Use It #15 and Kazan's Sketch #29

I finally found some time to do some playing around in my craft room. I haven't done anything like this in a while. I love these sites, 2sketches4you and Use It! challenges, because they inspire me. Really they do. I wish I had more time to keep up with them...forgive me, ladies. I am raising a family, you know. ;) So here is what I made this evening,...a baby card using the requirements for this week's Use It http://useitchallenges.blogspot.com/2009/06/use-it-challenge-no15.html (which were 1+ year old patterned paper; chipboard - the elephant; paint - on the circle behind the elephant; rub-on -- the parentheses around "bundle of joy"; and foam dots - under the scalloped circle and the elephant). I sort of followed Kazan's sketch for 2sketches this week, but nevertheless, check it out! http://2sketches4you.blogspot.com/2009/06/kazans-sketch-29-ultimate-showdown-top.html Thanks for looking!

Use It! Challenge No. 10

I love this site http://useitchallenges.blogspot.com/!!! You have to check it out if you have not already. This person who started it all is Rae, and she is an awesome cardmaker. She inspires me to the max! Here is her site: http://simplyrae.blogspot.com/. I am a major shopper when it comes to scrapping and making cards...and this site is helping me clear out some of that stash with some great ideas from everyone involved with it. This week Suzanne issued our challenge to use a monochromatic color scheme; some rub-ons or clear stickers; chipboard; and non-traditional ribbon. Her blog is here: http://cardgarden.blogspot.com/.

For my color scheme, I used Wild Asparagus frames coordinated with some My Mind's Eye paper. The Merry Christmas is a rub-on by Marcella K. (Thanks to my SIL, Jessica!) The trees are made from chipboard which I cut using my Cricut Expression and Doodlecharms cartridge. I covered them with coordinating paper and inked with white. And my non-traditional ribbon is the raffia as the tree trunks. I really like the way it turned out and now I have one card down for Christmas....Thanks for looking!

Use It Challenge No. 5

For this week's challenge at p://useitchallenges.blogspot.com/2009/04/use-it-challenge-no5.html, the requests were to:


1. Dig out those OLD scrapbook die-cuts.
Mine is that rectangle looking cut with the ropey border. Am I even describing it right? I don't know where it came from, and I probably would have never used it...until this challenge came along!



2. Here's another OLD challenge.....scrounge around and find a piece of patterned paper
that you've been hanging onto for a minimum of two years.
The patterned paper I used is from the ugliest scrap paper pack at Hobby Lobby. I bought it well over two years ago and I don't know why. I hate most of the paper in that paper pack, but I guess I was looking for something different...which I definitely received. I used the least ugly sheet from the pack...it's the black and white lined paper in the very background. The other paper used is all from my scraps. (Scrapbook Wizard 2005 paper line for black and white paper, scrap black cardstock, and ChatterBox for the blue paper.)



3. Think back to that tool or technique you used to use ALL the time.....bring it back to life.
The technique I brought back to life (not really) is inking. I ink most of the time even now (I've been doing it for several years), but what I don't use is black ink. I almost always use brown ink to give definition to my work. I went back to my old ways here and used black instead.



4. Have you bought something recently that was on clearance?
Let's incorporate that into this challenge too.
My recent purchase used here is from the $1 card stand at JoAnn's...I bought the chipboard arrow in a pack of chipboard diecuts,...and also the black tag is from a pack at the JoAnn's clearance bin. The company is Colorbok. I didn't spell that wrong, either. ;)



Thanks for the challenge, Lori! It was fun!

Laura's Sketch 22 and Use It #3

Following the sketch at this week at http://2sketches4you.blogspot.com/2009/03/lauras-sketch-22.html, and combined with the challenge at http://useitchallenges.blogspot.com/, I styled this card using the said supplies: American Crafts patterned papers (bought almost two years ago to make a "star book" which obviously I never did); brown eyelets (given to me by my SIL); a polka-dotted chipboard elephant (recently purchased at a scrap store nearby); brown ribbon from Hobby Lobby in the scrapbook section; Fiskars punch "Threading Water"; a paper arrow cut from the Accent Essentials Cricut cartridge (I've had this cart for a while and use it very little); and the "baby" chipboard wordplate (I guess that's what you'd call it!) from My Mind's Eye 2006 (also over 1 year stash item and also given to me by my SIL who is starting her own scrap store). I had fun with both the sketch and the challenge, and I am pleased with how the card turned out. Thanks for looking!

Use It Challenge #2

This week at http://useitchallenges.blogspot.com/, the challenge given was to use four flowers of any variety, Spring colors, and a tag. Here is the card I made using those guidelines. My bird is from Tomi Ann's etsy shop "Little Things." I used my Cricut Expression for the flowers on Accent Essentials, and the stem for the flower from the same. The reason I chose to use my Expression to make this card is that I rarely use some of my cartridges, and I felt this was a way to start using them again -- through this challenge. I machine stitched the edges of the Basic Grey and My Mind's Eye patterned papers. The tag is from the Tags, Bags Boxes & More cartridge. Thanks for looking!