CASology #61

Welcome to Week 61 of CASology!  Here's the cue word for this week:

This Guiding Light set from WPlus9 has been on my wish list for aaaaaaages but every time I went to order it it was out of stock.  I finally got a hold of it and I love it as much as I thought I would!  I layered the images for some additional depth and kept it in a simple frame.  Love those PTI Mat Stacks!  We're hoping to see lots of entries this week as the cue word allows a lot of room to play.  Be sure and check out the gorgeous DT work and then join us!

Ardyth Percy-Robb

Melissa Chipperfield

Rosemary Dennis 

Tracey McNeely

Judy Marino

Maureen Merritt

Meghan McMillan

Gillian Ross

Kimberley Wiener

And this week's guest designer:

Deepti

Link your creations to the CASology blog and remember that submissions are due by 4pm CST on Sunday, 15 September.

Supplies Used:

Cardstock:  (Kraft) Gina K, (Marina Mist, Early Espresso) Stampin' Up

Stamps:  (All from Guiding Light) WPlus9

Inks:  (Early Espresso) Stampin' Up

Dies:  (Mat Stack 1, Layerz Mat Stack 1) Papertrey Ink  

September Is Back!

Hello and welcome to a new week!  I've been a bit quiet over the weekend because my brother is home for a visit!  Yay!  He hasn't been to the island in over 3 years and even though we saw him in Chicago at Christmas it's not the same as all of us being back together at the homestead.  :D  I also took advantage of his visit and broke my shopping ban.  Actually I smashed it.  I bought my first Avery Elle, Mama Elephant and Simon Says Stamp stamps.  I also added to my Paper Smooches, Fresh Squeezed Stamps, Sweet Stamp Shop and WPlus9 collections.  It was like Christmas when Phil arrived! 

I broke out some of my new Sweet Stamp Shop stamps for this card so I could play along with 3 challenges. Curtain Call is having a Back to School challenge. The other two challenges are about using your stash.  The Shopping Our Stash challenge theme is School or Office/Workplace. Sweet Stamp Shop has a weekly Use What You Have challenge.  For both of these I dove into my 6x6 paper stash.  I have a pile of random papers from all sorts of collections that I bought from someone last year.  I used them to paper piece my school items - beaker, books and gym shoes!  Hope you've all had a good start to your week and I'll see you tomorrow!

Supplies Used:

Cardstock:  (White) Bazzill

Patterned Paper:  Assorted

Stamps:  (Beaker from Chemistry, Books from Geek Chic, Sneakers from Get Fit, Calendar from Calendar, Letters from Alpha Tabs) Sweet Stamp Shop

Inks:  (VersaMark, VersaFine Onyx Black) Tsukineko, (Riding Hood Red, Basic Grey) Stampin' Up

Ombre City

Good morning! Popping in with a quick post before I head off to work.  I had to make a birthday card for a co-worker's sister and the current Moxie Fab Tuesday Trigger was a great inspiration piece to work from (although it gave me some serious cake cravings!).  The recipient is studying architecture so I thought the buildings would be appropriate. I think a pink city is kind of cool but I don't imagine it would stay this clean for too long!  LOL! Have a lovely Friday!

ETA:  I meant to also add this card to the fun over at Seize the Birthday.  Clearly it's too early in the morning to be blogging!  

Supplies Used:

Cardstock:  (Pretty In Pink, Regal Rose, Melon Mambo, Rose Red, Rich Razzleberry) Stampin' Up

Stamps:  (It's Your Birthday from Say What) Mama Elephant, (Celebrate from Celebrate) Avery Elle

Inks:  (Melon Mambo, Rich Razzleberry) Stampin' Up

Die:  (Die-Namics Skyline Border) My Favourite Things

CAS(E) This Sketch #44

Welcome to Week 44 of CAS(E) This Sketch!  Take a look at this week's sketch by Chrissy Larson:

We've had some good news and some bad news this week in the world of CAS(E) This Sketch.  Sadly, we've said goodbye to 3 of our fabulous designers:  Therese Calvird, Karolyn Loncon and Christina Heeren.  However, we are welcoming 5 new designers to the team: Sam Simpson, Michelle Leone, Betty J, Joni Andaya and Leigh Penner!  Be sure to visit our exiting designers and wish them well and to check out the newbies creations and leave them some welcoming love.  Once you've done that, get to work on a card and play along with us!  You have until 9am EST on Thursday!

Supplies Used:

Cardstock:  (White) Bazzill

Stamps:  (Butterfly & sentiment from Skipping Stones Design

Inks:  (VersaMark, VersaFine Onyx Black) Tsukineko, (Tattered Rose, Worn Lipstick, Dried Marigold, Spiced Marmalade) Ranger Distress Inks

Embossing Powder:  (Clear) Ranger

Kirsty Colquhoun

***This is my second post for today.  For my CASology post please scroll down or 

click here.***

I wanted to pop in again today to say that I was completely overwhelmed by all the sweet messages I received regarding yesterday's post.  You ladies are all so amazing and I'm so very grateful to know you all.

I also wanted to mention one more person who I've met through my blog and who I consider to be a dear friend.  I didn't include Kirsty yesterday because she's not specifically a cardmaker.  She's actually a Jack Of All Trades - or a Kirsty Of All Trades I guess!  :D Our commenting on each other's blogs led to emails, some skypeing and a few exchanges of goodie packages.  She and her whole family are some of the warmest, most generous people I have come to know through this hobby and I am determined to meet up with them one day.  

