Sunday, May 31, 2020

Wecraftcards Challenges

I am hosting the next challenge at the wecraftcards Forum that starts on June 1st and selected a game board theme, Scrabble. The requirement is to build a sentiment or word using alphabet tiles on a card, tag, gift bag, etc. I created two sample/inspiration cards.

For the first, a wedding card, I found a blog that offers freebie scrabble tiles that can be printed off by individual letters, in this case, “L”, “V” and “E”. The  “O” in the word love was created with a wedding ring (I used two circle punches and metallic gold cardstock plus a scrap of holographic sticker paper to create the diamond.)  The roses are from a Jolee sticker set that I’ve had in my stash for some time. (I was saving it for something special… and this card is it!)
 
 
Supplies: 
·    Scrabble Tiles- Freebies you can print off separately found HERE
·    Inside Sentiment- “Dreams come true.” We Are 3 Digital Sentiments (Dreams)
·    Rose Diecuts- Jolee's Boutique Themed Stickers-Red Roses
·    Assorted paper, metallic cardstock and holographic sticker paper from my stash
Entered into:  
Simon Says Monday Challenge- We’re Going Around in Circles            
Word Art Wednesday Challenge- #440-441 Anything Goes                   
Crafty Catz Challenge- Anything Goes #508 (Optional twist- At Least Two Layers) 

For the second, a birthday card, I found a blog that provides a full-page Scrabble Freebie (with duplicate tiles like the game.) The tiles were easily cut apart and used to create the “Happy Birthday” sentiment. I decorated them with gift packages, colored with stripes and dots, from a Beccy’s Place Digi set.
 
Supplies: 
·    Scrabble Tiles- Full page Freebie (with duplicate tiles like the game) you can print off found HERE
·    Present Digis- Beccy’s Place digi set (Celebrations)
·    Colored with Spectrum Noir alcohol markers and Sakura Gelly Roll white gel pen
·    Inside sentiment- Computer Generated
·    Assorted background papers and black photo corners from my stash
Entered into: 
Beccy’s Place Challenge- May      
Cute Card Thursday- Challenge #636 Stripes
Outlawz Challenge- Festive Fridays                                                       

The current challenge at wecraftcards Forum requires that our card features one word that takes up most of the space on the card front. I didn't have a clue what to make... until I saw a box of Life cereal. It's lovely large and colorful letters just begged to be fussy-cut. Then I started looking through my files of digis and collected sayings looking for the word "Life." This is what I found.  (Sadly, I've had it in my files for many years and hadn't cited the source. I tried to find that now and although I found it on a few sites, none of them cited the original source. So... I'm sharing it in hopes that someone who sees it can provide that info. I do try to respect intellectual property whenever I can!) When I shared the finished card with my hubby he guffawed. (BTW- After my hubby guffawed, he said, "You know... you can have both. A hunky guy can bring you coffee!" I think he was referring to himself. Then I guffawed! He is so funny… but kinda cute, too!)
I am entering this card in a few other challenges including The Sisterhood of Crafters (One o of my favorite things to do is to add humor to my cards, using digis or sentiments that are humorous... or making my own sentiments, like this fun one!) 
 
Supplies: 
·    Lettering- Upcycled from LIFE Cereal box
·    Sentiments- Computer Generated (Original source unknown)
·    Inside digi- Freebie from Dearie Dolls (Old Percolator Coffee Pot)
·    Assorted background papers (including wallpaper samples), photo corners and rhinestones from my stash
Entered into: 
The Sisterhood of Crafters- Favorite Technique
Crafty Hazelnut’s Patterned Paper Challenge- May 

Saturday, May 30, 2020

Cat & Mouse & Coffee

Today is the last day of the Coffee Lovers Blog hop. I had the day off, so I have been busy creating all day... then realized that I need to get them on my blog so that I can enter them into the Hop. So I’ll be adding several posts within a short time to get them entered on time.

