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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!

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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.

Freshly Made Sketches #670

Freshly Made Sketches #670 published on 9 Comments on Freshly Made Sketches #670

For those who regularly read this blog, I have a question at the bottom of this post and need your feedback. Thanks in advance!

BRRRRRRR!!! That is the official word of the week! At least here in Virginia (and all the places I have been this week) it is so very cold. Looks like some of you in the south have had snow in a way you haven’t ever seen before and I hope you are both safe and having some fun with it. I had a quick moment in my craft room yesterday to use the latest sketch from Freshly Made Sketches created by our ever so sweet Amy O’Neill. And speaking of sweet…

I have a few significant birthdays coming up in my family and realized I was tragically low on cards. I took the opportunity to make one tailored for one of my sons. He loves chocolate cake (and cupcakes) – check! Loves the color purple – check! And lots of frosting with sprinkles – check! I used the Lovely Layers: Cupcakes and More dies (Honey Bee Stamps). The purple/teal elements were all cut from a piece of ombré patterned paper (part of some “Free Bees” from Honey Bee Stamps). I cut the “chocolate” part from some kraft card stock and inked it with Ground Espresso Distress Ink and then the frosting started as white card stock and inked with Antique Linen Distress Ink.

I cut the little banners from another “Free Bee” die set and then decorated the cupcake with sprinkles and added a candle. I love being able to customize this and it was exactly why I bought this set when it came out.

Now for my ask: I have been linking in a list below my posts for a while now. I do this for affiliate sales but also as a convenience to you for finding products. Many companies have been changing their affiliate rules and even providers so I only have a few affiliates left that I’m in. While I love having the list at the bottom, my sales don’t really justify the cost I’m paying for that service. The question for you…if I only link my products and affiliates in my posts (bold words for ease), would that be something you would still use? Leave your thoughts in a comment or feel free to email me too. I very much appreciate you and want to make sure I support your crafting as much as I can.

Alright, thanks so much for stopping in today. And thank you for your continued support! Have a great (and warm) day!

Freshly Made Sketches #668

Freshly Made Sketches #668 published on 6 Comments on Freshly Made Sketches #668

Hi everyone! I just got back from a week of vacation with my family so I’m doing the catch up game. I did have a few minutes to make a card for today’s challenge at Freshly Made Sketches and sort of, kind of followed the fabulous sketch by Karren Johnson. She is the forgiving type so I’m sure she will let me stay!

I used die cuts from the Lovely Layers: Spring Greenery set for this and just smooshed some Distress Inks onto the already cut greenery. This seems to be my go-to when I’m pressed for time and don’t have the brain space to actually color things. And it always makes me happy!

For the background, I used some Distress Oxide ink in Tumbled Glass and then spritzed on some Distress Spray Stain in the same color. I thought the Rustic Brick Wall 3D Embossing Folder would be pretty on the panel and I am glad my instincts were right. Love this texture!! For the sentiment, I used one from the Lean on Each Other Stamp set and put in on one of the “Free Bee” dies (October 2024) from Honey Bee Stamps. I love the fun gifts they send with orders! Finally a bit of crinkled ribbon and some confetti.

I hope this finds you well and not frozen! We returned to a pretty good snow event in Virginia and I must admit, I was happy to see the pretty landscape when I woke up this morning. Thanks for stopping in. Have a great week!

Freshly Made Sketches #667

Freshly Made Sketches #667 published on 6 Comments on Freshly Made Sketches #667

Happy New Year!! We are starting off the year at Freshly Made Sketches with a fun sketch designed by the lovely Cécile Ribon. I love that you can make it seasonal or not!

In keeping with the chaos of the season, I chose to use a little flower bunch that has been sitting on my desk for a while. A long while, actually. While I’m not sure I follow the sketch very well, it just seemed to work for me (once I opted out of making the card a square, at least). Oh by the way, these Sealed Wildflowers dies are on sale (link below).

I had a pack of “Free Bee” papers from Honey Bee stamps over where the stems were and found this one that seemed to go perfectly. A change over all the holiday cards I have been making for sure.

I hope you have a few moments to create as we move into the new year. I am grateful for you all and wish you much happiness as we move into 2025.

Spellbinders – Squeaky Voice

Spellbinders – Squeaky Voice published on No Comments on Spellbinders – Squeaky Voice

Another card today with the newest House Mouse Stamps by Spellbinders.

This darling image is from the Squeaky Voice set and so fun for a get well card. I opted for watercoloring on this one using my Karin Markers and a bit of regular watercolor paint for the background. The paper for this is a Pebble BetterPress Cotton Card Panel. The watercolors moved nicely on this and I love the subtle gray tone to the paper.

The sentiment is from the set and I used another panel of the card stock for the base. This olive twine from my stash was a good match so the serum bottle and I thought it added a nice touch.

Thanks for dropping in today. I’ll be back soon to share some more cards I have been making for the holidays. Until then, I hope you have a lovely weekend!

Spellbinders – Wishing for Spring

Spellbinders – Wishing for Spring published on 1 Comment on Spellbinders – Wishing for Spring

A quick post today with a set that is part of the new House Mouse release from Spellbinders.

This set is called Wishing for Spring and it is so sweet. The sentiments are lovely and I thought this one was unique and fills a gap I have for encouragement cards. I did a bit of Copic coloring and added a little bit of Distress Oxide blending around the image.

The coloring was fairly simple so I could keep the focus on this adorable fellow. I thought the Arch Labels would be a bit different and a nice way to highlight the image further.

I’ll be back soon with another set from this release. Until then, see you soon!

Freshly Made Sketches #666

Freshly Made Sketches #666 published on 5 Comments on Freshly Made Sketches #666

I have the last sketch of the year for Freshly Made Sketches and our friend Jen Brum has given us one that will be fun to use throughout the holiday season. As soon as I saw it, I saw exactly what I wanted to use!

This beautiful NOEL is from the Floral Noel suite of products by Honey Bee Stamps. It comes with stencils, dies and a stamp set. I played with inking the stencils using Distress Inks and I love the fun result. Those little flowers around the letters can actually be inked without the letters too and there are separate dies to cut them. Makes this set versatile even after the holidays! After all the inking, I simply cut out the letters using those die cuts from the set.

I also inked up the banner from the same set and added a sentiment from the coordinating stamp set. For the background, I found this paper from an older paper pack and loved how the letters stood out on it. I added foam tape behind the letters for some extra dimension and that is it. Flat for easy mailing and I created an envelope for the mini-slimline card using an older envelope set.

The team was super clever in their interpretations and I think you will find it easy to use too. I hope you are able to get some crafting time in over the next few weeks and join us. I’ll be back tomorrow (I hope) with a new project. See you then!

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