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Saturday, December 31, 2011

FSC - New Year, New Stash!



As this post goes live, it is a New Year in many parts of the world! Over at Fashionable Stamping Challenge, they thought it might be fun to use some of your new stash you received over the holidays to kick off the New Year! For my own card, I received a new stack of designer background card stock from my daughter. The stamps from Vintage Circus and Big Top Circus by Oxford Impressions were a gift to myself and are making their debut with this post. I stamped the various images and sentiments with Black Memento Ink and water colored the images with a variety of Distress Inks. I elected to keep the colors muted to give a vintage feel to my scene. The embellishments are limited to some Black Liquid Pearls and some black and white Baker's Twine, which I also distressed to tone down the bright white. You will absolutely want to check out the other Design Team Members samples for inspiration, and then it is your turn! Please remember to check FSC for the specifics. I wish everyone a very Happy New Year!


( I am also adding this card to Lisa Somerville's Blogger's Challenge - Celebrating the Circus Coming to Town!)


On New Year's Eve

As 2011 draws to an end, I want to thank each of you who happen on to my blog, on occasion, regularly or just this once. It was early 2009 when I decided to create a blog. I spent the next two and a half years talking to myself, which was okay! In May 2011, while recuperating from my second knee replacement, I stumbled onto my first challenge, and I truly mean stumbled. I had no idea all of you were out there, or perhaps a better way to say it is that I had no idea how to connect to all of you. I was utterly amazed to say the least. Since May, I have become a follower of a number of blogs that speak to me, and I have learned so much from all of you. I have had the honor of becoming a Design Team Member along with an outstanding group of artists at Fashionable Stamping Challenge and have made precious lifelong friends. Like many of you, I plan to make my annual New Year Resolutions over the next few hours. Concerning my art, my resolutions include: Continuing to develop my techniques, continuing to encourage others in their art and with my art, continuing to create and share my cards with all of you and continuing to learn from you. I wish each of you a very Happy New Year and thank you from the bottom of my heart for your support! Best, Yvonne

Note: The card above is a birthday card for my brother-in-law. The stamps are part of the Steampunk Elements collection at Oxford Impressions. Inks are Distress Inks and Versafine. I am entering my card in Simon Says Anything Goes and Stampin for the Weekend (both "Anything Goes" themes.)

Friday, December 30, 2011

Whimsical Birthday Greetings

My brother-in-law, and one of his sons, both celebrate birthdays in early January. They are also both graphic design artists. One of them will receive this card for their birthday. I began with a Kraft card base and using Distress Inks stamped images from the Whimsical Melange plate by Artistic Outpost onto the card front. I stamped the frame and sentiment and pendants onto ivory card stock, water colored with Distress Inks, trimmed and mounted the images to the card front. Embellishments include Baker's Twine and Silver Liquid Pearls for a pop of metal. I hope one of them enjoys it.

We are currently away from home. I am once again working out of a duffel bag and wishing for many supplies I left back home! Cannot bring myself to leave some of my stash at our beach condo as then I will long for it back home! It does make you work with what you have, though, which is probably a good thing. How about you? Are finding time to squeeze some craft time in now that Christmas is over?

We will have a quiet New Year's Eve and Day here at the beach. Back home, in Pennsylvania, in the heart of Dutch Country, we celebrate New Year's with Pork, Sauerkraut, Mashed Potatoes, Bread Filling, and Gravy (also hot dogs) for good luck and wealth in the New Year. At the beach, in Delaware, they celebrate with Pork and Black Eyed Peas. Any special foods where you live? Have a great day! Xoxo, Yvonne

Thursday, December 29, 2011

TIO - Steampunk Birthday Greetings

I was looking for a challenge today, and really could not bring myself to do anything more for Christmas. I have been making a list of challenges to check out and came across a non-Christmas challenge at Dragons Dream Tag It On, which calls for a tag that is either Steampunk, Victoriana or Gothic-inspired. I have a number of birthdays coming up in January for men in my family so I decided to mount these gorgeous stamps by Sam Poole that I recently purchased. I checked the fine print, and you can either make a tag or mount the tag to a card, which is what I chose to do. I used a lot of Wild Honey and Vintage Photo Distress inks and embellishments include Copper Liquid Pearls and Black and White Baker's Twine. Unfortunately, I now find the challenge is closed, but that's okay. I'll definitely check out their challenges again. In the meantime, check out this blogspot for some gorgeous tags by their Design Team! Best, Yvonne

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Wishing you a Merry Christmas!

Shortly after I began work on my Christmas Cards last year, I came across this image by Crafty Individuals. I immediately knew that it would be my image for this year's Christmas Cards!

