Waltzingmouse October 2012 Blog Party

If it is the 17th of the month, then you know where to find me--partying with my Waltzingmouse friends (and dreaming of a vacation in Ireland).  This month, we had this super fun color palette to inspire us to think about Halloween.

In my opinion, Waltzingmouse has the best Halloween stamps around.  But, do I own any of them?  No, not yet, but, it doesn't matter when you have a friend like Kim from Cupcakes, Cards and Kim.  I don't want to spill the beans about our upcoming Four-of-a-Kind group post this Sunday, but let's just say that Kim had my back on this one.

Around our house, Halloween is all about the candy, so I made two different treat holders that will be perfect for my little tricksters. 

One of the things Kim sent me was this black tulle netting.  I must admit that at first, I thought she had cut up her black lace stockings for me, and I was wondering what kind of Halloween shenanigans she was up to.  Anyway, I decided that the best way to use this was as a giant bow, Jeanne-style.

Here is what the treat holder looks like without the bow:

Here they are together:

That's it for me today.  Enjoy the rest of the hop.  I'm excited to see what everyone else has created as well.



Supplies Used:
Stamps:  Waltzingmouse Wanda's Pantry
Paper:  PTI Royal Velvet, Orange Zest, White, Black
Other:  PTI dies:  Favor it Box #3, Pillow Box, Photo Finishers, Limitless Layers Circles, PTI ribbon, Twine, black tulle netting

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CAS(E) This Sketch #1 and Make it Monday

I have a quick post for a new challenge this week called CAS(E) this Sketch.  Here is the sketch:

I thought this sketch was very fun and easy to work with.  I finally settled on this little owl from Lawn Fawn's Critters in the Forest.  I used some Pure Poppy patterned paper to piece a few bits for this birthday owl.

There is lots of PTI goodness on this card, as well, so I decorated the inside and am entering it into this week's Make it Monday #86:  The Inside Edition.

Supplies Used:
Stamps:  Lawn Fawn Critters in the Woods, Say it Loud, PTI Wonderfully Whimsical, Think Big Favorites, Heart 2 Heart
Paper:  PTI Kraft, Pure Poppy Pattern
Ink:  Momento Rich Cocoa
Other:  Lil Inkers Balloon Die

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Color Challenges with Avery Elle

I ordered my second Avery Elle set (To the Point) the other day.  It arrived at my house the next day.  Talk about fast shipping.  I decided to play around with some color challenges.

This week's ColourQ color scheme screamed Halloween, but I didn't feel like making any Halloween cards.  I don't know why.  So I decided to see if I could use the colors in a different way.  I only have two Avery Elle sets, but they work so perfectly well together.  This card uses Framed Fonts and To the Point. 

Birthday

Once I got going, I had some more ideas about how to play with these two sets.  I used this week's Color Throwdown #213 to make two more cards.  For the first card, I used a Spellbinders circle die to cut a space for the sentiment, and raised the front panel just a bit with dimensionals.

 

Thank You

This next card is basically a vertical orientation of my first card.

Congratulations

Supplies Used:
Stamps:  Avery Elle Framed Fonts and To the Point
Paper:  PTI White
Ink for Birthday:  Memento Black, Winter Wisteria, Summer Sunrise, Orange Zest
Ink for Thank You and Congratulations:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Hibiscus Burst, Limeade Ice, Orange Zest

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Retro Sketches #32 / Make it Monday

I am sneaking in with my card for this week's Retro Sketches #32, just in the nick of time.  My card features my latest adorable owl--Lawn Fawn's Winter Owl.  And, because my card stock, ink, and twine are PTI, I'm entering the stamped inside of the card into this week's Make it Monday challenge.

I decided to paper piece this darling owl.  This owl image works so well with paper piecing--he can have an entire wardrobe of scarves, to match any outfit.

Here is a peek at the inside, where I stamped his cousin, from Lawn Fawn's Critters in the Woods.

