Vintage Flower Fields: {PP57}

Happy Paper Players Sunday, friends!  Glad to have you here with me for my week as hostess over at The Paper Players.  We're hosting a sketch challenge this week and I designed it especially for you:

Some more goodies from the new catalog arrived on my doorstep last week and I couldn't wait to ink up Field Flowers.

I turned to my Color Coach for inspiration and found this fresh color combo: Soft Suede, Island Indigo, More Mustard and Lucky Limeade isn't it pretty?  Field Flowers is a gorgeous two-step stamp set and the best part is that the stems are separate from the flowers so they can be two different colors without using markers!  The stems were stamped in Lucky Limeade directly onto some First Edition Specialty Paper--love this look!  

One flower was stamped directly onto the DSP while the other was stamped two-step style onto Very Vanilla cardstock and snipped out for some dimension.  Both flowers received a Soft Suede center with yet another stamp in the set. Because I was channeling my teammate, Ann Schach, (!) I sponged the edges of the flower with Soft Suede.  In fact, I think I sponged all the edges and oh, yes I even used one of Ann's favorite tools the 7-sided distressing tool!  Love how it roughs up the edges! 

I rolled one corner and separated the layers of Island Indigo cardstock--I told you I was channeling Ann, LOL!  The corner was just crying out for something so a sweet little Soft Suede bee floated out of the Nature Walk stamp set and landed on my paper!

The opposite corners of the Soft Suede base got a background stamping treatment with the water spots and script stamp from French Foliage. As well as the More Mustard Top Note peeking out from the bottom.  Isn't that new In Color ruffled ribbon lovely? 

Another new stamp set saw ink on this card...Friendly Phrases is a must-have--love the mixed fonts and the cursive handwriting. 

More fun with water spots on the inside too!  Can't get enough of them!  So, I hope you've enjoyed today's card and that you'll cruise on over to the rest of the Design Team for some lovely inspiration:

The Paper Players Design Team

Ann Schach

Anne Marie Hile

Jaydee

Lauri Ingram

LeAnne Pugliese

Lesley Croghan

Nance Leedy

Sandra Azzopardi

Tui Nathan (GD)

If you decide to join us this week, please load your craftiness on The Paper Players blog by Friday, August 5th at midnight (PST) to be in the running for A Cut Above or even Headliner!  I can't wait to see what you do with our sketch!  Thanks for stopping by!

supplies:

stamps: field flowers, french foliage, nature walk, friendly phrases

ink: lucky limeade, more mustard, soft suede

paper: soft suede, island indigo, more mustard, very vanilla CS; first edition specialty DSP

xtras: lucky limeade ruffled ribbon; top note die; 7-sided distressing tool; sponges;

Pocketful of Love: {CCMC160}

Welcome to the Thursday Challenge of Create with Connie and Mary--oh, I was sweating over this one!  Skewed panels get me every time so this truly was a challenge for me but that's why it's called a "challenge", right?!  Here's this week's sketch:

Yep, it's a doozy!  I really loved the look of the black ribbon in the sketch and thought it was a great pop against the beautiful colors of the Timeless Portrait designer paper.  Here's what I made for you:

What do you think, really?  This is so far out of my comfort zone but I'm kinda liking the results.  I had an anniversary card in mind for my in-laws and thought the rich colors lent themselves to a romantic, shabby feel so I went with it!  The base is River Rock onto which I stamped Hello Doily in River Rock ink, sponged the edges with more River Rock for a tea stain look and framed it in Cherry Cobbler.  The panels of Timeless Portrait DSP were also edged in River Rock and applied directly to the card base.

The real star is this yummy flower punched twice with the Fancy Flower punch from Cherry Cobbler cardstock.  Just fold, crunch and distress each flower using the bone folder on the edges until the paper starts to separate.  I pulled apart the layers of cardstock flipped one over and layered them on top.  Flipping one flower over to the distressed side gives it a suede or velvet look.  

I finished off the center with a 3/4" circle of Island Indigo, an Antique Brad and a Tiny Tag sentiment.  The background of the sentiment is stamped in River Rock with one of the flourishes from the Tiny Tag set.  In lieu of a bow, I added a few Basic Black branches using the Large two-step Bird punch and tucked them behind the flower.