Because of the volume of cards we send out, I forced myself to rethink the number of steps and layers this year. I purchased pre-cut, pre-scored, bordered cards and printed my sentiment inside directly onto the card stock rather than printing onto a paper liner. My husband keeps telling me sometimes less is more. I like how it turned out and have had positive feedback from recipients.

Whether you received one of my cards in the mail, or only via this post, please accept my sincere wish for you and your family to have a most blessed Christmas with your family. Merry Christmas! Best, Yvonne

Monday, December 19, 2011

Peacocks and other birds

Yesterday, we celebrated my granddaughter's and her daddy's birthday. Isn't it special that they share the same birthday? Her daddy is a Graphic Designer and very artistic. Since her birth, and the birth of her brother, he has made them a cake each year for their birthday. As they were old enough to speak, they chose the theme for each party and daddy took it from there. This year, my granddaughter's theme was Peacocks and other birds. I had the privilege of making the birthday invitations, and unfortunately forgot to take a photo of one of them. It was a beautiful bejeweled peacock, though. And so for her birthday card, I chose other bird stamps and sentiments from the same set by Stampin Up and fashioned the card above.
With my son-in-law's permission, I am including some photos of the peacock cake he made. My granddaughter selected lemon as the cake batter flavor. My precious granddaughter, daddy and the cake are above.



It's the week of Christmas and I am really not close to ready. How about you? Well take care. Best, Yvonne

Saturday, December 17, 2011

Fashionable Stamping Challenges - Traveling Around the World



There's a new challenge over at Fashionable Stamping Challenge! For the next two weeks, we will be focused on the the theme "Traveling Around the World!" The skies the limit on this one. Will you choose a plane, a boat, or some other image to convey travel? For my own card, I decided to work with a brand new plate of stamps called French Flight by Artistic Outpost. A big thank you to AO who gifted me with the plate of stamps as a thank you for being published in the latest Take Ten Magazine with cards featuring AO stamps. I began with a white card stock panel and distressed it with Antique Linen, Vintage Photo and Faded Jeans Distress Inks. I stamped the script in Iced Spruce Distress Ink over the distressed panel. The various images were also stamped with Distress Ins and mounted either directly or with foam dots for dimension. I added several words in Festive Berry Distress Ink for contrast. Bits of red, white and blue twine and ribbon, some silver Liquid Pearls, and some very vintage buttons complete my card. You will be delighted with the variety of samples on display at FSC by the other Design Team Members. As always, there is a wonderful prize at stake and please make sure to read the few rules associated with this challenge. Thanks for dropping by and I look forward to seeing what each of you dream up! Best, Yvonne

Monday, December 12, 2011

MMM Challenge 28 - Red Ribbon

Good Monday Morning! Hoping you had a lovely weekend. My youngest daughter and grandson were with us over the weekend, which was lots of fun. My grandson is 11 months old and just so sweet! My husband and I went to his Holiday Staff Party for work on Friday night and my daughter and I went to see the Nutcracker on Saturday evening. It was extra special as my granddaughter and oldest grandson were both in the production. My trees are up, I have a good bit of shopping done and my Christmas Cards will be in the mail this week. Speaking of cards, over at Make My Monday, the Seasonal theme continues for December. This week, we are to include red ribbon. I chose my ever ready Sleigh Ride plate by Artistic Outpost. I water colored the image with Tim Holtz's Seasonal Distress Inks in Festive Berry and Evergreen Bough and distressed the panel with Iced Spruce. The image is matted in dark green and I used a red metallic ribbon that a friend gifted to me. The finishing touch is the German Scrap. I hope every one is well. Best, Yvonne

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

All Wrapped Up!

I recently learned of a new challenge over at Crafty Individuals called "All Wrapped Up." I just found Crafty Individual stamps earlier this year and I really love their style! In fact, the image above is being used on my annual Christmas Card this year! When I thought about what to do for my entry, I decided to use this gorgeous little red box. I stamped CI-254 on white card stock with Memento Ink and matted the image in black paper. I added a few crystal glitter gems to give the stars sparkle.

