A Couple of Challenge Cards to Post Before the Year Ends

I've had these two cards done for a while but just didn't get them posted. The first was a Christmas card for a special friend and the second was my hubby's birthday card for a couple of days after Christmas.

I knew the instant I saw the Fusion Challenge inspiration that I would use my PTI Winter Woods set. Nichole designed a trio of birds in Charley Harper style. And I absolutely love them! The only problem now is wishing Nichole would design more birds in the same style! The background is embossed with a Sizzix snowflake folder, the oval is Lil' Inkers Stitched Ovals, sentiment is a PTI die cut and the patterned paper is from Cosmo Cricket. Greenery is from WPlus9's Merry & Bright and the birch trees are Avery Elle. I tried several reds for the cardinal and found the best is Avery Elle's Strawberry, a gift from a very sweet friend. I wanted the bird's head to be black with the wing/tail stamp to be a dark gray so I cut my stamp apart to stamp. 

The Freshly Made Sketches Challenge led me to this design. Guess what, a snowflake! Mine is a Memory Box Bianca Snowflake, cut from glittery paper. The embossing is a Lifestyle Snowflake pattern. I made my own sentiment which is computer generated. The cup (done in green-hubby's favorite color) is from a Christmas present set, MFT's Birdie Brown Merry Christmouse.

 And below is the inside. Stamp from the same set.

A Little Side Note:

I helped at our botanical gardens before Christmas making greenery arrangements to sell at the holiday Illuminations. There were a lot of assorted decorations to use for accents but when we started to run low I decided to make some using stamps. I used all kinds of stamps but this particular one is from MFT Birdie Brown's Santa's Elves. I bought the smallest plastic ornaments from Michaels and PTI's Tag Sale #4 fit perfectly. I just had to cut off the top tag part so we could use the more sturdy plastic one. I added artificiaI snow purchased at a local nursery. If you are ever looking for winter decorations for your home, fresh greenery works better than anything else as it will last for ages by just adding a little water to the oasis. I bought this one to bring home. It was made 3 weeks ago and is still fresh as new!

Have a safe evening if you are going to be out and about, and a very blessed New Year!!

See you next year,

Sharron

The 12 Kits of Occasions: Walking in a Winter Wonderland with Lindsey

It's that time again!! This month the members of the 12 Kits of Occasions are playing in a Winter Wonderland, courtesy of our sweet hostess, Lindsey, Occasional Crafting! Below is a picture of some things in her kit. I so wish you could see this in real life. The colors are absolutely gorgeous and there is LOTS of sparkle!! I knew when I took photos of my cards that they weren't going to even be close to what they really look like. Lindsey did such an amazing job of selecting papers and elements. There is something for everyone--from elegant to whimsical! You are going to love touring all the blogs!

I know everyone has been super busy lately but I hope you can take some time to see all the wonderful projects. Lindsey also asked two people to be guest designers so there is lots to see. Click here to go to the 12 Kits blog. There are links to the members blogs as well as the blogs of our two wonderful guests. There is also a contest where Lindsey is giving visitors a chance to win a fantastic Clearly Besotted stamp set. It's one that has been discontinued so you don't want to miss this chance!

PHOTO BY LINDSEY

THe SPARKLE ON THE PINK PAPER IS AWESOME!

I'M GOING TO ENTER THIS CARD IS THE CAS-OLOGY CHALLENGE WHICH FEATURES 'MERRY'.  THE  MERRY DIE I USED IS FROM SSS.

LINK TO CHALLENGE

I LOVED THE AVERY ELLE WREATH THAT LINDSEY SENT US BUT UNFORTUNATELY MESSED IT UP.
I WAS SET ON USING THESE WONDERFUL COMPANION ELEMENTS SO USED MY CHISHOLM WREATH BY SSS AS A FILL-IN. SENTIMENT AND STARS ARE FROM MFT HAND LETTERED HOLIDAY SET.

Don't you love the adorable deer on this last card! He is one of the stamps in the set Lindsey is giving away so be sure to leave a comment over on the 12 Kits blog to have a chance to win.

Enjoy the hop! Wishing everyone a very blessed 2016!!

