Whiff of Joy #23

I really love these spring Whiff of Joy images! This week's Whiff of Joy Challenge is a sketch by the wonderfully talented Donalda. I used the Willow Sitting image, and decided to put her on her armchair. The images were colored with Prismacolor pencils and baby oil. I stamped tiny flowers a bit darker than the yellow on the chair to give it an upholstered look. Chalked around the image with Pebbles chalks. The basket was colored and cut out, attached on foam tape. It actually has eggs in it, but I put Flower Soft on it to make it a basket of flowers. All the DP is from Basic Grey Two Scoops pack. Sentiment is from Inkadinkado Southern Belle, attached on foam tape.

Stamps: Whiff of Joy Willow Sitting with Flower Wreath, Willow's Armchair, Basket; Inkadinkado Southern Belle.
Paper: Basic Grey Two Scoops, The Paper Studio CS.
Ink: Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Flower Soft, corner rounder, foam tape, Pebbles Chalks.

Timeless Tuesday #8

Ms. Betty Wright is hosting the Flourishes Timeless Tuesday this week and wants us to emboss it. Whatever type of embossing, it's up to you. I chose this image from the new Sweet Pea set, embossed it with gold EP and colored it with Prismas and baby oil. Decided to use the sketch from Taylored Expressions I cut out the image with oval Nestabilities, chalked around the image with Pebbles chalks. The solid colored papers are from HOTP. Used a piece from DCWV Luxury Stack to frame the image; cut out the oval, scalloped the border, and attached this piece up on foam tape so that image is set back. Added the flat back pearls. Not sure how I came up with this color combo. It looked good at midnight-ish last night. hee hee! ;)

Stamps: Flourishes Sweet Pea.
Paper: Hot Off The Press, The Paper Studio CS, DCWV Luxury Stack.
Ink: Versamark.
Accessories: Gold EP, Fiskars border punch, flat back pearls, foam tape.

House Mouse #30 - Shaped Card

I bounced around for a while with different ideas and this is what I finally settled on for this week's House Mouse Challenge. The DT decided on a shaped card for this challenge. My first idea started out looking great yesterday sketched out on paper. Fast forward to the cardstock cut into the shape and stamped with a critter, though still not finished. I put it down for a bit and then when I got back to it, all I could think was that it looked like a deformed elephant sitting on its rump with it's front legs and trunk up, and with a mouse bouncing around in its head. Not a good look, obviously. So it was filed in the recycling bin and left this morning with the truck. It was actually supposed to be a bunch of bubbles, with the mousie bouncing around inside one of them. Still looks good in the sketch, but I couldn't make it work in reality. :) SOOOOOO...This morning I drew this cup, handle and foot on the back of the DP, cut it out and attached it to the card base, then cut out the card base around it. The sentiment is actually the name of the stamp, and it was printed from my computer, cut out with Spellbinders Tag, attached on foam tape. The image was colored with Prismas, cut out and attached up on foam tape as well. Twinkling H2O's were added to the handle and part of the foot, and Stickles decorated the foot as well. I moved this card all over trying to get a better picture, but the lighting here is not good so will have to deal with a pale picture.

Stamps: House Mouse We're "Mint Tea" Be Together.

Paper: Hot Off The Press Handmade Flowers DP, The Paper Studio CS.

Ink: Stazon, Colorbox Queues.

Accessories: Twinkling H2O's, Stickles, Spellbinders Tag, foam tape.

A Beauty From Barb!

Several weeks ago there were some blogs posting winnings where if you were one of the first five to comment you would win an original item made by the blog owner. I was one the first five on Barb's wonderful blog Made for Keeps. She sent out a teaser a couple days ago letting us know she had sent our goodies. Oh my, my did I get a beauty!!! Barb knows I love these Rubbernecker ladies, and here is the card she made for me using one of them. What a treasure! Barb also gave me two awards, which I will get posted soon. Thank you so much Barb!
Ahem, I need to finish my five items and get them sent. :)

Rubbernecker Wacky Wednesday With a Tab

Here is my last card for catch-up this past week. This was is for Rubbernecker's Wacky Wednesday challenge. The design team members are taking turns with the challenge, and this week we were given a sketch. The image was stamped with Stazon, colored with Prismas blended with baby oil. Painted the moon with Twinkling H2O's, and added Tiara Stickles to the stars. Sentiment from Verve. Also added Stickles to some of the white dots on the DP. As a perk, Sharon's Stamp Simply challenge was to use up those little bits of ribbon by adding ribbon tabs. I had this MS ribbon left over from a previous post so it became a tab on this card. :)

Back to more job hunting this week. Me as the only bread winner and deadbeat dad not paying child support, I am close to panic mode. Wish me luck!

