Hello Again, Pink & Green!

Pin It Now! The winter doldrums might be setting in, as much as I hate to admit it!  I love snow, and the warmth of the woodstove, but I have found myself gazing out the kitchen window at what was once my flourishing garden, that's now a brown pile of compost.

So in the craft room, we're back to butterflies & blossoms, to brighten someone's day!

The sketch is the latest from Hand Stamped Sentiments, and it's all about circles. Which I love. 

The first thing I did was cut the card base a little narrow, 3-3/4" wide, so the elements on the card could hang over and still fit in a standard envelope.  Although I'll likely make a box for this one!

I used Strawberry Slush & Wild Wasabi on a Sahara Sand base. Papillon Potpourri for the butterfly & Simply  Celebrate for the "hello".   

The flower is punched from crepe paper with the Blossom Punch. Three layers of the crepe flowers, sponged, stacked, and fluffed with my scoring stylus. The glittery center is a jumbo pearl, of all things, with the sticky backside dipped in glitter. I used silver & some pink seashell glass glitter that I have in my stash. Then I simply stuck a couple of glue dots to the back and nestled it in the center.  

I thought the paper doily die cut needed a little something, so I sewed a couple of circles onto it. Better!

So what do you see in this snazzy sketch?  Will you go bold and trendy? Or change the shapes to suit your need?  I'd love to see what you do, so hop on over and play along!  

SUPPLY LIST:

STAMPS:  Papillon Potpourri, En Francais, Simply Celebrate

INK:  Strawberry Slush, Wild Wasabi, Crumb Cake

PAPER:  Sahara Sand, Sweet Sorbet DSP (Sahara Sand pattern), and In-Color Stack (polka dot)

EMBELLISHMENTS: Jumbo pearl, twine (Sale-A-Bration), Crepe Paper, vintage button (my stash)

PUNCHES: Blossom, 2-1/2" circle

BIG SHOT: Delicate Doilies Sizzlits Die

Ruffled Flowerfull Heart Valentine's Day Cards

Pin It Now! I sat down to make a handful of Valentines using Freshly Made Sketches #120,  a great clean & simple sketch. I loved the elements of this card, and decided to make each one just a little different.

They all use the same elements - Strawberry Slush Stretch ruffled ribbon, polka dot paper, embossing, and that pretty Flowerfull Heart that SU has introduced for Valentine's Day 2014.   But I don't like to repeat myself too many times, so to keep the creativity flowing in the snowed in craft room, I simply shifted things around on each card.  

I think this next one is my personal favorite!

No, maybe this one is...I think my mom will get this pretty one!

This one was made with hearts that were laying on my desk from this valentine card from last week.  

Here's a look at the sketch.  You should pay a visit to Freshly Made Sketches, and get ahead on your Valentine card making, too!  

File Folder Valentine, Hearts A Flutter

Pin It Now! Hello, crafty friend!  I have another Valentine card to share today.  I'm making LOTS of Valentines this year, because I'm determined to send them out all over the place this year!

Here's a file folder card made with the Envelope Punch Board.  These are SO fun to make, and only take a minute more than a standard card to make.  I used these instructions from a printable I found on Pinterest.

I love the color combo from the current challenge at Hand Stamped Sentiments:

Strawberry Slush

Coastal Cabana

Wisteria Wonder

What a fresh color pallette!  

Closer up, you can see I've used the heart framelit from Hearts A Flutter for the cute doily heart stamped in Wisteria Wonder, heat embossed  "sweet little you" from Perfectly You, punched a chevron banner with the Chevron punch, and sprinkled hearts about with SU's heart punch (retired, why do they do that?!). The little floral strip that you see under the chevron banner is DSP from the Mini Memories Simply Created Mini Album (Spring 2014). 

Inside, from Perfectly You and colored with Stampin' Write markers and Aqua painter. 

I've used the sketch from Create with Connie & Mary, turning it on its side. Super cool sketch, I wouldn't have added the glitter hearts if they hadn't suggested it in the sketch!  Love it!

SUPPLIES:

STAMPS:  Perfectly You, Hearts A flutter, Delightful Dozen (retired)

INK: Wisteria Wonder, Jet Black Staz On, Coastal Cabana, Strawberry Slush

PAPER:  Strawberry Slush CS, Whisper White CS, In Color 13-15 DSP Stack, Coastal Cabana CS, Silver Glimmer, DSP floral print from Mini Memories Simply Created Mini Album (Spring 2014)

EMBELLISHMENTS:  Pool Party Twine (SAB 2014), 

PUNCHES: chevron punch, hearts punch

BIG SHOT:  Hearts a Flutter Framelits

ENVELOPE PUNCH BOARD, CROP A DILE

Banner Blast Valentine's Day Cards

Pin It Now! Hey crafty friend!  Are you keeping warm?  It's minus 5 degrees outside as I'm writing!  But I'm cozied up in my craft room with a hot chai latte'.  Warm puppy at my feet.  Ahhhh.

My first Valentine of the season!  Boy, am I glad to see fresh, bright colors like these.  Have a little peek at some upcoming Sale-A-Bration items.

The cute little banners are made with the SAB Banner Blast stamp set (the center banner) and coordinating banner punch.  No more worrying over crooked banner ends!  Just punch, punch, punch. 

The center stamp, "Love", is covered with Iridescent Ice heat embossing powder to give a little oomph. 

