Red, White & Blue--not 4th of July

Fun inspiration for Ellen Hutson's July Pin-Sights challenge.  I was inspired by the chevrons, 2 shades of blue, the red & white polka dots & sparkle. I used MFT dies for the chevrons which I cut from 2 blue scraps.  

EH Bold Blossom was cut from printed paper & a solid red scrap--leaving all the pieces intact in the red flower. The die cut word is also EH & I used tiny alphabet stickers to spell happy.

The entire panel was sprayed heavily with Perfect Pearls mixed in water--ala Jennifer McGuire. I'm planning to use this for a birthday card.  I'm also entering The Playground & SSS Wednesday.  

I'm not one to save & fiddle with tiny scraps, but the pieces from the polka dot flower called to me & were saved from the trash--haha!  

I cut another blossom from white cardstock & brushed on Aqua Noir sparkle--a wonderful gift from my friend, Cat. Then I attached the little pieces on top which gives a nice texture.  The outline of the leaves was also brushed, leaving the inside pieces plain--neat look in person. The chevron piece is done with left overs from the first card & a piece of silver DCWV glitter paper adds more sparkle.  

The sentiment from SSS Card-Exchanging Friends is stamped in PTI Blueberry Sky--the only one of my many blue ink pads that matched the scrap!  A few PPP clear sequins finish it off. I'm entering EH July Pin-Sights, SSS Flickr Challenge No. 50 & SSS Monday.  Thanks so much for taking time to stop by.

Post Number 1001

I don't usually look at my blog statistics, but the number 1000 caught my eye.  Hard to believe I'm starting onto my second thousand posts--that's a lot! So glad I finally listened to my friend, Rosemary, who encouraged me to begin blogging. What a world of friends it has opened up to me since February, 2012--I'm so grateful for that.

HEATHER'S CARD

Onto my card which was inspired by Heather's for Winnie & Walter Rerun No 12.  It immediately reminded me of my very old (1997) DeNami stamp. Last night I pulled it out & made a card not at all my usual, but I love it!  Isn't it great when that happens?!  The stars are also very old--Stampendous & Ann-ticipations.

After the gold embossing was done I smooshed Distress Inks squeezed lemonade, dusty concord & peacock feathers--drying after each color. I bought Michaels Ebony spray mist for splatters, but this time I held my breath & misted with it as well. Totally changed the look of the panel--so fun! I used a spellbinder die for the scallops & gold heat embossed the side of the card to match the images. 

My much loved W&W hello die is stacked 3 high & brushed with gold WOS which I got months ago & had not opened. Finished off with PPP gold metallic sequins which I just got--best $3 purchase ever!  I'm also entering SSS Monday, SSS Wednesday, CropStop, HLS Anything Goes with Dies, Stamplorations Theme & Sketch & Word Art Wednesday.  
Fritz & I are planning several walks today as our temps are supposed to be in the 80s instead of the 90s. Could even turn on the oven, so better get the apple/zucchini bread made I've been putting off. Thanks so much for taking time to stop by.

Warm Summer Colors

The Impression Obsession challenge is Hello Summer & they want to see warm color projects. Don't you love that stampers can use any images with any colors? Using warm colors came naturally today with our temp reaching 94 degrees!  Too hot for Fritz & me--oops--I broke my promise not to complain after being in the East Coast humidity last week--haha!  

I couldn't resist the beautiful IO stamp called Nest Collage when we used it in a class about 4 years ago.  To give it a summer feel I began by heat embossing with Detail Copper powder & then sponging on Distress Inks squeezed lemonade, scattered straw & wild honey.  I brushed on Perfect Pearls for a nice sheen.  The edges of the image panel & the dry embossed mat were also copper embossed.  If hubby doesn't want to use it for a thank you card, I'll write a note to a blogging friend. I'm also entering Penny Black & More, Retro Rubber, SSS Monday & SSS Wednesday. Thanks so much for taking time to stop by.

Hello with Foil & Glitter

Shay's Card

Before my trip, I had an idea for a W&W Rerun No. 12 card inspired by Shay.  I only got as far as covering the hello die with FlitterGlue & silver foil. Last night everything came together using MFT Party Patterns, as I still just have the Hello die from W&W. Love that I can use it on the outside of a card for any occasion--just put the happy birthday, thank you, etc. on the inside. Best ever gift from a blogging friend!

Somewhere I saw a word die cut with 2 colored shadows & thought this was the perfect time to try it out.  Usually I have the top layer farthest to the left side, but I liked it better this way.  The inks are Memento Love Letter & Nautical Blue. I mounted the word to a piece of heavy weight vellum letting the pattern show through.  It's just enough to help the sentiment stand out.  I was inspired by Shay's red, white & blue color combo & the sparkle.  

Instead of gems I sprayed the entire card front with Glitter Dust--beautiful spray glitter. I'm also entering SSS Monday, SSS Wednesday & Word Art Wednesday.  

You just can't beat a pink rose in my book, so thought I'd share the bud I brought into the house. Thanks so much for taking time to stop by.

Papertrey July Blog Hop Challenge...& final SAF cards

Perfect timing for all the fun at PTI as I didn't have to hunt for inspiration to get back into stamping after my trip.  

