Seize the Birthday #266

 

It is time for another Seize the Birthday challenge.  As most of you know, I'm an avid reader so I am totally IN LOVE with Glenda's Topping choice to "Be Inspired by a Book."  See if you can guess what book I'm channeling...

Any guesses?  I will give you a small hint.  It was my favorite book of 2022 and my all time favorite behind only Where the Crawdads Sing.  

I was a research lab rat in my former life and most definitely qualify as a total science nerd.  Keep reading and I'll tell you the book later in the post if you haven't already guessed.  

I used two really old alphabet stamp sets to create the Oxygen and Magnesium element boxes.  (I freehanded the squares and intentionally made them a bit wonky.)  I stamped the flasks, colored them with Copics and added a few white gel pen bubbles.  The bottom sentiment was created with a bit of stamp surgery using parts of a sentiment and I added the little clear droplets to mimic gas  bubbles.  I wanted some sort of pattern for the card base so I grabbed a shark set that had tiny bubble stamps which I stamped in black around the perimeter of the gray card base.  

Supplies:

Spellbinders - Reaction stamp set

Avery Elle - Santa Jaws (bubble border)

Crafters Companion - Really Old stamp set (yep, that's the name of it!)

misc alpha stamps - very old and unavailable

So did you guess?

If you haven't read this I HIGHLY recommend it!

I invite you to visit our blog for more book inspiration from our Surprise Party Guest, Izzy, as well as more from our fabulous Design Team.  And as always, thanks so much for visiting me on my blog.

Jules

Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers #239

 

The Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers would like to honor our friend Lindsey on this one year anniversary of her passing.  She was such a light in so many lives and we miss her dearly.  

I miss our daily texts and conversations...both serious and snarky.  Her passing definitely left a huge hole in my heart and it is that (and her love of cats) which inspired my card.  

I set aside my usually snark in lieu of something from my heart.

Miss You, Friend.

I chose a fog cardstock for my background in honor of her beloved gray cat Duncan.  The background was created by using two kitty dies using the same fog cardstock.  I adhered them in a wonky fashion, cutting down the finished panel so as to leave a nice wide white border.  (I popped it up with fun foam for added interest.) I layered a white die cut onto a stack of black die cuts for the focal image and then added a heat embossed sentiment strip.  Nothing more was needed.

Even if you didn't know Lindsey we would love for you to join us in celebrating her life.  She loved books, cats, happy hour and family.  Snark or no snark, we'd love for you to play along with L is for Lindsey!

Supplies:

PoppyStamps - cat dies

MFT Stamps - Housecat stamp set

As always, thanks so much for spending a bit of your day with me!

Jules

Color Hues #68

The Color Hues gang is back for our mid-month challenge.  Our fearless leader Nancy is our host and she has chosen a wonderful color duo for us to try.  

Olive and Berry!

My initial thought was florals however I thought I'd mix it up a bit.  This older stamp set from Simon Says Stamps immediately came to mind as did this wonderful sentiment die by Cathy Z.  They're the perfect match for this color combo!

I stamped the background in opposite corners of the panel, colored the images with Copics and then embossed the background using a 3 dimensional folder.  The die cut sentiment is stacked three high.  I had originally planned to adhere it horizontally but I decided to live on the edge *wink* and place it on the diagonal.  I didn't have the right shade of berry in my cardstock collection so I used a Copic to color the outer edges before popping the panel up on the base.  And because I'm a creature of habit, I had to add in my customary sprinkling of clear droplets.  

Supplies:

Simon Says Stamp - Time for Wine stamp set

Simon Says Stamp / CZ Designs - Send Wine die

Altenew - Deck Planks embossing folder

I invite you to join us over at the Color Hues blog where you'll see the many hues of Olive and Berry on our DT examples.   Do come play along!

As always, thanks so much for spending a bit of your day with me!

Jules

 

Seize the Birthday #265

Hello Crafty Friends!  It's time for another Seize the Birthday challenge.  Colleen is our host this time around and she has chosen Circles as our Topping.  You may use a single circle or multiples in any method you choose.  I decided on a die cut circle background as the base for my design.  

My card was based upon one I saw on IG.  The creator was Angela Meiritz-Reid, aka stampingbeautynz.  Her blue card with white daisy die cuts really caught my eye.  

