My Dear Friend

I spent this month really trying to accomplish some of my 2018 crafting goals... one goal was to start working down my stack of pretty papers, another was to send out a card every day this month, and my big one was to start using some of my recent purchases. I have lots of old favorites that I frequently reach for... so this card was a result one of recent stamp additions. 

I love how this stamp fills up a good portion of the card front. I used the sentiment included in the set, but this floral spray would be suitable for many different occasions. I used this flower to stretch my skills and practice more with my Copic markers. I have been dealing with wrist and thumb pain, so coloring this took me longer than usual. The extra time needed to complete this really forced me to slow down and I’m very pleased with the outcome as pictured below.

Here are the supplies I used:

Stamps:

My Dear Friend: Uniquely Unity January 2018 (Unity Stamp Company)

Paper:

Amethyst Allure (Papertrey Ink)

True Black (PTI)

Stampers Select White (PTI)

Ink:

Detail Ink Raven (Brutus Monroe)

Accessories:

Copic Sketch Markers (Jerry’s Artarama)

Lucky to have You

This card was created as an entry for Unity Stamp Company’s challenge for “green and shiny”. I knew when creating this card I would need to work from the bottom up. I would need to determine my shiny object before I started on the rest of my card. I have over eight shades of green cardstock to choose from... but shiny was going to be my dilemma. 

I didn’t have very many shiny items... hmmm. I have never been a fan of glitter, and I can’t tie a bow to save my life, so I had to rely on my collection of sequins that I had. With several shades of green to choose from, the bright green ones were the ones that really stood out to me. I was reminded of St. Patrick’s Day, so I went with the only clover stamp I had in my collection. 

Here are the supplies I used:

Stamps:

Being Who You Are: February 2018 Kit of the Month (Unity Stamp Company) 

Paper:

Cucumber Crush (Stampin Up Retired)

Stampers Select White (Papertrey Ink)

Ink:

Cucumber Crush (SU Retired)

Versamark (SU)

Versafine Onyx Black (Simon Says Stamp)

Accessories:

Sizzix Big Shot (SU)

Decorative Dots TIEF (SU Retired)

Marvy Heat Tool

Clear Embossing Powder (SU)

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PTI Color Challenge

This card was created as part of Papertrey Ink’s Anniversary celebration. This challenge was a color challenge. We had nine different color groupings to choose from... they were all beautiful. I pulled out my swatch box and paired them all up in real life before deciding on which one I would choose. The rich earth tones in Heather Nichols’s design immediately clicked with me and the card I planned on doing. 

I have only been buying from Papertrey Ink for a little over a year now. I fell in love with their  paper right away. So the first thing I did was to make sure I had every single color of cardstock.  Slowly after that I have been building up stamps, dies and ink. I have roughly 10 ink pads in my collection, so I knew my card would need to be heavy on the cardstock to enter in this challenge. I went with this design, as it is one I favor when I have scraps of paper to use up. I selected the Blessed stamp for this since the card has a Fall/Thanksgiving feel to me. 

Here are the supplies I used:

Stamps:

Keep it Simple: Blessed (Papertrey Ink) 

Paper:

Vintage Cream (PTI)

Scarlet Jewel  (PTI)

Honey Nut (PTI)

Olive Twist (PTI)

Prairie Grass (PTI)

Classic Kraft (PTI)

Ink:

Scarlet Jewel (PTI)

Versamark (Stampin Up)

Accessories:

Sizzix Big Shot (SU)

Decorative Dots Embossing Folder (SU Retired)

D’vine Swirl Embossing Folder (Cricut Retired)

Marvy Heat Tool

Clear Embossing Powder (SU)

Look Mom, No Stamps!

This card was created as part of Papertrey Ink’s Anniversary celebration. This challenge was to use dies only- no stamps. I initially thought it would be easy peasy. I have lots of word and background dies.  I would just need to figure out which ones to use. Hmmm.... that became the hard part.

I wasn’t sure the colors I was going to use once I decided on my background... I have 24 oxide colors to choose from, and I decoded to stay away from the blue/green combo I usually default to. I grabbed picked raspberry and started blending it in to the one end. Yikes! It was a brighter color than I wanted. Then I switched to worn lipstick on the other end and wasn’t liking the huge swing between the two pink shades. I then added the iced spruce to the middle hoping to balance out the colors. Once I oxidized the card, I was glad I waited... the colors mellowed out and blended together nicely.  

Here are the supplies I used:

Stamps:

None

Paper:

Stampers Select White (Papertrey Ink)

Smokey Shadow (PTI)

Brushed Silver (Recollections)

Ink:

Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Iced Spruce (Blitsy)

Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Worn Lipstick (Blitsy)

Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Picked Raspberry (Blitsy)

Accessories:

Sizzix Big Shot (Stampin Up)

Plaid Mix and Mat Die (PTI)

Waiting for Baby

Babies don’t always arrive on their due dates... some arrive early, while others take their sweet time to arrive. I have a friend who is due to give birth later this month and I want to be prepared for her grand entrance. 

