Unscripted sketch time

Any excuse I can get, I will use a sketch to create a card.  That is why I love being part of the Unscripted sketch blog and the Card Positioning Systems sketch blog.

 I didn't share my Unscripted sketch card with you last week so today I am going to share last weeks and this weeks together. 

This sketch was a bit of a challenge, but it was fun to stack the cut out leaves and butterflies from the Little Yellow Bicycle papers.  Notice the pretty punched corners on the light blue paper, LOVE that look.

The leaves and the butterflies are both in pieces of the patterned papers.

And, here is this weeks card.

Arielle from the Wax Fruit Company let the team use one of her digital stamps if we wanted. I just love what she creates so I found this fun.

I opened a Word document and inserted the little birdhouse image.  I sized it to the size I wanted to use and the I printed it three times. Once on plain white cardstock, once on the brick patterned paper by My Little Shoebox and again on the text print patterned paper by My Mind's Eye.  I used portions of each of the tree print outs to paper piece my design together for my card.

Thanks for visiting, Linda (lbpost)

SKETCH 116 – MAGIC MOMENTS card

Materials list:
Cardstock – Core’dinations
Patterned papers – Twig and Elizabeth Park/Little Yellow Bicycle and Double Dot/BoBunny
Word stickers – Cosmo Cricket
4-in-1 punch - Kreaxions
White Enamel Accents
Foam tape – 3M

SKETCH 117 – SEASON’S GREETINGS card
Materials list:
Digital stamp – The Wax Fruit Company
Cardstock – Core’dinations
Patterned papers – My Little Shoebox, Die Cuts With a View and My Mind’s Eye
Copic markersRub-on sentiment – Paper Smooches/EAD Designs
Glitter Glue - Stickles
Foam tape – 3M

Encourage a Friend

I love using scripture verses on cards to friends.

 I did make this to tell a friend "Thank You" but I wanted to share it with you before I put it in the mail.  I love this verse and there is a song that goes with those words so I am finding myself singing that now that I have stamped it. The verse is from a new set of stamps by Layers of Color stamps. 

 The flower and leaves are stamps from PaperTrey, Ink. This just might be my most favorite flower stamp.  I colored that with Copic markers.  That great doily is from a set of doilies by Martha Stewart that I found at Joanns Craft store and those papers are new from Die Cuts With a View. The entire collection is soooo cool.

And for some photos...

 We stopped along the California coast - this view is at Fort Bragg.  I loved the color of the water. 

 Another view

 And, the reason we stopped at Fort Bragg is the wonderful and amazing Glass Beach.  Yes, the sand is more polished glass then sand.  The pieces are really small, but fun nonetheless.  The story goes it was an old dump or something.

And, how is this for a weathervane? LOVED it.

Thanks for visiting, Linda (lbpost)

Bees and Butterflies

Both of my cards that I want to share today have to do with nature, one, a cute bee and the other one a wonderful butterfly.  Both are acutally based on sketches too.

 This first card uses the Card Positioning Systems sketch for this week.  I also created it to go along with Moxie Fab's Botanical challenge. 

 The bee is actually part of this label stamp by Layers of Color but I stamped it twice and cut out one of the bees so I could add it over the original one with foam tape.  The stamped image is colored with Copic markers and I also sprayed it with Chalkboard Glimmer Mist.

Next, I wanted to play along with the color challenge at Clearsnap, it is a color challenge.  Since I LOVE Clearsnap products, this was easy.

 I used the Card Patterns sketch for the layout of my card.  I used one of my Martha Stewart border punches to make my little border. It punches a half design so I just punched it twice.

 The woodgrain stamp is by Hero Arts. All I did was stamp that with the black Mix'd Media Inx by Clearsnap and then embossed it with clear embossing powder. I loved the black and white of this.  I lightly rubbed the edges of this with the gray ColorBox stamp pad. The Butterfly by Layers of Color was stamped the same way and after I cut it out, I "colored the image with the green, ColorBox ink.  This is called "direct to paper" since you just rub the stamp pad directly on the paper, the black embossed image acts as a resist so the black lines stay shiny.

And some photos!

 We are having a birthday bonanza around here this week with another party tonight.  Aren't these candles the best!

 Here is the birthday boy. Not only is he trying to blow out the candles, but both of his parents are trying to get them lit! The breeze was not cooperating at all!

 This is his typical reaction to every gift, most of them Lego related!!!

