink along with one other colour. Easy if you love pink, perhaps not so much if you don't. ;) I fall somewhere in between, so it wasn't too onerous a task.

Inspired by yesterday's Tuesday Trigger photo at Moxie Fab World, for my second colour I went with rich razzleberry. It seems to be one of those shades you either like or loathe; you can guess which side I'm on. And if you check the other design team creations, you'll see I'm not the only one! I decided to go classy with this card, and that often leads to me using this gorgeous rose image. I second-generation stamped it on the patterned paper as well as embossing one to cut out and pop up. 
Our sponsor this week is Bunny Zoe's Crafts. This store was new to me, but it looks like there is a great selection of crafting products, and one lucky winner will receive a £10 credit to the store! 

Supplies: white & Stampin' Up rich razzleberry cardstock, American Crafts Dear Lizzy Lucky Charm patterned paper, Stampin' Up Fifth Avenue Floral & Judikins Calligraphic Sentiments stamps, versamark & Stampin' Up rich razzleberry inks, clear embossing powder, Spellbinders small oval die, Recollections pearls, ribbon, pop-dot tape

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Cheers!

Happy Sunday! I may be leaving it till the last day, but I have a card for this week's Paper Smooches SPARKS challenge:

Kim has a colour challenge this week, and it seemed to me that the colours would be ideal for a nautical card. (Oh look, the combo is even called "oceanside".) For once, I've stayed fairly true to the colours, with the possible exception of the lower right one. In the description, it's called kraft, but the lighter tone pictured seemed to work better than the darker kraft for this. Even with that big gem in the centre of the ship's wheel, I think this makes a perfect masculine birthday card, don't you? 



Supplies: Papertrey Ink soft stone, Paper Smooches Lily & Beverly & Stampin' Up bashful blue cardstock, Paper Smooches Wicked Nauticool & Birthday Sampler stamps, Memento tuxedo black ink, Doodlebug flowerbox jewel, circle punch, corner-rounding punch

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Purrrfect SPARKS

Have you noticed? I've been trying my best to play along with the Paper Smooches SPARKS challenges as much as possible. This week is a sketch challenge.

As soon as I saw this layout, I wanted to make it into a modified gate-fold card. Which may just mean I'm weird, but whatever. 

Closed...

... aanndd open.

You've got to love the glint of mischief in this cat's eyes, despite his suave-looking chevron-patterned coat. A little trick I picked up from my friend Emily is to leave the tail unadhered -- much more fun that way. 
I wouldn't exactly call this strictly a masculine card, but I am going to give it to my brother for his birthday. He'll appreciate the cat's look of mischief, too. 

Supplies: white, orange & green cardstock, Cosmo Cricket Clementine & Basic Grey Plumeria patterned paper, Paper Smooches Nine Lives stamps, Versafine onyx black, Versamark & Memento new sprout & tangelo inks, clear embossing powder, Spellbinders small circle dies, Queen & Co. paw print trendy tape, dimensionals

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Hero Arts Sketch Time

The April Hero Arts contest is almost half over, and I thought I'd get an entry in before the first deadline. I really like their sketch this month: 

The flower immediately made me think of an older Hero Arts stamp that I acquired in a grab bag at a Victoria, B.C. stamp store -- a bag of stamps with the proceeds going to an animal charity. 

As you can see, I stayed pretty true to the sketch. I liked the idea of taking the casual, sketchy look of the stamp and pairing with the usually formal-looking vellum. It just might be the freezing rain and ice pellets in our weather forecast that made me go for the bright summery colours to go with it! :P 
That's it for me tonight. Although I have a couple of other cards trying to make their way from vague idea to actuality... 
Edited to add: Silly me! I totally forgot last night to add this to the current Simon Says Stamp challenge, April ice pellets Showers and/or Spring Flowers! 

Supplies: white, navy & Bazzill Basics yellow cardstock, vellum, Simple Stories summer fresh patterned paper, Hero Arts 5 Petal Outline Daisy & Hero Arts/Basic Grey sentiment stamps, Versamark & Memento Paris Dusk inks, clear & WOW white embossing powder, Creative Memories corner-rounding & EK Success 3/4" square punches, Studio G gold glitter glue

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