Splitcoast challenges »

hi there, butterfly

Jan 112019

I feel like I’ve been in a creative slump for quite a while, not creating as many cards as I used to. I’m not one for making New Year’s resolutions per se, but I do want to get back into a cardmaking groove again in 2019. I miss playing along in some of the various challenges I’ve participated in in the past. So today’s post is an effort to get back into the swing of things.

The Paper Players challenge that is closing shortly is to use any sort of animal on a card. I’ve combined that with a recent sketch challenge from Splitcoaststampers. I had the butterfly already colored and mounted to the red scalloped circle, left over from a long-ago cardmaking session, and I thought pairing it with the sketch would make a quick and easy start onto using up some of my “UFOs” (UnFinished Objects). Because of the way the butterfly is oriented, I thought it looked better to flip the sketch mirror-image. The narrow strips were cut from a scrap of cardstock. It’s definitely not one of the most amazing cards I’ve ever made, but it’s cute and perfectly suitable for Send a Smile 4 Kids.

Thanks for stopping by today! Comments are always welcome and appreciated.

Supplies:
Stamps: Somebuggy Loves You (Sweet ‘n Sassy Stamps)
Cardstock: Cool Caribbean, Crumb Cake, Real Red (Stampin’ Up); Solar White (Neenah)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Other: markers (Copic); big scalloped circle Nestabilities die (Spellbinders); dimensionals (SU)

Cards in Envy - Girls, Girls, Girls

2 Responses »

Jun 012015

Hello there, and welcome! Today marks the beginning of a new challenge at Cards in Envy. We’re following up our “Hey Dude!” challenge with “Girls, Girls, Girls”. Cards for this challenge should be A2 sized (4.25″ x 5.5″) and be thin enough to be mailed at the standard postage rate – and be suitable to send to a girl of any age.

Even though Operation Write Home will stop accepting cards after August 1, 2015, I’m still working on filling up a box to send them in July. So I decided to make a “miss you” themed card that one of our military men or women could send home to their daughter. I think this little girl image is really cute. When she’s colored with dark hair, she reminds me of Boo from the movie “Monsters, Inc.” OK, so the eyes are really different, but the hair style is exactly the same. I used the current Splitcoaststampers.com sketch challenge for layout inspiration, turning the sketch on its side to give me more space for the sentiment. It felt good to use up a few scraps of some of my oldest Basic Grey papers for the banners.

So now it’s your turn! Check out the Cards in Envy site for all the challenge details and to see what the rest of the design team has made. Then share your girly creation(s) with us by 7:00 p.m. Eastern time Sunday, June 14. We’d love to have you play along with us!

Supplies:
Stamps: In My Heart (Mama Elephant)
Cardstock: Baja Breeze, Pink Pirouette (Stampin’ Up); Pure Luxury White (Gina K. Designs); scraps from Blush 6″ x 6″ paper pad (Basic Grey)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Other: markers (Copic); stitched circle die (Lawn Fawn)

sketchy brayered bridge

3 Responses »

Nov 092014

Hello! Last week I was so busy finishing up cards for the Hope You Can Cling To challenges at Splitcoaststampers.com that I didn’t take time to blog many of them. Today’s card is the one I made for a challenge asking participants to create their own background without using designer papers. It ended up being an example of what one can put together using supplies that have been ignored for a long time.

When I’d had my glossy cardstock folder out from working on this card, I noticed that I had this piece with a brayered background and a peaceful covered bridge image. I figured this particular HYCCT challenge would be the perfect time to finally create a card with it. The current Freshly Made Sketches challenge sketch showed a panel that looked to be about the size of my bridge scene, but in a vertical rather than horizontal format. So I turned the sketch on its side and used it that way. For the snowflake element shown in the sketch, I decided to go old school with a metal edged vellum tag, and I stamped the sentiment on that. Some copper cording finished the card.

Thanks for stopping by today! All comments are read and greatly appreciated. 🙂 Hope your week is off to a great start!

