W2SB #24: Twas the Night Before Christmas

Happy Holidays W2SB friends!  We know it's a very busy time of year for everyone but we're hoping you'll take some time to relax, revisit the beloved Clement Clarke Moore poem, A Visit from St. Nicholas, and create a project using ANY line(s) from this holiday classic.

Here's my I-Team card for a little inspiration:

In addition to checking another Christmas card off your list, you have a chance to win a $10 gift certificate to My Favorite Things (woo hoo), a Guest I-Teamer invitation and our W2SB Winner's Badge.  Pretty nice Christmas present, huh? 

We look forward to seeing what lines you use for inspiration!  Thanks so much for visiting!

W2SB #23: Changing the Face of Men's Health

It's MOVEMBER and time for another Words 2 Scrap By Challenge!  Movember is the theme for November with the focus on men's health.  You'll see a lot of hairy men during the month as they grow their moustaches in support of this all important cause.  You'll also hear about stressing the importance of MOVING to support this health initiative, so for my simple I-Teamer card I went with that theme:

 

Bike riding is something I enjoy with friends and is a wonderful exercise to get my behind outside in the fresh air!  We hope you'll join in the fun at W2SB to support the men in your life.  Use your imagination ~ we can't wait to see what "moves" you!

 

~ Annie 

Yo, Mateys!

There's still plenty of time to "play like a pirate" in W2SB's September Challenge: Ahoy, Matey!!  Link up your project and celebrate National Talk Like a Pirate Day with us!  And...thar be Paper Smooches treasure for the lucky winner!

I used Doodle Pantry images from "Pirate Birdie" and "Feathery Friends" for my I-Team card today.  Laurie has some great pirate-themed digital images you can mix and match for this challenge. The sentiment is from our wonderful sponsor, Paper Smooches, in the "Slang Gang" stamp set.  I love their stuff!

Thanks for stopping by!

 I'll be entering this card in Doodle Pantry's current challenge:  AIMPDC #9 - Anything Goes. 

W2SB #21: Ahoy, Matey!!

Well, shiver me timbers, it's time for another creative challenge over at Words 2 Scrap By!  The theme this month is "Ahoy, Matey" in honor of National Talk Like A Pirate Day on September 19th.  There's a wonderful prize in our treasure chest from Paper Smooches so we hope you'll play along!

My I-Teamer card for a little inspiration:

My pirate birdie, pirate ship, DSP, and sentiment are from Doodle Pantry.  I printed the pirate birdie twice so I could fussy cut the wing and pirate hat to pop them up.  The buttons were punched with Martha Stewart's button punch to match the striped strip (say that 3 times fast).  Hope everything is "shipshape" in your corner of the world and you'll find some time this month to link up.

Thanks for stopping by ~ we can't wait to see your projects...we're sure "thar be good!"

W2SB #20: Calling All Book Lovers

Happy August 1st and time for another fun challenge over at Words 2 Scrap By!  This month we are celebrating books and National Book Lovers Day on August 9th.  The challenge to you is to create a project based on a title or quotation from a book. 

Since I'm just c-r-a-z-y about my 5 year old grandson, I wanted to focus on a children's book.  One of my faves has always been Winnie the Pooh.  You gotta love that silly old bear...he's the bestest of the best!  When I put this card together I showed my grandson and his "nice card for a baby" comment reminded me that he's not a baby anymore!  Just ask him and he'll tell you!  Maybe I should have gone with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles...hmmmm :-)

 I fussy cut Pooh images from Sandy Lion's Winnie the Pooh DSP and inlaid them in my comic strip die cut frame from Papertrey.  The bees, dies, and sentiments are from The Stamps of Life.  There's Wink of Stella on the wings and Glossy Accents on Pooh's eyes and nose.  I also stamped some of the backgrounds in Versamark and clear embossed for a tone-on-tone look.  So much fun!

We hope you'll play along this month!  Pick a book, any book, or a quote and let your imagination go!  Thanks so much for stopping by ~ we can't wait to see what you create!

Mmmmm....Chocolate!

I'm a firm believer that chocolate is a food group on its own, so with Words 2 Scrap By's July Challenge starting today, I had to go with chocolate ice cream in a waffle cone, of course! 

I started with The Stamps of Life ice cream stamps, stamping the waffle cone on Kraft with Colorbox Chocolate :) ink.  Then stamped the ice cream (also in Chocolate ink).  I fussy cut both images, adding a fussy cut cherry with green twine stem on top.  The ribbon is from my stash and the sentiment (you guessed it) also stamped in Chocolate ink and mounted on the ribbon with tiny brads.  I dry embossed a woven background on the ivory layer.

I hope you'll play along with W2SB this month and feel free to eat chocolate while you create!

Thanks for stopping by!

