CAS Colours & Sketches - Challenge #247

The fifth Tuesday of the month means the CAS Colours and Sketches Blog has a double challenge for you!  Emily has a lovely color combination and a very simple sketch!  I knew what I wanted to do from the beginning, but had trouble executing my vision.  I wanted to stamp the PTI sentiment directly on white paper, but I had trouble with the stamp and my Mini-Misty (and then there was the lining it up multiple times!!).  I had more success with strips of paper and then decided to heat emboss with white.  It's definitely a CAS looking card!

Hope you will play along with us this week.  I can't wait to see what you do with Emily's sketch!

CAS Colours & Sketches Challenge #246 - Sketch Challenge

It's a sketch challenge week on the CAS Colours & Sketches blog.  At first, I thought I would use balloons for this sketch, but Right At Home's Abstract Floral stamp set called to me instead.  I pulled out my Distress Inks, watercolor paper, and my spray bottle and went to work! After stamping the first layer and letting it dry over night, the outlines and details were stamped with SU! inks.  The sentiment was on my desktop from a different card (because I sampled different colors of embossing powder and the orange was a reject for that card, but perfect for this one!).  I'm not so crazy about all of the dots in the background - there are too many of them, but once they're stamped you can't take them back!  Lesson learned!

The color combination makes for a lovely fall birthday card and I have just the person in mind to give it to!  Last week, the leaves on the trees in my neighborhood had these colors in them.  After some rain this weekend, most are off the trees - and out weather folks are predicting snow next weekend . . . brrrr!  I'm not ready for that!

Hope to see your card in the CC&S gallery this week.  Pop over and check out the DT's inspiration!



Challenges Entered:
A2Z Scrapbooking October Challenge/ - Watercolor
A Bit More Time to Craft #54/ - AG
Penny Black & More October /- Close to Nature
Stamping Sensations October/ - Autumn Glory
Inspired By All the Little Things #69/ - photo challenge

Stick It Down - October Card Sketch

Today is reveal day for the card sketch team on the Stick It Down Challenge Blog.  Birthday cards are always great to have in your card collection.  I loved using letter dies for this card.  The colors make it great for a fall birthday as well as give it a male feel.

The candle stamp is Concord Plus 9th's Eat Cake and Celebrate and the letter dies are PTI's Modern Alphabet, which have been in my stash for years!  The photo doesn't show it well, but I used Wink of Stella on the candles and in the letters of the word birthday.

You can see what the rest of the DT did with this month's sketch here.  Hope you have time to play along with us this month!

Challenges Entered:
A Bit More Time to Craft #54/ - AG
Connie Can Crop #63/ - To Die For
Happy Little Stampers October /- AG with Dies
Dream Valley Challenges #166/ - Birthdays
613 Avenue Create #202/ - AG/Optional Twist - Masculine Card

My Time to Craft Challenge #357- Halloween or Cats

Suzanne is this week's My Time To Craft theme designer and she has chosen Halloween or Cats for us to play with.  I've used a digi stamp from QKR Stampede called Autumn Breeze for my Halloween image.  I paired her with some textured paper I found on clearance at Micheals a year ago - which was perfect with this scarecrow image!  The sentiment is from PTI's Keep It Simple Birthday III Mini stamp set.

I had fun coloring this image.  I've been taking a self-paced online class called, Marker Painting Foundations  from Amy Shulke at Vanilla Arts and am trying to practice using what I have learned on all of the images I color.  One of the things Amy teaches is using colored pencil on top of  Copics to add additional depth and highlights.  I've also changed my technique to coloring from dark to light - which has been a big adjustment.  The other secret trick is using N0 or N2 to shade under the colors.  I've been learning a lot and recommend the class if you want to work on your shading and blending.

Hope you will join us this week.  Before you get started, take a peek at the DT creations on the MTTC Challenge Blog!

Challenges Entered:
Alphabet Challenge/ - P is for Pumpkin
Crafty Catz #389/ - AG with Autumn Colors
QKR Stampede #266/ - AG
Aud Sentiments #191/ - Halloween + Sentiment
Moving Along with the Times #56/ - Autumn/Fall
Seize the Birthday 10/12/ - AG
Time Out Challenge #94/ - Photo Inspiration

CAS Colours & Sketches #245 - Colour Challenge

Happy Tuesday, CC&S Fans!

