Over The Moon Monday - Side Step Card

Good morning! I hope you had a great week.  I belong to Midwest Stampers Yahoo Group, and I joined a calendar swap, so I kept busy with that. My month is April, so I'm thinking April Showers and Easter.  I stamped a lot, colored a lot, and cut out a lot.  But it's coming along nicely. And it kept me in the air conditioned house.  It's brutally hot across much of the nation, and I hope you are keeping cool and drinking plenty of fluids to keep hydrated.

I was browsing some blogs, and found a card that I absolutely love, and I had to make one. It's called a Side Step Card, and I found it at Julie's Stamping Spot.  You have to be really careful to use the exact measurements she shows to make this card. Can I tell you how many I messed up and had to throw away?  Anyway, here is my card:

My camera is messed up, so I had to scan this with the scanner, and you can't really get the 3-D feel for the card. There are 3 "steps" on the right side of the card.  I used stamps from The Angel Company.  The little sentiment on the middle step says "flowers are the stars of the earth."

Also, I modified mine a little by putting the yellow cardstock on the 3rd step to make it a full sized card for my tulips to stand up on.

Anyway, I hope you find time to try this card. It's a lot of fun, and I can think of a lot of stamps that would go well with the 3-D-ness (is that a word?) of this card.  In Julie's samples, she used butterflies and flowers on one, and Christmas ornaments on another.  If you make this card, please share a link in the comment section.

Until next time, do something crafty!

Over The Moon Monday - Quilting

Good morning!  I hope you have had a good week.  I had a busy week and weekend.  First off, I have had severe pain in my right ankle for quite a while. So long, in fact, that I can't even remember when or how it started.  I finally broke down this week and went to a doctor, simply because I am tired of the pain, and it got to the point that I didn't even want to get out of bed.  I had to have some lab tests done, and the results weren't what I had hoped for.  I have to go have more labs today and then will see the doctor.

Then to start off my weekend, I awoke Saturday morning with a migraine.  Hubby said he tried to call me from the grocery store, and so I started looking for my cell phone.  It was in my jean pocket, the same one that he had just run through a complete laundry cycle. Needless to say, it didn't work. I had to go get a new cell phone. I have the old one in a bag of rice, and if I can get it dried out, at least I will have a spare. In case that happens again.

My granddaughters came over on Saturday afternoon to make their dad a Father's Day card, and the little one stayed the night. We went out to breakfast on Sunday morning, which is a treat for all of us, and then she spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon in the hot tub.  We don't have it heated right now, so it's like being in a swimming pool. Then we had a late lunch and she went home. She's one of those children that demand a lot of attention, but I really don't mind.

So, it's been a pretty full week, but I did manage to make a card. And here it is.

I really like this technique, since it lets me use up bits and pieces of cardstock or patterned paper.  

To make this card, I used plastic wrap tapped against a coordinating colored inkpad, then tapped on the paper to give it a watercolored look.  You could also achieve the same look using watercolored paper.  Or you could just use coordinating pieces of patterned paper.  Any of these options would be fine.  Just make sure you have at least 3 different kinds/colors of paper.

I stamped my main image (Miss Kitty) onto white cardstock and colored her. I also stamped it on a piece of the faux watercolored cardstock and cut out the dress so it would coordinate. You can't see from the scan, but I adhered little colored gemstones to her shoes that match the dress.

TIP:  You can use the little gems you find in the cosmetic section that you glue on your fingernails to use on your cards. They are usually less expensive than the jewels you buy for stamping/scrapping.

I cut these pieces of faux watercolored paper into odd sizes and adhered them to the bottom card layer.  I used a zigzag sewing stamp (unknown) to tie the seams together.  You could also just use a coordinating colored pen or a black pen to make these zigzag stitches.

I used nestability dies to cut out the main image, the layer mat, and the scalloped layer. I adhered them all together and adhered them to the front of the card. 

This is a great way to use up scraps.  I hope you give this technique a try. 

Have a great week!

