Still Waiting...

and waiting, and waiting, and waiting (big sigh here!) No sign of the little one's arrival yet. If this waiting is getting to me so much, you can imagine how impatient my darling daughter is right about now! LOL And then yesterday my son flew off to Louisianna to work on the oil spill for the next several months. Seems like everything is just topsy-turvy in my little world right now.

Since my mind has been mostly consumed by thinking of anything other than stamping, seems like I can't really do much in the line of designing cards right now. I had started a card and sort of given up on it 'cuz it just wasn't going the way I saw it in my mind. So today I got it out and finished it up. Not sure if I'm really happy with it yet, but there it is. It's very simple with clean lines and no sponging. Maybe that is what's missing here?! How about giving me some input here and helping me out. Should I just scrap it, leave it the way it is, or fix it somehow????


Stamps: Awash with Flowers, and FYI
Cardstock: Bermuda Bay, Melon Mambo, and Whisper White
Ink: Melon Mambo, Bermuda Bay, Pretty in Pink
Accessories: Bermuda Bay Polka Dot Grosgrain Ribbon, Square Fire Rhinestone Brad, Mat Pack and Piercing Tool, and Dimensionals







See, I told you it was a really simple card idea. I just don't know if it's too simple!
After I had stamped the smallest flower with Pretty in Pink ink, I was surprised how pale it was compared to the other inks. Is that part of the problem?? Should it have been sponged on both white layers? Should there have been a Melon Mambo layer under the sentiment?? Oh, the questions!! But no answers! Please, I'm begging you, give me some input here!

Ok, I guess that's all for today. I'm having trouble really concentrating on anything today. Hope you're all having a better (make that a more productive) day than I am. Enjoy your weekend!

Sharon

Yummy Watercolor Trio

Yes, I think this set is just the nicest that I've worked with in a long time. You can very simply just ink it and use it, or you can get more in depth and use markers to color all the images. Either way, it's fabulous to work with! For this card, I did a little (make that a lot of) CASEing from the fabulous Jan Tink here. If you'd like to see what a truly fabulous card looks like, go check hers out. Then you can come back here and see my pitiful take on it! I used fewer layers, changed the sentiment, ribbon and bling, and nixed the sewing. But the colors and layout are all her idea. Thanks Jan for sharing and letting me CASE your fab creation!

The ladies in class this week had a choice of sentiments from the Thoughts and Prayers set to use. Some had been mentioning the need for get well and sympathy cards, so this hopefully filled that need.

Stamps: Watercolor Trio, Itty Bitty Bits, and Thoughts and Prayers

Cardstock: Bashful Blue, Rose Red, Sahara Sand

Ink: Sahara Sand, Wild Wasabi (returning In Color!!), and Rose Red

Accessories: Bashful Blue Grosgrain Ribbon, Brass Build-a-Brad, Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack, 1/2" Circle Punch, Mostly Vintage Decor Stencils and Sponge quarter.

Isn't the sponged on stencil image just the absolutely perfect accompaniment for these floral stems? It adds such a lovely elegance to the whole card. I'm so happy Stampin' Up! came out with this smaller size stencil that works perfectly on cards. If you need to get one for yourself, you can just click on the button on the right to order it now!

Thanks for winging on by today. Hope you're enjoying your weekend!

Sharon

Masculine Birthday or Fathers Day

Yes, unbelievably, Father's Day is fast approaching so it's time to get those masculine stamps brushed off and inked up! Earlier this month I had seen an idea that I thought was the perfect card for a man. Then when I finally had time and went to sit down and stamp it, I looked at the original here, and decided to totally case it. It's really hard to improve on perfection. So thanks Robin for the great idea - it's ideal!

Stamps: Totally Tools, and Teeny Tiny Wishes

Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Basic Black, Mellow Moss, and Brocade Blue

Ink: Basic Black, Mellow Moss, and Brocade Blue

Accessories: Big Shot with Square Lattice Embossing Folder (new!!), AquaPainter, Basic Black 1 1/4" Striped Grosgrain Ribbon, Word Window Punch, Modern Label Punch, 1 1/4" and 1 3/8" Circle Punches, Sponge quarters, and Dimensionals

Isn't the texture on this new embossing folder just the greatest?! After the cardstock is embossed, it almost feels like fabric! I've been using it on so many things lately, and it's definitely my new favorite. And doesn't that ribbon just add the perfect touch of texture and color, yet doesn't look too frou-frou at all! Just perfect! I usually stay away from ribbon and think that a masculine card needs some hardware on it, but this one is perfect just as it stands. And anyone of the Totally Tools would work on the card - just pick your favorite from the set and go with it. Just remember to carefully ink the stamp so none of the sentiment shows up with it for this idea. Of course, you could always change the idea and use the sentiment that is with the stamp - your choice of course!

I guess that's the tip of the day - you don't always have to use all of the stamp. Ink only the portions that you want to use. The little Stampin' Spots are just perfect for seeing what you're inking and getting ink only where you want it.

Have an awesome Friday! Thanks for stopping by. Grand-baby updates will be posted when I know something! (Can you tell I'm excited???)

Hugs,

Sharon

Wedding Circles

Just in case you're wondering, and even if you don't care at all, I feel a great need to keep everyone up to date on the baby status. And no, as I sit here writing this, le grand-bebe' has not made an appearance yet. We thought that last night was going to be the arrival, but contractions stopped and baby-momma was sent back home from the hospital. Soooo... the wait continues. Ok, with that out of the way, let's get down to business!







