Stamping 411 Challenge

ColorLab 29

February 16, 2011 Jentimko 18 Comments

Razzleberry…hmmmm….what to do with Razzleberry?? This week’s ColorLab Challenge colors were interesting to me. What do you think?

Now I must say that I love the idea of combining Old Olive and Pear Pizzazz since they are such sister greens so the Razzleberry became a little less intimidating. When I am a little stumped with one element of a card, I usually go find a good layout. For me, it helps me see what to do next. Sure enough, there is a great basic layout over at Stampin’ 411 – SSC190. Once I saw that I knew I wanted to use the Pear DSP from Greenhouse Gala for the bottom panel. Putting Old Olive behind it looked great so then I layered everything with Rich Razzleberry.

My image panel was completed last and I’ll admit this wasn’t the first panel created. I was making it way too hard!! I pulled out this wonderful flower from Friends Never Fade and inked it up with my Stampin’ Write Markers in the three challenge colors. I knew I was on to something! I added the phrase from Say It Simply (Occasions Mini) and was left needing one more element. Given that I rarely use Rich Razzleberry, I don’t have any Taffeta Ribbon in that color. But I can make any color I want!! I dampened a piece of White Taffeta Ribbon and inked up the ribbon using my marker. I then rubbed the color around a little to even it out.

Hint: Unless you want Razzleberry fingers all day, you may want to use a paper towel or protective gloves when handling the damp ribbon (ask me how I know!). For really saturated color, you may need to apply your ink twice.

Recently, I won some blog candy from Stampin’ Celebration and the little Olive clip was in my box of treasures. I am so happy that I could use it for this! I popped the image panel up on Dimensionals and I am happy with the result. This is why you should try color challenges especially when one of the colors is “out of your box”. You end up making a card you might never have considered. Since I used my markers on both the flower image and the ribbon, this qualifies for Stampin’ Royalty’s Mark It Up Challenge this week.

Glad to see you today. Make sure to check out the other fantastic work over at ColorLab. I hope to have something else ready to post this weekend but I’ll definitely be back next Tuesday with the next SU Only Challenge. See you soon!

Stamps: Friends Never Fade, Say It Simply; Paper: Greenhouse Gala DSP, Old Olive, Rich Razzleberry, Whisper White; Ink: Rich Razzleberry, Pear Pizzazz, Old Olive; Accessories: White Taffeta Ribbon (dyed), Old Olive Library Clip (retired), Dimensionals

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Fresh Birthday

February 1, 2011 Jentimko 19 Comments

I wanted a little change of pace from the “clean” cards I made for the blog hop last weekend. I must say that Funky Four pretty much demands a clean style. For today’s card, I pulled out a set that has been languishing in my stamp drawer for far too long…Fresh Cuts. I found yet another great sketch from the Operators at Stampin’ 411:

They really have a knack for a great layout! I, like many of you, have a stash of designer paper. When things retire, I hold on to my very favorites. One of the DSPs from last year that I just loved was Nouveau Chic. The colors are so pretty together and seemed to fit my stamping mood. Gray, icy, a little distressed…just like the view outside my window today.

As a starting point, I stamped the “background” image from Fresh Cuts in Sage Shadow (retired) and then stamped the leaf image in Basic Gray over it. After that I chose the papers for the panels and distressed everything. It was still missing something so I stamped the words and punched them out with my Large Oval Punch and put on a Scallop Oval base. Finally, I added some Basic Gray Taffeta ribbon using the scrunching technique and frayed the ends a bit.

Hint: Once you have distressed the edges of your designer paper, sponge some color on the edges to finish the look (Basic Gray used here).

So glad you were able to stop in today. I hope you are not adversely affected by the huge weather pattern crossing the U.S. today!! See you again on Thursday for another ColorLab Challenge.

Stamp: Fresh Cuts (111634); Paper: Nouveau Chic DSP (retired), Basic Gray (121044), Very Vanilla (101650); Ink: Sage Shadow (retired), Basic Gray (120966); Accessories: Basic Gray Taffeta (retired), Large Oval Punch (119855), Scallop Oval Punch (119856), Antique Brads (117273), Sponges (101610), Dimensionals (104430)

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ColorLab 26

January 26, 2011 Jentimko 12 Comments

You are going to love, and I mean LOVE, using today’s ColorLab Challenge colors. They are seriously beautiful together!

