Dare to Get Dirty Day 4

I couldn't resist checking out the new DTGD challenges over on SCS. Have you been playing along? I couldn't play over the w/e, but have squeezed in a couple of cards yesterday and today.  I used 4 out of the 5 of today's posted challenges on my card.  For details, you'll need to check out the gallery for fan club members HERE!  I used the color combo, the sketch, bling and did double embossing.

STAMPS: Tiny Tags (PTI), Script BG (SU)
PAPER: "Happier" pad from MME's Six by Six collection, Pumpkin Pie (SU), White (PTI)
INK: Pumpkin Pie, Veramark, Versafine Onyx Black
ACCESSORIES: Square Lattice EF, Melon Mambo EP, Rhinestones, Orange Zest satin ribbon by PTI, Stitching, Brad, Tiny tag die by PTI, Foam dots to layer the flower.

Here We Go Loop-de-loo!

This is a 3 in 1 card - made for the Mojo Monday Sketch Challenge and also for 2 of the Dare to Get Dirty Challenges over on SCS (Bev Gerard's and Teresa Kline's challenges). There are lots of fabulous prizes to be given away, so head on over HERE to read about the details and dare yourself to get dirty!

I love this fun loopy flower stamp from Verve's Making a Statement set with its matching die.   I layered tiny black punched circles and rhinestones in the flower centers.  The polka dotted paper is flocked and gives the card a surprise element of texture that I love!  The sentiment is from Verve's Hope Blooms set.  Paper is "Chapter One" pad by Kaisercraft.

Thanks for stopping by...I'm heading out to work soon where I'll be faced with a huge admission day - close to 60 new clients are due to arrive on our rehab campus!  May need to choose roller skates for shoes today! 

Dare to Get Dirty

Good Monday everyone!

Have you gotten to join the Dirty Dozen yet in the challenges, chatter and stamping that kicked off on July 28th?  Dirty Dozen design team members have been busy cooking up dozens of creative challenges sure to revive even the rustiest mojo, and the generous Member Companies have sponsored the event with some fabulous prize packages for players.  My schedule was just too jam- packed this summer to host a challenge, but I did manage to make this sample card for my good friend, Teresa Kline aka va.sunshine, who is hosting one of today's challenges.

I can't go into detail about her challenge because you need to be a fan club member on SCS and then you can get all the details!  This week-long celebration is a thank you event for the Fan Club members who support the SCS site with their subscriptions, so join us here today and then come play along!

There's a whole lot of Vervey goodness going on with this card...both stamps and dies!
STAMPS: Sunny Days (leaves); Small Phrases
PAPER: 7 Gypsies "Venice" pad, Pear Pizzazz, Vintage Cream, Kraft
INK: Soft Suede, Pear Pizzazz, Color Box "Frost White" (used on the heart)
ACCESSORIES: Crimper, Seam binding, Offray elegant flower w/pearls, Leafy sprigs die, Charming Banner die, Jotted Heart die & Robbo Banner dies - all by Verve.

You Spin My Spurs

***Scroll on down for my Color Throwdown post*** 

That sentiment totally makes me smile! Another great sketch is posted in the MFT forum on SCS for the Wednesday Sketch Challenge.  I made this card late last night after getting off work...a great way to wind down!  I wish I had stitched the layers, but didn't want to wake DH with my noisy sewing machine - lol!
Here's what I used...
STAMPS: PI Cowboy by MFT
PAPER: Dilly Dally DP by MME, White (PTI)
INK: Memento Tuxedo Black
ACCESSORIES: Jute twine, Baker's twine, Copper brads, Die-Namics (boot & horseshoe)
COPICS: Hat, Vest, Boots - W3, W4, W6
                Hat Band, Scarf - R35, R37
                Skin - E000, E00
                Shirt - BG70, BG72, BG75
                Chaps - E33, E35, E57

Color Throwdown #202

 

Hello friends! It's Wednesday and time for another Color Throwdown Challenge! This week, Tammy has a beautiful table setting photo for our inspiration...aren't these colors fabulous?! 

 I made a solo excursion to a local stamp store, Paper, Ink!, in downtown Charlottesville last week and this Memory Box "Chloe Stem" die was one of several goodies I found.  It reminds me of the fields of Queen Anne's Lace that are blooming everywhere this time of year.

I stamped the Carte Postale script stamp in Bermuda Bay on a vanilla Top Note die shape, then sponged the edges with Pool Party ink.  

