Misty Watercolor Memories with the Paper Players

Hey y'all!  It's Sunday which means it's time for a new Paper Players challenge, and Jan has a fun one for us today:

I was quite taken with the idea of a watercolor landscape, so here is what I made:

I die cut a piece of watercolor paper with the square from the Stylish Shapes dies, and then die cut some mountains from the Scenic Adventure dies, which did cut my square into two pieces but we'll get to that in a minute.  I watercolored my scene, hit it with my heat tool to make it dry faster (impatience, thy name is me), and then adhered both pieces to a Basic Beige card front and stamped the greeting on it.  I die cut the trees out of Mossy Meadow and scrunched up a piece of cling wrap, inked it up on my Mossy Meadow ink pad, and pounced it on the trees to give them a bit of texture.  Easy!

My mom is still recovering from open-heart surgery, so I sent this card off to her as soon as I finished making it.  I hope you'll play along and share your card on the Paper Players blog.  Don't forget to keep it CAS!  And take a look at what the other Paper Players made for more wonderful 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 : )

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Scenic Adventure
Ink:  Mossy Meadow, Old Olive, Lost Lagoon
Paper:  Basic Beige, Mossy Meadow, Watercolor paper
Accessories:  Scenic Adventure dies, Stylish Shapes dies

The Clue in the Jewel Box

Happy Saturday y'all and welcome to a new Nancy Drew Challenge!  This time we're attempting to unravel The Clue in the Jewel Box.

I think it's fun how the OT and RT covers have the creepy dude, Nancy in pink, the old lady, and NOT the titular jewel box on the cover.  We'll get to that last part in a minute.  Nancy is feeling VERY 60s on both covers and they're both by Rudy Nappi so maybe that's why they are so similar.  I like them both quite well.

Case file:  Nancy becomes acquainted with Madame Marie Alexandra, the deposed queen mother of a never-named European country (Russia, obvs) who is searching for her grandson, the only other member of the royal family to survive the revolution.  This is Anastasia with a boy instead of a girl.  Nancy finds a man who has some bona fides, but his uncouth manners make Nancy doubt that he really is the lost prince.  The Easter egg with the nightingale in it (and that piece is consistently referred to as an Easter egg, not a jewel box) sings instructions to look for the clue in the jewel box, which is shaped like Madame Alexandra's favorite footman from the palace.  Nancy finds the real prince and also smashes a pickpocket ring operating in River Heights.

Here's my card for the OT:

I knew from the jump that I wanted to use the Bird Ballad DSP because it has the same colors as the book cover and it's got birds, which calls back to the nightingale in the Easter egg.  I let the DSP be the star of the show here, the only stamping is the greeting.

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Free as a Bird
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black
Paper:  Pool Party, Thick Basic white, Bird Ballad DSP
Accessories:  Lots of Labels Framelits, Dimensionals, Solid Faceted Gems

And here's the RT:

Case file:  The story remains the same as the OT, the only obvious changes I can think of are that Helen is married to Jim Archer in this one instead of having Buck Rodman as her date.  Also I think the OT is the first reference to Dave and Burt, who turn into Bess and George's regular dates for the rest of the hardback Nancy Drews.  Anyway, basically the same story and still the cover doesn't have the jewel box on it.

Here's my card:

I still used the Bird Ballad DSP but I brought in the Winterly Tree Tops stamp set, which coordinates beautifully with Bird Ballad and Free as a Bird, a stamp set that predates this one by a couple of years and was released with the Bird Ballad DSP.

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Winterly Tree Tops
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Pool Party, Stampin' Blends in Smoky Slate, Pool Party, Calypso Coral, Pecan Pie
Paper:  Petal Pink, Pool Party, Thick Basic White, Bird Ballad DSP
Accessories:  Winterly Tree Tops dies, Dimensionals, Petal Pink Foil Gems

Side note:  My favorite part of these books (this happens in both) is that Nancy and her father Carson go to a daddy-daughter picnic thing where a judge drops his daughter's compact and complains that women's clothing doesn't have pockets.  PREACH, JUDGE!  Why is this still a problem in 2025?!

So there you have The Clue in the Diary, which is a great addition to the ND lineup.  Leave me a comment if you want to make your own card for the challenge, I would love to see if you're also inspired by Nancy!  As always, you can read (lots) more at Hey, Nancy Drew, where my most recent post is a deep dive into The Message in the Hollow Oak.  Next Saturday on this blog, we'll be working to uncover The Secret in the Old Attic, another great one!

