The Perfect Blend /NAC # 54

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Hey y'all. Happy Tuesday! I hope you had a good weekend, and that you're having a great week so far. :)

I don't know about you but I'm always so excited when Tuesday's come around because it means we have an all new challenge at Nacho Average Challenges. This week it's all about Color. Now if you're new to my blog, these are my least favorite challenges... there's just sooo many possibilities! However, I'm pretty excited with how today's card turned out. I kept it pretty clean and simple, well at least for me that is. There's not even a dimensional or a speck of glitter to be found anywhere, and here it is-

Here's the Color Challenge we have for you-

Great colors, don't you think? I started with a base of Soft Suede cut at 4 1/4 x 11 scored @ 5 1/2. I used my Stripes Embossing Folder and Big Shot to create the plaid design with the Pear Pizzazz and Island Indigo colors on a scrap of Very Vanilla c/s. The best way to do this is to use your Brayer to add your ink to your folder. Note I said the "best way." Yep, guess who couldn't find her brayer in all the packed supplies? I had to apply my ink directly from my pad to my folder. That kept my color from being applied evenly, which probably wouldn't have bothered too many people, but did you notice the title of my blog? Obsessive-Compulsive. However, I'm going to go with the fact that most plaids are not uniform in color... that's my story and I'm sticking with it. I mounted my new plaid background on a piece of Pear Pizzazz c/s. I actually think this could also be a really feminine card as well with a lighter base, but since I couldn't find my brayer, it was just taking a little more time than I had to give with the move prep to try and make a second "feminine" version. Perhaps once the move is finished. Oh and in case you were wondering, I inked the word Coffee up with my Soft Suede Stampin' Write Marker and used my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig so I could stamp it 3 times on the label.

Most of you know I love pretty insides, so you know I had to do something there too, right? Here's what I came up with-

If you had told me I would ever have liked a set with the word "Grunge" in it, I would have told you that you were crazy! Even when we found out we were getting the Gorgeous Grunge set as one of our Free Convention Sets, I wasn't quite convinced about it, but I have to say, I'm a Believer! It was perfect for the coffee splatters here. :)  And, how about that coffee cup ring? I used the lid to one of my embossing powders? I don't remember who I first saw that trick with, I think it was Ms. Lee Conroy, but how  great is it with this set!?!

Well, that's all I have for you today. I hope you liked my card and I sure hope you'll come play with us and give this week's challenge a try. I can't wait to see what you come up with! If you have questions about today's card, leave me a comment below and I'll be sure to get back to you.

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated. Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,

Shan

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Tape It for NAC #51

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Hey y'all. Happy Saturday! I hope you're having a great weekend. It's Saturday night and because I'm a slacker that means it's time for another Nacho Average Challenge card. I miss the days when I got to stamp and blog every day.  Today's card has lots of new products to show you, hope you enjoy. Here's this week's NAC challenge card-

I have to say that I'm so happy with how this turned out! Everything is new with the exception of the Whisper White cardstock and the Stripes E.F. Aren't the colors Yummy!?! They're the new 2013-2015 In-Colors. I started with a base of Coastal Cabana. I then created the banners using the other colors- Baked brown Sugar, Crisp Cantaloupe, Strawberry Slush and Pistachio Pudding. Most of you know I hate mixing and matching colors and patterns because I never feel like I do a good job of it. I really stepped out of my comfort zone for today's card and I'm glad I did. :) The patterns on the banners are from the stamp set Tape It. They look like Washi Tape, you just can't tell on here because I flagged the ends. This set was on my must have list and in my first catalog order. Love it!!! The greeting is from the Really Good Greetings set. I am loving all the good sentiment stamps in this year's catalog. How about that ribbon? It soft and stretchy and just all around fabulous. I saw it at this year's Baltimore Regional and new I was going to be getting all of them.