Over The Moon Monday - Father's Day

Good morning!  How was your week?  I hope you had a fun week and got to do some crafting.  The heat here is brutal, so I've been spending as much time as possible inside, just to stay cool.  I've been enjoying the sunsets and sitting in the hot tub. We don't keep ours really warm, so it's been very refreshing, and a great way to beat the heat. I don't know what we did before we got it.

Today I want to share a card I made for my hubby for Father's Day.  He's a great guy (and the reason we have the hot tub), and I want to show my appreciation for all the things he does for me.

I like to keep my cards simple, without a lot of bulky embellishments so that I can mail them without a lot of extra postage.  Don't get me wrong, I love the look of cards with bulky embellishments, that's just not my style. Anyway, here is the card:

It's a pretty self-explanatory card, but here's how I made it anyway (for those of you who like written instructions):

• I stamped the hat 6 times, twice on each of 3 colors, and cut them out.
• I applied flocking to the hat bands, and let dry
• I used a nestability die to cut 6 pieces of cardstock, two each of three colors. These are the same colors I used to stamp the hats.
• I adhered the hats to the different colors of cardstock.
• I trimmed a piece of kraft cardstock with a scalloped edge punch.
• I adhered the hats in a manner that was pleasing to me to the kraft cardstock.
• I adhered the entire thing to a green base card.
• I stamped Happy Father's Day. (Stamp mfg. unknown)

I like the texture the flocking gives to the card without all the bulkiness.

Here are some things I could have done differently:

• I could have embossed the individual pieces before adhering the hats to them, but I liked the plain look.  
• I could have embossed the kraft layer before adhering the rectangles.
• I could have arranged the hats differently.

I hope you have enjoyed this card.  May your have a great week, filled with sunshine and laughter, and may you get to be creative.

Over The Moon Monday - Wedding II

Good morning.  I hope you had a great week.  The weekend is always too short for me, how about you?  

The weather here is already horribly hot.  The heat index was 110 degrees on Saturday. It was really hot the whole weekend. It's too early in the year for it to be this hot. It's not even technically summer yet.  Good weather to stay indoors and stamp, if you ask me.

Last week I showed you a wedding card I was making.  I spent the week re-doing the card, and I like how it turned out.  I will apologize in advance for the scan - lumpy cards just don't scan well, and I need batteries for the digital camera. Anyway, here is the new and improved card:

Here are the changes I made:

• I used twinkling H20's to color the embossed images.
• I matted the flowers with patterned paper.
• I made an additional flower with the patterned paper to add a little interest.

Leave a comment and let me know which one  you like best, the glittered one or the one that used twinks.

I hope you have a great week!

Over The Moon Monday - Wedding

Good morning!  I hope you are enjoying Memorial Day, which is usually a signal that summer is beginning. Please take a minute to reflect on the true reason for this holiday...the sacrifice by many men and women to give us the freedoms we enjoy today.

We had a family cookout yesterday, and we all had a really good time. Good food, good friends and family, good times.

Last week I told you I was working on a wedding card.  I finished it up, and now I'm not sure if I like it or not.  So, I will share it with you, and I welcome all comments, both good and bad. I still have some time before the wedding, so I have time to remake it, if that's what you think I should do.

Here is the card I made:

I used the dotted swiss embossing folder to make the white background.  Then I used the floral embossing folder with white cardstock.  I punched it out, using a nestability die.  Then I stamped the "love - honor - cherish" on white cardstock and trimmed it with a nestability die.  I stamped the rings using the 2nd generation stamping (stamp off once before you stamp on the project), then used twinkling H2O's to color them gold.  I matted with a patterned paper.  

I liked it at this point.  But sometimes  I can't leave well enough alone.  So I used glitters in the colors of the patterned paper to color the flowers.  I should have either left them white or watercolored them, I think.  What do you think?  Please leave a comment and let me know your thoughts, both good and bad. I value your opinion.

Hope you enjoy the rest of your day...until next time...do something crafty!

