unsuccessful adventure

How do you define success?  I can't always, but when a card makes me think "meh", that is unsuccessful.  When I was creating cards for the blog hop I was also planning to use those cards for Stamp-a-Stack that same weekend, so I wanted to use the die cut element from the first card on a second card.  If I hadn't come down with the flu, we would have made this card:

stamp set - Best of Birthdays; ink - Cherry Cobbler; Stampin' Write marker - Pink Pirouette; card stock - Midnight Muse, Pink Pirouette; designer series paper - Storytime; Big Shot with Labels Collection and Ovals Collection framelits and Perfect Polka Dots textured embossing folder; Stampin' Dimensionals

I was still thinking "meh" when I saw the call for a birthday card for him using the sketch at Seize the Birthday, and that Storytime Label seemed like just the right element, so now the card looks like this:

stamp set - Best of Birthdays; ink - Midnight Muse; card stock - Midnight Muse, Very Vanilla; designer series paper - First Edition, Storytime; punch - Extra-Large Oval; Big Shot with Labels Collection framelits: Stampin' Dimensionals

I like it a lot better (even though I missed the posting deadline at Seize the Birthday), and we'll probably make both cards later this month at Stamp-a-Stack if I can stay healthy.  Since it's fairly masculine and clean and simple, it qualifies at Addicted to CAS.  And don't worry, I saved those pink bits for another card, and possibly another post.

Since I was all flush with success snatched from the jaws of defeat (as it were), I decided it was time to try doubling up on Christmas card challenges.  The lovely Jingle Belles are looking for stickers for Stick-y & Sweet and Lesley is asking for one my favorite color combinations at Merry Monday.  Always Artichoke with Cherry Cobbler brings to my mind the retired designer series paper Deck the Halls first, and it always seems to "want" the retired Christmas Collage stamp.  I also had to dig through my box of "free to a good home" non-Stampin' Up!® paper crafting supplies to find a sticker - it's the little greeting on the Brushed Gold Modern Label:

stamp set - Christmas Collage (retired); ink - Always Artichoke; card stock - Always Artichoke textured (retired), Brushed Gold, Cherry Cobbler, River Rock; designer series paper - Deck the Halls; punch - 1-3/4" circle, Modern Label; Big Shot with Labels Collection framelit; Stampin' Dimensionals, unknown sticker

The original iteration, on a River Rock base, had me thinking "meh" but I kept working with it.  I had the Brushed Gold cut in the Label framelit shape, but it blended into the River Rock background, so I outlined it with my Cherry Cobbler marker, but that wasn't quite enough.  I thought about using Dazzling Details for the outline, but I wasn't sure the "bling" would coordinate with the otherwise vintage style. I cut a Cherry Cobbler framelit shape and considered using it as a shadow style mat, showing at the bottom and one side; I considered splitting it in half so it would mat above and below; finally I just punched the Modern Label shape out of the Brushed Gold.  Better, but still a little "meh", and then I smeared the inside sentiment - badly.  My first thought was to mat a sentiment to cover the blunder, but instead I decided to cut the front off and mat it onto a new base.  I flipped over the smeared back, re-stamped and trimmed it with the Label framelit for the interior:

stamp sets - Bells & Boughs, Scenic Season (retired); ink - Always Artichoke, River Rock; card stock - Always Artichoke, River Rock; Big Shot with Labels Collection framelit

You can see the outline of the unused portion of the framelit where it was under the sentiment piece. I won't try to convince you that I knew it would do that and planned it that way, but I like it as an "echo" of the full shape on the front.  Although it's not likely to be my favorite card this year, I like it a lot better than the first version, so it's not unsuccessful.