myasperations 6-29-21

I am honored to have served as a Guest Designer for Beccy Muir at Beccy’s Place and am now one of her “Contributors” (which means that she provides me with digis or clear stamp sets several times a year and I get to create cards or other items with them!)
It is always fun to see the images Beccy invites me to use.  This time, the digi set, named Garden Silhouette, is one of Beccy’s encore sets, which means it’s been part of her collection for a while but is also an old favorite and so deserves to be highlighted!
I enjoy silhouette stamps, so had fun creating a slimline card using just this sweet image (love this little feline) and sentiment, chalks, a makeup sponge, and stencil. Easy Peasy but oh so beautiful!
I’m entering this card into several challenges including Path Of Positivity’s Challenge Try Something New (I’m using a brand new-to-me digi set that also reminds me to not overlook the important things… in this case self-care. As a result, I've spent time these last few days walking in the beautiful outdoors, weeding the small patch of flowers in front of our apartment, and watching four squirrels enjoy the peanuts and sunflower seeds we regularly put out for them. They are such “regulars” that we’ve even given them names. “Shadow” is the smallest. He is nearly black in color and is super hyper, spending most of the time burying his “treasures.” “Chunk” appears to be the oldest or at least the biggest one. He mainly sits and eats… moving as little as possible, except when Shadow gets too close to the seed pile. Pepper is the “middle brother” who spends much of his time trying to keep the other two from fighting, burying seeds, or digging up the ones that Shadow just buried! Today a brand new squirrel joined the scene, brand new as really young. We named him “Twitch” because he is even more hyper than Shadow. He didn’t get close to the others, instead just climbed partway down the tree and hung by his toes, dropped his front paws down below himself, and waving them at the others in a twitchy way. My sweet hubby and I laughed out loud as we watched the little guy. It was like he wanted to be part of the excitement… but also didn’t want to get beat up. Smart little cutie! )

Supplies: 

·   Digi and Sentiment- Beccy’s Place Digital Stamps (Garden Silhouette)
·   Sky and Grass created with Decorated Chalks a makeup sponge and an All Night Media stencil (no longer available)
·   Mini Flower Sequins- Simon Says Stamp (Sequins Tiny Flowers Vanilla01)
·   Cardstock, slimline envelope, and all other items from my stash.
Entered into:  
Incy Wincy Designs- Slimline or Shaped Cards (no rectangle or square)  
Path Of Positivity Challenge- Challenge #92 (Optional Twist- Try Something New)
Show Us Your Pussycats Challenge- Furry Thing Goes #67 (June)
Word Art Wednesday Challenge- #497-498 Anything Goes                   
Cute Card Thursday- Challenge 689- Anything Goes

My next card features another scene, this time created with a handful of wood-mounted stamps that I’ve had in my stash for a few decades. I was introduced to this stamp line, and its wonderful and talented owner/creator Kevin Nakagawa, when a friend and I opened a stamp store in South Dakota in 1999. Kevin’s “Stampscapes” became a fast favorite for our classes and I learned most of the tricks and techniques that I taught through Kevin’s amazing tutorials HERE. (His creations are absolutely amazing and I was thrilled when he added a few of my cards to his website gallery many years ago. You can see them HERE.  I just checked to make sure my cards were still there and smiled when I saw them. Kevin had highlighted two of my cards made with card parts that I salvaged from some messy mistakes. I still do that, a lot!)
These days I use digis more than wood-mounts but still pull these stamps out when I was to create stunning scenes. That is exactly what I wanted to do when making make my final card to enter into one of my favorite challenges called the Butterfly Challenge. The sponsor, Mrs. A, is a talented stamper is who also so very generous with her challenge prizes. She also encourages us to create cards with specialty cards for each of the challenges and provides very easy-to-follow tutorials. The current challenge features a Plaited Fold. I haven’t made one of these folds for a while, and that became apparent when I tried to add it to my finished card but made a mistake with the cuts and was left with a mess. (Yep… from now on I will cut the Plait before I do the stamping!) I was able to salvage my card by trimming the oops, then creating the plait on a separate fold of kraft cardstock, which I trimmed and attached to the card front and back “panels” with double-stick tape. After stamping the inside scene, coloring it, and attaching it behind the oval “window” I finished the card with a stamped sentiment and three fussy-cut butterflies. (I took photos of the finished card, only to discover this AM that the adhered Plait was lifting from the card. So… decided to tape the plait to the back of the card with clear tape, and to the inside and front of the card with a strip of washi tape, trimmed in half to be thinner. Tedious, but I do like the look! (I included photos of the before and after so you can see the difference. Just like my cards posted on Stampscapes website, you got to see some of my “behind the scenes” attempts to rescue a card. My cards very seldom go into the trash, but they do often have “cosmetic work” done before they are shared here or sent on! Yes, creating “art” is often a messy process!)
My card features two of the required colors for the Butterfly Challenge (periwinkle blue in the sky and peach in the butterfly wing, plus all three of the themes (Plaited Fold, Butterfly and Pair-of butterflies.) 

