adventure in perseverance

When I  saw the Saturday sketch at Stamping 411 I didn't think I was going to be able to work with that large space on the top layer.  I didn't even add it to the reminder list of challenges on my crafting table.  I was also somewhat discouraged by my lack of imagination for the Jingle Belles prompt celebrating food; the only idea I could come up with was candy canes, and I was just sure that would be the most popular choice.  I had to do something, though, since it's the LAST Jingle Belles challenge for 2011! 

I was pleasantly surprised when I browsed through the entries today and saw more gingerbread (which I never even thought of), so I persevered with my candy canes.  I knew that I wanted to used Red Glimmer paper on Whisper White, and since Real Red is a favorite Christmas color for me, I thought I could stay on track for the new SU-Only Challenge if I added Garden Green and maybe some designer series paper.  As I sifted through my Letters to Santa paper, I came across a piece that I originally thought of as really more of a scrapbook page, and that Stamping 411 sketch popped back into my head:

stamp set - Grateful Greetings; ink - Real Red classic and Stampin' Write marker; card stock - Whisper White, Early Espresso, Marina Mist; designer series paper - Letters to Santa; punches - Decorative Label, Modern Label; Stampin' Dimensionals

They were just made for each other, weren't they?  I did have to reposition the sentiment so it wouldn't cover Santa's face.

Returning to the candy canes, the designer series paper idea wasn't working, so I went browsing for layout ideas.  Nothing was really speaking to me, but somehow it occurred to me that the Scallop Oval Frame die for the Big Shot might set them off nicely.  I declared that "glitter" is another Christmas favorite, even if it's not really a color, and finally I had all the elements.  I glued it all together on plain card stock, and then realized it really needed a little more texture.  Yes, I did pull out my favorite "trick" - turned the heat gun on and peeled everything off so I could add the Netting background stamp on both the base and the oval:

stamp set - Teeny Tiny Wishes, Netting; ink - Real Red, Garden Green; Stampin' Write marker - Real Red; card stock - Real Red, Garden Green, Whisper White, Red Glimmer, Silver Glimmer; punch - Word Window; Big Shot with Scallop Oval Frame and Stocking Accents; Stamping Sponges, Stampin' Dimensionals

I think it was worth it.  To think, my family used to think I had no patience.  Well, I probably didn't, but where would I be today without good, old-fashioned perseverance?

adventures with uninked rubber

This stamp set from the Idea Book & Catalog is so darn cute it was on my pre-order in June, and yet it remained uninked until today, and therefore would have qualified for Shopping Our Stash last week.  It qualifies this week, too, since it's a Christmas/Winter theme:

stamp set - Snow Much Fun; ink - Marina Mist; Stampin' Write markers - Early Espresso, Marina Mist, Riding Hood Red, Old Olive; designer series paper - Letters to Santa; card stock - Marina Mist, Whisper White; Big Shot with Northern Flurry textured impressions folder; punches - 1-1/4" circle and 1-3/8" circle

Layout is the sketch from Create with Connie and Mary this week, although I shifted the focal point to show more of the embossing.

The layout on this next card is from a sketch in Stampin' Connection, an invaluable (yet free) site for Stampin' Up! demonstrators to share ideas, pictures, and information - yet another benefit of being a demonstrator, as if discounted and free products and pre-order privileges weren't enough!

card:  stamp set - Thoughts & Prayers; ink - Pool Party, More Mustard; Stampin' Write marker - Soft Suede; designer series paper - Spice Cake; card stock - Pool Party, Very Vanilla, Soft Suede

notepad/pen:  stamp set - Delicate Doilies; ink - River Rock, More Mustard, Pool Party, Soft Suede; designer series paper - Spice Cake; card stock - Very Vanilla, Pear Pizzazz; punches - Boho Blossoms, 5-Petal Flower

 

 

I made the card for SUO Challenge 32; Thankful and to coordinate with the little thank-you gift for my sister-in-law, because we will once again be enjoying her wonderful hospitality and cooking for Thanksgiving dinner Thursday.  We'll contribute a beverage; she does EVERYTHING else!

Hope you all have a safe and satisfying holiday (or weekend, if you won't be celebrating Thanksgiving) and are able to spend time with people who are special to you.

more challenge adventures

Just a quick post this evening to show you my latest efforts.  I used sketch #11 from Freshly Made Sketches and all neutrals (gold is neutral, isn't it?) to make this card for Shopping Our Stash.

