Gothic Halloween

Happy Halloween, y'all!  I'm wearing a super cute shirt featuring Gretchen the mini horse with a witch hat on and it's bright orange :) and my Stitch Halloween jammy pants and socks so I am appropriately festive.  I'm glad that my costume for tonight is nice and toasty--we got quite a bit of snow yesterday!  Like, a couple of inches!  Now it's bright and sunny out and the high is in the 50s, so the snow might be gone by the time trick-or-treating starts, but this is the first time I've ever experienced snow on Halloween.  Ha!  I put all our Halloween candy in a big bag up by the front door where hopefully I will not be snacking on it all day long.  We've got a lot of kids in the neighborhood so that bag of candy weighs probably 20 pounds...I wanted to be prepared.

You know I couldn't resist making just one more Halloween card this year.

Once again I'm reaching back in the retired archives for a cool Halloween stamp set.  I'd never used this particular image stamp before, what would you call it, anyway?  It's From the Crypt, and there's a creepy skull that I haven't used too (next year).  I added Wink of Stella to the bat's wings for some sparkle but you can't see it in the photograph, and I thought the greeting from Fancy Flexible Phrases was appropriate for the ornate bat design.

I started with the Atlantic Hearts sketch and made it a little more CAS:

I like how the torn edges on the top and bottom add a bit more detail without making the card front feel too busy.  I was trying to make it more CAS so I could still enter at Addicted to CAS:

And sadly, that is most likely my final Halloween card for this year.  But I am plotting an entire parade of Halloween cards for next year, I love making them.  In the meantime, I'll still make some fall cards and Christmas is going to start creeping in here soon.  But for now I am enjoying the last bit of Halloween joy.

Cheers, y'all!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  From the Crypt, Fancy Flexible Phrases
Ink:  Basic Gray, Smoky Slate
Paper:  Basic Black, Smoky Slate
Accessories:  Basic Black 3/8" taffeta ribbon, Wink of Stella

Work It, Witch

Mornin' y'all!  Ryan's school is having a dress as your favorite character day so he decided to wear his Iron Man costume to school today (and he plans to wear it to school again tomorrow).  This is the conversation we had this morning as we were getting ready to head out the door:

Ryan:  You know, Iron Man doesn't have to go to school...
Me:  Sure he did.  Where do you think he learned the skills he needed to build his suit?
Ryan:  They're not teaching ME that stuff at school.
Me:  You have to learn the basics before moving on to advanced mechanical engineering, kid.

Nice try getting out of school, but it didn't work.  Anyway, I'm back with a fun Halloween card today.  I know it's too late to send anymore out this year but I'm working on a stash for next year.  Here's my fun witch:

I used the most excellent sketch from the Paper Players:

And it's still spooky season for two more days so I'm entering this at Inkspirational:

And finally, I just had to use a witchy stamp for the Cupcake Inspirations color challenge:

I used Lemon Lime Twist (kind of edging into Granny Apple Green), Gorgeous Grape, and Basic Black for my colors.  I had lots of fun putting this one together : )

We all went out last night to look at shower tile AGAIN and the hubs and I managed to choose tiles that both of us are very happy with, so I'm calling that a win.  And I'm crossing all my fingers and toes that we'll have a functional shower before Thanksgiving.  Wish us luck!

Have a great day, peeps.  Um, I might need to watch Hocus Pocus again today : )

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Best Witches
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Stampin' Blends in Basic Black, Pecan Pie, Petal Pink, Highland Heather, Lemon Lime Twist, Lemon Lolly
Paper:  Basic Black, Lemon Lime Twist, Thick Basic White, Toil & Trouble DSP
Accessories:  Stylish Shapes dies, Layering Circles dies, Dimensionals, Shiny Sequins

Boo Hoot

Hey y'all, how's your day going?  I've been busy so far and I have a list of things to do today so I'd better get with it : )  Let's start off with a card!

