TRIO OF SHROOMS

 Hi friends!

Playing along with this SUNDAY STAMPS Challenge

(ends May 15)

These mushroom dies have been on my desk for quite awhile, and I was happy to get them cut and colored up today. 

The spattered background was stenciled with Distress Oxide Citron ink. The distressed circle was die cut and the bottom two thirds shaded with the same brown ink as the sentiment. 

Mushrooms were cut from oatmeal card stock and shaded with Fired Brick Distress Oxide ink. A white gel pen was used to highlight the speckles and fill in some of the stem areas, with a little brown colored pencil used along the stem edges to give them some shadowing. 

Top of largest mushroom is foam mounted and butterflies are glued down the center only and the wings are bent upwards. 

Sentiment strip has antiqued brass brads attached. 

SUPPLIES

sentiment stamp -  Creative Worship Be Encouraged 2 clear set

mushroom dies - Hero Arts Mushroom and Ferns die set

butterfly dies - Sizzix Stampin’ Up! Embosslits Beautiful Wings

circle die - Sizzix Thinlits #665039

splatter stencil - Tim Holtz

I had a little guy left over so I made a little vignette on the inside corner. 

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KRAFTY CIRCLE SQUARES

 Hi friends!

Playing along with this FRESHLY MADE SKETCHES Challenge

(ends 5/11)

I wasn’t quite sure exactly what direction I was going to head when I first saw the sketch above, but I LOLed at Kim’s mentioning she was going to do squares since there had been lots of circles previously, because I already knew I was going to fill my squares with circles 😂

After I found the paper collection I wanted to use it was just a matter of semi-precision cutting and pasting. Squares were raised slightly with heavyweight scrap card. White elements on the kraft card stock were heat embossed. This card measures approximately 4.75” square. 

SUPPLIES

Hello sentiment stamp - Gina K. Designs Petite Geranium clear set

Best you sentiment stamp - Fun Stampers Journey cling rubber set #SS-0632

splatter dots stamp - Stampin’ Up! random (1998)

patterned paper - Pebbles Spring Fling #733112

white detail embossing powder

And another card I made using my extras:

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BE YOU FLORAL & PENNANT

Hi friends!

Playing along with this ATLANTIC HEARTS SKETCH CHALLENGE  

(ends 5/3)

Also playing along with this The Paper Players Challenge

(ends 5/8)

I do love a sketch to follow along with, and Michelle’s above is a fun one! And Jaydee’s mood board really meshed with the stamps and direction I was heading. 

I really enjoy paper-piecing images, and love these particular stamps. I also wanted to go with some Spring-y feminine colors. Speaking of paper piecing, I didn’t have enough floral background paper left to do a square card and had to get pretty creative paper piecing there as well!

SUPPLIES

female stamp - Jane Davenport Giraffe Wisdom clear set #JDS-053

sentiment stamp - Picket Fence It’s Peopley Out There clear set #S-150

pennant stamp - Simple Stories Always in My Heart clear set #10739

flat back gems - BoBunny Willow&Sage candy dots

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PANELED FLOWER BOUQUET

   Hi friends!

Playing along with this ATLANTIC HEARTS SKETCH CHALLENGE  

(ends 4/27?)

Another lovely sketch to play with, and of course I had to use this new-to-me, old, Stampin’ Up! bouquet to mirror all the wonderousness springing up outside. The bunnies took a chomp from our budding tulips but we must not have the tasty variety because they left it half eaten 🐰

        

After dry embossing and sectioning the white panels, I put a little Bundled Sage reinker in the ink pad lid with some water and then spattered the card stock. The flower bouquet was colored in with alcohol markers, fussy cut, and foam mounted over a strip of burlap ribbon as shown.  I trimmed the ribbon ends from the bouquet and affixed a premade burlap bow. The die cut sentiment panel was cut down from a fancier one. Behind that is a die cut label from a cardstock scrap I covered in the same marker as the tulips. I pierced it lightly because it was looking too plain and solid. I was concerned if I used a white gel pen instead for dots it might bleed. I really feel like I’m living life on the very edge every time I affix something to my card front and then proceed to mess about with it 😂

SUPPLIES

flower bouquet stamp - Stampin’ Up! Life’s Special Moments set

sentiment stamp -  unlabeled

label dies - Stampin’ Up!

embossing folder - Altenew Ribbon Waves

flat back gems - Waffle Flower Candy Dots

burlap bow - The Paper Studio

burlap ribbon - trimmed down from wider strip, unlabeled

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LOVE NOTE PUP

  Hi friends!

Playing along with this ATLANTIC HEARTS SKETCH CHALLENGE  

(ends 4/19)

UPDATE!

and this PENNY BLACK SATURDAY CHALLENGE Optional Pastel colors 

(ends 4/30?)

Love the sketch but needed to flip it to accommodate the direction the pup insisted on facing 😂

The background was made by stamping the postage collage image in black ink, trimming the edges and cutting it into squares, and then sponging all the edges lightly with a red ink. I used my little Prickly Pear clear T-square to lay out a grid in pencil and then affixed the squares back into order. The dog was colored in with alcohol markers and foam mounted. There is a little flat back aurora heart gem on the envelope flap. The stamped and die cut sentiment was backed with a heavyweight card stock scrap. 

SUPPLIES

postage background stamp - Hero Arts Mail Jumble #CG750

dog stamp -  Penny Black Love Note #2860H

 sentiment stamp and die - Spellbinders Nature’s Dance set #CSOM-JAN25

flat back aurora heart gem - The Paper Studio

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SO KIND TULIPS.

   Hi friends!

Playing along with this THE PAPER PLAYERS color challenge by Jan

(ends 4/17).

