Winter Bird

Hello again, y'all!  I told you I might be back with a second blog post today and I am currently procrastinating about putting up Ryan's laundry since the dryer just beeped that it's done.  In a minute, dryer.  In the meantime, another card:

I liked the sketch at TGIF Challenges:

Which I paired with the colors from CAS Colours & Sketches:

I hope I kept it CAS enough...I have a lot of white (navy blue) space, but we do have some layers going on.  I did forego putting any embellishments on it though.  You can send the Challenge Police after me if necessary.

Okay, laundry is calling...cheers, y'all!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Winterly Tree Tops
Ink:  Secret Sea, Mossy Meadow, Stampin' Blends in Pecan Pie, Mossy Meadow, Bronze, Ivory, Night of Navy
Paper:  Secret Sea, Mossy Meadow, Thick Basic White, Mossy Meadow DSP
Accessories:  Winterly Tree Tops dies, Stylish Shapes dies, Textured Notes dies, Dimensionals

Wishing Tree

Mornin' y'all!  I need to type fast because I think Daphne knows that I've finished my tea and she is more than ready to go out for her daily perambulation.  So let's get to it!

Once more I am playing around with some older, retired supplies even though I have four new stamp sets sitting on my table.  Let's start with the Just Add Ink sketch:

And then the Inkspirational word prompt:

And finally the AAA Colourful challenge that pulled it all together:

I honed in on the last three colors, which I read as Basic Black, Wild Wheat, and Calypso Coral, and that reminded me of the Softly Stippled DSP that I think was a Sale-a-Bration option a while back.  I inked up the tree image with markers so I could get a multicolored effect (RIP Stampin' Up markers), stamped a greeting right on my DSP and then added a few champagne Sparkle Gems to finish it off.

Okay, Daphne is doing the Care Bear Stare at me so I'd best take her for a walk.  Thanks to lots of fun challenges I may be back with a second card today, we shall see.  Cheers!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Rooted in Nature, Gather Together
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, markers in Basic Black, Wild Wheat, Calypso Coral
Paper:  Basic Black, Thick Basic White, Softly Stippled DSP
Accessories:  Nature's Roots dies, Dimensionals, Sparkle Gems

SUO Challenges: Cynthia in the Limelight!

 Mornin' y'all!  It's time for a new challenge from SUO Challenges!

And here it is:

I knew from the jump that I was going to make a floral card because Cynthia loves her floral cards : )  This is the card I chose to CASE and here's what I made:

Cynthia used a dainty pastel background for her lime green hydrangeas, and I chose to go for the DRAMA with a Blackberry Bliss pattern background.  I also made my main image darker than she did but that was unintentional; my Granny Apple Green ink pad is still extra super juicy.

So go have a look through Cynthia's blog, there's lots of beautiful cards to choose from!  Make your CASE and share it with us at the SUO Challenges blog.  Have fun!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Thankful Garden
Ink:  Garden Green, Lemon Lolly, Lemon Lime Twist, Granny Apple Green
Paper:  Lemon Lime Twist, Lemon Lolly, Granny Apple Green, Thick Basic White, Floral Charm DSP
Accessories:  Thankful Garden dies & masks, Nested Essentials dies, Dimensionals, Transparent Dots

September 2021

Scrappy Monday, y'all!  I've already started a load of laundry, got Ryan off to school this morning and did the grocery shopping, and next I have to take Daphne for her walk (she's currently playing with her duck toy that makes squeaky noises, so I can finish writing this post before we go) and this afternoon I'll be making lasagna for dinner per the hubs' request.  But for right now we gotta look at some scrapbook pages.

This is my monthly catch-all layout for September of 2021 where our activities included Ryan helping me make pumpkin cake (still his favorite for Sunday breakfast all year long) and going to a couple of fairs while we were in Germany.  See the pic on the bottom right?  Ryan is wearing a Star Wars shirt that my mom made for him but after this he refused to wear it (or any other Mimi-made shirts) because they're not as comfy as his regular T-shirts.  Child still lives in T-shirts and sweatpants or sweat-shorts, he owns not one pair of blue jeans.  SMH.

The color palette today is taken straight from the International Bazaar DSP that I used as an accent:  Rich Razzleberry page base, Pacific Point, Lucky Limeade, Daffodil Delight, Tangerine Tango, Early Espresso, and white.  It's always a fun time when I can work in a purple page base.

Okay, Daphne says she's more than ready to go for her walk so I'd better take care of her.  Cheers!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  My Paper Pumpkin, Shapes & Shadows
Ink:  Early Espresso, Tangerine Tango
Paper:  Rich Razzleberry, Pacific Point, Lucky Limeade, Daffodil Delight, Early Espresso, Basic White, International Bazaar DSP
Accessories:  1 1/4" and 1 1/2" circle punches

Sweet Colors, But Make It Spooky?

