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Halloween: Part I

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The first two Halloween cards have been created and will go in the mail today. There's just one week for them to reach their destination. Wisconsin doesn't seem so far away, but the time for delivery of a letter or card varies widely. I try to make sure there's at least a week before the event.

The first one is for Caleb, and the color choices came from The Addicted to CAS Challenge: Black, Purple, and Green. I hope the spider web doesn't disqualify the card from being CAS, but I enjoyed using those colors regardless. I'm also sending this off to the Festive Friday Challenge where I used: Black, Spider, and Ghost from the list.

CalebGhost

I started with a Royal Purple card base (Simon Says) and added a black web from Papertrey Ink's, "Caught in the Web." Last year I bought these creepy spider stickers by Jolee, but never used any of them. I decided Caleb would enjoy it. The ghost is from the only new Halloween set I purchased this year, Ghost, from The Stamp Market. The sentiment cut from a green scrap is also from that set.

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I die cut a larger ghost for the inside and stamped my sentiment from PTI's Sentiment Staples: Halloween.  I gave this ghost some green eyes

CalebGhostInside

Hannah's card uses the more traditional orange and black colors. 

HannahGhost

I used a lot of different products to create this card: the ghost is from Ellen Hutson's Ghost Hugger. The ghost is holding a pumpkin stamped, fussy cut, and shaded with Copic markers from Grateful Home by right at home. The card base is my favorite orange-Orange Zest by PTI to which I added a Circle Cover Die by Reverse Confetti in black. 

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I added some dimensional tape behind the pumpkin so the ghost's "hands" also had some dimension. The cute die cut sentiment is from PTI's To Die For Sentiments: Halloween. 

HannahGhostInside

I used two stamp sets for the sentiment: Happy Halloween from The Stamp Market and Sentiment Staples: Halloween from Papertrey Ink. The little ghost is also from the Happy Halloween set.

 I'm sending both cards to another challenge: Inspired By: Ghosts. 

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The Flower Challenge’s 7th Birthday

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Considering how many flower-themed cards I create, you'd think I'd have a card in each and every gallery for The Flower Challenge. Alas, not so. No explanation for it, either. However, I was determined to enter a card for their 7th birthday challenge. I didn't have a lot of crafting time over the weekend, and I was disappointed with the one card I made, so I started a new card last night and finished it today.

For this card, I pulled out one of my favorite Pinkfresh Studio florals, Magnolia Background, and it's accompanying set of stencils. On Saturday, I received the ink cubes for their new sets of color and was anxious to try them out. I knew I would love the Napa Valley set–a beautiful set of purples, and I also used two of the colors in the Green Gables set.

Magnolia

I decided to try a "spotlight" design, cutting the center from the card, adding a narrow gold frame and repositioning it with some dimensional tape. It's the first time I've tried this, and I think it worked very well. The stamping was gold embossed so I chose a gold embossed sentiment from Pinkfresh's Perfect Sentiments.  

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In addition to The Flower Challenge, I'm adding this to the Just Add Ink Challenge: Spotlight Technique. 

TFChallenge#85JustAddInk#675

 

World Card Making Day

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PFS

World Card Making Day was October 7th, and we were already on the road to Sarah's. Fortunately for me, Pinkfresh Studio's link-up doesn't end until tonight. Thus the reason for two blog posts in one day! I knew exactly what I wanted to do. When I was cleaning out my craft room I came upon a hot foiled panel I had made previously. It was foiled in gold on black cardstock, and right before we left I acquired the Christmas metallic watercolor set by Iuile. So last night I sat down to watercolor the panel, and I am so happy with the way it turned out.

LushVines

This beautiful design is Lush Leaves by Pinkfresh Studio. It is definitely in my top ten Christmas themed products. It's beautiful even when it's just foiled on the paper without the watercolors. However, I do love these metallic watercolors, and they are so easy to use.

