There She Goes April Sketch

 

This week's There She Goes sketch was a fun one to work with.  Love how you can dress it up as much or as little as you want to.

I decided to combine this sketch with this week's Color Throwdown as they had some wonderful earthy colours to play along with and it was perfect for this cute little gnome image from My Little Friend.

I coloured the image with Twinkling H2Os and my white gel pen came to the rescue for a slight colouring booboo the cat caused by jumping up on my desk while I was colouring the image.  Typical cat, has to be the center of attention and check out what is diverting my attention from him!  Needless to say, my payback was giving him a good brushing shortly thereafter LOL!

Next week and weekend are going to be very busy as hubby and I are once again cooking for the youth retreat at the church next Friday and Saturday.  There will most likely be 150 hungry mouths to feed and there is lots of shopping and prep to get done so things may a bit quiet here next week unless I get a chance to do some stamping this weekend so I can schedule a few posts.  We are always exhausted on the Sunday after all that work involved, and being that it is Mother's Day, I think the best gift I could get would be some quiet time reading a book in bed LOL!  Mind you hubby is usually in much worse shape than I am (he is the main cook, I'm seus chef , prep and clean up girl) so my guess is I'll be entertaining the kids for a good part of the day and will have to take a rain cheque on my reading in bed.  Or, maybe I can trade my hours in bed reading for a larger Mother's Day stamping gift....hmmm....that would be a great way to put a dint in my ever growing wish lists! 

Okay, I've blabbered on long enough!  Hope you are having a fabulous weekend and thanks for sharing a bit of yours with me :)




What's In It?
Stamps: (There She Goes) My Little Friend

Paper: Crushed Curry, Recollections DP, Chocolate Chip, Pear Pizzaz
Ink: Black
Accessories:  Martha Stewart Border Punhc, Scalloped Circle and Circle Nesties, 1" Greeen Grosgrain Ribbon, Raffia, Button, Half Pearls, Glue Dots, Dimensionals

Inkspirations Sketch #67

I combined Keesh's sketch this week with a Scrapmaster's Paradise color combination from last week.  I obviously missed the submission deadline, but loved the colour combination so decided to use it.

Out came one of my favorite Stampin' Up flower sets, Vintage Vogue.  I just love the flowers in the set and how you can layer them.  The Night of Navy panel has French Script on it, I cripmed the saffron panel for some dimension and texture as I didn't have a DP that would work, and added some flowers and ribbon to finish things off.   I just noticed I fudged the sketch a bit once again this week!  I'm obviously not paying close enough attention these days - sorry, Keesh!

The Design Team has some fabulous cards, which will most likely follow the sketch a bit better, for your inspiration.

Cindy Kirsty Makeesha Renée Brandi Carrie Helen Ilina Lee-Anne Marisa

Each week Keesh will select a winner and an honorable mention and post their cards on the Inkspirations Challenge blog.  We'd love to have you come and play along and see your card featured :).

Wishing you a fabulous day and a great weekend!  We are hosting Easter dinner on Monday and our son and some of the youth are doing a God Rod performance as part of the church's Easter performance.  Can't wait to see it as he is the lead in their performance!   I'm sure I'll be beaming and telling you all about it in a few days - be forewarned LOL! 

What's In It?

Stamps:  (Stampin' Up) Vintage Vogue, French Script Background
Paper: Night of Navy, So Saffron, 

Ink:  Black, Night of Navy, So Saffron, VersaMark

Accessories: Lacy Circle Nesties, Crimper, 5/8" Grosgrain Ribbon, Button, Twine, Glue Dots, Half Pearls, Dimensionals

Kitties for Jen

This is my card for this month's Sketch For Your To Try.   It never ceases to amaze me how quickly a month can go by!  Seems like just yesterday when it was the beginning of April!

I decided to use this adorable kitty image from There She Goes Catitude set.  Love this set, especially since we have a cat and my daughter is cat crazy :)   SO many fun images and sentiments that are "all cat" LOL!

