Anya - Life is What You Make It

Thursday, March 14, 2013

Play Date Cafe Challenge #173

Good morning, good morning!

It is once again time for the Play Date Cafe to bring you our fabulous color challenge.

The super popular color splash is here! This week we are splashing with coral - one of my favorite colors!

Here is what I created:

The pattern was built with the new Waltzingmouse Folk Art Medallion set. It is, in my opinion, stunning in black and white :) It was also a cinch to add just a splash of coral to the design. The fancy sentiment is from the Big Day Additions set and finishes off what could be an elegant birthday or wedding card.

I hope you will join us! You can link up your creation over at The Play Date Cafe Blog. You have through Tuesday, March 19th to play along. While you're there, you can check out the Cup of the Week prize from our fabulous challenge sponsor, Simon Says Stamp!

Thank you for sponsoring us this week, Simon Says Stamp!

I can't wait to see what you create with my favorite color! Hope your day is great!

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Recipe:
STAMPS: Folk Art Medallion, Big Day Additions - Waltzingmouse Stamps
CARDSTOCK: Groovy Guava - SU!; Black, White - Wplus9
INK: Groovy Guava - SU!; Onyx Black Versafine - Tsukineko
OTHER: Clear Adhesive Rhinestones - Recollections

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Time to Hit the Beach

My unconscious was trying to tell me something during this week's 10 Minute Craft Dash Challenge.

Can you guess what it was?

I think maybe I need a vacation.

Pulling it together in 9 minutes and 35 seconds, I combined the My Island set with the cane background from Heirloom Patterns.

At first I was a bit stumped by the challenge colors, but then the palm tree silhouette came to mind and the rest was history. We are, after all, approaching the six-month mark since our last trip.. that's about right for that urgent need to hit the road and head for the water to kick in.

Aloha!

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Recipe
STAMPS: My Island, Heirloom Patterns - Waltzingmouse Stamps
CARDSTOCK: Crumb Cake, Early Espresso, Old Olive - SU!; Oatmeal - Wplus9
INK: Crumb Cake, Early Espresso, Old Olive - SU!; Antique Linen Distress Ink - Ranger Industries
OTHER: Linen twine - SU!; Button - PTI; Sewing machine - Janome

Sunday, March 10, 2013

Wplus9 Monday Mood Board

Hello there!

There really is no time for chatting, I am just squeaking by with this before the deadline closes. I am feeling a little carded out after this week's release festivities for WMS, and I spent the weekend enjoying some beautiful weather, but I couldn't let this Monday Mood Board Challenge go by.

I remember when Dawn posted these cards as part of the last release and how she was inspired by vintage handkerchiefs. Seeing this photo turned my thoughts to vintage redwork, and I was inspired to create this quick and easy card.

I won't lie - it doesn't get much easier than this! Three stamps, one ink :)

Hope you had a great weekend, I am going to head back to the couch to join my hubby and finish watching tonight's Pens game. Later gators!

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Recipe
STAMPS: Chantilly Trim, Embroidered Bouquet - Wplus9
CARDSTOCK: Cupid's Bow, White - Wplus9
INK: Riding Hood Red - SU!

Saturday, March 9, 2013

March Cloud9 Blog Hop

Hello and happy Saturday! Welcome to the March Cloud9 Blog Hop!

This month, we are saying goodbye to dear Christina MacLaren. We will miss you, Christina! There is some good news, though.. the amazingly talented Erin Taylor and Maureen Merritt will be joining us!

Here is this month's inspiration photo, from the Erin Ever After Blog:

A beautiful, beautiful picture. I was completely stumped, though!

I pulled this set, pulled that set, and just couldn't quite decide what I wanted to do. Finally, I stepped back from the computer and looked at the photo from across the room. A handful of colors on the wall behind the vase jumped out at me, so I pulled those inks and a brush and this happened.

You know what, it is different but I liked it!

The flower is from Hope Seed Co. and the sentiment is from Quite Like You.

I am so glad that you've stopped by to see me today, I hope you'll play along with this month's Cloud9 Blog Hop with the chance to win a fabulous Wplus9 prize as well as join the Inspiration Team as next month's Guest Designer! You have until 10 am on March 12th to link up with us over on the Cloud9 Blog.

