Halloween Paper Pumpkin Card

Halloween is upon us! I made some cute cards to give to some friends, using a couple of the past Paper Pumpkin kits. Hope everyone has a fun day, and a not-to-spooky evening! Happy Halloween everyone!

I love doing a z-fold card. First you fold it in half, then fold the top half back on itself, in half again. I don't think the Paper Pumpkin kits I used are still available, and neither is the Pumpkin Pie Glimmer Paper, but that's okay. It's still cute!

 All supplies used are from Stampin' Up!:

Stamps: Paper Pumpkin: Sept. 2014 - Boo-tiful Bags, and Sept. 2015 - Wickedly Sweet Treat

Inks: Archival Basic Black, Rich Razzleberry, Pumpkin Pie, Lemon Lime Twist

Cardstock: Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White, Rich Razzleberry, Cardstock Vellum

Accessories: Pumpkin Pie Glimmer Paper

Again, I hope everyone has a happy Halloween, and thanks for stopping by!

Kathryn

Remarkable You Sweater Weather #TGIFC130

Sweater weather! That is what we have been having here lately. Dark mornings on the way to work. Frost on the grass in the morning. Leaves turning all shades of red and orange and yellow. It is beautiful, but, I must admit, I am not a fan of the cold weather. But it does encourage me to stay inside and craft more!

Over on TGIF Challenges blog, the challenge this week is a theme challenge called "Sweater Weather" and it is #TGIFC130. Here is my entry:

 All supplies are from Stampin' Up!:

Stamp sets: Remarkable You, Basket of Wishes

Inks: Archival Basic Black, Crushed Curry, Lemon Lime Twist, Pumpkin Pie

Card Stock: Whisper White Thick, Card Stock Vellum, Very Vanilla

Accessories: Big Shot, Cable Knit Dynamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, 

Aqua Brush, Rhinestone Basic Jewels

The leaves on some of the trees around here turn a beautiful shade of gold, and some of them have tinges of pale green and orange, and this was the look I was trying to go for when I watercolored those leaves. They definitely have that Fall/Autumn look to them I think. And if you couldn't tell, this card has a Z-fold on it, with that Cable Knit embossing folder used on the front half-flap.

Here is the Challenge Graphic from over on TGIF Challenges blog:

Thanks so much for visiting my little blog today. I hope you like my card, and I hope you come back soon!

Kathryn

Remarkable You Friendship card

I love to color. Whether it is with colored pencils, watercolors, or blender pens, just put a pen, pencil, or paintbrush in my hand and I am a happy camper! The card that I am showing you today, I used a blender pen and a puddle of ink in my inkpad lids to bring some lovely color to a beautiful Magnolia blossom. The stamp set that it comes from is called "Remarkable You" and it has some wonderful images for coloring. This one I used a kind of sketchy design to color it in, because my blender pen was not the most "moist". (It might be time to get some new ones! LOL!)

Take a look at my card:

All supplies are from Stampin' Up!:

Stamp sets: Remarkable You, and Watercolor Wings (greeting)

Ink Pads: Powder Pink, Berry Burst, Early Espresso, Lemon-Lime Twist

Card stock: Powder Pink, Whisper White, Early Espresso

Accessories: Big Shot, Polka Dot Basics Embossing Folder, Stitched Shapes Framelits Dies, Flourish Thinlits Dies, Blender Pens, Classic Label Punch, Dimensionals

A close-up:

Do you like to color? Let me know. Maybe I can do more coloring and watercoloring to show here.

Thanks for stopping by,
Kathryn

A Jar of Love and Thanks

Don't you love it when someone does something nice for you? You just want to give them a great big hug and a sincere "Thank You!". Well, having some cute thank you cards on hand sure helps to convey your feelings of gratitude to that person. That is what this card is all about. We recently had some friends help us out with something, and this is the card that I gave them.

