MFT Color Challenge #80

So I have been away, doing stuff, per usual. I have been crafting, just not posting. I thought I would post my entry into MFT's Color Challenge #80. This challenge inspired not just my entry but a Christmas card for a dear family friend. So here we go!

Last week there was a night where I could not sleep. You know where the harder you try to sleep the more frustrated you become? Yeah, like that. Anyway, since I couldn't sleep I was checking out MFT's Card Challenge site and noticed the color combo for this challenge. Very cute colors, but a little out of my norm. I was banging my dead trying to think what I wanted to do with them. My first flash of inspiration came not for what MFT card I would make, but the for a Christmas card for a family friend. I recently purchased Darcie's Stamps Happy Holla Days because I knew our family friend would LOVE Hipster Santa! I mean look, isn't he too cute for words?

So I got to work and made this card here. Please excuse my tilted pictures, I could not find my tripod and decided to free hand it. Yup that did not work. By the end of picture time I was frustrated and said to heck with it. 

I used one of my old There She Goes stamps sets for the background. I can't remember the name of it, but it's this one below: 

Anyway I used this set as the background and put dear Hipster Santa in the foreground. It's kind of hard to tell but I stamped the card base with MFT's Whimsical Woodgrain Background and layered some So Safron from my stash. I swear it looks cuter in person!

On to my submission for the MFT Color Challenge....

Again, I had camera/tripod issues so the colors are not coming out a vibrant as they are on the card. Just looking at the picture irks me.. I swear I when I get my tripod back I will update with a new photo!!

Alright, I know it wasn't much of an update or post, but I've been busy, busy, busy. 

Keep on Craftin'!

Whale, hello there...

Good morning! Did you all craft your hearts out this weekend for World Card Making Day? If you did, I am jealous. I 100% spaced it. I made other plans that day not remembering what it was. I was curious as to why my Facebook feed was filled with extra cards made by lovely people in groups I follow. Then it hit me.... BAM! How can I not be crafting on World Card Making Day? Don't get me wrong I got to spend time with my family, but I am still kicking myself.

I did eventually get around to making a couple of cards to share.

I love this card because it was super quick and easy. The only bummer is that I did not use my MISTI or Tim Holtz Platform and ended up with a little uneven coverage. She's still a beauty!

Stamps: Whale Wishes Mini Stamp Set
Inks: Memento Paris Dusk, Memento Rhubarb Stalk
Paper: Kraft Cardstock, Neenah Crest Solar White (80#), Patterned paper of unknown origin (makes it sound mystical, no?)
Accessories: Red Grosgrain Ribbon,  Whale Wishes die

 My second card I made took a bit longer than I anticipated. The first one I made did not turn out the way I wanted it to. I felt like something was missing. This is when I decided to stamp several images in Distress Oxide Ink (Worn Lipstick) and put a piece of vellum over that. That pulled it together for me.

Stamps: Lawn Fawn Baked With Love
Inks: Archival Black, Distress Oxide Ink (Worn Lipstick), Zig Clean Color Real Brush Pens
Paper: Kraft Cardstock, We R Memory Keepers Clearly Bold Acetate, Vellum, Bristol Smooth
Accessories: Die-namics Stitched Square STAX, Lawn Fawn Baked With Love dies

I would love to see what you all worked on for World Card Making Day. If you are willing to share, leave a link in the comment section!

Until next time, Keep on Craftin'!

Spook-tacular Cards and Podcasts

I know you are probably tired of hearing about it by now, but it was yet again another frantic week. Now before you roll your eyes and say Mercedes, isn't that always your excuse? And while it often is, this week it is for a fantastic reason; I recorded my very first podcast! I have to tell you I was terrified when I sat down to record with Billiam of SomewhatNerdy.com, Big D, and A.J., but after a few minutes with the group I was totally at ease. The podcast is going to be the Greatest Of All Time List, or the GOAT List. This podcast is going to be a bi-weekly podcast where myself and my fellow pod casters sit and talk about why a particular movie is the Greatest Of All Time... Except the movie isn't the greatest, not even close. We'll discuss all the cheesy goodness in our favorite B List Movies and then talk about why we love it and why it made our list. The first episode won't be up for a week or so, but when it is I will post a link for those of you who are interested in listening.




Now on to what you really came here for... The cards! I'm back again, with another Halloween card combo. This week I decided to use the same stamp sets and basic design idea to make two different cards.

Stamp Sets Used: BOO - by Waffle Flower Crafts, Fab-BOO-lous Friends by My Favorite Things
Paper: Canson Watercolor Paper, Stampin' Up! Basic Grey, Lawn Fawn Polka in the Dark
Ink: Archival Black, Kuretake Gansai Tambi Watercolors, Oxide Distress Inks (Black Soot, Faded Jeans, Wilted Violet, Spiced Marmalade, Fossilized Amber, and Iced Spruce), VersaMark, Spectrum Noir Glitter Marker, and Sakura White Gelly Roll
Accessories: Lawn Fawn Scalloped Box card pop-up dies, Lawn Fawn Puffy Cloud border die, Die-namics Stitched Sentiment Strips, Die-namics Stitched Circle Stax, Detail White Embossing Powder, and Neat & Tangled Like Magic Sequins


These two cards all started with the idea that I wanted to use my Distress Oxide Inks to creat a spooky twilight (time of night, not the movie) background and see if it would work in different sizes.

I started by blending my inks lightest to darkest on my watercolor paper (sizes: 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" and 3 1/4" x 2 1/4"). My smaller piece was run through my Cuttlebug with one of the panel dies from my Lawn Fawn Scalloped Box card pop-up dies and the larger piece was left as is. I now had two almost identical backgrounds in two different sizes. I then stamped, watercolored, and fussy cut out my images from the Boo Stamp Set. I set everything aside and ran the Lawn Fawn Scalloped Box card pop-up dies through my Cuttlebug with Stampin' Up! Basic Grey cardstock; then I got to work assembling my pop up box card.

Once I put my box card together I embellished with some Neat & Tangles Like Magic sequins, embossed the sentiment from Fab-BOO-lous Friends by My Favorite Things and voilà. I love the way the box card came out and am popping it in the mail this week to a really great friend.

As a side note, I bought a new light box to test out since I wasn't happy with my pictures. These are a little better, but I am still figuring it out so please be patient with me! 

If you remember from like a paragraph ago that I wanted to use the same background, just in two different sizes, so my second panel was attached to a card base and I built up from there. They layout is almost identical except the position of the ghosts. I embossed my greeting using a sentiment from Fab-BOO-lous Friends by My Favorite Things. 

I don't normally do "Halloween" cards, but I have just loved the sets that have been coming out so I have had to change my stance. What about you all? Do you make Halloween cards or do you use your Halloween stamps for something else? Let me know!

Overall I have to say that my little experiment worked out and I love, love, love how these cards make me feel like Halloween is here. 

That's all I have for now. If you're at all interested in know when the podcast gets published leave a comment!

Until next time Keep on Craftin'