Supplies: 
·   Rubber Stamp- Stampscapes (Cloud with Sun-Lg)
·   Rubber Stamp- Stampscapes (Cow Pair)
·   Rubber Stamp- Stampscapes (Pines & Rocks)
·   Rubber Stamp- Stampscapes (Meadow Lg)
·   Tutorial for Plaited Fold available HERE.
·   Scene created with Ink sponge, assorted dye ink pads, and assorted chalks.
·   Inside Sentiment- Embossing Arts Rubber Stamp Stamp (Company no longer in business)
·   A4 card with oval cutout, checked Washi tape, upcycled map and butterflies (upcycled from scrapbook paper).
Entered into:  
Butterfly Challenge- #158 P for Plaited Fold                                   
Outlawz Challenge- Twisted Thursday Anything Goes
Outlawz Challenge- Festive Friday  
Outlawz Challenge- Inlinks Challenge

This card is going into the mail today, heading its way to my sweet MIL. She loves getting hand-made cards, and I think she’ll like the sentiment and sparkly stars I added to this one.  
Am entering this card into several challenges including Outlawz Tuesday Color Challenge (my card features the required number of colors- red, cream plus a touch of blue and green in the iridescent stars!) and Double D’s Signs of Summer Challenge (in the USA the biggest summer celebration in the 4^th of July that includes parades and also fireworks!)

Supplies: 

·   Digi- Eureka Digital Stamp (Celebrate with a Bang) Also available in unmounted or cling-mounted
·   Peg mount rubber stamp- Ant image from Judikins (no longer available)
·   Colored with Spectrum Noir Classique markers and Sakura Gelly Roll white gel pen
·   Front Sentiment- Computer Generated
·   Sparkly Star Stickers- Hobby Lobby
·   A4 card with a star cutout, fireworks paper, Sparkly red paper, mini-star punch and misc. from my stash.
Entered into:  
Outlawz Challenges- Tuesday Color Challenge
        Since I’m a DT for Eureka/Stamp On It (sponsor), I’m entering just for fun!
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge- Red, White and/or Blue
Double D’s Challenge- Signs of Summer                                        
Crafty Hazelnut’s Patterned Paper Challenge- June  

                     

myasperations 6-25-21 (pm)

In January of 2020, I joined the  Design Team at Sheepski Designs… and I’ve really enjoyed artist/owner Andrea Norris’s kind and supportive nature. Plus, her digis bring out a bit of childlike whimsy in me! So when she asked her DT’s if we’d be willing to make a card with her wonderful “Faye" digi for an event at Digi Moto this weekend, I said, “Yes, please!”  I made a simple gate-fold card. To be able to enter the card into the current Snippets Challenge, I created a quilt-like background with scraps of patterned papers from a new 6x6 stack. The quizzical look on Faye’s face, with just a hint of teasing, inspired the funny computer-generated sentiment.  The pretty purple circle behind Faye's perch was created with scrap of a plastic index divider sheet. (These wonderful items- sometimes called document file folders- come in a pack of assorted colors and can be found in the office supply section of most stores. They're cheaper than colored vellum and more translucent. Punches and dies don’t work on these sheets, but they are easy to fussy-cut with a sharp pair of scissors after tracing shapes on them with a black permanent fine-line marker.)

