Unscripted Sketches #117

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge (#117)! Hope you've been having fun with our Christmas in July celebration! As we're coming to the end of the event, don't forget, we still have prizes to give away! 

Arielle, one of my fellow design team members, has her own digital stamp store named Wax Fruit Company, and she's giving away a set of all the images she's released this month in her store (that's at least 12 images)!

For the details on this giveaway, please visit the Unscripted Sketches blog!

Here's the card I made with this week's sketch:

Supplies: paper (Basic Grey Oxford 6x6 pad), image stamp (Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps - Bookworm Ruby), sentiment stamp (aMuse Studio - Clever Girls set), Copic markers, flower accent (Basic Grey Out of Print collection)

and here's the original photo of the sketch for you to create your own Unscripted card or project!

Thanks so much for stopping by! 

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches team to see what they've created with this week's sketch: Arielle, Becky, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Mary, Monique, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan!

And when you're ready to post your entry, visit the Unscripted Sketches blog to get linked up!

colourQ #95

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! This week's colourQ was inspired by this cute owl figurine and features three new Stampin' Up! colors:

Here's my card for this week:

Supplies: cardstock (Stampin' Up!), embossing folder (Sizzix), stamps (aMuse), Copic markers, ink (Stampin' Up!).

This card was relatively simple to put together, and it's also a gate fold card. Both the image block and the sentiment block are only adhered on the left side to allow the card to open. I used temporary adhesive to stick them down to take the picture. 

You can also visit the rest of the colourQ Royal Court by clicking on their blog links at the left under the photo of this week's challenge colors, or at the colourQ blog (where you can also link your entry for this week's challenge)! To be considered for colourQueen, link your entry before Sunday, July 31 at noon Central Time!

Thanks for stopping by! I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's colourQ!

Unscripted Sketches #116

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge!  There's still about a week left in our Christmas In July Celebration! I hope you've been enjoying the special posts on the Unscripted blog, the designer spotlights, and playing along with our weekly challenges!

Here's our sketch for this week! I think it would work great for a scrapbook layout, too! The three little rectangles had me stumped for a bit, but I took the photo idea and applied it to my card!

Here's my card!

Other supplies: paper (Basic Grey's Sweet Threads), flower (Prima), brad (Crate Paper), letter stickers (Cosmo Cricket), Sizzix embossing folder, Copic markers.

The stamps are from Whiff of Joy. I changed the proportions on the rectangles from what they appear to be on the sketch to better match the stamp images and the card dimensions. My layering order is also different so that I wouldn't be blocking more important parts of each image. And, instead of placing three separate lines of text (which probably wouldn't have fit after I added the rectangles) I only made one.

Thanks so much for stopping by! 

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team:  Arielle, Becky, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, Jenny, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Mary, Monique, Regan, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan! We want to see your take on this week's Unscripted Sketch! Don't forget to link up your entry!

Some Odd Girl: Lift an Odd Girl challenge!

Happy Wednesday! Today's post features my entry for the latest challenge at Some Odd Girl Stamps...to "lift" one of the creations of an Odd Girl DT member. I chose a card by Carlie, the highly talented and teenage member of the team!

Here's her card that I chose for my inspiration and "lifting":

And here's the card I created based on hers, which features Some Odd Girl's retired digi "Relax Mae" :

Supplies: paper (SEI Sunny Day mini pad, Echo Park Dots & Stripes mini pad), cardstock (Stampin' Up!), typed sentiment, Copic markers, brads.

 I don't normally put this many layers on a card, but I love the way it all came together! I used one mini paper pad to make it easier to coordinate the different papers and then selected scraps of cardstock that matched the papers. This was a fun card to create! Thanks for the inspiration, Carlie!

This challenge runs until Tuesday, July 26, so there's still a few days to enter! Visit the Some Odd Girl blog to get all of the contest details! Thanks for visiting!

Challenge Cards: CPS, Sweet Sunday Sketch & Cupcake Inspirations

Today's post will be a batch of three cards that I'm submitting to various challenges this week! 

First up is my card for this week's CPS challenge, sponsored by Want2Scrap, and is based on this sketch:

Here's my card! It was inspired by my niece, Olivia, who dressed up as Supergirl a few Halloweens ago!

