Two Green Cards

I blame it on snowstorm Stella and the resulting 30 inches of white stuff outside that made me create with the color green in the last few days, hehe...

Stamps: Sentiment (Altenew)

Dies: Stitched Rectangle (SSS), Foliage (Memory Box)

Inks: Distress Inks, Delicata Gold, LuminArte Gold

I had lots of fun smooshing a darker panel (for the foliage) and a lighter panel (for the background) using different shades of Distress Inks.

Challenges (click on the links for more information and lots of inspiration from the DTs and the galleries) - graphics at the end:

CAS Mix Up March Challenge

They are celebrating already one year of fun - Happy Birthday!

My choices are die-cutting, stitching, vellum, gold splatters

This card won "Outstanding Design"!

CAS Watercolor March Challenge "Spring"

INKSPIRATIONAL #130 "Watercolor Smooshing"

This card was "Top Pick"!

CASOLOGY #240 "Foliage"

AAA Cards CAS Game #86 "Die Cuts"


Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge "Bit O' Green"


Simon Says Stamp Work It Wednesday "Green"
Can't make banner appear - sorry!

Stamps: Flower and Sentiment (Essentials by Ellen)
Other: Washi Tape (Stampin' Up)


I made this next card in my mind while driving to pick up my kids from school after I saw the gorgeous inspiration board of the current Pin-Sight challenge...

Essentials by Ellen March Pin-Sight Challenge

Be well,

More ghosting and some Watercoloring

Check out my new signature at the end of the post that the amazing Loll created for me! The one that I made a few months ago caused a warning to pop up every time I wrote a new post, so sweet Loll offered to design a new one for me! I love it and hope you do, too!

Today I have two cards for you!

This past weekend I spent with my 7Cardologists friends (although one was missing) in the mountains at our annual Stamp Camp. I taught them the Ghosting technique which is the current theme at the CAS Mix Up Challenge. We all used different stencils and colors and had so much fun. I made this card from my background.

Stamps: Happy Little Stampers (sentiment)
Dies: Impression Obsession (tree)
Other: Tree stencil (TCW), Distress Inks


Challenges (click on the links for more information and lots of inspiration):

CAS Mix Up October Challenge "Ghosting"
plus Stamping and Die cutting
*This card was a runner up!*







On my second card I did some watercoloring with Distress Inks. I don't own Copics and use a lot of colored pencils when I am stamping with my friends but what I really love is the look of watercoloring.

Stamps: Winnie & Walter (sentiment)

Dies: Impression Obsession

Other: Distress Inks, copper embossing powder from PSX (that I've had for more than 20 years!!!)

The word "autumn" is embossed in copper. Hard to see in the picture but very pretty in real life. Will take a picture tomorrow and post it on instagram (button on the right sidebar).

Sending this card to the following challenges:


CAS Watercolor October Challenge "Fall"

Simon Says Stamp Work It Wednesdays September "Yellow, Orange, Red, and Brown"





The Gossip Column with Taheera Atchia on the W&W blog #5 "Precious Metals"








Both CAS Mix Up and CAS Watercolor Challenges are having an Design Team call and since I really like that style and enjoy playing in these challenges I am being brave and throwing my hat into the ring. Wish me luck...

Phew, that was a longish post! Thanks for sticking with me 'til the end!

Be well,

Keep Smiling...

First of all, let me welcome my new follower

Christine of Stempel-Wahn

Check out her blog, you will be inspired by her beautiful cards!

Today I am showing you a card I made with one of my first stamps. I bought it in the children's section of a bookstore on my first trip to the US. I just love grinning faces and was immediately charmed by Sandra Boynton's greeting cards. So when I found a stamp featuring her grinning cats I had to have it. Looking at them cheer sme up. I grinned the whole time I was making that card. To be honest, though, I haven't used the stamp much. Especially lately. But I wanted to make a card for a cat-loving person with a great sense of humor.

Inside sentiment: "Sunshine is good for your teeth"

Used some Distress Inks with a Tim Holtz stencil, then clear embossing paste over that, sprinkled with gold glitter. The rest is self-explanatory, I think. Let me know if you have any questions.

Stamps: Sandra Boynton (cats with sentiment),  Hero Arts (background)
Other: Stencil (Tim Holtz)


Challenges:


Simon Says Stamp Work It Wednesday "Sunshine"


 


That's it from me for today. My bed is calling me...

Be well,

Pink and Grey

This week we celebrated one of our Cardologist's birthday. A while ago she mentioned that even as a young girl she loved pink and grey together so those were the colors I chose for her card. The flower die was a gift from Dora B. And, of course, I had to use more dew drops... (I really hope I will live long enough to be able to use them all up...)

