Paper craft project no. 508: Gratitude blossoms and thankful always

!BIG EXTRA PRIZE ALERT!

If you comment on ALL 36 stops in the hop, make sure you include this line when you leave a comment on my post below: "Yes to 36!" in order to be included in the drawing for a $50 gift certificate to the store!

A big hop happening over at STAMPlorations today: the 3rd Annual Giving Thanks Blog Hop and Wishlist Linky Party. There are 35 participating designers in the hop (8 awesome guest designers representing various challenge blogs), a linky party for you to share your STAMPlorations wishlist + up to 3 thankful/gratitude projects, and tons of prizes up for grabs.

This is the last stop in the hop and you should have arrived here from Nonni's blog.

I made 2 one layer cards using 2 of the 11 new products for the hop: Gratitude is the Blossom and Something to be Thankful For from the Typografia Thankful line. (I also used stamps from Mixed Media Grunge and Scribbly Splattery Grunge.)

I hope you'll check out the event and see the projects that the other designers made. You have until the end of the month to leave comments and link up your wishlist, as well as a project or two of your own. You'll find all the details here. Plus if you scroll down some more, you'll find links to all the designers.

And last, there's a huge sale going on at the STAMPlorations store. Stamps, stencils, and dies are 40% off* until November 30. All orders of up to $39 ship worldwide for a flat rate of $5 while orders of $40 or more automatically get free worldwide shipping.

Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to smile :o)

!BIG EXTRA PRIZE ALERT!

If you comment on ALL 36 stops in the hop, make sure you include this line when you leave a comment on my post below: "Yes to 36!" in order to be included in the drawing for a $50 gift certificate to the store!

Paper craft project no. 507: Life is an adventure

Hello! Here's a card for the new challenge at Time Out. For the next two weeks, the challenge is Home Sweet Home, where we have this inspiration photo:

I took my inspiration from the colors, that rustic table that looks like a suitcase, and the big map in the background to create my one-layer card. I stamped the stack of suitcases and sentiment (Born to Roam), then masked the suitcases before stamping the various grunge background (Mixed Media Elements, Mixed Media Grunge). I gave the suitcases a bit of color with PrismaColor pencils and the card is done.

Check out the cards that the TO team + guest designer Trinia made and then come play with us! STAMPlorations is sponsoring the challenge. The winner (voted by the design team) will receive a $15 gift certificate.

Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to smile :o)

Paper craft project no. 506: Do what you love

Popping by with a card I made for the new challenge over at AAA Cards. STAMPlorations is sponsoring, and for the next two weeks the theme is rainbow. What a fun theme!

To create my one layer card, I started with one of the dies in the Curly Labels/Tags set to create a curly-curvy bottom edge. Then I took one of the brush stroke stamps in Mixed Media Elements and stamped it in rainbow colors down the left side. Then I stamped the sentiment (Do What You Love) in dark blue ink + stamped the ink splatter stamp from Art Marks a couple of times in orange and green and the card's done.

I hope you'll join the AAA Cards design team and link up your  clean and simple cards based on the theme. The winner will receive two stamp sets from the Say It Big series (Do What You Love and Choose Happy) and two randomly drawn winners will each receive a $5 gift certificate to the STAMPlorations store.

Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to smile :o)

Paper craft project no. 505: Bird soaring high

Seems like it's been forever since I posted. Sorry about that -- between my mommy duties and running STAMPlorations + being preggers and having terrible non-stop morning sickness up until late last week, I haven't been able to create anything to share here (although I've got some crafty/artsy exciting news soon). At 16 weeks, the morning sickness has subsided significantly, although once in a while I still feel like hurling.

Anywho...last week a new challenge started at Time Out. This time around we're to CASE a card and put our own twist to our creation. We are CASE-ing this fun card by Cornelia of Stempel Spass.

I took my cue from the main image and background. First, I sponged gray ink through the Zen Hearts stencil before stamping the bird (angled it a bit so it looks like it's about to take off) and sentiment (For the Birds) and then grounding the bird with a grungy dot stamp (Mixed Media Grunge).

Check out the cards the team + guest designer Pooja made and then link up your own project inspired by Cornelia's card. There is still a week left to play. Sponsoring this challenge is Happy Little Stampers. We can't wait to see your creations!

Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to smile :o)

Paper craft project no. 504: Happy birthday

Hello! It has been a long time since I posted here. Sorry about that -- something's been cooking the last couple of months and I'll spill the beans in a few weeks :o)

Anyway, a new challenge starts today at Less Is More and I'm thrilled the wonderful ladies over there are letting me play with them and share my take on the challenge theme this week! STAMPlorations is sponsoring this month and if you play along, you get the chance to win a $25 gift certificate to the store.

This week, they've got a drool-worthy theme: NEAPOLITAN Ice Cream Colors (chocolate, strawberry, vanilla). 

