SUO Challenges: Where Are You Going?

Hey y'all, happy Tuesday!  And it's time for a new challenge from SUO Challenges!

Aaaannnndddd....here it is:

Rather than going with the colors or style of the photo, I decided to go with the theme and here's what I made:

I combined the Scenic Adventure dies with the upcoming new Lights of Aurora DSP Stack to make a mountain scene because I, for one, love to travel to mountains!  We've been to the Rockies, the Appalachians, and the Alps (French, Swiss, German, and Austrian!) so yeah, the mountains are calling and I must GO.  Now I'm lucky enough to live where I can see the mountains every day when I take Daphne out for her walk.

Anyway, the Lights of Aurora DSP is, as you might guess, inspired by the Northern Lights so half the patterns are like the background I used, dark with a Northern Light design, and then the other sides are color washes in coordinating colors and that's what I used for the mountain scene.  I think I cut into six pieces of paper for this card : )

So decide where you would like to travel and upload your card to the SUO Challenges blog.  Don't forget to keep it Stampin' Up! only and have fun!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Scenic Adventure
Ink:  Highland Heather, Blackberry Bliss
Paper:  Highland Heather, Lights of Aurora DSP Stack
Accessories:  Scenic Adventure dies, Stylish Shapes dies, Dimensionals, Frosted Iridescent Dots

Funky Chocolate Club

Scrappy Monday, y'all!  I hope you had a good weekend.  I thoroughly enjoyed watching TMNT on the big screen yesterday morning and then a quiet, relaxing afternoon at the house.  And now it's Monday and I'm ready to get started on some projects for the week!  So let's look at a scrapbook layout...

And it's about one of my favorite things, CHOCOLATE!  During our trip to Switzerland, we took a class and learned all about chocolate and made our own chocolate bars.  Ryan especially liked the part where you put chocolate on your nose to see if it's the right temperature before the next step, but of course his favorite was taste testing everything.  Well, me too ; )

Of course today's color palette is chocolate-inspired too:  Close to Cocoa page base, with Chocolate Chip, Real Red, Taken with Teal, and Whisper White to go with it.  I think we've been to two different chocolate museums but this is the only place we got to make our own chocolate so it wins for chocolate-based tourism.

That's it for me, I've got some things to do today.  As Ryan said when I dropped him off at school today, "See ya on the flip side, Willie!" which is a quote from Bluey.  Cheers!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Calendar Alphabet & Numbers, Eat Chocolate
Ink:  Chocolate Chip
Paper:  Close to Cocoa, Real Red, Taken with Teal, Basic White, Ski Slope DSP
Accessories:  None

School Blues

Mornin' y'all!  Well, I went to two different book sales over the past couple of days and they were both a bust.  The first one was more antique/rare books, maps, and prints; I probably would have looked around for longer if I hadn't had Ryan with me.  The one yesterday was much smaller than I expected (like, probably smaller than my living room) and mostly books on Colorado history, which is cool but not what I'm looking for right now.  But I treated myself to lunch at Panera on the way home so the day was not a total loss : )

And I have a card to share today:

I have a friend who's a teacher so I will send this to her.  I have a few challenges today, starting with Addicted to CAS:

I die cut four squares with the Stylish Shapes dies, it's both sides of one sheet of Azure Afternoon DSP, and simply popped up the backpack and apple on top.  I wanted to add some embellishments but I opted to keep it CAS for this challenge.  Next up is the Cupcake Inspiration challenge:

School Days is the perfect stamp set for this challenge, easy peasy!  And finally here is the Creative Colour Challenge from last week:

I like a monochromatic challenge every once in a while and I can make an apple blue if I want to.

This year is the 35th anniversary of the 1990 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie and I am going to see it on the big screen today BY MYSELF because the hubs and the spawn don't know good movies and they don't wanna go with me.  I remember one year my brother got this movie on VHS for his birthday in November and watched it every single day of Christmas break that year, most often multiple times a day, and because of that I *still* have most of the dialog memorized.  So if I randomly say things like "Whoa, time to switch to decaf, April!" now you know why.  I'm going to go have a great time at the movies by myself.  Cowabunga, dude!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  School Days
Ink:  Blueberry Bushel, Azure Afternoon
Paper:  Balmy Blue, Thick Basic White, Azure Afternoon DSP
Accessories:  Stylish Shapes dies, Dimensionals

The Haunted Bridge

Welcome to another Nancy Drew Challenge, where today we are investigating The Haunted Bridge!

Case file:  Nancy, Bess, and George are hanging around a resort while Carson works on a jewel theft case.  While out golfing, Nancy's caddy tells her that a nearby bridge is haunted.  Of course Nancy investigates and finds a small brass chest full of jewels that may be related to Carson's case.  She tracks down the owner of the chest, reunites the woman with her fiance, and wins a golf tournament despite an injured hand, and does all of that while dealing with the unwanted attention of an older man who's quite a creep and brags about himself a lot.

This time, the OT and RT are very similar, the OT is just five chapters longer.  If the Nancy Drew books followed the same naming conventions as episodes of Friends, this one would be The One Where Nancy Golfs a Lot.  Here's my card for the OT:

I went through my collection of Ink Road stamps and I think this is pretty much what Nancy was thinking about the one guy who just would not leave her alone, though she's too "proper" to tell him off.  Personally, I would rather be rude and not have to put up with the guy's antics and bragging, especially since Nancy was trying to get away from him when she hurt her hand.  I added flowers because there are a couple of minor characters who are into gardening and stuff.

I always think of golfers wearing fashion victim outfits with discordant plaids so I had to use plaid on here, I think I managed to find a pretty good match for the colors on the book cover.  My hubs used to golf and I never saw him in an outfit like that, but let me hold onto my preconceived notions.

