Sweet Sunday Sketch #24

Happy Tuesday! Doesn't it feel like it should be Wednesday already? I think I've been off all day, thinking it was Wednesday. Weird.

Anyways, here is my card to go with Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch for this week. Those two horizontal lines were interesting and definitely took some time figuring out how to deal with them. I ended up with my default- ribbon. Ribbon always makes things look good! :)

I still had this paper sitting around from my VLV card, so I thought I would go ahead and use it up. My mom needs more thank you cards for her stash, so this one is going her way. I mass produced it (if six counts as a mass, lol) after finishing the first one. So watch your mail, Mom! They're coming! :)

It's a simple card again. I just like 'em this way. And these colors together just make me happy.

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies-

Stamps- Verve: Because of You, Thanks so Much

Paper- Very Vanilla, Marigold Morning, My Mind's Eye dp

Ink- More Mustard (stamped off), Close to Cocoa

Accessories- Aqua Mist ribbon, button, twine, dimensionals, nestabilities, cb

Viva la Verve!

Well, my unlucky streak continued at Verve's release party on Friday evening. You would think with more about 10 chances to win some free stamps, I might get lucky.... but no. Someday! Someday it will happen! :)

Amber gave us a new Viva la Verve sketch on Friday and the twist this week was to use some distressing on our cards. Hmmm.... I tried doing the sponging technique with my chocolate chip and close to cocoa stamp pads, but it really didn't look good. I think I need to go watch some more tutorial videos over on youtube before attempting that one again, lol. So I resorted to the 'ol scissor distressing. Works like a charm every time. I distressed every layer of the card and sponged some More Mustard around the perimeter. I also lightly rubbed the More Mustard along the distressed edges.

To finish the card off, a little pop of color from the ribbon. Of course, I had to use my favorite ribbon/bow/button/twine combo... I think I'm obsessed with it! A few little pearls at the bottom of the verse added to the shabby-chique feel of the card.

Overall, I think I like how it turned out. Definitely a different feel for me, but it's good to branch out and try new things every now and then.

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies-
Stamps- Verve: Jeremiah 29:11

Paper- Marigold Morning, Very Vanilla, My Mind's Eye dp

Ink- More Mustard

Accessories- Aqua Mist ribbon, button, twine, pearls, sponge, scissors for distressing, dimensionals

Taylor's Cupcake Challenge #73

It's been a good week here, though I'm still glad it's the weekend. My roommate and I both washed our cars since the weather has been so nice and they really needed it. I had a few more rounds of physical therapy for my bum arm and actually touched my left shoulder with my left hand for the first time in two months! Still working on the sqeezing thing with my hand... that seems to be the biggest issue right now. Amy and I also purchased tickets to go see the touring Broadway show of "Chitty Chitty Bang Band" in early July! How fun is that?! I love that movie with Dick Van Dyke! Saw the new Transformers movie, went to Bible study, slept in, made some good food (and cards)... It's been a good week. But enough of me rambling, on to the card!

This card was actally made using last Friday's sketch from Taylor. I decided to go really bright, and a bit out of my comfort zone with this one. I hereby admit that I am not sad to see Kiwi Kiss and Pacific Point disappear into oblivion. They are just way to bright and odd for my taste. I hardly ever use them. But I do have few scraps sitting around from my original in colors sample pack and figured I might as well use them up.

I also figured it was about time to ink up this little stamp that I bought about six months ago. She's just been sitting in my drawer, staring at me every time I open it. And every time I open it I think, "Gee, I really should use that stamp someday. It's too cute." Well that day finally came! lol I stamped her in Memento Tuxedo Black and colored her with my copics. To make her pants more of a Pacific Point color I mixed a blue and a turquoise together. I popped up the image panel and added some brads at the last minute, though I think I needed to scoot them a little to the left. Too late now!

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies-

Stamps- I wish I looked that good on a bike aBella

Paper- Whisper White, Pacific Point, Kiwi Kiss, Good Morning Sunshine dp

Ink- Memento Tuxedo Black

Accessories- ribbon, brads, copics, dimensionals

Verve Release Challenge Card #4

The sentiment on this card has never been so spot on. I am so thankful to be done with these challenges. Don't get me wrong, they were really fun and I enjoyed making all five of the cards. But man, oh man, five cards in three days has me tuckered out! I think that's a new record for me. I usually only complete one each day, if time allows. I was motivated by the enticing idea of free stamps this week!!

