Spanish Inspiration

The challenge this week at Sugar Creek Hollow is to create a vintage or shabby chic card or other paper-crafted project with LOTS OF LAYERS. 

I made this card for my daughter's 35th birthday last week - it makes me feel older just thinking about it.  When she was a teenager she was a synchronized swimmer and competed at the national level.  One year her music was Spanish and so her bathing suit and headpiece had to have a Spanish feel to them - lots of black, red and gold.  I saw this image on The Graphics Fairy and thought it would be a great starting point and with all the black, red and the fan I think the card has a Spanish feel to it.

I am going to enter this card in the following challenges:

Digi Stamps 4 Joy - Anything Goes
Crafting by Designs - Polka Dots
Clear It Out - Theme (Circles, Stash (Anything Goes)
Through The Craft Room Door - Anything Goes
Inky Chicks - Bingo (I used Die Cuts, Image, Flowers)
ABC Challenge - Birthday Cards
Lady Anne's Challenges - Anything Goes
Use Your Stuff - Birthday
Forever Friends  - Birthdays

Image:  The Graphics Fairy
Sentiment:  Computer Generated
Card Stock:  White (Staples), Black (Recollections)
Paper:   All from My Stash
Tools & Embellishments:  Roses (Excelsior Crafts), Lace (Stash I got from My Mother-in-Law when we moved her into a nursing home 3 years ago ), Ribbon (Michaels), Venetian Motifs Shapeabilities (Spellbinders), Pearl Stickers (Dollarama)

Tic Tac Toe

Over the holidays we played games with our Grandchildren, including Charades by candlelight when the power went out on Christmas Eve, so I thought it might be fun to play crafting Tic Tac Toe this week at Sugar Creek Hollow.  You need to make your vintage or shabby chic card using the 3 elements from one line on the graphic either vertically, horizontally or diagonally .  I have chosen the vertical line Lace, Ribbon, Pearls.

We have a Guest Designer this week so pop over to the Sugar Creek Hollow blog and see what Heidi Augustson (a.k.a. Filharmonica) has created.  Her work is always so lovely.

I have made a larger card this week to accommodate the dress form stamp that I picked up on a trip to the US last fall.  My lovely friend (and now my muse) Sue Carrington from Stamping Sue Style got me started in stamping when I went to visit her for a day last September on our trip to England.  I am using some of the techniques that she showed me that day.  I still have a long way to go to come even close to her talent but I will keep working on it.

I used Distress Inks to create a background and then stamped it with a few elements.  The dress form was stamped on an embossed rectangle that I created myself.  I printed text on card stock and die cut two shapes to make ribbon cards after I stamped them with some more of the sewing elements.  The ribbon was "pleated" on double-sided tape and the sentiment was computer generated.  I think I will hang on to this card and give it to my Mother-in-Law for her upcoming 91st birthday in March since she spent many years as the alterations person in a dress shop and should appreciate the theme.

I am going to enter this card in the following challenges:

Lady Anne's Challenges - Anything Goes (must use rubber or digital stamp)
Divas By Design - Make It Girlie
Frilly and Funkie - Follow Your Muse
Paper Pretties - Ribbon
Bunny Zoe's Crafts - Anything Goes
Card Mania - Oh So Girly
Simon Says Stamp & Show - Lace
Vintage Stamping Challenge - Vintage

Images:  TPC Studio
Sentiment:  Computer Generated
Card Stock:  Recollections
Paper:  My Stash
Tools & Embellishments:  Pearl Flourishes (Dollarama), Lace (My Stash), 1/2" White Ribbon (Kate's Paperie), 1/4" Ribbons (White Rose), Spun Sugar, Worn Lipstick, Milled Lavender & Dusty Concord Distress Ink (Ranger), Labels Four Nestabilities (Spellbinders),

Angel White

The challenge this week at Sugar Creek Hollow is called WINTER WHITE.  We want to see vintage or shabby chic cards all in white - if you want to include a focal image with some colour, that is fine but everything else must be white.

When I started this post I realized that the stick pins have slipped a bit.  They are not supposed to be in front of the image but my back has gone out and I am in too much pain to retake the photo so close your eyes and imagine both stick pins over the feathers on the left.