The inside got a little matching designer paper as well as a Teeny Tiny Wishes sentiment framed in Island Indigo with a Four Frames stamp.  So what do you think, will you take the challenge?  I certainly did!  I hope you will check out what the rest of the Create with Connie & Mary design team did with this sketch and then play along with us.  We can't wait to come visit you!  Thanks for stopping by...cheers!

supplies:

stamps: hello doily, teeny tiny wishes, charming, tiny tags

ink: river rock, island indigo, jet black sazon

paper: river rock, very vanilla, cherry cobbler CS; timeless portrait DSP

xtras: basic black satin ribbon; large two-step bird, scallop ribbon border, medium jewelry tag, 3/4" circle punches; antique brad; bone folder

Happy Birthday LeAnne!

Thursday is my friend, and fellow Paper Players DT member, LeAnne's birthday...Happy Birthday LeAnne!  LeAnne is such a sweet person with immense crafting talent and a wicked sense of humor!  Her emails and comments always brighten my day so I created this card to send some happiness her way!

Pinwheels are all the rage in the paper crafting world and I was inspired by the pinwheels on this card over at my friend Rita's blog, Cards by Rita.  The pinwheel is super simple to make--this one is a 3" square of Just Add Cake designer paper, scored corner to corner to form an "X" and cut in from each corner almost to the center but not all the way.  I made it more difficult by punching holes for the brad but it would be much easier to secure the ends with a glue dot in the center!  Live and learn.... :-)

The French Filigree background stamp was inked in So Saffron and stamped directly on another piece of Just Add Cake designer paper to mimic swirling wind!  That swirling wind is waving a sentiment flag cut from Whisper White cardstock and punched at the end with a 1 1/4" square punch on an angle and wrapped around a lollipop stick.  Lollipop sticks can be bought in bulk wherever candy making supplies are sold. 

Of course, wherever there is wind there are clouds...cupcake clouds that is!  On this card, these were punched with the Build-a-Cupcake XL punch and sponged with Baja Breeze.

And because I can't stop making cupcake clouds, I added a few more to the inside with some matching DSP and another sentiment from Happiest Birthday Wishes (sorry the pic is so dark).  I hope you'll ride a few of those cupcake clouds over to LeAnne's blog and wish her a Happy Birthday...have a good one friends!

supplies:

stamps: french filigree; happiest birthday wishes

ink: so saffron, wild wasabi, baja breeze

paper: wild wasabi, peach parfait; baja breeze, whisper white CS; just add cake DSP

xtras: polka dot impressions folder; build-a-cupcake punch; glimmer brads (subtles); 3/4" circle punch; lollipop stick; 1 1/4" square punch;

Worth the Wait: {PP56}

Happy Paper Players Sunday everyone!  What a great way to start off the week--with a sketch from The Paper Players!  This week the fun and fabulous Anne-Marie is our hostess and she has designed this awesome clean-and-simple sketch for you to try:

Now, the sketch is a square but I know Anne Marie won't mind if you make a traditional A2 card like I did.  I noticed a few other design team members snuck in a standard size too!  :-)  I love the circle elements in the sketch and couldn't get my mind off of buttons for this one.  So I built the card around some [retired] large designer buttons to make a welcome baby card for some friends of ours who recently welcomed a baby boy!

In addition to the buttons, I wanted to use the new Not Quite Navy 1 1/4" striped grosgrain ribbon I had left over from my ribbon share.  This ribbon is gorgeous and I love it in NQN!  I'm totally hooked on flagged ends too and my craft scissors made a quick flag on one end of the ribbon.  The other end I just looped around and adhered with snail adhesive then applied the whole piece of ribbon to my card base with sticky strip.

With the buttons and the ribbon selected, I had three colors for the sweet little turtle from Fox & Friends: Daffodil Delight, Not Quite Navy and Tangerine Tango.  The sentiment from Word Play, inked in Early Espresso, was the perfect companion to the slow and steady trio of turtles!

The buttons each received a treatment with Early Espresso Baker's Twine to dress them up nicely!  And here's a peek at the inside:

 Be sure to check out the rest of the Design Team inspiration:

The Paper Players Design Team

Ann Schach

Anne Marie Hile

Jaydee

Lauri Ingram

LeAnne Pugliese

Lesley Croghan

Nance Leedy

Sandra Azzopardi

Tui Nathan (GD)

We hope you'll play along with us this week--we enjoy peeking at your creations and sharing the fun with you!  You have until Friday, July 29th at midnight (PST) to link up your creation over at The Paper Players--we hope to see you there!

supplies:

stamps: fox & friends; word play, a word for you

ink: early espresso, not quite navy, tangerine tango, daffodil delight

paper: very vanilla, crumb cake, early espresso CS

xtras: scallop squares duo die; early espresso bakers twine; polka dot impressions folder; not quite navy 1 1/4" striped grosgrain ribbon.