The box is wrapped with red and white Baker's Twine and finished off with German Scrap Christmas Bells. It's clean and simple and very classy, I think. I decided not to add anything else! Looking forward to meeting some new artists who share my delight in Crafty Individuals images. Take care! Best, Yvonne

MMM Challenge 27 - Seasonal "Glitter"

Greetings once again! 'Tis the Season isn't it?! Over at Make My Monday this week, it's a new theme for December: Seasonal. Anything goes as long as it has to do with the Season. The added requirement for this week is "Glitter." My card is nearly all glitter, but alas you will probably need to take my word for it as my camera isn't cooperating. I created a forest of evergreens for the background from the Sleigh Ride plate by Artistic Outpost with Peeled Paint Distress Ink. I "loaded" the branches with Stickles Glitter Glue. The edges of the card base are also distressed with Peeled Paint Distress Ink. The little boy and girl are from the same set as is the sentiment. The tree in the little boy's hands is also glittered. A recycled tartan plaid bow and a "jingle bell" punched (Martha Stewart) out of green glittered paper and tied on with Baker's Twine. I am still hard at work on my Christmas Cards. It's an odd Christmas for me. Last year I had a knee replacement a few days before Christmas so we did not even have a tree! My dear daughter came up on Christmas Eve and pulled out a few decorations to make the house look festive and my best friend made Christmas Dinner for our whole family. This year, we lost all seven of our Christmas Trees to a flood in September. My dear husband and decided with needing to scale back in the next few years we probably don't want to replace seven trees. He is also recovering from surgery. So.....we purchased four Charlie Brown live trees and are just scaling back how many ornaments we use. A bit different, but it sure feels good to be able to decorate again! Hope all is well for you. Your comments are always read and valued. Take care. Yvonne

Saturday, December 3, 2011

FSC - Dressmaking, Corsets and Accessories

Well it's a new challenge over at Fashionable Stamping Challenge! For Challenge # 10, our theme is Dressmaking/Corsets/Accessories! I was really excited about our new theme. I have been dreaming of ordering these beautiful stamps from Oxford Impressions Dress Forms and Corsetry Plate for quite some time, and this gave me the perfect excuse! Images were stamped in London Fog by Memento and distressing was done with Milled Lavender and Spun Pink Distress Ink. Embellishments include a bit of ribbon and lace, a sewing needle and thread some buttons and snaps. Take a stroll over at FSC to see all the beautiful creations by the rest of the Design Team and we hope you will link your own creation! Please see FSC for the specifics concerning submitting to the challenge and to see the really neat stamps someone will win. Looking forward to seeing your creations! Take care. Yvonne



Monday, November 28, 2011

Use it Tuesday - Thank You

There's a new challenge at Use it Tuesday! This time, we are to make a card 'Giving Thanks.' I have a lot of thank you cards to make right now, so this was perfect timing for me. I began with a white card base and wrapped it with several very old ribbons, one recycled from a gift box. I stamped my Inkadinkado image in Wild Honey and matted it with black and burgundy paper scraps. The sentiment is by Stampin Up and is a 2004 release that has not seen ink in almost as long. To finish my card, I added some rust colored leaves, some 10-year old raffia and copper liquid pearls. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. Mine was not what I had planned, but it turned out very nice. Thanks for dropping by and thanks for your comments. Best, Yvonne

MMM Challenge 26 - Christmas Box



Challenge # 26 at Make My Monday is to make a Christmas Box! I have long admired stamped, decorated boxes but have NEVER tried one before. My heart sunk a bit at the challenge, but then I realized here was my chance to move past NEVER, NEVER LAND!



I began by picking a box. I have a small stash of boxes that I cannot seem to part with and found this beautiful turquoise Tiffany square box. I love red, turquoise and black together and so I chose that for my color scheme. My stamps are from the Sleigh Ride plate by Artistic Outpost. Embellishments include some turquoise glitter gems, recycled tartan plaid ribbon, lace, red tulle and some red and white Bakers' Twine. I watercolored the image with Red Barn Distress Ink. Really love that technique. I kept the coloring simple to go along with the vintage feel of the image. Looking forward to seeing everyone elses boxes! Check out MMM's blog for lots of ideas from the Design Team and congratulations to both Mynnette and Val on being selected as the two newest DT members! Have a great week everyone! Yvonne

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Ode to My Dear Brother

Here's another card that I made in the middle of a sleepless night, last night! It features a clip art image that I found in my Lucky Treasure Bag recently. It came to mind as I tossed and turned in bed last evening and so I just had to get up and bring him to life! I love black and white paired with green. I added a pop of red, some Bakers' Twine and black Liquid Pearls and a sentiment by Artistic Outpost. At the time, I did not realize it, but in retrospect, I believe I was drawn to this image as it reminded me of my dear brother, Steve, who would have celebrated his birthday yesterday had we not lost him to heart disease ten years ago. Steve and I grew up in the 50s. Playing "Cowboys and Indians " was one of our favorite past times as young children. I remember the year we both received cowboy hats, boots, holsters and guns for Christmas. We would make stagecoaches out of furniture pieces and played we lived in the Wild West for hours. It was a kinder, gentler time for certain. I miss that era and I miss you Steve. Here's to you! I love you.

