Fusion Card Challenge #4

Make sure to check out the winners from Fusion Card Challenge #3!

Thursdays are becoming one of my favorite days of the week...not as nice as Fridays, but since I joined the Fusion Card Challenge Design Team, Thursday posting days have really brightened up my week! Today it's time for Challenge #4 and we have a really cute sketch and colorful inspirational photo for you to choose from. All you have to do is make a card using either the sketch, the photo or a combination of both for perfect Fusion!  Here's the photo for this week:

I have been jumping back and forth between the sketch and photos for my cards, this week I chose the photo.  I loved all those stamped butterflies and decided to change it up a bit and use sheep instead of butterflies.

This looks very simple in design, but actually was not an easy card to make.  Here's a tip:  Think long and hard before you decide to use a lot of Polar White Flower Soft on a card in which you also plan to use bright Delphinium Blue Flower Soft.  I learned the hard way that it is very difficult to keep the blue color from migrating into the white...and photographing it was even harder!   What a mess!  It does give a lot of texture to your card though and really brightens up those cute sheep.  The stamp set is from Fresh Squeezed Stamps (Friendly Folk) and the cute little cross stitches are also included with that set.  The sentiment is also from Fresh Squeezed Stamps (Take a Number).  What do you think of those googly eyes?  That was a suggestion by my good friend Jeanne Jachna (A Kept Life) who thought the eyes would add that little extra touch to my card.

You are going to want to check out the beautiful cards made by the other members of the Fusion Card Challenge Design Team...A little hint:  I think you just might see some butterflies!  Here's a quick link for you to follow.
You have two weeks to play along with Fusion Card Challenge #4...the challenge ends at noon PST on Feb 24th.  I hope to see your cards in our gallery very soon!

Take a Number

Friendly Folk

Flower Soft, Polar White

Flower Soft, Delphinium Blue

InLinkz.com

Merry Monday #95: Use an Animal on your Card

I have a funny card to share today...at least I think it's funny according to my sense of humor.  This week's Merry Monday #95 challenge is to Use an Animal on your Holiday card.  I just received Fresh Squeezed Stamps Close Your Ear Deer stamp set last weekend and it was still sitting on my desk...great timing.

This cute little deer silhouette has so many possibilities...he can be dressed up for almost any occasion.  I almost put a Santa hat on him, but really wanted to use one of the cute sentiments that comes with the set, so I decorated his "rack" with a string of holiday lights.  The lights are from Cheery Lynn (Christmas Light Swag) and instead of the lights that come with it, I used sequins.  He is a very festive deer, so he got a rhinestone collar, nose and eye too.  I mounted my deer on an Instant Camera Die cut from Lil Inker Designs.  The sentiment is stamped on another Lil Inker die cut (Gift Bow Topper Die) and the "ho ho ho" is from PTI's Tiny Treat Christmas, the perfect scale.  

I have quite a bit of time to decide who is going to receive this Christmas card...has to be someone with a good sense of humor or else a slightly warped one like me!

Close Your Ears: Deer	Tiny Treats: Christmas Stamp Set	Christmas Lights Swag	Instant Camera Die	Gift Bow Topper Die
RUBY RED METALLIC SEQUINS	EMERALD METALLIC SEQUINS

InLinkz.com

For My Sweetheart

Happy Saturday morning!  Still sitting here in my pj's trying to decide if I want to do the responsible thing by getting dressed and doing a little grocery shopping...or, the more fun thing by staying right where I am now and making something crafty!  Hmmm...which one do you think I will choose?  While I go back and forth with my very difficult decision, I am sharing a tag I made for the anniversary gift I gave Warren last week.  Nothing like a cute little romantic tag attached to a rake.  Yes, I said a rake.  Aren't rakes the traditional 34th anniversary gift?  Well, they are at our house and it was a huge success too!  I guess the thrill is gone a bit, but he is outside using that gift this very minute!  LOL.

Wish I had snapped a picture of it attached to the rake, but I guess you will just have to use your imagination for that one.  Everything is from Lil Inker Designs...Folding Tag Die original, Rainbows and Clouds Die Set, Of the Heart Die set and Of the Heart Stamp Set.  So...just for fun, I'd love to hear the funniest anniversary gift you have ever given or received?  Hope I hear something funnier than a rake!

Like Milk and Cookies

 Today I'm sharing a card I made for two challenges...CASology #81 with the cue word "And", and WPlus9's birthday celebration with the theme of "Comfort Zone".  Both are fun ideas and I had the perfect WPlus9 stamp set to use to compliment them both, Milk and Cookies.

