A couple of rejects

Hello!

I made a couple of birthday cards for the most recent Paper Crafts call for submissions. They weren't selected for publication. I also submitted some Christmas cards, but I'll save those rejects for later. :-)

These two cards I made using one of the sketches. I made them pretty much the same, but in different colours. I always struggle choosing colours "appropriate to the season" because in Australia, Christmas is in the middle of summer. And here in Brisbane our Winter isn't that cold, so I think I have creative block when trying to figure out colours for a Winter Christmas season, LOL!

Here they are. I really like them, so I guess rejection isn't so hard in this case. If they'd been picked, I wouldn't be able to use them. ;-)

The first one went with "red and green" for Christmas colours.

 The second one, I used "blue and purple" for cold winter colours.

Colours used are Old Olive, Certainly Celery, Real Red, Poppy Parade, Early Espresso; Night of Navy, Bashful Blue, Elegant Eggplant, Perfect Plum. Stamps are PTI Rosie Posie and Think Big Favorites #12.

So, what do you think? I'd love to hear your thoughts on these ones.

Michelle
xxx

ColourQ 138

Hello!

As soon as I saw the ColourQ colours this week, I knew I had to make a card using them. It is a wonderful colour combo. Take a look:

I would LOVE a pair of shoes like that! (And I'm not a "shoe" person).

The card I made was for a young friend's baptism today. I wanted it to be pretty and special. This is what I came up with.

My eldest daughter was raving about this card even before I finished it. THEN she realised it was the card for her friend and she was jumping with joy. Later today she lamented that the cards we really like, we give away, LOL!

I used PTI Basic White card. SU! ink in Crumb Cake, Pure Poppy, More Mustard, and Pool Party. Stamps are PTI Botanical Silhouettes, Tiny Tags II, and Hero Arts Say It All. The ribbon is Pool Party seam binding. This is the first time I've used seam binding, and I'm hooked. It's so soft and makes a BEAUTIFUL bow. 

Thanks for dropping by!

Michelle
xxx

Edited to add: I'm a colourQ Colour Queen! So excited! Thanks everyone for your lovely messages!

Papertrey May Blog Hop Challenge

Hello!

I almost forgot to post my entry to the May Papertrey Ink Blog Hop! I think I've made it just in time. The card was made, I just forgot the post, silly me!

This was our inspiration:

I had a few more ideas than the one I created, but my limited crafting time in the past two weeks has seriously impacted my ability to make more than one card here and there (sob!). (This is where you chime in and say, "There, there, you poor dear." LOL!)

This is what I came up with.

I made another card the same, in a different colour, in fact, I might show it to you as well. When I made the green one, I wanted to add some bling, but its purpose was to be a bit more unisex, and the older men this was aimed at are not blingy types. So I made a second so I could add the bling! :-)

Both cards are constructed the same. I stamped PTI Rosie Posie, then masked and stamped the Hero Arts Zig Zag and added the Hero Arts Sentiment. I popped up the front panel to add some dimension to what is essentially a one-layer design. Card is PTI Basic White.

Thanks for stopping by!

Michelle
xxx

Dynamic Yellow

Hello!

I feel like I've been away forever! I had a busy week-end last week-end. Then I went to Canberra for work for a few days (it's a bit chilly down there at the moment). And I got back last night, but I've been sick with a horrible head cold - painful throat, head full of gunk, and brain not functioning!  I've missed my cards so very much so tonight I dashed off a quick one before I throw myself at that welcoming bed. :-)

Dynamic Duos this week has one of my favourite colour combinations: Yellow and Black.

I just realised I didn't use the dessert option of dry embossing (although I had intended to). Since it is called an "option", I'm hoping it doesn't have to be in the mix to qualify for entry! As there are only a few hours to go before the linky list closes, and my bed is calling my name loudly, I really am not going to go and make another card at this stage. :-)

Here is my card:

I used SU! Daffodil Delight and Memento Tuxedo Black ink. Stamps are PTI Rosie Posie, and Think Big Favorites #13. Dies are Mat Stack #1 and Mat Stack #1 Layerz, oh and Rosie Posie. Card is Daffodil Delight and Whisper White.