Life is Good!



Just a fun card I put together when I couldn't sleep last night! This is the first time I have inked up these images and sentiment, all by Artistic Outpost from their Favorite Book and Typography plates. With bits of lace and seam binding, some shell buttons and lots of Wild Honey and Tumbled Glass Distress Ink, my card is complete. I'll be sending my card off to my dear little grandson next week just to let him know I love him and to encourage him to keep working hard at school. Hope all is well with each of you! Best, Yvonne

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Tuesday Trigger - Red & Rustic



Well it has been awhile since I have been able to join Moxy Fab Tuesday Trigger. My dear husband has had some medical issues that have had us out of the house these past few weeks. Great to be back! This week, the photo above entitled Red & Rustic is our inspiration for our card. I am currently away from home and have just a tiny stash of card makings with me. When I pondered the inspiration photo, I immediately thought Pumice Stone Distress Ink, stripes, red and browns. For my card, I distressed the edges of the card base with Pumice Stone DI. I chose papers in stripes, browns and red for the card front. I stamped a sentiment from the Typography plate by Artistic Outpost in Pumice Stone and cut it apart to put it on the various squares. The image, also by AO, is from the Favorite Book plate. Embellishments include seam binding and bakers' twine, both by Martha Stewart, and some copper Liquid Pearls. Looking forward to seeing what everyone else comes up with. Thanks for stopping by. Best, Yvonne

Monday, November 21, 2011

Twas the Night before Christmas...

It's Monday, and that means there is another challenge over at Make My Monday! This week, we are to make a Christmas Card and make sure to use snowflakes, flowers or foliage. Yikes!!! Here I am out of town with just a handful of card supplies, and I totally forgot to bring anything Christmas with me! And so, I pondered my piddly little pile of stamps, chose this young lad from the Favorite Book plate at Artistic Outpost in a chair and decided he was reading the poem "Twas the Night Before Christmas" by Clement Moore. I cut holly and berries out of paper and added a bit of Stickles for sparkle and tied some Baker's Twine recycled from a pastry box around the image. Thank goodness for Distress Inks. Using primarily Peeled Paint and Barn Red, I distressed and water colored much of the card. The sentiment is handwritten. Now I really need to get cracking on the 300 Christmas Cards that need to go in the mail in short order! Hope everyone is doing well. Best, Yvonne

Sunday, November 20, 2011

With Love and Honor

Okay, here's the skinny. My dear husband and I decided quite suddenly yesterday afternoon to head out of town for warmer weather when we learned that our furnace (boiler) will not be installed for another week and a half. I only had an hour or two of daylight to drive in so we hurriedly put our things together to get on the road as quickly as possible. Long story short, when I finally sat down today to make a card for my dear Aunt who will be 87 next week, I realized I put together a very odd assortment of stamps, paper and embellishments. I decided to make a challenge out of it though. Luckily, I had grabbed my Lucky Treasure Bag and most of my card is made up of clip art, buttons, fabric, lace and ribbon from my LT Bag! The sentiment is from the Typography plate by Artistic Outpost. My Aunt, my mother's sister, has always been a special part of my life, and is even more so now that my own mother is gone. I think she will appreciate the card and I sure hope her day is filled with much happiness. Best, Yvonne

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Dreaming of a White Christmas

Greetings everyone! Well here we are again, looking at a brand new challenge, Challenge # 9, at Fashionable Stamping Challenge! The theme this time is "Dreaming of a White Christmas." Before I chat about my card, though, let me welcome Paula, the latest Fashionette to join the catwalk at FSC! Her card for the challenge reflects her exquisite style. You will love looking at her and the other designers creations and I know you will be inspired to enter your own creation. When we decided to go with Dreaming of a White Christmas my thoughts immediately went to this plate of stamps called Sleigh Ride by Artistic Outpost. I have only recently, and very tentatively done any heat embossing due to putting a nasty hole in my sofa years ago. I really wanted to my card to sparkle though, and so I pulled out pigment ink (I could only find Pink) and a white/silver embossing powder and embossed away! Unfortunately, even though I got advise on how to photograph to show sparkle, the weather did not cooperate and I apologize that the sparkle is not really displaying. I do love the sentiment's font. It seems so fitting and vintage. Embellishments are simple some pink pearls, pompom lace, baker's twine and glitter gems. Can't wait to see what each of you come up with. See FSC for the prize one of you will earn and of course, please remember, no Digis allowed, and we must be able to see your stamping. Here in the U.S., we are gearing up for Thanksgiving. I hope wherever you are, you are enjoying the weekend. Best, Yvonne

