Joyful Season for Freshly Made Sketches 200th Celebration

So Freshly Made Sketches is celebrating their 200th Challenge this week! Congrats, FMS! Thanks for all the wonderful inspiration since you started out! The sketch is a very simple one with lots of room for variation and creativity:

I was trying to come up with something different at the same time as I was unpacking my Holiday Catalogue pre-order and when I saw the new photopolymer stamp set, *Joyful Season, I had a marvelous idea! I thought the branch would make a great divider between the two areas of the sketch! And I was looking for a simple project that I could do at my first Christmas Stamper's Dozen this week. But that idea was dashed as this stamp set is not quite as easy to use as it might seem!

Take a closer look and I'll explain why:

• This water-colour-like stamp set is described as a Two Step Stamping set, but in reality, it's more like 3 or 4 steps per image. With the photopolymer transparency, you can line up your images fairly accurately, and for a real water-colour effect you don't want exact precision. but I ended up redoing this a couple of times trying for the best look. With all the little extra accents here, it would take too long to be a good sample for a Christmas Stamper's Dozen.
• I love the big, bold, sweeping Joyful sentiment! What a great one word summary for the Christmas season! When I first stamped it, I thought I had really missed either inking up the stamp or using even pressure when I stamped it on the Whisper White cardstock. But as it turns out, it is supposed to look like that - quick brush strokes that are, again, not precise!
• Tip Top Taupe is the cardstock for the card base and the ink I used for the branch. And check out the foil backing the image! Yes, it's RED! Stampin' Up! has added *Red Foil Sheets for the holiday season. Brilliant! 
• Since I was a little girl, cardinals have been my favourite bird! I love the bright red plumage, especially against the snow-laden branches, the perky crest and the black mask. Unfortunately, I don't get to see one very often as our valley is not in their range, but I think they make a great Christmas image.

Here's a couple of photos of my favourite birds:

Click on the links below to take you to my On-Line Store, where you can read about, look at, and purchase if you wish, the products used to make this card today!

Product List

Tip Top Taupe 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [138336]	Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [100730]	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708]	Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad [126949]	Tangerine Tango Classic Stampin' Pad [126946]
Tip Top Taupe Classic Stampin' Pad [138325]	Sahara Sand Classic Stampin' Pad [126976]	Brights Designer Buttons [130028]	Linen Thread [104199]	Fuse Fast Adhesive [129026]
Glue Dots [103683]

*Products from the Stampin' Up! 2015 Holiday Catalogue, available Sept.1, 2015: *Joyful Season Stamp Set, *Red Foil Sheets

New Year's Card for Pals Paper Arts

Pals Paper Arts Challenge #185 has been out for a while, and as I was looking around for inspiration today, I found their sketch, and decided to make a New Year's card with it:


                                               
  It's a mixture of new and old products, but definitely on the glitzy side:

• I don't know if I'm breaking a cardinal rule of the Arts, but I'm mixing my metallics!  This card features gold and silver embossing powder, gold foil sheets, silver glimmer paper and gold sequins. I like the way it looks so, if it looks good, break all the rules!!!
• I decided New Year's was a good celebration to use up some of my Modern Medley designs that I tend to overlook.  Here I mixed a mosaic design with some variable width stripes.  I'm such a rebel today!

• Everyone watches the clock for midnight New Year's Eve, so I used the Clockworks stamp set for that great pocket watch.  I had to use the Stamp-a-ma-jig to center the clock face, but I had SUCH a hard time with it.  Part of the problem is that my Clockworks set is clear mount and that can pose a problem with two-step stamping, especially if you have to clean the stamp in between stamping the acetate of the Stamp-a-ma-jig and inking up in Versamark so you can add embossing powder.  The cleaning of the stamp moves it slightly on the clear mount block.  If I had it to do over, I would definitely get this set in wood mount, and that goes for any two-step stamping set.
• The sentiment is half of one of the Christmas Messages set stamps.  I carefully inked it up in Versamark ink as well and embossed it with gold embossing powder.  Don't forget to use your embossing buddy for these kinds of projects, so you don't get embossing powder where you don't want it.
• I used an old neglected friend, the Curly Label punch, for the sentiment and it was just the right look! Yay for old friends:  "Should Auld Acquaintance be forgot...."

What are your plans on New Year's Eve?  We are going with two other couples to see the Hobbit Part 2 and I am so excited about that.  Have I mentioned that I am a huge Tolkien fan?  And that the Lord of the Rings Trilogy is my favourite movie series ever?

 

Click on any of these products for a direct link to my Stampin' Up! On-Line Store!

• Clockworks Clear-Mount Stamp Set
• Clockworks
• Christmas Messages Wood-Mount Stamp Set
• Christmas Messages Clear-Mount Stamp Set
• Modern Medley Designer Series Paper
• Gold Foil Sheets
• Silver Glimmer Paper
• Basic Black 8-1/2X11 Card Stock
• Versamark Pad
• Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder
• Silver Stampin' Emboss Powder
• Embossing Buddy
• Stamp-A-Ma-Jig
• Heat Tool
• Curly Label Punch
• Gold Sequin Trim*

*Available starting Jan. 3, 2014 from the Occasions Catalogue.

Retreat in the Snow

This weekend I went to my first ever papercrafting retreat, Papercrafter's Paradise.  Hard to believe, I know.  I've been papercrafting for somewhere close to 10 years and this is the first one I've done.  Now I'm asking myself, why did I wait so long?  It was fantastic!  Sooo relaxing and fun, being in a big room full of papercrafters, each working on their own projects, but everyone interested in what everyone else was creating; sharing ideas and supplies; getting to know people much better!  I'm booking the next one as soon as it is announced, that's for sure!

