Look...it's not a card!

This week, over at Crafty Contagion, it's anything but a card time! I get so used to making cards that sometimes it's hard to think of what I would make instead of a card lol. I managed to make a couple of things, though. Both of these are quick and easy and would make great gifts.

The first one is a 3x3 Post It note cover. I know at first glance it looks like a card, but open it up and it has a Post It pad tucked inside. Everything I used to make this is from Stampin' Up! except the crimper I used for the leaves. The measurements were easy. All I did was measure the pad and add 1/4" to all sides except the top. I adhered the pad with a strip of Scor-Tape on the back of the bottom sheet to make sure it stayed secure.

The second little project is something you could keep a couple of in your desk at work with different sentiments stamped on them like thank you, happy birthday, etc. All the items I used are Stampin' Up! even the ribbon. There is a sentiment on both sides and tucked inside the triangle are a few Hershey's Kisses. I need to cut the paper a smidge bigger next time since it was a very tight fit to get the bottom to stay together.

Have you made anything lately that isn't a card? Give it a try...it was a blast! Enjoy your weekend!

Cherie

I did some CASEing

I'm finding Pinterest to be a great source when I have crafter's block. It's a wonderful place to gather ideas and find some amazing inspiration. These are cards I CASEd from some of the people I follow on Pinterest.

This is the card I made for my mom for her birthday. The DP is a 6x6 Authentique pad and I used the Swiss Dots EF for the background. That button has a pattern on the other side of it, but went to well with the papers that I needed to use the back of it.

For this one, I used SU Sprinkled Expressions for the stamp and sentiment. I stamped it three times without reinking to get the look. I used Nesties Labels 8 to cut it out and the Swiss Dots EF for the background. For the ink around the edges, a makeup sponge works great.

This is a birthday card I made for my cousin. The DP is Mango Mambo from SU as well as the sentiment and black ribbon. Yet again, I used the Swiss Dots EF for the background. I like it because it's bigger and can fit a piece of 5 1/2 x 4 1/4 piece of paper without any problems.

I love the look of this card and the fact that I used scraps to make it. The Basic Grey DP has some blue in it so it's not completely monochromatic. The sentiment is from SU. To make the banner ends, I cut from the bottom up then from each corner to the top of the first cut. I don't have a square punch like so many people use to make the banner ends.

I hope this gives you some ideas for those times when nothing seems to help. Enjoy your day!

Cherie

Sketches 39-43

Here are a few more S&S sketches I've been working on. Let's jump right in, shall we?

Sketch 39 is first on the list. The kites are from Hero Arts OWH Righ At Home set. I didn't color them because there is so much color and busy-ness from the background paper. The sentiment is DeNami.

For sketch 40, I used some patterned scraps and a bit of ribbon to cover where the papers meet. My first thought was to make it a masculine card, but my purple ink was screaming to be used. In order to keep it happy, I used it with this great Inkadinkado stamp. Four little dabs of silver Pearl Pen complete the look.

Next is sketch 41. I used one of the new stamps I picked up at the rubber stamp and paper show last weekend by Endless Creations. I spent way too much money at their booth but it was worth it! The background is actually a card from one of those boxes you can buy at Joann's. You know the ones, they have about 100 cards in them and are usually lots of different patterns. I came across a few I had leftover when I was looking for something else the other day. I didn't want anything that would detract from the sentiment. A few lines of Baker's Twine and presto...a card.

Let's move on to sketch 42. The card base is another one from that big box. The sentiment comes from Endless Creations. At first I put some Pearl Pen in the corners, but it didn't give enough pow. So I added pearls to the middle of the Pearl Pen and it looked a lot better.

Last but not least for today is sketch 43. These are both new stamps from Endless Creations. I simply couldn't resist the image stamp and the sentiment was meant to go with a couple of mummy stamps I have, but it went well with this, I think. The image is colored with Copics and has touches of Glossy Accents. The layering paper pattern is shiny bronze and gives it an extra bit of pizzazz.

That's all for today, everyone. Thanks for taking the time to check out my blog!

Cherie

Sketch 38

Oh my! I had so much fun with the next sketch on my list. You will find sketch 38 here. I did several cards with this sketch and used two pieces of 12x12 paper out of my stash. Yay! I'm two pieces closer to being able to buy more paper lol. So here we go.
The first two have a cute little freebie on them. It's colored with Copics. To make the pattern on them, I simply used my Copic Colorless Blender. The sentiment is from one the Hero Arts OWH sets. There's a bit of Glossy Accents added to make them shine a bit.

These next two have another freebie, also colored with Copics. I added some Glossy Accents to the hearts. The first sentiment is, again, a Hero Arts OWH set and the second sentiment is DeNami.

