Winter Cat

This is just my second time using the sweater dies from Spellbinders (a bear comes with the sweater dies) but I am CASEing an idea I saw (here) by Sarah Leese Papercrafts using another Spellbinders set with this cute cat. Our Just Us Girls Moodboard Challenge #758 was chosen by our sweet hostess Bobby. It has pretty colors and winter elements to choose from. I went with the colors and winter theme. Don't forget to check out all of the wonderful design team cards and another creative one by our guest Annette Elias.

Products I used:

Spellbinders: Festive Friends die set, Halloween Add-ons by Wendy Vecchi

Pink Fresh Studio: Folk Snowflake stamp and die sets

Altenew: Obsidian Pigment Ink pad

Lawn Fawn: Patterned paper

My Favorite Things: In Stitches Numbers die set

The Stamp Market: Little Letterboard die set

I tried to line up the red and taupe plaids to match like when you are sewing with plaid fabrics and did the best I could. Inside the card I die cut "In 2025" in blue and red die cut letters to continue the sentiment from the front of the card.

Won't you join us this week with a pretty winter card?

Carol

Favorite things to do in January

Our new challenge at Time Out is "Inspired by" where this particular two weeks we are asked to share one of our favorite things to do in January. The thing you choose could be inspired by where you live. If it is cold, you might like skiing or building snowmen. If you live where it's warm, you might like to go to the water, or do indoor activities if it is too hot outside. I chose my activity based on both the warm weather and the free time I gain after the busy holidays. I can open the sliding door for fresh air and hear the pool water circulating while sewing or make a quilting project like a set of placemats. I'm trying this month to finish a set I started in the summer by using the "quilt as you go" method. I'll post them here if/when I finish!

Our generous sponsor this month is Lawn Fawn with a store credit of $25.00 for our challenge winner. The winner also gets an invitation to be our Guest Designer in the future. Be sure to check out our team's cards on their blogs to read the story behind their cards, as well as our guest, Verena Shapiro of simple_stamper on Instagram.

For my card I used The Stamp Market's Sending Hearts Cover die. I die cut it out of white, two pinks, an aqua and a teal, and one lavender piece of cardstock. Then I pieced them back together. My sentiment is from a Tim Holtz Ideaology sticker book where I can always seem to find a phrase that fits the theme of my card. I just heard that Inkspirational Challenges #332 is all about Pretty Quilts, and I'm adding my card to their gallery.

Think about taking some Time Out to make a card for our January themed challenge. We love to see your creations in the gallery.

-Carol 

A Masculine Card

For our Just Us Girls Word Week #756 our lovely hostess is Sue and she chose the word Masculine. As we all know, we don't make as many masculine cards as other types, so it can be a challenge. Here is my card with an inside joke for someone I know whose birthday is coming soon. Check out the team's masculine ideas for cards as well as that of our guest this month, Annette Elias.

Die cutting was the focus of the design of this card, plus embossing the background, then stamping the sentiment. It was my first time using this die set and it is pretty fun to "design" the fashionable sweaters that you want. I wasn't going for "in style" but rather a variety of patterns. We have an inside joke at our house about my husband's accidental collection of green sweaters. At one time the majority of his sweaters were green and he has been "warned" that he has enough of them for a lifetime. Inside the card I stamped, "birthday boy" to complete the sentiment from the front of the card.

Products I used:

Concord and 9th: Sweater Season die set, mini ink pads

Spellbinders: Plaid embossing folder

Pink Fresh Studios: Diagonal Stitched rectangle die

Patterned paper scraps

We hope you will make a masculine card this week for your stash and our challenge! Join us!

Carol

Winter Greetings

Happy New Year from Just Us Girls! We have something new called Die Week and our challenge this time around is Anything Goes. Some weeks we will have a caveat with Use a Die such as a theme or shape, etc. I received this fabulous Pink Fresh stamp, die and stencil set as a gift from a friend in December and couldn't wait to try it out! I die cut the snowflake and sentiment for my card. This card is very sparkly (if you look closely or in real life) on the white glitter cardstock! Be sure to check out all of the team's wonderful cards as well as that of our guest this month, Annette Elias. 

Products I used:

PrinkFresh Studio: Folk Snowflake stamp, die and stencil set

Distress inks

Ink blending brushes

White glitter cardstock

Waffle Flower Grip mat

Foam dots

I am so impressed with these stamps, stencils and dies from PinkFresh. Such great quality and ease of use. I didn't use the snowflake stamp this time, but chose one of the sentiments to stamp and die cut. We hope you will join us this week by using a die (or several) this week as we ring in the new year!

Happy New Year to you and yours!

Carol

Happy New Year and Happy Me!

It's a new year and 2025 is off to a fun new start for me as I join the Time Out Challenges Design Team. I am so happy and honored to be joining this talented and wonderful group of women from all over the world. Our first Time Out Challenge of the year is Beginnings and there is a wonderful prize being offered by our generous sponsor Doodlebugs, a $25.00 store credit.

I decided to go with a New Year's card even though I had been thinking about the beginning of a day (sunrise), a wedding theme (beginning of a new chapter), a new baby, a new job, etc. It is a fresh start or "beginning" when the calendar is on January 1st, so I grabbed some new and old products from my stash to make a wine bottle tag.

Products I used:

Hero Arts: Hello Edger die set

My Favorite Things: Number dies

The Greetery: Pinwheel Party die set

Stampin' Up!: Gold striped vellum

Gold glitter cardstock

We hope you are ready for some papercrafting and that you have some "beginnings" ideas for a project to share in our gallery!

Wishing you a happy new year with lots of time to do papercrafts in 2025!

Carol

Time to Get Merry

Like a lot of us, Santa is pretty happy that Christmas is almost here! I received this Simon Says Stamp freebie die in a recent order and could not wait to try him out! I love the shadow effect it gives. In that same order I finally got the Stampers Anonymous Pines Layering stencil, too! I am playing along at Inkspirational Challenges #331 Use a Stencil.

I also used a Flora and Fauna older sentiment with Altenew Obsidian black ink. The trees were stenciled with a Versafine white pigment ink pad. The sparkly stars were die cut with shiny gold cardstock.

I stood in line at the post office yesterday for almost 45 minutes (only two windows open) just to get some butterfly stamps so that my cards would be hand canceled...I don't want any destroyed cards!!

Happy Holidays!!!

Carol

Busy Christmas Bear

This cute little bear is putting up the Christmas decorations and as we all do, dealing with tangles in his string of lights. I made my card for the Color Throwdown #ctd822 using green, red and cream. I made my card CAS so that the colors took front stage. Almost all of the products are from Spellbinders.

His cheeks are actually ink blended red from a Concord & 9th Poppy mini ink pad. Just about everything else is from Spellbinders. I was gifted the cute cardstock and I had a scrap of corrugated paper for the turtleneck. 

Better run. We are going on a trolley ride tonight in the cold air to see Christmas lights with about 30+ neighbors. Did not think Florida would get a cold front this night of the year!

Happy Holidays!

Carol