Sunflower greetings

 Sunflowers are in season, so I was overjoyed to find a challenge for yellow flowers. I paired it with a sketch, the call for making it tone on tone, And, I could use my pretty papers.

The supplies were rather simple, dies and papers and some Perfect pearls. Later I added some glittery stones as I don't have enamel dots (which were called for in one challenge). 

 

I die cut the sunflower out of design paper and laid it over another. I made an underlay for the flower out of a yellow tissue paper so it would stand out better. I was working with a sketch so added the an outer and inner frame. The orientation was flipped, I thought my card made more sense as a horizontal.

Entering this in the following inspirational challenges:

As You See It: #377 Recipe for Happy Yellow Flowers

 

Atlantic Hearts Challenge: #692 Sketch - I changed the orientation

 

TGIF: #587 Technique challenge: Tone on tone 

 

Love Those Pretty Papers: July AG / Coastal optional - I am playing with AG

Embossed for birthday

Today I took on to combine  a sketch with a color challenge and add some dry embossing and die cutting to the mix. I chose these supplies to begin with - but later changed the bird-on-a-branch die to a doily die.

Here you can see the embossed and partially colored in flowers that have been already die cut out.

I tossed a long time between a white background and a colorful die cut and a dark grey background with a white die cut. The latter won as you see. I added a sentiment and embossed it in white.

 

 Entering this in these challenges that served as my inspiration today:

The Paper Players: #796 Sketch

 

Color Dare: #714 

 

Just Add Ink: #790 Dies, stencils ...or both - I used dies only

 

Cut It Up: #361 Emboss it 

 

From all of us

 Today's inspiration came from color challenges asking for red-white-blue. This is not my usual comfort zone so working with these colors gave me an extra challenge.

I started by pulling out my supplies: a floral die set, colors and a background stamp and a sentiment stamp.

 

I stamped the background with Versafine light blue directly to the card base. Then I die cut and assembled the flower and painted it. The sentiment reads " Best Wishes from all of us".

 

I am entering this in these inspiring challenges:

Daisy Chain: #109 Birthday  

Give a Crafter a Cookie: GCC#218 Yummy red, white and blue 

 

Colorful Options: July challenge

 

Pinspirational: July red, white and blue 

 

  

Shiny and earthy for your birthday

 Yesterday I made a square non-white card to fit certain challenges. Then I thought: what if I change one parameter of those four (of yesterday's card) and see what else I can do?

I removed the color challenge and kept 'blooms' and the 'square non-white card' requirement. I added stencil and shine. Out came the supplies:

 

I brayered a background paper first with cream, then pearlescent white acrylic paint. When it was dry I stenciled over it with gold paint. I cut it to size, then die cut the flower silhouettes from white card stock. I painted two of those with brown and left one white. Lastly I adhered the sentiment "Congratulation". 

 

This card became completely diffrent from yesterday's.

 I am entering this in these lovely challenges that were my inspiration today:

Seize the Birthday: #331 Square card, non-white base (2nd entry)

TioT: Summer blooms (2nd entry)

Just Us Girls: #833 Stencils week 

 

Creative Moments:  #284 Shimmer and shine

Creative Artiste mixed media: #128 AG Mixed Media

Colors for your birthday

 Today's inspirations became a recipe: a square card w/ a non-white base - birthday - blooms - a color palette of four vibrant colors.

These were the supplies: dies, papers and a sentiment stamp.

 

I die-cut every flower twice with different colors, then assembled the flowers with inlays onto the yellow paper. I snitched the layout idea from the color challenge, I thought it was genius.

 

Entering this in these challenges that I was inspired by today:

Seize the Birthday: #331 A square card wit a non-white base 

AAA Card Challenge: #319 Color challenge 

 

Try it on Tuesday: Summer blooms

Time Out: #318 Mother Nature 

 

 

A glimpse of heaven

 A card that would depict a hobby while using no stamping? A stencil that would produce a pattern? And a two-color scheme to cover it all? And make it for a male.

I thought I could find an answer to these multiple requirements and set out to select my supplies. I didn't need much, just a stencil, colors according to the scheme and TH text strips.

