Waltzingmouse August Pajama Party!

Today, you are warmly invited to the August Waltzingmouse Pajama Party!  There are prizes to be won and a Guest DT to be chosen!  You will find all the details and all the fun challenges on the WMS blog

Here are my cards for this month's challenges:

Tie a Knot in It

Stamps I used:  Tying the Knot, Pin Stripe Backgrounder, Big Day Today

Get Nauty (photo inspiration)

 Stamps I used: 

Safe Harbor Sentiments, Ocean Bound, part of fence from Hocus Pocus

Golden Oldie

Stamps I used: 

my first purchase from Waltzingmouse which are also the first stamps Claire sold!

Oven Fresh Gingerbread Joy and Half Baked Gingerbread Joy

I'm entering my tag in the Moxie Fab Holiday Tag Challenge.

And finally - we have the Sketch Challenge

Stamps I used:

Zig Zag Background,  Pin Stripe Mini, Funky Flowers, Big Day Today

So - are you coming to the Pajama Party this month?   Check it all out here.  I'll look for you there!

With Sympathy

Stamps:  Tying the Knot, Pin Stripe Background, Big Day Today- Waltzingmouse

Paper:  White - PTI

Ink:  Versafine Imperial Purple, Ranger Distress Milled Lavender, Ranger Archival Jet Black

Accessories:  rhinestones - Kaiser

A Ship in Port

Stamps: Ocean Bound, Safe Harbor Sentiments, Hocus Pocus - Waltzingmouse

Ink:  Memento Gray Flanel, Ranger Archival Jet Black, Ranger Distress Festive Berries and Salty Ocean

Accessories:  Square Lattice Embossing Folder - SU, Dienamics - Catch a Wave - MFT, foam tape, wide ribbon - May Arts.

Holiday Hugs Tag

Stamps:  Oven Fresh Gingerbread Joy, Half Baked Gingerbread Joy - Waltzingmouse

Paper:  white, Hawaiian Shores - PTI, Raspberry Ripple - SU.

Ink:  Ranger Distress Picked Raspberry and Peacock Feathers

Accessories:  rhinestones - Kaiser, 2" circle punch - Fiskars, 1 1/4" circle punch - SU, Tag Sale #3 die - PTI, foam tape, modern label punch - SU, Hawaiian Shores saddle stitched ribbon - PTI

Thank You Sketch

Stamps:  Funky Flowers, Zig Zag Background, Mini Pinstripe, Big Day Today - Waltzingmouse

Paper:  white - PTI

Ink:  Ranger Distress Worn Lipstick, Picked Raspberry, mustard seed, Versafine Spanish Moss, Ranger Archival Jet Black

Accessories:  Small Gothic Window die - Poppy Stamps, foam tape, Funky Flowers Cut Files - WMS

Merry Washi Books

Today I have a two cards to share that I made for a few of this weeks' blog land challenges.

First I have a Christmas Card (yes, we need to get going on these so we're not STRESSED in December right?!!) made for the Merry Monday Challenge sketch  

I made mine clean and simple using stamps from Around Christmas Time and Nordic Christmas by Waltzingmouse stamping in the traditional red and green inks.
I'm also linking this card up to the Moxie Fab Holiday Card Challenge

I made my next card for the Cas-Ology cue card challenge - Book and the Less Is More challenge was to use Washi Tape.

I used strips of Washi Tape to make my 'books' with complimentary strips on the bindings.  The sentiment is from Reading Floppy by MFT.

Tomorrow night I'll be participating in the Waltzingmouse Pajama Party -  will you??  Hope to see you!

Merry and Bright
Stamps:  Around Christmastime and Nordic Winter - Waltzingmouse
Paper:  white - PTI
Ink:  Ranger Distress Pine Needles and Festive Berries

Good Friends
Stamps:  Reading Flopsy - My Favorite Things
Paper:  white - PTI
Ink:  Ranger Archival Jet Black
Accessories:  washi tape - Darice and Freckled Fawn

Creations by AR - SOSN - Birthday Sneakers

It's my turn to post for the Creations by AR  Something Old.....Something New over on Paper Crafts Planet.

Today - I'm using the Sneakies Template to create little birthday sneaker 'cards' for my grand nephew Landon, who will be 3 in Sept and his sister, my grand niece, Mila, who just turned one last week.  Their parents had a joint birthday party last week for the two of them.

I used the high top version of the template for Landon's sneaker - with a fun dinosaur paper from Basic Grey.  I stamped his name on a punched circle and attached it to the side. (like the circle patches on the side of the Converse Sneakers!)