Stamps: Rubbernecker (Stamp Oasis) Moon Child, Verve Fairy Tales.
Paper: Basic Grey Lilikate, Hot Off the Press, SU! CS.
Ink: Stazon, Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Stickles, Twinkling H2O's, Dew Drops, Ribbon.

Timeless Tuesday #7

I am finally getting around to the last two cards I have been working on this week. This one is for the Flourishes Timeless Tuesday Challenge, where hostess Cindy Haffner challenged us to use ribbon. *Sigh*...I love ribbon, have lots of it, but I am so ribbon challenged I rarely use it other than sticking it straight across a card. I really struggle with tying bows, other than on my shoes, and most of the time end up needing both hands and feet for a card bow. hee hee! Think I did okay on this one though. Yay! I had this image from Flourishes Coffee With Friends already embossed with copper EP and it was just the size for the Mojo Monday 78 sketch. Pic looks washed out, can't seem to get good lighting, but these colors look so good IRL. The bottom DP is a pale golden yellow, and the top one a bit paler, though they look blah in the pic. Wrestled with the ribbon and successfully got it tied how I like it without having to call my son in here to add a finger. : ) Stamped the sentiment directly onto the card, added the Dew Drops. Will get the other card posted shortly.

Stamps: Flourishes Coffee With Friends.
Paper: My Mind's Eye, Hot Off The Press Flowered Handmade pack.
Ink: Versamark, Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Copper EP, ribbon, Dew Drops, corner rounder.

Crafty Secrets #60 on SCS

One more post for today; keep scrolling down for the other two. The Crafty Secrets Challenge on SCS is to make a monochromatic card. I wanted to use this image and sentiment, so searched around until I found this sketch (SFYTT) on Jen Del Muro's blog. I chalked around the image, cut it out with oval Nestabilities. Used Deco corner punch on the mat. Also stamped and cut out the sentiment. Used the DCWV DP because it was a perfect match for the chalking. The lower piece was plain, so I stamped a couple of the Crafty Secrets Flourishes, then attached the sentiment on foam tape. Added some Martha Stewart ribbon. There was a snag on the ribbon that I didn't notice until after I had it attached, so I made the vellum flower to cover it. :)

Stamps: Crafty Secrets For the Girls, and Flourishes.
Paper: The Paper Studio, DCWV Luxury mat pack.
Ink: Stazon, Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Ribbon, Nestabilities, Pebbles chalks, foam tape, flower punches, Stickles, Deco corner punch.

Whiff of Joy #22

Second post today; scroll down for my House Mouse card. This week's Whiff of Joy Challenge has gone green! We're supposed to use lots of green for our cards this week. I followed the sketch for the
Weekend Sketch Challenge on Jenn Balcer's blog, obviously not for the challenge itself but just for the layout. Thought it was perfect for a WOJ card. Willow is colored as usual with Prismacolors blended with baby oil. Added some Stickles to her bracelet and jeans, Flower Soft in her basket, then chalked around the image with Pebbles chalks. The DP's are from Hot Off The Press, DCWV, and The Paper Loft. Butterflies are vellum, punched with MS punch. Flowers punched from scraps, curled, inked and stacked, with rhinestones in the centers and some little tendrils.

Stamps: Whiff of Joy Willow With Flower Basket.
Paper: Hot Off The Press, DCWV, The Paper Loft.
Ink: Stazon.
Accessories: Rhinestones, Stickles, Flower Soft, MS butterfly punch, flower punches.

House Mouse #29

I didn't get around to finishing this post yesterday evening, so here it is now. The House Mouse Challenge this week gave us a sketch to use. Mojo is still only sporadically materializing these days. I feel kind of all over the place with this card, but I really like the sketch. The image was colored with Prismacolors blended with baby oil. The flowers themselves were painted with two different colors of Twinkling H2O's, though that gorgeous shimmer does not show in the pic. I can't seem to get good lighting so all my cards look really dull and pale, but IRL this card is much brighter. Chalked around it with yellow Pebbles chalks with orange in two corners. The DP's are from The Paper Loft, Basic Grey, My Mind's Eye and I have no idea who makes the gold embossed DP. The flourish in the corner is Tim Holtz Grungeboard. Colored it with gold Deco pen, then inked edges with Stucco Colorbox Queues.