I tried to use a never-been-inked stamp (there's one in Creative Elements that coordinates nicely with the Mocha Morning designer series paper strip) but it didn't really seem to fit on this card.  They will be together one day, though!  Stamp sets are Bells & Boughs and Delightful Decorations.  Ink is Versamark (embossed with gold) and Crumb Cake.  Card stock is Very Vanilla (both smooth and textured), Brushed Gold, and Soft Suede.  I used my 3/4" circle punch for the sentiment.

This card nearly made itself with the combination of colors from The Paper Players, sketch #167 from Clean and Simple Stamping, and the theme prompt for a silhouette from Less is More:

Stamp sets are Four the Holidays and Dasher, ink is Versamark (embossed with silver) and Night of Navy, card stock is Whisper White, Night of Navy, and Brushed Silver.  The scalloped circle was cut with Circles #2 die in the Big Shot, Dasher was punched out with the 2-1/2" circle, and I used the corner rounder punch on the sentiment strip.  This one will be going to a friend who doesn't really celebrate Christmas, and so is also perfect for this weeks Jingle Belles prompt!

Stop by the blogs I've linked to and check out all the great ideas from other stampers.  Better yet, join in the fun by linking up cards you've made!

adventure of encouragement

This week's one-layer challenge theme at "Less is More" is leaves.  This card, made with the holly leaves from Bells & Boughs popped into my head one night, I could hardly wait to put it on card stock (Naturals White):

I used Always Artichoke ink and colored the berries with my Cherry Cobbler Stampin' Write marker.  The sentiment is from Contempo Christmas.  I finished it Sunday, the day after the challenge is posted - you have plenty of time to play along, by the way - and then lost all my card-making motivation.

I traced a sewing pattern that I've been wanting to try, finished reading The Book Thief, washed the dishes and did some other chores.  Monday I looked over my list of challenges, colored in an image with Cherry Cobbler and More Mustard for the challenge at Create with Connie and Mary but gave up after realizing I should have used Very Vanilla instead of Whisper White. I played some computer games and reorganized the book shelves while attempting to choose a book with a lighter subject matter.  The Book Thief takes place in Nazi Germany; I started it after the break from reading I needed when I finished The Kite Runner, which takes place in Afghanistan in the '70's-'80's.  I don't know what I was thinking.

This evening I started the laundry while reading the $2.99 Kindle edition of Everliving, which seems to be a ghost story romance.  I thought possibly I needed a break from stamping, but again, I don't know what I was thinking. Between chapters, I checked my email and found the encouraging comment that sweet Lauren made on my Jingle Belles card, and found my card-making motivation again!  I also found three more blogs I *need* to follow, one of which - Freshly Made Sketches - posted the sketch for this:

Card stock is Very Vanilla (textured for the base), Basic Black, and Cherry Cobbler.  The designer series paper is from the Spice Cake collection, stamps are Polar Party and Four the Holidays.  I used More Mustard and Cherry Cobbler Stampin' Write markers on the penguins. I was envisioning it as something like a family portrait hanging against the wallpaper?  Well, I don't know if that works or not.

While I was fiddling with the image that I stamped on Whisper White, I tried it on Bashful Blue using sketch #229 at Stamping 411.  It wasn't colored right for that either, but I liked the card, so I colored yet a third version:

The designer series paper here is from Letters to Santa, they were scraps left from the swap cards I was making two weeks ago.  The silver glimmer paper snowflake, cut with a sizzlit from the Snowflakes #2 set for some other project but discarded in favor of a different embellishment, was also sitting in the little scraps pile of things that are still good for something.

Thanks to Lauren for her kind comment, and really to everyone who takes the time to comment - it is so nice to find encouragement when your motivation deserts you!  Now, if I could just figure out where Blogger hides the word verification setting, so I can turn it off - Mandi and Chrissie have asked ever-so-nicely, but I just haven't figured out yet how to accomplish that.

sifting supplies adventure

This started out to be quite a different card for me, but now that it's finished, it looks similar in style to many of my others, doesn't it?

