Fusion - Hello Cards

Hello!

I'm here with my latest card for Fusion Card Challenge where the inspiration is just awesome! I've again made a fusion card using both sketch and inspiration photo. I'm amazed, I'm usually a sketch OR inspiration girl, but when you can't choose between them you just need to use both. :-)

I think the cute little envelope dies are Wplus9. The sentiment is definitely Wplus9.

That inspiration photo has so much to work with. I didn't even get to using the flowers and greenery in my card!

I can't wait to see what everyone makes for this challenge. I'm betting on a colourful and beautiful gallery.

Thank-you for visiting!

Michelle
xxx

Fusion - Interlocking Hearts

Hello!

I can't believe we're into February already. Time flies so quickly! Valentine's Day is fast approaching our latest Fusion Card Challenge is celebrating LOVE. For my card this time I have used a fusion of both sketch and photo inspiration.

I used PTI Heart Prints stamps and dies.

Isn't that sketch and inspiration just awesome?! I just know our gallery will be filled with fabulousness this time around, as always!

Thanks for visiting!

Michelle
xxx

CAS(E) This Sketch 158

Hello!

This week's sketch for CAS(E) This Sketch had me wondering for ages just what I would do with it. It's such a simple sketch, but those vertical stripes puzzled me. Then I had an idea! Yay for the mojo coming out to play!

This is what I came up with.

I used Mama Elephant Bear Hugs stamps and dies. I coloured in Copics (W2 & W4).

For those of you who layer easily, this sketch will have you bursting with ideas, I'm sure! I can't wait to see what you create!

Thanks for visiting!

Michelle
xxx

Bear Hugs

Hello!

I've been playing around with Mama Elephant Bear Hugs. When I first saw these stamps I just knew I had to have them. My girls have two favourite picture books - Always and You're All My Favorites - both of them about baby bears and mama bears and love. :-)

This one I made for my 12 year old. She wouldn't read it in front of me. She didn't say anything afterwards. But it is on display in a prominent place in her bedroom. I think she likes it.

This next card I made for my 7 year old. She likes a good pun. She also forgives my amateur Copic skills. In fact, she told me that she LOVED the way I coloured the card. She's good for soothing my ego, lol!

The "beary much" part of the sentiment is made from Lawn Fawn Milo's Alphabet. It matches the Bear Hugs font pretty well. I'm adding this one to the Mama Elephant Stamp With Me April Flikr challenge "Make Me Laugh".

I think I may have better luck with watercolouring this set. Copic backgrounds aren't really my forte. ;-)

Thanks for dropping by to visit!

Michelle
xxx

CAS(E) This Sketch 104

Hello!

I just noticed that I made farm animal cards two weeks in a row for CAS(E) This Sketch! I hope you like farm animals as much as I do! I blame it on the fact that I hadn't yet tidied up my desk and that little pig was just begging me for a place on a card, lol! This may just be my style of Valentine's card - CAS, not too mushy, with just a touch of humour thrown in. ;-)

I used PTI On The Farm. Colours are SU! Pumpkin Pie, Gumball Green, and Early Espresso.

I managed to get a tiny bit of Christmas shopping done today at lunchtime. If I can do a tiny bit more tomorrow, then my Christmas Eve shopping won't look quite so daunting... only one week to Christmas!

Thanks for visiting me! I hope you can join us at CAS(E) This Sketch this week!

Michelle
xxx

Love

Hello!

I've had this little idea in my head forever, since I bought PTI Square Prints (which is a LONG time). Someone else has probably already made the same card, the idea has been hanging around in my head for so long, lol! But, finally I decided it was time to put ink to paper and get it out of my head.

I used PTI Square Prints and Mama Elephant So Breezy. Inks are Memento Luxe Rose Bud and Memento London Fog.

I'm entering this into Addicted to CAS where the code word is LOVE.

I'm also entering this as my second entry into the One Layer Simplicity challenge where the challenge is to repeat stamp. I love how these squares make such pretty patterns when repeat stamped, they were made for cards like this!

Thanks for coming by. Today I am attempting to mow the lawn, take the Christmas tree down, do some loads of washing, clean the bathrooms, and vacuum the floors... all before school pick up. Wish me luck!

Michelle
xxx

Hearts and Smiles

Hello!

I am bringing you a couple of cards in this post. The first is this.

I used Hero Arts Envelope Pattern Background, and PTI Botanical Silhouettes sentiment. It's hard to see but I used the PTI Linen impression plate. Colours are Berry Sorbet & Real Red (mixed on the heart), Bashful Blue, Night of Navy. I forget the name and brand of the twine.

I made this card in response to Tuesday Trigger: Cross My Heart

 and also Addicted to CAS Challenge #5

and I'm putting it into the A Passion For Papertrey challenge where the theme is Love Is In The Air.

My second card is my homework for Day 8 of Clean & Simple Card Making 2 where we received a video tutorial on plaid stamping from the super-amazing Laura Bassen.  This card was also going to be homework for Day 7 (since I'm running behind), but my one-layer card had a massive stamping error (the masking worked at the edges, but my mask leaked through and left some splotches on my lily-white card). I really need to get some masking paper!