Over The Moon Monday - Pick 3 Challenge

Good afternoon. Another week has flown by. It seems like the older I get the quicker time flies.  I got to do a little stamping and card making this weekend, and that's always a good thing.  My brother's birthday is coming up, and I wanted to do something for that.  And I have a wedding card to make, for my husband's nephew by marriage, but I'll save that for another post, since I have some time to get that done.

My brother has had a lot of medical problems, and I wanted to make something to remind him to count his blessings for what he has and can do, and not dwell on what he doesn't have (or can't do). I have a little stamp by Hero Arts that I think will do nicely. And so we will have a Pick 3 Challenge.

Here are the things to pick from:

• Animal
• Rivets
• Birthday
• Lace
• Patterned Paper
• Punch

Just pick 3 of the above items and share your creation via a link in the comment section. Here is my creation:

I stamped the sheep (Hero Arts) onto white cardstock and colored using Copic markers.  I used a nestability die to cut out the image.  Based on the colors I used to color the image, I chose my patterned paper for the background. 

I used the same nestability die in 2 larger sizes, once to make a mat for the image with the background paper, and a larger one on white cardstock for the final mat.

On the inside I stamped "Happy Birthday" and matted it with the same patterned paper that I used for the background. 

A very simple card that looks nice.

I hope you have a wonderful week, and I'll look forward to seeing your creations, and also seeing you back here next week for the wedding card. Until then, do something crafty!

Over The Moon Monday - Layout Challenge

Good afternoon, and welcome to Over The Moon Monday.

Today is my birthday, which is why I'm late posting.  I've just been doing everything out of order today, and it's been fun mixing things up.

I had lunch this past Saturday with my friend, Candy, and we always show each other what we've been up to stamping wise.  I always get some good ideas, and this time was no exception.  So, I would like to use my favorite one as a Layout Challenge.  My example is nowhere near as pretty as Candy's, but I'll practice up on it.

Here is the Layout I want to challenge you to use:

and here is my sample:

You can click on either picture for a larger image.

I hope you take up the challenge and post links to your creations so we can all see your beautiful artwork. I always enjoy seeing how other people interpret the challenges.

It's starting to lightning and thunder, so I'd better close for now.  I hope you have a wonderful week and you get to do something crafty.

Over The Moon Monday - Pick 3 Challenge

Good morning!  This is the last day of my mini vacation and Birthday Bash here in the Florida Keys.  The Birthday Bash is our annual celebration of all the May birthdays, anniversary, and Mother's Day, and we have 1 big party instead of 7 little ones.  Sometimes we go to a theme park, but this year we chose the Keys for a 4 day get-away.  I love the Keys, so it was a perfect choice. I have limited time, so I'll have to share the fun later.

I told you last week if we had enough comments posted I would give away blog candy.  That didn't happen, so you are stuck with another Pick 3 Challenge.  I combined this with a challenge I had to use colors that you don't usually use together, and I thought I came up with a pretty good color combination.

Here are your choices:
1.  Something summery
2.  Eyelets
3.  Fringe
4   Punch
5.  The color Yellow
6.  Glitter

Pick 3 and play along.

Here is what I made:

This is an ATC sized card using the Sun stamp and vine stamp from My Paper Moon.  The sentiment is from The Angel Company.

The challenge to me was to use 2 colors that don't usually go together.  The burgundy and bright yellow were a natural choice, once I decided what I was going to make.

I stamped the sun onto yellow cardstock.  I stamped it twice, cut out just the face of the 2nd one, and applied crystal lacquer.  Let dry thoroughly, so you don't get smudges or fingerprints in it. 

While that was drying I used the vine stamp around the edges.  I colored it in with markers, making the berries a dark red (almost burgundy).

I colored in the sun's rays, then applied glitter glue and allowed to dry.  While that was drying, I punched a piece of white cardstock, then stamped the sentiment inside with yellow staz-on ink.  I used a burgundy marker to make faux stitches around it, then applied it to the bottom portion of the ATC. 

I used a pop dot to attach the sun's face.  Then I matted the whole thing onto burgundy cardstock.

I hope you have enjoyed today's pick 3 challenge.  If you decide to do the challenge, please leave a comment, and you can even leave a link to your beautiful creation.  I get inspiration from looking at other's work, so please share with me.