Here's the sketch I was working with-

I changed it up just a little. What a great sketch though. I know I will definitely be using it again and soon. You know I like to have pretty insides too so here's what I came up with-

I stamped my sentiment from Oh Hello in Coastal Cabana onto a piece of Whisper White c/s that I ran through the Big Shot with my New Deco Labels Framelets and my new Magnetic platform. How inspired is that Magnetic Platform? Uh, the answer to that would be, So Inspired!!! I stamped a different pattern from the Tape It set and used those pieces to "tape down" my cut-out piece. Two WOW little factoids for those of you that know me- 1- I stamped my sentiment after I ran the c/s through the Big Shot and I did it without using my S-A-M-J. 2- As hard as it was for me I didn't obsess about the "tape" being in exactly the same place on all 4 corners. I know you're now asking yourself if I really made this card, but I did. :) Baby Steps...

I forgot to add a picture of my sweet little Nacho last week so I've got something a little different this week. I don't know if you watched The Voice this season or not but I was so excited to see little Danielle Bradberry win! Someone else found their voice this week, 3 guesses who and the first 2 don't count. My little Nacho discovered her voice this week and she's telling all sorts of stories to anyone who'll listen. That is except to me when we Face-Time. Silly girl just sits there and smiles and tries to grab me and then cries when I sign off. Lucky for me her sweet momma got some video for me or I wouldn't believe it. Here she is-

Well, that's all I have for you today. I hope you liked my card and that it inspires you to let loose and have some fun. If you liked today's card or have questions, I hope you'll leave me a comment below. I love hearing from you and your comments really so make my day. If you'd like to +1 or Pin it, I've put those buttons on my blog for your convenience. Friends and Followers are always welcome too!

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated! Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,

Shan

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Lovely As A Tree / NAC#19 / My Challenge #46

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Hey y'all. Happy Thursday! I hope you're having a great day and an Amazing week! Have you missed me? I have missed y'all, something awful! I've been so busy with my new job, I just haven't had time to do much of anything. I think I'm going to have start doing all but my NAC challenges on the weekend and then scheduling them to post. I just hate the thought of that though because then it doesn't feel as personal. I'm gonna figure something out though, I promise!

Did you order stamps during our one day Spectacular? I did and Mr. Ups brought them to my house on Monday. Love that guy! One of the sets I got was Lovely as a Tree? Do you have it? It's only the longest running set in Stampin' Up's catalog. Well, I finally got it. I think it's very pretty and great for masculine cards but I just kept putting it off. I sure hope they don't discontinue it in the next catalog!!!

Whenever I get new sets, I try to use them before I use any of my other sets. With the exception of that poor Make a Monster set, I'm pretty good about doing this. SMH. At any rate, I thought it would go great with this week's challenge over at Nacho Average Challenge. Have you been there yet? If not, you really should check them out. They have a great design team and great challenges every week. I haven't missed one yet. :) Here's what I came up with for this week's challenge-

Masculine Card featuring
Lovely as a Tree

Can I tell you how long it took me to do this card? I knew what I wanted to do, it was just the DSP selection and trying to figure out how to layer them. I bet I spent at least 45 minutes figuring this card front out. In the end though, I was really happy with how it turned out. :)

Here's the sketch I was working with-

 What do you think? I think it ended up being a pretty good take on the sketch. Here's a close-up of my focal point-

I used DSP from the color stack pack for the lower pieces. They were cut out with the 3rd smallest Window's Framelet. I sponged the edges with Soft Suede adhered them with Tombow to my base of Crumb Cake and then trimmed the edges. Next I cut a scrap of Soft Suede c/s with the same size framelet and then ran it through my Big Shot in my Stripes Embossing Folder. This was adhered with Tombow over the the other 2 pieces. I also sponged Soft Suede over the raised stripes to make the embossing stand out even more. It's hard to see in the picture but it really made a big difference. I love that something so simple can make such a big impact. My image was colored with Always Artichoke and Soft Suede. I stamped the Always Artichoke off once before adding the Soft Suede ink and then stamping it on Very Vanilla c/s. This was also then sponged to add a little depth. This piece was adhered with some Dimensionals.