Have a Hoot and the coordinating Peek a Hoot dies were I think in the 2020 holiday catalog, and since we were just moving to Germany then I didn't get them and I had regretted it ever since so I had to fix my mistake this year, ha.  (See also:  Hallows Night Magic.) I'm hoping this reads as Halloween enough for the Addicted to CAS challenge:

My mom has this giant inflatable spider that she gets out every Halloween, so I'll be sending this to her, probably next year since I sent out a batch of Halloween cards yesterday (which was probably like the third batch of Halloween cards this year).  The Sunday Stamps colors aren't your traditional Halloween colors but I thought they worked well for the image:

These were a little difficult to translate into SU! colors, but I was going for Copper Clay, Terracotta Tile, Seaside Spray, Boho Blue, Starry Sky, and Night of Navy.  But there were no Stampin' Blends in Terracotta Tile (why), so I used Cinnamon Cider for the owl instead.  (Side note:  I really loved Cinnamon Cider.)  So I did manage to use some approximation of all six colors on my card.

We're not quite at the end of October and I'm already sad that spooky season is winding down.  I think next year I'm going to have to pull out all the stops for Halloween cards for the entire month of October...I have so many great Halloween stamps that I don't get to use nearly enough of them every fall.  So I'm plotting for next year.  But for now, I need to mop the kitchen and put laundry in the dryer.  Cheers, y'all!

Oh, before I forget, Ryan and I watched the two Amazing Spider-Man movies with Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone over the past few days, and now he has a bit of a crush on Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy.  He's seven, y'all.  I think it's so cute that he has a crush on her : )  And apparently he likes blondes?

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Have a Hoot
Ink:  Night of Navy, Starry Sky, Boho Blue, Seaside Spray, Stampin' Blends in Copper Clay, Cinnamon Cider, Starry Sky, Peach Pie
Paper:  Starry Sky, Boho Blue, Seaside Spray, Thick Basic White
Accessories:  Peek a Hoot dies, Nested Essentials dies, Stylish Shapes dies, mini Dimensionals

October 2020

Scrappy Monday, y'all!  And it's looking like it will be a busy day--Ryan is going back to school after being on fall break for two weeks, I'm meeting Missy for lunch and I also need to go shop for tiles because we have come to the conclusion that we need to replace our entire shower.  (Happily, we are firing our first contractor now.)  What was supposed to be a two-day job has now edged into its third month and I think it will be a couple of weeks before our new contractor can start work, but that gives me time to order tile.  Just hope it's done by Thanksgiving.

Anyway, on to the scrapbook pages!

This is my monthly catch-all layout for October 2020, our first fall in Germany.  I was so excited that we got fall colors there : ) so I would take pictures while the hubs was driving and we went out hiking several times (because 2020, hiking was all we were allowed to do).  Then there's a pic of Ryan with the first pumpkin coffee cake of the year (family favorite recipe, find it here), playing at the village park, and we got me a bike for the first time in decades!  I used my favorite Color Me Autumn DSP and I really wish I had bought like ten packs of it because I am running out.  Sadface.

Here's our very autumnal color palette:  Cajun Craze, Crushed Curry, Old Olive, Early Espresso, and Very Vanilla.  All taken straight from the DSP and they work great with all my miscellaneous photos.  Man, I haven't worked on scrapbook pages in a long time and now I really really want to...maybe I'll get to do that this week.

Time to get Ryan off to school.  Cheers, y'all!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Full Calendar, For All Things
Ink:  Cajun Craze, Crushed Curry, Early Espresso
Paper:  Cajun Craze, Crushed Curry, Old Olive, Thick Very Vanilla, Color Me Autumn DSP
Accessories:  None

Cozy Kindness

Mornin' y'all.  I got some time to stamp on Friday so I had cards to share through the weekend and here's today's card:

A couple of cozy creatures to go with the Inspired By... challenge:

That knit texture in the photo reminded me of the Knit Together background stamp I got a couple of years ago, and I love the animals from All Bundled Up so that's where I started my card.  I took the colors Pecan Pie, Cajun Craze, and Mossy Meadow from the pic, plus some Wild Wheat.  I thought this challenge worked well with the inspo list at Festive Friday:

I chose bold colors, wool (the knit stamp counts, right?), feet, and kindness.  Now I'm wondering if I have any stamps with sock images...hmm.

