Paper Players are Sew Suite: PP40

Happy Sunday everyone!  I can't believe a week has gone by since my last post but it's been a whirlwind...more on that in a minute.  Today, I am delighted to share with you a sketch I designed for this week's Paper Players Sketch Challenge {PP40}!  Here's the sketch:

and here is my card:

I liked it so much I made a second one with a Baja Breeze base and Pear Pizzazz/Greenhouse Gala designer series paper:

The details on this one are pretty straightforward but I do want to show you some close ups...I love, love, love cutting out these dress forms.  I know you might be thinking "oh I hate to cut things out" but this little mannequin is so easy once stamped on Greenhouse Gala designer series paper with Early Espresso ink--all my lines are right there ready for cutting!

Isn't she "sew" sweet?!  That's a bitty flower from the Itty Bitty Punch Pack in Baja Breeze with a big basic pearl in the middle.  Once the pearl was attached, I just scrunched the paper up around the pearl to distress it a little.

Can't you just see giving a card with this sentiment, from Bold Blossoms, to your best girl friend?  I stamped it in Early Espresso and then used the small ornate blossom from Friends Never Fade stamped off once in Pear Pizzazz behind the sentiment.  And because the top left corner seemed a little neglected...

I added a little snip of Pumpkin Pie 1 1/4" striped grosgrain ribbon.  I literally stapled this one in place...I scrunched up a little 2" piece of ribbon, stapled the bottom together and tucked it under my oval with a glue dot.  Doesn't it look a bit like a jaunty scarf?!

Just a simple inside...a piece of whisper white stamped with an all-time favorite sentiment from Great Friend in Early Espresso, another Pear Pizzazz dress form and the final touch is an itty bitty flower from Cheep Talk to mimic the flower on the front.

So, if you're still with me...I just have to share some incredible news with you.  In addition to our Paper Players challenge this week, I took this card to swap at our Regional Training event in Orlando, FL this weekend.  It was a fabulous all-day event full of stamping, swapping and demonstrations all hosted by our company's incredibly gracious and sweet president, Shelli Gardner.  OK, I'll cut to the chase here....all the swap cards were posted on boards around the room and entered into a Creativity Challenge where Shelli selected her favorites.  Well, guess what?  Can you guess?  OMG, yes...are you with me?  OK, get ready for some shouting going on here....SHELLI CHOSE MY CARD!!!!!   OMG, can you imagine?!  It was awesome to have her hold my card up on the big screen for all to see--what a thrill!  Oh, and as if that wasn't enough...I also won a $50 SU shopping spree!!  I know, right?!

And let me just say that she is as gracious and kind in person as you would want and expect her to be!  It was a such an honor!

OK, thanks for indulging me for a moment.... :-).  I hope you will play along with our sketch challenge this week. Be sure to pop on over to The Paper Players blog, check out all the other DT inspiration then load up your creation by midnight (PST) Friday April 1st.  We can't wait to come visit you!  Have a great day my friends!

the goods:

stamps: sew suite, friends never fade, great friend, cheep talk

ink: pear pizzazz, baja breeze, early espresso

paper: baja breeze, pear pizzazz, pumpkin pie, whisper white, naturals white CS; greenhouse gala DSP

xtras: scallop border punch, itty bitty punch pack, 1 1/4" wide striped grosgrain ribbon, scallop oval frame die, basic pearls

Paper Players Friends {PP34}

Happy Paper Players day everyone!  Thank you to all who showed us some love last week with all your LOVEly creations.  With so many fabulous entries, you're making it more and more difficult each week to choose our winners!  Our friend and Paper Player Jaydee is our hostess this week for a color challenge:

and she is challenging us with Cherry Cobbler, Crumb Cake, Cajun Craze and Whisper White!  Now, I cannot tell a lite...these colors were challenging for me but that's what it's all about, right?  That's how we grow by stepping outside of our comfortable box every once in awhile!

Yesterday, I mentioned that I've been trying to create more mat stacks--love the way they look and it's a fun way to incorporate several colors.  This card actually started with the "Friends" stamp from Friends Never Fade which I stamped in Cajun Craze and a second time in CC to cut out the flower and pop it up:

 A few Basic Pearls added to the center added even more dimension.

