It’s been awhile, hasn’t it?  I finally declared some “me time” with my stamps and it felt good!  I had fun playing with my new goodies from Crafty Secrets; isn’t this little rabbit adorable?  I think he’s supposed to be white, but I have a hard time leaving anything white!  I don’t think a little caramel ever hurt anyone! All images are from Crafty Secrets, including this beautiful patterned paper.  The paper was my inspiration, and I chose to pull the remaining colors for this card from it.  The vintage hat pin and beads are compliments of my grandmothers - thank goodness they save everything!  I think they’re the perfect touch for this card!  All of the sewing was started on my machine and then finished with a marker (after I got too frustrated with my breaking thread)!  Improvise, right? 

I’m going to be hostessing a bridal shower for my soon-to-be sister-in-law in early June and was inspired by Nichole Heady’s strawberry cards that she sent for everyone at the SCS IL Shoebox Swap in late March. If you haven’t already, be sure to check out more of Nichole’s handiwork at PaperTreyInk - such neat stuff! 

I made 16 of these for the fuschia and black-themed wedding. I think they are adorable! I love that the paper clip can be used beyond the shower - a practical memory of the day!

About the design: the polka dot paper is from Making Memories and the fun twinkle stickers in the center of each flower are from Amuse. All other supplies are from Stampin’ Up! including the Polka Dots and Petals stamp set I used to create these invites.

To recreate this card, cut and score at 5.5″ a 4.25 x 11″ piece of cardstock; fold to close.  Cut an alternate piece of cardstock to 3.5 x 4.25″ and score at 3″.  Holding your cardstock up, so that the fold is towards the surface you’re working on, affix the short side of your alternate cardstock to the back of the card; this creates a “flap” over the front of your card.  Punch an opening on the alternate card stock using your word window punch.  Place a small self-healing mat on the inside of your card and use a hobby blade to cut two small slits following the horizontal lines of the punched area to create your latch.  Weave your paperclip through the punched area and through the latch to close your card.

The tragedy at Virginia Tech has resonated with everyone, and I was glad to participate in the Color Combination Challenge at SplitCoastStampers.  This card will be sent to the family of one of the victims of that horrific event. 

About the design: Pumpkin Pie, Always Artichoke and Bravo Burgundy were the colors featured in this color challenge.  Pumpkin Pie isn’t may favorite color, so it was a challenge to incorporate it into this card without feeling like it was overdone.  I settled on the background panel stamped with Well-Worn Words in Pumpkin Pie Classic Ink on Pumpkin Pie cardstock.  The distressed edges are sponged with Bravo Burgundy Classic Ink as well.  This fresh vase of flowers is a new design from My Favorite Things.  These stamps are, no doubt, quickly becoming one of my favorite things!  The lines of the image are crisp and clean, and the images lend themselves to simple watercolor using an Aquapainter and Classic Ink reinkers. 

I decided to incorporate this week’s Technique Lover’s Challenge into this card as well by creating a Levi’s-inspired tab for the sentiment.  Such a simple, yet impactful, touch.   The card is finished with faux stitching and Print Pattern stamped on two opposite corners in Always Artichoke Classic Ink. Although certainly never enough, I hope this card is a bright spot in what will unfortunately be many dark days ahead for the victims’ families.

I’ve been inspired to try creating a patchwork card lately - and love how easily this one came together thanks to these vintage-looking papers from the Cape Town by Scenic Route line of designs.  My mom is an avid quilter so I’m planning to give this card to her for Mother’s Day.  A note about the design: this card is 5″ x 5.”  Sharon Johnson  is always inspiring me with her work, and I always think of her when I think of non-conventional card sizes and shapes.  The patchwork pieces are 1.5″ x 1.5″ and are outlined using narrow black rick rack - so fun and vintage-y!  The sentiment was created using Typeset Alphabet Lower and the To My Mom stamp from All Year Cheer from Stampin’ Up! and my Stamp-a-ma-jig.  The edges of the card base and sentiment circle are sponged using Creamy Caramel, So Saffron and More Mustard classic ink to mimic the look of the designer paper.

I created this card for last week’s Color Challenge and the prior week’s Sketch Challenge at SplitCoastStampers.  Just the inspiration I needed to create this birthday card!

The color challenge featured Elegant Eggplant, Rose Red and So Saffron this week.  Such a beautiful combination!  I decided to sponge the edges of each layer to help create a cohesive look.  I am particularly pleased with the flourish panel - how did I ever function without my Stamp-a-ma-jig?

It’s about time!