Best Blueberry - Stampin' Up! Berry Blessings - Paper Players 526

 The Paper Players are back with a brand new challenge today!  It's Laurie's turn to host and she's given us a tic-tac-toe inspiration board!  So fun! So pick a row down, across or diagonal and use those items for your card.  

  I decided to do the left to right diagonal; Die cut, Embossing and Blue.  Does my title give you any hints??  I took the "blue" to heart and used not only blue inks and papers but also my images are blueberries!

 Starting with the die cut element I used 3 of the Tasteful Label dies to create this layered label.  I just decided which one I wanted to use to cut my sentiment and then added 2 others behind to give it some more weight.

 For the embossing I used the Old World Paper embossing folder to emboss the the Whisper White label for some texture.  I also used heat embossing to emboss the sentiment with white embossing powder.

 Now to the blues!  The card base is Balmy Blue, the blueberries and stems are stamped all over to create a background.  I used Night of Navy for the blueberry outline and Pacific Point ink for the centers.  I also used Balmy Blue and Night of Navy for 2 of the labels.  So 3 different blues on one card!

  I hadn't yet used the blueberry stamps from the Sale-a-Bration set Berry Blessings so this was a great challenge for me to get those images inky.  

  The Paper Players Design Team is top notch and I know you'll get tons of inspiration seeing how they used this tic tac toe challenge!  Check out their creations at The Paper Players blog or on their blogs and then share yours in the gallery!

 Jaydee
 LeAnne
Claire
Joanne
Laurie
Anne Marie
Ann
Nancy
Debbie 

  

Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Berry Blessings (SAB)

Ink: Night of Navy, Pacific Point, Garden Green, Granny Apple Green, Versamark

Paper: Balmy Blue, Night of Navy, Whisper White

Accessories: Tasteful Label dies, Old World embossing folder, white embossing powder, dimensionals, crinkled seam binding ribbon

Sweet Birthday - Stampin' Up! Sweet Ice Cream

   I had some fun with ice cream to create my card today.  I thought the Freshly Made Sketches layout was perfect for a few scoops of ice cream.  Makes me want to get some ice cream for lunch today!

  The card base is Purple Posy and then I created a frame with the Ice Cream Corner DSP and the Stitched Rectangle dies.  The sentiment from Pretty Perennials fit better than the one from Sweet Ice Cream so I stamped that in Blackberry Bliss on Whisper White then embossed it with the Subtle embossing folder.

  The ice cream scoops were watercolored onto watercolor paper using Petal Pink, Terracotta Tile and Purple Posy.  I did 2 layers of ink drying between layers, then used the old marker spritzer tool to add a bit of splatter and then finally some bigger light splatters with the stamp from the set. Doing several layers of colors really adds depth when working with watercolor paper.

  The cones are stamped in Cinnamon Cider with the accent being full strength ink and the bigger cone stamped off once.

  After getting everything punched and adhered to the card front I added a few of the Ice Cream Corner Sprinkles to the tops with very little dots of glues.  The bottom of the card seemed a bit bare and off balance so I added a few Terracotta Tile faceted gems to finish off this design.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Sweet Ice Cream, Pretty Perennials

Ink: Blackberry Bliss, Terracotta Tile, Purple Posy, Petal Pink

Paper: Purple Posy, Whisper White, watercolor paper, Ice Cream Corner DSP

Accessories: Stitched Rectangle dies, Subtle embossing folder, Ice Cream Cone builder punch, dimensionals, Ice Cream Corner Sprinkles, faceted gems

 

Perennial Valentine - Stampin' Up! Pretty Perennials

   Happy Friday stampers!  Did your week fly by or drag slowly on?  Mine went pretty quickly and here we are at a new Fab Friday Challenge!  We have a gorgeous color combo for you to try out.  My card came together so quickly I was worried that maybe I should make another one right away while the ideas were flowing!

  So pretty right?  I can't wait to see what you will create!  For now here's my card for some inspiration!

  I thought these colors would look really nice as a non-traditional Valentine's day card.  I started with the stamped and punched heart then added the sentiment and then the flowers and greenery in the back.  In an effort to use more of my supply stash that I had set aside for classes which are still not happening, I used a square vellum doily to back the heart/flower combo.

  I layered all of that on top of a Whisper White and Blushing Bride Stitched Rectangle panel and adhered with dimensionals.  I added a few stamped Blushing Bride dots and 2 Just Jade enamel dots.

  For more inspiration see what the rest of the Fab Friday Design Team did with these colors!  I always get so many great ideas from their cards!

