Purple Peace and Your Birthday Star

There are a lot of purple cards showing up on blogs this week -  not because everyone suddenly loves purple - in fact, many stampers (including myself!) are saying that they don't really like or usually use purple!

So here's my contribution - I used Winter Wisteria for the bird ornament that I cut with a coordinating die, Royal Velvet for the card base (although it looks kind of like navy blue in my pic?!), and I used a piece of purple Celtic Square digital DP cut with a Tipped Tops Die.  I even got in Lilac bakers twine!

Here's a close up of my free hanging ornament - I punched a hole through the DP, threaded the twine through the hole to the back and held it in place with the brad.

and here's the inside -  I put a Wisteria layer on the darker card base so you can see the sentiment and write a salutation!

All this for the Cas-ology Cue Card - Purple challenge!

 

 as well as the Merry Monday challenge to use an ornament on your card.

And I had to get this card posted today as the deadline for one of the challenges is midnight tonight!

I stamped the celestial map on a piece of white card stock.  Then I sponged the whole panel with Ranger Distress Stormy Sky ink.  I sprayed some water on it and dried it with my heat gun to get that water drop look.  I black embossed the sentiment on a brushed silver square rounded the corners and added some enamel dots.  I adhered the sentiment over the map with foam dots.

I'm putting this card in two challenges:

Freshly Made Sketches

and the Moxie Fab World: Constellations: Trendy Star Power Challenge

Peace on Earth

Stamps:  Folk Art Christmas Additions - Waltzingmouse

Paper:  Winter Wisteria, Royal Velvet - PTI, Digital Celtic Squares Patterned paper - Waltzingmouse

Ink:  Ranger Distress - Seedless Preserves

Accessories:  bird ornament die/Folk Art Christmas - Waltzingmouse, Tipped Tops Die - PTI, Star Brad - SU, Lilac Bakers Twine - The Twinery.

Wish Upon Your Birthday Star
Stamps:  Star Gazer Additions - PTI
Paper:  White, True Black - PTi, Brushed Silver- SU
Ink:  Archival Jet Black, Ranger Distress Stormy Sky, Versamark
Accessories:  black embossing powder, heat gun, corner rounder - Zutter, water spritzer, enamel dots - My Minds Eye, foam dots.

Fusion Card Challenge - January 30th

It's Thursday and time for another Fusion Card Challenge!  We had so many inspiring entries for the last challenge - I can't wait to see what you all do this week!! It's a heart theme just in time for February 14th!  Or you can be inspired by red and white, or just the sketch!

I just love making treat boxes and Valentine's Day is a perfect time for them!  Everyone loves a little treat on Valentine's Day - even the guys!   So I dressed up a tool box cut file to get the job done!  I was inspired by the colors and images as well as the sketch this week.

The tool box cut file is from the Silhouette Shop. It's 4" wide  x 2 1/4" deep x 3 1/4" high  I decorated it with hearts and a sentiment from the stamp set, My Heart, by Waltzingmouse - do you see the sketch in the layout of the hearts??!!

And, yes, those are chocolate tools in my little tool box.  I made them using a chocolate mold I found on Amazon.

 

I layered red wood grain washi tape and ruler twill onto the base of the tool box.  I adhered punched hearts on the ends of the 'wood grain' handle.  The hearts were stamped and layered onto the front of the tool box with foam dots. 

I'm also entering this in
the City Crafter challenge -  create a project for Valentine's Day
The Pink Elephant Challenge - Theme: Love
Addicted to Stamps and More - photo inspiration (box of candy hearts)

I'm heading out to see what the rest of the Design Team has created - I hope you'll join me - here are the links!

Betty J
Cathy Weber 
Dannielle Robeson
Deepti
Geri Freeman
Julia Aston - me!
Katie Brooks
Kelly Griglione
Kimberly Wiener 

Lyndal Higgins

Lynn Mangan 

Michelle Williams

Michelle Lupton

Sindhu
Stephanie Severin

And we hope you'll be inspired to create and link your card or project over at Fusion!

