JOY at Christmas Color Hues #98

 Hi everyone! Welcome to the new challenge for Color Hues #98.  Karen chose Black and Red for us to use this time, and I added gold to the simple card that I have to share with you today. It felt good getting into the spirit of Christmas.

The Layered Poinsettias are from Waffle Company, and the JOY die cut is from the Greetery. Here's a wish for a wonderful holiday season ahead, and for many happy crafty sessions for you all! 

 I mentioned in the last post that I was moving and by this time next week, we will be in our new home. That is a happy thought! 

Thanks so much for your visit today, and for all the days in the past. It's a very sad day to be leaving the wonderful team at Color Hues. Nancy is a wonderful team leader. She's amazingly gifted, inspiring, kind, encouraging and so very organized.  I couldn't have been more proud to be part of this talented group of ladies! 

I will for sure be looking for your creations in the gallery, and I hope to play along in the future.  Have a great day!

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Hello, it's Color Hues #97

 Hello, I'm so glad that you've made a visit to my blog today. It's time for a new duo at Color Hues, and Julie P has chosen mustard and olive for us. 

I was inspired to pull out the Fragrant Florals supplies from Altenew, this time featuring the embossing folder and stencils. I just love these shades, I used mostly distress inks to sponge lightly on the leaves and flowers. I did keep adding layers to try to be more mustard-y. Wish the photo did them justice! 

I love the hello sentiment, it's so easy to continue on the inside with a more specific greeting. 

Hello's and goodbye's are very much on my mind these days. On a personal note, my husband and I are in the process of moving to a small home near our daughter's family. I've had to significantly pare down my overflowing craft collections(s)! You know, it's NOT just stamps paper and ink anymore but includes, dies, foils, stencils and ALL the stuff. So, instead of a craft room, I will have a craft closet.

I  may or may not be posting much after the dust settles - but I will see you again for one more challenge at Color Hues. You know you don't need an invitation to play - just make a card using these colors plus a neutral. 

I look forward to hearing from you and seeing your creations! 

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft

               Make something beautiful!  

Purple and Orange for Color Hues #96

 Hi friends, whoa, how has it gotten to be October?  Yikes! Please don't tell me how many days there are until Christmas, lol! You may be getting ready for Halloween, and if so, this challenge is for you! Julie is asking for purple and orange for this month's Color Hues Challenge and I'm sure the gallery will be full of inspiration!

We are delighted to have Trina Pham and Stephanie Lanzalotto as our special guests. Please welcome them!

I took a bold leap with these colors using the Blossom of Life dies from Altenew. I wasn't sure I would like it, but I think the result surprised me. These pretty dies are huge! I used a couple shades of orange card stock, one of purple and a final black layer. The white dots are Nuvo drops.

We are all hoping that you will join the fun and play along at Color Hues! I can't wait to see what you will make.

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Pink and Blue for Color Hues!

 Hello friends, I'm here to kick off my challenge at Colors Hues #95. Being the hostess means that I get to choose the colors we will be using. I chose pink and blue. We choose our colors ahead of time by a month or two and I saw a Christmas card that inspired me, so I went with it. 

I can't wait to see what will inspire you! Remember that the dark or light hues of the colors chosen are up to you!

Here's my card. 

I loved coloring the snow couple with Copics, and I even made their noses pink! I began by stamping the image with gray ink, coloring and then fussy cutting them. The All-in-One Hexagon Die provided the stitched frame and I sponged pale blue ink on the back panel, propping the sweethearts up with a bit of foam tape. 

I embossed white card stock and cut a strip of snowflakes, sponged lightly with blue to bring out the details, and placed this at the bottom of the card. 

Finally, sponging pink ink on Glitter paper, I die cut snowflakes to embellish. I LOVE snow-people so I'm sure I will be using this Chilly Day stamp set (Penny Black) often! 

Please do make sure to visit the challenge and admire the amazing team samples! We love having you play along with us. 

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Supplies: 

Stamps: Penny Black - Chilly Days
Ink: Altenew - Blue Horizon, Blush Rose
Other: Penny Black - Blizzard EF, All-in-One                                                                                          Hexagon Die

The Flower Challenge #95 Reminder

 Hello crafty friends! Have you checked out the inspiration from The Flower Challenge #95? Here I am back with a reminder and I hope it will encourage you to join in this easy going challenge. I'm sure you will have fun creating a stamped flower. Nothing difficult about that! It's even inspired me to look back through my stamps and use an older layering stamp set. 

I pulled out the Wplus9 Builder Rose set and was surprised to find some flowers already stamped. I love when that happens except that I don't remember exactly what inks I used, so I can't tell you! In addition, I pulled out a background that I had made with many images randomly stamped in pale black and spritzed with gold paint. 

I assembled the panel onto a gold mirror background and added a sentiment from Honeybee stamps. 

You will find more DT samples on the blog and a lovely gallery of cards from our participants. I hope that you will be one of them! It's wonderful to see what you make. 