That's it for me today, peeps.  Ryan starts school again tomorrow after having two weeks off for fall break.  I will be doing super fun things while he's at school...like laundry ; ) Cheers!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  All Bundled Up, Knit Together, Kindest Gnomes
Ink:  Early Espresso, Cajun Craze, Stampin' Blends in Pecan Pie, Ivory, Crumb Cake, Mossy Meadow, Cajun Craze, Wild Wheat
Paper:  Wild Wheat, Cajun Craze, Thick Very Vanilla, Mossy Meadow DSP
Accessories:  Ornate Frames dies, In Color Dots, Dimensionals

Regally Missing You

Hey y'all, how's your weekend going?  In about 20 minutes I will be leaving to meet up with a friend whom I haven't seen in I think at least 10 years; we've been friends since middle school : )  So that will be good, and then probably this afternoon we'll take Ryan to a trunk or treat thing.

In the meantime, I made good on my threat and made a second card with the two challenges that I used yesterday:

This time I turned to my favorite Regal Flora stamp set.  Here's the Freshly Made Sketch:

And the Color Throwdown:

This time I did Peach Pie, Very Vanilla, and Crumb Cake, all edible colors (except I actually don't like peaches or peach flavor).  That's a beautiful inspo pic, too.

All right, I'm going to get ready to go.  Cheers, y'all!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Regal Flora
Ink:  Peach Pie, Crumb Cake
Paper:  Peach Pie, Very Vanilla
Accessories:  Regal Flora dies, Dimensionals, Polished Dots

Thoughts of Autumn

Happy Friday and guess what, today I only have a single card to share.  Whaaaat. I should make another one : )  But for now, here's my card:

I tried to resist, but in the end I bought Autumn to Remember, which is one of the stamp sets that coordinate with the CTMH stuff that SU! now has under their umbrella.  Here's this week's Freshly Made Sketch:

I thought the different sized leaves would work well for the circles on the sketch.  And here's this week's Color Throwdown:

I used Peach Pie (again), Basic Beige, and Pecan Pie for my colors, but I kinda want to have another go at this and use Peach Pie with Very Vanilla and Crumb Cake.  Anyway, the entire DT made cards in honor of Barbara Anders, and so I chose a thinking of you sentiment for my card.  Wishing comfort to Barb's family.

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Autumn to Remember, Thoughtful Expressions
Ink:  Peach Pie, Basic Beige, Pecan Pie
Paper:  Basic Beige, Very Vanilla
Accessories:  Mini Dimensionals, Classic Enamel Dots

Doubled Up (Again)

Hey y'all, happy Thursday.  Apparently this is my week to do double duty on certain challenges because I made two cards with the same sketch yesterday : ) Here's the first one:

We are going DEEP into the vault for this one!  Check out the Retro Rubber Challenge:

Fall Whimsy (the leaf stamp) was one of the first stamp sets I ever bought; the oldest card with it in my Splitcoast gallery dates to 2006 but I think I've had it even longer than that, so let's just say it is probably approaching 20 years old.  Print Pattern (the diamonds) dates back to at least 2006 as well; French Foliage is at least 13 years old, and Bright Blessings is a wheel that I unmounted and turned into a stamp set and it is also 13 years old.  We are definitely retro today, and I very much enjoyed playing with these older stamp sets.

Speaking of Retro, Atlantic Hearts is going retro and revisiting some of their earliest sketches to celebrate their 600th challenge, so here's the retro sketch:

That is a classic sketch and I couldn't resist making two cards for it, so here's the second one:

I wanted a doggo-riffic card to send to my friend Krissy and this sketch made it super easy.  I kept it really simple with this one, stamping directly onto the card base for both the dogs and the sentiment, then adding some ribbon from my stash.  We might be visiting the Humane Society this weekend to check out puppers for adoption : )

That's it for me today, peeps.  I'm going to work on getting a few more things listed on Ebay to sell...wish me luck!

