Seize the Birthday Guest - Text Background

I'm kicking it old school with the ladies at Seize the Birthday challenge as their surprise party guest and I had so much fun playing along in their latest challenge.

I love a good card with an old-timey vintagey feel to it, so when I read that the new challenge was to use a text/script background I was all sorts of happy. 

I stamped some gorgeous poppies from a Penny Black stamp set and watercolored it in using some Dina Wakely Scribble Sticks. 

I used some black and tan damask paper as well as some vintagey text paper for my background.

My card was also inspired by the sketch challenge going on at The Paper Players right now. 

I'm also going to play along in:
Craft Rocket Challenges - Something beginning with "F" (flower)


There is some gorgeous inspiration up at the Seize the Birthday blog and you all should go check it out!! 

STAMPlorations New Release Blog Hop + Giveaway

Hello Ladies and Gentlemans! Today is a very special day because it's a new release party!!! I always love breaking open a new package of stamps. Something about hearing the crinkle of the bag and trying desperately to unstick the polymer clings from the packaging just does it for me. 

STAMPlorations is releasing 4 new sets today and they are all focused on the special ladies in your life - yo mama. 

I want to show off the card designs I made using these fantastic new stamps:

Using The Bee's Knees Parfumerie. The vintage perfume bottles were a perfect pairing with these old-timey 1920's ladies.

Using Big Grins by Becca Cruger - Sweet & Sassy Mom. If you're looking for a mother's day/lady set that pairs humor and sweetness, this is the stamp set for you! 

Using Dee's Artsy Impressions - Best Mom Ever. I love this big ol' flower arrangement and used watercolors and gold shimmer to really make it pop. 

Using Shery Russ Designs - One Cool Chick. This artsy girl was just screaming for a graphic, edgy design and I happily obliged. 

Here's what you need to know:
Number one, these stamps are in the STAMPlorations store right now and my bloggy readers can get 20% off their ENTIRE order by using the discount code STAMPGIRLBECCA at checkout.

Number two - if you hop along, we're drawing 2 prizes. One commenter will win a choice of a stamp set and one commenter will win a $15 gift certificate. Winners will be drawn from comments left on the STAMPlorations blog and participating designers blogs. 

What are you waiting for! Head over to the New Release Party and hop along!

Happy Birthday Monica - Blog Linky Party + Prizes

Ya'll! (I know I'm not even close to being Southern, but it really makes for a perfect interjection)

Ya'll! 

Monica Taylor of TaylorMade4U Cards is celebrating her 50th year on this earth and she's invited some bloggy friends to celebrate with her. Not only that - Monica is giving away some seriously awesome prizes - like lots of them! 

How do you win said prizes? Check out that uber lovely mood board, put together by Monica to inspire you! She wants you to create a card inspired by the mood board and the word "Journey" and link it up. 

I loved the old timey car and was drawn to the browns and the blues I saw in the picture, so here's what I made:

I used some BoBunny papers and Tim Holtz stamp sets and added in some metal gears to complete the look. 

I'm also going to play along at:
Southern Girls Challenge - About a Boy
Aud Sentiments - Stamp your Sentiment
The Corrosive Challenge - Anything Goes
Come and Get it - Make it Square

So we don't have any party fouls, here are Monica's party rules:

1.  Look at the mood board and find something that reminds you of a JOURNEY.

2. Create a project and link it up. This can be a card, canvas or anything that inspires you and in any style.

3.  Follow Monica's blog & like her Facebook page

4. Leave me a comment 

There are also some fun discount codes to use throughout her party!

1. I BRAKE FOR STAMPS - 10% off using coupon code SAVE10MONICA
2. STAMPLORATIONS - 20% off  in stamp store using coupon code STAMPGIRLBECCA
3. TAYLORMADECARDS4U - 10% off using coupon code BIRTHDAYBASH

Now for the prizes:

Prize - Memory Box Sponsored by Taylormadecards4u

Prize - $15 gift certificate to I Brake for Stamps (2 people)

Prize - T.H.E. Bag - Sponsored by Simply Charming Bags

Prize - Perfectly Posh gift set - Sponsored by Aimees Posh

Prize - Stamp Set by creator of Big Grins - Becca Cruger from Big Grins (2 people)

Prize - $15 Gift Certificate to Canvas Corp Brands

Prize - Umbrella Crafts Papercrafting Favorites Kit-  Sponsored by Scrapbook.com

Prize - The Ton - Stamp set of your choice

Prize - Celebrate Mini Digital Sentiment kit- Sponsored by Decosses Dynamite Doodles (3 people)

Prize - Set of Vintage Printables - Sponsored by VectoriaDesigns (3 people)

Prize - 7Gypsies Stash - Sponsored by Taylormadecards4u

Prize - One Paper Pack and one digital set of your choosing - Sponsored by MHKDesigns
 

What are you waiting for? Go play along already!

Celebrate Your Birthday Card - Retro Style

I love working with retro things, vintage embellishments and fun patterns so the monthly challenge at STAMPlorations is sah-weet for my cardmaking inspiration. 

I wanted to have some fun with the colors and patterns of the late 60s and early 70s so I broke out some of my vintagey papers. 

I chose this rich gold-brown and used a white pigment ink to stamp a subtle pattern using balloons from A Snarky Birthday to You.

I layered on funky patterned papers, adding some texture with with CUTplorations Art Edges for a little bit of visual interest. 

I used the CUTplorations Celebrate Word Die and double layered it for dimension, stamped a sentiment using SENTIMENT BUILDERS: Celebrate, scribbled on some x's using a white gel pen, and splashed the whole thing with some Picket Fence Distress Spray Stains. 