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Banner Year, Heartfelt, Pretty Perennials

Ink: Blushing Bride, Just Jade, Bumblebee

Paper: Just Jade, Blushing Bride, Whisper White

Accessories: Stitched Rectangle dies, Heart punch pack, vellum doily, Perennial Petals dies, dimensionals, enamel dots

Well Suited Envelopes - Stampin' Up! Itty Bitty Birthdays

  With all my floral cards lately it was high time to design something more masculine for a change of pace.  When I first got a look at the Jan.-June Mini catalog I knew the Well Suited DSP would be on my preorder.  I loved the fun patterns and smaller scale and knew I would use them a lot even if I didn't get the stamp/die bundle.  It's nice to have some more masculine paper to mix in with stamp sets I already have to see what I can come up with.

  I used the current and last challenge ever at CAS(E) This Sketch.  I'm sad to see this challenge ending as it's been one of my go to's for a long time.  I thank the design team for all their lovely inspiration over the years.

 

  I had fun putting this design together.  The hardest part was deciding on only 3 papers for use for the envelopes!  Hard choices I tell you!

  This card starts with a Smoky Slate base, then the long skinny strip down the side which is Night of Navy topped with a Basic Gray strip embossed with the Tasteful Textile embossing folder.

  The envelopes and little inserts are cut with the Snail dies.  I used my Night of Navy marker to ink up individual words on the sentiment from Itty Bitty Birthdays.  I did add a bit of adhesive to the inserts just so they wouldn't fall out in the mail or fall down into the envelope.  A bit more Night of Navy ink on another sentiment from Itty Bitty Birthdays for the corner and this card is finished.

  The mini envelopes are a fun way to show off multiple DSP patterns while showing off a cute message.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Itty Bitty Birthdays

Ink: Night of Navy

Paper: Smoky Slate, Night of Navy, Basic Gray, Well Suited DSP, Whisper White

Accessories: Snail dies, Tasteful Textile embossing folder

Birthday Banner - Stampin' Up! Pretty Perennials

   I feel like I've been getting my money's worth from the Pretty Perennial bundle lately!  All of my new stamp sets are front and center on my stamping desk and this bundle has been one of my go to sets for all kinds of cards.  We have a huge amount of family birthdays coming up in February so I've been concentrating on re-stocking my birthday cards so I'm not caught short once the time comes to get things in the mail.  

  The Festive Friday Challenge has been a fun one to participate in lately.  I love their themes along with the Inspiration List of which at least 3 items need to be used when creating your card.  This time the them is Chinese New Year. I really don't have any Asian inspired stamp sets but I didn't let that stop me!  I used red, banners and flowers as my 3 items for my birthday card.

  At first I was having a hard time with the red as it just seemed "too much" but after changing out a piece of red cardstock for the checked pattern it started to come together a bit more.

  The card base is Whisper White, then the fun Sala-a-Bration freebie Berry Delightful DSP.   I pulled out this retired narrow shimmer ribbon from my stash; I think it's Bermuda Bay?? Next is a layer of Coastal Cabana topped with a Whisper White Stitched Rectangle.  I stamped the birthday greeting from Many Messages in black.

  For the banner element I cut them with the Tasteful Label dies and added the stamped and die cut flowers from the Pretty Perennials set.  The flower outlines are all stamped in full strength ink with the fill being stamped off once.  The banners are popped on dimensionals across the card front.  

 Sometimes it can be tricky lining up multiple elements like this and I've found that starting in the middle and working my way out helps me keep the spacing even and the elements lined up.  Just find the center of your card and adhere the first one then go out from there.  I usually have the other banners (or whatever) in roughly the spot they will go just to judge the spacing.  

  The last things I added to this card were to black candy dots to "hold up" the banner ends.

  This was a fun challenge to do and I'm glad I could get another birthday card made!  

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Pretty Perennials

Ink: Coastal Cabana, Bumblebee, Poppy Parade, Memento Black

Paper: Whisper White thick, Whisper White, Coastal Cabana, Berry Delightful DSP (SAB)

Accessories: Stitched Rectangle dies, Tasteful Label dies, Perennial Petals dies, dimensionals, shimmer ribbon (retired), candy dots (retired)

Perennial Sympathy - Stampin' Up! Perennial Petals Dies

   Sympathy cards are never the kind of card that I want to make so I was glad to have a bit of help from a challenge to get one made.  The creative ideas almost always fly right out of the window when I have to make a sympathy card but the Tic Tac Toe Challenge saved the day with their challenge board this week.

  My card used the center-down column which has ribbon/twine, CAS, and tag as the elements to incorporate on the card.

  I started this one with a Soft Sea Foam base then another layer of the same color embossed with the Old World Paper embossing folder.  I added a square vellum doily next.  It doesn't show well in the photo but in real life it's a nice delicate detail in the back.

