a one-of-a-kind birthday

Short post before bedtime....
I made this card very quickly to make sure I had time to link it up for the OTWC challenge. I'm a little disappointed that it didn't end up the way I had imagined, but it's still a fun, colorful card. I stitched around the sentiment sloppily (on purpose!) in yellow, red, and green thread. A quick ribbon and button finish it off.


The layout was loosely inspired by this CPS sketch:

Embellish Masculine Challenge

Masculine cards are tough for everyone, right? I didn't even think I was going to participate in this week's Embellish Magazine challenge until I went to the craft store and found some "manly" papers on clearance for like 10 cents each. I hit the jackpot when I found this hammer. (I kind of wish I bought more sheets...)

I know my last card was dark- as is this one- so I'm hoping to get back into crafting with bright colors ASAP!



My card also fits for this week's Less is More challenge. Here's the sketch:

Lawnscaping: neutrals plus....

Today I made what is likely my darkest card ever. The challenge at Lawnscaping is to make a card with all neutrals, plus a splash of color.

I kept the card really dark so that the yellow stands out even more. There is grey and black stitching, and my sentiment is embossed in white. Thanks for stopping by!

OCC Let's Make ATCs!

This week, the challenge at Our Creative Corner is to make ATCs! I have never made an Artist's Trading Card before, and to be honest, wasn't too sure where to begin.

When I hear "trading card," I think Pokemon, Magic, etc. (Not that I've played those trading card games before, but it is pretty dorky that I think of them immediately!) You know- cards with stats on the back, including your HP and attacks.

Now ATCs are more like little cards that artists swap/trade with no intention to sell. They can be folded cards, or more like decorated business cards. There seem to be little limitations, except for size. They MUST measure 2.5"x3.5"

For the OCC Challenge, you must make an ATC, as well as these colors:

~Kraft

~White/Cream

~Black/Brown

~Color of your choice

This might be a great opportunity to use up some small scraps, or those tiny stamps that often get lost on larger projects!

For my ATC, I chose a fairly personal theme. I wanted the card to reflect me, so I incorporated music. The kraft paper reminded me of my viola, so I die cut 2 f-holes and added embroidery floss "strings" for a graphic representation of the instrument. The kraft panel is adhered with foam tape, and the color of my choice is that small little pop of fuchsia in the heart.

I printed the "LOVE Music" onto vellum using this cool font I found.

(above you can see the little stand I made out of black cardstock- that is not part of my ATC)
Don't forget to check out the ATCs from the DT, and join us at Our Creative Corner!

PS The sheet music in the pics above is called "Concertpiece," by Enesco for viola and piano. If you look closely, you can see how much I mark up my music!

Make it Mondays #7

This week's challenge for Make it Mondays is to add color to non-neutral cardstock. Although most people will use Copics, you guys know I don't have them. Instead, I applied watercolors to purple cardstock.

It worked great, except as the paper got saturated with water, my floral outline faded. No biggie- I just traced over the lines with a super fine black marker. Fixed!

Other features include little black pearls in the center of the flower, and 3 pieces of embroidery floss across the bottom.

I used the colors for this week's colourQ...so pretty!

The Cityscapes are on the Rise

Happy Monday! I'm back with a card for a Moxie Fab World challenge. I was so excited to see that the challenge this time around is to incorporate a cityscape.

Anyone who knows me knows that I ADORE Boston! I studied music at Boston University, and a big factor that helped me choose to go there was the city. I also met my husband at a movie theater in Boston (random!), so I have many reasons to love it. Although we live just outside of the city, we go in at least once a week.

This card is dedicated to my love for Boston. I designed each layer for my die cutter, and used it to cut them out. Notable buildings include the John Hancock Tower and the Prudential Building (the Pru!) The water/trees/front buildings are adhered with foam tape to add dimension.

This card is dear to my heart- I hope you love it too!

Flashback Friday 9.0

Today I am playing along with Amy's Flashback Friday Challenge. The challenge this time is to re-post your first window card.

The card I'm linking up is originally from February 2010, and I first posted it here. I remember having a hard time keeping the thread straight in the window! Here it is:

OCC Reuse Your Packaging!

Good mornin'!

I'm excited to share my latest card for Our Creative Corner. Rebecca Ednie is hosting, and her challenge is to re-use packaging that you might normally throw out. This could include boxes, cans, bags, embellishment bubbles, etc.

We also have a sponsor for this week's challenge. Doodle Pantry is giving our Top Talent a $10 gift card to their store! Below is the set that I used for my sentiment:

(This was my first time using digis!)

Last week I bought a border punch, and I knew that I had to save that plastic packaging! Here's how it looked before I took my scissors to it....

I free-hand cut some flower shapes from the plastic, and curled up the edges of each petal. I stacked them all together, and used some embroidery floss to sew them together, and to adhere my button. It was tricky to get through all of those layers of plastic, but it worked out well, and the plastic didn't split (at first I was worried it might).

I embroidered around the sentiment, and to add dimension I also strung a scrap piece of embroidery floss across the corner of the card and used foam tape to adhere a few more of the pennants.

Thanks for checking it out, and we'd love to see your creations! Load 'em up at Our Creative Corner!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I feel so lucky to have such great blog readers....thanks!

cute as a button

This evening's card is for Totally Hues #3. I have to be honest....I wasn't a fan of these colors at first. I'm never really drawn to complimentary colors, so the blue/orange combo left me stumped.

I took some inspiration from the last card I made (a baby card), and decided to go with a similar theme. I used the same duck as this card.....times 6. The colors are layered underneath, and the front panel is raised with foam tape. The embossing technique is actually one I used on a card a few weeks ago, and now this week that same technique is highlighted on the current Make it Mondays!

the card that doesn't make sense...

So by now you must know how much I fret over the One-Layer Wednesday challenges. This one was no exception! The challenge is to use a picture from Marta Dansie's Pintrest for inspiration.

I loved this photo, and knew I could make those buttons one-layer with a circle stamp and a marker. I chose a color scheme I liked, then picked a letter of the alphabet.

I went with "H" so that the sentiment could be "Hello." Seems fine, right? Well, when I was done, it seriously looked like a baby card. Luckily I have a baby sentiment that starts with the letter "H," but I don't think that helped the card make any more sense. Unless someone is having a baby named Henry....

Thank You

The other day I saw (via Laurie's blog) that Papertrey Paper Dolls was having a blog hop and giveaway. I had never been to their blog before, but it was fun hopping along and seeing what everybody made.

The theme of the hop was "PTI"....using something on your card that begins with each of those letters. It sounded like fun, so I just made a card to fit the challenge. Now I certainly love Papertrey Ink, but sadly none of their products are on this card! Here's what I incorporated:

P- patterned paper, paper lace

T- twine, "thank you"

I- ink, insect (butterfly)

Goodnight!