And, here is the birthday boy and his younger cousin having way too much fun in the pool!
Thanks for visiting, Linda (lbpost)

SKETCH 228 – SWEET BLESSINGS card

Materials:
Cardstock – Core’dinations
X-Press Blending Card – Copic Markers
Stamp set – Honeysweet/Layers of Color
Patterned paper and sticker – BoBunny and Graphic 45
Black Versafine stamp pad
Clear embossing powder – Stampendous
Copic Markers
Fluid chalk stamp pads – Clearsnap
Chalk Glimmer Mist – Tattered Angels
Glossy Accents – Ranger
Corner rounder punch – Fiskars
Self adhesive pearls – Queen & Co.
Ribbon and small flower


SWEET BLESSINGS card

Materials list:
Cardstock – Core’dinations
Stamps – Woodgrain/Hero Arts and Butterfly, Sentiment/Layers of Color
Black stamp pad – Mix’d Media Inx/Clearsnap
Green and light gray stamp pads – ColorBox/Clearsnap
Clear embossing powder – Stampendous
Border punch – Martha Stewart
Seam Binding
Foam tape – 3M
Self adhesive pearls – Queen & Co.

One color and One sketch - more challenges

I just had to find time to play with this Colour Q combo challenge for this week.

 This is what I came up with! I recently won some wonderful stamps by Layers of Color and so it was so fun to pull out some of them for my card. 

 I had wanted to use this stamping and coloring technique again, color resist.  I stamped the butterfly with white ink and embossed with white embossing powder on white cardstock.  Next I took four watercolor crayons and quickly colored portions of my butterfly.  I really just scribbled the colors on and then used my watercolor brush to get the colors wet.  When I had it looking like I wanted, I set it aside to dry and then used a cloth over the butterfly exposing the white lines. 

 Notice my punched corners.  I used a Kreaxions 4-in-1 punch with the plates in it to punch the corners. 

 Next, since I so love My Favorite Things stamps, I wanted to use their sketch this week. 

 I just got this little Pure Innocence girl stamp in the mail so I wanted to give her a try and she is so fitting for summer with that cute pinwheel.  Gotta love these new Echo Park papers, the pinks are so sweet and girly. 

 Since she is holding a pinwheel, I thought a fun accent would be a larger pinwheel.  These are soooo simple.  I just cut a 1 1/2" square from the patterned paper and made a cut into each corner.  Then I folded in four of the corners.  I really like to use 2 sided papers for these. 

 I paper pieced her pants with some of the patterned paper. 
And for a couple photo...

 We recently took a road trip and since I love lighthouses, we try to stop at any that we might be near. This one is just outside of Mendocino, CA. 

Here is another photo of the lighthouse.
Thanks for visiting, Linda (lbpost)

YOUR FRIENDSHIP WARMS MY HEART card

Materials list:
Cardstock – Core’dinations and Bazzill
Patterned paper – BoBunny
Butterfly and Sentiment stamps – Layers of Color
4-in-1 punch - Kreaxions
White stamp pad – Joann Craft store
White embossing powder – Stampendous
Water color crayons
Twine – Karen Foster
Foam tape – 3M
Self adhesive pearls – Queen & Co.
Ink Essentials Enamel Accents

HAPPY SUMMER card

Materials list:
Cardstock – Bazzill
Patterned paper – Country Drive collection/Echo Park Paper
Stamp set – My Favorite Things
Black Versafine stamp pad
Clear embossing powder - Stampendous
Border punch - Recollections
Copic Markers
Pearl brad – American Crafts
Fiskars corner rounder punch
Ranger Glossy Accents

Orange flowers

I have said this before but here it goes again...I LOVE CHALLENGES!

 I am always a fan of color challenges and Play Date Cafe does such a good job of putting them together but this weeks combo is a "MUST DO"! Is this yum?

 I also love sketches so as I was trying to decide how I was going to put that color combo together, I came across the Sketchy Thursday sketch and while these are meant for layouts, I knew I wanted to try it on a card. 

 I went searching for a photo to use because I liked that that one part of the card would be a photo that I took.  I found this wonderful, orange rose photo that I took as I walked through a garden.

 The flourish piece is cut with my Cricut using the Cindy Loo cartridge.  The sentiment is printed directly on the card front. I used a digital stamp by The Wax Fruit Company.

 I loved in the sketch that they used a butterfly going off of the edge and so I used my Kreaxions butterfly die with this text patterned paper.  Notice I created a decorative middle to the butterfly by pleating a strip of matching paper. 

 This card uses the Card Positioning Systems sketch for this week.  Want2Scrap is the sponsor for this week. You MUST check out their BLING! They offer shapes of rhinestones and pearls that fit with the shapes of Spellbinder dies. SOOO clever. 