The Perfect Plum and Basic Gray pair so nicely and I loved adding a pop of Bashful Blue. I found another great sketch courtesy of the Operators over at Stampin’ 411 and got to work. Something about this color scheme compelled me to pull out my Every Moment set. I just knew the flower and the butterfly would be fantastic on this challenge.

I started with a base of watercolor paper for my image and stamped the flower and butterfly in Black Stazon Ink. Using my lightest color first, I colored my butterfly with Bashful Blue and then the flower with Perfect Plum. I have Stampin’ Write markers in these colors so I used the technique of coloring a bit on a clear block and pulling the color from there with my Blender Pen. I added Basic Gray to the flower center and stem, and then to the butterfly. With the little left on my Blender Pen, I shaded a little around the images with Basic Gray. I used the sentiment from Say It Simply (again!)…it really is a great little set!

For the rest of the card, I rolled out a frame on Perfect Plum with my Big Shot and the Framed Tulips Embossing Folder. I did use some retired Basic Gray Taffeta ribbon and scrunched it using the thread pulling technique. All you have to do is rough up the end a bit and pick a center thread to pull. I did the same on the tails of the bow. The bow is held together with an Antique Brad. The team over at Pals Paper Arts have a Bow challenge this week…how fun! Of course, I love a bow so I am thrilled to join in.

I hope you love playing with these colors this week! I can’t wait to see your beautiful creations! I’ll be back tomorrow for the Stampin’ Addicts Sale-a-bration Blog Hop. I’ll be showing you projects with the SAB choice Funky Four. Thanks for stopping in today!

Stamps: Every Moment (120522-C), Say It Simply (122324); Paper: Watercolor (105019), Basic Gray (121044), Perfect Plum (101889), Bashful Blue (105120); Ink: Perfect Plum (100035), Bashful Blue (105111), Basic Gray (120966); Accessories: Big Shot (113439), Framed Tulips Folder (121809), Antique Brads (117273), Blender Pen (102845), Basic Gray Taffeta (retired)

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Birthday Party and a Blog Candy Winner!

January 17, 2011 Jentimko 19 Comments

Thank you, thank you, thank you to all who left comments last week for my blog-iverary!! I am so thrilled that you have joined me on this creative journey and it was so nice hearing from you. Right to the blog candy winner. Using Random.org, here are the results:

True Random Number Generator Min:

Max:

Result: 3

Jen Conrad, that means you are the winner. I will e-mail you to get your mailing information and if you don’t hear from me today, please contact me.

It seems that I’m not the only one with a reason to celebrate. Stampin’ Celebration has madeover their blog and are throwing a bit of a party! Here is their inspiration challenge for this week:

I also saw that the Operators over at Stampin’ 411 have a sketch challenge this week and it is a great one. It includes tearing on the base layer. Always a great way to add quick texture to a project!

While I love the balloons, I also noticed the little pennants on the table of the inspiration piece. I decided to pull out my Brights Patterns Designer Series Paper Pack and my Party Hearty stamp set to see what happened.

The little hats turned into pennants! Oh, I love this stamp set for the variety of cards it makes! The words are from a retired A La Carte set called Birthday Wish. These little sets really are super for specific stamp needs! I colored a piece of thread with my Daffodil Delight Stampin’ Write Marker so I could “hang” the pennants. I really love the torn Melon Mambo piece with the pop of Daffodil Delight torn above it.

Thanks again to all my followers! I’m looking forward to another fun year of stampin’ and blogging! I’ll be back tomorrow to tell you about my new blog header and some fun with MDS.