  I dug through my ribbon scraps to see if anything worked and I came across this strip of what I think is Pear Pizzazz ribbon and some twine left from a years ago banner kit.  Both were just right; I added the ribbon around the middle and the twine was used at the top of the Crumb Cake tag.

  The Perennial Petals dies have this nice sized leaf sprig so I cut 2 of them.  The outline is Pear Pizzazz and then the inside is Soft Sea Foam.  I glued the outline to the tag and then glued the lighter color to the open leaf spaces.

  The sentiment is from the retired Petite Pairs set and is stamped in Pear Pizzazz and then cut out with the Tasteful Label dies and popped up with dimensionals.  The last thing added is a few small adhesive pearls.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Petite Pairs (retired)

Ink: Pear Pizzazz

Paper: Soft Sea Foam, Crumb Cake, Pear Pizzazz, Whisper White

Accessories: Tag punch, Perennial Petals dies, Tasteful Label dies, Old World Paper embossing folder, pearls, dimensionals, ribbon (retired), twine (retired)

Hello Word Bubble - Stampin' Up! Snail Dies

    I had some fun with the current Just Add Ink challenge which is a nice layout by making something that didn't have flowers on it!  I liked the sassy feel of the word bubble pattern from the Snail Mail DSP and wanted to try something that didn't use the snails as the main focus of the card.  The 2 overlapping panels in the sketch were a good base for some smaller images.

  I carried the idea of the word bubbles from the background and made my own with the die cut and a bunch of 'hello' stamps from my current sets.  They are popped with dimensionals. The sets are listed below from top to bottom.

  The rectangle panels are Blushing Bride and Coastal Cabana and cut with the Stitched So Sweetly dies.  I added the stitched details to the centers with the Stitched With Whimsy dies.

  The ink colors are pulled directly from paper.

  Nothing fancy but this one will be sent out soon to say 'hello' to a friend!

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

 Stamps: Many Messages, Snailed It, Sweet Strawberry, Many Messages (again), Well Said

Ink: Blushing Bride, Coastal Cabana, Real Red

Paper: Whisper White thick, Whisper White, Blushing Bride, Coastal Cabana

Accessories: Stitched So Sweetly dies, Stitched With Whimsy dies, Snail dies, dimensionals

Blue Bird Birthday - Stampin Up! Birds & More Dies - The Paper Players 525

    Gosh we're already back to Sunday!  This past week went quickly didn't it?  Let's start the week off on the right foot with some stamping!  The Paper Players are back with a fun sketch challenge from Joanne.  This was a fun layout to work with (twice)!

  This card is an example of you never know when or where you'll get some inspiration.  Once I started working on this card I realized that a card I made last week shared some similar characteristics!  I must have been subconsciously using this sketch for this card here because I didn't even realize they were so similar until I took a closer look at the challenge icon and started work on this card!  I think I need to pay more attention.

  Here is the intended design for this challenge!

  This card starts with a Crumb Cake base that you can't see because of the lovely Old Olive pattern of Ice Cream Corner DSP covering the front.

  The only stamping on today's card is the black embossed sentiment at the top.  I love the big, basic birthday greeting from the Sweet Ice Cream stamp set.  And for those eagle eyes out there I did emboss the Whisper White panel with the Subtle folder before the heat embossing!

  While there is little stamping there is a bit of coloring on the die cut branch.  I used some Blends to give this leafy branch color with Old Olive, Rich Razzleberry and Crumb Cake .

  The bird is die cut in Misty Moonlight and then backed with a piece of Balmy Blue which is all trimmed off just leaving the bits you can see.  I at first left the eye Balmy Blue as well but honestly the bird looked a bit deranged so I cut a black eye with the die and glued it in.  Much better.  Finally this little guy was ready to be adhered with dimensionals.

  The final touch is the sheer striped Blackberry Bliss ribbon tied in a fork bow.

  Thanks to Joanne for her lovely layout that inspired 2 cards even if I didn't realize it at first.  I hope you'll play along with the team at The Paper Players and share your card in the gallery.  For more stamping goodness check out their sites!

Jaydee
 LeAnne
Claire
Joanne
Laurie
Anne Marie
Ann
Nancy
Debbie 

Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Sweet Ice Cream

Ink: Versamark

Blends: Crumb Cake light, Old Olive light, Rich Razzleberry dark

Paper: Whisper White, Misty Moonlight, Balmy Blue, Basic Black, Ice Cream Corner DSP

Accessories: Birds & More dies, Subtle embossing folder, black embossing powder, dimensionals, Blackberry Bliss striped ribbon