Girly Birthday Wishes

 



Greetings! Thank you, as always, for stopping by today.  I recently popped over to one of my first ever challenge sites that I joined called Make My Monday and saw they are having a "Girly Birthday" challenge.  I decided to join in and cooked up the following card.  The perfume bottles by Crafty Individuals are stamped onto the card base with Watering Can Archival Ink.  Audrey is stamped with Black Archival Ink, trimmed and mounted to the card front over a frilly pink doily.  The sentiment, by Hero Arts was added next.  I decided to add a bit of pink and red dotted washi tape for a punch of color.  Thanks for all your inspiring and encouraging comments.  Best, Yvonne

Today I Will Stand Quietly...

Greetings! The weeks fly by so quickly and already it is time for another challenge over at Inkspirational!  This time, we are creating a project based on the photo below.  The picture is The Firebird by Edmund Dulac who was famous for illustrating fairy tales. 

What a fascinating photo!  I knew I wanted to use this beautiful, new to me stamp of trees by Hero Arts and stamped it with Midnight Blue StazOn Ink.  The fairy and sentiment are by Red Lead and were inked for the first time, as well.  A bit of Wendy Vechhi's Embossing Paste and a Tim Holtz stencil add sparkle to my card, along with some Dresden trim by Retro Art Cafe.  I hope you will pop over to Inkspirational to see what the rest of the Design Team have come up with and then create a project of your own to share with us.  Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Celebrate!

Greetings! It's time for the Pink Team to step to the front over at Eclectic Ellapu with a new challenge.  Our theme this time around is "The Oldies, Happy Birthday."  If you read my other post for today, you know that I am somewhat without craft supplies!  This is a wonderful theme, but I was not able to do it the justice it deserves, though I truly tried to find images that would work.  My Design Team sisters have hit the nail on the head though, so I hope you will take a look at their inspiration pieces.  I have chosen this gorgeous image by Hero Arts.  Though the women are not old, they would be today, so please work with me on this one!  The sentiment is by Stamping Up.  (I found it out in our storage unit, which is filled with craft gear that I can live without while we are in transition.) Some wood banner pieces and scraps of card stock add a festive touch at the top of my card.  Vintage Photo Distress Ink subdues the bright white card stock.  Thanks so much for dropping by today.  Hugs, Yvonne

I Have Eyes Only For You

Greetings!  My post today is for a challenge at Try It On Tuesday called "It's All About the Eyes."  How we interpret it is up to us.  After looking through my stamp images, I decided to go in a completely different direction than I thought I might with this stamp I have had in my collection from Hero Arts for many years.  I decided to include the tree and fence behind the focal image, which are from Artistic Outpost. The sentiment was stamped with an alphabet set by Studio G, cut, distressed and added to the card front.  The background is a piece of white card stock that was distressed with various Distress Inks.  Milled Lavender Distress Ink was stenciled through sequin waste.  Tim Holtz Tissue Tape and a metal sentiment, by Idea-ology, complete my card.  Thanks for dropping by.

Pretty as a Peacock

It's Friday and that means it is time for another challenge over at Bloggers Challenge.  This week, Lisa asks us to Create Your Own Background. I chose to spray white card stock with three shades of Dylusions Ink Sprays.  The edges were then distressed with Wild Honey DI.  The focal image by Gecko Galz was matted and layered over vintage sheet music.  The sentiment by Hero Arts was stamped on a scrap of sticky back canvas.  A metal charm by Idea-ology, vintage buttons, lace, seam binding and liquid pearls complete my card. I hope everyone has a great weekend.  Best wishes, Yvonne

P.S.  I had some trouble with my photo on my previous post.  I have hopefully corrected that if you would like to take another look! 

Autumn Harvest

It is already the second week of Autumnal challenges for Make My Monday for November.  I missed the first week with my dear husband being hospitalized.  We are home just for an overnight before heading back to the hospital, so I thought I would join in at MMM for the current week.  This week, the theme is Autumn and Stitching (faux or real).  I chose to stamp a bunch of pumpkins on white card stock and water colored them with Distress Markers.  A zigzag stamp by Hero Arts was stamped around the border.  The prepared  image was mounted to background paper and a paper doily over the card base.  Paper leaves, burlap string and a button and some copper liquid pearls complete my card.  I hope every one is enjoying their weekend.  Best wishes, Yvonne

A Makeover!