Supplies:
Stamps:  Vintage Ladies & Snarky Housewife 2 from The Ink Road, Orange Blossom
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Pretty Peacock, Stampin' Blends in Peach Pie, Petal Pink, Pretty in Pink, Cajun Craze, Pretty Peacock
Paper:  Mango Melody, Pretty Peacock, Thick Basic White, Plaid Tidings DSP Stack
Accessories:  Textured Notes dies, Pretty Peacock Foil Gems, Dimensionals

Next up is the RT:

Same story but I think the annoying guy's name changes from Mortimer to Martin.  Anyway, I like Nancy's little polka dot ascot on this cover.  Here's my card:

I didn't want to recreate my first card, so this time I decided to go with the ghost at the bridge (which was a scarecrow erected by one of the minor characters to keep the golf caddies away from his garden).  I still got some plaid in there and used a bunch of patterns to go with my mental image of golf outfits.

No offense if you're a golfer, I just don't understand the appeal.  That twine I used was wrapped around some stamps and dies I ordered from Lawn Fawn, so recycling!

Supplies:
Stamps:  Twick or Tweet
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Stampin' Blends in Balmy Blue & Granny Apple Green
Paper:  Granny Apple Green, Thick Basic White, Dandy Designs DSP
Accessories:  Nested Essentials dies, Dimensionals, twine from Lawn Fawn, Glitter Enamel Dots

I'm giving this one three stars, what do you think?  Please comment on this post if you'd like to join me--you can read the book(s) and make a card inspired by the contents, or just go off the covers, either way.  I'd love to see how Nancy Drew inspires you!  If you want a more in-depth look at the Nancy Drew books, check out my other blog at Hey Nancy Drew.  Next up, we search for The Clue of the Tapping Heels!

Rainbow Hot Air Balloons

Mornin' y'all and happy Friday!  I am happy to report that Ryan and I both got an A+ from the dentist yesterday, no cavities for either of us despite not having cleanings done for a long time.  I really like the dentist we saw and it's super close to the house so that's all great.  Today Ryan has early dismissal (why??) and then I'm planning to drag him with me to the Rocky Mountain Book and Paper Fair this afternoon.  There will most likely be bribery involved.

Anyway, I got some good crafting time in yesterday and feel like I worked through a creativity block I had going on, I got four cards made.  Pretty sure what broke the block is that I had three double-size mugs of tea yesterday, I am sure my creative muse is fueled by tea.  So here's the first card:

I have been pondering this week's Atlantic Hearts sketch since Monday:

I knew I was going to be showcasing some patterned paper but I wasn't sure what until I saw the Inspired By... challenge:

Those soft colors made me think of the Lighter Than Air DSP Stack immediately, and then in a delightful coincidence the new Just Add Ink challenge dovetails perfectly:

I used patterned paper and pastels since I'm taking that as pastel colors rather than pastel crayons.  I used some Rainbow Dots for accents but those I don't think count as pearls.  Also, fun fact, we see hot air balloons around here a lot, the hubs says he sees them most mornings on his way to work when there's nice weather, and last weekend there was one that was basically hovering over the house across the way from us so quite close.  He asked if I wanted to go up in one and I said heck NO but I like to look at them!

Right this minute I am mostly through my first mug of tea for today (Republic of Tea's blueberry black tea, if you're curious), so we'll see if I get any more cards made before I go pick Ryan up and go book shopping (my favorite kind of shopping...okay stamps too).  So I am looking forward to a really fun day!

Cheers, y'all!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Adventurous Sky
Ink:  Balmy Blue
Paper:  Lemon Lolly, Thick Basic White, Lighter Than Air DSP Stack
Accessories:  Adventurous Sky dies, Mini Dimensionals, Rainbow Dots, Bubble Bath ribbon

Peony Petals

Mornin' y'all!  I've got to get Ryan out the door in just a couple of minutes because we're both going to the DENTIST.  Wish us luck, it's been far too long since our last dental appointments.

I have a quick card to share today:

I stuck very closely to the Freshly Made Sketch this time:

And here's the Color Hues Challenge to go with it:

I went with Petal Pink and Gray Granite thanks to the retired Peony Garden DSP.  I personally think Petal Pink is more peach than pink but...it does have pink in the name?  And I liked the floral prints with this sketch.

Gotta go, wish us luck at the dentist!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Regal Flora
Ink:  Gray Granite, Petal Pink
Paper:  Petal Pink, Thick Basic White, Peony Garden DSP
Accessories:  Stylish Shapes dies, Textured Notes dies, Mini Dimensionals, Petal Pink foil gems

Gathering Some New Stamps

Mornin' y'all!  I am happy to report that new stamps DID help make me a happy crafter yesterday and look what I made!

I used the new Gathering Moments bundle (stamps and dies) and some of the coordinating Gathering Together DPS, which is gorgeous and has gold accents.  I dug out some long-retired gold baker's twine for an accent but pretty much everything else on here is new (other than the Stylish Shapes dies).  I had to have a go at the color challenge from The Paper Players:

The background square may look black in the photo, but it's actually Blackberry Bliss cardstock and I stamped the greeting in Blackberry Bliss ink, too.  And finally I get to play along with this week's CASE-ing Tuesday Challenge:

For one reason or another I have missed playing along with them for several weeks recently, so I'm glad the inspiration struck for this one.

That's it for now, peeps.  Ryan has a cooking class after school today so I get EXTRA crafty time, woohoo!  Cheers!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Gathering Moments
Ink:  Basic Beige, Blackberry Bliss, Cherry Cobbler, Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie
Paper:  Basic Beige, Blackberry Bliss, Very Vanilla, Gathering Together Specialty DSP
Accessories:  Gathering Moments dies, Stylish Shapes dies, Dimensionals, Low Profile Dots, gold baker's twine