A Little Rusty ~ Retro Sketches Challenge #121

I am obsessed with anything rusty. I'm a junk collector so the rustier the better! I was totally inspired today while surfing Pinterest. The colors are absolutely gorgeous. I love how they contrast and compliment each other. So, I set out on a mission to create my own rusty card.

Here's my Inspiration...

The sketch came from Retro Sketches for challenge #121. It's a fun one that really worked well for this card. 

Here's the Sketch!

My initial idea was to make a gate with rusty hardware, but it didn't exactly turn the way I had it pictured in my head. I just plain ran out of room for hinges. Oh well, I really like the way the coloring turned out. I hope you like it too!

Here's my Creation!

Supplies Used:

Cardstock ~ Early Espresso, Baked Brown Sugar, Sahara Sand, Whisper White, Cajun Craze

Ink ~ Soft Suede, Baked Brown Sugar, Sahara Sand, Cajun Craze, Tangelo Twist, Hello Honey, Coastal Cabana, Bermuda Bay, Tempting Turquoise, Soft Sky, Early Espresso

Stamp Sets ~ Hardwood, Chalk Talk, Gorgeous Grunge

Tools/Other Supplies ~ Sponges, Big Shot, Circle Framelits, Chalk Talk Framelits, 1/4" Circle punch, Paper Trimmer, Paper Snips, 1 1/4" Circle Punch, 1/2" Circle Punch, Paper Piercing Tool, Piercing Mat, Liquid Adhesive, Dimensionals

Embellishments ~ Antique Brads, misc. brads

Stylin' Stampin' INKspiration ~ Memorial Day

Happy Memorial Day!

Soldiers gave their lives - Enormous price for freedom - Gray clouds in morning

Memorial Day marks the unofficial beginning of summer with a long weekend of barbecues, fun and friends but we should all take a few moments to remember the real meaning of Memorial Day. I am truly blessed to call this country mine. All because of them. To all the men and women that have fought bravely for our country. Thank you, and God Bless!

Today at Stylin' Stampin' INKspiration we are celebrating Memorial Day by sharing our own creations. Make sure to stop by to check out some wonderful work!

I am a total fan of the {Hardwood} stamp. I think it will be one of my all-time favorites. I am also a fan of the chevron stripe. I've been wanting to decorate a wall in my living room with barn wood in this design. Since that project requires the help of one busy hubby, I decided to make my own on paper. I am in love with the way this turned out. I hope you like it too!

Supplies

Cardstock ~ Real Red, Very Vanilla, Soft Suede

Ink ~ Real Red, Night of Navy, Baked Brown Sugar, Crumb Cake, Soft Suede, Early Espresso

Stamp Sets ~ Hardwood, Chalk Talk, Everything Eleanor

Tools ~ Paper Trimmer, Paper Snips, Ruler, Sponges, Dimensionals, Anywhere Glue Sticks, Glue Dots, Liquid Glue

Embellishments ~ Denim Ribbon, Basic Metal Buttons, String

Emboss it!

Today at Stylin' Stampin' INKspiration, we're focusing on Embossing. I love heat embossing and I love texture embossing. So, I decided to do both for this card. 

I'm in SPRING mode. I can't wait for green grass, flowers and sunny skies! I just love this new little stamp set {Petite Petals} from the Stampin' Up! Occasions catalog. There is also a coordinating punch to go with it. This was perfect for this card!

I got to try the {Stained Glass} technique for this card. I've never done it before, so it was a little challenging, but once I figured it out, I was on FIRE! 

Stained Glass Technique:

1. Stamp the image onto Vellum with VersaMark. 

2. Emboss with White Embossing powder and a heat gun. 

3. Punch the image out. 

4. Turn the image over and sponge/color the back side with ink or markers. 

* To make the stained glass flowers really pop, I backed them with white cardstock.

Supplies

Cardstock ~ sahara sand, whisper white

Ink ~ strawberry slush, pumpkin pie, lucky limeade

Stamp Sets ~ chalk talk, petite petals, everything eleanor

Tools ~ paper trimmer, paper snips, petite petals flower punch, arrows embossing folder, dimensionals, anywhere glue stick, glue dots, 1 1/4" circle punch, white emboss powder, heat gun, vellum, corner punch

Embellishments ~ pink yarn

Chalk Talk

$18.95

Everything Eleanor Clear-Mount Stamp Set

$26.95

Petite Petals

$11.95

Petite Petals Punch

$12.95

Arrows Textured Impressions Embossing Folder

$7.95

3/16 Inch Corner Punch

$6.95

Heat Tool

$29.95

White Stampin' Emboss Powder

$4.75

White Vellum 8-1/2X11 Card Stock

$6.50

Blender Pens

$9.95

Table by StampinBuddy. Try it FREE.