Supplies, fall card, all SU! (mostly retired)
Stamps:  Fall Whimsy, Print Pattern, French Foliage, Bright Blessings unmounted wheel
Ink:  Cajun Craze, Crushed Curry, Versamark
Paper:  Cajun Craze, Early Espresso, Very Vanilla
Accessories:  Gold EP, Sycamore Street ribbon in Crushed Curry

Supplies, dog card, all SU!
Stamps:  Doggone Friendly, Lighthearted Lines
Ink:  Early Espresso
Paper:  Crumb Cake
Accessories:  Early Espresso 3/8" taffeta ribbon (retired)

For the Birds

Mornin' y'all!  I got some new SU! goodies over the weekend, but they're mostly Christmas-related and I am not ready to be done with fall and Halloween yet so I've been playing with some other stuff.  I have two cards to share today, so I'm going to share the first one, then the challenges, and then the second one.  Here we go.

I saw the new challenge at SOS Challenges to use birds or feathers and couldn't resist playing with Bird's Eye View.  Next up is the CAS challenge from the Paper Players:

And I thought I could put a tag on the Inspire. Create. sketch in place of the greenery:

For some reason I really wanted to play with Summer Splash yesterday, so I made that color the main focus of the card.  Then I started to worry that maybe my card wasn't CAS enough for the Paper Players challenge, so I made a second one, still with Summer Splash but this time focusing on Peach Pie:

I've never been much of a peach person before but Peach Pie is the first of this year's In Colors that I had to buy a whole pack of cardstock for because I was using up the variety pack so fast.  (Pretty in Pink doesn't count because I already had that color from the first time it was in the lineup.)  Anyway, for this one I used several elements from the first card, but made my tag (and bird) smaller and only did one pattern for the strip going across the card front.  I actually used up most of the 6x6 sheet of DSP that I used for yesterday's pumpkin pie card, I have a 1/2" strip left  : )

That's it for me today, peeps.  We're going to take Ryan to another martial arts studio tonight so he can try out a class; we're trying to find something that was similar to what he was doing in Texas.  So we'll see how that goes.  Cheers, y'all!

Supplies for the first card, all SU!
Stamps:  Bird's Eye View, Saying Hey
Ink:  Early Espresso, Stampin' Blends in Peach Pie, Pumpkin Pie, Poppy Parade, Pecan Pie
Paper:  Summer Splash, Thick Basic White, Summer Splash & Pecan Pie DSP
Accessories:  Merriest Trees dies, Mini Dimensionals, white baker's twine

Supplies for the second card, all SU!
Stamps:  Bird's Eye View, Saying Hey
Ink:  Early Espresso, Stampin' Blends in Peach Pie & Pecan Pie
Paper:  Peach Pie, Thick Basic White, Summer Splash & Pecan Pie DSP
Accessories:  Tags & Labels dies, Mini Dimensionals, white baker's twine

SUO Challenges: Tricks AND Treats!

 Hey y'all, guess what?  It's time for a new challenge from SUO Challenges!

Get ready....get set...here it is!

And because I was indecisive I went with tricks AND treats : )  So here's my trick card:

Okay it's really not tricky at all but it is a Halloween card.  I thought that Nested Essentials die shape gave coffin vibes so I had to use it with the vampire ghost.  The card base and the sentiment circle are Blackberry Bliss, not black, it showed up extra dark in my photo for some reason.

Next up, a treat:

Let's be real here, if this was truly representative of how I eat pumpkin pie, you wouldn't be able to see the pie for all the whipped cream ; )  I was inspired by this card by Amy Koenders and took my layout from there.  There was a pie-tastic color challenge recently at Hand Stamped Sentiments and I had so much fun with it the first time that I had to have a second go.

We hope you'll join us for this challenge.  What do you think, tricks or treats...or possibly both?  Have fun and don't forget to upload your card at the SUO Challenges blog!

