Stampin' Up! Blue Ribbon

How about a bit of a manly card today?!   I used the fun colors from colourQ along with another Dare to Get Dirty challenge to make this one.  I love this club ribbon set and just don't use it nearly enough!  I paired it with Gorgeous Grunge to add some fun distressing.

Aren't those fun colors?   Now I am NOT a Summer Yuckfruit fan and don't own any, but the new honey in color was a nice substitute.  

She needed to wear a towel just like mommy.  lol   We had a nice day yesterday.   I braved Target with her and we bought 3 bags of school supplies to donate to our local assistance ministry.   I love school suppplies, so it was such a treat to get to shop for them.

Freshly Made Beach

It's Wednesday, so time for a new sketch from Freshly Made Sketches!  Jen M, who makes me spend a lot of money with her awesome creations, is our hostess this week.  She has a fun sketch that I had such a blast with.   It looks a bit different than the sketch, but if you are like me and drop your phone while you are looking at it and it turns sideways, you'll totally see my card!  ;)

Can you see it?  If you lean your head to the right you can totally see a shape just like an old Polaroid, right?!  Once I saw that, I knew I wanted to combine the sketch with a Dare to Get Dirty challenge.  I can't share that one with you, but if you are a fan club member you can see it in the gallery over on Splitcoast.  

And because August is SMA Awareness Month, here's a graphic about that.  You can also read more about it here.  

CASE Study Flower

I loved the challenge at CASE Study this week, so I decided to play along and combine it with one of the Dare to Get Dirty challenges on Splitcoast.   I've fussed with this one for a few days and finally gave up and called it done.  I'm still on the fence about it, but I do love the colors.  ;)  

Isn't that a gorgeous card?!   I had to pull out my retired paper to use for the card base because it reminded me so much of the background on the inspiration.  Do you still have some of that paper?  I love it!  I wish I had bought a second pack to hoard use.  

My assistant.   ;)    We have had the WORST day today.   It has been so long and so full of crying.   I am mentally exhausted and hope she is easy to get to bed tonight so I can have a break.   I finally finished reading Game of Thrones and am ready to start the second book.  I need some quality time with my Nook.  

*If you like the flower, it's a free digital stamp!  You can find it here.

Stampin' Up! The Open Sea and Flower Frenzy

Happy Sunday.   I thought I'd try to do a quick post before lunch to share a couple of the cards I made for the Dare to Get Dirty challenges yesterday.  This one was a fun one.  I stamped and heat embossed the Hardwood background and then painted over it with some white paint.  The flower is using the Flower Frenzy die which I just used for the first time!  I put it on my first order from the new catalog and somehow forgot about it.  (Or I was still protesting the retirement of Fun Flowers)   I used white tissue paper to cut two different sizes and then spritzed them with a mixture of alcohol and reinkers.   The sentiment is heat embossed on vellum and is from the And Many More set.  

Now the masculine card.  It features a bit of watercoloring of The Open Sea set.  I pulled out some retired designer paper because I have got to use up some of that stuff.   It's out of control!  lol   I can't really share the details of the challenges, but if you are a Fan Club member over on Splitcoast, be sure to check them out.   If you aren't, go join!  :)  

Always in on the picture action!  lol  She has her Hope Calendar pictures on Friday, so I hope she likes the camera then.   We got the most adorable dress for her to wear.   She's already had a meltdown wanting to wear it.  Shocking, I know!  lol

I Scream

Just a quick post from me tonight.  Today is my sweet boy's birthday, so it's been a sad day.  It seems a bit crazy that he would now be six.  The five months we had him with us seem so long ago now.  To distract myself, I decided to play along with some challenges.  I don't have the best of mojo this time of year, but stamping keeps my mind occupied.    I made this for the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge and one of the Dare to Get Dirty challenges on Splitcoast.  

I love watercolor washes so much.  I used Coastal Cabana and Strawberry Slush along with my Aquapainter to make this one.   The stamps are from the August kit from SSS.   Twine and sequins are Stampin' Up! 

A parent holds their child's hand for just a short time, but holds their heart forever.

Stampin' Up! Apple Blossoms

It's time for a new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches.  Woo hoo!  When I saw the sketch, I was a bit afraid.  I started looking over my stamps, saw this cute retired set, and knew it was PERFECT!    I used another color combination from the Color Coach, Pool Party, Crushed Curry, and Old Olive.

Now my first thought was a window.   Then I thought I might stamp a scene and cut it up.   Then I realized I don't have very much mojo this week, so I went for easy and just stamped the simple stems and called it good.  Sometimes easy is best, especially when we are struggling.  

Laila decided to send her daddy a text she typed all by herself.   I'm not sure what she was meaning with the beer and ice cream, but she was a bit out of luck on both counts.   lol   

Hooray for Stamping

Happy Monday!  (Is there such a thing?)   I actually don't mind Monday; Sunday and Tuesday seem to be Laila's most terrible Terrible 2's days, so Mondays are usually a nice break between them.  lol   I ran off to my stamp room today while she napped and this was what I came up with.  I had started it last night but couldn't get it to come together.  It seemed easy today and I do like the result.   It is for the MFT Wednesday Stamp Club sketch and uses their Bokeh Builder and LJD Birthday Greetings stamps.

I can't resist sketches with banners.  I figure banners, sequins, and chevrons have to be over soon, but I am so in love with them all that I will just have to be off trend and keep on using them.   I love the slightly retro feel to the colors.  

We braved dinner out on Friday night and Laila was so good.  I was happy because she's not been the best to take anywhere lately and we stay in most of the time.  She was also well-behaved at Costco on Saturday, so I hope she's learning that the better she is, the more we get to go do!   Being home all the time is ZERO fun for any of us.   Don't you love the big cup they brought her water in?   lol 

I Heart Sunshine

Avery Elle has another great challenge at the AEIHeartU challenge blog this week.   Since I've been feeling a little blue, I decided that sunshine was just what I needed today.   I used a stencil to make some sun rays, die cut the hello like a rainbow, and added some sequins and baker's twine for a fun element.   It makes me happy to look at, so I'm saying this card is for me.  Maybe I'll mail it to myself since next Saturday is the most difficult day of the year for me.

I hope you are stamping a bit this weekend  as well.   I know I haven't been doing it nearly enough myself.   I want to try to do better, so maybe you'll see a few more cards from me next month.   The Dare to Get Dirty challenges are coming up soon at Splitcoast and those are on my list to work on when they start up next week.

Laila needed her picture taken after her bath the other night.  lol   She's so silly sometimes.