We went to a beautiful camp, Gardom Lake, and it was still very snowy, so really pretty outside!  We had camp style accommodation, but it was very comfortable and being the age I am, I don't say that lightly!
We demonstrators shared the cooking and there was no shortage of delicious food!

I accomplished a LOT!  I was surprised, since I didn't have much of a plan when I went.  I didn't take along a ton of gear, and it was probably a good thing this time as there wouldn't have been room for it in the car, as I drove the organizer up and she had a great deal of supplies with her.  I really only missed my embellishments and ribbons, and they don't take up much room, so will make sure they come with me next time.  Here's a quick shot of some of the cards I made:

One of my biggest projects was a PHD (project half-done) as my upline would say and I can't show you the photos for awhile since they are gifts for my 3 daughters and I want to keep it a surprise.  But one of the cards that I am proudest of was created for a colour challenge on Saturday using Baja Breeze, Perfect Plum and Wild Wasabi!  It was a kind of random colour palette and two of the colours are not ones I use regularly, but I embraced the challenge and used a layout from the new Paper Players Challenge #134:

It's a simple but versatile layout and it worked with how I was imagining the card I wanted to create.

Here's the card:

I stamp-a-ma-jigged (yes, it's a verb according to Brian Pilling down there at Stampin' Up headquarters)  the main image using Stippled Blossoms in Baja Breeze and Perfect Plum and who knew they could work together so perfectly? (For instructions on how to do this, go here.) The sentiment is from a stamp set that we got at Convention 2012 called "I Am...".  (Unfortunately, it is not available in the catalogue.)  The linen-like flag of Natural 7/16" Trim Ribbon completes the soft look of the whole card.

 I loved how it turned out!  It tied for first in the retreat challenge  and I won a free stamp set! (Just the prize to make a stamper's heart beat a little faster!)

Anyway, you've got to come along to the next retreat!  Contact me if you're interested.  I think it will be in the early fall sometime!

Stamps:  Stippled Blossoms (w126745; c126747); I Am (unavailable)
Paper:  Sahara Sand (121043), Perfect Plum (101889), Wild Wasabi (108641), Baja Breeze (111352) and Very Vanilla (101650) card stock
Ink:  Classic Stampin' Pads in Baja Breeze (126960), Perfect Plum (126963) and Wild Wasabi (126959)
Accessories:  Natural 7/16" Trim Ribbon (129287); Pearl Basic Jewels (119247)
Tools:  3" Circle Originals die (122125); 2 1/2" Circle Punch (120906); Word Window Punch (119857); Modern Label Punch (119849); Stamp-a-ma-jig (101049)

Stippled Blossoms Two-Step Stamp Set

Stamp-a-ma-jig

Modern Label Punch

Natural 7/16" Trim Ribbon

2 1/2" Circle Punch

Mr. Lonely

I must be nuts!  It's 11:36 pm and I just finished filming and editing another Crafty Clues by Heather video tutorial!  I should be going to bed while it publishes to You Tube because that takes FOREVER!  Instead, I'm trying to write the blog entry to post it in.  Why, because I want it to be there for my readers in the morning!  I care about you all so much! 

Actually, I'm trying to get that done, so I can concentrate on making some swaps for Regionals next weekend! (How did that happen so soon?  I just got back from Convention!)  Anyway, I titled this post Mr. Lonely in honour of an obscure colour in the Regals collection of Stampin' Up colours called "Bravo Burgundy".  As I was looking at my paper rack, trying to decide what colour to use for the card I was featuring in my video, my eye caught sight of a colour I rarely use, and others rarely use it, as far as I can tell by the blogs I follow.  Even Stampin' Up must consider it a second class citizen, because there are NO ribbons in that colour, at all! No brads are that colour...There is nothing to coordinate with Bravo Burgundy.

Poor little guy, I thought.  I'm going to give him his big break!  So I got out the Colour Coach and found More Mustard, Crumb Cake and Baja Breeze and River Rock could be paired with it.  I chose Crumb Cake, but I needed a colour in the same general hue for the Two Step Stamping I was demonstrating, so I found Pretty in Pink would do the trick.  Thanks for the Colour Coach, Stampin' Up.  Here's the card I came up with:

I think Mr. Lonely came through, don't you!  He made the most of his big break!  The card base is Bravo Burgundy, of course, as is the matte for the main image, die cut with the Labels Collection Framelits, and the backing for the sentiment, cut with the Modern Label punch.  And since there are no ribbons in Bravo Burgundy, I made a paper border, cut on both edges with one of the Finishing Touches Edgelits.  The back panel and the sentiment are Crumb Cake.  I used the Fancy Fan embossing folder to give the back panel some delicate texture. The video below will give you the details on how to stamp the main image. (I used Wild Wasabi and Always Artichoke for the leaves, by the way.)

So without further ado, here is the latest Crafty Clues by Heather:

 

So, indeed, goodnight, and when you think about it, take Mr. Lonely out of isolation once in a while and let him strut his stuff!  He'll really appreciate it!

 

Stamps: Stippled Blossoms (w126745; c126747); Teeny Tiny Wishes (w115370; c127802)

Paper: Bravo Burgundy (105123), Crumb Cake (120953) and Very Vanilla (101650) cardstock

Ink: Classic Stampin' Pads in Bravo Burgundy (126967), Pretty in Pink (126955), Wild Wasabi (126959) and Always Artichoke (126972)
Accessories:  Pearl Basic Jewels (119247)
Tools: Stamp-a-ma-jig (101049); Big Shot (113439); Labels Collection Framelits (125598); Finishing Touches Edgelits (127010); Fancy Fan embossing folder (127751)

Stippled Blossoms Stamp Set

Finishing Touches Edgelits

Fancy Fan Embossing Folder

Stamp-a-ma-jig