I coloured the image with Twinkling H2Os and just had to use this paw print DP :)   Played around with which colours to use for some time and finally settled on these as pink and turquoise were just a bit too much for me this morning LOL!  A touch of twine adn a few dew drops (remember those LOL) and I called it a card.

Have a purrrrrfect day :)





What's In It?
Stamps:  (There She Goes) Catitude
P aper:  Certainly Celery, So Saffron, Cat Print DP, Brown  
Ink: Black
Accessories:  Twinkling H2Os, Pink Bakers' Twine, Dew Drops, Swiss Dots Embossing Folder, Paper Piercer, Dimensinals

Mojolicious Diva Dare

Absolutely LOVE this week's Mojo sketch! So much so, that I think I will make a square card as well!

My starting point was this yummy Fancy Pants Gerber Daisy DP.  Sure wish it hadn't been the last piece and with flowers and Spring come butterflies, right....?!  At least they do in my book and it is a great excuse to pull out this wonderful butterfly die.

I pulled my colours from the DP -- sure wish this hadn't been the last piece on the shelf as I would have stocked up! - and just had to use my lacy nesties again...I know, it's an addiction LOL!  Paired it with long standing Swiss Dots embossing folder addiction and some paper roses from Michael's.  Just realized this card has no stamping on it!  Doesn't happen very often, that's for sure! 

This card also qualifies for this week's Shabby Tea Room challenge to use butterflies (easy peasy for me LOL!) and Verve's current Diva Dare.  Though black isn't really a spring colour, butterflies and flowers sure are, so I think I can sneak it in :)  Will no doubt make a second one as I love my Verve flowers, and with this month's fabulous release of flowers and matching dies, I can't wait to use my new goodies to make another card for this Diva Dare that is perfect for me :)

Wishing you a day filled with sunshine and a few butterflies ane flowers too :)




What's In It?
Paper: Black, Fancy Pants Gerber Daisy DP, So Saffron, Very Vanilla
Accessories:  Lacy Circle and Circlel Nesties, SU Sizzex Butterfly Die, SU Scalloped Border Punch, Swiss Dots Embossing Folder, 5/8" Saffron Satin Ribbon, Recollections Roses, Half Pearls, Button, Twine, Glue Dots, Dimensionals

Peachy Keen Mother's Day Card

Loved the layout of this sketch so decided to play along with Peachy Keen's challenge this week.  However, once I had finished the card, I realized I didn't include the twist of using gold or metallic on the card.  That's what I get for not having a piece of paper with the specs on it right in front of my face LOL!

If all goes well, the half pearls will count.  If not, I'm quite happy with the card, so all is good :)

My two month Guest Designer spot with There She Goes stamps is coming to and end and though I'm not participating in this month's release sneak peeks, you can head over to the There She Goes blog to get a list of the blog hop participants.  If you do the hop you are entered into a draw to win the sets previewed today!.

Have a fabulous day and thanks for popping in and keeping me company in my little piece of blog land :)





What's In It?
Stamps: (Verve) You Are Special
Paper:Sahara Sand, Pretty in Pink, American Crafts DP, Mellow Moss
Ink: Black
Accessories: Martha Stewart Leaf Punch, Lacy Border and Butterfly Punch, Heart Nesties, Half Pearls,Dimensionals

Falling Into Mother's Day

I loved this Clean and Simple FTL sketch when I saw it last week, but life got in the way so I  never got to play along.  That all changed today :)

I combined it with this week's Color Lab because I just love this colour combination!  It's one of my fall back colour combinations so it was great fun play along.  Then after loading the Color Lab picture I realized it needed a touch of Baja Breeze - ugh! - so I had to switch out the green twine for blue twine.

My newest Verve order arrived so I was able to use the new flower set called Bloom and Grow and the matching dies.   Love my Verve flowers....happy sigh....!    The matching leaf die felt a big too large for the card so I used a Martha Stewart Leaf punch instead.  The pink layer was cut with the Labels 17 die to form the shape along the bottom.  A touch of twine and just had to use my lacy nesties :)    Nothing fancy, just a CAS card that you can change the sentiment on and use for all sorts of occasions.