Stamps:  My Heart - Waltzingmouse
Paper:  White - PTI, Red - Prismatics, Woodgrain - Amuse
Ink:  Ranger Distress - Barn Door, Archival Jet black.
Accessories:  Ruler twill and basket shred - Michaels, red woodgrain washi tape - Freckled Fawn, enamel Dots - My Minds Eye, foam dots, Glue N Seal, heart punch - EK Success.

Are Giraffes and Frogs Pink?

Well -  they are around Valentine's Day!  I've got two more sweet digital  images to share today from A Day for Daisies.   First this sweet Hello Baby Giraffe.  I die cut the printed image with a Stitched Mat Circles Die layering it onto a white panel.  Sentiment stamps are from Sweethearts by Waltzingmouse.  I added three punched hearts and enamel dots. This Valentine will be going to my sweetie-pie little grandniece, Mila, who is 17 months old.

 Here's a 'not very good phone photo' my sister had on Facebook of Mila in pig tails -  she looks a little like Baby Giraffe!?!

 And then this cute little Love You Frog that I cut out with a Stitched Mat Rectangle die.  The washi tape has little hearts in the center of the knots - see them there?  The sentiment (you make me hoppy) is from Tiny Treats: Valentine by PTI.  I made two of these frog Valentines to send to my grandnephews Landon who is 3 1/2 and James who is 2 3/4 - I think they'll get a kick out of a pink/red frog!

They are pink (and red) for the A Day for Daisies Blog challenge to use pink and red (see yesterdays' post as well!)

and look -  there really ARE pink frogs!

My cards were also inspired by the JUGS challenge -  the third photo down on the left has little pink animals in it and red hearts are all over the photos!

 I hope you can stop by tomorrow when I'll be posting my Design Team sample for the new Fusion Card Challenge!

Hello Baby Giraffe
Stamps:  sentiments from Sweethearts - Waltzingmouse,  Digi Hello Baby Giraffe image - A Day for Daisies
Paper:  White, Pure Poppy - PTI
Ink:  Archival Jet Black
Accessories:  Stitched Mat Circle dies - Lil'Inker Designs, large heart punch - EK Success, small heart punch - McGill, foam dots, enamel dots - Michaels, Copics - RV21, RV23, R35, C1, glue pen.

You Make Me Hoppy 
Stamps:  Tiny Treats - Valentine - PTI, Digital Love You Frog - A Day for Daisies
Paper:  white, Simply Chartreuse, Hibiscus Burst - PTI
Ink:  Archival Jet Black
Accessories:  enamel dots - Michaels, stitched mat circle dies - Lil'Inker Designs, glue pen, small heart punch - McGill, foam dots, woodgrain washi tape - Freckled Fawn

Red and Pink

I was checking out my friends blogs and came across this beauty by Danielle - which led me to the A Day for Daisies blog challenge - to use Red and Pink.  You need to use an A Day for Daisies image on your card - they are digital images.   I just happened to have purchased a few some time ago (thanks to more inspiration from my friend Danielle!)  but I fell in love with this new image -  Love Clown so I bought it and of course was able to download it immediately!

 I used a stitched mats rectangle die to cut out my printed image.  I colored the sweet clown with Copics, added a strip of hearts Washi tape along the bottom and 3 enamel dots in the top corner.  I layered the mat to the card base with foam dots.  Isn't she the sweetest?!

I'm also entering this in the CAS on Sunday challenge - Lovely Dovey

Stamps:  Love Clown - Digital image from A Day for Daisies

Paper:  White - PTI

Accessories:  Washi Tape - Michaels, Stitched Mat Rectangle Die - Lil'Inker Designs, enamel dots - My Minds Eye, Copics:  R20, R00, R35, E00, E31, E35, foam dots.

The Card Concept - Texture

I missed participating in the inaugural Card Concept challenge and did not want to miss the 2nd!  The challenge is to used Texture on your card.

I used several textures on my card -  green (grass) and blue (sky) burlap, a layered stitched die cut sun, and two stitched rectangles - the card base and the adhered slightly smaller panel.  The house is stamped on red with Sepia ink.  The sentiment is stamped on a Dienamics Sentiment Strip.  I found a wonderful pack of 5 different colors of burlap by DCWV at Michaels.