 I laced it up with wrinkled seam tape.

 

 Since he is turning 3 -  I stamped a little rectangle and adhered it to the back of the sneaker.

 

 As part of his birthday present - I got Landon a deck of Dinosaur Cards at Target to go with his Dinosaur sneaker - he'll have fun looking at the pictures now and will be able to read all the info on the back in a few years!

 

 I used the low top version for little Mila's sneaker - using a heart paper from a Valentine pack by K and Co

 I stamped Mila's name on a punched heart for the side of her sneaker.

 

  I laced her's up with pink wrinkled seam tape.

 and added a 1 to the back -  her very first birthday!

Since Mila is just starting to walk - I thought she could use these colorful socks to go with her Birthday Sneaker.  The words on the feet of the socks are rubber so she won't slip when she's walking around in them.

 

All of Adela's templates come in 3 formats - PDF for printing and cutting out by hand (which I used for this project), SVG and DXF for cutting with a machine like the Silhouette.

I just love how these adorable sneakers came out - the low top measures 2" x 1 5/8" x4 7/8" and the high top is 2" x 2 3/8" x 4 7/8".  Aren't these just the cutest things??!  And they are really easy to put together!   

and here are some photos of Landon and Mila at their party.  Mila's opening my gift to her with her mum Katie - see the sneaker hanging on the bag?

 Landon's waiting patiently for someone to get his just opened truck out of the box it's tied into.

 A cousin made this lovely quilt for Mila and she immediately jumped on it and laid down - it was SO cute!

 And here's Landon at the end of the day -  eating one last chocolate chip cookie!

Thanks so much for stopping by today!

High Top:
Stamps:  Karen Foster Snap Stamps - Alphabet and Numbers - retired
Paper:  White and black - PTI, Green - Prismatics by Prism, Pattern Paper - Arcaic Basic Grey
Ink:  Versafine Onyx Black
Accessories:  wrinkled seam tape - Prairie Bird Boutique Etsy Shop, 1 1/4" and 1" circle punches - EK Success, scor tape, Scor Pal, sneakies template - Creations by AR, Cropadile, Scotch Quick Dry Adhesive

Low Top:
Stamps:  Karen Foster Snap Stamps - Alphabet and Numbers - retired
Paper:  White- PTI, Pink - Prismatics by Prism, Pattern Paper Smitten - K & Company
Ink:  Versafine Onyx Black
Accessories:  wrinkled seam tape - Prairie Bird Boutique Etsy Shop, heart punches - EK Success, scor tape, Scor Pal, sneakies template - Creations by AR, Cropadile, Scotch Quick Dry Adhesive

It Takes Courage

I'm finding it takes courage to do Mixed Media!!!  After throwing my first attempt into the trashbin (!)  here is my project for Mona & Sue's Mixed Media Color Challenge #6.  I'm still struggling to find out how I 'do' mixed media - what it is I feel comfortable with, how much to put on, what variety of mediums I use. etc, etc.

For this week's project - I used a small 6"x8" flat canvas.  I painted over it with two shades of pink acrylic paint.  Then I added a strip of Tim Holtz Terminology Tissue - adhereing it with Mat Mod Podge.  I printed a photo I took in my garden last year in monochromatic color -  my printer program didn't have a good pink to go with my paints so then I was trying to get grey but this is the closest I could get.  

 

 I stamped the sentiment "It takes Courage to become who we really want to be" from Rubbernecker directly onto the photo using Archival Jet Black ink.  I adhered that to the canvas with Mod Podge as well.  Then I used the Concentric Circles Stencil from MFT with Studio 490 White Embossing Paste.   

When the embossing paste had dried - I adhered the Tim Holtz die cut fence cut from Grunge Board using Glue N Seal from Ranger.  The flowers and leaves are wooden pieces from Michaels that I colored with a gray Copic. I brushed over the fence and flowers with Glitter Glaze from MFT - I think you can see it in the photo above.

and finally I added some enamel dots to the flowers and centers of the circles.

I'm happy with my final project today -  I think I learned a little bit more of what is pleasing to my eye for design etc.  

Oh- and the project I threw out?  Here's a pic -  it was a 9 x 12 framed canvas - that had so much spread out all over it - it looked sort of like I just threw stuff on (which I guess I did!)   It definitely didn't turn out to be 'My Happy Place'!! (please - don't even say anything !!! LOL!!)

I'm much happier with my second attempt:  I guess I like order - or at least organized chaos!!??! or maybe I need to let loose a little??!

 I'm also putting this into the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - Get Dotty.