Also, today is the last day of the virtual stamp convention at Rubber Stamp Chat, so if you haven't checked it out, now would be a good time to do so.  Lots of vendors and sales.

Have a great week!

Over The Moon Monday - Pick 3 Challenge

Good morning!  I hope you had a great weekend. I pulled a muscle some time ago, and I keep reinjuring the same muscle before it has had time to heal, and it gave me a great deal of pain and trouble this weekend.  I have to get it better before next weekend, because we are doing our annual Family Birthday Bash (5 Birthdays, 1 Anniversary, Mother's Day, and our Anniversary).  This year we are taking everyone to the Florida Keys, since my kids and grandkids haven't been before. We are only taking a long weekend (Friday through Monday), but we'll have fun. The guys can spend one day deep sea fishing while the girls can go to Theater of the Sea for the dolphin shows, and the rest of the time we will just get some much needed R & R.

This week we will have a Pick 3 Challenge. I like those because they give you a lot of leeway. These are the things you get to choose from:

1. Lace
2. The color green
3. An animal
4. Fun Flock
5. Punch
6. Birthday

You know the drill...pick 3 of the 6 and make a card using those 3, then post a link to the comment section.  And here is my creation:

Since we have a lot of birthdays this month, I made this card for my youngest granddaughter.  She will be 7, and the colors are bright and vibrant, and something she'll love.

Anyway, for the challenge I chose a bird (animal), the color green, a scalloped border punch, and the celebrate sentiment for her birthday.  The colors are very bright (they don't show well in the scan).  I stamped the bird and colored him first, I colored the hat with bright colors, then added glitter glue for some bling. Then I punched him out with a nestability punch.  I wanted him "out of the box", so I followed the directions on Split Coast Stampers to accomplish this. 

Then I layered the cut out image on a green layer, then a red layer. I stamped "celebrate" onto yellow cardstock with green ink, then punched it out with a Fiskars scallop border punch.  I used a ruler to make faux stitches across the top. I adhered everything to the patterned background.  Inside it says "a little birdy told me it's your birthday."  Emilie will love it.

I hope you have a great week.  Even though I will be in the keys resting and relaxing, I will still have a blog entry for you next week, so see you then. Maybe if we have enough people who take the challenge and post a link (10 or more), I will give out blog candy and/or stamps.  So tell your  friends to get busy and post a link. ;-)

One last thing before I leave...over at Rubber Stamp Chat they are having a virtual stamp convention from Thursday, May 6th - Monday, May 10th.  Even though I will be gone, I will be participating in the convention, so mark your calendars and head on over to Rubber Stamp Chat on Thursday, May 6th.

Over The Moon Monday - Meet the rest of the ladies

Good morning! I hope you had a restful weekend.  I attended a bar-b-q cookoff on Saturday, and my nephew took home first place in ribs.  And they were good.  There were quite a few teams competing, so I got to sample a lot of food, and his truly were the best.  I also work for him at my day job, so I'm sure he will have a swelled head...lol. But I do love it when he brings lunch...he's a good cook.

Today I want to introduce you to the rest of the new images at My Paper Moon. I think you will like these ladies, too.

This is Winnie.

 

And Uma comes to us from India

This regal lady is Nefertiti, but she really needs to introduction.

And this is Bessie, who could be a flapper, or just an elegant lady.

Millie is an old-fashioned kind of gal, one of the early settlers, maybe.

and Athena has had poetry written to her

Yuki is a gracious geisha

And finally, here is Anna, who is a beauty.

I hope you have enjoyed meeting all my beautiful new ladies.  This is the last week they will be 10% off.  Next week we will be back to our regularly scheduled programming.

I hope you have a great week.  Do something crafty!

Over the Moon Monday - New Stamps Preview

Good morning, and welcome to Over The Moon Monday. 

Where does the weekend go?  It seems like a few minutes ago it was Friday, and now it's Monday again.  They sure do fly when you're having fun.  And I did have fun this weekend. For my early birthday/anniversary present my hubby got me a hot tub.  And boy is it nice.  I can't imagine what we did without one. It's very relaxing and I can see it getting a lot of use.