Bokeh Burst

Bokeh just happens to be my current favorite effect for photos. SO CUTE! So, I decided to create my own Bokeh patterned card. Since Valentine's Day is right around the corner, it's perfect!

Supplies

Cardstock ~ basic black, very vanilla, strawberry slush

DSP ~ first edition (sadly retired)

Ink ~ strawberry slush, pumpkin pie, basic black

Stamp Sets ~ hearts a flutter, banner blast, lovely little labels

Tools ~ paper trimmer, paper snips, dimensionals, glue, SU markers, chalk talk framelits, hearts a flutter framelits, small heart punch, chalk marker, sponges

Fascinating Feathers ~ My infactuation

Today has been a long day. Shuttling kids to and from school, doctors appointments, moving hay, cleaning house, feeding critters, homework and dinner. To say the least, this week is catching up to me in a hurry. Come on Friday! Despite being totally exhausted, I decided to sneak to my She-Cave. I was only going to tidy things up, but I got sidetracked and fell into some stamps and ink. Oops! I don't know how that happened!

I think I am on a new kick. After making yesterday's card, I am hooked on a Southwestern theme. What better to show that off than wood, arrows, and feathers? I wanted to go with softer, more subtle colors, so I chose Sahara Sand and Soft Sky. I know that the Soda Pop Tops are retired, but I stockpiled them and need to use them. Besides, they're pretty amazing! I really like how this turned out. It is masculine enough for the manly man in my life, but it's also soft enough for any occasion. SCORE!

Supplies

Cardstock > Soft Suede, Crumb Cake, Sahara Sand, Whisper White

Ink > Sahara Sand, Crumb Cake, Soft Suede, Soft Sky, Basic Gray

Stamp Sets > Hardwood, Perfect Pennants, That's the Ticket, Peachy Keen, Off the Grid, Chalk Talk

Tools > Distress tool, paper snips, paper trimmer, Ticket Duo Builder punch, 1" circle punch, Dimensionals, adhesive, sponge daubers

Embellishments > Soda Pop Tops (retired), thread, Natural Chevron Ribbon

Finished Size: 4" x 5 1/2"

Stylin' Stampin' INKspiration Birthday card! A Sweet Sorbet Birthday

Today at Stylin' Stampin' INKspiration, we're highlighting Birthday cards! So, I decided to do something OUT of my comfort zone. A clean card. No distressing, no aging, no antiquing. Just clean lines. I'm quite surprised that I really like it! I am totally in {love}with the new Sweet Sorbet Designer series paper. It's available in the SALE-A-BRATION catalog from Stampin' Up! This paper just SCREAMED Happy Birthday to me. I'm also completely obsessed with the new stamp sets that are available in the Occasions catalog. Especially all of the amazing arrows! 

Take a quick minute and stop by Stylin' Stampin' INKspiration to check out some amazing Birthday cards!

{inside}

Supplies

Cardstock ~ Crisp Cantaloupe, Pool Party, Summer Starfruit, Basic Black, Whisper White

Designer Series Paper ~ Sweet Sorbet

Ink/Markers ~ Sahara Sand, Pool Party, Crisp Cantaloupe, Basic Black, Summer Starfruit, Chalk marker, Whisper White Craft ink

Stamp Sets ~ Peachy Keen, Geometrical, Hello Lovely, Chalk Talk

Tools ~ Chalk Talk Framelits, Artisan Label Punch, Stampin' Up! paper snips, Dimensionals, Sponge daubers

1. Using the Artisan Label punch, punch out two shapes and glue them together 

2. Cut out your pieces

Crisp Cantaloupe ~ 5 1/2 x 8 (makes a 4 x 5 1/2" card)

Pool Party ~ 3 7/8 x 5 5/8"

Sweet Sorbet DSP ~ 3 3/4" x 5 1/4"

Pool Party (strip) ~ 1 1/2" x 3 7/8"

Basic Black ~ 2 3/4" x 3 3/4"

3. Chalkboard effect ~ Using Whisper White craft ink and a sponge dauber, lightly swirl ink onto the cardstock. Smudge until smooth. Draw dotted line around the outside with the new Chalk marker.

4. Stamp arrows from Geometrical stamp set in Sahara Sand in opposite directions.

5. Stamp arrows from Peechy Keen and Hello Lovely in Crisp Cantaloupe and Pool Party and cut out with paper snips.

6. Stamp the "Happy Big Day" form the Chalk Talk stamp set in Summer Starfruit and cut out with paper snips. 

7. Using the Chevron stamp from the Geometrical stamp set, stamp with Whisper White craft ink onto the chalkboard. I used my Stamp-a-ma-jig to line them up perfectly. 