We were treated to a little stretch of sunshine this past week, but it is still stinking cold out!  Just heard that this is the coldest April on record for 75 years - I'll vouch for that (not that I've been around for 75 years but that it has been cold this spring LOL!).  Upside is the grass doesn't grow very quickly so I've only had to mow twice so far :)  Have a great day and hope it involves a bit of stamping!





What's In It?
Stamps: (Verve) Bloom and Grow and Because of You
Paper: Pretty in Pink, So Saffron, Certainly Celery
Ink: So Saffron, Black
Accessories: Verve Flower Die, Martha Stewart Leaf and Butterfly Punches, Crimper, Lacy Circle and Labels 17 Nesties, Green Twine, Dimensionals

Happy Easter

 

Happy Easter everyone!   No card today, but rather a picture that fills my heart with joy :)   I love Easter and all it represents, and am always deeply moved and touched by what Christ has done for me (us).

In addition, my son is the lead in the God Rod performance to Arise My Love tonite and I can't wait to see him perform.  Little rotter has quite the stage presence and does such an amazing job up there.   It is a very powerful performance and I know I'll be a total mess tonite.  No worries though, Kleenex is already packed in my purse :)

Have a blessed Easter!!

Butterflies and Flourishes

This week's Verve sketch was a hum dinger!  After much pondering, I decided my sanity was worth more than having to struggle with the "sun rays" so I decided to take a few liberties with the that part of the sketch as I saw a few of the Divas do the same.  So if Shannan questions me, I can say "the Diva's did it" LOL!
.
When I saw the sketch I immediately thought of a butterfly (surprise, surprise!) and the butterfly trial subbing in for the rays.  I started off with this fabulous Cosmo Cricket DT and my colours came from there.  I double layered the lacy circle nesties and added my butterfly.  Then I realized there was no way my butterfly trail (I used this wonderful flourish from the There She Goes Flourish set) could match up properly unless my butterfly was flying sideways or downward, so the butterfly is flying properly and the butterfly trail works right where it is, right (wink, wink).  Phew!! I can't believe I've finished all the Verve sketches for this month so early - feels good :)

This weekend is a special one as my son and some of the other Grade 5/6 Youth are doing a God Rod performance to Arise My Love at our church's Easter performances.  He has the lead and I had tears streaming down my face at the rehearsal last night.  All the kids did an amazing job with the choreography and my little guy did a great job as the lead and has quite the stage presence the little rotter!  Proud mommy moment - happy sigh...   

It's going to be a crazy busy weekend with two Easter performances and then a big Easter dinner on Monday to play sues chef for (hubby is the chef in the family and we are having lamb and ham), so I'll take this opportunity to wish you all a blessed Easter weekend.  Blessings.






What's In It?
Stamps: (There She Goes) Flourish

Paper:  Cosmo Cricket DP, Certainly Celery, Orchid Opulence, Pale Plum, So Saffron
Ink: So Saffron
Accessories:  Lacy Circle Nesties, Stampin' Up Sizzex Butterfly Die, SU Scalloped Border Punch, Button, Twine, Glue Dot, Baker's Twine, Button, Half Pearls, Dimensionals

You Make A Difference

This week's Clean and Simple FTL was an interesting one so I decided to give it a try.  Try became the operative word too - ugh!

I desperately wanted to use my new lacy oval nesties, and after much frustration and lots of changes, this is the card I ended up with.  It's not totally true to the sketch, but with the way things were going (or more appropriately, not going), I took some artistic license so I could get to bed LOL!  That will teach me not to heed my note to self about not staying up late to work on a card.

