TCC147 This is the Day

 

Hi Friends!

Welcome to The Card Concept #147 {Dare To Dream} Challenge! This week our Design Team has outdone themselves- so many beautiful cards and different styles/interpretations- we hope you will check it out!

Don't you think that this room looks like a wonderful place to study, journal, and/or create! So peaceful but I would need a bit more desk space for sure :-)

Also, I absolutely love all the different globes, the tones of brown on the suitcases as well as the overall vintage feel.  The combination of all of this inspired my Shabby and Vintage card!

I enjoy participating with online challenges and used the Try Stamping On Tuesday #489 Sketch Challenge  for the layout (plus I used die cuts :-)) and will also be linking to the Word Art Wednesday #475-#476 “Anything Goes” Challenge.

Again, if you have not had a chance to visit The Card Concept or the other challenge sites yet, I encourage you to do so- wonderful inspiration from all! 

To create this card:

For the background panel- distress the edges of a 4” x 5 ¼” piece of the Vintage Emporium designer paper and mount it onto a piece of espresso cardstock.

Cut another horizontal piece of the ledger design from the Vintage Emporium paper, distress the edges and mount onto espresso cardstock, distressing the edges.  Adhere to the background panel.

Die cut a piece of the world map design from the Vintage Emporium paper pack using one of the larger outside ovals from the Hemstitch Oval Dies and lightly distress the edges.

Close-up of the map :-)

Die cut another oval using the same oval die from espresso cardstock, cut the espresso oval in half and adhere behind the map die cut (allowing a bit of the espresso oval to show at the top and bottom) and lightly distress the edges.

Adhere the map oval die cut directly to the background panel.

Add the ribbon slide to a piece of sage twill ribbon and adhere to the card front (wrapping the edges of the sage ribbon behind the panel). 

Add the three antique brads to the panel before mounting the entire panel to the white card base.

De-static a piece of vanilla cardstock with an embossing powder tool, stamp the sentiment from Give Thanks using Versafine Onyx Black ink, apply clear embossing powder and heat set with a heat tool.

Once cooled, die cut with the Fishtail Sentiments Banner Dies (also die cutting another one from espresso cardstock).  Cut the espresso die cut in half, layer behind the sentiment layer. 

Use a sponge dauber to apply antique linen distress ink to the edges and mount onto the card front using dimensional foam (or chipboard) to finish off the card.

Stamp Sets: Give Thanks (Stamp Simply)

Ink/Mediums: Versafine™ Onyx Black, Tim Holtz Antique Linen Distress

Paper/Cardstock: Vanilla, Espresso; Vintage Emporium 6x6 Paper Pad (Craft Consortium)

Tools/Accessories: Gemini, Jr., Stamp Simply Dies- Fishtail Sentiment Banners Dies, Spellbinders Dies- Hemstitch Ovals, Embossing Powder Tool, Clear Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Distressing Tool, Sage Twill Ribbon, Antique Ribbon Slide, Antique Brads, Sponge Dauber

Thanks again for taking the time to visit!  We would love for you to create a card based on our Dare To Dream photo and join us at The Card Concept! The challenge is open until February 1^st at noon EST.

TCC118 When I Need A Friend

Hi Friends!

Welcome to The Card Concept #118 {Cacti Clusters}Challenge!  I was inspired by the colors of the succulents as well as the images to pull out the Sweet Succulents Stamp Set (Technique Tuesday) and create a Classy and Elegant/Mixed Media card!

This will be the last challenge at The Card Concept until September.  We take a break over the summer to give our Designers time to spend with their families as well as take a vacation or two :-).  We will be back in the beginning of September with another round of inspiration photos for sure!

I paired the Sweet Succulents Stamp Set (Technique Tuesday) with a sentiment from Choose Happiness (Stampin’ Up!).    I have owned the Sweet Succulents set for a while and this is the first time I have had a chance to ink it up (still working on goal of giving all of my stamps some “love”).

