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.