I'm excited about the new stamps, too!  I have them up on the website and for a short period of time they are on sale. Instead of having a challenge today, I'd like to spotlight some of the new stamps.

This is Claire. Claire is an elegant flapper (or whatever else you want her to be).

Meet Jill.  Jill is a sultry southern girl.

This is Summer.  Summer could very well be a bride, with the right colors.

And the last one for today....

This is Wendy. Wendy is a free spirit. You might find her at the beach, or riding a horse, or working in the garden.  She's very versatile.

I hope you have enjoyed the glimpse you have gotten of 4 of the 12 new woman images just released.  They are all available and on sale now at My Paper Moon.

See you next week!

Over The Moon Monday - Out of the Box

Good morning. Hope you had a great weekend.  I made stamps on Saturday and spent Sunday reading and relaxing. There is still a cool breeze where I live, so it's nice to be outdoors still (except for the pollen, which is a killer). Summer is only a few weeks away, and it will be brutally hot, so I'm enjoying the cool while I can.

I want to share with you today an Out of The Box card.  Although in this case it's an "out of the oval" card. Here is the card:

I used My Paper Moon stamp #276L-10 (Make a Joyful Noise). Here are the details for the card construction.

I stamped the image onto green cardstock, using black dye ink.  I decided how much of the image I wanted to stick "out of the box", then used a nestability oval die to cut it out.  In this case I didn't want a lot to hang over. If I had wanted a lot to hang over, I would have chosen a smaller oval, but I wanted the words to be on the green cardstock.

I stamped the image again onto white cardstock, colored it in with markers and a white gel pen, then cut it out.  I adhered it over the image that was stamped on the green cardstock.  Notice how some of it hangs over the edge?

I covered my base cardstock with blue patterned paper that coordinated with the colors I had chosen for the image. I adhered a blue ribbon, the attached my out of the box image on top.

I had colored the bird on the left birdhouse blue, but when I put it against the blue background, it faded away, so I recolored it red. I added a little bling with some glitter on the flower centers.

I was pleased with the results.

I will have new images coming out sometime this week or next at My Paper Moon, so be sure to look for them.

Have a great week!

Over The Moon Monday - Paper Piecing

Good morning and welcome to Over The Moon Monday here on the blog.  I hope you had a nice Easter. My hubby, who is the cook in the family, fixed a ham, lamb, mashed potatoes, roasted veggies, green beans, crescent rolls, deviled eggs, and for dessert we had fresh strawberry shortcake.  Yummy!  I think I heard the table groan under the weight.  We shared it with my daughter and her family and her mother-in-law.  I don't think anyone went away from the table hungry.

Paper Piecing is so much fun, and today I want to share another one with you. The stamps are from Sparkle 'n Sprinkle. And as always, please share a link to your creation in the comment section.

I stamped the rabbit on white cardstock and colored in the parts that would be showing.  I stamped it again on the dotted patterned paper, and cut out the dress and the wagon. I used the same patterned paper for the mat.  Then I glued them to the stamped bunny.  You could also use double sided tape or xyron to attach the dress.

I also cut out the Catch A Falling Star stamp on the patterned paper that was adhered to cardstock (to give it support), then used pop dots to attach it to the background, which is contrasting patterned paper.  I sponged coral ink very sparingly around the edges of the white cardstock, then attached it to the dotted patterned paper and adhered to the background.

I used glitter goue for all the stars. I don't think it shows very well, but the background has some glitter also.

I used this card for a birthday card for my stepdaughter.  I was very pleased with the way it turned out.

Now that spring is here and the weather is turning nice for those of you who live in snow country, you will be able to get out of the house and enjoy the warm weather.  But don't forget to take some time for yourself and do something crafty.

Don't forget to share your creations with us. And be sure to watch the header area for a special one-day-only sale coming up soon.  Check back often so you won't miss it.

Over The Moon Monday - Pick 3 Challenge

Good Monday morning!  How was your weekend?  Weekends are always too short for my liking.  We need a weekend in the middle of the week.  Don't you agree?