Except for the inks, all supplies for this card are from Stampin’ Up.
Stamps: Changing Seasons, Always in My Thoughts
Cardstock: Naturals Ivory, Basic Black, Glossy White
Ink: Stained Glass rainbow pad (Adirondack); Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Other: copper cording, copper metal edge tag

sketchy chickie

2 Responses »

Nov 032014

Here’s a quick card I made for the current Freshly Made Sketches challenge just before the challenge deadline. I chose the chicken image and sentiment so that the card fits into the Chicks Stick Together challenge for Splitcoaststampers.com’s Hope You Can Cling To. The chicken is a digital image that I purchased online, but I created the sentiment myself using Microsoft Word. I doodled some dots around the edges of both circles (although it’s hard to see the pale yellow dots around the chicken). The patterned papers are some old, old scrapbooking papers from my stash. The red paper has a faint splatter print, and the yellow paper has a subtle plaid print.

Thanks for stopping by today! 🙂

Supplies:
Digital Image: Hey Chicky (Sweet ‘n Sassy Stamps)
Cardstock: So Saffron (Stampin’ Up); Pure Luxury White (Gina K. Designs); patterned papers from Cottage Papers Collection (Keeping Memories Alive)
Ink: printer ink
Other: markers (Copic); standard circle Nestabilities dies (Spellbinders)

Cards in Envy - Pumpkin Patch

Comments Off

Nov 032014

Hi there! It’s Cards in Envy challenge introduction day! For the next two weeks we have a theme challenge of Pumpkin Patch. Show us your A2 sized cards featuring at least one pumpkin. Remember to keep your cards flat enough to fit in an envelope and be mailed at the first class postage rate.

Since Halloween has passed, I didn’t want to use a jack-o-lantern image. I chose this cute Rhubarb the teddy bear digital image for my card and colored it with Copic markers. I’ve combined a couple other challenges along with the Pumpkin Patch challenge. The layout is this past week’s sketch challenge at Splitcoaststampers.com, and the teddy bear lets the card qualify for the Warm Fuzzies Hope You Can Cling To challenge.

If you need additional inspiration, please go check out the Cards in Envy site and see what the rest of the design team has made. What kind of pumpkin card will you create? Share your work with us on the Cards in Envy site by 7:00 p.m. Eastern time Sunday, November 16. We’d love to have you play along with us!

Supplies:
Digital Image: Rhubarb’s Autumn Day (Sweet ‘n Sassy Stamps)
Cardstock: More Mustard, Dusty Durango, Autumn Vine designer paper (Stampin’ Up); Pure Luxury White (Gina K. Designs)
Ink: printer ink
Other: markers (Copic); standard circle and big scalloped circle Nestabilities dies (Spellbinders); small scalloped border die (Papertrey Ink)

52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown - November sketch challenge

6 Responses »

Nov 012014

Hello! The year is passing by quickly, and it’s time to turn a new page on the calendar. Our 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown challenges this month start off with a sketch challenge. This is a nice one that can be kept very simple or be dressed up. As always, you’re welcome to turn the sketch on its side or manipulate it into a rectangle. So long as the basic shapes of the sketch are easily recognizable in your card, it’s all good.

I’ve stretched the sketch out into a landscape-oriented rectangle and created a little scene on the focal panel. I’m still drawn to the cute little birdie stamps, so I’ve turned the part of the sketch that’s drawn as a ribbon with a bow into a tree trunk. I took the artistic liberty of adding in a tree branch for the birdies to perch upon. The sky background was made with an “ink smash” technique. I dripped a few drops of reinker in two shades of pale blue onto glossy cardstock, and then laid another piece of glossy cardstock on top of it to “smash” the ink between them. I carefully pulled the two cardstock pieces apart and set them aside to dry. While I was waiting for the ink to dry, I worked on the tree and the birds. Once I got the scene all assembled, I knew I wanted to use a snowflake-shaped eyelet in the place of the bow on the sketch, but something still seemed to be missing. So I decided to add some “falling snow” to the scene by dipping a small paintbrush into shimmer paint and flicking it onto the scene (after I’d covered the birds with sticky note masks, because I didn’t want to risk messing them up). I originally planned to use some small snowflake stamps for the little embellishments drawn on the sketch, but I decided instead to use the musical notes because the size of them worked better.