Sweet Birthday: {CCMC159}

Oh my goodness, has it really been 10 days since I last posted?! Yikes!  Sorry friends, I guess I needed a bit of a break.  :-)  Thank goodness for this week's challenge over at Create with Connie & Mary to get my crafting mojo in gear!  This week we have some really pretty colors for CCMC159, how about Regal Rose, Marina Mist and Sahara Sand...lovely!

I paired this week's colors with this adorable sketch from the Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge (SSSC126):

With colors and sketch in hand, I knew just what I wanted to do...

I just love that flagged end to the Regal Rose designer paper!  The balloon was made by stamping a sentiment from the new hostess set Happiest Birthday Wishes in Marina Mist ink onto MM cardstock.  The circle was made with the 2 1/2" circle punch and edged with some Tombow liquid adhesive and Silver Glass Glitter.

The balloon basket from Sweet Centers was stamped in Sahara Sand to which I added some Regal Rose balloon weights, Linen Thread ties and Sahara Sand clouds punched with the Build-a-Cupcake punch.  I can't believe I don't have a Regal Rose marker so I substituted with a RR ink pad and blender pen.  Guess what's on my next order?!

I love those cupcake clouds!  And here's a quick peek at the inside:

Another banner panel for the inside with more clouds, this time sponged with Marina Mist ink and the super happy sentiment also from the Happiest Birthday Wishes hostess set.  

That's all for me today folks--I hope to be back to a regular posting schedule now.  Be sure to check out the rest of the design team inspiration over at Create with Connie & Mary--they're sure to have some lovely projects!  We hope you'll play along with us--we can't wait to see what you create with these colors!

supplies:

stamps: sweet centers, happiest birthday wishes

ink: marina mist, regal rose, sahara sand

paper: sahara sand, whisper white, marina mist CS; designer patterned paper (brights)

xtras: build-a-cupcake, scallop ribbon border, 2 1/2" circle and 1 1/4" square punches; basic rhinestones; silver glass glitter; linen thread; blender pen

Hello Poppy! {PP55}

Happy Paper Players Sunday, friends!  As you read this I am on a Mommy & Me camp-out with my daughter's Girl Scout troop!  Lesley is our Color Challenge hostess with the mostess this week and she has selected a sophisticated and modern color palette:

I will be the first one to say that I am NOT a fan of Poppy Parade but I do LOVE it combined with these colors.  Basic Gray, Cumb Cake and Baja Breeze all on one card?  Be still my heart!  Poppy is just perfect for a little pop of color which is what I do when I'm stumped by a color!

It's a pretty simple design and [I think] doesn't need much explanation but just a few pictures to show you the details.

I stamped Upsy Daisy directly on the Baja Breeze patterned paper and then outlined the flowers with a Baja Breeze marker for added dimension.

The bold and beautiful sentiment from My Friend was inked in Versamark, then Basic Gray ink, sprinkled with clear embossing powder and heat set.  Love that shine, beginning to love that set!

The Crumb Cake border was punched with the Scallop Trim border punch and backed with some Poppy Parade circles made with the Itty Bitty Punch Pack.  These pint-sized circle sure do pack a poppy punch! ;-)

And so do those sweet little Poppy butterflies from the Beautiful Wings embosslit--so glad that made it to the new catalog!  Pop on over for some Paper Player fun and check out the rest of the Design Team inspiration:

The Paper Players Design Team

Ann Schach

Anne Marie Hile

Jaydee

Lauri Ingram

LeAnne Pugliese

Lesley Croghan

Nance Leedy

Sandra Azzopardi

Tui Nathan (GD)

We hope you can join us this week!  Because so many on our design team are headed to the SU Convention, our color challenge will stay open an extra week--until Friday, July 22nd at midnight (PST)!  Hope to see you there...thanks for stopping by today!

supplies:

stamps: my friend, upsy daisy, inspired by nature

paper: basic gray, crumb cake, poppy parade CS; subtles designer pattern stack

ink: baja breeze, versamark, basic gray

xtras: scallop trim border punch; itty bitty punch pack; beautiful wings embosslit; crumb cake 3/8" taffeta ribbon; clear embossing powder

Sneak Peek & Ribbon Shares still available!