The third Tuesday of the month means a color challenge and Emily has a great combination for us this week.  I used two stamps from Altenew's Bamboo Rose set and Scripty Sayings 2 Gina K Designs' for my card.  My fellow DT member Samantha uses watercolors so beautifully on her cards, I was inspired to give them a try this week and combined pulled out some gold embossing powder for the line work.  It's a beautiful combination!  Thanks for the inspiration, Samantha!

Check out the rest of the DT work here and then share your creation in the CAS Colours and Sketches gallery this week!  We're announcing a DT call; read more about it on the CC&S Blog.

Challenges Entered:
Addicted to Stamps #155/- AG with Flowers
Glitter 'N' Sparkle #261/ - AG
Penny Black October - Close to Nature
Sweet Stampin' Oct 14/ - Sparkle & Shine
Colour Crazy Challenge #41/ - AG
Creative Knockouts #215/ - CAS

CAS Colours & Sketches #244 - Sketch Challenge

We have a sketch challenge for you this week on the CAS Colours and Sketches Challenge Blog.  The sketch inspired a sympathy card for a collegue, using a simple branch and leaf die set I have had in my collect for a while.  I don't even remember which company they came from.  Since it's fall here in the midwestern US, I started with kraft paper and colored the leaves and branch to reflect what I see out my window.

Emily's sketch has so many possible interpretations!  I hope you will join us and look forward to seeing what you post in the CC&S gallery!

Challenges Entered:
Cards In Envy/ Oct. 2 - Fall Leaves
Ooh La La Creations #239/ - Die cuts
A Bit More Time to Craft #53/ - AG
Aud Sentiments #190/ - Die Cut + Sentiment

My Time To Craft Challenge #356 - Sympathy

I'm delighted to announce my debut as part of the My Time to Craft Challenge Blog DT.  I was so excited when Shell asked me to join the group.  One of the things that appealed to me about the MTTC Blog is using my stash to create cards for you, so I'm happy to share this sympathy card using an "oldie but goodie" stamp from PTI - Harvest Berries and a newer sentiment from PTI's Ways to Say Collection - With Sympathy.

I colored the branch and trimmed around the rectangle of white paper and mounted another rectangle of brown behind it as a frame.  My original idea was to use a Bravo Burgundy card base.  There was enough room on the white rectangle to mask the sentiment on two lines.  Well,  I was using a Cherry Cobbler stamp pad that was seven or eight year old (and noticed the tell-tale gold sheen on top of the stamp pad).  The red smeared when I mounted the panel on the card base!!  I was faced with the decision to either recolor the card or create Plan B - which you see here!  Stampin' Dimensionals are behind the branch - and my Cherry Cobbler ink pad is in the trash!!

I hope you will play along with our challenge this fortnight.  Sympathy cards are a little sobering to make, but they are always good to have on hand.  Before you get started, take a peek at the rest of the MTTC DT inspiration here.  You just might get bragging rights as one of our Top 3 and post the badge on your blog!  Hope to see you in the gallery!

Challenges Entered:
Crafty Catz #387/ - AG/optional CAS
Pattie's Creations #139 - Shades of Autumn
Creative Knockouts #214/ - AG
Addicted to Stamps #262/ - Make Your Mark

CAS Colours and Sketches #243 - Colour Challenge

Back with this week's color challenge.  Emily is hosting the CC&S challenges this month and she's got three fun colors for us to play with - Pumpkin Pie, Crumb Cake and Pear Pizzaz.  I know this colored image isn't exactly simple, so I left that for the card design.  The oval shape has been sitting on my desk since last fall, so it was wonderful to use it over the image and then adhere both to a Crumb Cake card back.  The image is called Tiny Townie Fay Loves Fall from Stamping Bella.

Hope you will join our CAS Colours and Sketches challenge this week.  Hope to see your card in the gallery!

Challenges Entered:
Cards In Envy 10/2/ - Fall leaves
Color Inspiration Monthly Challenge - October
Dream Valley #164/ - One for the Girls
Oh-La-La Creations #238/ - Harvest Time
Dare 2 B Artzy October - Fall Colors
Dragonfly Journeys #102/ - Pumpkin Spice
Stamping Sensations October - Autumn Glory