I used a Springtime topper by Flower Soft, cut in a circle shape.  I layered that onto a scallop circle Spellbinder Nestabilities die.  The circle of rhinestones fit perfectly. Notice that great accent of the Flower Soft on the plant in the tea cup.  I used two colors of Flower Soft for a more natural look. 
Thanks for visiting, Linda (lbpost)

YOU SPRINKLE JOY… card

Materials list:
My own photo
Cardstock – Core’dinations
Patterned paper – BoBunny
Cindy Loo Cricut cartridge (2 ¼”)
Butterfly die - Kreaxions
Digital Sentiment – The Wax Fruit Company
Clearsnap Fluid chalk stamp pad
Copic Markers

SKETCH 227 – JUST BECAUSE card

Materials:
Circle of rhinestones courtesy of Want2Scrap
Cardstock – Core’dinations
Patterned paper and sticker – Gabrielle collection/Gabrielle Stripe/BoBunny
Springtime topper – Flower Soft
Christmas Green and Pale Green - Flower Soft
Spellbinder Nestabilities
Rub-on sentiment – EAD Designs/Paper Smooches
Little Flower

Moxie Fab and Unscripted Sketches

 Have you checked out the current Moxie Fab Tuesday Trigger? Every week or every two weeks, Cath puts up a great inspiration piece and this is this weeks.  Is that cuteness???

 The first thing I was taken with in the inspiration photo was that wonderful, soft yellow with pink flower background.  I was so happy to find this piece of BasicGrey patterned paper that would look similar.

 The quilt circle piece is cut from a piece of October Afternoon patterned paper and that is backed with a yellow piece cut with a Spellbinders Nestabilities die.  When I looked at the yellow coat, I knew I wanted to use my new My Favorite Things flower die. I thought this finished flower looked a bit like the rolled collar on the coat.  And, of course, it had to be finished off with this big, black brad from BoBunny. 

 For my other card in this post, I used the Unscripted sketch for this week.  The piggyback challenge was to use wrapping paper on the project. 

 I had some bright, green tissue paper and so that seemed the perfect choie.  I had just picked up a mini pad of papers by My Mind's Eye so I combined the orange prints with the bright green. 

And, guess what! I turned to my new Cricut Expression again for my flower and leaves.  The flower is from the Stamping Cartridge, I cut it at 2 1/2" and I also used the shadow for this shape.

Thanks for visiting, Linda (lbpost)

SKETCH 115 – LIKE YOU A LOT card

Materials list:
Cardstock – Core’dinations
Patterned papers – My Mind’s Eye
Flower and Flower Shadow – Stamping/Cricut cartridge (2 ½”)
Leaves – DoodleCharms/Cricut cartridge
Rub-on sentiment – EAD Designs/Paper Smooches
Corner rounder punch - Fiskars
Self adhesive pearls – Queen & Co.
Foam tape – 3M

HELLO card

Materials list:
Patterned paper – Mini pad/Urban Prairie/BasicGrey and Fly a Kite: Ice Cream/October Afternoon
Spellbinder Nestabilities
Flower die – My Favorite Things
Brad – BoBunny
Pin – Maya Road
Fiskars corner rounder punch
Sentiment – Hello- Stamping Cricut cartridge
Foam tape – 3M
Ribbon

The Aliens have it...

In a previous post, I mentioned Nikki Sivils, Scrapbookers newest release and I want to share more of that with you today.  Plus I love to stamp so I wanted to enter this over at Moxie Fab for the Stamp It! Cards week challenge.

 These little cuties are part of the My Lil' Monster collection. The row of alien looking guys are actually a stamp from one of the new sets.  I just love the primary colors of this collection, perfect for little boy layouts.

 Here is a close-up of my stamped little guys.  I colored them with Copic markers and gave some accent with Enamel Accents by Inkessentials.

 This card uses the CPS sketch for this week and more of the My Lil' Monster collection of papers.  The ring of striped patterned paper was cut with my Kreaxions circle cutter. I will tell you again that this thing is amazing! It took me seconds to cut a 5" circle and then a smaller circle inside of that.

 I used my new Cricut Expression and the Home Accents cartridge.  I cut the shadow in white and then cut the apple two times, in cream and in red and cut the leaf once.  I cut these at 3".

Gotta share a few photos...

 We recently were able to drive through the Redwoods in Northern California again. If you have never taken this drive, put it on your "to do" list! There are no words to explain the majesty and beauty of the area. And, don't just drive down the 101, take some of the off road routes. These offer many places to stop and walk back into the woods.  Notice how the tree bark is twisted.

 This one looks twisted too although not all of them do. They are just TALLLLLL!

 I caught a photo of the drive, how does it get better? If you look close, you can see an oncoming car. That gives some perspective to just how tall the trees are.

This was a very interesting little bridge across a creek. My DH is at one end so you again can see the size of everything. Notice the tons of ferns, they are everywhere.

Thanks for visiting, Linda (lbpost)

SKETCH 226 – YOU DESERVE THE BEST card

Materials:

Cardstock – Core’dinations

Patterned paper and sticker – My Lil’ Monster collection/Nikki Sivils, Scrapbooker

Cricut cartridge – Home Accents (3 ¼”)

Kreaxions circle cutter

Rub-on sentiment – EAD Designs/Paper Smooches