CAS-ual Fridays #67: Banners & Flags

Used a new (to me) Paper Smooches stamp set called "My Guy" to create a birthday card for one of our friends who looooves classic cars.  Next Friday we are all going to the Grand Prix Festival in Watkins Glen, NY.  They actually let the participants "race" their classic cars on the original 6 mile road course and we will see lots of cars similar in style to the one I used on my card!  So fun to see the drivers of these cars wearing racing goggles with their neck scarves fluttering in the wind :)

Did a combination of coloring and piecing on the car.  Used a silver gel pen on the chrome parts and some stickles on the lights.  Created the "road" by using a Cuttlebug embossing folder.  Sentiment is from Paper Smooches "Sentiment Sampler" set. 
Other Materials Used:  Stampin' Up cs, Bo Bunny pp, My Mind's Eye Life of the Party pp. Doodlebug Designs bakers twine, W R Memory Keepers corner rounder

Since I did use a flag banner in my design I'm linking this up to the current CAS-ual Fridays challenge:



Have a wonderful Wednesday!!

Minty Christmas!

Since I'm suddenly in the mood to create Christmas cards I decided to go with it:

This is based on one of the sketches for the current Hero Arts challenge (instead of using a circle I used a square and I also moved the sentiment strip from the bottom to the top third of the card).  After die cutting a frame using a Spellbinder Nestie I white embossed Hero Arts (HA) S5208 Designer Woodgrain.  The HA CG395 Snowing Village was first stamped in HA soft pool shadow ink on white cs then embossed in black on both white cs and gingham pp.  After squishing various inks on an acrylic block I picked them up with a blender pen and colored in the houses on the black embossed piece.  The gingham house was paper pieced as shown then the whole piece was cut out and adhered to the soft pool piece with foam tape.  Some sparkle was added to the village with a Sakura gelly roll pen (hard to see in the pic) and a few gems.  Sentiment is from HA CL540 Christmas Reindeer.
Other Materials Used:  WPlus 9 banner die, Doodlebug designs button, Martha Stewart baker's twine, HA clear gems, Papertrey ink white cs, Stampin' Up pool cs and markers (pool and kiwi kiss), Ranger barn door distress ink

I'm also linking this up to the Moxie Fab World Minty Fresh Challenge that runs through September 3rd.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

PDCC #145 (Burnt Sienna, Mustard, Slate) and Hero Arts Sketch Challenge

Love the color palette of the current Play Date Cafe Challenge.  I think the slate adds a bit of sophistication to these harvest colors:

I always seem to reach for this Real Blossom stamp from Hero Arts whenever I sit down to create a fall card - probably because it reminds me of a mum:

I also wanted to play along with this month's Hero Arts challenge so I based my card design on one of their sketches.  For some reason I struggled with this one:(  I couldn't figure out how to add a border to the bottom of the stamped panel.  I finally remembered I had this striped ribbon in my stash and after adhering a strip of double-sided tape I pleated it onto my panel.  I've been seeing alot of inked and embossed panels in my travels through blogland and decided to use this Lifestyle Crafts embossing folder to echo the dots in the dotty pp.  Butterfly from Hero Arts Antique Engravings was embossed on pp.  Sentiment is from Hero Arts Everyday Sayings.  All edges were distressed with Ranger pumice stone distress ink.

Other Materials Used:  Stampin' Up rust and grey cs, Papertrey ink rustic white cs, WPlus 9 banner die, W R Memory Keepers corner rounder, Michael's pearls colored with grey Sharpie, Ranger rusty hinge distress marker, Tsukineko smoky gray pigment ink, My Mind's Eye Lost & Found Sunshine pp, JoAnn's striped ribbon

Don't know if you've gotten a copy of the Paper Crafts Card Design Handbook yet - nearly every page of mine is dogeared already and I've read different sections aloud to my husband while "watching baseball" with him:)  I had to giggle when he looked at my card and without even batting an eye said "Well, it looks like you've made the mustard color your gallon, the rust your quart and gray your pint."  Gotta love a guy who actually listens :)

Thanks for stopping by and for all your comments!

Moxie Fab World: Minty Fresh Challenge and I'm a Daytripper!

Looooooove this little guy from Memory Box!

After stamping this Polar Bear Globe image in Clearsnap seaglass pigment ink, I clear embossed then die cut it using a Spellbinder Nestie.  The same image was then black embossed twice on white cs and pp scraps.  The polar bear was then cut out and paperpieced to the main image.  Sentiment is from Hero Arts CL540 Christmas Reindeer.
Other Materials Used:  K & Company Peppermint Twist pp, My Mind's Eye Quite Contrary (Jack & Jill) pp, WPlus 9 banner die, Papertrey ink white cs, Cuttlebug snowflake embossing folder, JoAnn's heart button

Hopefully this color is minty enough as I'm entering it into the Moxie Fab World: Minty Fresh Challenge!  This challenge runs until 9/3/12 so you've got plenty of time to give it a go:)  I'm also going to pop this into the current Simon Says Stamp Challenge: Animal Antics!

Wanted to share a few pics from the daytrippin' my hubby and I did last week at the gorge in Watkins Glen NY State Park.  Sorry there aren't any pics of us but this possibly was a worse "bad hair day" than our Niagara Falls trip:) 

The way Glen Creek has sculpted the rocks is SO cool:




I just love how my husband got the flowers in the foreground of this shot:

And look at the brilliance of the greenery growing on the sides of the gorge:

The last time I hiked the gorge was as a kid with my parents.  All I can remember about that experience was having to go to the bathroom when we got to the top of the trail and racing back down as fast as I could to get to the restrooms way at the beginning of the trail :)  I had to giggle when halfway up my husband and I heard a little boy tell his mother he "had to go - NOW"!!!  I guess it served me right that my calves were killing me for days after our hike....

