Peeking Pals

I'm a bit late to the show with this week's card for the CAS Colours & Sketches color challenge.  I got so busy that I forgot to take a photo of my card!  And I only take pictures at a certain time of day because of the natural light.  When I remembered it was too late.

Julie did challenge me  this week.  I just could not decide what to do and had very few ideas.  My first one went down in flames.  I had just received these dies in the mail and fully intended to use them on one card.  So I thought, why not make the backgrounds the challenge colors?

I originally blended the backgrounds from dark to light, but the solid really made the animals pop so I went that direction.  The sentiment is one from a pre-printed sentiment set at Simon Says Stamp.   They make it super easy.

Thanks for stopping by today.  I hope you will find time to join us at CC&S this week!

Products used:

• Dies: Simon Says Stamp Peeking Cat, Peeking Dog, Peeking Frog; MFT Stitched Rectangles
  
• Cardstock: Poppy Parade, Pacific Point, Just Jade
• Accessories: Simon Says Stamp Sentiment Strips

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Valentine Ladder Shaker

Ever have one of those cards that seems to take WAY more time than it should?  My card this evening is one of those.  It’s for the color challenge (Petal Pink, Poppy Parade and White) at Splitcoaststampers so the color choices were fixed.  First I couldn’t decide on the stamp set.  My first thought was the new set Mini Meows from My Favorite Things but I had at least 4 other sets on my desk that I looked at, thought about, and played around with.  And I finally ended up using Mini Meows.  Sigh.

Then it was design.  Again, I just couldn’t come up with what I wanted.  As I do when I need inspiration I checked out the MFT website and Pinterest.  I saw a similar design and coloring of the cats so I used those as my starting point.  I hit on making this a shaker card, that's where everything clicked and from there the process went fairly quickly (at least as fast as a shaker card can go.)

My cats are colored very simply.  I really love detailed coloring but every so often (and it’s happening more lately) I find that simple or flat coloring is what the card needs.  Here was one such occasion.

Engineering this card took some time.  I call this a “ladder shaker” because I wanted three individual shakers not one large one.  I cut a second “ladder” and glued my background squares behind it. 

I glued that to the card and attached my foam.  I had to be very careful to make sure there were no gaps. 

After that it was simple.  I guessed about right on the amount of shaker elements.  This can be the toughest decision in shakers because once you’ve attached the top there is no going back.  I try to err on the side of too much because too little isn’t much fun.  I wish I had a formula for you, but my basic method is “eyeball it!”

This card will be going to my youngest daughter for Valentine’s Day.

 

This is also for the NBUS challenge this month.  My Never-Been-Used-Schtuff? The Mini Meows stampset (just arrived!) and the Photo Booth Strip (had for ages).

Products used:

• Stamps and dies: MFT Mini Meows
• Dies: MFT Photo Booth Strip, MFT Basic Stitched Edges 2
  
• Markers: Copic W1, Stampin’ Blend Petal Pink Light
• Card stock / Paper: Whisper White, Subtles DSP (retired)
• Accessories: Stampin’ Up! From My Heart Faceted Gems

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Easy CAS Valentine's Day Card

The month has flown by!  It's my last week as hostess at CAS Colours & Sketches.  I have today a fun and QUICK card for the sketch challenge.

Here is my sketch:

This is card is very easy provided you have a stamping platform of some kind.  I used my Stamparatus so I could move the top plate, but any will do.  Just move the image.

I colored this with markers so I could get the stems in green and the hearts / flowers in red.  The sentiment is from a different stamp set but I felt it so appropriate - turning the ordinary flowers into hearts!

I hope you will find time to play along with us this week.