This is either CAS (similar to DT Tracey's card) - CAL (similar to DT Kay's)  Since there are many layers even though there is still quite a bit of white space - I'm leaning towards CAL (Clean and Layered)??!

Here's a close up of the layered sun -  I just got these dies from Lil' Inker and I love them!  I bent up some of the 'rays' of the smaller top layer to add texture and dimension.

Stamps:  Board and Beams - PTI
Paper:  White, Pure Poppy, Kraft, Harvest Gold, Summer Sunrise - PTI
Ink:  Archival Versafine Sepia, Archival Jet Black
Accessories:  burlap - Die Cuts With a View Mat Stack (Michaels), sunshine die (large and small), Stitched Mat Rectangles - Lil' Inker Designs, Dienamics Sentiment Strip die - MFT, Enamel Dot - Michaels, foam dots.

A Christmas Bag - Just for You

Today I have another project for the Merry Monday Challenge - I had so many ideas floating around in my head I just had to get them out! And I'm getting this in just under the wire!  Instead of a Christmas Card -  I made a Christmas Gift bag - using a 5" x 7.5" Kraft bag.

This is a flat bag so you'd have to put something thin in it -  like a gift card - or you could slip in 3 hand stamped cards and envelopes.  I tore a piece of Terminology Tissue Wrap sponging it with ink for the background.  The pine bough and cones and sentiment are Waltzingmouse stamps and dies.  The bow is a die from Lil'Inker Designs.  The cones are up on foam dots and to finish it off,  I  added three enamel dots.

For my design, I used this week's Cas(e) this Sketch

 The colors are based on the Merry Monday Challenge -  Hopefully the paper bow counts as ribbon?!?!

 Why do the weekends go by so fast?!

Stamps:  Festive Foliage, Compact Sentiments - Waltzingmouse
Paper:  Vintage Cream, Pure Poppy - PTI
Ink:  Versafine Vintage Sepia, Archival Jet Black, Ranger Distress - Frayed Burlap
Accessories:  dotted kraft bag - Impress, Tissue Wrap Terminology - Tim Holtz Idea-ology, Bow Die -Lil'Inker Designs, Pine cones die set - Waltzingmouse, enamel dots - Michaels, Scor-Tape, foam dots.

One Shiny Heart

They're getting back to basics in CAS over at the Cas-ology Challenge getting us to really focus on what CAS means.

I left a lot of blank space on my card -  it's black blank space but blank none the less! (can you say that 3 times fast??!!)  With the contrast of a white center -  and a touch of glittery red!

I used my Small Circle Burst die from Memory Box on the black panel and punched my heart out of sparkle card stock and popped it up inside the circle. Love it!!  Clean and simple!

Paper:  White, True Black - PTI, Glitter Red - Michaels

Accessories:  Small Circle Burst die - Memory Box, foam dot, heart punch - EK Success

A Berry Wreath for Christmas

Gosh  - every challenge I go look at is inspiring me this week!   I check them out while I'm at work and the ideas start floating around in my head - and I can't wait to get home to my craft room and start stamping!  Of course - I have to work in making supper and try to get in 20 minutes of exercise, and if there's a TV show on I want to watch - I have to work around that as well!!

And, of course, I work it all out because I LOVE TO STAMP!

I made this card using stamps from the Wreath for all Seasons set from PTI, circle Nestabilities and a stitched rectangle mat die from Lil'Inker Designs (you may have noticed I've been using these A LOT on my cards lately?!)

My colors and Christmas theme were inspired by the Merry Monday Challenge - use red, vanilla, kraft, chocolate and ribbon.

And my card design was inspired by this week's Seize the Sketch

Stamps:  Wreath for all Seasons - PTI
Paper:  Vintage Cream, Kraft - PTI
Ink:  Ranger Distress Barn Door, Versafine Vintage Sepia
Accessories:  ribbon - May Arts, Stitched Mats Rectangle - Lil' Inker Designs, foam dots, Circle Nestabilities.