And a different perspective so you can better see the glossy, glittery (self-adhesive) paper I used to cut out the flowers.

Stamp: Penny Black (sentiment)
Dies: die-namites (flowers), SSS (banner)
Other: self-adhesive paper (Recollection


Challenges:

Inkspirational #104 "Pink and Grey"







Simon Says Stamp Work It Wednesday "Something Floral"






I am so delighted to be able to welcome three new followers:

Greta from GG Creations
Karen Hashek from Karen's Kreative Kards
Loll Thompson from Stamping with Loll

Thank you, ladies, for becoming followers of my blog!
The are all seasoned stampers and bloggers and you will find lots of inspiration when you meander through their blogs. It will get your mojo going!

My welcoming quote for the three of you is something Susan Raihala wrote on her blog some time ago that I loved:

Life: It is what it is. 
Some parts are good, some parts are bad, and gratitude poured over it all makes it manageable.


Thanks so much for reading till the very end! I so appreciate every one of your visits and comments!

Autumn Hello

On a recent Thursday night Dora brought her new stamp from Purple Onion to the 7Cardologists get-together. We all stamped the cute raccoon with the pumpkin designed by Stacy Yacula on watercolor paper but then went off in different directions. I watercolored mine, fussy cut it, and made this card.

Stamp: Purple Onion Design (raccoon)
Die: Top Dog Dies (hello)


Our cards all ended up looking very different, so for more ideas on how to use this adorable stamp please click over to Dora's blog (here and here) where she has posted what the other girls made!


Challenges:

Virginia's View #19 "All Things Colored"







Simon Says Monday Challenge "Wonderful Watercolor"






Simon Says Wednesday Challenge "Mood Board"







Simon Says Work It Wednesday "Stamp"







Time Out #42 
(Pumpkin and striped scarf)








Hope you are all well!
Hugs,
Susanne

Purple card for Domestic Violence Awareness

Hi there,

Maybe you have noticed lots of cards featuring purple in the blogosphere lately. I know that some of you have even made purple cards for the blog hop to raise awareness for domestic violence organized by the fabulous Becca Cruger aka "Damsel of Distressed"! Please click on the link to read her very moving post! Did you know that 1 in 3 women will experience domestic violence in their lifetime? That is a lot! And it's not only women. Nobody deserves this!

If you are experiencing domestic violence, reach out for help! 

Call the 24/7 confidential National Domestic Violence Helpline at 

1-800-799-7233

(Sorry, I only have the number for the States)

Please help raise awareness, post a purple card, and link it to Becca's blog, where you will find the rules and more info. And look at all the sponsors that she has lined up! You have until 10/14.

I recently placed an order at Winnie & Walter and used one of the sets to make a card for this hop.

Stamps: Winnie & Walter (circles), Altenew ("rock")

Die: SSS ("you")

Challenges (please click on links to find out about rules and to admire the galleries):

The Hop to Stop

Winnie & Walter "WCMD 2015 - Watercolor with Vanessa"

Winnie & Walter "WCMD 2015 - Gold/Metallic with Lydia"

Virginia's View Challenge #19 "All Things Colored"

Simon Says Work It Wednesday "Stamp"

Simon Says Stamp "World Cardmaking Day"

I have to say that you all ROCK for stopping by here and leaving me sweet comments! Thank you!

Wishing you all a fun filled weekend,

Susanne

Thanks a ton

Every month my friend Gundi from papierelle gives out a prize to one of the commenters of her most visited post of the previous month. Isn't that a great idea? I was the lucky winner of the prize for the month of August. So, a few weeks ago I got this in the mail:

Two cute Christmas stamps and a Christmas embossing folder! Just the right thing to put me in a Christmas mood! The dragonflies on the card are really sparkly. It was all packaged with love in that sweet little bag she made.

This deserved a "ton" of thanks so I got out a NBUS set from Clearly Besotted and made her this card:

Stamps: Clearly Besotted (whale, sentiment)

Dies: Memory Box (waves), Sweet 'n' Sassy Stamps (clouds), SSS (frame)

The waves are cut out from a photocopied picture of lake water, a leftover from one of the calendars I always make for my family (told you I keep every snippet)! The whale is stamped on glossy paper and fussy cut.


Challenges:


Pixie's Snippets Playground - week 197
The waves and the clouds are snippets







Time Out Challenges #41 'Autumn... the year's last, loveliest smile'
Since the whale wears a big smile I thought I would enter here too, focusing on the word "smile" and bring a touch of blue into the see of autumn colored entries... ;)







Simon Says Stamp "Anything Goes"







Simon Says Stamp Work It Wednesday "Stamp"







Simon Says "World Cardmaking Day"







Happy Little Stampers "October sketch"








Thank you for visiting and leaving me a comment!

Hugs,
Susanne