Classic red/black and white Valentine

Good Saturday afternoon all!  Here's a simple kraft/red, black and white Valentine that I made with thees red Valentine doilies that I got at my grocery store yesterday!  Great detail on them, 20 to a pack from Hallmark, also available in white, a real steal of a deal around $2.00.
Anyway, I used PaperTrey Ink's kraft cs and embossed the front with a Sixxix folder, made some borders from MS punches and some polka dot pattern paper, tied a SU kraft seam binding ribbon around all and then added this SU sentiment and positioned a tiny red heart over the flower in "you".  The little bird is also a MS punch and I used a red Copic on the heart and adhered over the polka dot heart on the heart doily.  How simple is that?
Have a great day,
Chriss

Paper and Lace Pretty in Pink Valentine

Hi there!  Hope everyone had a good start to the week?  I have been busy making some Valentine cards, some for friends, some just because I have all of this cool Valentine "stuff" and I want to make use of it!
I like the way this card came together, my version of Shabby Chic, without the artful distressing and fewer embellishments,  It doesn't even have a stamped image or sentiment on it!
The paper is K & CO, paper doilies from MS, some lacey hearts trim, satin and chiffon ribbon and a stick pin with a heart, also from K & CO.  The flowers are some from the UK that I ordered early LAST year.  It's about time that I start to use them, before I lose them ;)
hugs and cheers,
Chriss

MFW~Gray is the new Black

Here is an entry for the Gray is the new Black challenge going on at the MoxieFabWorld.  I have loved gray and yellow for some time now and I think it makes for an elegant Wedding card.  I used this Cosmo Cricket paper from Everafter and made the flower embellishment from a couple of PTI flower dies and a Spellbinder floral.  A lot of rdges on the card are sponged with craft SU Going Gray.  Some stitching here and there, the perfectly sized Verve sentiment from Love Story, a MS border punch and the gray pearls that I bought at Ellen Hutson's give it the elegant finishing touch (imho)

Here is a close-up that shows the gray button I have been itching to use.

Thanks for visiting and I hope your weekend involves family and fun and some stamping :)

Cheer!

Chriss

Shabby Winter Whites with Flourishes

Good Day all!
It seems that the season is really upon us and I am wrapping and mailing some gifts that have to reach Canada...just a few more days left in this window I think...better get a move on!
I did make this card yesterday for a couple of challenges, the Flourishes FLLCDEC10 "Winter Whites" and I used the Card Positioning Systems sketch 196.
I started by stamping the Flourishes Cyclamen flower(from this set) in Memento Tuxedo black ink and coloured with Copic markers and added just a touch of clear Spica sparkle to the flower bases.  I then cut out using Tim Holtz Tonic scissors and a Fiskars finger craft knife.  I placed foam dimensionals behind the cut out image and adhered to a MS doily that I sponged with vanilla craft ink.


The card base was created with a Quickutz embossing folder.  I placed 2 quarter panels in the folder and ran through the CB.  I used a Spellbinder Label 1 die to cut the opening in the 2 panels.  It was a little tricky lining up the card base front with the 2 already cut panels and I should have cut all 3 at the same time...I'll remember that the next time :)


Once the panels were cut and lined up, I took a length of this ribbon that I purchased from my local yarn shop and I adhered it sandwich style with tape runner.
The rest is quite simple, just adding the MS dove with pearls at the flower center and the dove's eye, some spongeing on the dove, the MS fern punched foliage atop another length of the same pretty ivory trim and these paper flowers and tiny crocheted ivory flower that I had the pleasure of receiving in a swap earlier this year.
This is the inside of the card.  The beautiful Merry Christmas is also a Flourishes stamp from this set "Christmas Wreath"
The tag was made using a MS punch and the JOY! sentiment is a Flourishes from the new Paperwhites set, such a beautiful and versatile set!


The last photo is a close-up of the foliage.




                  Thanks for visiting and I hope you are having a great season so far!
Cheers!....Chriss

Fussy cut poinsettia wreath

Another DTGD card here, this one for DTGD10BevMom, DTGD10kmahany and DTGD10rsalamon.
I am also entering this for the CPS sketch 177
I stamped this beautiful Northwoods poinsettia wreath in Always Artichoke SU classic and coloured with my Copic markers.  I cut oy the whole image and popped up on foam for some dimension.  For the border, I used a MS punch and layered a length of lace over it.  The sentiment is a SU one that I haver had for a while.

