Birthday Wishes Card

Here is the last card I made for the Artisan Awards contest. I love the bright colors with the Soft Suede and Crumb Cake... don't they just pop? Here is the card:



Goodies:
All products by Stampin' Up!

Stamps: A Little Birthday Cheer, Crazy for Cupcakes
Ink: Soft Suede, Basic Black classic ink
Paper: Soft Suede, Real Red, Bermuda Bay, Crushed Curry, Whisper White, Crumb Cake cardstock
Accessories: Polka-dot Impressions folder, Bermuda Bay Polka-dot Grosgrain ribbon, Crystal Effects, Scallop Edge punch, Dimensionals, Hemp Twine

This one was fun to do- I actually made it for someone's birthday but since I was down to the wire for the Artisan Award deadline, I decided to send it in instead. Hee! The shiny balloons are my favorite!

Here are the links to the rest of the Artisan Award winners who are participating in the blog hop:

Heather Van Duker
Elizabeth Price
Renee Ballard
Angela Timms
Jodie Olver
Becky Cowley
Andrea Munro
Richard Garay
Tessa Wise (you are here)

Thanks for stopping by today!

-tessa

Bright Blooms Card

We've had a few rainy days here in the DC area so I've been cleaning up my scrap area a bit... I refound some goodies I haven't played with in awhile- the Eastern Blooms set and the brass embossing template that matches it. Here is what I made:



Goodies:
All products by Stampin' Up!

Stamps: Eastern Blooms, A Little Birthday Cheer
Ink: Rich Razzleberry, Pumpkin Pie classic inks
Paper: Whisper White, Melon Mambo, Rich Razzleberry, Pumpkin Pie cardstock; Razzleberry Lemonade DSP
Accessories: Melon Mambo polka-dot grosgrain ribbon, paper piercer, Floral Frenzy Classy Brass Template, Dimensionals

I was a big time dry embosser a few years back so it was fun to use this technique again... I use a light box and stylus but I know a foam sheet sandwich can be made to use in the Big Shot with these templates to get the same effect- anyone try this yet?

Anyways, today the sun is out so I'm going to keep this short and take my girls to the park- they have way too much energy from being inside the last few days! Thanks for stopping by!

-tessa

Kristen's Birthday Gift

Good morning!

Today I am sharing a little gift I made for my friend Kristen. Her birthday was last month and of course, I was fashionably late giving it to her... Here is what I made:



Goodies:
All products by Stampin' Up! (except the frame)

Stamps: Season of Friendship set
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Bashful Blue, Rose Red, So Saffron, Old Olive classic inks
Paper: Whisper White, Chocolate Chip cardstock; Maine Blueberry DSP
Accessories: Hemp twine, rubons from last year's Sale-a-bration, dimesnionals; frame from Walmart

Pretty easy gift giving idea really. It is like a card, times three and framed! It was a lot of fun creating it special for my friend... I found the frame at Walmart, chose my colors, and stamped! Hee!

I also made her a card using a paper weaving technique I found in this month's Stampin' Success (SU! demo magazine). Here it is:



Goodies:
All products by Stampin' Up!

Stamps: Crazy for Cupcakes set, A Little Birthday Cheer set
Ink: So Saffron, Regal Rose, Pumpkin Pie, Pink Pirouette classic inks; Jet Black Stazon
Paper: Pumpkin Pie, So Saffron, Regal Rose, Whisper White cardstock; Sweet Always DSP
Accessories: So Saffron wide grosgrain ribbon, Dazzling Diamonds glitter, Dimensionals, Aqua Painter, Stamping Sponges

The paper weave was pretty easy, too. I'm glad I tried it!

Today I think I'll have some time to stamp so hopefully I'll be back tomorrow with some fun new projects to share!

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by!

-tessa

A Simple Circle Circus Card

I saw the Circle Circus set in the new Australian Catalog a few months ago and was hoping that it would make it to ours! You know how excited I was that it did, and that it was one of our preorder items!! Yahoo! Today I'm posting my first card using it... I kept it simple, using my punches and the circles for design. Here it is:



Goodies:
All products by Stampin' Up!

Stamps: Circle Circus set; A Little Birthday Cheer set
Ink: Bermuda Bay, Certainly Celery, Basic Gray classic inks
Paper: Bashful Blue, Whisper White cardstock; Certainly Celery, Basic Gray textured cardstock
Accessories: Circle punches (various sizes), Filigree Brads, Ice Circle Rhinestone Brads, Dimensionals

The color scheme came from a page in the new catalog. It looked so fresh and pretty on the pages, I was inspired to use it! I am loving the new set, and the new Bermuda Bay color!!

Thanks for looking today! I hope you are all enjoying your weekend!!

-tessa

Little Birds in a Row

This afternoon while Natalie was taking a snooze, I got to make a card for this week's Color Inspiration Challenge on Kristina Werner's blog! I love participating in her challenges! Here is what she challenged us with this time:



and, here is the card I made!



Goodies:
All products by Stampin' Up!