Supplies, ghost card:
Stamps:  Playful Ghosts
Ink:  Blackberry Bliss, Lemon Lime Twist, Versamark, Stampin' Blends in Blackberry Bliss, Lemon Lime Twist, Rich Razzleberry
Paper:  Blackberry Bliss, Lemon Lime Twist, Thick Basic White, Peach Pie DSP
Accessories:  white EP, Nested Essentials dies, Stylish Shapes dies, Purple Shimmer Gems, Dimensionals

Supplies, pie card:
Stamps:  More Than Autumn
Ink:  Pecan Pie, Early Espresso, Stampin' Blends in Pecan Pie, Pumpkin Pie, Ivory
Paper:  Peach Pie, Pumpkin Pie, Thick Basic White, Pecan Pie & Pumpkin Pie DSP
Accessories:  More Than Autumn dies, Nested Essentials dies, Stylish Shapes dies, Dimensionals, In Color Shimmer Gems

Devil's Table

Scrappy Monday, y'all.  We're starting off today with a bang because Ryan isn't feeling so great, poor kiddo.  I think we'll be taking it easy today; maybe I can convince him to watch Ghostbusters 2 with me this afternoon.

In the meantime, I have some scrapbook pages from one of our expeditions in Germany, take a look:

The Devil's Table is a rock formation that I think is near Pirmasens? I could be making that up, but anyway, we took a train to whatever town this was and hiked up to where the Devil's Table is.  I love the pictures of Ryan and the hubs together : )  I took inspiration from hubs' shirt to do a Bravo Burgundy page base, some super-thin Dusty Durango mats thanks to the orange tones in the rocks, and an interesting Soft Succulent pattern because I think it looks like creepy eyes and for some reason that just seemed to fit with the Devil's Table so that's what I chose.

There's the color palette:  Bravo Burgundy/Merry Merlot (my Bravo Burgundy ink pad has the dreaded gold sheen, but Merry Merlot is pretty close...I just have very few sheets of Merry Merlot 12x12 cardstock), Soft Succulent, Dusty Durango, Pecan Pie, and white.

Hope your Monday is starting off well.  Cheers, y'all.

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Rough Type, Wing It, My Paper Pumpkin
Ink:  Merry Merlot, Dusty Durango
Paper:  Bravo Burgundy, Dusty Durango, Pecan Pie, Thick Basic White, Lovely in Linen DSP
Accessories:  1 1/2" circle punch, Layering Circles dies

Autumn CAS

Mornin' y'all!  We're going to meet some friends at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo today so that should be fun : )  But first I have a CAS card to share today.

I started with the Color Hues Challenge:

I used Old Olive and Delightful Dijon for my colors, with some Crumb Cake, Pecan Pie, and Early Espresso because apparently one brown just wasn't enough for me.

Next up is the sketch from CAS Colours & Sketches:

And this is my first time playing at Addicted to CAS:

That made me think of the new Autumn Expressions stamp set with that wood cross section, and I found a woodgrain scrap of patterned paper too.  Since two of the challenges are CAS, I didn't add any embellishments other than the stamped wood cross section and the leaf, but I did add a smidge of Wink of Stella on the lines of the leaf for a very subtle sparkle.

Have a great day, peeps!  We're going to go wild at the zoo : )

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Autumn Expressions
Ink:  Pecan Pie, Delightful Dijon
Paper:  Old Olive, Crumb Cake, Thick Very Vanilla, Early Espresso DSP
Accessories:  Autumn Expressions dies, Mini Dimensionals, Wink of Stella

Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Mornin' y'all and happy rainy Saturday.  I've got a nice hot cuppa tea in front of me and I did some yoga this morning so it's off to a good start.

A couple of days ago, the hubs asked me to make a card for someone in his office who just had a lumpectomy for breast cancer, he wanted a large card for everyone in the office to sign, so here it is:

Obviously I went with pinks and dug out several long-retired stamp sets for this.  I used Pink Pirouette cardstock and DSP, Pretty in Pink for the flowers and Regal Rose for the ribbon, and Mellow Moss and Fresh Fig to round out my colors.  I asked the hubs what sentiment he wanted and he chose "Get Well Soon"; I would have picked "Best Wishes" but I did what he said.

That's it for me today, peeps.  And don't forget that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, so go get your girls checked.  A few minutes of discomfort is much, much better than a stage 4 diagnosis.  I got mine done earlier this month, you can do it too.