Friday, November 18, 2011

Bloggers' Challenge - For the Boys


It has been a few weeks since I have been able to participate in Bloggers Challenge. It feels good to join in again. The theme this week is called "For the Boys." I chose the plate called Generation Redux by Artistic Outpost. When this plate came out, I knew it was a company whose images were going to appeal to me going forward, and I have not been disappointed. I began with Kraft card stock and used a lot of Distress Inks in Mustard Seed, Ripe Persimmon, Gathered Twigs, Peeled Paint and Vintage Photo. Embellishments include recycled ribbon, a button, pieces of an antique dictionary page and liquid pearls. Why not join us at Bloggers Challenge? Thanks for dropping by. Yvonne

Monday, November 14, 2011

Vintage Christmas Wishes

I recently checked out Ebay for the first time and came across this rare, retired stamp by Magenta called Christmas Carolers. I won the bid, obviously, and was shocked when the stamp arrived to see how "fat" maple wood stamps were years ago. Curious as to whether anyone out there has seen this stamp before. It's a funny thing, back in the late 80s I visited a home by Frank Lloyd Wright and stepped away from Colonial and Antiques to all things Early Modern. I still absolutely love Early Modern, but I am happy that I have fallen in love again with vintage. I guess it is true, we always come full circle. For my card, I softened the card front, background paper and doily with Vintage Photo Distress Ink, added some crinkled black ribbon, some gold braid, gifted to me by a friend, and added a sentiment and holly leaves by Art Declassified. Snow flakes were cut from a gold doily. No challenge for this one, just moved to make it in the middle of the night while my DH was recently hospitalized. Thanks for dropping my. Yvonne

MMM Challenge 24 - CAS Christmas



I love Mondays! It means another Make My Monday Challenge! For the month of November, we are exploring Christmas. For this week, Challenge #24 is to make a Clean and Simple Christmas Card with the emphasis on the sentiment. We are to keep multiple layers and embellishments to a minimum. I began with a white card base as MMM is looking for lots of "White Space!" For my Christmas image, I chose a stamp by Penny Black from some time ago. I stamped it with Distress Inks in Peeled Paint and Vintage Photo inks. I matted the image with metallic gold background paper and attached it to the card front. For my sentiment, I chose "Noel" by Recollections. I embossed it in gold (big step for me as I gave up embossing when I burnt a hole in my sofa) and cut it out and mounted it to the card front with pop dots. To further draw attention to the sentiment, I wrapped a single strand of metallic gold thread around the corner of the card near the sentiment. Wishing everyone a beautiful week. Love your comments! Best, Yvonne

Saturday, November 12, 2011

A Word of Encouragement

One of my oldest friends since childhood that I reconnected with through Facebook has been battling cancer for years. She battles again this coming Monday and I wanted to make her a card to let her know I am thinking and praying for her. I recently acquired some sentiment stamps from the Typography plate by Artistic Outpost that I think fit the bill along with these dear little girls from the Birds of a Feather plate, also from Artistic Outpost, that look a lot like my friend and her sister when they were little. I am thankful for my own good health and to having found my old friend again. I truly believe it is all in God's plan. Hope you are having a great weekend. Best, Yvonne

Monday, November 7, 2011

MMM Challenge 23 - Christmas Traditional and Vintage

Was sorry to miss out on Challenge 22 at Make My Monday while my hubby was in the hospital, but happy to report he gets stronger every day. With November comes a new challenge at Make My Monday - Christmas. For this week, we focus on Traditional and Vintage. I confess that although I purchased all my supplies for my nearly 300 cards I make each year back in early September, I just started working on them yesterday. I do that every year! My card for the challenge is not my card for 2011, but only my entry for this challenge. I began with an olive card base, added a vintage inspired clipping from a piece of paper purchased years ago at a stationary store. I choose the Joy and Happiness stamp by Stampington and Company and stamped it on glossy paper with Peeled Paint Distress Ink. I distressed the image with Antique Linen, Peel Paint and Barn Red Distress Inks. I added gold photo corners and matted the image on gold metallic paper. Embellishments include portions of a gold doily, ivory tulle, red and white Baker's Twine (from an actual pastry box) and beautiful buttons that arrived from England recently as part of a Treasure Bag. Can't wait to see what everyone else comes up with for the challenge. Check it out, if you have not tried MMM before. It's a great challenge site. Best, Yvonne

Saturday, November 5, 2011

Make My Monday - Deezine Team Call



I was so amazed, and joyful, to learn recently that Make My Monday Challenge is adding two new Deezine Team Members to their challenge team via a DT Call. Although I started my blog several years ago, it was not until May 2011 that I stumbled onto "Challenges." All of a sudden my world changed! Yes, I gained some followers, and yes the number of people who visited my sight escalated one-hundred fold, but the most precious part of this discovery was all of the kindred spirit friends I made who share a passion for art, and in particular, cards and other projects made with stamps.


