Simon Says.......Anything Goes

Happy Wednesday - welcome to our challenge at the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge Blog!

It's Anything Goes this week, and the team is playing with Lawn Fawn products!  I chose a stamp set I've had for awhile, and still love.  One of my favorite things about fall is the new apple crop, and I look forward to biting into a crisp tart Jonathan apple!

supplies: white cardstock, Sunny Studio Rainbow Bright heart dp, Lawn Fawn Thanks a Bushel, Nuvo markers, (retired) Winnie & Walter stitched scallop rectangle die, adhesive foam squares

In the past I always paper-pieced this set, so I thought it was high time to just color them this time.  I love the teensy little hearts included in this set.  The largest sentiment actually reads "Thanks a Bushel", but for today's card I shortened it....

Now it's your turn!  We have a $25.00 gift certificate 

to the amazing Simon Says Stamp store for 1 lucky random winner of this week's challenge!  I can't wait to see what you all make this week!

Inspired by Norine

Norine Borys is one of my favorite cardmakers, and almost everything she creates inspires me.  Awhile back she did a post using 1 stamp set and made 4 cards.  On the very last one she used a floral die as a background.  Here's my take on that card, using my own supplies.

supplies: white and orchid pink cardstock, Paper Rose Rose Frame Background die, Altenew Build a Rose stamp and die set, Rose Petal and Sea Shore mini inks, Memory Box Spring Lilacs sentiment

Instead of a floral die, I used this floral frame die, cutting it, then taping it on the reverse so that everything stays intact before removing it from the die.  I pulled up just a few leaves and a bud just as Norine did.  Then I stamped and die-cut my rose and leaves and stamped my sentiment, matted it in a matching pink and attached it to my card base. 

I love that Norine has given us yet another way to use our dies - many thanks to her!

I Love Fall!

 It's time to pull out the Thankful Leaves Turnabout set for the season; I made 2 really easy cards with it.

supplies: cream and kraft cardstock, Concord and 9th Thankful Leaves Turnabout, Altenew mini inks, sentiment from (retired) Neat & Tangled Hello Fall, Simon Stitched Rectangle die

Next up, I changed the ink colors a bit, trimmed the panel, and added some self-adhesive alphabet letters from my stash.

supplies: Dark Chocolate, Lipstick Red, and ivory cardstock, Thankful Leaves Turnabout, Altenew inks, Spellbinders Hemstitch Rectangle die, Simon Stitched Rectangle die, heart die from (retired) Simon Large Hearts set, chipboard letters, adhesive foam to pop up heart

I very rarely use chipboard elements, but in this case, I love the results - and they express my feelings perfectly!

Simon's October Card Kit

 I have a card today made with the supplies in this month's Simon Says Stamp Card Kit.  When I saw this big sentiment, I decided to use it first, to sent to our Grands in TX.  Thought I haven't heard them say "y'all" yet, their Momma does, so I thought they'd all get a kick out of this.  The bonus is that their grade school mascot is an owl!

supplies: white cardstock, dp from Simple Stories Cozy Days paper pad, leaves, sentiment, and owl from new Happy Fall, Y'all stamp set, Hero Arts Infinity Circle die, markers to color, doodlebug heart sprinkle

The kit is still available HERE.

I'm looking forward to stamping and coloring up that cute bear next!

A Season for Giving

 Some of my favorite kinds of cards have a text of some kind featured prominently.  At this time of year, I always like to pull out this old Autumn Words woodblock to make a card.  This year I accessorized it with some skeleton leaves cut in fall colors and added some sequins.

supplies: white, gold, Burnt Orange and Orange Peel cardstock, Stampendous Autumn Words woodblock, peacock feathers and a blender brush, Neat and Tangled (retired) Maple Leaf die and sentiment from (retired) Hello Fall, Simon Summer Gold sequin mix

I used "see-through" leaves so that you could see more of the autumn words, since I didn't ink the whole panel.  You can see more of my cards using this HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE (3rd card).

Sorry to say once again, almost everything on this card has been retired.  I thank you for stopping by!

Simon Says...........Animal Antics!

Happy Wednesday - welcome to our challenge at the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge Blog!

