Now that's just way too much orange!

But that, at times, isn't a bad thing.  And on the whole, have very much enjoyed getting out all my various oranges.

This first one uses a set that hasn't seen the light of day for quite a while, and don't know why it popped into my head, but very glad it did

What you need

Cardstock - BB Brown/Orange;  PTI white

Patterned paper - SU Brights Collection

Stamps - HA Everyday Sayings;  SU Pocket Silhouettes

Ink - Brilliance Rust, Memento Rich Cocoa

Die - MFT Fishtail Flag Stax

******

Another Cardablities sketch I missed coupled with the Summer Camp challenge 1 colours.  The idea was to use at least 4 of the 5 colours

I think this is my favourite of the last few posts and I don't think I have used grey and orange before but I really like it.

What you need
Cardstock _ SU Basic Grey;  PTI Orange Zest, white
DSP - SU Neutrals Collection
Stamps - HA Everyday Sayings
Ink - Memento Tangelo
Dies - MFT Fishtail Flag Stax

Now ....... Breathe ............

WOW ... huge (cultural) weekend for us, but I have to say my daughter did the hard yards.  In the past week, she has had the final week of school for this term.  But also rehearsals leading up to the mid year Aust. Girls Choir showcase, a day long workshop with choirs from other schools in the area and  a charity concert for dance.  Now we can relax.

This first card is a real mix up of colours and patterns which I thought would be great for a teenager.

Love these colours, so summery, which is nothing like the weather here at the moment.  Winter has really hit now - but nothing like the Northern hemisphere experiences - but we do suffer ("tears tears").

Love this little sentiment!

What you need

Cardstock - PTI red, white

Stamps - CAS-ual Fridays Woot woot, Big Thanks

Ink - SU real red, Island Indigo, Certainly Celery;  PTI Hawaiian Shores;  Memento Tuxedo Black

Punches - SU

Ribbon - Certainly Celery satin

Gems - Kaisercraft

Marker - SU Island Indigo

******

Now, I have to add a few thoughts on the Bolshoi Ballet.  So very glad we went, larger than life, BUT,   I think I far preferred the subtlety and elegance of the Hamburg ballet we saw last year.   It is a great experience for children to see these famous companies and make informed decisions on their preferences.  They were faultless but, in my opinion, a bit emotionless. 

OK enough artsy opinion,  needed to have a go at a few challenges close to my heart.  No stretch on colour, theme or bling (NEVER a problem there).  I loosely interpreted that Graphite Black was BLACK.  

Edited to add:  this was selected as the Headliner for The Paper Players.  Thank you, that is a real thrill!

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white, black;  SU Lucky Limeade

Stamps - CAS-ual Fridays stamps Bold Wishes, Mum's the Word

Ink - SU Lucky Limeade Memories Unicorn white, Brilliance Starlite Black (well, it has black in the name!!)

Die - TE branch

Gems - Kaisercraft

? Christmas ..... already!

I have had the Festive Friday challenge sitting in my to do list for quite some time, but this is the first time I have attempted it.  So to go with that, the latest WMS Christmas card challenge, hosted by Charmaine Stack and the theme is Glitter.

So, lots of glitter and my favourite Christmas sweet treat - Gingerbread.  I am too lazy to decorate it but love baking and of course eating it (any time of year really).  

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white

Glitter card - Bella! Glitz Rouge

Stamps - WMS Nutcracker Sweet, Candy Jar Christmas Fillers

Ink - SU Early Espresso

Punch - SU scallop

Stickles - Red, Diamond

*****

I missed the dessert option for Dynamic Duos, initially but I was determined to use a bear for this sketch.  Must be telepathic!  

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white; SU Pacific Point

Stamps - PTI Baby Button Basics

Ink - VersafinStame Onyx Black;  Memento Bahama Blue

Copic T1

Various punches - SU

Glossy Accents

Goosebumps - K and Company

*****

And finally for this weekend - 2 colours I don't use much and 1 quite a bit.  And yes, you guessed it, another piece of 12 x 12 bites the dust - very satisfying!  I admit to a bit of recycling too.  The twine around the button came with my first (I anticipate many more) consignments of Cas-ual Fridays Stamps.  I had a very hard time limiting the number of stamp sets.  It's all Susan Raihala's fault, she has created some really great cards with these stamps lately.