It's nice to be back. I hope to make a few more cards this week-end. I have a whole bunch I started last week-end for another challenge, and I have plans to finish them, hopefully, if I can drag myself out of bed. I am way behind in my blog visiting and commenting. I will be back at that sometime soon, too! I miss everyone.

Michelle
xxx

For Your Inspiration #30

Hello!

It's time for another For Your Inspiration challenge. Challenge number 30, to be precise. The inspiration photo at first glance was tricky for me, but then I thought about it for a while, and ideas started jumping! This is an AWESOME inspiration photo and the DT have done AMAZING things in response to it.

Take a look:

Sitting here in my jacket and scarf, I totally start daydreaming of summer while looking at this picture.

I'm in Brisbane (most of you know this) and we have fairly mild weather most of the year. This autumn it has been as warm as summer, well as warm as summer somewhere else (Summer in Brisbane is really HOT). Autumn hasn't really hit. This week we skipped past autumn and went straight to winter. Morning temps are quite cool (about 8 celcius/46F) and we have no heating, so getting out of bed is a challenge!

Anyway, back to the challenge! I had an idea formed, but I really needed a layout and I couldn't think one up myself in this instance, so I went where I knew I would find a great layout - Mojo Monday. This sketch is for Mojo Monday 241.

I love this sketch, I think I'll use it again.

In the end, this is how my card turned out.

I'm in love with this card. It turned out even better than I imagined!

Card: crumb cake, pumpkin pie, early espresso, apricot appeal (retired)
Ink: early espresso
Stamps: PTI Turning a New Leaf, Pretty Peonies
Other: PTI buttons, Sizzix dots embossing folder, twine, Spellbinders circle dies, SU! square punch (for the ends of the banner)

The DT have done some seriously awesome things with this inspiration. Please take some time to browse their creations, because I promise you'll be inspired.

Debbie

Debby
Rudlis
Karen

Rochelle

Sara

Steph
Sylvia

Vicki

I'm looking forward to seeing your responses to this photograph, too!

Michelle
xxx

Happy Birthday, Debbie!

Hello!

My team mate from For Your Inspiration challenge, Debbie Standard, is having a BIG birthday today, she's turning 60!  So I have made a card especially for her.

Happy Birthday, Debbie!

I will admit, that I had to use some inspiration to get to this point, so this is being entered into CASE Study #90 and Dynamic Duos #2.

CASE Study 90 has this beautiful card by Aga as inspiration:

Yep, I used the entire layout. Why mess with something that is already so beautiful?

And I chose the colour scheme from Dynamic Duos, challenge 2:

I don't have So Saffron, so I had to choose between Barely Banana and Daffodil Delight. Because I was using an outline stamp, Daffodil Delight won the toss.

I used PTI Pretty Peonies, Thin Big Favorites #12, and Background Basics: Circles. Stampin' Up Pool Party and Daffodil Delight. Card base is PTI vintage cream.

If you pop over to the rest of the team blogs, you'll see some more birthday cards in honour of Debbie's birthday.

Debby
Rudlis
Karen

Rochelle

Sara

Steph
Sylvia

Vicki

Debbie, I hope you have a wonderful day of celebration filled with love, laughter and happiness.

Michelle
xxx

Yellow for LIM66

Hello!

I was sitting surrounded by paper and ink and totally stuck. I am working on presents for Mothers' Day, and I have come to a halt.  So what do you do when creatively stuck? Do something else completely!

The challenge over at Less Is More this week for Challenge 66 is to use YELLOW. I love yellow, it's such a happy colour for me. To be honest what is in my head for this challenge is not what I created. But this card was waiting in the sidelines of my mind and jumped the queue. :-)

Just looking at it makes me smile.

I used PTI Rosie Posie (image) and Botanical Silhouettes (sentiment). Memento Tuxedo Black and SU! Daffodil Delight. Card base is PTI basic white and panel is SU! Whisper White.