I won't be making too many of these cards because I can't lie...this one took a while to colour and cut :0)
Thanks for taking a look,
Chriss

Dreaming GREEN Christmas tag

Good Monday morning everyone! For all Mother's, hope you day was very special!

For the start of this week, I made a tag for the new City Crafter's challenge blog. It is their challenge #3 and it is, to make a tag this time around.

I recently purchased this new to me Dreaming of a GREEN Christmas stamp from InkaDinkaDo and thought I would try it out on this tag challenge. The base is SU Old Olive card stock That I used the MS branches border punch on either side and I attached a small Kraft flat bag as the tag/gift card holder. The small tags on the inside and front of the tag holder are made from a recycled coffee sleeve that I added various punched branches and oval/ label shapes to with A Little Something sentiment from SU stamped in black. I made the layered flower from Graphic 45 papers line Botanicabella and the floral shapes were made with a MS flower punch a CuttleBug floral die. The narrow silk ribbon is from PaperTrey Ink. The whole project measures approx. 3" X 5". That's it for now! Hope you have a great start to your week and thanks for looking!

Monochromatic birthday for Caardvarks challenge

Good Monday morning! Hope everyone had a fun weekend and the weather in your part of the world is treating you good;)

I love creating cards with a monochromatic theme, so when I saw this challenge on the Caardvarks blog, well I just had to play along! I don't have any Core'dinations card stock, but I am on the hunt for it! Click onto the Caardvarks link above and you will see some amazing cards that the crew over there created. They are TRULY amazing!

For my simple card, I used PaperTrey Ink Ocean tides for the front double edged twig border, Bazzil textured Hazel card stock for the card front and the double edged hydrangea border panel, a strip of this perfectly colour co-ordinated Memory box paper from the Poppyfinch collection, Spellbinder petite oval dies, CuttleBug fancy filigree square dies that I layered under the ovals, a SU bird punch and some pretty Prima paper roses that compliment this colour theme quite well (imho) as an embellishment. The sentiment is from the SU set Well Scripted. I sponged the edges of the card, Memory box paper strip and the birdie with PTI Ocean Tides ink for a little dimension. Thanks for taking a peek today. Hope you have a great creating week!

cheers!

chriss

Petunia Cupcake

Hello again! I seem to have gotten a touch of a second wind and created this card for Mojo Monday sketch #136 and, a brand new challenge

City Crafter Challenge CCCB week # 1 - Cupcake

When I saw Julee's fabulous sketch, I had in mind to use my beloved little Lockhart Petunia cupcake stamp with this Basic Grey Wisteria paper...well, I created this in a Jiff!

I followed the sketch quite closely, adding my sentiment from PTI at the top of the Spellbinder Label that I used and positioned to peek out under the larger print paper. I added a MS border at the bottom and wrapped a vanilla taffeta ribbon around

the front. I popped up and layered my cupcake on a circle of the same Bazzil card stock that I used for the front of the card and then onto a blossom Spellbinder shape cut out of the same tiny print found in the 6 X 6 the Wisteria pad.

I loved how this turned out, especially since it did not take me an hour to create it!

Thanks for looking, and check out the new challenge! I have it linked above.

Chriss

Kioshi inchie violets

Good afternoon everyone. It is overcast and windy here today, good crafting weather! I have been wanting to make a card for the Inchie Inkling blog and here is what I came up with for sketch #3.

I really enjoyed using these Basic Grey papers from the Kioshi line for this Mother's Day card. This is a very easy card, so I will list the items in the recipe.

EK Success pierced scallop punch, MS classic eyelet punch, Lockhart cupcake stamp, coloured with Copic markers and cut out, Kioshi papers cut in various size squares and arranged and tiny flowers and geometrics from a sheet of Kioshi that I cut out and arranged on the top left square. The sentiment is from SU and it is cut out with a classic oval Nestability and layered onto a mega scalloped Nestability. Very, very easy and fun using these tiny images and shapes. Great sketch Lisa!

Hope you have a great day, and, thanks a bunch for visiting!

Chriss

Sew Rite Spring Tulips

Hello again today!

I wanted to post this card, before I missed another deadline...

Here is my card for theJust Rite "Sew Rite"challenge, to use some sewing elements on your card. I used the same paper as in my previous post, just not cut out. I made a border from the print on the other side of this K and Co. paper with a MS garden Trellis border punch and added a length of lace over that. For my focal image, I stamped (with SU basic gray ink) the pretty Spring Tulips from the Just Rite "Breath of Spring" set, coloured and shaded with some Copic markers and cut out. I chose one of the beautiful oval borders from the same set and stamped it on the same paper that I used for the trellis border and then I stitched in a pale green colour, just inside of the stamped stitched border. I adhered the cut out tulips onto the oval with dimensional foam and added
to the card front. I also added some unique buttons to the lower right corner from my PTI stash. Look closely at the two buttons on the right side, the pink one is an organic tulip shape and the green one has a tulip embossed onto it!

