All That Scraps Weekly Wednesday Challenge: Buttons!

With a challenge theme like buttons, how could I not play along?

Week 70 Challenge:

The challenge this week is to use buttons on your creation.  Have fun with it and let's see how creative you can get. 
Remember, every week there is a new and exciting prize being offered and in order to be eligible to win, your project must include a stamp that is sold in the All That Scraps store.Whether it is any of our wonderful in house designs or from the various other stamp companies that ATS carries, the choice is yours. Then be sure to link up your creation with Mr Linky by next Tuesday at 10pm est and only one entry per person please!   This challenge runs until March 15th.

I decided to pull out one of my favourite stamps - the birthday penguins from The Cat's Pajamas. Here's my card -

Supplies: stamps from The Cat's Pajamas;
stamped with Palette Noir ink;
papers from Cosmo Cricket "Delovely" (yellow) and AC "Abode" (red);
Cotton Ball Fun Flock from Stampendous;
buttons from Basic Grey;
Sakura Stardust glitter pen; Martha Stewart markers; Adirondack Citrus for the grass

And as you can imagine, this card is reaaaaally front-heavy. I should have made it as a top-fold card so that it would have a chance of standing up independently, but oh well. My scissors were just solid enough to keep it from tipping over for the photo - barely! I love this sentiment - every birthday I wonder if I'm going to feel like a grownup, and I have yet to do so.
xoxo,
Jessi

Paper Piecing Challenge in the Moxie Fab World!

Nothing like the last minute to get creativity flowing...here are three entries for Moxie Fab World's paper piecing challenge.

Supplies: Sweet puppy & sentiment from Inkadinkado;
papers from AC "Abode;"
orange flower from Recollections;
Distress ink (antique linen) & fineline marker for ground;
Puppy is paper-pieced using Basic Grey brown scrap & white cardstock



Supplies: cake stamp from The Cat's Pajamas;
All papers & paper piecing done with My Mind's Eye "Tickled Pink" papers;
pink polka dot layer cut with Nestabilities Labels 4;
Mod Podge Dimensional magic used on the cake stands, heart, and cherry on top;
Martha Stewart markers used for the dotty background



Supplies: stamps all from Cornish Heritage Farms Kim Hughes Collection;
banner paper from My Mind's Eye "True Blue;"
Owl & branch paper-pieced with Basic Grey "Origins" and white cardstock (eyes, beak, toes);
hat paper-pieced with K & Co "Citronella;" coloured with Martha Stewart markers;
buttons from Basic Grey; banner tag from Martha Stewart

I think my very favourite is Mr. Owl up there - I love his expression! I really, truly suck at creating scenes with masking - I am just too impatient, and I nearly always smear the ink. This particular owl card I had attempted via masking, and after the 4th botched image I decided I liked him better paper-pieced anyway. So there. (*blows raspberry*)
xoxo,
Jessi

Wishing you Well!

"Get Well" cards are something I don't make very often - I was going through my stash of cards last week & realized that the get well cards I had, I've had for quite some time. I received this darling little Pure Innocence doctor as a Teaser Time prize from My Favorite Things in January, and had only had a chance to use it once, so I pulled him back out & gave him a whirl. He's watercoloured using reinkers. 

Supplies: papers from Basic Grey "Archaic;"
doctor stamp from My Favorite Things;
coloured with Adirondack Salmon, and Distress Vintage Photo & Antique Linen;
"wishing you well" stamp from Hero Arts, stamped with Vintage Photo

I am nearly finished with my second package of "Archaic" papers...they have been my go-to paper for masculine cards for a long time, and I wish I could find some more! I really like how this turned out suitable for a guy, even though the PI image is pretty cutesy.
xoxo,
Jessi

The Ultimate Insult...

...my child wanted to buy his friend a STORE BOUGHT CARD. My shame and horror know no bounds. Sigh. I have no more words.

On that note, I have another challenge card to share for Moxie Fab World, this time for the Tuesday Trigger "Oh So Lovely." As Cath says, check it:

(image via Pinterest)

How gorgeous! I love the shabbiness of the painted chair, and that luscious bouquet of warm colours...so here's what I made:

Supplies: papers all from Basic Grey "Curio;"
flower silhouette stamp from Digital Princess;
stamped with Versamark & Adirondack Salmon ink, embossed with clear EP;
sentiment stamp from Kaisercraft, stamped with Memories Artprint Brown;
standard & lacey circle Nestabilities, lacey circle sponged with Memories Artprint Brown.

