Flower Forever

Hello!  Time for another Great Impressions card for you.  I absolutely love the simplicity of this card.  A Memory Box floral frame and a tiny corner flower (Martha Stewart greenery) is all the fab G455 A Flower sentiment needed.  Btw, you may recognize the "Smile and laugh" from our July challenge.  Again, the GI sentiments are perfect for a nip and tuck to stretch your stamp.
 
See you next week with another GI design!  Toni 

Don't forget about the GI monthly challenge!

You don't have to use GI stamps but it'd be totally awesome if you did!

Also, if you do use GI stamps, be sure to link up to the customer gallery to show us your fabulous work and for a chance to get a little year-end prize.

Wonderful Gerberas

I had such fun working this card up for the Happy Little Stampers CAS challenge this month which is all about coloring.  I love coloring.  I love flowers.  I love coloring flowers.  Hmm, that wasn't hard to figure out what would be the focus of my card, huh?

I chose a digi from Power Poppy, printing it out at default size.  I started out with the melon then yellow flower.  The burgundy flower?  Yeah, that started out bright pink.  Like what was I thinking pink (RV00, 02 and 04).  I first layered on R22 to tone it down but it was still too bright relative to the other flowers so I went way deeper with R37 and R39 shadow.  Now it looks like the bright pink is intentional highlighting.  Shh, let's keep it between ourselves.  :)

Now color up whatever your like and share it with us.  It is so fun and amazing to see what you create for our challenges--truly inspiring!

The Details:  Power Poppy Gerbera Daisies, Hero Arts tiny bee, Copics, PTI 140lb white cardstock base, Crafter's Companion 80lb cardstock, mystery green that I love because of the pebbly texture (Bazzil maybe)

Celebrating Your Birthday

Today marks a new challenge at House of Cards where we ask you to incorporate stitching into your design.  Come join us!

I used a stitched die as well as a stamp with stitching, keeping it really simple.  I surprised myself by liking the background designer paper.  I initially was planning to use a black and white stripe but this seemed very fresh and happy.

The Details:  PTI Movers & Shakers sentiment, Great Impressions Stitched Flowers, mystery DP, Copics, Doodlebug Designs sequins, Versamark, Stampendous detail fine black embossing powder, Memento Tuxedo Black, Simon Says stitched rectangle die

Sunflower Thinking of You

Although  I missed the Power Poppy challenge featuring this stamp, I managed to download the stamp while it was 50% off.   Such beautiful renderings--love PP's images!  A coworker's uncle passed unexpectedly so I kept the design very simple and used a deeper background color than I would normally.  It also works to focus the eye on the image.  Do you like the background paper's texture--sort of waffle?  I picked some more up in white this weekend.  It's perfect for interest but not too much.

The Details:  Power Poppy Sunflower Power, Clearly Besotted Thinking of You sentiment, PTI 140lb white cardstock base, Esse brown cardstock (I think), Copic E17, E34, E39, E59 YG13 (center), Y11, Y15, Y18, Y19, Y24, Y27 (sunflower), YG00, G21, G24, G28, YG13 (greenery), B0000 (background), VersaFine Onyx Black, Simon Says stitched rectangle die

I'm entering this in Addicted to Stamps & More #159 CAS, Simon Says Anything Goes, Shopping Our Stash #216 Splish Splash

Flaming

I saw the My Favorite Things Tickled Pink sentiments and I had to have them.  Had to!   They're so punny!

For this card I first embossed the shimmer pink front panel with flames and sponged over it to create melon colors.  I love that the shimmer remained.  I had cut the flamingos with the Cameo out of the same panel; the glittered up circle covers up the missing flamingo shapes of the panel below.  I popped up the sentiment and added a sprinkling of hearts, sequins and enamel dots for fun.

The Details:  My Favorite Things Tickled Pink sentiment and pierced circle die, Simon Says stitched rectangle die, pink shimmer cardstock, Memento Tuxedo Black, Tangelo and Dandelion, Distress Picked Raspberry, PTI 140lb white cardstock base, Darice embossing folder

I'm entering this in AAA Cards #47 Spectacular Embossing,  Fab 'n' Funky #270 Things with Wings, and Paper Players #260 Tic Tac Toe (haven't done one of these in forever:  Melon, sequins, circle)

Hey, Cupcake

A glittery fun cupcake card for the girl whose sister is getting a hedgehog--share the love.  Glitter + cupcake + heart = tween cute but not tween cutesy which apparently is a complete no-no. 