STAMPS: Tiny Tags (PTI), Carte Postale (Stampendous)

PAPER: Vintage Cream, Rich Razzleberry, Spice Cake DP by SU

INK: Bermuda Bay, Pool Party, Rich Razzleberry

ACCESSORIES: Bermuda Bay grosgrain ribbon by SU, Tiny Tags die (PTI), Button by SU, Chevron Die-Namics by MFT, Chloe Stem die by Memory Box, Top Note die by SU.

Don't forget to check out all the inspiration by the rest of the design team, as well as our talented July guestie, Judy Rozema,  HERE!   As always, if you don’t have the exact colors, it’s no problem...just substitute with what you have that’s close to this week’s colors.  And, don’t forget to use the keyword CTD202 if you upload your project to an online gallery. 

Saturday Sketchbook Challenge

Good Monday everyone! I have a lot on my "to do" list for this week, so kept this card really clean and simple. I'm a fan of Chupa's Saturday Sketch Challenge layouts and this one was so fun and easy to use!  If I need a 15 minute card in the future...this will be the way to go!  

STAMPS: Happy Days (Verve)

PAPER: "Chapter One" 6x6 pad by Kaisercraft, White by PTI

INK: Versafine Onyx Black

ACCESSORIES: Daisies die by SU, Satin ribbon, Button, Cotton thread.

July Diva Dare

 The Verve divas are having a July Diva Dare challenge and the theme is birthdays! Recently on SCS, there was a tri-fold pocket card challenge which I never had time to try and thought this would be the perfect solution for a birthday gift/card in one.  

I die cut a long tag using SU's Bigz Two Tags die and adhered a gift card to it, so it would serve as a pull tab.  The link to Beate's tutorial for this tri-fold pocket card is in the SCS resources section HERE.  

STAMPS: Bloom and Grow (leaves), Big Wish (sentiment) - both by Verve
PAPER: Kraft, Black, Riding Hood Red, Lucky Limeade
INK: Versafine Onyx Black, Lucky Limeade
ACCESSORIES: Tiny Sweet Scallop tag die (Verve), Elegant Leaves die (Verve), fabric flower and burlap border from Funkie Junkie store, Jute twine.

Start Each Day With "Whee"!

Whee! It's hump day and that means the MFT gals have a new Wednesday Sketch Challenge in the forum on SCS! I had bought this stamp from a girl who has given up stamping for other priorities in her life and I had never inked it up.  I chose to ink up only one word from the sentiment (using a black distress marker) and colored the image with Copics!   What did I use?

STAMPS: Start the Day with Whee by MFT

PAPER: Victoria DP by Echo Park, Ocean Tides, True Black & White by PTI, 

X-Press It Blending Card

INK: Memento Tuxedo Black

ACCESSORIES: Brad, Border Die-Namic by MFT

COPICS: R0000, R20, R21, R22 - dress, 

G40, G43, G46 - leaves, 

E000, E00, R20- skin,  

E51, E53, E35 - hair, 

E55, E57, E59 - swing.

Color Throwdown 201

Our 200th challenge celebration was a lot of fun this past week and we saw some amazing entries from you fans!  Just a reminder to check out the winners' list on yesterday's CTD post HERE.  But now it's time to move on to the next 200 challenges!

I am hosting this week and found this throw pillow photo from Pottery Barn with some versatile colors... I hope you like it! 

If my mother were still living, today would be her birthday!  I really miss her, but know she's celebrating in heaven, so that's why I went with a birthday card in her memory.  The layout is using Jen Del Muro's Sketch For You To Try for July and what a fun one!  For the vertical element, I opted to use the leafy vine and mini roses Die-Namics by MFT since they are the sponsors for the SFYYT challenge.  The sentiment is from the "You're So Tweet" Pure Innocence set.  I used SU's 2-step bird punch and sponged the edges with Tim Holtz' Fired Brick distress ink.  A little distressing and stitching details were added as well.  DP is from MME's Lost and Found Two "Rosy" pad.  I'm getting so anxious to see the new papers released at summer CHA...not that I NEED any more paper - lol!

Don't forget to check out all the inspiration by the rest of the design team, as well as our talented July guestie, Judy Rozema,  HERE!   As always, if you don’t have the exact colors, it’s no problem...just substitute with what you have that’s close to this week’s colors.  And, don’t forget to use the keyword CTD201 if you upload your project to an online gallery.  Hope to see you in the gallery!

Blog Candy Winner & DSC

It was an exciting week with all the celebration of the 200th Color Throwdown Challenge, but the party is over and we're moving on!  The winner of my blog candy (thanks to random.org)...

drum roll please...