Thanks for taking a peek again,

Chriss

Pieced flowers for Moxie and SC275

Good morning everyone! I have a couple of cards today, truly they were quick!

I am having fun with the Moxie paper piecing challenge and created this 1st card with a Lockhart knitting basket stamp that I am using today as a flower basket. I stamped directly onto a more solid colour of the Crate paper and cut the basket out, omitting the yarn balls. The flowers are cut from the Crate paper line "Brook" that I have been indulging in this week and I placed each little flower on a piece of dimensional foam. I just love the colour palette in these sheets! I used this week's SC sketch275. The panels are pierced on the sides.

The next card is TRULY a 5 minute card. It is the first time that I have used this bird and branch punch from SU. I have had it a while, but have not made time to use it, so here it is. I punched the Crate paper sheet once and then turned it over to the brown solid side and punched out another wing. I trimmed it down to a smaller scale and layered over the other wing for a little dimension. The horizontal border is a Martha Setwart punch and I stamped the PTI birthday sentiment directly onto it in SU basic brown ink. I think this is masculine enough to send to a guy?
Have a great day and thanks for taking a peek!

Chriss

Happy St. Patrick's Day !

Hello again everyone! Thanks for visiting. I have another card today made with the Basic Grey Origins paper. I am really liking working with this package. I only used the one pattern paper and paired it with a Bazzil textured card stock. It is quite striking IRL, even though quite simple. This was a great sketch and very easy to work with.

The focal sentiment is from the Papertrey "Luck of the Irish" and it was stamped onto cream with Memento Tuxedo black. I used a Martha punch for the hearts and adhered with dimensional foam. The two scalloped circles are made with the Spellbinders petite scallop, 1 in black, 1 in the same Bazzil cs.

The strip behind the patterned panel and the front one were made with a CuttleBug embossing folder called Ironworks. It has really nice detail. I used the SU border punch on the strip and layered with black cs from SU.
Thanks for peeking,

chriss!

Plum Violets

Hello everyone! It's sunny here today and very slowly starting to warm up! It has been a cold winter for these parts.

Today I wanted to participate in the SCS sketch challenge and I peeked at the colour challenge (pale plum and brown suede) and decided to combine them. Although I (and many others it seems) do not gravitate to using the purple family, I usually am pleased with the results. Here is what I came up with.

I stamped my favourite Lockhart cupcake stamp onto white in Memento Tuxedo black ink andg coloured with my Copics. I am experimenting more with shading and so far have not totally destroyed anything ;) I also stamped the same image again in pigment white onto velum and heat embossed and then cut out the cupcake liner to layer over the coloured image. I used my square and rectangle nesties to cut the various panels and matted them with pale plum. The "suede" main panel is a Bazzill brown that I substituted. The next panel is of pale plum that I embossed with the Su floral folder and then I layered that with a My Mind's Eye striped pattern paper.

The flower is made from MS punches and a Prima that I layered all together. I added these two sizes of apricot coloured rhinestones to all of the flower centers.

Here is a close-up. Now, onto some exciting ironing!

Thanks for taking a peek, I appreciate everyone's visit! chriss

Caarvarks Wedding #2

Hi there, I wanted to submit another card for the Caarvarks challenge to get published and this is what I came up with. Something really, really easy!

I wanted to use this cream and black patterned paper from K and CO. and accent it with a colour. I think I probably should have used the green that I had out, but I decided at the time to use this Aqua Mist from PTI. Well, I can always make another, but for now it's the Aqua...after all, the colour of the year that was chosen a few weeks ago from Pantone is Turquoise, very close to Aqua? ;) so I'll just be content with it!

I made the card base out of the black and white dp and then put a slightly smaller piece of the Aqua Mist through the CuttleBug and a ferns and "floral fantasy" folder, adhered to the front and then made a rectangular panel from PTI Vintage Cream, stamped the SU Well Scripted sentiment in Memento Tux. black ink and used the Martha Stewart loops border punch on the top and bottom.