Today is my daughter's birthday.  I hope she has a happy one.  She loves giraffes, and so I thought the card I made for today's challenge would be an appropriate one. I think she'll like it. The giraffe stamp is from My Paper Moon. For the next couple of days, if you enter the code MADNESS at checkout, you will get 17% off your order.

Today we will have a Pick3 challenge.  Here are the selections:

• Animal
• Anniversary
• Brads
• Brown
• Ribbon
• Lace

Choose 3 and make your card.  Then leave a link here in the comment section and share it with us. I chose animal (giraffe), brown and brads.  Here is the card:

If you click on the card above, you will get a larger image.

I used a lot of left overs making this card, which is a good thing.  I had small bits of some cuttlebug embossed folders, some glossy cardstock with alcohol ink spots, and some glimmer mist cardstock.  They all came together very nicely with the giraffe that I stamped on the piece of oval cardstock.  I used browns and  yellows to age the oval, which also helped color the giraffe.  I used a scalloped nestability die to punch some brown cardstock, which I put behind the giraffe layer. The edge is punched with a Fiskars scalloped punch, then the brown cardstock is layered behind, and I used a brown marker to make the dots. I finished it off with 3 antique brown brads. There is a shimmer to the glimmer mist cardstock that is barely visible, but beautiful nonetheless.

I hope you have enjoyed my card today, and I hope you will post a link to your challenge. If you are reading this somewhere besides the blog, you might be missing out on valuable coupons.

Have a great week. Do something crafty.

Over The Moon Monday - Paper Piecing

Good morning!  I hope you had a great weekend.  I think spring has finally arrived.  I am hearing more birds and things are starting to green up a bit.  I like the cool weather, though, and hope it stays this way just a bit longer. I would much rather deal with the cold than the heat. (But not too cold - I am a southern gal after all).

I love to go shopping, and one of my favorite things to buy are shoes.  A girl can never have too many pairs of shoes. I have been known to find a comfortable pair of shoes and buy them in several colors (hence the saying stamp). And so, one of my favorite stamps is the shoe stamp from My Paper Moon (03-167J).

Today I am going to use the shoe stamp and paper piecing to make a whole closet full of shoes.  (grin)

I simply stamped the cardstock, then stamped onto patterned paper, cut out and adhered to the cardstock. I can make any color or pattern of shoe I want.  And then I get to embellish with rhinestones, glitter, beads, pearls, ribbon, flowers, sequins, other paper, etc.  You get the picture.

This is a great way to use up scraps.  The red shoe used a little scrap I had, then I embellished it with a scrap of holographic paper and some gemstones to give it some extra bling.

The black shoe is almost identical to one I had several years ago. I loved that shoe and wore it out. So when I saw the patterned paper, I had to make the card.  The medallions at the top were cut from the same paper and the centers are punched out of holographic paper, as is the stripe on the shoe.

You can click on each picture for a larger version.

I like to paper piece, and this is a great stamp to use because it doesn't have any really small places to cut out.

The shoe stamp is #03-167J and the saying stamp is #01-129F at My Paper Moon. I hope you have  enjoyed today's cards.  Post a link to a scan of something you have paper pieced.  If you are reading this somewhere besides the blog, you need to click here to post a comment. We would like to see your creative efforts.

I hope spring is showing it's head where you live.  It's been a cold winter and I'm sure you could use some warmer weather.  See you next week!

Over The Moon Monday - Pick 3 Challenge

Good morning. Did you have a good weekend?  I had a wonderful time this weekend.  On Saturday my daughter and granddaughters picked me up and we had a girls day out.  Everybody needs one of those every so often.  We dropped of my eyeglass prescription, then went to lunch, the flea market, the pet store, Jo-Ann's, and shopping.  A full day!  But I had so much fun, and can't wait to do it again.

Today we are going to have a Pick 3 Challenge.  Those are always fun.  Here are your things to choose from. Just pick 3 of them and make your card.  Pretty easy, huh?