All supplies from Stampin' Up!:

Stamp set: Jar of Love

Ink pads: Basic Gray, Bermuda Bay, Pool Party, Old Olive, Daffodil Delight, Crushed Curry

Card stock: Whisper White Thick, Whisper White (regular), Daffodil Delight

Accessories: Big Shot, Everyday Jars Framelits, Classic Label Punch, (Retired DSP), Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Dimensionals

 Here is a close up of the flowers, so you can kind of see how I lifted one edge, but glued down the bottom edge. I wanted them to have a bit more dimension. I felt like it gave it more layers, but without too much bulk.

I hope we can all remember to express our gratitude to those around us who help us out each day. Not only will it maybe make people more willing to help others out, but I think it makes us feel good as well. 

And speaking of gratitude, I am thankful that you stopped by here today as well. I hope you enjoyed my card.

Thanks again,

Kathryn

Rainbow Cool Treats Birthday Card

I have a friend at work, and her birthday is tomorrow, so I wanted to make her a birthday card. I've had this idea floating around in my head for a while, so I decided to use it for her card.

Take a look:

 All supplies are from Stampin' Up!:

Stamp set: Cool Treats

Ink Pads: Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight, Lemon-Lime Twist, Bermuda Bay, Archival Basic Black

Card Stock: Whisper White Thick

Accessories: Big Shot, Frozen Treats Framelits dies, Aqua Brush, Watercolor Paper, Sprinkles Embellishments (retired), Fine Tip Glue Pen, Dimensionals

I taped the piece of watercolor down (all four sides, using some washi tape) and I spritzed it really well with water. Then I took my Aqua Brush, and starting on one end, I "watercolored" a swatch of color, then a second color, overlapping  them some to blend the colors as I worked my way across the watercolor paper. How do you like it? Me? I LOVE it! The bright colors really made me think of popsicles, and that is why I used the Cool Treats stamp set. What a fun birthday card for an end of the Summer birthday!

Thanks for stopping by,
Kathryn

You've Got This Birthday Card #tgifc119

They have a really great color challenge over at TGIF Challenges this week. The challenge was to use the three Stampin' Up! colors of 1.) Pool Party, 2.) Crushed Curry, and 3.) Lemon-Lime Twist (one of this year's In-Colors...and I love it!).

I don't know about you, but I seem to use more birthday cards than anything else, so I made my card a birthday card. (I really should try to make more masculine cards, but I know more women to give cards to than men, except for my family, who are all men. Except for one of our cats...LOL!)

Anyway, take a look:

All supplies are from Stampin' Up! unless otherwise specified:

Stamp Sets: You've Got This, and Beautiful You

Cardstock: Pool Party, Crushed Curry, Whisper White Thick

Inks: Pool Party, Crushed Curry, Lemon-Lime Twist, Archival Basic Black

Accessories: Big Shot, Hexagons Dynamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, 

Watercolor Paper, Aqua Brush, Linen Thread, Dimensionals, Paper Snips

I stamped the large flower image on some watercolor paper, using SU!'s Archival Basic Black ink. It is waterproof and I knew that I wanted to paint it with the ink colors from the challenge. I used all three ink colors when I painted the stem and leaves. Lemon-Lime Twist was just a little too bright of a green for my liking for this large Peony-like flower, but it was the color in the challenge, so I had to figure out how to make it work. The three colors together make it really interesting. I also used the Lemon-Lime Twist for the center things of the flower, with a little bit of Pool Party thrown in for good measure! What do you think?

Here is the challenge graphic from the TGIF Challenge Blog:

Anyway, I hope you like my card today! I really liked making it and I'm really happy to share it with you!

Thanks for stopping by,

Kathryn

Garden Girl Emboss Resist Challenge (#tgifc118)

Boy this was a tough challenge for me. My collection of stamps did not lend itself well to what I wanted to do for this TGIF Challenge. Nothing like taking it almost right down to the wire either! LOL!

