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Freshly Made Sketches #365

Freshly Made Sketches #365 published on 4 Comments on Freshly Made Sketches #365

We have a wonderful sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches this week. Created by the awesome Linda Callahan, who you can always count on for both inspiration and a great big smile. I’ll admit, I’m in a weird place creatively. Youngest came home from his first year of college (YAY!), graduation celebrations are looming for the oldest, I’ve been teaching out at the training center and then passing of my sweet kitty. My brain is cluttered and I am having trouble focusing enough to create. Part of the seasons of creativity and I’m just accepting that is ok. But it is also great to get a push and this is what the sketch did for me!

I have turned, yet again, to the gorgeous washi tape from the Flowers for the Soul suite by Pinkfresh Studio. I just played around with pieces until I got a grouping I liked. They are so pretty and so versatile. I have started doing some coloring on the stamp set with the same images and maybe, just maybe, I have a card with that effort in the next few weeks. In the meantime, I’m happy that the talented Dawn Woleslagle did the creative work and all I had to do was cut out the images.

I used the Spring Medley 3D Embossing Folder (Honey Bee Stamps) in the background to add a little interest. Even though the products come from different companies, they seem to coordinate really well. I embossed a sentiment from the Flowers for the Soul Stamp Set in gold to go with the gold touches in the washi and added a few gold pearls to finish.

Hope you get a creative push from this sketch too and come over to join us! Thanks so much for stopping by. See you soon!

Freshly Made Sketches #683

Freshly Made Sketches #683 published on 6 Comments on Freshly Made Sketches #683

Hi everyone! Sorry for the break. We had a lot going on here and sadly, after years of wonderful antics we had to say goodbye to our sweet calico cat, Kate. She has been my coloring muse for many years, the supervisor of all things in my house and a benevolent dictator. I didn’t have any creativity in me, to be honest, but since I’m the sketch designer this week for Freshly Made Sketches, I got down to the craft room to see what I could come up with.

I created my sketch based on a card from the talented Carly Tee and used the same die cut gate fold technique she did.

Using the Good Tidings Stamps, Stencils and Dies from Honey Bee Stamps, I created this holiday greenery. I flipped one and scored the die cuts could wrap around the back of the card. Then I used the Snowy Pines 3D Embossing Folder to create a layer underneath the greenery.

Here is a video to show you how it works:

Die Cut Gate Fold Video

To cover the attachment point on the back of the card, I simply added another plain white panel over that. It does make for a bulkier card but if you are doing a fancy fold, a little extra postage is worth it.

I hope you will come over and play along this week. The team has created all kinds of wonderful cards with the sketch! And we have two new team members to inspire you!

Thanks so much for stopping by today! Hope to see you again soon!

Freshly Made Sketches #681

Freshly Made Sketches #681 published on 5 Comments on Freshly Made Sketches #681

We have another great sketch at Freshly Made Sketches this week. Our designer is Amy O’Neill and she has one that is so clever. I have a friend who lost a sweet kitty suddenly last week so I thought I’d use the sketch to make a card for her.

I pulled out some older products from Newton’s Nook Designs for this one plus a sentiment from Honey Bee Stamps. The kitty is from Furr-Ever Friends and stencil is the Pawprints Stencil. Using some Distress Oxide blue inks I created the partial stenciled panel and a banner.

I added the kitty in black ink and stamped this sentiment from the Rainbow Bridge set and added another sweet one from the same set inside. I thought the clean lines of this were appropriate for such a somber occasion.

I hope you’ll come over and join us. The team has their always great inspiration up and I’d love to see you in the gallery. Thanks for stopping in!

Freshly Made Sketches #680

Freshly Made Sketches #680 published on 3 Comments on Freshly Made Sketches #680

A little late to post this here but a quick share of my card for the latest from Freshly Made Sketches. This fun one by Narelle had me pulling out that new washi tape again. So fun!

The Flowers for the Soul washi remains the star of the show. Just smooth it over some white card stock and cut with the coordinating dies (links below). I thought this Nectar card stock from Concord and 9th was the perfect background color.