I began with two different shades of cornflower blue cardstocks.  I used the deeper color for the base and the lighter shade as the die cut panel.  I then die cut two additional pieces of the lighter blue and stacked them underneath to create a bit of dimension.  I die cut the florals from white and the darker blue cardstock and arranged them onto the card front.  I stamped the sentiment onto a die cut label using a coordinating color of dye ink, positioned it about midway and then finished it off with a generous amount of blue shaded pearls.  

Supplies:

Spellbinders - Stylish Oval Birthday Wishes stamp set

CC Designs - A2 Circle Cut & Stitch cover plate

Spellbinders - Die of the Month July 2018 (florals)

Pinkfresh Studio - Fancy Label die set

Our new Surprise Party Guest is Isabella, aka Izzy Scrap.   We are delighted to have her join us for the next two months!  I invite you to visit our blog for more circular inspiration from Izzy as well as our Design Team.  And as always, thanks so much for visiting me on my blog.

Jules

Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers #238

 

Welcome to another installment of Sisterhood Saturday where we have lots of new snark to boost your mental health.  Today marks a new prompt for this fortnight...Upcycle.

Our Lee is such a clever human!

There are many ways to incorporate this prompt but for me what came to mind was altering "any ole something into something else."  Or in my case, a store bought card into a semi handmade one.  This particular card was given to me by a friend who knows flamingos are my spirit animal and I love her for that.

  

I removed the front of her card, cut it down, slapped a new hand stamped sentiment banner over top of the original greeting, added some bling and then adhered it to a hand stamped card base.  Voila!  A new card is born.  

Supplies:

Mass Produced Card Front

Hero Arts - Tropical Foliage background stamp

Technique Tuesday - Sassy Birthday stamp set

Little Things by Lucy - Fairytale Crystals

I'm excited to see just what you choose to Upcycle.  We have wonderful examples from my Sistahs on the blog as well as a card from our new Reigning Queen Granne.  We all love a good snark but it's not a prerequisite to enter.  

As always, thanks so much for spending a bit of your day with me!

Jules

Happy Little Stampers - July Christmas Challenge

 

Happy Fourth of July to my USA friends.  I hope you're all enjoying a wonderful day off from work and spending it with family and friends.  

Today I'm sharing a card created for our Happy Little Stampers July Christmas challenge where the (optional) prompt is Twinkle.

This fabulous die set is new to me and I really, really wanted to use it while still adhering to our prompt so I gave this cute reindeer some twinkling stars on his antlers.  

I used several different colors of cardstocks to die cut the elements and then followed the package design to adhere them together.  I added the stars to his antlers (the packaging shows flowers), adhered him to an embossed panel, added a die cut sentiment banner and then finally an overload of bling.  (In hindsight, it was far too many but it is what it is.)  The whole panel was popped up with fun foam onto a heavyweight red card base.  

Supplies:

Spellbinders - Magical Deer die set

Spellbinders - So Many Sentiments die set

Fun Stampers Journey - Cozy Knit embossing folder

Mama Elephant - Confetti Cuts die (stars)

I invite you to visit our blog for more holiday inspiration.  We'd love to see your card in our gallery.  Prompts are always optional but remember that only holiday cards qualify.  

As always, thanks so much for spending a bit of your day with me!

Jules

Color Hues #67

 

Happy July crafty friends!  We are starting out the month with a new Color Hues challenge brought to you by Marcia.  I took advantage of the opportunity and incorporated her colors into a Father's Day card for hubby.  

 

Given that my red cardstock appears more cranberry than merlot in my photo, now is a good time to remind everyone that this is a hues challenge meaning there is flexibility in the color range.  Don't be afraid to have a bit of fun with it.

For my card...

I used an embossing folder to create the texture on the focal panel.  The die cut "Dad" was stacked four high for dimension and adhered over top of an embossed strip that was first stamped and then heat embossed in gold.  I added the gold pearls for accents and hope they didn't take away from the masculine vibe.  

Supplies:

Lil Inkers - Dad die

Avery Elle - Mom & Dad stamp set

Spellbinders - gold foil pearls

Altenew - Checkered Squares embossing folder

Our designers have created some fabulous inspiration pieces so I hope you'll visit the blog and join in on the fun. 

As always, thanks so much for spending a bit of your day with me!

Jules