There's an interesting new challenge over at Our Creative Corner.  It is called "What Not to Stamp." Why not check it out?! The challenge is to select a card you made early on that you really don't care too much for but that includes something about it that is endearing and then make a new card that includes what you like but in your current style.  Wow! It took me a while to sort through some old cards, and the one I selected below was created before I began my blog.  It's funny, I don't normally care for cute stamps (that' putting it mildly) but when I saw this stamp by Hero Arts, years ago, something about it struck me.  When I created my card with it, I followed the color suggestion on the face of the stamp using Copic markers.  What  don't I like? I don't like the heaviness of the colors and the poor blending, nor do I like the plain background.  The rickrack seams to narrow, too.  I never sent this card, so I guess I knew all along it was a dud!

Since I do like the stamp, I decided to try using it again.  Six years later, it really is a different world isn't it?  Distress Ink, Distress Markers, Specialty Paper, vintage seam binding, ChitChat Stickers, how did we ever live without all these wonderful products?  With a more vintage feel, softer colors, and grounded embellishments, I think this is a card I would feel good about sending out.  

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  Best wishes, Yvonne

Nature: Discover Your World!

Greetings!  It is hard to believe another fortnight has rolled around, and here we are with a new challenge at Fashionable Stamping Challenge.  This time around, our challenge is to make a project with a theme around "Nature."  Now you could go one of many directions:  Butterflies, flowers, trees, mushrooms and on and on!  I chose birds, on of my absolute favorites.  I began by layering a background panel to my card base.  The panel was monoprinted using a GelliArts plate.  The fern-like stamps on the panel are from Hero Arts.  The rest of the images are from Artistic Outpost and were stamped with Black StazOn ink onto Ranger Specialty Paper.  This was the first time I ever used the Specialty Paper and I was very happy with the results.  The images are very crisp and detailed.  The images were colored with Distress Markers and the edges were distressed with Old Paper Distress Ink.  The vintage button and liquid pearls were from my stash.  The white jute and black burlap string are from the Funkie Junkie Boutique.  My Design Team Sisters have once again come up with spectacular inspiration pieces for your enjoyment.  I hope you will pop on over and take a look, leave them so love and then submit an inspiring piece of your own! Please remember that Digis are not permitted, as we are a stamping challenge.  Thanks so much for dropping by!  Best wishes, Yvonne

June Birthday Wishes

Hello!  The Make My Monday Challenge is celebrating a full year of weekly challenges with this their 52nd Challenge!  For the month of June, we will be challenged to make projects associated with the month of June.  For this first week, the theme is to create a Birthday Card with Pearls.  My youngest daughter has a June birthday, so she will be the recipient of my card, I think!  She turns thirty this year!  Images, and the background paper, for my card are from Crafty Individuals, except the sentiment, which is from Hero Arts. The watercoloring was done with Distress Markers.  Thanks for dropping by today!  Best wishes, Yvonne

White Flowers

During the month of May, over at Make My Monday, our theme is Flowers.  Specifically for Week #48, we are to create a project with Lily of the Valley flowers, or other white flowers and they are to be the focal point of our project, rather than just an embellishment. Although I love flowers, I really do not have a lot of flower stamps.  I found a box of four flower images in my stash from Hero Arts and realized that they stamp in reverse.  So, in order to make the flowers white, I chose Fired Brick Distress to really pop the flowers.  After trimming each flower, they were popped up with foam dots and mounted onto more white card stock and then matted with red card stock and added to a Kraft card base.  A simple bow was tied using vintage white seam binding.  The sentiment by Stampa Rosa was stamped onto the seam binding. A vintage button and repurposed string from a tag complete my card.  Have you tried Make My Monday yet?  Hope to see you there!  Best, Yvonne 

