Simply Sketchy Morning

A day off work - with orders to NOT log in and check on things - so I am playing in the craft room this morning - then a play date with my daughter and granddaughter.   Here is one of her latest photos.

Isn't she precious.  She had just had her bath and was ready to meet the rest of us at The Cheesecake Factory.  We had a great time celebrating Aunt Rebekah's birthday and stuffing ourselves on delicious food. 

Anyway, this morning I grabbed one of my new stamp sets, Simply Sketched. It is one of the new hostess sets.  I have always loved the 'sketch-type' stamp sets and this one is really lovely.   The other day I did this card - you might remember it.

I used one of the sketches and sentiments from the set.  Looks great just stamped but I played a little bit more with the two other sketches in the set this morning. 
I knew I wanted to do some things with the floral stamp and the leaves so stamped up several using Basic Gray and then colored them in using the markers and blender pens.

The flower looks like the oriental poppies my parents had in a flower bed.  They were bright orange but I'm not a lover of orange so I tried a variety of colors.  From left to right - Calypso Coral, Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight, Strawberry Crush, Real Red, and Melon Mambo.  I used Wild Wasabi for the green on all of them. Some have the leaf image stamped alongside the flower.

So here is what I came up with using ideas I saw on the demonstrators' website and just letting my imagination go as I worked on each card.

Calypso Coral - This one I did not color the flower but stamped a second image on Calypso card stock and cut out the flowers.  I adhered them using dimensionals.   When I stamped the flower and leaf image on the Whisper White, I stamped off (ink the stamp, stamp on another sheet of card stock and then without re-inking stamped it on this one).  That gives it a fainter look more like a pencil sketch.   I used some retired designer paper (DSP) to accent the background.  The mat pieces and the Fabulous Phrases sentiment are Midnight Muse.  I used my Stamp-a-ma-jig to get my words lined up. 

 

Pumpkin Pie - I colored in the floral image using the markers.  For the leaves in the background, I scribbled a marker on an acrylic block and then picked up a little ink using a blender pen.  I used some retired DSP in the background with a piece of Wild Wasabit to accent.   Very simple and easy.

Daffodil Delight - I colored this with the markers and added a little Calypso Coral in the center of the flower.  The leaves were stamped off along the card front and a piece of retired Wild Wasabi DSP added.   Calypso Coral card stock and ribbon and it is done.

Strawberry Slush - this is one of the new IN colors. Very nice!  I colored this one using the markers.  The sentiment is from Petite Pairs.   The ribbon is the new ruffled stretch ribbon in Strawberry Slush and I used some Soft Suede card stock embossed with the Herringbone folder in the background.

Real Red - some more retired DSP - sorry, I have so MUCH of that I have vowed to use up at least one package before buying any new.  :-)  I used Basic Black for matting and the Lovely Little Labels stamp set.  A few of the pearls in the corner to make it 'sweet'. 

 

Melon Mambo - And some more reitired DSP.  Some Elegant Eggplant behind the image to make it stand out.  The card base is Old Olive - not an exact match for the stems but the paper has Old Olive leaves so went with that. 

So those are my six - and I love each one :-)  Here are a couple more that I did with ideas from some other cards I saw.

I stamped off the image with Basic Gray then cut out an oval using the Ovals Framelits.   I cut a smaller oval from a piece of the heavy card stock that comes in the DSP packages (yes I save all of those - never know when you might need one ).   I placed the image behind the smaller oval opening to use the smaller oval as a stencil.  I held it up to the light so I could be sure I had it centered.   I sponged Sahara Sand ink on the image. Removed the stencil and I had a sort of reverse-frame effect. 
The larger scalloped oval is cut using the largest oval framelit.  I embossed it using the Polka Dot embossing folder and trimmed off one side.  The card base is Strawberry Slush and the sentiment is from Petitie Pairs.  I'll be trying this reverse frame using my more of the nested framelits.

 

Another Calypso Coral one.  I stamped off the images and randomly stamped the leaves around a larger piece of card stock. Then trimmed it down to the size I wanted.  The coloring was all done with blender pens and ink from the markers.  I also stamped off the sentiment - the Basic Gray is too dark for me, almost looks black.  I am going to like the new Smoky Slate but I wanted something between the two for this one.  I used a Wild Wasabi candy dot on the sentiment and mounted it on Calypso Coral.  Love the candy dots - they add interest like a brad but not the bulk.  Will be stocking up on those (glad they don't cost much).

