Photo Collage Gift Project

This framed photo collage is a gift I made to give my Secret Sister at our revealing dinner this evening. The theme for the gift exchange is "For their Heart." My secret sis is all about her family, and so this is a project that I hope will touch her heart each time she sees it, if for no other reason is that she will see her family members.

Okay ---not one stamp image was used here, but it is mostly all made from odds and ends of various pattern papers I had around my stamp room.

I recycled a picture frame I bought cheap from a hotel that was changing the decor, so this was a rather large piece (for me) to paperscape, so not only a work of my heart, but also a frugal gift.

I went with colors that coordinated with the existing matting, and offset 12x12 pattern paper to fill in the backround. I finish the edges and gaps with paper strips, ribbon, and some metallic gold eyelash yarn. {I could not get a photo without the satin center ribbon showing alot of shine and color variation from my camera's flash, but I promise you, the entire thing blends and looks better in real life.} Then I hunted around for colors that would kind of bring up the not-so-noticeable colors from the background. After finding a few, I made my photo mats and frames using my Big Shot, some Sizzix frames and ovals and put together several photo mats and frames, and used the ones I liked best when I was done with that. (I saved the others for the next project...I have 3 more the same size frames to do, but because I am using scraps, they will all be different!)

Lastly, I added butterflies and gold bows around to glam it up a bit, and am leaving it the way it is, until I help my Secret Sister (who will learn my secret identy tonight) put her photgraphs in it, so we may add a few stamped images or phrases at that time, depending on what she chooses.

Hope she likes it!
C-ya Later!

Merry Little Christmas Skaters

I am experimenting with various ideas for Christmas cards for this year's cards. I like to make many before I decide which is "the one" that will be our family card.

This card combines the "Winter Post" skaters and reindeer with the "Scenic Season" pines, and the greeting comes from the Level 2 Hostess Set "Christmas Punch."

Using Card Pattern's Sketch #35 as inspiration, I also used the Stampin' Addicts Color Challenge 32 with Soft Suede, Kraft, Old Olive, Real Red with Very Vanilla as my neutral color.

Tools that I used on this card include the Top Note Die with my Big Shot, the Wide oval punch and the 1-1/4" and 1-3/8" circle punches and colored pencils.

Have a great day!
C-ya later!
Cheryl

Hope I can remember how to post here!

Hello! I believe I am finally back to stick around. What a summer it has been! I am truly looking forward to a long white winter that will enable me to sip coffee, keep the home-fires burning, and do some serious creating. Summers are brief and busy around our home, more-so with our 5 year old, who sees each day as a chance to do as much as she can to pack the day full. They definately can give anyone a new perspective on the world we live in.

This is a WCMD challenge card I did last weekend, with the requirement to use "words" as the main focal image. It is a very simple design, but I fiddled with the frame to give it a textured look about it.

Begining with a 5.5" x 11" Ivory Naturas lcard base, I attached a piece of 5.5" x 5.5" pattern paper, and added brown ogandy with a tiny strip of Old Olive card stock over the top.

The sentiment stamp is from the retired Stampin' Up's "Sampler Sayings" and stamped it with Basic Brown onto Ivory Natural oval (coluzzled) that had the retired SU retired "Linen" background stamped with Creamy Caramel on it. This makes it look more stitched to me. i sponged the edges with Chocolate Chip and layered it onto an Old Olive oval (coluzzled again) and the Chocolate Chip frame was also Coluzzled on the inside and outside diameter as a frame.

To get the ouside frame's edging, I used an old pair of Stampin' Up!'s retired scissors (Antique Elegance, I think --- they were fabulous edgers!). Still lacking the "ooomph" I wanted, I then ran the frame through my Big Shot with the Finial Press Folder and was happy when I saw how it looked. Really a very simple card, once I figured out how I wanter to do it!

Enjoy your day!

Miss you a Latte!

As my first attempt to get back into regular daily stamping, I found a great "Clean & Simple" challenge at this site. After seeing the sketch challenge, I knew I needed to make a coffee card. For me, "coffee" is always the best place for me to start - for projects, road trips, mornings, even card making! This card went together quickly and I confess I do like how it turned out!