Products used:

• Stamps: Stampin' Up! Valentine Keepsakes, Simply Succulents
• Dies: MFT Stitched Rectangles
• Markers: Stampin' Write Real Red, Old Olive

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Dandy Day Card with Tips for using Solid Dies in a MISTI

My card this evening is for the color challenge at Splitcoaststampers.  Chris gave us Daffodil Delight, Smoky Slate and  Basic Gray with something that moves (vehicle or animal) for dessert.  A very contemporary and sophisticated combination.  However, my first thought was "school bus!"   After careful consideration I decided upon this image...

This adorable little mouse is part of MANY stamp sets from Lawn Fawn that I purchased and never used.  Mice are gray and I knew I had the coordinating paper in yellow, so it just followed!

I tried stenciling the clouds in Night of Navy ( a Stampin' Up neutral) but they were way too dark, so I used the Smoky Slate.  I decided it looks like a stormy sky so it works.

A tip on using the Curvy Banners dies and stamps.  The dies are solid so if you stamp first you really can't see if the die is properly placed, but if you cut first it is difficult to use a Misti when stamping the sentiment (too small to hold the banner in place with a magnet.)  To get around this, I placed a piece of paper in my Misti over the foam and used the magnet to hold it.  Then I used Tombow repositional  adhesive to hold down my banner instead of a magnet.  Worked like a charm!  This is a great way to stamp AFTER doing the die cut - especially on small pieces.

I have also entered this in the NBUS challenge - a great challenge to use those purchased-but-only-gathering-dust items we all seem to have!

 

Products used:

• Stamps and Dies: Lawn Fawn Dandy Day
• Dies: Lawn Fawn Wavy Banners, Outside In Scalloped Rectangle; MFT Stitched Scallop Circle Frames
• Paper / Cardstock:  Stampin' Up! Daffodil Delight, Whisper White, Neutrals DSP; Lawn Fawn Dandy Day Petite Pack
• Markers: Stampin' Blends Smoky Slate, Mossy Meadow Light; Copic markers N0, N1
• Ink: Basic Gray (sentiment), Smoky Slate
• Accessories: MFT Mini Cloud Stencil; Stampin' Up! Banners Pick a Punch
  

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Springtime Joy Wreath and Scan 'n Cut Tips

Today is the first challenge of 2021 for Team O at Tic Tac Toe Challenge!  Steph is our featured designer and she gave us some fantastic board elements to work with.

 I chose the right hand column down - pink, wreath and sparkle.

I decided to use the bunny from the Stampin' Up! set Springtime Joy.  I almost passed on this set because I don't make many Easter cards, but after thinking about it I decided the critters were pretty adorable (I do use cute critters A LOT) and could work for other occasions.  I am so happy I decided upon this set!  I combined it with the Arrange a Wreath dies (a die set I will keep forever) in a few soft shades of green and pink.  The bunny's flowered wreath looks perfect with the flowers in the die cut wreath.

Since there are no coordinating dies to the Springtime Joy set I figured I'd use my Scan 'n Cut to cut out the images.  I have a "craft area" not a craft room, so my Scan 'n Cut is put away until I need it and then set up in the kitchen. (Some day I hope to have a craft room!)  It seemed a waste of time to just cut one image so I colored a whole sheet of images.

A tip for using the Scan 'n Cut.  If you look closely, the outline is not solid in some places.  The machine needs a solid line to scan and cut correctly. Also, it seems to get confused by uncolored white interiors - like the one wreath I left empty for coloring later. To correct this, I used a pencil to complete the outlines and like filled in my bunny's wreath.  After everything was  cut I simple erased the pencil.

I hope you enjoyed my card today and will find time to join us in the challenge this week!

Products used:

• Stamps: Stampin' Up! Springtime Joy
• Dies: Stampin' Up! Arrange a Wreath, Simon Says Stamp Love You, The Stamps of Life Scalloped Rectangles
• Cardstock: Pink Pirouette, Blushing Bride, Rococo Rose, Soft Sea Foam, Pistachio Pudding, Whisper White
• Markers: for the bunnies and lambs - Copic markers W00, W0, W1, W2.  Wreaths various Copics and Stampin' Blends

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