Together Forever in Blue

The talented ladies over @ the Shabby Tea Room have the most beautiful inspiration photo, this week.  Just one look, and I am sure you can create something fabulous {smile}.  I typically don't use baby blue color.  However, the application of spring flowers and a bird; easy peasy!

take a look at their inspiration photo:

my disclaimer:
I did not add any spring flowers as embellishments, but rather I used a floral pattern paper.

I used a blue floral/text pattern paper from Melissa Frances, as the main panel.  Love the look.  I used my sewing machine to add some zig zag stitches with some silver metallic thread.

I used a string of hearts die to cut the decorative strip at the left top of the card.  I felt it needed some pizzazz, so I cut a banner piece from My Mind's Eye and stapled it the front.  I thought the crispness of the metal would add some visual interest.  I adhered a single blue button to the banner.  

I took a Tattered Angels flourish frame and covered it with picket fence distress ink and dazzling diamond glitter.  I backed the frame with a script text pattern paper by Paper Studios.  The large '&' is actually a wooden embellishment.  I used the picket fence distress ink and dazzling diamond glitter on it, too {smile}.

The sentiment pieces are from a retired Stampin' Up! stamp set.  I stamped the words in Jet Black Staz-On ink.  I stamped them on whisper white card stock and matted them with pool party textured card stock.

The swallow (bird) was actually cut with a die from Amuse Studios.  I used silver glitter paper from Stampin' Up!.  I cut the leaves from a light grey polka dot pattern paper.  I distressed the edges with picket fence distress ink and dazzling diamond glitter.  I added a light blue button tied with cream twine, and a white button to the middle of the card, to help add some visual interest to the empty space.  

Thank you for stopping by {smile}.  I hope you have been inspired and get a chance to play along with the challenge over @ the Shabby Tea Room.

Create in Shades of Blue

Howdy, howdy.  Hope your weekend was fabulous.  Mine, oh yeah!  I spent Friday, Saturday, and Sunday with 3 fabulous friends at the Hen House Retreat, aka the Inspired Retreat!  We had a ball.  We laughed until we almost peed our pants, paper crafted, ate, drank, sang songs, played games (and won big!) and gabbed until the cows came home!  It appeared that we all really needed the time away from home, and to regroup with crafty girl friends.  We all went home tired, and very de-stressed.  Recharged with a new energy, and tons of good memories from our silliness.  You know how that is, you remember a snippet of a line, or a crazy joke and just start laughing.  Either out loud or softly to yourself.  Either way, memories made that will leave smiles on our faces and a deeper friendship in our hearts.  

So, with this new energy and a re focus, it games me a new prespective on this week's sketch challenge, over @ Nacho Average Challenge.  A new way to look at color combos, and a new way to look at sketches.  

Here is this week's sketch, #41.

Before we get to my card.  For those who know me, would see this sketch and already vision a hand-made flower where the blue decorative circle is.  A shabby, vintage embossed background piece.  Vanilla, with crumb cake sponged on the edges.  But, that isn't what I did!

First, you will notice that I have rotated the sketch 90 degrees and mirrored it.  

I used mostly blues.  I just love the depth of the marina mist.  The color is so sweet, and soft.  I took a scrap piece of neutral DSP gray polka dot pattern paper and matted a baja breeze card stock under it.  I also tied a simple bow with baja breeze seam binding around the center panel.  I stamped the frame in marina mist classic ink.  I used the matching punch to punch out the label piece.  I matted the decorative label onto marina mist card stock.  I stamped the sentiment in basic grey classic ink.  The sentiment comes from the Creative Elements stamp set.  I love this word and how it is assembled.  I love the different fonts, and how they are off-set.    The pinwheel is made from the pinwheel die.  I used a tiny silver brad to hold that adorable pinwheel together.  For the large panel of the card,  I matted the floral print Twitterpated DSP onto baja blue card stock.  The card base is made from marina mist card stock.

  

I hope that the design team has inspired you to play along with us @ NAC.  I know that we would love to see what you create with this sketch.  And thank you for stopping by.  I will be sharing a book that I created over the weekend with you another day.  So, please come back again soon.  Take care.

love this card?  you can purchase it here.

Established Material

On this Tuesday, the design team @ Nacho Average Challenge have a color challenge for you to try.  The thing that I love about color challenges, is that you can use any stamp set, or layout, to create your master piece.  And, well, the color challenge this week, just happens to use one of my all time favorite color combinations.  Here is this week's color challenge, #18:

I love how soft suede and calypso coral look together.  And well, throw in some summer starfruit, and you have a great pop of color!  Here is what I created:

I started with a card base made from crumb cake card stock.  I then added a layer of soft suede and calypso coral.  I stacked a piece of first edition dsp, neutrals dsp, and comfort cafe dsp.

I stamped the dress form in soft suede onto very vanilla card stock.  I stamped the sewing label in calypso coral classic ink onto very vanilla card stock, and then matted that circle onto crumb cake card stock.  I rubbed some very vanilla craft ink onto a weeded button and used my heat gun to set the ink.  I made a multi-loop bow with very vanilla seam binding, that I crinkled myself.  

I did some faux stitching at various places on this card.  I did a criss cross stitch on two dsp papers.  And a straight stitch around the main panel.  

I hope that we have inspired you, and find some time to create and play along with us @ Nacho Average Challenge.  

Birdie Birthday

I need a Birthday card for my son-in-law's mother, Barbara.  She is a wonderful lady, and very kind.  So, I want to make something pretty!  Something vintage.  Something 'girlie'.  So, I headed over to Cupcake Creations for some inspiration.  The colors for this challenge are:  Light Pink, Medium Green, and a Neutral.  

Here is their inspiration board:

Here is my card:

The card base is Sahara Sand cardstock.  The main panel is Pink Pirouette card stock.  I stamped a flourish and a 'Postale Carte' in Pretty in Pink classic ink onto the pink cardstock.  I ran the pink cardstock thru my Big Shot inside my Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder.  I sponged some pink ink randomly.  I used a sanding block randomly, too.  Then I grabbed my scissors and distressed a few spots on the edges.  I added some text paper behind the distressed edges.  I wanted to give this special birthday card some contrast.  I stamped Happy Birthday in Basic Brown classic ink, onto the Sahara Sand DSP.  I thought that it looked better without a tag.  To jazz-up the neutral DSP, I also stamped a fancy frame in white craft ink and used white detail embossing powder.   For the ribbon, I loved the crochet trim, but I also loved the seam binding, so I combined the two.  I used Pear Pizzazz seam binding, and Pretty in Pink dyed Very Vanilla seam binding.  I tied a double-bow with each color of the seam binding and put them together, with a vintage brad.  I used my glue gun to attach the vintage brad to the crochet trim.  The stamp multi-colored flowers/stems, I 'colored' my stamp with markers, huffed, and stamped.  To add a little sparkle I added some dazzling diamond glitter to the flower centers.  I also stamped a different swirl in Wild Wasabi classic ink, onto the text paper peaking out from behind the circle piece.  I tore the bottom edge and sponged with some sahara sand classic ink.

Thank you for looking.  I hope that you have seen something you like, and leave me some well-wishes.