Love You Like a Great Pedicure

This week, the (click here>)Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Anything Goes is showcasing Tim Holtz products. I have not used my Tim Holtz "Bird Crazy" stamps and dies for a little while, but I love how fun and playful they can be...so that is what inspired my tag, along with my Simon Says Stamp CZ Design "Love You Like" sentiments, and my HoneyBee "Shine On" nail polish die. 

I used my Tim Holtz/Ranger Distress Oxide ink pads with blender brushes and a heart stencil to create the background as well as to color my bird. I chose my Simon Says Stamp Intense Black ink pad for the sentiment at the bottom, a Versamark ink pad and black embossing powder to emboss the Love you sentiment at the top, and I hand cut wonky tags out of white and blue cardstocks as well as another of vellum. Though not my favorite part of making this tag, but the best detail, I cut the tiniest thin strips of red glitter paper to make my crazy bird's polished and pedicured claws.

Hope you  liked my Bird Crazy tag and will check out the challenge this week!

-Carol

Pretty Spring Gift Bag

If you have not heard of Pootles Papercraft, you need to run, not walk to her hundreds of YouTube videos of 3D projects that she provides demos/tutorials for ALL THE TIME! Click on the link above for the tutorial for this cute little spring gift bag using an envelope punch board and only 1 sheet of 12" x 12" patterned paper. So cute!

Everything I used for this project is Stampin' Up! product from my craft stash. Sam's video gives you all the measurements and hints that you need! The bag is 5 1/4" x 3 3/4" x 1 1/2". Might be cute at each place setting on your Easter table filled with little chocolate eggs.

See you soon,

-Carol

Family Humor

My husband makes jokes ALL of the time. And luckily, he can take a joke too. Since his recent surgery he has to wear a neck brace. We have been joking about how dogs wear the "cone of shame" when they have surgery and aren't allowed to lick their wounds. Poor dogs look so embarrassed and sorry for whatever they did to deserve the awful cone they must wear. I have had this idea in my head for a while, and while my friend Nancy (@scrapperatheart) is over stamping with me, we came up with this card. The vellum cone gave us such a belly laugh, as it did my husband when we gave the card to him!

The dog stamp is from a set by Inkadinkado called Dogs. The googly eyes add to the silliness of the card too. This cone actually swivels back and forth, which my husband is NOT allowed to do in his cone. LOL! I am entering this card in the Addicted to CAS: Animal challenge where the code word is Animal.

Hope this made you laugh a little today,

-Carol

Cue the Confetti

Do you ever start to clean up your craft space and find a reason to start/finish another card? Well, that is what I did this morning. Here is a birthday card using "cue the confetti" from Picture Perfect Birthday by Stampin' Up! Actually, the patterned paper, sequins and ink are also Stampin' Up! but the balloon was made with two different sets of dies from My Favorite Things.

I cut a balloon with an MFT Big Birthday Balloons die and then cut out the middle with another MFT Inside and Out Circle die to be able to make a shaker. I used white sparkle cardstock for the balloon to add to the birthday feel. I decided to keep the balloon open on the back side to the patterned paper because it reminded me of a clear balloon with confetti inside like you see at Disney. The sentiment banner was cut with again, an MFT Inside and Out Stitched rectangle die. My next favorite things on this card, besides the shaker, are the balloon strings. They are part of the balloon die set and I love them!

So now I need to get back to cleaning my craft space and the rest of the house. Party pooper chores!

See you soon,

-Carol

Two Watercolor Challenges

So there are two challenges I am entering my latest CAS card in and they have a watercolor theme in common. The AAA cards: Game #184 Sketch and February Instagram Simon Says Challenge by Simon Says Stamp were where I found inspiration for my card.

This style of card is one I found and fell in love with last fall from Xeniacrafts.com. Click on her site name in my last sentence and watch the tutorial, in Spanish, but with subtitles for the measurements. (I speak Spanish and know that not everyone does, but her tutorial is great and very visually explanatory.) I used Distress Oxide Inks on watercolor paper for the base of my slider piece. I used my Whoa! You're Amazing die from Simon Says Stamp with white cardstock to create the front of the slider piece. I added a place for a sentiment inside using my My Favorite Things In and Out Stitched Rectangle die and some bright green cardstock. The sentiment piece inside (sentiment from Picture Perfect Birthday by Stampin' Up!) will not show when the card is closed with the slider piece in place holding the card shut. Also, it creates a place for a written message from the card sender!

Take a look at both challenges and see all the creative things people have entered!