Your visit today is so appreciated. I hope that your fall is going great! I know that I'm loving the cooler temperatures. 

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

The Flower Challenge - Count Your Blessings!

 Welcome to The Flower Challenge! Our theme for Challenge #95 is to use a stamped flower on your card.  So pull out those pretties and put some ink to paper! 

I've been going for the less is more vibe lately, and Penny Black's tulips from the Overflowing clear stamp (31-062) gave me a kickstart to a clean card. 

I watercolored using re-inkers from my Distress Inks. Adding TWO pearls (colored with Copic markers) seemed a good way to emphasize the "twice" in the sentiment. Am I the only one that thinks of these things?

Thanks so much for your visit today! Please come and visit us at the challenge blog where fabulous floral designs await to inspire you! 

I'm adding this to these challenges: The Penny Black Saturday Challenge,  and NBUS where I'm using the stamp and die for the first time. Time Out Challenges asks for cards of encouragement/friendship.

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Other Supplies from Penny Black:
Blessed Builder Clear set (30-996)
Berry Basket Dies (51-796)

Color Hues #94 With Thanks

 We are ushering in FALL with these new colors at the Color Hues Challenge! For #94 ( WOW, how has that happened!)  the colors dear Carol has for us are Rust and Green. She encourages a range of shades to choose from, so I went with a variety, using stencils and Distress Oxide Inks. 

The Lovely Silhouettes Stamps (The Greetery) were inked in green and complemented with a dark green card stock mat. Although it appears almost black, it is a lovely deep green. I had a hard time with the photo of these hues, I promise there is no yellow, just a pale orange. 

Do you ever finish a card and it just doesn't seem right? For me, the stacked shapes  were off balance intentionally. I added the gold metallic pearls, to compensate for that. What do you think?

You will not want to miss seeing the amazing cards in the gallery, and we hope that you will play along! 

Your visit means so much. Thanks for coming by! 

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Supplies: 
The Greetery: Lovely Silhouettes stamp set, Color Spots Stencil
DOX inks: Dried Marigold, Fired Brick, Spiced Marmalade, Lucky Clover
Concord & 9th: card stocks
WPlus9: Basic Label stamps and dies

Sunflower Harvest at Penny Black

 I'm always surprised to see the back-to-school and fall decor items flooding the stores before summer is even over! And I'm usually not at all ready for the new season, even though FALL is my favorite! 

But the Sunflower Harvest is a brand new-to-me stamp set that I couldn't resist pulling out for this card. It's my reminder that The Penny Black Saturday Challenge is still in full swing! The  challenge is Anything Goes, with an Optional theme - flowers. I LOVE sunflowers!

Pairing them with a rustic fence and pumpkins makes it even better. I stamped the scene using light gray ink, and watercolored with Distress Ink re-inkers. After fussy cutting the image panel I layered it with patterned paper and twine. The sentiment is from the Delightful Day set, stamped onto brown card stock. 

I sure hope that you've already checked out the challenge blog and enjoyed the inspiration! Thanks so much for coming by to visit me. I end this post by sending autumn greetings your way - just a wee bit early!

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Color Hues #93 Super Bright Birthday!

 Hi friends, and welcome. Here we are again with a new challenge at Color Hues! Tracey gives us Orange and Yellow for our combo, a happy bright and super fun choice! 

I thought these colors were just right for making my own background. First, I 'll show you my card, and then I'll let you know how I did it. See what I mean? So bright, it could be neon! 

The technique is one I stumbled upon as I went. I really like how the colors came out without cancelling each other out. 

I began with Mixed Media paper from Vicky Boutin, and a stencil of the 3-pack of hers called Arts Layered Stencils. Sponging lightly with Altenew Citrus Burst Ink, I got this. 

My next step involved using the 3D EF from Sizzix adding medallions and texture. I added more sponging to the raised area of the large medallions with Distress Ink in Carved Pumpkin. 

Hmmm, how to get a blend of these colors while still retaining some white space? I inked the debossed side of the folder with the yellow ink and ran it through the machine again. 

Once I added the large sentiment, it took on a different look! It's my first time using the sentiment dies from from Heffy Doodle.  

Nuvo Gel (on the heart) and enamel gems added a bit of sparkle. Now it's your turn! What will you make using Orange and Yellow? Please join us for this fun challenge. The team's inspiration is amazing!

Thanks for your visit, it means so much that you come by! 

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Be Inspired for The Flower Challenge

 Hello, how are things going for you?  For me, it's going to be a busy month for challenge posts, and I'm here to share the new one at The Flower Challenge #94. We'd like you to be inspired by these colors when you create your card featuring flowers. Aren't they beautiful hues? You may also add neutrals. 

I chose to use supplies from The Greetery and Altenew to create this Anniversary card. The supplies are listed at the end of this post. 

