Poppystamps: Reindeer Cheer

I am on the Poppystamps blog today with my third card using the charming Whittle Forest Reindeer Kit.

This Whittle Reindeer with the sweet little hats are just the cutest.  Be sure to check out the Poppystamps blog for more details and more pictures including a picture of the three that I've done!

SUPPLY LIST

Stamps: Poppystamps Christmas Sparkle

Dies: Poppystamps Whittle Forest Reindeer Kit

Paper: Memory Box Jolly Christmas, Polished Foil, Majestic Hues glitter and cardstock in Earth Neutral, Berry Red and Lush Green

Freshly Made Sketches: Give Thanks

It's time for a new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches! Today we have a sketch by Jen Timko and here’s what I did with it!

 

I had a different idea in my head for this sketch but as I was flipping through dies I saw that my three Honey Bee Itty Bitty sets all had pieces cut already that I must not have used on a different card.  This had a huge advantage because I made this entire card without the cast on my wrist!!  Progress is happening! But my wrist doesn't move well and it doesn't really like stress or pressure (including rolling stuff through my Big Shot) so when I saw the pre-cut diecuts, I was definitely using them.  Then I got a little giddy when I remembered this giant leaf and knew it could be the "circle" behind my little die cuts!

I hope to see you playing along with us at Freshly Made Sketches.

SUPPLY LIST

Stamps: Taylored Expressions Mini Strips - Harvest

Dies: Simon Says Stamps Stitched Grand Maple; Honey Bee Stamps Itty Bitty Pumpkins, Itty Bitty Leaves and Itty Bitty Fall Flowers; Taylored Expressions Mini Strips

Paper: Photoplay Thankful 6x6 pad

Other: Little Things Bronze Mix Jewels

The Card Concept: Christmas Joy

There’s a new inspiration challenge at The Card Concept and it's double challenge week!  I picked Christmas Joy.  My Clean and Layered card was inspired by the horizontal look of the shelves, the various words on the shelves, mantle and pillow, and loosely inspired by the colors.

For me the creation of this card happened in such a way that it reminder how amazing it is to have some sort of inspiration to start with.  With the inspiration photo in mind, I started flipping through my Christmas dies and I was just maybe five dies in and I saw this and knew instantly that I wanted to use it.  It was so reminiscent of the horizontal shelving and the various words, it just worked.  I also knew that I wanted a subtle red pattern in the background based on all pops of red in the photo. Then what? I looked at the colors and quickly realized I could use the green for a Christmas tree and the gray/silver for a snowy tree.  So then came the fourth color. I didn't use it as is but it totally inspired me for the finishing steps.  As I looked at the color to see how it was used, I saw the woods in the photo (also the vintage books) so I added some wood elements and a woodgrain base and it is exactly the warm and rustic card that I was going for!!

BTW - the other inspiration for this challenge is Harvest Bounty. I hope to see you playing along with us at The Card Concept!

SUPPLY LIST

Dies: My Favorite Things Joy, Peace, Love (old)

Paper: Echo Paper Dots & Stripes Christmas Collection (old), Poppystamps Woodgrain Paper Pack, Stampin' Up Real Red

Freshly Made Sketches: Trick or Drink

It's time for a new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches! Today we have a sketch by Jacquie and here’s what I did with it!

 

On my last post, I talked about Halloween cards for the older "children" in my life.  This is another example of finding a product that would work for my sons in their 20s!  It uses a stamp set and die set from Trinity Stamps. This is my second card with the first card also made for Freshly Made Sketches.  Funny story though - both of these cards involve drinking but my two sons think that I'm the drinker in the family.  You don't know me - so it's probably not immediately funny - until you realize that a half glass of wine puts me to sleep!!  I never actually get drunk because I'm asleep before then!!  But one time we were at a local Mexican restaurant and I had a margarita - not even a giant schooner full - a small water glass size.  I'd had it dozens of times, but I would swear they double-poured, because I got giggly and I had to seriously focus to walk a straight line.  My teenage sons had never witnessed that before, so now I have a reputation that I may never live down.  Of course, when my oldest turned 21, we took him for the same margarita - and he also got giggly.  So not only do I have a bad reputation, but my son is horrified that I passed along the giggly/sleepy drunk gene!!

If you follow me regularly, you might be surprised by the sheer amount of typing on this post.  I am still in my cast, but I found an ergonomic keyboard that allows my hand to be at an angle that works!  I just keep figuring out ways to accommodate the wrist and the bankle - I'll be an expert but probably about the time they come off!

I hope to see you playing along with us this week at Freshly Made Sketches!

SUPPLY LIST

Stamps: Trinity Stamps Trick or Drink

Dies: Trinity Stamps Creepy Cocktails, Ink to Paper Diagonal Banners

Paper: Doodlebug Designs Haunted Manor (old), Stampin' Up Granny Apple Green

Dancing Witches on Halloween

I don't have a lot of Halloween products and most of what I have dates back to when kids were young (they are in their 20s now). The only Halloween cards that I make these days are for those sons and for my high-school age nieces - all of whom probably roll their eyes when they get them but I enjoy making them so they'll just have to deal with it.  However, I have done a bit of shopping so as not to be overly cutesy with my older products.  For my nieces, I got the Six Witches die from Impression Obsessions then used five of them on these cards. 

I also got this paper from Catherine Pooler specifically for these cards (the floral is fabulous!!)

I decided to do  the same but different on the second card. It uses the same patterned paper pad, but I thought the paper with the little diamonds could be a night sky. So I added a big sparkly moon and two of the bigger witches.  Then I had some space to fill so found a die with little bats.