W2SB #18: It's a Man's World

Welcome back!  It's June 1st and time for another Words 2 Scrap By challenge!  The theme this month is "It's a Man's World" and we're looking for a guy card for any occasion:  Father's Day, birthdays, graduation, bachelor party, etc.

My card is a spin-off of a girly card that I did for my best friend.  You can see that one HERE.  This time I went for a clean guy look for Father's Day.  My Dad is a HUGE baseball fan and this sentiment should really hit home for him (get it?).

 

Stuff I used:  Neenah Solar White Card Base, Red and Blue Bazzill Cardstock,

Sizzix Adhesive Sheets, Memory Box Star Flourish die (cut into pieces), MFT Stacking Stars Die,

The Stamps of Life sentiment, VersaFine Majestic Blue Ink.

I hope you'll join in the fun at W2SB this month.  You have until June 26th to enter and, of course, there is another fantastic prize waiting for the winner!  We can't wait to see your "manly" projects!

Operation Write Home Finishing Strong Bloghop with W2SB

Operation Write Home, a charity that has supported heroes with handmade cards since 2007, will be closing later this year. All cards need to be sent in by August 1st, so I’m helping to get the word out through the Words 2 Scrap By blog this Memorial Weekend.  OWH has a library of fantastic sketches available to everyone!  I used OWH Sketch #123 for my red, white & blue love card:



It's a bittersweet ending to a great campaign...fewer deployed troops means fewer cards.  I hope you'll check out the fantastic work of OWH supporters on the Finishing Strong Bloghop, and if you have cards that follow OWH guidelines, please send them in by August 1st!  Have a wonderful Memorial Weekend and Happy Hopping!  To return to the W2SB blog, click HERE.  Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies
Cardstock:  Bazzill
DP:  Doodlebug Design 6x6 Patriotic Parade
Stamp:  Great Impressions
Ink:  VersaFine Majestic Blue
Dies:  Spellbinders
Other:  Cuttlebug Cross My Heart Embossing Folder

W2SB Challenge #17: Say Cheese!

Happy May Day and welcome to another fun challenge over at Words 2 Scrap By!  The theme this month is "Say Cheese" inspired by National Photograph Month.  Pictures stimulate memories of important events in our life and we'd love to see how you interpret this challenge.

My I-Team card came about because my Dad is soon turning 93 and I just finished scanning a number of old photographs for digital copies.  One of my favorites was my Dad sitting on the running board of their old car in front of their farmhouse in North Dakota.  He's the little guy on the left, my Grandfather in the middle, and my Aunt Anne (whom I was named after) on the right. 

This photo was so old that I went for a vintage look with Tim Holtz stencils, Distress Inks, and various metal embellishments.  The sentiment is from The Stamps of Life and I thought it was appropriate.  The picture was taken during the Depression-era and my paternal Grandmother had just passed away giving birth to my Dad's brother.  The baby was put up for adoption and my Dad never knew he had a brother until he was in his 60's.  Come to find out he grew up with him, they went to the same school, and were neighbors.  Quite a story, huh? 

Well, let's "Say Cheese" and I can't wait to see your "pictures."  Thanks so much for stopping by! 

 

W2SB and SOS Challenge

Today at Words 2 Scrap By we are so excited to be partnering up with Shopping Our Stash and combining our April theme, "The earth has music for those that listen" with their weekly challenge.  SOS is one of my favorite challenges ~ they always have such fun themes!

For my card (and in the spirit of shopping my stash), I used a Penny Black Christmas stamp called Winters Edge.  Instead of snow, I used a long forgotten jar of Sweet Pea Petal Soft on the tree to give it a spring look.  The music background stamp is from My Favorite Things.

Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope you'll play along in both challenges...it's a two-fer!!

W2SB Challenge #16: The Earth Has Music

Are you ready for another W2SB Challenge??  April's theme is "The Earth Has Music" and my I-Team card is in honor of all those birds chirping away in my backyard.  Ahhh...what's better in the morning than a cup of coffee (or two), a beautiful sunrise, and the birds starting the day with a song?

This card began with one of Tim Holtz' Bird Crazy stamps, stamped on Ranger Watercolor Paper.  I love their quirky look!  I watercolored the bird and background with Distress Inks (Pistachio, Tumbled Glass, Seedless Preserves, Mowed Lawn, and Squeezed Lemonade).  I used a stencil and Pistachio Distress Ink to create a background on Lemonade cardstock (TSOL), die cut a square, and mounted that layer over the watercolor paper.  The sentiment (Momenta) is one of my all time favorites, stamped in VersaFine Onyx Black ink and heat embossed.  For the final touches, I added a musical vellum banner layered over DP and polka dot ribbon from my stash . 

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you'll join in the fun over at W2SB and share your projects with us!  Happy Spring!