My first card features an adorable cat digi from Sheepski Designs named “Mindy.” I used just the cat section of the digi, because the snarky expression on her face fits so beautifully with the sentiment, which is a freebie from Kellie Winnell. I used alcohol markers and a white gel pen to color the cat to resemble an orange tabby.
Supplies: 
·    Cat Digi- Sheepski Designs (Mindy)
·    Coffee cup- Stampin’ Up rubber mount stamp (retired)
·    Sentiment- Freebie from Kellie Winnell (Coffee You’re In Charge Today)
·    Colored with Spectrum Noir alcohol markers and Sakura Gelly Roll white gel pen
·    Assorted background papers, black photo corners and rhinestones from my stash
Entered into:  
CoffeeLoversCardmakers.com- 2020 Spring Summer Coffee Lovers Blog Hop  
SheepSki Designs FB- #43 Anything Goes (Twist- Layer It Up ) 
Simon Says Monday Challenge- We’re Going Around in Circles            
Polkadoodles Challenge-Week 22 Anything Goes 

I love this sweet- and FREE- digi from Gerda Steiner Designs named simply “Mouse with Coffee.”  I find the pink rhinestones in my bling stash when looking for the green rhinestones on the other coffee card, and decided to make a B&W&Gray card with just a few pops of pink. So… the little mouse is lightly colored with gray alcohol markers, with light pink ears, cheeks, and tail. The sentiment is part of the digi. So fun!
I am entering this card into several challenges including Cute Card Thursday (the background paper includes stripes within the pattern) and Path Of Positivity Challenge #80 (Furry Friends- During college I took a Psychology class in which we had to train mice to ring a bell to receive a treat. I received an “A” in the class, but I think this had little to do with my skills. My mouse was just easy to train- much easier than the cute guy that I’ve been married to for over 4 decades!) 
Supplies: 
·    Digi- Gerda Steiner Designs - Mouse with Coffee
·    Colored with Spectrum Noir alcohol markers and Sakura Gelly Roll white gel pen
·    Cardstock, background paper and pink rhinestones from my stash
Entered into:  
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge- Anything Goes
Cute Card Thursday- Challenge #636 Stripes
Gerda Steiner Designs- Share Your Designs Challenge-May
Path Of Positivity Challenge- Challenge #80 (Optional Twist- Furry or Feathery Friends)

For this last card, I upcycled a card that I’d received from a friend, adding a bit of coloring, shading, and highlighting on the flowers and sentiment. The beautiful butterfly is a free digi that I found on one of my favorite vintage blogs. (I was unable to find this specific butterfly on the site today, but there are many other options available so I’ve provided the link in the supplies below.) I added a fuzzy body to the butterfly by fussy cutting a scrap of black felt that I upcycled from an ink penholder. The inside sentiment is a favorite from one of Beccy Muir’s digi sets.

Supplies: 
·    Card background stamp and sentiment- upcycled from a card from a sweet friend
·    Butterfly Digi- A freebie from HERE
·    Inside Sentiment-“I Think  You’re Amazing”  Beccy’s Place Digital Set  (True Beauty)
·    Assorted cardstock and papers from my stash
Entered into:  
Power Poppy- Creative Confetti- Quick Color!
Word Art Wednesday Challenge- #440-441 Anything Goes                   
Outlawz Challenge- Saturday Paper Ala Mode- Encouragement 
Outlawz Challenge- Inlinks Challenge
           

Friday, May 29, 2020

Coffeeology

Today is the last day of the Coffee Lovers Blog hop. I had the day off, so have been busy creating all day... then realized that I need to get them on my blog so that I can enter them into the Hop. So I’ll be adding several posts within a short time to get them entered on time.
Both of the coffee cards on this post include a background I created with coffee phrases I’ve collected over the years. (Sadly I cannot provide the source of any of them, as I’ve had most of them long before I started citing sources.)   

My first card features one of my favorite digi sets from Imagine That named “Coffee Boy.”  The Coffeeology background was printed on tan parchment cardstock then layered atop a paper patterned with wonderful earth tone colored stripes. I colored the coffee boy with alcohol markers and a white gel pen, and had fun trying to match the background stripes on his jacket. I fussy cut the image, then attached him to a vellum overlay so that the Coffeeology background could show through. The inside sentiment from the digi set is layered atop a scrap of the striped paper to match the front of the card.
 