Pretty in Pink

Happy Friday everyone! This is my second post of the day. Trying to play catch up. So please scroll down if you would like to see my first post! My card is for the new challenge over at Bloggers Challenge. This week, we are to create a project with a Birthday theme. My oldest daughter's birthday is next week, so this is perfect timing! I began with a vintage pink card base, added springtime designer paper from the Shades of Summer pad by Crafty Individuals that was wrapped with white lace and re-purposed lavender ribbon. A paper doily grounds the focal image, which is from a Miniatures Book by Crafty Individuals. The sentiment by Hero arts is stamped in Black StazOn ink and outlined with Stickles for a bit of sparkle. Embellishments include a rose pink applique, pearls, a teapot charm and a simple piece of rose seam binding tied into a small bow. The girl above resembles my daughter growing up. She has grown into such a beautiful woman, inside and out. What a precious blessing she is to all of us. Enjoy your weekend. Best wishes, Yvonne

MMM Challenge # 34 - Butterflies and Dragonflies

Hello, this is my second post for today. Please scroll down to see my first post. This is the last week at Make My Monday for the Nature theme, and specifically, we are to use Butterflies and/or Dragonflies for Challenge #34.

I began with a white card stock panel and sponged on three different shades of PanPastels in orange tones. I next stamped on blocks of small fluttering butterflies by Inkadinkado in Wild Honey Distress ink with the thought of them being in the background, rather than front and center. Next, I stamped stems of flowers by Hero repeatedly with Black Versafine ink. I then stamped a butterfly and dragonfly, also with Black Versafine ink, trimmed them ,colored them in with Atyou Spica Glitter pens and distressed the edges with Antique Linen Distress ink. I added them to my card with pop dots. A sweet sentiment by Stampin Up was stamped on white card stock, distressed with Antique Linen Distress ink and matted with black paper and mounted between the raised butterfly and dragonfly.

On the left side of my card, I added a clip art image from Crafty Individuals, which I matted in black paper. This sweet image of a deer and a child seem to be looking out over the field of flowers and butterflies. Embellishments include vintage buttons, cheese cloth, black liquid pearls and orange and black baker's twine. I am so enjoying these PanPastels! I just love the velvety texture and softness it lends to my cards. Have a wonderful night. Best, Yvonne

MMM Challenge # 33 - Leaves and Flowers

Back again, with a second post for today! This post is for a Make My Monday Challenge - Nature (Leaves and Flowers). As I headed up to my art studio to work on this challenge, I gave some thought to what direction to go. When I thought of flowers, this old standby from Hero Arts came to mind. I stamped it with Festive Berries and Peeled Paint Distress inks. I chose paper leaves with a text imprint and stamped my background with this sweet little heart balloon from A Muse stamps that I just discovered in my stash earlier today and colored them in with a Copic Marker. With Valentine's Day coming up, I thought adding a doily and a loving sentiment by Studio G complete my card. I hope you are having a good day. My best to each of you. Yvonne

Winter Blooms

I am entering the card above into two challenges. The first is for the Moxie Fab Tuesday Trigger. The inspirational photo, Winter Blooms, is above. As I studied the photo, I immediately felt drawn to pull out some soft gray card stock for the card base. I wish I had flower stamps that replicate these pretty pompoms, but since I do not, I chose a Petals and Patterns Boxed Set by Hero Arts. Next I chose Antique Linen, Scattered Straw, Tattered Rose and Pumice Stone Distress Inks to stamp my flowers. I decided to only use three of the four flowers in the end and balanced my card out with a sentiment and some vintage buttons and cheese cloth. A bit of pink lace and some black and white Baker's Twine completes my card. The other challenge I am entering is for Crafty Cardmakers Challenge. For this challenge, the requirement is "No Floral Embellishments." Floral paper, stamps, etc. can be used, but no floral buttons, paper flowers etc. are to be added to our project. Hoping everyone is having a great day. A special thanks to my most recent followers for joining in and to all of my followers for your consistent visits and encouraging comments. I really appreciate your support. Best Wishes, Yvonne