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The sentiment was also hotfoiled in gold on black cardstock. It's from another favorite Christmas product, Pinkfresh Studio's Perfect Sentiments: Holicay. Getting good photos of metallic papers or paints is always a challenge, but I think you can see some of its beauty here.

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My intention is to get one card made everyday. I have a lovely box of unused stamps and dies on the shelf behind me, and I need to get crackin' with my Christmas cards! I'm sure there will be days when I'm not home long enough to get a card completed from start to finish, but that's certainly what I hope to do!

 

It’s Pumpkin Season

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There are multiple challenges now focused on pumpkins and fall themes. We've just returned from an 11 day road trip to visit Sarah and her family. On our way, we visited with my cousins in Cleveland. The granddaughter of one of my cousins and her husband hosted ten of us for dinner. I wanted to send them a special thank you note, and chose a pumpkin theme for my card.

Basket

Last month, I pulled out the Pretty Pink Posh Fall Basket dies to fill a pick-up truck. This time everything on the card is from the Fall Basket set except for the sentiment. I started out with a group of already die cut shapes and added some Distress Oxide shading to them. I "filled" the basket with leaves (you can see them peeking through the slats as well as poking out from the top.  

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The sentiment was also previously stamped (so long ago, that I don't remember which stamp I used.) I have a whole set of these sentiments stamped on different colored strips. The card design is the result of a mistake I made at the very end of the first card design. I cut down that card, framed it with some orange cardstock and added it to a card base created with some Simon Says woodgrain cardstock that arrived while we were away. The truth is the card is much improved because of the mistake–not the first time that's happened!

BasketFlat

I'm entering this in four challenges all of which feature pumpkins in their inspiration photos.

Just Us Girls: Word Week-Pumpkin,

JUGS #701

the Double D Challenge-also looking for pumpkins,

October - Pumpkins Double D

Color Throwdown: Orange, Yellow, Green (I hope  the neutrals are OK)

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The Four Season Challenge where "anything fall" goes. 

October - Pumpkins Double D


Color Hues #74

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It's mid-October already and Hannelie has gifted us with a new color combination for the Color Hues Challenge:

_CH #74 Yellow and Kraft._001

When I sat down to create a card for this challenge, a new leaf die from Pinkfresh Studio was sitting on my desk. The Fall Leaf felt like a good place to start. I have to admit that the rest of the elements took a lot longer to create than I anticipated, but when they all came together, I was quite happy with the card. I tried some ink smooshing for the first time in a long time, adding three different yellows to the mix, and letting the watercolor paper dry between the layers. 

CH#74

From the start, I wanted to incorporate The Greetery's Woven Cane Background.  I ended up smooshing a piece of Classic Kraft in a mixture of Classic Kraft and Honey Nut inks. Being standard cardstock, it didn't take as well to the well ink smooshing, but worked out fine when die cut with the Woven Cane Bakcground and used behind a Pierced Oval Frame from Papertrey Ink cut with Classic Kraft.

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I tied the leaves together with a piece of gold metallic thread from Altenew and added a tiny gold pearl to the bow. 

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The sentiment is gold foiled from The Stamp Market's Foiled Card Phrases. 

I know you'll find lots of inspiration from the Design Team, so click through and check out the amazing variety of cards. Hope to see yours in our gallery!

I'm adding my card to the mix at the Four Seasons Challenge where the challenge is Anything Goes for Fall. The challenge always posts an Inspiration Board to get you started, but it's not required that you take anything specific from it. Other than two of the colors in the bottom right photo my inspiration really came from the color challenge and the fall leaf die on my desk!

2023 October Board

Hello, Sweet Friend

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It's not often I post twice in a day. If you're looking for the Summer Photography Scavenger Hunt post, it's right below this one

The Time Out Challenge hosts an annual Cancer Awareness Challenge.

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This card is for a dear friend who has been battling pancreatic cancer for over two years. She's outlived her prognosis by over a year, and never wavers in her positive attitude and good nature. 

