Ice Skating Chloe at Pink Gem Designs

Hello!

It's time for another challenge over at A Gem of a Challenge, and this week (Challenge #97) the theme is "Use Two Images." This challenge will run from 8:00 AM September 14, to 6:00 PM September 20, and the prize for the winner will be 2 individual digi images (NOT SETS) from Pink Gem Designs. So do head on over and see what the rest of the lovely Design Team have created, then join us, won't you? We'd love to see you!

It's time to start getting one's Christmas and winter-themed cards under way, so today's card shows sweet little "Ice Skating Chloe" out on the ice.  I've used the digital stamp version, but she is also available as a polymer stamp which you can find here.

I've colored her with Copics and placed her behind a window frame cut with my Silhouette Cameo, which I then dry brushed with two shades of silver shimmer paints to loosely mimic woodgrain.

Check out her fluffy earmuffs and the trim on her coat.  This was done with Puffies puff paint which puffs up with heat, no dry time required as with regular puff paints.

I've glittered the snowflake die cut then applied the "Christmas Time Calendar" to it with a rhinestone decoration and some hand numbering after first coloring it with Copics.  Rhinestones also decorate the tiny snowflakes and the side of the base layer.  Can one have too many rhinestones?  Not in my world.

I've stamped the inside with off-stamped snowflakes, leaving plenty of room for a message.

Thank you for joining me today, and do pop by the rest of the Design Team to see what they have created for you.  And don't forget to play along in our challenge!

Happy crafting!

Challenges entered:

Oozak #21 - Anything Goes w/die cuts/punches
Fussy And Fancy #97 - Sports
Oldie But a Goodie - Spots and Stripes (snowflake rhinestones and window wood grain - my oldies are the rhinestones - had them for over a year).

Pretty Martha

Hello!
It's time for another challenge over at A Gem of a Challenge, and this week (Challenge #94) the theme is "Anything With a B." This challenge will run from 8:00 AM August 24, to 6:00 PM August 30, and the prize for the winner will be 2 individual digi images (NOT SETS) from Pink Gem Designs. So do head on over and see what the rest of the lovely Design Team have created, then join us, won't you? We'd love to see you!

Today I've used the sweet, vintage image called "Martha" from the Pink Gem Designs store.  Isn't she sweet?  And my "things with a B" are the colors blue and brown, plus bows, a button and a bouquet of flowers. 

I've colored her with Copics using puff paint for the white flowers and pink Stickles on the red ones for a wee bit of sparkle. 

Look closely at the paper.  Looks 3-dimensional, doesn't it?  Actually it's newly-released digital paper, "Champagne Lace," also from the Pink Gem store.  

I colored the blue flower, which was white to begin with, using Copics and rubbing alcohol.  The seam binding was hand dyed and tied into a double bow, and a brown double bow was adhered on top, finished off with a vintage baby button.  A few additional flowers, some stitching and a couple of pearls complete the card.

Thank you so much for joining me today and I wish you a lovely Saturday doing the things YOU want to do, be it crafting, spending time with the family, or both!  And don't forget to visit us at A Gem of a Challenge and play along!


Happy crafting!

Challenges entered:

Snowflake Bear at A Gem of a Challenge

Hello!

It's time for another challenge over at A Gem of a Challenge, and this week (Challenge #91) the theme is "Pearls", which can include anything pearlescent, be it paints, papers, embellishments, etc. This challenge will run from 8:00 AM August 3, to 6:00 PM August 9, and the prize for the winner will be 2 individual digi images (NOT SETS) from Pink Gem Designs. So do head on over and see what the rest of the lovely Design Team have created, then join us, won't you? We'd love to see you!

For this card I used the adorable PGD stamp "Baby Polar Bear."  Isn't she just the sweetest thing?  For the white base layer I sponged two colors of blue ink through a snowflake stencil.  OK, I'll confess - I used the wrong color of blue ink and redid it with the correct color thus giving a slightly two-toned appearance.  I like it.

I colored her with Copics then masked her while I airbrushed the background, also with Copics.  Some clear glitter on the littls stars and snow, and some gold glitter on the big star added a nice note of sparkle.  I splattered some thinned white acrylic paint to mimic falling snow, once again masking the image.

The diecut snowflakes have been glittered up, and I hand wrote the word "JOY" on the tiny banner and added a couple of pearls.  Pearls also decorate the little bear's winter scarf.