Pumpkin Patch

Hey y'all, as promised I have a second card to share today and here it is:

I had to play along with the Inspired By... challenge:

I also did a variation on the sketch:

And I paired this with the Just Add Ink challenge:

I did words and neutral colors, with just a leeetle bit of Peach Pie because pumpkins.  I started with Peach Pie, Pecan Pie, and Cloud Cover, and then filled the other pumpkins in with some neutral Blends for more neutral colors.  I thought about adding some kind of embellishments, but decided against it as I think the grid layout is enough on its own.

That's it for me today, peeps.  Stay tuned for a new Nancy Drew challenge tomorrow and then a Paper Players challenge on Sunday...gonna be a great weekend!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  More Than Autumn
Ink:  Early Espresso, Pecan Pie, Stampin' Blends in Pecan Pie, Peach Pie, Cloud Cover, various neutrals
Paper:  Pecan Pie, Peach Pie, Very Vanilla
Accessories:  More That Autumn dies, 1" square punch

A Trail of Bats

Mornin' y'all!  I did get a lot of stuff done yesterday (there are three pumpkin cakes sitting on my kitchen island right now) and I made a few cards too so today will be another double-post day.  I'm particularly excited about one card but I won't be sharing it for a little bit as it's for a design team : )

In the meantime, even though we still don't have our Halloween decorations out in the front yard, I do have a Halloween card to share:

Here's this week's Freshly Made Sketch:

At first I was thinking of doing a trail of leaves, but I saw the bats in the Spooky Halloween stamp set and decided to go with that instead.  I added a few of the die-cut bats from the Spooky Sweet Specialty DSP as well as a few foam stars and done.

Check back later for my second card today, right now it's time for me to get my workout done.  Cheers!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Fright Night, Spooky Halloween
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Pumpkin Pie, Petunia Pop
Paper:  Pumpkin Pie, Thick Basic White, Spooky Sweet Specialty DSP
Accessories:  Fright Night dies, Mini Dimensionals, Shimmer Star Foam Stickers

Fall in the Forest

Mornin' y'all.  Did not get much sleep last night and I have a lot to do today so we'll see how that goes, wish me luck.  And I only got one card made yesterday, I just could not settle in my craft room and it's so frustrating when that happens.  Anyway, here's what I've got:

Let's start with the Color Throwdown:

I used Terracotta Tile, Night of Navy, and Boho Blue for the colors, with Very Vanilla as my neutral of choice.  Next up is the Festive Friday challenge:

I used blue (more than one, actually), ribbon, patterned paper, and a thinking of you sentiment.  I still had Winterly Tree Tops on my mind from yesterday and there is a lovely thinking of you in that set, so that was nice.  Last up is the Atlantic Hearts sketch:

I wanted to pair this sketch with the Festive Friday challenge because it automatically ticks off the ribbon element on the list.  Kinda wish I had some Terracotta Tile ribbon to match the leaf, but I don't...I don't buy ribbon very often because I don't use it a whole lot.  I tried making the card base Terracotta Tile and just didn't like the way it looked, so I ended up with mostly blue.

Okay, I've got to go chivvy Ryan up the stairs to get ready for school.  He keeps dilly-dallying every morning so we're skating in to school just before the bell rings and I don't like that.  Being late is a personal pet peeve : p unfortunately one Ryan does NOT share, so we need to work on that.  Cheers!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Gathering Moments, Winterly Tree Tops
Ink:  Terracotta Tile, Boho Blue, Night of Navy
Paper:  Night of Navy, Very Vanilla, Timeless Plaid DSP
Accessories:  Gathering Moments dies, Textured Notes dies, Dimensionals, Night of Navy ribbon, In Color Opaque Sparkle Dots, Wink of Stella

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!

Witch Cat

Mornin' y'all!  I have a fun card to share today with a new-to-me stamp set that I acquired earlier this year and haven't used until now:

I think Clever Cats came out in 2021 and I don't know why I didn't get it then but at least I've fixed that oversight ; )  Okay I'm much more of a dog person when it comes to my own pets, but who can resist cats for Halloween?  Also the Shopping Our Stash challenge was a great excuse to ink this up for the first time--it's a challenge to make a card with cats and/or bags.  I love the expression on this cat's face, haha!

