It's Not That Easy Being Green

Do you know that song? It was written by the talented Joe Raposo and recorded famously by Kermit the Frog and by Frank Sinatra too. If you don't know it go find it on You Tube, I'll wait...really go ahead...  Isn't that a great song? Anyway when I first saw the various shades of green in this week's Color Throwdown Challenge it came immediately to mind. 

I decided to dig through some of the supplies I hadn't used in a long time and decided to use this set of Sizzilits dies from Sizzix. I don't know the name of them and they are long retired, but I've always liked that came as a coordinated set with the elements in nice proportion to each other. 

Working with the various shades of greens was a bit of a challenge for me, which is no doubt what got me thinking about that song, but in the end, just like Kermit, I think I actually really like it.

Happy Crafting!

Two for One - MFT Sketch & Color Throwdown #256

Lately I've been combining the My Favorite Things Sketch Challenge with the Color Throwdown and I've done the same again this week. The Color Throwdown combos tend to push me in the direction of a flowery, feminine card more often than not. While pretty, flowery cards are fun to create, OWH always has a need for some cards that would work for either gender, so this week I actually created two cards using the sketch.

This is a really pretty color combo and the sketch is so versatile that turning into a more gender neutral thank you card was easy. I forced myself to flip it too. Sometimes I find if settle on one or two set parameters (in this case... not feminine and the sketch in a  horizontal position) before I begin it helps me to solidify a design more easily while still leaving room for creativity.

Here is the sketch and color palette. My Favorite Things posts a new sketch on their blog each Wednesday and the Color Throwdown Challenges run from Wednesday to Monday. Both blogs have great Design Teams with tons of inspiration to get you started.

Happy Crafting!

SUPPLIES USED:

"Miss You"

STAMPS: Pretty Poppies (MFT)

INKS: Sour Apple (MFT), Elegant Eggplant (Stampin Up)

PAPER: Bazzill Solids (Michael's)

DIES: Poppies & Leaves, Scalloped Ribbon Border, Blueprints 1 - Stitched Ribbon (MFT) 

OTHER: Raffia Green, Lime Green Rhinestones (Michael's)

"Thanks You're the Best"

STAMPS: Sending Thanks (MFT)

INKS: Steel Blue, Wild Cherry & Black Licorice (MFT)

PAPER: Recollections Solids & Polka Dot (Michael's), Book Page

OTHER: Jute Twine &  Silver Brad (Michael's)

BASICS: Click HERE to check out my crafting tool bag.

Trendy Triangles and Color Throwdown #255

This card was created for the Moxie Fab Trendy Triangles challenge. I opted to go with a square design and made it a birthday card since I need to send one out this coming week. Believe it or not I don't send many cards and I  typically don't make the few I do send, so it's not at all unusual to find me at a local Hallmark or in the greeting card section at Walmart. In the past week though I've made two for upcoming occasions so maybe I'm starting a new trend. :)

I used a 3/4" square punch and then cut them from corner to corner. I  lightly penciled some guidelines on a 3.75" square base and then glued down each piece. Gluing down such small pieces was not easy, so they are not precise, but they're close enough to create the effect I was aiming for. The color palette is taken from this week's Color Throwdown challenge, and while it's not one I would have come up with on my own I like the way they look together and they make a nice choice for a festive, fun occasion like a birthday card.

So not only did I manage to enter two challenges, I have a card all set to mail out. Well, all set except for an envelope which I'll probably have to make by hand too since I'm not likely to find a single square envelope easily. 

Happy Crafting!


SUPPLIES USED: 

STAMPS: Year Round Sentiments (Hero Arts)

INKS:  Black Onyx (Versafine)

PAPER: Recollections Solids (Michael's) & Bazzill Basics

DIES: Fishtail Flag Stax (My Favorite Things)

OTHER: 3/4" Square Punch (EK Success)

BASICS: Click HERE to check out my crafting tool bag.

