Ingenious Inkling

Living Room Rug Inspired

This afternoon I got to hang-out (via Video Chat) with friends from Junkiefest.  I'm an introvert who often goes all day on Saturday not talking with anyone, but even I've had a bit too much solitude time lately, so I truly appreciated the chance to see their faces, talk about life and see the projects they were working on.

 

 

I decided to work on the current Stay Crafty with Hero Challenge (#staycraftywithhero) ... to make a card inspired by something in your home.  I chose my Living Room Rug.

 

I found a Gel Press print in my stash that had several of the colors, so I die cut it with the Hero Arts Bold Graphic Confetti Die and then attached it to a grey cardstock base.

I took some of the confetti pieces and put them back into the die in different places to move the colors around.

 

I wanted to pull in a bit more shades of grey like the rug, so I added a strip of Suminagasi hand-marbled paper (that I made here) and stamped my sentiment from Hero Arts Hand Drawn Everyday Messages in Magenta Ink on a lighter grey cardstock before framing it with the rust and gold colors from the rug (I actually laid my cardstock down on the rug to find the right shades).

The Bunny Trail

Even though I've already mailed the Easter cards I've made (I like to get them there early, so people have a bit of time prior to the holiday to enjoy or display them), I couldn't resist making another for the Impression Obsession Easter Fun! Challenge.

 

I die cut my three little Impression Obsession Bunnies from the cardstock colors from the Just Add Ink Challenge ... I added pearl bunny tails and tiny black gem eyes.

 

The layout and inspiration are from the current Fusion Card Challenge ... the adorable picture also inspired the bit of polka dot washi banner along the top.

 

I finished with a sticker sentiment (don't really have many Easter sentiment stamps in my stash).

 

Vintage Winter Owl

I intended to take a different approach for this week's Vintage Holiday card for Jingle Belles, but ended-up going down pretty much the same path as last week.

I started with the leftover half doily that was still on my studio table ... and then topped it with page from a perfectly sized falling-apart hymnal I found while thrifting with my sister last summer.

Since the stamps were also still on my table, I thought the lovely blue owl worked perfectly with the dark purple background ... and then I kept adding stamps. 

I finished with a strip of Champagne Jewels, which always seem vintagy to me.

I hope you'll break out the vintage (or vintage-looking) goodies in your stash and join our fun.

Thursday Link Love

Another week of skipping through blogland:

• simple Drop Biscuits
• do you need the Board Game Remix Kit
• gorgeous Stained Glass installations by Lesley Green
• love those Open Shelves in the dining room
• what a happy Paper Flag Rainbow
• need Recipe Ideas for Frozen Vegetables
• or maybe 20 Ways to turn at Baked Potato into Dinner
• how to Freeze Food
• Funny Faces made from Toilet Paper Rolls (one of many shown)
• Potato Soup
• Free Virtual Art Exhibits of Basquiat & Haring

Have a tremendous Thursday!

 

Peter Cottontail

A quick Easter card to continue to stock my stash, so I can get them in the mail before the holiday.

 

One of my final fuzzy butt bunny stickers with a sticker sentiment and fun Easter papers using a sketch from Global Design Project.

 

Mother's Day Bouquet

I've been hanging onto this lovely little crocheted circle, which was the last of a group that were made for me by Jessi Fogan (aka OneCraftyMama), but today I decided a Mother's Day card would be the perfect place to use my final one.

 

I used a Doodlebugs Bright Bunch Bouquet sticker and grounded it with some Grey Spectrum Noir Marker.  The background and floral inspiration came from the Yellow Makes Me Happy Inspired By Challenge.

 

I also played Tic Tac Toe with The Paper Players - diagonal of Pink, Spring & Patterned Paper.

 

The absolutely perfect Mother's day Sentiment is from the discontinued Simon Says Stamp set Mom and Dad Icons.

 

And the layout is the always reliable Mojo Monday Sketch (#535).

 

 

I'm also joining Dawn & Rite for a little Paper Shenanigans on Instagram.

Makeover Monday - Love My Tribe

I went back to March of 2019 for today's Makeover Monday ... when I was in a different kind of quarantine with our entire first floor (which included my studio) being repaired after being flooded by a broken pipe in our wall that adjoins the trash room in our Condominium Building.

I am very grateful that this quarantine leaves me alone in my craft room to play.  Here's my card from March 2019.