This week our theme is Animal Antics, and the team is playing with Doodlebug Designs goodies.

supplies: white cardstock, Doodlebug Design Hey Cupcake 6" papers, Party Llama Doodle-pop, Simon Party Like a Panda tiny sentiments

Doodlebug has a wonderful selection of what they call Doodle-Pops, which are layered stickers, and they had lots of animals to choose from.  I chose this cute llama, and the coordinating papers to work with.  

Now it's your turn!  We have a $25.00 gift certificate 

to the amazing Simon Says Stamp store for 1 lucky random winner of this week's challenge!  I can't wait to see what you all make this week!

Autumn Blessings

 Here's the last installment of my seasonal set of cards using The Greetery products.

supplies: white and Burnt Orange cardstock, The Greetery Autumn Sketches and Robin and Wren stamps and matching die, Simon Four Seasons die, stamped sentiment from The Craft's Meow, Penny Black Stitched Stackers die

Here are the other seasons: Spring, Summer, and Winter.

I tried to keep a few elements the same, using season dies from the same set, and a border of Stitched Stackers, in addition to the Robin stamp, just varying the colors.

Thanks for stopping by!

More Foiling

 I wanted to try foiling the toner sheet leaves again, this time using a rainbow foil.  I love how it turned out, but it took me half a day to get a good representation of what it looks like!

supplies: various fall shades of cardstock, from pale yellow to deep burgundy, Endless Leaves toner sheet, Summer Rainbow foil, Hero Arts Nesting Rectangle dies, sentiment from Impression Obsession Early Sunsets clear stamp set

To start, I cut 1/2" strips of lots of fall-colored cardstock, and attached them on the diagonal to a card base.  Then I foiled the toner sheet - this Summer Rainbow has tones of silver, gold, orange, red, and purple, repeating in stripes down the panel.  I attached it to my card, then made a skinny frame and stamped my sentiment to finish.

I took a zillion pictures inside, but in order to get the foil colors to show, I also got lots of glare from the acetate base these toner sheets are made of.  I finally took my card outside on a bright day and took some shots in the shade.......still not a piece of cake, but I got at least this one to show you the details.

Thanks for coming by!

Blessings

 Today's card is a variation of one I made last year - I like these elements together.  This year I added some metallics to the mix.

supplies: ivory and Tim Holtz Rose Gold Metallic Kraft cardstock, plank dp from Craft Consortium Wood Textures pad, Simon Stitched Grand Maple and part of Christmas Blessings sentiment dies, Spellbinders Falling Leaves embossing folder, rose gold sequins, adhesive foam to lift top panel

When I got this new plank pad of paper, I wondered whether I'd ever use this particular one - it looks like someone used the side of a barn to clean his paint brushes!  But I think it worked nicely for this card.  The pinks in it were one reason I chose the rose-gold accents.

And one more shot.  It's unusual to find an embossing folder with various leaves on it like this one.

As always, thanks for stopping by today!

Simon Says.........No Stamps Allowed

Happy Wednesday - welcome to our challenge at the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge Blog!

Our theme this week is No Stamps Allowed, and the team is showcasing Spellbinders' products!

For my first card, I chose their lovely Oval Coronet dies.  I love the beautiful filigree details that the designer, Becca Feeken, specializes in!

supplies: white, Surf Blue, Audrey Blue, Lavender, purple, Green Apple, and Green Leaf cardstock, Oval Coronet dies

This die set has 5 dies that can be mixed and matched for different results.  I used all of the dies except the very largest shaped one today.  I cut the most detailed oval die from 6 different colors, and then inlaid them back into the pattern.  That panel was then placed onto an oval of surf blue cardstock, before attaching it to the large white panel cut with the largest die.  Then that panel was attached to an A2 panel of surf blue cardstock.  

I didn't really have a sentiment die that wouldn't cover up this beautiful design, so I opted to leave this as is for the present.  I'll probably add a small stamped sentiment when I use it.