Through submitting to challenges, and viewing others blogs who submitted to the challenges, I found my way to Make My Monday. I immediately felt like the quality of your challenges was on a different plane and I look forward nearly every Monday to the next challenge.


I love the monthly theme, and the weekly challenges within the theme. I love the mid-week encouragement and the personal touch I feel when I hear from the Deezine Team members. I love the the work of the other entrants, and most of all I love the classy, elegant, vintage-inspired work that is shared by both the Deezine Team and the participants. Your challenge has stretched me as an artist. I am recently retired, and am excited to have the time, finally, to devote to growing my artistic passion. I enjoy communicating and pride myself on being reliable and responsible when given a task, responsibility or deadline and would be honored to serve on your Deezine Team!


As part of the DT Call, we are to create a card with a Celebration Theme. I gave this some thought, and decided to make a card celebrating the birth and promise of a new baby girl. The main image and sentiment are by Crafty Individuals are stamped in Versafine Sepia ink. The background images, stamped in Tattered Rose Distress Ink, are by Invoke Art. I took a minimalist approach to embellishments due to the vintage look I was going for and added pearl heart buttons, a bit of gingham ribbon and baker's twine. Thank you for this opportunity to be considered for your esteemed Challenge. Best, Yvonne

Fashionable Stamping Challenges - As Time Goes By

Greetings! It is sooooo great to be back on my blog and back to following many of yours. The past two weeks have been a blur as my husband underwent some surgery. My apologies to those of you who have been so kind to leave comments, I should be able to do a better job of responding from here out.

I am most excited about the new challenge at Fashionable Stamping Challenge (FSC). The theme is "As Time Goes By." For those who know me, it is no secret that I am a literalist! My first thought went to the movie with the song in it with the same name. I confess I have never seen the movie, but my research on the movie, Casablanca, led me to select the elements above for my card. The loving couple image is by Art Declassified. The beautiful Eiffel Tower is by Stampsmith. (I just love how you look up at the tower!) The postcard stamp was a gift by Crafty Individuals when I ordered some other stamps. (Thank you!) The plane is by K & Company, and the sentiment was made with an Alphabet Set by Studio G. Other elements include lace, number stickers, background musical paper, LOTS of Distress Inks, vintage buttons and Baker's Twine.

I cannot wait for you to take a peak at the creations from the rest of the Design Team. You will be so inspired! We cannot wait to see your take on the theme, too. Just a reminder, we must be able to see your stamping and, please, no Digis. See FSC for full details including the deadline for your submission.

Have a wonderful weekend. Best, Yvonne

Monday, October 24, 2011

Bloggers' Challenge - Fall Blooms

The challenge at Bloggers' Challenge this week is to make a project with Fall Blooms. For my card, I chose these beautiful floral stamps by Hero Arts and stamped them in fall colors! I used Spiced Marmalade, Vintage Photo and Wild Honey Distress Inks. The flowers were trimmed and mounted onto background paper and mounted to a Kraft card. Embellishments include paper leaves, seam binding and Copper Liquid Pearls. All of these fall challenges have helped me get ready for sending out Thanksgiving Day cards, which will be a huge help as I am just getting started on my Christmas Cards. How about you? Are you where you want to be? Why not come join us at Bloggers' Challenge with a Fall Blooms card? Best, Yvonne

Make My Monday - Challenge 21 - Orange and Black

Happy Monday to everyone! The challenge over at Make My Monday continues to be Autumn for the month of October and the challenge for this week is 'Orange and Black.' As an option, it can be a Halloween card if you please. I began with a black card blank, added some orange and black designer paper. I stamped my image and sentiment both from Studio G, with Black Memento Ink and distressed the edges of both with Spiced Marmalade Distress Ink before matting both with black paper. Both were added to the card front. My embellishments include Black and White Baker's Twine, a recycled portion of a die cut that previously was a label and that I received when purchasing card stock and some Copper Liquid Pearls. My granddaughter will probably be the recipient of this card. Looking forward to seeing what everyone else comes up with. Take a look at the DT's examples. Excellent! Best, Yvonne

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Coffee & Cream with a hint of Dark Chocolate




