Sketch Challenge and a commentary on primas

Sketch Challenge day - Love it! It takes such a burden off the decisions you have to make when creating a card. Of course I say that EVERY sketch challenge day, but it's true.

• I started with the DP as my inspiration. It's from Scenic Route and I found it in the clearance section of my LSS. I love sales.
• The colors for the card: More Mustard, Garden Green, and Bashful Blue. If someone had asked me 6 months ago (just after I joined SCS and started making cards everyday) what colors I don't use: I'd have said "More Mustard" along with other assorted colors I can't seem to live without.
• Apparently math isn't my strong point when I first get up. I wanted the panels to be closer together with just a hint of the More Mustard peeking through. I made the gaps too big. I realized it AFTER I had the card put together.
• I only used 1 stamp on this card: my sentiment running up the side of the card. It's stamped in Versafine black.
• I added some primas and brads into the big panel to add a little contrast and texture.

I am addicted to little paper flowers. Seriously. When I go to my LSS, I tell myself "no primas" but then I can't help but see what they have - and then I tend to buy a package. There are so many things I've been introduced to in the 6 1/2 months I've been on SCS - primas being the big thing I tend to buy a LOT of. I initially had sticker shock when I saw how much a bottle of primas cost - then I realized how MUCH is in one of those bottles. It evens out. I have enough of them that I could use 1 a day and more than likely not run out until at least late 2009 at the EARLIEST.

Just thought I'd share.

Monday - double challenge post

It's been a busy day with some fun challenges.



First challenge was Faith's last time hostessing the Stalker's Thread Color Challenge. She chose Real Red, Handsome Hunter, Mellow Moss and Old Olive. Hello green!

• I chose to use Papertrey's Snowflake Serenade as my background stamped in all the colors of the challenge.
• The main image is from SU! The World Over. It's stamped in Basic Gray and colored in with my Prismacolor pencils.
• I wanted to add a little punch (and some ribbon) so I tied some Real Red grosgrain around my background 3 times and pulled the knots to the bottom.

The other challenge was the Technique Lover's Challenge: Clear sleeved Nugget boxes. Now, I'd heard about Nugget tins - I have a bunch, courtesy of a buy with a friend on SCS - but I'd never heard of Nugget boxes. I followed the links to the different sized boxes - I'd like to thank that person - they did a great job.

• Bottom of my box is a piece of Scenic Route paper - it's vanilla with an olive pattern on it. There's no tape holding it together - it's just folded.
• The slide is a piece of acetate (like a transparency) that's leftover from when I made an acetate card. It's held together with 3 brads.
• The nuggets are wrapped with an address label stamped with a snowflake from Snowflake Serenade in Old Olive.
• The slide is tied with a piece of olive velvet ribbon.

Featured Stamper: TexasGrammy

Today's Featured Stamper is TexasGrammy. Her gallery is really nice to see - I've seen some of her cards when I wander through the new additions.

One card really popped out at me today: http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/58827

• While I do have the set Paint Prints, I wanted to do something similar with a different set - I chose Delight in Life.
• I kept the sentiment set the same - chose another word out of the set.
• Perfect Plum and Mellow Moss were the first SU stamp pads I bought, but I didn't want to CASE too closely. I really like Groovy Guava and Barely Banana as a combo - they're warm colors and since it's barely above freezing outside right now, I love warm colors.
• Instead of using the folded white that's torn, I masked above the sentiment and sponged with Barely Banana. Keeping the mask in place, I also stamped my flowers.
• I wanted to put some embellishment on the card, so I added 3 black brads.

I just wanted to say my VSN mini challenge is officially over. It was a lot of fun and I'm glad that a lot of people participated - I was afraid that no one would do it. *roll eyes* The next VSN mini is on December 5th - it's a Wednesday - at 7pm EST.

So behind with the cards

The week of Thanksgiving... always fun. I truly tried to update this week, but things keep getting in my way. Not feeling well, holiday, that sort of thing.

I've been making cards though.

I've been keeping up on some of the regular SCS challenges and I did all but the new inspiration challenge that just started in the ST- line this week. Next week, there's going to be another new challenge, started by... ME! Fridays will have the STVV - Stalker Thread Visualize Verses which will be explained in my first challenge. I can't wait to start this!

I'll make sure I'm posting cards pretty soon.

Shelly's turn to shine!!!

I was so excited about the Featured Stamper for today because it's Shelly - papermoon04 on SCS. She's a total sweetheart - and she lives about 45 minutes away from me. And there's 2 LSS between the 2 of us, so we've been shopping buddies - and will probably get together sometime to go shopping again.

I've been a bad friend, though. I haven't been looking through her gallery (or anyone else's really) so when I looked through it, I was blown away by the gorgeousness of her cards.

I picked her Fleur D Harlequin card to CASE. If you're curious, her card is: http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/674717

• One of the LSS we've been to had this gorgeous May Arts organdy ribbon. You can't really see it on the card, but it's variegated from aqua to brown, which is the inspiration for the Blue Bayou and Chocolate Chip on the card.
• Instead of stamping out diamonds, I cut diamonds out of Groovy Guava Prints paper.
• The layer beneath the diamonds has swirls from Priceless stamped in Blue Bayou.
• The "s" is Basic Grey chipboard embossed several times with silver embossing powder. **Note: if you're embossing on chipboard, it doesn't cool off as quickly as paper, so leave it alone for a few minutes before you run your finger over it to see how smooth it is. You'll pull part of the embossing powder off. I learned this to my detriment today.
• I don't have vintage brads - I need to ask Shelly where she got hers because they're really cool. I used clear rhinestone brads - and twisted my ribbon to "pinch" it at the brads.

This card is being sent to Shelly in the mail tomorrow. :)

Unusual request for a crafting blog

This is a crafting blog, I know. But thanks to my map, I've noticed that I've been getting visitors from places other than the US and Canada. Which is wonderful and I appreciate all my visitors. :)

I work at a daycare center and I'm starting to think of things to do for the summer already. The theme this summer is Around the World in 55 days. I'm hoping to find simple to create (or find in the grocery store) kid-friendly snacks from around the world.

If you have an idea for me and my work, please comment on this post with either a link to a recipe or the recipe itself. If you could also tell me where the snack originates from, that would be greatly appreciated.

I really appreciate whatever you can send me in way of ideas.

Pearlized Thanks

**random comment to start today: Blogspot remembered me. I had to click "sign in" but I didn't have to add any information like I have in the past. Weird.

My card for today is a double challenge card: Stalker's Sketch Challenge and the Ways to Use It - unique brads.

I have pearl brads that came 12 to a package, so I'm hesistant to use them. That works!

• Card base is Certainly Celery
• My lovely pentagon layers are Almost Amethyst cs and Certainly Celery Prints dp.
• The sentiment is stamped in Almost Amethyst. It's from Happy Harmony and is punched out with a super jumbo scalloped oval
• The main image is from The Art of Life. It's inked in Certainly Celery and Almost Amethyst inks and layered on a piece of Almost Amethyst.
• The layers of Almost Amethyst blend together, so I took a black marker and faux stitched around the edge of the image layer to create some definition.
• I used my crop-a dile to create some holes to thread ribbon through so I could tie a ribbon around my flower.

This card is going to a friend on SCS who is completely wonderful.