Just a Reminder for this weeks Cupcake Inspirations Challenge

 Hello Friends!!! Happy July 4th!!!

Today I am popping in with a reminder for this weeks Cupcake Inspirations Challenge #547. The theme is "Oh My Stars."

Below is this weeks Cupcake Inspirations Challenge Badge.

Source

Once again I did not use the traditional red, white and blue on my card. I went with a beach theme. I used the image from "Summer Circles" by Pretty Pink Posh, which I colored in using Copic Markers. 

The star fish border was stamped in pink using the Seas and Greetings stamps from Simon Says Stamps. The die cut starfish is from a Hero Arts die set and the sentiment is from a Concord and 9th stamp set.

Once again, I LOVE how this card came out!!! It is a simple design but was fun to create. 

I hope that you join us this week at Cupcake Inspirations Challenge. It is always so fun to see what you create. 

I thank you for taking the time to stop by today. Have a FABULOUS 4th of July!!

Cupcake Inspiration Challenge #529 Anything Goes

Some Affiliate links are used in this post. Please see my Affiliate Policy for more details. 

Hello everyone!! 

I hope you all enjoyed your weekend. I am popping in with a card I created for the second week of the Cupcake Inspiration Challenge #529-Anything Goes. 

This challenge is sponsored by Di's Digis. They are giving the lucky winner a prize of two digital stamps of the winner's choice!

Since I didn't have any of Di's stamps, I chose to use some products that I already had to create my card.

I designed an 80th Birthday card this week that was requested by a friend. 

I started off by using the Altenew *Garden Trellis to die cut a panel out of *Neenah White Cardstock.  I then added yellow and purple flowers that I stamped using some flower stamps from Hero Arts.

I added a sentiment that I had printed out on my computer and some die cut numbers using The Greetery's Bold Numbers Dies. 

I used Tonic Electric Purple Mirrored Cardstock for the numbers to match the flowers and my card was complete!

So hop on over to The Cupcake Inspiration Challenge Blog today to play along with our Anything Goes Challenge. I cannot wait to see what you create!!

That is all from me today. I hope you have a FABULOUS day!!

Distress Inking and Copic Coloring for Some Challenges

Happy Tuesday everyone!! I hope you all had a fabulous holiday weekend. 

Chris and I are in full fledged empty nest and we actually were social for a change. We had my Dad and Stepmother over for a cookout on Sunday and went to a friend's house to spend time with my girls on Monday. We hadn't been all together for over a year. It was so refreshing!!

That said, I know we probably should have not gone anywhere. However, I am tired of being the only one staying home and socially distancing. I am vaccinated, I have been masking EVERYWHERE for months, and I needed these visits for my mental health.

I also had some fun making a couple cards for some challenges. 

I created my first card for the Color Hues Challenge #TCH #25, Sunday Stamps #265, a color challenge,  Addicted to CAS #205-Nature and The Four Seasons Challenge.

I started off my card using a rectangle die to die cut a mask. I placed the mask over an A2, top folding, white card base. 

I then blended Ranger Distress Ink in Squeezed Lemonade, Mustard Seed, Dried Marigold and Carved Pumpkin through the mask. I then used Tim Holtz Distressed Mica Stain-Set 1, over the top.

While the stain was drying, I die cut Prima Moroccan Foliage Dies out of white cardstock and used the same colored Distress Ink blend over the top. 

I tied the three leaves together with 49 and Market Jute and adhered them to my card front.

My next card I created using this weeks Color Throwdown #658 and Freshly Made Sketches #501 as my inspiration. However, I missed the deadline for both. I am also going to enter this into the Inspired By Card Challenge #IB185, which is to use scraps on a card. I used PLENTY of scraps on this card!!

I started off using the Hero Arts Bold Script Prints background stamp using Hero Arts Charcoal Dye Ink on a Neenah White card base. I then stamped it again using Hero Arts Navy ink.

I then a scrap of light gray cardstock over the top. I then adhered a light blue rectangle scrap that I embossed with a polka dot embossing folder and a strip of blue pattern paper. I stamped a sentiment from MFT at the bottom of the blue rectangle.

I die cut some Pink Fresh Curvy Leaves out of vellum and Neenah White cardstock and layered it over the top of the card.

I then used a Pink Fresh butterfly from Little Butterflies that I had stamped with Tuxedo Black ink. I colored in the image with Copic Markers and then heat embossed with Ranger Super Fine Gold embossing powder. I die cut it using the matching Small Butterflies die. 

I adhered it to my card front using foam adhesive. My last step was to use some SB.com Clear Shimmer Pen.

Well that is all from me today. I want to thank you all for taking the time to stop by. Have a FABULOUS day!!

Some Challenge Cards

Happy Sunday everyone!! 

This week has been so BEAUTIFUL, not like a normal New England August at all. It makes me smile!! I have not been able to enjoy much of it, though, as I have been shopping to get Charlotte back to college. She has her first apartment (on her parents dime 😬) and she needs quite a few things to fill it. I have been on the prowl to find her another set of dishes, a stock pot and I did finally find her new bedding. 