I am really glad that Stampin' Up! decided to bring back their Glossy Card Stock too. You can do some really cool ink blending with this stuff! My card is a Z-Fold card, with a background made using the emboss resist technique, which is what the challenge was. So many cute samples over on the TGIF Challenge blog! Take a look at my card:

All supplies from Stampin' Up!:

Stamp sets: Garden Girl, Better Together

Cardstock: Peekaboo Peach, Flirty Flamingo, Whisper White, Glossy Cardstock

Inks: Peekaboo Peach, Flirty Flamingo, Sweet Sugarplum, Archival Basic Black

Accessories: Big Shot, Stitched Shapes Framelits Dies, Lots of Labels Framelits Dies, Clear Stampin' Emboss Powder, Heat Tool, Sponge Daubers, Stampin' Write Markers (Sweet Sugarplum and Flirty Flamingo) Clear Wink of Stella Brush, Delicate White Doilies, Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Dimensionals

It is hard to tell in the big picture, but in the close-up you can see that I painted over the little butterfly with the Clear Wink of Stella Brush to give it a little touch of sparkle.

And here is the challenge graphic from the TGIF blog:

I hope you enjoyed my card! Thanks for stopping by,

Kathryn

I've Got the "Summertime Blues"! #tgifc117

What a fun challenge this has been this week over at tgifchallenges.blogspot.com! The theme is "Summertime Blues" and the idea behind it is to use blue...any shade, as many shades as you want, etc...as long as there is some blue, you are good to go! (I don't think you had to stick with just blue, though, as long as there is at least a touch of blue in your card!)

I had this thought in my head about what I wanted to do. It turned out a little different than I was imagining, but I really like it! Take a look:

All supplies from Stampin' Up! unless otherwise stated:

Stamp sets: Beautiful You, Bunch of Blossoms

Inks: Night of Navy, Marina Mist, Pool Party, Archival Basic Black, Powder Pink, Crushed Curry

Cardstock: Thick Whisper White, Night of Navy

Accessories: Color Theory Designer Series Paper Stack, Big Shot, Polka Dot Basics Embossing Folder, Sponge Daubers, Delicate White Doilies, Cookie Cutter Builder Punch, Scalloped Tag Topper Punch, Linen Thread, Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Dimensionals, Blue Sharpie (not from SU!)

If you are wondering how I colored her dress, I used the Sponge Daubers. I tapped the dauber in the Pool Party ink pad and then colored 1/3 of the stamp. Then I did the same with the Marina Mist ink pad, and then the Night of Navy ink pad last, using a different sponge dauber in each color. I lightly over-lapped each color to help them blend a bit. Then I breathed onto the stamp to moisten the ink back up and and carefully stamped over the top of the outline of the lady. It turned out really cute, I think! I just used an Aqua Brush to add color to the hat (Pool Party), and her skin (Powder Pink).

Now you might be thinking, "Hmm, Stampin' Up! doesn't make blue rhinestones!" I used a blue Sharpie pen to color a couple of Rhinestone Basic Jewels to get a little bit of blue sparkle on my card!  And the little blue hearts? They came from the Cookie Cutter Builder Punch. It has the cutest little heart on it!

Check out the other cards over at TGIF Challenge Blog, and join in on a challenge or two! Here is the inspiration starter from their blog this week:

Well, I hope you like my card this week! I had a lot of fun making it!