I digress.  More baby cards, male or female this time I think

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white;  SU Calypso Coral, Island Indigo

Patterned Paper - Pebbles Inc Ever After (Sparkle)

Stamps - PTI Baby Button Basics

Ink  - Versafine Onyx Black

Die - SB classic scalloped circles

Pen - SU Calypso Coral

Button - PTI

A couple of mid-week cards

It's been a grey old day here today, looks like winter is not far away.  All children in Grades 3, 5, 7, and 9 are completing 3 days of national testing on numeracy and literacy today.  Stress over for another 2 years!  Most parents I have spoken to recently are completely in the dark about what the testing is designed to highlight - where an individual child may need help, or how well the school is teaching the test.  I saw one of my daughter's friends this morning before they headed off to orchestra, and said good luck with Maths today, R said, "Is that what we are doing today, I'll do whatever they put in front of me" . I guess that's how to handle it .

Anyway a chic card for a very chic ensemble.  I didn't want to do black and white stripes necessarily, then remembered this DSP.  The other details I wanted to highlight were the belt and buckle and the model walking away from camera, just over her shoulder.  The stamping didn't work quite as well as hoped so I went over it with the Molotow paint pen.

What you need

Cardstock - PTI black; Canson shimmer gold

DSP - SU Neutrals Collection

Stamps - PTI Think Big Favourites

Ink - Memories Unicorn white

Molotow paint pen

Buckle

***

Next up is one of my favourite challenges which I have missed the passed few weeks.  So this being a birthday celebration, we got to choose a favourite colour palette from the past year.  This is one from the last couple of weeks and while we are on the theme of slightly masculine cards, I think this one could be used for a young boy.

I had thought to stamp stripes but knew that would end up in too much wasted cardstock, so went with strips of card.  Not much stamping I admit, but love the effect.

What you need
Cardstock - Gina K white;  SU Bashful Blue, Pumpkin Pie
Stamps - HA Year Round Sentiments, Many Birthday Messages; PTI Star Prints
Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black; SU Bashful Blue, Pumpkin Pie
Die - MFT Star Stax

4 cards for Sunday

 It's been a while, but I have been busy.  Getting rid of a lot of 12 x 12 paper into cards and able to use it in a few Christmas cards as well.  Thanks to all those lovely people who took the time to wish my daughter well with getting braces on, so thoughtful.  She has come through it really well and is not very noticeable.  The first few days were a diet of tomato soup and Nurofen but things are pretty much back to normal.  It helped too, that she had friends over the following 2 days to take her mind of it.

Now for some cards, which came together remarkably quickly

Loved this sketch as soon as I saw it.  I thought of stitching over  the stripes, glad I didn't, and love the look of the final result.

What you need

Cardstock - BB Navy, Red;  PTI white

Stamps - HA Year Round Sentiments

Dies - PTI Hearts;  MFT Fishtail Flag Stax

Ink - SU Real Red

Gems - SU

*****

What a stunning dress!  So elegant!

I didn't want to mess around with it too much, and glad I didn't add anymore leaves.  I know there was no red in the graphic, but, hey, it was still on my desk.

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white

Stamps - PTI Embroidered Blooms

Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black; SU Real Red

Gems - Kaisercraft

****

Who can resist red and kraft/cream.  I used the picture in the top right corner and in the process used up another paper from my stash.  Couldn't think of any better stamp set to use than the Nordic style Folk Art Florals.

What you need

Cardstock - PTI Kraft, cream, red

Patterned Paper - American Crafts

Stamps - Wplus9 Folk Art Florals;  Verve (sentiment)

Ink - SU Real Red;  PTI Kraft

Dies - Spellbinders Classic Rectangles

****

Unusual from me, so few combined challenge cards, but couldn't not go without doing it.  More black but I love it with grey, and even though Father's Day for us is in September, my card is already done.