Sharron

The 12 Kits of Occasions: Have a Holly Jolly Christmas & a Festive Fall

Wow, it's almost Christmas and we are in our eleventh month of 12 Kits of Occasions for 2015. The year has really flown! Our lovely hostess this month is Kim from Cupcakes, Cards and Kim. I was so excited when her kit arrived. I already had the Harvest Mouse set but I didn't order dies so I knew it would be so much fun to start by coloring all the little critters. And I really wanted the bears but finally decided to limit my purchase and wait until later to order them. And then they arrived--already cut out and stamped and ready for some crafty fun! Thanks, Kim!! As you can tell, I loved your kit!

I had already spent time playing with the mice that I had. I have limited Copic colors and you might see a lot of variation in their patterns. Kim included lots of polka dotted papers which is another favorite so practically every card has some dots!

I try to keep my post short as there is always so much to see. We have two guest designers this month to add to the fun. Just click HERE to connect to the 12 Kits blog where you can find links to all the different blogs. A collage created by Tracey is below showing all the wonderful supplies in Kim's kit and you can also find a list at the top of those on the 12 Kits blog.

PHOTO by TRACEY

THIS CARD USES AN IDEA I GOT FROM JENNIFER MCGUIRE IN A VIDEO ON ALTERING YOUR STAMPS. I JUST CUT OFF THE BASKET OF APPLES ON THE STAMPED IMAGE AND USED THE STAMPED PACKAGES. I DIDN'T KNOW HOW TO LINK HER VIDEO HERE BUT YOU CAN CHECK HER LIST OF YOU TUBE VIDEOS. THE PACKAGES AND SENTIMENT ARE FROM MFT SANTA'S ELVES.

THIS CARD WILL BE ENTERED IN THE FRESHLY MADE SKETCHES CHALLENGE.

LINK TO FMS

SENTIMENT FROM MFT HAND LETTERED HOLIDAY

SENTIMENT FROM AN OLDER HERO ARTS SET

So happy that you came by and hope you got some inspiration from this month's theme. Enjoy the rest of the hop and have a wonderful week!

Sharron

Seasonal Stamps Added to For Sale Section

I just added a couple of stamp sets that work great for this time of year. To check them out, click on the For Sale tab above.

Thanks for looking and have a wonderful weekend!
Sharron

The 12 Kits of Occasions: October, "Let's Go" with Joyce

Hi all! The 12 Kits of Occasions are posting a day early this month so as not to interfere with all the little goblins out and about tomorrow night! We have a theme that we have never done before. Joyce, Cards-by-the-Sea, is out hostess this month and she selected this fun theme of things relating to travel. Of course, we all like to travel! She sent lots of wonderful patterned papers and stamped sentiments and images. The die cuts included lots of these fabulous suitcases (my favorite!) I loved adding them to most of my cards!

We also have TWO guest designers! Kara Vrabel, with KandR Designs, and Jackie Southas from What did I do today. Kara is one of our inactive 12 Kits members and Jackie will also have lots of fantastic designs for us to see. Connect with their blogs, as well as the blogs of all our members, over at the 12 Kits blog HERE.

So sit back and enjoy our little trip around the world!!

Thanks so much for letting us share. Hope you get a little inspiration, or at least an urge to pack your bags and plan your next adventure!

Sharron

Hop to Stop National Domestic Violence

I learned of this challenge from sweet friend, Michele at I Card Everyone. Over on Becca Cruger's blog, Damsel in Distressed, a very special event is going on.

"You see, purple is the color of National Domestic Violence Awareness month. 

1 in 3 women will experience domestic violence over the course of their lifetimes. 

Let that sink in - 33% of all the women you meet.  And women aren't the only people who are affected! Women, men, transgender - gender doesn't matter. Domestic violence is something that exists regardless of gender, socioeconomic status, religion, education level, etc."

So the blog hop is to raise awareness of this very important issue in our society. It has and may in the future touch many people in one way or another. 

Please click HERE to find out about the rules so you can take a few minutes to join the hop! There are also many wonderful sponsors.

Your card does need to contain some purple! I chose this sweet image from Tiddly Inks and a wonderful sentiment from WPlus9. I don't have many purples in my Copic collection but with a little mixing I tried to create a bouquet of different shades! The yellow is my favorite 'happy' color!

I'm also submitting this card to the 30 Day Coloring Challenge over at The Daily Marker.

Thank you so much for dropping by!

Have a blessed weekend,

Sharron

W&W World Cardmaking Day: Masterboard Background Building

Masterboard Background Building is just one of the great challenges that Winnie & Walter Stamps is hosting. World Cardmaking Day was a week ago but the challenges are running until Sunday night. Click here to see a few of the fabulous background designs Shay provided for us. 