For this one, I used the princess bobblehead from Bugaboo. These are so adorable that I think I have more printed out than I could ever use. This time I layered the background strips in black to make them stand out a bit more. To be honest, I didn't even think about it before I got to this card and it was too late to go back and redo the other ones lol. She is colored with Copics, the sentiment is Hero Arts again, and there's more Glossy Accents. I added some bling to her crown and she turned out so pretty.

Finally, I used a MelonHeadz (I think) freebie on the last card. It was already colored which is always a plus. I can totally see a parent sending this to one of their children. There's a bit of Glossy Accents on the ice cubes.

I really enjoy this sketch as you can see. Is there a sketch you really enjoy working with?

As a little side note, the bling on the first three cards came from this:

I found this big and, I think, gaudy leaf/branch thing in the clearance bin at Ben Franklin. There is no way I'd use the whole thing on a card or scrapbook page, but when I saw it I could easily picture deconstructing it and using bits and pieces on lots of projects. Does this ever happen to you?

Enjoy your day!

Cherie

Disney Squares

I purchased this adorable Disney paper awhile ago. It was covered with little squares, each having a Disney character in it. I cut them all up and made several cards, then I got tired of looking at them so I tucked them away. Well, a couple of weeks ago I purchased some Sesame Street paper that was the same except with Sesame Street characters. I told myself I have to finish using the Disney before I can cut up the Sesame Street. I'm making good headway and here are a few of the cards.

I really like how the red pops out from the white and purple on this one.

This is the only Minnie I had left. She just seemed to call out for ric-a-rac and a button. 

Some of you might recognize S&S sketch 6 here. I made several of this one with different embossing folders for the backgrounds. I like how the yellow pops in the middle. The sentiment is DeNami.

The last one for today has a great Inkadinkado stamp. Those kid sayings just make me smile...all over my face!

I still have some Disney characters left, but it's time to work on a few more sketches. So I'll have some more adorable Disney faces for you soon. I hope someone puts a smile all over YOUR face today!

Cherie

Pinterest Inspiration

How many of you have discovered Pinterest? I have and it's given me a lot of inspiration! Today I'm going to share some of the cards I've made from that inspiration. All of these were part of the gifts I gave to my mom and stepmom for Mother's Day. I gave them each a set of 12 cards with envelopes. It was odd giving the cards to anyone but Operation Write Home!

All of the sentiments are from SU! Everything else was in my stash.

Do you ever give a set of cards as a gift? I love sharing my creativity that way and everyone is so appreciative.

Hope you're having a great week!

Cherie

Sketches 33 - 37

It's that time again...time for more S&S sketches! I've found myself leaning towards more masculine type cards these days. Some are even brown as per Sandy's "request."

You'll find sketch 33 here. As usual these days, all of the papers are from my stash. The sentiment is from SU! I added a little more detail by piercing around the edge and connecting the dots with a black pen.

This is sketch 34. I used more of the same papers and a different sentiment from the same SU! set. This time I added detail with a Pearl Pen. I've been trying to use the entire sheet of paper once I cut into it. This prevents less scraps and I already have the mojo flowing for those papers.

For sketch 35, I used a cute stamp from Rubbernecker and a sentiment from one of the Hero Arts OWH sets. Look...browns! I added a bit of ribbon to hide where the papers meet. I colored the image with Copics and white embossed the sentiment.

Next on the list would be sketch 36. Did you notice more brown? All of the stamps are from Hero Arts OWH sets. I stamped the middle sentiment in black, then I used Memento London Fog for the others. I stamped it once then again to give it the progressively lighter look. There's a brad holding the clock hands on the clock.

The last sketch for this post is 37. The patterned papers I've had forever and just recently found in a drawer. They have metallic touches of copper and bronze on them that make them really pop. I believe they're from a 4X6 DCWV pack. The sentiment is SU! and there's a bit of Pearl Pen to help ground it.

That's it for this post. I hope you're all having a wonderful spring!

Cherie

Miss Ewe

Happy Saturday, everyone! I hope everyone is having beautiful weather like we are here in Washington. This is the fourth weekend in a row that's been gorgeous and it's supposed to break into the 70s! Trust me, that's something to write about if you live here lol.

Today it's Down on the Farm time over at Crafty Contagion. Our challenge is to make something with a farm animal on it. I had a lot of options to choose from in my printed digis, but I decided on this cute sheep that you can find for free on the Operation Write Home site.

I used Copics for the grey and Pearl Pen for the dots on the sheep. The embossing folder is Geo Flowers from The Paper Studio. The background designer paper is from DCWV. The whole thing is based on sketch 6 from the Stars & Stamps blog.

