Challenges (Variable)

SUO Challenge 44 – For Mom

May 1, 2012 Jentimko 3 Comments

*SPOILER ALERT for my mom….this is your card so if you want a surprise, please stop reading for now*

The SUO Challenges has a timely theme for this week, Mother’s Day! We know that you make some of your most beautiful things to send to your moms and the mom-like inspirations in your life so we want you to share them with us.

It isn’t hard for me to talk about why I designed this card. My mother is a quilter and makes the most wonderful quilts! My children, husband and I are often the beneficiaries of these treasures and we have quilts of many different styles here. The children have themed quilts for their beds and personal quilts for all the things they love. Our home has quilts for couches and decoration, including quilts representing the places we have lived. How lucky we are!! I have been pondering a quilt card for a while and finally decided to make a card mimicking a quilted square. There are so many pretty patterns out there but I thought a flower would be perfect. Thus the tulip. After some experimenting, I settled on this design. The square is 3/4″ and the triangles are another 3/4″ square cut on the diagonal. The small Blushing Bride square is 3/8″. The leaves are another 3/4″ square cut on the diagonal and then I added a small strip for the stem. Once I had everything laid out I ran it through my Big Shot with the Square Lattice Die to give it the fabric look. Of course, what would a quilt card be without ribbon and a button so I added the beautiful Seam Binding tied up with a Basic Gray button. For a final touch I framed it with the Framed Tulips Die. I have a tutorial here that shows you how to make it a square. I would love to say that the border was part of my creative master plan but it wasn’t. I made the square and was starting the final design of the card when it hit me. Isn’t this what keeps us creating?? You never know what a-ha moment we will have!

I’m so happy with the final result and I hope my mom will like it too. I’m inspired to try some other quilt patterns since this was such fun.

Back tomorrow with another Freshly Made Sketches challenge and back later today with some fun news. Keep an eye out for another post!

Thanks for dropping by for now and I’ll see you again soon!

Stamps: Teeny Tiny Wishes; Paper: Twitterpated DSP (still available), Baja Breeze, Basic Gray, Whisper White; Ink: Basic Gray; Accessories: Big Shot, Square Lattice EF, Framed Tulips EF, Baja Breeze Seam Binding, Neutrals Buttons, Dimensionals

SUO Challenges #43

April 17, 2012 Jentimko 9 Comments

This week at SUO Challenges we are celebrating the “Last Spring Fling”!! Ok, spring is really just beginning in some places but much of our focus is on the amazing Occasions Mini that is only current until the end of April. There are so many fantastic products from this one so there is a lot to celebrate. Of course, anything with a spring theme is very welcome and I look forward to seeing what you create!

You may have noticed that I really love the Bordering on Romance stamp set. LOVE it! It has quickly become one of those go-to sets when I want a pretty card. The different sized flowers work on so many cards. For this one I joined the stamp with the lovely Twitterpated DSP. Something about the Basic Gray with the pretty Subtles colors really works for me right now! I stamped the image with Basic Gray ink and colored using my Blender Pen with Rose Red, Baja Breeze and Wild Wasabi ink. This set is so quick to color…another reason to love it! I chose a Rose Red button and topped it with one of the large pearls from the mini and finished the bottom of the image panel with the Eyelet Border Punch. I have to say that I am part of the cheering section hoping this set makes the new catalog. Not too long to wait now….but you might want to grab one of these just in case!

The Paper Players have a watercoloring challenge this week. Wow, what pretty example from the design team. I am entering this into their challenge (the card isn’t completely CAS but the watercoloring here is so quick and fun!).

The sketch comes from a relatively new sketch challenge called Retro Sketches. I played along last week but missed the deadline with this card. Fortunately, I was a bit more timely this week. I thought the split background panel was particularly cool and I like the added texture it gives.

I am really looking forward to seeing what you create for our Last Spring Fling! As always, the design team has created stunning examples. Make sure you jump over and check them out!

Thanks so much for dropping in today. I’ll be back tomorrow with another Freshly Made Sketches card. Have a great day!

Stamps: Bordering on Romance, Teeny Tiny Wishes; Paper: Twitterpated DSP, Basic Gray, Whisper White; Ink: Basic Gray, Rose Red, Baja Breeze, Wild Wasabi; Accessories: Eyelet Border Punch, Large Pearls, Basic Pearls, Blender Pen, Basic Gray Taffeta (retired), Subtles Button, Dimensionals

Paper Players 90 and a new sketch

April 13, 2012 Jentimko 22 Comments

I haven’t gotten to play with many challenges lately and really wanted to join The Paper Players this week. Timely because I needed a baby card for a sweet little boy and these colors just beg to be used for that!