Cheryl Lea - you're the winner!

Please contact me at cullenwrATyahooDOTcom with your mailing address and I'll get your goodies sent out to you!  Thanks to everyone who commented and played along with us!

Tune back again tomorrow when I'll be hosting a new CTD challenge!

Before I leave this post, I want to add a card that I made using Jen Shultz' layout for her Deconstructed Sketch Challenge #60.

I had these papers -  7 Gypsies "Venice" pad - out from a previous project, so went with it again.  Very little stamping...just the tiny tag and the large tag outline.  The fern and bird dimensional stickers are by K&Co.
Have a great day...I'm heading out to work shortly, so crafty time is done for today!

Howdy Y'all!

It's been awhile since I've played along with the MFT Wednesday Sketch Challenge, so this card remedies that problem! I'm using some papers from the "Avalon" Bazzill Basics Paper pack and this pack, along with some other goodies, could be yours if you enter my blog candy give-away by participating in this week's 200th Color Throwdown Challenge!  Check out the details HERE if you're interested.  Each one of the design team members is giving away free goodies!  Back to my card...I'm also playing along with the Ways to Use It Challenge on SCS to use stitches - faux or real.
 I colored with Copics and faux "stitched" a border using a Copic multiliner pen.  Here's what else I used...

STAMPS: Cowgirl PI (MFT)
PAPER: "Avalon" DP by Bazzill Basics Paper, Pure Poppy, White
INK: Memento Tuxedo Black
ACCESSORIES: Open scallop border Die-Namics, Buttons by PTI, Flag die by 'Lil Inker Designs
COPICS: Hat, hair, vest - E41, E42, E43, E44
                Hair - E35, E37, E39
                Shirt - R27, R27, R29
                Skin - E00, E000, R20 

Celebrating CTD #200 & Blog Candy Give-away!

In honor of our 200th color challenge, the Color Throwdown gals have a little fun planned for you this week. Not only have each of the CTD designers created fantastic projects using the colors and inspiration photo for this week, but each team member also has blog candy to give away to a lucky Color Throwdown participant!

So what's up for grabs and how do you play along?

First, visit each of the CTD team members blogs and leave comments on their projects.

Next, create a card or project using the colors from this week's challenge and submit your project on the CTD blog HERE using the Inlinkz at the bottom of the post.  Lynn is our hostess for this week and she has chosen a really fun inspiration picture for us!

As always, if you don’t have the exact colors, it’s no problem...just substitute with what you have that’s close to this week’s colors.  And, don’t forget to use the keyword CTD200 if you upload your project to an online gallery.  Next Tuesday, you'll want to check back with the CTD blog to see the featured stamper and the blog candy winners from each of the DT members' blogs will be listed.                          You must participate in this week's Color Throwdown Challenge in order to be eligible to win any of the blog candy that's being offered by the team.  

Now that I've hopefully covered all the details, let me move on to the card I created...

IRL, the herringbone BG looks more like a light orange shade instead of the golden shade that shows up in the photo. :-(  The card base is Pumpkin Pie CS  and is 5 1/4" square.  I wanted to do this paper quilting technique that I used when I was a Limelight Designer on the Flourishes' blog in February.  If you want step-by-step directions on the process, please refer to my post HERE.  I used the Kassie's Brocade EF (love that Cuttlebug is making their folders in 5x7" sizes now) to emboss the finished star pattern and I used Creative Memories' square punch which is a bit larger than the 1" squares I used in the tutorial (it's about 1 1/4" square).   

STAMPS: Joyful Blooms by Verve, Sentiment Flags by 'Lil Inker Designs

PAPER: Vintage Marketplace DP and Avalon DP - both by Bazzill Basics Paper, Pumpkin Pie, Vintage Cream

INK: Chocolate Chip

ACCESSORIES: Fanciful Flourish die by Cheery Lynn Designs, Prima by Petaloo, Button, Kassie's Brocade EF by Cuttlebug, Lil Inker Designs flag die

Are you still with me - lol?  This is a long post and last but not least....here is my BLOG CANDY for some lucky participant!

Vintage Marketplace DP by Bazzill Basics Paper

Avalon DP by Bazzill Basics Paper

Spellbinders Shapeabilities "Flourish Accent"

Webster's Pages "Bloomers"

JustRite "Quiet Moments" stamp set (7 stamps)

Clear stamp set by Heidi Grace Designs

Scor-Tape (1/2")

Adhesive Rhinestones

Adhesive Faux Pearls 

Here's the list of all the design team members...go check them out!

