Sparkly snowflake

| Judy Inukai

Sometimes creating the card is the big challenge. I love the Sparkling Mandala from Spellbinders, but every little hole needs to be poked out. Using DMC metallic thread presents another challenge – it really splits, but the end result is lovely. Then getting the background – oh there was the real challenge. My DH got me lots of stamping goodies for my birthday. One I thing picked up was a roll of Spellbinders Speckled Prism foil to use with the Glimmer machine he got me for Christmas. I went to foil a piece of CS with the Pinkfresh Studios Hot Foil Plate and ended up foiling my shim. After much weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth, I got it cleaned off (mostly) with the help of UnDu. After I got the sandwich right and got the CS foiled, I die cut it using the Snowflake Cover Plate by GKD. Every single cotton pickin’ hole had to be punched out. Some places on either end didn’t get enough pressure and wouldn’t punch out at all. I very carefully lined up the die and was actually able to get enough pressure to finish punching out the hanging chad. I cut a piece of Hero Arts White Glitter CS use for the backing behind the Snowflake Cover Plate, then added the Stitched Snowflake/Mandala. This really does have a lot of sparkle and shine in real life. I’m entering this in the Color Hues Silver and White Challenge. I also decided it would work for the Just Us Girls Photo Week Challenge. The snowcouple holding hands with the heart above them in the inspirational photo look like newlyweds who had just found out they were expecting and put Frosty’s ultrasound on this card to announce the happy occasion.

Blue Winter Hearts

| Gayle Chrvala
Double D Challenges

CASE-ing a little of this and a little of that with my card today. SimonSaysStamp released some layering heart stencils and I decided to make my own stencils using my Spellbinders Classic Hearts dies. They aren’t as large as the SSS stencils but they worked. My design was a CASE of Yana Smakula’s card using the SSS stencil with angled layered card stock. Sentiment was from an unkown stamp set in my stash. The hearts looks like they needed more attention so I stamped the Taylored Expressions Good Hearted background stamp over the hearts using versamark ink and then added a splat her and a splat there.

The Double D Challenge is Blue & White Winter to which I’ll be sharing my card. February is a winter month so my blue hearts will meet the challenge theme.

Thanks for stopping in for a peek. Take care, stay warm and be safe.

Winter Bunny

| Gayle Chrvala

Looks like a fun time for this bunny to be sledding down a hill with his winter animal friends. For my card today, I decided to play along with the following two challenges:

The Paper Players: PP574 Winter Animals

Sunday Stamps: SSC274 Split In Two

My background patterned paper is Craft Smart’s Winter Dream” paper pad from my local Michael’s, Hero Arts’ Snowflake Medallion Fancy die and Stampin Up’s Merry Crittermas stamp set.

Annette’s sketch for Sunday Stamps is featured below:

and

oops….does that really say Clean-And-Simple Winter Animals challenge for the Paper Players??? Well here’s hoping it will fit that challenge too….LOL.

Possibility of another inch or two or three of snow overnight tonight. Second warning for the snow people in my front window. I’m getting their storage box ready for them. Thanks for stopping in for a peek. Take card and be safe.

valentine chicken

| Lisa K

Odd title?–stayed tuned.

https://modsquadchallenge.com/valentines-day-card/
https://watercoolerchallenges.blogspot.com/2022/01/wwc333-dawns-challenge-all-about.html

The chicken is from SU Birds of a Feather set as well as the greeting. I found heart stamps in other sets from Gina K Designs, but can’t remember which set I grabbed the hearts from. The row of hearts border is from a Sizzix set designed by Stephanie Bernard that has a lot of hearts on it, but again, don’t have the name handy.

I saw this idea on Pinterest where it had the chicken at the top and red gingham at the bottom. I changed her idea from ribbon to the heart border. My background was so plain, so the hearts were added. I made 5 of these cards total. They will be going to an assisted living center.

This card is also being added to Watercooler Wednesday All About Occasions Challenge. I have been watching this challenge for quite some time, but have never entered or it has been quite a while.

