Rudolph Day February 2014

On the 25th of each month, Sarn at Stamping  for Pleasure has a Christmas Card Challenge. Two cards, anything goes as long as it is Christmas! This is a great way to get some cards made ahead so they will be finished and waiting for that special time of year. Making two card a month for Sarn's challenge is a fun way to add to my finished Christmas card totals!

Here are my two February Rudolph Day cards.  Card One...

The poinsettia images were coloured this summer up at the lake and then stored in my coloured images binder. How I love this little book!  When I need a card in a hurry for a challenge or for a giveaway, I check out my binder to see if I have anything that would work. Here is a close up...

Today is Craft day with my neighbour and my turn to design a card for us. I kitted up one of poinsettia coloured images and papers, for her too. Each card was the same basic design but I used various random snippets from my scrap drawers. We made up three of the poinsettia image cards.
Here is the inside of my card.

Don't know what I am doing wrong lately but I can't seem to get a crisp, clear, in focus image...Perhaps this one is a bit clearer...

Card 2 - I made one last card using some Anna Griffin Christmas Kitsch vellum quote stickers. I have the silver and gold book of these quotes as well...so expect to see a lot of these this year. Again I used some of my really tiny snippets to make the flags. I promise that it is centered on the card...I had to play with how I held the camera to avoid the glare off the glittered card.

The inside...

Card 1 - Recipe
Card Base - glittered 5x7 cards and envelopes from my stash (originally fromMichael's)
DP - Flag snippets: pink and white Basic Grey 2011 Kissing booth; green damask Echo Park green damask; dark pink unknown snippit; Backing paper mats, I think the floral is a Basic Grey and the strip is unknown
Cardstock - snippets of white from my stash
Embossing folder - Holly leaves
Bling - clear diamond bling from my stash
Cord - extra fine silver cord from my stash
Stamp - unknown (this is the last of the ones that were part of a class at the scrapbook store last year)
Sentiment - Up-cycled from a Christmas card

I am entering this card into the following challenges
1. Stamping for Pleasure Rudolph Day - must be Christmas
2. Pixies Crafty Workshop - must be snippets
3. MFP Speedy TV Christmas Card Challenge - must be Christmas

Card 2 - Recipe
Card Base - glittered 5x7 cards and envelopes from my stash (originally fromMichael's)
DP - Flag snippets; Recollections small black dots; bright pink stripe Echo Park Watermelon
aqua snowflake is MME; dotted mat is also MME
Sentiments - Anna Griffin Christmas Kitsch Vellum Quotes

I am entering this card in the following challenges
1. Stamping for Pleasure Rudolph Day - must be Christmas
2. MFP Speedy TV Christmas Card Challenge - must be Christmas
3. Pixies Crafty Workshop - must use snippets

Mrs.A's Inaugural Butterfly Challenge

Finally have a card to post for Mrs. A's Inaugural Butterfly Challenge. This is a fortnightly challenge in which your card must contain a butterfly or butterflies. Each fortnight there is a theme and this time it is Butterflies and Flowers. You must have at least one of each on your card.

I have had this image coloured up for quite some time but was never sure how to use it. A couple of weeks ago, I was at our local Korean dollar store just a mile or so away from my house. I love to peek in there when I post a letter or pick up a prescription, as it is in the same plaza.  They have many different items than the big Dollar Stores here, and the lady has a good eye for choosing craft supplies.

The aqua cutwork border is from there...it was a very heavy weight, sateen cardstock cupcake wrapper in another life. The had packets of 8 or so for a dollar. I remembered this image and had to have it.

I managed to use up some more of my Michael's dollar packets of flowers. I try to pick these up whenever they have their clear out after each change of season. I have combined 3 sizes and changed out the bling on the larger layered one. I wrestled with the idea of adding a die cut butterfly, thinking it would be too big. Then I remembered my Stampin' Up Sizzlets set, Beautiful wings. I had a snippet of the teal card left so I cut out some of the smaller ones and set them aflight! I added a touch of Stardust Stickles to bits of the stamped image, to gussy it up just a tad.

Kept the inside fairly simple...

Recipe:
Card Base - 5 1/2 inch square textured card and Envelope, from my stash
Patterned paper -Authentique, Shine
Cards Stock - snippets of grey textured sateen card and teal card from my stash
Dies - Spellbinder ovals and scalloped ovals; Memory Box Madeira Corner and Stampin' Up Sizzlets Beautiful Wings
Embellishments - cupcake wrapper from the $ store
  - various size flowers from Michael's dollar bins (from my stash)
Bling - clear diamonds from my stash and a wee blue glittered chipboard center for the largest flower (from my stash)
Stamp - will update soon as I find it!!! lol
Sentiment Stamp - My Sentiments Exactly, S126-IO

I am entering this card in the following challenges:
1. Pixies Crafty Workshop - must use snippets
2. Butterfly Challenge - must use atleast one flower and at least one butterfly
3. Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge - must cover card with paper
4. Allsorts Challenge Blog - Ladies Day

Speech Bubbles

I think I must lead a bit of a sheltered life.
The challenge I am trying to do requires the use of a speech bubble. Now, I know they have been popular for quite a while...but I do not have one! I have just never had the need for one...until today.

I looked through all my stamps and almost decided that I would have to give this challenge a pass...and then I saw it. I saw this little frog and mason jar...and I had to find a way to make this work. I picked up this stamp set at a Garage Sale last summer at my local scrapbook store. They sponsor four of these sales a summer and I am lucky if I am in town for one of them! Bargains abound as the store does not take a cut of the profits...just opens up their parking lot and rents you a table for $10 I am so looking forward to this years sales.

I knew right away the words I wanted to put in the speech bubble, so I just had to find a way for this to work. I printed out my sentiment for the bubble on the computer, and then printed it onto kraft card stock.

I  cut out this sentiment using a circle die and then punched some smaller circles to be the bubbles leading to the speech...My speech bubble was born!

Phew,,,thank goodness that was sorted. Then it was just the fun part of fussy cutting the lid and popping it up and colouring in my image. I didn't do a very good job on the dirt...the frog was positioned kind of funny on the jar (stamping operator error)  so the dirt had to come up quite high. Not too fond of that part!
I did pull out my Gelly Roll pen and went over the lid, to make it look metallic. It has a lovely shimmer now!

Here's the arty view...

and the inside view...

Recipe:
Card base - made from my stash
Design paper -  MME, Notable Wonder; from my stash
                      - Basic Grey, Origins Hot Stone; from my stash
                       - snippets of blue background paper is from my snippet stash
Card stock - snippets of white from my stash
Dies - Memory Box, Small Alder Tree and Spellbinders Deckle Rectangles and Petite Circles
Brads - ivory glitter brads from my stash
Twine - snippet from my stash
Ink - Cats Eye Chalk Ink , Chestnut Roan from my stash
Copic Markers
Stamp - Stampin' Up, All wrapped up (mason jar and frog)
Sentiment Stamp - Stampin' Up

I am entering this card in the following challenges
1. Pixies Crafty Workshop - must use snippets
2. Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge - must cover base with paper