Supplies: 

·   Digi- Sheepski Designs (Faye)
·   Spectrum Noir Classique markers, Sakura Gelly Roll white & sparkle gel pens
·   Sentiments- Computer Generated
·  Scraps of patterned paper (quilt) and textured vellum (Wings), a  purple index divider sheet, cardstock, and other items from my stash.

Entered into: 
Pixie's Snippets-Week #405

The Paper Shelter- Things With Wings

Crafty Hazelnut’s Patterned Paper Challenge- June  

Besties Challenge- June Anything Goes

It’s Wedding Season… and I am running low on cards. This sweet digi from All Dressed Up comes to my rescue. The beautiful banner on the front and sentiment on the inside are both freebies from simplycardsmagazine.com. (I needed to sign up on the website, but it’s been very worthwhile as I’ve found lots of free digis, sentiments, and papers that are now in my collection! The link is in the supplies list below.)

Supplies: 

·   Digi- All Dressed Up (First Dance) Flipped the image. 

·   Colored with Spectrum Noir Classique markers and Sakura Gelly Roll white gel pen

·   Puffy Heart Stickers- Sticko’s from WalMart (113 assorted puffy hearts for just 99 cents!)

·   Front Sentiment banner and inside sentiment by NitWits- Freebie from Simplycardsmag.com (sign up HERE)

·   Cardstock and circle of vellum, all other items from my stash.

Entered into:  

Cute Card Thursday- Challenge 689- Anything Goes 

Polkadoodles Challenge- Week #26 Anything Goes  

All Dressed Up- #118 Anything Goes (June) 

Outlawz Challenges- Monday Greeting Challenge- Colours: Pink & Grey

Outlawz Challenge- Inlinks Challenge

In late May I decided it was time to organize and downsize my craft supplies as they had overflowed the space available!  So, I sorted my treasures, gifting many, donating others to local thrift shops, and vowing to make a dent in my large collection of papers and upcycled items before buying anything new. I know that JoAnne’s, Hobby Lobby, and Goodwill all miss me, but I haven’t purchased anything but adhesives this last month! This beautiful Nativity sketch is from a Christmas card I’ve had in my stash for over a decade, maybe even two. Since the sketch is so delicate, I decided to keep embellishments to a minimum. I carefully tore the parchment paper on the upcycled card, making sure not to damage the gold embossed edging. Sentiments from a Beccy’s Place set, small gold ornate gold stickers, plus various sizes of stars punched or cut from metallic gold cardstock all worked together to create an elegant card.

Supplies: 

·   Nativity Sketch- upcycled from an old Christmas Card

·   Sentiments- “Come Let Us Adore Him” & “Glory to the Newborn King” Beccy’s Place (Lamb of God) Available in Digi or clear set

·   Cardstock, small gold stickers, metallic gold paper scraps, mini-star punch, and star stencil from my stash.

Entered into:  

Word Art Wednesday Challenge- #497-498 Anything Goes                   

Outlawz Challenge- Festive Friday  

Rudolph Days Challenge- June  

Beccy’s Place Challenge- June  

        Since I’m a Contributor for Beccy’s Place, I’m entering just for fun! 

myasperations 6-25-21

It’s Friday and time for the Colour Crazy Challenge. This challenge is an “Anything Goes” but it adds a requirement; the creation needs to include coloring in “any colouring medium you like, onto any project you like, and in any colours you like.” I’ve never outgrown my love for coloring… which is why making cards is stress therapy for me!! 
This week's sponsor is Polkadoodles and I’m sharing fun card that features a digi image from Polkadoodles named Gnometastic Birthday Cake. I colored the handsome guy with Spectrum Noir Classique Markers and a Sakura Gelly Roll white gel pen. To provide the card with a crisp, clean feeling, I kept the number of colors used to a minimum, leaving lots of white space, including a hand-drawn candle glow made with my trusty white gel pen! A strip of a checked paper napkin provides a nice base to reinforce the food theme and the humorous inside sentiment adds a bit of reality to the card. (Heh heh!)