Think it is going to be a long day, which may even require a bit of a 15 minute power nap or a sip of some caffeine, not to mention an early bedtime :) What's the saying,..."do as I say not as I do" LOL!  Later :)




What's In It?
Stamps: (Verve) Because of You
Paper:  Art Impressions DP, Wild Wasabi, Real Red
Ink: Black
Accessories:  Marvy Flower Punch, Lacy Oval and Oval Nesties, PTI Medium Scallop Die, Swiss Dots Embossing Folder, Martha Stewart Butterfly Punch, 5/8" Black Sheer Ribbon, Half Pearls, Dimensionals

Praying For You

This week's sketch was a bit tricky for me, most likely due to the fact I was doing it late at night.  Note to self: don't work on cards late at night LOL!

One of the LSS I frequent had a 50% off sale on all their DP this past weekend  and this lovely Melissa Frances DP was one of my finds.   The sentiment panel uses Verve's Classy Label Die and I layered it with a lacy nestie.  Since I don't own any lace (second note to self:  make sure you get some), I used the Martha Stewart daisy punch to create a strip of faux "flower lace" down the side.  Lots of half pearls and a few butterflies later, I called it a card.

This card is going to our Music Pastor's wife who is currently battling cancer.  She has had a rough go of it lately, and I want her to know our family is praying for her and her family as they walk this journey.  Love being able to personalize cards for people and hopefully touch their life in some way by doing so :)  





What's In It?
Stamps: (Verve) Circular Sayings
Paper: Early Espresso, Mellow  Moss, Very Vanilla, Orange, Melissa Frances DP
Ink: Black
Accessories: SU Border Punch, Martha Stewart Daisy Border Punch and Butterfly Punches, Verve Classy Label Die, Lacy Circle Nesties, Half Pearls, Dimensionals,

Sweet Sunday Flowers For Mom

I just loved Karen's Sweet Sunday sketch this week.  Nice and simple with lots of options to "dress it up" as much or as little as you want to.  My kind of sketch :)  I opted to keep it rather simple and love the clean feel to this card.

I pulled out the fabulous flower image in Close As A Memory from Stampin' Up.  Just love this flower spray and it is great for Mother's Day cards.  I paired it with this delightful pink and white polka dotted DP which I bought up when it was on clearance at Michael's a year or so ago.  A lacy nestie framed the flowers fabulously and some ribbon and a butterfly with bling finished things off.    I love the fresh feel of this card and hope you do too :)

We have another sunny day today and it feeeeeeels good...nanananana, just like it should.....nananana, sorry, couldn't resist LOL!   Sunshine is making me giddy :)   Have a good one! 




What's In It?
Stamps: (Stampin' Up) Thoughts and Prayers and Fancy Flexible Phrases 
Paper:  Making Memories DP, Lavender Lace, So Saffron
Ink: Positively Pink, Certainly Celery
Accessories:  Corner Rounder, Lacy Circle and Circle  Nesties, Martha Stewart Butterfly Punch, Bling, 5/8" Saffron Satin Ribbon, Dimensionals

Kind Words

This sketch was created by Verve Diva Andrea and it had me going "hmmm" for a little while as I tried to figure out how to work this sketch. I finally decided to flip it and things went a bit more smoothly from there :)

I absolutely love this quote by Mother Theresa.  Such a powerful reality to it and a great reminder to not just think nice things about people but to actually tell them so it can echo in there heart for days to come.

Got a few more bits of my Costco DP pack used up on this card - yeah!  Went with an oval instead of a circle, added a layered prima and some black, sheer ribbon and I was good to go.

Why not join me in making a conscious effort to bless someone today by sharing some kind words with them.  Not only will it bless them, but those of us who speak them :)





What's In It?
Stamps: (Verve) Kind Words
Paper: Costco DP, Lavender Lace
Ink: Black
Accessories: Scalloped Oval and Oval Nesties, SU Border Punch, Primas, 5/8" Sheer Black Ribbon, Button, Glue Dot, Half Pearls, Dimensionals

Inkspirations Colour Challenge #66

Keesh continues to come up with fabulous colour combinations and this week is no exception :)

Julee's Mojo Monday sketch was perfect for these colours and Verve's Kind Words set was calling my name as this flower image looks fabulous with sentiments.  Another "if spring won't come then I'll make a flower card and pretend" project LOL!

