CAS-ual Fridays Stamps Sneak Peek - Sweet Friend

Happy Monday to all!  I'm here today to show you a sneak peek of one of the new CAS-ual Fridays Stamps sets that will be released this month.  Three brand new sets will be available here on February 15th.  Woo hoo!

The set I'm sneaking is called Beanstalks, and it is so super cute!  There are some really lovely sentiments and some great beanstalks that are wonderfully versatile!  So without further ado, here is my Beanstalks paper yummy:

For this card, I combined two of the sentiments from the set, joined by a little hand-drawn comma.  Using a little bit of masking, I stamped the words "you" and "friend" in a different color ink to highlight them.  Then I stamped one little beanstalk multiple times to create the elements on each side of the sentiment.  I had originally planned to color in the leaves to match the red words in the sentiment, but once I stamped the beanstalks, I really liked the way they looked not colored in.  Here's a close-up of the sentiment strip and beanstalks:

Please remember to visit the CAS-ual Fridays Stamps blog and leave a comment on each sneak peek day!  A lucky commenter will receive that day's release!  Thanks so much for looking!

Supplies: card stock: Copic; patterned papers: Lily Bee Design; stamps: CAS-ual Fridays Stamps; inks: Tsukineko; twine: Recollections

CFC67: Nuts about you

Happy Friday, peeps!  Today I'm back with this week's CAS-ual Fridays Challenge (insert cheers here!):

CFC67: Use banners or flags on your clean and simple project

Yep, this week we're playing with trendy banners and flags.  I love them, and it's a good thing - you can hardly look through a new paper collection and not find banners on patterned papers, stamps, or pre-made embellishments.  So I was glad to have a "reason" to use them on this paper yummy:

I apologize for this picture, but I just could not get a good picture of this card standing up.  I don't know what it was...  Anyway, this card came together super quick, and I think it's so cute!  The Double Ended Banner Die and the Acorn Die and sentiment are from Lil' Inkers Designs.  The wood grain is Hero Arts Designer Woodgrain.  The patterned papers are from the yummy Pink Paislee Prairie Hill 6x6 pad, which is full of wonderful colors and patterns.  I popped up the top of the acorn with some dimensional adhesive, and finished off the card with a button tied with twine knots and frayed.  Here's a close-up:

Are you as crazy about flags and banners as we are at CAS-ual Fridays?  We'd love it if you joined in on this week's challenge!  You have until next Thursday at noon EST to do so.  Click here to see the rest of the design team's banneriffic creations.  Thanks for looking!


Supplies: cardstock: Core'dinations; patterned paper: Pink Paislee; stamps: Hero Arts (woodgrain), Lil' Inkers Designs; ink: Tsukineko (Memento Rich Cocoa); dies: Lil' Inkers Designs; die-cut machine: Cuttlebug by ProvoCraft; button, twine: craft supply; corner rounder: We R Memory Keepers

CFC66: You float my boat

Hello, and happy Friday to all!  I hope everybody has enjoyed their summer.  Even though it is still August, I am glad that summer is winding down.  Even though it is still ridiculously hot here in Arizona, the early mornings have become much more bearable when I go jogging.  I am excited to start all my fall and Halloween crafts.  But before I do that, I have one more summery card for this week's CAS-ual Fridays challenge!

CFC66: Splish Splash  -  Include something you might find in the water (ocean, lake, pool, etc.) in your clean and simple project

And the fabulous Stop and Scrap has generously agreed to be our sponsor again.  The winner of this week's challenge will receive a $20 gift certificate to spend in their store!

Okay, on to the challenge.  When I thought of "something you might find in the water", my mind went straight to the Cosmo Cricket Salt Air collection.  This line is so stinkin' cute!  I love the colors and the vintage kitschy feel it has.  So I perused my collection pack, and found a cute border strip that was perfect for this paper yummy:

I thought the people in the little boat were so cute and funny.  I paired them with a sticker strip from the same collection, then added a sentiment, twine, and a button.  Easy peasy!  Here's another view:

So what floats your boat?  Share it with us in this week's challenge!  You have until next Thursday at noon EST to play along.  We'd love to have you!