I will also be linking this card to the Try Stamping On Tuesday #413 Sketch Challenge along with the Word Art Wednesday #392-#393 “Anything Goes” Challenge.

If you have not had a chance to visit us at The Card Concept or the other challenge sites yet, I hope you will find time to do so- gorgeous inspiration from all!

To create this card:

1). De-static a piece of white cardstock with an embossing powder tool, stamp the succulent images from Sweet Succulents with Versafine™ Onyx Black, apply clear embossing powder and heat set with the heat tool.  Once the embossing has cooled, color the images with water-based markers, colored pencils and distress oxide inks.  Once you are satisfied with the coloring, fussy-cut the images and set aside.

2). Using a stitched rectangle die, die cut another piece of white cardstock for the middle frame, use the next smaller stitched rectangle die to die cut a piece of green designer paper, a stitched circle die to die cut a piece of white cardstock and the same size circle die to die cut two pieces of blackberry cardstock.

3). Layer the white and green die cut rectangles together, add the lace strip along with the wide blackberry satin grosgrain ribbon (wrap the ends of the ribbon behind the back of the panel).  Mount the panel onto a piece of blackberry cardstock and adhere to the white card base.

4). Overlap the two blackberry stitched circle dies to create a small border for the white stitched circle die cut.  Layer together and mount onto the card front with dimensional foam.

5).  Mount the fussy cut image onto the die cut circle using dimensional foam and use a clear shimmer pen to add shimmer to the succulent images.

6). Using the same steps as in Step #1, stamp the sentiment from the retired Stampin’ Up! Set, Choose Happiness using Versafine™ Onyx Black ink, emboss with clear embossing powder, trim and mount onto blackberry cardstock and adhere to the card front.

7). Add a few pearls to the upper right hand corner to finish off the card.

Stamp Sets:  Sweet Succulents (Technique Tuesday), Choose Happiness (Stampin’ Up!)

Ink/Mediums: Versafine™ Onyx Black, Tim Holtz™ Distress Oxide Inks-Bundled Sage, Seedless Preserves; Stampin’ Write Markers (all retired)-Sage Shadow, Orchid Opulence, Bordering Blue, Mellow Moss; Zig® Clean Color Real Brush Markers- Violet, Pale Green, Olive Green; Spectrum Noir™ Clear Glitter Pen

Cardstock/Paper: Whisper White, Blackberry Bliss (Stampin’ Up!); misc. designer paper- from my stash, not sure of manufacturer

Tools/Accessories: Big Shot™;  My Favorite Things™ Dies- Stitched A2 Rectangle Sets 1 & 2, Stitched Circles; AquaPainter™, Embossing Buddy®, Clear Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, White Lace and 1 ¼” Wine Grosgrain Satin Ribbon (from my stash), Pearls

Thanks again for taking the time to visit! I hope I have inspired you to create your own card based on our {Cacti Clusters}  photo and link up to our gallery at The Card Concept- we would love to see your interpretation!! The challenge is open until Monday, July 8^th at noon (EDT).

Update: My hubby, Dave is still recovering in the hospital and after a few very rough days, but he seems to be doing so much better!  We found out that he did have Stage 1 prostate cancer as well, so we are so blessed that he no longer has to worry about bladder cancer or prostate cancer :-)  

He still has the rare Waldenstrom Macroglobulinemia (Waldenstroms or WM for  short).  He had several years of chemo/immunotherapy from 2014-2018, so while there is no cure for WM, he had a positive response to the treatment and his numbers for the WM look good so far! 

Hugs and thanks for all of your prayers and well wishes!  Praise the Lord, He is answering the prayers!!

TCC85 Romantic Rose Easel Card

Hi Friends!!

Woohoo- it’s time for The Card Concept #85 {Rustic Blooms} Challenge!!  I love this gorgeous photo and was inspired by the beautiful colors as well as the flowers to create my Classy & Elegant Mixed Media easel card. 