I stenciled the background and cut it to size, then adhered it to a backing. Now it was time to select the text and bring it onto strip of a vellum. Originally I had two in mind, but in the end I found four that suit each other well. Put together they evoke the dream of every fisherman out there. Listen to this:

"glittering in the sun:

a very wonderful place -

a glimpse of heaven

wonderful dream"

 

Entering this in all the challenges that were my inspiration today:

Creative Crafting Uncles: #79 No stamping

The Male Room: #212 Hobbies - this is for a hobby fisherman 

 

GCG: #26 blauw en/ of zalm (salmon and/ or blue) - I chose both 

Krafty Chicks: #830 Masculine week

Stencil Fun: AG/ make a pattern (optional) - I am playing with "Pattern" 

Simon Says Monday: Add some text  (2nd)

Simon Says Wednesday: Make your own background (2nd) 

I need some vitamin sea

 Today's card was inspired by a trip to the seaside. Add to that a color palette - and I knew exactly what I wanted to create.

I had recently purchase a beachy set of rub-ons. I didn't need much else, just a pan of metallic watercolor and a sentiment stamp.

I rubbed three images onto a cardboard, then fussy cut them out and mounted them with foam strips. I painted a few lines to give the scene some 'vitamin sea' and stamped the sentiment. The sentiment is a tricky one to translate, 'longing for the sea' sounds about right.

 

Entering this into these lovely challenges that served as my guide today:

The Paper Players: #795 Going to the Beach / CAS

 

CAS Colours and Sketches: #590 Colour challenge

 

Allsorts: #854 At the seaside 

613 Avenue Create: AG / Any holiday optional. I am playing AG 

Enjoy your day

 I was so happy to see that there were a few challenges that I could combine with each other: create a background, work according to a sketch, use older stamps and depict flowers, birds and butterflies. So satisfying!

I purchased this set of Carabelle Au Grand Air stamps a year ago (and they are still available worldwide, I just checked). The butterfly stamp from a TH collection is a veritable oldie, I must have had it for at least 5 years if not longer. 

 

I also used a gelli print and my Gansai Tambi watercolors.

I stamped, heat embossed and watercolored three pictures: a bird, flowers and a nature scene. I also stamped, heat embossed and watercolored the butterfly and fussy cut it. Then I adhered all to that gelli print background according to the sketch. I added the butterfly (on foam strips) onto the center picture. The sentiment says: "Enjoy your day".

 

 Entering this in these challenges that were my inspiration today:

Retro Rubber Challenge: #rrcb 276 Sketch time

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge: Make your own background 

Triple B: AG w/ birds, blooms, butterflies 

Festive Friday: #FF0214 National Friendship Day, Pick 3: I picked flowers, birds, butterflies 

 

 

An Inspiration to the Simple Life

 The title is a quote from an ancient TH sheet. It seemed so apt for today's card.  A few challenges led my thoughts to my summers and summer vacations. The most fun was to stay on a farm and observe the garden and its inhabitants. The birds, the squirrels, the hedgehogs. We put watered milk out for them. 

The supplies were many this time: two stamp sets, two die sets and an embossing folder.

I started by embossing the background, then stamping the hedgehog and the tree. The hedgehog is layered and heat embossed. The flowers were cut from scrap paper and assembled.

The card will go to a friend who is thinking of quitting a city job.

 

I am entering it in these lovely challenges that inspired me today:

As You Like It: Favorite pet (and why) I always wished I could have a hedgehog, they look so soft and cuddly (but of course they are not)

Can You Handle the Pressure: AG, Stars and/or stripes optional - I selected stripes

Nachteulen /  Night Owls: # NSS 63 Urlaub - meine Ferien sind an einem Bauernhof

Creative Knockouts: #575 Outdoor fun

Craft Rocket Challenges: #138 Animals 

Koi greetings

 I needed a card that was not overly sweet. I love my pinks, but blue is a good option, too. There were some nice challenges to nudge me on. 

My supplies were stamps and inks. And paper. I had a blotched background left over from the positivity card and since it had already been half inked I now inked it fully and then stamped the background on it.

The aperture was cut freehand and propped up with foam tape. (If your eyes detect a stitched line along the edge of it - well, that was made with a pattern wheelie.) The koi fish were stamped in two colors and then fussy cut. The sentiment reads: "A little hello".

 

I am entering this in these wonderful challenges:

Time Out: #317 Water

 

The Paper Funday: #89 Make a splash

Simon Says Monday Challenge: Add some text

Lil' Patch of Crafty Friends: July 19. AG