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Jessica's 10-Minute Scrap Pile challenge encouraged me to have a little creative fun in my studio this afternoon.
I've had this polka dot paper stamped with the large flourish in the top right corner in my scrap stash forever. I decided to add some bold rub-ons and a clear sticker sentiment for another Resolution card to hang in my cubicle at the office.
And a big thanks to Dad for my new small Flower Frog for displaying my cards.
Last year I had fun taking a walk down memory lane and picking my 10 favorite cards of the year ... so much fun, I thought I'd do it again this year (in chronological order).
1 - This Think Happy Thoughts card won the Sketch Challenge to celebrate the 100th Sketch at CPS and was subsequently published in CardMaker Magazine.
2 - This krafty creation was for the Kraft Macaroni & Cheese challenge with the 'Varks crew. I was thrilled when it won third place in the Hero Arts Friendship Challenge.
3 - This card for the Caardvarks Critter Challenge featured a fabulous vintage illustration that was highlighted with Shimmerz glitter paint. I continued to fall in love with using vintage book pages in my designs.
4 - This was another Caardvarks Challenge card. I love the effect of the glimmer mist mask on the vintage text.
5 - I love the bold graphic statement of this card for Dawn's Raspberry Suite Color Challenge #4. The Hero Arts Bold Flourish was one of my favorite stamps of the year.
6 - While I didn't finish the challenge, I did enjoy the weeks I participated in Emily's 52Q Challenge. I also enjoyed working on my digi-skills.
7 - I loved the colors and dimension of this design for a Hero Arts challenge (note the Bold Flourish again) ... and fell in love with detail cutting this year.
8 - This card was for a SplitCoast Stampers Inspiration Challenge. I love the combination of visual interest with a single layer design ... and I also love being able to host that Challenge each week to push my own creative boundaries.
9 - I really loved how all of these colors from Dawn's Color Challenge worked together in this bold design.
10 - And although not the best photograph, this was my favorite holiday card of the year. I loved the texture of the felt tree, blinged simplicity, and all-over glimmer.
Thanks for sharing this year with me ... I look forward to lots more creative fun in 2010.
This week's Moxie Fab Tuesday Trigger is a beautiful beachy bedroom from Coastal Living. I could almost hear the waves crashing, feel the wind blowing, and hear the seagulls screeching.
I was inspired by the soft blues and yellows, the weathered look of the floor, as well as the relaxing feel of the room.
This sentiment from Unity seemed to sum up what I would be doing if I was lounging in this beach front oasis. I cut the words in the shape of a cloud that I would expect to be floating outside that window.
It also works for the Gingersnap Creations Challenge to create a Resolution Card. I think this is a pretty good resolution for me in 2010.
Papers are Memory Box and Core'dinations. Bird punch is from Martha Stewart & the birds on the background are Inkadinkado. The Sketch is Jen's Sketch For You To Try. She's giving away a one-year membership to SCS Fan Club, so make sure you check it out.
My focus today is still on masculine, professional (and mailable) thank you cards, so I used Sketch 126 from the CPS blog, Basic Grey Granola papers, and a favorite stamp from Paper Inspirations.
I rounded the corners and sponged the edges of the circles with some Blue Iris ink to cover up the white bits that show when you punch DP and add a little dimension. Finished card is 4" x 5 3/4".
The Tuesday Challenge at the Jacksonbelle Embellishments Blog is to make something fun with ribbon. Just use Keyword JBE086 or link up to the Jacksonbelle blog to play along.
I had seen wreaths made with fabric scraps and wondered if I could do the same with ribbon. I started with a 1.5" loose leaf binder ring and started double-knotting on pieces of May Arts 3/8" Moss grosgrain ribbon until the entire ring was completely filled. Then I went back and trimmed the ribbon pieces to similar sizes.
I think this would make a really fun ornament. I added a Martha Stewart Punched Cardinal for an accent, a brad at the top to hang the wreath, and a Thank You from A Muse.
These great papers are from My Minds Eye Bloom & Grow collection (love these colors and how all of their papers are two-sided). Hope you can join us for some ribbon fun today. Make sure you check out the rest of the Jacksonbelle Rock Star blogs for more great ribbon ideas:
Jimmi Mayo ~ Stamping & Shopping
Michelle Philippi ~ Inside My Own Private Idaho
Tobi Crawford ~ Tobi’s Place
Carly Robertson ~ Paper in Bloom
Shemaine Smith ~ Scraptastic
Lynda Benden: Stamp Act
Jill Dunn: Ink Genious
Lindsey Botkin: Embellished
Heather Lee-Reppen: The Best in Life
Amy Tsuruta ~ Tsuruta Designs
Pam Varnell ~ The Stamping Addict
Dawn Lusk ~ Dawn a New Day
At my home, it is the season of thank you cards ... thanks for Christmas gifts and for those who have cared for me while I've been recovering from my tonsillectomy. This card uses the sketch from the Sweetest Thing blog, Hero Arts stamps (Collage Thank You & Wavy Leaf Pattern), and more paper scraps.
I added a wash of Golden Wheat Shimmerz glitter paint to highlight the sentiment.
I needed an understated, professional thank you card for the office, so I combined Laura's Sketch #42 with scraps from my stash ... a touch of ribbon ... and voila.
The thank you is one of my favorite stamps from A Muse (in Pumpkin Spice).
I woke up to several e-mails congratulating me on being chosen as the Featured Stamper at SplitCoast today ... what fun! I have had such a great time perusing the gallery of cards inspired by my creations.
I decided to make a quick card inspired by my Denim & Muslin card design with American Craft papers and Accent stickers I picked up on our last road trip to Madison. Even though we're covered in lots of snow right now, it's never too early to start dreaming of Spring.
I attached the stickers to white cardstock and trimmed them for some stability and definition against the patterned papers. The coral piece is stamped with Hero Arts Four Leaf Grid.
Thanks for sharing my special day with me.
Last time my Dad came to visit, he helped me build a storage rack for my punches (which still works marvelously). Today we tackled Nestability Storage. I'm a very visual person who likes to have as many of my creative tools as possible in my direct line of site. I decided to see if we could utilize a small corner in the back of my studio for storage.
The opening was perfect for a 10" x 4' pre-finished shelf board. We placed two rows of magnetic tape strips (5/8" apart so they could make contact with the smallest center die cuts). A yard stick was used to sketch out the lines and then a bead of gel super-glue to help the magnet adhere strongly to the board. We attached two hangers to the back (and a small nail at the bottom to keep it from trying to pop away from the wall when I remove the die cuts).
Now they are in my line of site, so I have a constant reminder of what is available, as well as easily removable from the wall. The next task is to make some magnetic labels to put beneath each set to identify the name of the set. Here's another close-up shot.
It's always great to get to spend time with my Dad in my studio.