  
Supplies: 
·    Coffeeology Background- computer generated
·    Digi and Inside sentiment- Imagine That digi set (Coffee Boy)
·    Colored with Spectrum Noir alcohol markers and Sakura Gelly Roll white gel pen
·    Assorted card stock, background paper, and vellum from my stash
Entered into:  
CoffeeLoversCardmakers.com- 2020 Spring Summer Coffee Lovers Blog Hop   
Crafty Hazelnut’s Patterned Paper Challenge- May                                 
Outlawz Challenge- Saturday Paper Ala Mode- Encouragement            
Outlawz Challenge- Festive Fridays   
Outlawz Challenge- Inlinks Challenge

My second card again includes the Coffeeology background, this time printed on white copy paper.  A coffee cup ring was stencil with brown inks, which I also sponged along the edges of the card to create more of a distressed look. The wonderful mug is from a digi set named "Coffee Please" from a company named Verve, which sadly closed a few years ago. I sketched a few steam swirls on scraps of vellum, cut them out and taped them to the mug, taping a strip of acetate behind them for added support. I created an overlay for the card with a scrap of acetate that I cut from some plastic packaging. Since the acetate didn’t want to lay flat, I created a belly band with yellow vellum and dark green cardstock.
  
Supplies: 
·    Coffeeology Background- computer generated
·    Large Mug- Verve digi set named “Coffee Please” (company is no longer in business)
·    Coffee Ring Stencil- The Crafter's Workshop (Mini Butterfly Collage)
·     Assorted background, plus regular and yellow vellum from my stash
Entered into:  
Simon Says Monday Challenge- We’re Going Around in Circles            
Stamplorations-  May Stencil: Anything Goes      

For the last card I used a clear stamp from a Beccy’s Place set named “Nancy’s Garden.” The set has a wonderful assortment of floral stamps but I felt like the one that resembled a wheat stalk would work for a simple (dare I say CAS?) sympathy card. I stamped the image several times across the bottom of a gatefold card, re-stamping a few times between inkings to add some depth to the images. The sentiment was a free digi that appears to no longer be available. The lovely green butterfly is a freebie to which I added a fussy body with a scrap of black felt that I upcycled from an ink penholder.
Supplies: 
·    Images- Beccy’s Place clear stamp set (Nancy’s Garden)
·    Front Sentiment- Papercrafts Magazine Freebie (no longer available)  
·    Butterfly- A freebie from a scrapbooking website HERE
·    Assorted cardstock and brown ink pads from my stash
Entered into:  
Beccy’s Place Challenge- May      
Stamplorations- May CAS: Anything Goes 
Word Art Wednesday Challenge- #440-441 Anything Goes                   
Crafty Catz Challenge- Anything Goes #508 (Optional twist- At Least Two Layers)  

Coffee times Two

Today is the last day of the Coffee Lovers Blog hop. I had the day off, so have been busy creating all day.. then realized that I need to get them on my blog so that I can enter them into the Hop. So I’ll be adding several posts within a short time to get them entered on time.

My first card for the Hop features one of my favorite character stamps from Art Impressions named “Super Maude.” I’ve had this dear lady in my collection for nearly 20 years, but I checked and she is still available as one of AI’s “Golden Oldies”!  I love the snarky attitude that she exudes, and I often pair them with sentiments like the one I used for this card (a freebie from Kelly Winnell.) I made the striped background to resemble muted wallpaper
with a stripes stencil, small flower stamps and light pastel-colored ink pads.
 
