Saturday 30 July 2016

Birthday Bears

Hi!  It's Saturday morning here and I have a card that I finished last night to show you.  I got the Beary Special Birthday set and dies on Thursday and on Thursday night I just had to color one of the images - they are so cute!  Then on Friday night, I made that image into a card using the current sketch at MFT and the colors from Color Throwdown.  I'm also linking up to Seize the Birthday.


This card just makes me smile!  I love the background and I love that little bear.  To make the background, I sponged Melon and Duckling inks onto a panel of Tim Holtz watercolor paper.  Then I dropped some Perfect Pearls shimmer mist onto the panel.  Finally, I took the Scribble Script stencil and sponged over the top using those same two ink colors.  I just love that stencil - in fact, it's probably my favorite.  The script is undefined enough to be text when you want it to be text and to just be a pattern when you just want a bit of interest in the background, like I've done here.



For the rest of the card, I die-cut a white pierced rectangle frame, cutting off the bottom.  I also white-embossed a sentiment onto black, both of which are popped up on foam tape, as is the bear.  I couldn't decide what to put in the top right corner as per the sketch, but finally decided on two layers of Party Banner dies, the bottom layer sponged in Rosie Cheeks ink and the top frame layer sponged in Duckling.



Thanks for visiting!




Products used:

Stamps:  Beary Special Birthday (MFT), Shenanigans (CASual Fridays)
Ink:  Black Licorice Hybrid, Versamark, Duckling, Melon, Rosie Cheeks (SSS)
Cardstock:  White, black, watercolor, X-Press It
Dies:  Pierced Rectangle Frames (MFT), Beary Special Birthday (MFT), Party Banner Duo (SugarPea Designs)
Accessories:  Scribble Script stencil (Donna Downey), White EP, Copics, Perfect Pearls

Cheers
Karren

Edited to Add:  This card got a shout out at Seize the Birthday.

Wednesday 27 July 2016

Make Today Awesome

It's time for another fabulous challenge at Freshly Made Sketches and our wonderful hostess this week is Shannon Jaramillo.



As soon as I saw the sketch, all I could think of was a shaker card so that's what I made.


The background is a white embossed panel that I watercolored over using Distress Inks.  The stamped sentiment is stamped onto the card base inside the shaker element.  The die-cut word is stuck on the card front and over the acetate.


I filled the inside with a mixture of blue, green and clear sequins and in hindsight, I wish I'd stuck with clear as the colored sequins make it a bit harder to read the sentiment.  But there was no way I was pulling it apart, so the colored sequins stay!

Thanks for visiting.  Be sure to visit the rest of the design team and see how they've interpreted the sketch.  They'll impress you for sure!

Products used:

Stamps:  Garland Bold Prints (Hero Arts), Awesome (Neat & Tangled)
Ink:  Black Licorice Hybrid, Blueprint Sketch, Mermaid Lagoon, Cracked Pistachio, Versamark
Cardstock:  White, Watercolor, Black, Acetate
Dies:  Inside Out Stitched Circles, Blueprints 24 (MFT), Awesome (Neat & Tangled)
Accessories:  White EP, sequins

Cheers
Karren

New Arrival

Hi and welcome to SugarPea Designs Challenge Day!  And here's this week's challenge.


Now I have to admit to taking a few liberties with the sketch this week and used stork legs for the flags :)


My nephew and his girlfriend became parents a couple of weeks ago and I needed a baby card.  What better set to use than the adorable Bundle of Joy.  I stamped and colored the stork and baby and paper-pieced the cloth the baby is in.  I then fussy cut the image out (and believe me, fussy-cutting round those legs was fiddly!

I cut a Soft Stone card base and stamped the sentiment, adhered some patterned paper to the top and colored a shadow where the stork would be.  Finally I adhered the stork and his precious bundle to the card.  The wee heart was colored with clear Wink of Stella for a little bit of shimmer.





And don't forget, SugarPea Designs are having a sale this week, so get in and grab a bargain!


Thanks for visiting!
Here are the guidelines to join in our challenge:

  • Create a new card or project using the sketch provided.
  • SugarPea Designs stamps are NOT required to play along or to win but would be appreciated :)
  • You may rotate/flip the sketch & replace shapes – so long as the original sketch layout is recognizable.
  • Upload to your blog or other Online Gallery using Keyword: SPDMIU9 so that we may check out your beautiful work.
  • One randomly selected winner will receive a $25 Gift Certificate to the SugarPea Designs store. However, if the winning entry features a SugarPea Designs stamp we will increase the prize to $50!
  • We will announce our Main Winner at the end of each month.
  • The more times you play along during the month, the better chance you have of winning!
Be sure to visit the rest of the design team - they have some wonderful inspiration for you:





I'm linking this up to Just Add Ink who have a paper piecing challenge this week and the Welcome theme at Addicted to CAS.

 photo badge1_zpse398c447.jpg



Products used:

Stamps:  Bundle of Joy (SugarPea Designs)
Ink:  Black Licorice Hybrid
Cardstock:  Soft Stone (PTI), X-Press It, Homespun Gingham Patterned Paper (MFT)
Accessories:  Copics, Wink of Stella

Cheers

Tuesday 26 July 2016

Birthday Bunny

Hi and welcome!  I'm down to the wire tonight, getting my card posted before the MFT Sketch Challenge closes.  I also used the colors from the MFT Color Challenge and that closes in a day or so.   I'm also linking up to the Texture challenge at Simon Says Stamp.  I don't do texture like the beautiful examples from the design team, but my stenciling adds a nice texture to the background of my card.  My card also meets the Make a Birthday Card challenge at Can You Case It.