Had so much fun this morning!  Let me know which card is your favorite.  I think mine is the Strawberry Slush.

Flower Shop and Pansy Punch

One of my favorite new Stampin Up items are the Flower Shop stamp set and Pansy punch.  And you can get them in a bundle and save!   I have been playing with them both the last couple evenings.  Just what I needed after some stressful days at work!

All of these cards were inspired by cards I have seen from other demonstrators.  Thankful for them posting on the demonstrator website.

 I used the new Designer Series Paper - Gingham Garden for this one.  The Flower Shop images are stamped in Raspberry Ripple and Midnight Muse.  The sentiment is from one of the new hostess sets - Banner Greetings. 

 This one is Bermuda Bay, Soft Sky and Crisp Cantaloupe.   I used 3 different images from the Flower Shop set and a leaf die cut.  I used the oval framelits to cut the Soft Sky and Bermuda Bay.  The Bermuda Bay is layered behind the Soft Sky.  I ran the piece of Soft Sky through the Big Shot using the Square Lattice embossing folder.  The sentiment from Trust God was stamped on the white card base and the ovals layered on top.   I arranged the flowers and a couple die cut leaves, then added a pearl.

The same colors and dies.  This time I layerd the Bermuda Bay on top of an oval of Soft Sky.  The sentiment was stamped on Very Vanilla and punched using the extra large oval.   Same colors as above.

Smoky Slate and Daffodil Delight.  The gingham washi tape was perfect for this one.  I pierced around the edges of some Whisper White, then wrap the washi tape around it.  Layered that on Smoky Slate and added a Smoky Slate color dot to the upper right corner.  Love these!  Add a dot of color like a brad but no bulk since it is just a little round dot that adhere directly to the paper.  I am going to love those!    The flower center is from Daffodil Delight with a small rhinestone in the center.  The sentiment is from Petite Pairs.

And another one using the Gingham Garden paper.  The sentiment is from the Fabulous Phrases stamp set.  This one uses the candy dot but it is place on the coordinating brads - so you can have a brad or not - however you like it.   The brads are silver and have a ridge around the flat top so you just add the candy dot.   I used the Herringbone embossing folder for the background.

Love this stamp set and the punch makes it so easy to use.  A hint for using the punch.  Look for the flower with the little dip in one half of the petal.  All the others are rounded but this one show here has a little indentation.

  

 

Line that indentation up with the same petal on the punch.  The top petal in the photo below.  Once you have those petals matched it is easy to line up the others. 

 

 

Painting the craft room

Oh my!  Painting the craft room so not much cardmaking going on.  Got the room all torn apart and everything boxed up in the dining room and hallway and major problems at work  - stress and more stress - and then when I get home I don't want to tackle painting.  I did get a break from work today so got the room painted and started putting things back in the room. 

 

Doesn't it look nice.  The paint is Hint of Violet.  It looks like a lighter shade of the guest bathroom so coordinates well.  I am rearranging the room so I can get a computer cabinet that we have in the family room moved into the craft room for a Big Shot station.   We don't have a PC any more - all have laptops - so the cabinet is just housing the printer that we use occasionally.  I may move the small desk to the family room to use for the printer - or may move the printer to my craft oom :-)

 

I started putting away some of my collection of stamps, punches, ribbons, etc and just had to stop and make a card with some of the new (retruned from previous years) colors,  Bermuda Bay,  Crushed Curry, and Soft Sky.

 



I set up the card table since my craft table is currenlty stored in the garage.  Not a lot of room to play there after I got out the new stamp sets, inks and ribbons.   I used one of the new hostess sets, Simply Sketched, and Bermuda Bay ink to stamp the image and sentiment.  The Bermuda Bay 1/8 inch ribbon is new and looks nice on the Soft Sky card stock.
I love the Crushed Curry with the blues.  It is a simple and quick card but looks pretty nice.  Would love to play some more but it is time for bed and tomorrow will be another busy day.

All that junk!

Cleaning out the craft room in preparation for painting it  - and wow - where did all that junk come from!
Can't believe that this.....

and all of this.....

and even this...

and this.....

all were in this room

Some of it is NOT going back in there :-)   Have plans to reorganize it and move the computer cabinet from the family room to be used as a Big Shot station.  We all have laptops so the only thing in the computer cabinet is a printer.  Might even over it into the craft room.