The sentiments are from an ancient Hero Arts but it's basic Halloween sentiments and will stay in my stash forever.

SUPPLY LIST

Flying By

Stamps: Hero Arts Happy Halloween (old!)

Dies: Impression Obsession Six Witches

Paper: Catherine Pooler Sweet-n-Spooky, cardstock: Taylored Expressions Plum Punch and Candy Corn, Papertrey Ink Lavender Moon, Simon Says Fog, silver glitter paper at Michaels

Happy Haunting

Stamps: Hero Arts Happy Halloween (old!)

Dies: Impression Obsession Six Witches, CC Designs Bats (old!)

Paper: Catherine Pooler Sweet-n-Spooky, Memory Box Graceful Garden Glitter pad

Poppystamps: Winter Whittle Reindeer

 I am on the Poppystamps blog today with another card using the wonderful reindeer and their charming hats from the Whittle Forest Reindeer kit.

This is my winter take on these reindeer.  They were actually released in the fall release so the first card that I did had them on a big hill with evergreen trees - see it here.  I already have plans for a classic Christmas card - it just takes a red-nose on that reindeer!!

Be sure to check out the Poppystamps blog for more details and many more pictures.

SUPPLY LIST

Dies: Poppystamps Whittle Forest Reindeer kit, Proper Merry Christmas, Adelaide Snowflakes

Paper: Memory Box cardstock pads in Earth Neutral and Ocean Blue, Glitter Pad in Majestic Hues

Other: Poppystamps/Open Studio Christmas Fairy Jewels

Freshly Made Sketches: All Things Christmas

It's time for a new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches! Today we have a sketch by Judy and here’s what I did with it!

I quickly settled on the idea of patterned paper with holiday words on it.  I was thinking I was going to have a little Santa or something peeking out of the square, then I saw the new-to-me die that had all of those shapes (except the snowflake).  I adore creating groupings of diecuts.  I pulled colors from the paper and added it all to the kraft card base so the colors popped.

Still dealing with a cast on the wrist so that is all the words for today!!  I hope to see you playing along with us at Freshly Made Sketches.

SUPPLY LIST

Dies: Spellbinders Parcel & Post Christmas decorations, unknown snowflake

Paper: Vicki Boutin Evergreen & Holly, Stampin' Up cardstock in Poppy Parade, Shaded Spruce, Granny Apple Green, Balmy Blue, Summer Sun (retired) and Crumb Cake

Other: Memory Box/Open Studio Fairy Jewels

Freshly Made Sketches: Joy

It's time for a new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches! Today we have a sketch by Amy and here’s what I did with it!

I'm still working with a broken wrist and after a doctor's visit this week, it's going to be a while.  Thank goodness for great dies because I don't see myself actually stamping for a while. This card uses the Pretty Pink Posh Joy Shaker although I decided making a shaker was way too fiddly to do one-handed. Luckily I like it just as a die cut.  I have stamps from PPP that I thought would work nicely intertwined with this die but with an inability to stamp, I went looking for birds and found one of my favorite older sets, WPlus Folk Art Florals. I used mostly new in-colors from Stampin' Up which I am loving for a fresh and more contemporary look for Christmas.

Short on words - one-handed typing might be the hardest part.  (A really big apology to all of my blog friends who aren't hearing from me. Just know that reading your blogs is something that I can do and it's always a highlight of my day!)

I hope to see you playing along with us at Freshly Made Sketches.

SUPPLY LIST

Dies: Pretty Pink Posh Joy Shaker, WPlus9 Folk Art Florals (retired), Taylored Expressions Petite Scallop Rectangle and Stitched Stacklets Rectangles

Paper: Stampin' Up Cardstock in Crumb Cake, Sweet Sorbet, Flirty Flamingo, Tahitian Tide, Parakeet Party and Granny Apple Green

The Card Concept: Colors of Fall

There’s a new inspiration challenge at The Card Concept and the theme is Colors of Fall.  My Clean and Layered card was inspired by the vivid fall colors and specifically those picked out in the graphic. I was thrilled the purple was in those colors. It's a fabulous color for fall cards but somehow it doesn't often occur to me without inspiration! Also, I tend toward white card bases, but I used kraft as a nod to the full wash of rich colors in the photo.

With my right arm in a cast, I'm even more into die cuts than usual. My left hand can cut and can squeeze glue - and with my fingers out of my cast, my right hand can hold the die cut in a tweezer.  It actually works (just don't tell my wrist doc!)  I've used a stamping platform to do a few sentiments, but no fancier stamping because I can't exactly color the images left-handed!  

I did try to use some ink on this card; I wanted to sponge a little at the base of each leaf to add dimension.  I already the colors picked and the leaves cut when I realized two of the three were Stampin' Up colors and I dare anybody to open their inks with a broken wrist!!  I have a lot of inks and I'm sure I could have found substitutes - but it just seemed like a lot of work and the other thing I've discovered in the last few weeks is the need to let things go and move on.  Just basic hygiene is an overwhelming amount of work.  Anything else in life is less important!! Very oddly, I seem to be finishing my cards more quickly than before because I'm letting go!

I hope to see you play along with us at The Card Concept!

SUPPLY LIST

Dies: Photoplay Autumn Word Trio, Hero Arts Autumn Leaves

Paper: Stampin' Up cardstock in Crumb Cake, Crushed Curry, Pumpkin Pie and Poppy Parade, Taylored Expressions Plum Punch

Other: Stampin Up Meadow Moments embossing folder, Little Things by Lucy Copper Rose Jewels