Supplies: patterned paper (Jillibean Soup), stamps (Lizzie Anne Designs), cardstock (Stampin' Up!), Copic markers, ink (Tsukineko Brilliance), card base, silver glitter pen.

My second card is for the Sweet Sunday Sketch challenge. Here is the sketch:

and here's my card! I picked this stamp up at the Lizzie Anne Designs clearance sale.

Other supplies: pink striped paper (Echo Park Dots & Stripes), glitter brads, cardstock (Bazzill), card base, Copic markers.

I don't have any tattoos, but there was a time when I wanted to get a small one near my ankle...I don't think I'd be brave enough to get one this big, though! I like the pairing of this stamp with the paper from Basic Grey's Out of Print collection!

My third card is for this week's {Cupcake Inspirations} challenge. Here is the sweet inspiration for this week:

I was inspired by the colors on the cupcakes and the frog to create my entry:

Other supplies: patterned paper (Cosmo Cricket Pixielicious - polka dot; Basic Grey Sweet Threads, My Mind's Eye - yellow gingham), card base, cardstock (Stampin' Up!), Spellbinders Lacey Circles die, flower (Prima), brad (Basic Grey), Copic markers.

The frog image and sentiment are from the new Stampin' Up set, "Turtle & Co."

If you'd like to participate in any of these challenges, here are the deadlines (you can visit each blog for all of the contest guidelines and details):

CPS runs through Saturday July 23 at 8pm Central Time

Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge runs until Friday at 10 PM Mountain Time

{Cupcake Inspirations} runs until Saturday at noon CST

Thanks so much for stopping by!

colourQ #94

If you're looking for the post related to my Designer Spotlight at Unscripted Sketches, please scroll down or click HERE. Thanks!

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge (#94)!  The colors are great, but it's not often that I use so many bold colors like these in one card! I'll admit, this one had me stumped for a little while!

Here's what I came up with for my card:

Supplies: sentiment sticker (SRM Stickers), card base, border punch (Fiskars), buttons, twine, paper flowers, Rich Razzleberry cardstock (Stampin' Up!), yellow paper (Cosmo Cricket DeLovely), word stamp (Technique Tuesday), ink (Stampin' Up!), orange paper (Basic Grey Life of the Party).

Thanks so much for stopping by! 

To see more inspiring examples of projects with this week's colourQ combo, visit the colourQ blog and the other members of the Royal Court (you can find their blog links to the left under the thumbnail photo of this week's colourQ)!

Unscripted Sketches: My Featured Project & Recipe

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend! I met up with my friend Sparkle on Saturday morning and we went to the aMuse warehouse sale!

We both picked up lots of great cling stamps...they were on sale for $1 each! I got lots of image stamps and sentiments to fill in gaps for images that I like to use, but never really know what I should say to go along with them!

I'm the featured designer today over at Unscripted Sketches as part of our Christmas in July celebration! I also shared a project, which is how to organize a cookie and recipe swap!

To view my questionnaire and get the details on my project, please visit the Unscripted Sketches blog! While you're there, you can also check out all the fun things we're up to as Christmas in July rolls on!

In case you'd like a copy of the sugar cookie recipe that I shared with my project, I'm including it in an easy copy & paste form below.

Thanks for stopping by! If you have any questions about the project I shared, please let me know in a comment or send an e-mail to sparklingscrapper at hotmail dot com!

====================================================================

Holiday Sugar Cookies (source: Domino Sugar)

1 cup butter or margarine, softened

3/4 cup firmly packed Light Brown Sugar

3/4 cup Granulated Sugar

2 eggs

2 tablespoons milk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

4 cups all-purpose flour

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

Beat butter and sugars together in large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add eggs, milk and vanilla; beat well. Stir together flour, baking powder and salt in small bowl; gradually add to sugar mixture. Cover and refrigerate dough 3-4 hours until chilled.

Preheat oven to 375°F. On a well floured surface, roll out half of dough at a time, to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut into desired shapes. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet for 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned at edges. Cool. Decorate as desired.

Can make up to 7 dozen cookies, depending on the size of the cookie cutter that you use.