Enjoy your weekend, everyone! And to all the mothers out there, Happy Mother's Day!

Cherie

S&S Sketches 30-32

Today I have some Stars & Stripes sketches for you. I'm working on the last few cards for the Muscle Card challenge that are due no later than April 30. It's been fun working on the masculine type cards. I had no idea how easy they could be once I put my mind to it!

For sketch 30, I used two SU stamps from the Best Dad Ever set, some Basic Grey DP I got on clearance at a LSS, and some cardstock I had on hand.

This is sketch 31. I used the same papers, a cute stamp from Inkadinkado and some black brads.

Last, I did sketch 32. Again, I used the same papers. I love it when I use the papers I just bought. The stamp is from the SU Happiest Birthday Wishes set and I added a couple of small Pearl Pen dots. I rounded opposite corners to give it a softer look. I love my corner rounder.

I hope you enjoyed my take on these great sketches. Enjoy the rest of your day!

Cherie



Hello, everyone! It's been awhile since I've posted, but here I am again!

Today I have a pretty spring time card for you that goes with the new challenge over on Crafty Contagion. This time it's a recipe challenge: use 3 patterned papers, 2 ribbons and 1 punch. At first I was a bit worried, but I got these great Stampin' Up! papers that go so well together. Actually, this whole card is made from Stampin' Up! products.

The Melon Mambo and  Rich Razzleberry patterned papers are from DSP Brights Collection and form the flower. I used the Owl Builder punch to create the flower. The ribbons are SU, too. For the background, I used their Elegant Lines embossing folder on Certainly Celery and I did the stem and leaves free hand on Old Olive. The thank you is from the For All You Do set. I used my Stamp-a-ma-jig to get the sentiment straight.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I did making it.

Enjoy your weekend!

Cherie

S&S Sketches 26-29

For the next three sketches, I used the same patterned papers. I love these two papers together, the rocks and stripes. The first two sentiments are all from my mom's stash and the third is Kid Quotes by Inkadinkado. There's some Pearl Pen on all of them to make them pop.

Sketch 26

Sketch 27

Sketch 28

The last one for today is sketch 29. I used my brand new Stampin' Up! set Best Dad Ever for the sentiment and ties. The ties were stamped on the white paper, then stamped again on the back of patterned paper, cut out and paper pieced. The background is a Cuttlebug EF. I made four of these for the new masculine card challenge at Operation Write Home.

Enjoy the rest of your week!

Cherie

S&S Sketches 21-25

Without any delay, let's get to it! First up is sketch 21. The "wood" paper is DCWV. I'm not sure about the sentiment, but it's embossed in black. I pierced the outer edge and used a black pen for some faux stitching.

For sketch 22, I used some Graphics 45 paper and a Fiskars sentiment. It needed just a bit more, so some Pearl Pen was added.

The sentiment for sketch 23 is from Hero Arts and everything else is from my stash. I made this card by starting with the button and working around it. Love this button.

This sentiment, for sketch 24, is actually three different stamps all from one set by Hot Off the Press. The patterned papers are from two different DCWV pads. The ivory paper is handmade and I added a bit of Pearl Pen for a bit of bling.

This next one is sketch 25 and took a couple of attempts. For some reason, I just could not get the dimensions right. The sentiment is from my mom's stamps as well as the brown striped paper. In fact, so is the Pearl Pen since I made the card at her house.

That's it for today. I'm happy with my forward progress working on the S&S sketches. It makes me feel good to keep moving down the list.

Happy day!

Cherie

Two Hearts Coming Together

My husband has a friend who just got engaged and he asked if I would make a card for her. My first question was "what's her favorite color?" His reply was blue lol. So today we went to the LSS and I had him pick out the blue he wanted me to use. I figured it was simpler than trying to determine which blue he wanted. This is what I came up with. I'm not sure who makes the flourish stamps but the EF is from Cuttlebug. After I saw the picture, I went back and added Glossy Accents to the dots and the end of the flourishes. The blue really pops; he picked a great color.

Yesterday I made a couple of cards with buttons I've had for awhile. I had the hardest time coming up with ideas to showcase the buttons themselves because they are so pretty and I didn't want them lost. The shapes are all Nesties, the AEIOU stamp is Hero arts, not sure about the miss you stamp.  The EF is Geo Flowers from The Paper Studio. I'm still not completely happy with them, but they'll have to do.

This one was inspired by a pin on Pinterest. I was dying to make a pretty spring card. The flowers are Hero Arts Earth Flowers, the sentiment is Magenta and the EF is Cuttlebug. I used Nesties for the ovals. The flower is embossed with Recollections Snow embossing powder.

Now if it would just stop snowing here, I'd be all set for spring!

I hope your day made you smile.

Cherie