The bulk of the flowers are done using the Floral Arches stencils. Details are added with the accompanying stamps. The Arched Sentiment set of stamps and dies provide the greeting. Finally, the A2 arches die cut the sentiment panel. You can find out about all of these elements HERE. 

We hope that you will be encouraged to join us in the challenge! Thank you for your visit today, let's do this again soon! 

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

The inks I used are from Altenew: Maple Yellow, Blush Rose; Coral Bliss, Heartbeat, Pink Pearl; Frayed Leaf, Forest Glades, and Evergreen. 

Flowers for You at Penny Black

 Hi there friends.

 I couldn't be more delighted to share this news! I've been chosen as the monthly Guest Designer for The Penny Black Saturday Challenge,  so of course I said, "Yes!" I've been loving my Penny Black stamps and supplies, new and old. Actually, the "new" products have been multiplying quickly in my craft area, so I'm glad to use them!

You'll find their challenge to be fun as it's often 'Anything Goes' and this month the optional theme is Flowers. Who'd have thought ????

My very simple card uses the Charisma Transparent stamps and dies. With the addition of circle dies, I cut a framed window and placed the bouquet on top. Using versa mark and one of the floral stamps, I created a subtle background, topping it all off with a sentiment circle. I found it refreshing to use only one stamp set for this card. The floral image was stamped in pale gray and colored with Distress Oxide re-inkers and a brush.

I sure hope you will check out the inspiration at the challenge and play along! I'm so happy that you've visited today. Thanks so much! 

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

On Your Birthday for Color Hues #91

 It's time for new hues at The Color Hues #91 Challenge.  Our dear Stef has chosen Pink and Brown for this fortnight. Let us see what these colors inspire you to create! 

I'm using some never-been-used Penny Black products to create a birthday card in warm shades of pink and brown. 

Starting with the LOVE Immense Die, I cut two layers out of water color card stock and brushed color on the top layer with Distress ink re-inkers. I colored the bear the same way, the image and the sentiments are from PB Have A Nice One transparent stamp set. After dry embossing white card stock with the Dashed Design EF, I sponged Tea Dye and Vintage Photo DOX inks to add color. The flower is from the Petals metal dies. I felt it needed just a bit more, so I added shimmer to the flower with spray.

I enjoyed keeping the pieces of this card on my desk, and doing just a bit of work on it over several days. That's a fun way for me to play! 

I hope you enjoyed the post, please have a look at the fab samples from my team! 

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

I'm entering the NBUS Challenge today. 

Christmas in July!

 Hi, again! Hope your week is off to a good start. 

It's still July so when I saw Sheri's great new colors for us at Color Hues! I made my first Christmas card for 2024. She has chosen Red and Green and you may use the combo any way you wish, as long as you add only neutrals - black, white, kraft or gold, gray or cream.

Here you go! 

Pulling out my Winterberry dies, stamps and stencils, I created my focal point. I used Distress Inks and chose to layer the bouquet over an embossed white panel. 

The bow and the sentiment tag are also from The Greetery.

Thanks for following us at Color Hues, We hope that you will be stoked to create! 

They're asking for FRAMES at the Christmas Kickstart Challenge, so I'll also be linking up over there.  

I sure enjoyed your visit, stay cool!

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Celebrate!

Hello friends, welcome to my reminder post for the Flower Challenge #93, to make a birthday card. Playing along helps you boost your stash so we hope you will be inspired! 

I pulled out two older sets and  made an elegant layered birthday card with a bold sentiment. 

I love the matte gold foil card stock but it's sure hard to get a good photo. Thanks for coming by to visit!

 Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!  

Supplies from The Greetery: 
Floral Delicacy stamps and die
Birthday Blooms stamps and dies
A2 Arches Die
Inks: Distress Oxide - Peeled Paint, Salvaged Patina, Spun Sugar, Saltwater Taffy

Watercolor Birthday for The Flower Challenge

 Hello! Happy 4th of July to those in the USA!

Time for another theme for you at The Flower Challenge! For this month you'll have an opportunity to build up the birthday cards in your stash as you play along. 

Make a birthday card featuring flowers. How easy is that! I'm featuring a new-to-me set called Watercolor Flowers by Altenew. For this card I used the stamps, stencil and dies. 

Summery colors worked well even though I took creative liberty and made blue leaves. The Altenew colors are Blue Horizon, Maple Yellow, Honey Drizzle, and Green Field. The pinks are Concord & 9th  Carnation.

For the sentiment, I used the small font "wishing you a beautiful day" included with the stamp kit. I did however, cut off the word "day" and added a die cut Birthday in black with a shadow layer in white. 

I stepped the design up a bit, by partially die cutting the top of the floral spray, centering it on the card front, and adding pink pearls. 

There you have it! Wishing you a beautiful day, and heartfelt thanks for your visit. Please be sure to check out the fabulous inspiration from the team!

Be yourself

          Have delight in your craft 

               Make something beautiful!