SweetFriend

Recently I commented on a friend's card on Instagram that used this beautiful Round About Fall Foliage die from The Greetery. Marcia kindly die cut several and put them in the mail to me. (Many thanks, Marcia!) I used some finger daubers and some Distress Oxide Inks to color it. Although I'm happy with the end result, I learned a few things about using both for ink blending. I have a much heavier hand than I need! 

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The die cuts just one half of this wreath, so I glued the two together and added them to a cardbase of Ellen Hutson's Woodgrain cardstock. Now that Ellen is retiring, I need to find a new source for woodgrain paper. 

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The sentiment (just perfect for the recipient) is from The Stamp Market's Foiled Card Phrases.  I added a few Pinkfresh Studio gold pearls as a final accent. 

I'm also adding this to the gallery at Addicted to Stamping and More where the challenge is to use a die cut or a stencil and to The Card Concept: Country Style. I used both the wreath and three of the colors (although my red is quite muted) as my inspiration from the photo. As usual, I think my card fits their "Clean and Simple" category the best. 

AddictedTCC199 September 2023

September Woodblock Wednesday

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Clearly, it is not Wednesday, but yesterday was the first time I was able to get this card completed for this month's Woodblock Wednesday, hosted by Amy Tsuruta

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I pulled out a favorite snowman image so I could add another card to my Christmas collection. This stamp by PSX even lists the date-1995. I've been at this long before I started blogging; actually before I had a computer.

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I stamped the snowman on a piece of textured cardstock I found on my desk and die cut it, as well as the background, with Simon Says Stitched Rectangles. The background was stamped with My Favorite Things Snowfall Background and embossed with a sparkly Bridal embossing power which was also a PSX product.

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I colored the scarf with Copics, used an orange Stadetler Fineliner for the nose, and Jane Davenport's Golden Age pen to outline the halo. I also added glitter to the wings which proved to be very difficult to photograph. The sentiment is from Savvy Stamps.

 

 

Just Truckin’

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In the past month or so, Spellbinders has had a couple amazing sales and I managed to pick up a couple dies I'd been eyeing for a long time, but unwilling to spend the money for them. During the sales, everything I bought was 50% or more off the original price. Here's a card that features a pick-up truck that can be used for every season of the year. I needed a card for a male friend who's birthday is in October so it was the perfect opportunity to break out the die.

Truck

I die cut the truck and all its parts from scraps. The pumpkin, leaves, and wheat were die cut last fall and filed with the Pretty Pink Posh Fall Basket dies.  I layered it all with some dimensional tape on a piece of Ellen Hutson's woodgrain cardstock after adding a piece of patterned paper from My Favorite Things to ground the truck.

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Another buy during the sale was Spellbinders So Many Sentiments giving me ample sentiments for the license plate. 

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Amazingly, I had nearly a complete set of sentiments stamped on orange and die cut with Pinkfresh Studios Basic Banners: Celebrate. The two leaves added with some dimensional tape from the Pretty Pink Posh set were all the embellishment this card needed.

This will be my second entry into The Four Seasons September challenge, and my third entry to Seize the Birthday, working with the Topping (Fall Colors) once again. And since the truck is making its first appearance, another card for NBUS.

FS fall 23109-14-ŪseFallColorsNBUS

Altenew’s Stargazer Lilies

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The Flower Challenge has been on almost all month and the challenge is to use a die cut. It happens all too frequently that I put off getting a card made until nearly the last minute. The Altenew Stargazer Lily die has been on my desk at least all month, but finally I made a card with it.

Lilies

I die cut the lilies with the. Spellbinders Specialty flower paper which does make it easier to shape the petals once you've colored them. I pulled out my ink daubers for these and used several different inks from Pinkfresh Studio. After I assembled the lilies, I splatter some white ink over the them.

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For the background I chose a piece of Smoky Shadow cardstock which I die cut with Altenew's Dotted Scales Debossing Cover die which adds subtle, but lovely, texture to the card. The sentiment is from The Ton's Easy Expressions: Birthday. 