BOTH Jingle Belles and Shopping Our Stash challenge blogs prompted us to use stickers this week, isn't that funny? I have a few Stampin' Up!® stickers left from a retired Simply Scrappin' kit, but they're flowers and birthday sentiments, and only someone far more imaginative than I could turn them into a Christmas card.  So I sifted through my old supplies and found some clear stickers in miscellaneous shapes, which I thought I might be able to adapt to a Christmas theme.  I used my Stampin' Up!® Naturals Ivory card stock for the base, and Chocolate Chip classic ink with a Christmas Greetings stamp for the sentiment, but all the other supplies are of unknown origin.  Oh, I used Sticky Strip to hold that gold paper ruffle down, and of course Multipurpose Liquid Glue holds everything else together.

Yesterday, there was another RC swap meet that Tom wanted to attend, and all of his buddies were there all day with tables, so I accompanied him for the drive and went off to Jo-Ann's to look at fabric and patterns.  I'm hoping to do a little sewing before Christmas, since I have that amazing new grandson who will look adorable in anything, even if it is made by someone with long-unused skills.  My "thank you" gift this weekend was lunch at Fazoli's - the one in Elkhart serves dine-in patrons on ceramic (stoneware?) plates with real flatware!  As we were pulling out of the garage, I had to jump out of the car to take this shot, since the moon was totally glowing:

I hope you all see something equally beautiful somewhere this week - please share it with someone when you do!

fall colors adventure

Tom and I like to take a "color tour" in the autumn, since we live in the beautiful state of Michigan.  We drive north after work on a Friday evening and stop when we get tired - this first leg of the trip is closer to home, and we don't feel the need to drive it in daylight.  Saturday morning we head north again, and eventually over to one of the coasts, and meander home sometime Sunday.  Sometimes it's hard to judge which weekend will provide peak color, and a lot of times we accidentally run into homecoming weekend (when it's hard to find a hotel room) in one college town or another.  This year we couldn't fit the "tour" into our schedule, but it's been a fabulous and long-lasting season and we've enjoyed the beautiful autumn colors on all the little trips we've taken close to home, even just running errands.

In honor of Firework Night (a/k/a Bonfire Night, Guy Fawkes Night, or Guy Fawkes Day) Mandi and Chrissie at Less is More have asked for clean and simple cards featuring red and orange.  I got rather naturally "stuck" on autumn colors and looked through my leaf and tree stamp sets for some time.  While I was thinking, I remembered that I needed cards to include with Stampin' Up!® orders for customers.  I specifically wanted 3"x6" cards so I could easily tuck in the $1-$2 they over paid on shipping & handling, and I also wanted to feature our Well Worn designer series paper:

Stamp sets are Gently Falling and Pursuit of Happiness; ink is Early Espresso, Cajun Craze, and Soft Suede; card stock is textured Sahara Sand and Cajun Craze.  I used the Decorative Label punch for the sentiment and popped it up on Stampin' Dimensionals.
 
Then suddenly, out of nowhere, I just decided maybe I've done enough autumn for now, and out came my new stamp set Floral Fillers, and this card nearly made itself:

Card stock is Peach Parfait and Very Vanilla; ink colors are Poppy Parade, Tangerine Tango, and Peach Parfait.  The sentiment was punched out with the Large Oval punch, sponged at the edge with Peach Parfait, and, again, elevated on Stampin' Dimensionals.  I didn't feel I'd done enough of this shape card, though.  This one is 3-1/4"x6-1/2" and will nicely hold comic strips that need to be shared as well as checks or paper money, and fits perfectly in our small open-end envelopes.  I've decided now that I'd like to have those envelopes in Very Vanilla as well as Whisper White, especially since they can be mailed without extra postage!

adventure in keeping up

Surprising even myself, I seem to be keeping up with challenges so far this week.  Maybe it's that list I put on my stamping table, but it helps to complete two challenges with one card, too. This one follows sketch CCMC174 at Create with Connie and Mary (a new challenge for me) and incorporates a see-through circle treat cup for the Jingle Belles' prompt "it came upon a midnight *CLEAR*":

Inside the treat cup are some micro beads I've had too long to remember why I have them. I think Stampin' Up!®'s new Mica Flakes, some Glass Stampin' Glitter, or a few Mini Jingle Bells would be a better choice.  Maybe some of each!  The designer series paper is from Letters to Santa, card stock is Confetti White, Riding Hood Red, Old Olive and Early Espresso.  I used So Saffron, Old Olive, and Early Espresso Stampin' Write markers to color one of the trees in the Polar Party stamp.  I had the Riding Hood Red marker right there, and intended to color in the baubles on the tree, but that step got overlooked.