Such a quick card to make. I might make a set.

Thanks for dropping by!

Michelle
xxx

Vintage Vogue Birthday

Hello!

CAS-ual Fridays is celebrating their first birthday this week. So for CAS-ual Fridays Challenge 51 we have been asked to make a CAS birthday card.

To make this extra-special birthday card, I went looking for some additional inspiration and found it over at Tuesday Trigger with the Vintage Vogue photograph.

I can't tell you how much this photograph appeals to me. It's delicious!

There's not much colour there, but there are lovely textures, and that lace! I wanted to make a card that captured that feeling of old lace without being vintage or lacy... if you get what I mean... since I was trying to make a CAS card. So this is what I came up with.

I used PTI Rosie Posie to clear emboss on vanilla cardstock a flowery background. I sponged with SU! Crumb Cake. The label is PTI Mat Stack #1 and Mat Stack #1 Layerz (in vanilla and barely banana). The sentiment is PTI Think Big Favorites #12 in Crumb Cake. I used PTI Filigree border die to make the vanilla border and finished off with some SU! vanilla grosgrain ribbon and pearls.

I quite like this card. It is different colours to what I usually work with, but I love them! And I always love that big daisy stamp from Rosie Posie. :-)

Thanks for coming by to visit.

Michelle
xxx

CASE Study 89 and ColourQ 135

Hello!

I'm a bit distracted, my 4 1/2 year old is using scissors to make bird legs out of paper, eek!  I'm popping in today to show you my entry to CASE Study 89 and ColourQ 135.

The muse over at CASE Study for May is Agnieszka Malyszek.  I am a big fan of Aga's. I have been for a long time. CASE Study has been inviting many of my card-making heroes to be their muses lately. It's wonderful!

Aga's card for us to CASE this week is this one:

From this I have taken the dark card base, the dark on dark embossing, the bright letters, and the two directional sentiment.

I have used the colours from ColourQ 135, which this week are:

I wish I hadn't left this to the last minute. I really love this colour combination. I think I could have made three or four different cards using this one!

And this is my card:

I have used Hero Arts Dots and Flowers background stamp with copper embossing powder.  I bought this powder by accident last Christmas. I grabbed what I thought was dark brown powder. Didn't I get the surprise of my life when I heated it up? LOL! In this photo it looks a bit shinier than it really is, I think. The sentiment is made using Papertrey Ink Block Alpha dies and SU! cardstock - barely banana, ruby red, pool party, white. The card base is early espresso.

I'm quite happy with how this one turned out. After I sat there cursing about sticking down tiny letters in the evening light, I took a look at the finished product and decided the effort was worth it. :-)

Thanks for coming to visit!

Michelle
xxx

For Your Inspiration #29

Hello!

It's time for another For Your Inspiration challenge. Today we are at Challenge number 29. We have another sponsor this week - Fresh Brewed Designs. They have been kind enough to let us use some of their digi stamps for our projects this week. They are so lovely! Enter this challenge at FYI and you will have the chance to win three of their gorgeous digi stamps for yourself. :-)

The photo inspiration is this serene scene.

There is so much inspiration there to choose from -  greens, blues, greys, and browns; hills, village, waterfall, ocean; or even just the feeling that the photo gives you.

This is my card:

Isn't the little A+ Bug so cute? The minute I saw him, I fell in love!

I paper-pieced the image and did a little colouring with Inktense pencils. I also coloured his dots black using a Copic multiliner. The patterned paper at the side is a retired one from Stampin'Up! My card base is PTI white. Sentiment is Hero Arts stamped in Tuxedo Black.

Now, I happen to know that the rest of the team have done an amazing job with this inspiration and the Fresh Brewed Designs images, so please do go and take a look at their work also!

Debbie

Debby
Rudlis
Karen

Rochelle

Sara

Steph
Sylvia

Vicki

Thanks for stopping by! I can't wait to see what you come up with in YOUR entry to FYI this challenge. :-)

Michelle
xxx