Fabulous Friend

Another piece of smooshed card here, die-cut to make this jolly balloon against a background embossed with a Stampin' Up folder. I find it difficult to remember the source of lots of my stash particularly the stuff that doesn't see the light of day too frequently. I don't think I've used the balloons before and the hello has seldom been used. I know that the fabulous friend bit is from Clearly Besotted and I just looked up the hello and discovered it's from Technique Tuesday. For the moment the origin of the balloons remains a mystery.

CASe this Sketch

Mixing up Embossing Powders

Here is a simple one layer card using a super Indigo Blu image, stamped with Versamark and embossed in silver gold and black powders.  A tiny amount of each was added without removing any surplus after each addition. It's a little wasteful but I love the effect. The sentiment is from Avery Elle.

It's for AAA CArds Embossing & CAS on Sunday One Layer

Now I'm off to the gym, it's the start of a new programme today!

Beautiful die-cuts

Since I discovered the technique of smooshing, it has become a technique that I use again and again!

Here I incorporated a few Distress Inks with the Inka Gold paste for this background. I diecut the flowers from Concord and 9th from the background and from a piece of white card spritzed with Crafter's Companion Iridescent sparkle spray. I then inset one into the other ( and some of the bits were very fiddly I can tell you!)

The love sentiment is from Winnie and Walter. It's a sentiment that I use SO often on my cards!

                    

                                                          Freshly Made sketches                                As you see it

Wire

There are some new designers joining the team at "Less is More" this week, so do head on over there and say Hi!

The challenge this week is to use wire... quite a tricky one I feel but I'm sure that LIMettes will be up for the challenge!

Here I used a section of wire cut from the spool and just eased open a little then secured on an embossed panel with glue dots. The floral spray is from Simon Says Stamp and the EF from Design Objectives. A little additional leaf spray snuck in there but at the moment I can't remember its origin! I'll keep looking!

I was quite pleased with how this turned out!

I'm sorry I only have one example this time, but I've spent quite some time making my Brother-in-law's wedding invitations this week... plus spending time down at my daughter's in Bath babysitting overnight!

Fabulous flowers

I just love the scribble style of these stamps from  Lil Inkers and I thought they were perfect for a technique I saw done by Jennifer McGuire on one of her videos.

The image was stamped in Versamark and embossed with white EP. The whole piece of card was inked with Mowed Lawn Distress Ink until the colour was quite strong and the card was well covered. The next step was to paint with water inside the image to remove some of the colour, then some Mustard Seed DI was flooded into the flowers and a final coat of Wink of Stella added.

It's such a pretty effect!

It's for the challenge at Addicted to Stamps and more - Make your Mark.

The sentiment is a die-cut from Waffle Flower, mounted over a section of the card embossed with a Cuttlebug folder.
CASology - Distress (Inks)

Simple cards

Today I have a rather sore back! Years ago I had some surgery on it and for the most part since then, it has been fine, but I must have done something to aggravate it and it's letting me know about it!

Anyway it should get better with care. 

Here is a card for the challenge at Color Throwdown and I just love the combination!

I used a scrap of DP which has been lurking around for a while and a new Cuttlebug EF which I bought in Florida recently and am really rather pleased with. The butterfly is from All Occasion Dies and I believe the sentiment is from Waffle Flower.

This one in a similar orientation, has the 'happy' word cut from a Winnie and Walter die and the rest is computer generated. The butterfly is my new acquisition from Simon Says Stamp. I have a couple of friends who prefer this wording to the usual Mother's Day!

Color Q

Sequins

We never like making Sympathy cards and this one was particularly difficult as it was for my son's Godmother whose husband passed away recently. She loves green and for me butterflies always signify change from one state of being to another and so is a focus I use often on this genre of card. The background was smooshed with inks and the butterfly cut with Memory Box dies.  The sentiment is from Die'sire.

The sequins are a mix of tiny ones from eBay (which are perfect for shaker cards) and some pretty shaped ones from Clearly Besotted.

I cut the front panel with a large, stitched, rectangle die from Lil Inkers, extended to make a square.

It's for AAA cards Sequins challenge

Addicted to Stamps - Anything Goes

Lots of texture

Less is More this week has the challenges to add some texture whilst still keeping the card CAS.

This is a card with stamps made from funky foam cut with All Occasion Dies.

