Sunflower Studio

HAPPY GREEN PILGRIMS?

I've had these little Pilgrims from ANNA WIGHT'S new TURKEY TIME set from WHIPPER SNAPPER DESIGNS all colored and ready to make into cards for the whole week.  I was too lazy to hunt for patterned paper to go with them.  How sad is that?!  ACK...school going back got everything all mixed up...including sleep in our household. 

Thursday, I stopped by JoAnn's and all of the DCWV pads were on sale...I picked up a few 8x8 pads that I had yet to add to my collection.  For these cards, I used papers from the INDIAN SUMMER pad and the "gratitude" strip is paper from PTI in their Thanksgiving pad for last year.  That way, I didn't have to go digging in the multitude of paper that I already owned.  I am sooooo weak!

 

Enough about the paper though....these are the cutest little Pilgrims.  What?  You don't think they look like Pilgrims?  Neither did the little boy...he took one look at the boy Pilgrim card and said, "You've got the flower for Spring, the pumpkin for Halloween, and a green leprechaun."  HA!  I never!  So why are they green?  I wanted to do something different than traditional brown and I had Kiwi cardstock on the table and I just went for it with the green.  I think he's right, though, he could be a leprechaun!!!  Let's just use our imaginations, shall we?  

I knew that I wanted to make two coordinating cards and wanted each of them to have their little pet.  Going through my AW sets I saw the kitty in the CAT'S LIFE set...I had to do some cutting to get him alone but that was fine since I was "popping" them up anyway.  Got some new punches at JoAnn's too...both from Fiskars - the Apron Lace punch (on the girl card) and the Upper Crest punch (on the boy card).  All of the buttons are from Creative Imaginations and I used PTI button twine and some velvet trim, from Michael's, I think.

TCP TUESDAY #73 - Color Challenge

Get out your colors...this week I'm the Hipster Hostess with the Mostess for the CAT'S PAJAMAS color challenge!  I love this color combo...CHOCOLATE, SKY BLUE, and KIWI.  This is one of my absolute fave combinations....deee-lish!  I really hope you'll play along.  The Holey Moley Monday Slideshow always looks sooo great when the cards are all in the same colors.

I dug out this great patterned paper from American Crafts...I used it on another TCP card with the little indian penguin a while back.  It must have stuck in my brain and popped out again last week when I was putting the color challenge together.  It does make a fun background! 

Penguin and his fun floatie from the BY THE SEA set really "make a splash" in a sea of scallops.  I added some Crystal Effects to the floatie to make it shiny-plastic-like.  The buttons and twine are from PTI and the big wide brown ribbon is from SU!

 

So, get out your TCP stamps and work up something Choco-sky-kiwi colored!  Add a link to your creation here at the end of THIS blog post by midnight eastern on Saturday, August 29th.  All color challenge cards go into the monthly SWANKY STAMPER contest for $25 in CAT'S CASH!  Please used keyword TCPTUES73 when posting to Splitcoast or PCP so that we can all see your colorful card/project.

Oooh...don't forget that the BY THE SEA set is part of this month's KITTY KAT PACK special...great low price for all three new sets!

WHIPPER SNAPPER NEW RELEASE DAY!

I'm so excited, AGAIN!, to be showing off new release stamp sets by ANNA WIGHT for WHIPPER SNAPPER DESIGNS!  Anna and WSD have three adorable new sets available today!  All three are CLASSIC ANNA and definite "must have" additions to your stamp collection:  SINGING COWBOY - didn't want your cowgirl to get lonely did ya?!, TURKEY TIME - cute little pilgrims plus a bunch of other fun harvest images, and FARM FRESH - the chickens are a-farmin' and they've got all the right stuff...a tractor, hay, a barn, pumpkins, and sunflowers, of course!  {**Click on each of the set images above to see the images a bit larger.**}