See you soon,

-Carol

The Ocean Has My Heart

I am linking up with AAA Cards #183 today with my mermaid in the ocean card. The challenge is to put images all in one corner and the optional twist is to create a scene. My stamp has a scene all in one.

My stamp is by Rubber Moon, an older wooden stamp. I used a couple of Flora and Fauna sentiments and added Glossy Accents for bubbles after I used blender brushes and Distress Oxide inks to create the water. I used a Wink of Stella pen to add shimmer here and there and I also used my Simon Says Stamp Wonky rectangle dies for an "ocean wavy" stitched edge on all of my surfaces.

Try a CAS card with your images only in one corner...it was a different way to think of making a card that I have never done before!

Sea you soon!

-Carol

 

Love You Beary Much

This little bear is so cute and has so many uses! He is in a set called All Inside from Ellen Hutson, and there are sets of accessories galore. If you look for him on Pinterest, there is a never-ending amount of cards made with him that will give you ideas for something to make with him. My card is yet another Valentine and attempt to use pink and red together. This card is for Just Us Girls #570 and NBUS#23 (Never Been Used Schtuff) and Color Hues Color Challenge #11 Challenges.

I used my new Circle Sayings stamp set from Simon Says Stamp for the first time and used Versamark ink with an old wooden SWAK stamp for a subtle background. It took me numerous attempts to make a decent bow. I need to find a tutorial for that!

Happy Valentine crafting!

-Carol

 

My Funny Valentine

I am on a roll making Valentines...but I had to use this Stampin' Up! stamp that I've had for a while because it is funny! I made this card for the Color Hues #11 and The Card Concept #148. I keep hearing an OLD song in my head (my mother used to sing it around the house) sung by people like Johnny Mathis and Frank Sinatra: My Funny Valentine. Anyway, people of ALL ages can get a kick out of this sentiment:

The Color Hues challenge is pink and red and this cool fabric "patterned paper" started me on that journey.

The Card Concept challenge is this inspiration photo. I took inspiration in the pink and red cupcake toppings and dark cake and put them into my card design. My card style is mixed media with all the textures and elements on my card: black and red glitter papers, textured cardstocks, fabric "patterned paper" along with the ribbon and rhinestones. My two hearts even have stitched texture on them.

Check out both of these challenges. They are fun and easy to join!

See you soon,

-Carol

 

Shiplap Valentine

Hello there again and happy almost-Valentine's week. I miss elementary school Valentine exchanges from my childhood and my child's. What a fun activity every year! I made a Valentine with some homemade shiplap "wood" planks I made. The Color Throwdown #628 has a challenge using pink, yellow, green and purple, so I added baker's twine and little ink blended flowers in those colors. The Stamp Market Candy Cane Christmas leaves and Simon Says Stamp Wonky Heart die also bring pink and green to the card. The small flowers on the heart wreath were cut with a Martha Stewart punch. My card is a CASE of The Greetery's new shiplap cards.

The shiplap is just random color blending. (I didn't actually blend the colors together, I blender brushed (a new verb: to blender brush) areas of each color randomly all over the cardstock until no white was showing) Then I ran the cardstock through my Big Shot with a woodgrain metal die for texture. Next I watered down some white acrylic paint and brushed it on lightly so the colors underneath would still show. After it dried, I  spattered it with dark brown ink and cut it into "planks" about 3/4" wide and 4" long. The fun part was arranging them in a herringbone pattern on the white card base.

I have some more "planks" left over and plan to make tags or something other than a card with them. If I do, I'll be sure to post it here.

Happy Valentining!

-Carol

It's That Time Of Year

Valentine's Day is just around the corner now and comin' in hot! I have been wanting to use a mailbox die that was gifted to me as well as try a door card from scratch. I am playing in the The Color Hues #11, The Card Concept #148 and The Paper Players PP526. Here is my card:

My Color Hues TCH #11 card uses red and pink as pops of color on the "clean" white door.

The Card Concept's photo inspiration for me were the colors of not only that yummy-looking pink icing, but the juicy red berries too. The addition of dainty hearts to those cupcakes, as well as the silver wire tray were little details that I mirrored on my card. My card's style is clean and layered. I used my Scor-Pal to dry emboss the door panels and give the card clean lines overall. I have some color, but white overall. I made my little pink envelopes by hand and on the inside of the card I showed the Valentine opened by the recipient of the card in the mail slot. 

For the Paper Players I have red sparkle card stock and dry embossing on my door panels. I always like a white card with a pop of color.

Back to more Valentines...are you still making yours? Happy Valentine's Day!

See you soon!

-Carol