Week Two of the Cupcake Inspiration Challenge #350

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Hello Crafty Friends!!

There is still time to play with Cupcake Inspiration Challenges #350-Halloween Theme.

I have to be honest, though I like Halloween, I never really enjoyed making cards for it...until this year. It has given me a chance to GET MESSY!!! 

Can you see what I mean? Again, I did not use the Cupcake Inspiration Badge per se as the inspiration for my card but more the colors from the badge.

I started off this card by blending the background with Distress Ink in *Carved Pumpkin, Wild Honey and *Dusty Concord. I then used the Tim Holt *Script Layering Stencil over the top with *Black Soot. I also blended some Black Soot around the edges of the card front.

I then used Tim Holtz Bubbling Cauldron, Hocus Pocus, and Empty Tomb Distress Mica Spray, flicking it over the top to get my large droplets as you see. I cannot tell you how OBSESSED with this stuff I am!! While this dried, I die cut my yellow circle and blended some *Squeezed Lemonade Distress Ink over the top.

I stamped the sentiment using Sugar Pea Designs Fang-Tastic stamp set and die cut my bats from black glitter paper using dies from Impression Obsession. 

I die cut my card front and layered it onto a top folding A2 card base, as shown. I used foam adhesive to "pop" the moon up and adhered the bats to my card and was finished!! I cannot tell you how happy this card makes me feel!!!

Well, that is all from me today. Please hop on over to the Cupcake Inspiration Challenge and play with us this week!! We are also teaming up with the Double Trouble Challenges this time. Please put your cards with the following rules:

I want to thank you for taking the time to stop by today. 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!!

Wishing I was at the Beach and a Critter Card

 Hello friends!!!

It is a very rainy day in Connecticut. I brought my daughter down to the beach yesterday to stay with my sister at her cottage and it was so sunny. I wish I had been able to stay but had appointments and couldn't fit it in. Chris and I were going to go down and spend half the today but the weather is just not cooperating. I am not complaining because I would rather have rain than a drought.

Today I am popping in with two cards I created for some challenges. The first is a challenge I have just heard of and decided to play along. It is the Inspiration Station Challenge.

The challenge was to use the photo below as my inspiration for the Inspiration Station Challenge #9-Sun, Sea, and Sand. I also was inspired by the Card Concept Challenge #158-Long Summer Days.

When I think of the beach, I think of lighthouses. I was lucky enough to vacation in Cape Cod when I was little with friends. The two things I remember are the lighthouses and the sand dunes. Cape Cod is the home of 22 lighthouses. This includes the lighthouses on the islands of Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard. I decided to create a lighthouse card in honor of those vacations.

I used CottageCutz Lighthouse die to create this. I die cut my lighthouse out of red and white paper. I then used gray Copic marker to make some shadows.

The background was created by blending Salty Ocean Distress Ink on the bottom and Tumbled Glass Distress Ink to shade the sky. I added some clouds and seagulls that I had die cut using CottageCuz Lighthouse w/ Clouds die. 

The sentiment is from PaperTrey Ink. I had a retirement card to make for a friend so this was the perfect die to use!!

I LOVE how this card came out and I hope my friend likes it too. Oh how I WISH I was retiring right now.

For my next card, I am playing with two new TO ME challenges.  Crafty Animals Challenge #52-Anything Goes and 2 Crafty Critter Crazies #52-Anything Goes. 

Both challenges you could make a card for any occasion but it had to have a critter on it. I chose to break out my never before used My Favorite Things Birdie Brown Mice Day to Celebrate stamps and matching dies to create a birthday card. 

The background is a piece of pattern paper that was left over from another project, as well as the green triangle underneath the mouse.

The mouse itself was colored in with Copic Markers. I did a dot technique all over the critter. You might wonder why I decided to color him/her in gray. The mice that we catch in our house all happen to be this color. (They tend to find their way in to our upstairs in the winter. We have not figured out how, though.)

The sentiment is from the same Mice Day stamp set and I added some sequins around the little birthday mouse to make it a bit more festive. I love the way this came out and cannot wait to create another card with this set!!!

I have just recently become an Affiliate of My Favorite Things and if you use my links, I will earn money at no extra cost to you!! (I am playing around with it as I am really not 100% knowledgeable on how it works.) July 6-July 9 they are having a 15% off sale site wide (in-stock products only), no code, so there is till time to shop!!! 

That is all from me today. I want to thank you for taking the time to stop by. I hope you have a FABULOUS day!!