The Tags til Christmas set has a great stamp that fits the Decorative Label punch perfectly.  I inked it in Crumb Cake and stamped on the same cardstock, cut it in half and used each piece to frame my center panel.

The Two Tags die makes a fun focal point for my little mat stack.  I cut out a piece of Cajun Craze and stamped it with the Dot, Dot, Dot stamped inked in more Cajun Craze.  

My Crumb Cake card base needed a little something so I stitched a piece of woodgrain designer paper from Woodland Walk DSP onto the base.  I really need to do more stitching--it adds such a subtle accent.  Next, I made a border of Whisper White with the Framed Tulip embossing folder and placed it behind the mat stack and behind the Two Tags.

The other fun thing about using a tag as a mat is that it already has a hole ready for your ribbon!  I added some yummy Cherry Cobbler seam binding ribbon and a basic glimmer brad to hold it there in style!

Lastly, a retired set Best Blossoms, has this lovely sentiment that is perfect for any friend.  I inked a flower from Friends Never Fade in Crumb Cake and overstamped with my Cherry Cobbler sentiment.

I hope you enjoyed my card today and that it has inspired you to give this unique color combo a try!  Pop on over to The Paper Players to see what the rest of the design team has cooked up for you!  Then link up your creation on our blog by midnight (MST) Friday February 18th to be in the running for A Cut Above and Headliner! Have a great week my friends!

supplies:

stamps: friends never fade, tags til christmas, dot dot dot, best blossoms

ink: cajun craze, crumb cake

paper: crumb cake, cajun craze, whisper white CS; woodland walk DSP

xtras: two tags die; framed tulips embossing folder; cherry cobbler seam binding ribbon; glimmer brad; basic pearls; decorative label punch

A Curtain Call Sketch 4 U

Hi everyone, happy Friday!  We all have the day off today, in fact almost the whole city does as it is a very big day here in North Florida.  Believe it or not, the schools all shut down for UF Homecoming!  I know, it's crazy but if you follow the Florida Gators at all, you will understand.  Parades, pep rallies, it's crazy!  We've lived here over 15 years and I still don't "get" it but I'll take the day off! :-)

Thank goodness, too, because it gave me time to stamp for Stacey's Curtain Call Color Challenge this week.  Aren't these colors fabulous together?!  So Saffron, Marina Mist, Crumb Cake, Basic Black & Whisper White...so fresh and modern!  I also used Kazan's great sketch over at 2 Sketches 4 You.  Here is what I created:

The single stamp, Ornate Blossom, was inked up with Stampin' Write markers in this weeks colors, stamped on Whisper White and cut out with circle nestabilities and the Big Shot.  I stamped the center of the blossom with Marina Mist ink on some scrap, cut it out and popped it up on dimensionals.  I really like how the Black Raven Lace looks laid flat on the So Saffron designer paper next to a piece of Marina Mist cardstock embossed with the Polka Dot impressions folder.  The sentiment from Curly Cute was stamped with jet black Stazon for a crisp clean look.  Not sure if I like the 3 pearls but I felt it needed something more in that corner to balance the blossom.

Here's a quick look at the inside with more of the same designer paper.  I'm sorry it looks crooked in the photo, I think it's the angle, I promise it's straight IRL!

This is a smaller version of the same ornate blossom and this one is from the Friends Never Fade set.  I inked it in Marina Mist and stamped off once before stamping on the paper.  Such a fitting sentiment for a thank you card, this one is from the level 2 hostess set Occasional Quotes.

So, that's it for today...I hope you like it.  As always, thank you for stopping by and thank you even more for leaving a comment with your feedback.  I love hearing from you!  Be sure to check back on Sunday for another fabulous week at The Paper Players!

supplies:

stamps: ornate blossom; friends never fade; curly cute; occasional quotes

ink: basic black, marina mist, stazon

paper: crumb cake, whisper white, sweet pea stack (retired)

xtras: crumb cake, marina mist, daffodil delight, basic black stampin' write markers; black raven lace; basic pearls; polka dot impression folder; circle nestabilities

Paper Players {16}: a sketch

Hi everyone and happy Sunday!  You're going to love the sketch Lesley has given The Paper Players to work with this week.  So versatile--for the right-hand boxes you can use any shape you want--leaves, butterflies, birds, circles, whatever strikes your fancy.  The important thing is to have fun!  