 I actually had this card pretty much made on the weekend, but had to assemble it, which I did tonight.  I used the adorable Snuggle Bunnies stamp set, as well as Sweet Birthday Wishes for the balloons and The Whole Herd for the sentiment.  The bunny and balloons were colored with Copics and the Nightshift Blue card base was stenciled with the Large Grid stencil and some translucent embossing paste.


I think this card would be quite suitable for a young boy, so I left off any sequins and embellishments.

Thanks for visiting.



Simon Monday Challenge Blog

CYCI#130 FS

Products used:

Stamps:  Snuggle Bunnies, The Whole Herd, Sweet Birthday Wishes (MFT)
Ink:  Black Licorice Hybrid, Versamark
Cardstock:  White, X-Press It, Nightshift Blue, Poppy, Blu Raspberry
Dies:  Snuggle Bunnies, Sweet Birthday Wishes, Blueprints 29, Inside Out Stitched Rectangles, Stitched Fishtail Flag Stax
Accessories:  Large Grid Stencil (MFT), Translucent Embossing Paste, Copics, White EP, white gel pen

Cheers
Karren

Saturday 23 July 2016

Bold Blooms

Today's card was made using the inspiration at Muse as well as the beautiful colors at Color Throwdown.


From Jenni's gorgeous card, I took inspiration from the layout, the black sentiment and the floral arrangement.

I was lucky enough to win a $25 gift certificate to Winnie & Walter in the last Coffee Lovers' Bog Hop and I put that towards the Addie's Garden stamps and dies and today was their first outing.  I colored the flowers using the CTD colors, leaving the blue for the sponged background.  The card base is white and I used a Soft Stone layer, cut with Blueprints 14.  The white circle was cut with Inside Out Circle dies and the sentiment comes from CASual Fridays.



The flowers and leaves were generously painted with Wink of Stella as a finishing touch, which you can see in this next photo.




Thanks for visiting.



Products used:

Stamps:  In Bloom:  Addie's Garden (Winnie & Walter), Mon Ami (CASual Fridays)
Ink:  Black Licorice Hybrid, Broken China
Cardstock:  White, Soft Stone (PTI), X-Press It
Dies:  Inside Out Circles, Blueprints 14 (MFT)
Accessories:  Copics, Wink of Stella

Cheers
Karren

Edited to Add:  This card got a shout out at Muse.

Friday 22 July 2016

Congratulations

Hi and welcome!  Today's card was made with the repetition theme at Less is More in mind.  I also went with the "No Patterned Paper" theme at Cardz for Galz (easy for me!) and the gorgeous inspiration pic at Time Out, where I was drawn to the neutral tones with pops of black and color.  I love that inspiration photo so much that I might be back with a second card at some stage :)


I die-cut the Bed of Roses cover plate by Essentials by Ellen from white cardstock and adhered it to a Soft Stone card base.  From there I adhered a white-embossed banner and placed some lilac enamel dots.


Thanks for visiting.



Our blog badge

Products used:

Stamps:  Oh Happy Day (Avery Elle)
Ink:  Versamark
Cardstock:  White, Black, Soft Stone (PTI)
Dies:  Bed of Roses (Essentials by Ellen)
Accessories:  Enamel Dots

Cheers
Karren

Wednesday 20 July 2016

Birthday Hearts

Welcome back to another fabulous challenge from SugarPea Designs!  This week we have a CAS sketch and a delicious inspiration photo.



I went with the sketch and let the patterned paper from Whatever the Weather do all the work!


I chose two patterns and separated them with a sliver of black cardstock.  For the sentiment, I used the incentive set Gift Greetings and die-cut it with Stitched Flags.  I then layered that slightly offset onto a black flag and tied some pink baker's twine around the end.  A few sequins and my card was finished.