Mornin' y'all!  It's time for a new challenge from the Paper Players, and this time LeAnne has a sweet color challenge for us:

And if you read the title of this blog post, you're probably wondering how I could possibly turn those colors into a spooky card.  Here's how:

Isn't Medusa the CUTEST?!  As a child, one of my favorite movies was Clash of the Titans (the 1981 masterpiece with Harry Hamlin, not that 2010 disaster, I shall speak no more about it because ugh) and I really love Greek mythology.  (Side note:  there's a new Percy Jackson book coming out soon!)  So anyway, I found this Mini Medusa from Sweet November Stamps and I was instantly smitten with her.  I was cruising through my stamps with the challenge colors in mind and I kept coming back to Medusa.  Hope you love her as much as I do!  What do you think Medusa would use as a nickname?  I think she lets her friends call her Doozie.  And by friends obviously I mean her snake hair.

Hope you'll join in the fun at the Paper Players blog!  And check out what the other Paper Players made for more inspiration:

The Paper Players Design Team

Jaydee

LeAnne Pugliese

Claire Broadwater

Joanne James

Anne Marie Hile

Ann Schach

Jan Clothier

Stef Perry

Eliz Stewart

  and now me : )

Have fun!  I think I need to find a book where Medusa is the heroine because she got a bum deal in the original myths and she deserves better.  #JusticeForMedusa  Cheers!

Supplies:
Stamps:  Mini Medusa from Sweet November Stamps
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Lemon Lolly, Stampin' Blends in Soft Sea Foam, Lost Lagoon, Lemon Lolly
Paper:  Soft Sea Foam, Thick Basic White, Tranquil Textures DSP, Inked Botanicals DSP Stack
Accessories:  Dimensionals, Milky Dots

Guest Designer: AAA Cards Challenge

Good mornin' y'all!  Okay so it's really the middle of the night my time but I have fun news to share, I'm a guest designer for AAA Cards Challenge today!  Here's the challenge:

I am not afraid to say that I had to ponder these colors for a while before I figured out what to make.  I translated them to SU! colors as Cinnamon Cider, Elegant Eggplant, Cloud Cover, and Perfect Plum, three of which are retired colors, and here's what I made:

I actually came up with the idea for this one when I saw someone selling Night of Flight on a Facebook group and it occurred to me that a moth would be PERFECT with these colors!  My Elegant Eggplant ink pad is still extra juicy so while it might read as nearly black, I promise, it's purple.  I used the fill-in stamps in the set to add color to the moth's wings, and then added a bit more on the moth's body and the lightest portions of his wings.

I hope you'll play along at the challenge at AAA Cards Challenge.  Don't forget to keep it CAS and have fun!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Night of Flight, Power of Hope
Ink:  Elegant Eggplant, Perfect Plum, Cloud Cover, Cinnamon Cider
Paper:  Cloud Cover, Thick Basic White, Cloud Cover DSP
Accessories:  Stylish Shapes dies, In Color Flat Pearls, Dimensionals

The Quest of the Missing Map

Hey y'all and welcome to another Nancy Drew Challenge!  Today we're on #19, The Quest of the Missing Map.

Unlike the last few books, the plot for the RT version of this book sticks fairly close to the OT version.  We have an illustrated scene from the book for the OT, and we're still doing the collage style for the RT version.  Personally I like the bold purple cover of the RT version better but they're both good.

Case file:  Nancy meets Hannah's friend Ellen Smith, who asks her to investigate prospective employer Mrs. Chatham, whose daughter Trixie says that Ship Cottage on their estate grounds (yeah they're rich) is haunted.  She's not entirely wrong; crooks are using secret passages on the estate to get around.  Also, Ellen's dad is trying to track down his long-lost twin brother because they each received half of a treasure map from their father and they have to work together to find the treasure.  Multiple bad guys are after the pieces of the map, but Nancy manages to charter an expedition to the south Atlantic and find the treasure despite being kidnapped several times.

Here's my card:

The model ships made by Mrs. Chatham's deceased first husband (who is the missing twin) are a big plot point, so I pulled The Open Sea out of my to sell sets to make this.  At first I was going to work in some Darling Duckling for Nancy's dress, but I found a striped piece of Island Indigo DSP so I used that instead.

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  The Open Sea, Daring Adventure, World Map
Ink:  Crumb Cake, Early Espresso
Paper:  Early Espresso, Very Vanilla, Crumb Cake, Island Indigo DSP
Accessories:  Deco Labels Framelits, Dimensionals, Enamel Dot Essentials

And here's the RT:

Only a few minor differences this time between the two versions but I like how we get Bess and George on this cover as well as the map.  Here's my card:

I went with the palm tree from Balmy Breezes because they're searching for Little Palm Island, and I chose that greeting stamp from World Treasures to echo the treasure hunt theme and also to honor Bess and George on the cover.  And I threw on some purple glimmer gems because treasure.  Y'all know I am highly influenced by the colors on the book covers when I make these cards.

I kept the World Map background from the first card but I kept it lighter and kinda faded in places for the background.  I did a lot of sponging on both cards for this challenge.

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Balmy Breezes, World Treasures, World Map
Ink:  Pecan Pie, Crumb Cake, Gorgeous Grape
Paper:  Gorgeous Grape, Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla
Accessories:  Layering Ovals dies, Dimensioanls, Purple Shimmer Gems

If these books inspire you to make a card, please leave me a comment so I can see!  As always, you can read a much more in-depth discussion of the books over on Hey Nancy Drew.  I'll see you here next week when we uncover The Clue in the Jewel Box!