Barbara Anders - Paper Pursuits

Broni Holcombe - Splashes of Watercolor

Joan Ervin - Stamping With Passion

Lori Tecler - Inking Aloud

Tammy Hershberger - Stamp Happy

Wanda Cullen - Cullen-ary Creations

Kerri Michaud - Cards by Kerri

 Judy Rozema - Joy in a Jar  - as our July Guest Designer

Hope to see you join in on the fun...can't wait to see what you create!

Raspberry Trio

Using Chupa's layout for her Sketchbook Saturday Challenge, I also played along with the SCS Color Challenge - Raspberry Ripple, Pink Pirouette, Crumb Cake and neutral of choice with dessert option to include an element or edge that is torn. The flowers are made from Raspberry Fizz felt by PTI.  It's difficult to see, but the black BG is embossed using SU's square lattice EF. 

STAMPS: Flags and Tags Sentiments (Lil Inker Designs), Grunge Cirque (Tim Holtz)-checkered BG
PAPER: Kraft, Black, Pink Pirouette, Green
INK: Versafine Onyx Black
ACCESSORIES: Circle flower Die-Namics by MFT, Fern punch by MS, Fanciful Flourish die by Cheery Lynn Designs, Square lattice EF by SU, Light pink pearls.

Timeless Tuesday

It's good to be back in my stamp room again after a week at the beach last week!  It was great to be with extended family members, but have to admit...trying to survive triple digit temperatures almost got the best of me!  Fortunately, our beach house had a pool in the back, so I opted for cooling off there rather than deal with the hot sand several days.  OK...on to the business of papercrafting! :-)  I created this card for the Timeless Tuesday Challenge on the Flourishes blog to use a sentiment as the focal point.  None of my sets had any large sentiments, so I opted to stamp the largest one I had on vellum and overlay it on this floral image.

 I guess my brain is a little fried, because I thought I was using the SCS Color Challenge colors only to discover after I was done that I forgot the Crumb Cake!  Doh!   I used Jen Shults' great sketch for the Deconstructed Sketch Challenge #59.

STAMPS: Botanical Bookplates and Calla Lilies - both by Flourishes
PAPER: Raspberry Fizz, Black, White, Vellum
INK: Memento Tuxedo Black
ACCESSORIES: Corner punch by SU, Silver & black adhesive pearls, Lace, Raspberry Fizz ribbon, Tiny flower punch ($1 bin at Mike's).

Raise the Bar #108

Another month has rolled around and that means a new theme for the bartenders at Raise the Bar - bring on your red, white and blue color combos for your creations this month!  As a reminder, we're taking a bit of a break with our challenges this summer and are only doing one theme a month for June, July and August.  You have the whole month to play!

I went with a nautical, masculine theme for this card.  I love this burlap trim from Linda's Funkie Junkie online store and layered it with some baker's twine with a little anchor charm found in the jewelry section of Michael's.   I hope all my American blog friends had a happy 4th of July!  We celebrated with a family cookout and watching fireworks...an annual tradition!

STAMPS: The Open Sea by SU, Making a Statement (sentiment) by Verve
PAPER: "On the Bright Side" DP by MME, White, Enchanted Evening (PTI)
INK: Night of Navy, Real Red
ACCESSORIES: Picot Circle and Circle Nesties, Burlap trim, Baker's twine, Charm, Distressing tool, X-Press It Foam.

Color Throwdown !99

Happy Independence Day to all my American friends!  It's also Wednesday and that means it's time for another Color Throwdown Challenge!  Lori has chosen some great colors for us this week: Real Red, Tempting Turquoise, Night of Navy and Crumb Cake - inspired by this festive, nautical party table!

I created my card using another fun, summertime digi image from Sassy Cheryl's Digis.  I colored with Copics and layered the Labels Eight Nestie panel over some burlap trim that I ordered from Linda's Funkie Junkie online store.  The tiny tag die is by PTI, as is the Tiny Tag stamp set.  DP is from MME's "On the Bright Side" 6x6 pad.

We hope you can play along with us and don't forget to tune in again next Wednesday for some awesome blog candy to be given away by the entire design team to celebrate our 200th challenge!  If you need some more inspiration for this week's challenge, go to the Color Throwdown blog and check out the great samples by the design team!  We're also thrilled to welcome a new guest designer with this being a new month...the talented Judy Rozema...WELCOME, JUDY!!