Several weeks ago, I needed a masculine birthday card and just couldn’t get inspired. I had colored several eagles from the Fearless Flyer set from GKD and found one just sitting on my desk waiting to land on a card. I looked through my stash and found an oval cut from Ivory and it fit perfectly. Then I cut a lacy layer from Dark Chocolate. There were some scraps from the Good Ol’ Sport paper pack from Graphic 45 that worked perfectly with the oval. I added a Dark Chocolate Layer over a Kraft card base. That turned out so well, I decided to make several more for my stash as I had some other guys with birthdays coming up. None of them were quite the same because the pattern paper pieces were different sizes. But they all had the eagle over the oval. I decided to enter the Double D Challenge which requires a bird. I’m getting in just under the wire. Then I discovered that the current challenge at Can You Handle the Pressure had anything with wings as a twist. Since that challenge requires using an embossing folder, I remembered I had used a basketweave EF for one of the cards in my stash. Always fun when a card fits two challenges.

I’m trying to rebuild my stash. While cruising the internet today, I came across the current Color Throwdown Challenge CTD#725 to use red, green and brown. The flower is Bold Bloom Mini by Gina K Designs, colored with Copics: R22, 24, 27, 29 and G03, 09, 14. The mat is Dark Chocolate. The Hand Written Hello sentiment by Simon Says Stamp was also cut from Dark Chocolate. I added Wink of Stella for a bit of sparkle. This sentiment has a shadow die, but I opted not to use it. I had another idea for a sentiment but I decided Hello would better cover an oopsie. The card base is Kraft.

I made small easels to display these little tear off calendars from Taylored Expressions for friends. After preparing the easel I used patterned paper from Gina K Designs to create a mat for the calendar. I planned to make New Year’s cards to mail with the calendars. I used the Happy New Year sentiment from the Season’s Greetings set by Sunny Studios embossed in gold on black, cut with the matching die. I discovered that the scraps that were left from the mats behind the calendar were just the perfect size for the sentiment. I matted the patterned paper with black. I used the fireworks stamps from Let’s Party, an incentive from Gina K designs stamped tone on tone on the card base. The calendars tucked nicely into the card and went through the mail without additional postage. This is just one of several colors of cards and patterned paper. I’m hoping this project is CAS enough for the Cardz 4 Gals Challenge #190 CAS

This card took on a life of its own. I was heading in a completely different direction with different layers  when I realized – Hey if  I put gold on this, it would qualify for the Color Hues challenge to use light pink and gold. The original plan was to use a piece of ephemera that used the word Peace. I ussd gold glitter cardstock from Hero Arts to cut the word Peace, also from a Hero Arts set. Unfortunately the die cut Peace didn’t work with the ephemera, which luckily I hadn’t attached to the card. I had already attached pattern paper from Floral Essentials by Gina K Designs. I attached my gold die cut and decided I liked the simplicity of it.

I needed some quick cards for shut-ins. I found an odd sized thin pad of patterned paper that came with a card kit from Simon Says. The focal panel and mat were cut with Matting Basics 2. I used the Handwritten Hello from Simon Says. I was pleased at how easy it was to line up with the shadow layer.

You can get one hello with and one shadow layer cut from the mat layer of ML2. All CS is GKD – Christmas Pine, Prickly Pear, Moonlit Fog, Powder Blue, Lemon Drop, Kraft and Grass Green. It was fun to make cards with no stamping for a change.

I got in a real time crunch for my Christmas cards. I found a cute pad of patter paper called White Christmas that had a matching ephemera pack

This was a fun mass production card. I stamped the Snow Carolers on masking paper and very carefully trimmed around them. There is a matching die set, but I don’t have it, and it leaves a white border around the edge, which I don’t always like. I used Ivory Layering weight cut with the stitched die from Master Layouts 2. I stamped the Snow Carolers on the panel, then placed the mask over them and stamped the Music Background in Soft Stone, then removed the mask. I colored the hats, scarves, etc. with Copics: R27, R29, B00, B01, G03, G14, N0, N3, N5, Y35, YR07, E50, C00. The mat is In the Navy, attached over a Soft Stone Card Base. All products are by Gina K Design except the Noel sentiment which is from Classy Christmas by Sunny Studio.

This is another take on the background stamp from the April My Monthly Hero kit. Having the matching layered stencils makes coloring so quick and easy. Inks are by Gina K Designs: Lovely Lavender, Wild Wisteria and two new colors, Light Spruce and Medium Spruce. The bee was colored with Copic Y38.  I used a Black Onyx mat. The sentiment, from Beautiful Balloons by Gina K designs was stamped in Edible Eggplant. I’m entering this in Colorful Options challenge which is Precious Purple.

I’m somewhat obsessed with the background stamp from the April My Monthly Hero Kit. The matching layered stencil makes it so much fun and easy to color. Best of all, I can get two cards out of one background. Colored with GKD inks: Wild Dandelion, Prickly Pear, Jelly Bean Green and Fresh Asparagus.  After cutting an A-2 panel, I had this piece left. I added black mat. Since I needed a belated birthday card, I used the sentiment from Many Birthdays by Spellbinders. Even though the background has bees, I wanted a larger bee for an accent piece. I colored a bee from the January 2021 My Monthly Hero kit and die cut extras to give it some dimension. I’ve been away from posting and entering challenges for several months. Thanks to Stamp Buddy Johanna, I discovered that Black and Yellow was the combo for the current challenge at Color Hues and thought this would be a good way to jump back in.