More scrap pages

I thought I would share a couple more of my favorite layouts from my scrapping weekend. The first spread is of my niece - she's 9 now and races motocross! These were my favorite pages of the weekend. I love these scallop flower papers, I think they are Autumn Leaves MOD collection. I adhered them to blue paper from my My Mind's Eye stack from Costco. The pictures are matted on pumpkin pie, with the tiny circle pictures matted on SU scallop punch outs. I used some circle clips from the SU hodgepodge hardware with orange grosgrain and olive May Arts faux suede ribbons. The left page has a My Mind's Eye rub-on and the right page has Alison's name punched out using my friend's Quickutz and Queen and Co. parentheses embellishments. I also added some fun Primas to both pages.
The second set of pages is from a boat ride my mom and I took to an island off the California coast. The base pages are taken with teal, with pieces of patterned paper from Creative Memories attached. The photos are matted in gray and blue, then I added some stickers, some linen thread and shell charms, more Quickutz letters and another MME rub-on. I'm really happy with these pages, too!

Fabulous Z-fold

Because of my trip to the Northwest, I've been out of the challenge loop for a couple of weeks. I couldn't wait to get back to Beate's challenge this weekend! I used her Z-fold layout in my first attempt with Fabulous Flowers. Can you believe I JUST got my first order from the new SU catalog? I am in love with pomegranate and with this set. I'm showing two versions of the card, one opened and one closed -though it's hard to tell much difference, since the card doesn't like to stay closed. This was a duel challenge for me; I also made it to meet the requirements of one of the mini-VSN challenges on SCS. The next Virtual Stamp Night is not until January, so to tide us over, the VSN coordinators this round have put together three mini-VSNs. Each night will offer four challenges, all at once, with no time limits and two weeks to create and upload, all relaxations of the traditional VSN rules. Stay tuned because I'm hosting one of the challenges in November and I can't wait!
For my card, I started with the Z-fold card base in shimmery white, then stamped the large flower three times in pomegranate, pixie pink and pink passion, then cut out each one, layering the smaller, lighter colors. The center is a pink rhinestone brad from Target. I stamped the sentiment and the small flowers from the set in pretty in pink, positively pink (retired), pixie pink, pink passion and pomegranate. I added some diamond stickles and silver brads for even more sparkle, and finished the card with white organdy ribbon, silver cord and snipped of sparkly pink May Arts ribbon from a Jody Morrow share. It is super pink and super sparkly, but fun!

Girls' scrapping weekend

Last weekend, during my vacation to the Northwest, I spent Thursday night-Sunday morning at a beautiful vacation home on the waters of the Puget Sound near Olympia, Washington. While it rained and stormed outside, 8 friends and I were holed up inside, mostly in our jammies or sweats, snacking, drinking and scrapbooking! A friend of mine from college - the one who got me started stamping and exposed me to Stampin Up - rents a house about once a year and invites all of her crafty friends for a girls' scrapbooking weekend. I've only been able to attend one other time, so I was so excited to be able to go this year. A couple of the girls are long-time friends of mine, and some of the others I've gotten to know over the years since we have a common friend and a common interest. We had a great time, watching chick flicks, eating chocolate, savoring the pomegranate martinis one of the girls brought, and best of all, scrapping! Everybody brought a bunch of scrap and stamp supplies and shared them, so we could try new tools or use sketch books we might not have at home. It was so much fun and over all, I'm very happy with the work I did during the weekend. Above are the 25 pages I completed, primarily on Friday and Saturday, which were our prime scrapping days. The only thing left to do is journaling on the computer for some of the pages, and the last two pages I made might need some additional embellishment. It was 1:30 a.m. and I was running out of steam! This is the most scrapbooking I've done in ages, and means I'm closer to finishing my 2005 and 2006 albums. I know it's not in vogue, but I'm a chronological scrapbooker. I can't help my type A self! I have a few favorite two-page spreads from the weekend, and the one above is among them. Some of the pictures I took to scrap were from the wake/party I attended over Memorial Day weekend 2006 to remember my honorary uncle who died of lung cancer two years ago. He didn't want a funeral or memorial, just a get-together where his family and friends could celebrate and enjoy each other. I used red, white and blue since the party was over the holiday weekend and because those were the colors in the table linens and decorations. The patterned paper is from Carolee's Creations; the diecuts are from My Mind's Eye's new confetti collection; the quote is from a DCWV quote stack; I used SU cardstock in navy and red to mat the photos and SU brads on the quote. It's a fairly simple spread, but I really like how it turned out.

More happy mail!