I recently found a new sketch challenge that I thought would be great for this, too. Sadly I missed their deadline but the sketch was just what I needed. I’ll try to make the Retro Sketches on time next time!

I wanted this one to be a very clean card and this layout leans towards Clean and Simple (CAS)! I don’t really have many baby stamps and have seen some variations of this boat lately. I knew it would be a great choice! As I went through my designer papers for the sails, I had every intention of following the PP90 challenge for colors. Somehow I had a mental image of them and chose these papers….sadly, not the actual challenge colors. I had already finished the card before I figured it out so I thought I should give credit since they were my inspiration. In any case, I love this card and it was well received by the new parents.

I have some cards from my Vintage Card Class to show you over the next few days. My boys are on spring break so I’m off to run around with them. Hope your week has been great!

Stamp: Teeny Tiny Wishes; Paper: Twitterpated DSP, Not Quite Navy, Whisper White; Ink: Not Quite Navy; Accessories: 1 3/8″ Circle Punch, White Baker’s Twine, Dimensionals

SUOC42 – Congratulations!

April 3, 2012 Jentimko 11 Comments

Over at SUO Challenges this week we are celebrating! Our own Michelle Laycock has been a Stampin’ Up demonstrator for 10 years and we thought it appropriate to make “Congratulations” cards in her honor. These are always fun cards to make, aren’t they??!!

As I told you last week, my boys and I went down to Washington DC for the Cherry Blossom Festival and to visit the wonderful museums. Card first and then I’ll share the inspiration photos. With cherry blossoms on the brain, I had no choice but to pull out a flower set…and what better set than Elements of Style? I wanted the focus to be on the flowers so I thought I’d try using my Labels Collection Embosslits to create a frame. First I cut the center piece out of Watercolor Paper. I stamped the flower and colored it using my Blender Pen with Pink Pirouette, Blushing Bride and Pear Pizzazz inks. Next, I created an embossed frame on Very Vanilla paper. Getting the Big Shot “sandwich” right was the only difficult part. Here it is:

Multipurpose Platform on Tab 1
Cutting Pad
Silicone Rubber Mat
Very Vanilla Card Stock
Embosslit with the cutting edge turned up (**see note)
Typing paper
Cutting Pad
Shim (for me a piece of thick paper that comes in the DSP packs)

**Note: Make sure the cutting edge is turned up or you could cut into your silicone mat

Every Big Shot is a little different so you may have to play with the “shim” part to get the desired level of embossing.

I added a “Potato Masher” bow (tutorial here) and some of the tiniest of the pearls in the Basic Pearl pack. I love the elegance of this card!!

Now, in truth, almost all the cherry blossoms are already gone. But I went in search of and found some holdouts! The first picture is from a set of trees near the Jefferson Memorial (which you see in the background). These are a later blooming variant. The second picture is from a lone tree along the Tidal Basin that was still blooming. I loved that I could get the Washington Monument in the photo! I tormented my children with many pictures of them with the trees too but will save those for an MDS project.

Well, off to enjoy a beautiful day here in Virginia. I hope that you will join us at SUO Challenges with your happy cards! See you tomorrow!

Stamps: Elements of Style, Silhouette Sentiments (hostess, retired); Paper: Very Vanilla, Watercolor; Ink: Early Espresso, Pink Pirouette, Blushing Bride, Pear Pizzazz; Accessories: Big Shot, Labels Collection Embosslits, Very Vanilla Seam Binding, Blender Pen, Basic Pearls, Dimensionals

SUOC41 – Spring or Fall

March 20, 2012 Jentimko 7 Comments

This is the time of year for seasonal changes and we want you to show us your cards inspired by those. At SUO Challenges, spring fever has definitely set in. But we know that many of you live in the Southern Hemisphere and we want to see your beautiful fall cards.

When I got to go to Cindy Elam’s house a couple of weeks ago, one of the most fun things we did was prepare for this challenge. We used the same sketch to create our cards. She chose spring and I chose fall. Here are the cards side-by-side. Fun, huh??!!