Thanks for stopping by,

Kathryn

A Truly Artistic Color Challenge -- #tgif115

I love to do the challenge blogs. I know I haven't done very much of it lately...because...well, you know...LIFE. Anyway, I was checking out some of my favorite ones, and saw this one over on tgifchallenges.blogspot.com. It was a color challenge this week, using some of Stampin' Up!'s new In-Colors for 2017-2019. The colors are: Lemon Lime Twist, Berry Burst, and Tranquil Tide. I really like how it turned out. Take a look:

All supplies from Stampin' Up! unless otherwise stated:

Stamp sets: Feathery Friends, Just Add Text, and Thoughtful Banners

Cardstock: Whisper White Thick, and Whisper White Regular

Ink pads: Lemon Lime Twist, Berry Burst, Tranquil Tide, Archival Basic Black

Accessories: Big Shot, Stitched Shapes Framelits, Blender Pens, Berry Burst Crinkled Seam Binding Ribbon, Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Stampin' Dimensionals, Foam Adhesive Strips

Just a few things about how I made this card. On the background, most of the blocks of color I stamped off once on a piece of scrap paper, so they wouldn't be quite so dark. And I fussy-cut the flower stem embellishment. I know. It would have been nice to have a die that cut it out, but I guess we can't have everything we want. (LOL!) The upper piece of Whisper White card stock is mounted on the Foam Adhesive Strips to give it some extra lift. And the die-cut circle and flower stem are just lifted up on regular Stampin' Dimensionals. I colored the flower stem using the ink pads and a blender pen. I gave a little shading to the leaves and stem with a touch of Tranquil Tide.

How do you like it? I think it turned out really cute! Leave me a comment and tell me what you think, okay?

Anyway, go check out tgifchallenges.blogspot.com and have some fun with their weekly challenges too! (Here is the graphic for this weeks challenge.)

Thanks for visiting,

Kathryn

Too Late to Participate :( (#tgifc114)

I have been trying to get some mojo going, so I thought,"Why not participate in a challenge?"  I have always enjoyed the tgif challenges blog, so I went to work. Lucky me! The challenge this week has been to "case" a member of their design team, Elizabeth Price. I love Elizabeth's work!  So I set to work trying to come up with something "challenge-worthy". 

Here is my card:

All supplies are from Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted:

Stamp sets: Bunch of Blossoms, Just Add Text

Card stock: Whisper White Thick, Berry Burst

Inks: Berry Burst, Old Olive, Powder Pink, Archival Basic Black

Accessories: Big Shot, Stitched Shapes Framelits, Blossom Builder Punch, Color Theory Designer Series Paper Stack, Linen Thread, Rhinestone Basic Jewels

So I got ready to download my entry onto this weeks linky, and what do I discover? The challenge has already closed!! Oh, well. I have a pretty card. Actually, I don't have it anymore. I already gave it to someone! Yay!

Thanks for visiting,

Kathryn

I Died and Fell off the Earth...But Now I'm Back!

Don't you just hate it when life gets in the way of your fun?!

I had to get a full-time job, and it has seriously put a crimp in my crafting time, what with having to take care of my family, cooking, shopping, cleaning, laundry, etc... I am really having a difficult time getting up to my desk to create! But recently, my sweet husband helped me out with dinner duty so I was able to sneak up to do some card making.

Stampin' Up!'s 2016 Occasions catalog is my source of inspiration for this card. Take a look:

All supplies from Stampin' Up! unless otherwise stated:

Stamp sets: Carousel Birthday, Thoughtful Banners

Card stock: Peekaboo Peach, Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla, Calypso Coral

Inks: Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, Peekaboo Peach, Calypso Coral, Bermuda Bay

Accessories: Cupcakes and Carousels Designer Series Paper Stack, Bermuda Bay Stampin' Write Marker, Blender Pens, Paper Snips, 3/8" Metallic Ribbon Combo Pack (from Sale-a-Bration), Clear Wink of Stella Brush, Paper Snips, Large Polka Dots Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, Big Shot, Dimensionals

In the close-up you can see the sparkle and shine from the Wink of Stella brush. And the gold shine on the ribbon is so pretty in person, but it just doesn't show up in the photograph.

Anyway....I hope you like my card. And I appreciate you all who have kept coming back to visit even though there hasn't been anything new to see. I hope to correct that in the near future!

Thanks again,

Kathryn