Greetings, my friend

 My blog posts have gotten very predictable: these days I start with my inspirations and proceed to how I made the card. Well, why break the mould, it serves me well... So, dear reader, let me tell you what I was inspired by this morning. It was butterflies, colors and a sketch - a combination that I thought would work well for a simple greeting card.

After seeing the inspiration photo at A Place to Start (scroll down to challenges) I knew I wanted to use an old book page. It had a tear down the middle which I decided to keep (by not glueing the ends properly), because that would work well for the sketch I was eyeing. The inspiration photo also had butterflies and flowers so I knew I would want to use those images. To begin with I pulled out these ingredients:

 

For stamping and coloring I used the colors in the inspiration palette (scroll down for challenges).

 

The card was put together following the sketch (again I refer to challenges). 

 

I am entering this in these wonderful challenges:

A Place To Start: #202606 Inspiration photo

 

Sunday Sketches: #389 Down the middle

 

All About Papercraft: #6 Colors

 

Girlz Rebel Challenge: #53 Vlinders (butterflies)

Girlz Creative Challenge: #69 Vlinders (butterflies)

Just snippets

 With just how little can you make a card? My previous cards have been very labor and material intensive, it was time to try to make one with less.

A couple of challenge are very inspiring in this, the Snippets challenge and a CAS challenge. There were others, too, that I took cues from. Here is what I started with,  some gelli print remnants and a washi tape. I also wanted to use my minimal star die, it only punctures dots onto the base.

And here is what it became:

Entering it in the challenges that inspired me today:

A Place to Start: AG/ option New - I played with that option

Snippets playground: #469 December challenge

Alphabet Challenge: S is for Stars

AAA Challenge: #255 sketch - it's cold

Double Trouble partnering with Use Your Stuff #481: Challenge #155 - I am entering all three categories: die cut -check, washi tape -check, Double Dare -check.

Card for a child

 Glitter - critters - holiday fun: a great recipe for a child's card.

I have a circles background die (by Lawn Fawn) which is quite a concundrum when you think about it. It does not die cut any shapes, just stitches. This gave me lines to adhere the letters, later, and it also provided a backdrop for all those glittery circles. They also have a stitched edge which I like, it looks so neat and clean.

 

 The critters are from summery sets, (also Lawn Fawn), rendered festive by addition of Santa hats.

 

Entering it in these lovely challenges:

Lawn Fawnatics: #161 Holiday critters

Dragonfly Dreams Challenge: Inspiration photo - I was inspired by the round shapes and glitter

Let's Craft and Create: #201 Stitched up, real or faux - I opted for faux stitching 

A Place To Start: AG, option Something for a child - I went with this option

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge: AG

Eternal sunshine

 Sunshine is what I wish for my summer vacation. Instead, I have been looking at rain clouds. It is a rainy summer up North where I live.Nevertheless, or for that reason, I was inspired by a couple of challenges that called for Vacation themes.

My starting point were the lovely colors of Inspirational challenge. I also got the idea for my starburst layout here - from the beach ball.

I have a lot of gelli prints, so I started by pulling out the vacation-appropriate colors: pink, turq, yellow, orange. Then I stamped "Happy Birthday" onto a cloud, which I placed in the center and flanked by two smaller clouds.

Entering this into these lovely challenges:

 Bastel-Traum: #125 Vacation/ Ferien

Inspirational Challenge: #51 Photo Inspiration

AAA Birthdays: Game #52: Anything Birthday goes

A Place to Start: AG/ Life is a beach - I am playing the AG option

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge: AG

 

Thank you for your visit!

Text only

 Sometimes text just takes the center stage. (It reads: Best wishes on your special day)

 

 I was heavily inspired by the color orange and started by stamping the background with a cover plate stamp (Hero Arts). I did that twice, once with white and after repositioning the stamp, once more with Abandoned Coral. The background was an ink swipe with Spice Marmalade.

I raised part of the sentiment and stamped the rest underneath (Hero Arts), then heat embossed it with white. Finally I adhered some random letters around the main one - for no other reason than the card needed something but I did not want to add new imagery.

 

 

I am entering this into the challenges that inspired me:

A Blog Named Named Hero: Sentimental Journey

Inspiration Station : #50 photo - I was inspired by the moody oranges

Shopping our Stash: #499 Sentimentally yours

A Place to Start: June AG

 

Thank you for your visit!

Sending happy thoughts

This sympathy card was inspired by several challenges which helped me set my design: prompt with color, geometric elements and the use of a die cut.

Entering in:

Crafty chicks: #578 All occasions

Perfectly CAS: #19 Geometric - I chose ovals

Colour and sketch challenge:

Happy little Stampers: AG with dies

A Place to start: #9 Patterned paper

... said the raven

 A couple of challenges coincide again very aptly, at least for my taste calling for distress and shimmer. The summer was very short and hefty here in the High North and is busy turning into fall. I am longing for the first pumpkins to hit the market stalls, but until then this photo had to do.

 

I completely mistreated it - as I so often do with magazine cuttings - distressing it first with a sanding paper, then applying distress markers and Gelatos into the roughened texture.

The backbround is kraft stock where I had smeared some leftover black acrylics a while ago. Those marks are now hidden under the green paint. I then stamped the trees (stamp by Viva Las Vegas) with black Versamark ink - and while it was still wet I sprinkled a wonderful shimmer powder onto it and rubbed it in. The excess can be removed, it only sticks onto the ink, totally changing it's color. Here the green powder on black ink gave me metallic shimmering trees. (This wonder powder is called Blonde Moments 'Friends Pearl Pigments' and it may be already retired.) The raven stamp is by Lost Coast, I stamped on copy paper and then fussy cut.

The card was completed with black and white splatters and a sentiment that the raven might well express when he has found a heap of pumpkins that he deems to be his, and his alone.

 Entering this in:

Frilly and Funkie: De-stress with a little distressing This is definitely on the funky side!

Simon Says Monday challenge: Glimmer and sparkle 

A Place to Start: #8 What's your style? I love doing collage on mixed media and adding text to it.

Dare 2 be Artzy: Anything goes

Word Art Wednesday: #505-506 Anything goes

Just to say...

I have a lovely stamp by Crafty Individuals which works for almost any occasion. 

I treated the background with two distress inks, leaving it blotchy and watercolor-y. I stamped with a text stamp and a numebrs stamp loosely here and there and spritzed some ink around. Lastly i added leaf garland in crushed olive to match the card color, added the image and a large bird and the sentiment. The frame was created with washi tape.

This is for "just because", the recipient loves birds, hence the added bird.

Entering this in:

Watercooler challenges: Occasions

TioT: Feathered friends

Penny's Challenge: #501 Anything with paper

 Creative Fingers: #212 Anything goes

Through the Craft Room Door: Anything goes

Thinking of you

 I needed a card for a dear friend. She is a poetry lover, so the text is taken from a poem.

"The wind threw the petals into air

like snow falling from low to high"

First I painted the background in acrylics. I started with pure turquoise and mixed it with more and more white towards the top to give it an ombre look. When it was dry I glued Tim Holtz tissue on it. Next came black gesso through a flourish stencil. Then I stamped my beloved cherry bough stamp (Paper Source) both onto the card and white copy paper so I could color in the blossoms and cut them out. 

entering in:

A Place to Start: June 2021 / Make your own challenge

More Mixed Media: Anything goes with optional purple