Also be sure to check out the amazing creations from the rest of the inspiration team:

Suzanne Dahlberg
Erin Taylor
Gayatri Murali
Maureen Merritt

as well as this month's special guest designer:

Michelle Leone!

Have a great day!

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Recipe
STAMPS: Hope Seed Co., Quite Like You - Wplus9
CARDSTOCK: Going Gray - SU!; Oatmeal - Wplus9
INK: Poppy Parade, Marigold Morning, Bermuda Bay, Groovy Guava - SU!; Slate - Amuse|Studio; Onyx Black Versafine - Tsukineko
OTHER: Aquapainter

Friday, March 8, 2013

WMS March Release Blog Waltz

Hello there and happy Friday!

Welcome to the Waltzingmouse Stamps March Release Blog Waltz. Today, the three new Waltzingmouse stamp sets we've been previewing for the past few days will be available for purchase in the Waltzingmouse Stamps store.

You should have arrived here from the incredibly talented and super sweet Sarah Martina's blog. The waltz starts over on Claire's blog, so be sure to head there if you're just popping in.

As usual, Blog Waltz prizes are up for grabs! One winner will be randomly chosen from the comments left on one of the Design Team blogs, so let us know what you think of the new release! You have until 6:59 AM EST on Monday, March 11th to leave your comments. The winner will be announced on the WMS Blog on the 13th.

I have two more cards to share with you today. The first is a simple one, using some of the floral images from Folk Art Medallions.

The flowers are built from a few different images, stamped in shades of coral. I fussy cut them as well as a few leaves. I wanted to keep the rest simple, so I layered the flowers onto a strip of cream cardstock stamped with the sentiment and then a gray embossed panel. I love gray, and I particularly love it combined with coral.

My second card today again uses some of the same images as the navy card I shared yesterday. I adore the gorgeous medallion in the set, but this tile pattern is really what does it for me. It is just so fabulous, I have only scratched the surface of possibilities. Here is a fun springy version for you today:

Instead of using all the different fillers for this square frame, I put some chicks (from A Good Egg) in there! It is cute and pastel and very spring :) I could think of a million other little doodads from other WMS sets that would look fabulous in this pattern, too. I love that!

So that is all for me today - you still have a little waltzing to do - so I won't keep you any longer. Next stop on the waltz is Chupa, who will no doubt have created something awesome! I have only peeked at the rest of the DT blogs over the past few days and I am SO looking forward to the weekend, curled up on the couch with my laptop checking out what everyone else has made!

Thank you so much for your visits and kind words over the past few days. It means so much to me that you stop by and share your thoughts. Take care!

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Recipe
With Love
STAMPS: Folk Art Medallion - WMS
CARDSTOCK: Vintage Cream - PTI; Going Gray - SU!
INK: Blush Blossom, Groovy Guava, Pear Pizzazz, Wild Wasabi, Going Gray - SU!; Vintage Photo Distress Ink - Ranger Industries
OTHER: Tea Party Embossing Folder - Lifestyle Crafts; Silver Sequins - Darice

Happy Easter
STAMPS: Folk Art Medallion, A Good Egg - WMS
CARDSTOCK: Crumb Cake, Pink Pirouette - SU!; White - Wplus9
INK: Crumb Cake, Pink Pirouette, Soft Sky, Barely Banana, Certainly Celery - SU!
OTHER: Doily - Wilton; Sweet Blush Button - PTI

Thursday, March 7, 2013

Play Date Cafe Challenge #172

ETA: Hello, hello! This is my second post of the day. To see Day 3 of the upcoming Waltzingmouse Stamps release, scroll down or click here (you won't want to miss it!)

Good morning!

Its Thursday, so today I am sharing a new color challenge from the Play Date Cafe.

This week, we are using a bold and bright color combination. Look at this fabulous inspiration picture!

Here is the card that I made with this week's colors...hollyhock, spring bud, and azure.

I started by die cutting an oval from some printer paper, then laid it over my card front. I stamped the flower clusters over the mask in green ink. I stamped the same flowers again onto scrap cream cardstock in pink and blue and fussy cut a few of them to layer on my card.

