Colour Inspiration #15 July 12, 2008

Gotta be quick.  I’ll be back to edit this post with all the details once I have linked to Kristina’s blog.   I’ve lost track of the time but I know I’m cutting it close.

OK, I’m back.  Time again for another colour inspiration piece from Kristina.  Here is this week’s inspiration piece.  Aren’t the colours just gorgeous.

I had wanted to use my Wanted DSP for this challenge, but when I got home from work, I realised that the Close to Cocoa didn’t really go all that well.   And since I was going to use the Wanted papers,  I had also thought that I could use some Western stamps that I got from Paper Candy many moons ago that I hadn’t inked up yet.  So, the CTC not matching kinda threw a spanner in the works.  After a bit of messing about, this is what I decided to go with, cause I just couldn’t get past using the Bronc!  The Star brads are from the BEAUTIFUL Styled Silver Hodgepodge Hardware that will be available in the Spring Mini, which starts on August 1, 2008. (Yes, my pre-order arrived on Thursday, yay – look out for some more sneak peaks!)

Thanks for looking and hope you have a great weekend.  Keep warm (or cool it it’s hot where you are!)

Supplies Used:

Stamps:  Bronc & Ride ‘em Cowboy sentiment – Paper Candy (don’t think their available anymore)

Ink:  Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa, Really Rust, Certainly Celery

Cardstock:  Whisper White, Chocolate Chip

Accessories:  Star brads from Styled Silver HPS (available 01/08/08), dimensionals

Sketch Challenge Time Again July 5, 2008

I had time to complete this week’s sketch challenge over at 2 sketches 4 you.  This is a fantastic blog and I’m finding it really inspiring.

This week’s sketch was so pretty, I thought it would make a great  wedding/bridal card.  This is what I came up with

The card started out as being 8″ x 4″ (and fits into a standard DL envelope), however, I found it to be a bit too tall for what I wanted, so I trimmed a little off the top and it’s now 6-5/8 x 4.  I’m really enjoying making these non standard size cards.  The base is Very Vanilla and the patterned paper is from Spring Silhouettes.  The frame is from Frames with a Flourish and the sentiment (which reads now & forever) is from Occasional Greetings.  I used my Chocolate Chip marker to dot around the scallops to tie in with the frame and some Chocolate Chip 5/8″ Grosgrain ribbon.  The blue pearls are from KaiserCraft (Bliss).  I really love how this turned out!

Hope you’re all having a great weekend, thanks for looking!

Supplies:

Cardstock:  Very Vanilla, Spring Silhouettes DSP, Stamps:  Frames with a Flourish, Occassional Greetings,  Ink:  Chocolate Chip, Soft Sky, Chocolate Chip Marker,  Accessories:  Corner Rounder, Chocolate Chip 5/8″ Grosgrain Ribbon, KaiserCraft Pearls (in Bliss) and Dimensionals

Colour Inspiration #14 July 3, 2008

OK this has to be quick, got dishes to do and the Amazing Race is about to start.  Time for another colour inspiration challenge from Kristina.  This is the inspiration piece.

 

I didn’t think I’d get around to completing this in time to make the cut off, but I the idea came to me at work this afternoon and it turned out just like I imagined (something that RARELY happens).  It’s my best friends daughter’s 15th birthday next week and  these colours are PERFECT for her and now I’ve got plenty of time to actually get there – the mail takes ages to get from Melbourne to Merimbula.

Here’s what I came up with:

The card is 6-5/8″ x 3-1/4″, the same size as the SU Long Notes in last year’s mini catalogue.  I’ve used American Craft Thickers, I think they’re called GiftBox and they are self adhesive chipboard.  I LOVE these and wished I had bought more of them cause they were originally white – I’ve just rubbed them over the Rose Red ink pad and voila!  (and they’re not quite dry yet, LOL)

Supplies Used:

Stamps:  Happy, Happy Birthday Wheel, Ink:  Basic Grey, Rose Red, Cardstock:  Basic Black, Going Grey, Accessories:  River Rock Stitched Ribbon, American Craft Thickers, Dimensionals.

Sketch Inspiration June 28, 2008

I finally got around to completing a card in time for submission to a great new blog – 2 Sketches 4 You.  You can see the sketch here.  This is what I came up with.

