Today is your day!

Happy Friday!!!  It's time for a new challenge from the Cut It Up Challenge Blog.  This week, the challenge is: Forever Green

Here is my card for your inspiration:

My oldest daughter's birthday is this week and it just so happens that green is her favorite color, so I took the opportunity to use this "Forever Green" theme to create a birthday card for her.  She's turning 20, though I have absolutely no idea how that happened!  I felt like something a little different, so I created a gate fold card.  I die cut the paw print cover panel out of green card stock and adhered it to some green check paper.  Then I adhered the whole thing to one side of the card base and used a craft knife to cut off the overlap so it would fit perfectly on the other half of the gate fold base.  I used some brown glitter paper to die cut the "20" and also two paw prints that I layered on top of some of the green leftover pieces and inlayed back into the main panel.  I used some green mulberry paper to mat the sentiment circle and added a cute little pup to the bottom circle.

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I hope you will hop over to the Cut It Up blog for the full details of the challenge and to see what the rest of the Design Team has created. 

Supplies:

Stamps: PaperTrey Ink "Just Sentiments: Birthday"; Mama Elephant "Lunar Animals

Dies: Your Next Stamp pawprint cover plate die; Papertrey Ink "By the Numbers" border die; unbranded circle dies from Amazon

Challenges:

Cards Galore #145--anything goes

Pattie's Creations #240--anything goes

Crafter's Cafe #328--fancy folds OR anything goes

Creative Inspirations--cute critters

Paper Funday #85--anything goes with the optional twist: fur or feathers (I went with fur)

Crafty Gals Corner #275--make it green

If You Give a Crafter a Cookie #214--clovers are green

Aud Sentiments #335--glitter/bling AND/OR St. Patrick's green

Colorful Options--green or rainbow

Love Those Pretty Papers--anything goes with the optional twist: circles

A Gem of a Challenge--anything goes

Creative Creases #133--anything goes with more than one fold

Word Power--sentiment as focal

Shopping Our Stash #569--I'm counting on you

Crafty Catz #709--anything goes

Creative Fingers Challenge #318--anything goes

Inkspirational Challenge #363--greens

Lil' Patch of Crafty Friends #274--anything goes

Try a Sketch on Tuesday #691--sketch

Fab n' Funky #633--four-legged friends

Birthday Bunny

Hello, everyone!  It's time for a new challenge from the Creative Moments Challenge blog.  The theme is: Bunnies and Blooms.  I am using an image from our fabulous sponsor: Polkadoodles.

 Here is my card:

Obviously, the image was the start of the card, but the layout was inspired by the blue patterned paper square.  It's been sitting on my desk for quite a while and I found a sketch that was perfect for it!  There was a piece of vellum on my desk as well, and I thought it was perfect for the circle element and wouldn't cover up that beautiful blue paper.  I forgot to take a picture of it, but I added some gold glitter pen to the tutu and the balloon.  It adds just a bit of sparkle to the image.  I decided to pull out some embellishments that matched with the image and had a bit of fun adding more embellishments than I usually do.  But, once I've already made a square card, it won't be able to go in a regular envelope anyway, so why not??

You have all month to play along.  So, get inky and link up your creation; I can't wait to see what you create!

Supplies:

Stamps: Polkadoodles "Birthday Party Bunny Balloon" digi; Verve "Better Together" sentiment

Dies: unbranded circle die from Amazon; My Favorite Things corner bracket die; Verve "Scalloped Trim Trio" left over tiny hearts

Challenges:

Cards Galore #145--anything goes

Pattie's Creations #240--anything goes

Cheerful Sketches--sketch

Creative Inspirations--cute critters

We Love Stamping--wildlife OR anything goes

The Paper Funday #85--anything goes with the optional twist: fur or feathers (I've chosen fur)

Love Those Pretty Papers--anything goes with the optional twist: circles

A Gem of a Challenge--anything goes

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday--make it cute

Creative Knockouts #566--birthday wishes

Vintage birthday

Happy Friday!!!  It's time for a new challenge from the Cut It Up Challenge Blog.  This week, the challenge is: Happy Birthday

Here is my card for your inspiration:

Almost this entire card was created with leftovers that were already (or still) on my desk from other recent projects.  I decided to take some process photos and share a bit of my creative process with you, so this post will be a bit longer than normal, but hopefully it will also be a bit of fun!  I didn't think about doing that until after I had already die cut the border piece, but it was die cut from a scrap of white that was on my desk as well.  