Find Joy in Everyday Blessings

My card share today incorporates the sketch over at My Favorite Things and the colors in this week's Color Throwdown challenge. If you're one of my regular readers you've heard me say that I just love the MFT product line. Not only have they got a beautiful line of stamps, dies and accessories but they've been great supporters of OWH too.

Some women collect shoes and handbags, others prefer jewelry as a gift. Me? It's always some sort of craft (or art) supply and lately it's a lot of MFT. I think it's been the case my entire life. As a kid nothing made me happier than a new box of crayons. I'm blessed to have such a generous family and I've managed to grow quite a collection of MFT stuff over the past couple of years so you see quite a bit of it in the cards I post. Today's card is no exception.

Just a few notes on a few elements in this design. The Postage Stamp Stax dies is rectangular so to achieve the shape you see I carefully pieced two together. The seam is hidden beneath the flowers. You need to do some planning ahead but I've done this a time or two already and it's easy to get the hang of it. The 'tape' is actually cut from the stitched border in the Blueprints 1 die set and the ends are trimmed with an old pair of deckled-edge scissors. I don't recommend those crazy scissors for much because I find they usually just result in a messy look, but in this case, for trimming such a small edge in one snip, they're perfect

Happy Crafting!

SUPPLIES USED: 

STAMPS: Cheerful Blessings, Pretty Poppies (My Favorite Things)

INKS: Factory Green, Hot Fudge (My Favorite Things), Merlot (Colorbox)

PAPER: Solids (Bazzill)

DIES: Sunflower, Postage Stamp Stax, Peek-a-Boo Dots, Blue Prints 1 (My Favorite Things)

COLORING MEDIUM: 

OTHER: Green Crepe Ribbon (my stash), Deckle Edged Scissors

BASICS: Click HERE to check out my crafting tool bag.

Just Be Happy

This sentiment is from the My Favorite Things Chalkboard Sentiments set, which has quickly become a favorite for me.  Something about the combination of the hand-lettered type and the words of wisdom in the sayings makes me think of the seashore. Whenever I look at the set I picture old painted wood signs that you might see in places like Cape Cod, the Jersey Shore or Galveston.

I combined the MFT Wednesday Stamp Club Sketch #134, though I turned it and flipped it, and the yummy color combo over at the Color Throwdown.

I did initial attempt to ink up this stamp piece by piece, covering and masking, but finally gave up. Everything is really close together and my eyes and patience wore thin so I decided I'd fussy cut it instead. Which all-in-all isn't too bad. It actually shows less in person that it does in this photo but next time I'd use a very thin card stock or heavy paper so that  the edges would be almost undetectable.

Happy Crafting!


SUPPLIES USED: 

STAMPS: Chalkboard Sentiments, Script - Pretty Poppies (My Favorite Things)

INKS: Kraft (My Favorite Things), Perfect Plum, Pink Passion (Stampin Up)

PAPER: Lace DSP Attic Boutique (SU), Solids (Bazzill), White 80# Accent (Card Base)

DIES: Layered Rose (MFT), Circles (Spellbinders)

OTHER: Chalk (Stampin Up), RIbbon (Michael's), Brads

BASICS: Click HERE to check out my crafting tool bag.

We're on Island Time...

The color combo at this week's Color Throwdown Challenge definitely says Island Time to me. Five colors is typically more than I would work with in a design so it took me some time to think this one through but once I decided that I would use my MFT Hibiscus die and make them white it all started to come together. 

Here's the color palette and the image that inspired it. I don't know about you but just looking at it makes me dream of a Caribbean beach with warm sand and cool blue waters. Is that you humming Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville or is it me? :)

Happy Crafting!


SUPPLIES USED: 

STAMPS: Sentiment is my own custom stamp design

PAPER: Recollections (Michaels), Bazzill Classics

INKS: Versamark with Hero Arts White Embossing Powder

DIES: Hibiscus, Peek-a-Boo Dot, Mini Double Dot Border (MFT)

COLORING MEDIUM: Pink Chalk (Stampin Up)

OTHER:  Silver Seed Beads (Darice), White Mini Brads (Oriental Trading)

BASICS: Click HERE to check out my crafting tool bag.