Thanks for visiting!
Here are the guidelines to join in our challenge:

  • Create a new card or project using the sketch provided.
  • SugarPea Designs stamps are NOT required to play along or to win but would be appreciated :)
  • You may rotate/flip the sketch & replace shapes – so long as the original sketch layout is recognizable.
  • Upload to your blog or other Online Gallery using Keyword: SPDMIU8 so that we may check out your beautiful work.
  • One randomly selected winner will receive a $25 Gift Certificate to the SugarPea Designs store. However, if the winning entry features a SugarPea Designs stamp we will increase the prize to $50!
  • We will announce our Main Winner at the end of each month.
  • The more times you play along during the month, the better chance you have of winning!
Be sure to visit the rest of the design team - they have some wonderful inspiration for you:





I'm entering this into the current Seize The Birthday Challenge, where the toppings are Bold & Bright - I'm pretty sure this card qualifies :)


Products used:

Stamps:  Gift Greetings
Ink:  Black Licorice Hybrid
Cardstock:  White, black, Whatever the Weather Patterned Paper Pack
Dies:  Stitched Flags
Accessories:  Twine, Sequins

Cheers
Karren

Pretty Bouquet

Hi and welcome to challenge day at Freshly Made Sketches.  This week our hostess is the fabulous Rita Wright and she has a wonderful sketch for us.


And here's my card inspired by the sketch and by Donna's gorgeous tag at Tag You're It:


I spritzed some Heidi Swapp color spray onto a die-cut tag and set it aside to dry.  Then I stamped some images from Peony Bouquet.  Some dotted washi tape was wrapped around the tag and I then arranged my flowers to the left as in the sketch.  I wanted a thin and long sentiment and found the perfect one in a PTI KIS set.  Lastly I tied a bow from some black twine.


Thanks for visiting.  The rest of the design team have some wonderful cards so be sure to check them out.



Products used:

Stamps:  Peony Bouquet (Altenew), KIS Just Because (PTI)
Ink: Moon Rock, Velvet, Rouge, Blush, Forest Glades, Frayed Leaf (Altenew), Versamark
Cardstock:  White, Black
Dies:  Peony Bouquet (Altenew), Fishtail Flag Stax, Tag You're It, Blueprints 24 (MFT)
Accessories:  Teal Color Shine (Heidi Swapp), twine, washi

Cheers
Karren

Tuesday 19 July 2016

Triangular Celebrations

And here's my final card for this session of Camp Create!  It's always a challenge for me to make so many cards in one week but I did it!  For my final card, I've stuck pretty closely to Laurie's example of masking and used a mask of a cover plate to come up with my card.  I'm linking up to Sunday Stamps who have a color challenge and I've tried to match to three of the colors over there.


I die-cut the mask from Inkadinkado Masking Paper and adhered it to a white card base.  Once that was in place, I sponged over it with Scattered Straw, Twisted Citron and Spiced Marmalade.  Then I splattered some Rusty Hinge ink over top before removing the mask.

I die-cut the 'celebrate' word from the sponged piece and then adhered three black die-cut words before replacing the top layer.

I finished the card with a few clear sequins.


Thanks for visiting.

Print


Products used:

Ink:  Scattered Straw, Twisted Citron, Spiced Marmalade, Wild Honey
Cardstock:  White black
Dies:  Celebratory Greetings, Triangle Screen (MFT)
Accessories:  Sequins

Cheers
Karren

Krafty Penguin

Hi and welcome!  Today's card is for Camp Create and involved coloring on kraft.  I have to admit that pencil coloring is not my forte because I just don't have the patience to get a really good finish.  Instead, I went for more of a sketchy look (for sketchy, read "lazy") and came up with this card.


I went with partial die-cutting and used Penguins in Paradise - love this set!  I colored the images with my Derwent Inktense pencils and then sponged some Tumbled Glass onto a white card base, which is hard to see in the photo.  The kraft panel is popped up on foam tape.


Thanks for visiting.
Print

Products used:

Stamps:  Penguins in Paradise (MFT)
Ink:  Black Licorice Hybrid, Tumbled Glass
Cardstock:  White, Kraft
Dies:  Penguins in Paradise (MFT)
Accessories:  Derwent Inktense Pencils

Cheers
Karren

Cool as You

Hi and welcome!  Today I'm thrilled to be a Guest Designer this week at City Crafter Challenge Blog.  The challenge is Typically Tropical and as I'm right in the middle of winter, it was nice to create something with a warm feel :)


And here's my card:


I used the adorable Penguins in Paradise set and created a little scene after sponging some "sand" and "sea" onto a white panel.  I used Copics for my coloring and also added some white gel pen dots on his towel.  The palm tree in the foreground as well as the penguin are popped up on foam tape.  For a different look, I positioned the panel in the bottom right hand corner of the card base.



Thanks for visiting!  And thanks to the team at City Crafter for inviting me to join them this week.  Head on over and check out the challenge and the fabulous inspiration from the DT.


I'm also entering this into the Tropical theme at Cupcake Inspirations Challenge and the stash challenge at AAA Cards.  My absolute favorite thing to use is my Copic marker collection, followed closely by my distress inks - both of which are featured here.

Products used:

Stamps:  Penguins in Paradise (MFT)
Ink:  Black Licorice Hybrid (MFT), Brushed Corduroy, Salty Ocean (Distress)
Cardstock:  White, X-Press It
Dies:  Penguins in Paradise
Accessories:  Copics, white gel pen

Cheers
Karren