Yesterday Jen Rzasa told us to not look too closely at her plaid stamping (go and take a look if you haven't already seen her awesome card). I think she really has nothing to worry about, mine is the one that you shouldn't look too closely at!  I used some older inks from my stash and it wouldn't lay down evenly, so I had to over-stamp several times (hence the leaking mask). The sentiment is made from SU! "sticky strip" that I die cut. I left the orange backing on it while I stamped, then took it off at the end and rubbed in the only glitter I own (which was not really opaque enough). It is a very glittery sentiment over a very bright plaid. I die cut a new card front and stuck it on top to cover the splotchy card front. Pretend it's one layer - that's what I intended, LOL!  Colours are all Stampin' Up! from the old Bold Brights collection.  By the way, I'm never die-cutting sticky strip sheets ever again, they don't cut through properly, argh! I had to hand cut half of those letters.

That's a lot of words! If you read them all, thank-you. I'm just having a whinge! Getting it all off my chest. I was up late last night trying to finish this card, and had such high hopes for it. I'll have to make another... when I get some masking paper. :-)

Michelle
xxx

The ridiculous ways of a perfectionist crafter...

Hello!

I am a perfectionist. BUT, I make big attempts to crush my perfectionism down to a manageable level, because (as it turns out) it is very difficult to actually ACHIEVE perfection. It also makes it difficult on those I live with when I let my inner-perfectionist have full-reign. I have made a discovery over the years - people still like my creations in which I can see multiple flaws.

Today, the perfectionist came out to play! Argh!

Here is the card that I THINK is the one I want to put forward (and I'll show you the others anyway, so you can have a giggle at my craziness).

The flowers are Jane's Doodles Pretty Peonies. The colours are SU! Real Red and Memento Tuxedo Black. The card base is PTI Basic White. The black line is made using a Copic Multiliner.

This card (and the others) was made for Retro Sketches #47 and Dynamic Duos #36.

I was determined to respond to this Retro Sketches challenge, because the last time I attempted the "framed sentiment" technique I couldn't quite get it.

Dynamic Duos has the dessert option of a Valentine Theme. Here was my attempt that included the theme. This one was actually my most technically perfect for the stamping and masking, but I felt I had misplaced the flowers at the top of the frame, they were too even, sigh! And now I'm getting the urge to go and make another to get it REALLY perfect, LOL!

This was my other version, which was almost right, but didn't quite do it for me. Maybe if I'd used the outline flower on the bottom frame?

Thanks for coming to visit. You now know me a little better!

Michelle
xxx

Sending Love - CAS-ual Fridays #74

Hello!

I have had this card waiting to go onto my blog for almost a week, and I just realised the deadline is looming, and it isn't yet up! Eek!  This is my entry to CAS-ual Fridays #74 where we need to put our heart into it. :-)

I used PTI Postmarks, and Think Big Favourites. The little envelopes are WPlus9 Love Notes. Colours are PTI white card base, PTI Fine Linen, SU! Pretty in Pink and Very Vanilla.

Thanks for dropping by!

Michelle

xxx

Happy Anniversary, my darling!

Hello!

This week was my wedding anniversary. Unfortunately for the hubby, I was nursing my sick daughter leading up to the day, and then I was dying on the couch on the day itself after catching the bug my daughter had. This meant that no card was made for the occasion. Four days late isn't too late, is it? :-)  We've been married 13 wonderful years this year. We've been together for 19 years. Time passes by so quickly!

Here is the card.

Card is PTI Vintage Cream, SU! Soft Suede, and Crumb Cake. Ink is Bashful Blue, Night of Navy, Soft Suede, Crumb Cake. Stamps are PTI Heart Prints and Think Big Favorites #16. Button is PTI. Twine is Twinery.

I really like how it turned out. I am responding to the CR84FN colour challenge #63, and it calls for the colour "denim". My blue collection is severely limited, so I made "denim" by mixing SU! Bashful Blue and a dab of Night of Navy. I actually love the colour result, I may use it again. :-)  I'm also throwing my hat into the ring for the DT call at CR84FN.

I used a sketch from Retro Sketches #30. I turned the sketch upside down.

Thanks for dropping by.

Michelle
xxx

RIC#3 - Black and White Love

Hello!

I've been pondering Runway Inspired Challenge #3 for a little while now, trying to think how I would use those black and white stripes. Today the idea came to me, so I sat down in this 36 degree heat (96.8F) and whipped up a little card quickly before I go for a swim. :-)

Here is the inspiration:

Black and white isn't my forte in card-making. Neither are stripes, really, but I like them!

I went for a black and white heart, and I picked up the circles off the runway floor.

Here is my card:

PTI Heart dies, PTI Background Basics: Circles, PTI Botannical Silhouettes (sentiment). A really easy card, and I really like it.

Now, I'm going to try to beat the afternoon thunderstorm to the pool.  It was a clear blue day 30 minutes ago, now we're looking at this:

It doesn't look much, but it won't be long until the sky is dark grey with lightning and thunder - that's my prediction anyway. It's rare for us to have this heat, and high humidity all day without an afternoon thunderstorm. We can't swim in a storm, so it is a matter of getting there before the thunder starts growling.

Michelle
xxx