The background was stenciled with Daffodil Delight, then overstamped with collage words in gray ink, stamping off once for the top corner, and spatter marks in black ink. Floral image was stamped on gray cardstock in Versafine black ink, and cut with an oval die. The oval panel photos a bit dark. The sentiment was cut from a scrap piece I ink blended the yellow onto in a slight gradient.

SUPPLIES

flowers stamp - Hero Arts Newspaper Tulips  #K5576

words stamp -  River City Rubber Works Ephemera Words #CEW-23 

 splatter stamp - DeNami Design 

words die - ProvoCraft metal plate die

stencil - unmarked, from Amazon multi-pack

preprinted sentiment strip

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SPOTLIGHT AMARYLLIS.

  Hi friends!

Playing along with this JUST US GIRLS Challenge

(ends 4/15).

Floral collage image was stamped in Memento gray ink on white card stock. The tag was stamped over this and colored in as shown with alcohol markers; I used a blender with a dark blue maker inside the tag and around the stem, and a gray marker on two outside edges to give the tag a shadow. I used a SU distressing wheel to rough up the edges of the panel and backed it with fun foam before mounting to light gray card base. The sentiment strip is slightly raised by a strip of scrap heavy weight card stock. 

I had originally intended to place the tag stamp about half an inch higher to encompass more bloom. But I was using older wood mounted stamps with the Stampa-ma-jig, and my plastic placement guide sheet must’ve slipped a bit. Do you ever find you are so close to your projects that you don’t notice things like this til you get the color down?! 🤭

SUPPLIES

flower with text stamp - Penny Black Floral Story  #4210K

tag stamp - Dawn Houser for Inkadinkado #305 

 inks - Memento London Fog & Tuxedo Black

alcohol markers

preprinted sentiment strip

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BOTANICAL COLOR BLOCKS.

   Hi friends!

Playing along with this FRESHLY MADE SKETCHES Challenge

(ends 4/13).

Congratulations on your first FMS sketch Donna!

and this CAS ON FRIDAY Challenge

#331 Botanical (ends 4/15)

I started with stamping the script in Versamark ink on white card stock and then heat embossing it with clear powder. Next I inked up the botanical blocks and stamped them in the colors as shown, and trimmed them to size. They are each slightly raised from the base panel by a strip of scrap heavyweight card stock (backer for comic storage I think). 

*TIP* (If you use foam tape or double stick ATG tape, and adhere something incorrectly, a paper-thin metal Cricut small spatula actually allows you to lift a lot of pieces. I had the bottom orange piece on upside down, after I purposely stamped so the script would be mostly continuous 😂)

SUPPLIES

botanical rectangles stamps - Hero Arts Every Happiness set #40-198

script words stamp - Stampin’ Up! En Francais background

clear embossing powder

Adirondack inks - Juniper, Salmon & Aqua

preprinted sentiment strip

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SUNNY SIDE UP FLOWERS

  Hi friends!

Playing along with this WORD ART WEDNESDAY Challenge 

Anything Goes Weeks #746-747 - I’m using their verse prompt

(ends 4/14).

UPDATE: I got a Top 3! 😃

and this NBUS Challenge #85 (ends 4/30?)

and this THE PAPER FUNDAY Challenge #86 

Anything Goes with Optional Die Cuts/Punches (ends 5/3)

It’s my first time putting these dies to use; I purchased them last year I think, during the Spellbinders warehouse sale. The discount was very generous, and I especially love the hardiness and cheerful vibe of anemones - we have a little patch of white ones I look forward to seeing come up and bloom every year.  *TIP* (If you leave all your newest purchases in a clear bin near your workspace til you use them at least once, you’ll never run the risk of filing them into the proper category unused, never to see the light of day again!)

This card came together super easily so I don’t think there’s anything earth-shattering to say about it! Just that the dies cut beautifully, and I’m pretty happy with the color mix from my random stash of card stock. Pre-textured pink card stock for a little more interest.  *TIP* (which I forgot to do! To get rid of those pesky release dot marks you get when die cutting, any tool with a round ball on the end, like a flower shaper, or scoring tool, works wonderfully. To avoid getting the card stock shiny with the circular rubbing, you may want to use a thin sheet of paper in between.)

SUPPLIES

flower dies - Spellbinders Fresh Picked Anemones #S6-228

verse words - free printable from Word Art Wednesday Challenge blog

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FAITH SEES THE WAY FLOWER

 Hi friends!

Playing along with this SUNDAY STAMPS SKETCH CHALLENGE

(ends 4/17)

and this INKSPIRATIONAL CHALLENGE 

#364 (ends 4/10)

Optional “E” for…ecosystem!

First of all, love the sketch! Honeycomb was stenciled with transparent glossy texture paste and dusted with powdered Pearl Ex while wet. *TIP* (when it is thoroughly dry, it works well to use a microfiber type cloth to remove Pearl Ex powder from the card front. Though you can see in the close up a slight gold sheen will remain over the blank area)Flower was heat embossed with clear and colored in with alcohol markers. 

The bee was stamped in grey inks and filled in loosely with alcohol ink markers; wings were covered in fine glitter glue (an ancient PSX bottle of Sparkle, now chunky and mostly empty 😭). Flower and bee were fussy cut and foam mounted. The sentiment and bee were stamped in a Stampin’Up! Grey and Adirondack Slate mix to avoid the harshness of black. Mounted on matching grey textured card stock. 

SUPPLIES

bee stamp - Stampendous #A136 Spring Bee

flower stamp - Altenew Himalayan Mayapple set

sentiment stamp - Creative Worship #SNS-14-006 The Future clear set

honeycomb stencil - Stampers Anonymous Tim Holtz Collection

clear detail embossing powder

gold Pearl Ex powder

Ranger Texture Paste Transparent Gloss

random flat back pale pink faceted gems

Thanks for stopping in today!