Words 2 Scrap By #15: In Like a Lion, Out Like a Lamb

March 1st and time for a new challenge over at W2SB!  The theme this month is "In Like a Lion, Out Like a Lamb."  What does the weather look like where you are?  You can probably guess what mine is when I tell you I have three pairs of rubber boots...yes, three!

For my I-Team card, lately I'm loving the color combo of orange and blue.  The DP on my card is from Doodlebug Designs.  I used Elizabeth Craft Designs stickers for the boots, colored them with Copics, and fussy cut.  They were fun to make and so easy - glad I picked them up on another impulse buy!  The sentiment is a perfect fit from Savvy and stamped in VersaFine Onyx Black.  All of the dies are from My Favorite Things. 

I hope you'll play along this month.  Any weather-related project or Lions/Lambs will work.  I hear the hostess this month has a birthday and she is giving out a present.  Don't be late for the party!!

Words 2 Scrap By #14: Do Something Different

The challenge over at Words 2 Scrap By for February is to "Do Something Different."  I'm always game for getting out of a rut and trying something new.  So...I plugged in the eBrush I bought with a Christmas gift card, loaded up a Spectrum Noir marker, and happily began spraying ink all over the place...LOL!  I definitely need practice at this airbrushing thing!  I didn't get too fancy for my first adventure but was actually happy with the results for the background layer.  In person it looks a bit like stone.

The rest of the card came together a bit quicker once the spraying frenzy was over.  I stamped the hearts in VersaFine Onyx Black ink on the airbrushed background.  Then I stamped it 7 more times on scrap paper so I could fussy cut and paper piece the hearts.  The sentiment is from Avery Elle and the black layer was die cut with the femme frame from Mama Elephant.

I hope you'll venture outside of your comfort zone and do something different for the W2SB challenge this month.  Helpful hint:  If you practice airbrushing, move things that are NOT part of the project out of the way :-))  Thanks so much for stopping by today!  We look forward to seeing your projects!

W2SB Challenge #13: #youchoosetheword(s)

Happy New Year!!!  W2SB has been live for one year and it has been a blast to be part of the I-Team.  I'm looking forward to 2015 and more creative challenges from W2SB this year!  I hope you are too!

January is being kicked off with a unique challenge:  #youchoosetheword(s).  Start with a hashtag and use any words your heart desires! 

For my card, I went with #auldlangsyne.  We all know the song and sometimes it's a little confusing...like the scene from When Harry Met Sally.  Harry wonders, “What does this song mean? My whole life, I don’t know what this song means. I mean, ‘Should old acquaintance be forgot?’ Does that mean that we should forget old acquaintances. Or does it mean that if we happened to forget them, we should remember them, which is not possible because we already forgot them?”

The title of the 1700's Scottish tune by Robert Burns translates to “times gone by” and is about remembering friends from the past and not letting them be forgotten.  I'm going with that :-) and will drink a cup (or glass) of kindness for auld lang syne, my dear,

This image is a great one from Tiddly Inks called "Lily Bean - Happy New Year."  I digitally colored the image and touched it up with Copics.  Of course, what is champagne without bubbles, so gold sequins and clear rhinestones were added to the bubbly.

I hope you'll join in the challenge at W2SB and tell your friends!  Word has it there are going to be some terrific prizes this year {wink, wink}.  Happy New Year!!

W2SB Challenge #12: Eat, Drink, and Be Merry!

What an appropriate challenge from Words 2 Scrap By for December...Eat, Drink, and Be Merry!  I know I'll be eating, drinking, and being merry all month long :-)  I just finished decorating the house which makes me very merry! 

So, for my card, I had to have a Santa, Christmas Lights, and a Christmas Tree keeping with the decorating theme.  I cut a piece of Bazzill red cardstock 2.5" x 5-1/4" and punched three 1-1/2" holes.  I traced the holes on my Neenah Solar White cardstock base so I knew where to stamp my images.  All images were stamped in Memento Tuxedo Black and colored with Copics.  I scored the red strip on the top and bottom and mounted it over the images.  I added a bit of green/white ribbon and stamped the sentiment in VersaFine Onyx Black Ink.  I love this stamp set called "Tis the Season" designed by Julie Ebersole over at Ellen Hutson and I have used it on several Christmas cards already. 

I hope you'll play along at W2SB this month and spread the merry!  And, who knows, you may be the lucky recipient of an awesome prize package that includes yummy stamps from My Favorite Things!  Thanks so much for stopping by ~ we can't wait to see what you create!  Happy Holidays!

W2SB Challenge #11 - Gratitude & Kindness

Happy November 1st!  It's time for another inspirational challenge from Words 2 Scrap By and this month we are celebrating gratitude and kindness.  For my card, I decided to try a bunch of different techniques to mix things up a bit - literally!