Stamp: House Mouse Take Time to Smell the Flowers.

Paper: The Paper Loft Front Room/Parlour, Basic Grey Urban Couture, My Mind's Eye, Unknokwn gold embossed paper.

Ink: Stazon, Colorbox Queues.

Accessories: Twinkling H2O's, Cuttlebug, Grungeboard, Deco pen.

SSNOTIME - White Mat

I have been spending the last few days job hunting, both out stopping in different businesses and papering the internet with my resume. Haven't had much paper play time so I played catch up with some of this week's challenges. Most are still in the finishing stages, but will probably get at least one more posted this evening and the rest tomorrow. Wanted to get in Sharon's Stamp Simply challenge to use a white mat rather than our usual dark ones, before her next challenge comes out tomorrow. I love this stamp but couldn't seem to come up with a layout I liked to make it really stand out. Then I bumbled onto the 2 Red Bananas blog, scrolled down and thought THIS is it. It was from a sketch challenge they did a couple weeks ago, simple and clean, but I think it's perfect for this image. She is called Large Cameo, from Creative Images. I stamped her with Colorbox Queues, faintly colored in the flowers on her dress, then cut out the oval. The white mat I drew freehand and cut out with deckle edge scissors. The smaller pieces of cardstock in the corners are from DCWV Luxury Stack and Basic Grey Porcelain. The flowers I made. Stickled in the center with Tiara, and attached to the card. Little scrolls in the corners are from Crafty Secrets Flourishes set stamped with Versamark.

Stamps: Large Cameo by Creative Images, Crafty Secrets Flourishes.
Paper: Stampin Up! CS, DCWV Luxury Stack, Basic Grey Porcelain. The Paper Studio white CS.
Ink: Colorbox Queues, Versamark.
Accessories: Deckle edge scissors, flower punches, Stickles.

Think I Lost it Again

Here are a couple of cards for some challenges I finished several days ago, but I'm not very happy with how they turned out so hadn't posted them yet. I decided to go ahead and post them because I haven't been able to come up with anything else, so guess the ol' mojo has taken a walk - again. Hope it comes back soon, and hangs around longer this time. :)

First up is the card I did for the Whiff of Joy Challenge. This week was a sketch by Heather for us to follow. I colored the Willow With Flowers image with Prismacolors blended with baby oil, chalked around her and added Flower Soft. I think all the layers were my downfall with this one, I don't know. At any rate, all DP is by Hot Off The Press, including the shimmery BG. Made the flowers from scraps of the DP.

Stamps: Whiff of Joy Willow With Flowers, Verve Artful Elegance.

Paper: Hot Off The Press DP, The Paper Studio CS.

Ink: Stazon, Colorbox Queues on the flowers.

Accessories: Flower and leaf punches, Flower Soft, rhinestone, Stickles, Pebbles Chalks.

This card is for the Crafty Secrets challenge on SCS. This one had a recipe to follow, to use ribbon or lace, brads or buttons, and paper piercing. Thought I would use the Mojo Monday sketch to finish up. Should have been pretty simple with all that, but after coloring the image from the Garden Girls set I couldn't seem to make it come together like I wanted. Bottom DP is from My Mind's Eye. Had a piece of wide lace that I attached to blue CS, and then the matted image over that. Did the paper piercing in the scallops around the image. The flowers were from a MS hydranga punch, attached with brads, then added Stickles to the brads. Corners seemed bare, so I added some swirlies in a couple different shades of blue.

Stamps: Crafty Secrets Garden Girls, Verve filigree Fantasy.

Paper: The Paper Studio, My Mind's Eye.

Ink: Stazon.

Accessories: Lace, brads, Stickles, Martha Stewart Hydranga punch, Pebbles chalks, Nestabilities.

Masculine Mouse

That title sounds like the name of a cartoon super hero. :) This week's House Mouse Challenge is...men. Oh, so many possible funny comments, so little time. haw haw! Just kidding. This one was a challenge, just to make the mice not so cute so they could fit a masculine theme. Guess that's why it's called a challenge, right? A friend of mine has been job hunting for a while - as are many of us now - and just found a job that is totally different from his degree field. I decided to make this card using this challenge and followed this week's Splitcoast Sketch for the layout. At first glance it seems a bit twisted (as is my sense of humor sometimes), but please look again. :) All DP is from My Mind's Eye, and words are printed from my computer. Coloring was done with Prismacolor pencils blended with baby oil. Main image is attached on foam tape.