In 2011 Kirsty CASEd one of my cards as part of her 365 Days of Pinterest Creations challenge.  Instead of just pinning and pinning and pinning some more to her Pinterest pages Kirsty decided to make use of all the ideas she was collecting and for 365 days straight she completed a Pinterest project each day.  She cooked and baked, made cards and home decor, sewed clothes and crocheted cute little critters, produced games and study aids for Ben and Polly (two of the coolest kids ever) and even put together a hard core emergency preparedness kit!  Despite the day to day hiccups that sometimes occur (and a nightmare with her back) Kirsty, with the help of the whole family, completed her goal. How awesome is that??  I know I spend a lot of time thinking about things I'd like to try "one of these days" but Kirsty just got on with it and did it.  She rocks.  

Now the family has moved across the country and bought an old orphanage which they 're living in and renovating.  Seriously, does this girl ever take on small projects??  And on top of that, Kirsty has started a new blog - It Started With a Pair of Sneakers - to chronicle her goal of getting fit and completing a 5K, 10K and half marathon in the next 365 days.  She's encouraged me to join her and I'm pondering it.  If reading this new blog is anywhere near as inspiring as her 365 Days blog then I'll be out there with my sneakers in no time!

I encourage you all to check out both of Kirsty's blogs and to say hello to her and her fabulous family.  Peruse all the goodies she's tried out on 365 Days or even better, find her on Pinterest where I have no doubt you'll be sucked into all the goodness she's collected there!  

365 Days of Pinterest

It Started With a Pair of Sneakers

  

CASology #60

Welcome to Week 60 of CASology!  Here's the cue word for this week:

My card today was inspired by some gorgeous paper pieced apple cards (which you can see here and here) made by my teamie, Judy.  She's been rocking the Sweet Stamp Shop stamps lately and I just learned today that she's one of the newest members of the Sweet Stamp Shop Design Team!  Whoop whoop!!  I used Paper Smooches apples for my card and some yummy Echo Park papers and decided to forgo the school cards and make a baby card instead.  I love how the colours pop off the kraft base although now I'm thinking it could use a little bling...

Time for you to put on your thinking caps and roll out some apple inspired cards but first head over to the CASology page and check out the gorgeous inspiration from the rest of the team!

Ardyth Percy-Robb

Melissa Chipperfield

Rosemary Dennis 

Tracey McNeely

Judy Marino

Maureen Merritt

Meghan McMillan

Gillian Ross

Kimberley Wiener

And this week's guest designer:

Sandie

Link your creations to the CASology blog and remember that submissions are due by 4pm CST on Sunday, 8 September.

Supplies Used:

Cardstock:  (Crumb Cake) Stampin' Up

Patterned Paper:  (This & That: Charming, This & That: Graceful) Echo Park

Stamps:  (Apples from Falling For You) Paper Smooches, (Sentiment from CL352) Hero Arts

Inks:  (VersaFine Onyx Black) Tsukineko, (Chocolate Chip) Stampin' Up

It's Official! I'm Moxie Fab!

I'm puttin' on my dancin' shoes to celebrate being the latest Moxie Fabber of the Week!  I was so excited to receive an email from Cath inviting me to join this fabulous list of crafters.  In fact, I was so excited that I answered all my questions and had them back to her within 24 hours.  LOL!  Reading it back now, I wish I'd spent a little more time pondering it all but c'est la vie.  It is done.  And I'm still excited.  

The question that stumped me most was the one asking about a paper crafter that you admire.  Just one?  Not possible.  I was only able to mention a few in my interview but I'm going to take a page out of Lynn Mangan's book and mention more people here. 

In the (nearly) 3 years that I've been blogging I have "met" so many incredible paper crafters.  This crafty blogging community never ceases to amaze me - people cheer each other on, share tips, tricks and even crafty stash and offer support during life's rougher moments.  I love finding new crafters, learning from their style and watching their creative evolution.  

I follow a ridiculous number of blogs.  Sometimes I think I spend more time blog-surfing than crafting but there's just so much yumminess to see.  There are some women though who not only continually amaze me with their creations but have also been sweet, supportive and made me laugh along the way.  I am so grateful to each and every one of them for the little kindnesses they've bestowed on me with their comments, messages and the occasional surprise gift.  Some of these names are well known in our blogging world but I encourage you to check out any that you don't recognise as each one of them is far too awesome to be missed!  The only order to the list is that it's (roughly) chronological in terms of when I found them:   

Lynn Mangan

Karen Baker

Kim Singdahlsen

Laurie Willison

Therese Calvird

Emily Leiphart

Kasia Curry

Amy Tsuruta

Brandi Hall

Tenia Nelson

Lisa Arana

Jay Gee

Chan Vuong

Jocelyn Olson

Stacy Rogers

Helen Fournier

Jenny Mullens

Jackie Rockwell

JJ Bolton

Jessi Fogan

Lindsey Martin-Penny

N@ Ali

Christy Q

Maureen Morton

Erin Thiem

Joyce

Michelle Williams

Darnell Knauss

Melissa Chipperfield

Ardyth Percy-Robb

Tracey McNeely

Rosemary Dennis

Maureen Merritt

Meghan McMillan

Judy Marino

Deepti

Chrissy Larson

Kelly Griglione

Kimberley Wiener

Gillian Ross