Stamps:  Rubbernecker
Paper:  Grunge Board, glossy photo, Tim Holtz Terminology Tissue Paper, Grunge Board - Tim Holtz.
Ink:  Archival Jet Black - Ranger
Accessories:  Enamel Dots - My Minds Eye, wooden flowers and leaf - Michaels, Copic T6, GlitterGlaze Sheer Sparkle - MFT, Glue N Seal - Ranger, Studio 490 White Embossing Paste, Mat Mod Podge, Acrylic Paint Love Bird and Ballet Slipper - Martha Stewart., 6"x8" flat canvas panel - Michaels.

A Birthday Candle and Purple Sympathy

I have two cards to share today that I made for challenges over on Split Coast.

I made this birthday card for the Mix-Ability Challenge - which was to use some fabric on your card and at least one other medium.     And I was inspired for my colors with this red and blue kaftan from Monsoon, the web store from the Inspiration Challenge.

 

And here's my card:  I used fabric, Mod Podge, black ink, Copics and Glitter Glaze.

 

I die cut the blue and red fabric with square and circle Nestabilities adhering them to a square of cardstock with Mod Podge which I also covered the top with.  I die cut the frame using 2 square Nestabilities and layered it over the fabric square using foam tape.  I adhered the die cut BIRTHDAY from PTI to the frame with a glue pen and stamped the sentiment in the corner.   The candle is an older Sizzix die that I cut in white and then in yellow for the flame.  I colored the wick with a fine point black pen and the inner flame with an orange Copic.  Then I brushed over the whole flame with Glitter Glaze from MFT and layered it over the cloth panel with foam dots.

Here's a second card I made for the Inspiration Challenge - inspired by this Glitter butterfly headband 

I printed a photo I took in my garden last year - changing the color on my printer setting to monochromatic purple.

I trimmed the top and bottom to fit the 5 1/2" x 4 1/4" card base, adhered it to the card, and then simply stamped the "With Sympathy"  from the Big Day Today set fromWaltzingmouse directly on the photo.  You never know if an ink is going to stamp well or 'squish' on a glossy photo! Luckily, this one turned out well!! I used Ranger Archival Jet Black.

Candle Birthday
Stamps: Cornish Heritage Farm - Birthday Centers
Paper: white, pure poppy, Summer Sunrise - PTI
Ink: Memento Paris Dusk
Accessories: fabric - JoAnn's, candle sizzix die, birthday die - PTI, square and circle Nestabilities. Matt Mod Podge, Glitter Glaze Sheer Sparkle - MFT, Copic - YR04, 01 Fine tip black Micron Pen

Butterfly Sympathy
Stamps: With Sympathy from Big Day Today Set - Waltzingmouse
Paper: white - PTI, glossy photo paper - Dell
Ink: Archival Jet Black - Ranger
Accessories: computer printed photo

Take Joy in Today!

Wow - did I get a lot done today in my craft room!  I had several challenges laid out on my work table that I wanted to get done - and here they are!

First up is my card for this week's Cas(e) This Sketch

I had this wonderful picture taken by my niece - of her husband Nate and their son, 2 year old James.  They took a boat out to one of the islands in Boston Harbor last month and one of the things they did there was fly a kite!  I thought the sketch would work perfect with this photo.  I die cut the sentiment balloon from Jillian Vance, stamped the sentiment from PTI on it and popped it up on the photo with foam tape.  Then I just layered the photo to a black and then green panel.   The finished size is 4 1/4" x 5 1/2".

I actually made this as just a card front and attached a die cut easel from Tim Holtz to the back so it can stand up and be displayed on a shelf.  

My next 2 cards are for Christmas challenges.

I used the Merry Monday sketch for this one

 

 and here is my card

and I used a star which is the July Christmas Card Challenge in the Waltzingmouse Forum.  I stamped the star and sentiment with Archival Jet Black ink on brushed silver card stock.  I punched the circles out of the same silver.  The star is popped up over the circles and I added some clear rhinestones.  The blue panel is embossed with Square Lattice.

And my final creation was made for the Addicted to CAS - Code Word Holiday challenge

 

and the August Christmas Card Challenge in the Waltzingmouse Forum - to use the non-traditional colors of lime green, raspberry and tangerine! 

 

I wasn't sure what I was going to do with these funky colors but once I decided what stamps I would use, it all worked out nicely! Who would have thought these colors would make a pretty Christmas Card?!!  That's why we have challenges - right?!  The wreath and berries are from Around Christmas Time and the Noel is from Compliments of the Season - Two all from Waltzingmouse.

