WWC326 - Helen's Challenge: All About Occasions

It's October and Fall colours are everywhere!  We're also coming up to celebrating Thanksgiving here in Canada.  What an excellent time to create a Thankful card!

Everything in this card is retired Stampin' Up! product.   Well, except for the watercolour inks.  Those are all from my set of Derwent Watercolour pencils.  Instead of regular cardstock, I created the card itself using a fun Fall Designer paper.  Both sides are absolutely perfect, aren't they?

This is a special fold which opens in the centre and shows off both sides of that wonderful patterned paper.  On the left front, I attached a stitched oval stamped with a combination of images from the Country Home and Pretty Kitty stamp sets.  On the right front, I attached a banner with the sentiment.  When closed, the shapes overlap and "lock" the card in place.

Once opened, the card stands beautifully, displaying the sweet sentiment from the Painted Harvest stamp set.  I think it works perfectly.  I don't give out Thanksgiving cards but a card to thank someone will definitely come in handy and be used.  Don't you just love the finished card?

Have fun checking out our Watercooler Wednesday Challenge and I hope you'll link your creation before the deadline on Monday, October 18th, 2021.

I've also entered my card at the following challenges:

International Art & Soul Challenge:  #118 Furry Friends

Stamping Sensations: October - Animals, Birds & Bugs

WWC325 - Heidi's Challenge: All Things Masculine

 Oh my!  It's a masculine challenge and I'm the host!  Do I ever have a cool card for you to enjoy! 

If you know me, then you know I love cats.  Cats of all kinds.  And even though Tim Holtz stretches his images  of cats to the limits, I love most of them.  They really do reflect what cats appear to be saying in their inimitable way.

I had fun with this card.  I cut out the image with a cute squarish stitched die, leaving little room around it so that the background white cardstock could get some love.  I decided to just use my embossing folder across two corner of the paper.  Then I splattered some Broken China Distress Oxide ink across the paper.  Once that had dried, I used my Silver UniBall pen to fill in the embossed stars.  A quick stamp of the sentiment in black ink, a Smoky Slate matte and the image mounted using foam adhesive strips, and the card was done.  Well, sort of.  After I added some black metallic thread and a black sequin star, it was definitely done.

But I couldn't just leave the inside blank.  It screamed for another one of the Tim Holtz cats and I knew precisely which one I would be using.   It was perfect with the Tim Holtz sentiment, don't you agree?  I added some Broken China Distress Oxide ink to the perimeter and now, truly, the card was done.

Have fun checking out our Watercooler Wednesday Challenge and I hope you'll link your creation before the deadline on Monday, October 4th, 2021.

I've also entered my card at the following challenges:

Crafting Happiness Challenges:  Ch#114

Lil Patch of Crafty Friends Challenge: C# 166

WWC320 - Dawn's Challenge: All About Occasions

As you know, I love whimsical stamps.  I also love stamps with little animals, especially mice.  How cute is this new stamp I've gotten from Penny Black with three little mice floating along in tiny little walnut shells?

I decided to make a birthday card.  After all, you should be able to do your own thing on your birthday, right?   With a base of bright Pineapple Punch, I needed a nice bright blue as a matte and this one, in a pretty lacy die-cut, is perfect in Balmy Blue.  

I stamped the images using VersaFine Clair Morning Mist.  I love the softer edge it gives, don't you?  Then I used my Aqua Painter and a variety of stamp pads to watercolour my images.  Since the walnut shells are a pretty Soft Suede, I also used the colour for the sentiments.  It's always about balance, isn't it?

Have fun checking out our Watercooler Wednesday Challenge and I hope you'll link your creation before the deadline on Monday, July 26th, 2021.

I've also entered my card at the following challenges:

Lemon Shortbread Challenge #150 - Anything Goes

Penny Black Saturday Challenge PBSC July - Anything Goes

WWC311 - Kath's Challenge: All Things Feminine

I'm enjoying the early Spring we're experiencing at the moment.  Yes, I know as far north as I live, actual Spring weather normally comes sometime in April if we're lucky.  Most likely there will be another snow storm, more cold weather, and just the memories of this warm spell to sustain me.  But for now, it's lovely and so I had to find an image which reflected my mood.  This House-Mouse image by Ellen Jareckie comes close.

I used a base of Heavy Whisper White followed by a matte of Balmy Blue cardstock.  My image is stamped on a piece of Watercolour paper using the VersaFine "Morning Mist".  I love the lighter grey because it leaves the watercoloured images showing off without much in the way of intrusive lines.

I used my Derwent InkTense Watercolour pencils for the images and then used my AquaPainter and Balmy Blue stamp pad to watercolour the background.  I love the results, don't you?   If you look closely, you'll see a bit of sparkle on the butterfly's wings as well as in the centre of the wide open flower.  For that I used the Nuvo Aqua Shimmer.  I love that stuff!

Have fun checking out our Watercooler Wednesday Challenge and I hope you'll link your creation before the deadline on Monday, March 22nd, 2021.

I'm also entering my card in the following challenges:

 Lemon Shortbread Challenge #141 - Anything Goes

HMFMC #335 - Anything Goes

Simon Says Monday Challenge - Use Something Green (used green watercolour pencils)

WWC307 - Heidi's Challenge: Anything Goes With a Feminine Twist

 After getting an amazing sentiment stamp made by Stampendous, I began checking my (way too many) stamps to see what image would fit.  Sometimes oldies are the best.  I combined two of my favourite Stampin' Up! sets and did some free-style drawing to wind up with a card that I love.  I hope you love it, too.  