Greetings! Boy do we have a fabulous new challenge for you over at Fashionable Stamping Challenge! For Challenge # 7, the theme is Coffee & Cream with a hint of Dark Chocolate! I hope you will hop over to FSC and check out all of the examples by the other Design Team Members. They are over the moon! You will be so inspired. For my own card, I started by stamping a Cafe scene and and an accompanying tray with coffee, both by Art Declassified in Memento Rich Cocoa ink. I also stamped a street map of Paris by Stampsmith with the same ink. All images were distressed with Antique Linen Distress Ink and then matted with Kraft card stock and black paper. The images were layered over a background designer paper and embellishments include Kraft photo corners, seam binding by Martha Stewart, a paper flower, gold cord and vintage buttons. The finalized panel was placed on a brown card base. I had the privilege decades ago of spending nine days in Paris and the surrounding area. I have fond memories of being offered coffee each morning with either hot or cold milk. I fondly remember the little bistros that lined the Paris streets and hope one day to return. Now we look forward to seeing what you come up with! Please remember we need to be able to see your stamping and no Digis, please. Bon Soire! Yvonne

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

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

Try it on Tuesday

Came across a new challenge today called Try it on Tuesday. Their challenge this week is called 'Taking to the Skies.' The interpretation is open to us. The Design Members at Try it on Tuesday had many interpretations, I must say! For my card, I chose birds, a sentiment and a bird cage by TPC Studio. I added Antique Linen Distress Ink to most of the pieces and finished with a feather and Baker's Twine, a doily and Liquid Pearls. I really felt the card needed a pop of color so I added the ribbon at the top of the card. Looking forward to meeting some new folks at this challenge. Thanks for stopping by. Yvonne

Monday, October 17, 2011

Autumn Inchies - Flora and Fauna

Hope everyone had a great weekend! Our weather was gorgeous all weekend and continues into the new week. Challenge # 20 at Make My Monday is Autumn Inchies - Flora and Fauna. I recently picked up this stamp by Inkadinkado and think it is perfect for this week's challenge. I painstakingly cut background papers into inchies and arrange them colorfully and then realized I needed to put them all back together to stamp my image! I am also submitting my card to Stamptacular Sunday Challenge for Challenge #134 - 'You Choose,' which calls for any card using a technique new to you. Although I have made a few cards with inchies, I have never attempted to stamp one image across multiple inchies. I have always stamped each block individually, so that is my 'new to me' technique. Looking forward to seeing what evryone else comes up with! Thanks for dropping by. Best, Yvonne

Friday, October 14, 2011

Bloggers' Challenge - Cardboard



The challenge at Bloggers' Challenge this week is to incorporate cardboard into a project. I decided to use a piece of cardboard that was at the bottom of a stack of card stock. I die cut a vine by Sissix from the cardboard and sponged the leaves with Fresh Foliage Folk Art Paint and Crushed Olive Distress Ink. The focal image is from Generation Redux by Artistic Outpost. I added Kraft Photo Corners to tie into the card stock vine. The sentiment is by Stampin Up. Embellishments include a paper flower I found in my stash, ribbon by Michael's and Pink Pearls by Martha Stewart. I felt as though the card was a bit flat, so I added just a bit of Frosted Lace Stickles here and there on my cardboard vine. I really appreciate being challenge to go beyond the regular paper or card stock I would have pulled together for my project. It is good to grow! Hope everyone has a great weekend. Heading to the beach with my sister that I have not seen in ages and my husband. Take care. Yvonne




Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Moxy Fab - Textured to Perfection

This is my first Moxie Fab World Challenge, though I have joined in on the a number of Tuesday Trigger Challenges. The challenge is to make a card that incorporates texture in an innovative way. I love texture and always try to add some to my cards. For this card, I challenged myself to look for ways to add extra texture. To get started, I grabbed this beautiful seashell embossing folder by Sissix and embossed Kraft card stock. I then distressed the edges of the panel. I immediately knew I wanted to use the clam shell gather from Artistic Outpost. To further the texture of my card, I tore around the image to reveal the soft paper at the core. I wrapped the panel in baker's twine and then added raffia as a bow to heap on more texture. Where I might have added stamped seashells, for today's card, I added real seashells and some pearls. The entire panel was mounted to white card stock. I thought the accent panel lacked texture so I added some with Copper Liquid Pearls for tactile appeal. Everything was mounted on a textured peach card base. Thanks for stopping by.

