Oceans of Love

I have hoarded this card stock long enough...the colors, texture, and glittery details are so pretty in person. I used it for the blue(s), and light and dark greens for the Color Throwdown Challenge #829. I wish you could see all the sparkle on the shells!

I used Papertrey Ink's Summer Shells dies as well as Spellbinder's Seahorse and Sand Dollar die set. I used Distress Oxide ink in Tumbled Glass to shade the shells and "weather" the frame. The card stock is Sea Glass Shell Squares Embossed Glitter Specialty Paper from maybe Joanne Fabrics? My dark green stamped sentiment is from the Flora and Fauna Mermaid Love stamp set. The dark green and blue droplets are Tim Holtz Idea-ology and the shadow box/curio frame is The Greetery.

I assembled the panel and adhered it to an A2 top folding card base. I may display this one in my craft room.

Thanks for stopping,

Carol

Santa Claus is Coming to Town

It took a while to figure out my card for Craft Roulette #260 this weekend but it finally evolved into a shaped card: an envelope full of postage stamps so Santa could respond to letters from kids. The CR parameters are:

Project: Envelope

Colors: Toys

Element: Children's Story

Random: List(s)

My take on them is obviously the envelope card base, the toy colors like wagons, fire trucks and matchbox cars in red and green, the children's story is Santa Claus is Comin' to Town by J. Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie (click on the title to go to a reading of the book), and the list Santa is reading to see who was naughty or nice.

Products I used:

Spellbinders Envelope of Wonder die set

My Favorite Things Jingle All The Way stamp set

Waffle Flower Postage Collage Love stamp set, Postage Collage Coloring set

Honey Bee Stamps Country Christmas Wreath stamp and die sets

Pink and Main Large Sentiment Strip dies

Simon Says Stamp Peace Joy Hope Love stencil, Stitched circle die

Stamper's Anonymous Pines Layering stencil, Element Stencils Festive Art

Tim Holtz Idea-ology Droplets-Christmas

Copic markers

Wink of Stella pen

Altenew Obsidian black ink pad

Joanne Fabrics red card stock with foil dots

I die cut and assembled the envelope, then cut the envelope base on a 5" x 7" white card base. The envelope was adhered to the card base.

I die cut the postage, stencils it and stamped the postage on it.

Next, I die cut the pine branches and stamped and colored Santa with Copic markers. I added sparkle to his hat with Wink of Stella pen. I die cut Santa with a stitched circle die and added the droplets.

Last, I stamped the sentiment and die cut it with a banner die.

I was going to have Santa on the circle be on a lined sheet of "paper" as a way to pull up the list out of the envelope, but decided to CASE my card from last Christmas with. postage in the envelope peeking out.

Well, here's one 2025 Christmas card ready to go!

Check out Craft Roulette's gallery for this challenge...there are so many great ideas!

Thanks for stopping in,

Carol

Thinking of You

I have been admiring the cards lately that are stenciled on a perforated panel. My A2 Piercing Plate die from Ellen Hutson gives the same effect, so I got out my stencils and blending brushes to try out the technique. Color Throwdown #829 is using blue, lime and green which was just the color I have been wanting to stencil the berries!

Products I used:

Papertrey Ink Berry Branches stencil set

Ellen Hutson A2 Piercing Plate 2

Concord and 9th Thinking of You stamp set

Altenew Obsidian black ink pad

Avery Elle Wonky Scalloped Frames

Concord and 9th, Hero Arts and Stampin' Up! stamp pads

Pretty Pink Posh sequins (clear but photographed grey)

All I did was die cut, stencil and stamp. Simple! I fell in love with the challenge graphic and would love some wallpaper just like it.

Thanks for taking a look!

Carol

Happy Birthday

Our Just Us Girls Challenge #768 is Anything Goes with a Stencil. I needed a card for my daughter's upcoming birthday and she loves pink and gold. This is my first time playing with this stencil set and I love using it!

Products I used:

Papertrey Ink - Berry Branches stencil set

Simon Says Stamp - Circle Sayings stamp set

Pink Fresh Studio - Braided Circles dies

Lawn Fawn - Henry's ABCs dies

Distress Oxide ink pad

Concord and 9th - mini ink pads

I really love this berry stencil set...super easy to use and nice, sturdy stencils. I didn't want to cover up the stenciling too much, so I made my sentiment fit on one circle. I backed the circle with gold vellum and punched a few hearts from it as well. 