I hope you will join us for this week's challenge! You can link up your creation over at The Play Date Cafe Blog. You have through Tuesday, March 12th to play along. While you're there, you can check out the Cup of the Week prize from ScrapbookPal.com. Thank you for sponsoring us again ScrapbookPal!

Have a great Thursday!

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Recipe
STAMPS: Mini Blooms - PTI
CARDSTOCK: Tempting Turquoise - SU!; Vintage Cream - PTI
INK: Certainly Celery, Tempting Turquoise, Melon Mambo - SU!; Onyx Black Versafine Ink - Tsukineko
OTHER: Pink adhesive rhinestones - Recollections; Ovals small die - Spellbinders Paper Arts

Waltzingmouse March Release Day 3

Hi there!

Welcome to Day 3 of the previews for the March Release at Waltzingmouse Stamps.

Today is our last day of previews, and while I love the other sets we have previewed I am completely smitten with the set we're sharing today. All three new sets will be available for purchase tomorrow, and the DT will be kicking off a huge release blog waltz! The set we're previewing today is called Folk Art Medallions.

The centerpiece of this set is the most amazing medallion image. The other bits in the set coordinate with the medallion and also work together to create some fabulous patterns.

First off for you is a simple set of one layer cards.

I stamped the medallion in green and filled in the spaces with the coordinating flowers in different shades of yellow. The sentiment was heat embossed in gold. The second card is a combo of purples...

And the last is a vertical version in peach.

These were a piece of cake to make, and super fun!

My next card uses some of the other elements in Folk Art Medallions to create a stunning background. I'll be honest here, I saved my most favorite for last.

Be still my heart. I cannot even tell you how much I love this set. The pattern reminds me of gorgeous Moroccan tile, and I loved every second of stamping it.

*swoon*

Tomorrow the release blog waltz starts at 2 pm EST. The sets will be available for purchase then, too. Claire is offering chances to win the sets, so be sure to check out all the details on the WMS Blog. Here are the rest of the Design Team links for today.

Anya Schrier - you are here!

Becca Feeken

Belinda Chang Langner

Thank you ever so much for stopping by!

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Recipe
Medallion Set
STAMPS: Folk Art Medallion (available March 8) - Waltzingmouse Stamps
CARDSTOCK: Vintage Cream - PTI
INK: Mellow Moss, Elegant Eggplant, Perfect Plum, Pale Plum, Tangerine Tango, Groovy Guava, Blush Blossom, So Saffron, Daffodil Delight, Barely Banana - SU!
OTHER: Detail Gold Filigree Embossing Powder - Stewart Superior

With Love
STAMPS: Folk Art Medallion (available March 8) - Waltzingmouse Stamps
CARDSTOCK: Sahara Sand, Night of Navy - SU!; Oatmeal - Wplus9
INK: Night of Navy, So Saffron, More Mustard, Sahara Sand - SU!; Antique Linen Distress Ink - Ranger Industries
OTHER: Eggshell Seam Binding - Hug Snug; Twine - WMS; Flower - Prima; Baby's Breath Embossing Folder - Provo Craft; Timeless Tags Die - Wplus9; Sewing Machine - Janome

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Waltzingmouse March Release Day 2

ETA: Hi there! This is my second post of the day. To see this week's Serendipity Stamps Challenge, please scroll down or click here!

Hi there!

Welcome to Day 2 of the previews for the March Release at Waltzingmouse Stamps.

For the next two days we will be sharing previews of the three new sets that will be available for purchase on March 8. If you missed Day 1 yesterday, scroll down or click here! Today we're previewing a gorgeous mini set called Folk Art Labels No. 25.

For my first card, I used one of the small coordinating images in the set to create a background.

I started by masking off the outside edges of a piece of Kraft cardstock. Then I stamped the teardrop image repeatedly in different colors to create a little pattern. Then I stitched around the edge of the stamping with gold metallic thread. While I love the look, this was so tedious! The thread is very brittle and patience was a virtue.

Some other gold accents, including vellum die-cut feathers slathered in Perfect Pearls, completes the look.

My second card features the centerpiece of the Folk Art Labels No. 25 set, the large label (which of course coordinates with Spellbinders' Labels 25).

I thought this image looked so much like stained glass, I set out to achieve that look with my card. I started by stamping the label onto vellum and heat embossing it with black embossing powder.