I started by embossing a Crumb Cake panel with Cindy’s Vintage Wallpaper Embossing Folder. So pretty! With that lovely background I wanted to keep the rest pretty clean so I went to Cindy’s punch rack and started punching out flowers to layer. Aren’t they pretty together? All I did was sponge the layers of the flower and the edges of the Crumb Cake panels. I chose this lovely sentiment from the Sale-a-bration set Elementary Elegance. Finally, the bow was the one I made for the bow tutorial we created. I thought this had a bit of a fall feel with the color choices, especially when put next to Cindy’s amazing spring card! This sketch was one Cindy had saved and I really like both results with it.

I hope you will be able to join us at SUO Challenges with this fun theme! The design team has created some fabulous cards for inspiration so make sure you drop by to see them.

I will be back tomorrow for another Freshly Made Sketches Challenge. Make sure you check back in because it is a cool sketch…unlike any that I have used before! Until then, have a great day and thanks for stopping in.

Stamps: Elementary Elegance (SAB); Paper: Crumb Cake, Rich Razzleberry, Naturals Ivory: Ink: Rich Razzleberry; Accessories: Big Shot, Vintage Wallpaper EF, Regals Button, Crumb Cake Seam Binding, Dimensionals, Punches – Blossom, 5-Petal Flower, Boho Blossoms

PPA131 – Summer Blossoms

March 16, 2012 Jentimko 16 Comments

I got some time to stamp yesterday and just had to pull out my new things from the Summer Smooches package being offered in April. Many of you know that I have what I call “seasonal stampers disorder”. My colors choices are completely and utterly seasonal! I have to say that this beautiful selection of products fits that syndrome beautifully!

Just look at the bright, happy colors here! They are just perfect for Margaret Moody’s wonderful sketch over at Pals Paper Arts this week. The Summer Smooches DSP has the most wonderful designs. I thought this pattern would be fun to use with the matching stamp from Bright Blossoms. All I did was mimic the colors from the paper when I stamped the flowers. I matched the little yellow centers from the DSP with a Daffodil Delight brad in the middle of the biggest flower. Easy and fun! For the little flag, I pulled out my trusty Teeny Tiny Wishes for the sentiment. What would I do without that set??!! The card seemed to need something else so out came the handy dandy Mat Pack for some paper piercing.

I’m still enjoying all of my Sale-a-bration products and the ones from the Occasions mini but it was nice to get a little preview of the upcoming catalog. The Summer Smooches suite of products will become available on April 1st for one month only (some of the products will only be offered for that month!!). Just wait until you see the little purses made with the new Big Shot die. I’d show you the one I made the other day but it was already taken by a friend of my boys…she just loved it!!

I have some great new cards to show you next week! I’ll be back Tuesday with the SUO Challenge and Wednesday with Freshly Made Sketches. Until then, thanks for stopping by. Have a great weekend!

Stamps: Bright Blossoms, Teeny Tiny Wishes; Paper: Summer Smooches DSP, Daffodil Delight, Island Indigo; Ink: Old Olive, Daffodil Delight, Real Red, Tempting Turquoise, Island Indigo, Tangerine Tango; Accessories: Mat Pack, Piercing Tool, Dimensionals

SUOC40 – Easy being green

March 6, 2012 Jentimko 2 Comments

The SUO Challenge team is back with a new challenge for you. We want you to use any SU green as your focal color. Stampin’ Up has so many pretty greens that there is sure to be one that is your favorite!

My choice of green was Lucky Limeade. It is a weird choice for me because I didn’t really love it at first. But like many other things, as soon as I saw the coordinating things made with the color it has grown on me. I started with some of Berry Blossoms DSP and felt inspired by one of the prints. I saw a beautiful flower over at Yvette’s Paper Garden and went to look at her tutorial link created by Melanie Hopes. The tutorial shows how to created a variety of flowers using different SU punches and dies…amazing! I chose one of the flowers from Fun Flowers to try. It is easy, fast and wow. My kind of project! I love that I could just add the 3-d flower to the print in the DSP. As I was looking for way to finish the card, I noticed that my Sale-a-bration brads coordinated and just had to add them in.

I can’t wait to hear what you think about this big flower and I’m sure you’ll want to try some right away too. Remember that it is easy to be green with SU so I hope to see you in the challenge!!

I am writing this post ahead of time but with any luck I will be at Cindy Elam’s house (Heart’s Delight Cards) when this goes live!! I am planning on serious stamp-a-pa-looza!! How cool that one job will take me to a friend made doing my other job!! I’m sure we’ll both have lots to post after this visit!!

Thanks for dropping in today. See you tomorrow for another Freshly Made Sketches challenge!