Stamps: Party Hearty (111532), Birthday Wishes (retired); Paper: Brights DSP Pack (117155), Melon Mambo, Pacific Point, Daffodil Delight (Brights Card Stock 119706), Whisper White (100730); Ink: Brights Stampin’ Write Markers (119701); Accessories: Brights Designer Buttons (119744), Glue Dots (103683), Dimensionals (104430), Non-SU Thread

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CL24 – Blushing Blossoms

January 13, 2011 Jentimko 12 Comments

The colors for today’s ColorLab Challenge 24 are really beautiful! Just take a look:

These colors lend themselves to soft, vintage style cards. While I would love to tell you that is what I made today…it wasn’t happening. Believe me, I tried to make it happen but I had to cut my losses and make something else. After over an hour of trying to force things, I pulled out my Apple Blossoms hostess set to see what came of it. Thankfully, a much better card. I inked up the big and little blossoms of the set with Blushing Bride and used a sponge dauber to add Rose Red around the edges. How pretty they are together! Soft Suede for the stems and the flowers were done. The stem for the little flower is just the stamp for the stem done upside down. I inked the words in Blushing Bride and sponged on the residual Rose Red to make the sentiment match. My touch of Crumb Cake is the new Crumb Cake Seam Binding from the Occasions Mini.

While the colors are soft, they aren’t as soft as this picture looks. I guess some days are just like that when you are stamping. The layout comes from the wonderful team over at Stampin’ 411 and their SSC185.

Thanks so much for stopping in today. I can’t wait to see the beautiful things you create with these colors!! Don’t forget to go to this post to see the blog candy offered for my blog-iversary! See you again soon!

Stamp: Apple Blossoms; Paper: Soft Suede, Blushing Bride, Very Vanilla; Ink: Rose Red, Blushing Bride, Soft Suede; Accessories: Stamp-a-ma-jig, Crumb Cake Seam Binding, Basic Pearls

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SUOC9 – A shiny new resolution

December 28, 2010 Jentimko 16 Comments

The challenge from SUO Challenges today…Bring on the Bling! Like many of you, the last week has been a bit time-pressed and the upcoming week promises more of the same. With my children happily playing with the new Legos (that I spent much of the weekend building), I managed to get this card done. Now, technically the challenge wanted us to put on the bling with our New Year’s card. My first thought, though, was that I need to keep working toward my stamping new year’s resolution. Yes, I am committing myself to actually SENDING cards….on time. Oh, I know that is just crazy talk but I really want to make a go of it! *smile* So here is my not-so-New Year’s card complete with bling!

Yes, those cool shimmery flower centers are my In-Color Glimmer Brads! I was lucky enough to get these at the Stampin’ Up Regionals I attended in early October and they were demanding some attention. These are the Peach Parfait brads and they sort of have a coppery feel to them. Love them! I put on my Early Espresso Satin Ribbon to add another layer of shine to the card. It was great to pull out the Vintage Vogue set and to use decidedly un-holiday colors (although I did use a piece of Deck the Halls DSP)! The sketch is courtesy of the Operators over at Stampin’ 411, another fantastic layout to work with!

I will be back on Friday for the Stampin’ Addicts Occasions Mini Blog Hop. I can promise you won’t want to miss all the exciting projects sure to be on this hop! Until then, I hope you have a wonderful week and are enjoying time with family and friends!

Stamp: Vintage Vogue; Paper: Peach Parfait, Early Espresso, Whisper White, Deck the Halls DSP; Ink: Peach Parfait, Early Espresso; Accessories: In Color Glimmer Brads, Espresso Satin Ribon, Neutrals Buttons, Sticky Strip (to bunch ribbon), Dimensionals, Sponge Daubers

Friends are like pearls…

November 6, 2010 Jentimko 3 Comments

I was so fortunate to stamp with a dear friend of mine while I created today’s card. It was all the more special because she has been very busy lately and I have missed seeing her! She and I have a tendency to love the same colors and papers and we were both working with Deck the Halls today. This seemed the right card to post for the Our Creative Corner Challenge this week “An Attitude of Gratitude”. I am so lucky to have a friend like her and enjoyed the time stamping tremendously!!

There is another challenge today from Splitcoaststampers, their Inspiration Challenge IC257. It is based on the work of Miyuki Sakai which is stunning (I did have to reduce the size of the page to see everything – bottom right corner of your screen). Here is the picture I loved:

I love the holiday feel of it and the little flowers trailing off reminded me of pearls. Then it hit me that good friends are like pearls. They are beautiful when new but get even more fabulous with time. They are precious and timeless! How lucky I am to have a number of friends like this in my life!!