My starting point was the beautiful Basic Grey Sultry paper (from one of the 6×6 pads I bought recently).  I love the BG papers, however I do have a great deal of trouble actually using it!  Once I picked the papers, I found that the big prima flowers I picked up for 40% off at a LSS a few weeks ago matched the papers perfectly.  I thought a bit about what I was going to use as a sentiment and then had a brainwave – my SU Anchored rubons would look great around the flower (I had been stumped as to what I was going to do with those curved ones!)  Then came the buttons.  Now, I don’t know how it started but I have almost become obsessed with buttons.  I have NEVER used them before – never, ever wanted to, but now, everytime l look through my SU catty, I stop on the buttons and think how much I need them.  When I placed my last order, I decided to cave and got the clear ones.  Then I wondered if the rubons would fit on the button – and they did.  The one in the center of the flower says ‘Friends Forever’ and is attached to the flower using some 3mm white ribbon I found whilst looking for thread!  The 3 buttons on the bottom are actually ‘faux buttons’, punched with the 1/2″ and 3/4″ RD punches.  I made the button holes with the 3mm punch and threaded some thin strips of cardstock through as thread and then gave them a coat of Crystal Effects. 

Thanks for looking and hope you’re all having a great weekend!

Supplies:

Cardsock:  Pink Passion, Whisper White, Basic Grey Sultry (stripes & houndstooth)  Stamps:  Baroque Motifs   Ink:  Whisper White    Accessories:  Anchored Rub Ons, Prima Flower, 1/2″ RD Punch, 3/4″ RD Punch, Crystal Effects, 3 mm RD Punch, Corner Rounder

Colour Inspiration #12 June 21, 2008

Well, it’s that time again – time for another of Kristina’s colour inspiration challenges.  Here’s the inspiration piece.

This is what I came up with.  I’ve used my new Polka Dots & Petals set that I purchased from Lauren’s clean out!.  I also got All I Have Seen (which I have wanted for ages) and Straight Up Edges mini alphabet (this retired here last year but I liked the numbers in it).  They were a real BARGAIN, so THANK YOU Lauren! 

The colours for this week were Sahara Sand, So Saffron, Wild Wasabi and Whisper White.  I have stamped the lined floral image using Wasabi, Saffron and Sand and have attached a little bling in the centre of each.  They were punched out using the 1″ punch and each of them are mounted on dimensionals.  The whole panel is also mounted on dimensionals.  The letters for the ’Hi’ are American Craft thickers – Giggles, they’re foam and really cute.  I used the corner rounder (with the guard removed to create the scalloped edge.  It’s an EK Success one, but I’m pretty sure that it’s the same as the 3/16″ SU! one.  I’m not sure I really like it, but it is what it is.  I was going to make another one but since it’s 10.15 pm already (and I still have to make the bed, fold the washing that’s finished in the dryer and pick up Harry’s toys), so I think that will have to wait till tomorrow!

 Thanks for taking the time to visit!

Weekend Catch Up! June 21, 2008

Can’t believe it’s nearly the end of June already.  Where has the time gone??????  Here’s a couple of cards I’ve made over the last few weeks.  We had some good, natural light coming in the window this morning so I thought I’d take advantage of it with these photos – the only thing is – I think I like the ones I take at night using the daylight globe and dare I say it, the flash, better!

This is a baby card I made a few weeks ago for my ”for sale’ box.  Colours are So Saffron, Bashful Blue and Night of Navy with a bit of Whisper White thrown in.  Layout was based on one in the May 2007 edition of Cards Magazine.  Giraffe is from Wild About You, sentiment is from Short & Sweet (both by Stampin’ Up!) and the polka dots are from Art Warehouse (Memories Interactive Journalling Backgrounds).  Patterned paper is So Saffron Designer Series Prints (no longer available).

 

The following cards were going to be last week’s submissions to Kristina’s Colour Inspiration #11.  I didn’t submit any of them, you’ll see why.

This one actually meets the colour requirements (So Saffron, Whisper White, Rose Red, Old Olive and Going Grey), however the final layout was NOT what I was intending, in fact it ended up looking JUST like a card Kristina had created on a previous post.  I thought it was a bit tacky to submit a card for a colour challenge that was basically a CASE of something she had created, so I started again!.  Stamps used were Polkda Dot background and ABC Alphabet (lower), both by SU! and Art Warehouse (for the lined paper stamped in Going Grey), as above.  I also used the Star Punch (small) and Spiral Punch and Old Olive 5/8 Grosgrain ribbon (all by SU!)