I'm entering both of these Christmas cards into the Moxie Fab World Holiday Card Challenge

Phew!  that's it from me today!

Take Joy in Today
Stamps:  Beautiful Blessings - PTI
Paper:  White, True Black, Kraft - PTI
Ink:  Ranger Archival Jet Black
Accessories:  message balloon die - Jillian Vance Designs, foam dots, small easel die - Tim Holtz Alterations, photo

Follow Yonder Star
Stamps:  Yonder Star - Waltzingmouse
Paper:  Enchanted Evening, True Black - PTI, Brushed Silver - SU
Ink:  Ranger Archival Jet black
Accessories:  Square Lattice Embossing Folder - SU, rhinestones - Creative Charms, 3/4" and 5/8" circle punches - EK Success

Noel
Stamps:  wreath and berries - Around Christmas Time, Noel from Compliments of the Season TWO - Waltzingmouse
Paper:  white - PTI, certainly celery - SU
Ink:  Memento Pear Tart, Tangelo, Ranger Distress Picked Strawberry, Ranger Archival Jet Black
Accessories: circle nestabilities, foam tape

Contentment Times Two

I have two creations to share today -  my first card was done all in blues for the Just Us Girls monochromatic challenge.   I'm continuing with yesterday's post theme, making this one a sympathy card.

I sponged a floral stencil for the background in Ranger Distress Weathered Wood, then I stamped the blooms on die cuts in Chipped Sapphire and Faded Jeans.  The 'in sympathy' is stamped on a sentiment strip die cut.  The flower and sentiment are popped up on foam tape and I added one lone rhinestone.

I'm going to slip this card into the Cas on Sunday - floral fantasy challenge as well

My 2nd card was made for the Word Art Wednesday Challenge - it's Anything Goes - but they provided this verse from 1 Timothy if we wanted to use it.  And I have a confession to make!  I originally thought this card would also be for the Just Us Girls monochromatic challenge - until I re-read the instructions and realized it was supposed to be blue!  But it was a happy mistake because I got two cards for my efforts!

I sponged the circles stencil for the background.  I printed the Bible Verse from my computer, die cut it with a Wonky Rectangle, sponged it before taking it out of the die, then layered it over the stenciled panel with foam tape.

Floral Sympathy
Stamps:  In Sympathy from Asian Garden Additions - Waltzingmouse, flower and leaves from Tropical Sensations set - My Favorite Things
Paper:  White - PTI
Ink:  Ranger Distress Faded Jeans, Weathered Wood and Chipped Sapphire
Accessories:  Foam Tape, Mixable Stencils - Petal Pattern - My Favorite Things, Dienamics Dies - Sentiment Strips & Tropical Sensations - My Favorite Things, Rhinestone - Kaiser

Godliness with Contentment
Paper:  White, Summer Sunrise - PTI
Ink:  Ranger Distress Wild Honey
Accessories: Bible Verse printed from computer,  Funky Rectangles - Spellbinders, Mixable Stencil Concentric Circles - My Favorite Things, foam tape, rhinestone - Kaiser 

Floral Sympathy

My stash of Sympathy cards has unfortunately been depleted by a friend at work who had several co-workers lose parents in just a few weeks time.  I found inspiration for replenishing my cards in the CAS on Sunday Challenge - Floral Fantasy

I ended up making 5 cards using the same design with different ink colors since I had everything out on my work table.  I stamped the bloom, masked it and stamped the leaves - then I simply stamped the luscious scrolly sentiment over part of the bloom.

This is the first one I made using Ranger Distress Wild Honey, Crushed Olive, and Peacock Feathers along with Archival Black.  I added some enamel dots on the swirls of the sympathy sentiment.

On this one I used Dusty Concord on the bloom

Here I used Peacock Feathers

On this one I used Picked Raspberry

and for the final card I used Faded Jeans

For each one, I stamped the images on a 4" x 5 1/4" white panel and adhered it to my 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" card - even though it's all white I think the layer adds depth and nice thickness to the card.  It makes a CAS card seem substantial!

The flower, leaves, and stamen are from Funky Flowers and the lovely sentiment is from Big Day Today - both new sets from Waltzingmouse.   The enamel dots are from My Minds Eye.

Stamps:  Waltzingmouse - Funky Flowers, Big Day Today
Paper:  White - PTI
Ink:  Ranger Archival Jet Black, Ranger Distress Peacock Feathers, Crushed Olive, Wild Honey, Dusty Concord, Faded Jeans, Picked Raspberry.
Accessories:  Enamel dots - My Minds Eye.