Vintage Chic Card - Valentine

I know... I know... it's the day after Valentine's Day and I should stop already, but I just can't! I've whipped up SO many valentines this season and I've still got a few more to showcase. 

Case in point? This one that I designed for the latest The Card Concept challenge, which hit the internet TODAY. 

Isn't that inspiration image a beaut? I love all the vintagey goodness going on and was super inspired by the scrawly script and leather heart. 

So I decided to make some paper leather. 

Check that out! This was made with a combination of Vintage Photo, Walnut Stain, Antique Linen, and Tea Dye Distress Inks - using the Distress Ink Double Dipping technique. 

Next, I brought out a lovely little cardboard heart and did some alterations to give it texture and life. 

I started by using Vintage Photo Distress Paint over the surface of the cardboard and, while it was still wet, sprinkled some Rust Embossing Powder over the top. I heat set it with my embossing gun and edged the heart with a coppery InkaGold. 

To bring in the scrawly script, I used a big background stamp and added a layer of Distress Crayon and Distress Spray Stain splatters, edging the whole panel in InkaGold to tie it in. 

Put it all together and what do you get? Taaaa daaaa! 

I hope you'll go check out the other awesome inspiration on The Card Concept blog and then play along! 

I'm going to enter my card at the following challenges:
Mixed Media World - Anything Mixed Media Goes
Try it on Tuesday - Let's Get Messy with Paints/inks

A Punny Valentine's Day Card

Ah, February, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways:
1) You give me reasons to make tons of punny cards
2)  I can fully express my love of all things hot pink
3)  You're short - just like me

 

If you haven't guessed by now, I've got another Valentine's Day card to share with you! Actually - two of them! I loved the first one so much that I made it in duplicates. 

But before I get toooo far ahead of myself, let's talk about where I'm drawing my inspiration from. It's time for a brand spankin' new STAMPlorations theme & sketch challenge. 

As lovely as the sketch is, I saw the theme "Stamps & Retro" and could see no further than that. Especially since I just got the new Hello You 5x7 Stamp Club set and <3 <3 <3 everything about it!

I could not WAIT to ink up that typewriter. I also wanted more of a V-day lovey dovey sentiment, so I decided to make my own. 

I verrrrry carefully (because stamping is such an exact science right? <-- please see sarcasm in the dictionary for a full definition) drew a tiny little sheet of paper and then hand-lettered a punny typewriter-related phrase. 

I layered and layered and layered following the sketch from the Hand Stamped Sentiments challenge. 

Figuring out how so many patterns could go together and not clash was so fun, that I decided to do it a second time in order to create a more masculine version and used the color challenge from The Color Throwdown.

Taaaaa-daaaaaaa! 

My cards are also going to play along in:
Simon Says Wednesday - Color of Love
Craft Rocket Challenge - It's a Love Thing
Cute Card Thursday - Be My Valentine

Thanks for popping by!!

A Tale of Two Coffee Cards - Vintage vs. Modern

Last night I buckled down in my craft room and had a coffee card making FRENZY. Ok, ok, I really only made two cards, but I knocked them out so quickly that I'm going to stick with the frenzy.

It just seemed like whatever stamp I pulled out spoke to me and said "oooo la la" (they were apparently French) "this is exactly what you should do with me". I probably should have stayed and crafted more but my craft studio is still at my old house until the craft studio at my new place gets finished. And it's scary crafting all alone in the dark in a big empty house!

Anywho - you're here for the cards, and not my blabbering - RIGHT?!

My first design is nothing but a study in vintage frillery (it's a word if I say it is). STAMPlorations just released a card for all of you tea lovers out there called Always Tea Time and it's so luscious! I decided to try out a no-line watercoloring technique. 

I stamped the image using Tattered Rose Distress Ink and then smudged the Tattered Rose and Vintage Photo DIs onto my craft mat and used them to watercolor. I love how this turned out - all antiquey and gorgeous. 

I piled on some of my grandma's vintage lace, along with some Martha Stewart Crafts metal corners. 
My card was really inspired by this lovely card from Tracey McNeely over at Muse Challenge:

I know some of you might be scratching your heads thinking - huh? Hers is so Clean and Simple, how could it possibly be inspired by that. The truth is, I rarely do CAS anything... but I was so inspired by the watercoloring and the soft pinks and greens. I saw Tracey's card and just fell in LOVE! <3  And this is what happened when I tried to duplicate something similar haha!! I started with a simple watercolored image, but then I kept adding layers and layers because... my stupid brain.


I'm also sending this one over to play along with Vintage Stamping Challenges - Lots of Layers 

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And NOW for something completely different. Last Coffee Lover's Blog Hop I won an adorable set called I LOVE Coffee from Uniko Studio. 

I also saw this funky cool, bright image from The Challenge this week:

I loved the bright colors mixed with the black and white. Those bold pink blooms just stole my heart.

I stamped the coffee mug and then just decided to start doodling. I used a Micron pen to make a sketchy frame and then started writing coffee over and over again in a scrawling script. 

BLAM! This is what happened! I colored the stamp using one of my brightest pink Spectrum Noir Markers (BP5) and did the same for the sentiment. Then I outlined both stamped things using my black pen. 

A little bit more doodling, a couple of strips of washi tape and I was set! 

Woot!

I'm also sending this one over to Simon Says Stamp - Food or Drink challenge

Last, but not least, these are both going over to the Spring Coffee Lovers Blog Hop. 

 

Thanks for popping by, my friends! :) Wishing you the best Tuesday you ever had! 

 PSsssst - if you like the Always Tea Time set, It's currently on sale up at the STAMPlorations shop for 15% off using code SPRINGCLBH - in fact, EVERYTHING in the store is 15% off with that code.