Author: Gayle Chrvala

Gray — Not My Jam!

| Gayle Chrvala
As You See It Challenge #239

The challenge for the As You See It Challenge blog is a fill in the blank: The color I avoid using most is ________. and then use that color. GRAY!! I normally do not use gray and I don’t wear alot of gray either as I am “tawny spring” on my personal color wheel which are more warm tones. I did finally find some nice gray shades of cardstock from GKD in Stormy Sky and Slate. My white snowflakes were die cut using a Tim Holtz Sizzix die and the top is one that GKD sold at one time and I cannot remember the name of the company. Anyway there is a snowflake in between the two die cuts from a 2017 StampTV kit which was stamped and heat embossed in silver (kind of gray). The background was created using SU’s Snowflakes stamp set and clear embossed. Merry is part of a Penny Black sentiment die that I cut apart from the Christmas and the Christmas stamped and white embossed is a SSS Christmas sentiments set. Since I cannot just use the gray my red card stock was calling my name!

challenge 239 not my jam 1

Thanks for looking. I’m in Christmas card making mode and am halfway completed and they may get in the mail by December 1st or maybe not!

Stay Safe.

Embossing Take Two

| Gayle Chrvala
The Sisterhood of Crafters – Embossing (wet or dry) challenge

I really am working on my Thanksgiving cards and I do believe I can sneak this one in for the season too as a non traditional card. After watching Jennifer McGuire’s recent YouTube on inking 3d embossing folders, I decided to give it a try and enter my card into the embossing challenge at The Sisterhood of Crafters blog.

Using my brayer and Distress inks, I inked up my Tim Holtz Alterations Sizzix 3d textures fade embossing folder. I tried inking both the outie and innie sides of the folder and this was the result of the ???? oh gee I forget I think the raised side. My sentiment is from Gina K’s Autumn Silhouettes stamp set which was stamped in Versafine Black Onyx and clear heat embossed. My frame is an Impression Obsession die; added a white vellum paper strip and some sequins.

Rainy, chilly day in Pennsylvania so I’m hoping to get a lot more cards made today. Focus, Focus, Focus!

Have a great day. Stay Safe.

Baby Sofie

| Gayle Chrvala

Welcome to the world little Baby Sofie! My girlfriend was blessed with another grandchild and this little one gave everyone quite a scare. With a collapsed lung and air filling her chest she was rushed to a larger nearby hospital with a NICU unit. Thankfully the doctors and respiratory therapists took wonderful care of Sofie and she came home from the hospital in two days. Everyone is doing extremely well. The top card is for the grandparents and while I liked the concept of the open window it took a little while for me to figure out the how to after almost sealing the card shut:) Middle card is for the moms and thought it was such a cute image. And the bottom is for big sister who is 9 years old and was adopted from birth. Happy day for this family.

Plus Gold

| Gayle Chrvala
The Paper Players Colour Challenge: PP516

Another beautiful day in Pennsylvania with temperatures in the 70’s. I think one more day of outdoor winterizing before the fall chill and rain returns to us. In the meantime, I created a card for The Paper Players Colour Challenge: PP516 using these pretty Christmas (to me) Stampin Up colors.

However, since I’m still not anywhere near ready for Christmas cards I decided to turn the colors into another fall/autumn/Thanksgiving card. My green is Distress evergreen bough ink and a Gina K stamp from the Petals & Wings set. I pulled out one of my favorite SU silhouette sets Garden Silhouette to gold emboss. The sentiment FAITH is also a GKD stamp from Triple Play Frame which also was gold embossed. So this is normally where I run into problems adding another color and I was looking to go minimalistic and used a strip of Recollections Christmas Plaid paper pad for Real Red. A punched butterfly in gold was added to finish off this card.

Thanks for looking and have a great day. Stay safe.