Before I let you go off to create your own card for this challenge, I want to invite you to consider joining in our 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown design team search! We’re looking to add a few people to our team. New members will start their terms in January 2015. All you need to do to apply is to participate in each of our challenges this month, and to include the note “DT” in your name when you link your cards to the challenge posts. So what are you waiting for? Go for it and show us what you can do! 🙂 Be sure to link your card using this week’s sketch by 1:00 p.m. Eastern time Friday, November 7.

Supplies:
Stamps: Winter Sparrows, Feathered Friends [for Simon Says Stamp] (Lawn Fawn); Weathered (Stampin’Up)
Cardstock: Blue Bayou, Baked Brown Sugar, Glossy White (SU); Pure Luxury White (Gina K. Designs)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Baked Brown Sugar (SU)
Other: markers (Copic); Soft Sky and Baja Breeze reinkers, Frost White shimmer paint (SU); snowflake eyelet (source unknown)

CAS - Colours and Sketches #98

1 Response »

Oct 302014

Hi there! It’s a fifth Thursday of the month, and that means we have a double challenge for you at CAS – Colours and Sketches! This week we’re asking our challenge participants to use the provided colors and sketch to create a clean and simple styled card.

I have to admit it took me a while to figure out what to do to combine the required colors with the sketch. I was browsing through some of my older stamp sets, trying to get ideas for a different project, when I came across this set of monster images. And the one monster image clicked in my head as being doable for this challenge. I even was able to separate a two-line sentiment and use it for each of the narrow horizontal panels by using markers to ink up each line of the sentiment. I’ve stretched the sketch into a rectangle. It wasn’t until I started assembling the card that I realized didn’t center the monster vertically on the panel very well, but at that point I wasn’t going to do it over. It’ll be all right.

Just in case you can’t read the sentiment, the top panel says “Your age doesn’t scare me.” The bottom says “Well, maybe a little.” This humorous sentiment lets the card work for Kathy’s Hope You Can Cling To challenge, “Laughter is the Best Medicine”.

What will you make for the double challenge? Be sure to visit the CAS – Colours and Sketches site to see what the rest of the design team has done. Then link your own card at the site by 1:00 p.m. Eastern time Wednesday, November 5.

Supplies:
Stamps: Little Monsters (Lizzie Anne Designs)
Cardstock: Pear Pizzazz, Chocolate Chip (Stampin’ Up); Pure Luxury Ivory (Gina K. Designs)
Ink: Chocolate Chip (SU)
Other: navy grosgrain ribbon (SU); markers (Copic)

sketchy pink balloons

1 Response »

Oct 292014

I really liked the sketch this past week at CAS(E) this Sketch!, but I never seemed to make the time to create anything for it until just now. I would have liked to have spent more time with it because it has a lot of really cool potential. However, this is what I came up with for it. I did get to play around with inlaid die cuts for the first time, which was fun. I’ve combined the sketch with the “Pretty Pink Balloons” Hope You Can Cling To challenge over at Splitcoaststampers.com. The ink color is supposed to match the balloon color… oh well.

Thanks for stopping by today! Comments are always welcome and appreciated – I do read each one!

Supplies:
Stamps: All Squared Up (Avery Elle)
Cardstock: Pink Pirouette, Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose (Stampin’ Up)
Ink: Regal Rose (SU)
Other: Medium Balloons die (Sizzix); Cotton Candy twine (Really Reasonable Ribbon)

52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown - October stash challenge

9 Responses »

Oct 252014

Hello! Once again, it’s stash challenge week at 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown, where we invite our challenge participants to use particular items from their crafting stash to create a Christmas or wintry card. This time the chosen item is enamel dots.

