Midnight Madness Sketch Challenge #34

I thought this little guy with his iced mocha would be great for this MMSC#34 sketch. I had these Petaloo flowers in my stash for a while. They seemed too big for most cards, but tucked under the image, they work great. I used a Nestabilities label to create fancy corners and stitched them with my white Signo gel pen to brighten them up. I wanted to use the Bo Bunny dot paper for the background, but it was too small. The solution? Cut it in half and have a space between. It worked!! Thanks for checking in!

New Year's challenges

I did double duty on this card for challenges. Here is the last Mojo sketch challenge for 2009 and the Cute Card Thursday with a New Year's theme. I figured Sidney toasting in 2010 with his fishy Martini would be a fitting New Year's card. I used the Cosmo Cricket papers for the base of this card. Then I colored the inner tube the same colors as the paper...using Copics, of course!! Hope you have a Happy New Year!

Friday Sketchers Christmas Challenge

Here is the Friday Sketchers Christmas Challenge for this week. Be sure to do this sketch challenge this week and link it to your blog for a chance to win stamps from Stamp Shoppe Creations!!! Then join the blog hop to see the beautiful cards from the Friday Sketcher's Design team. You can start with Claudia and just hop your way through...

Here is a sample of my sketch for this week. I used a sample of the stamps that I will be giving as the prize for this week. I am not planning on winning, but I love to do the challenges and I also wanted to encourage you to try too! Have fun with the blog hop and I hope to see some of your cards!

Midnight Madness Sketch Challenge #33

Here it is...My Tuesday sketch! This was outside my comfort zone, but I liked the results. I used just the Santa head from my Santa's Presents stamp and colored it. Then I used the 2 biggest Label 3 nesties for the frame, but it was too bid, so I used the next size smaller. Now I had the other label sitting on my desk and decided it would be perfect if I cut it in half and used them as my diangle strips of paper. Talk about using all the scraps :) All papers were from Graphic 45, giving the card a more vintage feel. I still felt that it was too plain, so I added the pine branchs punched out from McGill. Then I used 3 red brads to add for berries. Thanks for looking!

Mojo Monday challenge #118

I am falling a little behind this week. Here is my Monday challenge on tuesday. I stamped Ellie the Elephant on the white strip and stamped the peanut three times, using a mask to overlap them. The images were colored with Copics. I added the extra strip of white paper to put the sentiment on, otherwise it would have gotten lost in the flowery Cosmo Cricket background paper.

Sketch Saturday #82

Here's my Sketch Saturday challenge...a little late, but I guess they say "Better late, than never!" I decided to do something besides snow for this card. I was thinking that if I had the sentiment, it could be a Valentine's card..."Wood you be mine?" I used the new Martha Stewart double edge punch for the strip along the side. I had the pine branch punched out of the green paper for another card and decided to see how punching out a circle around the cut out would work. I liked it because I thought it went with the wood them. Thanks for looking!

Friday Sketchers Challenge #83

I am running a day late, but here if my Friday Sketchers challenge! I wanted a silent night look for my snow guy, so I got out my airbrush from Copic. Did that ever work great! I love the look and it was the look I was wanting to achieve. I stamped "Here's Trouble" on my paper, then made a mask of him. Then I made a mask for the snow. I used my B23 and C7 Copic markers and airbrushed the sky. After I was done with the airbrushing, I removed the masks and colored the image and added white dots with my Signo White Gel pen. I noticed after I removed the mask that there was some airbrushing on the image, so I used my Copic blender and faded out the ink. Then I added some glitter to the snow. I also had the chance to use the new Winter borders from Nestabilites on two of my strips of blue paper for the background. I wasn't liking the different layers of decorative papers and I didn't like the just plain cardstock. The cuttlebug did the trick!! I made this into a square card. It gave me the extra room to add all the layers. Hope you have a great weekend!!

A New challenge!

I just found this new challenge. When I saw the name of this challenge, I knew it was for me!! Cute cards-Yay! This challenge is theme oriented. The challenge is to make aperture cards, which when I looked up the definition was...an opening, as a hole, slit, crack, gap, etc. I don't often make window "aperture" cards, so it was fun to do one again! I used the Martin the monkey for the inside. Then I masked him and airbrushed a mountain and skyscape for a background. Then I stamped Martin Swinging with extra leaves which I colored with Copics and cut out for the outside of the card. I stamped the swinging sentiment on a nestabilities label and attached with a ribbon.
Here is a better view of the inside:

Check out this challenge blog. I would like to see some of your ideas!

Jacque serves Christmas cookies

Using the MMSC32 sketch challenge with the holiday "baking" theme. I thought that Jacque was just the one to use, but I didn't want the cake. I wanted a plate of Cookies. The Whiff of Joy had the girl with a plate of cookies, so I stamped just the cookies, then stamped Jacque on another piece of paper and cut him out. Then I glued him down where the plate of cookies were. After that, I colored him and cut him out with the circle nestabilities. Because we were doing a baking theme, I decided I had to use the yummy chocolate box paper from Core'dinations. Running the paper throught the cuttlebug folder, then sanding it so the red showed through. I used the red side of the paper and punched the scallop border and glued it to the embossed paper. This sketch was a challenge for me, but I love the way he turned out!!

Mojo Monday challenge #117

Wow! What a fun sketch from Mojo Monday's Sketch challenge!! I had Jacque the lion already colored and ready to use on a card and here was the perfect sketch right away, this Monday morning. I used the Chocolate Box paper and ran it through the Happy Birthday cuttlebug folder. Then I sanded the embossing to have the terra cotta color show through the brown. The sketch doesn't really have a place for the sentiment, but I thought this guy needed "Ze birthday saying". Hope you have a great week!