Stamps: Cheep Talk set, A Little Birthday Cheer set, Owl Together set
Ink: Baja Breeze, More Mustard, So Saffron Classic Inks; Versamark
Paper: Baja Breeze, So Saffron, More Mustard, Whisper White cardstock; Sahara Sand textured cardstock; Walk in the Park DSP
Accessories: Kraft taffeta ribbon, Paper Piercer and mat, Dimensionals, Signo White gel pen

I love these little birdies and have wanted to make a card with them all lined up like this since I got it back in January! I added a little hat on one because I wanted it to be a birthday card for my cousin Shirlie... she's having her 18th birthday tomorrow!! I added some faux stitching to each of my background panels and some Kraft colored taffeta ribbon as a little wire for the birds to sit on. The hardest part was the hand cutting!

Funny, Deb of Papertree Designs Blog commented today and said I should submit the flip flop card I made last week... it really would have worked! These must be some hot colors! Hee! If I hadn't had the afternoon to stamp, I probably would have!

Well, I better go... I've been multi tasking, watching American Idol and Dancing with the Stars while typing this up. I can't wait to see who wins both shows!! It seems like the competition is pretty close this year and that makes it a little more exciting to watch!

Hope you all have a great day tomorrow! Thanks for stopping by!

-tessa

Some March Birthday Cards...

I have so many card deadlines coming up... birthdays, classes, workshops... it's getting a little crazy! Luckily, yesterday I was able to get these two birthday cards out of the way. I couldn't resist this Making Memories paper line from Michaels...




Goodies:

Stamps: A Little Birthday Cheer set by Stampin' Up!
Ink: Kiwi Kiss Classic ink by Stampin' Up!
Paper: card stock by Stampin' Up! and Bazzill; Chloe's Closet patterned paper by Making Memories
Accessories: Paper flowers and buttons by Making Memories; Edge punch by Fiskars; Signo White Gel pen; So Saffron wide grosgrain ribbon and Dimensionals by Stampin' Up!


The paper is only at Michaels... I just love the colors and couldn't help but buy a little 6x6 note pad! I think I'll try to make a little mini book with it, too!

Hope your week is going well!

-tessa

A Happy Birthday for Uncle Jason and a Nice Surprise...

When I finally turned the computer on and checked my email this morning I was surprised with 19 new messages- a lot for me in one morning! I check my email all the time (I think I'm addicted) so I never have more then 7! Today, my emails had good news! I made the top picks for last week's color challenge at Kristina Werner's blog! Hee! It definitely made my day!!

Today I am sharing a card I made for my brother in law Jason. Another one of those darn boy cards I have so much trouble with... Again, I kept it simple, relying on the patterned paper for it's coolness. Hee!

Here is the card:



Goodies:

Stamps: A Little Somethin' set, Big Deal Alphabet set, A Little Birthday Cheer set, Take a Number wheel- all by Stampin' Up!
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Tangerine Tango Classic Inks by Stampin' Up!; Versamark
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Whisper White card stock by Stampin' Up!; patterned paper part of Zach's Life (Little Yellow Bicycle) by Deja View
Accessories: Dimensionals

HB stands for Happy Birthday. I cased the idea from a card in last July's Cards magazine. Simple, right?

Anyways, hope you are having a good day! One more boy card to go!

-tessa

It's Color Challenge Day Again!

Last night while I was uploading some new cards onto SCS, I thought I'd check out some of my favorite blogs including Kristine Werner's. I was so excited when I saw she put up a new color challenge!!

Here is her Inspiration for us:



So, Pacific Point, Kiwi Kiss, Regal Rose, Rose Red, and Whisper White?? I can't wait to see what everyone else did because this was hard for me! Here is my card:



Goodies
All products by Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted.

Stamps: Sock Monkey set, Polka Dot, A Little Birthday Cheer set
Inks: Basic Black, Kiwi Kiss, Pacific Point, Regal Rose
Paper: Pacific Point textured card stock; Whisper White, Kiwi Kiss, Regal Rose, Rose Red card stock, and Sweet Always DSP
Other: Eyelet and Ribbon by American Crafts; Stickles by Ranger; Dimensionals

I started with the Sock Monkey stamp. I've been wanting to piece together one of these since I got it so today I tried! The patterned paper is from the Sweet Always DSP pack. After piecing him together, he needed somewhere to sit so I made him a little paper box. Then I got to work on the back grounds! For some reason, this color scheme was screaming polka dots to me! So, that is what I used! I had some larger ones on the Kiwi piece to start with but it was a little too much so I opted for the cute cupcakes instead. I added a cupcake to the monkey's hand, sprinkled with a little stickles! Over all, not too bad. I can't wait to see what everyone else posts!!

Since you are all into Color Challenges as much as I am, you can understand how sad it is when a card goes bad, only minutes before the deadline... Here was the card I made for Kristine's last challenge, which was a great color scheme- I just messed it up totally!



I had this really great idea to distress the roses so I crumpled them up. Then I realized you really couldn't see the color any more. So, I distressed them a little more with some light ink. Then, they were just brown and you still couldn't see the color any more. Then I thought maybe I could save them with some watercoloring with a darker pink. So, I did, and it was awful. Then, just in case it would hide all the other flaws, I added some crystal effects- I was going for that morning dew look... it looked like snot! Poor little rose card!

Well, a few days later, I re stamped and cut out all the flowers again. This time I left them plain! Here is the redone card:



What can you do, right? At least I can still use it as a great sample of some two step stamping! Hee!

Thanks for looking!

-tessa