I got a little behind in posting RAKs I received from my fellow September VSN hostesses, so now is as good a time as any to get caught up. The first card is from Heather (alcesalces on SCS), who blogs at Stamping the Details. I love the colors of this card, especially the marbling of the leaf in the center. It's so cool! This waterfall card was made by my friend Melinda (Wonkaismycat on SCS). Her blog, Endless Embellishments, can be found here. The waterfall shows the bear eating the hotdog! Such a clever card, and I love that camping stamp set. It's so nice to receive happy mail from friends! Thanks girls.

Deck the halls

I'm finally back in California - where it's hot, windy and smoky right now! I brought a cold back with me, so I'm tired, cranky and coughing like crazy, but I will head off to work in a few minutes since I've used up all my vacation/sick leave this year. I will post some photos and info about my vacation and girls' scrapping weekend later in the week; I'm still catching up around here! In the meantime, here's some more stuff I was working on before I left.
I'm trying really hard to get a head-start on the holidays, especially where the crafting is concerned. I have a list of projects I want to get done, and I've started picking up the supplies to make them. One of the ideas I've been saving since last year is this pinecone ornament. I first got the idea from Amanda at Inkspirations. You can check out her tutorial here. I didn't have time to make them last year, but after the holidays, I found a stash of styrofoam balls, then found some of the tiny pins needed to make them at Big Lots. And they sat in my "to make" box for much of the year until a few days ago when I decided I would tackle one. This was my first. I used DCWV paper from an old Christmas stack, added a little charm from the Michael's $1 spot and some organdy ribbon for the hanger. It was pretty easy to make, though I highly recommend using a thimble to stick the pins in or you fingers will get sore!

Raks from jaymerz

I have a few more RAKs to share today from Oregon. I'll be leaving in the morning :( to return to California. I will be glad to see Eliot, but I will miss my family and friends. Good thing I'll be back in two months for Christmas!
My friend Jamie, aka jaymerz on SCS, sent me these two cards when she was my secret sister for the last VSN. I realized I never posted them on here - probably because both of them ended up on my mantle as soon as I got them in the mail! My favorite cards can end up on the mantle for weeks or months, sometimes. I just love having handmade cards on display. These two are especially great for display because they are such bright, happy cards with lots of color. The first card uses True Friend. I love how she used the striped paper as a mat,with just a touch peaking out. The second card uses Heartfelt Thanks - one of my all-time favorite sets. I love the wide ribbon and the narrow ribbon with the clip! You can see more of Jamie's work on her blog, Stamp This! Thanks Jamie for the happy mail; it's still making me happy several weeks later!

A sweet little card

Hi from rainy Oregon! I'm having a nice vacation; I leave in the morning for Washington, where I'll visit my cousin and her infant twins, then head to my girls' stamping and scrapping weekend on the Puget Sound! I'm excited to see everybody and also to get some scrapping done!
I was visiting a friend a few weeks ago and she had her stamping stuff out while I was there, so I couldn't resist making a card. It's always a little strange using someone else's stuff to stamp; my friend uses SU stamps and ink, but not the cardstock, pens or anything else! It can be a fun challenge to make "me" cards with her stuff. I started with the flower image, I think the set is called Happier because of you. I stamped it with black stazon, then colored it in with her colored pencils. I then covered the whole thing in Versamark and embossed using some silvery, holographic embossing powder. It's super sparkly in real life. I added the little butterfly, cut out with her CM cutting system, and popped it up with pop dots. I finished the card with a piece of organdy ribbon. All the cardstock is non-SU.

Rak-ing up the leaves

I have a stack of RAKs that need posting, so while I'm on vacation and not stamping, it's the perfect time to share some of the cards that have brightened my mailbox lately. Both of these cards feature fall leaves and came from people who participated with me in the September VSN, which had a fall theme. The first card was my first mail ever from Australia. It came from Frances, aka StampOwl, who was one of the other VSN hostesses. This is the card she made for my VSN challenge, which was aptly called "Make like a tree" and was all about making leaving, bon voyage, or farewell cards. I couldn't believe Frances actually had a stamp that said that! Isn't it great? I also love her background on this card. You can see more of Frances' lovely work on her blog, Stamp Owl's Studio.
The second card was made by my friend Patty, aka Pattyb. Patty is a brand-new blogger. You can see more of her work at Paper Patty. Patty was one of the coordinators for the September VSN and sent this to me as a thank-you for hostessing. I love the bright colors in the background here. She included a little bag of goodies, too, which I can't wait to play with! Thanks Patty.

Trick or treat tri-fold

I'm heading out in the morning for my vacation; I prepared a few posts for my blog in advance, in case I have a little computer time to post them while I'm gone, but it may be a bit sporadic around here for a few days. I promise, though, that I will be back!
In the meantime, here is what I think this is the end of my Halloween cards for this year. I realized I need a couple more kids' cards so a couple of pairs of siblings would get similar but different cards. So I pulled out the SU Trick or Treat set that I borrowed from a friend and made these triangle tri-fold cards I learned from Beate (link to her blog at right.) The base is only orange; the images are stamped in black Stazon and colored with bold brights markers, then layered on orchid and green galore. The patterned paper is from K and Co. and the ribbon is from Michael's. I'm sure the kids will enjoy them, especially if I stick a treat in with them.