I am going to enter this card in the following challenges:

Stampavie and More - Blue and White
Creative Moments - Monochrome
Top Tip Tuesday - Fur or Feathers
Use It Tuesday - Make It Sparkle (Must use hoarded stash - silk flowers bought 12 years ago to make my daughter's wedding headpiece)
Craft Your Passion - Vintage/Shabby Chic
Image:  The Graphics Fairy
Sentiment:  Aussie Scraps
Card Stock:  Staples
Tools & Embellishments:  Feathers (Dollarama),Pearl Headed Pin (Dollarama), Crystal Headed Pin (Excelsior Wholesale Supply), Beads (Michaels), Organza Ribbon (Arton Bead Supply), Silk Flowers (My Stash), Pearl Stickers (Recollections), Oval & Labels Sixteen Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Deco Fan Punch Around the Page Set (Martha Stewart), Corner Rounder Punch (Marvy Uchida), Budding Vine Embossing Folder (Craft Concepts), Winter Frost Paint (Creative Impressions Paint)

Three Funny Snowmen

I didn't get enough Christmas cards made in 2012 and was scrambling at the end so this year I decided to start early and maybe if I keep plugging away, I will actually make it.  My other goal is to make every card flat enough that it only requires regular postage, which is going up to 63 cents here in Canada - ouch.

I haven't had time to play in Sassy Cheryl's challenges for ages but decided I would use one of my newly purchased images and participate this week.  The challenge is Anything Goes (as long as you use a Sassy Cheryl image) so I am sure a Christmas card will qualify.

I also used my new Cameo to cut the snowflake but I really need to spend more time figuring out what blade depth and speed I need for the type of material I am using because it did not go as well as I hoped and I wasted some material.  I know once I figure it out, I will love the machine.

I am going to enter these happy snowpeople in the following challenges:

Sassy Cheryl's - Anything Goes (with a Sassy Cheryl image)
Gingerloft Challenges - Christmas or Winter
That Craft Place - Christmas
2 Sisters - Anything Goes
Broken Box Stock - Winter/Snowflakes
Card Crafters Circle - There's No Business Like Snow Business
Dilly Beans - Snowmen
Creative Belli - Winter/Snowmen

Image:  Three Funny Snowmen (Sassy Cheryl's)
Sentiment:  Computer Generated
Card Stock:  White for Card Blank (Staples), Pearl White for Snowflake (Recollections)
Paper:  Creating Keepsakes
Colouring Medium:  Pencil Crayons (Prismacolors) with OMS (Gotrick)
Tools & Embellishments:  Card Candi (Craftwork Cards), Chalk (Mungyo)

Celebrating Something New

I'm baaaack - have you missed me :)  It certainly was great having a break from blogging but the holidays were very busy indeed.  I did have a lovely time though and got to visit with family and dear friends.  Now we have lots of snow and cold temperatures so it is time to hunker down and craft, blog, work and sew.

The challenges are starting back up today at Sugar Creek Hollow and for this first one of the New Year we want you to make a vintage or shabby chic card or other paper-crafted project to Celebrate Something New.  Your creation could celebrate the New Year itself or a new job, house, relationship, baby or anything else that is new.

I have created a card to celebrate the new home that a friend just moved into.  I sure hope she doesn't see this because I haven't received her new address yet so I haven't been able to mail it.

For this card I decided to CASE a lovely card by my friend Sue Carrington at Stamping Sue Style but I already had the image and had it printed to use for this card.  I made my flower from Buckram, which is a really stiff interfacing fabric and my Tim Holtz Tattered Florals die.  The butterfly is a Martha Stewart punch and the flourish is a Spellbinders die.  I used lots of Distress Ink for this project so now have a pair of latex gloves in my craft room.

I am going to enter this card in the following challenges:

Crafty Creations - Anything Goes
Divas by Design - Anything Goes
Flutterby Wednesdays - In With The New (must have a butterfly or fairy)
For Fun Challenges  - Something New
Fresh Brewed Designs - Anything Goes
Simon Says Stamps - New Something
Crafty Sentiments - New
Papertake Weekly - Anything Goes
Pixie Dust Studio - It's All New To Me
Shelly's Images - Anything Goes

Image:  The Graphics Fairy
Sentiment:  Computer Generated
Card Stock:  Staples
Paper:  Lily Bee Design
Tools & Embellishments:  Button (My Stash), Wild Honey, Scattered Straw & Rusty Himge Distress Ink (Ranger), Venetian Motifs Shapeabilities (Spellbinders), Black Gems (Michaels)