I choose to take an abstract route and use the sweet birdcages from the Aviary stamp set as my "shapes".

 

Cute?!  I was inspired by the colors in the Greenhouse Gala designer paper and chose to combine them for a fresh and slightly off-beat card: Pumpkin Pie, Pear Pizzazz, Baja Breeze, Crumb Cake and Whisper White.  The Stamp-a-ma-jig was a must for lining up the birdcages exactly...if a little wonky!  The birdcages are stamped in Crumb Cake and 3 little Basic Pearls decorate each one to mimic the dots of the Polka Dots impression folder.  I punched a spiral border on the Crumb Cake cardstock and used my aqua painter to wet the paper and distress it a little.  I wanted it to look like it had been torn out of a notebook.

The Pumpkin Pie base was run through the Big Shot with the Polka Dot impressions folder (aren't you glad I put down the Elegant Lines folder?).  The polka dots always look fresh and happy to me and fit the whimsical nature of Aviary to a tee.

Since it inspired my color palette, I used a bit of Greenhouse Gala paper for a Pear Pizzazz punch and wrapped the whole card front with some {retired} Baja Breeze grosgrain ribbon.  I adhered a piece of sticky strip to my ribbon, wrapped it around the card and just cut the end for a simple look.

The sentiment from Teeny Tiny Wishes was stamped in Early Espresso on Whisper White and popped out with the Modern Label punch.  I like the look of a watermarked image behind the sentiment so I inked a flower from Friends Never Fade in Pear Pizzazz, stamped off once and stamped onto the label.  I think it fills the area nicely and pulls in the 3rd color to this corner.

Be sure to head over to The Paper Players blog and check out all the lovely work of the other designers...and then link up your creation.  We would love for you to join us.

supplies:

stamps: aviary; teeny tiny wishes; friends never fade

ink: pear pizzazz, pumpkin pie, baja breeze, crumb cake & early espresso

paper: pumpkin pie, crumb cake & whisper white CS; greenhouse gala DSP

xtras: polka dot impressions folder; baja breeze grosgrain ribbon; modern label & spiral border punches; basic pearls; aqua painter; SAMJ

Spotlight Gala

Spotlight on Greenhouse Gala, that is! The star of this card is the beautiful new Greenhouse Gala designer paper (available July 1st). As a demonstrator, I am able to pre-order select items from the new catalog and when I saw this paper, I had to have it and I think you will too! The colors are so opulent. It's some of the prettiest dsp we've had in awhile. Credit for this fantastic layout goes to Jaydee @ Stampin' with Jaydee. I saw her Neopolitan card and I knew I wanted to make one highlighting this gorgeous paper! This is such an quick layout and I was so inspired, I made two!

The first uses chocolate chip, daffodil delight (new core color) and real red. Aren't these colors gorgeous together? Do you remember Reese Whitherspoon's yellow dress and red pumps at the Oscars a few years ago? Wasn't that was a fresh and unexpected color combination? This paper makes me think of that fabulous outfit. The flower stamp is also a sneak peek from the new Friends Never Fade set and the sentiment is a new hostess level 1 set, Because I Care.

The {signature} inside with the same flower stamped in daffodil delight and chocolate chip. Those cute little real red dots are part of the level 2 hostess set Punched Posies (available now in the summer mini):

Here is the second one also featuring Greenhouse Gala paper--isn't it beautiful?! I know I am repeating myself but you've got to see it! Chocolate chip, baja breeze and pumpkin pie are featured here with another flower stamp from Friends Never Fade:

A close-up of the flower detail:

The inside using baja breeze, chocolate chip and pear pizzazz (new in color) markers to color the flower and the same Punched Posies dots in pumpkin pie:
So does that get you ready? If the sneak peek goodies are this good, wait until you see the new catalog! That's all for today--thanks for stopping by...cheers!