Happy Friday everyone!  Sunday is just around the corner so here's an early bird sneak peek of my card for The Paper Players:

Check back on Sunday to see what we have in store for you!  You won't want to miss all the design team creations--they're sure to be gorgeous!

RIBBON SHARES are filling up but there's still space available....for all the options and details check out this post, HERE.  I have 5 different options of yummy new ribbon on offer--chose any combination you would like or just one.  Whatever suits your needs and strikes your fancy!  It's an economical way to get a variety of styles and colors.

That's it from me today folks!  Hope you have a great weekend and I'll see you back here on Sunday for the full Paper Players reveal...stay tuned!

Basic Double Saffron Pie {CCMC158}

Happy Thursday everyone!  Wow, it's a double challenge over at Create with Connie & Mary--CCMC158 will last for two weeks and includes a color challenge AND a sketch challenge.  Choose one, choose both--more options for your creativity! 

 Combining both the color and sketch challenges into one card, made everything come together easy-peasy!

The sketch is a square card so I made a 5x5 card featuring some textured Basic Gray cardstock and a large scalloped Pumpkin Pie circle.  My Circle Scissor Plus easily cut a nesting circle of Very Vanilla and So Saffron for the focal image.  I used post-it notes to cover up the bottom third of the circle then simply sponged Pumpkin Pie ink above the line created with the post-it notes.  The forest of pretty pines from Plant Hope was stamped twice in Basic Gray.

In place of the brads in the sketch, I wanted a few birds in the sky.  I tried hand drawing them but they just didn't look right.  So, do you know where my birds came from?  Believe it or not, they are in the background of the Sail Away stamp!  Yep, I inked just the birds with a Basic Gray marker and stamped them twice onto my circle. 

I planned to use Very Vanilla seam binding ribbon but it looked plain on it's own, so I stamped it in Basic Gray ink with the Woodgrain stamp for a little interest.  I wrapped it around the card and added an Antique Brad and some basic pearls along with a sentiment from Teeny Tiny Wishes.

I used a little more Very Vanilla inside along with some Pumpkin Pie designer patterned paper, just a touch of First Edition designer paper and one of my favorite sentiments from Word Play.

So, will you play along with us?  Two challenges, two weeks--combine the challenges or do them separately--we just hope you'll join us!  Be sure to stop by Create with Connie & Mary to see what the rest of the design team has to inspire you!  Have a great day!

supplies:

stamps: plant hope, woodgrain, teeny tiny wishes, word play, sail away

paper: basic gray textured, very vanilla, pumpkin pie, so saffron CS; first edition DSP; brights patterned DSP

ink: pumpkin pie, basic gray, so saffron

xtras: antique brads; basic pearls; circle scissor plus; scallop ribbon border punch; scallop circle die; very vanilla seam binding ribbon.

NEW Ribbon Shares!

Yes, it's time!  By now I am sure that you have seen all the fabulous colors and new ribbon in the 2011-2012 Idea Book & Catalog.  Lovely choices abound and I'm offering you the option to buy into a "share" of ribbon.  This means that instead of buying the whole roll of one color, you can buy 1 yard of ALL the colors for each type of ribbon.  Variety is wonderful!  I will cut, prepare and ship each share directly to you.  All ribbon is wrapped around a backing to keep it smooth during delivery.  Choose from the following options:

Share #1:
NEW 3/8” (In Color) Ruffled Ribbon includes 1 yard each of 5 colors for $7.00.  Colors included are: Calypso Coral, Island Indigo, Lucky Limeade, Pool Party, and Wisteria Wonder (pg. 194).