First I wanted to make my own background paper.  I used Tim Holtz Distress Watercolor paper, three different stamps, and heat embossed the images.  Then I added Distress Inks in Spiced Marmalade, Mustard Seed, Forest Moss & Vintage Photo on the background, spritzed some water, and let it dry.  (That was the hard part :-).  I added a "thanks" die cut from My Favorite Things, using Ultra Thick Embossing Enamel (UTEE) on the die cut for serious shine and dimension.  I die cut the sweet "Reed Bird" from Memory Box holding a punched maple leaf to match the birds in the background.  Lastly, I needed ribbon to match the cardstock so I made my own, adding dye ink to a plastic bag and swishing around some white seam binding.  When it was the color I wanted, I spread it out to dry.  This card was a lot of fun but took patience.  I really have a hard time waiting for things to dry!

I hope you'll join in the challenge this month for a chance to win a guest I-Teamer spot in January and a wonderful Tim Holtz mini blueprints stamp set!  Thanks so much for stopping by and supporting Words 2 Scrap By!

World Card Making Day 2014

It's World Card Making Day and I'm thrilled to be part of Words 2 Scrap By's inspiration for Operation Write Home!

The theme is Love and my wintery card features the sweet penquin image and sentiment from the OWH fundraiser set from Doodle Pantry called "With Heart."  A portion of the proceeds from the sale of this digital set are donated to OWH to help ship cards to our heroes. 

 

Thanks so much for stopping by and enjoy blog hoppin' this weekend!  If you're looking for a fun challenge this month, check out Words 2 Scrap By Challenge #10...who doesn't love paw prints?  And prizes??

 

To return to Operation Write Home's Blog, click HERE.

To return to Words 2 Scrap By, click HERE.   





W2SB #10: Paved with Paw Prints

Happy October!  Inspired by National Adopt a Shelter Dog Month, Words 2 Scrap By's October Challenge theme is "The road to my heart is paved with paw prints."  This really hits home for me.  My four rescue pups are pictured at the top right of this blog.  It all started when I brought a stray home at age 6 and I've been happily adopting ever since!  So, with the fondest memories and many paw prints on my heart, this card is for Tinkerbelle, B.D., Beau, Josie, Abe, Chloe, Bailey, and Harley - for ending many of my days with dog slobber :-)

Supplies
Cardstock:  Neenah Solar White, Bazzill
DP:  Bo Bunny Happy Tails Collection
Image:  Mo's Digital Pencil "Lazy Mutt"
Sentiment:  American Arts Stamp "Dog Slobber"
Other:  Copics, The Twinery Red/White Twine, Queen & Co. brad

I hope you'll play along this month ~ there are  some cool stamp prizes courtesy of the very talented Sandy Allnock, founder of Operation Write Home!  Thanks so much for stopping by...Woof!

W2SB: To Everything There is a Season

Hello!  I can't believe it's September and it seems like so many things start to change this time of year.  Especially the big, old maple tree in the background when the leaves change into so many different colors.  It's beautiful but I won't be saying that as I rake, rake, and rake some more!

Words 2 Scrap By's September Challenge Theme is "To Everything There is a Season."  Since I have leaves in my yard and The Byrds song, "Turn, Turn, Turn" from 1965, playing over and over in my head, I went with the following card. 

I hope you'll join in the fun and link up your interpretation of the theme.  There's a super prize waiting for the winner - a Tim Holtz autographed clock assemblage!  Also, make sure to subscribe to the W2SB blog to keep up with future fun & prizes!  Thanks so much for stopping by!

Supplies:
Cardstock:  Memory Box Kraft & DCWV Neutrals Paper Pad
Stamp(s):  The Stamps of Life "leaves4fall" & My Favorite Things Wood Plank Background
Dies:  Sizzix Leaf Triplets
Ink:  VersaMark, VersaFine Vintage Sepia, and Ranger Distress Inks (Forest Moss, Scattered Straw & Fired Brick)
Other:  Ranger Fine Gold Embossing Powder, Hero Arts Metallic Décor (gold), Sizzle Ivory/Gold Nylon Cord

Your Future is Bright

I can't believe it is already August - this summer is flying by!  It's time for another fun monthly challenge over at Words 2 Scrap By and it's perfect for this time of year!  School will be starting up before you know it and W2SB's theme this month is based on the famous quote:

"Education is the movement from darkness to light."

- Allan Bloom

 



 

A bright future called for a bright card!  The sentiment background was done with a pencil eraser and 3 ink colors.  The DP is from a DCWV paper pad called "The Grade School Stack" and the fishtail banners and alpha die cuts are from MFT.  The finishing touch is a bright yellow starburst and button die cut.

I hope you'll play along this month and I can wait to see what everyone creates!