Color Throwdown #453

It's Wednesday (and the last one in July - OMG -  how did that happen already?!), so that means another Color Throwdown Challenge is on board! Broni is our hostess and I'm totally in LOVE with these awesome colors: raspberry, green and yellow!

You know I had to go with florals and it was perfect to initiate some new (to me) stamp goodies.  Here is my take on it...

I'm loving this Watercolor Stripes Stencil by Altenew and created the background by blending Daffodil Delight ink (SU) with a Tim Holtz blending tool.  Though I've had Simon Says Stamps' Spring Flowers stamp set for several months, I just recently got the Floral Shapes wafer dies.  I white embossed the images on Ranger watercolor CS then colored them in using Zig Clean Color brush markers.  Well, I should say I quickly scribbled in the colors since I knew I didn't have to stay inside the lines because I was die cutting them out.  Easy peasy!  The third new necessity - lol - was using one of MFT's Stitched Dome Frame Die-Namics.  I love using open frames on my cards, so you'll be seeing a lot more of these in the future.  The sentiment is from SSS Uplifting Thoughts.  

ZIGS: 202 Peach Pink, 025 Pink, 027 Dark Pink, 051 Lemon Yellow, 045 Pale Green, 041 Light Green, 047 May Green. 

For more details on how to play along, head over to the Color Throwdown Blog and you'll find the information on the right sidebar!  You can also visit the rest of the design team's creations for more inspiration by clicking on the links below:

Amy Rohl 
Amy Rysavy
Barbara Anders  
Broni Holcombe
Jodi Collins 
Lisa Henke
Lori Tecler
Lynn Put  
Vickie Zimmer 
Wanda Cullen (you are here)  

Tracey McNeely - July Guest Designer 

Thanks to Tracey McNeely for joining us this month as a guest designer!  Stay tuned next week to meet our August guestie!

Happy 1st Birthday

It's our grandson's 1st birthday today and I had a ball creating his birthday card using Lawn Fawn's Critters From the Past stamp

set and matching dies! He and his big sister are both into dinosaurs, so this was a no brainer when it came to card ideas.  I colored with Copics after stamping with Memento Tuxedo Black ink on X-Press It Blending Card (my favorite with Copics!).  The die cut images were then popped over some rolling hills and ombre paper for the sky in the background.  I love personalizing cards, so had to include his name with MFT's Stitched Banner Alphabet Die-Namics!  The inside of the card uses SU's Number of Years stamp set and says Look who is turning 1.  Yes, I forgot to get a photo of the inside, so...insert sad face here!

I can't close without posting a couple of recent photos of the birthday boy! He's adorable and very laid back... a shy guy - tucking his head and turning away when he first meets you!  He loves to smile and has a very unique crawl that gets him everywhere!

Freshly Made Sketches

I love the tilted panel in the new Freshly Made Sketches challenge #297, but went with an A2 sized card instead of a square. I went with Reverse Confetti products again (can't seem to get my fill of them!) and mixed some old with some new!  I just love the brushed lettering look with this new sentiment set! 

STAMPS: Sentiment Essentials, Build A Bunch (both by Reverse Confetti).
PAPER: Coastal Cabana (SU), Kraft (PTI), X-Press It Blending Card, White (PTI).
INK: Memento Tuxedo Black; Ocean Drive dye ink by WPlus9.
DIES: Lacy Scallop and Swirlies Confetti Cuts.

SFYTT for July

This month is flying by and I still hadn't played with Reverse Confetti's Sketch For You To Try challenge, so it was time to remedy that situation!  I was going to stay totally monochromatic and create a beachy themed card for a neighbor who waters our plants while we are on vacation.  At the last minute, I thought it needed a pop of color, so added some florals.   Here is what I used...

STAMPS: Build a Bunch and Posted Note Sentiments (Reverse Confetti).
PAPER: Free Spirit 6x6 pad and Stone CS by Reverse Confetti; Black Licorice (MFT); White (PTI); X-Press It Blending Card.
INK: Versamark; Memento Tuxedo Black.
DIES: Sand dollar, Build a Bunch, Pierced Round Top Layers - all by Reverse Confetti; Stitched diagonal strip by Lil' Inker Designs.

The florals were colored with Copics, die cut, then several flowers were popped with foam dots.  I used a stipple tool to add some Lead ink (RC) to the edges of the sand dollar.  

Years ago, we visited friends at a beach cottage in Swansboro, NC and took the owner's small boat to a tiny island called Sand Dollar Hill.  There were oodles of sand dollars everywhere and I remember being so surprised that their color is not initially white like you see in the souvenir shops - lol!  Instead, it's a dirty brownish/gray color that is bleached out later by collectors.  I also always loved the legend of the sand dollar and thought I'd share it with you here.

Color Throwdown #452

Hey everyone! The new colors for this week's Color Throwdown Challenge are red, yellow, green and turquoise.  Barbara Anders is our hostess this week and was inspired by this street with a row of rainbow colored houses!  There were so many different ways I could have gone with the colors, but ultimately I chose some new goodies from Reverse Confetti's July release for this 5 inch square card.

The base of the card is RC's Aqua cardstock.  I cut the Thanks

Square Confetti Cuts die from white heavy weight CS then layered up some of the new stamps from RC's Build A Bunch stamp set with matching dies. I'm using the sketch for Freshly Made Sketches' last challenge and reversed the washi tape element to the

opposite corner.  The tiny cross-stitched detail is from the Stitched dies by Paper Smooches.  I colored the images with Copics after stamping with Memento Tuxedo Black ink on X-Press It Blending Card (my favorite paper for Copic coloring that doesn't smear!).  The flower centers were highlighted with black Enamel Accents.

For more details on how to play along, head over to the Color Throwdown Blog and you'll find the information on the right sidebar!  You can also visit the rest of the design team's creations for more inspiration by clicking on the links below:

Amy Rohl 
Amy Rysavy
Barbara Anders  
Broni Holcombe
Jodi Collins 
Lisa Henke
Lori Tecler
Lynn Put  
Vickie Zimmer 
Wanda Cullen (you are here)      

Tracey McNeely - July Guest Designer

CAS(E) This Sketch

I'm loving the new layout by Donna Mikasa for the current CAS(E) This Sketch Challenge! I wanted to pop a color against a trio of black patterned papers and went with a sunny yellow that will make you want to grab your shades!  I didn't have a bright yellow button, so I went with a button die from MFT, layered up 3 cuts then added Glossy Accents over the top.  This Spring Flowers stamp set by Simon Says Stamp is probably my current favorite set of florals!  I love to emboss with white (Altenew Pure White Opaque EP) then color with Zig Clean Color brush markers!  The matching dies (Floral Shapes wafer dies by SSS) make it so easy and you don't have to stay inside the lines since it's all die cut!  The sentiment is from SSS Uplifting Thoughts stamp set.

ZIGS: 051 Lemon Yellow, 050 Yellow, 052 Bright Yellow, 053 Yellow Green, 046 Mid Green, 043 Olive Green.
PAPER: Bazzill 'Licorice' Basics Patterned Paper; Ranger watercolor cardstock; Yoyo Yellow (retired SU).

Sneaking a Peek

Good Monday everyone! Hopefully by now you've all seen the great new Verve July release! As a guest diva this month, I've got another card featured over on the Verve blog today and I hope you'll hop on over and check it out! Here's a little peek at what I created...

Happy shopping (if you haven't already visited the Verve store)!