 

This next one I really like but after spending at least 3 hours on it last Saturday night and it STILL not working using all the required colours, I cracked it and went to bed.  Since I had well and truely missed the deadline for submission by the time I got to sit back down again, I just decided to leave out the colours that weren’t working.  I’m also ashamed to say that this card was the first time that I used my Green Thumb set by Papertrey Ink which I got over a year ago.  To get the colour variation, I just kept stamping using Rose Red ink without reinking in between.  It’s hard to see but there is also a little ‘bling’ in the center of each flower and on either side of the Happy Birthday sentiment that was supposed to be embossed with White EP instead of the Clear I inadvertently picked up and (sprinkled on before noticing, doh).  Sentiment is from It’s Your Birthday by SU! and the patterned paper is Rose Red from Designer Series Paper pad.

 

The last one uses one of the many Saffron/White Polka dot bases that I made for the colour challenge.   The onesie image is from Savvy Stamps, the sentiment is from Stampa Rosa and the little heart is from Small Sayings (SU! & retired).  At first, I thought I’d met the colour requirements but then I realised I hadn’t used any Going Grey.  Again, way too late for it to matter and at least it was good to dust off some of my pre SU! stamps that haven’t seen the light of day for quite while.

.

Thanks for visiting – hope you’re having a great weekend

Thanks for the Inspiration June 1, 2008

Sam.  After seeing the beautiful card Sam made for her Crayon Resist technique class, I decided I was going to have a go, after all I’ve had the glossy cardstock in my stash for a little over a year and a half to try this very technique. 

So Friday night, I grabbed Harry’s bit of white crayon and got to work.  This is what I came up with.  The colours I used were from a SCS colour challenge (Soft Sky, Blue Bayou and Certainly Celery)

It started out being based on this sketch challenge by Beate, however I didn’t really look all that carefully at the sketch and thought I’d mucked it up, so I flipped it so I could put the sentiment at the bottom (it’s stamped in VersaMark and embossed with White embossing powder).  The dots at the side of the sentiment and on each scallop are from the Anchored rub on’s.  

This one IS based on Beate’s WCS #50.  I originally had 3 brads in the left hand corner to balance it up a bit but didn’t like them so I ‘fixed’ that mistake by piercing around the B/Bayou mat.  It still looked unbalanced so I added the sentiment, again from the Anchored rub on’s.  I’m not too sure about the sentiment, I mean, who says that???.  I think it would be better on a scrapbook page, oh well, too late now.

 

This last one is probably my favourite, I’ve pierced around the whole of the image panel, which is raised on dimensionals.  The Happy Birthday sentiment is also on dimensionals.

 

 Stamps:  Spring Solitude, A Little Birthday Cheer  Ink:  Basic Black, Certainly Celery, Soft Sky, Blue Bayou, Versamark  Cardstock:  White Glossy, Whisper White, Certainly Celery, Soft Sky and Blue Bayou Textured cardstock  Accessories:  Paper Piercer, Mat, Piercing Template, Anchored Rub-On’s, White Embossing Powder, Corner Rounder (with guard removed to make scalloped border), Certainly Celery 5/8″ Grosgrain ribbon, Word Window Punch, Dimensionals, Stampin’ Sponges, Tissue (to wipe off excess ink & crayon), Harry’s Crayola crayon!

Kristina Werner Colour Inspiratation #10 June 1, 2008

Another colour inspiration from Kristina – this week the colours are Old Olive, Bashful Blue, Whisper White, So Saffron and Not Quite Navy.  For some reason, this colour combination just screamed ‘baby boy’ colours to me, so that’s what I created.  It was a bit of a process, cause I knew what I wanted to use (my new SU star punches) but that was about it.  As a result, I have a heap of left over elements on my table so expect some more cards using this colour combo.

 

The circle elements are raised on dimensionals, the book plate thingy is by Making Memories (jigsaw frames and flourishes) and is covered with So Saffron DSP.  I used my Basic Grey Precision File Set to sand the edges and it is attached to the Bashful Blue Striped Grosgrain ribbon using Old Olive brads.  Card Base is 4-7/8″ x 5-3/4″.

Thanks for looking!

