10 Minute Craft Dash #28

I had a quick second to make a card, so I turned to the latest 10 Minute Craft Dash Challenge.

It's the perfect challenge for me....motivating, challenging, fun, and rewarding because  a card gets made even when I don't have much time.  I just wish I could get my act together to make a card sooner than just hours before the challenge closes, so I could encourage all of you to give it a shot.  It's definitely worth 10 minutes of your time.

I've been trying to get rid of scraps and bits and pieces of unfinished cards that I've been hanging onto for who knows how long.  That's where the die cut and the red patterned paper panel came from.  My favorite part is the glittery aqua berries.  It was the last thing I added and I'm glad I did.  This card is simple, and the glitter adds just a bit of fun that makes me smile.  ETA: Oops...I forgot to mention my time.  I finished this card in 9 minutes 36 seconds.

PTI October Blog Hop: Tags

Sometimes I love the internet.  Sometimes not so much.  Right now not so much.  I was cutting it close as it was but unfortunately because of internet finickiness I missed the link up deadline for Papertrey's October Blog Hop.  Oh, well.  At least now I am a little bit ahead of the game for Christmas packaging.  And I did manage to squeeze in some paper crafting time, which I haven't been able to do this week, so I'm glad for that, too. :) (Nevermind the fact that I was trying to work super quickly and the room literally looks like a tornado went through [I'm not kidding...this mess rivals the biggest mess my toddler has ever made and he's made some good ones]...but I'll deal with the mess in the morning.)

PTI's challenge was to create a set of five tags using unique materials, but I've been so short on time this week that I couldn't get too creative.  I did use ribbon which is pretty unique for me and these were made entirely from scraps (except the red ornament), but that's probably a bit of a stretch.  Besides the common color scheme I also added snowflakes and rhinestones to each tag in one way or another and three of the five tags have glitter.  A few of the tags (like the zebra bow one) were made with specific family members in mind, which makes me smile.  For being a speedy last minute attempt, I'm pretty happy with how they turned out.  Hopefully tomorrow I'll get a chance to take some more photos (in better lighting) so you can actually see the details of the tags and then I might go into a bit more detail on the description, too.  Some are pretty sparkly and fun in person.  Hope many (if not all) of you got to participate in the hop.  I'm hoping in a few days to have some time to catch up on everyone's fabulous projects.
ETA: To see more photos/details about these tags go to this post. :)

Supplies
Stamps: Background Basics: Retro, Friendship Jar Holiday Fillers, Think Big Favorites #19
Cardstock: aqua mist, pure poppy, white (PTI)
Ink: aqua mist, pure poppy, true black (PTI)
Dies: tag sale #4 (PTI)
Other: snowflake punch (Marcy Uchida), washi tape, rhinestones (CTMH), ribbon (Hobby Lobby), twine (The Twinery), glossy accents, white embossing powder (SU!), dazzling diamonds glitter (SU!)

TAWS #39 & Simon Says: Christmas/Happy Holidays (Take 2)

I wasn't satisfied with the first card I made for the current TAWS Challenge, so I decided to make a new one.  I'm loving all the wreath cards floating around and couldn't resist making another one myself.  I was inspired by the colors in the inspiration photo and thought it would be fun to use them on another holiday card.  I hope it was okay to add green...I considered it a neutral here, you  know, like a wreath form is neutral when you buy it and then you add stuff to it. :) I created the wreath with the little pine branch image in TAWS's Trees Company set.   I just stamped it repeatedly in a circle like I did with the leaves on this card.  I used a paper hole punch to add the berries and topped it off with a bow from Lil' Inkers.  This card makes me happy, and my husband's reaction to it was much better.  This time when I asked him what he thought I got an enthusiastic "Awesome!" I'm so glad I gave the challenge another shot.   I'm also linking this card to the current Simon Says Wednesday Challenge: Christmas/Happy Holidays. (P.S. I did alter the sentiment from TAWS's Toyland set slightly by making the "T" into a "J"...I didn't think the toyful pun worked as well on this particular card.)
ETA: I just found out about a great link up over at Jingle Belles Rock (thanks Marie for the tip) that I wish I'd known about sooner.   They are doing their annual Pink Christmas...For the Cure and will be donating $4 to the Susan G. Komen Foundation for every card linked up.  All you have to do is feature pink on a Christmas card.  The deadline is tomorrow (October 23rd 6pm EST), but if you have a bit of time, it certainly seems like a great cause to contribute to. 