I’ve combined a couple of other challenges in with this one. The layout for this card is the current sketch at Freshly Made Sketches. I also tied in tomorrow’s Hope You Can Cling To challenge requirements – but since that challenge hasn’t gone live yet, I can’t give any details on that! Heh heh heh. I’ve used one of my favorite little penguin images – oh what am I saying, I love all my little penguin images. 🙂 I did add a bit to the sketch by working in my enamel dots and by using a die-cut snowflake to mat the penguin. The sentiment is from an older sentiment set by Purple Onion Designs. I looked on their website to try to get the name of the set, but I couldn’t find it, so I’m guessing it’s been retired.

How will you use your enamel dots? We’d love to see! Link your card at the 52{C}CT site by 1:00 p.m. Eastern time Friday, October 31. Be sure to check out the rest of the design team members’ cards for more inspiration. Thanks for stopping by today!

Supplies:
Stamps: Critters in the Snow (Lawn Fawn); Kissmas & Mistletoe (Unity Stamp Company); sentiment stamp from Purple Onion Designs
Cardstock: Marina Mist, Basic Black (Stampin’ Up); Pure Luxury White (Gina K. Designs)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Craft White (SU)
Other: Festive Flurries die, enamel dots (SU); markers (Copic); standard circle Nestabilities die (Spellbinders)

CAS - Colours and Sketches #97

1 Response »

Oct 232014

Well hi there! It’s Thursday, which means it’s time for a new challenge at CAS – Colours and Sketches. This time we have a sketch for you. I’ve combined the sketch with my Get Inked! Hope You Can Cling To challenge to create today’s card.

First off, I’ve stretched the sketch out to a rectangle and turned it 90° on its side. I’ve used some pink ink and a gold spray mist to create a spotted background for this cute SuperGirl image. The pink dots were made by dipping a paintbrush into the ink, holding it over the cardstock, and tapping the brush so the ink splattered onto the cardstock. Once the pink ink was dry, I sprayed the cardstock with the gold mist. The gold has a hint of shimmer to it, which I hope was picked up in the photo. I used brushed gold cardstock for the scalloped element of the sketch to tie it in with the gold mist.

What will you do with this sketch? There are so many possibilities! I hope you’ll try out something and share what you create with us! Link your work to the CAS – Colours and Sketches blog by 1:00 p.m. eastern time Wednesday, October 29. Consider taking part in Hope You Can Cling To, also!

Thank you for stopping by today! Comments are always welcome and appreciated!

Supplies:
Stamps: Super Duo (Mama Elephant for Simon Says Stamp)
Cardstock: Pink Pirouette, Regal Rose, Brushed Gold, Whisper White Textured (SU); Pure Luxury White (Gina K. Designs)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Other: Pink Pirouette ink refill (SU); Heirloom Gold Perfect Pearls Mist (Ranger); markers (Copic); Crusader Kids die (Mama Elephant for Simon Says Stamp); small scallop die (Papertrey Ink); mini star brad (The Paper Studio); corner rounder (EK Success)

Get inked!

Comments Off

Oct 212014

Happy Tuesday! All during the month of October, Splitcoaststampers is sponsoring Hope You Can Cling To to benefit the MD Anderson Cancer Center. A different challenge is being presented each day of the month. I’m excited today because it’s my day to host the challenge!

My challenge is called “Get Inked”, and it’s dedicated to my mom and to other cancer patients who have received, or who are currently receiving, radiation treatment. In preparation for radiation treatments, frequently the affected area of the patient’s body is tattooed with dots so that the technicians can line up the machines accurately each day of treatment. So my challenge is to use a liquid ink to create dots or spots somewhere on your artwork. You can drip or spray the ink, and your inked piece can be used as part of your main focal point or as a background. The choices are up to you!

The card I’m sharing today features some inked leaves. The leaves are from a digital stamp set. I printed them and then watercolored them with ink from stamp pad refills. Once the leaves were dry, I dipped a paintbrush into a small pool of ink, held the brush over the leaves, and tapped the brush so the ink would splatter randomly onto the leaves. I repeated this process with several different colors of ink. For the background of the card, I scored double lines across the cardstock and used them to frame the leaves.