Supplies Used:

Stamps:  Lawn Fawn Winter Owl, Critters in the Woods, Paper Smooches Good Gab
Paper:  PTI Kraft, Vintage Cream, Ripe Avocado, Lily Bee Buttercup
Ink:  PTI Kraft, Memento Rich Cocoa
Other:  PTI rustic jute twine

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CAS-ology #14: Leaf

My house is still a shambles, but I have been playing in my craft room, making up for lost time, I think.  I have two cards for this week's CASology Leaf Challenge.  

I broke out my new Lovely Leaves set to make a CAS 'Thinking of You' card.  I wanted to have a masculine card for someone who is ill, where getting well was not going to happen.  I was inspired by the many examples on this post on I'm in Haven.

In the spirit of this week's Make it Monday, I did some stamping on the inside of the card as well.

I thought of the idea for this next card in spin class this morning.  I knew I would need to do a lot of masking, but at the time, I thought I had dies for the stamps I planned on using.  It ended up that I had to do a lot of fussy cutting, which was strangely relaxing.  

 

After I made this card, I noticed that there was a very similar card already submitted for this challenge here.  What can I say other than--great minds think alike--and that her card is a real stunner.

Here is the inside of my card, which I am also entering in this week's Make it Monday challenge.

Supplies Used (PTI):
Thinking of You
Stamps:  Lovely Leaves, Botanical Silhouettes
Paper:  Rustic Cream
Ink:  Memento Rich Cocoa, Ripe Avocado, Simply Chartreuse, Fine Linen

Thank You
Stamps:  Leaf Prints, Think Big Favorites
Paper:  Rustic Cream
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Scarlet Jewel, Ripe Avocado, Canyon Clay, Summer Sunrise

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For the Girls

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, and this week's CAS-ual Friday's CFC73 challenge is to celebrate the women in our life.  I decided to make a card for breast cancer.  According to the National Cancer Institute, breast cancer strikes 1 in 8 women. 

I used the hexagons from my new PTI Happy Harlequin stamp set, and some images and sentiments from the Paper Smooches Hope set.

Fight Like a Girl

The challenge in this week's Make it Monday #86 is to decorate the inside of our cards.  I am trying to do that for all the cards I make this week.  The inside of this card was easy, since I had stamped a 4 by 5 1/4 panel with hexagons.  I used the leftover piece for the inside.

I decorated the inside of another card that I gave to my daughter the other day.  You can see the original card front here, from my Four-of-a-Kind February post.

15

Supplies used:
Fight Like a Girl
Stamps:  PTI Happy Harlequins, Paper Smooches Hope
Paper:  PTI White, Hibiscus Burst
Ink:  Hibiscus Burst, Soft Stone, Memento Grey Flannel, Versacolor Opera Pink
Other:  PTI Pinking Die

15
Stamps:  PTI Ad Sense
Paper:  Rustic Cream,  Simply Chartreuse, Patterned Paper from Kim
Ink:  Scarlet Jewel
Other:  PTI Numbers Die


Now, can I ask you to do something?  Please schedule your annual mammogram, if you haven't already done so.  Mine is in 5 weeks.

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Rachel's 15th Birthday

My baby turned 15 yesterday.  Where has the time gone?

I used some of the techniques Ashley showed us in this week's Make it Monday #86:  The Inside Edition, to spiff up the inside of the card I made her.  I had previously posted this card here.

I also broke out my new Pillow Box die, and made a box to match the card.  Rachel is trying to save some money for a school trip later this year, so I filled the box with chocolates and some cash.

Here are the card and gift box together.

Here is a picture of my 'baby'.