Plaid Christmas

| Gayle Chrvala
Peace On Earth Christmas Challenge #8

Another fun mood board from the Peace on Earth Challenges – Anything Christmas challenge #8. I opted to be inspired by the plaid boots with the truck tag hauling a Christmas tree. I worked on my gingham plaid background using a SimonSaysStamp gingham background stamp, layering it on black cardstock and adhering to a card base the same GKD color as the plaid panel. No truck for me this time but my tree is a Hero Arts November 2021 card kit and die cut my tree from white cardstock twice, adding a sentiment banner to complete the card. This Hero Arts card kit is sold on-line at Joann’s and included a stamp set, die, some cardstock, ink cubes, embossing powder and glitter and since it was a good price point decided to give it a try.

A simple little card that was fun to make for this challenge. It’s still very cold in Pennsylvania with two or three more chances of snow this week yet! So far the snow falls haven’t been too large but try telling that to my back! The snow people that are in my front window will be warned to knock off the snow or they will be banished to their box in the basement!

Thanks for stopping in for a peek. Take care and be safe.

Snowflake

| Judy Inukai

It’s Color Week at Just Us Girls with colors of Light Blue, White and Silver. I stitched the Sparkling Mandala from Spellbinders with Silver and Blue Opal Metallic Threads. The Blue Opal really looks more white, so I used the Snowflake Coverplate by Gina K Designs in a light blue CS from my stash, and placed it over a piece of Silver CS also by GKD, on a white card base. The sentiment is from the Winter Poinsettia set by Stamp Simply.

Blue Carnation

| Gayle Chrvala
The Sisterhood of Crafters

Continuing with the “Blue” challenge theme for January, The Sisterhood of Crafters’ January Challenge is The Color Blue. Blue should be the obvious color on your card project. I decided to CASE a card that was posted on the SSS website when the Carnation Frame die was released. I purchased a Sudio71 watercolor kit that was on clearance at SimonSaysStamps some time ago. The kit includes paints, watercolors and watercolor pencils with a few brushes. I decided on three of the blues, a flat brush, some water and went to work on creating my striped background. Maybe I should have added some splatter to the background? What do you think?

I die cut the carnation frame twice and once in navy blue. The navy blue pieces were inset into my flower. Sentiment is from Gina K Designs Lacey Flowers.

This is the second card I made using the same concept but using a blue frame die cut.

I’me starting a collection of cards for troops and try to keep sentiments more general.

Waiting for the snow to begin or to fizzle today, watching the Eagles get clobbered by the Bucs and making some cards. Thanks for stopping in for a peek. Take care and be safe.

Beautiful Friendship Background

| Lisa K

I created a card with a background and greeting for the Mod Squad Challenge.

https://modsquadchallenge.com/handmade-background-focal/

I used the set called Beautiful Friendship from Stampin Up and a greeting from Maymay Made It, Big Time Sayings. I stamped the flowers with SU In-colors Polished Pink and Pale Papaya. The leaves are stamped in Pear Pizzazz. I stamped the Hello with a gray color, then added Versamark to emboss it. I stamped along with a favorite crafter on YouTube in creating this card.

Celebrate!

| Lisa K

I have been watercoloring with Gina K Designs ink with her current challenge is mind.

https://ginakdesigns.com/2022/01/01/january-2022-monthly-mix-challenge/?v=7516fd43adaa

I used my all time favorite Gina K Designs kit, Petals and Wings. I purchased this kit in 2012, shortly after we moved into our current home. It is red rubber stamps. I used the texture background stamp inking it with Lucky Clover, Turquoise Sea, and Wild Wisteria, then spritzing with water. I blotted a bit with paper towel and let it dry. I stamped the flowers from the kit, three times with Black Onyx ink. I colored the flowers with a Copic marker that matches Turquoise Sea ink. The Turquoise Sea background is embossed with the Swiss Dots embossing folder. I think this is the first folder I purchased and it is still the most used out of my many folders. I added the vertical greeting from Vertical Greetings 2 set illustrated by Theresa Momber.