Then the fun began with making the flowers. I used CuttleBug flower dies and the same pattern paper, black card stock and aqua that I cut various flowers from and plyed with stacking them in different ways and adding a pearl in the center that I had coloured with a brick beige Copic marker to take the edge off of the white.. I loved creating these embellishments and like knowing that they are a little unique! I made 4 total and used one of them as a little platform for the smaller "Mr. & Mrs." sentiment. This sentiment is also SU from the Fancy Flexible phrases.
Well, that's it for now and the contest ends tonight for the wedding cards...

Thanks for peeking in and have a great evening!

Chriss

rRedHeartChallenge for Caarvarks!

Hello everyone! I had time to do a quick challenge this afternoon. It is for the Caarvarks Red Heart challenge here. It is a very, very simple card, but I think the colours make it clssic and attractive. I layered some red hearts onto a kraft lotus flower that I punched out with a MS punch and then layered that onto another MS lattice heart that I punched out. The borders are all MS and the sentiment is from PaperTrey Ink "Everyday button bits" that I stamped in black ink also from PTI onto a kraft piece of card stock and then used a Spellbinder fancy label to cut out. I added 2 red rhinestones to the label (after I took the photo!) You can see a wee peek of a rhinestone in the second photo. The cream and black paper is from K and CO 8 X 8.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Chriss

"Cranberry and Lattice" embroidered heart

Here is my take on the Card Positioning System sketch # 148. I kept this very simple, and like the result. I took my cue from the sketch, of course, and this strip of Basic Grey pattern paper from last year's Bittersweet collection. This is from the 6 X 6 paper pad. The two other textured card stocks are Bazzil, a soft chocolate and a deep cranberry colour. The focal image is simple a heart punched with a MS lattice heart punch and I did some stitching around the edges with a "pretty darn close enough" cranberry coloured embroidery thread. I like the different texture that this brings to the paper world ;) The heart was then placed onto a rounded corner square of the cranberry and then onto the chocolate scalloped square. The two little hearts on the right side were stamped with a sentiment from SU and punched out with another older MS hearts punch and layered onto the same cranberry colour card stock that I punched out larger hearts from. I placed a little cranberry heart in between the two in place of the "&" symbol. The background cranberry panel was embossed with my Retro Diamonds EF. Very easy card!

I like easy.

Thanks for peeking in again,

chriss

Birthday bird and a SFYTT

Hello out there. I had time today to play along with Jenn's ~sketch for you to try~ and this is what I came up with...

I have not shown any love to my BG Urban Prairie paper pad lately (so many neglected collections that I have to put to good use, a new year's resolution for sure!) and it is such a pretty collection of papers, so I pulled it out and started mapping out my card with this great sketch from Jenn. More details for this can be found on the iheart2stamp.com blog.

I made my panels with the pink print and solid pink (this one I placed in a Quickutz Retro Diamonds embossing folder and backed them with the solid blue and adhered to the pink pirouette card base.

I made some circles and ovals using my Spellbinder Nestability dies, alternating the paper patterns. To these I added a punched MS bird, a SU birthday sentiment and a Serendipity cake image that I stamped with Tuxedo black Memento ink and coloured with my Copic markers. This has a lot of colour in it and I am wondering if it has a little too much going on. Well, that's it for now...

cheers,

Chriss

I needed a trigger!

Hi everyone! It's been quite a while since I posted and I can honestly say that I am glad that November has past! I finished working on November 1st and have been quite busy with some household chores and my annual big card order. That took longer than anticipated (I say that every year) but 650 cards is a lot! I need to get busy and make mine now ;)

The Tuesday Trigger on the MoxieFab blog really did the job on triggering me to make this very simple card. Love that blog!

I love this colour combo and may end up using it for my very own Christmas cards. To make this one I first cut my cream card stock and an extra panel to emboss with a new to me CB folder. It is called Damask and it comes with a die cut frame. I haven't tried the frame yet...but I really like the look of the Damask design on the cream colour. I cut it smaller and placed it on a berry coloured Bazzil textured A2 panel. On top of this I added another panel I made from the same CS that I used the new MS holly border punch on both sides. I then cut a panel of this cute Mistletoe Cardinal patterned paper to place in the center of the berry Bazzil. I love cream and red together! For the sentiment I used a PTI stamp from the Holiday Tags set and I cut this out with the Spellbinders Blossom die. I cut another larger one with the Bazzil berry and layered with dimensionals. I then added my little flourish that I made with 2 other MS punches (holly and branch

and added the discarded punched red holly leaves from the border to replicate the berry part of this little swag flourish).

I like how it turned out and I think it looks elegant, even though it was so simple to create! Thanks for taking a peek. I will be posting on a more regular basis now that I have more free time:)

Chriss