Tuesday Trigger - Finesse the Dress




It's another Tuesday Trigger at Moxy Fab! This week, we are to make a card as inspired by the dress above. I immediately thought of this previously uninked stamp by Inkadinkado and stamped it in London Fog Memento Ink onto a Turquoise scrap and matted the image in white and metallic gray. A simple gray strip punched with a Martha Stewart border punch replicates the hem of the dress. The scalloped doily behind the image also replicates, somewhat, the bodice of the dress. The sentiment is by Stampa Rosa and embellishments include gauze flowers by Tim Holtz and Baker's Twine by Divine Twine. Looking forward to seeing everyone else's takes on the photo! Thanks for dropping by. Best, Yvonne

Monday, October 10, 2011

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


Sunday, October 9, 2011

Fashionable Stamping Challenge - anything but a card



Greetings! I have really been enjoying the challenges at Fashionable Stamping Challenge. The new challenge, "Anything but a Card"
should be very interesting. Looking forward to seeing what each of you comes up with! For my project, I chose to decorate an unfinished white linen picture frame. I began by stamping shells in Antique Linen Distress Ink onto the frame and added the sentiment in Black Versafine ink at the bottom of the frame. The bathing Beaty was stamped onto Glossy Paper and trimmed and mounted to the side of the frame. I added tulle, ribbon, shells, pearls and butterfly stickers by Tim Holtz. All stamp images are by Oxford Impressions.

Please check out all the projects by the Design Team for inspiration. Can't wait to see your entry! Please remember no Digis and we must be able to see stamping on your project. Best, Yvonne

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Blogger's Challenge - Sketch Challenge -9/30/11




Greetings! Catching up on last Friday's new Bloggers Challenge, which is a sketch this week. (See above.) I decided to use the beautiful stamp plate called Paris Exposition by Artistic Outpost. Not sure why I felt led to stay to all neutrals on this one, by I like it! Looking forward to seeing every one's entries. Best, Yvonne




Make My Monday - Challenge 18 - Autumn- Resist Technique



Greetings! It sure feels good to be back in blog land! I have been traveling for a while and though I had my card supplies with me, had no time to apply myself. I was very excited to see the new challenge for Make My Monday for October and was delighted to see that it is "Autumn." Specifically, for this first week, we are to use a "Resist Technique." Yikes!!! I don't know that I have ever used a resist technique. It is, however, what I love most about challenges... growing my skills. So...I did a search and found some really good videos on You Tube. I recalled having a Ranger Resist Ink Pad from back in the days when I did heat embossing (before I burnt a hole in my sofa). That was way before Distress Inks though. Don't you just love how Distress Inks have changed the course of card making? So for my card, I stamped this leaf collage by Northwoods Rubber Company with Resist Ink onto Glossy Paper. I added Antique Linen, Spiced Marmalade, Dusty Concord and Worn Lipstick Distress Inks. I matted my image with white and then copper metallic paper. I layered a purple card stock to my white card base, added a beautiful copper ribbon, and my matted image. The sentiment is a portion of an stamp by The Stamp Pad Company, also stamped in Dusty Concord. Embellishments include paper leaves mounted on pop dots, Copper Liquid Pearls, Birds cut from ribbon, Baker's Twine and Raffia. Looking forward to a week of sunshine and warmer weather as we are still without a furnace as a result of last month's flood! Lot's of hot tea helps! Take care. Best, Yvonne






Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Make My Monday - Challenge 17 - SteamPunk - Anything But a Card


Really excited about the Make My Monday Challenge! I learned when going to their site for this week's challenge that I had been selected as one of the Top Three for last week's Challenge 16. I am both humbled and honored at being selected from all the beautiful entries. This is my first ever being selected at any Challenge so I am just thrilled. Check out the other winners noted as part of this week's challenge. You won't be disappointed!


This week, for Challenge 17, we wrap up SteamPunk with the specification of "SteamPunk -Anything But a Card." I am a card maker! I admit it. This is the second challenge in the past few days where I am stretched to go beyond a card base for my canvas. I searched my art studio and came up with this very handsome black box. It contained my Yearly Calendar that I purchased at Barnes and Noble at the begining of 2011. It was so gorgeous, 8.5" by 10.5" that I had previously tore off the front label and set aside for another day. For Challenge 17, I decided to decorate the top of the box in preparation to give the box and possible contents as a gift to someone. (My digital camera broke a few days ago and I am trying to get use to my husband's new camera so please forgive the shadows and waviness until I figure it all out. Not very mechanically incline, I'm afraid.)



I am really enjoying SteamPunk, have ordered some new stamps, but they have not yet arrived, and so I set to work with what I had on hand. I used two stamp plates by Artistic Outpost, Whimsical Melange and SteamPunk. I did a lot of ink distressing with Brushed Concord, Spiced Marmalade, Worn Lipstick and Antique Linen.



I added sprockets by Tim Holtz, sewing snaps, jump rings from my attempts at jewelry making, and tried to make a pair of spectacles from jewelry wire.


Not sure yet who will receive this box, but I think it will make someone happy. Looking forward to seeing what else everyone else comes up with and very curious about the new theme for October! Take care and thanks for dropping by. Best, Yvonne