A Couple of Challenges

It's been a while since I've posted. This is because I was paper crafting on a larger scale i.e. wallpapering. Anyhow, although I didn't get to post anything I was still able to try a few of the challenges.

The first card is a sketch challenge and I decided to make mine a Get Well card.

STVSC25

For that same week I did the Potluck Friday challenge.

One-Two-Three-Four Recipe:

1 or more designer paper

2 or more different types of bling

3 or more pastel colors

4 or more layers

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Both these cards are the long DL cards, which along with square cards would be my preference.

However I do love the cuttlebug embossing folders and they work best with a C6 card. Still I can always play around and see what turns out.

This was all there was time for two weeks ago but there were more last week.

Monday Challenges

I've been meaning to do the Mojo Monday challenge for several weeks now without any success but this week I was determined because I really liked the sketch or rather the samples.

In my head I was planning on light blue and white and doing a Christmas theme - that would mean one more ready for December. As you can see things didn't quite go as planned. Anyway I was happy enough with the result and the good thing was I used up some off-cuts of paper.

MojoMonday MOJO99

my card

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Monday is also the day for the stamptv colour challenge and this weeks colours were red, brown and cream. I decided to tie it in with the splitcoaststampers tutorial for a recessed card.

This isn't a great photo because of the lighting. The inner frame, fine border and ink are all very dark brown although in the photo they look black. Will post photos of the insides of these cards later.

Christmas & more.

Blue Christmas

I've been busy trying to get on top of things and take part in some challenges too. I always seem to be putting my entry at the very last moment but I think I've got the challenge days sorted in my head now. Sometimes I get lucky where I've already made a card that fits the bill without having to start afresh. Anyhow today was the sketch challenge.

Here is the sketch

and here is my card.

My first Christmas card of 2009. This is early for me. I don't usually get started until December. End of November if I'm really organised. Anyhow snowmen and blue - I think that's me to a T. The snowman is coloured with Sakura Gelly roll glaze and Stardust pens.

STAMPS: Home and Hearts - Penny Black; Snowman -Inkadinkado

Here are a couple of last year's cards. Surprisingly they fit next week's technique challenge so that's sorted although I would like to try a baby card or something. Tutorial for this technique here.

Winter Village

Winter's Butterfly

CUTTLEBUG EMBOSSING FOLDERS

Evening Sunset.

I'm also posting the card I made for Potluck Friday. This week it had to include a photo and my choice was one of a sunset my daughter had taken from her home. It is an absolutely breathtaking photograph. And here is my card.

I kept it simple because I didn't want to detract from the photo.

PUNCH: Martha Stewart Arch Lattice

STAMP: CHF Thomas Kinkade

Watercolour Spritzing Challenge

I've already mentioned that I'm trying to build up my cards supplies and my ideas by taking part in weekly challenges. Stamptv offers different types of challenges for different days of the week.

This week the technique challenge was watercolour spritzing. Video tutorial can be found here. I'd already used a similar technique before and liked the result. The hardest part was finding a solid or fairly solid image stamp . This tree from CHF seemed the best choice so of course it had to be Autumnal colours. Managed to get the card uploaded with just about an hour to spare before the challenge closed. It's not a card that will stand out among others but it met the brief.

I am excited though because when I checked in this morning I found that I had won and so got to pick a stamp set of choice.

It has to be noted that the winner is the luck of the draw - random generator number - and nothing to do with the card. However, it's an added bonus when something like this happens.

The technique challenge for next week is to ink a Cuttlebug embossing folder. I made a lot of my Christmas cards last year this way and was really pleased with the results. But then I love Cuttlebug embossing folders.

Baby Girl and the colour challenge

Earlier on my blog I said that I was going to take part in weekly challenges in order to build up my stash of ready-to-go cards and also as an opportunity to use up my paper stash. My intentions were better than my efforts but there are a lot of other things demanding my time at the moment, namely home decorating projects. However sometimes the challenge just leaves me stumped. Last Monday's colour challenge for stamptv was peach, ivory and pink was optional. Not too bad, or so I thought. Theresa who set the challenge had made a really beautiful card. I already had an idea I had previously done in my head. Time to create.

Now it is important to remember that this was a colour challenge.

My idea went out the window the moment I got the papers out.

I reckon I have a pretty good collection of paper and cardstock but could I get peach. Everytime I gathered what I thought was peach and started to put paper and cardstock together, everything seemed to be more of a pink. In the end I found a peach DL card blank and a sheet of K&Co paper which was 2/3 pink with a peach border. It didn't leave a lot to work with but I managed to put something together. It really was a challenge this time.

Next weeks cc is red, brown and cream. I know I definitely have those colours - just hope I get the inspiration.

When you need more than an envelope.

My second post today and this is the one I had hoped to make. I couldn't find the memory card for my camera until about 5 minutes ago .

After I made the tri-shutter card I realised that an ordinary envelope wasn't going to do the job.

My fan-fold flowers would end up more like pressed flowers. The only answer was a box.

view from above

view from the side

inside view

I was going to put a couple of folded flowers on the lid but then decided that might be too much and settled for some tiny bling. I had the flowers made but didn't want to overdo it.

Let me know what you think I should have done.

Signsof Autumn

There is something I did want to post before this card but things didn't go as planned. Anyhow this card was for the stamptv Potluck Friday challenge stvpf24. The idea was to make a card with flowers but to use bleach as a 'colouring' medium. My flowers were stamped onto the rust coloured card, heat embossed to give a raised edge and then painted within the lines with bleach. Black stickles were used to decorate the flower centres. The flowerheads were then cut out and raised on 3d foam tabs. The effect was quite striking but the results differ depending on the card used and also the bleach. Each colour layer is cut with the graduating curved rectangle nestabilities as is the main body of the card. I think this card lends itself to being a good size and design for a notelet.

Tri-Shutter Card

It has been longer than I intended since my last post because I was working on more than one project. Sometimes in the middle of one thing, another idea comes along and I run with that. Then something else gets my attention and off I go again with the result that plenty gets started and little gets finished.

I've wanted to do a card like this for some time but never got around to it. When it came up on the SCS tutorial last week I decided it was time. I adjusted mine to fit an A4 piece of card and used a score board instead of measuring. Finished size closed is the same as a DL card-ie. 8 1/4 x 4 1/8 inches.

The closed view

The work view

The open view

There is another version of this card which gives a full card front. Hope to try it soon. I was really pleased with the way the fan-fold flowers turned out. The scrolls were cut with Cricut Expression + Home Decor.

PAPER: K&Co Breeze range, Rayher pink patchwork and stripes
STAMPS: Lizzie Anne Designs