Basic Grey papers are so beautifully distressed, and the "plain" pages in the Curio collection really bring shabby paint to my mind, and the colours were perfect, so I knew I wanted to use them for this Trigger. I also knew that I didn't want to cover up any more of the scrumptious background paper than necessary!
xoxo,
Jessi

The Cityscapes are on the Rise Challenge

So, I picked up a copy of Paper Crafts magazine a few weeks ago - and have been practically carrying it around the house with me. The Moxie Fabs article was about Cityscapes - and lo and behold, an idea for that paper from Basic Grey's "Wander" that I'd been hoarding was hatched. Kim Kesti's card on p. 24 uses the paper, and I cribbed my sentiment from Courtney Kelly's awesome card on p. 26 (also featured here, the first card shown). And now Cath's challenge -

Create a paper crafted project (card, gift bag, tag, layout, home decor item, mini-book cover, etc.) that incorporates a cityscape in an innovative way.

Not sure that this qualifies as innovative, but I love how it turned out - simple, even suitable for a masculine card (yay!), so I'm sharing it for the challenge. I may even dare to try again before the challenge closes March 28.

Supplies: papers all from Basic Grey "Wander;"
stickers from Basic Grey "Kioshi" (yellow) and "Oliver" (green);
teal layer popped up on one layer of foam tape, and the yellow layer is popped up on two.

xoxo,
Jessi

More Pink Cat Fabulousness!

Ah, I was going to make you wait longer to see the last two cards I made with Pink Cat Studio's St. Patrick's Day digital release, but hey, I have no patience, so here they are :)




Pink Cat Studio

Supplies: Leprechaun digi from Pink Cat Studio;
coloured with Spiced Marmalade Distress ink (hair & beard),
Adirondack Salmon (skin), and prismacolor pencils;
"Little Leprechaun" sticker from Karen Foster;
Shamrock button from Dress it Up!;
loose gold glitter on the hat & belt buckles & the pot of gold

Supplies: Shamrock bear digi from Pink Cat Studio;
coloured with Prismacolor pencils;
flocked with Quickie Glue Pen & Stampendous Cotton Ball Fun Flock;
dotty paper from Colorbok;
teeny shamrock stickers & banner from Jolee's;
loose gold glitter for buckle & pot of gold;
quilled shamrocks by me :)

Saint Patrick's Day isn't traditionally a big card-making day, but there are always folks who have someone with a St. Paddy's birthday who are looking for something different than the 2 options H***mark gives...and I am more than happy to fill that niche :)
xoxo,
Jessi

Pink Cat Studio St. Patrick's Day Digi Release!!

Well, that title is a bit of a mouthful, but I wanted to get it all in there!

I am super-beyond-excited to share these new images with you - and I hope you rush right back over to Pink Cat Studio and take advantage of the package deal Melissa's offering so that you can get that sweet little shamrock-sitting pixie for free! While you're there you should look through the loads of digis she has to offer, including free sentiments. I *want* Blobby! and Rex & Bronty...and the incredible Gnome series...and...well, you get the idea. I love them!

So, in no particular order, here are 4 of the cards I made for the release - you'll just have to come back to see the other two ;)

Supplies: Pixies & Pot of Gold digi from Pink Cat Studio;
coloured with markers;
glitter paper from Colorbok;
shamrock confetti & clear microbeads from Michaels;
loose glitter (gold & green, for the coins & shamrock on the pot);
Jolee's stickers - coins, vellum shamrocks, small pot of gold

Supplies: Shamrock Bear digi from Pink Cat Studio;
coloured with Prismacolor pencils;
covered with Quickie Glue Pen & Stampendous Cotton Ball Fun Flock;
loose gold glitter for hat buckle & coins;
shamrock from stash - embossed with Cuttlebug folder & sanded;
"Lucky Clover" sticker from Karen Foster

Supplies: Leprechaun digi from Pink Cat Studio;
coloured with reinkers (hair & skin) and Prismacolor pencils;
gingham paper from Cosmo Cricket "Material Girl;"
Shamrock buttons from Dress it Up!;
sentiment stickers & hat on evelope from Karen Foster;
hat & balloon sticker from Jolee's;
loose gold glitter & Quickie Glue Pen;
Nestabilities oval die

Supplies: Itty Bitty Shamrock Betty digi from Pink Cat Studio;
watercoloured with reinkers: Spiced Marmalade; adirondack Citrus & Salmon;
paper roses from Recollections;
paper from K & Co adhesive pack;
standard circle Nestabilities die;
hard to see, but her shoes & belt buckle have Mod Podge Dimensional Magic

All right, now head over to the Pink Cat Studio blog and see what all the other fabulous designers have created, and don't forget to pick up your own set!