My reward for all my hard work today -

Fresh strawberry shortcake.  Homemade sweet biscuit shortcake slit in half and topped with juicy strawberries.  Then some whipped topping  heaped on top.   The strawberries are from a friend's patch - they pick them at their prime and it really make a difference.  I got 10 qts and froze 8 cups or berries.  Have some to give to the kids' Tuesday night and then lots for us to eat on cereal and salads this week - or just to eat as is.  So good! 
Won't get much stamping done this week. But hoping to have the painting done and everything put in place before the weekend. 

Another zucchini recipe

Found another way to cook zucchini that my husband will eat.  He says he does not care for zucchini but he sure does eat it. 

It was pretty scrumptious!  But how can you go wrong with melted cheese and garlic powder.  Roasted Zucchini Romano is a keeper.

I rubbed some boneless pork chops with cajun seasoning and threw a couple sweet potatoes in the microwave (did not have time to do them in the oven with the zucchini) and we had a meal.  I did mix up some Honey Cinnamon Spread for the potatoes.  That really topped the meal. 

Now, I am digging into my first workshop order from the new Stampin Up catalog - can't wait to see all the goodies in these boxes.  It isn't all mine - but most of it is! 

And more cards

 Okay - the last of the cards I made today.  Used up most of the Wildflower Meadows that had stamped earlier - then when cleaning off the table found a couple more.  Something to start on tomorrow.

 

But first, this is a card showing the new IN Colors for 2013-2014.  The background is Baked Brown Sugar.  The flowers from top to bottom are Pistachio Pudding, Strawberry Slush, Crisp Cantaloupe, and Coastal Cabana.  The butterfly was done in Coastal Cabana and the sentiment in Strawberry Slush.  The card base is Crisp Cantaloupe.

This card was stamped with Pistachio Pudding and then I did a second image using Strawberry Slush.  I cut the large flowers out of the second image and glued them to the card. 

This is another card front that was stamped in Pistachio Pudding.  I used the several sizes of flowers to cover the stamped image flowers.  The colors are Daffodil Delight, Crisp Cantaloupe and Strawberry Slush.

For this card I stamped the image using Whisper White craft ink on Basic Gray card stock.  Once it was dry, I colored the stamped image using watercolor pencils.  This is a variation of the Black Magic technique. 

This is a variation of Black Magic also.  After colorin the image I highlighted using a white gel pen. 

And this is another variation of Black Magic.  I used a gel pen and made dots all around the colored image. And now it is time for bed :-)   I will be straightening up the craft room this week and have lots of plan for rearranging and organizing it.  I want to swap some furniture from elsewhere in the house and also paint the room. 

More rhubarb and more cards

More rhubarb for supper - Rhubarb Salsa.  It was pretty good.  It was fairly quick - lots of chopping.  

I could eat it with a spoon :-)   Frozen tamales, chips and salsa,  A nice supper after a day of cardmaking.   And more cards to show you...

The stripes on this one is washi tape.  I finally ordered some and I love it.  It add some color but is almost transparent.   This is the Gingham Garden designer series paper.  The stamp set is Label Love. 

Another washi tape card.  I used the Daffodil Delight gingham tape and put is on a strip of Whisper White card stock because I did not want the Bermuda Bay scallop behind it to show through the tape.  Smoky Slate was used for the ink.  It is a new color and I am so glad to have a lighter gray.  I layered the Artisan Label, Modern Label and Decorative Label for the sentiment. 

 

A monochromatic card using Crisp Cantaloupe and Calypso Coral.   I bought the Chevron emobssing folder some time ago and it was still in my 'need to use' stack.   The zig zag strip was cut using the Tasteful Trims die. 

 

 

These cards show two different ways to use the lace tape.   For the card on the left I places the tape on some Whisper White card stock and sponged Melon Mambo ink over it - then removed the tape.  I used the inked tape on the card on the right.   The paper is Gingham Garden.

 

And I think this was my favorite card of this group.   The card base is Soft Sky.  I added some of the lace tape and used an embossing folder to make the cross stitch line below the tape.  The 1/8 inch taffeta ribbon is Daffofil Delight.   I stamped the baby stamp from Label Love using Daffodil Delight and a second one in Pistachio Pudding.  I punch out the center of the Pistachio Pudding with the small scallop circle and put a strip of Pistachio Pudding card stock behind it . 

 

So - supper break is over and I'm going back to the craft room.  Having so much fun with my new toys.