AND THE SKIES ARE NOT CLOUDY ALL DAY

Here's my cowboy...Home, home on the range!  It's dry and dusty out near the canyon, right?  But he's still singin'!  Anna's images make me want to be her and I find myself including little "Anna" touches without even thinking about it consciously...ahem...the pattern tracing wheel.  I stamped my background images and airbrushed in the ground and sky.  I was too lazy to do any masking so I colored the rocky outcroppings first, airbrushed the ground {wait...I did use a torn post-it to mask the sky while I was airbrushing the ground}, airbrushed the sky right on over the colored hills and cacti, then used the colorless blender pen to "lift off" some of the ground color from the fence posts and then colored those.  I colored the cowboy and "gee-tar" separately, cut them out and popped 'em up.  Don't you just love Anna's actual handwriting on these sentiments?!  They just add to the homey, handmade feel of her sets.

A CORNUCOPIA OF BLESSINGS TO YOU

The TURKEY TIME set has the cutest little pilgrims in it and, for some odd reason, Thanksgiving images are some of my very favorite...right behind Halloween!  {I'm not all that big on Valentine's or even Christmas images....but give me Halloween and T-giving and I'm there, peeps!}  But in this set, Anna also included this lovely little countryside image and a cornucopia of harvest goodies and those spoke to me first.  As above, I stamped the hills twice, airbrushed the ground and the sky, and then colored the trees and hills right over the airbrushed color.  The bright background layer was so colorful that I didn't want it to have to compete with patterned paper.  I chose this Basic Grey black and cream paper to add just a tiny bit of texture.  And I really liked the tone-on-tone Kraft paper for the card base and scalloped edges...they also don't compete with the stamped images but do add interest.  I finished it off with a few buttons and button twine...these are becoming my staples these days.

There should be new cards featuring these sets being added all day to the WFSD gallery on SPLITCOAST.  Be sure to stop in and get inspired by this month's design team.  I know that Anna is finishing up her vacation but I'm sure she'll post something amazing on her blog today as well.  I'm working on more with these sets so stop back in this week to see more.  Thanks for visiting!

SUINKWWC53 - BACK TO SCHOOL!...Prize Week!

Not sure about you all but we are counting down to that first day of school in these parts.  We have just over a week to go.  By the way, am I the only one who remembers not going back to school til after Labor Day?  What's up with that anyway?  Did we always have to go the 180 days like they do now?  So odd!

But, like I said, it's time!  To celebrate...uh, or commiserate...the design team at STORAGE UNITS, INK & MORE! are featuring BACK TO SCHOOL cards and projects.  There are tons of great papercrafting products out right now that highlight school and SUINK has the perfect set to go along with them....A TOUCH OF CLASS. 

I was inspired by a decorated composition book on the HYBRID CHICK blog.  Have you subscribed to that feed?  The blog features projects by a bunch of different papercrafters....most of them using some sort of digi product.  I don't always end up creating the hybrid project but I am inspired each and every time I get the feed.  My book is covered by patterned paper included in one of the newest collections by Cosmo Cricket...THE BOYFRIEND.  It's so yummy that I had a hard time even cutting into it!

I used various stamps from the A TOUCH OF CLASS set...the desk, the globe, the math problem, the A+, the "class by yourself" sentiment, and a part of the "back to school" sentiment.  There's a cute little girl in that set too but since I have a boy, I decided not to stamp her here.  I also dug out one of my all time favorite alphabet sets...Tall Tales Alphabet from Stampin' Up! for the title of the book. {I haven't used any SU in ages and I really do need to clean house but I'll never part with my alpha!}  I stamped the letters with red chalk ink and then outlined them with a thin black marker, added the shadow with a copic, and the highlight with a white gel pen.  I love the overlapping letters!

It's hard to tell but I attached a wide ribbon to the back cover of the book with one of those big Bazzill brads.  That way, the ribbon becomes the bookmark...a little something I saw in the HYBRID CHICK version.  Yesterday, I bought a new EK punch at Mike's...that's where the big scalloped edge came from.  I also used the SU! notebook paper punch, some Nestabilities dies, a chipboard arrow, oooh...and a new die from Sizzix for the big bracket piece.  {Got myself a Big Shot Express too recently...that thing cuts like a dream...works on the Sizzix and cuts chipboard! AND used it with my Spellbinders dies too...woo hoooo!}  I added a bunch of fun buttons from Creative Imaginations with some PTI button twine.  