Supplies Used for Pillow Box and Inside of Card:

Stamps:  Star Prints, Tag it's, Think Big

Paper:  White, Aqua Mist Patterns 

Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Winter Wisteria, Hawaiian Shores, Orange Zest, Aqua Mist

Other:  Pillow Box Die, Twinery Twine 

 

 

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Cloud9 Blog Hop

I'm back to the land of crafting.  The last guests left this morning, and I will be recovering and cleaning up from Sarah's Bat Mitzvah weekend for some time.  I hope to have pictures before long, but the quick recap is that it was a wonderful and festive weekend, with non stop celebrating and visiting with friends and family.  

I snuck up to my craft room for a bit today, to try to catch up on what I have been missing.  When I saw that it was the Cloud9 Blog Hop, I knew I didn't want to miss it, like I did last month.

Isn't that a fun inspiration photo?  Since I am sorely lacking in WPlus9 stamps, I had to get a bit creative with my interpretation.  I focused on the black and orange, the word "BOO", and the theme of Halloween.  In my house, Halloween is all about the candy, so I used my A Pocketful: Valentine set to make this sweet Halloween card:

The tree in the photo is represented by the wood grain impression plate, and the spider web is from my friend Carol from Crafty Magra.


Supplies Used:
Stamps:  A Pocketful:  Valentine
Paper:  PTI Vintage Cream, Smokey Shadow, Orange Zest patterns, book print
Ink:  Distress Black Soot
Other:  A Pocketful:  Valentine Die, PTI Alphabet & PTI Spider Web die

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Play Date Cafe #151

I was procrastinating a little bit yesterday, and decided that Sarah needed one more card--to congratulate her on what I know will be a great job at her Bat Mitzvah on Saturday.  

A bit of information, for those of you unfamiliar with a Bat Mitzvah.  Sarah has been going to religious school 4 hours a week since she was 8 years old.  This is in addition to her normal school and other activities.  On Saturday, she will lead our congregation in prayer, read and chant from the Torah (in Hebrew) in front of a congregation of about 200 people, read a speech she has written about this week's Torah lesson, and formally take on responsibilities as a Jewish adult..  Pretty remarkable for a very shy 13 year old girl.  

Deserving of a second card, wouldn't you say?  Here is her first card.  I recently purchased You're a Hoot from There She Goes, and had to make a quick card using her favorite owl from this set, and this week's gorgeous color scheme from PDC #151.

It's a bit hard to see in this picture, but the sentiment "Way to Go" is stamped repeatedly up the side of the card.

Well, back to the grind for me.  In addition to all the important religious stuff, there is a celebration party, and several family gatherings at our house over the course of the weekend, with family and friends from all over the country.  That's the part that has me running.  Our very first guest flies in tomorrow.  I hope to post some pictures next week.


Supplies Used:
Stamps:  There She Goes You're a Hoot, PTI Crackle, Paper Smooches Sentiment Sampler
Paper:  PTI Rustic Cream, Canyon Clay, Scarlet Jewel
Ink:  PTI Simply Chartreuse, Canyon Clay
Other:  PTI Pinking Border Die

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CAS-ual Friday #72 and Retro Sketches #31

I snuck away from my Bat Mitzvah planning long enough to make a quick card for two challenges.  CFC72:  Toot Your Own Horn, challenges us to make a card inspired by our own blog header.  HELLO--why did I never notice how BORING my blog header is?  Why didn't anyone tell me?  So, instead, I decided to make a card inspired by my blog background, and to get working as soon as possible on making a more interesting blog header. 

I used this week's Retro Sketches 31 to design my card.

I used a variety of distress inks to create a sunset background, and stamped a palm tree image from Waltzingmouse My Island.  My blog background is inspired by the sunsets and palm trees all around where I live, and when I saw the My Island stamp set, I knew I needed to own it.  So many of the images in the set are the things I see every day.

Supplies Used:
Stamps:  Waltzingmouse My Island
Paper:  PTI Kraft, White
Ink:  Memento Black, Distress:  Spiced Marmalade, Worn Lipstick, Faded Jeans, Dusty Concord
Other:  Rustic Jute, PTI Loop de Loop Die

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