I actually woke up on Wednesday morning with this paper idea in my head. I thought some stripes and polka dots would look awesome together on this card, especially because of the layout. I stared at my paper stash for a moment before pulling out my Parisian Breeze dp. I love the colors in this set. I am so sad that Baja Breeze is being retired! They really needed to make it part of the normal catalog! And when I tried to order more before it leaves forever, they were already sold out! AHHH! Now I'm really going to hoard the remainders of my little Baja Breeze stash.

On to the card details. I inked the flower image in Baja Breeze and then stamped off to create a lighter image. The sentiment stamp is a thank you stamp from a past Verve order. I love these little things... the font is so pretty! Some yummy chocolate ribbon I picked up at Joann's finished the card off. The colors look better in real life, but this was the best picture I could get without the Baja looking almost neon on my computer. ha!

I'm off to dinner this evening with one of my student's family from this last school year. They stopped me in the hall on the last day of school and asked if I would be willing to come to their house for a thank you dinner. Who am I to say no to a free meal?! Another one of my co-workers will be there also. Should be some yummy Indian food!

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies-
Stamps- Verve: Because of You, Thankful Thoughts
Paper- Whisper White, Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze, Parisian Breeze dp
Ink- Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip
Accessories- Ribbon, nestabilities, cb

Verve Release Challenge #3

Here's the third challenge for Verve's release this Friday and my fourth card (only one more to go)!

I admit, this was the sketch that scared me the most. I almost saved it for last, but decided not to, but rather to just get it over with. That lone oval in the middle haunted me. What in the world do you do with an oval all by itself?!

I decided this was definitely a case for my favorite set of dp from My Mind's Eye. It makes everything look good. lol Some punching, die-cutting, and stamping later... this is what I ended up with. Not too bad, and more than anything, I'm just glad it is over and done with. Now I can move on. ;) Is it just me or does the bow seem a little lonely up there all by itself?

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies-
Stamps- Verve: Psalm 51:10
Paper- Whisper White, Tangerine Tango, Aqua Mist (PTI), My Mind's Eye dp
Ink- Sage Shadow
Accessories- Aqua Mist ribbon (PTI), EK Success edge punch, nestabilities, cb

Two for One Deal

Ok. Back to doing things in order. Since I already did card number one, it is on to number two! For some odd reason I was drawn to the color pink today... a bit of a rare occurrence. Maybe it's because I have Dawn's new color challenge floating around in my head, and she's having us use a bunch of pink this week. At least the mojo was working with me today. Usually trying to incorporate pink is not easy for me.

Anywho, I reminded myself of the sketch and immediately pulled out this dp from Paper Loft. Fun, huh? I did try to keep the pink to a minimum so that it wouldn't overtake my card. It's solidly secured in a bunch of Chocolate Chip. :)

I stamped the teapot twice in berry sorbet, cut out the second, and popped it up on some dimensionals. I also popped up the entire middle square. After fiddling with that darn circle and trying about four different things, I finally ended up with a big 'ole melon berry button with a twine bow. I think it works... it was better than everything else I tried... including a sentiment. Guess the teapot is just going to have to speak for itself.

Thanks for stopping by!
Supplies- Stamps- PTI: Tea for Two
Paper- Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip, Cameo Coral, Paper Loft dp
Ink- Berry Sorbet
Accessories- ribbon, twine, button, brads, dimensionals

Verve Release Challenge Card #5

All right. I know. I'm going out of order. But I love this sketch and was immediately inspired by it and had to follow the mojo. I'll jump backwards and finish the other ones now (with my least favorite/scariest being last). hee

I still had some of this dp sitting out from my card the other day and thought I would use up some more of it. It's so fun and I love the colors on it! I was a little scared there might be a little too much vertical striping/dots going on, but I think it mellowed out once that last layer made it onto the card. I kept the ribbon simple since there just wasn't room for that gorgeous bow/button/twine combo I'm obsessed with right now. I did add some brads to the corners and some stickles to the butterfly to make him sparkle a little bit. When I finished the card, the top corner just felt naked to me, but I couldn't figure out what embellishment to put there.... I finally just decided to paper pierce it, and tada! Perfect!

I also used Lisa Spangler's Scribble This Challenge with the pictures on this card. She has so generously been giving free photo editing tips on her blog and then posting a fun challenge where we can share our successes! This week we used the "sharpen" options in the filter tab. It makes the cards so crisp looking. I really like how it made the stickles stand out more on my butterfly. I'm definitely going to use this editing option again in the future. Thanks, Lisa!