So, do you think I'd actually let my little guy use this for school?  NOT...it's mine....ALLLLL MINE!  {Oh dear!}

Why don't you join us in this challenge?  Post a link to your BACK TO SCHOOL themed card or project on the SUINK blog and you'll be entered in a random drawing to win a stamp set of your choice from STORAGE UNITS, INK & MORE!  Hurry it up...you have until the end of the week!  Please use keyword SUINKWWC53 if you're posting to SCS or PCP.  Have fun! 

TCP TUESDAY #72 - Inspiration Challenge

Yea...Tuesday!  This week we're on an inspiration challenge and TONI came up with this fun Back To School photo (left).  Don't ya just love brand spankin' new pointy crayons?!  Aaahh...the smell and feel of them...um...uh...that might just be my little freaky quirk....I'm an office and school supply hoarder too!

Anyway, even though Toni came up with this one, AMY will be this week's Hipster Hostess with the Mostess so you should link your card to her post -->HERE<--.  If you're uploading to SCS or PCP, make sure to use this week's keyword, TCPTUES72.

I'm featuring Mr. Bear from the HAPPY CAMPER set again this week.  I can't get enough of him...he's so cute!  This is a pretty simple card.  Stamped Bear on six different patterned papers (all from Basic Grey with the exception of the purple which is from PTI), stamp letters using NIGHTIE ALPHABET, cut out and arrange into conga line.  I layered the bears on top of this ginormous grosgrain ric rac ribbon that I bought from Jody at Confessions of a Ribbon Addict.  It's Deee-LISH!  I dug deep into my old stamp stash for this cursive alphabet set from CTMH for the "back to" part of the sentiment.  I used the ScorPal to frame the card front and then used a paper piercing tool and some black embroidery floss to add the dotted line.  A whole pile of rainbow colored Dew Drops and Bella Baubles finish it all off. 

Now, would you give this to the teacher?  Would that be buttering her up for the new school year?  Hmmmm....

I haven't posted the complete challenge details in a while so here they are...just in case you forgot or were wondering what the deal is...

1. Each a week one of The Cat’s Pajamas DT members will host a challenge.
2. The challenges will vary {stamp, color, theme, sketch, etc.}
3. You will have until {this} Saturday night at 12 midnight EST to complete the challenge.
4. Link your project on this week’s hostess’ challenge announcement. This week you will link your project on Amy's blog.
5. TCP stamps are not required, but of course, highly encouraged. {Unless it is a challenge calling for a specific stamp.}
6. There will be one winner each month. She/he will be deemed that month’s Swankiest Stamper and get $25 in Cat’s Cash {money to spend on the TCP site!}.
7. When uploading to SCS or PCP, please use the keyword TCPTUES72 for this challenge.
8. Alma will post the entries from the week the following Monday on her blog.
9. The newly crowned Swanky Stamper will be announced on the First of the Month and have his/her winning entry posted on The Cat’s Pajamas website where he/she will reign for the entire month.

Grab your TCP stamps and get goin'!

TCP TOTEBAGS

I was hopping around on some blogs this evening and got hit by a brick over at AMY ROHL's blog.  She's really on a creativity roll....amazing cards and projects that will really WOW you.  I highly recommend a stop over at her place!  Last week she was showing off a fab market bag with goodies to go along with.  It's a really great project and she was inspired by JOANNE BASILE's project in the Splitcoast Fan Club gallery a few month's ago.  {You can find pix of Joanne's yummy project through the link at Amy's if you are a fan club member.}  And then KIRSTEN DUBOSQUE had this really terrific Amy Butler "Nappy" bag that she'd sewn and I was just drooling all over it.  Soooo many crafty and creative gals out there, right?!