Here's the inside-

The sentiment is from Teeny Tiny Wishes. I really don't know how I made it this long without that set! The acorn & leaf image is also from the Lovely as a Tree set. I colored it with my Old Olive SU marker and then "tap-danced" Cajun Craze and More Mustard over it. The base of the limb & top of the acorn was colored in with Soft Suede and the bottom of the acorn with Crumb Cake. I then huffed on it and stamped it on a piece of V.V. c/s. Here's a closer look-

The edges were then sponged with more Soft Suede and my card was done. I'm so glad I finally got this set! Yea!!!

I hope you liked today's card and I hope the DT over at Nacho liked it too. I'll be back soon with the EWT for this week. Please don't give up on me, I'm gonna get this new job figured out and we'll be back on track soon. If you liked today's card or have any questions, I hope you'll take a moment to leave me a comment below. I read them all and they really do make my day! If you'd like to +1 or Pin today's card, I've put those buttons on my blog for your convenience. Friends and Followers are always welcome too!

Thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated! Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,
Shan

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End of the Week Technique #41 (A Two-Fer) Coloring/Un-Coloring Stamps / PP106

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Hey y'all. Happy Thursday to you! I hope you're having a fabulous week. Just one more day to go until the weekend. Yea!!!

I've got lots of pictures for you today, so I'm just gonna jump on in. :) This card didn't start out with the intent to be a EWT. In fact, I was looking through my reader this weekend to get some challenge ideas and decided on The Paper Players Challenge. I went down to the studio to make my card and had a little "oopsie". Well, you know what they like to say about stamping..."There's no mistakes just creative design opportunities. That's what happened here. Gotta say I love when that happens and you end up loving your creation.

Here's today's card-

Masculine Card featuring
Forever With You

I know I talked yesterday about the only card as hard for me to do as Sympathy cards were Masculine cards. Luckily as I was reading through my feeds, I saw this challenge over at The Paper Players and thought I would give it a try. I usually like a little more structure to my challenges, which is one reason I don't often do Color Challenges.

 I decided on the Masculine, Dry Embossing and Blue options. I really love this stamp set, but I think it's easy to make a beautiful, romantic card for a female with it and a little bit harder to make one that's masculine. You know...all those flowers. :)

I started with a base of Midnight Muse (Check, Blue). Next came a Crumb Cake layer that I embossed with my Stripes Embossing Folder and my Big Shot (Check, Dry Embossing). I gently sponged over this with some Crumb Cake Classic Ink to make the embossing stand out more. Oh, I used my new Windows Framelets to cut all of my layers out. I then decided to layer on a piece of DSP from the new Comfort Cafe Collection. Even though this piece has a floral element, I don't think it's frilly or feminine with this card so, I think it works. Oh I also ran it through my Big Shot with my Lattice E.F. and sponged over it with more C.C. (Check Blue and Dry Embossing). Hey this might not be so difficult after all. :) Or at least that's what I was thinking at the time.

For my focal point I decided to color in the stamp with my Stampin Write Markers. I guess I could have inked it up all in Midnight Muse for an even more "Masculine" look, but you know me, always adding a little something more. Coco Channel would be so disappointed. I used my Stampin Write Markers in Midnight Muse, Primrose Petals, Raspberry Ripple and Wild Wasabi to color in my image and stamped it on Whisper White c/s. You know this has really been a week where none of my cards have been created  easily and without some little Oopsie happening. Well, I went to mount it to the C.C. mat (I cut a piece of C.C. c/s with the same framelet twice, and  cut it so I could layer it behind my W.W. panel to give just a narrow mat instead of a wider one) and realized that I should have used Very Vanilla instead of W.W. AUGH!!!! It was def way to bright against that card. What to do, what to do? You know what to do here..... Think, Think, Think, say it in your best Pooh-Bear voice. Why, I know I'll just add some C.C. ink to it and make it look a little antiquey/vintagey. So definitely not my normal style, but I definitely didn't want to re-color that whole stamp again. So I swirled on some C.C. ink all over the image and c/s. I'm not sure why but some of the colors blended out with the C.C. ink too. I had even waited a while to do this. The M.M. blurred into the center and edges as well as the P.P and R.R around the stamped floral elements. I was not  happy at all, but the more I looked at it, I decided it looked like a really old element and that it went well with the card, so I decided to just go with it. Here's a close-up of the center element-