A different angle to try to show the sparkle and dimension.

I also stenciled the inside a little bit.

Thank you so much for joining me today and I wish you a lovely Saturday doing the things YOU want to do, be it crafting, spending time with the family, or both!  And don't forget to visit us at A Gem of a Challenge and play along!

Happy crafting!

Challenges entered:

Simon Says...Anything Goes
Divas By Design - Favorite Color Combination (red and navy)
Pile It On - Anything Goes

Stamp Nation - Sketch

 

Floral Heart

Hello!

It's time for another challenge over at A Gem of a Challenge, and this week (Challenge #88) the theme is "Spots or Stripes (or both)."  This challenge will run from 8:00 AM July 13, to 6:00 PM July 19, and the prize for the winner will be 2 individual digi images (NOT SETS) from Pink Gem Designs. So do head on over and see what the rest of the lovely Design Team have created, then join us, won't you? We'd love to see you!

My project today uses several items from the PGD store, starting with the striped and dotted digi papers.  They have been discontinued but have been replaced with so many lovely new digi papers that you really owe it to yourself to check them out.  The stamps are Flower Heart and one from the Vintage Occasions Sentiment set.  I used my Silhouette Cameo to cut both stamps out after printing.

I colored the heart with chalks and then added Perfect Pearls in their centers.  I haven't used my Perfect Pearls in ages - for most of them this was the first time, and it turns out I was able to use every single color I have!

I used one of my handmade stick pins with a little added charm and put it through the hand dyed seam binding bow.  I didn't have any pink striped baker's twine, so I colored that myself too.

Some stitching, vintage lace and a few more pearls finish things off.

Thank you so much for joining me today and I wish you a lovely Saturday doing the things YOU want to do, be it crafting, spending time with the family, or both!  And don't forget to visit us at A Gem of a Challenge and play along.

Happy crafting!

Challenges entered:

Oozak #17 - Anything Goes w/a Girlie Theme
The Ribbon Reel #57 - Picnics
Simon Says...  Pin It
Divas By Design - Charming
Crafty Ribbons #52 - Anything Goes w/Ribbon
Frosted Designs - Ribbon, Twine, Washi Tape (use at least 2 of 3)
613 Ave. Create #27 - Anything Goes + Create Your Own Challenge (I used patterned paper, plain paper, sentiment, sketch, die cut, liquid pearls, pearl [on the bow], baker's twine, ribbon, lace)
Oldie But Goodie - In the garden (stickpin and chalks are over 6 mos. old)

Sketch N Stash #117 - (used very neglected Perfect Pearls, every color I own, which I haven't used in over a year)

Teddy Girl

Hello!

It's time for another challenge over at A Gem of a Challenge, and this week (Challenge #86) the theme is "Teddies."  This challenge will run from 8:00 AM June 29, to 6:00 PM July 5, and the prize for the winner will be 2 individual digi images (NOT SETS) from Pink Gem Designs. So do head on over and see what the rest of the lovely Design Team have created, then join us, won't you? We'd love to see you!

My project today is a gift bag for a baby.  I've never done a gift bag before so it took longer than expected, but it was fun working with large sizes of everything and I look forward to making more of them!

The stamp is Baby Girl Teddy (available here) and she was so much fun with which to work.

I colored her using Copics and gave her fur some texture using Colorless Blender and a piece of terry cloth.  As I was coloring her booties I suddenly ran out of one of the pink colors and didn't have a refill - yikes!  Fortunately I had enough for both booties and the bow and decided to paper piece her jammies.


The pacificer ring is a jewelry jump ring, and the baby bottle is a button that my daughter discovered in a jar of vintage buttons last week.  Lucky for me!


The trim on the baby's outfit is made with Puffies which I like much more than regular puff paint as you puff it with a heat tool as soon as you apply it - no dry time required.

I used the Silhouette Cameo for several elements - the large doily, corner flourish, words, and to cut the image out (yay, no fussy cutting!); however, I chose to attach the charms separately, as I wanted a little movement on this piece.  They are colored with Smooches and attached with metallic gold braided thread.

I painted the words with white Creative Inspirations shimmer paints and added a few rhinestones for stars.  I even had baby-theme tissue paper!

A pretty two-ribbon bow and a lace rosette flower finish things off.