 
Supplies: 
·    Image- Art Impressions Clear Stamp (Super Maude)
·    Colored with Spectrum Noir alcohol markers and Sakura Gelly Roll white gel pen
·    Sentiment- Freebie from Kellie Winnell (Coffee comes from a plant)
·    Stripe stencil- Printworks (no longer available)  Note- I did find a similar one at a reasonable price HERE
·    Assorted background papers, paper doilies, pastel ink pads and assorted mini floral stamps (unmounted-source unknows)  from my stash
Entered into:
CoffeeLoversCardmakers.com- 2020 Spring Summer Coffee Lovers Blog Hop   
Art Impressions- #283 All Layered Up
Crafty Catz Challenge- Anything Goes #508 (Optional twist- At Least Two Layers) 
Polkadoodles Challenge-Week 22 Anything Goes   
Stamplorations-  May Stencil: Anything Goes   

A friend who knows that I love all things coffee gave me a packet of these wonderful B&W beverage napkins a few years ago. I made this card by separating the layers of one of the napkins, which leaves the coffee cup slightly translucent.  I carefully trimmed the square image from a napkin, slipped scraps of patterned paper behind the cups. I love how the subtle colors and patterns show through.  I bought a box of 10 notecards at TJ Max a few years ago because I loved the wonderful black die-cut on each. I trimmed one from a card and used it to frame the bottom of this card. I printed off a computer-generated tag, stapled a bit of ribbon to it, and slid it down into the diecut flowers. So pretty. 
I’m entering this card into several challenges including Bugaboo Stamps 123 Recipe Challenge which requires 1 ribbon (on the tag), 2 flowers (the die cuts look like stylized flowers) and 3 layers (The top portion of the card- napkin section- includes three layers= yellow paper + paper piecing + napkin. The lower portion-dicut section- also includes three layers= Diecut + yellow paper + tag!)
Supplies: 
·    Beverage napkin, vellum scraps, washi tape and assorted papers from my stash.
·    Sentiment- Computer Generated
·    Assorted background papers, black diecut, and ribbon scrap from my stash
Entered into:  
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge- Anything Goes                                               
Word Art Wednesday Challenge- #440-441 Anything Goes                   
Bugaboo Stamps- 123 Recipe Challenge (1 ribbon, 2 flowers, 3 layers)
Outlawz Challenge- Saturday Paper Ala Mode- Encouragement

I recently won three digis from Lemon Shortbread and had such fun creating with this sweet digi named “Winter Snowflake.” (However, on my card this title should be “Winter Snowflakes”?!) For the first time ever, I added a png image to a background paper (you CAN teach an old Kathy new things!) I really like the ease of doing this so I’ll plan to do more experimenting. (Sadly, the background paper that is used is no longer available and I just discovered that the company closed last December.  The base for my card was created with a  beautiful snowflake patterned paper in jewel tones. It inspired my color palette when I started coloring the image with alcohol markers.  I've always loved snowflakes and now have a nice collection of dies and punches. I used an assortment of both in different sizes to add some fun to this card! .)The sentiments are both from Beccy’s Place digi sets.
I’m entering this card into several challenges including Outlaws Sketch (I did use a rectangle vs a square, and flipped the sketch, placing large snowflakes on the lower left and upper right corners), The Sisterhood of Crafters (One of my  favorite techniques is that I love to color… and layer on the embellies! Okay… this card includes TWO of my favs!)
 
 

Supplies: 
·    Digi- Lemon Shortbread (Winter Snowflake)
·    Colored with Spectrum Noir alcohol markers and Sakura Gelly Roll white gel pen
·    Background Paper- winnie and walter Holidaymint Snowfall (company has closed its shop and blog)
·    Snowflake Dies- Spellbinders November 2019 Small Die of The Month Club Exclusive  and Lawn Fawn LF995-Mini Snowflakes Die Set
·    Snowflake Punch- Martha Stewart Large Punch-Himalayan Snowflake
·    Front Sentiment- “Hello Friend” from Beccy’s Place Digital Set  (True Beauty)
·    Inside  sentiment- “Sending you warm winter wishes” from Beccy’s Place Digital Set  (Seasonal Windows)
·   Jewel-toned background paper- Hobby Lobby
·    Assorted background papers from my stash
Entered into:  
Lemon Shortbread Challenge- Anything Goes #120
Outlawz Challenges- Wednesday Sketch 
The Sisterhood of Crafters- Favorite Technique
Outlawz Challenge- Festive Fridays                                                         
Outlawz - Inlinks Challenge                                                                  
Crafty Hazelnut’s Patterned Paper Challenge- May