Sending Big Hugs and a new DT Gig at the Cupcake Inspiration Challenge Blog

Happy Monday everyone!! Today I finally get to share that I have a new DT gig at Cupcake Inspirations Challenge Blog!!! I am an official "Sweetie." I am beyond EXCITED!!! 

The challenge will be a two week challenge and my first card ever for the Design Team is below.

My photo inspiration is from Cupcake Inspirations Challenge #522 badge. Aren't those little chicks cute?

(Source)

 

I know, I know-you are probably thinking how did I get from those little chicks to my card? Well, I did. When I think of birds, I think of spring. When I think of spring, I think of flowers. So I decided to get out my WPLUS9 stamp sets out and create a little scene. If you notice, the little bird on my card is yellow like the ones in that nest!

I used WPlus9's The Little Things stamps and dies, Spring Blessings stamps and dies, and the bird is from the Winter Greenery stamp set.

I made sure to add some brown in my little scene, another ode to the inspiration photo. I also used a shaded oval in the background with the color blue, like a robin's egg. See how I did that?

The sentiment on my card is from The Ton. The little orange flowers on the "ground" were in my "extra" pile of stamped images. I am not sure from where. I am so excited at the way this card came out. 

I hope you come on over to the blog and play along with me and the other Sweeties this week. I cannot wait to see what you create!!!

My Turn on the CAS-ual Fridays Blog with a Rainbow of Flowers

 Happy Monday everyone!! I hope you all had a FABULOUS weekend!!! We spent it finishing off our deck...or I should say that Chris did. I helped with little things but he did most of the heavy lifting!!!

Today I am on the CAS-ual Fridays Stamps Blog with a card that I created a fun background with the Flowerburst Stencil. 

The idea came to me when I was lying awake in the middle of the night last week. Does that every happen to you???? Below is a sneak peek of my card.

I have to admit that this was A LOT of fun to make. I can just imagine a field of flowers 

when I see it!!!

Hop on over to THIS POST to see a pictorial step-by-step to see how I created this card!!! Let me know what you think.

I want to thank you for taking the time to stop by today. Have a FABULOUS day!!!

A CAS-ual Fridays Post to Brighten Your Day

 Happy Sunday everyone!! 

I cannot believe we are in MAY!! I have to admit that I want this month to go fast as work has been really tough. I am ready for summer vacation!!

Today I am on the CAS-ual Fridays Blog with a bright and cheery card. 

Hop on over to my post to see what products I used and how I created this!!!

I want to thank you for taking the time to stop by. Have a FABULOUS day!!

The Final Day of the CAS-ual Fridays March 2021 Release

 It is Friday and the final day of the CAS-ual Fridays March Release!!!! I saved the best card (or at least my FAVORITE card) I created for last. 

I went way out of my comfort zone with this card design using the new Swirls Stencil, paired with the new Love Notes stamp set. 

I started off this card by blending Distress Ink in Twisted Citron and Lucky Clover onto a white, A2 card panel. I then used the Swirls Stencil and the same ink colors to stencil the swirls on different areas of my card panel. There was no rhyme or reason, I just had fun!!! When I was done stenciling, I blended some Vintage Photo Distress Ink around the edges to add a little contrast to the greens I used. 

Next I used Walnut Stain and Picket Fence Spray Stain to flick over the card front. I was trying for small splatters BUT sometimes you get what you get.

As the splatter was drying, I stamped the sentiment strips in black, using the Love Notes stamp set. I then used Vintage Photo Distress Ink across the top and Walnut Stain dragged on the edges of each sentiment strip. I distressed the edges using some sand paper.

When the green panel was dry, I stamped the music from the Love Notes stamp set using WOW! Clear Embossing Ink and then heat embossed it with WOW! Clear Embossing Powder. I used a paint brush and water to lighten the ink inside the music so that they would stand out a bit.

I used sand paper to distress the edges of the panel and adhered it to a white, A2, top folding card. 

I used foam adhesive to adhere the sentiment strips and then added some green Nuvo Crystal Drops over some of the stenciled swirls. The card was complete!!!

This was COMPLETELY out of my comfort zone but a lot of fun to create. I really love how it came out!!!

This stencil, as well as all the other new products, are available in the CAS-ual Fridays Stamp Shop under the NEW section right now!!! Use my code NORASENTME to get 15% off your total order!!!

Be sure to comment to be entered into a random drawing of all the commenters on the designers blogs to win a prize. Hop on over to the CAS-Fridays Blog to link up to the fabulous creations created by the Design Team!!

That is it for me today. I thank you for taking the time to stop by. Have a FABULOUS day!!!