Well with all of that, it hit me that I had forgotten to post a photo of the totebags that I made for THE CAT'S PAJAMAS design team gals for CHA.  There were four of us meeting up at CHA...that was before Joanne joined our ranks.  So, I made four bags and four tags.  I was really happy with the way these turned out.  They're matchy-matchy with the TCP signature colors too...yellow on the inside (as you can see in the inset photo).  I don't have a photo of the tag right now and my camera batteries are dead as a doorknob so maybe I'll add that here later.

 

WHIPPER SNAPPER - COWGIRL UP!

What a crazy summer it's been and I truly can not believe that we're nearing the end...ALREADY!  I hope you've all been livin' it up and that the weather has cooperated.  I know, here in Maryland, the heat finally found us.  YUK!  Can we go back to the mid-70s, please!

Anyway, I wanted to share a few more cards using one of ANNA WIGHT's new WHIPPER SNAPPER DESIGNS sets.  {She's got new sets right around the corner so stay tuned for more fun...don'tcha just love that girl?!!!}  These are from the COWGIRL UP! set.  Don't think that the set is just for those western-type gals...NOPE!  There's the cutest little cowgirl...PLUS, some chickens, a cactus, a bouquet of flowers, a tasty pie, and then some rootin' tootin' cocktails too...just for fun.  There's more stuff that really round out the set and make it quite versatile!

HOWDY, FRIEND!

Here's the little cowgirl greeting her trusty steed.  The horse isn't included in the set but it's also available from WHIPPER SNAPPER.  She's called WINNY.  I love that many of Anna's images - from her sets and sold singly - can be stamped together to make a scene.  The patterned paper is from Daisy D's.  It's hard to tell here but I stamped the star from the set in Versamark on Kraft cardstock and clear embossed on the bracket layer.  I then inked the edges so the embossing is hard to capture in the photo.  I also added a little detail to this gal's shirt...some swirly swirls.

YOU'RE MY FAVORITE

Isn't that the greatest sentiment?!  I get a big kick out of it and it's just the best when someone tells you this.  Here are the chickens in the COWGIRL UP! set.  I stamped them across my strip a few times - doing a teeny bit of masking to change 'em up a bit.  Then I stamped a few more sets and "popped" a few of them up into the foreground along with the bucket.  This chicken paper is by Reminisce...perfect for these stamps, right?!  I made the little "medallion" from an old hymn book that I bought at an antique store.  I cut strips, accordian folded them and created the rosette.  The big ole button is from Creative Imaginations.  Then I had to figure out where to place a sentiment.  I cut out one of the label Nestabilities shapes and folded it to create a "tab".  Then I stamped my sentiment, layered it, and created a little banner to go on top of the tab.  The sentiment is from Anna's SWEET EXPRESSIONS set.  It's a must have!

TCP TUESDAY #71 - Sketch Challenge

I love it when it gets around to Sketch Challenge week again.  Carole's come up with a really great sketch again this week.  Who could resist a gaggle of rounded corners?!  I'm off to the beach so I won't get to play again until the weekend but I wanted to give anyone who might be visiting the details so that they can join in.

Like I said, Carole Burrage is this week's Hipster Hostess with the Mostess.  You should definitely post a link to your card over on her blog so that you can be entered into the SWANKY STAMPER of the month contest.  If you're uploading to Splitcoast or PCP, don't forget to use keyword TCPTUES71 this week. 

MORE NEW RELEASE SAMPLES FROM TCP

When we, the design team, work on our new release samples for THE CAT'S PAJAMAS, we have certain requirements that have to be met.  We create lots of different samples and they all get uploaded to our group site.  From there, Alma can pick and choose what she'd like to use on her website, in samples for stores, or in her convention booth.  In addition to the stamps, we are given patterned papers and some other supplies to try so that our samples make a cohesive display.  Well, to make this long story short...I forget that I haven't shared more of the new release samples here on my blog.  I thought I'd add a few more today...