A Red Barn in Winter

Just came upon another new challenge I hadn't seen before -  Festive Friday!  I'm sure I'm one of the last to find it!!  They have a wonderful inspiration photo for their latest challenge -  you can find scenes like this all over New England in the winter - one of the reasons I LOVE living here!

I immediately had two ideas for cards -  one involved a Classic screen door die from Poppy Stamps  I layered a red panel behind the door, punched a wreath with a Martha Stewart fern punch, (layering 3 ferns over each other) added a brad door knob and tied a bow with twine.  I originally had a full red back panel that I embossed with a wood grain embossing folder -  but it just didn't look good to me -  but when I slipped the back panel away - this pleased my eye!  The sentiment is from Alpine Christmas by Waltzingmouse.

and my 2nd idea involved the beautiful Alpine Christmas Stamp set and Alpine dies from Waltzingmouse.

I die cut two sets of alps, sponged the peaks with Weathered Wood and layered one over the other with foam dots.  I die cut the lodge, stamped it with Versamark and white embossed it. The base of the lodge is up on foam dots as well - the roof is just leaning on the alps!

This challenge is open until 1/29  -  I'm excited to get started on next years Christmas cards!

Christmas Door

Stamps:  Alpine Christmas - Waltzingmouse

Paper:  White, Pine Feathers, Pure Poppy - PTI

Ink:  Archival Jet Black

Accessories:  Classic Screen Door die - Poppy Stamps, fern punch - Martha Stewart, Maraschino Twine - The Twinery, Blue N Seal - Ranger, Brad - Michaels

Alpine Christmas

Stamps:  Alpine Christmas - Waltzingmouse

Paper:  white, Pure Poppy - PTI

Ink:  Versamark, Archival Jet Black, Ranger Distress Weathered Wood

Accessories:  hot gun, white embossing powder,  Alpine Christmas Dies - Waltzingmouse, Enamel Dots - Michaels, foam dots.

Praying for You

I unfortunately seem to be needing a lot of sympathy cards lately -  so I took advantage of a couple of challenges to make one for my stash.

I placed a rectangle of patterned paper behind my Gothic window, layering the window over the Gothic arch with foam tape. I stamped my sentiment in Sepia ink on a sentiment strip using an MFT die.  I layered the whole thing onto a textured white panel from Coredinations. The sentiment is from PTI.

the challenges:

Featured Stamper Challenge - Split Coast Stampers -  I CASE'd this card by Tina (GardenDiva), changing it from an Easter card to Sympathy- and leaving off her flowers and ribbon - (I'm a CAS girl at heart!)

Cas-ual Fridays - Color Block (my patterned paper)

Stamps: Boutique Borders - Sympathy Set - PTI
Paper: white, Text Style Father Knows Best - PTI, Snow Cone white - Coredinations
Paper Size: A2
Ink: Archival Versafine Vintage Sepia
Accessories: Dienamics Sentiment Strips - MFT, Small Gothic Arch and Gothic Window dies - Poppy Stamp, foam dots

Creations by AR - January Blog Hop - Lovely Cart

Welcome to the January Creations by AR Design Team Blog Hop.  Look at this marvelously fun new template Adela has created -  Lovely Cart.  How Cute Is This?!

 Front View

Back View
Adela has 3 options for the wheel spokes -  standard spokes that I used here, hearts and a star.  I used a Filigree Brad from SU for the hub.

Close up of the canopy.
I layered same color panels onto the base - sponging all the edges before putting it together to give a little weathered look and dimension to the 'canvas' of the canopy.

I just happened to have the perfect stamp set to use with this wonderful cart -  Candy Wagon by Waltzingmouse. I used a Die-namic Sentiment Strip and a SU Sizzlits Lots of Tags Label 3 for the signs.

This wonderful treat cart measures 6" high x 4.88" long x 2.63" deep. Files come in both SVG (for cutting machines like Silhouette, that I used to cut mine)  and PDF (that you can print and hand cut)

Adela is also offering this sweet Valentine Card template - free!! with your purchase of Lovely Cart!