Here's a look inside the peep show...some little fuzzy chicks chatting it up in the grass. :) They are from Flourishes Signs of Spring set, the grass from Rubbernecker, and their peeps made with the JustRite tiny letters. Added some butterfly outline stickers. So, see...it's all in good fun, and I know I'll get a playful smack on the back of the head from my friend.

Stamps: House Mouse Say Cheese, Flourishes Signs of Spring, Justrite Tiny Letters.
Paper: My Mind's Eye, The Paper Studio.
Ink: Stazon, Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Outline stickers, photo tab, brad, foam tape.

Timeless Tuesday #6

This week's Flourishes Timeless Tuesday challenge is hosted by Kimberly Crawford, and she gave us a sketch to follow. I used this image from the Signs of Spring set, colored with Prismacolors blended with baby oil. Cut the image out with oval Nestabilities, chalked up with shimmery Pebbles chalks while still in the die. Inked edges of both ovals. All DP is from My Mind's Eye. The butterfly was cut from gold vellum and inked up a bit, and drew drops added around the ovals.

Stamps: Flourishes Signs of Spring.
Paper: My Mind's Eye, The Paper Studio.
Ink: Stazon, Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Nestabilities, Martha Stewart Butterfly punch and Lace Doily border punch, Pebbles Chalks, Dew Drops, corner rounder punch.

Rubbernecker Wacky Wednesday #1

I was on the Rubbernecker blog and decided to play in their Wacky Wednesday Challenge. Each week one of the design team members will come up with a different challenge, and Sherry Cheever kicked it off with making an ATC. I used the sweet little Angel Cat from Stamp Oasis, colored with Prismacolors and blended with baby oil. Added Patina Stickles to the wings, and bent them up while still wet for dimension. Attached to this tissue paper with fibers running through it. Was in my stash, I think from some packaging I scavanged. Anyhoo, put the little kitty amongst a flower patch, and added the blue Stickled swirl above.

Here is the card I made with the ATC. Gold embossed the Stamp Oasis sentiment, then added another swirl and extended the flower bed.

Stamps: Stamp Oasis Angel Cat and Maker of Dreams.

Paper: The Paper Studio, tissue paper, scraps.

Ink: Stazon, Colorbox Queues.

Accessories: Flower punches, Stickles, rhinestones, Cuttlebug, Sizzlit.

Three's a Charm...

....Challenges, that is. :) I started this card for the Flourishes Timeless Tuesday Challenge, where Becca Feeken is hosting this week and wants us to use Spellbinders. Wheee! So I decided to use the Poinsettia and Boxwood set and also make this my Christmas COTW #10 for my own personal challenge. I had all the pieces embossed, painted and cut out when I saw Sharon's Stamp Simply Challenge to heat things up with embossing, and well...this just fell right into that one. :) The picture is a bit washed out; I couldn't seem to get a better one. Looks much better IRL. I stamped and embossed the poinsettia twice and a bunch of leaves with silver EP, then colored with Twinkling H2O's and Stickles added in the center. Cut out a layer for the poinsettia and mounted on foam tape, then attached onto Nestabilities Labels Two, the largest which was also edged with Twinkling H2O's. Embossed Peace with silver EP, stamped some flourishes in the corners and added tiny pearls at the top.

Stamps: Flourishes Poinsettia and Boxwood, Verve Fairy Tales, Inkadinka Peace.
Paper: The Paper Studio, My Mind's Eye.
Ink: Versamark, Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Nestabilities, embosisng powder, foam tape, Twinkling H2O's, pearls, Stickles.

Whiff of Joy #20

Wow, two posts in one day. :)

Oooh...The theme for this week's Whiff of Joy Challenge is Lavender & Lace. I love them both. This is another double challenge card, using the SCS Sketch 218 Still have several of the new Spring WOJ girls to use, and this one is called Kneeling Willow, colored with Prismas and blended with baby oil. Cut her out with Nestabilities Labels and chalked around her with Pebbles shimmery chalks in a pale yellow that just vanished for this photo. :) Both DP's are from Anna Griffin, rest of CS is plain ivory, all edged with ink. Ran the lace through my Xyron then patted lavender, velvet and dune Colorbox Queues over it to "age" it and make it match. Made the flowers and the urge to use Stickles overcame me and I dotted a bit in the center of the flowers.