Thanks for looking!

Supplies: cardstock, patterned paper, sticker strip: Cosmo Cricket; stamps: Paper Smooches; ink: TPC Studio; button: craft supply; twine: Offray; corner rounder: We R Memory Keepers

Paper Smooches SPARKS challenge - Hey diddle diddle

Happy Monday, everybody!  I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!  Today I have a card for this week's Paper Smooches SPARKS Challenge.  Since it's the second week of the month, that means it's time for a designer drafts challenge:

Yep, it's another one of Kim's awesome sketches.  And like I've said before, these sketches have truly challenged me.  But from every challenging sketch has come a card I've been really happy with. And this sketch is no exception.  Here's the sketch:

See, those curved lines just messed with me. My brain wants them to have a purpose, and not just serve as an arbitrary place to change patterned papers or something like that.  I need to have a reason to have something shaped like that on my card.  Dumb, I know, but that's just how my brain works.  So after looking at that sketch for a while, it hit me: those two curvy lines create a shape that looks like a crescent moon.  Then I had the perfect idea for this paper yummy:

 I used that crescent moon to make a baby card based on the nursery rhyme "Hey, diddle diddle."  You know, the part where "the cow jumped over the moon."  I free-hand drew the moon, cut it out of the yellow gingham paper, and stitched around the edges.  I stamped the cow from the Green Acres set onto white cardstock, masking the legs when I inked it so that I could stamp them at an angle to make it look more like the cow was jumping.  After I colored it in, I fussy-cut around it, and boy is that tale skinny!  I stuck the back legs and udders behind the moon, and the front legs on top of the moon.  I adhered the back of the cow down flat to the card, and used foam tape under his face:

I stamped a star from the Space Cadet set onto the blue patterned paper, and drew in a line to make it "hang" from the moon. I used the Alphadot and Graffiti sets to create my sentiment.  I was inspired by this post by Kim Hughes herself where she encouraged us to use stamps in different ways. To create the "Hey", I used the A from Graffiti, but masked off the top part to turn it into an H.  The y is a lower case h turned upside down.  I ruffled some gingham ribbon and hot-glued it around the edge of the blue paper.  I finished off the card with a button and some twine:

I'm really excited to see how other people interpret and use this sketch!  You can play along with the challenge here.  You have until next Sunday, August 19th at 11:59 PM EST to play along.  The winner will receive a $30 credit to the Paper Smooches store!!  And don't forget the check out the rest of Team 2's wonderful creations, and give em' some love!

Angeline

Erica

Jackie

Savannah

Thanks so much for looking!  Now get busy with that sketch! :)

Supplies: cardstock: Core'dinations (kraft) Georgia Pacific (white for stamping); patterned papers: My Mind's Eye; stamps: Paper Smooches; ink: Tsukineko; markers, black pen: Copic; ribbon: American Crafts; button, twine: craft supply; sewing machine: Kenmore; thread: Coats & Clark (yellow), Singer (white)

Paper Smooches SPARKS Challenge - Squeal!

Happy Monday, everybody!  I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!  Today I have a card for this week's Paper Smooches SPARKS Challenge.  Since it's the second week of the month, that means it's time for a designer drafts challenge:

Here is the awesome sketch Kim designed for us this week:

I thought this was a pretty fun sketch to work with.  I wanted to use some of the super cute stamps from the Paper Smooches June release to make a baby card.  Now for the paper yummies:

I stamped and paper-pieced the adorable little piggy from the new Green Acres set, and used the "squeal" from the same set.  Then I used another sentiment from the Pip Squeaks set below that.  I used patterned papers from the new Echo Park Sweet Day collection.  I fussy-cut this banner from one of the patterned papers, and stitched across the top of it and around the orange paper:

I finished off the card with some twine and a button:

I'm really excited to see how other people interpret and use this sketch!  You can play along with the challenge here.  You have until next Sunday, June 17th at 11:59 PM EST to play along.  The winner will receive a $30 credit to the Paper Smooches store!!  And don't forget the check out the rest of Team 2's wonderful creations, and give em' some love!