Royal Icing (source: Domino Sugar)

2 cups Confectioners Sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons meringue powder

3 tablespoons warm water

Assorted food coloring

Instructions »

In a bowl, with mixer at medium speed, beat confectioners' sugar, meringue powder and warm water until stiff peaks form, about 5-7 minutes. If icing is too thick, add a couple drops of water. If icing is too thin, continue beating until desired consistency. Tint icing with desired food coloring. Using pastry bag with decorator tip, decorate as desired. (Note: I don't use a pastry bag to decorate my cookies. I mix the icing in a bowl and spread it on with a butter knife.)

Makes about 1 1/2 cups.

Unscripted Sketches #115

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge!

Today, I'm meeting my friend Sparkle for a warehouse sale in Seattle and then my husband & I are going to try and see the Harry Potter movie tonight! Rainy or not, it should be a great day!

Don't forget, we still have lots of fun Christmas in July activities for you at the Unscripted Sketches blog! My Designer Spotlight is coming up this Monday, July 18, and my featured project will be how to set up a cookie swap for the holidays or any time of the year!

Are you ready to play with this week's sketch? Here it is:

And here's my card!

Supplies: image and sentiment stamps (Papertrey Ink, Year of Flowers), paper (Jillibean Soup, and scraps from American Crafts and October Afternoon), ribbon, adhesive gems, Copic markers and foam squares.

Thanks so much for stopping by! Hope you have a great weekend and I hope to see your entry for this week's challenge at the Unscripted Sketches blog!

Want to see more inspiring creations with this week's sketch? Then visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team: Arielle, Becky, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, Gardenia, Jenny, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Mary, Monique, Regan, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, Steph, and Susan!

 

colourQ #93

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for a closer look at my card for this week's colourQ challenge (#93)!

Here's this week's colour combo for you to play with:

And here's my card!

Supplies: Patterned paper (Hobby Lobby brand), embossing folder (Sizzix), typed sentiment, image stamp (DeNami Designs - crab; The Rubber Cafe' - party hat), ribbon, Copic markers, cardstock (Stampin' Up!).

Sometimes I run out of cardstock in the challenge colors, so I try to match the colors with paper that I have...in this case, I got very lucky and found some paper in my stash that is pretty close to most of the colors! I bought it several years ago at Hobby Lobby, so I'm not sure if it's still sold there.

Thanks so much for stopping by! 

To be considered for this week's colourQueen, link up your entry for cQc #93 at the colourQ blog before Sunday, July 17th at noon Central Time.

CPS #226

Hi! Glad you stopped by to take a look at my entry for this week's Card Positioning Systems (CPS) sketch challenge!

Here's the sketch for this week:

And here's my card! 

I used stamps from aMuse Studio and some papers from Basic Grey's Sweet Threads collection...

Other supplies: dies (Spellbinders), Copic markers, letter stickers (Cosmo Cricket Tiny Type), foam tape.

Thanks so much for stopping by! You can get all the details for this challenge at the CPS blog!

Sweet Sunday Sketch #125

Thanks for stopping by to take a closer look at my entry for this week's Sweet Sunday Sketch challenge! Here's the sketch for this week:

And here's my card!

Supplies: patterned paper (Basic Grey), typed sentiment, image stamp (Swimming Lucy - Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps), button & twine, Copic markers, Glossy Accents.

Thanks again for stopping by! 

This challenge runs until this Friday, July 15 at 10PM Mountain Time, when one card will be randomly selected to be featured on Saturday at "The Sweetest Thing" blog! Visit the SSSC blog for all the details!

Cupcake Inspirations #118

Hi! Hope you had an excellent weekend! Thanks for stopping by to take a closer look at my entry for this week's Cupcake Inspirations Challenge (#118)! This week's challenge is sponsored by Chi Chi Memories, and here is the tasty rainbow-colored inspiration for this week:

And here's my card!

Supplies: paper (Jillibean Soup Watermelon Gazpacho), cardstock (Stampin' Up! Soft Suede), image stamp: (Sweet Kawaii set - My Cute Stamps), sentiment stamp (Hero Arts), ink (Tsukineko Brilliance), button & twine, Copic markers, Glossy Accents.

The deadline for this challenge is this Saturday, July 16 at noon Central Time...visit the Cupcake Inspirations blog for all the details!

Thanks again for stopping by!

Sparkle Creations 1-Year Anniversary Blog Hop!

(If you're looking for my weekly Unscripted Sketches post, click HERE or scroll down to the next blog entry.)