In addition to The Flower Challenge, I'm entering the challenge at Addicted to Stamps and More: Any Occasion, and another entry to Darnell's NBUS–the lilies first run!

TFChallenge#84AddictedNBUS

Happy Birthday, Skylar!

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Today is the 12th birthday for my oldest granddaughter. You couldn't ask for a nicer young lady–serious about school and passionate about horseback riding. We gave her a gift certificate to the local tack shop which is loaded with all kinds of things for horseback riding. I'm sure she'll find something she'll like. Unfortunately, my stamp collection does not include images of horses. Well, there's one wooden stamp but I forgot about it when I was making her card. She also loves rainbows and pretty colors so I went with this:

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I was lucky a month or so ago and won the Sneak Peek kit from Waffle Flower that included this Stacking Cake Die.  I used glitter paper for the frosting, and purple and bright pink for the candles–adding a bit of glitter to them with a Nuvo glitter pen. The sentiment strip was also included in the kit. For the background I used the Pinkfresh Studio Layered Sunburst stencil which I ink blended with a variety of Pinkfresh Studio inks.

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I'm sending this off to the Seize the Birthday challenge without the topping this time. The colors of Skylar's card match pretty successfully with the STB logo designs. And also to NBUS since this is the first time I've used the stacking cake die. 

STB-AnythingGoesNBUS

Hope you're having a great day! Sun is shining here which is always a mood booster!

Color Hues #72

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Today, I'm honored to announce a very special Challenge at Color Hues!  

In conjunction with our normal Color Challenge, The Color Hues Design Team and a few guests, from our sister challenge Seize the Birthday, are participating in a Blog Hop! 

Collectively as a team and with other crafters, we are hopping in memory of our dear friend, fellow cardmaker, and Design Team member, Lindsey Martin-Penny, who sadly passed away last year from a rare and aggressive form of Ovarian Cancer. 

 

The purpose of this hop will be to honor Lindsey, celebrate her life and all that she loved, as well as spread the word to raise funds for Clear Cell Ovarian Cancer Research.  

How can you Help? You can find all the fabulous details and the start of the hop at Emily's Blog HERE!

In honor of Lindsey, the Design Team has created a variety of cards using her favorite color combo of Purple and Red.

CH #72 Purple and Red Anim.

In honor of Lindsey, I chose a CAS design with hearts of red and purple. I'm not quite sure where I first saw the technique of using recessed die cuts, but I think it was one of Laura Basson's cards. It worked perfectly for this card.

CH#72

I first die cut a square of 110# Neenah cardstock with one of the Simon Says Stitched Rectangles and popped it up with dimensional tape on a square cardbase. Using Simon Says TicTacToe dies, I cut hearts in two hues of red and two hues of purple, and adhered them to the card base.

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The sentiment was a preprinted one from The Stamp Market's Foiled Card Phrases. The final touch was to add a gold pearl to six of the hearts.

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I hope you'll join the Color Hues Design Team and our Special Guests, Barbara and Glena from Seize the Birthday Challenge, and create a card in red and purple in honor of Lindsey. Please hop along and support the cause in any way you can!

A Fall Plaid with Color Throwdown

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I loved this week's Color Throwdown Challenge: orange, red, maroon, and gold. The Double D Challenge is looking for Fall Plaids, and this fits that challenge as well. 

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Pinkfresh Studio's Dainty Plaid and stencil were laying on my desk so I decided to see if I could use these colors for a card. ColorThrowdownFlat

To use the stencils properly, you'd use six different inks, but I experimented and came up with a plaid using just three inks: Papertrey's  Orange Zest, Pure Poppy and Scarlet Jewel. I gold embossed the plaid and used a preprinted gold sentiment from Pinkfresh Studio. 

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I've totally depleted my stash of Thinking of You cards which, sadly, are the cards I seem to need most often. This is the third card I've created this week, but I still need a few more. 

