Blessed is the Man Who Listens

It wouldn't take reading through more than a week or two of my posts to see that I'm nuts about K&Co papers! I thought the grays in one of the floral patterns from the {new-to-me} Madeleine collection would be a perfect complement to the beautiful door image from Our Daily Bread Designs' Ask, Seek, Knock. I colored with Copics, using some rich browns for the door and a mixture of grays and grayish-greens for the stonework. I bumped up the size of the card to 5x7, a size I enjoy turning to here and there, and *still* couldn't find the real estate to include the Scripture on the front - something is wrong with that! LOL. So I added that to the inside, along with some minimal decorating.



The layout is from Splitcoast's Sketch Challenge last Wednesday, #232.

Hope you had a great weekend!



Stamps: Ask, Seek, Knock (Our Daily Bread Designs)
Paper: Papertrey Vintage Cream card stock, Prismatics Silver Metallic card stock, K&Co Madeleine dp
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, SU Basic Grey
Accessories: Copic markers, corner rounder, sewing machine, Offray ribbons, 7Gypsies key, SU corduroy brads, Hero Arts bling, Fiskars A-Fleur border punch, Spellbinders circle Nestabilities
Size: 5" x 7"

I Need Coffee!

The vacuum cleaner is in the driveway, tree-trimming-size garden shears are on the cooktop, and there's a GameBoy in my microwave. The baby gate is so high I have to pole-vault it, yet my 2-year-old scales it with ease. I have wiped baby powder from the bathroom sinks, hand sanitizer from the bedroom carpet, and sunscreen from the windows. It's a two pot kind of day, alright ... but aren't they all? *grin*

This fun new image, I Need Coffee Flopsey, will be available from My Favorite Things on Wednesday (6/17) at midnight. I stamped in Memento Tuxedo Black onto Papertrey Vintage Cream and colored with Copics. My coloring is pretty horrific - sorry! I had a heck of a time blending my E42 with my E44. Anyone else have trouble working with these? Guess I'll be adding an E43 to my collection.

The layout is Jen's fantastic Sketch for You to Try. You can see the sketch, Jen's sample, and guest designer Ashley Newell's sample at i{heart}2stamp. The rest of the gang is all here this week, so check out these awesome samples, too: Amy Rohl, Carole Burrage, Kelly Lunceford, and Susan Liles. Hope you can play along! Link your creation to Jen's post and use keyword SFYTT if you upload to SCS.

The patterned papers I used are all from K&Co's Classic K Charlotte 12x12 collection. You know how much I love my blues and greens! I distressed all the edges with Ranger Antique Linen and Vintage Photo Distress ink, then went back over everything with an edge distressing tool. All of the stitching is by machine. The ivory fabric trim is some I found at either Hancock Fabrics or at Jo-Ann's in the fabric section. Flopsey is stamped twice - the second one is trimmed out and popped up.

Thanks for hopping by! Hope you've got a fabulous weekend brewing!



Stamps: I Need Coffee Flopsey (My Favorite Things - to be released Wednesday, June 17)
Paper: SU Blue Bayou and Certainly Celery; Papertrey Vintage Cream; K&Co Classic K Charlotte collection
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black; Ranger Antique Linen and Vintage Photo Distress ink
Accessories: Quickie glue pen, SU glitter, sewing machine, edge distressing tool, fabric trim, foam adhesive, Copic markers, Prismacolor pencils, Gamsol, blending stumps
Size: 5 x 7

Verve Project Parade: It's a Guy Thing

It's my day to post over on the Verve Stamps blog for our current Project Parade. This month's theme is "It's a Guy Thing: Celebrating the Men in Our Lives" - just like last month's theme, only it's the guys' turn to be celebrated!

For my project, I decided to pair up a custom photo puzzle with the "I Love You To Pieces" sentiment from Sweet On You to make a Father's Day gift for my daughter to give to her sweet Daddy. For the puzzle, I chose a photo of my husband and daughter on their way to their annual Father-Daughter Valentine's Dance. There are numerous online vendors for these puzzles. You just upload or email your digital photo, then choose your finished size along with the number of pieces. Or, for a smaller, DIY version, you could easily adhere your photo to lightweight chipboard (think cereal box weight) and die-cut it with one of the puzzle dies on the market (Cuttlebug and Spellbinders come to mind).