Hi! Hope you're enjoying the Sparkle Creations Anniversary Blog Hop! I'm so happy to be celebrating with Sparkle and her team! It's the one year anniversary of Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps, but also the release of 4 new SCRS images (Backpack Oliver, Bookworm Ruby, Hula Lucy and Ukulele Josh) and 2 new Karber Rubber Stamps (Rainbow Leslie and Reading Millie!)


All of the new releases are available in the SCRS store now, and there's also a sale going on!

As you hop along, you'll visit the blogs of the Current Design Team, DT Alumni and past/present Guest Designers. I was lucky to serve as Guest Designer this past April, and I'm now the coordinator for the SCRS newsletter! 


If you happened here by chance and would like to start from the beginning, the hop begins at the SCRS blog -- please see the complete list below.


AND...what's a hop without prizes? We've hidden TEN single stamp prizes along the way and one lucky winner will win the ENTIRE July release! All you need to do is leave some love at every stop along the hop.. You have until 11:59 PM EST on Sunday to leave comments for a chance to win! Winners will be announced on the SCRS blog on Monday. Good luck to all and Happy Hopping!

Here’s my card using the fun new Ukulele Josh:

Supplies: paper (American Crafts), Copic markers, flower accents (Basic Grey), button, foam squares, ink (Brilliance Graphite Black)

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Unscripted Sketches #114

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketch! This one was definitely a challenge for me, since I make cards...but it may be slightly easier if you're doing a scrapbook layout!

and here's my card! Instead of using the longer rectangle section, I broke it up with two squares to create the tile effect.

Supplies: digital stamp (Wax Fruit Company), paper (Memory Box Brioche, Cosmo Cricket Material Girl), ribbon (Pebbles), flower accent (Cosmo Cricket), gem brad, sentiment (SRM stickers), Copic markers, Glossy Accents.

My card features one of the lovely digital stamps from Wax Fruit Company, which is also our sponsor for this month's Christmas in July celebration! Visit the Unscripted Sketches blog for the full details, but here's a little bit of info:

To celebrate Christmas in July, we're sharing something new with you every day, all month long at the Unscripted Sketches blog! We’ll have prizes, games, designer spotlights, special projects and tutorials and lots more fun!! Follow this link to see the introduction with all the details, including the schedule for the month! Don’t forget BINGO starts TOMORROW so be sure to send in your song list TODAY! Follow this link to the Bingo songs and rules.

Thanks so much for stopping by! Today is my monthly craft group meetup...can't wait!

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team: Arielle, Becky, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, Gardenia, Jenny, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Mary, Monique, Regan, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, Steph, and Susan!

Sparkle Creations Sneak Peek - Reading Millie

If you're looking for my post for this week's colourQ challenge, click HERE.


Hi! Thanks for stopping by to see the card that I made with the second Karber rubber stamp releasing this month at Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps, the adorable Reading Millie:

Other supplies: paper (Basic Grey Hopscotch Mini Pad), flower accent (Basic Grey), Copic markers.

Millie and her matching sentiment will be available in the Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Store this Saturday, July 9! 

Be sure to visit all rest of the SCRS designers for more peeks of Reading Millie. Sparkle will be giving away a Reading Millie to one lucky person! For a chance to win, you need to comment on all of the designer's blogs (list below). Then head on over to the SCRS blog and comment on the Millie post. You have until midnight EST each day to comment. The lucky winner will be announced the following day!

Amber Hight
Elena Joldersma
Kadie Ensley
Mary Johnson
Peggy Toole, Sponsorship Coordinator
Piali Biswas
Suzanne Bier, Newsletter Coordinator

Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Store

Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Blog

Thanks again for stopping by!

CPS #225

Thanks for stopping by to look at my card for this week's Card Positioning Systems challenge (#225), which is sponsored by Simply Betty Stamps!

Here's the sketch for this week:

and here's my card! I picked up this cute set on Tuesday -- it's by Your Next Stamp. I've had my eye on this set for a while, and finally decided to get it! I have several French-related sets, but none with a little boy or dog! They were too cute to pass up!

Other supplies: background paper (Memory Box - Brioche collection, red squares are scraps from Graphic45), fleur de lis brad & mini brads, sentiment sticker (SRM Stickers), Copic markers, ink (Tsukineko Brilliance in Graphite Black), cardstock.

Thanks again for stopping by! The CPS blog has many great samples for this challenge from its design team and the other entries! Check them out!