I used the Rustic Brick 3D Embossing folder for some interest behind the flowers and added a gold embossed sentiment from the Mini Messages set. Some gold pearls to finish and match the sketch.

Sorry about the delay. Lots of flying and with all the weather, the time I thought I had for posting on a layover well…that didn’t happen. Have a great weekend!

Freshly Made Sketches #679

Freshly Made Sketches #679 published on 4 Comments on Freshly Made Sketches #679

Hi all! Been a busy week here. I have a sick kitty who is taking a bit of my time and my oldest came home for a quick trip so it was nice to spend some time with him. I did get in a tiny bit of crafting for Freshly Made Sketches and had a fun time using some new products for this sketch by our wonderful Karren.

I recently got the Flowers for the Soul suite of products from Pinkfresh Studio that was designed by Dawn Woleslagle. I learned with the holiday release that I really do love the quick results that come from the washi tape and quick was what I needed this week. All I had to do was attach the tape to some white card stock and cut with the coordinating dies.

After cutting out a bunch of the images, I just started playing around. I also got the Essentials: Elegant Circles dies from the new release and thought it would be perfect with the sketch. The sentiment is from the stamp set and is heat embossed with gold embossing powder. The edge die behind the banner is a retired die from Pinkfresh Studio.

Hope you are having a good week and that you get to spend a little time creating. Thanks for stopping in. See you soon!

Freshly Made Sketches #678

Freshly Made Sketches #678 published on 7 Comments on Freshly Made Sketches #678

Another week has flown by. I’m teaching out in Denver this week but I was able to get in a little crafting time before heading out here. We have a gorgeous sketch at Freshly Made Sketches courtesy of our lovely Cécile Ribon. I didn’t vary from it too much but I see so many ways to use it (and so many flower options).

I opted for the incredible flower from the Bloom with Grace Stamp Set by Honey Bee Stamps. I know it isn’t really sunflower season but I didn’t think that should stop me from coloring this one. I took a bit of time working on shading and adding some rust colored shading. I love images like this that give room to play a bit and think about shadows and light.

For the background, I thought I’d experiment a little on BetterPress Cotton Card Panels in Bisque. I partially stamped the Vintage Flora Background Stamp in Vintage Photo Distress Ink. Then I added water to smudge and add character. I took my watercolor paints and added some variations on green randomly over the image and then added black splatters. For the flower and leaves, I actually fussy cut the images. I don’t do this often but for this I thought it intensified the effect. To keep the edges of the flower from looking too white, I took a black marker (I do this from behind to help avoid stray accidents) around the edges. Finally a sentiment from the Mini Messages Stamp Set using its coordinating die set.

Hope you like this one and are having a good week. Thanks for stopping by today! See you soon.

Freshly Made Sketches #677

Freshly Made Sketches #677 published on 4 Comments on Freshly Made Sketches #677

Hi all! Sorry it has been a bit. Had some family fun to do and a wonderful family wedding to attend! The weather was perfect for an outside ceremony in Savannah, GA and it was nice to spend time with much our our extended family.

Back to creating this week with a wonderful sketch at Freshly Made Sketches by our fearless Canadian adventurer Jen Brum. I was inspired by the weather and our impending cherry blossom blooming timeline.

I cut the base of the Lovely Layers: Cherry Blossoms out of a dark brown card stock and then cut all the layering flowers and leaves from white. I pulled out my Distress Inks and got to blending. As usual, I got lost in the process and just played with layering colors on the flowers and leaves. Once done, I glued everything in place and added an additional brown layer behind for more stability on the branch.

When the flower branch was completed, I started working on how to layer with the pretty sketch. I thought that some patterned paper designs would work well to make it pop and settled on these gorgeous patterns from the Vintage Love collection. I added a sentiment from the Inside: Birthday Sentiments stamp set and pulled out some pretty pink pearls from the Vintage Pearls collection (Honey Bee Stamps).