The one I ordered comes in a drawstring bag, so I've put together a box that will double as gift box and storage box:



I started with an inexpensive 30-piece store-bought child's puzzle from Target that I already had on hand. I covered and decorated the box top with papers from Stampin' Up's Parisian Breeze collection. Then I used the box bottom as a template and made a new bottom out of the same Parisian Breeze dp. To strengthen it a little, I added chipboard panels to the inside, both on the bottom and the four sides, then added some coordinating dp to dress it up a little. (By the way, the reason I did it this way was that I found if I covered both the box bottom and the box top, they fit together so snugly that it was difficult to get the lid off.) This photo shows how the top and bottom fit together:



It's always helpful to have a picture of the puzzle to look at, so I've included the picture in a pocket on the front...



... and again in the bottom of the box, where I also included the sweet sentiment from Dad's Day.



I'm hoping this will be something my husband and daughter will enjoy doing together, and when she outgrows it, they'll both still have a nice keepsake.

[Update: I haven't shown the puzzle today because it's not here yet - bummer! It looks like it's scheduled for delivery today, so I'll post a picture when it comes (if I can hide it from my husband, who is home from work today). Gretchen asked about size and number of pieces. I chose an 8.25" x 11" 30-piece puzzle. There were a lot of options to choose from, everything from a small 4-piece 4x6 puzzle to poster-size puzzles with more than 1,000 pieces.]

Remember, just for playing along with our theme, you'll have a chance to win a Verve stamp set of your choice! Just link your creation to the Mr. Linky form over on the Verve Blog Day 1 post before 8 pm MT on Saturday, June 20. We've also hidden another $25 gift certificate somewhere along the parade for a random commenter. So be sure to check out each day of the parade, and leave lots of comments along the way! Have fun!

[Another update: The puzzle came. I was wrong, though - it didn't come in a drawstring bag, it came in a box after all (I still like mine better, though *grin*). It also came with an index photo, but since it was too big for the box I made, I'm glad I did the little pocket on the front and added the photo to the bottom, too. The moral of all of this is ... order early, especially if you have a deadline you're trying to hit!! The last picture is of the completed puzzle.]







Enjoy your day!



Stamps: Dad's Day, Sweet On You (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Stampin' Up Whisper White and Chocolate Chip card stock, Parisian Breeze dp, lightweight chipboard
Ink: SU Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip craft, Ranger Old Paper Distress
Accessories: SU hardware, buttons, ribbon, and clear embossing powder, Spellbinders Mega Curved Rectangle Nestabilities and Pinking Border Piercabilities, May Arts burlap string, sewing machine, child's puzzle piece and puzzle box

Snuggle Bunnies

I love these sweet little Snuggle Bunnies by My Favorite Things, especially how that little one's ear is all flopped over - so adorable! I made this card using this week's MFT Sketch Challenge. Every Thurday, you'll find two new challenges in the MFT Forum - the My Favorite Challenge and the Sketch Challenge. Both have prizes, so it's worth your while to give it a go. MFT stamps are not a requirement, so if you don't have any yet, you're still invited and encouraged to play! While you're in the MFT Forum, be sure to check out Joanne's How'd They Do That tutorial. She's got some great ideas and gorgeous samples for different ways to use glitter.

I stamped the image in Memento Tuxedo Black onto Papertrey's Vintage Cream cardstock and colored with Copic markers. The image is in three layers - the base image, the pair of bunnies popped up, and then the smaller bunny's head and floppy ear popped up again. The wavy border along the bottom of the yellow panel is cut with the Ricrac Piercabilities by Spellbinders. The papers are from Nana's Nursery (boys) by Die Cuts With a View. I used Susan's ribbon and button treatment and Jody's hint for using liquid applique correctly :)

Thanks for peeking in today!



Stamps: Snuggle Bunnies (My Favorite Things)
Paper: SU Baja Breeze and So Saffron; PTI Vintage Cream; DCWV Nana's Nursery Boy Collection
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black; SU Baja Breeze
Accessories: Copic markers, Spellbinders Circle Nestabilities and Ricrac Piercabilities, Stardust Stickles, sewing machine, liquid applique, SU button, ribbon, brads, and paper piercer
Size: 5 1/2" square

Balloon Festival

I've never been up in a hot air balloon or to a balloon festival, but I sure can imagine the wonder and beauty of a sky filled with colorful balloons. I thought it would be fun to make a card with that kind of feel using Verve's new Up, Up & Away set. The balloon layering is done with masking, and then two of the cloud groups are stamped separately, trimmed, and adhered with dimensionals. After I did all the stamping, I colored the sky and balloons with Prismacolor pencils and Gamsol. The striped dp is from K&Co's Carolyn Gavin Greenhouse collection. I cut 1/2" strips, adhered them to the four sides of the balloon panel, and then snipped in on the diagonal at each of the four corners to get the mitered corner look.