Love that the monthly PTI Blog Hop wasn't cancelled even though the SAF deadline isn't until tomorrow morning. The more chances Mr Random has to find me, the better--haha! Fresh & clean inspiration with Berry Sorbet, Aqua Mist, Soft Stone & Blueberry Sky.  I still needed to try Watercolor Like a Master, so combined the challenges.  

Lots of practice needed, but I had fun using images from Garden Gild Mini Kit & a sentiment from Meadow Greens stamped in Versafine Smokey Gray. Fortunately I had a quatrefoil embossing folder which kept the panel from going into the trash.  I'm also entering SSS Monday.
Hubby needs a thank you for one of his male cousins.  The Masterpiece Inspiration by Matisse gave me the idea to cover much of a panel with leaves.

I used Turning a New Leaf & dots from Harvest Berries with 4 green inks: Spring Moss, Mint Julep, Simply Chartreuse & New Leaf.  The sentiment from Take Three Summer is stamped in Memento Toffee Crunch which I think goes well with the Classic Kraft card front. I'm also entering Word Art Wednesday.
I couldn't find a PTI stamp to use for Pointillism Play, but I do want to give that technique a try in the future.  

My last card is for Color Blocking.  The definition I found said you combine colors opposite each other on the color wheel.  I ended up with a fun, happy card using the stem stamp & flower die from Flower Fusion #9 with Lemon Tart, Winter Wisteria, Pink Lady, Mint Julep, Spring Rain & Summer Sunrise. The sentiment from Heart to Heart #2 is white embossed.  I'm also entering Retro Rubber as these have been in my stash for over 3 years. 

I've had a ball letting chores wait & spending all my time walking Fritz & making cards. Now I better get back to real world duties & mail some cards! Thanks so much for all the sweet comments which really make my day.

Rudolph Days Guest Designer

My PTI SAF post is HERE.

Last year Maureen asked for volunteers to help her with the Rudolph Days challenges for 2016. She had a pretty big response & didn't want to turn anyone away. It worked out great as each of us is on a team who will Guest Design every other month for 3 months.  All the challenge details are on Maureen's RD Post.  

My card features several of my favorite things: poinsettias, felt & foil. The stamps & dies are by My Favorite Things. Recently I bought FlitterGlu to see if I could foil a stamped image.  It worked great with the Distressed Diamonds, which I also used on this card.  To give the felt more body, I attached it to cardstock before die cutting.  Hope you'll check out the work of my teammates & make a Christmas card for the challenge.  I'm also entering HLS Anything Goes with Dies, CropStop, Uniko & Word Art Wednesday. Thanks so much for stopping by.

PTI Marathon!

I've been having such fun working on PTI challenges. Need to get my card entered for the MIM Spritzed Stamps challenge.   I'll also include the SAF cards I've completed so far.  Don't think you need the directions, so I'll just list the products I used--all PTI stamps.  Feel free to ask if you have any questions.

I've spritzed stamps, but not with layering images like this bloom from Rosie Posie.  The little tag & sentiment are from Tiny Tags. The inks are PTI Lovely Lady, Berry Sorbet, Limeade Ice, Lemon Tart, Harvest Gold & Memento Toffee Crunch.

For Master Color Recipes I chose the one inspired by Renoir.  My background was done with Distress Paint Wild Honey softened with Antique Linen & then watercolored with Hawaiian Shores.  

I used the other colors to stamp the images from Friendly Flowers. The sentiment is stamped in Versafine Vintage Sepia & the mat is Berry Sorbet cardstock.

Next is Starry Night--such a fun card to make! My PTI inks are Enchanted Evening, Blueberry Sky, Amethyst Allure & Ocean Tides. When I tried to add more ink with a waterbrush it looked like my sky was ruined. I let it dry & then did more blending of the inks & it came out just like I wanted.  

I used a foam brush with black acrylic paint for the land & trees. The stars are splatters of white paint & brushed pewter Distress Stain.  I added Stardust Stickles to the die cut word from Don't Forget to Write.

Gold is on trend now, but I've always loved it. My card for Gilded In Gold uses dies & a stamp from Don't Forget to Write. The Liquid Leaf is beautiful & easy to use.  I clear embossed "Note" for shine.
For Floral Impressionism I used The Sweet Life, Don't Forget to Write & Text Style.  

The inks are Sweet Blush, Melon Berry, Mink Julep, Spring Moss, Fine Linen & Memento Toffee Crunch. It did take a couple tries to figure out which of the stamp layers to use, but I love the end result--soft & feminine. I'm also entering the 30 Day Coloring challenge.
Thanks for sticking with me--last card is for Mastering Drips & Splatters.  

I couldn't resist trying the yarn dipped in watercolor. Even though I mixed the paint with more water & got a different look, I really like it.  I watercolored a scrap of the wc paper so my die cut word from Don't Forget to Write would match the blue splatters. The mat & sentiment are Royal Velvet.  I'm also entering The Playground & Double D.  Take care if you're in a heatwave.  I won't complain after experiencing the high humidity of the East coast!