Here is the card before I sharpened it in Photoshop Elements-

And after! Ta-da!

Ok. I know it's reeeaaally subtle, but I promise it is a lot clearer when the picture is zoomed in more. The first just has a softer, almost fuzzy, but not out of focus look to it. Kind of like if I had used a soft filter. The second is much more crisp and defined. Really. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies-
Stamps- Verve: Beautiful Kindness
Paper- Very Vanilla, Sage Shadow, Tangerine Tango, WeR Memory Keepers dp
Ink- Sage Shadow, Tangerine Tango
Accessories- brads, ribbon, dimensionals, stickles, paper piercer

Three Birds With One Stone

Good afternoon! It's time for another Verve release and they're hosting a whole bunch of sketch challenges to give out free stamps! So, prepare yourself for the onslaught of cards over the next few days. There are five (yup, count 'em) sketches this week! Eek! I figured I would start right away with a triple whammy: Kristina's Color Inspiration and Mojo Monday/Verve Release Sketch #1.

I loved the colors that Kristina was inspired by this week... I want that skirt! I just happened to have the perfect dp sitting in my stash with all of the colors and

even a similar pattern to the skirt! Love it when that happens.

Then I jumped over to the Mojo Monday blog for some sketch inspiration and discovered this week's quintupled challenge. (is that how you say that?) Time to crank one of these babies out.

I popped up the sentiment square and added a few jewels in the bottom right corner, but otherwise stuck with the sketch. I like how it turned out. Definitely a different color set for me, but it's always good to branch out.

Lots more cards coming your way over the next few days! (Four more to go just for this week's Verve challenges!)

Thanks for stopping by!
Supplies- Stamps- Verve: Because of You, Circular Sayings
Paper- Very Vanilla, Really Rust, Basic Gray, Basic Grey dp
Ink- Basic Gray, More Mustard
Accessories- More Mustard ribbon, button, twine, jewels, sponge, nestabilities, cb, dimensionals

Sweet Sunday Sketch #23

Happy Father's Day! I won't see my dad until later tonight, but I've got a card all ready to go for him.

This sketch scared me just a little bit. There's no big image panel! What in the world was I going to do with those little squares. After digging through my ever-growing stack of dp, I stumbled across this paper I purchased a few months back and had yet to use! Definitely time to remedy that! I love the colors and patterns on the two papers and they go so well together.

I have a confession... This is actually the second card that I've made for this sketch today. The first, you will never see. It was horrible. I had it in a saved blog message, but held off on posting it today because it just never sat well. This was one I definitely needed to come back to (about 6 hours later) and give it another try. Soooo much better this time! Guess the mojo wasn't working this morning. lol

There are also NO stamps on this card!!! I know, I shocked myself too! I don't think I've ever made a card with no stamps before.

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies-
Stamps- None!
Paper- Tangerine Tango, Sage Shadow, WR Memory Keepers dp
Ink- None!
Accessories- ribbon, button, twine

Viva la Verve!

Good morning and happy weekend! I know I'm on summer break, but the weekends are still most definitely welcome. They still symbolize the right to slow down and relax a bit.

I had a few free hours yesterday to play along with this week's Viva la Verve sketch challenge of on Splitcoast's Verve forum. My favorite sketch of the week... I'm always waiting for Friday to come and the new sketch with a *twist* to be unveiled.

This week's was definitely do-able. This must be a popular sketch right now... I did one eerily similar a few days ago for another challenge, and I checked out the Weekend Sketch Challenge for this weekend and it's almost exactly the same as well. I have a suspicion people are being inspired from a similar source. ;)

Well, that half circle was a challenge the first time I encountered it here. It went a little more smoothly this time around. The twist from Amber this week was to be inspired by our dp. We were only allowed to use one piece of dp and build our card around it. Easy peasy! I immediately went over to my favorite stash of My Mind's Eye paper, particularly this piece from their Wild Asparagus set. It just makes beautiful cards every time.

Some ribbon, a button, and some polka dots later... voila! I love the soft feel of this card. And the little white dots stamped onto the Kraft?! Yummy!