I hope you’ll join in the Hope You Can Cling To challenges at Splitcoaststampers.com and help bring cheer to the cancer patients at MD Anderson! Thanks for stopping by today!

Supplies:
Digital Images: Autumn Leaves (Sweet ‘n Sassy Stamps)
Sentiment Stamp: Birthday Whimsy (Stampin’ Up)
Cardstock: Cajun Craze, Naturals White (SU); Solar White (Neenah)
Ink: printer ink, Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Other: Daffodil Delight, More Mustard, Wild Wasabi, and Cajun Craze ink refills (SU); score board (Martha Stewart)

Cards in Envy - Any Witch Way You Can

4 Responses »

Oct 202014

Hello, and welcome to another Monday! Since it’s the third Monday of the month, it’s time for a new challenge at Cards in Envy. For the next couple of weeks we’re getting into a Halloween mood by focusing on a theme of “Any Witch Way You Can”. Cards for this challenge should show a witch, or something that easily depicts a witch (such as a witch’s hat or shoes) – and be an A2 card (4.25″ x 5.5″) and flat enough to fit in an envelope for mailing. Your card can be scary, cute, or anything in between.

I took the cute route with my card. I really don’t have any witch stamps, but I do have a Lawn Fawn Halloween-themed set. The cat wearing a witch hat was my solution for this challenge. I felt that making her appear to be riding the broom helped her look even more like a witch. I colored the cat as close to black as I could without losing the details of her face and still providing contrast with the hat. I pieced the background together using a few designer papers. The stars are cut from the blue paper to show the yellow underneath. I’ve used one of my go-to sketches from the OWH Stars & Stamps blog for the layout, but scooted the image panel toward the center of the card since I decided not to put a sentiment on it.

This card just “might” be a sneak peek of an upcoming Hope You Can Cling To challenge at Splitcoaststampers.com, too! I’m not at liberty yet to reveal just what the details of that challenge could be. You’ll just have to keep checking in at SCS to see. It also fits in with the current Lawnscaping challenge.

Thanks for stopping by today! Now go check out what the rest of the Cards in Envy design team has made. I’m sure they’d love it if you visit their blogs and leave a comment. Then share your own witchy card with us at the CIE site by 7:00 p.m. Eastern time Sunday, November 2. We’d love to have you play along with us!

Supplies:
Stamps: Critters in Costume (Lawn Fawn)
Cardstock: Marigold Morning (Stampin’ Up); Pure Luxury White (Gina K. Designs); designer papers from Oh Baby! Boy collection (Basic Grey)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Other: markers (Copic); Landscape Trio and Starburst Cover dies (Mama Elephant)

52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown - October recipe challenge

8 Responses »

Oct 182014

Hello! This week is recipe challenge week at 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown. It’s one with very few crafting “ingredients” – the challenge is to make a one-layer card. No designer papers, no added cardstock. Just one layer. You may add pearls or rhinestones as embellishments.

I used one of my favorite Christmas tree images on my card. I stamped the tree, covered the image with a mask, and masked off an area for the sentiment. Then I dipped an old toothbrush (appropriated for crafting purposes only!) into yellow ink and spritzed it over the card. I repeated that process with green ink. (It’s a messy but fun process. I did wear a disposable glove so my fingers and thumb wouldn’t turn colorful, LOL! I also covered my work area with scrap paper.) Then I removed the masks and added the sentiment. To help set off the sentiment area, I made tiny dots with a green marker near the edges of the area, using a ruler to space the dots evenly. Rounding the corners was the finishing touch. I debated adding a green ribbon and bow but decided against it to keep the card clean and simple.

Hint alert: This card just might be a sample for one of the Hope You Can Cling To challenges coming up before the end of October on Splitcoaststampers.com! 😉

And there you have it. If you need more inspiration, be sure to stop by the 52{C}CT website and see what the rest of the design team has made. Then share your own one-layer creation with us by 1:00 p.m. Eastern time Friday, October 24. We’d love to have you join us!