The Details:  Penny Black Cupcakes sentiment, Elizabeth Craft Designs cupcake sticker, Doodlebug Design Sugar Coating in Lily White, Versamark, Stampendous detail fine white embossing powder, Paper Studio Uptown Flair designer paper, Scor Tape, Copics, PTI 140lb white cardstock base, Recollections 110lb black cardstock

I'm entering this in Tuesday Throwdown #259 Just Because, Simon Says Anything Goes, Seize the Birthday without weather topping, Simply Create Too #93 Special Occasion

Welcome to my Rainbow

Hello!  Time for another Great Impressions card for you!

With this card, I used the B224 You Need Me sentiment.  It's a 3 line sentiment but I chopped it up (seriously--don't be afraid to Frankenstein your stamps!) and made it into one line so I could tuck it beneath my colorful houses.  I was thinking of my step kids who have both moved to California for school when I left the door open on the next to last house.  This would be a great going-away card.

Btw, you may recall my rainbow butterfly card for which I first created the colorful cardstock.

Don't forget about the GI monthly challenge!

You don't have to use GI stamps but it'd be totally awesome if you did!

Also, if you do use GI stamps, be sure to link up to the customer gallery to show us your fabulous work and for a chance to get a little year-end prize.

Sunshine of Life

Oh, my, I cannot relay to you how many things I tried with this concept all because I couldn't settle on a background.  First I tried my usual outline, but deep colors because I love that shade of blue against yellow.  I didn't like the result so tried again using dots.  Ick.  I finally decided to do an entire colorwash of a deep blue over everything and then wet a paper towel with colorless blend and dab it off.  Yay!  Not so yay--it didn't occur to me that the ink the paper towel was picking up would transfer onto my uncolored flowers.  Are. You. Kidding. Me.  Unfortunately, no.  I couldn't get the blue off the petals so colored and fussy cut another set.  Whew!  Well, worth it I think.  I'm going to place Copic backgrounds on my practice list but not for a while.  LOL.
The Details:  Hammermill color copy cardstock 80lb, Ellen Hutson woodgrain cardstock, Stampendous Sunflower Ladybug and white embossing powder, Lil' Ink Sunny Sentiments, Versamark, Memento Tuxedo Black, Recollections 110lb white cardstock base,

I'm entering this in Crafty Cardmakers and More #146 No Patterned Papers, Try it on Tuesday Sending you Flowers, Penny Black Summer Flowers, Simon Says Anything Goes, Addicted to Stamps and More #159 CAS

Enjoy the Hedgehog

I was asked  to make a hedgehog birthday card for a girl who is getting a hedgehog. They're so cute but I totally don't want one.  I'd much rather have a houseful of cats with pettable fur!  This card is super cute too--so pink and dotty!

The Details:  Penny Black stamp, Papertrey Ink Mixed Messages sentiment and 140lb white cardstock base, Embossalicious embossing folder, Versamark Onyx Fine, Memento Tuxedo Black, Copics, Doodlebug enamel dots, MFT pierced circle die, Wink of Stella, Paper Studio Uptown Flair designer paper

I'm entering this in the Friday Mashup #222 birthday and/or technique, Little Tangles #59 Birthday, ABC P is for Pretty in Pink, Sweet Stampin' Spots or Stripes

Looks Like Watercolor But It's Totally Not

My Altenew stamps arrived!!  They were having a sale at MarkerPop plus free shipping.  Swoon!

This flower is from the Lacy Scrolls set.  I hadn't realized they were solid surface stamps until I received them and I was like "ewww."  Then I took a stroll online to see what others had done with them.  Holy craparooni--gorgeous!  So, this is my first experiement.

I stamped the image using Hero Arts Shadow Ink Soft Sky but I had used the stamp earlier with another HA ink which I hadn't cleaned off well so the end result was a pale lilac with orange tones.  Weird, right?  I used Copic B000, B21 and B26 and was very pleasantly surprised at how it reacted with the HA ink.  I wish you could see it in person.  The result is exactly the kind of look I love with watercolor but have been unsuccessful in achieving.  Huzzah!  I did the leaves the same way.

I can't wait to play more with these!  Oh, and the matching dies?  totally worth it.  I cut out the flower twice more and layered it rather than using foam.  Plus, I had perfect fussy cut look without the actually hand-cutting.  Sweeeeet.

The Details:  Altenew Lacy Scrolls, Clearly Besotted Sympathy sentiment, Copic B000, B21, B26, YG00, YG13, G24, G28, Hero Arts Soft Sky and Lemon Yellow, Memento Tuxedo Black, PTI 140lb white cardstock

I'm entering this in Papertake Weekly To Die For, City Crafter #275 Around the Corner, MarkerPop #76 Anything Goes