My card today will be entered into the August Anything Goes Summer for the final summer season challenge with The Four Seasons Challenge. I was inspired by the colorful mood board for this challenge and decided it must be Happy Hour somewhere with my very colorful martinis. Although I do realize that martinis are not “umbrella” drinks, I could not resist adding some more color to this card. Sentiments are from Gina K Designs Lazy Days of Summer, The images are from a stamp set named DMD Happy Hour which was probably in clearance from one of the local big box stores. Patterned paper was from my stash and just added more of summertime fun. So I added a little bow because the martini glasses looked like they needed something more…so the bow is the more!!

Inside sentiment is: 1 Martini, 2 Martini, 3 Martini, Floor….lol!

Thanks for stopping in for a peek. I appreciate you and your time. Take care, be safe and stay Cool.

Tranquil Turquoise is the August Colorful Options challenge this month. Love turquoise, teal, blues/green colors. I even like the soft gray with the turquoise which along with white are my neutral colors for this project.

Since it’s so stinking hot, I had more time to play with layering stamps and was really happy with the way they turned out. The stamp set I used was Gina K Designs Layered Carnations from the her Watercolor Spring kit. This kit sold out so quickly that Gina actually restocked for those who wanted it. My flowers were stamped in GKD’s Turquoise Sea, blue Lagoon and Tranquil Teal and my leaves in Soft Stone and Turquoise Sea. I lightly sponged soft stone over portions of the Bodacious Blooms stencil from the same kit and did direct to paper for the layering panel. Taylored Expressions sentiment and die was stamped in the Turquoise Sea ink. Gosh I was very matchy-matchy on this card.

Awesome inspiration mood board….I definitely do not remember a turquoise can of coke but look at those gorgeous colors.

Thanks for stopping in for a peek. I appreciate you and your time. Take care, be safe and stay cool.

I really love to try new techniques suggested by our Buddies and to be inspired by their makes. Today, Lisa K posted a Faux Wood Burning Technique that looked very interesting. Lisa’s card was gorgeous. After watching the YouTube video Lisa linked to in her blog post, I got to work and this card was my third attempt. The first time I used SSS dark chocolate and after multiple stamping did not get much movement of the ink after brushing liberally with water. Second attempt I used GKD dark chocolate ink and maybe I added too much water because it turned more pinkish than brown and the image lines were very blurred and sentiment was a mess. On to the third and final attempt, which was Tim Holtz Distress ink in Walnut Stain. I figured the water brush would definitely move this ink. I did use watercolor paper on all three attempts but maybe I should have used the smooth side. To add to the wood grain look, I embossed my Hero Arts woodgrain fancy die then added a little more ink and waterbrushing over top of it.

Thanks so much for sharing this technique, Lisa, maybe I’ll try your alcohol markers on vellum techinque. I too enjoy Lisa Curcio.

Thanks for stopping in for a peek. I appreciate you and your time. Take care, be safe and stay cool!

Today’s card will be entered in the the Lighthouse challenge with the Double D Challenges group. My striped background was inked using Sugar Pea’s Skinny Stripes Stencil and masking off and alternating Gina K Designs Powder Blue and Kraft ink. After stamping and fussy cutting my Gina K Designs By the Sea lighthouse, a Spellbinder’s classic oval was die cut and I sponged some “water” and “light” from my lighthouse and of course the gulls that are required for all nautical scenes. I found some leather like ribbon from my stash but without a sentiment I needed something else so I went on a search of my stamps and located GKD’s Ship to Shore stamp set for my wheel. Better, I believe. I’m hoping our other Buddies join in this challenge. I do know that Johanna already made a fabulous nautical card for this challenge.

Thanks for another fun challenge and inspiring mood board. Oooh that bottom right red lighthouse with the blue cloudy sky is fabulous. I wonder why I didn’t choose that one. LOL. Who knows.

Maybe two more days of hazy, hot and humid in Pennsylvania before temperatures give us a break. Thanks for stopping in for a peek. I appreciate you and your time. Take care, be safe and stay COOL.

My forever friends and I try to get together at least two times a year to make cards to be given to troops for their use. I prep all of the cards pack and they then we have our “class” This past Thursday the seven of us worked on these cards completing these cards and are mailing 201 cards to the Making Cards for our Troops group in Maryland. Lots of laughter, lunch, strawberry rose wine ice cream floats and our project was completed. These were the ones we worked on together. I had an additional 30 cards in my stash from joining in on challenges and some on line classes.

Thanks for stopping for a peek. I appreciate you and your time. Take care, be safe and stay COOL. We are heading into another heat wave in Pennsylvania. We have promises of rain every day but it seems to miss our area.

Paper Dragonfly Creative Challenges Challenge #8 is Summertime Buzz. I was thrilled to learn and be inspired by all of the designer cards for this challenge but most especially by our Stamp Buddy Lisa K’s card. Lisa is a guest designer for this challenge and her card is awesome. For my card, I cut some yellow and black strips of cardstock and adhered them to a piece of copy paper then stamped my image from SimonSaysStamp’s Bee Yourself stamp set. I wasn’t quite sure on how to incorporate the dragonfly twist but decided on sponging in some clouds using Inky Antics Cloud Stencil for my background. Dragoflies are Gina K Designs’ Dreams Take Flight stamp set.

Thanks for stopping in for a peek. I appreciate you and your time. Take care, be safe and stay COOL!!

A new month and a new Halloween challenge with the Two Old Bats…LOL…I love and can relate to the name of this challenge blog. The challenge is an Anything Goes but as always a really fun Inspiration Mood Board and this month I thought I would go cute with the sweet red cat but with a little spooky sky background which makes flying on a broom a lot easier.

My stamps are from a Michael’s Recollection stamp set, the moon was created using Tim Holtz moon mask stencils blended with frayed burlap. Halloween sky is also Distress Oxide inks in Pricked Raspberry, Seedless Preserves, Chipped Sapphire and Black Soot and a little splatter using Copic Opaque white ink.

Thanks for stopping in for a peek. I appreciate you and your time. Take care, be safe and stay COOL!!

Just Add Ink’s Game #614 theme is Just add…under the sea. I’m working ahead with my birthday’s and this little grand-friend will be 6 in September and starting kindergarten so I figured she would love a little magic for her special day. My background was from a patterned paper pad in my stash but I added some bubbles to the upper portion with a Sizzix embossing folder, The sea’s vegetation was stamped from Gina K Designs’s Quite a Catch stamp set and my main image, tiny fishes and sentiment are all from Technique Tuesday’s Nancy and Nick the Narwhals stamp and die set. Super cute stamp set.

Thanks for stopping for a peek. I appreciate you and your time. Take care, be safe and STAY COOL!! Another heat wave is on it’s way to PA.

The Make the Cards Challenge is a technique challenge to use a black cardstock background. On my black cardstock I stamped with versamark ink the border wildflower background stamp from Hero Arts/PinkFresh Studios collaboration set “You Make a Difference”. After heat embossing the gold embossing powder, I used a white colored pencil to color in certain areas of my flowers and then used different colors of colored pencils to complete the background. After adding the sentiment from the same stamp set, I cut some frames from Taylored Expressions A2 Thin Frame Cutting Plate in gold cardstock. The sentiment frame was popped up by adding two frames under the gold.

Thanks for stopping in for a peek. I appreciate you and your time. Take care, be safe and stay cool. Temperatures are heading higher again tomorrow in Pennsylvania.