Hello there!  I hope 2022 is off to a good start for you.  We’ve had some crazy weather here in Virginia.  On January 1, the afternoon temperatures were around 70 degrees Fahrenheit, warm and a little humid.  On January 3, the afternoon temperatures were around 30 degrees and we had almost 8 inches of snow on the ground! 

Now that the holidays are over, it’s time to try to get back into the usual routine with the weekly challenges at CAS Colours & Sketches.  I have decided to take a step back from creating and stay in a more behind-the-scenes administrative role there.  However, in the midst of all the pre-Christmas hustle and bustle, it totally slipped my mind to invite someone to be the January Guest Designer at CC&S.  So I’m going to be joining in the challenges in that capacity this month. 

This week we have a color challenge.  I decided to focus the colors on the sentiment, using a die to cut the word “happy” from cardstock in each color.  I offset the die cuts when I glued them together so that each color would show.  I used the bottom color of the stacked dies for my card base and for the stamped portion of the sentiment.  The focal panel is at an intentional angle to the card base.  I thought it would make it look quirky and fun.  Now I’m wondering if it just looks… crooked.  Oh well.

I hope you’ll stop by the CC&S blog to meet the newest members of our design team and to see what the team has created!  Or, if you’d rather, you can “like” our Facebook page or follow us on Instagram!  We’d love to have you join in the fun and creativity with us.  You have until 6:00 p.m. Eastern U.S. time Monday, January 10 to link your card at our challenge post.

Supplies:
Stamp: Happy Happy Happy (Lawn Fawn)
Cardstock: Poppy Parade, Highland Heather, Petal Pink (Stampin’ Up); Solar White Linen (Neenah)
Ink: Poppy Parade (SU)
Other: Happy Sash die (Poppystamps)

Hello there!  Yes, it’s been a while since I’ve shared anything here on my blog.  Hopefully I will start feeling more creative again now that the winter doldrums are well over.

We have a new color challenge starting today at CAS Colours & Sketches.  As the blog manager there, I normally don’t let the challenge hosts pick two neutral colors for a color challenge combination (since we allow neutral colors to accent the challenge colors).  But this month’s hostess, Samantha, backed up her choices with the fact that they tie into the Pantone Colors of the Year for 2021, so I figured why not roll with it?

The colors immediately made me think of sunshine contrasted against a dark sky, and the lyrics to the song “You Are My Sunshine” popped into my head.  So I went along with that theme for my card.  I printed the sentiment onto the lighter grey cardstock and trimmed it down to fit my card front.  Then I die cut the clouds and sunshine and glued them into place.  I added a mat, offsetting it with the card front, and attached it to a card base matching the sunshine yellow.  Easy-peasy!

We’d love to see what you can create with these colors!  Share your card at the CC&S site by 6:00 p.m. Eastern U.S. time Monday, May 10.  Thanks for stopping by today!

Supplies:
Stamps: None
Cardstock: Daffodil Delight, Basic Gray, Smoky Slate (Stampin’ Up)
Ink: printer ink
Font: Care Bear Family
Other: Rainbow Builder dies (SU)

Hello!  Welcome to the start of a new year of challenges at CAS Colours & Sketches!  We’re back from our holiday break and ready for some more fun and creativity!

We’re kicking off the year with a color challenge.  I’ve used the colors to make a wintry scene.  I made a mask to create a snowy hill, and blended the two shades of aqua to create a sky above it.  After I removed the mask, I die cut the tree and the cardinals from cardstock and glued them into place.  The focal panel is the same size as the card front, and I attached it to a base of the lighter shade of aqua.  I couldn’t decide on a sentiment for the card, so I chose to let it go without.  Sometimes a card doesn’t necessarily need a sentiment on the front, don’t you think?

Be sure to stop by the challenge blog and welcome our newest Design Team members and our Guest Designer!  Then create your own card using these colors, and link it to the challenge site by 6:00 p.m. Eastern time Monday, January 11.  We’d love to have you join us!  Thanks for stopping by today.

Supplies:
Stamps: none
Cardstock: Solar White (Neenah); Pool Party, Cherry Cobbler (Stampin’ Up)
Ink: Bermuda Bay, Pool Party (SU)
Other: Winter Trees dies (Penny Black); stencil brushes

Hello there!  It’s another Tuesday, which means it’s new challenge day at CAS Colours & Sketches!  This week we have a trio of colors for you to work with that should start helping you think about autumn.  Of course, if you live in the southern hemisphere, you’re probably thinking about spring about now, so we hope you’ll show us a springtime way to use them.  As always, if you don’t own the exact colors named in the graphic, just use whatever product you have that closely matches them.

I wasn’t in the mood for coloring an image, so I opted to use some dies to create a little scene on my card.  The challenge colors made it pretty easy to decide which to use for the tree trunk, the leaves, and a couple of cardinals.  After I die cut the bare tree, I laid it on the card front to figure out where I wanted to position it.  I didn’t want to fiddle with cutting and gluing a bunch of leaves, so I used a gel stick in a color that seemed to match the challenge yellow and blended it out to add some color for the “leaves”.  I cut the male cardinal from cherry cardstock and the female cardinal from the same brown as the tree, adding a little cherry ink to her to make her look more realistic.  Offsetting the card front on the mat and the card base allows a little extra color to show. I think the cardinal pair and the sentiment I picked will make this a decent enough anniversary card to give to my husband next month.

We’d love to see what you can create with this week’s colors! Share your card at the CC&S website by 6:00 p.m. Eastern time Monday, September 21. Thanks for stopping by today!

Supplies:
Stamp: Picture Perfect (Stampin’ Up)
Cardstock: Baked Brown Sugar, Cherry Cobbler, Very Vanilla (SU)
Ink: Cherry Cobbler (SU)
Other: Winter Trees dies (Penny Black); gel stick (Faber Castell)