Since I have been making an effort to give all of my stamps “love”, I decided to pull out the long ago retired stamp, Romantic Rose (Stampin’ Up!) and paired it with a verse from the Scripture Medley 1 stamp set from Verve Stamps.

I am also linking this card to the Try Stampin' On Tuesday “Tic-Tac-Tuesday #1” Challenge (top row across- Black, Die Cut, Pink) along with the As You Like It “Favourite Die and Why? Challenge (I loved stitched dies of all kinds and used two different stitched dies on this card), the Word Art Wednesday #318-#319 “Anything Goes” Challenge and the Simon Says Wednesday "Layer It Up" Challenge.

If you have not had a chance to do so, I hope you will find the time to check out the rest of the wonderful Design Team cards at The Card Concept as well as the entries at the other challenge sites- fabulous inspiration from all!

To create this card:

1). Ink the Romantic Rose image with Versafine™ Onyx Black ink, stamp onto a piece of white cardstock, apply clear embossing powder and heat set with a heat tool.  Once the embossing has cooled, watercolor the rose image and background with ink from water-based markers (see the colors listed below).  Use a sponge dauber with broken china distress ink and a stencil brush with peacock feathers distress ink along with two stencils to add layered stenciling to the background (this step could be omitted- I thought that it needed a little something extra and the dotted stencil did not look right so I added the chevron. Once you add it, you can not take it away, so there it is :-))

2). Die cut the panel using a cross-stitched rectangle die (Gina K. Designs) and mount onto black cardstock, trim close to the die cut edge.

3). Emboss a piece of blue cardstock with a woodgrain embossing folder, mount onto the black card front.  Add the triple 5/8” black satin ribbon bow (wrapping the ends behind the panel- see note in step 7) and set the card front aside.

4). Create the easel card base from a 4 ¼” x 11” piece of white cardstock, scored at 5 ½” and 8 ¼”.  Fold for the easel and mount the focal image panel onto the 2 ¾” portion of the upper fold (see the tutorial at Splitcoaststampers here for the instructions on an easel card).

5). Emboss a 2 ¼” by 4” piece of blue cardstock with the woodgrain embossing folder.  Mount onto a 2 ½” x 4 ¼” piece of black cardstock, add this panel to the bottom part of the 5 ½” portion of the easel card using dimensional foam.

6). Stamp the verse sentiment from Scripture Medley 1 (Verve Stamps) with Versafine™ Onyx Black ink, stamp onto a piece of white cardstock, apply clear embossing powder and heat set with a heat tool.  Once the embossing has cooled, watercolor with the blue marker to match the background on the main panel. Layer onto a piece of black cardstock and trim close to the edge.  Adhere to the lower layer of the easel card and add a few pearls to the corners.

7). Cut a piece of black cardstock 2 ½” x 4 ¼” and adhere to the back of the lower portion of the main focal image panel (this hides the ribbon ends from view).  OOPS!  If I had planned the project better, this step could have been avoided by adding the ribbon to the blue layer before mounting onto the black card front...but, hindsight is 20/20, right?

8). Finish off the card by adding shimmer to the flower petals with a clear shimmer pen and white highlights to the small flowers with an extra fine white paint pen.

Stamp Sets: Romantic Rose (retired Stampin’ Up!), Scripture Medley 1 (Verve Stamps)

Inks/Mediums:  Versafine™ Onyx Black; Tim Holtz® Broken China and Peacock Feathers Distress Ink; Stampin’ Write Markers-Blushing Bride, Flirty Flamingo, Melon Mambo, Powder Pink, Pear Pizzazz, Wild Wasabi, Island Indigo, Smoky Slate; Spectrum Noir™ Clear Glitter Pen, Sharpie® Extra Fine White Paint Pen

Cardstock/Paper: Whisper White, Basic Black, Island Indigo

Accessories: Big Shot™, Dies- MFT Stitched Rectangle A2 STAX Set 1, Gina K. Designs Cross Stitched Rectangles; Embossing Buddy®, Clear Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Sponge Dauber, Clarity™ Stencil Brush, Memory Box Modern Chic Chevron and Zippy Dots Stencils, 5/8” Black Satin Ribbon, Pearls, Antique Brad

Thanks again for stopping by- I hope you will be able to join us for the The Card Concept #85 {Rustic Blooms} Challenge at The Card Concept! 