I decided to use The Party set and stamp my large paper with just the streamers.

For this card I added additional images from the set. The sentiment was stamped on a separate paper and cut out. The present was stamped, colored with Copics and fussy cut out. The circles are from a SSS Circle Loops die.

There are several great challenges that you can check out over at Winnie & Walter. I hope to make something else if I can before the deadline.

Please come back for my The Hop To Stop card that I will post tomorrow morning.

Have a great weekend,

Sharron

WPlus9 Throwback Thursday #7

LINK TO CHALLENGE

I know I'm super late to post for this challenge, especially since I started on my card more than a week ago! It features the Pretty Patches and Country Charm sets from WPlus9. I have all or part of all four of these sets and love the country look.

Another thing I wanted to try was making my own background panel. A sweet friend, Kara from KandRDesigns, is a master at this. Here is a link to one of her recent ones. I am in no way as talented but below is my first attempt. 

I started by embossing a sheet of white cardstock with Sizzix Circles which provided spaces to stamp my images. I'm not ready to plan out a complicated design!! I used the apple set and stamped the gingham heart and a green leaf. Vellum was used as a cover, with the sentiment from the same set. The square was cut from Clear Cut Stackers: Pinking Squares (WPlus9) and a cream-colored twine was placed underneath. For the card base, I used Green Acres cardstock, also by WPlus9.

I've been busy making cards so will be posting more later!

Thanks for coming by,

Sharron

The 12 Kits of Occasions: September with Jessica "Welcome to My Nightmare"

It's that time again! It's the last day of the month which means we are hosting a 12 Kits reveal and it's also the beginning of the fall season, my favorite! Jessica, The Paper Parade, is our super talented hostess. Bet you can guess the theme with all the little ghosts and goblins! Below is a picture of the fabulous kit we all received. Tracey was so sweet and put together this collage. There are wonderful fun images and embellishments and the coolest papers. I used elements from the papers in all my cards, even cutting out images for the last two! This was a fantastic playful month and I really enjoyed putting together my cards. Thank you so much, Jessica--loved your kit!

Sadly, Cathy Weber, Empty Nest Crafter, has had some family issues that will prevent her from finishing out the year with us. Cathy has been in our group since the very beginning and we are really going to miss her. But of course, family is the first priority so we are sending her big hugs and wishing her the all the best. She has asked Lisa Elton, My Paper Tales, to take over for her. Lisa does wonderful work and you are going to love seeing her creations over the next few months. Be sure to visit her blog and wish her well! To connect to the 12 Kits blog, click HERE. You will find links to all the other members' blogs. A list of supplies is available by opening the Monthly Kits Supplies 2015 located at the top of the blog page.

PHOTO BY TRACEY

NOTHING SCARY HERE! MY SWEET FRUIT BAT IS JUST CHECKING OUT THE JAR FULL OF CANDY CORN! SENTIMENTS ARE FROM WPLUS9 AND WALTZINGMOUSE.

I JUST RECEIVED THIS NEW DIE SET FROM MEMORY BOX CALLED VINTAGE HALLOWEEN LETTERS AND THOUGHT THEY WORKED GREAT WITH THIS PAPER AND FUN IMAGE.

THE BRICK WALKWAY IS DONE USING A MY FAVORITE THINGS STENCIL.

THE CUTE GHOSTIES AND PUMPKINS ARE CUT OUT FROM SHEETS OF THE PAPERS THAT JESSICA SENT IN THE KIT. THE BANNERS ARE FROM WPLUS9 AS IS THE SCALLOPED DIE CUT.

JESSICA INCLUDED A SHEET OF EMBOSSED BLACK PAPER THAT WAS COVERED WITH SPIDERS. I FUSSY CUT A FEW OF THEM TO PUT ON THE EMBOSSED WEB. THEY REALLY ADDED A LOT OF DIMENSION. THE SENTIMENT IS FROM MY TIME MADE EASY, A COMPANY NO LONGER IN BUSINESS.

Thank you so much for visiting and letting me share my 12 Kits Creations. Have a wonderful October. Hope you have a beautiful fall if you live where the trees change!

Enjoy the hop!

Sharron

CAS(E) This Sketch #138

This is my second post for the day. Please scroll down for the 12 Kits of Occasions August reveal.