Now it was quite impossible for me to look at that photo and not have ice cream. So while I thought about how I was going to design my card (hey, a CAS card makes me think doubly hard!), I treated myself to some Ben & Jerry's non-dairy chocolate fudge brownie ice cream :o) Of course, it had to be done in stealth mode (i.e., when the Kat is napping). A scoop later, I had an idea. I stamped the grungy frame from Floral Bliss at an angle and then took the brand spankin' new Cupcake Builder #1 CUTplorations dies out for a spin. I found cardstock that could pass for chocolate and vanilla and then for the strawberry, I sponged spun sugar DI onto white cardstock. I repeatedly stamped the sentiment from A Snarky Birthday to You in alternating chocolate and pink colors along the bottom of the card to finish it off.

Hope you were inspired by my card to join in this week's Neapolitan challenge! Thank you again to the LIM ladies for having me.

Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to smile :o)

Paper craft project no. 503: One amazing chick

I'm back again with one more card for the challenge at Time Out. There's still a week left to join in the Home Sweet Home challenge, where we have this inspiration photo:

source

This time around,  I simply went with the butterfly element in the photo and created this one layer card. First I stamped the girl whose name is Cora, by the way, in black.

I'm going to digress a bit to share a little story about that girl: she's the main girl in my new set One Cool Chick and she was drawn in 1974 -- that's right, 43 years ago -- by my dad back when he was courting my mom. (They ended up eloping and having a civil ceremony in December 1975.) My dad loved to draw, especially people (unfortunately I didn't get that particular talent for drawing people from him!), and because he didn't really have a lot of money to buy my mom expensive gifts, he simply gave her his hand made love letters and poems (sometimes he'd do song lyrics) accompanied by his own illustrations. I remember how excited I was when my mom shared with me many, many years ago her little box containing every single illustrated love letter my dad gave her. A year ago, I asked for mom's and dad's permission to turn a couple of the illustrations into stamps. I had my sister scan the love letters and I simply cleaned up the images and did a little bit of editing on them so they'd work as stamps. (My dad had colored his illustrations.) So you're meeting one of them...Cora, the Cool Chick. Some time in May, you'll meet the other one, Rudi, the Cool Dude :o) 

Aannnyyyywayyy....after stamping Cora, I masked her and then stamped the flowers in Becca's new set, Sweet and Sassy Mom + the cute butterfly from Shirley's Winged Things + the cool sentiment and then I finished the card by rounding one corner.

Check out the cards that the TO team + guest designer Michelle made and then come play with us! STAMPlorations is sponsoring the challenge. One winner (voted by the design team) will receive a $15 gift certificate and another winner (randomly drawn from all entries) will win her choice of STAMPlorations product the design team used.

Linking my amazing chick one layer card to these fun challenges:

• Less is More #324 - Spring Walk (my cool chick is taking a nice little spring walk)
• Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Showers and/or Flowers
• Crafty Addicts Challenge #35 - ATG, optional Add a Sentiment

Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to smile :o)

Paper craft project no. 502: You are enough

Popping by with a card I made for the new challenge over at AAA Cards. STAMPlorations is sponsoring, and for the next two weeks the theme is stencil. It's a great challenge theme because there are many ARTplorations stencils in the store -- and there's a Spring/Easter flash sale going on too!

To create my one layer card, I started by cutting a curve/wave on scrap and then masking 2/3 of my card base so that only the left side shows. I placed the Two Feathers stencil/mask and sponged yellow ink through it. Removed the mask and then stamped the flower and leaves (from Trendy Spring Blooms), as well as the sentiment from Noteworthy 2. Thought my stenciled border looked a bit boring so I took a black gel pen and added some dots here and there just to nicely tie it with the black from the flower outline and sentiment. Finished the card by rounding one corner.

I hope you'll join the AAA Cards design team and link up your  clean and simple cards based on the theme. The winner will receive a $10 gift certificate to the store and one randomly drawn winner will receive a pack of 3 ARTplorations stencils.

Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to smile :o)

Paper craft project no. 501: The butterfly counts moments

For my Things with Wings blog hop & linky party week 2 project, click here.

Hello! Back today with a card for the new challenge at Time Out. For the next two weeks, the challenge is Home Sweet Home, where we have an inspiration photo:

source

Fairly obvious where I took inspiration from -- the butterflies, the colors, and the clock (for my sentiment) -- to create my one-layer card. I sponged various shades of reds and pinks through the Ethnic Flutter 1 stencil/mask on my card base and then grunged it all up by randomly stamping faux textures (Mixed Media Grunge, Mixed Media Elements, Scribbly Splattery Grunge). I stamped the sentiment from Trendy Butterflies 2 in red.

Check out the cards that the TO team + guest designer Michelle made and then come play with us! STAMPlorations is sponsoring the challenge. One winner (voted by the design team) will receive a $15 gift certificate and another winner (randomly drawn from all entries) will win her choice of STAMPlorations product the design team used.

Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to smile :o)

Paper craft project no. 500: Never hide your wings

Hello! Back to share a card I made for week 2 of the Things with Wings Spring Blog Hop & Linky Party. It's in full swing now and if you haven't checked it out yet, I hope you do! Link up your own winged-themed spring projects (any type, using any product you have) by April 30 and you get a shot at some sweet new stamps and dies from the spring release.