These particular dies are super for this technique as they are quite intricate and so make a good impression when cut and inked.

I simply stuck them onto an acrylic block with a glue stick, inked them and was away!

The impressions were clear heat embossed and a few splat stamps were added. Finally I used a regular cut from the die to add as an embellishment!
This is also for Addicted to Stamps - Anything Goes

When making some Thank you cards for a charity, I embossed the front of one card on the wrong side so cut it off to re-use, so here it is as the front panel of this card. The embossing folder is from Hobby Solutions. The butterfly is cut from some smooshed card with a die from All Occasions. The sentiment is from Penny Black.

This dinosaur is from Joanna Sheen, cut from a smooshed piece of card and inked around the edges afterwards!

The background is the debossed side from a Crafter's Companion EF and the sentiment from Taylored Expressions.

One Layer at "Less is More"

There's a DT call at Less is More this week, combined with our usual 

ONE LAYER CARD challenge.

So if CAS is your thing and you would be interested in joining us...head on over there and see the deets!

The theme this week is to include a stem. 

Here I have a digital coneflower image from the Wax Fruit Company, coloured with watercolour pencils and a water brush.

Simon Says Stamp - One Layer

Here's another digital image this time from  A Day for Daisies, once more coloured with watercolour pencils and blended with a water brush. This is such a good medium for colouring one layer cards as the colour doesn't usually bleed through to the inside of the card.

Computer generated sentiment.

My husband got a new car today... it's very shiny!

"Less is More" is 5!

Can you believe that "Less is More" has been going strongly for five years!

I don't know where the time has gone to!

This week there are lots of sponsors and lots of prizes so a very good reason to join in.

As with our very first challenge, it's a colour theme and those chosen this time are

WHITE ON WHITE

Here is a die from MFT, embossed with a Craft Concepts EF, part of which fits the cups of this bra perfectly. The sentiment is from a Penny Black die with additional words computer generated,

I did have a thought after I'd made this that I could have put the  'for your support' bit behind a  lift up flap... maybe next time.

The sentiment here goes to all those who have supported Less is More over the years and it's truly heartfelt.

Here I am in Ocho Rios, Jamaica, last week at the beautiful Konoko Falls and Park... I do apologise for my lack of commenting during my holiday, but on board a cruise ship, there didn't seem to be lots of time!

Here's another white on white shaker card, using all die cuts. The champagne glass is from MFT, the letters are from Memory Box, Alphabet Soup with the @ sign from Cuttlebug.

Finally a wedding card using die-cuts and the Couture Creations embossing folder entitled Tied Together which I think seems so appropriate for a wedding card!

The heart is from Simon Says Stamp, the initials from Cuttlebug, the flourish from MFT and I'm uncertain of the make of the stitched, rounded rectangle.

The sentiment is computer generated in Andalus and Alex Brush Fonts.

I do hope that there will be a bumper number of entries in Less is More's challenge this week to celebrate quite an achievement!

Red

I was asked to make a card for a lady's birthday incorporating a golf theme!

This is what I came up with. The stamp is from Art Impressions, partly paper pieced and coloured with alcohol pens, before cutting out and popping onto dimensional pads.

The  sentiment is computer generated in Cashew Apple Ale font.

Addicted to CAS has the theme RED and I thought this appropriate!

AAA cards has a LOVE theme this time... it is that time of year after all!

I bought some of the elements for this card from Michael's and Hobby Lobby on a recent visit to Florida. The lips are from a Recollections set and the heart embossing folder from Cuttlebug. The sentiment is from a stamp which I've had for some time from Sir Stampalot!

Stamping with Embossing Folders

The challenge at Happy Little Stampers CAS challenge this month is to stamp with an embossing folder.

I have used this technique quite a few times but this time I wanted to go for more of a  watercolour effect.

I used Cuttlebug's Dotty Stems folder and inked it with Twisted Citron and Mermaid Lagoon inks using Sponge daubers to add the ink. I then spritzed this with Shimmer Mist in a champagne shade, then used the folder to stamp the background. I did not close it or emboss the image. You can just see the tiny blooms amongst the watery background.

I stamped a few butterflies and the tiny script stamp from the HLS Thinking of you set over this, using Encore Gold ink, then stamped and embossed the main sentiment, cutting both panels with MFT pierced rectangles.