I offered to give this to my daughter as her boss' wife is going to have a baby in a couple of weeks, but they're having a boy so it's back to the drawing board for me.  Anyone need a baby bag for a girl?

Thank you for joining me today and I do hope you'll head over to the Pink Gem Designs challenge!
Happy crafting!

Challenges entered:

Simon Says - Anything Goes
Crafts and Me - Anything Goes
Simon Says Stamp and Show - Stripes (base layer)
Color Throwdown #248
Crafty Ribbons #50 - Anything Goes w/Ribbon

Summertime at A Gem Of A Challenge

Hello!

It's time for another challenge over at A Gem of a Challenge, and this week (Challenge #82) the theme is "Summertime."  This challenge will run from 8:00 AM June 1, to 6:00 PM June 7, and the prize for the winner will be 2 individual digi images (NOT SETS) from Pink Gem Designs. So do head on over and see what the rest of the lovely Design Team have created, then join us, won't you? We'd love to see you!

My card today uses Thoughtful Chloe and Heart Tree stamps, plus I've also used one of the papers from the Pink Gem "Daisies" digital papers paper pack.  I wanted to have Chloe perched "on the edge" of the double die cut window with the tree in the background poking out a bit as well.

I used the sun ray technique which always thrills me as to how realistic it looks.

I colored both images with Copics and added some sparkly gel pen to the flowers on the tree, plus some dots of Copics Opaque White to the centers of the flowers and the whites of Chloe's eyes.

The flowers are from WOC and I Am Roses, and I added some swirl diecuts underneath.

 A few rhinestones on the sentiment tab and the upper left corner finish things off.

Thank you for joining me today, and I do hope you'll head on over to A Gem of a Challenge to see what the lovely design team has created for you, then please do join us!


In the meantime, happy crafting!

Challenges entered:



Timeless Tuesday #222 - Summertime
Creative Card Crew #37 - Punches/Dies
Simon Says ... - Anything Goes
Fussy and Fancy #90 - Bling It On

Amelia

Hello!

It's time for this week's challenge over at A Gem of a Challenge, and this week (Challenge #80) we have a sketch drawn by the lovely Lisa.  This challenge will run from 8:00 AM May 18 to 6:00 PM May 24, and the prize for the winner will be 2 individual digi images (NOT SETS) from Pink Gem Designs. So do head on over and see what the rest of the lovely Design Team have created, then join us, won't you? We'd love to see you!

My card today uses one of Janet's gorgeous new drawings, "Amelia."  Isn't she adorable?  And she's a breeze to color, too.

 

Janet includes some shading in her latest images making them very easy to color, but they lend themselves to adding some shading of one's own, too.  I colored her with Copics.

 Close up of the flowers.

 

And a close up of the bow and faux stitching.  I've taken to letting the tails of some of my bows stay a little long lately and attaching them towards their tips.  Some pearls on each corner finish this card.



And that, lovely readers, is today's card.  Please do head over to A Gem of a Challenge to play along, won't you?  We'd love to see you!


Happy crafting!

Challenges entered:

Fussy and Fancy - Pearls and Lace

 

A Rose By Any Other Name - Challenge Day at AGOAC

Hello!

It's time for this week's challenge over at A Gem of a Challenge, and the theme this week (Challenge #78) is "Make It Sentimental."  That means no image, just a sentiment.  This challenge will run from 8:00 AM May 4 to 6:00 PM May 10, and the prize for the winner will be 2 individual digi images (NOT SETS) from Pink Gem Designs.  So do head on over and see what the rest of the lovely Design Team have created, then join us, won't you?  We'd love to see you!

My card today uses the PGD digi Vintage Occasion Sentiments (Black).  This is a set of 10 framed sentiments for various occasions plus a blank one for a custom sentiment, which in this case I put the word "Mother."  I printed it out on floral digi paper which I faded so as to not distract.

This card has a lot going on.  I used a brick wall embossing folder to emboss the pink layer, the paper of which is also from Pink Gem Designs from the digi paper "Springtime" collection, a lovely set of 24 pastel prints, patterns and solids.  I used the solid, slightly distressed pink.  I brushed the paper with white acrylic paint then applied a light gray Copic marker in the spaces between the "bricks" for a bit more definition.  Not that you can see it much with all the other doodads on the surface...