I think it looks almost like a label or something from an old card. I actually really like it. :) I adhered the C.C. mat to it with Tombow and then adhered that with Dimensionals. The other two layers are also adhered with Dimensionals.

Here's the inside-

Oooops! *EpicFail!* As I went to pull up a shot of the inside, I realized that I must not have taken one. *Headdesk* Oh well, as far as my usual insides go it was pretty boring. Definitely "masculine" with out frills or glimmer. I stamped "Love You" from the Bitty Banners Stamp set in M.M.onto a piece of V.V. c/s.  I inked it with my Stampin Write Markers so I was able to get just the words and not the frame around it. Oh and I sponged the edges too.

So what do you think? I think it fits the challenge requirements and is pretty cool too, even if it is all vintagey. Lol!

Now for today's technique. I know this is a very basic technique, but it's one that I use a lot. You can really change the look of a stamped image by doing this and create endless looks at the same time.

Here's what you'll need- Stamp set of your choice (This works best with line images or stamps with lots of detail), Markers of your choice (Of course I used S.U. because they're amazing and I never have to worry about them coordinating with my c/s or embellishments), Cardstock of your choice to stamp on and last but not least a Blender Pen.

Here's what you do, it's so crazy simple. Really it is, and speaking of this how cool is it that we can now color our stamps different colors in MDS? I know random thought. Sorry. :)
1- Choose the color you want for each different portion of your stamp and color directly on the stamp with that marker.
2- Continue to do this until your entire stamp is inked up. If you're using lighter colors just tilt your stamp around under the lights to see the color and make sure that everything is really inked up. It sure does stink if you forget this step and you have a beautiful image except for that one little spot. Ask me how I know!!! Your stamp  might not look the best at this point, but don't be a Scaredy Cat. Have a little Faith.

3- Once you've finished step 2, other sections of your stamp are probably dry, so you want to make sure you "huff" on your stamp to re-moisten everything. I usually huff a couple of times just to make sure I've got everything "huffed on". Then stamp your image onto your c/s. That's all there is to it. See I told you, Super Simple. I love the effects you can get doing this. What I really love is the look on the faces of my clients when they do this and see the beautiful images they get. This never fails to amaze!
4- Smile when you see your finished project and smile even more when you think about the smile it's going to bring to the face of it's recipient! I L.O.V.E. this part! : D

Oh did you think I forgot about my Blender Pen? Nope you get two Techniques today for the price of one. And since that price is FREE, What a Bargain!!! This second one was the "Main Idea" for today's technique, but since I figure there might be some "newbies" out there who happen to have stumbled upon my little blog somehow, I'd throw the first part in as well. Hey, there was a time when I had never heard of it either. :)

Here's how to turn an *@#%! into an YES! If you've ever tried this technique you have probably encountered one of those *@#%! moments where you coughed, sneezed, heck maybe you just blinked, or could be that the lines were really close together. For whatever reason, you colored out of, or off of your line.