I paired that with this week's Freshly Made Sketch:

The Everyday Arches dies made the arched elements a breeze and I fussy cut the cat, broomstick, and hat.  I pulled out some real old Halloween DSP for this one, I don't even remember what year Creepy Crawly came out, but More Mustard was still in the color lineup then.  I put all my Halloween DSP all together in one plastic container so I don't have to hunt through all my papers for it.  I need to start sending out Halloween cards now as I've already made several recently.

Daphne is giving me puppy dog eyes to take her out for a walk so I'd better hurry up with my breakfast so we can do that.  The hubs took today off work so we're finally going to finish the painting in the entryway...here's hoping we have no mishaps with the ridiculously tall ladder!  Cheers!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Clever Cats
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Perfect Plum, Pecan Pie, Darling Duckling
Paper:  Perfect Plum, Darling Duckling, Thick Basic White, Creepy Crawly DSP
Accessories:  Everyday Arches Dies, Stylish Shapes dies, Dimensionals, Shimmer Star Foam Stickers

Art Deco Inspiration

Mornin' y'all!  I have a card to share today that I think is a bit unusual, what do you think?

About a year and a half ago I had the idea to do an Art Deco inspired design with the Stitched Triangle dies, but for one reason or another I didn't make it, until now.  Thanks to the folks at Addicted to CAS for the push I needed to finally get this idea out on paper:

I hope this still counts as CAS, I couldn't resist putting a few rhinestones across the bottom because this design is fancy : )  I used the colors from TGIF Challenges:

I may have to play with this idea some more, I think this would be extra fancy with some glimmer or foil paper, hmm.  And it would work with any colors but I think black and metallics would be interesting to try as well.  The ideas are percolating!

But for now, Daphne says it's time for me to escort her on a tour of the neighborhood.  And who could say no to this face?

BLEP.  She has ears, I promise, she just likes to keep them pinned back against her head.  Oh, she's talking to me now, gotta go!

Supplies, all SU!
Stamps:  Fabulous Phrases
Ink:  Secret Sea
Paper:  Secret Sea, Strawberry Slush & Timid Tiger DSP
Accessories:  Stitched Triangles dies, Rhinestones

Autumn Trio

Mornin' y'all.  Apparently our house was the chosen spot for a bird of prey to eat a late-night snack last night; we kept hearing noises from the chimney (we have a fireplace in our bedroom) and there's a lot of feathers in the yard this morning.  Between that and Daphne getting me up twice last night to go outside, I didn't sleep too much...but Ryan has STEM club after school today so maybe I have time for a nap!

It is supposed to get up to 81 degrees today which is just unsatisfactory for September and I am manifesting fall as hard as my little autumnal goblin heart will go.  And I finally busted out my Rustic Centerpieces stamp set, take a look:

The three images in Rustic Centerpieces are LORGE so I hope this still counts as a CAS card to enter at CAS on Fridays.  I thought it would lean more towards CAS if I stamped the outline image and didn't color it in at all, and I just added a simple greeting.  Plus that made it super fast to make two cards.

I was inspired by the Four Seasons Challenge which is new to me but LOOK HOW GORGEOUS:

I saw someone else link to this challenge but thanks to sleep deprivation I don't remember who it was and none of the cards in the gallery is jogging my memory either.  I must need more tea.

Anyway, I wasn't ready to be done with that beautiful inspiration challenge yet so I made a third card:

I finally cut into my Autumn Toile DSP and I love those foxes!  The stripes on the edge are the reverse of the fox pattern.  I slightly edited the Sunday Stamps Challenge sketch:

I didn't want to cover up the foxes so I switched the directions for the greenery behind my sentiment circle.  I used last year's Autumn Expressions because I love it and it has several extra-large greeting stamps that would be perfect for a sketch like this.

Daphne is pestering me to take her for a walk and who am I to tell her no?  Cheers, y'all!

Supplies, top two cards:
Stamps:  Rustic Centerpieces, Gathering Moments
Ink:  Crushed Curry, Cajun Craze
Paper:  Cajun Craze, Crushed Curry, Very Vanilla
Accessories:  Textured Notes dies

Supplies, bottom card:
Stamps:  Autumn Expressions
Ink:  Cajun Craze
Paper:  Early Espresso, Very Vanilla, Crushed Curry, Autumn Toile DSP
Accessories:  Autumn Expressions dies, Stylish Shapes dies, Dimensionals, Cajun Craze & Gold Dots