I have been able to make some cards, though, for some challenges. This first card is for this weeks *Color Throwdown Challenge #354. It was to use the colors gray, brown and white. 

Below is the badge for this weeks ctd654 challenge.

I am not going to lie, I always have difficulty doing color challenges. I am also NOT a neutral person. I decided to go through my scrap drawer which contains my neutral colors, get out some of the pattern paper and cut it into strips. I then made a few backgrounds.

I die cut this background twice, one to create the striped rectangle for this card, and to make a frame for my next card, with my Lawn Fawn *Stitched Rectangles. I adhered it to a *Kraft background using *foam adhesive. 

I used the Tim Holtz *Wildflower Stems 2 to die cut some leaves from *Neenah Solar White Cardstock. I adhered the leaves over the striped rectangle.

I then adhered the sentiment that was stamped and die cut using the Thinking of You Sentiment Suite from The Greetery. I LOVE how this card came out and intend to use this as a Sympathy card. I will add a nice sentiment inside for the recipient.

For my second card, I used the remainder of my striped paper as a frame for my card.

I decided to create a shaker card, using an ocean theme. I shaded the inside using *Salty Ocean Distress Ink.

I added a kraft paper net that was die cut using a Tutti Fruitti die and some shells from the Hero Arts *Fancy Sea Shells die set. Can I tell you how I LOVE these dies? I get no money from saying this but I adore them!!

The last thing I adhered was a sentiment from my stash. I am not sure who the company is that created it. I intend for this to be yet another retirement card and will add a nice sentiment inside for whoever I send it to.

I am entering this card into the Just Add Ink Challenge #566-Just Add a Frame. 

The last card I created just because. I used a Stamp Market Paper Hug die (retired) with The Greetery's Alpha Buds Floral Detail stamps and dies. 

The sentiment is one from my stash and I am not sure who created it. 

I shaded in the white rectangle using *Squeezed Lemonade Distress Ink and used a piece of yellow pattern paper underneath.

I love how all my cards came out. I have been having so much fun in my craft room creating things again and using my supplies!!

I want to thank you for taking the time to stop by today. I hope you have a GREAT night!!!!

A Fun Weekend and Some Cards

Hi everyone!!! I hope you are having a nice Sunday. The sun is out here and I started my day off with a walk with my neighbor. The temperature is a little chilly but the sun just makes it so worth it. 

I am going to share a couple cards today. I apologize to you in advance that they are all sympathy cards. I know people hate making them but I find them so peaceful to create. That is weird isn't it?

I used The Stamp Market's Ready to Bloom Card Cover Die for the white flowers. I used Nuvo Crystal Drops in Crushed Grape Gloss for the flower centers.

I stamped a sentiment from Your Next Stamp onto a die cut oval (retired MFT die) and heat embossed with Rangers Silver Tinsel Embossing Powder. 

I used a PTI embossing plate to emboss the paper under the flowers and combined sentiments from two different sets on the inside of the card.

I am going to enter this card into The Flower Challenge's #54: Shades of Purple and Simon Says Stamps Wednesday Challenge: Beautiful Blossoms.

My second card I used the same basic supplies as my first card.

I changed up the sentiment and used My Favorite Things Deepest Sympathy Stamps and heat embossed with WOW! white embossing powder. I stamped this on a Pinkfresh Studio's Braided Oval that I die cut from purple cardstock. 

I used yellow Nuvo Crystal Drops in Dandelion Yellow for the flower centers.

Again, I used the same sentiment stamps for the inside of my card but added a die cut rick rack to hide an ink spot. I was not going to throw it away!!

I am entering this card into The Watercooler Wednesday Challenge #310, All About Occasions and The Paper Players Challenge #531: Spring is in the Air.

 

My next card is a card I made for someone who lost her baby recently. I was not able to go to the wake as I was not feeling well but I wanted to make sure that she knew how much I cared.

I used Spun Sugar Distress Ink to blend behind the Hero Arts Angel Wings. 

I used foam adhesive to layer the heart over the wings and added some Prima flowers that I have had FOREVER over the heart. I created leaves using the small flower from CAS-ual Fridays 4 Petals Die. 

The heat embossed sentiment strip is from Taylored Expressions.

Some fun things to blog about after my sympathy cards is that I went to a "Zoom" birthday party last night. They hired a virtual mixologist and we made drinks. 

Before the party we had a shopping list for things to buy. We are not heavy drinkers so we had a lot to purchase!!! It was a lot of fun and a different idea to make everyone interact virtually.

I also received some purchases this week. I had sold some stuff on Ebay last year and bought myself a 72 ink pad storage from Organize More. 

I had ordered it a while ago and of course it came when Chris was home alone. I hate when that happens!! I just need to reconfigure my desk so I can put my ink pads in it. I am so excited!!!

I also received an order from Simon Says Stamp. I am a little mad at myself for this one. I am supposed to be on a spending freeze but it IS NOT GOING WELL!!!

A couple things are missing from this photo too that I forgot to put in there.

Well, that is all from me today. I thank you for taking the time to stop by. Have a FABULOUS night.