This happened to me. I had colored in the entire center section and was outlining the outer rings when Mayhem struck. No, hes' not only in those insurance commercials (but don't you love him in those...so funny!) Any-whoo, I was almost done and BAM!!! (and not the Tasty, Emeril Lagasse kind of Bam!!! either). My hand slipped and I colored the tips of a few of my leaves Midnight Muse. Now on some of my colored images a little color sharing might be ok, but I was not having it for this one. Here's what I mean-

Sure wish I knew how to add in those handy little arrow pointers, right about now

Well let me just tell you- I was not in the mood to clean that entire stamp and start again. Now, I had heard that you could use your blender pens to "erase" these kinds of mistakes. Having never tried it for this (only on paper and it really doesn't work so well then, kinda like shutting the gate after the cows gone through it) I wasn't sure if it would work. Maybe it was one of those crazy Urban Legends. I figured it was worth a shot. What's the worst thing that could happen? It didn't work and I would have to start over again. I decided to take my chances and try-

Do you have any idea how hard it is to un-color your stamp
at the same time you are trying to photograph you un-coloring
your stamp with a B.B.?

Here's what you do-
1- Carefully swipe your Blender Pen over the misplaced ink until it's all removed. If your area is really big you may have to clean your blender pen at some point during your removal process. Mine was small so I didn't have to clean it till I was done.
2- Do a little *HappyDance* because you don't have to meticulously re-color your stamp.

Woo-Hoo!!! It worked. That Blender Pen just soaked up the color. It's just like touching the end on them on your ink-pads though (Not a good idea BTW! Ask me how I know.), you will really have to wipe it quite a bit to get it all out of your pen and on your scrap grid paper. But it will eventually come out and then you're stamp will look like this-

All clean and ready for the correct color to be applied. 

Well, that's all I have for you today. I hope you liked not only my card, but the techniques as well.  I really hope today's post inspires you to try something new today, whether it's a challenge or a technique or heck even something out of the crafting/designing realm. You know the motto here- Just try.

If you liked today's post or had questions about it, I'd love to hear from you. Feel free to leave me a comment. I read all of them and will be sure to get back to you. Your comments really do make my day! If you  would like to +1 or Pin today's card, I've put the buttons here on my blog for your convenience. Friends and Followers are always welcome too! :)

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are so appreciated! I hope to see you back here real soon for more fun projects or if you like...more excuses to smile and laugh at my mis-adventures. Till next time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,

Shan

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End of the Week Technique #35 - Brayered and Embossed Checkered Background

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Hey y'all. It's Friday! (Oh Noes! I just said that to my self and now that awful "It's Friday" song is swimming around my head on auto-repeat! Help, someone quick...ear-worm!!!! AUGH ):  ) Oh well, I hope your week's been great and I haven't just shared my ear-worm with you. LOL :)

I have a really simple technique for you today. It can go from a simple background to a Wow focal point, depending on your color combinations and other card elements. I probably see this technique once a month or so during my blog reads. I first tried it last fall, with my upline Robin, I think it was at a team meeting, on a holiday card. I thought I'd try it today on a fun, bright, baby card.

Here's today's card-

Brayered and Embossed Checkered Background Baby Card
with Easy Events Stamp Set

I showed this to a friend the other day and she just loved it. I started with a base of Certainly Celery. Next came my checkered background using Certainly Celery and Daffodil Delight. I knotted a piece of our new stitched ribbon in Daffodil Delight and secured the ends under the card with a little SNAIL. My sweet little ducky is popped up with dimensionals. So quick and easy!

Here's what you need for this technique- Brayer, Big Shot, Stripes Embossing Folder, Ink Pads (I used two colors but you can also use just one color for a more tone-on-tone look) and of course cardstock, your choice of colors, I used Whisper White.

Here are the steps-

1- Pick out your colors. I chose two, but like I said you could choose one and it would still give a nice effect. (I'll try to do this soon and post it.)

2- Ink up your brayer with the first color and roll it on the inside cover of your Stripes Embossing Folder (this is the side that has "Sizzix" written on it. Make sure that you have even coverage on all of the raised portions.