My card started with cutting out the bells and ribbon from the Deck the Halls DSP. I used last week’s sketch from Stampin’ 411. I didn’t meet their deadline but I still wanted to use the sketch. I put the cut out paper on the flip side word paper and love the effect. I added Basic Pearls to the bells and love the result. After I tied the bow, it was missing something so I added some additional pearls to the center. Here is the final result:

I am just in love with this DSP. You should see the cards my friend made…lovely!! Well, I hope you have a great weekend. I’m off to enjoy the VA fall weather.

Stamp: None outside; Paper: Deck the Halls DSP, Soft Suede, Early Espresso, Naturals Ivory (inside); Ink: None outside; Accessories: Basic Pearls, Espresso Satin Ribbon, Dimensionals, Thread (to cinch bow)

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A Note for our Heroes

September 6, 2010 Jentimko 17 Comments

Ok, the final push is on! Friday is the Open House for my Operation Write Home card drive. I am trying to step up the pacing and actually create a few more cards at a time. I am not known to make cards quickly so this is harder than I thought. The effort is made easier when you have a good sketch and a challenge to stay Clean and Simple. The sketch comes from the Operators over at Stamping 411 and it is another great one. They have added some wonderful features over there so please go and check them out. What a wonderful resource they are!! The Paper Players threw out a Clean and Simple challenge for the week…perfect for me!!

One of the things I have been trying to do with my Operation Write Home card making process is use all my lovely (previously hoarded) retired designer papers. In today’s card, I used some of my old Parisian Breeze Specialty Paper. I also pulled out one of my very favorite retired stamp sets, Branch Out. I don’t hold on to many of them but this one sure is a keeper! All I did was stamp the main image panel (3″x3 3/4″) and then cut it into 3 one-inch strips. It adds a lot of visual interest with almost no extra work…translated, simple. The ribbon is retired Kraft Taffeta Ribbon and I just tied on a retired Chocolate Corduroy Button. Tying on a button is WAY faster than any bow…yep, more simple. The sentiment comes from the Apple Blossoms Hostess Level 2 set and, other than the actual card colors, is the only current thing on this card. I think this is exactly the kind of card that will be perfect for one of our heroes to send home!

Now I don’t feel so bad for having kept these beautiful retired products. I’m so glad they can go to a wonderful cause!! If you haven’t ever thought about it, consider putting together your own box to send. The wonderful volunteers at Operation Write Home make it very easy. Have a wonderful and safe Labor Day!

Stamps: Branch Out (ret), Apple Blossoms (Hostess Level 2); Paper: Parisian Breeze Specialty DSP (ret), Chocolate Chip, Whisper White; Ink: Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze, Crumb Cake; Accessories: Kraft Taffeta Ribbon (ret), Chocolate Chip Corduroy Button (ret), Dimensionals, Thread

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A "Blue Carrot" Funk

July 10, 2010 Jentimko 7 Comments

This is definitely NOT to be confused with a blue funk. Today over at Splitcoast, their Inspiration Challenge uses a store called Blue Carrot. I found this really cool picture there and it reminded me of my brand new, never yet used set called Funky Four (p. 93).

The colors also worked for the coordinating paper called Play Date (p. 175). Then I found this great layout from Stamping 411:

Before I get into the card details, I have to give a huge thanks to the Operators at Stamping 411. I had read their tutorial on mounting the stickers on Stampin’ Up’s new cling mount stamps. Well, I just got my first set of those and the tutorial was right on target (although I don’t trim the rubber)!! My cling mount stamps cling perfectly and I may be a convert!! Check out all the great info over there…it is fantastic!

Back to my card. I must say that this one came together pretty easily (it had to, it is a Saturday and my house is crazy on Saturdays!). I am in love with the little leaves in both Funky Four and Apple Blossom (hostess level 2), and I am thrilled that they are in the DSP. Using my trusty Stamp-a-ma-jig, I stamped the three flowers using the plate as a motivation. The Olive button is from the new Brights Designer Buttons collection and it was the perfect way to make a quick bow with my Real Red Wide Grosgrain. I added another little flower inside the card and it is ready to send off to one of my sons’ schools. They were kind enough to put together a bag of 4th of July cookout goodies for military families and the one they gave us was amazing. How lucky we are to have such a community!!