Share #2:

NEW 1/2" Scallop Dots Ribbon includes 1 yard each of 10 colors for $10.  Colors included are:

Basic Black, Cherry Cobbler, Chocolate Chip, Elegant Eggplant, Marina Mist, Melon Mambo, More Mustard, Old Olive, Pretty in Pink and Tangerine Tango. (pg. 195)

Share #3:

3/8" Taffeta Ribbon includes 1 yard each of 10 colors for $9.  Colors included are: Basic Black, Certainly Celery, Crumb Cake (yay!), Not Quite Navy, Perfect Plum, Pink Pirouette, Riding Hood Red, So Saffron, Soft Suede and Whisper White. (pg. 195)

Share #4

1/2" Seam Binding Ribbon includes 1 yard each of 7 colors for $6.  Colors included are: Always Artichoke, Baja Breeze, Cherry Cobbler, Crumb Cake, Pear Pizzazz, Rose Red and Very Vanilla. (pg. 195)

Share #5

NEW Colors!  1 1/4" Striped Grosgrain Ribbon includes 1 yard each of 7 colors for $9.  Colors included are: Basic Gray, Cajun Craze, Cherry Cobbler, Melon Mambo, Not Quite Navy, Soft Suede and Wild Wasabi. (pg. 195)

To order, please send the following information to me via email (nleedy@cox.net):

1. Your name
2. Your mailing address
3. Your email address
4. Share choice (#1, #2, #3, etc. and quantity desired)
5. Any additional instructions

I will send a PayPal invoice to the email address you provide.   

Shipping in the US only

$2.00 anwhere in the continental U.S. for the first share, $1.00 for each additional share.

Shipping amounts will be added to the cost of the share and will be included in your PayPal invoice.

$3.00 to Canada for the first share, $1.00 for each addtional share.   Apologies to my Canadian friends, I was mistaken.  I am unable to ship SU product across the border.  Please use the SU Demo Finder if you don't already have a Canadian demo. 

I look forward to hearing from you and please let me know if you have any questions: nleedy@cox.net.

Thank you for your support!!

Starburst Wonder {PP54}

Happy Paper Players Sunday, everyone!  I hope my US friends are enjoying our long holiday weekend and happy [belated] Canada Day to my friends north of the border!  I don't have a 4th of July card to share with you because this week The Paper Players are celebrating with Jaydee's Theme Challenge..."Christmas in July"...how fun! 

Since it was 98F degrees here today, I have completely forgotten what Christmas feels like so I decided to go with a non-traditional color palette.  I turned to my Color Coach and was drawn to Wisteria Wonder, Cherry Cobbler and Pink Pirouette:

The first time I saw the teardrop and starburst circle image in the new My Friend stamp, it struck me as a very festive holiday look.  

So, I embossed a few rows of the teardrops with Silver Stampin' Emboss powder onto Whisper White cardstock.  Isn't it pretty?

Then I embossed the starburst image in Cherry Cobbler onto Pink Pirouette cardstock and punched it out with a 1 1/4" circle punch.  To emboss in Cherry Cobbler, I first inked the image with Versamark, then again in Cherry Cobbler ink, stamped on my paper, sprinkled with Clear Stampin' Emboss powder and heat set.  This is a great technique to emboss in any color!  I popped up the circles on a Cherry Cobbler designer paper ornament and added a Baker's Twine bow and a little bit of bling.  Isn't that Wisteria Wonder paper on the bottom half beautiful?  It's from the Flirtatious Specialty Designer Paper which premiered in the NEW catalog on Friday.

I used another little piece on the inside along with more teardrops and the "inside" sentiment from the Christmas Greetings set--so glad that one made a comeback in the new catalog.  The teardrops were colored with a Pink Pirouette Stampin' Write marker.

So, will you join us this week?  It's never to early to start on holiday cards!  Pop on over to The Paper Players to see what the rest of the design team has to inspire you.  This month we are delighted to welcome our July Guest Designer, Tui Nathan...you're going to love her style!  Hi, Tui!  Alright, if you decide to join us just make sure to load your lovely creation over at The Paper Players by Friday, July 8th at midnight (PST).  And here are the rest of our amazing team:

The Paper Players Design Team

Ann Schach

Anne Marie Hile

Jaydee

Lauri Ingram

LeAnne Pugliese

Lesley Croghan

Nance Leedy

Sandra Azzopardi

Tui Nathan (GD)

supplies used to make this card:

stamps: My Friend; Christmas Greeting

ink: Wisteria Wonder, Cherry Cobbler, Versamark

paper: Wisteria Wonder, Pink Pirouette, Whisper White CS; Flirtatious Specialty DSP

xtras: Scallop Ribbon Border punch; Ornament punch; Silver & Clear stampin' emboss powder; Cherry Cobbler baker's twine; basic rhinestones.