Creative Blog Hop- Time to Celebrate :-)

Hi Stampers! 

Today I am sharing a card as part of the Creative Blog Hop- Sondra Hammond, a fellow SU! demonstator was kind enough to invite me to participate in the blog hop, and if you have not had a chance to check out her post from last Monday, below are the links to her blog as well as two others that are part of the blog hop:

Sondra Hammond

JodyBrechbill

CindyFodor

Also, I have invited the talented Karen Barber to be part of the hop and she will be posting her card next Monday, March 2nd , so please remember to check her out as well :-)

I decided to use the hostess set from the 2015 Occasions Mini, Time to Celebrate, to create a card with the CC518 Splitcoaststampers Color Challenge (Baked Brown Sugar, Pistachio Pudding, Crisp Cantaloupe, Coastal Cabana and Hello Honey- I used all five colors) along with the Friday Mashup! FM198 “Up, Up and Away” Themeand Sketch Challenge.

Again, if you have not already done so, I hope you will have the time to check out all of the linked sites- gorgeous creations and inspiration from all!

To create this card:

Using Memento™ Tuxedo Black Ink stamp the balloon and sentiment images from Time to Celebrate onto Whisper White cardstock.

Color the balloon image using Stampin’ Write markers- Pistachio Pudding, Crisp Cantaloupe, Coastal Cabana and Hello Honey and use the Crumb Cake marker to add shadows.

Trim the panel for the balloon and distress the edges using a Distressing Tool.   Apply Baked Brown Sugar Classic Ink using a Sponge Dauber and stamp the large splatter stamp from Gorgeous Grunge using Crumb Cake Classic Ink.

Mount the distressed panel onto a piece of Hello Honey cardstock, distress the edges using the Distressing Tool, mount onto a piece of Coastal Cabana cardstock, distress the edges using the Distressing Tool and mount onto a piece of Basic Black cardstock.

Trim the panel from the Everyday Adventure Project Life® by Stampin’ Up! and emboss the panel using the Big Shot™ with the Chevron Textured Impressions™ Embossing Folder.  Distress the edges using the Distressing Tool and apply a bit of Baked Brown Sugar Classic Ink over the embossed area.  Mount onto a piece of Basic Black cardstock.

Use the Big Shot™ with the Woodgrain Textured Impressions™ Embossing Folder to emboss a piece of Coastal Cabana cardstock, trim and mount onto the Basic Black card base.

Add the distressed Everyday Adventure panel and mount the balloon image using Stampin’ Dimensionals®. 

Trim the sentiment and create the banner using the Hexagon Punch.  

Mount onto a piece of Basic Black cardstock, distress the edges using the Distressing Tool and stamp the Gorgeous Grunge splatter stamp with Crumb Cake Classic Ink (“huff” onto the stamp to re-moisten the existing ink from the previous step above). 

Mount the sentiment using Stampin’ Dimensionals®. 

Create the bow from Basic Black cardstock using the Bow Builder Punch.  Add the retired Basic Black button (with a piece of Coastal Cabana cardstock in the center to mimic the thread) and mount onto the card front to finish off the card. 

Stamp Sets: Time to Celebrate (2015 Occasions Mini hostess set), Gorgeous Grunge

Ink: Memento™ Tuxedo Black Ink, Crumb Cake, Baked Brown Sugar; Stampin’ Write Markers- Pistachio Pudding, Crisp Cantaloupe, Coastal Cabana, Hello Honey, Crumb Cake

Paper:  Whisper White, Coastal Cabana, Hello Honey, Basic Black, Everyday Adventure Project Life® by Stampin’ Up!

Accessories: Big Shot™, Chevron and Woodgrain Textured Impressions™ Embossing Folders, Distressing Tool, Hexagon and Bow Builder Punches, retired Basic Black button

The other part of the challenge was to answer four questions, so here we go :-)

1.) Why do you create what you do?

I have been artistic all of my life and love stamping since it gives me a chance to teach others that they can be artistic as well (plus it helps reduce stress :-)).  I have been a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator since 1999 and was not taking the time to create as often as I liked, so in May of 2010, I decided to start participating in weekly challenges.  This allowed me to actually use the supplies and stamps that I had been accumulating over the years and, in August of 2010, I started my free "tutorial" blog.  It truly has been an honor to see the response to the cards that I post and that helps motivate me to continue designing original card designs as well as experimenting with new and different techniques.

2). What are you working on?

I am currently on two Design Teams- SUO Challenges and The Card Concept.  Since these challenge sites are bi-weekly, I can create original designs for my entries on the Design Team and I also create at least three to four additional cards per week.

3). How does your creative process work?

As I mentioned, I like to participate in several challenge sites on the internet.  By allowing myself to limit my choices to specific colors, sketch and/or theme, it helps me narrow down my selections for the creative process.  My mind tends to be a bit "hyperactive" and I am also a perfectionist, so having the limitations helps me focus.  Once I choose a challenge, I think about what stamp sets would be good to highlight and go from there…Not sure exactly how else to describe the process, other than I truly believe that my artistic talent is God-given, so the Lord inspires me to create using the steps above.

3). How does your work differ from others in your genre?

Not sure how to answer this one.  I tend to gravitate towards a Shabby Chic style but also love to participate in Clean and Simple, Clean and Layered, Mixed Media and other styles as well.  Recently I was told that I have an “Elegant Eclectic" Style- not sure if this is an actual stamping style or not, but I tend to agree that I am a bit “eclectic” since my designs are varied (my learning style is Random Concrete from the CynthiaTobias' “The Way They Learn” so I guess “eclectic” fits me-lol!) 

Thanks again for taking the time to visit- don't forget to visit Karen Barber next Monday to check out her fabulous design on the next stop for the Creative Blog Hop :-)

It has been an honor to participate in this blog hop, and if you have a a chance, stop by again soon...I will be posting another card tomorrow using the Time to Celebrate set :-)   Have a fabulous day, my friends!!