TCC82 Peace on Earth

Hi Friends!!

It’s time for the new #82 {Retro Holiday} Challenge at The Card Concept! What a gorgeous wreath with all of the pinks, blues and sparkle- this reminds me of Christmas at my grandparent’s home.  Silver trees with pink and blue were all the rage in the late 60’s :-)

I decided to pull out the retired Stampin’ Up! stamp set, Merry & Type to create my Mixed Media card.  I thought that this stamp set would be perfect for the retro feel and we cannot wait to see what you create for our challenge!

I have incorporated the Try Stamping on Tuesday #347 "How Sweet It Is" Sketch Challenge into the design (I flipped the sketch) along with the As You Like It “Christmas orNon-Christmas and Why?” Challenge (I love Christmas so Christmas it is!) and the Addicted to Stamps and More #268 “Holiday” Challenge.

If you have not had a chance to do so, I hope you will find the time to check out the rest of the wonderful Design Team cards at The Card Concept as well as the entries at the other challenge sites- gorgeous inspiration from all!

To create this card:

1). Prepare a piece of white cardstock with an embossing powder tool, stamp the ornament image with Versafine™ Onyx Black ink, apply silver embossing powder and heat set with a heat tool.  Once the embossing powder has cooled, watercolor the ornaments and background using a water brush with watercolor pencils and water-based marker (colors are listed at the end of the post).  Add shadows with a water soluble graphite pencil.  Die cut the panel with a pierced rectangle die.

2). Ink the #25 stamp with Versamark™ ink, stamp repeatedly over the background on the panel.  Use a pastel pencil to color over the images, run with your finger or a paper stump (remember the “Popping Pastels” technique?).  

 3). Mount the panel onto a piece of gray cardstock and trim close to the edge.

4). Score a piece of white cardstock vertically (per the layer in the sketch- it is hard to see in the photo), mount onto gray cardstock and mount onto the white card base.  Add the watercolored panel directly onto the card front.

5). Ink the sentiment with Versafine™ Onyx Black ink, stamp onto a piece of white cardstock, apply clear embossing powder and heat set with the heat tool.  Add a wash of watercolor to match the card front, die cut with a pierced tag die, mount onto gray cardstock and trim close to the edge.

6). Die cut a snowflake from silver foil, split in half and adhere behind the tag sentiment.  Mount the sentiment to the card front with dimensional foam. Add a few rhinestones to the corner and ornament along with using a clear glitter pen over the ornaments to finish off the card.

Stamp Sets: Merry & Type (retired Stampin’ Up!)

Ink/Mediums: Versamark™, Versafine™ Onyx Black; Derwent® Watercolor Pencils; Stampin’ Write Markers-Bermuda Bay, Blushing Bride, Island Indigo, Sweet Sugarplum, Spectrum Noir™ Clear Glitter Pen, Conté à Paris Pastel Pencil 

Cardstock/Paper: Whisper White, Basic Gray, Silver Foil

Accessories: Big Shot™, ODBD Pierced Rectangle Dies, MFT Pierced Traditional Tag STAX, Memory Box Lindeman Snowflake Die, AquaPainter™, Embossing Buddy®, Heat Tool, Silver and Clear Embossing Powder, Rhinestones

Thanks again for taking the time to stop by!  I hope I have inspired you today and that you will be able to join us for the #82 “Retro Holiday” Challenge at The Card Concept!