While part of me is sad summer is winding down these cooler temps are making me wistful for autumn.  Fall in our neck of the woods really is glorious!  Plus I love all things pumpkin :) 

Happy Monday and thanks for taking the time to leave such thoughtful comments!

Runway Inspired Challenge #17 and Hero Arts Sketch Challenge

Look at the gorgeous inspiration at the current Runway Inspired Challenge:

I was really inspired by the colors, the ruffles and the movement of the dress:

I chose this image from Hero Arts CL477 Delicate Leaf Cluster for the ruffled edges of the leaves.  After inking the stamp with Ranger spiced marmalade, dusty concord and peeled paint distress inks I very lightly sprayed with water before stamping on a piece of PTI rustic white cs.  Sentiment is from Hero Arts CL342 Everyday Sayings.  Butterflies were die cut from Stampin' Up pp using a Stampin' Up/Sizzix Beautiful Wings embosslit.

Other Materials Used:  Stampin' Up elegant eggplant cs, WPlus 9 banner die, Queen & Co pearls, W R Memory Keepers corner rounder

And since I used one of the challenge sketches I'm also going to put this in the current Hero Arts challenge.

Thanks for your lovely comments and have a great weekend!

CAS-ual Fridays CFC65: Square Cards and Hero Arts Sketch Challenge

Still not done playing with these roses from Hero Arts CG434 Floral Blossoms :)

Using the negative space of a vase die cut from Cricut Walk in My Garden cart I sponged it with Hero Arts soft pool ink onto a die cut white cs circle.  The roses were inked with Ranger dusty concord and peeled paint and Stampin' Up wisteria wonder markers.  The largest bloom is adhered with foam tape for some dimension.  Sentiment is from Hero Arts CL476 With Sympathy.
Other Materials Used:  Stampin' Up pp, Cuttlebug swiss dot embossing folder, Hero Arts clear gems (colored with copic marker), W R Memory Keepers corner rounder

I'm linking this up to the CAS-ual Fridays challenge #65 to create a square card:



I met my friend Ruthie for dinner last night - was so great to catch up:)  Seeing her reminded me it's been far too long since I participated in a Hero Arts challenge so I'm entering my card in this month's sketch challenge!  Ruthie's the one who got me started on their challenges way back in 2009!!!  I am incredibly thankful for her for that as my life has been soooooo enriched by being part of the wonderfully supportive and inspirational on-line world of cardmakers that includes all of you!!!

Hugs :)

A Blog Named Hero Challenge #9: Freestyle and PDCC #144

Happy Friday everyone!  I finished a card last night using the scrumptiously (hope this is a word!) summery colors for the Play Date Cafe Challenge #144:

and it occurred to me since I also used a whole bunch of Hero Arts stampy goodness to make it I could also enter it in A Blog Named Hero's Challenge #9: Freestyle! :

And here's my card:

I can't seem to stop using this floral image from Hero Arts CG434 Floral Blossoms whenever I need to make a feminine birthday card!  The image was stamped in Ranger worn lipstick, spiced marmalade and squeezed lemonade distress inks.  The sentiment frame from Hero Arts CL588 Sending You Love was also stamped in worn lipstick and die cut using the matching Frame Cut die.  After adhering it to the card front with foam tape I added a couple of Hero Arts Sunshine Dots.  The butterfly from Hero Arts CG130 Butterflies set was white embossed twice on yellow cs and vellum.  After sponging the vellum piece with squeezed lemonade and coloring in the dots with a worn lipstick distress marker I cut out the wings only and adhered them to the cs butterfly.

Other Materials Used:  Papertrey ink white cs, Stampin' Up yellow cs

We are finally getting some much needed rain here in upstate NY - I think I can actually hear the grass saying "Ahhhhhhhhh!!!!!"  Hope everyone's been enjoying their summer!  My hubby is finally free of the arm brace he had to wear 24/7 and is getting some range of motion back in his arm through weekly PT.  We've been trying to "squeeze our summer" into these last few weeks:)  Last Monday we took a day trip to the Canadian side of Niagara Falls and had sooooo much fun being tourists for a day!  Neither of us had ever been on the Maid of the Mist so we bought the Adventure Pass tickets to do it all!  I'm kicking myself for not bringing the camera as we were quite a sight in our garbage bag rain ponchos looking like drowned rats!  And at the end of the day there was a stunning double rainbow over the falls!!  At the Hershey store we spent an outrageous amount of money on the thickest and most chocolatey milkshake either of us had ever had :)  And we promptly lost all our Canadian change at the casino:( 

Thanks for all your supportive comments and have a fantastic weekend!

CAS-ual Fridays: CFC63

The current challenge (ending today at noon EST) at CAS-ual Fridays is a color challenge:

These are the same colors on a Vera Bradley floral print purse I saw someone carrying the other day :)

All stamps are from Hero Arts (Speckled Ornaments, Earth Flowers and Hooray).  Used Stampin' Up tempting turquoise and pacific point inks along with Hero Arts Green Hills.

Other Materials Used:  Stampin' Up cs, Michael's black pearls, W R Memory Keepers corner rounder

Thanks for all your lovely comments and have a wonderful day!