My card base is made from a cardstock I picked up several years ago, and while I cannot tell you the maker, I do remember it was called acurately "Gingerbread" if that helps anyone trying to replicate it. Real Red and Chocolate Chip trim for the Very Vanilla panel. I used Real Red Classic ink for the cup (What's Brewing?) and clear embossed over that with Faith's Miracle Embossing Powder, and added a light bordering blue for the steam swirls and some gingham ribbon. I used VersaMark with White embossing powder for the "Miss you a latte!" (Like it a Latte). The coffee bean pattern paper was a real find for me, as my love of coffee keeps me on the lookout for theme papers and stamps. This was a scrap from a GFS advertisement, and with careful trimming, I can make about 6 cards with the beany borders around the one page.

C-ya tomorrow!

A Drive by Posting

Seems like forever since I've posted anything. I've been busy lately, but truthfully, I've just been in a stamping rut and thought taking a break would do me some good. These are a set of 4.25" square cards I did a while back, that I came across while organizing my stamp room for the new Stampin' Up! year that is now under way. I believe I made them for a challenge, (or cased them, so if you recognize them, please let me know so I can give credit where it is due) but can't recall which one it may have been. All the cards were done with SU markers, direct to rubber.

Stem Silhouettes and Oval All Sets. Mellow Moss base with Very Vanilla panels and Always Artichoke and Perfect Plum layering and scraps of retired SU pattern paper. Scallop Scissors, MS Scalloped Punch, and SU large oval and scalloped oval punches.

Stamps: Stem Silhouettes, and random SU word (?) Sage Shadow Card Base. Very Vanilla Panels and Perfect Plum layers. Scraps of Retired SU pattern paper. Scallop Scissors, SU Eyelet Lace Punch, small, large and scalloped SU Oval Punches.

Stamps: Stem Silhouettes, Very Versatile. Pale Plum card base, Perfect Plum layers and Very Vanilla panels, and scraps of retired SU pattern paper. Scalloped scissors, MS scallop punch, and small and large oval punches, and a satin ribbon scrap.

C-ya soon!

Cheryl

CPS117 Card Sketch Challenge

Hi there! I found a neat sketch challenge site called "Card Positioning Systems" that offers a place to start when card-making. I used Blush Blossom for the card base, textured with a Cuttlebug "Dotted" embossing folder template on my Big Shot. The flower image is from SU's retired set "Live your Dream" which I direct-to-marker colored with Really Rust, Bravo Burgundy, Chocolate Chip and Always Atrichoke (don't know why, but I want to always say Always Avocado instead). I layered the panel with the Artichoke, which I also used in the Scallop circle and stayed with the Rust for the dot, backed with a small rim of Mellow Moss, which was also the body for the butterfly which was stamped with rust. The butterfly is punched from a Martha Stewart punch, and the design was a detailed butterfly that I stamped on the Moss before I punched it out, to give it a few details. The birthday greet, stamped in white was from SU's currently available Crazy for Cupcakes. The colors are a bit odd for this time of year, but it's been pretty cool here and feels more like the chill of late fall right now, so that must be where my color scheme came from.

C-Ya Later!

Back to the Blog!

I can hardly believe it's been over a month since I last posted! Life has gotten very busy for my husband and I, as he is seriously working hard to accomplish the starting up of a business, and I will also be a part of that business as well. Add that footwork to his job (he is still working his full time job where 90% of the workers are laid off, so the remaining crew is jumping through hoops as they try to keep things going), our 4-yeal old (soon to be 5 years old) who thinks that Daddy hung the moon, and just normal daily living issues that happen every day, and "whoosh!" another month has flown by!
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Anyway, I have done a few cards in this time, got some rugs finished, and will try to catch up somewhat in my posting of both this week.
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Diva Coffee Break Designs had a sketch this week (#125) that got me rolling this afternoon. It was so easy, it would have been hard NOT to have an idea pop into my mind. I went with a monochromatic theme of Kraft, Chocolate Chip and Ivory, but relented and added the ribbon with a bit of red to zazz it up a little. If you don't have that Friendly Words Jumbo Wheel from Stampin' Up!, feel free to order one from me! It is so very nice of a background to use for easy cards. If you don't wish to order on-line, you may call me directly and I can order it for you! The birds used were from the retired SU! See with the Heart set.
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More later!
C-ya soon!