I used the small flowers from Verve's Love's Flower to create a pattern on the turquoise panel, added a butterfly (cheated a bit bit here by making it pretty in Pink versus Regal Rose...shhhhh....), some seam binding, half pearls and a bit of twine to finish things off.

The Design Team has some fabulous cards for your inspiration.

Cindy Kirsty Makeesha Renée Brandi Carrie Helen Ilina Lee-Anne Marisa

Each week Keesh will select a winner and an honorable mention and post their cards on the Inkspirations Challenge blog.  We'd love to have you come and play along and see your card featured one of these weeks!

Can't wait for the Verve release tonite!!  Hoping to add some new stamps to my already large Verve collection - happy sigh :)  Have a great weekend everyone! 

What's In It?

Stamps:  (Verve) Kind Words, Love's Flower
Paper: Tempting Turquoise, Sahara Sand DSP, Regal Rose, Pretty in Pink

Ink: Sahara Sand, VersaMark

Accessories: SU Border Punch, SU Butterfly Die, Seam Binding, Baker's Twine, Button, Half Pearls, Dimensionals

Verve Recipe Challenge

This card was made for April's Verve Get Your Diva On challenge over on SCS.  Amber provided a recipe we had to work with depending one the initial of our first name.


My recipe was as follows:

• Embellishments:  twine, buttons, brads
• Colour Combo: brown, pink, turquoise
• Layers/Shape:  4 layers or a circle shaped card

Phew - was a lot to keep in mind while making this card!   There where many times when I thought to myself "Oh, this would look great on this card" only to have to stop myself as it wasn't in the recipe.

I stayed true to my recipe and made my flower based on this fabulous tutorial.  Working with these colours was a bit tricky in that it is beyond strange making a brown flower and adding turquoise leaves LOL, but, once I was able to wrap my mind around it, I was good to go :)

Maybe I should have swapped out the colour category with one of the others, (we could switch one category as long as we used everything in the new category not just one item or colour) but thought of it too late and didn't want to start over so I stuck with what I had.   Loved all of Amber's recipes so I just may have to try each one of them as a fun starting point for a card :)

Thanks for your wonderful comments and for supporting my little piece of blogland - you guys are the best (((hugs)))





What's In It?
Stamps: (SU) Fancy Flexible Phrases
Paper: Early Espresso, SU Regal Rose DSP, Turquoise
Ink: Chocolate Chip
Accessories: Lacy Circle and Circle Nesties, SU Flower Punches, Martha Stewart Leaf Punch, Seeing Spots Embossing Folder, SU Border Punch, Brads, Baker's Twine, Button, Glue Dots, Dimensionals

Crazy For a CPS Sketch

I loved this Card Patterns sketch and decided to combine it with this week's Crazy 4 Challenges colours because I just love brown and green with cream together :)

This Echo Park Halloween DP that I got on clearance is coming in very handy!  The flip side is very Halloweeny but this side is simply yummy and perfect for this challenge!

The natural colour palette made me immediately think of my PTI Turning A New Leaf set (love this set!) so out it came and off I went.

I stamped the large leaf image in Garden Green on cream card stock, over stamped it with French Script in Chocolate Chip and cut it out.  Wasn't in a circle mood so swapped it out for an oval instead and added a few flowers, butterflies and half pearls for a little zip to the focal panel.  Don't have and brown baker's twine (it's on my shopping list for my next LSS trip) so had to go with some hemp twine instead, and I think it worked out just fine.

Have a fabulous day and hope it includes a little stamping time :)





What's In It?
Stamps: (PTI) Turning A New Leaf, (SU) French Script
Paper: Echo Park DP, Costco DP, Early Espresso, Vanilla
Ink: Garden Green, Chocolate Chip
Accessories:  Threading Water Punch, Scalloped Oval and Oval Nesties, PTI, Medium Scallop Die, Mary Flower Punch, Martha Stewart Butterfly Punch, Half Pearls, Twine, Glue Dot, Dimensionals