Supplies: 
·   Digi- Polkadoodles (Gnometastic Birthday Cake)
·   Colored with Spectrum Noir Classique markers and Sakura Gelly Roll white gel pen
·   Inside Sentiment- Freebie from Kellie Winnell (this sentiment appears to no longer be available- but there are many other fun freebies on her site)
·   Pioneer Black Photo corners- available from several sources
·   Checked paper napkin- from our local Dollar Store

Entered into:  

Bugaboo Stamps- June Week 2 Anything Goes  

Cute Card Thursday- Challenge 689- Anything Goes

This card features a beautiful image named “Bridal Veil” from Cute As A Button’s June Progressive Challenge. A friend’s son is getting married next month, and I decided to make a special card for her future daughter in laws bridal shower. I tried to match her hair and eye color, and used lots of elegant items including silver paper, satiny tan cardstock with flocked black swirls and a piece of antique lace. Because every bride-to-be needs some bling, I added a sprinkling of tiny rhinestones on her veil, and in her earring, I added a single rhinestone, slightly larger and a lovely pale blue to match her eyes! (I added a closeup pic of this bling.)

Note- I'm not very happy with the roses, as I had the great idea of using a layer of white pencil on top of the alcohol markers, thinking it would give the petals a velvety sheet. Didn't work as well as I'd hoped, and caused the white gel pen to smudge. "Fixing" them only made a bigger mess. So... I've convinced myself that they look a bit ethereal?!  :)  

Supplies:

·   Digi- Cute As A Button (Bridal Veil)

·   Colored with Spectrum Noir Classique markers and Sakura Gelly Roll white gel pen

·   Front Sentiment- Eureka Digi (Blessings) Also available in unmounted or cling-mounted

·   Inside Sentiment- From We Are 3 Digi Set (Special Wishes)

·   Pioneer Black Photo corners- available from several sources

·   Silver Card- from a Hobby Lobby set of metallic A2 cards and white envelopes

·   Flocked patterned paper, a scrap of antique lace, and small rhinestones from my stash.

Entered into:  
Cute As A Button-MeWe Progressive Freebie Challenge #49 Bridal Veil
Cute As A Button- June: CH #69 Anything Goes
Word Art Wednesday Challenge- #497-498 Anything Goes                   
Crafty Hazelnut’s Patterned Paper Challenge- June                       
Outlawz Challenge- Festive Friday  

Several months ago I was the random winner of a sweet digi set from a Coni Fong FB contest! (If I remember correctly, I squealed with delight when I read about my win!) I colored, fussy-cut and adhered the little cutie (named Lonny) onto cloudy sky scrapbook paper. The pretty balloons (on front and inside) were created with scraps of plastic index divider sheets. (These wonderful items- sometimes called document file folders- come in a pack of assorted colors and can be found in the office supply section of most stores and occasionally even at Dollar Stores. They're cheaper than colored vellum and more translucent. Punches and dies don’t work on these sheets, but they are easy to fussy-cut with a sharp pair of scissors after tracing shapes on them with a black permanent fine-line marker.) The balloons are attached with just a little bit of snail adhesive, then I added bows and strings with the permanent fine-line marker. The sentiments are computer-generated.

Supplies: 
·   Digi and inside sentiment- Conie Fong digi set (Lulu and Lonny With Balloon Bundle)
·   Colored with Spectrum Noir Classique markers and Sakura Gelly Roll white gel pen
·   Sentiments- Computer Generated
·   Sharpie black permanent fine-line marker, scraps of purple and green index dividers, cloudy sky paper, cardstock, and other items from my stash.
Entered into: 
Conie Fong Art & Design Group [FB]- Monthly Challenge- June Anything Goes    
Outlawz Challenge- Crash Your Stash- Old Designer Paper  
Outlawz Challenge- Inlinks Challenge
2craftycrittercrazies Challenge- June 2021                                    
        Since I’m a Contributor for Beccy’s Place (sponsor), I’m entering just for fun!

myasperations 6-23-21

It's time for another challenge at Penny's Paper-Crafty Challenge Blog where challenges are always Anything Goes and prizes are awarded from one or more sponsors.  Stop by the blog to check it out!
For this challenge, my DT card features a beautiful digi from Fred She Said named Winter Birds. I found the website of a talented wildlife photographer than helped me with the delicate coloring of the bird, named a Blue Tit. (Okay, cue the giggling if I share the bird's name when helping the middle school students in our after-school program make Christmas cards this year. They really like to color and make holiday cards to deliver to residents of local retirement homes.