3- Position your c/s, wherever makes you happy in the folder. (I lined mine up with the top and side so everything my lines would be straight, but then you all know I'm a "little OCD" hahaha) Carefully Close it and run it through your Big-Shot. Remove your c/s. 

4- Re-ink your folder. If you're going to use the same color, go ahead and re-ink your brayer. If you're changing colors, rinse your brayer and embossing folder, tap water is fine, until the water runs clear. This won't take long. Dry both well, then re-ink your brayer with your new color and ink the folder again.

5- Turn your c/s 90 degrees (1/4 turn), position your c/s and run it through again. You will now have the checkered, or plaid look you see above. Because I used such a large piece of c/s it didn't get colored completely when I ran it through, so I just inked it up again and moved my c/s up making sure to line up with the previously embossed areas so my spacing stayed even.

6- Enjoy your new background or accent piece. Smile when you think of the joy and smiles it will bring to the face of your card's recipient. (Always the best part for me!)

***TIP*** You may want to try running a piece of your c/s dry through your Big Shot with this embossing folder first. You may need to adjust which platform level you use on with your machine. I did this with one tab down. If you look real close, you can see a little "wrinkling, for lack of a better word" in some of the white spaces. I think my machine is a little tight. Everyone's is different. Next time I will do it with no tabs. It's still a beautiful card, but the OCD in me wants it perfect of course. :)

Here's my sweet little ducky-

Easy Events Duck and Labels Framelet

How Stinkin' Cute is he?!? Love him. I stamped him in Staz-On  on a scrap of Whisper White c/s. If you look closely you can see the sentiment below him. I had actually intended for it to be seen, but my water turned out darker than I had planned. *blush* *SMH* Don't you love it when people post things that aren't "perfect" and then admit it?!? I know I sure do.  I used my second smallest Labels Framelet to cut him out. He fit perfectly. It makes me so happy when things work like that. I used my Blener Pends and Classic Ink Pads  to color. Here's what I used- So Saffron, Daffodil Delight, and Tangerine Tango for my little cutie-pie. Certainly Celery and Baja Breeze for the umbrella, Baja Breeze and Marina Mist for the hat and Marina Mist for the water. Once I had the water colored in though I realized I had made a little "Ooopsie" or as we like to say "I had created a design opportunity." What to do, what to do? Yep, I channeled my inner Pooh Bear. Think...Think...Think and not my inner Eyeore (Oh, Bother!) I had a lightbulb moment, love when those happen. Let Tink come out to play. Well I did and I think the results are fabulous. You can still make out the "for baby" if you look close, otherwise it just looks like extra shading in the water. "Thanks Tink!" 

Here's the inside-

The sentiment is from Petite Pairs. Seriously, if you only get one sentiment set, get this one. I use it all the time. I think it's probably one of my best stamp purchases. I actually mounted them both on the same block and stamped just one time. ***TIP***  If you do this, please make sure to do a test stamp on your grid paper (or other scrap paper) to ensure everything is lined up just like you want it. I got lucky and had it right the first time. Yea, Shan! My precious little froggy is from last year's Ronald McDonald set. It's retired now, but it wasn't when I made the card. I colored him in with Wild Wasabi, that was an In-Color when I first did Stampin' Up years ago. A little love from Tink and he's so handsome you just know he's really a prince.  If these two cute little fellas don't make you smile, well then I'm just at a loss.

So what do you think? I hope you liked today's card and I hope it inspires you to try something new. If you liked today's card and would like to +1 or Pin it, I've put the buttons on my sidebar for your convenience. Your comments always make me smile, so feel free to let me know what you think. Friends and Followers are always welcome too! :)

That's all I have for you today and for this week. I hope you'll come back and see me soon.
Thanks for stopping by. You are so appreciated. Till next time-

Wishing you a weekend filled with Family, Friends and of course lots of time for creativity.