Nothing like some ice cold milk and Oreo cookies, my kind of comfort food.  I made sure my cookies were the double stuffed variety by adding some Liquid Applique to the centers and heating them with my heat tool to make some nice puffy icing.  I stamped the little banner in the corner and attached it with a staple.  The ampersand is a die from Papertrey Ink.  This was a fun card to make, definitely in my comfort zone.  Hmm...I'm feeling like I need some cookies...Oreo's anyone?

Card Concept Challenge #3 - Monochromatic Pink

I am so excited to be a part of the Card Concept Challenge...can you believe we had 119 cards submitted for our last challenge?  If you're wondering if your card was one of the favorites chosen by the design team...get right over to the Card Concept blog and check out the challenge winners!  Today, we are opening up Challenge #3...one that I personally LOVED because it is all about the color pink! 

 Monochromatic pink to be exact, something I use often, but especially right about this time of year when Valentines Day is close upon us.    Here's my card representing the Classy and Elegant style:

Pink, pink, and more pink.  Everywhere you look there is an explosion of some shade of pink.  To get my card started, I embossed a white panel with Lil Inker's Circles and Diamonds Stitched Pattern die.  The die coordinates with the Lil Inker Darling Diamonds stamp set.  I had such a good time coming up with the right shades of pink ink to use and once I had them, I just stamped solid circles every other layer.  I stamped the inside of the solid circles with one of the centers...this one has a heart in the middle, just perfect for Valentines Day.  I used a border punch to cut a hot pink topper to my card.  One of the elements of the Classy and Elegant style is to use an elegant sentiment, so I looked through my stash and found the swirliest, love-themed sentiment I have and embossed it in white.  I also used a layer of lace, a layer of circular ribbon and gathered it over the seam.  I went to town with the little pearls on this one too.  I put one just about everywhere I could find a blank spot.  The last touch were those cute little glittery cupids.  They are from Impression Obsession (Cupids) and I only wish I had some reason/excuse to use them at other times of the year...Christmas Cupids?  We'll see about that one a little closer to next Christmas.

Need more information about the Card Concept Challenge or about the different card styles?  Here's a little explanation:

Card Concept Styles Defined

So...what is your card style?  I guarantee you will find something that is just right for you when you check out the other cards made by the Card Concept Challenge Design Team.  Challenge #3 lasts for two weeks,  plenty of time to make and post your card in our gallery.  The challenge ends on Feb. 17th at noon PST.  The winners will be revealed on Wed. Feb. 19th.  I hope to see your card in the gallery very soon!

We also have a new guest designer for the month of February...Laurie Willison who is representing the Clean and Simple style.  Please stop by her blog and see what her version of Monochromatic Pink looks like!

Husband Kit Anniversary Card

I bet you are wondering what a Husband Kit is...you probably wish you had one too...right?  LOL, who doesn't?  Luckily, I was the recipient of a big bag of cards made specially for my sweet, but card-challenged husband...all made for me by my friend Joyce Mehrberg of Cards by the Sea.  Joyce had a brilliant idea last year.  Probably like every card maker, we make so many cards to give to others, yet are lucky to receive one purchased from the grocery store an hour before our birthdays, anniversary's or Mother's Day.  I know that is the way it always goes down at my house.  Joyce thought up the idea to make a whole batch of cards...probably enough for two years worth of events and to mail them in a Top Secret package...ready and waiting for our husbands or children to look through and present to us on our special occasions.  Last Summer, I received this package from Joyce.  Kim Heggins, Tracey McNeely and Joyce also received packages from each other.  I stored my package away and had a long time to wait before I could hand this package to Warren this weekend.   Here is a picture my daughter took of him as he opened the package:

From his expression, he was either excited or afraid of what was in that envelope...either way...he was happy to not have to run off to the store to buy me my anniversary card.  Here's the beautiful card that Warren/Joyce gave me:

Isn't this pretty?  I love the woodgrain paper, the cute hearts on the mini tag and those very delicate flower dies.  Thank you Joyce (you will notice I did not thank Warren) for the beautiful card.  For Warren...thank you for 34 years and for giving me the kind of life I had always dreamed of.  My birthday is coming up soon and Warren has already picked out the card he's going to present to me...I'll post a picture after I open it up.  Wasn't a husband kit a great idea?

CASology #80: Purple

I wanted to play along with this week's CASolgy #80 challenge which has a fun and colorful cue word...purple.  

So what is CAS, purple and since I am running late on time...quick to make while on my lunch break? How about some sparkly sequin grapes?

I stamped one of the Papertrey Ink Fruit Fusion: Grape images and filled in the individual grapes with a few different colors of purple sequins.  I cut a postage stamp frame, popped it up with dimensional foam, added a mini twine bow and stamped the sentiment, ate lunch and still managed to get back to work before my lunch hour was up.  You can't get much faster than that!