Angeline

Erica

Jackie

Savannah

Thanks so much for looking!  Now get busy with that sketch! :)

Supplies: card base: Recollections; patterned paper: Echo Park; stamps: Paper Smooches; ink: Tsukineko; twine: Offray; button: craft supply; sewing machine: Kenmore; thread: Singer

Simple Card Saturday - Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Saturday!  I hope everybody had a wonderful week and is having a fantastic weekend celebrating mothers.  Here is a quick card I made last night using last week's sketch from Card Patterns:

I already made my mom's card for Mother's Day (click here to see it), but a couple of the guys at work had asked me if I would make cards for them.  I really liked how simple and versatile this sketch was, and thought it would be perfect for a simple Mother's Day card.  Please excuse my photo - it's caca.  My camera battery died right after I photographed a different card, so I had to use my phone for this picture.  Now for the paper yummies:

I used 3 different patterned papers from My Mind's Eye, alphabet stamps from American Crafts, a circle die from Spellbinders, some twine, and a button.  This card was super simple, and would be easy to reproduce for any occasion.  I'll be back tomorrow with another Mother's Day card that I totally CASEd from a thank you card I made a few months ago.  I hope everybody has a lovely Mother's Day!

I'm playing along here:
AnnaBelle Stamps AC072: Say it with...Stitching
Through the Craftroom Door Challenge #25: Happy Mother's Day
Fab 'n' Funky Challenge #120: Buttons & Bows
Papercraft Star Challenge 96: Use a stamp (I used alphabet stamps to create the sentiment)
Raise the Bar Challenge 104: Mother's Day
The Ribbon Carousel RCC52: Word to Your Mother
Tuesday Throwdown #97: Motherly Love

Thanks for looking!


Supplies: card base/cardstock: Recollections; patterned papers: My Mind's Eye; stamps: American Crafts "Ginger" alphabet; ink: Memento; circle die: Nestabilities by Spellbinders; die cutting machine: Cuttlebug by Provocraft; twine: Recollections; button: craft supply; sewing machine: Kenmore; quilting thread: Americana

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day, everybody! I hope all of you had a great day with somebody you love. I know I did - my friend Amy and I headed up to Phoenix and hit up Hobby Lobby (or two). We showed them lots of love. LOL. Today I'm sharing a cute little card that's perfect for Valentine's Day, or just any day you want to tell somebody that you love them. Now for the paper yummies:

I'm playing along with a few challenges:

Cupcake Craft Challenges "Entwined" challenge

Simon Says Stamp "Love is in the air" challenge

Ooh-la-la Creations "Be my Valentine" challenge

Paper Play Challenges "Love Letters" challenge

Frosted Designs "Love" challenge

Fussy and Fancy "With all my heart" challenge

Crafty Emma's Store "Lots of Layers" challenge

Thanks for looking!

Supplies: cardstock: Recollections (kraft), Georgia Pacific (white for stamping/coloring); patterned paper: Creative Imaginations; stamps: Hero Arts (background polka dots), Jillibean Soup (library card), TPC Studios (elephant), Hampton Art (sentiments); inks: Staz-On (fuchsia), Tsukineko (black); embossing powder: Hampton Art; markers: Prismacolor; distress ink: Tim Holtz; charm: Tim Holtz; heart punch: Hampton Art; glitter glue: Ranger; heart/scallop edge punch: Martha Stewart; corner rounder: We R Memory Keepers; ribbon/twine: craft supply; dimensional adhesive: American Crafts