Patterned paper is Fresh Prints Designer Paper Stack.  These 4.5 x 6.5 papers are just the right size and easy to store!

I think I like this red background  best.

Be My Valentine is from Delightful Dozen (#122652 $24.95). It's just right with a red Glimmer heart!

I'm playing with the Monday Lunchtime Sketch TSSC296. Nice sketch, I love clean sketches, you can literally go anywhere with them!  Love the inspiration from the designers, too!  Heck, who doesn't love a banner?!

Have a blessed & creative day!  Stay cozy ~ Erika

Petals & Feathers - New Spring Supplies! HSS176

Pin It Now! Hey crafty friend!  How's it going?  Have you recovered from Christmas yet?  As much as I love Christmas, I am very ready for some springy projects!  Here's one using some new spring mini & Sale-A-Bration goodies, as well as some regular catty stamps I have in my stash.

I'm drawing inspiration from this photo from Hand Stamped Sentiments. This is a fantastic photo because there are so many ways to interpret it.  Hearts? Pink? Nature?  I chose feathers, and a little pink!

HAND STAMPED SENTIMENTS
PHOTO INSPIRATION CHALLENGE
HSS176

Fine Feathers is a stamp set that I purchased right away, and it sits and looks pretty on my shelf most of the time.  This was a great opportunity to ink it up!  I stamped three feathers in three colors - Crisp Cantaloupe, Blushing Bride, and Soft Sky.  Cut and arranged them on a tag. A little stamp layering with two new stamp sets (Petal Parade & Simply Celebrate) and some spritzing. 

See the sequins?  You'll be seeing a lot of them!  They come in a huge roll, and I think they'll last a long, long time!  I adhered them with Sticky Strip behind the (new SAB) Sweet Sorbet DSP. They add a nice glimmery touch to an otherwise pastel card, and I love the way they catch the eye when the light hits them.  

So go on, make a spring - love - birdy - feather - whatever card!  I'd love to see what you come up with using Hand Stamped Sentiment's photo challenge!  

Have a blessed and creative day ~ Erika

Supplies:

Stamps: Fine Feathers, Petal Parade (SAB), Simply Celebrate (Spring Mini)

Ink: Basic Black, Blushing Bride, Soft Sky, Crisp Cantaloupe

Paper:  Sweet Sorbet DSP (SAB), Blushing Bride, Whisper White

Embellishments: Gold Sequin Trim, Crisp Cantaloupe Stretch Ruffle Trim, Gold bakers twine

Punches:  Scallop Tag Topper, Crop-A-Dile

Other: Stampamajig, Spritzing Tool. 

Sketch Full of Sneak Peeks! HSSSC175

Pin It Now! Tis the season to be busy!  I've had a box full of sneak peek products from the upcoming Spring Occasions Mini and Sale-A-Bration for over a week now (even paid for expedited shipping!) and finally have had time to make a birthday card for my mom using this week's sketch at Hand Stamped Sentiments!

Most of the supplies are from a mini album kit - Mini Memories Simply Created Album Kit, and I've broken out the kit so I can use it for cards because all the elements of it are so sweet!  It has a little bit of everything...the paper bag, doily, the large sequin, and the lovely gold baker's twine are all from the kit.  I've cut apart the tulip printed bag and sanded it a bit to tone down the white, and there's plenty of it leftover for more cards.

The stamp is from the upcoming Another Great Year set, and it has the BEST birthday stamps...you'll see the largest one below on the inside. "Wish Big" is embossed with white and watercolored with Wild Wasabi and Calypso Coral. A few sequins and a bow from the twine embellish the sides of the Natural Composition DSP frame.  

I love the watercolor trend!  It was very easy and I didn't have to worry about getting things perfect.  See the muslin banner there?  It's part of a Sale-A-Brations freebie! A super lovely banner kit called Heartfelt - OMGoodness I LOVE it!  There are POM POMs in it! The top of the banner is punched with a new Scalloped Tag Topper Punch.

Inside is a show stopper sentiment with a little more watercoloring brushed on. 

So, do you have a little time set aside for stamping during this busy time?  Head on over to Hand Stamped Sentiments and play along!  

O Holy Night Subway Art Christmas Card HSSCC174

Pin It Now! Once in a while you find a stamp that can stand alone on a piece of paper and just be stunning. O Holy Night is a beautiful stamp set, with rich text art and all the right words to celebrate Christmas!  I believe I have found a keeper!

Hand Stamped Sentiments is challenging us to use a warm color combo this week of Cherry Cobbler, Baked Brown Sugar, and Daffodil Delight.  Looks rather autumny to me, but I've got to get Christmas cards rolling out of here, so I made it work. 

I used Daffodil Delight to sponge the outside of the stamped layer, and I think it  brightened it up nicely against the red.

Gotta love that double fork bow!

Be sure to set some time aside during this busy Christmas season to satisfy your creativity!  Join us at Hand Stamped Sentiments and play along!

STAMPS: o Holy Night

INK: Cherry Cobbler, Daffodil Delight, Crumb Cake for sponging

PAPER: In Color 13-15 stack, Cherry Cobbler, Baked Brown Sugar, Very Vanilla

EMBELLISHMENTS:  Cherry Cobbler SBR, Basic Pearls, Linen Thread

TOOLS: Framelits Apothecary Accents