The image above is from the new FUN IN THE SUN set.  Doesn't Sprinkle look cool as a cucumber?!  I've noticed lots of sewing on cards and scrapbook pages lately so I had to give it a try.  It's my new fave technique, I think.  The glitter on my chipboard bracket is also a new TCP product...it's sparkly German Glass Glitter that comes in a four color pack.  It's called GLITZY and it's gorgeous.  The fab paper here is more of the Snorkel paper from Cosmo Cricket...those paper people have been on a serious roll lately!

And then here's Sprinkle in nurse mode.  This image is in the YOU SICK THING set.  She looks fairly sinister with her needle poised at the ready, doesn't she?  I'm thinkin' that if she came at me lookin' like this I'd definitely be getting better...and soon!  Again, the red stripe paper is more from the Cosmo Cricket Snorkel pack.  The smaller stripe is from Cosmo Cricket L'il Man.  I've seen this ruffled ribbon thing on lots of cards and pages lately too.  It's another fave for the summer. 

 

I made up a little tin of nautical notecards using the BY THE SEA set.  I love all of these traditional CAT'S PAJAMAS characters in the portholes.  I found a site online about how to tie knots and created this little rope embellishment to go with the theme.  There's more of the GLITZY glass glitter on the chipboard frame on the tin.  I used the new NIGHTIE alphabet for my tag and also some ribbon from the CANDY SPRINKLES ribbon assortment from TCP.  {I actually darkened the ribbon just a tad with a Copic marker...works to match the colors a bit better.}

Don't forget that all three sets are part of this month's KITTY KAT PACK....that's a deal that you won't want to miss out on!

'Mother-Button Son of a Basket Challenge'

"What's This!", you're asking!  Well, while at the CHA Craft Supershow, the MTF and TCP girls went a little crazy at the PAPERTREY INK booth.  Let me tell ya...it wasn't hard.  They created this whole frenzy situation and you felt like if you didn't get in on it you'd really be missing out on something.  I, thankfully, only made two trips to STAND IN LINE to make purchases.  A few others, who will remain nameless, made even more trips to the booth under the pretense of "just going with so-and-so."  Yea...right!

Anyway, many of us came away with the Michelle Wooderson inspired VINTAGE PICNIC set.  It's just irresistible!  So, we decided to throw down a challenge to each other and actually USE this fun new set instead of just adding it to our pile of unused "must-have" stamps.  The only requirement for the challenge was that you had to use one of the baskets.  Otherwise, it's anything goes...any other stamps....anything that you want to put IN the basket...any other papers and supplies.  That definitely got the warped side of my brain going...

 

Of course, I couldn't just play it straight.  And, actually, the basket full of toilet paper came to my mind instantly and struck me as hilarious.  (Is it just me?  Good question!)  At least it's dainty pink rolls of TP on a preppy little card.  I used Basic Grey Lemonade patterned papers since they're also new to my stash.  I did a little masking and colored everything up with Copics.  I used the Nestabilities die to mask the label and airbrushed the bit of green ground.  The ribbon, twine and buttons are also Papertrey.  The toilet paper and plunger stamps are from STAMPS BY JUDITH.  The sentiment is from the RUNNING SICK set from OUR CRAFT LOUNGE. {Well, I live with an 8 year old boy...what do you think he thinks is the funniest thing in the world?  Now you understand the draw of that set!}

After completing the card above, I was feeling a little guilty for being so irreverent with Nichole's lovely basket.  I sat back down tonight and came up with another picnic basket card...

This one is much more respectful!  I used one of the brand new sets from MY FAVORITE THINGS, I {HEART} BOOKS.  It's such a sweet little set too.  I filled my basket - or in this case, it looks more like a picnic tin - with books for this busy reader.  I used some more new Basic Grey Junebug patterned paper, the Copics, drew in the floor with a Copic Multiliner, and added a Nestabilities label and some SU! ribbon to finish it off.

The challenge girls area all uploading tonight and I can't wait to see what they've created too.  I hope I wasn't the only naughty one!  Click on over and check out their baskets...

Joanne Basile

Carole Burrage

Kirsten Dubosque

Christina Fischer

Amy Rohl