Red and Grateful

| Gayle Chrvala
November Monthly Mix Challenge ModSquad Challenge – So Grateful

The November Monthly Mix Challenge hosted by Arjita is to create a card that is Red and White and includes a tag! The challenge at the ModSquad Challenge hosted by Judy is “So Grateful” and you must use the word GRATEFUL.

My card uses the negative GKD FoilMates Swirls & Flourishes foiled panel adhered to a white cardstock layer. The tag was created using Gina’s ThermoWeb Decorative Tag Set and was stamped with a flower and sentiment from GKD’s A Happy Hello which includes GRATEFUL in the sentiment. A few of Gina’s sequins and it really needed some green leaves to complete this look.

Pine Cone Thanks

| Gayle Chrvala
DRU Challenge #156 – Give Thanks Double D Challenge – Pine Cones or Trees

I do like when challenges help motivate me to get hopping on seasonal cards. My card for today will be entered into the DRU Challenge #156 – Give Thanks and the Double D Challenges of Pine Trees and/or Pine Cones Challenge.

My pine branches and cones are from GKD’s Seasonal Sentiments stamp set and dies. The sentiment stamped in brown is also a Gina K Designs Thermo-Web Stamp n Foil set called Thankful Leaves. The copper foil embossed layer is from Michael’s Recollections and Sizzix Embossing Folder. The other metal dies used were my go to Waffle Flower A2 Layering dies. A few GKD sequins added just because!

Witchy November

| Gayle Chrvala
Two Old Bats Halloween Challenge: November Anything Goes

Playing along with the November Anything Halloween challenge from Two Old Bats Halloween Challenge today. I decided to work off the mood board for some inspiration using the purple witch hat.

For my card, my witch hat is an oldie but goodie from Outlines Rubber Stamp Company using Daniel Smith extra fine water color samples which was included in a My Monthly Hero set I colored the hat. Added some marker coloring in a darker purple and gold as well as some gem stones. Trying to remember if the Outlines stamps were made for gems as embellishments or pearl pen or nuvo drops for those area. After mixing the paint with perfect pearls I painted my background and die cut with Waffle Flower A2 nesting dies. I cut out two thin frames and made them a little wonky on my card because my image was off center. So it’s wonky all around to cover that up. I found my spider netting for a bow with a spider center and punched some bats with Martha Stewart punch.

Fun project definitely to be hand delivered or at least in a padded envelope.

Flirty Triangles

| Gayle Chrvala
As You See It Challenge #238 Just Us Girls Word Week #561

Two really awesome challenges for this “out of my box” card. The As You See It Challenge #238 entitled Aura uses the dreamy SU colors of Petal Pink, Flirty Flamingo, Basic Gray and Black.

challenge 238 1

The Just Us Girls Challenge #561 is Word Week and that word is “Triangle”.

So for the combined triangle color challenge I came up with my card using some unknown stitched triangle dies that I ink blended with Worn Lipstick and Dusty Rose (Flirty Flamingo), my second larger triangle is weatered wood and london fog for basic gray. Looks a little dark in the photo. I definitely need to invest in a real gray not that green gray color. The focal layer is backed with some basic black and all mounted on the closest thing I could find to Petal Pink. This 110 lb. cardstock is from my local Michael’s pink pack. Sentiment and die are from Sugar Pea’s Stamp of Approval stamp set.

Different for me but I do believe it may grow on me.

Silver Cascade

| Gayle Chrvala
Just Add Ink Colour Challenge #529

Why oh why are color challenges so difficult for me? I love color but maybe I feel that I need to go overboard on the colors. So for this color challenge:

I attempted to keep myself in check over these gorgeous colors. Using the Gina K/Simon Says Stamp Stamptember collaboration set Snowflake Cascade, I silver heat embossed it on my blue raspberry (Misty Moonlight) and stamped my sentiment on dusty rose (magenta madness) and then for good measure silver heat embossed some snowflakes from the same set and die cut them.

I’m still not quite sold on it but to my eyes it looks better when I put everything on the white card base.

#IVOTED2020