Then I went back and colored the image with Copic markers. Copics on vellum are really interesting - you don't get quite the same smooth blending as you do with regular cardstock. The color almost pools, which in my opinion, helped to give this the stained glass look I was going for.

I wanted some light to be able to shine through, so I cut a window out of a square of black cardstock and my cardbase using the coordinating Labels 25 die. I sandwiched the vellum between the two pieces of black cardstock, so that the image was illuminated from both sides.

I am so pleased with the results!

We will be sharing previews through Thursday and the sets will be available for purchase on Friday, so be sure to stop by tomorrow to see more of the March release. Here are the rest of the Design Team links for today. Enjoy!

Anya Schrier - you are here!

Becca Feeken

Belinda Chang Langner

So glad you stopped by! Have a super day!

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Recipe
Gilded Feather Card
STAMPS: Folk Art Labels No. 25 (available March 8) - Waltzingmouse Stamps
CARDSTOCK: Rich Razzleberry, Vellum - SU!; Kraft - Wplus9
INK: Rich Razzleberry, Old Olive, Tangerine Tango, Cool Caribbean - SU!; White - Wplus9
OTHER: Feathers Die - Lifestyle Crafts; Perfect Gold Perfect Pearls - Ranger Industries; Doily - Wilton; Metallic Gold Thread

Stained Glass Birthday
STAMPS: Folk Art Labels No. 25 (available March 8) - Waltzingmouse Stamps
CARDSTOCK: Vellum - SU!; Black - Wplus9
OTHER: Labels 25 - Spellbinders Paper Arts; Copic Markers - Imagination International; Detail Black Embossing Powder

Serendipity Stamps Blog Challenge #7

Hi there!

It is time once again for a new challenge on the Serendipity Stamps Challenge Blog. The challenge for this week is to create envelope art - we're skipping the cards and giving the envelopes some love.

I used the Feather Background (448L) for my card. I colored the feathers in using Copic markers. I had every intention of adding the Square Frame to the front for the address, but I couldn't cover up the feathers.

I added a few touches of gold gel pen to the feathers to give them a little glitz.

Stop over to the Challenge Blog for all the details and to see the fabulous inspiration from the rest of the Design Team:

Cathy Weber

Jeanne Jachna

Jenny Gropp

Marybeth Lopez

Miriam Napier

Pauline Pollington

Serendipity's special this week is buy 3 items get the 4th free. The special runs through Wednesday 3/13.

Have a great day!

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Recipe
STAMPS: Feather Background (448L) - Serendipity Stamps
INK: Rich Cocoa Memento - Tsukineko; Antique Linen Distress Ink - Ranger Industries
OTHER: Copic Markers; Gold gel pen

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Verve's March Diva Inspirations Hop!

ETA: Good morning! This is my second post of the day. To see my Day 1 preview for the Waltzingmouse Stamps March release, please scroll down or click here!

Hello!

Today I am so excited to be joining in my first Inspiration Hop as a new Verve Diva!

This is a regular feature on the 5th of the month and is a chance to breathe some new life into some much-loved stamps and dies. Leaving a comment enters you into a drawing to win a $30 gift certificate to Verve Stamps! You are on the right track if you've arrived here from Amy's blog. The hop is kicking off on the Verve blog, so be sure to head there to get all the details!

I used the Bloom & Grow set for this card. I love all the flower building options. The largest flower has a solid background stamp included in the set, which is a great base for your flower. For the smaller flowers, I flipped the stamps over and stamped the 'back' side of the stamp to create that solid base. Since the images are symmetrical, it worked perfectly. I added a few score lines to fill in the open space on my card - my way of handling my phobia of empty card space :)

That is it for me - Betty is your next stop along this month's hop!

Take care!

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Recipe
STAMPS: Bloom & Grow - Verve Stamps
CARDSTOCK: Lake House - Wplus9; Vintage Cream - PTI
INK: Groovy Guava, Ruby Red, Wild Wasabi - SU!; Antique Linen Distress Ink - Ranger Industries; Onyx Black Versafine - Tsukineko
OTHER: Red adhesive rhinestones - Recollections; Score board - Martha Stewart Crafts