• 
  
  Metal
• 
  
  Butterflies
• 
  
  Alcohol Ink
• 
  
  The color green
• 
  
  Ribbon
• 
  
  Textured cardstock

I chose metal, alcohol ink, ribbon, and textured cardstock. Here is my card:

The metal is the part that "Dream" is stamped on.  I colored it with alcohol inks.  When I stamped the Dream stamp, it removed some of the color, which I thought was great.  It's a pretty simple, easy card, and doesn't need much explanation.  Both the white and blue cardstock are textured.

I hope you have a great week.  Take some time for yourself.  And as always, if you want to share your creation with us, please leave a link in the comment section. We'd like to admire your work.  To do that, you have to come here if you aren't reading this at the website.

Over The Moon Monday - Sponging

Good morning!  Welcome to Over The Moon Monday.  This is my 250th post!

Did you have a great weekend?  The weather here in Florida is finally warming up a bit. I don't want it to get too warm yet.  I'm enjoying the coolness. Like I tell my hubby, I can always add more clothes, but when it gets hot in the summer I can't always take more clothes off.  I'll take the cool weather any day.

I always enjoy my weekend, but I look forward to Monday so I can share with you.  Today I want to share some cards using the sponging technique.

Since so many of you have had lots of snow this winter, I chose to make snow scenes.  The stamps are from The Angel Company. 

I like to pick 3 colors to use when I'm sponging a sky. And depending on which colors you use, it can look like a morning sky, or an evening sky.  Cardstock makes a difference, too.  Glossy cardstock can give you a lighter sky.

I think the first card looks like a morning sky.  I used post-it notes torn to make a ragged edge as the horizon.  Then I sponged my lightest color of ink onto the cardstock.  Moving up a bit, I sponged the 2nd lightest color, and finally at the top I sponged the darkest color, being sure to overlap them some to blend.  The top card is on glossy cardstock.  I punched a yellow circle to be the sun/moon.

On the 2nd card, I used regular cardstock.  The colors tend to be darker because it takes more ink to cover the cardstock.  This could be an early morning or twilight card. Again, I overlapped the colors to blend them.  And again, I used a punch to make the moon.

On the yellow card, this is definately going from midday to evening. If I had reversed the colors on the cardstock, it would have been daybreak.

Instead of using a punched out sun/moon, I used the negative space from where I punched the others, and sponged in the sun.  I like the look...it's softer.

The next card, is definately evening/night. I used several colors of dark blue and purple, and they are subtly blended. I used a white gel pen to add falling snow, and added some crystal clear glitter to the snow to give it a glisten.  You can't see it in the scan, though.

I hope you have enjoyed the cards for this week.  I have enjoyed making them, and if you need any further information on sponging, please don't hesitate to leave a comment and ask. 

I hope you have a great week.  If you get to try your hand at sponging skies, please leave a link in the comment section. We'd all like to enjoy your creation. And you never know, I might just decide to give out a little blog candy, and you might be the lucky winner.

See you next week!

Over The Moon Monday - Green Challenge

Good morning and welcome to Over The Moon Monday here on the blog.  Did you have a good weekend?  I can't believe it's March already and it's still cold. Did you stay warm?  If you live in the northeast, I hope your power stayed on and you were able to stay warm and cozy.  It's been very cool here in Florida, but I am enjoying it.

Let's do a color challenge this week.  Since March is the month for St. Patrick's Day, how about having a green challenge?  I know exactly the stamp I want to use.  I don't have many St. Patrick's Day stamps, but I have a little guy named Shamrock Sam, and he's a cutie. I have put him on sale for you, too.  Go check him out.  I hope you like him as much as I do.

  To make this card, I first cut a card base for an A2 card (5-1/2 x 8-1/2) and scored it. I cut a piece of medium green cardstock for the bottom of the card, and a piece of patterned paper for the top.  You can cut it half and half or in any proportion you want.  My patterned paper is less than half of the card, so I used the medium green for the rest.