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Blossoms in Bloom, Ribbon of Hope, Sincere Salutations
Ink:  Pretty in Pink, Fresh Fig, Regal Rose, Mellow Moss
Paper:  Pink Pirouette, Fresh Fig, Thick Basic White, Pink Pirouette DSP
Accessories:  Stylish Shapes dies, Dimensionals

A Couple of Cool Cats

Hey y'all.  Today is my wedding anniversary, but my inlaws are coming in so I get to celebrate with crippling anxiety.  Hooray.

But I have a couple of cards to share.

This one was very quick and simple using the Atlantic Hearts sketch:

All the elements coming out from the central circle reminded me of this patterned paper from my stash, and I had to do a spooky cat card.  I had cats on the brain because of the Cupcake Inspirations challenge:

And of course thinking of cats made me think of my favorite animated kitty:

Yzma from The Emperor's New Groove.  I tried out the Creative Colour Challenge for this week:

I used the same sketch but this time I stamped some elements to go behind Yzma.

That's it for me today, peeps.  Cheers.

Supplies, first card:
Stamps:  Spooky Cat
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black
Paper:  Calypso Coral, Basic Black, Basic Beige, Cupcakes & Carousels DSP Stack
Accessories:  Layering Circles dies, star accents, Dimensionals

Supplies, second card:
Stamps:  Latte Love (splats), Poison Kitty from The Ink Road
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Stampin' Blends in Bubble Bath, Melon Mambo, Gray Granite
Paper:  Melon Mambo, Gray Granite, Thick Basic White, Bright & Beautiful DSP Stack
Accessories:  Dimensionals, Festive Gems I think?

Pumpkin Joy

Mornin' y'all, how goes the week?  I told Ryan we have to go run some errands today and he's not too happy about it, but we're going anyway : )  That's what he gets for being on fall break, I can't do grocery shopping when he's at school.  Ha!

Anyway, I got some time in my craft room yesterday to play along with some challenges.

I've got a mix of stamp sets happening today to go with the fun sketch from Freshly Made Sketches:

And I love this week's palette from The Color Throwdown:

I used Summer Splash, Pumpkin Pie, and Mossy Meadow for my colors, with some Crumb Cake for a neutral background.  For the three panels, I was able to scrounge up some scraps in each of the challenge colors and put them on white die cut from the Perennial Postage dies.  I ended up with the sentiment from Merriest Trees because it fit in the die cut I wanted to use : )

Well, my cuppa tea is almost empty so I think I shall go brew another one.  And then my hubs just sent me a request for a card for someone at his work, so I'll be working on that.  Cheers, y'all!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Warms My Heart, Merriest Trees, Playful Ghosts
Ink:  Early Espresso, Stampin' Blends in Pumpkin Pie, Summer Splash, Mossy Meadow, Crumb Cake, Pecan Pie, Petal Pink
Paper:  Summer Splash, Thick Basic White, DSP scraps in Pumpkin Pie, Summer Splash, Mossy Meadow
Accessories:  Perennial Postage dies, Dimensionals, Candy Dots (retired)

Where Wolf?

Hey y'all, how's it going?  Today is going to be a laundry day : p But maybe while I'm waiting for clothes to dry I can get in some crafty time.  So let's start today with the beautiful Paper Players challenge:

I saw that and I was all set to do a beautiful, elegant card of fall leaves and then....

I saw that werewolf stamp in the set Boo to You.  So I colored him in shades of brown and made his clothes in Peach Pie and Cajun Craze, with a little bit of Pumpkin Pie for shading.  And then I just played around with some scraps of various colors of DSP until I found something that I liked, and this is the result.  Maybe I'll go back and do an elegant fall leaves card still...but in the meantime this werewolf is already off in the mail : )

That's it for me today, peeps.  Time to put the first load in the dryer.  Cheers!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Boo to You
Ink:  Early Espresso, Stampin' Blends in Pecan Pie, Peach Pie, Pumpkin Pie, Cajun Craze, neutrals, Flirty Flamingo (I promise his nose and the insides of his ears are pink)
Paper:  Early Espresso, Peach Pie, Thick Basic White, DSP scraps in Pumpkin Pie, Cajun Craze, Early Espresso
Accessories:  Deckled Rectangles dies, Deckled Circles dies, Dimensionals, Early Espresso Candy Dots