I made 4 of these cute little heart cards (they measure a sweet 2 1/2" x 4").  I used black and gray for the card bases and some two sided patterned papers - using one side on the front and the other side on the inside.

I drew xo around the banner with black on the top left one,  made dots with my white gell pen on the banner on the top left.  All the banners are popped up on foam dots.

 I drew black faux stitching on the banner below left and black dots on the banner below right.

The banner comes both plain and with the XOXO cut out on it.  I added a piece of gray cardstock behind the XOXO on the lef so it could be seen better..

 And here are the cards flipped open so you can see what I put on the inside.

Now for the fun part  -  You could win the Lovely Cart Template!

HOW TO QUALIFY TO WIN:

Leave comments:

1.  On each of the Design Team's blog linked below.

2.  On the Creations by AR  Face Book Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Creations-by-AR/154314751303824

Comments accepted until Friday, January 24, 12:00 noon EST

One random winner will be announced on Jan 25th at these locations:

1.  Creations by AR Face Book Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Creations-by-AR/154314751303824

2.  Creations by AR Website:  http://creationsbyar.com

Now it's time to check out the rest of the Design Team creating with the Lovely Cart today -  We welcome FIVE new members to the Design Team with this release - Lisa Eisner, Tina Milbourn, Doris E Molina Mora, Monica Soto and Penny Duncan!  Please give them a warm welcome when you visit their blogs linked below.

Adela:  

Doris Molina: 

Jak Heath: Sitting out this month

Julia Aston: - ME!

Lisa Eisner:  

Lisa Somerville:

Lori Brown:  

Lyn Bernatovich:

Monica Soto: 

Patti J Gilliam:  

Penny Duncan:  

Sue Kment:  

Tina Milbourn: 

 Lovely Cart
Stamps:  Candy Wagon - Waltzingmouse
Paper:  Cream - Prismatics, woodgrain - Amuse
Ink:  Ranger Distress Old Paper, Archival Coffee, Archival Sienna
Accessories:  Creations by AR Template - Lovely Cart, Silhouette Cameo, Dienamics Sentiment Strips - My Favorite Things, Scortape, Filigree Brads - Stampin'Up, glue pen, Tiny Twinkles - Taylored Expressions, Sizzlits Lots of Tags Label 3 - Stampin'Up.
XOXO Heart Cards
Stamps:  Be mine from My Heart - Waltzingmouse, Happy Valentine's Day from My Favorite Valentine set - H and M Stamps (no longer in business)
Paper:  white - PTI, black, red - Prismatics, Grey - Bazzill, DP - Yours Truly 6x6 paper pad - Echo Park
Ink:  Going Grey - SU, Archival Jet Black - Ranger
Accessories:  Creations by AR Template - XOXO Heart Card, Silhouette Cameo, word window punch - SU, enamel dots - Michaels and My Minds Eye, heart punch - EK Success, black 01 micron pen - Sakura, white gel pen - Inkssentials, foam dots.

Baby - Brand New

I took a little break from making Valentines to make this card.  A new baby girl will arrive in April in our family - and this may be the card I give them.

I used two shades of pink'ish' and 2 shades of blue'ish for my CAS baby card. Since I made this for a girl baby - I used Hibiscus for the die cut BABY and pink enamel dots - but by changing those to blue - this could very easily be a baby boy card!  I cut a wavy edge on a piece of card stock for my mask and sponged the different colors as I moved the mask around.

My card inspiration came from 4 challenges

The Inspiration Challenge on Splitcoast  where I chose this  panel from Design Seeds

Less is More - New Baby

Addicted to Cas - Code Word NEW

Cas-ual Fridays - Color Blocks

Stamps: Precious Baby Quotes - Fiskars
Paper: White, Hibiscus Burst- PTI
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black, Ranger Distress Weathered wood, Faded Jeans, Victorian Velvet and Spun Sugar
Accessories: Enamel dots - My Minds Eye, Wonderful words - Baby die - PTI, glue pen, blending tool - Ranger