Hope you enjoy this card and that you are inspired to create with this new sketch. Thanks for stopping in today. See you soon!

Freshly Made Sketches #673

Freshly Made Sketches #673 published on 6 Comments on Freshly Made Sketches #673

Well, as I type the winter wonderland is returning to northern Virginia. So beautiful (as long as I don’t have to drive around). But when it comes to stamping, I seem to have moved on to spring. I’m the sketch designer this week for Freshly Made Sketches and I had fun getting inky for my card.

I had a couple of ideas about what I was going to use for the decorative element but finally decided this sweet little spring umbrella was perfect for the job. All of the die cuts are from the Lovely Layers: April Showers set from Honey Bee Stamps. Using Distress Inks, I colored all of the flowers, the bird and the umbrella using both the Bitty Bunny Blending Brushes and the Beeluxe Blending Brushes.

I used the Spring Medley 3D Embossing Folder for the background and cut out a circle, inking it in Squeezed Lemonade Distress Oxide Ink. The sentiment is from the Mini Messages Stamp Set cut out with the coordinating Mini Messages Banners dies.

I hope you like my take on the sketch and will find some inspiration in all that the team has created. As always, their work is incredible! Hope to see you in the gallery!

If you’d like to shop with me, you can use the links above or click here (at no extra cost to you):

Scrapbook.com shopping

Simon Says Stamp shopping

Freshly Made Sketches #672

Freshly Made Sketches #672 published on 7 Comments on Freshly Made Sketches #672

Hi all. Before I get into my card, a quick note on the awful week in aviation. Needless to say, my heart is broken by the tragic loss of lives in the midair collision at DCA airport. I fly in and out of that airport often which makes it all the more sobering. As I have asked on social media, I also ask here. Please do not fall prey to those who say they know what happened or start laying blame. Investigations take months and even years. While it is hard to wait, we owe it to those lost to follow every piece of information and put together the entire sequence of events. The news will move on but those families will still be facing unimaginable loss. All of our words should respect those families and their new realities.

I was grateful for this clever and really workable sketch created by our lovely Jacquie Southas for Freshly Made Sketches this week. A little time to color but nothing that taxed my brain too much. Perfect!

The flowers, the hummingbird and the sentiment on this card are all from one set called Grandma’s Garden by Honey Bee Stamps. The stamp set and the coordinating Grandma’s Garden Dies are on clearance if you are interested (links in the bold type). I just pulled out my Copic Markers and had a bit of fun with shading on this.

Something about this sketch lent itself to really clean design so I kept all the white space actually white. The flowers have some layering extras so I added one to match the trio in the sketch design. I could not resist adding on the bird just for fun.

I bet you have some things in your stash that would be fun for this too! Dies, banners or a stamp set like the one I chose. Hope you will come over and join us. Thanks for stopping in today. Wishing you a good week.

Freshly Made Sketches #671

Freshly Made Sketches #671 published on 5 Comments on Freshly Made Sketches #671

First off, thank you so very much for your help on my links question last week. I think I will be moving back to just direct linking in my posts.

Birthday card palooza continues with another one for this week using our super fun sketch at Freshly Made Sketches designed by the wonderful Judy Rozema. This one is unique and made me think a bit.

I mostly used some older things or gifts with purchase on this one. The balloons are from one of the “Free Bee” die sets from Honey Bee Stamps. Last year, they had a series of tag sets and these were in one of them. I had not used them before and I thought they were super fun for this sketch. I just inked them up with Distress Inks and used the blending brushes from Honey Bee Stamps. They are sturdy and I love the size!

The paper is from an older pack from Honey Bee Stamps and I thought it look a bit like party hats. The sentiment was part of the design on the back side of the paper and I just used a sentiment die to cut it out. Could not be easier and a perfect match! And finally, the rickrack. I had this in my stash of ribbons and look at that…it seemed just right for the sketch.

I hope you enjoy this one and that you’ll pop over and take a look at all the clever ways the team used the sketch. Love those ladies! Wishing you a great week and I hope you have some time to create.

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