  ...which include a shimmery painted birdcage, some lace, some leafy flourishes and some shimmery painted roses.  The whole idea here is to make this look like climbing roses on a brick wall.

A close up of the roses and some of the brick wall...

 

...and the bird cage, the sentiment, and the individual words (computer generated).  The background of the sentiment is a big cream colored rose faded out to a mere whisper of color.

The bird is covered with pale blue glitter - talk about sparkly!  

Last but not least is the seam binding bow in the center of which I've put a little wooden heart decoupaged with some lovely gift tissue paper, then topped with a coat of resin.

And that, lovely readers, is today's card.  I'm not telling which of my two mothers (biological and in-law) this card is for but I'm going to have to tell MY mother to not read my blog until after Mother's Day.  Tee hee!

Thank you so much for joining me, and please stop by A Gem of a Challenge to see what the rest of the Design Team has created for you, then do play along.  We'd love to see you!

Happy crafting!

Challenges entered:

Love To Create #63 - Punches and/or Dies 
Tammy's Scrapping Corner #60 - Lots of Layers
Creative Card Crew #35 - Bling
Crafts and Me #131 - Floral Frenzy
Crafty Ribbons #44 - Anything Goes w/Ribbon
Delightful Challenges - Add Ribbon
3 Girl JAM #17 - Anything Goes w/Ribbon
Really Reasonable Ribbon #71 - Sparkle, Bling, Ribbon
Fussy and Fancy #88 - Anything Goes
My Sheri Crafts #109 - Mother's Day
Pile It On 17 - April Showers Bring May Flowers (rain, flowers or both)
Eclectic Ellapu - Anything Goes
Sugar Creek Hollow #60 - Spring Flowers

The Shabby Tea Room #164 - Beautiful Spring (using photo as inspiration)

 

Shabby Postcard - Challenge Day at A Gem of a Challenge

Hello!

It's time for this week's challenge over at A Gem of a Challenge, and the theme this week (Challenge #76) is "Distress It."  This challenge will run from 8:00 AM April 20 to 6:00 PM April 26, and the prize for the winner will be 2 individual digi images (NOT SETS) from Pink Gem Designs.  So do head on over and see what the rest of the lovely Design Team have created, then join us, won't you?  We'd love to see you!

My card today uses two digis from PGD, Butterfly Postcard and Keep Calm and Eat Cake.  I have quite decided I like combining digis, and these two go together like, well, cake and frosting.  Speaking of which, my cards lately seem to have had lots of "card frosting."  Guess it's a clear indicator of how I like my cake.  A little cake (or card) and LOTS of frosting (embellies).

I've noticed a lot of challenges lately focusing on Earth Day, which is April 22, and their requirements are to recycle something, which inspired me to use a couple of recycled items on this card. 

 One is the paper toweling I used for the roses. 

After spraying some ribbon with some of my homemade shimmer sprays (pink and brown), I used a paper towel to wipe up the interior of my spray box, and I liked the look on the towel, so I sprayed it a little more and die cut it with SB Rose Creations dies to make roses!  You can see where the original wiping section was, but that just gave more depth to the resulting flowers.

The other recycled item was the gold leaf I used on the buttons.  There are always "crumbs" left over when I use gold leaf, and I do hate to throw them away, so this time I used them on some buttons.

The remaining flowers were airbrushed with Copics, and the leaves were enhanced down the centers with Copics as well.

Perfect Pearls form the centers of the flowers.

And I couldn't resist a teeny, tiny gold leafed button to use as the "postmark."

Close up of the messy bow with another gold leafed button and some linen thread.  You can see the distressed edge of the base layer on which I also stamped some French script for depth, then sponged around the edges with distress inks.

And that, dear readers, is my distressed card for today's challenge.  Please do join us at A Gem of a Challenge this week - we'd love to see you!

Happy crafting!

Challenges entered:

The Shabby Tea Room #162 - Pretty Shabby (recycled paper towels and gilding "crumbs")
Tammy's Scrappin' Corner #58 - Spring Has Sprung
Tuesday Throwdown #143 - Focus on the Sentiment
Creative Card Crew #34 - Handmade Flowers
Frilly and Funkie - Upcycle for Earth Day 
Red Carpet Studio #32 - Hollywood Noir
Inky Impressions #105 - Punches/Dies
Fussy and Fancy #87 - Vintage

613 Ave. Create #15 - Sketch