Puppy Love

Hi everyone.  I'm so happy with today's card ... it makes me smile. :)  I love the adorable images from Bugaboo ... and this is one of the seven free ones that I won recently.  I'm entering this into Bugaboo's January challenge - Anything Goes ... and SCS Technique Lover's Challenge (TLC411 - best of 2012), choose a past technique challenge from 2012.  I'm using the past challenge of TLC360 - Twine it up! ... include twine on your card.

As well, I thought this puppy and heart balloon were perfect for this week's Paper Players challenge (PP#127 - Love is in the air) ... and it literally is with the floating heart balloon :)  I even made my own designer paper!

Stamps:  Puppy Love - Balloon (Bugaboo); Word Salad (Paper Smooches)
Paper:  White (C.C. Designs); watercolor, Regal Rose polka-dot (SU!)
Ink:  Basic Black, Staz-on Black; Stampin' Write markers:  Crumb Cake, Soft Suede, Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose
Accessories & Tools:  blender pen, Pink Sorbet twine (The Twinery), adhesives, glue, and dimensionals

I created lines of 'XO' repeated on my computer and printed it onto Regal Rose polka-dot paper.  I used that for the strip at the bottom of the card front, inside strip and also printed the digital image (heart) onto it.

I printed the puppy onto watercolor paper and used SWM with blender pen to watercolor.  I cut him out and popped him up on the card front, attaching the end of the twine from the heart balloon to his tail.  So fun!!

Here's a close-up of the main image:

Birthday Bugs

Hi everyone.  This is my Design Team card for the latest Addicted to Stamps & More challenge - Theme #5 (Nature).

This week's sponsor is

Prize:  7 digital images 

 (please follow the rules of the challenge to be eligible to win)

Stamps:  SceneIt - Ladybugs (Bugaboo); Happiest Birthday Wishes (SU!)
Paper:  White (Neenah)
Ink:  Basic Black (SU!); Copics:  Y21, Y32, YR24, V09, V25, R27, R29, E44, E49, E77, G85, G99, YG95, YG99, 0 (colorless blender)
Accessories & Tools:  Crystal Effects, white gel pen, and dimensionals

I used an adorable image from this week's sponsor - Bugaboo.  I colored it with copics and added a little Crystal Effects to the ladybugs for shine and dimension.  I'm getting more comfortable with using my Copics, but still have a long way to go ... and of course, I need to get more colors - I see shopping in my future! :)

Here's a close-up so you can see the Crystal Effects - just love the shine it adds to the ladybugs!:

I hope I have inspired you to join us for this fun challenge.  Check out the other fabulous creations by the Design Team at ATS&M!

Just for you ...

Hi everyone.  Today's card is for the latest colour challenges at CAS - Colours & Sketches (Challenge #6 - Crumb Cake, Summer Starfruit, Gumball Green).  I really struggled with this challenge - I found them a difficult combination to work with.  But that's what it's all about ... otherwise they wouldn't call it a challenge!! :)  Finally I decided to go with a favorite SU! stamp of mine, Gently Falling.  I've had this set for quite a while and used it lots ... but I realized that I always seem to use it with the Watercolor Spritz technique - it just works!   Haven't made a masculine card for a while and it's always great to have some on hand.

Stamps:  Gently Falling, Just Believe (SU!)
Paper:  Crumb Cake, watercolor paper (SU!)
Ink:  Black, Crumb Cake, Summer Starfruit, Gumball Green (SU!)
Accessories & Tools:  Big Shot, Tim Holtz Brick embossing folder (Sizzix), mister, Stamp-a-ma-jig, sponge, and dimensionals

I ran a piece of Crumb Cake cardstock through the Big Shot with the embossing folder and then sponged more Crumb Cake ink on top to give it depth.

The maple leaf stamp is a 2-part stamp.  I inked the inside leaf stamp with Crumb Cake, Summer Starfruit and Gumball Green Stampin' Write markers, misted it five times and stamped onto watercolor paper.  I inked the outline leaf stamp with Gumball Green, misted it five times and stamped overtop (using the Stamp-a-ma-jig to line it up).

Here's a close-up of the maple leaf:

Mambo Daisy

Hi everyone.  Today's card is for a couple of challenges:  Inkspirational is a new challenge blog and their very first challenge is running right now.  It's a colour challenge :  black, kiwi, dark pink.  Fabulous colour combination ... bold and bright.

And today's card is also for Splitcoast Stamper's "Ways To Use It" Challenge (WT408 - New Year, new toys!) ... use something new that you got for Christmas.  I just got the rolled daisy die from My Favorite Things ... love it!  Used two to create a large daisy for today's card from one of my favorite papers ... Melon Mambo polka-dot!  I do love the polka-dot papers from SU!

Just realized that this also qualifies for this week's CAS-ual Fridays challenge (CFC84 - thank you).  And, this week's Simon Says Challenge - Something new.  Whoo hoo!

For some reason, maybe it was the angle of my camera ... but the daisy looks so big in comparison with the rest of the card ... and it looks like it's falling off the flourish :)  Not so ... in real life it looks like just the right-sized daisy and is firmly planted on the flourish ... don't you love photography??!!

Stamps:  Sweet Sentiments (Amy R)

Paper:  White (C.C. Designs); Melon Mambo, Starfruit,  Melon Mambo polka-dot DP (SU!)

Ink:  Black, Kiwi Kiss (SU!)

Accessories & Tools:  Big Shot, Fanciful Flourish die (Cheery Lynn), Rolled Daisy die (My Favorite Things), 1 1/4" punch, glue, Stamp-a-ma-jig

I punched a 1 1/4" circle from the Melon Mambo cardstock to use as my base for my flower.  I die-cut two of the rolled daisies from the Melon Mambo polka-dot DP, gluing one around the outside edge of the circle, moving slightly inwards as I went.  The second daisy was rolled (I use tweezers to hold the end and then twirl), and then glued in the middle to fill it in.  I sponged the edges of the flourish to give it more depth.

Easy and fun card to make.

Here's a close-up of the daisy:

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One quick note ... thanks to Linda and Deb for giving me some advice on my image uploading problems.  Turns out that Blogger no longer likes my version of Internet Explorer ... so I may have to give in and change to Google Chrome as my default web browser.  It bugs me a little that Goggle is so proprietary ... it should work with IE ... but it won't as long as I'm using Windows XP.  So there you go.  It's a fight between Microsoft and Google ... for now Google is winning :)