Make My Monday - Challenge 32 - Create a Scene

The challenge over at Make My Monday for Week 32 continues with the Nature theme and specifically is to "Create a Scene." This is probably the very first "scene" I have ever created. I marvel at others who do them, but I always think I don't have the right stamps to try. I really wanted to give it a go, though so I decided to go through my old wood mounted stamps and came up with this beautiful group of Horses by Inkadinkado, Pinon Silhouette by Stamp a Mania, Woodland Grasses by Hero Arts and a sentiment by Anna Griffith. I am also entering this card into the Anything Goes challenge at Pan Pastels UK's Challenge blog. My PanPastels just arrived in the mail over the weekend, and I thought I might as well dive in. I began by adding PP in a light blue, pale yellow and olive green to cream card stock. The colors a bit lighter here than in person, so I will probably adjust my values in the future. Being my first try with PPs, I wasn't sure what would work with them. I was delighted to find that Memento Ink, which I used for the Pinon Silhouette and Horses worked well. I also found that I could easily watercolor the Horses with Vintage Photo Distress Ink and was able to distress the edges to give the scene a vintage feel. To finish off the card, I added some flocks of birds from the Beyond the Sea plate by Artistic Outpost, a border punched with an EK Success border punch and some Baker's Twine and a button.

Use it Tuesday - Challenge # 17 - Metal

The challenge at Use It Tuesday this time around is 'Metal.' What I love about this Challenge site is that you are encouraged to dust off and use stash that has not been used in awhile. I immediately thought of these metal squares that I had been saving for years! I matted them with black paper and mounted them on a very old piece of red card stock. The ribbon is recycled from several Christmases ago. The sentiment is by Hero Arts. Thanks for stopping by. Yvonne

Autumn Trees and Falling Leaves

I don't usually combine challenges, but since several are along the theme of Autumn, I hope you will indulge me! Over at Make My Monday, the theme continues to be Autumn, and this week we are to make a project with AutumnTrees! At Bloggers Challenge, the theme is Falling For You and can be interpreted as we see fit. I also came across a new to me challenge called Stamptacular Sunday Challenge and their theme, #133, is called "So Distressing! " And so, with these challenges in mind, I created my autumnal card with an Orange card base. The trees by Rubber Stampede were stamped in Rich Cocoa Memento Ink on Glossy Paper. I distressed the tree image with Distress Inks in Antique Linen, Spiced Marmalade, Wild Honey and Brushed Concord. The sentiment, also stamped in Rich Cocoa is by Hero Arts. Embellishments include leaf buttons, Scrappers' Floss, ribbon, and Liquid Pearls in Copper. I just love this time of year! Hope everyone has a great week. Best, Yvonne

Tuesday Trigger - Garden Glory

The Tuesday Trigger this week is Garden Glory and the inspirational photo is noted above. As part of our entry, we are asked to explain what inspired us when designing our project. At first glance, my attention went to the geometric design on the chair. I remembered a background paper that looked very similar but discovered I had already used it. I settled on another paper that my daughter just gave to me for my birthday and really like how it pulls the greens and turquoises together. The brown table, though small, really grounds the photo so I added brown matting to my card. I stamped a flower by Hero Arts in turquoise and green to pay homage to the pillow in the photo and then added a sentiment by Penny Black in brown ink. Just like the photo, I added white flowers, which I probably would normally have thought was too much, but I like it. Congrats to all the winners from last week. Looking forward to seeing everyone's entries! Thanks for stopping by. Yvonne

365 Cards - Day 96 - Ad Inspired

The challenge for Day 96 at 365 Cards was to make a card inspired by the Coke ad above. Truly, I would never have created my card without this challenge! The vase is by Studio G, the stamped butterflies are by Cavellini Paper Company, the birthday sentiment is by Hero Arts and the sticker butterflies are by Martha Stewart and the sticker flourishes are by EK Success. The touch of glitter is Stickles by Ranger. You will want to check out the other entries for this challenge. They are over the top! It was especially fitting to make this card today as today was my deceased Mother's birthday and she loved butterflies. Happy Birthday Mom! I miss you so much. Thanks for stopping by. Yvonne