Stamp: Inviting; Paper: Berry Blossoms DSP, Lucky Limeade, Whisper White; Ink: Lucky Limeade; Accessories: Big Shot, Fun Flowers Die, SAB Brads

PP84 – Sweet Birthday

March 2, 2012 Jentimko 7 Comments

Don’t fall over from shock! I’m posting and it isn’t even a Tuesday or a Wednesday. Yes, I got to stamp!! I am enjoying getting some time but I find it easier to start with a good layout right now. Thankfully, The Paper Players had a great one this week. I’m getting in right under the wire.

I need at birthday card for a sweet little girl named Lily. Of course I have my Patterned Party set that I typically use right now for kid cards but with a name like Lily, her card simply demands flowers. As I was searching around the stamp drawer I came across this Sweet Summer set from last year’s Sale-a-bration. Loved it then, love it now! It seems perfect to use with the sketch (turned on its side). So Saffron is such a pretty yellow and I used the striped paper from Just Add Cake DSP. I still seem drawn to my watercolor stamps and this is an easy watercolor to do. Some So Saffron Taffeta Ribbon tied with a little flower button and the sentiment from Teeny Tiny Wishes to finish.

I’m planning on some more stamping today for next week’s design team work. More great challenges so make sure you come back to see them!

Don’t forget that this year’s Sale-a-bration is going all through this month. You’ll love the sets for years to come! Thanks for stopping in today. See you again soon!

Stamps: Sweet Summer (SAB ’11), Teeny Tiny Wishes; Paper: Just Add Cake DSP, So Saffron, Whisper White; Ink: So Saffron, Rose Red, Marina Mist, Wild Wasabi, Basic Gray; Accessories: So Saffron Taffeta Ribbon, Subtles Buttons, Jewelry Tag Punch, White Thread

SUOC39 – Happy Birthday

February 21, 2012 Jentimko 9 Comments

I think the cards I make most around my house are birthday cards. I can never have enough of them!! The SU Only Challenge this week is to make birthday cards…perfect for getting some made for when you need them.

I made this for a friend of my oldest son and turned to my favorite kid birthday set again, Patterned Party. I love these balloons! I can’t remember where I found the layout (sorry) but I liked the idea of the three bright panels in the background and the asymmetry of the focal image. I did use a couple of retired SU things here, the Real Red wide grosgrain and the sentiment. You could easily replace these with current items but I continue to try to use what I have (to make room for more). This is a quick little card to put together but it looks special with the layers.

I can’t wait for you to see what the rest of the design team has made this week. As usual, there are multiple styles and loads of inspiration.

I am happy to say that my training in Denver is completed!!! The check ride went well and I got home late Friday night. We had some family in town which was very fun and now I am catching up. I leave tomorrow for my first trip. It is official…if you find yourself on a United Airlines Airbus 319/320, make sure you look to see if I am there. I hope to see stampers all across the country!

Off to stamp (haven’t done that in a while) and pack! Hope you have a great day. Back tomorrow with a new Freshly Made Sketches Challenge. Thanks for dropping by!

Stamps: Patterned Party, Birthday Wish (retired); Paper: Brights Paper Pack, Basic Black, Whisper White; Ink: Pacific Point, Real Red, Daffodil Delight, Basic Black; Accessories: Brights Buttons, Real Red Wide Grosgrain (retired), Thread

SUOC38 – My little Valentine

February 7, 2012 Jentimko No Comments

This week at SUO Challenges we want to see your Valentine creations made with two main colors. Of course neutrals can be added (because they usually just have to be)!

Now the design team has put together some stunning cards but my focus had to be Valentine’s for my boys’ classes. I got to go home over the weekend but time for stamping was pretty limited as you can imagine. The boys chose the candy they wanted to give (Sweethearts) and I designed this for the packaging. It is very hard to see but I did sponge a sky with clouds behind the balloon. I guess I’ll need to make it a little darker on the rest! I love this phrase and it does seem pretty fitting for my house don’t you think?? You’ll be amused to know that I stamped all the balloons I need and brought them back to Denver to cut out this week. Even fussy cutting seems better than studying!! *smile* The boys like the result and I guess that is the most important part!

Make sure you go look at the beautiful artwork from the rest of the design team. Such elegant cards!! You will surely be inspired to join us!

Back tomorrow with another Freshly Made Sketches challenge. Thanks so much for stopping in today! Have a great day!

Stamp: Up, Up and Away; Paper: Real Red, Basic Gray, Whisper White; Ink: Real Red, Basic Gray, Baja Breeze; Accessories: Simply Scored Scoring Tool, 1/8″ Hole Punch, White Taffeta Ribbon

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