Stamps: Whiff of Joy Kneeling Willow.
Paper: Anna Griffin DP, The Paper Studio CS.
Ink: Stazon, Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Nestabilities, lace, foam tape, flower and leaf punches, Stickles.

Chippy House Mouse

Still feel like my mojo is MIA, but the House Mouse challenge was a fun way to try to tweak it. The DT team wanted us to use chipboard on our design. I don't have any, but I found a coaster in my stash that I used as the base for my image, which was colored with Prismacolors blended with baby oil. I followed the Mojo Monday #76 sketch. Main card was run through Cuttlebug embossing folder. Cut the coaster down some, distressed and inked the edges. The pale green panel is actually a paint chip (going to be the color of my kid's bathroom - grin). I stamped the scroll from Verve Artful Elegance with Versamark, but it's hard to see on here. Rather than a sentiment like the sketch showed, I put the flower there, and a row of beads going across the bottom.

Stamps: HM Throwing Daisy Petals, Verve Artful Elegance.

Paper: SU! CS, paint chip, The Paper Studio, My Mind's Eye.

Ink: Colorbox Queues, Stazon, Versamark.

Accessories: Corner punch, flower and leaf punches, beads, ribbon, coaster, Cuttlebug Floral Fantasy embosisng folder.

Some Late Postings, and Where is My Mojo?

Hola! Had a total brain meltdown, or something. I finished my Christmas COTW #9 and the Flourishes Timeless Tuesday card last Thursday but somehow forgot about them. Did the Stamp Simply Challenge Friday and then remembered them Friday night. Thought I would get to them Saturday, but that didn't happen either, then I forgot again. Saturday our JROTC Booster Club was responsible for lunches for 448 JROTC kids from all over central and south Texas at the orienteering meet at Camp Bullis. Essentially the kids are sent out armed with only maps and a compass to run around in the woods on the Army Post and find different markers within a specific time frame. I think only two got really lost this time. : ) We got there at 7:30 in the morning. There were 12 of us parents out there spending most of the day battling that 35-40 MPH wind and cold blast that came through while doing hot dog lunches for the kids. One dad grilled up 1000 hot dogs, and six of us then did an assembly line of bunning and wrapping the dogs. Went smoothly, just very windy. At some point the dust got to me and the sneezing started, so I spent the rest of the day at home being lazy with Chuck and sneezing my head off. I think my mojo blew away with the wind. I haven't even sat down at my craft table, so until I find my mojo again, here's these two cards to check out.

This is the card I did for Flourishes Timeless Tuesday, to use vellum on the card. I followed the Mojo Monday #75 sketch for this. The Flourishes butterly was stamped on beige vellum then cut out. Base DP from DCWV. Pink and yellow DP were plain colors from My Mind's Eye. On the pink I stamped a flourish all over, and the yellow I embossed then inked the raised portions. Layered all pieces, attached the butterfly by its body and gently bent up the wings. Flower made with various size punches, Stickled in the center, then added a clear Dew Drop. Colored Dew Drops added beside the butterfly.

Stamps: Flourishes Butterfly Moments; Crafty Secrets Flourishes set.
Paper: DCWV Once Upon a Time, The Paper Studio CS and vellum, My Mind's Eye DP.
Ink: Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: MS cornice edge punch, CarlaCraft flower punches, EK Success leaf punch, Dew Drops, Cuttlebug Textile embossing folder.

Here's my Christmas card of the week #9 for last week too. Base DP is a piece of wrapping paper. Ran Versamark pad along edge of base card then embossed with gold EP; Inkadinkado Peace Wreath also embossed with gold EP. Cut that out with circle Nestabilities, cut out center and added vellum to backside to soften the center. Had added a felt poinsettia and leaves to the center, and...ick, so pulled those off and with that pulled off part of the background. So I filled in those spots with a gold Deco pen, and then covered that "window" with vellum to further camouflage that. Hopefully some of this week's challenges and sketches will help bring back my mojo. By the way...the boy's orienteering team took 2nd place, the girls team took 1st place. Woohoo!

Stamps: Inkadinkado Peace Wreath.
Paper: The Paper Studio, wrapping paper, vellum.
Ink: Versamark.
Accessories: Gold EP, Nestabilities.