Supplies: 
·   Digi- Fred She Said Digital Stamp (Winter Birds)
·   Colored with Spectrum Noir Classique markers and Sakura Gelly Roll white gel pen
·   Wildlife Photograph from David at The Hall of Einer found HERE
·   Free Winter Wonderful Digital Paper from Free Pretty Things For You (FPTFY)
·   Computer-Generated Sentiment (source unknown)
·   Pioneer Black Photo corners- available from several sources
·   Snowflakes- Cheery Lynn Designs Die (C146 Snowflakes)
·   Snowflakes- Lawn Fawn LF995-Mini Snowflakes Die Set
·   All other items from my stash.

Entered into:  

Word Art Wednesday Challenge- #497-498 Anything Goes 
Outlawz Challenge- Festive Friday (Christmas)
Outlawz Challenge- Inlinks Challenge
Crafty Hazelnut’s Christmas Challenge- #547 AG

Crafty Hazelnut’s Patterned Paper Challenge- June    

I fell in love with this sweet little bathing beauty the first time I saw her. So was excited to recently add her to my ever-growing digi collection. Used bright paper to match the rainbow of colors on the wonderful freebie sentiment, then colored, fussy-cut, and perched the little cutie atop the sentiment. Cut banners from a scrap of paper to create a swag to add to the inside of the card. Then added a bit of bling with a trio of sparkly butterflies that I’ve had for at least a decade. 

I’m entering this card into several challenges including The  Butterfly Challenge (I used all three colors- Periwinkle/Peach/Plum, and two themes- a Pair of Butterflies); The Paper Shelter- Things With Wings (butterflies), and the wecraftcards Forum- Your Name (required that we use the first letter of our first or last name when making our card, mine includes a Keenly Adorable image! The adverb Keenly means “Intensely”.)               

Supplies: 
·   Digi- The Paper Shelter (My Swimsuit)
·   Colored with Spectrum Noir Classique markers and Sakura Gelly Roll white gel pen
·   Sparkly Butterfly Gems- From my stash
·   Front Sentiment- Freebie from Desert Diva (You Add Color To My Life)
·   Inside Sentiment “Sending Sweet Birthday Wishes”-Imagine That digi set (Ice Cream to My Cone)
·   All other items from my stash.

Entered into:  

Outlawz Sunday Challenge- By The Sea
We Craft Cards Monday Challenge- Your Name
The Paper Shelter- Things With Wings
Butterfly Challenge- #158 P for Plaited Fold    
Double D’s Challenge- Signs of Summer           

Although it seems like summer just started, I realized that the 4^th of July is right around the corner so I got started making patriotic-themed cards. This little lady Liberty from Bugaboo was fun to color. Since she looked like she is meant to be seated, I sketched a simple rustic fence that I shaded with markers and highlighted with a white gel pen. The sentiments are computer-generated. When finished I sprinkled the card with small, punched stars to add a festive touch. Happy Birthday to the USA!

Supplies: 
·   Digi- Bugaboo Digital Stamp (Brat-Liberty)
·   Colored with Spectrum Noir Classique markers and Sakura Gelly Roll white gel pen
·   Sentiments- Computer Generated
·   Small star paper punch and other items from my stash.
Entered into:  
Lil Patch of Crafty Friends- #159 Anything Goes

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge- Red, White and/or Blue
Di’s Digi Stamps- For a Child
Bugaboo Stamps- June Week 2 Anything Goes  
Cute Card Thursday- Challenge 689- Anything Goes