Here is the start of my card:

I knew the sketch I was going to use and I knew I was going to use that tiny bit of ribbon as part of the dividing border between the two pieces of patterned paper.  When I do that, I often will use a scrap piece of cardstock to layer under the patterned paper to give a good base to wrap the ribbon around, so this is what I'm showing in the photo below:

I felt the urge to go a bit vintage looking with this, so I distressed the edges of my patterned papers with my scissors and then used Old Book distress oxide ink to give a old feel to the papers.  On the pink dotted paper, I used the same ink to stamp a French script stamp on the paper.

I had just a tiny piece of the ribbon (that I distressed with Vintage Linen oxide ink) and the scrap of white carstock I used for the border die was not long enough for the card, so this is how I solve that problem.  Since I knew I was going to have a panel covering up a section of the border, I laid it on the card in the general spot I was going to place it and cut both the ribbon and the border die cut so that cut would hide behind the image/sentiment panel.  On the finished card, you will never know they don't span the entire card.

Here is the final result:

I stamped the butterfly first with the Vintage Linen Distress ink and then inked just the edges with Worn Lipstick Distress Oxide and stamped it again.  I stamped the sentiment and a flourish with a pale gray ink.  I was even able to use some of the pink mulberry paper behind the image panel.  To finish it off, I added three pink pearls.  I really LOVE how this turned out!!

Since I was having so much fun and was feeling really inspired, I decided to decorate the front and back of my envelope to match the card.  I used the same butterfly and French script stamps with the same inks.  I also distressed the edges of the envelope with the distress oxide ink.

I finished off the back as well with a sentiment, and I created a "seal" with the same butterfly and a matching die.  I will add it after I seal the envelope.

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I hope you will hop over to the Cut It Up blog for the full details of the challenge and to see what the rest of the Design Team has created. 

Supplies:

Stamps: Picket Fence Studios "Butterfly Boutique"; PaperTrey Ink "Just Sentiments: Birthday" and "The Sweet Life" flourish; Hero Arts "French script"; Concord and 9th "Perfectly Penned" both sentiments on the envelope

Dies: PaperTrey Ink border die; My Favorite Things "Blueprints 13" banner; Picket Fence Studios "Butterfly Boutique" on envelope

Challenges:

Krafty Chicks #810--birthday

Creative Knockouts #566--birthday wishes

Pixie's Snippets Playground #527--anything goes with snippets

Sweet Stampin'--a special woman (this is for my best friend from high school--a very long time ago!)

Lil' Patch of Crafty Friends #273--anything goes

Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #671--sketch

Cards Galore #145--anything goes

Crafter's Cafe Blog Challenge #327--for the girls OR anything goes

We Love Stamping--wildlife OR anything goes

Double D Challenge--books/bookmarks OR postal/postage (I hope the fact I decorated the envelope to put in the post will count for postal/postage.)

 

One

Happy March 1st!!  It's time for a new challenge on the Critter Crazy Challenge blog!  As always, it is a month long challenge: Anything Goes as long as you feature a creature.  Here is my card for your inspiration:

A sweet little girl in our family just turned one!!  This is the card I created for her.  I've had this paper pack for several years.  The bright colors and patterns always make me think of them when creating cards for babies or very young children.  I pulled out 5 of the pink patterned papers to create the card.  I used dark gray cardstock for contrast and silver and silver glitter paper for the accents.

Thanks for stopping by!  Hop on over to the Critter Crazy blog and check out the details and the rest of the projects from the Design Team.

Supplies:

Stamps: Papertrey Ink "Big Birthday Wishes"; Verve "Emory"

Dies: PaperTrey Ink number die; MFT "Balloon Cluster" and "Blueprints 14" stitched rectangle; Spellbinders "Right this way" arrow; Altenew frame

Challenges:

Crafter's Cafe Blog Challenge #327--for the girls or anything goes

Creative Inspirations--think pink

Fab n' Funky Challenge #631--dies or punches

Crafty Catz #707--anything goes

Creative Fingers Challenge Blog #316--anything goes

Word Art Wednesday #741--anything goes with uplifting sentiment

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday--anything goes