 

I swapped the grey solid for grey patterned paper from Reverse Confetti Pattern Play since I'm still going to join the Stock Your Stash Easter Challenge.

 

I swapped the pink and aqua, since that is what I had left in my stash.  I intended to stamp the sentiment in black directly on the patterned paper, but underestimated the height of those bunny tails and my MISTI wouldn't close, so I went with bright pink on a strip of white cardstock from the same Reverse Confetti My Tribe Stamp Set.

 

I just love those fuzzy little bunny tails.

 

Ho Ho Ho

Today I decided to wander over to the Featured Stamper Challenge at SplitCoastStampers where I discovered the gallery of gabbygal with with 2310 cards to peruse for inspiration.  When someone has that deep of a gallery, I like to go back to their earlier cards in search of one to by inspired by.  I chose this card from November 2014 for my inspiration.

 

I knew I had some snowflakes, but of course I couldn't find them ... and I also could find a set of letter stickers with 3 H's, so I had to take a little spin on the approach.  I die cut three H's from a vintage Cuttlebug Alphabet and then use three cloth-covered Brads from the Cosmo Cricket Cheer Collection (which are half-off here).

 

Since the buttons were ivory, the next scavenger hunt through the studio was a for a holiday paper that had red and cream (vs. white), which I finally found ... and a card is born.

 

Since I can't get a manicure, pedicure, massage or haircut (my usual stress-reduction activities), I am so grateful I can still make cards in my studio.

Creating with Friends

This afternoon I joined a group of friends from across the time zones for an online crafting meet-up ... I didn't realize how much I needed it.  The friendships I have made in this industry have been the very best.  It really lifted my spirits and talk about art supplies, projects, and tater tots ... and I got several cards finished too.

Last week Tami of The Paper Forest shared a Video that featured how she had been inspired by several cards I had made (which made my heart so happy), so today I decided to join in the virtual challenges she shared on The Paper Forest Facebook Page.

Challenge #1 was to make a card using Sketch #426 at Freshly Made Sketches.  I decided to make another Easter Card using The Ink Road Eggstra Stamp Set.  I masked and stamped two of the Easter Eggs and colored them in shades of chocolate brown.

 

I paired it with chocolate colored papers from Prima's Engraver Collection and a piece of recycled packaging from the Hero Arts Die I used in yesterday evening's card for Daring Cardmaker's Recycle Challenge.

Yesterday I opened my hoarded back of Riesen's Chocolates, and I will confess I did get a bit Chocolate Wasted.

 

I'm also linking-up at the Spectrum Noir Spring is in the Air Challenge.

 

My second card was for The Paper Forest Challenge #2 - to use this color combination.

 

I used the colors for layering the Birch Press Caprice Heart Die for my first Mother's Day Card (I like to send as many cards as I can get made to all the wonderful mothers in my circle).  I love the look of those colors layered together.

 

The layout is from Julee's Mojo Monday Sketch.  Sentiment is Memory Box Big and Little Valentine's Set.

 

I hope you found some time to create today.

Rock On

Yesterday I read this article about Generation X and Quarantine, and most of it rang pretty true ... seriously, I used to read encyclopedias to entertain myself.

But the one thing that brought back the biggest flood of memories was the making of the perfect Mix Tape.  How I would hold my cassette tape player next to my bedside clock radio and try to hit record at the exact perfect moment when the DJ announced one of my favorite songs was going to play (and hope that my brother didn't come running through the room making noise) ... or setting the needle down on the record player and rushing to hit record before the song began. 

And how after high school, the perfect mix tape was one that lasted me through my drive to night classes at college and back (48 minutes each way) after a full day at the office ... and it was a bonus if it was something I could sing along with on that drive back home and keep myself awake.

So it was those memories that inspired today's card.  The Cardz 4 Guys Challenge is to use a Stencil (my foiled strip used a Stencil and Therm-o-Web Transfer Gel before applying Gina K. Designs Jelly Bean Green Foil) and the All Sorts Challenge is all about Men and Boys.

 

 

The stamp set is Mama Elephant's Rewind (it looks like it is discontinued, but they released a portion of the images under a new Mix Tape Set).

Addicted to CAS is code word Texture ... you can see the wonderful texture of the foiled Transfer Gel where the light is reflecting on the left.

 

 

And lastly, Simon Says Stamp is Anything Goes.

Are you mailing your cards?  This one is going in the mail along with others. Make sure you're taking this opportunity to send some positive vibes across the miles.