I thought the plain green was too plain, so I used a Stampin' Up canvas stamp to give it some texture. It still wasn't quite what I was going for, so I added a little drywall tape, then used white gesso and gold acrylic paint and sponged it on the tape, then removed the tape.  That gave it more texture, and I was happy with it.

I cut out a piece of white cardstock with a nestability die, then stamped Shamrock Sam in the center. I colored him with alcohol markers. I put the die back on the cutout, then sponged green ink around the image. He's a leprechaun, right?  So he needs some gold bling.  I found some gold glitter that I've had forever, and it was very chunky, so I added a little glue under the image and put the glitter on. Now it looks like he's gathering gold and putting it in his bags.

Before I adhered the image to the card, I glued a piece of dark green ribbon over the seam where the two papers come together, then adhered the image.  I punched 4 hearts out of a lighter green paper, and adhered to the card to make a 4 leaf clover. I used a green marker to loosely outline the hearts.

I don't have a St. Patrick's saying stamp, so the words are computer generated.

I hope you have enjoyed today's card and I have inspired you to create something. If you do, please leave a comment and a link to your creation so we can all ooh and ahhh over it.  I hope you have a great week, and you get to do something crafty.

Inky hugs,

Over The Moon Monday - Pick 3 Challenge

Good morning and welcome to another Over The Moon Monday.  I hope the weather has been good where you are.  It's been cold here in Florida (not that I'm complaining...it's better than being too hot), but Sunday was a lovely day.  A true spring day, with birds singing.  I sat outside and read part of the day and really enjoyed it.  Maybe spring is finally on it's way. 

I haven't had a Pick 3 Challenge lately, and Ithink it's time to have another one, how about you?  So without further ado, let's get started.

If you haven't participated in a Pick 3 Challenge before, this is how it works:  I will pick 6 things.  You have to make a card or project using 3 of the 6 things I have chosen.  Then post a link to your work here at the website, in the comments section. It's pretty easy.

Here are the list of 6 things to choose from:

1. 
   
   Birds
2. 
   
   Jewels
3. 
   
   Blue
4. 
   
   Faux Stitching
5. 
   
   Dry Embossing
6. 
   
   Birthday

For the challenge I made the following thank you card.  This is not a standard A2 card, but is about 3-1/2 x 3-1/2.

I love this little bird stamp from My Paper Moon. 

• 
  
  I cut the 6 panels using a Provo Craft die.  I embossed 2 with the Cuttlebug Dotted Swiss Embossing Folder.  To hightlight the dots, I ran a darker blue dye inkpad over the raised area. 
• 
  
  Two of the panels I cprayed with a gold mist spray. These were all cut from a left over piece of cardstock.
• 
  
  I stamped the birds onto a piece of beige cardstock, then colored with Copic markers. 
• 
  
  To make the foam of the seashore, I used a white Gelly Roll pen. I added a little glitter with a glitter pen to the sea, making it look like the sun glinting off the waves. 
• 
  
  I cut this out using a nestability die, then mounted onto beige cardstock that was cut a little largerl\
• 
  
  I stamped the "thank you" (The Angel Company) onto beige cardstock that I colored with Copic markers and cut out with the Provo Craft die.  I mounted this onto  a larger piece of cardstock (again fromt he scrap cardstock I used before) that was also cut with a Provo Craft die.
• 
  
  I stamped a faux zig zag stitch onto blue cardstock and mounted the thank you on it, then adhered to the card.

To mail the card, I am using a standard A2 envelope, since postage would be more for a square envelope, and I'm trying to be thrifty.  Here is the envelope I made:

Let's see what you have made.  Leave a link in the comment section to your creation.

While I had that little sandpiper stamp out, I made another card. I cut a larger piece of cardstock with the nestability die for this one, and I used the faux flower soft (I don't know the name, but I think it's called fluff or something) for where the wave is breaking on the shore.  It's made from styrofoam, and I made a bunch. I put it in little baggies and colored it with reinkers. I've never used the real Flower Soft, but this is an economical substitute, and I love the way it looks.

The background swirl stamps are from The Angel Company.

I hope you have a wonderful week, and that you get to do something crafty.  See you again next time.