My picture seems a little blurry but it will have to do for now (off to play outside with the kids). Your comments are valued and I look forward to your thoughts on all the new items!

Stamp: Funky Four, Apple Blossoms (words); Paper: Play Date DSP, So Saffron, Real Red, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White; Ink: So Saffron, Real Red, Old Olive, Chocolate Chip; Accessories: Real Red Wide Grosgrain, Brights Designer Buttons, Dimensionals, Thread, Stamp-a-ma-jig

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Busy, busy, busy…

June 25, 2010 Jentimko 3 Comments

It is official…I have survived the first week of summer break and I’m still able to be awake after the kids go to bed. We have had a lot going on and I have been sadly lacking in my posts. I’m definitely having to adjust to the new schedule!! That said, I have been busily creating but I can’t post it quite yet. I can tell you that I was working with some friends on a special gift for a special someone who is having a baby shower this weekend. I don’t want to spoil any surprises so I will say no more!

Because I was doing the “other” project, I just got around to cards yesterday. Now, this shower is for twins…how fun is that??!! Well, maybe not for Mommy late in the pregnancy but fun for the rest of us!! I did, however, come to the rapid conclusion that most baby stamps use the words “one”, “baby” and other singleton things like that. Not only that, I have virtually no baby stamps (a situation that will be fixed soon after July 1st!). I went to one of my Stampin’ friends and raided her stamp stash. Once home, Margaret Moody and the Pals Paper Arts team saved me once again. They have a sketch challenge this week (PPA48), thank heavens!! As usual, I can’t seem to load their sketch so you’ll have to drop on by and see it for yourself (and give it a try)!! Now that I have my new catalog, I have doubled my efforts to use up old papers. Because the twins are a boy and a girl, this left me room to use pink and blue (I know, pretty traditional but it works). I saw the onesie in A Little Love and knew what I wanted to do! The idea is in no way original but I have never used it and I’m so happy with this card!

I used retired DSP (Bella Birds) with the Bordering Blue and So Saffron strips. The onesies were paper pieced to add a little interest after I colored them with Pink Pirouette – my brand new marker – and Bordering Blue (popped up on Dimensionals). I used the “Welcome” part of “Welcome Baby” from the Short & Sweet set. Finally, I dyed some thread with my Chocolate Chip marker for the clothesline. I must say that this card makes me smile!!

I needed another card for the same shower and turned to the So Many Scallops set (ret, SAB). I love the little baby set in it other than it says “Sweet One”. I used my Pretty in Pink and Bordering Blue markers to fill in everything but the words on the stamp and stamped it first. I cleaned the stamp thoroughly and then inked up the “Sweet” word only. Using my handy-dandy Stamp-a-ma-jig, I put the word right where it belongs. I must say, I’m feeling pretty clever about these modifications (and very sympathetic to parents/friends of multiples when it comes to stamping)! I used last week’s Stamping 411 sketch, SSC156. Take a look at Lee Conrey’s card here and you’ll see my ribbon inspiration for this sketch.

The DSP on this one is from the Sweet Pea paper pack (ret). I used the beautiful White Organdy ribbon and cinched the bow together with a 5/16″ White Jumbo Brad.

Well, these are the cards and I can’t wait to share some of the gift pictures with you! Thanks for stopping in. I hope you have a great weekend!

Card 1:

Stamps: A Little Love (ret), Short & Sweet; Paper: Bella Birds DSP (ret), Chocolate Chip, Pink Pirouette, Whisper White; Ink: Pink Pirouette, Bordering Blue, Chocolate Chip; Accessories: Stamp-a-ma-jig, Dimensionals, thread

Card 2:

Stamp: So Many Scallops (ret); Paper: Bordering Blue, Whisper White, Sweet Pea DSP (ret); Ink: Pretty in Pink, Bordering Blue; Accessories: Stamp-a-ma-jig, White Organdy ribbon, Jumbo brad, Dimensionals

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