Check out the team's cards on their blogs as well as that of our guest Jeanne Jachna, who has been a fabulous guest all month.

See you in the gallery!

Carol

Let's Fly Away

Our latest Time Out Challenge #285 is an "Inspired By" theme: Your Favorite Movie. I thought this was going to be a hard challenge and I know I have said that many a movie was "my favorite ever" at some point. Recently I decided to watch one from a long time ago and realized that it is not only on my top favorites list, but I chose to make a card about it.

I may or may not have cried a few times during this one because of the sentimental points it makes. The scenery is amazing and you can't finish the movie and not want to travel to Tuscany on the next flight going there. 

We also have Ginger Williams of Andora's Stamping Studio for this challenge. Be sure to check out her card and blog as well as those of our design team who make a great effort to inspired you for our challenges.

Products I used:

Waffle Flower - Postal Collage die

La La Land - outryside Designer Paper Pack

Simon Says Stamp - Summer Sentiment Strips

Scrap of "sun" patterned paper

I die cut four white rectangle postage stamps, then used the same die to cut here and there from my paper pack. I trimmed the patterned ones so that the white postage edge would show around them. I adhered them together.

I chose some sun patterned paper as a mat for my white mini slimline card base. I adhered the mat and stamps to the card, then chose a sentiment. The theme of the movie was a fresh start in another part of the world, so I chose Let's Fly Away.

Our kind sponsor this month is Claire Brennan of Claire Brennan Design and Illustration (Former owner of Waltzinghouse Stamps). As a prize she is offering her Mid Mod City 4 X 8 Stamp set. Our winner will also be invited to be a future guest designer!

We hope to see your favorite movies via your creative cards in our gallery!! Thanks so much for stopping by.

Carol

Hoppy Easter - Your Paper Insider

I was the lucky recipient of a box of specialty papers from Your Paper Insider a while back...and this is my second card using these fabulous sheets of vellum, solid core cardstock, glitter paper, shimmery pink vellum-y paper, in addition to confetti and holographic papers. There are also handmade papers from Japan and a sheet of cold-pressed watercolor paper! My card today uses only their papers except for the blue sky cardstock from my stash.

The dies I used are an older club set from Spellbinders called Hello Peeps, the sentiment is from a stamp set from Simon Says Stamp called Hoppy Easter, and I used my Pink and Main banner die to cut out my sentiment. All the white cardstock you see on this card is a gorgeous glitter paper that does not shed. Can you see how smooth the papers are? They are sturdy too!

Check out their subscription boxes and watch a video on their website to see how some of the paper are made and sourced. They are great to work with, I promise!

Thanks for stopping by,

Carol

Thanks a Gazillion

Here is a different style card I made using new dies I got on sale a while back. For Craft Roulette #259 I CASEd this round easel card after keeping it in mind for a long time from The Stamp Market's shop samples. The "funn" parameters this week were:

Project: Card with two folds

Colors: Jelly Beans

Element: Math

Random: Use markers

My use of them was this easel card, with the round card base (one fold) and the fold on the top of the card base (second fold) which has a circle attached for embellishing/stamping. Then the Easter jelly bean colors, counting up to a gazillion, and I used a Wink of Stella pen/marker on the yellow pieces of my card for sparkle.

Products I used:

The Stamp Market - Succulents die set

Stampin' Up! - Really Retro stamp set

Simon Says Stamp - Circle dies

Pink and Main - Banner dies

Wink of Stella pen/marker

Card stock scraps

Foam squares

I made a square card base then used a circle die, overlapping/extending the die off the edge of the fold about 1/4 " to keep the folded edge intact. Then I cut another circle of the same size. Next, I scored the top of the card base in half. The single circle got glued to half of the scored card base front. (see the second photo).

I assembled my plants and adhered them on the card front, then stamped and die cut the sentiment, popping it up on foam squares so that it could hold the decorated circle in place like an easel.

The card folds flat and fits in an A2 envelope!

It was kind of a quick card and I'd like to make some more of these! I like a card that can be displayed on a desk or shelf.

It was a good set of parameters and I had time to enter it this week!! See you soon and thanks for stopping by!

Carol