SKETCH  #138

It has been forever since I last did a card for this challenge! I haven't been doing challenges at all lately so I'm hoping to break my bad habit!! When I saw Heather Nichols (Pine Is Here) from PTI post a batik technique, I knew it would be great with this sketch. I was going to use white for the base but switched to Hawaiian Teal for a rich contrast. I cut out the rectangle and placed the finished watercolor paper behind. The embossed leaves are from Turning a New Leaf (PTI) and the zebra (my take on the sketch challenge stripes) and sentiments are from another PTI set, It's a Jungle Out There.

Of course, I had to made a mask for the zebra so he wouldn't have green stripes but wished I had some masking fluid as that would probably have worked better!

Hope you enjoy! Try this technique if you can. It's very cool!

Thanks for letting me share,

Sharron

The 12 Kits of Occasions: August with Michele "A Spoonful of Sugar"

Hi all! Goodness, here we are at the end of summer and the start of school! It's so hard to believe how fast this year has flown by! And since it's the last day of the month it's also time for another 12 Kits of Occasions reveal. Our little group has dwindled a bit and we are keeping things going with just 10 of us. But we're as enthusiastic as ever and ready to share this month's "A Spoonful of Sugar" creations, which is also our newest member's first kit. You're going to love all the fabulous goodies that Michele, I Card Everyone, has sent us this month! See a little peek in the photo below. Her kit included so many wonderful images, really cool papers and lots of fun embellishments. There was even a secret element that Michele said was something that would seem out of place. But after several looks at the supplies, I decided there just wasn't anything that met that criteria. Wanting to play along and make a guess I went with a little coat hanger paper clip. Guess who was totally wrong! Can't wait to find out the answer........

If you've never visited Michele's blog, be sure to drop by today. She does the most amazing creations and often adds a bit of humor that can bring a little sunshine to anyone's day! 

We also have a special guest designer this month. It's someone you might remember as she been with us before. And she does gorgeous designs!! To find out who it is, just click HERE to go to the 12 Kits blog. When there, you can also find links to all the other designers' blogs and a link at the top to a list of supplies that were included in our kits.

PHOTO BY MICHELE

Here is my hanger card! The first picture is the one I posted on the 12 Kits blog. The second is my rescue card after I discovered the vellum was completely coming off the front. I used an almost empty can of vellum spray so it must have been too dry. So a frame to the rescue! The dotted vellum is placed over a piece of black paper with large white polka dots. Sentiment is from Simon Says Stamps. Dies are from Lil' Inker.

MICHELE INCLUDED SEVERAL SENTIMENTS THAT SHE HAD TYPED.  I USED ONE FOR THE INSIDE OF THIS CARD BUT RETYPED IT SO I COULD USE THE YELLOW POLKA DOTS.

REMEMBER WHEN YOU WERE LITTLE AND HAVING MOM KISS YOUR OUCHY (OR BOO- BOO) COULD MAGICALLY MAKE IT ALL BETTER!!! THE FUNKY FONT IS SCHOOLHOUSE CURSIVE.

LOTS OF CHERRIES HERE. THE BOTTOM PATTERNED PAPER IS A CHERRY DESIGN TOO!

LOVE THE COLOR OF THIS PAPER! IT MAKES ME THINK OF STRAWBERRY ICE CREAM. THERE'S NO COMFORT FOOD QUITE AS GOOD AS ICE CREAM--AT LEAST FOR ME! SO I MADE THIS CARD WITH A FOLDING TAG DIE BY LIL' INKER AND THOUGHT A GIFT CARD TO A FAVORITE ICE CREAM STORE WOULD BE FUN!

HERE'S A PICTURE OF THE TAG MICHELE INCLUDED!

HAD TO DO A SHAKER CARD FOR MICHELE'S PURE INNOCENCE SWEETIE! I TRIED TO USE A DOT TECHNIQUE FOR THE BEAR'S FUR BUT JUST ENDED UP WITH A TOO DARK BEAR!

DON'T YOU LOVE THIS WOODGRAIN!

AND LASTLY A CARD WITH A SENTIMENT THAT CONTINUES TO THE INSIDE OF THE CARD.

Thanks so much for your visit! We love being able to share our 12 Kits creations each month.

Hope it's fun and inspirational for you as well! 

Enjoy the hop,

Sharron