Don't forget about about the Verve Project Parade, going on right now on the Verve Stamps blog. Our theme is "It's A Guy Thing: Celebrating the Men in Our Lives," so if you struggle with masculine cards and projects (raising my hand!), you're sure to get loads of ideas from all the Verve Divas this month. I'll be posting over there (and here) on Friday with a fun gift for dads. Play along with our theme for a chance to win some Verve for yourself. All the details for participation can be found on any of the Project Parade posts. Good luck!



Stamps: Up, Up & Away; Dare to Be (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Papertrey Raspberry Fizz and White card stock; K&Co Carolyn Gavin Greenhouse dp
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: Prismacolor pencils, Gamsol, blending stump; foam adhesive, paper piercer

Streams of Living Water

Here's another look at Quiet Waters by Our Daily Bread Designs. The inspiration for this came from three places. First was THIS BEAUTY (breathtaking!) by Sandee Shanabrough, one of ODBD's current guest designers. Second, ANOTHER BEAUTY by fellow ODBD DT sister Angella Crockett. And third, my blog friend Silke Ledlow, who turns white space into art like nobody else. So thanks, ladies, for the inspiration - I love how this one came out!

I stamped on watercolor paper with a freshly re-inked Jet Black Staz-On inkpad (nice and juicy), then watercolored with a water brush and Stampin' Up re-inkers. The image panel is die-cut with one of the Labels 4 Nestabilities by Spellbinders. The scripture panel is die-cut with one of the Mega Curved Rectangles Nestabilities, also by Spellbinders. I created the scored pattern with my Scor-Pal (you can find a basic how-to HERE), and finished off with some edge distressing, ribbon, a hat pin, and pearls. The card base and layered panels are all watercolor paper (a type that I don't care for for watercoloring, but it makes wonderful, thick, textured card bases).

Have a blessed day!



Stamps: Quiet Waters (Our Daily Bread Designs)
Paper: Canson watercolor paper
Ink: Jet Black Staz-On; various Stampin' Up re-inkers
Accessories: Spellbinders Labels 4 and Mega Curved Rectangle Nestabilities, water brush, SU Pretties kit; ribbon (source unknown), distressing tool, foam adhesive, Scor-Pal
Size: 5 1/2" square

SFYTT Hi

A few weeks ago, I found a huge K&Co papercrafting kit on sale at my local ACMoore. I doubt I would have purchased all the components individually, but I liked enough of them to more than justify the price. Some of the pieces have been put to good use on today's card, which is my sample for today's Sketch For You To Try. The only thing I stamped was the large red panel, which has a very subtle, tone-on-tone pattern using Papertrey's Spots and Dots background set. Most everything else was part of the bounty of pre-made elements in the kit, so this came together very quickly.

Take a look at the sketch and Jen's sample over at i{heart}2stamp. While you're there, be sure to give a warm welcome to our June guest designer and ogle her amazing sample as well. Of course, I'm writing this post Friday night, so I haven't actually seen her sample, but since I know WHO it is, I absolutely know it will be rockin'!! And speaking of rockin', here are your SFYTT regulars: Amy Rohl, Kelly Lunceford, and Susan Liles (Carole is sitting out this week). To play along, link your project to Jen's post and/or use keyword: SFYTT if you upload to SCS. I did a little browsing through the SFYTT gallery yesterday, and it was so great to see all the creations from this past week!

The only things about today's card that might warrant explanation are the little white ric-rac-looking borders along the top and bottom of the red panel. They are just Martha Stewart Lattice-punched borders mostly covered up. An easy, different look to a familiar punch.

Thanks for stopping by!



Stamps: Spots and Dots (Papertrey Ink)
Paper: Papertrey Dark Chocolate; Stampin' Up Kiwi Kiss textured, Riding Hood Red, and Cool Carribean; K&Co paper accents and elements
Ink: SU Riding Hood Red and White craft
Accessories: Spellbinders Labels 1 Nestabilities; Martha Stewart Lattice border punch; SU white taffeta ribbon, 1 3/8" circle punch, dimensionals, and paper piercer; glue pen; Art Institute superfine transparent glitter