Stamps: Small Saying (retired)  Paper: Not Quite Navy, Old Olive, Bashful Blue, Whisper White cardstock, So Saffron Designer Series Paper (retired)  Accessories:  Star Punch, Large Star Punch, 1/3-8 RD punch, Oval Punch, Old Olive brads, Bashful Blue Striped Grosgrain ribbon, Bookplate thingy (Making Memories), Glue Stick, Dimensionals, Precision File Set (Basic Grey)  Ink:  Bashful Blue Classic Ink.

21 Today! May 25, 2008

Not me, LOL, I passed THAT milestone some time ago.  It was Jarrod’s yougest brother’s 21 on Thursday just gone and he had a joint 21st party with one of his good friend’s who will be celebrating his 21st on Tuesday.  Suffice to say, this may be a bit all over the place since I’m running on around 2 hrs sleep!

These are the cards I made for the boys.  This is what I made for Jarrod’s brother, Scott.  I used the Happy, Happy Birthday wheel with White Craft Ink on Craft cardstock.  I then used the Classic Stars wheel with VersaMark on W/White textured card and embossed with black embossing powder.  I wanted it to be shiny, without using glitter, after all, we’re talking about a 21 year old guy.  I then used Polka Dot background stamp with Real Red ink on R/Red cardstock.  The ribbon is Real Red striped grosgrain and the 21st is from Image Tree by Susy Ratto (by EK Success) that I’ve had sitting in my stamp draw for years that has never been used.  I used the stamp-a-ma-jig to align the numbers.  The 21st star is mounted on ‘double dimensionals’.  Some of the other stars are also dimensionals.

This is what I made for Scott’s friend, Ryan.  Again, I used the Happy, Happy Birthday wheel, this time in More Mustard on More Mustard cardstock.  I then used some East Coast Prep DSP and Real Red 5/8″ grosgrain ribbon.  I then puched out 1-1/4″ circle of T/Turquoise and a 1-3/8″ circle of Wild Wasabi and mounted onto dimensionals.  The numbers are American Craft Thickers – Giggles which are foam.

This is another that I made.  It actually started out as a huge mistake, I have had a lot of trouble with the Happy, Happy Birthday wheel, uneven pressure makes the words distort, a moving wheel guide gives a crooked impression etc, etc.  I’m actually thinking that it may be easier to ‘unmount’ the wheel and use with one of the large acrylic blocks I have for my pre-SU unmounted stamps.  I think I’ll be abe to get a better impression first time around.  I covered the dodgy wheeling with the East Coast Prep DSP and stamped the Polka Dot background on the other end.  I then punched out a W/White scallop with the scallop punch and tied the ribbon in a knot.  Circles as per Ryan’s card and I used my stamp-a-ma-jig to separate the Happy Birthday sentiment from A Little Birthday Cheer so it would fit on the 1-1/4 circle.  I think the knot in the ribbon and the scallop circle make it a ‘girly’ card and I really like how it turned out.

 

 

 

 

When Good Ideas Go Bad May 13, 2008

This is what you get!  Yes, the colours are from Kristina Werner’s colour challenge.  Just a tad late.  Last week was a VERY stressful week, with Jarrod’s father being rushed to hospital with a suspected heart attack.  He’s been discharged, but they’re still running tests to find out exactly what the problems are.  (On Thursday we were told he had sustained permanent damage to his heart, late Friday afternoon he was discharged.  What’s the go with that?  He goes in for more tests tomorrow.)

This one is a little better, except I mucked up the placement of the stars, the blue one is too high.  Of course, they’re stuck on with Mono Multi so they’re stuck for good (I did try to move them!)  I need to make some more to fill in the gaps.  As a last minute thing, I covered the stars in diamond stickles to make them ‘twinkle’.  The sentiment also has stickles on it.

 

 This last one, I  quite like.  This was more of what I had in mind, especially with the weaving effect.

Supplies Used:

Stamps:  It’s Your Birthday, A Little Birthday Cheer

Cardstock: Whisper White, Brilliant Blue

Ink:  Whisper White Craft, Brilliant Blue, Bashful Blue

Accessories:  Jersey Shore DSP, Whisper White embossing powder, Dazzling Diamonds Glitter, 2 Way Glue Pen, On Board Accents, Jo Sonia White Paint, Diamond Stickles, Daisies from LSS, SNAIL, Mono Multi, Dimensionals