Next I made a card with another die set that was released at Christmas.  This one has a built-in sentiment, I made it into a year-round card by using floral patterned papers for a spring or summer feel. 

supplies: white, Green Leaf, a darker green, and several coral pink cardstocks, Carta Bella Flora #1 patterned paper, Joy die set, enamel dots in deep red

I first embossed the image into a piece of white cardstock, then cut it out from 2 greens.  There is a separate flower die, which I used to cut out the flowers in several shades of coral.  I cut apart the green die-cuts and glued them into place on my embossed panel, then added the flowers.  Finally, I cut out the letters, which are also separate dies, and pieced them back into the design.  I used the same patterned paper as borders after trimming my embossed panel.

Now it's your turn!  We have a $25.00 gift certificate 

to the amazing Simon Says Stamp store for 1 lucky random winner of this week's challenge!  I can't wait to see what you all make this week!

Mighty Oak

More cards for the season - oaks were my Dad's favorite tree in the autumn; he liked the duller colors.  These oak dies are another new Botanicuts release from The Greetery.  They're a nice size, not too big, so there's plenty of room for a sentiment, as you'll see in my 2nd card.

supplies: white (to stamp pitcher) and kraft (under shiplap) cardstock, solid dps from an Authentique 2012 paper pad, The Greetery Pitcher-esque layering stamps, Ship Lap and Mighty Oak dies, sentiment from (retired) Sugar Pea Designs Fall Fox

Isn't that ship-lap die amazing?  It has woodgrain markings in it, as well as little "nail" cutouts.  I layered my individual boards over a panel of kraft cardstock to get the nails to be more noticeable.   I added a darker brown shelf to hold my pitcher.  Here I just arranged the leaves in my pitcher with some bare branches, adding some acorns and an extra leaf as if they'd fallen out.

For this next card, I used the full branch.

supplies: Lipstick Red, Schoolhouse Red, Burnt Orange, kraft and cream cardstock, The Greetery Mighty Oak Botanicuts, Changing Seasons embossing folder, sentiment from (retired) Newton's Nook Fall-ing for You

This spray of oak leaves was fun and easy to put together - I used colored cardstocks to make it even easier!  I cut a couple extra of the smallest leaves to have them fluttering down and to balance out the sentiment in the corner.  

Thanks for stopping by - is it feeling like fall where you live?

A Season of Blessings

 I've pulled out all my fall goodies and will be playing with them this month and next.  I always love a fall wreath!

supplies: cream cardstock, Poppy Stamps (retired) Leafy Wreath Collage die, markers to color, Sunny Studio Autumn Greetings sentiment, Winnie & Walter Noelle die (retired), foam to pop up top panel.

I first cut the stitched scallop panel, then the wreath.  After removing the tiny cuts, I added some tape on the back of the panel, sticky side towards the front, then carefully colored and pieced each leaf back into the wreath.  My sentiment is the only new-to-me thing on this card - and it appears to be discontinued already!

The last time I used this stamp was in 2017 - high time to bring it forward again!  

So Grateful

 I just received some of the new release from The Greetery, and here's my first play with some of them.

supplies: white cardstock, a dotted yellow dp, The Greetery Pitcher-esque, Bittersweet Bouquet, and Square Dance stencil, Gina K. Designs Autumn Wreath Builder sentiment, Altenew mini ink cubes

I have a large collection of salt-glazed stoneware, which is a hand-made pottery usually grey with blue painted details.  And pitchers are my favorites, so useful for holding flowers!  So I started by making my pitcher using greys with a blue decoration.  I stamped the bittersweet bouquet and a few extra little branches.  Then I used the stencil to make my gingham background all in the same blues, and finished with a yellow tablecloth to hold the sentiment.

The gingham stencil is 3 parts, and can be stamped in 1 to 3 colors - this was a must-have for me!  I used 2 colors here.

It's Friday again!  Enjoy your weekend!

Simon Says.........Humorous/Fun Card

Happy Wednesday - welcome to our challenge at the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge Blog!

This week we want you to make a funny card!  We are highlighting a company that specializes in such sentiments: Riley & Company!  They have so many cute sentiment stamps in their Funny Bones collection - I chose one that made me giggle, and made a card to send to our Grands.

supplies: white and black cardstock, Riley and Company Milk Dud cling sentiment stamp,  Doodlebug Down on the Farm 6" papers, What's Moo Doodle-pop, red gingham ribbon, MFT Wonky Stitched Rectangle die

I used a strip-piecing technique taught to me years ago by my friend Mary Anne.  It's a great one for using up scraps of paper, or, in this case, just creating a background to highlight an image.  Doodlebug's design papers are made to play nicely together, so I chose 5 from this Down on the Farm pad.   Simply cut 1/2" strips and glue them onto a backing piece of cardstock.  You can glue them touching each other, or off-set them a bit like I did today.  Then trim your panel and mat it.