Here's a card I made last week that wasn't for any challenges, I just liked the one I saw posted by another demonstrator on our Stampin' Connection Showcase:

Both the focal point Santa stamp and the ornaments background are from the same designer series package - Letters to Santa.  The card stock mats are Marina Mist and Early Espresso and the base is Riding Hood Red.  No stamping on this one, it was very quick and easy to make - I almost feel guilty saying I made it, it's more simple assembly - but so darn cute!

adventures in gratitude

My husband has several buddies, who like him, enjoy Radio Controlled aircraft, but no one was available this morning to make the drive to Northville, Michigan for a swap meet, so he asked me yesterday if I'd be interested in driving over with him. Well, no, interested wasn't the right word, but I was willing.  It was a beautiful day for a drive and after I peeked at the swap meet (a lot like the computer swap meets we used to attend in a different decade) I went for a walk.  There are many beautiful homes like this one in Northville:

Quaint beauty notwithstanding, the walk reminded me of how grateful I am to live in the country.  On the subject of being grateful, this is how Tom expressed his appreciation:

Mmm-mmm-mmm!  Absolutely worth the entire drive, just for this!  We also took a little side trip to IKEA and bought a new lamp that will turn on in the morning before my alarm clock, since I have such a hard time waking up that early (no matter what any of you early birds think, 7am is EARLY for the night owl I've been all my life).  There was a sign in the department that stated that a large percentage of the world's children don't have electric lights to make it possible to read after dark, so I am also grateful that we have reliable electricity for lamps, computers, laundry, and all the other advantages of life in the United States, including crafting!

Months ago I saved a link to this card by Diana Gibbs, because I really liked it and wanted to CASE it.  Pals Paper Arts posted a color challenge - Early Espresso, Soft Suede, River Rock - that was meant for this card, don't you think?  Stamp sets are Have a Seat, Teeny Tiny Wishes, and Woodgrain.

Meanwhile, over at Stamping 411, there's a new color challenge of Riding Hood Red, Lucky Limeade, and Early Espresso.  I have a little list on my table of the current challenges in which I'd like to participate, and there was a sketch that I thought would work:

Funny thing is, the sketch is also Stamping 411 - oops ;\ - will it be silly to post it twice on the same blog?  Stamp sets on this card are Polar Party and Kidoodles.  One of these days I *will* learn to put Dazzling Details on LAST.

update adventure

This is where I ended up after the first prototype I posted earlier this week, and this is the swap card (minus the Old Olive base) that was mailed to nineteen Watercooler Llama swap participants:

Much better, but it took awhile to get there!  There was another prototype in between, which didn't have Dazzling Details on the ornament (Contempo Christmas) and wasn't embossed with the Big Shot and the Perfect Details Texturz Plate.  It did have the Riding Hood Red textured cardstock medallion and the Letters to Santa designer series paper (both cut with the Big Shot and the Perfect Pennants die), and it had the Early Espresso layer punched with Scallop Trim borders.  (insert sigh of contentment)

 

I meant to start punching 45 (48? I'll have to look it up) Snowflake and Itty Bitty Shapes punches for another swap, but I took a non-swap break first to try a few other things.

I had this one, leftover ornament/medallion combination that looked like it needed a rosette.  And Saturday Sketch Challenge 227 at Stamping 411 looked like it was custom designed for that rosette medallion:

I've been thinking this week about Thinking of You cards, since that's the newest challenge at  SUO Challenge.  At Shopping Our Stash (hi, ladies, it's been a while but I'm back for another try), Challenge 24 is Cowboys/Country/Western/Sports.  You would think that a challenge that broad would offer something for everyone, wouldn't you?  Alas, I have NOTHING sports or cowboy/western related, and (amazingly) no much desire to purchase anything in that category!  New stamps would defeat the purpose of "Shopping Our Stash", anyway.  I did remember that down at the bottom of a stack of older stamp sets there is a pickup truck in Loads of Love.  If Arielle hadn't specifically mentioned pickup trucks, I don't know whether I would have made the connection.  Meanwhile, there's a color combination over at ColourQ that speaks to me of autumn in the country, so that all came together for me when I pulled out a piece of Watercolor paper and a Naturals Ivory card base:

Colors of card stock and classic ink are exactly from the ColorQ challenge: Soft Suede, Cherry Cobbler, Pumpkin Pie, Island Indigo, although the Watercolor paper and Naturals Ivory are standing in for Very Vanilla.  The sentiment is from Timeless Treasures.