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storm to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,
Shan

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Early Father's Day Card- Stampin 411 SSC #255 / My Challenge #21

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Hey y'all. Happy Tuesday! It's another rainy, gloomy day here in the DMV. At least it's not cold....glass half full and all that. :) I hope it's warm and sunny wherever you are.

It's time for this week's challenge card. I actually found a couple different ones that I liked this week but decided to go with this one over at Stampin 411. You can always count on them for a great sketch. I chose it because I thought it would provide a good frame for the focal point I had in mind.

Here's today's card-

Father's Day Card, Origami Shirt, SSC #225

I'm sooo happy with how this card turned out. I'm sure, like me, you've seen these little shirts everywhere. I've seen them in this size and in a bigger one too, but I love that this one is made with a piece of 4 x 6 cardstock so you can get 6 of these cute shirts out of one piece of DSP. Woot! I used the Letters to Santa DSP for mine. This was so easy! I'm definitely doing one for my upcoming Father's Day Stamp-Camp.

Want to know the hardest part about this card? Tying the paper "thread" I used on the buttons. I used my Paper Cutter to cut real thin strip of Bashful Blue c/s and threaded the button holes with it. I used the Mini-Buttons that SU sent me for free during one of their promotions. Love It! I oh-so, carefully tied it in the back and then Tombowed the ends up to the middle to secure it. A Mini-Glue Dot gave a little extra security and attached the buttons to my shirt-front.

Here's the Challenge Sketch I used for my inspiration-

Love this Sketch! I stuck pretty close to it too, even leaving the orientation the same. The only elements missing are the bow and the small pink layer which it seems like most people are interpreting as a ribbon layer. I just couldn't find a way to incorporate the bow and because my boxes were a little bigger than the sketch I left out the small pink layer. Hope the fine ladies over at Stampin 411 will think it fits. :)

So, if you've been following along with me at all, you probably know about my inability to mix and match DSP. *SMH* I tried with this, I really did! I had the other DSP's in this set out to use but just couldn't do it. So instead I added a lot of texture with my Embossing Folders. It's so funny, because I just now realized that the sketch incorporates the Stripes  and Lattice Folders. I almost used both but at the last minute decided to just stick with the Stripes. I did however use the folder to make a "plaid" background on my Certainly Celery panels that echos the plaid DSP on my shirt. I also used the Stripes Embossing Folder on my Bashful Blue layer at the bottom of my card-front.

I drew my colors directly from my DSP, only leaving out the Riding Hood Red. The base is Marina Mist, paired with Chocolate Chip, Bashful Blue, and Certainly Celery. I sponged the edges of my Whisper White piece with Bashful Blue. I also sponged this color over the stripes to make them stand out a little more. Some Certainly Celery sponged over those panels helped make the embossing "pop". I used Stampin Dimensionals on all of the center panels to elevate them. The Bashful Blue layer is Tombowed directly to the card-front.

Here's the inside-

How sad am I, that I had nothing special to put on the inside of my card? :'( There are some origami ties tutorials out there, I may have to try. If they're not too bulky, perhaps I can add one. I'm sure a guy wouldn't notice or be upset at the lack of a "little something extra" on the inside, but I sure do! I did sponge around the edge of my W.W. c/s for a little added dimension, but I just want more. The sentiment is from Teeny Tiny Wishes. I really don't know how I made it this long without that set and to think I was still reluctant to buy it. Silly Shan!

Well, that's all I have for you today. I hope you liked today's card and I hope it inspires you to try something new. Why don't you swing over to Stampin 411's page and play along too? If you liked today's card I hope you'll leave me a comment. I love hearing from you! Also, if you liked it, please feel free to +1 or Pin it. I've put the buttons on my sidebar for your convenience. Friends and Followers are always welcome too!

Till next time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,
Shan

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All "Packed For Baby" Boy Card

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Hey y'all. Happy Tuesday! I hope you're having a great week so far. It's cold here in the DMV but at least it's not raining (or snowing) today. :) I hope you're warm wherever you are.