It's been a while since I made a one layer mixed media card. The last one's here and I've been faux-ing the mixed media part on my one layer cards lately. I needed to create one or I'd have to change the name of my blog ;o)

Anyway, I started by applying Marabu white acrylic mousse through the Ethnic Flutter 1 stencil/mask on my card base. Once dry, I applied Gansai Tambi watercolors and layered the yellows, oranges, reds + hints of blues and darks. Then I grunged it all up by randomly stamping faux textures (Mixed Media Grunge, Mixed Media Elements, Scribbly Splattery Grunge) in Distress inks (vintage photo and walnut stain). Last, I stamped the sentiment from Trendy Butterflies 2 and the card's done :o)

Check out more awesome winged-themed spring project by the rest of the STAMPlorations girls for this week here! The main post is here (with all the details + linky).

Linking up my spring card to these fun challenges:

• Creates and Makes #10 - Anything Goes
• Crafty Cardmakers #186 - Things with Wings
• 613 Avenue Create #196 - Anything Goes with the optional twist of spring

Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to smile :o)

Paper craft project no. 499: Choose happy

It's not everyday that I find myself with a little bit of time to make cards just for the fun of it. Tonight, though, I resolved to give myself some me-time (aka do whatever I want except work!) after the Kat has gone to bed. The little one is deep in sleep and mommy is happily stamping away! (I have her on the Gynoii on my cell phone and Kindle Fire so I can watch her while I'm out in the living room.)

Here's one of the cards I made for a couple of challenges. Inspired by the current challenge at Less Is More (One Layer + Curves), I started by stamping the rose bloom (background + outline from Trendy Spring Blooms) then cut out a couple of curvy masks to cover the top and bottom part of my card base and leaving just a little bit of space in between for me to stamp the rest of my flowers in spring colors. Debated where to stamp the sentiment (Noteworthy 2) -- was going to stamp it on the bottom right but decided at the last minute to stamp it right beside the rose. Rounded off the left bottom corner and the card's done. (I resisted the urge to grunge up the top panel.)

I'm also linking my card to a couple more challenges: Craft Stamper's Take It Make It (Anything Stamping Goes) and Inkspirational #132 (Spring).

  

 

Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to smile :o)

Paper craft project no. 498: Be the exception

I hardly get to create a card to enter in challenges, but I managed to make this card in 6 minutes -- while my little girl watched a short Little Pim Learn Spanish lesson on the Roku :o)

Saw the current sketch over at CAS(E) This Sketch - and I pretty much followed it exactly as it is. Took the Plaid Maker stencil and used my Marabu mixed media crayons over it. Then I stamped the sentiment (one of several in the new Say It Big sentiment line that will be available later on this month in the STAMPlorations store), added 3 matte enamel dots, and finished off the card by rounding the bottom corners.

Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to smile :o)

Paper craft project no. 497: Hello sunshine

For my Things with Wings Spring Blog Hop & Linky Party post, click here.

Hey, there! I'm back to share a card for the current challenge at Time Out. It's an Inspired by Words challenge: "When it rains, look for rainbows; when it's dark, look for stars."

I went with colors of the rainbow to create this graphic one layer card. I stamped the different floral shapes (from Trendy Spring Blooms) in various colors then overstamped the outlines in black to make the colors pop. Also stamped a butterfly (from Trendy Butterflies 2) in light gray, as well as the sentiment (Sweet Spring Wishes) in black, then finished the card by rounding one bottom corner.

Check out the cards that the TO team + guest designer Marilyn made and then come play with us! Uniko is sponsoring the challenge.

Linking up to these fun challenges:

• Addicted to Stamps & More #236 - Anything Goes
• Crafting by Designs - April Anything Goes
• Crafty Creations #338 - Anything Goes
• Crafty Addicts #35 - Anything Goes
• Fusion - Spring/Easter (I went with just the photo - using flowers, bright colors + touch of gray in the napkins)
• Double D Challenges - Neon/Brights (I went with bright colors)

    

Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to smile :o)

Paper craft project no. 496: Be brave to fly

There's a fun event that starts today at the STAMPlorations blog: the Things with Wings Spring Blog Hop & Linky Party! Thirty-one (31!) STAMPlorations girls are sharing winged-theme spring projects and we're celebrating spring throughout the month of April -- every Wednesday, to be exact. And if you hop along and even link up your own projects, you get a chance to win gift certificates and some of the new stamps and dies in the spring release.

I used Trendy Spring Blooms, Trendy Butterflies 2, and Flutter Zen 1 layering dies to create my one layer card. Stamped the blooms all over my cardbase before die-cutting the butterfly in the center. Then stamped the outlines of the blooms in gray ink, adhered acetate to my butterfly window before sticking the die-cut butterfly, stamped the sentiment, and finished off by rounding the bottom corners.

Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to smile :o)