I used the very last bit of this skinny red gingham ribbon to make a bow for this darling little cow.

Now it's your turn!  We have a $25.00 gift certificate 

to the amazing Simon Says Stamp store for 1 lucky random winner of this week's challenge!  I can't wait to see what you all make this week!

Hello Fall

 I take September as my cue to play with all my fall goodies; here's a card made of new and a bit older multi-step stamps from the Greetery.

supplies: ivory cardstock, Sunny Studio Classic Gingham dp, The Greetery Sprinkled with Kindness watering can, Budding Beauties Autumn and Autumn Sketches stamps, sentiment from Sugar Pea Fall Fox, Altenew mini ink cubes, adhesive foam squares

I'm in heaven when I'm working with these stamps and colors - what's your favorite kind of card to make?

Endless Leaves

 I don't think I've done a foiled card for fall, so when I saw these Endless Leaves clear toner sheets,  I jumped!  

supplies: turquoise woodplank dp, DecoFoil Endless Leaves toner sheet, Gina K. Designs Dazzling Orange foil, laminator, sentiment from (retired) Neat & Tangled Maple Thanks clear stamp set

I love orange and turquoise together!  This foil looks just shiny in some lights and more glittery in others; hopefully you can see both on these photos.  The toner sheets are printed on clear acetate.  It cuts beautifully and I just put dots of glue under the most solid parts of the design, and it's holding well to the plank background!  It's a real steal, in my opinion - you can make 16 cards with the package!  

The sentiment is a scripture quote, 1 Thessalonians 5:18, just stamped on a scrap of the plank paper and glued over the foiled panel.

Thanks for stopping by today - I hope your week is a lovely one!

Harvest Time

It's September, and for me that means I can start using my fall stamps and dies!  Here's my first card for the season.

supplies: various colors of cardstock, Honey Bee Studio Fall Bouquets dies, Spellbinders Hemstitch Rectangle die, Pink & Main Fall Sentiments, enamel dots

I used a distress marker to accentuate the embossed lines in the pumpkin and also shaded it just a tad with the matching spiced marmalade ink. The flowers and leaves were all cut from colored cardstock.  These dies have lots of fun embossed details in the leaves.  I decided to stamp my sentiment right onto the pumpkin, and then just added a few enamel dots to the flowers and here and there around my arrangement.  I only used the smallest flowers in this set, but there are 3 much larger ones included; also some acorn dies and a canning jar, so this has everything you need to make a beautiful autumn arrangement!

I got these dies last year - HERE's what I made then.  

Thanks for stopping by!

Simon Says...........Stamp It!

Happy Wednesday - welcome to our challenge at the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge Blog!

It's STAMPtember, so our theme this week is Stamp It!  We'll be playing with Simon exclusive products this week, and we'd love to see you using them, too, but it's not a requirement to enter the challenge. 

I wasn't sent any stamps that had images on them, just sentiment stamps, so I had to put on my thinking cap this week.  One of the stamp sets I received is called Circle Sentiments Christmas, and I seized on the idea of "circles" to compose my card.  

supplies: white, Green Apple, Green Leaf, and Doll Pink cardstock, Doll Pink ink, NEW Circle Sentiments Christmas clear stamps, NEW Detail Ringlet Plate die, Christmas Foliage dies

I stamped my sentiments and dotty circle using Doll Pink ink, added a wreath around it, and the tiny banner sentiment, and placed the whole thing against the new Ringlet background die.  I'm so pleased to have been sent this Ringlet die - it's so versatile, adds a lovely subtle detail, or can be colored so that it's more prominent!  I did 3 other cards using it on THIS post earlier this morning.

Now it's your turn!  We have a $25.00 gift certificate 

to the amazing Simon Says Stamp store for 1 lucky random winner of this week's challenge!  I can't wait to see what you all make this week!