 What you need
Cardstock - PTI white, black;  Silver glitter Doodlebug ?
Stamps - PTI A Little Argyle;  Wplus9 Woodgrain Silhouettes (sentiment)
Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black, London Fog, Grey Flannel
Dies - PTI Pretty Peonies

Where does time go .....

We have had quite a restful Easter, which is good as there was alot of running around in the 2 days before with my daughter - a trip to the orthodontist, decided that braces were happening MUCH sooner than anticipated, like in the next 2 weeks.  Before that she has to have 3 baby teeth removed under general anaesthetic.  Apparently, these days braces are a source of great excitement and she really hopes they will be on before she goes back to school in 2 weeks.  Obviously she isn't paying for them and I will remind her of this time when cleaning her teeth becomes a chore.  The hope is that if they go on now, they will be off in 18 months time.

Anyway, enough of our goings on - a card.  I have been doing alot of kit card making recently, hence the silence over here.  The downside of a kit is that sometimes the patterned paper chosen, is one that I would not have picked in 1000 years, yet that is the challenge.  Also I have been doing alot of Copic colouring - something that tends to happen in fits and starts,  but a technique I am always trying to improve on.

    

 So we have my perfectly polished young lady.  For the Paper Players challenge I settled on

Pink and Green - Birthday - Pearls

What you need

Cardstock - SU white, Gumball Green, Primrose Petals

Stamps - MFT Polished to Perfection;  PTI Quilled Elegance (sentiment), Embroidered Blooms

Ink - SU Primrose Petals, Gumball Green; Memento Tuxedo Black

Copics - as above

Pearls - SU

I will also enter this into the latest Simon Says Stamp Challenge - Anything Goes

****

Another task undertaken this weekend was a complete clean up of my craft room, and believe me, it needed it.  I have had this recent edition of Better Homes and Gardens (Aust. Ed) sitting on my desk, well, since it came out.  It is hard to see but the main picture uses orange and grey as its main theme.  Just crying out as inspiration for a card.  

Unfortunately I was too late for the CASology challenge this week but went ahead with it anyway.  In my cleaning frenzy, there were some new PTI stamp sets to put away.  As they aren't designed to fit CD cases anymore, I find it a chore to make them fit into the cases I have.  But I found this set and had to use it.

I was about to throw the magazine away (minus recipes and DIY stuff), but I think I will keep it for future reference as there are a few more very interesting colour palettes

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white

Stamps - PTI Quilled Elegance, Think Big Favourites

Ink - Memento Grey Flannel, London Fog, Tangelo, Morocco

Gems - Kaisercraft

Right I am off to do some cooking, apart from dinner, there are a couple of biscuit recipes dying to be baked.  Oh and trying some of the baked cheesecake I made earlier.

*****

Thought I would just sneak one more in.  Difficult colours but enjoyed the challenge of pulling it together and very happy with the result.

What you need

Cardstock - SU Always Artichoke, white, Lucky Limeade

Patterned Paper - PTI 2008 Bitty Dot Basics (Ripe Avocado)

Stamps - PTI Birds and Blooms, Think Big Favourites

Ink - SU Lucky Limeade, Pool Party

Die - MFT Retro Squares (?)

Copic - BV25

Gems - Kaisercraft

The weekend that was

Now, this was a challenge.  The colours are a couple of favourites, but how to use them with this sketch. Hmmm  I didn't want to put Island Indigo card over the top of the Pool Party so went with vellum.  It is hard to see but the vellum is stamped with white flowers and then stitched

What you need

Cardstock - SU Pool Party, white, vellum

Stamps - SU Fifth Ave Floral;  TE Treasure Life

Ink - PTI white

Thread - DMC 598

So to my other card of the weekend - pink, black and white, wonderful.  I have tried the layering thing again, but with plenty of white space still.  I have used one of the older Mojo Monday sketches that I really loved.

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white, black;  SU basic grey

DSP - SU Brights Collection

Stamps - Verve Amazing Wishes

Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black

Die - MFT flourish

Ribbon - PTI Smoky Shadow satin

Flowers -  Prima