It's not often I post twice in a day, but the Color Throwdown Challenge closes tomorrow, and I don't want to count on remembering to get it up in the morning.

Just a Note

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In addition to the Fall Folk dies used here, I purchased the Fall Folk stencil from The Greetery. Like the dies, I can see this stencil used in many seasons beyond fall depending on the colors you choose. For this first card with the stencils, I opted for a color palette of teal, red, and orange, not at all what I might choose if I wanted a fall palette.

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I used both ink cubes and cardstock from Concord and 9th: three hues of the teal, two of red, and one for the orange. 

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Because the stencil creates a rather busy pattern, I decided not to add any embellishments after adding a gold foiled sentiment from Pinkfresh Studio's Perfect Sentiments. I cut down the stencil with one of Hero Art's  Infinity Rounded Rectangles,  and then die cut the next two layers of Juniper and Marmalade cardstock to add a bit more color before adding it add to a Tidepool card base. 

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It's been a busy weekend here–two memorial services (for me), and a three day celebration for Tracy's high school graduating class. It's been a small gathering–about 40 in all, but fun for Tracy to reconnect with friends he made in high school and for me to reconnect with a few I've known for quite some time as well as to get to know a few I don't believe I've ever met before. 

Sending this card to Darnell's NBUS blog to share my NBUS Fall Folk stencil.

NBUS

Fall Folk Dies

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The Greetery just had a new fall release and there were several items that spoke to me. The Fall Folk dies were one of them, and I had time yesterday to get a few cards made. I'm sharing my favorite here today, and will be back with a couple others with the second die in the set.

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With a palette of navy, white, and some red accents, this die doesn't scream fall to me, and I can see replicating this design for a variety of occasions. I didn't like any of the sentiments I tried, so decided against one, and will use this particular card to send a note of encouragement to a friend who is undergoing chemotherapy.

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The Fall Folk die was cut into a white square cut from Papertrey Ink's Window Dressing Scallops. I die cut just one of these when I was with friends months ago, and now wish I had a pile of them as it's just perfect with this die. 

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I backed the die with some navy shimmer paper I purchased in Milwaukee at Broadway Paper. The tiny red pearls are from AMuse. I have quite a collection of these, and hope I never run out, I use them so often. 

I'm throwing this in the NBUS gallery since the die has never been used. For once, I used it very promptly after it's arrival. 

NBUS

 

 

Fair Isle Christmas

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I was inspired by three challenges to finally break out some holiday stamps and sentiments. While I was purging stamps I often came upon stamp sets I loved but hadn't paid any attention to in a long time. Papertrey Ink's Fair Isle Motifs was one of those sets, so I pulled it out to create two CAS cards for Addicted to CAS: Holiday, Christmas Craft Creations: CAS, and Peace on Earth Christmas Challenge: Anything Goes. I think this is the first time I've ever played along with Christmas Craft Creations although I've been following them for awhile. 

CASChristmasCraftPOE Sept 23

 

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I chose two different motifs and created cards with different orientations. For some reason I've had a lot of trouble lately being able to photograph cards without shadows. If I weren't so close to the deadline for the Peace On Earth Challenge, I'd give this another go tomorrow. 

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The sentiment for this card is from one of my favorite holiday sentiment sets, Simon Says  Holiday Greetings Mix 1. After die cutting the motif with Ellen Hutson's Essential Squares I die cut a white square from the next largest die. It's hard to see, but I added one layer of dimensional tape behind it.

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The greeting here is from Pinkfresh Studio's Berry Branch stamp set and die cut with My Favorite Things Itty Bitty Strips. Again I backed the image with white and added some dimensional tape before adding it to the card base.

Last year I had over 50 Christmas cards completed by now. This year we're doing a photo card for many people on our holiday list, so I'm not in need of the large number I usually create. With all the disruption in my craft room, it's a good decision.