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies-

Stamps- Verve: Philippians 4:4, PTI: Polka Dot Basics

Paper- Whisper White, Kraft, Baja Breeze, My Mind's Eye dp

Ink- Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze, Moonlight White

Accessories- ribbon, button, twine, brads, EK Success wavy border punch, nestabilities, cb, sponge

Getting Sketchy

I've been seeing a lot of cards floating around for a while now with this label "SFYTT." After looking at the "sketches for you to try" several times, I figured it was about time that I "tried" it. :)

I love, love, love the panels in the background of this sketch. I just love the look they create on cards. I kept this card really simple and clean. I pulled out my much neglected Urban Garden dp and decided to use some of this beautiful gray floral print. I matched up the Basic Gray paper with some old River Rock paper and ribbon to add another layer of dimension.

This picture makes the ribbon paper look like two completely different colors. Weird. I promise they really are the same... Somehow the ribbon and paper color didn't translate the same from my camera to the computer. Hmmm.... Gonna have to work on that one.

After some physical therapy to continue fixing my arm, I'm off to the Hollywood Bowl this evening to see Josh Groban perform! Heaven! Seriously, that guy can sing... My roommate Amy and I love to put him on in the car when we're cruising together and just sing at the top of our lungs.... I think we've harmonized every song. If Josh ever decides he needs some back up singers, we would definitely be more than willing to offer ourselves. ;)

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies-
Stamps- Verve: Because of You
Paper- Basic Gray, River Rock, Urban Garden dp
Ink- Basic Gray
Accessories- River Rock ribbon, button, twine, dimensionals

Mojo Monday

Good afternoon. I'm taking it slow today... think I'm fighting a little bug. And I know exactly who nailed me too. Don't you hate that? People need to stay home when they are sick. I was supposed to return to Disneyland today, but opted out since I need to be at my best for Josh Groban tomorrow!

Yup, tomorrow my mom, roommate, and I are off to the Hollywood Bowl's opening night featuring Josh Groban! Woohoo! I've seen him a few times in concert now and have never been disappointed. Should be great!

Well, on to the card. I used this week's Mojo Monday sketch to help create this card. I think I've only ever made one other card using these dimensions, and this one definitely turned out a lot better than the last attempt. I hadn't used my Candy Lane dp for a while and it was calling my name from my paper stash. I love the colors on it. Can't go wrong with brown!

It's a fairly self-explanatory card today... nothing too complicated. I colored the little bird and flower with my copic markers and added a little pearl the flower center. This is also almost a SUO card except for the copic markers. Heee I can never quite pull it off anymore. I've been corrupted by all of the fun tools, supplies, and embellishments out there!

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies-

Stamps- SU: Fun & Fast Notes

Paper- Close to Cocoa, Red Riding Hood, Candy Lane dp

Ink- Memento Rich Cocoa

Accessories- Ribbon, brad, nestabilities, cb, pearl, copics

Sweet Sunday Sketch #22

I think I have truly been "lazy" today. I slept in, read for a while, checked some blogs, read some more, ran a few errands, made a card, and I'm getting ready to read for a while again. I love summer vacation. :)

I'm off to Disneyland with some friends tomorrow, so I wanted to make at least one card today.

I set my mind on conquering Karen's sketch for us this week. I have a circle phobia when it comes to cards. I never know what to do with them, how big they should be, etc. I'm much more of a clean cut, straight edge, and corners kind of gal.

I immediately took some inspiration from Karen's sample card. LOVE the bright colors she used. They just make me think of summer and made me smile. I wanted to do something similar, so I dug through some old magazines until I saw a color combo that jumped out at me. This is almost a Stampin' Up only card, but I cheated with the ribbon and sentiment. I just couldn't get a SU sentiment to work in that circle for me. It's that whole circle complex again... Ah! But I am proud that the sketch didn't conquer me, but the opposite! Hooray!

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies-
Stamps- SU: Upsy Daisy, Doodle This, Verve: Circular Sayings
Paper- Whisper White, Certainly Celery, Apricot Appeal, Pumpkin Pie, Washington Apple dp
Ink- Pumpkin Pie
Accessories- Ribbon, nestabilities, SU scallop edge punch, scallop circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, jewels, white ep

Raspberry Suite Color Challenge #9

Happy Sunday! Church was great this morning! I attend a satellite service of my church and we usually have live video feed of the pastor and his sermon, but he surprised us today by joining us for his live sermon! After service, they provided a HUGE barbecue lunch for us: carne asada tacos with all the fixings (including guacamole), chips, and churros for dessert! Yummy! I was pretty much in lunch heaven. It was such a great opportunity to sit down with some new people and get chatting. Good food, good fellowship, and a good God. Doesn't get much better!