Pink snowburst

I am heading off on vacation starting Saturday - woohoo! - and part of my vacation will be a girls' stamping and scrapping weekend with some friends from college. The friend who organized the weekend is the one who invited me to my very first Stampin' Up party and got me started stamping almost 10 years ago. She rented us a beautiful waterfront home on the Puget Sound in Washington. We'll be relaxing, stamping, hot-tubbing, chatting, snacking, watching chick flicks and otherwise enjoying fall in the Pacific Northwest. I live in California now, and two of the things I miss most are fall, with the crisp, cool air and gorgeous colors of the leaves changing, and my closest, oldest friends, many of whom still live in close proximity to one another in Oregon and Washington. Anyway, I was looking for a little gift to take to my organizing friend, but since she's a stamper and taught me much of what I know, I was struggling with what to make for her. So my friend Joni (jstarbright on SCS) suggested I turn one of those tag punch starbursts into an ornament, and that's what I did here. Pink might seem odd for a snowflake, but I was kind of hampered by my selection of heavy weight sparkly cardstock and mulberry papers - I have quite a few of both, but only a couple that match! And this ornament took a whole sheet of each. The directions for the starburst can be found on SCS here. I made two of the regular snowflakes, then added a smaller one, using six tags. To make the smaller one, I just laid out three tags so the corner points met and left a triangle in the middle, then layered three more tags on top the same way. I attached the silver snowflake brad in center and attached the silver cord hanger to the brad's backside. I attached the two larger snowflakes together using pop dots. I think my friend will like it; if not, I'll hang it on my tree!

Fast and fishy

I stamped these Silly Sealife images while I was visiting a friend. I used black Stazon on whisper white paper, figuring I could color them later. Then a few days ago, Sharon of No Time to Stamp posted a challenge to make three quick 3 x 3 cards, so I figured I would use those images and a scrap of Creative Imaginations patterned paper to make a set of little note cards. The card bases are white textured cardstock (manufacturer unknown.) The patterned paper is ticket-corner punched and each image is layered on tempting turquoise cardstock with an eyelet or two for embellishment. The fish are all watercolored using an aquapainter and ink from the pad lids. I was experiment with my watercolor technique - I'm still not very good, and I need to practice on different paper! The octopus is quite shimmery because I had used my aquapainter previously with Ranger perfect pearls and a trace of them remained on the brush. I actually really like the effect, though I'll probably never figure out how to duplicate it! I think these cards will make perfect gift tags for kids' presents. Thanks Sharon, for the challenge!

Dazzling tag

I decided to give the Paper Salon World Cardmaking Day challenge one more shot by making a tag using the tag sketch they posted. I really like how this turned out. I started with a bravo burgundy base, I think it measures 3 by 4.5 inches. I cut the corners off one end to make the top, then added a layer of Paper Salon Dazzle collection blizzard paper along the top, using my Fiskars cutter to make a scallop edge. The middle cardstock is PS Dazzle candy strip. I stamped most of the mistletoe image from SU's Peaceful Wishes set in bravo burgundy on the striped cardstock, then using my stamp positioner to line the images up, stamped the bottom piece of the image in white craft ink on the burgundy paper. I attached the wide moss organdy ribbon under the snowflake layer, then tied it in sections using my SU silver cord. I added an eyelet and another piece of the moss ribbon at the top, again tied with the silver cord. I think I will add a TO/From stamp on the snowflake layer at a later time.

Happy Birthday Anna

Today is Anna Wight's birthday. She was also selected as the Featured Stamper for this week's challenge on SCS. Anna is one of my favorite stampers and bloggers. She is a true artist, from her drawing to her photography and her cards. Her blog, Sassy and Sweet Notes, is daily reading for me. Anyway, for this week's challenge, I CASEd this card from Anna's SCS gallery. I love how simple and elegant it looks. I used basic black and whisper white cardstock, and a sheet of green paper from the Basic Grey Phoebe collection. The stamps are from the SU set Happy Winter. This was one of the first sets I ever bought after I started stamping and it is still a favorite of mine. I stamped with black Stazon and colored the scarf and buttons with my glorious green marker. I used a Marvy square punch to make a mask around the image in order to leave some white around the edges of the focal piece. I finished the card off with some silver brads from Making Memories.

