Catered Crop: Spring Fever and Viva la Verve!!

I love this cardmaking/blogging world that we live in.  Thanks so all of you who sent birthday wishes my way and thank you to all of you who have asked whether my class load is getting better.  I am amazed at what a large group of good friends I can say that I have, even though I've only met a few of you in person.

A quick update. I started new classes last week.  I was scared to death because I wasn't sure if the crushing load from last semester was going to continue now that I am into the senior level classes, or if those classes were just flukes.  Happy news...based on the first few weeks, these classes seem much more comparable to others that I have taken, which means that I can dust off my crafting corner!!!  But not quite yet...I did two weeks of classes in the last eight days because I am running away tomorrow for a quick girlfriend get-a-way!! (I guess I can't whine anymore about being busy, can I?)  I'm heading out to Chicago for a couple of days of sightseeing, dining and a lot of chatter. When I get back...I'll be crafting, I'll be reading blogs, I'll be commenting and catching up on your lives.  It will be fantastic!!

Before I run away, I am playing along with a couple of challenges.

The new challenge at Catered Crop is Spring Fever.  Linda starts describing the challenge with this quote...

"It's spring fever. That is what the name of it is. And when you've got it, you want - oh, you don't quite know what it is you do want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so!"    ~Mark Twain

I most definitely have spring fever!!  (Although that doesn't quite explain why I would go to cold, windy and rainy Chicago instead of staying in Colorado where the forecast is mid-60s and sunshine all week!?)

Spring cards could be St. Patrick's Day, Mother's Day, Easter, butterflies, flowers, rain, bunnies...anything springy!  I had an uninked stamp set in my stash that is most definitely spring and also works perfectly with the current sketch at Viva la Verve.



Do you like my spray of sequins?  I said in a recent post, that I would be using sequins long after the trend fades (if it fades).  I love the way they fill space without getting cluttered.  It's rare you'll see a card of mine without at least a trio of sequins - a couple above the sentiment and one below - it's a perfect way to make it stand out.  In this case I splashed seven sequins across the card to add a little sparkle to my muted card. These particular sequins are from Pretty Pink Posh.  The flat marshmallow sequins are the first flat sequins that I have purchased and I love the way they "layer" with cupped sequins.  The silvery-looking sequins are actually their 6mm sparkling clear sequins (they recently came out with a smaller size too).  If you didn't see it, be sure to check out my clear sequin post from a few months back in which I compare the look of a variety of "clear" sequins.  I mentioned the silvery look of these Pretty Pink Posh sequins and, given it was winter, mentioned that they were perfect for snowman and snowflake cards.  But I find that I use them for much more, particularly given the trend towards grays in papers such as in the above card.

Here's the sketch I used...

And now I am off for a little last-minute shopping and then packing!! I have a couple of posts scheduled for this week - so you'll never know that I am gone.

Thanks again to all of you!!

• Stamps: Verve Egg-stra Special
• Paper: My Mind's Eye Chalk Studio 6x6 pad, Papertrey Smokey Shadow cardstock
• Ink: Memento Black, Copics, Papertrey Smokey Shadow
• Accessories: Pretty Pink Posh sequins Sparkling Clear (6mm) and Flat Marshmallow, Hemptique 10-lb white twine, Spellinders Lacey Circle die