This was my week devoted to regular stamping classes. Since I gave you a sneak peak of one of the projects already, it's time to share another one. For this card, the ladies had a choice of using either a wedding or graduation sentiment depending on what they would need. I made the class sample using a wedding sentiment. Way back at last year's convention, I received a swap similar to this idea. (Yes, I just had to make some changes!!) I thought it was very elegant and would like to give the creator credit for it, but it was unsigned. Sorry!

Stamps: Circle Circus and God Bless II (retired)
Cardstock: Elegant Eggplant and Whisper White
Ink: Elegant Eggplant
Accessories: Big Shot with Finial Press Embossing Folder, 1" Circle Punch, Modern Label Punch, White Organza Ribbon

Now don't you agree with me that it's a very classy card? And of course, you can just change up the main color of the card and ink and it will look so very different. It was seeing this card that convinced me I needed this stamp set!

Hope you enjoy this idea and put it to good use yourself. Thanks for taking time out to stop by today. And yes, we're still waiting for the arrival of the baby!!! When he's finally hear, I'll be sure to let you know! LOL As if you could stop me from shouting it from the rooftops!!

Ok, have a great day!
Sharon

Bouquet Bunch Again

Hope you're not getting tired of me using this set yet. I just love these little images and the different ways they can be brought together. I had started on this card when I got a call from church about someone passing away. So I changed plans for this card and turned it into a sympathy card. Why is it I never have one when I need it???

I had started out a bit brighter using fall colors, then decided to tone it down a bit and switched the background card to Kraft which is so much more understated. I got my left-over Tangerine Tango out to use on this card. Don't you love the look of autumn that's so easy to achieve with watercoloring the leaves with all those warm, earth-toned colors?

Stamps: Bouquet Bunch and Teeny Tiny Wishes

Cardstock: Kraft, Old Olive, So Saffron, Tangerine Tango, and Very Vanilla

Ink: Stazon Jet Black, Old Olive and Watercolor Pencils

Accessories: AquaPainter, Pinking Hearts Border Punch, Word Window Punch, Modern Label Punch, Chocolate Satin Ribbon, Flower Brads, Piercing Tool and Mat Pack, Sponge quarter, and Dimensionals

Maybe I should make a few more of these cards while I have everything scattered over my work table. Or does that jinx things and there'll be more funerals????? Anyway, I love playing around with the colors on the planter and leaves. I must be reverting back to kindergarten and all that coloring in the lines again. hmmm, maybe I can squeeze in a little afternoon nap while I'm at it? lol

Thanks for having a look-see today. Leave me a comment so I'll know you've stopped by. Make sure you find some time to stamp today.

Sharon

Another Bouquet Bunch Idea

Well, that same stamp set was sitting on my work table today, so what else could I do? Put it away? Never!! I just had to keep using it! Right? Besides, it's new - I have to play with it!! So that's exactly what I did...

The first one I did (previous post) was really, really bright. So this next one is much more understated and calming. With the new color renovations getting geared up at Stampin' Up!, I thought it would be a good time to dig out the returning In Colors I have left. When I pulled out the Wild Wasabi packet of cardstock, I noticed a partially stamped piece just waiting for me to use. Sometimes when I'm working on a project and it's just not coming together, I'll take the odds and ends pieces and throw them back in the original color packets and forget about them til later. Well, it might be well over a year later, but now was the time to use it! Here's what I came up with...

As you can see, this is a melding of old and new - the Wild Wasabi cardstock and diamond pattern stamped on the back-folded flap are old and the image and layered cardstock is new. I just love being able to use up an old scrap that I've saved and turn it into something new again!!

Stamps: Bouquet Bunch and Teeny Tiny Wishes with a retired set (diamond pattern) that I don't know the name

Cardstock: Wild Wasabi, Soft Suede, and Very Vanilla

Ink: Stazon Jet Black, Bashful Blue

Accessories: Watercolor Wonder Crayons, AquaPainter, Vanilla Grosgrain Ribbon, Scallop Circle Punch (used as stencil for clouds), Sponge quarters, and Dimensionals

I've got some birthdays coming up for some men in my life and think this just might be useful! For me, it's always much more difficult to make masculine cards, but I don't know why. And then when I finally get them done, I don't understand what the struggle was all about anyway. Sheesh!! Sometimes I think I need my head examined! But at least I got another one ready to go in the mail. Now how many more do I need???

Thanks for stopping by today. Hope you're having a great week so far...

Sharon

Challenge with Bouquet Bunch

Hey, it's Monday already! How did that happen? I know I'm a bit late (again!) for the Stamping 411 Saturday Challenge, but at least I'm working on it! As usual, the ladies came up with a great sketch with nice, clean lines. And that's just what I like. So here we go...

After several rainy, overcast days, the weather today was gorgeous and sunshiney! It made me happy to be alive and I just had to spend some time outside! So when I finally settled down to stamp something for the challenge, I think I still had a residue of sunbeams in my eyes, so the card came out a bit bright and sunny looking. Take a couple of oranges and throw in some yellow, and you really get bright! But that just makes it 'really cheerful' in my book!!

Stamps: Bouquet Bunch and Sincere Salutations

Cardstock: Pumpkin Pie, So Saffron, Tangerine Tango, Certainly Celery, and Whisper White cardstock with So Saffron Patterns Designer Series Paper

Ink: Stazon Jet Black, So Saffron, Summer Sun, Tangerine Tango, Certainly Celery

Accessories: Aqua Painter, Black Gingham Ribbon, Sponge Quarter, and Dimensionals

Don't you think this card would cheer up anybody when they received it in the mail? Especially if they were dealing with one of those pesky 'milestone' birthdays. You always need just a bit more cheeriness when you realized you've somehow gotten another year older, don'cha think???

Have a super week, and make sure you find time to get a bit of stamping done. It's good for the spirit!! Hugs,

Sharon