I love this image from the Beautiful You set.  It is definitely my favourite, although I love the other images, too.  In order to make the image fit the sentiment, I added a puddle at her feet and then sketched two boots to fit her feet.  Since this is a very stylish girl, I had to ensure that her hat matched those boots, right?  And then I sketched in a little jacket since the rain is seldom warm.  All the colours I used to watercolour my image are from Stampin' Up!  We have Daffodil Delight for her hat, crinoline and boots, then her jacket is a combination of Basic Black and Smoky Slate.   That pretty dress is the lovely, bright Poppy Parade, the puddle and raindrops are Balmy Blue and then the sentiment is Pacific Point.

I'm not sure if you can tell from this angle that I covered the puddle with some Shimmering Crystal Effects.  After all, puddles are shiny, aren't they, even in the rain.  The raindrops are from the Weather Together stamp set.

For the inside, I cut a broad stitched frame from a piece of Balmy Blue cardstock and then stamped the remainder of the sentiment inside.  Then I went on a hunt for a boot stamp.  Believe me, with all the stamps I've accumulated, I knew I had a stamp which would be perfect.  And I was right.  This image is from the Craft Consortium Farm Meadow.  I love the style and went wild with the colours, of course adding polka dots to make them perfect. 

Have fun checking out our Watercooler Wednesday Challenge and I hope you'll link your creation before the deadline on Monday, February 8th, 2021.

I've also entered my card in the following challenges:

Lemon Shortbread Challenge #138 - Anything Goes

Addicted to CAS Challenge #190 - Pattern

WWC212 - Tristan's "All About Occasions" Challenge

Yay!  I made the top three!

We're having an "All About Occasions" Challenge hosted by Tristan this week.  I love the possibilities that are offered by this challenge.  So many big and little occasions happen in our lives all year long.  I also love that I had an opportunity to use a brand new Happy Hoppers stamp created by Ellen Jareckie.

Isn't that a fun image?  Stampendous offers all these wonderful images created by Ellen Jareckie in rubber stamps.  I wound up with a perfectly crisp image which I had a lot of fun colouring with my Aquapainter and several of my ink pads.  The umbrella is Rich Razzleberry, the raindrops and puddle are Balmy Blue, and the adorable little frog is a combination of Pear Pizzaz and Mossy Meadow.  For the bunny's fur I changed to my Stampin' Blends and used the Crumb Cake and Petal Pink.

That lovely patterned piece with all the watercoloured dots is from the Share What You Love Specialty Designer Series paper.  I've taken all my colours from that paper (except the frog).  My two slanted pieces of cardstock are Grapefruit Grove and Tranquil Tide.  I love the way the colours and images came together.  I think someone's spirits are going to be lifted with this little card.

I hope you'll check out the wonderful creations by the Watercooler Artists over at our Watercooler Wednesday Challenge and also welcome our brand new Watercooler Artist, Michelle Wallace.

I've entered my card into the following challenges:

House Mouse & Friends Monday Challenge #286 - Anything Goes with Option of Dots or Stripes

Lemon Shortbread Challenge #89 - Always Anything Goes

"Less is More" #388 - Navy & Yellow

When I saw the Fable Friends stamp set in the Stampin' Up! Occasions Catalogue, I fell in love.  Those little images remind me so much of the wonderful characters in some of my daughter's "read-to-me" books.  Nostalgia made me buy them. 

Since the challenge for which I decided to use this set asked for Navy & Yellow, the ducklings were a sure pick.  I stamped them, coloured them with a combination of Stampin' Markers and my Blending pen and then began the meticulous job of cutting them out. 

On a piece of Whisper White cardstock, I used my AquaPainter and Night of Navy ink to create a puddle and shadows near the bottom.  Then I used the clouds and raindrops from my retired Weather Together stamp set to finish the simple rainy scene.   At the very bottom I stamped a sentiment which is also from the Weather Together set. 

Having glued the ducklings down to join with the shadows I painted, I took my glaze pen and created little swirls to give the illusion of puddles.  I also put a spot of glaze onto each raindrop.

To finish, on a base of Heavy Whisper White, I used a matte of Night of Navy and then attached the stamped scene.  I love the results and hope you do as well.

I've entered my card into the following challenges:

"Less is More" #388 - Navy & Yellow

Crafting With An Attitude #48 - Anything Goes

WWC169 - Charlotte's "All About Occasions" Challenge

I love the "All About Occasions" challenges, don't you?  This week Charlotte is our host and I just know there are going to be some awesome cards for this challenge.

With Mother's Day coming up within days here in Canada, of course I decided to make a card with that in mind.  Since my own Mum has passed on to a kinder, more joyful home, I decided to make this card for my beautiful daughter.  Shera-Lee is an awesome Mother to her two boys and deserves to be celebrated each and every day, especially on Mother's Day.

For this card I decided to use a combination  of products, both brand new to the upcoming Annual Catalogue and, unfortunately retiring with the current Annual Catalogue.  The ones retiring are the gorgeous Myths & Magic Specialty Designer Series paper which I've used for my base.  It has bubbles which are embossed in an irridescent, glittery design.  It looks amazing in this photo but even more so in real life.  The other retiring product which I've used  is the sentiment from the Birthday Blossoms set.

The rest is all new product and it's exciting to showcase it for you.  Don't you just love the heron and water-lilies from the new Lilypad Lake Bundle?  And that gorgeous paper in the foreground under the sentiment is from the new Share What You Love Specialty Designer series paper  which just takes my breath away with those wonderful pearlized pages.

The sun  rising in the distance is from the fun Waterfront stamp set while those clouds are from the Lift me Up set.  I've used my inks and AquaPainter to add the soft colours.

I hope you'll check out the wonderful creations by our Watercooler Artists at the Watercooler Wednesday Challenge blog.

I'm also linking this card up to the following challenges:

Crafty Animals Challenge #14 - Anything Goes

Addicted to Stamps & More #291 - Anything Goes