Supplies are from Stampin’ Up unless otherwise noted.
Stamps: Season of Joy, Christmas Greetings
Cardstock: Pure Luxury White (Gina K. Designs)
Ink: Wild Wasabi, Daffodil Delight
Other: corner rounder (EK Success); Wild Wasabi and Daffodil Delight ink refills, Wild Wasabi marker

awesome little birdies

4 Responses »

Oct 152014

OK, I admit it – I’m kind of addicted to cute little birdie stamps lately! These seemed perfect for the “Heart Song” Hope You Can Cling To challenge at Splitcoaststampers.com, which asks participants to create a card using music, birds, and/or hearts along with words of encouragement. I’ve turned the current CAS(E) this Sketch! layout on its side to create a landscape scene with the die-cut grass. The color variations in the green and yellow designer papers are subtle, but the papers still let this card qualify as a just-before-time-expires entry for the current Lawnscaping challenge. The birds were stamped onto both the card base and the yellow paper. I colored in the beaks with a marker before fussy cutting the birds and attaching them to the card base. (I wasn’t about to attempt cutting around their tiny little legs!)

Thanks for stopping by today! I hope you’ll consider joining in the fun of Hope You Can Cling To and using your cards to brighten the day of cancer patients.

Supplies:
Stamps: Feathered Friends for Simon Says Stamp, So Much To Say (Lawn Fawn)
Cardstock: Soft Sky (Stampin’ Up); designer papers from Oh Baby! Boy collection (Basic Grey)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Other: Landscape Trio dies (Mama Elephant); marker (Copic)

52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown - October color challenge

10 Responses »

Oct 112014

Hello! This week is color challenge week at 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown. We have a bright, non-traditional color palette this time. The challenge graphic shows five colors and you should choose at least three of them for your creation. Using a few neutral colors for stamping outline images and sentiments is also allowed.

I’ve used four of the five colors for my card: the bright blue, the turquoise, and the two shades of pink. The vivid colors suggested bright Christmas lights to me, so I pulled out my stamp set with Christmas lights and used that theme for my card. The lights also fit into the “Shine On” challenge for Splitcoaststampers.com’s Hope You Can Cling To challenges. It’s nice using up some of this retired pink cardstock, LOL! The card seemed kind of bland when I laid it all out just before adhering everything, so I decided to fussy cut adjacent to the line of the lights strand. Cutting the white cardstock was easy, but I’ll admit that trimming the black to give a consistent look with the straight edges of the panel was more difficult. I’ve put a couple of small twinkly rhinestones in place of the dots over the letter “i”s in the sentiment, and added some larger rhinestones in the corner to balance out the look.

And now it’s your turn to show us what you can create! We’d love it if you joined our challenge this week. You have until 1:00 pm Eastern time Friday, October 17 to link your card at the 52{C}CT site. Thanks for stopping by today!

Supplies:
Stamps: Holiday Baubles (Sweet ‘n Sassy Stamps); Magic of Christmas (Technique Tuesday)
Cardstock: Pixie Pink, Basic Black, Whisper White (Stampin’ Up)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Pink Passion, Tempting Turquoise, Pixie Pink, Brilliant Blue (SU)
Other: rhinestones (SU)

Older Entries

hi there, butterfly

Cards in Envy - Girls, Girls, Girls

sketchy brayered bridge

sketchy chickie

Cards in Envy - Pumpkin Patch

52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown - November sketch challenge

CAS - Colours and Sketches #98

sketchy pink balloons

52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown - October stash challenge

CAS - Colours and Sketches #97

Get inked!

Cards in Envy - Any Witch Way You Can

52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown - October recipe challenge

awesome little birdies

52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown - October color challenge

Design Team Experience

Really great links

Really great shopping

Some fun stuff

Thank you for visiting!

Follow me via email

Contact me

The Important Stuff

Translate this Page

I heart

Archives

Meta

Design Team Experience

Really great links

Really great shopping

Some fun stuff

Thank you for visiting!

Follow me via email

Contact me

The Important Stuff

Translate this Page

I *heart*

Archives

Meta

I heart