8. Assemble your card. Use Dimensionals underneath the "Happy Big Day" piece and the two arrows. You can just glue them on if you'd like, but this adds a little depth to the card. 

{Inside}

1. Cut Summer Starfruit cardstock to 3 7/8 x 5 5/8"

2. Cut Whisper White cardstock to 3 3/4" x 5 1/4"

3. Lightly stamp arrows from the Geometrical stamp set around the outside of the Whisper White piece.

4. Stamp "Hooray for Today" from the Geometrical stamp set in Basic Black. 

5. Stand back and smile, you did a fabulous job!

I hope you've found this helpful. I've noticed that I get so wrapped up in the project that I forget to take photos along the way. Let me know if you have any questions and I will gladly help you out. Thanks for stopping by!

Merry Christmas Money Card

Who doesn't love money? That's pretty much my standard gift. Little to no thinking involved, no Black Friday nonsense, everyone loves it, and it's always appreciated. But, I can't just hand over a wad of cash, right? Well, I could but that would be boring. So, I made a cute little card to hold it.

Supplies:

Cardstock ~ Basic Grey, Wisteria Wonder, Smoky Slate

Ink ~ Smoky Slate, So Saffron, StazOn White, Wisteria Wonder

Stamp Sets ~ Beautifully Baroque, Gorgeous Grunge, Chalk Talk

Embellishments ~ Rhinestones Basic Jewels, Stampin' Up! Shaker Frames, 

white linen fabric, tule, snow glitter

*I rolled So Saffron ink onto the white linen fabric with the Brayer tool. 

A Gift for Grandma

Here is another set of cards that I'm giving as a gift for Christmas. I love how these little boxes turned out. They are so simple! They're perfect for heavily embellished cards too! Though they're extremely time consuming, they're SO worth it! I think it totally completes this gift. No wrapping required!

Supplies:

Cardstock ~ Early Espresso, Real Red, Whisper White, Very Vanilla, Early Espresso Core'dinations

DSP ~ Ooops it's retired, Sorry!

Ink ~ Real Red, Early Espresso

Stamp sets ~ Everything Eleanor, Chalk Talk, Postage Collection

Embellishments ~ Pearls Basic Jewels, Soda Pop Tops (retired), cream colored satin ribbon

Flyin' High

I recently was asked to join a fun little blog called SSINKspiration. It's a group of very talented Stampin' Up! ladies. I'm excited to see where this takes my creativity and I'm excited to meet all these wonderful gals. My first project for January (I'm not officially a member until January 1st so I'm jumping the gun a little) is a Color Challenge. It was a nice change of pace in the midst of the Christmas rush. 

The colors for this challenge are: Primrose Petals, So Saffron and Bermuda Bay.

Sketch is from Retro Sketches, challenge #94

I'm obsessed with feathers. I think they're fabulous. I created these by drawing them by hand onto Stampin' Up! cardstock, then cutting them out. Then I sponged White StazOn around the edges and cut the fringe with my scissors. Finally I added a little detail with my Stampin' Up! markers to give it a little more dimension. I got my inspiration from Stampin' Up! Fine Feathers. Boy do I love this! Was it time consuming? Yes. Was it worth it? Yes! 

Supplies:

Cardstock ~ Bermuda Bay, Primrose Petals, So Saffron, Baked Brown Sugar, Whisper White

Ink ~ Bermuda Bay, Primrose Petals, So Saffron, Baked Brown Sugar, White StazOn

Stamp Sets ~ Gorgeous Grunge, Chalk Talk

Embellishments ~ Antique Brads, Crochet Ribbon

Trouble Again

There's trouble again. No, this time it's not my 4 year old. It's SU's New Toil and Trouble stamp set. I LOVE this set. If you know me, you know I love skulls. I had a lot of fun putting this card together. I originally created it for Retro Sketches's latest challenge. I'm still going to enter it, but I'm not sure I really kept to the sketch. Funny how that happens. Oops!

Supplies

Paper ~ Bravo Burgundy, Baked Brown Sugar, Basic Black, Very Vanilla, :Lucky Limeade

Ink ~ Early Espresso, Baked Brown Sugar, Bravo Burgundy, Lucky Limeade, Pumpkin Pie, 

Stamp Sets ~ Toil and Trouble, Chalk Talk, Oh Hello, Hello Lovely, Sketch Alphabet

Embellishments ~ Early Espresso embossing powder, Soda Pop Tops, Hemp Twine

*I also used a non-su miscellaneous alphabet stamp set