Do you ever get something and know you want to use it but aren't sure just how you're going to use it? I hate when that happens! I've been trying real hard to only spend money on things I have a definite plan for, especially when it comes to stamps and supplies. I won't buy something just because it's "popular" or I think I should. So when the Packed for Everything set came out, I was intrigued and wanted to get it, but just wasn't sure what I would do with it. So, I decided I would wait a while. Then a great thing happened, I got it for FREE! Yep, I said Free. I won it for participating in a Stampin' Up event and Stampin' Up sent lots of it's demonstrators not one stamp but the whole bundle. How great is that? SU is an Amazing company and they really take care of their demonstrators.

Then all I had to do was come up with a way to use them. I've seen lots of cool cards with them, but I was still kind of stuck because although I could CASE someone else (please, with all the fabulous demonstrators out there, this would be so easy!) but I wanted to come up with something on my own. I finally came up with today's card. I made it almost a month ago, when I was getting cards ready for my two weeks off. Hard to believe I'm just now getting around to posting it!  I used a sketch challenge for my inspiration, I only wish I could remember which one. :( *Fail* I took it with me to the Open House I was at this weekend and it was the first card I ever sold. Thanks Holly!

Here's today's card-

Packed for Baby Card

I started with a base of Marina Mist which I ran through the Big Shot with my Stripes Embossing Folder (it's hard to see but if you look at the bottom center of the card you can see it). This is the first time I have used this folder. I got it for free during Sale-A-Bration this year. Did you get yours? Next I ran a piece of Whisper White c/s through with my Perfect Polka Dots Embossing folder. What will we do if they ever retire that folder? For the next layer I used an old background stamp I had lying around and created the dotted background with Baja Breeze Classic Ink. This was a small background stamp so I used my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig to help line everything up. I matted this on a piece of Marina Mist c/s and then secured a strip of Baja Breeze seam binding around it and raised this layer up with dimensionals. A Baja Breeze Bow completed this layer and I simply secured it with a Mini-Glue Dot.

For the main focal point I stamped my image in Basic Black and then colored in just a few of the images with  my Stampin Write markers. I used Marina Mist, Baja Breeze and Soft Sky for my blues. I love how all the blues coordinate even though they're so different. A little pink (I think it's Pink Pirouette) for the hearts  and piggy and some Daffodil Delight for that sweet little ducky and the coloring was done. I adhered it to another piece of Marina Mist c/s and popped that layer up with dimensionals as well and the front of my card was done. Oh, I'm sure you can tell I sponged all the elements with Marina Mist to add a little extra dimension and depth too.

Here's the inside-

I kept it really simple here. I stamped the sentiment in Marina Mist on a WW background and sponged the edges. The sentiment is either from Teeny Tiny Wishes or Easy Events. Sorry I can't remember which one they're both very similar. :(  Isn't the font just adorable though? I really need to not wait so long to post and then maybe I could remember these things. I inked just the cute little ducky from the stamp with my Basic Black Stampin Write Marker and then stamped him for my something extra, that you all know I love to do on the inside. A quick color with my markers and my card was done.

What do you think? I was pretty pleased with how it turned out and really happy when it sold!

Well that's all I have for you today. I hope you liked it and I hope it inspires you to grab one of those stamps you've been putting off using and give it a little love. :)

If you liked today's card, please feel free to leave me a comment. I love hearing form you. Also, if you'd like to +1 or Pin it, I've put the buttons on my sidebar for your convenience. Friends and Followers are always welcome too.

This set and the entire Packed for Everything bundle is in the current Occasions catalog and will be leaving on April 30th. If you want to get it or any of the single stamps in the set including the one I used for today's card, don't wait too long. You can shop for these stamps or other supplies in my ONLINE STORE 24/7.

I hope you'll come back soon and see what I have for you.

Till next time-

Remember- Life isn't about Waiting for the storm to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,
Shan

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