Thanks again, Melissa, for this fantastic fun opportunity!
xoxo,
Jessi

Shamrock shakes rock!

We got a McDonald's coupon flyer in the mail yesterday, and Shamrock Shakes are back! We haven't seen those as long as we've been in Amherst. I'm more than a little stoked...I know I won't drink a whole one, but someone will HAVE to share with me!

A few weeks ago I experimented with Distress Ink backgrounds and I had a blue-green piece left over that I wanted to use. I paired it with this gorgeous shamrock bouquet from Waltzingmouse Stamps (found in the Freebies section). I watercoloured three bouquets with the same combination of inks that I used on the background paper: Broken China, Faded Jeans, and Peeled Paint, and sponged the edges with Peeled Paint. I love how it turned out. I cut out just the shamrock portion of the second bouquet & popped it up on foam tape for dimension, which cast some shadows in the photo :) I cut just a portion of the third image with a circle punch to decorate the envelope.

Supplies: Shamrock bouquet from Waltzingmouse Stamps;
Koi waterbrush, makeup sponge, foam tape;
Distress inks: Broken China, Peeled Paint, Faded Jeans;
Standard Circle Nestabilities

Stay tuned for some incredible, brand-spanking-new Saint Patrick's Day images from Pink Cat Studio...I went nuts making cards that I hope you'll love!
xoxo,
Jessi

Par-TAY!

I love Sandra Boynton. Her books are wonderful little gems - we went through three copies of Barnyard Dance before the boys finally tired of it. I was lucky enough to find a Mom's Calendar book on clearance last year, and I've been doling out some of the illustrations for cards. Mostly I like to just leaf through the book and giggle to myself.

Supplies: Illustration by Sandra Boynton;
paper from K & Co; acetate sheet & googly eyes;
confetti from Amscan, microbeads from Michaels;
envelope stamped with Inkadinkado stamp & Fiesta Kaleidacolor ink

I've said it before, but shaker cards are really hard to capture. Nearly all the fun is in the motion. This baby's got balloons, happy faces, and wee little hearts.

I finished up all 6 (!) of the St. Patrick's Day cards that I made for Pink Cat Studio, and I'm so excited to share them with you on release day...I really enjoyed making them, and I think they turned out pretty well. Oh, that little leprechaun is adorable...

The boys had excellent report cards - both of them improved in several areas, Riley in particular in some areas of concern, so that's fantastic. It still kills me that the teachers are unable to mention autism anywhere on the report card - so many things have to be mentioned, and are obviously autism-related, but heaven forbid we document the problem we all know exists. Sheesh. I mean, seriously, they are graded on SPEAKING, but you can't mention the autism-related speech impediment or language issues. Bah!

My stomach is still killing me. It's about a full month now of this with the new diabetes medication, and the increased dose last week has just made it that much worse. It's very hard to eat frequently when eating makes you feel worse - and not eating spikes my sugar, so it doesn't work either. Everything I've read says that the side effects should abate after several weeks at a consistent dose, and I suppose I haven't actually had that yet. So, week after next, dang it, here I come. Oh, yeah, right, that's when I go back to the doctor...and probably change the dose again. *sigh* Well, that's a downer. Go back and look at the happy monsters, and skip to the end -

xoxo,
Jessi

Maybe a cupcake will help?



Supplies: Sheep with cupcake stamp from Pink Cat Studio;
coloured with Prismacolor pencils;
fuzzified with Stampendous Fun Flock;
papers and buttons from Basic Grey "Lemonade;"
sentiment from TLC Designs

Well, really, isn't a cupcake helpful most of the time? At least it's rare for a cupcake to make things worse...ah, unless you have crazy blood sugar like I do. I suppose a cupcake actually would make things worse for me. Boo, hiss. Paper cupcakes are good, though. I will continue to love on paper cupcakes :)
xoxo,
Jessi