Friday Sketchers Challenge #82

As I was surfing some of the different blogs and card ideas, I noticed the friday sketchers challenge. I thought it would be a great one with my Martin the monkey stamp. I stamped extra palm boughs to use as my floral embellishments...call it a little creative license :) I flipped the sketch to work for this card. The papers were some of Magenta's decorative paper and all stamps are Stamp Shoppe Creations. Hope you all had a great weekend!

Saturday Challenges

Here is a card I made to match two card challenges today. I used the sketch from the Sketch Saturday challenge and the blue and brown colors from the Stampin for the Weekend challenge. Iused the Angel Wishes stamp from Sugar Nellie. These are some really cute images. The background paper is from Cosmo Cricket and I used some of our new Chocolate Box paper from Core'dinations. After I cuttlebuged the strips with the new Winter borders, I sanded it showing some of the light blue background through to the front. Then I colored the image with Copics to match the paper and sponged the light blue paper and sentiment tag with Vintage Photo distress ink. I stamped the sentiment from Stamp Shoppe Creations on the tag. I added the glitter flowers from Heidi Grace and centered them with the small snowflake shapeabilities. I love these challenges. They help me to think outside the box.

Vintage Christmas

Here are some new stamps we have just in time for Christmas from Sugar Nellie. I used the Cosmo Cricket christmas journaling cards. There are six different cards per 12 x 12 cardstock. I thought this postcard background worked great with "Santa's letter" stamp from Sugar Nellie. I colored the image with the more vintage colored Copics to match the paper. I used the "Mistletoe" stamp from Sugar Nellie on the card below: The sentiment on the top of this journaling card was perfect with the Mistletoe, since that is one of our Holiday Traditions. With the scallop top, it makes an easy card to throw together with not much work...yet it looks great. Thanks for looking!

Happy Anniversary

Here I used two different stamps to create an anniversary card. I just love this Cosmo Cricket paper and wanted to use it with my card, so I colored the kids in colors that would compliment the paper. Using the framed flourish cuttlebug folder, I embossed the corner and sanded it to bring out the swirls better. I made the stamen in the center of the flower with the starburst punch from McGill. It was a little big, so I cut the pieces down to fit the flower. I cut out a heart and popped it out above their heads...making it an anniversary card :)

We have a Blog Candy Winner!!

Peggy Kautza is our lucky winner of the blog candy! Thank you all for you comments. It's good to hear who is your favorite. I am also using the the Midnight Madness sketch MMSC31 for my card. It's not only a sketch, but is to follow the winter wonderland theme. I used the snowflake background on a marble blue background paper to have the feel of falling snow. Then stamped the signs of winter penguin with the Winter greeting and colored it with Copic markers. Adding a texture of snow with the Snow marker and glitter also add to the feel of freshly fallen snow. I scuffed the edges of the matting cardstock and added glitter around the rough edges. I love these challenges!! Again...congratulations to Peggy and you can pick up goodies!

Mojo Monday challenge #116

The Mojo Monday sketch has inspired me again! This little Stamp Shoppe Creations Penguin was sitting on my desk, colored and ready to be used on a card. When I saw the sketch, I thought the circles needed some snowflakes to back set the image. Then with all the snowflakes in the air, the "there's no days like snow days" sentiment worked well this card. I just love these spellbinder snowflakes. They add the perfect embellishment to winter cards. Thanks to Mojo monday for their weekly challenges...they are SO inspiring and thanks for looking!

Saturday Sketch 80 - Small Mr. Frost

I used Stamp Shoppe Creations' Small Mr. Frost for my focal point for the Saturday Sketch 80. I colored the image with Copic Markers and distessed the edges of the panel with Tim Holtz Vintage Photo Distress Ink. The snowman's scarf is actually our Candy Cane image....tucked neatly around his neck.

Designer Paper: Graphic 45
Ribbon: May Arts
Flowers: Making Memories
Cuttlebug Embossing Folder: Candy Cane
Images: Stamp Shoppe Creations
Signo White Gel Pen
Making Memories Distressing Tool

MMSC30 - Thanks A Ton

This card is for Midnight Madness Sketch Challenge 30, which was a fun one! Ellie the Elephant is the star, colored with Copic Markers and highlighted with a Signo White Gel Pen. Early Bird Cosmo Cricket designer papers set the theme. Each panel is Cuttlebugged with the Distressed Stripes embossing folder. Thanks A Ton is stamped on the Nestabilities Ribbon Tags, which was altered by cutting the slides off. For a fun touch, the Nestabilites Label Six has been faux stitched with the white gel pen for a different look. All images are by Stamp Shoppe Creations!

Mojo Monday 115 - Best Fishes!

Just loved the Mojo Monday 115 challenge. It was fun to use my new snowflake nesties as and accent on my Nestabilitie Ribbon Slide tag. The velvet May Arts Ric Rac coordinated so well with the Scrap Within Reach Designer Paper. Using the Candy Cane Cuttlebug, I embossed part of the paper and used the Scor-Pal to create and edge along the embossed impression.

I colored Sidney Fishing with Copic Markers and accented it with Art Institute Glitter. Topped off my snowflake with the Best Fishes sentiment that coordinates with the main image. Images by Stamp Shoppe Creations.

Holiday Planner & More--Up Coming Class

I decided with all the hustle and bustle of the season, to plan my December class as a useful AND relaxing tool for you! In this class, you'll make a Holiday Planner--perfect for housing all of your lists, menus, receipts, etc. You'll also make a few items perfect for your gift giving and decorating needs. The three projects will also provide you with instruction in the use of the Big Shot, Bind it All, Scor-Pal and copic markers.

You can read more about this project here.

Class will be held December 8th at 6pm--you can reserve your spot today!

TTFN, Jane