This stamp set is versatile for plenty of baby occasions, simply change the color of the romper to fit. The ScanNCut made quick work of cutting out the moon image, as well as other images in this set. In just a couple of minutes I was able to have a handful of die cut images ready to go for the next baby card I need to make. 

Here are the supplies I used:

Stamps:

Moon Baby (Stampin Up)

Paper:

Stampers Select White (Papertrey Ink)

Sweet Blush Bitty Big (PTI)

Sweet Blush Cardstock (PTI)

Ink:

Memento Tuxedo Black (SU)

Accessories:

Scan N Cut (Brother)

Sizzix Big Shot (SU)

Lucky Stars TIEF (SU Retired)

Copic Markers (Assorted Colors)

Sunflower Harvest

Happy Anniversary Papertrey Ink! This card was created as part of a sketch challenge to celebrate the 11th anniversary of PTI. We had multiple sketches to choose from, but I chose the one Lizzie Jones provided as the inspiration for my design. 

I usually go on a spending freeze for January and February, as a way to force myself to use items I already have on hand. With that in mind, I reached for a stamp set I haven’t used yet, Sunflower Harvest. I was eager to buy this as soon as it came out... and today was the first day I inked it up. I am limited with my sunflower colored inks, but I was very happy with how the card came out. Sometimes you just happen to get it just right on the first try.

Here are the supplies I used:

Stamps:

Sunflower Harvest (Papertrey Ink)

Paper:

Stampers Select White (Papertrey Ink)

Crushed Curry (Stampin Up)

Ink:

Crushed Curry(SU)

Pumpkin Pie (SU)

Pear Pizzazz (SU)

Garden Green (SU)

Soft Suede (SU)

Accessories:

Sizzix Big Shot (SU)

Chevron Vertical Die Cover Plate (PTI)

Sunflower Harvest Dies  (PTI)

Black and White Valentine

This card was created as an entry for the Unity No Color Challenge. We are in the season for Valentine's Day... so that is the direction I went with this card. Third time is the charm as they say, and it was the third try before I was able to get this card exactly how I pictured it in my head. I don't often get the time to play along with these challenges, but was excited to find time to participate in this one. 

The En Francis stamp from Stampin Up makes for a great subtle background on this card. I use this stamp often in many of my creations in place of patterned paper. I opted for a black frame to balance out the colors in this card so that black and white appeared to be equally represented. The black base layer of the flower and the white petals are the only part of the card that is embossed. I added this detail to give the card definition. I lightly sponged black over the love die cut so that it would stand out. Black on this sentiment was too harsh, and leaving it white caused it to get lost in the background. Thanks for looking

Here are the supplies I used:

Stamps:

You Are This (Unity Stamp Company)
En Francis (Stampin Up Retired)

Paper:

Stamper's Select White (Papertrey Ink)

True Black (PTI)

Ink:

Versamark (SU)
Versafine Onyx Black (Simon Says Stamp)

Accessories:

Marvy Heat tool 

Sixxiz Big Shot (SU)

Sunshine Wishes Thinlits (SU)
Scalloped Stitched Rectangles (Gina Marie Designs)

Tim Holtz Stamp Platform (Blitsy)

Clear embossing Powder (SU)
White Embossing Powder (SU)

Friends of Unity February Blog Hop

Welcome Unity fans to our Friends of Unity February blog hop! This month our theme is Love. I came up with my  basic layout idea for this card from a video that I saw from Jennifer McGuire on stacked die cutting cards. You can see her video tutorial here. My idea takes the idea of using multiple dies and creating inward dimension, not necessarily giving the card extra height. 

The stamp set used in this card design is another reason why I like my Tim Holtz platform so much. Having the grid lines really helps line the stamps up instead of just eyeballing their placement on a clear acrylic block.  I am a big fan of monochromatic cards, so I kept this card simple with the navy and white color scheme. 

Here are the supplies I used:

Stamps:

Special Wishes  (Unity Stamp Company)

Paper:

Stampers Select White (Papertrey Ink)

Dark Indigo (PTI)

Floral Boutique (SU Retired)

Clear Cardstock (PTI)

Ink:

Night of Navy (Stampin Up)

Accessories:
Sizzix Big Shot (SU)

Lots of Labels Framelits (SU)

Tim Holtz Stamping Platform (Blitsy)

Thanks for stopping by and checking out my blog! Hop to the others and see their amazing creations:

Crystal O. Minkler

Eileen Mathys (You're Here!)

Robyn Jordan

Jeanie Hays

Amber Trubiak

Wynne Grob

Dawn Fields