Dazzling Christmas

I just happened to have a couple of pristine, uncut sheets of this yummy Paper Salon paper from the Dazzle collection, and Paper Salon happens to be hosting a World Cardmaking Day challenge, which you can find here. The papers are blizzard and candy stripe. The challenge is to make a shaped holidaycard or tag or to use one of two sketches from PageMaps. I chose this card layout from PageMaps because it would work wonderfully with this tag punch starburst that my friend Joni encouraged me to try. For directions on making the starburst, which is made with the two tag punches from SU, visit this thread on SCS. Here are the rest of the details: mellow moss card base, Paper Salon designer papers layered with bravo burgundy cardstock; starburst uses sparkly turquoise CS from unknown source (possibly Paper Zone) and pale pink The tiny snowflakes are punched from bravo burgundy and rose romance cardstock using some EK Success snowflake punches I have. The sentiment is from MSE and inked in mellow moss and bravo burgundy. I used the word window punch to round the edges of it. The snowflake brads are from my stash, not sure who made them.
Hope you're all having a great World Cardmaking Day. I am planning to work on some other cards and challenges later, but I need to do some chores around the house, too!

Twice as inspired

This week's inspiration piece for the SCS inspiration challenge was some darling white and flowered bedding from Pottery Barn. I made the first card for the inspiration challenge, then used the inspiration piece to make the second card, for Beate's weekend sketch challenge. The first card is a white card base with a layer of bashful blue then a layer of embossed cardstock from DCWV that I got at Joanns. I didn't do much stamping on this one - the flowers are Primas with flower brad centers. The white flower brad is coverd in diamond Stickles for a little sparkle. The sentiment is from SU's retired small script set; I love that set! The ribbon is from Michaels.
The second card is using Beate's weekend sketch, found here. I used another piece of the bashful blue as the card base, then cut the partial circle from the same DCWV embossed cardstock, then added another circle layer out of pixie pink. The main image uses stamps from Delight in Life in real red, only orange, pixie pink and old olive. It is also layered on bashful blue and pixie pink. I finished the card with a sprig of striped ribbon from my stash and some Primas and a white flower (source unknown) and a Queen and Co. orange and white brad.
Check back later for more stuff; I plan to stamp a lot today in honor of World Cardmaking Day.

The strange fascination continues

I swear that orchid opulence is NOT my favorite SU color. Orchid and glorious green are the two oddest, hardest-to-use colors in the entire collection, as far as I can tell. But I've had the orchid out this week, and I keep finding new ways to use it. This card was for Friday's limited supply challenge on SCS. The challenge was to use patterned paper and a sentiment, but no image stamps. So I pulled out my trusty Sage Advice - love the sentiments, and this one is big! Then I flipped through my My Mind's Eye paper stacks - the ones from Costco that are like 400 pages of lightweight patterned paper. Anyway, I found this sheet and thought it would make a pretty card. And since I happened to have the orchid cardstock out, and it matched, I started there. So the orchid card base is topped with a piece of Caribbean and then the patterned paper, which were all punched with the ticket corner punch. Then I added the piece of Martha Stewart twill (twill was the Thursday Ways to Use it Challenge), and the silver flower brads. The sentiment was stamped in Caribbean on whisper white, then layered on orchid and Caribbean cardstock, again ticket corner-punched. I finished the card with some primas and another brad.
That's all for tonight, it's late now and I'm headed to bed soon to rest up for World Cardmaking Day tomorrow. I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm planning to stamp my heart out. Expect a couple of new posts tomorrow during the celebration.

Halloween sketch

I'm still in my Halloween groove, and still had supplies out from my weekend cards, so I used them again for this week's sketch challenge on SCS. I used the images from Trick or Treat, itty bitty backgrounds and the $1 stamp sentiment from Michaels on this card. Card base is orchid, with whisper white, basic black, green galore and pumpkin pie cardstock as well, with all the layered pieces' edge-distressed with my Heidi Swapp distresser. I stamped the images in stazon black and colored the eyes and other features with my bold brights markers. I went over the colored pieces with diamond stickles for a little sparkle, but didn't wait for them to dry before taking the photo! Maybe tomorrow I'll have something non-Halloween for you!

Almost agapanthus

The Sunday challenge on SCS is "Featured stamper." The idea is to find a card in the chosen stamper's gallery and CASE it, changing at least two elements of the card, but still allowing the original artist's work to shine through. This week's featured stamper was Jenn Balcer. I love Jenn's bold bright colors and she always has awesome gift ideas on her blog, too. You can see some of her work here. Anyway, I chose a card Jenn had made using a stamp of aganpanthus (I think it was by Stampendous). She used the same pinks with chocolate chip. I changed it up by using black ink and cardstock along with the pixie and passion pinks. I also used different stamps - these flowers from Happy Harmony and Heartfelt Thanks. The striped ribbon is from Doodlbug. The card measures 4.25 inches square. Thanks Jenn, for the inspiration!