All right, this challenge from Dawn took me some work today. I sat down with one idea in my head, started stamping it out, hated it, scrapped it, and started all over again. These colors just weren't working for me! I needed a fourth color- preferably Kraft. So, I went in search of some inspiration. I eventually stumbled across an old card that I love by Heather Nichols (see it here). I kept a similar idea, but change the main elements and added a few little touches. Am I happy with the card that I ended up with? Yeah, I think so. I think it looks nice, but I don't think it is amongst my most favorite cards ever made. :o)

Thanks for stopping by!
Supplies- Stamps- PTI: Beyond Basic Borders
Paper- Very Vanilla, Wild Wasabi, Basic Black
Ink- Moonlight White (Archival), Wild Wasabi, Basic Black
Accessories- Cream ribbon, small hole punch, pearls, EK Success wavy border punch, nestabilities, cb, dimensionals

Viva la Verve!

It's my favorite day of the week! I always look forward to Amber's Viva la Verve challenge over on the Splitcoast Verve forum. Number one, I love sketch challenges. Secondly, she always stretches me with the additional twist each week.

Speaking of twists, this week's twist was to use some serious white space on our cards. As much as possible, and only two colors or cardstock were permitted (excluding white, or course). Easy peasy! I do have to admit that I was pleasantly surprised by how elegant all that white space made the card look. I love it and will definitely be using this one again!

I did cheat a little on the sketch and put an image where the sentiment was "supposed" to go. It just needed it! I popped up the entire panel as well as the teapot. I stamped the teapot in Summer Sun but stamped off first to mute the color a bit. I think I am addicted to the button/bow combo. It's just so pretty every time!

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies- Stamps- PTI: Tea for Two
Paper- Whisper White, Kraft, Lemon Tart
Ink- Basic Black, Summer Sun (stamped off)
Accessories- White ribbon, twine, lemon tart button, SU scallop edge punch, scallop circle punch, dimensionals

Mojo Monday

It's another glorious June-gloomy day here. I LOVE IT! I could seriously take this everyday. If only it would last. Amy (my roommate) and I decided since we both had today off that we would make brunch together. I had some granny smith apples sitting on the counter, so we whipped up some apple blinis and bacon, with juice of course. So yummy! And such a great way to start the day!

We have a couple friends coming over for dinner and a fun movie tonight so this day is shaping up to be a great one! Quinn is on a vegan diet though, so I think we're sticking with a salad bar this evening to accommodate him. Fine by me after that filling brunch!

I also got a call from UPS today saying that my little gift to myself will be delivered tomorrow! I can't wait! I ordered myself a D-SLR over the weekend. I ended up getting the Canon Rebel XSi with an additional lens and I can't wait to break it in! Oh, and my new box of PTI goodies came in the mail yesterday! Lots of ribbon and buttons. Seriously, this week has been great!

I had some time today to play around with this week's Mojo Monday sketch. I admit, this one scared me a little bit. That weird circle on top was throwing off my mojo. lol So, I did what I usually do when I am completely stumped by an element... cruise the Splitcoast boards! Lots of stars, flowers, buttons, circles, but none of that felt right to me. Finally, I found one where a big bow was used. Bingo! Button/bow combo, here I come!

I am loving my new pack of Washington Apple dp from Stampin' Up and decided it was time to play with it a little more as well. I pulled my main colors from the dp and launched from there. This is almost a Stampin' Up only card except for the button. I haven't made one of these in a looong time. I've had so much fun playing around with other stamp companies and finding what style of stamps I really do love. I think I'm finally getting into a groove.

I stamped the image in So Saffron and then sponged some Red Riding Hood around the tips of the flowers. I popped up the entire image panel with dimensionals.

In addition to making the card, I'm playing with a fun editing challenge today. Over on Kristina Werner's blog, she posted some great links to another blog with some photography editing tips. After reading through some tips on how to edit the light level in Photoshop, we can post a link to share our achievements! We are required to show a before and after shot. So here's mine!

And AFTER!

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies-

Stamps- SU: Upsy Daisy

Paper- So Saffron, Red Riding Hood, Whisper White, Washington Apple dp

Ink- So Saffron, Red Riding Hood

Accessories- Lemon tart button (PTI), twine, ribbon, sponge, dimensionals