Supplies

Stamps: Toyland, Trees Company (TAWS)

Paper: PTI (Aqua Mist, Hibiscus Burst, White)

Ink: PTI (New Leaf, Summer Sunrise)

Other: small bow die (Lil' Inkers), Linen & Canvas Impression Plate (PTI), orange striped washi tape, hole punch

ColourQ #211, Simon Says: Happy Holiday, &TAWS Be Inspired #39

Hello!  I had full intentions of going with a Halloween theme for these cards, but obviously that didn't happen. I recently won some TAWS stamps and they arrived in the mail a couple days ago (yay!).  I couldn't resist the urge to try them out last night.  My first card was inspired by this week's ColourQ Challenge the Simon Says...Christmas/Happy Holiday Challenge.

My favorite parts of this card are the darling little paper pieced elf and the shiny lights.  It took a while to cut everything out, but it was so worth it. (Though, just so you know, he looks super cute even without coloring/paper piecing him at all)  The string of lights was inspired by Arielle's awesome card.  I added some liquid glass to the lights so they would be shiny.  ETA: And since this card features some pink, I'm also linking this up to Jingle Belles Rock's Pink Christmas...For the Cure.  It's a special link up and for every card linked to the challenge $4 will be donated to the Susan G. Komen Foundation.  Pretty awesome, huh?  The deadline is tomorrow (October 23rd 6pm EST), but if you hurry and make a Christmas card featuring pink, your card can help increase the contribution. 

Supplies

Stamps: TAWS (Chill Out, Toyland)

Paper: PTI (Orange Zest, Raspberry Fizz, White), The Paper Studio (Merry Merry Collection)

Ink: PTI (True Black), SU! (Pumpkin Pie)

Other: CTMH (liquid glass), colored pencils

I debated whether or not to even share this next card that I made for the TAWS Be Inspired #39 Challenge.  It was the first idea that came to me when I saw this cute little bird in my TAWS Chill Out set.  Even during theor release week every time I saw this bird I knew he would look perfect perched on the branch/tree from TAWS's Trees Company set, which is one of the reasons I wanted to get the new set.  I drew inspiration from the vibrant pink and orange but also the tiny bit of blue in the challenge photo.  I did notice the yellow, too, but a yellow tree branch seemed funny, so I stamped brown on cork instead like I did on this card.  I was a bit on the fence with how it turned out, so I asked my husband what he thought, and he said, "eh.  You could still give it to someone."  That was a nice way to confirm my doubts.  The card is lacking something, but I'm too busy to figure it out.  Well, I'm off to work some more on my son's Halloween costume.  Wish me luck! :)

Supplies
Stamps: TAWS (Chill Out, Toyland, Trees Company)
Paper: PTI (Raspberry Fizz, White)
Ink: Color Box (Robin's Egg), PTI (True Black), SU! (Pumpkin Pie)
Other: PTI (Bubble Talk Die), Cork 

Just For Fun

Hello!  I've been uploading lots of pictures and happened across a card I never shared here (probably because I forgot to take a photo until I gave it to my niece at her birthday party).  Her party was a Shake It Up Dance party, so I used that as my inspiration for the card.  I focused mostly on the colors of the show's logo and stars seemed appropriate.  It was a bit challenging to make a card that looked more grown-up to me...my nieces are getting too old too fast.  I really wanted to stick a princess or something "younger" on the card.  It's a bit hard to tell but I embossed the sentiment on a clear cardstock banner, hence the reflection in the photo.  I've been doing lots of cleaning this week and not so much cardmaking (okay, no cardmaking).  Truthfully, both make me happy.  I  have my mother to thank for instilling in me an appreciation for a clean house.  Hope everyone is having a happy week.